Graces of the Spirit or think that Gods gifts are the lesse because they are born in Earthen Vessels 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for all men bear Mortality about them and the Cabinet is not beauteous as the Diamond that shines within its bosom then we may without interruption pay this duty to Piety and Friendship and Thankfulness and deplore our sad loss by telling a true and sad story of this great man whom God hath lately taken from our eyes He was bred in Cambridge in Sidney-college under Mr. Hulet a grave and a worthy man and he shewed himself not onely a fruitful Plant by his great progress in his Studies but made him another return of gratitude taking care to provide a good Imployment for him in Ireland where he then began to be greatly interested It was spoken as an honour to Augustus Caesar that he gave his Tutor an honourable Funeral and Marcus Antoninus erected a Statue unto his and Gratian the Emperour made his Master Ausonius to be Consul And our worthy Primate knowing the Obligation which they pass upon us who do Obstetricari gravidae animae help the parturient Soul to bring forth fruits according to its seminal powers was careful not onely to reward the industry of such persons so useful to the Church in the cultivating infantes palmarum young Plants whose joynts are to be stretch'd and made streight but to demonstrate that his Scholar knew how to value Learning when he knew so well how to reward the Teacher Having pass'd the course of his studies in the University and done his Exercise with that Applause which is usually the reward of pregnant Wits and hard study he was remov'd into York-shire where first in the City of York he was an assiduous Preacher but by the disposition of the Divine Providence he happened to be engaged at North-Alerton in Disputation with three pragmatical Romish Priests of the Jesuits Order whom he so much worsted in the Conference and so shamefully disadvantaged by the evidence of Truth represented wisely and learnedly that the famous Primate of York Archbishop Matthews a learned and an excellent Prelate and a most worthy Preacher hearing of that Triumph sent for him and made him his Chaplain in whose service he continued till the death of the Primate but in that time had given so much testimony of his great Dexterity in the Conduct of Ecclesiastical and Civil Affairs that he grew dear to his Master In that Imployment he was made Prebendary of York and then of Rippon the Dean of which Church having made him his Sub-Dean he managed the affairs of that Church so well that he soon acquir'd a greater fame and entered into the possession of many hearts and admiration to those many more that knew him There and at his Parsonage he continued long to do the duty of a learned and good Preacher and by his Wisdom Eloquence and Deportment so gain'd the affections of the Nobility Gentry and Commons of that Countrey that as at his return thither upon the blessed Restauration of His most Sacred Majesty he knew himself oblig'd enough and was so kind as to give them a Visit so they by their coming in great numbers to meet him their joyful Reception of him their great Caressing of him when he was there their forward hopes to enjoy him as their Bishop their trouble at his Departure their unwillingness to let him go away gave signal testimonies that they were wise and kind enough to understand and value his great worth But while he lived there he was like a Diamond in the dust or Lucius Quinctius at the plough his low Fortune covered a most valuable person till he became observ'd by Sir Thomas Wentworth Lord President of York whom we all knew for his great Excellencies and his great but glorious Misfortunes This rare person espied the great abilities of Doctor Bramhall and made him his Chaplain and brought him into Ireland as one whom he believ'd would prove the most fit instrument to serve in that design which for two years before his arrival here he had greatly meditated and resolved the Reformation of Religion and the Reparation of the broken Fortunes of the Church The Complaints were many the Abuses great the Causes of the Church vastly numerous but as fast as they were brought in so fast they were by the Lord Deputy referred back to Dr. Bramhall who by his indefatigable Pains great Sagacity perpetual Watchfulness daily and hourly Consultations reduc'd things to a more tolerable condition then they had been left in by the Schismatical principles of some and the unjust Prepossessions of others form any years before For at the Reformation the Popish Bishops and Priests seemed to conform and did so that keeping their Bishopricks they might enrich their Kindred and dilapidate the Revenues of the Church which by pretended Offices false Informations Fee-farms at contemptible Rents and ungodly Alienations were made low as Poverty it self and unfit to minister to the needs of them that serv'd the Altar or the noblest purposes of Religion For Hospitality decayed and the Bishops were easie to be oppressed by those that would and they complained but for a long time had no helper till God raised up that glorious Instrument the Earl of Strafford who brought over with him as great affections to the Church and to all publick Interests and as admirable Abilities as ever before his time did invest and adorn any of the Kings Vicegerents and God fitted his hand with an Instrument