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A01980
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A recovery from apostacy Set out in a sermon preached in Stepny Church neere London at the receiving of a penitent renegado into the Church, Octob. 21. 1638. By William Gouge D.D. and min. in Black-Friers London Herein is the history of the surprizall and admirable escape of the said penitent.
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Gouge, William, 1578-1653.
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1639
(1639)
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STC 12124; ESTC S103306
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53,252
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98
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Saviour extremely under-valued the glorious Gospell vilified the profession thereof disgraced weake brethren offended and adversaries occasioned to triumph and insult Yet are not the fore-mentioned Apostates no nor others though worse then they except onely before excepted such as sinne unto death to be excluded from all hope of recovery mercy and pardon And that for these reasons 1. The freenesse of Gods grace For God justifieth freely by his grace Rom. 3.24 and his free gift is of many offences Rom. 5.16 Wherefore that the freenesse of Gods grace may more clearely be manifested it pleaseth him to extend it to such as of all others are most unworthy as Apostates who denie him are Mans unworthinesse gives evident proofe of the freenesse of Gods grace And the more unworthy any may be thought to be the more free will that grace which is extended to him be knowne to be So as pardon of sin may in faith be expected from him who wil not the death of a sinner but that repenting he may be freed from destruction and saved by the mercy of God If any thinke otherwise he is not a Christian but a Novatian 2. The riches of Gods grace God is said to be rich in mercy Ephes 2.4 Now the greatnesse and heighnousnesse of sinne commends the riches of mercy and shewes that to be true which is said Rom. 5.20 Where sinne abounded grace did abound much more But by Apostacy sin aboundeth and may be reckoned in the number of great crimes yet in the Church such as repent ought not to despaire of Gods mercy 3. The infinite value and worth of Christs sacrifice It is a sufficient price for any sinne yea and for all sins in which respect it is said that the blood of Iesus Christ cleaâ—seth us from all sinne 1 Ioh. 1.7 If from all sin then from Apostacy Object On these grounds the sinne against the Holy Ghost might be pardoned Answ Not so and that for these Reasons 1. They wilfully and utterly reject the onely meanes of pardon the Lord Jesus Christ In this respect they are said to tread under foot the Sonne of God Heb. 10.29 2. They neither will nor can repent It is impossible to renue them againe unto repentance As other sinners who doe not repent are not pardoned so these Apostates because they cannot repent cannot be recovered 3. An irreversible doome of the Judge is absolutely without any limitation gone out against these but it is not so against any other sinners The doome is this Whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost it shall not be forgiven him Mat. 12.32 4. The meanes to be used by others for recovering sinners is absolutely forbidden in these mens case The meanes is prayer The prayer of faith shall save the sick and if hee have committed sinnes they shall be forgiven him Iames 5.15 But the Apostle even where he prescribeth this meanes for obtaining pardon excepteth the sin unto death thus If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not unto death he shall aske and he shall give him life for them that sin not unto death There is a sin unto death I doe not say that he shall pray for it 1 Ioh. 5.16 4. A fourth ground of an Apostates recovery is the extent of Gods promises which extent is so large as except before excepted it excludeth none All manner of sin shall be forgiven unto men saith the Judge himselfe Mat. 12.31 5. A fift is Gods faithfullnesse in ratifying the just censure of his Church For Christ gave to his Church in the person of Saint Peter power of binding and loosing when he said Mat. 16.19 I will give unto thee the keyes of the kingdome of heaven and whatsoever thou shalt binde on earth shall be bound in heaven whatsoever thou shalt loosâ— on earth shall be loosed in heaven When therfore the Church upon due observation of an Apostates true repentance absolves him and receives him into her communion that Apostate may justly be accounted to be recovered and to be brought into the state of salvation 6. The last ground which now I intend to note is example For we reade that in all ages Apostates and that of all sorts and kindes except before excepted have beene recovered and received into the favour of God and his Church Adam the first man was a most notorious Apostate Yet the Church in all ages hath taken it for grant that he repented and was saved It is therefore reckoned among the heresies of the Tacians that they opposed the salvation of the first man The promise of redemption was first made to our first Parents Gen. 3.15 and that they beleeved it may be inferred from their teaching their children to offer sacrifice Gen. 4.3 4. The children of Israel in Egypt played the parts of Apostates by the Idolatry which they committed Ezek. â—0 7 8. so in the Wildernesse Exod. 32.1 2 c. and in the land of Canaan under their Judges Iudges 2.17 and under their Kings 2 King 29.6 Yet upon their humiliation and repentance God received them to grace and favour But to give instance of particulars Salomon in his old age proved an Apostate 1 King 11.4 yet he repented as is evident by his booke stiled Ecclesiastes which the Hebrews say as we heard before is the book of Salomons repentance That God was mercifull in pardoning his Apostacy appeares by this promise which God made to David concerning him 2 Sam. 7.14 15. If he commit iniquity I will chasten him with the rod of men and with the stripâ—s of the children of men But my mercy shall not depart from him as I tooke it from Saul Manasseh in his younger yeares did himselfe and caused Iudah to doe worse then the Heathen yet he repented and found mercy 2 Chron. 33.2 9 12 13. The Levites that went away farre from God though they were excluded from the more excellent functions in the Temple yet upon their repentance were admitted into the Temple to do the inferiour works thereof Ezek. 44.10 11 c. Peter thrice together not without swearing and cursing denied his Master yet his teares declare that he repented and both the other Disciples and also Christs manner of entertaining him afterwards shew that he was received to mercy Many forsooke Paul which was a kinde of Apostacy but Pauls prayer for mercy to be shewed to them 2 Tim. 4.16 gives evidence of a possibility yea and a probability too of their finding mercy In the ten fierce and fiery persecutions of Christians under the Romane Emperours many renounced the Christian faith and in the tumults raised by Arrians others renounced the Orthodox faith yet the Catholike Church with a motherly affection received them againe upon evidence of their repentance as Peter was received after his weeping being put in mind of his sin by the crowing of a Cock. We have before shewed how the Church of old had daies and places and rites and
