nion / and this euell hurtefull purpose being
remoued / then Paule commendeth these worckes / and all other
ciuyle ordinaunces commaunded / and appoynted to that Nacion: he
condenneth them not / but so farre as they wer iustly and not
supersticiously vsed / he did leaue them in theyr place /
[[Gal. 3.]]
and did not hinder the obseruacion of them. As he dyd also
write / that in the Lord / there was neither Iue nor gentill /
neyther nonde nor fre.
[[Gal. 6.]]
And that in Christe Iesus / neyther circumcision auaileth any
thing at all / nor vncircumcision / but the obseruing of the
commaundements of God / or a new creature.
[[1. Cor. 7.]]
And againe yf any be called being circumcised / let him not adde
vncircumcision. If anye be called vncircumcised / let hym not be
circumcised. Let euery man abyde in the same estate / in which he
is called. All these indifferent thinges / might somtyme be well
obserued / somtyme be as well left vndone / as most serued for
edifying in godd. Of which vse and obseruacion of them
[[1. Cor. 9.]]
Paule doth speake / when of him self he saieth: I am made all
vnto all men / that I might wynne manye: Vnto the Iues / I am
made as a Iue / to them which are without the lawe / as though I
were without a lawe. This sentence he hath also confirmed by
examples:
[[Actor. 16.]]
For when he was required to circumcise Timothie / because that
the custumme which was yet in force might be kept / he did it:
But when they wolde enforce him to the ouerthrowing of the
christian libertie / that he shulde likewise circumcise Titus /
[[Gal. 2.]]
In no wyse wolde he gyue place vnto them / no not for the space
of one houre / and because (saith he) false brethren came in /
to espie out / or to betray our libertie. S. Paule did obserue
these thinges then / when it might be done without an euell
mynd / when no hurte shuld ensue of it: The cause and end why
Paule did it / was to auoide the offendinge of the beleauing
Iues / les yf he did it not / they shuld therby be alienated and
turned awaye from Christes gospell / which they had newly
receyued. But we must not compare these ceremonies of the old
lawe with the Inuencions of men / they can not be iustly
compared with Massing: They were plainly taught in Goddes
worde / but these masses and popishe Idolatries are thrust vnto
vs by the subtiltie of the deuell / and craftye deceyuing of men.
They were thinges indifferent / and as such
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