good as his skill was great For the first Specimen of his Abilities and Diligence in recovery of some lost Tithes being represented to His late Majesty of blessed and glorious memory it pleased His Majesty upon the death of Bishop Downham to advance the Doctor to the Bishoprick of Dâ—rry which he not onely adorned with an excellent spirit and a wise Government but did more then double the Revenue not by taking any thing from them to whom it was due but by resuming something of the Churches Patrimony which by undue means was detained in unfitting hands But his care was beyond his Diocese and his zele broke out to warm all his Brethren and though by reason of the Favour and Piety of King James the escheated Counties were well provided for their Tithes yet the Bishopricks were not so well till the Primate then Bishop of Derry by the favour of the Lord Lieutenant and his own incessant and assiduous labour and wise conduct brought in divers Impropriations cancell'd many unjust Alienations and did restore them to a condition much more tolerable I say much more tolerable for though he rais'd them above contempt yet they were not near to envy but he knew there could not in all times be wanting too many that envied to the Church every degree of prosperity so Judas did to Christ the expence of Oyntment and so Dyonisius told the Priest When himself stole the golden Cloak from Apollo and gave him one of
being in Gods favâ—ur upon the only account of being of such an opinion and that when we are once in we can never be out We are taught to believe that the events of things do not depend upon our crucifying our evil and corrupt affections but upon eternal and unalterable Counsels that the promises are not the rewards of obedience but graces pertaining only to a few praedestinates and yet men are Saints for all that and that the Laws of God are of the race of the Giants not to be observed by any grace or by any industry this is the Catechism of the ignorant and the prophane but without all peradventure the contrary propositions are the way to make the world better but certainly they that believe these things do not believe it necessary that we should eschew all evil and no wonder then if when men upon these accounts slacken their industry and their care they find sin still prevailing still dwelling within them and still unconquerable by so slight and disheartned labours For 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 every fool and every ignorant person is a child still and it is no wonder that he who talks foolishly should do childishly and weakly 3. To our weak and corrupted nature and our foolish discourses men do dayly superinduce evil habits and customs of sinning Consuetudo mala tanquam hamus infixus animae said the Father an evil custom is a hook in the soul and draws it whither the Devil pleases When it comes to the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as Peter's word is a heart exercised with covetous practices then it is also 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 it is weak and unable to do the good it fain would or to avoid the evil which in a good fit it pretends to hate This is so known I shall not insist upon it but adde this only that wherever a habit is contracted it is all one what the instance be it is as easie as delicious as unalterable in vertue as in vice for what helps nature brings to a vitious habit the same and much more the Spirit of God by his power and by his comforts can do in a vertuous and then we are well again You see by this who are and why they are in this evil condition The evil natures and the evil principles and the evil manners of the world these are the causes of our imperfect willings and weaker actings in the things of God and as long as men stay here sin will be unavoidable For even meat it self is loathsom to a sick stomack and it is impossible for him that is heart-sick to eat the most wholsom diet and yet he that shall say eating is impossible will be best confuted by seeing all the healthful men in the world eat heartily every day 2. But what then Cannot sin be avoided Cannot a Christian mortifie the deeds of the body Cannot Christ redeem us and cleanse us from all our sins Cannot the works of the Devil be destroyed That 's the next particular to be inquired of Whether or no it be not necessary and therefore very possible for a servant of God to pass from this evil state of things and not only hate evil but avoid it also He that saith he hath not sinned is a lyar but what then Because a Man hath sinned it does not follow he must do so always Hast thou sinned do so no more said the wise Bensirach and so said Christ to the poor Paralytick Go and sin no more They were excellent words spoken by a holy Prophet Let not the sinner say he hath not sinned For God shall burn coals of fire upon his head that saith before the Lord God and his glory I have not sinned Well! that case is confessed All men have sinned and come short of the glory of God But is there no remedy for this Must it always be so and sin for ever must have the upper hand and for ever baffle our resolutions and all our fierce and earnest promises of amendment God forbid there was a time then to come and blessed be God it hath been long come Yet a little while saith that Prophet and iniquity shall be taken out of the earth and righteousness shall reign among you For that 