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church_n	earth_n	heaven_n	militant_a	4,766	5	11.7120	5	true

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A36929	Three sermons preached in St. Maries Church in Cambridg, upon the three anniversaries of the martyrdom of Charles I, Jan. 30, birth and return of Charles II, May 29, gun-powder treason, Novemb. 5 by James Duport ...	Duport, James, 1606-1679.	1676 (1676)	Wing D2655; ESTC R14797	53,659	86

merits and mediation Indeed 't is the free Grace and Mercy of God that is the prime and principal proegumenous cause whereby God is inwardly mov'd and enclin'd to give a discharge and release to Sinners and to grant pardon and forgiveness o' Sin and 't is the all-sufficient merit and mediation of Christ that is the prime and principal procatarctic cause the only impulsive meritorious cause whereby God is mov'd and induced to show pity to poor Sinners 'T is Christ alone that is our Advocate with the Father and he is the propitiation for our sins says St. John though if Socinus say true the blood of Martyrs may avail almost as much for the expiation and pardon of Sins as the blood o' Christ yet the same Apostle tells us that not the blood of Martyrs but only the blood of Jesus Christ the Son of God cleanseth us from all sin Without shedding o' blood his blood no remission o' Sin not of the Sin of Blood-shed and Murder this Sin to be sure 't is his blood alone can wash out this blood the guilt and stain of this Crimson and Scarlet Sin especially the stain of innocent and Royal blood the Sin of this day 'T is not the blood of all the Martyrs and Holy men that ever were slain since the beginning o' the world not all the righteous blood shed upon the earth from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of our righteous King Charles the First that can make an atonement or propitiation for any one Sin The blood of Saints and Martyrs may cry aloud to Heaven for vengeance but it can never cry for mercy no that 's proper and peculiar to the blood of Christ alone No other propitiatory nor deletory of Sin but only the blood of that immaculate Lamb. Nor have we any other Advocates in Heaven that we know on nor Mediators of intercession no more than of Redemption but only that one Mediator between God and men the man Christ Jesus I say no other Advocates nor Mediators in Heaven yet we have a sort of inferiour Advocates and Intercessors on earth viz. our fellow Christians that may and do make intercession for us and are daily Orators in our behalf at the throne of Grace praying to God for us that he wu'd not impute our Sins unto us Some on earth then we have that intercede and pray for us but none in Heaven but our Saviour Christ I mean none that pray for us in particular though in the general the Church Triumphant in Heaven may pray for the Church Militant here on earth yet I scy no Saints departed pray for us in partkcular for ought we know and Viventes pro viventibus ergo Defuncti is no good consequence by the Cardinal 's leav for they that live and converse with us here on earth may see and know our wants or we may impart our thoughts and desires our needs and necessities to 'um but that the Saints in Heaven either know my wants or hear my Prayers I ha' no ground to believ because no warrant at all in Scripture therefore I cannot in Faith call upon 'um nor pray unto 'um to pray and intercede for oe and though St. Stephen's Prayer might prevail for his Persecutors while he was upon earth yet it cannot prevail with me to say Sancte Stephane or a me now he 's in Heaven However this benefit and advantage we have by that Article of our Creed the Communion of Saints that we who are members of the Catholic Church here on earth reap the fruit of one anothers Prayers Nor is this sweet perfume of the Prayers of the Saints confin'd within the verge and pale o' the Christian Church but extends it self to the benefit even of Jews Turks Infidels and Heretics so that when this alabaster box is broken and these Prayers pour'd forth the whole world is fill'd with the odour of the Oyntment Though then the mediation and intercession of Christ in Heaven be the sole meritorious cause of a nè imputes of not laying sin to the sinner's charge yet by the vertue of his merit and mediation the Prayers and Intercessions of Holy men upon earth are very prevalent and impetratorious in their kind as motives and inducements to God to give a discharge not as meriting but procuring causes or rather not causes but occasions of the remission of Sins and not only of their own but even of other mens Sins Yet is not this done per saltum neither but by degrees I mean by some previous qualifications and conditions requisite to be perform'd by the Sinner himself to render him capable of so great a favour as this non-imputation such as godly sorrow and hearty repentance and an unfeigned purpose of amendment o'life therefore Qui vult finem vult media he that prays for another that God wu'd not lay his sins to his charge is presum'd to