A declaration of the true manner of knowing Christ crucified

Touching the first: Man must know Christ not generally and confusedly, but by a lively, powerful, and operative knowledge; for otherwise the devils themselves know Christ.

Touching the first: Man must know Christ not generally and confusedly, but by a liuely, powerfull, and operatiue knowledge; for otherwise the deuils themselues know Christ.

In this knowledge three things are required. ⟨p. 2⟩The first is notice or consideration, whereby thou must conceive in mind, understand, & seriously bethink thy self of Christ as he is revealed in the history of the Gospel, and as he is offered to thy particular person in the ministry of the word and sacraments. And that this consideration may not be dead and idle in thee, two things must be done: first thou must labour to feel thy self to stand in need of Christ crucified, yea to stand in excessive need even of the very least drop of his blood, for the washing away of thy sins. And unless thou throughly feelest thy self to want all that goodness and grace that is in Christ, and that thou even standest in extreme need of his passion, thou shalt never learn or teach Christ in deed and trueth. The second thing is, with the understanding of the doctrine of Christ to join thirsting, whereby man in his very soul and spirit longs after the participation of Christ, and saith in this case as Samson said, Give me water, I die for thirst.

In this knowledge three things are required. ⟨p. 2⟩The first is notice or consideration, wherby thou must conceiue in mind, vnderstand, & seriously bethinke thy selfe of Christ as he is reuealed in the history of the Gospell, and as he is offered to thy particular person in the ministery of the worde and sacraments. And that this consideration may not be deade and idle in thee, two things must be done: first thou must labour to feele thy selfe to standin neede of Christ crucified, yea to stand in excessiue need euen of the very least drop of his bloode, for the washing away of thy sinnes. And unlesse thou throughly feelest thy selfe to want all that goodnes and grace that is in Christ, and that thou euen standest in extreme neede of his passion, thou shalt neuer learne or teach Christ in deed and trueth. The second thing is, with the understanding of the doctrine of Christ to ioyne thirsting, wherby man in his very soule and spirit longs after the participation of Christ, and saith in this case as Samson said, Giue me water, I die for thirst.