's in the day of Christs kingdom the manifestation of the Gospel when Christ reigns in our hearts by his Spirit Dagon and the Ark cannot stand together we cannot serve Christ and Belial And as in the state of nature no good thing dwells within us so when Christ rules in us no evil thing can abide For every plant that my heavenly Father hath not planted shall be rooted up and cast away into the fires of consumption or purification But how shall this come to pass since we all find our selves so infinitely weak and foolish I shall tell you It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter into the Kingdom of heaven said Christ. It is impossible to nature it is impossible to them that are given to vanity it is impossible for them that delight in the evil snare But Christ adds With men this is impossible but with God all things are possible What we cannot do for our selves God can do for us and with us What Nature cannot do the Grace of God can So that the thing may be done not indeed by our selves but gratia Dei mecum saith S. Paul God and man together can do it But if it can be done any way that God hath put into our powers the consequent is this No mans good will shall be taken in exchange for the real and actual mortification of his sins He that sins and would fain not sin but sin is present with him whether he will or no let him take heed for the same is the Law of sin and the Law of death saith the Apostle and that mans heart is not right with God For it is impossible men should pray for deliverance and not be heard that they should labour and not be prosperous unless they pray amiss and labour falsely Let no man therefore please himself with talking of great things with perpetual conversation in pious discourses or with ineffective desires of serving God He that does not practise as well as he talks and do what he desires and what he ought to do confesses himself to sin greatly against his conscience and it is a prodigious folly to think that he is a good man because though he does sin yet it was against his mind to do so A mans conscience can never condemn him if that be his excuse to say that his conscience checkt him and that will be but a sad apology at the day of Judgement Some men talk like Angels and pray with great fervor and meditate with deep recesses and speak to God with loving affections and words of union and adhere to him in silent devotion and when they go abroad are as passionate as ever peevish as a
judge his people in Righteousness that their good things be not abolished and that their glory may endure for ever 4. All the offices Ecclesiastical alwayes were and ought to be conducted by the Episcopal order as is evident in the universal doctrine and practise of the primitive Church 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 It is the 40 th Canon of the Apostles Let the Presbyters and Deacons do nothing without leave of the Bishop But that case is known The consequent of this consideration is no other then the admonition in my text We are Stewards of the manifold Grace of God and dispensers of the mysteries of the Kingdom and it is required of Stewards that they be found faithful that we preach the word of God in season and out of season that we rebuke and exhort admonish and correct for these God calls Pastores secundùm cor meum Pastors according to his own heart which feed the people with knowledge and understanding but they must also comfort the afflicted and bind up the broken heart minister the Sacraments with great diligence and righteous measures and abundant charity alwayes having in mind those passionate words of Christ to S. Peter If thou lovest me feed my sheep If thou hast any love to me feed my lambs And let us remember this also that nothing can enforce the people to obey their Bishops as they ought but our doing that duty and charity to them which God requires There is reason in these words of S. Chrysostom It is necessary that the Church should adhere to their Bishop as the body to the head as plants to their roots as rivers to their springs as children to their Fathers as Disciples to their Masters These similitudes express not only the relation and dependency but they tell us the reason of the duty The head gives light and reason to conduct the body the roots give nourishment to the plants and the springs perpetual emanation of waters to the chanels Fathers teach and feed their children and Disciples receive wise instruction from their Masters and if we be all this to the people they will be all that to us and wisdom will compel them to submit and our humility will teach them obedience and our charity will invite their compliance Our good example will provoke them to good works and our meekness will melt them into softness and flexibility For all the Lords people are populus voluntarius a free and willing people and we who cannot compel their bodies must thus constrain their souls by inviting their wills by convincing their understandings by the beauty of fair example the efficacy and holiness and the demonstrations of the spirit This is experimentum ejus qui in nobis loquitur Christus The experiment of Christ that speaketh in us For to this purpose those are excellent words which S. Paul spake Remember them who have the rule over you whose faith follow considering the end of their conversation There lyes the demonstration and those prelates who