Esprit, le changement surnaturel | Ghost, the supernatural change que l'Écriture appelle nouvelle which, in the Holy Scriptures, is naissance, régénération, conversion, called new birth, regeneration, passage de la mort à la vie. conversion, passing from death to life. VIII. We believe that we are justified before God, not by righteous works which we may accomplish, but only by grace and through faith in Christ, whose righteous VIII. Nous croyons que nous sommes justifiés devant Dieu, non par des œuvres de justice que nous ayons faites, mais uniquement par grâce et par le moyen de la foi en Christ, dont la justice nous est ness is ascribed to us. On that imputée. C'est pourquoi nous account we are assured that in sommes assurés qu'en Lui nous Him we have eternal life, and that avons la vie éternelle, et que nul no one can pluck us out of his ne nous ravira de sa main. hand. IX. We believe that without sanctification no man will see the Lord, and that, ransomed at a great price, we must glorify him by our IX. Nous croyons que sans la sanctification personne ne verra le Seigneur, et que, rachetés à grand prix, nous devons le glorifier par nos œuvres. Et quoique le combat works. And although the battle entre l'esprit et la chair demeure between the Spirit and the flesh en nous jusqu'à la fin, toutefois exists unto the end, still we are nous ne perdons pas courage, mais not discouraged, but, having reayant reçu une volonté nouvelle, ceived a new will, we work for nous travaillons à notre sanctifi- our sanctification in the fear of cation dans la crainte de Dieu. the Lord. X. Nous croyons que le comX. We believe that the beginmencement et la fin du salut, la ning and the end of our salvation, nouvelle naissance, la foi, la sanc- our new birth, faith, sanctification, tification, la persévérance, sont un and perseverance are a gratuitous don gratuit de la miséricorde di- gift of the divine mercy; the true vine; le vrai croyant ayant été believer having been elected in élu en Christ avant la fondation Christ before the foundation of du monde, selon la préconnais- the world, according to the foresance de Dieu le Père, dans la knowledge of God, the Father, in sanctification de l'Esprit, pour the sanctification of the Holy Ghost, obéir à Jésus-Christ et pour être to obey Jesus Christ and to be bathed in his blood. arrosé de son sang. XI. Nous croyons que Dieu, XI. We believe that God, who qui à tant aimé le monde que de so loved the world that he gave donner son fils unique, ordonne his only Son, now orders every présentement à tout homme, en tout lieu, de se convertir; que chacun est responsable de ses péchés et de son incrédulité; que Jésus ne repousse aucun de ceux qui vont à lui, et que tout pécheur qui invoque ly appeals to him will be saved. sincèrement son Nom sera sauvé. XII. Nous croyons que le SaintEsprit applique aux élus, par le moyen de la Parole, le salut que le Père leur a destiné et que le Fils leur a acquis; de telle sorte que, les unissant à Jésus par la foi, il habite en eux, les affranchit de l'empire du péché, leur fait comprendre les Écritures, les console et les scelle pour le jour de la rédemption. XIII. Nous atíendons des cieux le Seigneur Jésus-Christ, qui transformera le corps de notre humiliation pour le rendre conforme au corps de sa gloire, et nous croyons qu'en cette journée-là, les morts qui sont en Christ sortant à sa voix de leurs tombeaux, et les fidèles qui vivront alors sur la terre, transmués par sa puissance, seront enlevés tous ensemble dans les nuées à sa rencontre, et qu'ainsi nous serons toujours avec le Seigneur. man, in every place, to be converted; that every one is responsible for his sins and his unbelief; that Jesus repels none who go to him; and that every sinner who sincere XII. We believe that the Holy Ghost applies to the chosen ones, by means of the Word, the salvation which the Father has destined for them and which the Son has bought, so that, uniting them to Jesus by faith, he dwells in them, delivers them from the sway of sin, makes them understand the Scriptures, consoles them and seals them for the day of redemption. XIII. We expect from heaven our Saviour Jesus Christ, who will change our body of humiliation and make it conform to his own body of glory; and we believe that, in that day, the dead who are in Christ, coming out from their tombs at his voice, and the faithful then living on the earth, all transformed through his power, will be taken up together into the clouds to meet him, and that thus we shall always be with our Saviour. XIV. Nous croyons qu'il y aura XIV. We believe that there will une résurrection des injustes comme be a resurrection of the unjust des justes; que Dieu a arrêté un as well as of the just; that God jour où il jugera le monde univer- has decided upon a day in which sel par l'homme qu'il a destiné he shall judge the whole world à celà; et que les méchants iront by the man chosen for that puraux peines éternelles, pendant que pose; that the unjust will go to les justes jouiront de la vie éter- everlasting punishment, while the nelle. just will rejoice in life everlast ing. XV. Nous croyons que les ég- XV. We believe that individual lises particulières, établies en di-churches, established in different vers lieux et plus ou moins mélan- places, composed more or less of gées de régénérés et d'inconvertis, converted and unconverted perdoivent se faire connaître au sons, must make themselves known monde par la profession de leur to the world by the confession of espérance, les actes de leur culte, et le travail