Ministers for admitting penitents after their Apostacy into the Church which gives an evident demonstration of her willingnesse and readinesse to entertaine such The like might be noted of the Orthodox reformed Churches which ever siâ—ce the beginning of the Reformation have time after time received such as have turned from their Heresie Idolatry Superstition Apostacy or any other notorious and scandalous offence For it is an especiall branch of Christian discipline to stop the course of repenting and returning to the faith from none 1. Take notice hereby of the just cause that the true Christian Catholike Church and the Orthodox Fathers of that Church had to detest and abhominate as they did the unchristian uncharâ—table and unmercifull opinion and practise of the Novations in denying repentance to such as had once denied the Christian faiâ—h and in refusing to admit them into the Christian Church againe though with all the testimonies of penitentiall humiliation and contrition that they could expresse they desired it and made free offer of all the satisfaction that the Church should require Most proudly and odiously they stiled themselves 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Puritans as if they had beene forsooth the purest in the world yea and they onely the pure ones whereas they are of all the most impure denying repentance whereby sinnes are purged away Their extreme severity or rather cruelty being directly contrary to the minde of God our gracious and mercifull Father manifested in his Word by his owne free and rich grace offered to penitents by the directions given to his people to receive such and by their constant course in entertaining such the Catholike Church adjudged Novatus to be accounted an Heretique and put Novatians into the Catalogue of Heretiques For bowells of mercy ought no where so to be enlarged as in the Catholick Church that as a true mother shee neither proudly insults over her children that fall nor hardly pardons them being amended 2. This makes much to the justification of this daies solemnity in receiving this Penitent by a prescript order of our Church into her communion Herein our Church sheweth such a tender compassion to this her sonne that was once lost but by Gods good providence is now found as the Father did to the Prodigall affording unto him the best welcome that she can What cause hast thou O Penitent to blesse God that thou wert borne and brought up in such a Church wherein thou hadst at first the benefit of Baptisme to preserve thee as Noah was preserved in the Arke from the deluge of destruction and now again a recovery by penance enjoyned to thee and performed by thee which being heartily done is as another plancke after ship-wracke reached out unto thee to keep thee from drowning 3. All ye that are children of the same mother and bretheren and sisters to this Penitent imitate this gracious indulgency of your Mother towards him Be not like the Prodigals elder brother who envied his brother and was offended with his Father for the grace favour and honour which was shewed to his penitent brother Doe ye rather shew your selves to be of the mind of the Angels of God in whose presence there is joy over one sinner that converteth Luk 15.10 Henceforth upbraide not to him his Apostacy Upbraide not his circumcision upbraide not his subjecting himselfe to Mahometisme shunne not his society avoid not communion with him no not in the most sacred and divine ordinances trafique with him eate and drinke with him pray with him and pray for him Receive him as a brother beloved Forgive him comfort him I beseech you that you would confirme your love toward him 4. My heart stirres me up againe to returne to such as have renounced the Christian faith and beene circumcised in the name of the Lord Jesus to beseech them yea and to require them for Gods sake for the Gospells sake for the Churches sake for such friends sake as are privie to it and for their owne soules sake as they tender the peace of their conscience yea and the salvation of their soule to make their case knowne to submit themselves to the discipline of the Church and to be willing to give such satisfaction as the Church shall thinke fit Yee had many that could beare witnesse of your denying the faith and those such as tooke occasion thereupon to insult over you over your Faith over the Church by which you were instructed in the Faith and over your Lord and Saviour on whom you placed your Faith Is it not then meet that you should have many witnesses of your returning to the Faith againe and of your humiliation and contrition for that dishonour you have done to God and to his Church and those such witnesses as hâ—ve power to loose you and to receive you againe into the Church ye and such as will rejoyce at your conversion and praise God for the same O be not more ashamed of confessing your sinne then you were of committing it Shall hee who was not ashamed of his wound bee ashamed of binding up and healing his wound 5. Let me in the last place leave a few directions with thee O Penitent upon whose occasion we are here met 1. That which now thou dost openly with thy tongue and body before us children of men doe it ex animo do it heartily as to the Lord the Searcher of hearts Thus will thy repentance be sound indeed Thus will much inward peace be brought to thy conscience Thus wilt thou be loosed in Heaven as well as on earth All the grace and favour which now the Church sheweth is upon this pious and charitable presumption that in prostrating thy body thy soule is humbled and that the confession of thy mouth proceedeth from the contrition of thy heart If it bee otherwise thou dissemblest with the Church thou deceivest thine owne soule and mockest God who will in no wise brâ—oke such mockings Unlesse thou do what tâ—ou dost sincerely and heartily thou art in no better case if not in a worse then they who have suffered themselves to be circumcised by profest enemies of Christ and therewithall renounced the faith of Christ and yet seek not to bee loosed by the Church of Christ They cannot in Faith expect to be loosed in Heaven because they are not first loosed on earth Nor canst thou expect to partake in Heaven of the benefit of the Churches loosing thee on earth because it is utterly made void by the deceitfullnesse of thy heart But we are perswaded better things of thee and things that accompany Salvation though I thus speake 2. Be inwardly more dejected in soule more pierced in spirit and broaken in heart then with the teares of thine eyes beatings of thy brest casting downe of thy body and confession of thy mouth thou canst expresse For thy sinne for which this penance is enjoyned is an heinous sinne a crying sinne a sinne