The Institution of Christian Religion

First of the name of merit I must needs say this afore hand, y• whosoever first applied it to works of men compared to the judgment of God, he did very ill provide for the pureness of faith. Truly I do by my good will abstain from strives about words, but I would with that this sobriety bad alway ben used among Christian writers, that they would not have found in their hearts to use words strange from the Scriptures, which engendered much offence & no fruit. For whereto, I beseech you, was it needful to have the name of Merit brought in, when the price of good works might be fitly expressed by an other name without offence? But how much offence the word containeth in it, is evident with the great hurt of the world. Surely as it is most proud it can do nothing but darken the grace of God, and fill men with froward pride. The old writers of the Church, I grant, have commonly used it, & I would to God they had not with the abusing of one little word given to posterity matter of error. Howbeit they themselves also do in many places testify, how in no case they meant to give any prejudice against the truth. For thus saith Augustine in one place,¹ Let Merits of men here hold their peace, which have perished by Adam: & let the grace of God reign, by Jesus Christ. Again, The saints give nothing to their own Merits: they will give all to none but to thy mercy,² O God. In an other place, When man seeth that whatsoever good he hath, he hath it not from himself, but from his God, he seeth that all that which is praised in him, is not of his own Merits, but of the mercy of God. You see how taking from men the power of doing well, he also throweth down the dignity of Merit. And Chrysostom saith,³ Our works, if there be any, which follow the free calling of God, are repayment & debt: but the g••tes of God are grace & bountifulness & the greatness of liberal giving. But, leaving the name, let us rather look upon the thing. I have verily before alleged a sentence out of Bernard▪ As it sufficeth to Merit, not to presume of Merits: so to want Merits, sufficeth to judgement. But by adding forth with an exposition, he sufficiently mitigateth the hardiness of the word, where he saith: Therefore care thou to have Merits: when thou hast them, know y they are given: hope for fruit, the mercy of God: & so thou hast escaped all danger, of poverty, unthankfulness, & presumption.