pray withal that God wu'd give him Grace to repent of his Sins this latter being the way and means to procure and obtain the former for as without shedding o' blood the blood o' Christ so without shedding o' tears the tears of a Sinner i. e. without godly sorrow and repentance there is no remission So then the Prayers of the faithful are a powerful and prevalent means whereby God is mov'd and enclin'd to give repentance to Sinners and consequently remission of Sins Let the Elders pray over the sick person says St. James and the Prayer of faith shall save the sick and if he have committed sins they shall be forgiven him therefore saith Simon Magus to Simon Peter here i' the next Chapter Pray to the Lord for me meaning as appears by the context that his Sins might be forgiv'n him And Pray not thou for this people says God to the Prophet implying that the Prophet's praying for 'um was the ordinary means to move God to give 'um a pardon and not to lay their sins to their charge That Austin ever was St. Austin he might partly thank his Mother Monica for her Prayers and Tears Fieri non potest ut filius istarum lacrymarum pereat So powerful and prevalent are the Prayers and Tears of holy Men and Women of Saints and Martyrs to obtain repentance and salvation for others the Prayers of Martyrs especially for as Sanguis Martyrum semen Ecclesiae so Oratio justi clavis coeli As the soil of the Church is manur'd and made fat by the blood of dying Martyrs so being blown and breath'd upon by the soft gentle gales of their Prayers especially of those Prayers they make for their enemies it becomes more fruitful by a new addition o' Converts and Proselytes who by observing both the constancy and charity of these holy men at their deaths by seeing their patience in constant suffering for the truth and by hearing or rather God's hearing their charity in such servent praying for their persecutors are effectually wrought upon converted

is escaped as a bird and we are delivered 1. Then The Church was in Danger and that 's no news the Church is in a conflicting condition militant here on earth a lily among thornes in the midst of her enemies among the pikes and many a push made at her many a snare laid for her And thus Israel the Church and people of God in King David's time was in great danger it seems and that by reason of a snare and that snare the snare of the fowlers whether Philistins or Ammonites or others And was not our Israel the Church of England the Church and people of God with us in as great danger too as upon this day 64 years ago and that by reason of a snare too the snare of the fowlers those Popish Philistins such a snare as the like was never laid by any fowlers that ever were such a Plot as the like was never contriv'd by all the wit and malice of Devils and Men the Gun-powder Treason which having once nam'd I have nam'd the very quintessence and elixir of all villany and barbarity mischief and cruelty a Plot that none but the Devil or a Jesuit or a Jesuited Papist could ever invent and a snare it was to purpose Wicked and ungodly men especially Tyrants and Persecutors the enemies of God and his Church are often in Scripture compared to Hunters and Fowlers and their mischeivous machinations malicious plots and contrivances to traps ginns and snares as in the book of Psalms and elswhere And very fitly so compar'd and that in these three respects especially 1. Because they are Mala dolosa occulta cunning and close mischiefs 2. Repentina improvisa sudden and unexpected 3. Perniciosa mortifera dangerous and deadly And was not this days treason a snare in all these respects 1. In regard of the closeness and cunningness of it A ginn or a snare is laid very closely and cunningly that the bird shall not see nor perceiv it for in vain the net is spread in the sight of any bird saith Solomon And such was the mischievous design of this day the snare was laid very closely and cunningly hid in a dark vault in a deep mine These Popish Pioneers and Powder Traytors dig'd so deep to hide and conceal and cover their Plot and Powder as if they would have dig'd as deep as Hell Flectere si nequeo superos as if when God and men fail'd them they would have mov'd and call'd in the Devils to help them indeed such a black and horrid treason could not be hatcht and hammer'd but in the Devil's forge in the deepest and darkest cell and caverns of hell A dark vault or coal-hous they hir'd to this purpose under the Parliament hous where in they hid their Wood and Powder and truly such a dark vault was a fit place for such a work of darkness and a coal-hous a fit shop for such Romish Incendiaries with their fides Carbonaria their Collier's faith Now besides this close and secret conveyance the better to cover and conceal their cursed conspiracy they bound themselvs by an Oath of Secrecy yea under the Seal of the holy Sacrament not to discover nor reveal it to any without common consent Thus closely and cunningly was the mischief contriv'd and the snare laid for a company of cunning