Selected quad for the lemma: death_n
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A93601
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Scintillula altaris. or, A pious reflection on primitive devotion : as to the feasts and fasts of the Christian Church, orthodoxally revived. / By Edward Sparke, B.D.; Thysiasterion.
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Sparke, Edward, d. 1692.
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1652
(1652)
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Wing S4807; Wing S4806; Thomason E1219_1; ESTC R203594
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218,173
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522
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his own free gracious act On our part undeserv'd oppos'd effect Light on us therefore O Celestial Dove So with thy Fanning Wings inflame our Love That Earth with grateful Harmony may sing With those Aetherial Spirits to Heavens King That both in compleat Consort so aspire Till all one Hallelujah singing Quire Then they 're ill Shepherds sure will not always Together with their Flocks Christ this day praise The COLLECT PRAYER The Epistle Heb. 1. from vers 1. to 13. The Gospel John 1. from vers 1. to 15. Almighty God which hast given us thy onely begotten Son to take our nature upon him and this day to be born of a pure Virgin Grant that we being regenerate and made thy children by Adoption and Grace may daily be renewed by thy holy Spirit through the same our Lord Jesus Christ who liveth and reigneth c. The stoning of Steuen Act 7* 58 And cast him out of the Citie and stoned him the witnesses layd downe there clothes at a voung mans feete named Saul 59 And they Stoned Steuen who called on God and said Lord Jesus receiue my spirit 60 And he kneeled downe cried with a loud voyce Lord laye not this sinne to there charge etc The Plate here Saint Stephens Day DISQUISITION 4. YEsterday presented a Nativity and this a Martyrdome like a Deaths-head served up at a Festivall the Church thereby first tacitly intimating human Condition both our natural accidental frailty how neer our End bordereth on our Birth Finisque ab origine pendet And yet how many outward dangers equalling inward diseases hasten the pace of precipitating Nature Vitae unicus introitus mille exitus Our life for one sole ingress having many thousand out-lets And secondly expressly desirous by joyning these two Festivals that we should all learn to live well as Christ and to die well as St. Stephen Ideo natus est Dominus ut moreretur pro servo In a Sermon on St. Stephen ne servus deficeret mora pro Domino saith holy Austin yesterday we celebrated the Birth of that heavenly King of Martyrs born into the World and to day the first fruits of Martyrs going out of the world It behoved the Immortall saith he First to take Flesh for Mortals that so mortall man might the better contemn Death for the Immortall Therefore was the Lord born to die for his servant that the servant might not fear to die for his Lord. Christ was born in Earth that Saint Stephen and his other followers might be born in Heaven Christus pro nobis induit hominem Stephanus pro Christo hominem exuit Christ for us put on human Flesh and Saint Stephen here for Christ put it off The story is so obvious that I shall need only glance on it out of the Scriptures for the Day Acts 7. it consisting of two remarkables Acts 7. viz. the Jews cruelty and his Piety their bloody and his godly behaviour in his Martyrdome First here Mat. 23. They retaining their old Title of Killers and stoners of the Prophets put him to death who endeavoured to bring them to everlasting life by his large Sermon to them Acts 7. that sweet 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Acts 7. or Recapitulation of the whole sacred Scripture Law Prophets and Evangelists even from Abraham to Christ whom he would have applied home to them had not their fury withstood their conversion even that they should have seen him as he did at the right hand of God but that they stopt him there with a Constructive Blaspphemy becomming Accusers Judges and Executioners all at once presently beginning their persecution with their tongues and teeth v. 54. gnashing on him with c. beside the malice of their tongues that they could even tear his Flesh but that their hands beguiled their mouthes with as ready and more mortall instruments The Jews had among them Quatuor magna supplicia foure speciall sorts of torments besides their bonds and scourgings and other lighter punishments which