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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
book_n	holy_a	place_n	scripture_n	3,179	5	5.3996	4	true

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A01701	A fruitful sermon preached at Occham, in the countie of Rutland, the second of Nouember. 1583. By Thomas Gybson.	Gibson, Thomas, M.A.	1584 (1584)	STC 11839; ESTC S112170	27,150	83

preaching and that euery minister is bound to preach Thirdly I will shewe what they ought to preach The first point as in manye other places so here it is named but not fully set downe what it is but in other places we may easily gather what it is The second is here named and prooued For Saint Paule beeing a minister and saying Woe be vnto me if I preach not the Gospell doth plainely affirme as much The third is here set downe moste plainely the matter that we must preach of namely the Gospell As touching the first let vs see how the Scripture speaketh of it as it is particularly and specially applied to y e publique office of the minister otherwise I know this worde preaching to haue a further and more generall signification But I speake of it as Christ and the Apostles do applying it to the ministers Saint Paule sayth He that prophecieth speaketh vnto men to edifiyng to exhortation and to comfort The same Apostle charging Timothy and in him euery minister to preach the worde addeth immediately Improoue rebuke exhort with all long suffering and doctrine The blessed Apostle Peter as he receiued of his master a charge to feed his flocke so he exhorteth al other to do the same The holy Euangelist Luke sayeth that Christ taught or preached in Nazareth He firste read then shut the booke afterwarde he expounded that scripture which he read and so applied it to the hearers By the●e and such like places we may gather that preaching properly as we speake of it is an exposition and application of the scriptures by the liuely voyce of the minister to the edifiyng of the people whereby it may easily appeare that reading is not preaching nor yet sufficiēt in a minister approued of God Saint Paul wil haue him apt to teach The Prophet Malachy affirmeth that the Priestes lips must preserue knowledge Christ after reading shut the booke and expoūded and yet some are not ashamed to count simple reading sufficient saying it will serue the turne and there may be as much good done by it as by preaching As for reading we speake not againste it we disalow it not but account it a holy lawfull necessarye and profitable meane wherby great good and benefite is wrought to the Church of God but yet it doth not followe that it is sufficient in a minister that it will serue simply of it selfe in the publique congregation The Lorde hath set d●●n an other order and requireth greater thinges at the hands of his speciall seruauntes But this matter shal appeare more plaine in y e wordes following For my purpose in this part is onely to shew you by some circumstances and descriptions what preaching is that reading is not preaching or at least that kind of preaching which the Lord requireth in his ministers as may appeare by comparing them together and by vsing some apt similitudes for the explanation of this matter The smell or sight of meat doth good to the hungrie man but it will not feede him except he taste of it So by reading men may haue some smell of religion but they shall neuer throughly taste of it without preaching and therefore it is called a feeding as we heard before and Preachers are counted Pastors and féeders Again meat that is rawe and fatte maye bee called good but it is not to bee eaten before it be made readye and dressed so are the Scriptures read good holy and pure but not sufficient food for the people without preaching Againe bare reading is as thogh one shoulde cast a whole loafe before them which want strength to cut it Preaching is a cutting and diuiding of the breade of life that euery one may haue his seueral portion Again bare reading without preaching is euen as the husbandman should cast whole strikes and bushels of Corne on his land together on heapes not scattering of it preaching is a spreading and a sowing of the seed Again bare reading is as though the Fisher should shuffle his nets on heapes not opening them Preaching is a wise opening laying and handling of the Net Bare reading is as one shoulde offer good treasures and yet such as were hid shut vp and fast locked and coulde not be come by Preaching is an opening of the treasures to the ioy of Gods children Reading is like to fire couered with ashes which doth smally profite them that stand by it Preaching is an opening and discouering of the fire Let vs consider one example amongst many for the further explaning of this matter The Chamberlaine that noble treasurer of Aethiopia going to Hierusalem to worshippe God as he went read the Scriptures if reading woulde haue serued his turne Philip needed not to haue come to him but he vnderstoode not before he had a guide he was not conuerted neither had he faith sufficient to saluation before he hearde the preaching of the worde which indeed is that especiall effectuall blessed and excellent ordinarye meane of faith as it appeareth more plainlie and fully in the next part of our text Which beeing rightly waighed confirmeth the great necessitye of preaching and prooueth that euerye minister ought to preach Woe be to me if I preach not the Gospell And why so because I am called to it because I am a minister because the Lorde requireth it of me Although Saint Paule and the other Apostles had priuiledges and prerogatiues which we haue not although we haue not fullye so large a Commission as he and they had although they did manye thinges which we neither may nor can do yet as touching the office of preaching it appertaineth as well to vs as to them And for the further proofe of this matter I will rehearse some argumentes which before I haue vsed in this place adding diuers others to them 1 It is the cōmandement of Christ and the holy Apostles therefore necessary Christ saide to his Apostles Goe preach the Gospell The which cōmandement in this behalfe belongeth to all the ministers of God Saint Paule straightly chargeth the ministers of Ephesus Take heede vnto your selues and to all the flocke whereof the holy Ghost hath made you ouerseers to feede the Church of God which he hath purchased with his own bloud And most weightily of all he requireth it in the place already alleadged he leaueth it not as a thing indifferent that may bee done or vndone but speaketh with a wonderful and mighty protestation hee ioyneth the Scripture and preaching togeather For hauing before in the former Chapiter set foorth the great profit of the scriptures straight waye hee necessarilye addeth this forecible exhortation I charge thee therefore before God and before the Lord Iesus Christ which shall iudge the quicke and the deade at his appearing and in his kingdome preach the worde be instant in season and out of season improoue rebuke exhort 2 It is an argument and token of the loue the minister oweth vnto