Fowlers they were The cunning Fowler when he cannot get his quarrie nor kill the birds with his gun and shooting then he spreads his net then he falls to his snare then he lays his ginns and snares privily for them These Romish Fowlers or Hunters if you will yea and Fishers too for sure the Fisherman of Rome sub Annulo Piscatoris St. Peter's pretended successor had a main hand in the business I say these Popish Fowlers had often shot at us before and fought against us as in 88 and at other times Many a time had they fought against us c. Psal. 129. but they did not prevail against us Yea Catesby and Faux with some other of their complices had been very lately tampering with the Spanish Guns dealing with the King of Spain about an Invasion but when that fail'd and those Guns wu'd not go off nor take fire then they fall to the snare yet there was gun-powder good store in the snare too when they could not prevail against us by open force and violence then they make use of their craft and subtilty then they seek to entrap and entangle us with their ginns and snares their close secret Plots and Conspiracies for they had learn't Lysander's 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 when the lion's skin would not reach they peic't and eek't it out with the foxe's when neither the wild beasts of the field nor the roaring Bulls of Rome of themselves could do us any harm then those crafty subtil foxes the Jesuits seek to circumvent and supplant us to undermine and blow us up for 't was the Jesuites powder that was able to cure an ague and all other diseases 't was Father Garnet and Greenwell and others of that cunning crew the spawn of Ignatius with ignis fire in his name 't was they that animated and encouraged Catesby and Peircy and the rest of the Conspirators to undermine both Church and State to work in the mine and blow up King and Parliament Lords and Commons and all at a blast all of a sudden which leads me to the second Consideration the second Circumstance in respect whereof this horrible Plot and Conspiracy is fitly term'd a snare and that is 2. In regard of the suddenness and unexpectedness of it The bird is taken in the snare of a sudden ex improviso and surpriz'd at unawares Eccl. 9. 12 As the birds that are caught in the snare so are the sons of men snar'd in an evil time when it falleth suddenly upon them and Luke 21. 35 As a snare shall it come c. viz. the last day that is to say suddenly unexpectedly and unawares Such was the mischief of this day Malum repentinum improvisum sudden and unexpected in a time of general peace and tranquillity in the days of Great Brittain's Solomon wise and peaceable King James of happy Memory no forrain foes from abroad no domestic enemies suspected at home he having oblig'd his Roman Catholic Subjects as he thought by many signal favours when all things were thus calm and serene no clouds gathering at all in appearance then this storm was to break out of a sudden and fall upon King and Kingdom and like a Hurricane sweep all away in a moment Sudden it was in regard of the time and season when 't was contriv'd viz. when all was quiet and no such desperate or fatal blow was in the least fear'd or suspected as the bird is surpriz'd and caught in a snare when she little suspects it thus it was Malum improvisum And sudden it was too in regard of the quick dispatch and havock it would have made had it succeeded

compass of Omnis anima and have a Soul to save he must be subject to the Higher Powers honour the King or Kaisar obey him and reverence him and pay him due homage custome and tribute VVhat shall we say then that our Jesuits never read the precept of Jesus Reddite Caesari nor our Romanists the 13th to the Romans no● our pretended Catholics this Catholic Epistle of St. Peter Sure if they read it they do not regard it For were they to honour the King to be subject to the Higher Powers then and are not we now Consider but what Caesars Kings and Emperours they were in those days in the time of our Saviour and of his Apostles and afterward in the time of Tertullian and the rest of the Primitive Fathers for 300 years after Christ Tiberius and Caligula Nero and Domitian cruel and bloody Tyrants the very worst of the Roman Emperours yea the worst of men the very monsters of mankind these and the like in the time of Christ and his Apostles And then in the Primitive times Trajan Marcus Antoninus and others though the best of Heathen Emperours yet Heathen Emperours utter enemies to the Gospel and Church of Christ and cruel Persecutors of Christian Religion Give Caesar his due saith Christ though that Caesar was no other than Tiberius Lutum Sanguine maceratum a lump of clay molded and temper'd with blood as his School-master call'd him in regard of his dull and yet cruel disposition Honour the King saith St. Peter though that King or Emperour was no better than Claudius for it was in his reign that he wrote his Epistle Pontus Galatia and the rest that he wrote to being then Provinces of the Roman Empire I