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A03336
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A sermon preached at Pauls Crosse the third of March, 1610. By Theophilus Higgons. In testimony of his heartie reunion with the Church of England, and humble submission thereunto. Published by command
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Higgons, Theophilus, 1578?-1659.
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1611
(1611)
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STC 13456; ESTC S104096
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44,137
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62
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may behold and hate the turpitude and deformity of sinne from this one effect that it putteth vs in the state of dead men as S. Paul speaketh of the widow liuing in pleasure shee is dead euen while she liueth A spirituall death in a naturall life Thou hast a name saith God vnto the church of Sardis Apocal. 3.1 that thou liuest but thou art dead And so J may say vnto a sinful man it is but a name a shadow of life which thou hast for thogh thy body liue by thy soule yet thy soule liueth not by grace and consequently thou art separated from GOD the author and fountaine of thy life Thus a sinner is farre from God and God is farre from a sinner the first in grace the second in mercy But from whom God is farre in mercy he is neer in iustice for their destruction sleepeth not 2. Pet. 2.3 So much of the second motiue or cause to wit the great loue of God wherewith he loued vs when we were dead in sinne Now ensueth the third and last namely GRACE for so it followeth by grace you are saued Whereof I will intreat as briefly as I can It may be a question why Not before is now turned into Vos Before he said God loued vs to wit Iewes and Gentiles Now he saith You are saued to wit the Gentiles The answere is Though Iewes and Gentiles haue a common right in Christ yet the right of the Iewes was more singular then ours and in order at the least before ours by reason of their priuiledges as I shewed you before Whence it is that our Sauiour himselfe testifieth in this manner I am not sent saue to the lost sheepe of the house of Israel Math. 15.24 Likewise he gaue his commission vnto his disciples Goe not into the way of the Gentiles but goe rather vnto the lost sheepe of the house of Israel Math. 10.5.6 Conformable whereunto is the testimony of Saint Paul vnto the vngratefull Iewes It was necessary that the word of God should first haue been spoken vnto you but seeing you put it from you and iudge your selues vnworthy of eternall life loe wee turne vnto the Gentiles c. Whereupon the Gentiles glorified God and receiued the Gospell with great alacrity of heart that so it might bee verified which the Prophet declared long before Reioice ô barren that didst not beare breake forth into ioy and reioyce thou that didst not trauaile with child for the desolate hath more children then the married wif◠Esay 54.1 Specially therefore the Gentiles were saued by grace But by what grace There is the grace of God toward vs which respecteth vs as the obiects of it there is the grace of God in vs which respecteth vs as the subiects of it So that we are in the first grace the second grace is in vs. It is the first therefore not the second by which we are saued For we are not saued by the grace of God wrought within vs by his Spirit but shewed vnto vs in his Son You are saued by grace that is by the free and voluntary fauour of God the Father in Iesus Christ his Sonne For the grace of which S. Paul doth here speake is referred vnto God euen the Father howsoeuer our translation supplying some words which are not in the originall seemeth to refer it vnto the Son But the matter is not great For this grace is equally in all the persons but originally in the Father exhibitiuely in the Son by whom and in whom the Father hath declared his mercy loue and grace To proceed then We are saued by grace What by grace only We are saued by Christ by faith by hope by grace By all these but in a different manner By Christs death as the only meritorious cause by Faith as the proper instrumentall meanes by Hope Rom. 8.24 as sustaining our expectation of things to come by Grace as mouing God If therefore the question bee as it is properly in this place what was the first motiue of our saluation The answere is The grace of God For as the end of our saluation is his glory so the beginning of it is his grace Our election to life is free our vocation inwardly by the spirit outwardly by the word is free our iustification by the bloud of Christ is free our sanctification by the holy Ghost is free finally our glorification in heauen is free also as Fulgentius obserueth very well Datur ex gratia non solùm iustificatis vita hona sed etiam glorificatis vita aeterna Not only a good life vnto them who are iustified but also eternall life vnto them who are glorified is giuen freely and by the grace of God Not of works lest any man should boast himselfe Ephes 2.9 This is the argument vpon which S. Paul doth spend a great part of his Epistles this is the thing which he doth euery where inforce to wit the grace of God in Iesus Christ O S. Paul S. Paul Vas misercoridiae tuba gratiae the vessell of mercy and the trumpet of grace For in none was the mercy of God more expressed then in thee and in none was his grace more exalted then by thee And this he doth not to destroy actum operis but opinionem meriti not the performance of good works but the opinion of merit thereby and specially the merit of Condignity which the Church of Rome defendeth precisely in this sense to wit that after the first iustification by Christ the second being by works as they teach a man being in state of grace may performe and some doe performe such good works as in their owne worth and proper value deserue eternall life This they call merit of Condignity But this is an indignitie to God a disgrace to his grace and blasphemy against his honour More truely saith our Apostle Non sunt condignae c. the afflictions of this present life are not worthie of the glory which shall bee shewed vnto vs Rom. 8.18 Neither our actions nor our passions can deserue the same And I pray you marke the opposition in this behalfe SVNT they are worthy saith the Church of Rome NON SVNT they are not worthy saith S. Paul Away away with merit let vs establish the grace of God which is more honourable vnto him and more comfortable vnto vs. But J leaue the prosecution heereof and after a brief reflexion vpon that which is already past I will proceed vnto the residue of my text First then concerning the Mercy of God Trust in it Trust in it onely Trust in it euer Trust in it without diffidence for in the mercies of the most High you shall not miscarrie Psalm 21.7 Trust in it onely without any other plea. We doe not present our supplications before thee for our owne righteousnesse but for thy great tender mercies Dan. 9.18 Trust in it euer without wearinesse for his compassions faile not Lam. 3.22 As the oyle did not cease till there