ignorant and carnall men for none of these in truth doe make account of the Gospell And now let vs come to the thirde part of our Text wherin is set down what euery minister ought to preach namely the Gospell They are not bound to deliuer the counsels of men the traditions of the fathers the statutes of earthly Princes or the authoritie of mortall men but as they are the seruauntes of Iesus Christ Prince of all Princes so are they bounde onely to preach his Gospell The true Prophetes neuer spake of them selues to the people but as they receiued warning from the Lorde They had no authority to speak their owne wordes nor the wordes of any mortal mā The Apostles might not teach their owne doctrine but only y ● which they had receiued from their master who enioyneth them to teach all thinges whatsoeuer he had commanded them Goe saith he and preach the Gospell The holy Apostle writing to the Corinthiās auoucheth that he receiued of the Lorde that which he deliuered to thē Wherby we may sée al these teachers cōfuted which stand vppon the authoritie of men which add or diminish anye thing from the Scriptures which ioyne their owne fantasies and the traditions of men with the holy pure perfect worde of God Woe be to those sonnes of vanities for in deede they preach not the Gospell they preach not Christ but themselues they deface and weaken the authoritie of the holy scriptures The lawe of God is a perfect lawe conuerting soules The scripture is able to make the man of God absolute and perfect to all good workes The Lorde sayth by his Prophet He that hath a dreame let him tell a dreame and hee that hath my worde let him speake my worde faithfullie And what is the chaffe to the wheate saith the Lorde Is not my word euen like a fire sayth the Lorde and like a hammer that breaketh the stone Our Sauiour in the Gospell speaketh against such teachers saying In vaine they worship me teaching the doctrine and preceptes of men Let vs remember that which is spoken in the last Chapiter of the Reuelation I protest vnto euery man that heareth the prophesie of this booke if anye man adde vnto these thinges GOD shall adde vnto him the plagues that are written in this booke And if any man shall diminishe of the wordes of this prophesie God shall take away his part out of the booke of life and out of the holy Citie and from these thinges which are written in this booke Woe be to them which preach and yet preach not the Gospell But that we may know the better how the Gospell shoulde bee preached let vs consider a litle what it is and what it contayneth The Euangelistes call it the Gospell of the kingdome Saint Paule accompteth it that which was promised before by the Prophetes in the holye scriptures concerning Iesus Christ our Lorde And in the same Chapiter he sayth It is the power of GOD vnto saluation to euery one that beleeueth And in an other place he calleth it the worde and ministerie of reconciliation Saint Iohn calleth it the testimonie of Iesus Christ From these and such like places maye bee easilie gathered a full difinition of the Gospel which I leaue to your Godly consideration onely this I add that vnder the voyce of the Gospell is comprehended the whole Historye of Iesus Christ in the flesh and also the fruite and vse of the same historie As touching the first namely the historie of Christ it is sommarily comprehended vnder his passion and resurrection the vse and ende of al is that we should haue repentance and remission of sins in his name And this doth Christ himselfe witnesse when as he saide to his Apostles after his resurrection Thus it is written thus it behooued Christ to suffer and to rise againe from the deade the third daye and that repentance and remission of sinnes shoulde be preached in his name among all Nations To this agreeth the holy Apostle S. Peter when as he sayeth with other the Apostles to the counsell and chief Priestes The God of our Fathers hath raised vp Iesus whom ye slue and hanged on a tree Him hath God lift vp with his right hand to be a Prince and a Sauiour to giue repentance vnto Israell forgiuenes of sinnes By this we may see how the Gospell must be preached the people must be taught what Christ hath don for them The whole storie of his Incarnation Conception Byrth sufferinges Resurrection and Ascention these thinges I saye must be oftentimes and effectually preached to the people as they are set downe by the holy Euangelistes and Apostles but yet this is not ynough to shew what Christ hath done to rehearse the storie of his Incarnation but also the minister must be carefull to preach the vse the end and fruite of the same storie which is that the people may repent be tourned vnfaynedly vnto God and so by faith made partakers of remission of sinnes through Iesus Christ Repentance is a true turning to God a chaunging of the outwarde and inward man a dying to sin a liuing to righteousnes and amendmēt of y e whol life with this doctrine we must begin this we must first of all and chiefly vrge this is that doctrine cheefly and moste of all preached by the holy prophets This is the common and vsuall voice O Israel returne to the Lorde Iohn the Paptist the Messenger and also Iesus Christ his Maister they cry both of them Repent for the Kingdome of Heauen is at hand The Apostles also euery where exhort men to repentaunce to amendment of life to mortification and regeneration This is an vsuall doctrin in all their Epistles Nowe they can neuer truely repent which know not the greatnesse of their sinnes and the punishmente due to them And howe shall they knowe this except their sinnes be reprooued and laide open by preaching the lawe of God for by the lawe commeth the knowledge of sinne so that the Doctrine of the lawe must not be seperated from the preaching of the Gospell for it is a Schoolmaster to bring vs to Christ This then is necessarily required of euery Minister freelye and boldlye to reprooue sinne in all states and degrees whatsoeuer This is it that the Lorde sayeth to his prophet Crye aloude spare not lift vp thy voyce lyke a Trumpet and shew my people their transgressions and to the house of Iacob their sinnes Our Sauiour Christ accounteth it as an office duetie of the holy Ghost to reproue the world of sinne And in deed there is no doctrine more necessary for this age wherein wee liue although few can away w t it but cry out against such as preach it And as in other places so in this place heretofore I haue had proofe in this matter For vpon iust occasion noting the certaintie of Gods