say Claudius a Heathen and wicked Emperour who banisht the Christians out of Rome Impulsore Chresto assiduè tumultuantes as Suetonius has it mistaking the word the name Chresto for Christo but much more the thing as if Christ had been a Ring-leader of Sedition and likewise the time as if he had liv'd in the days of Claudius whereas he suffered some years before in the reign of Tiberius And yet these were the Emperours whom the Primitive Christians were to honour How much more then does this duty concern us How much more should we honour the King the King whom this day God bless'd us with by bringing him into the world and also this day by a miracle of mercy restor'd unto us by bringing him back to his Kingdom even our Gracious King Charles the Second whom God long preserv not a Heathen Emperour but a Christian King not an Enemy to Christ and the Gospel nor a Persecutor of the Church and Christian Religion but a nursing Father of the Church a zealous Mainteiner of the Christian Religion of the true Orthodox Reformed Religion a Defender of the Faith of the true ancient Catholic and Apostolic Faith not a Nero or Dioclesian but a Constantine a Theodosius not a cruel and bloody Tyrant but the very picture and mirrour of Mildness and Clemency not a VVolf or Butcher of the flock but 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a Shepheard and Father of his people Under whose auspicious and gracious Protection we enjoy our Lives and Liberties and which are dearer to us our Church Faith and Religion the pure and Reformed Religion the true and sincere Worship and Service of God whereas before his happy Restauration you know how it was with us and in what sad and horrid confusions we were wrapt and involv'd both in Church and State For which ever-glorious and wonderful Revolution as with joyful and thankful hearts we look up unto God this day as the principal Author so we cannot but with loyal and humble hearts reflect upon our Gracious Sovereign as the cheif Instrument under God of all our happiness Therfore as we bless God so let us honour the King honour him with our substance by paying him due homage custome and tribute honour him by our Obedience in a chearful submitting to his Laws and Constitutions honour him by a dutiful Reverence and respect to his Sacred Person honour him with our hearts by entertaining high and honourable thoughts and apprehensions of him loving and loyal affections towards him honour him with our hands by fighting if need be or writing in defence of his Royal Person Crown and Dignity honour him with our mouths by speaking highly and honourably of him and not in the least kind slandering or aspersing disparaging or defaming Him or his Government Take we heed and beware of the blasphemous rudeness of those railing Rabshakehs and filthy dreamers who despise dominions and speak evil of dignities Jud. 8. or as our Apostle St. Peter has it they despise government and are not afraid to speak evil of dignities 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 they tremble not to blaspheme Dignities Blasphemy is properly against God now is a kind of Divinity in Dignities and Higher Powers so that to speak evil of them is a kind of blasphemy Naboth did blaspheme God and the King a capital crime had it been true but you see blaspheming God and the King go together He that blasphemes or speaks evil of the King blasphemes and speaks evil of God whose Image and Vicegerent he is Wherefore to conclude Honour we the King ore and opere both by word and deed I and corde too with our hearts and souls Let us show that we fear God by our honouring the King Let us declare our-selves to be good Christians by being good Subjects and so joyn these two together in our life and practice which St. Peter does here in the words of the Text Fear God Honour the King A SERMON Preached upon the Anniversary of the Gun-Powder Treason Psalm 124. v. 7. Our soul is escaped as a bird out of the snare of the fowlers the snare is broken and we are delivered THIS Psalm as ye may perceiv by the tenour of it all along is a Gratulatory or Eucharistical Hymn or Psalm of Prais and thanksgiving to God for delivering Israel both King and People for it was in King David's time the Author of the Psalm the Church and people of God out of the hands of their merciless and cruel enemies the Philistins most like or the Ammonites However some extraordinary preservation some remarkable signal deliverance belike it was and 't was the Dominus nobiscum that did the deed for If the Lord himself had not been on our side when men rose up against us they had swallowed us up quick c. but Blessed be the Lord who hath not given us over as a prey to their teeth Our soul is esaped c. In the words we may observ these three Particulars 1. The Danger that the Church was in or the Plot lay'd for her i. e. The snare of the fowlers 2. The Prevention of the Danger or the Defeating and Disappointing of the Plot The snare is broken 3. The Churche's Deliverance and safety ensuing thereupon Our soul