they had borrow'd from Scythians the Masters of those Arts and other cruell Heathens as the first was Burning Gen. 38.24 Dan. 3.22 The second Casting to wild Beasts Dan. 6. and St. Pauls Case supposed by many 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 1 Cor. 15.32 Thirdly Stoning Exod. 19 13. And lastly Crucifying Luke 23.21 as all are frequently to be seen elsewhere in Scripture but of all this of stoning was most ordinary among them as the onely Deucalion-race of mankind Vnde homines nati durum genus ad lapides currebunt saith * Loco citat St. Augustine Duri ad duros Presently they run to stones hard hearts unto hard instruments of mischief whether for their readiness cheapness fatalness I argue not or as the best Emblems of their flinty nature Sed Petris lapidabatur qui pro Petra i. Christo moriebatur but with stones destroyed they the servant of him who was the chiefe Corner stone and Rock of his Church Jesus Christ an harsh and an hard act of a right stony people whose obduratnesse to God and man hath turn'd their memory into a Niobean monument of shame not sorrow while Arator hath inscribed this due Epitaph Lapides Judaea rebellis In Stephanū lymphata rupis qua crimine duro Saxea semper eris Arator lib. Carm. in Act. Rebellious Judah that did Stephen stone For that hard act shall pittied be of none Till at length their Punishment so ecchoed their Sin that for their killing of the Prophets and stoning them who were sent unto them Non lapis super lapidem inter Lapidatores Their House was left to them so desolate that not a stone was left upon a stone Matth. 24.2 O let all their Successors consider this not onely in Judea but in England or where ever that still make the Prophets cry and sigh and that as lowd as in most times heard heretofore Psal 44.22 onely with a little cruell variation For sheep appointed to be slain Pastors appointed to be starv'd Think of stony Jerusalem avoid her sins and so her Plagues lest likewise the same judgement follow and overtake you Temporall your house be left unto you desolate Spiritual Christ saying You shall not see me henceforth Matth. 23. And eternall that upon you come not all the righteous blood both of Abel and Zechariah i. both of Laicks and Clergy So Cajet in locum Sanguine fundata est Ecclesia sanguine crevit Sanguine decrescit sanguine finis erit Christs bloud did found his Church and Saints increase Which wains in storms yet in 's Foes bloud shall cease But now to take a glimpse of that which more particularly concerns us observe St. Stephens behaviour in his suffering an excellent Patern to reflect on at our deaths made up of Piety and Charity a man of an high Character and and that by the pencill of the Highest * Acts 6.55 Full of faith and power of the Holy Ghost v. 55. a
* Expos in Gal. c. 1. four sorts of Apostles viz. Some sent immediately from God as the Prophets under the Law 2 Pet. 1.21 Jesus Christ and John Baptist at the beginning of the Gospel John 1.6 and 20.21 Some immediately from God the Son in his state mortal as the Twelve Apostles Matth. 10.5 Matth. 10. in his state glorious as Saint Paul Acts 9. Others are sent by men onely as those who unworthy both as to Life and Learning croud notwithstanding into the Ministry Others you see neither chosen of God or called of men for the choice is known by the Talents as the false Prophets of whom Jeremy complains Jere. 23.21 Phil. 3.2 John 10.1 Matth. 7.15 They ran and I never sent them c. Evil workers Theeves climbing into the Church at the Window not entring in at the door Wolves in sheeps clothing c. Lastly Others both elected of God and Ordained by men as the Bishops of Ephesus Acts 20. And other Priests and Deacons of the Primitive Church Acts 14. As all Orthodox Ministers of the Word and Sacraments among us Now Saint Peter you see was one of the first sort an Apostle chosen of God by Christ himself immediately with whom he grew so highly into Favor that he became one of Christs Triumvirate that is one of his three eminently beloved Disciples not onely of his Councel as they say but of his Cabinet With him in all serious transactions Matth. 17. with him in Tabor Matth. 17. where he participateth heavenly society and as it were anticipates the glories of the Resurrection desirous not to change the scene Bonum est esse hîc Would fain be building Tabernacles there It is good for us to be here c. Nor doth Christ onely grace him with miracles by Land but by Sea also Chap. 14.19 Matth. 