Justifying faith must be distinguished from historical faith; Rome's reply helps; miracle faith is not an eminent grade of justifying faith

But that justifying faith ought to be distinguished from historical faith is not hard to prove. For if historical faith were the same as justifying faith, then whoever had historical faith would by that very fact have justifying faith. Yet many hypocrites and ungodly people are endowed with historical faith who nevertheless lack justifying faith. For of this faith Scripture says that whoever believes does not perish but has eternal life (John 3:16), and that Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes (Romans 10:4); and that in the Gospel the righteousness of God is revealed to all and upon all who believe (Romans 1:16-17). From which it is plain that no one is endowed with such faith who is not a partaker of righteousness and salvation. And therefore to those who are in a state of perdition and remain in sin, if they are said to believe, another faith must be assigned.

And certainly what the Pontificians say about these places helps our sentence. For they say that when Scripture says whoever believes has eternal life, it ought to be understood of those who believe as they ought and with the whole heart; and that the reason many believe in the Son and yet do not have life is that they believe badly, and not with the whole heart, and not as they ought — as may be seen in Bellarmine, book one On Justification, chapter ten, paragraph Adde quod. But who can with any reason affirm that it is the same faith by which someone believes well and by which someone believes badly; by which someone believes as he ought and by which someone believes as he ought not? Or that the faith by which someone believes badly, and not with the whole heart, and not as he ought, is the justifying faith which the Apostle says is imputed for righteousness (Romans 4)?

Next, that the faith of miracles is not an eminent grade of justifying faith is also manifest from this: that some are gifted with that faith who nevertheless do not have justifying faith. For to many who will say to Christ, Did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works? Christ will answer, I never knew you, as Christ himself witnesses (Matthew 7:22). Add that the Apostle in 1 Corinthians 12:9 numbers the faith of signs among the various charisms of the Spirit, which the Pontificians call graces given freely (gratiae gratis datae). Yet an eminent grade of justifying faith belongs to grace that makes acceptable (gratia gratum faciens). For it is given for the salvation of the one who has it — not, like those free gifts of the Spirit, for the salvation of others. Then if the faith of miracles were an excellent grade of justifying faith, Christ, when reproaching the disciples for the defect of that faith, would not say to them, If you had faith like a grain of mustard seed, you would say to this mountain, Move from here, and it would move, and nothing would be impossible for you (Matthew 17:20). For a grain of mustard seed denotes something very small in the Scriptures, and it amounts to the same as if Christ said, If you had even a tiny bit of faith.