de leur charité. Mais nous croyons aussi que, au-dessus de toutes ces églises particulières qui ont été, qui sont et qui seront, il existe devant Dieu une sainte Église universelle, composée de tous les régénérés, et formant un seul corps invisible dont Jésus-Christ est la tête et dont les membres ne seront entièrement manifestés qu'au dernier jour. XVI. Nous croyons que le Seigneur a institué le baptême et la Cène comme symboles et gages du salut qu'il nous a acquis: le baptême, qui est le signe de la purifica their hope, the acts of their worship, and the works of their charity. But we also believe that, above all these individual churches which have been, are, and will be, there exists before God a holy universal Church, composed of all the redeemed ones, forming one invisible body of which Jesus Christ is the head, and whose members will be entirely known only at the last day. XVI. We believe that the Saviour has instituted Baptism and the Lord's Supper as symbols and pledges of the salvation which he has acquired for us: Baptism, tion par le sang et par l'Esprit de which is the sign of the purificaJésus: la Cène, dans laquelle nous tion by the blood and spirit of recevons par la foi sa chair et son Jesus Christ; the Eucharist, in sang, et nous annonçons sa mort | which we receive by faith his body jusqu'à ce qu'il vienne. XVII. Nous déclarons que, tout and his blood, and announce his death until his coming. XVII. We declare that, while en voulant devant Dieu maintenir wishing before God to maintain among ourselves the sound preaching of all these truths, we receive as brethren all such as, in any place whatsoever, pray to Jesus Christ as their only Saviour and their God; we wish to love them, and to learn from our Lord to give them on parmi nous la saine prédication de toutes ces vérités, nous reconnaissons pour frères tous ceux qui, en quelque lieu que se soit, in voquent Jésus-Christ comme leur unique Sauveur et comme leur Dieu; nous voulons les aimer, et nous désirons apprendre du Sei- all occasions tokens of the bonds gneur à leur donner en toute occa- which unite us all together in Him sion des témoignages du lien qui for eternity. nous unit tous en Lui pour l'éter nité. CREED OF THE FREE CHRISTIAN CHURCH IN ITALY. (LA CHIESA CRISTIANA LIBERA IN ITALIA.) Declaration of Principles, adopted unanimously in General Assembly at Milan, June, 1870. [From the Fifth Evangelization Report of the Free Italian Church in Italy. Florence, 1876.] I. Iddio, Padre, Figliuolo e Spi- I. God the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost has manifested his will in Revelation, which is the Bible, the alone perfect and immutable rule of faith and conduct. II. God created man perfect in rito Santo, ha manifestato la sua Volontà nella Rivelazione, ch'è la Bibbia, sola regola perfetta ed immutabile di fede e di condotta. II. Dio creò l'uomo diritto a Adam, disobeying the Word of sua immagine e similitudine; ma his own image and likeness, but Adamo disobbedendo alla Parola di Dio, peccò, e così per un uomo il peccato è entrato nel mondo, e sin has entered into the world, and per lo peccato la morte. Per la death by sin. On this account qual cosa l' umana natura in human nature in Adam and by Adamo, e per Adamo, è divenuta | Adam has become corrupt and corrotta e peccatrice; e tutti in sinful; and we are all born in Adamo nasciamo con l' inclinazi- Adam with the inclination to do one al mal fare, e l' incapacità di evil, and the inability of doing fare il bene da Dio comandato; well what God has commanded; epperciò, naturalmente, siamo tutti | therefore, naturally, we are all sinpeccatori e sotto condannazione. ners under condemnation. III. Iddio non vuole la morte III. God does not desire the del peccatore, ma che venga alla death of the sinner, but that he conoscenza della Verità e sia sal- should come to the knowledge of vato. the truth and be saved. IV. Salvation comes from the IV. La salvezza viene dall' amore eterno e gratuito del Padre;-E eternal and gratuitous love of the acquistata pel sacrificio espiatorio, Father; it is obtained through the per la risurrezione e per la inter-expiatory sacrifice, resurrection, cessione del Figlio, che ci giustifi- and intercession of the Son; it is ca; - Vien comunicata dallo Spi- communicated by the Holy Spirit, rito Santo, il quale, rigenerando il who regenerates the sinner, unites peccatore, lo unisce a Cristo per him to Christ by faith, comes and la fede, viene ad abitare in lui, dwells in him, produces peace in produce la pace nel suo cuore, his heart, giving him the assurance dandogli la sicurezza dell' intera of the entire remission of his sins, remissione dei suoi peccati, lo ren-making him free, guiding and conde libero, lo guida e lo consola per soling him by means of the Word mezzo della Parola ch' Egli stesso which he himself has given, sealha data, lo suggella e lo custodisce, ing and guarding him until the day of the glorious appearing of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. per il giorno della gloriosa apparizione del Signor nostro e Salvatore Gesù Cristo. V. Il Cristiano,riscattato a gran V. The Christian, redeemed with prezzo, deve glorificare Iddio nel a great price, ought to glorify corpo, nell' anima e nello Spirito, God in his body, soul, and spirit, che a Dio stesso appartengono, which belong to God, walking in camminando nella santificazione, holiness, without which no man senza la quale niuno può vedere il can see the Lord. In order to Signore. A ciò fare, egli trova this, he finds strength in com |