am confined vnto his Loue therfore I will speake particularly of it He hath an immanent loue dwelling in him so he loueth himselfe by the necessity of his nature He hath a transient loue proceeding from him and so he loueth his creatures some more some lesse by the liberty of his will He hath a generall loue vnto all for all are his creatures the works of his own hands He hath a speciall loue vnto some according as his Image in respect of their substance is stamped in them and as his likenesse in respect of their qualities is represented in them For likenesse is the cause of loue So then God loueth vs as his creatures but more as men He loueth vs as men but more as elected He loueth vs as elected but more as iustified And this loue which he beareth vnto vs as actually iustified by Christ hee declareth more in his work of our sanctification by the Spirit Finally the more holy wee are the more hee loueth vs. Whereupon S. Augustine doth excellently obserue tract in Ioh. that God loueth the Humanity of Christ more then any man because it was full of grace and truth Ioh. 1.14 If therefore we will obtain and retain the loue of God we must be as he is conforming our wils vnto the obedience of his will and be like vnto him in all things merciful as he is mercifull louing as he is louing gratious as hee is gratious yea perfect as he is perfect Math. 5 48. Not by adequation that is beyond our power but by imitation that is our dutie Be holy for I am holy Leuit. 11.44 In the second place As before this loue in God was a speciall and not a generall loue so here it is not a little but a great loue For he is a great God and a great King aboue all Gods Psal 95.3 Likewise his loue is great aboue all loues Therefore the vulgar readeth it thus propter nimiam charitatem for his ouer much loue In truth it is ouer much beyond our desert and beyond our comprehensiō too For what loue shal I compare vnto his loue The loue of a WOMAN It is great indeed but yet the loue of Ionathan vnto Dauid was greater then it Thy loue to mee was wonderfull yea passing the loue of women 2. Sam. 1.26 The loue of a MOTHER Here is a greater degree then in the former but yet this loue is not so certaine and infallible as Gods loue Can a woman forget her child and not haue compassion vpon the sonne of her wombe If they should forget as some may be yea some haue beene so vnnaturall yet will not I forget thee saith God vnto his disconsolate and afflicted Sion Esay 49.15 Therefore till you canne find whom you may compare with God you shall find no loue to bee compared with his loue But now to come vnto the third point As the loue of God was commended before from the quantity thereof it beeing a great loue so it is yet further commēded from the obiect thereof Vs. Who Iewes and Gentiles Of what condition or estate Dead in sinne This was * Pag. 5. designed by me to be the third generall circumstance of my Text but I will intreat of it here because I am so happily inuited thereunto his great loue wherewith hee loued vs when wee were dead by sinnes First I will consider the Obiect it selfe Vs which in extension doth include both Iew and Gentile Secondly the quality thereof dead in sinne or by sinnes And first of the Obiect Vs. O blessed S. Paul Quid tibi nobis what hast thou to doe with vs It was thy priuiledge not ours to say They the Iewes are Hebrewes so am I they are Israelites so am I they are the seede of Abraham so am I 2. Cor. 11.22 But so were not we the Gentiles What is the reason then thou shouldest here include thy selfe in this extensiue particle vs The reasons are many but specially three The first is the charity of S. Paul For the voice of Faith is EGO I with an appropriation vnto our selues Faith draweth the circūference of Gods promises vnto the center of our hearts But the voice of Charity is Not we with a communication vnto all Therfore it is one note of charity assigned by S. Paul 1. Cor. 13.5 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 it seeketh not her own things Secondly the speciall interest of S. Paul in the Gentiles whose Apostle he was by way of excellency and prerogatiue aboue all others He is a chosen vessell vnto me to beare my name before the Gentiles Act. 9.15 Thirdly our communion in Christ For now the stop of partition-wall was broken downe Ephes 2.14 Now there was one shephard and one sheepfold Ioh. 10.16 Now God had perswaded Iaphet to dwell in the tents of Shem Gen. 9.27 So that now there was no difference no distinction as our Apostle diuinely saith There is neither Iew nor Grecian there is neither bond nor free there is neither male nor female for you are all one in Christ Iesus Galath 3.28 Why then should one nation despise another or why should one man contemne an other For as we are all one by nature in the first Adam so we are all one by grace in the second The nobility of stocke the antiquity of descent the abundance of wealth the excellency of wit the comelinesse of bodie finally no externall glory of temporal things maketh a difference or an acception of persons in the sight of God Now to proceede vnto our owne vnworthinesse whereby the worth of Gods loue is amplified be we Iewes or be we Gentiles great was the loue of God which was extended either to the one or other As for the Iewes the whole course of the old Scriptures doth so demonstrate their ingratitude and rebellion against God that it must needs be a singular extraordinarie loue in him to vouchsafe them any grace or fauour at all For instance I remit you vnto the 78. Psalme where the Prophet Dauid doth illustrate the benignitie of God by the iniquitie of this people to wit how hee brought them out of Egypt by a miraculous power diuided the sea for their protection brought water out of the stonie rocks for their consolation went before them in a cloud for their direction yet they sinned still against him and prouoked the Highest in the wildernesse verse 17. Notwithstanding hee rained downe Manna vpon them he rained flesh also vpon them as dust yet for all this they sinned still and beleeued not his wondrous works vers 32. Notwithstanding he forgaue their iniquitie and restrained his anger from them vpon their submission vnto him yet they returned and tempted God and limited the holy one of Israel vers 41. Notwithstanding he cast out the Heathen before them to receiue them into their inheritance yet they tempted and prouoked the most high God and kept not his testimonies vers 56. But as for vs Gentiles what could we plead We