Cap. 5 Mem. 2 Fathers: Ambrose — without faith the passion bears you no fruit
After the firm foundations of the Scriptures and the weight of the arguments, we will also set down the Fathers’ suffrages — but very few.
Ambrose, On the Faith to Gratian, book 4, chapter 1: If you do not believe, he did not descend for you; he did not suffer for you. Those words have this sense: no fruit of redemption from Christ incarnate and having suffered reaches this or that singular person before he believes in Christ.
For Ambrose does not mean to deny that Christ descended and suffered for human beings, whether they believe or do not believe; he means to teach that the usefulness, or saving force, of this passion then vivifies and reconciles human beings when they believe.
In this manner of speaking, then, he follows the known rules of the jurisconsults, who are accustomed to say that not-being, and being but uselessly, are held for equals. Things found without effect may be called as if nothing. Christ is therefore denied to have been incarnate and to have died for unbelievers, because by their vice he is understood to have been incarnate and to have suffered for them uselessly and without effect.
This plainly argues from Ambrose’s mind that by this alone — that Christ died for believers — no one is placed in the state of reconciliation and salvation before faith is applied to the Gospel.
Latin
Post firmamenta Scripturarum & argumentorum pondera, Patrum etiam suffragia apponemus, sed paucissima. Ambrosius, De Fide ad Gratian. lib. 4. c. 1. Si non credis, non descendit tibi, non tibi passus est. Quae verba hunc sensum habent, Nullum fructum redemtionis ex Christo incarnato & passo pervenire ad hanc aut illam singularem personam, donec credat in Christum. Non enim negare vult Ambrosius Christum descendisse & passum esse pro hominibus, sive illi credant, sive non credant; sed docere vult, utilitatem sive vim salutiferam hujus passionis tum vivificare & reconciliare homines quando credunt. In hac igitur formula loquendi sequitur notas regulas Jurisconsultorum, qui dicere solent, Non esse, & esse, sed inutiliter esse pro paribus habentur. Quae absque effectu comperiuntur, possunt dici quasi nulla. Christus igitur pro non credentibus incarnatus & mortuus negatur; quia illorum vitio pro illis inutiliter & absque effectu incarnatus & passus intelligitur. Hoc plane arguit ex mente Ambrosii, eo solo quod Christus mortuus est pro credentibus, neminem collocari in statu reconciliationis & salutis ante fidem Evangelio adhibitam.