14. Causing him to take a walk with him upon the waters and when his Leaden-Faith there began to sink him lent him more then bladders of assistance beside teaching him to angle treasure out of it to take Fish of more then their own value Chap. 17.27 Matth. 17. And all this while he seemed to be a kinde of Rock of Power Faith and Favor But when once out of self-love or carnal fear he disswades Christ from his sufferings Matth. 16. Chap. 16.23 Master be good to thy self Let not this happen unto thee c. Then he seems a Reed again and is shaken to some purpose Christ giving him sharp words nay the very same rebuke as he did to the Devil in his temptation Chap. 4.10 Matth. 4. Get thee behinde me Satan c. and very fitly for it came from him to break the design of our Lords coming and to obstruct the work of our Redemption Yet this Slip he recovered afterward and his Faith like a broken bone well set again seemed stronger then ever it was before Matth. 26. Chap. 26.32 c. Where our Saviour telling them That the Shepherd should be smitten c. That all should be offended at him and forsake him makes a bold Catholike challenge Though all men be offended yet will not I and for all Christs subjunction defieth death it self to exhort his denial Stout Rock indeed that stands against all storms and billows nay and at Christs apprehension in the Garden he began to act according to this rate whispering death in Malchu's Ear but that Christ by an ex tempore miracle cured one and cooled the other How sociable was his Master with him in frequent Dialogues especially that most remarkable in the Gospel of this day Chap. 16.13 c. Matth. 16. Whom do men say that I am c. Whom say yee And Simon Peter answered Thou art Christ the Son of the Living God And Jesus answered Blessed art thou Simon Bar-Jona c. As if Christ should have said I am the natural Son of God 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as thou art of Jona Non te opinio terrena fefellit sed inspiratio coelestis instruxit Englished in Verse 17. Flesh and blood hath not revealed this unto thee but John 6.44 c. Faith is the work of God and no man cometh unto me except the Father draw him Vpon this Rock will I build my Church c. And now we are among the Rocks indeed many busying their Subtilty and Learning to distort this passage to the proof of Saint Peters lordship over the rest of the Apostles and so though inconsequently of that Iatalian Phaëton's unlimited Jurisdiction To say nothing of Gardners * See Fox Acts Mon. in John Rogers Martyrd Contradictory Exposition of it in his several Sermons before King Edward the fixt and Queen Mary like many others being of the Religion of the times the stream of the Ancient and the Orthodox run otherwise expounding it of the Faith of Peter not the favor of his confession which was Commune symbolum the Creed of the Apostles and not of his person So Saint Augustine * Tract 124. in Johannem Serm. 13. de Verb. Domini frequently Petrus à Petrâ non è contrâ Peter is denominated from the Rock and not the Rock from Peter as a Christian is derived from Christ and not Christ from a Christian Aedificabo te super me non me super te I will build thee upon me not me upon thee I will build my Church upon my self the Son of the Living God And whereas he did once construe this of Saint Peter he retracted that Opinion expounding it of Christ as Hierome * Comment in Amos. Gregory * Moral 31. c. 34. Primasius Anselm and others do Fundamentum Ecclesiae Fides saith St. Ambrose * Ephes 2. in locum His Faith was the Rock for which Simon was called Peter and the Foundation whereon the Church is built many of the School-men herein siding with the Fathers viz. Hugo Cardinalis Suarez Vide Boys Postils in Festo Ferus Tostatus c. And it is a common Axiom * Aquin 1. part quaest 1. Art 10. Symbolica Theologia non est argumentativa that is That in matters of Divinity Arguments are of no efficacy fetched from Allegories Metaphors and Similitudes But not to detain you in these rough Speculations me thinks it is evident of the Faith of Peter and not of the person from the very Context Christ not more highly dignifying him in the Eighteen and nineteen Verses then sharply reprehending him in the Three and twentieth as before expressed else what a strange change in Three or four Verses Besides alas For his own particular what a weak Rock was he afterward or a Reed rather at our Saviours sufferings shaken with wind of a Damsels breath How was he besmutted at the High Priests fire For all his former Protestations Matth. 26.69 c. denying his Master his own Name his Countrey denying not onely his relation but his knowledge of him denying again and