never thirst, and there shall be in
him a spring of living water unto everlasting life." We see,
then, the first abuse of the mass is this--that we have lost the
chief blessing, to wit, the testament and the faith. What
consequences this has had we now shall see.

19. It follows of necessity, where faith and the Word or promise
of God decline or are neglected, that there arise in their place
works and a false, presumptuous trust in them. For where there is
no promise of God there is no faith. Where there is no faith,
there everyone presumptuously undertakes to better himself by
means of works, and to make himself well-pleasing to God. When
this happens, false security and presumption arise therefrom, as
though man were well-pleasing to God because of his own works.
When this does not happen, the conscience has no rest, and knows
not what to do, that it may become well-pleasing to God.

[Sidenote: Abuses of the Mass: 2. The Mass a Good Work]

So too I fear that many have made out of the mass a good work,
whereby they thought to do a great service to Almighty God. Now,
if we have rightly understood what has been said above, namely,
that the mass is nothing else than a testament and sacrament, in
which God pledges Himself to us and gives us grace and mercy, I
think it is not fitting that we should make a good work or merit
out of it. For a testament is not _beneficium acceptum, sed
datum_;[12] it does not derive benefit from us, but brings us
benefit. Who has ever heard that he who receives an inheritance
does a good work? He does derive benefit. Likewise in the mass we
give Christ nothing, but only take from Him; unless they are
willing to call this a good work, that a man be quiet and permit
himself to be benefited, to be given food and drink, to be
clothed and healed, helped and redeemed. Just as in baptism, in
which there is also a divine testament and sacrament, no one
gives God anything or does Him a service, but instead takes
something; so too in all the other sacraments, and in the sermon.
For if one sacrament cannot be a meritorious good work, then no
other can be a work; because they are all of one kind, and it is
the nature of a sacrament or testament that it is not a work, but
only an exercise of faith.

[Sidenote: Good Works Connected with the Mass]

20. It is true, indeed, that when we come together to the mass to
receive the testament and sacrament, and to nourish and
strengthen faith, we there offer