teach good life whose Sermons are the measures of Christ and whose life is a copy of their Sermons these must be followed and surely these will for these are burning and shining lights but if we hold forth false fires and by the amusement of evil examples call the vessels that sail upon a dangerous sea to come upon a rock or an iron shoar instead of a safe harbour we cause them to make shipwrack of their precious Faith and to perish in the deceitful and unstable waters Vox operum fortiùs sonat quà m verborum A good life is the strongest argument that your faith is good and a gentle voice will be sooner entertained then a voice of thunder but the greatest eloquence in the world is a meek spirit and a liberal hand these are the two pastoral staves the Prophet speaks of nognam hovelim beauty and bands he that hath the staff of the beauty of holiness the ornament of fair example he hath also the staff of bands atque in funiculis Adam trahet eos in vinculis chaâ—itatis as the Prophet Hosea's expression is he shall draw the people after him by the cords of a man by the bands of a holy charity But if against all these demonstrations any man will be refractary We have instead of a staff an Apostolical rod which is the last and latest remedy and either brings to repentance or consigns to ruin and reprobation If there were any time remaining I could reckon that the Episcopal order is the principle of Unity in the Church and we see it is so by the inumerable Sects that sprang up when Episcopacy was persecuted I could adde how that Bishops were the cause that S. John wrote his Gospel that the Christian Faith was for 300. years together bravely defended by the sufferings the prisons and flames the life and the death of Bishops as the principal Combatants That the Fathers of the Church whose writings are held in so great veneration in all the Christian World were almost all of them Bishops I could adde that the Reformation of Religion in England was principally by the Preachings and the disputings the writings and the Martyrdom of Bishops That Bishops have ever since been the greatest defensatives against Popery That England and Ireland were governed by Bishops ever since they were Christian and under their conduct have for so many ages enjoyed all the blessings of the Gospel I could add also that Episcopacy is the great stabiliment of Monarchy but of this we are convinced by a sad and too dear bought experience I could therefore in stead of it say that Episcopacy is the great ornament of Religion that as it rescues the Clergy from contempt so it is the greatest preservâ—tive of the peoples liberty from Ecclesiastick Tyranny on one hand the Gentry being little better then servants while they live under the Presbytery and Anarchy and licentiousness on the other That it endears obedience and is subject to the Laws of Princes And is wholly ordained for the good of mankind and the benefit of Souls But I cannot stay to number all the blessings which have entered into the World at this door I only remark these because they describe unto us the Bishops imployment which is to be busy in the service of Souls to do good in all capacities to serve every mans need to promote all publick benefits to cement Governments to establish peace to propagate the Kingdom of Christ to do hurt to no man to do good to every man that is so to minister that Religion and Charity publick peace and private blessings may be in their exaltation As long as it was thus done by the Primitive Bishops the Princes and the people gave them all honour Insomuch that by a decree of Constantine the great the Bishop had power given him to retract the sentences made by the Presidents of Provinces and we find in the acts of S. Nicholas that he
certainty from uncertain fears to certain expectations from the death of the body to the life of the soul that is to partake of the light and life of Christ to rise to life as he did for his Resurrection is the beginning of ours He died for us alone not for himself but he rose again for himself and us too So that if he did rise so shall we the Resurrection shall be universal good and bad all shall rise but not altogether First Christ then we that are Christs and yet there is a third Resurrection though not spoken of here but thus it shall be The dead in Christ shall rise first that is next to Christ and after them the wicked shall rise to condemnation So that you see here is the summe of affairs treated of in my Text Not whether it be lawful to eat a Tortoise or a Mushrome or to tread with the foot bare upon the ground within the Octaves of Easter It is not here inquired whether Angels be material or immaterial or whether the dwellings of dead Infants be within the Air or in the regions of the Earth the inquiry here is whether we are to be Christians or no whether we are to live good lives or no or whether it be permitted to us to live with Lust or Covetousness acted with all the daughters of rapine and ambition whether there be any such thing as sin any judicatory for Consciences any rewards of Piety any difference of Good and Bad any rewards after this life This is the design of these words by proper interpretation for if Men shall die like Dogs and sheep they will certainly live like Wolves and Foxes but he that believes the Article of the Resurrection hath entertained the greatest Demonstration in the world That nothing can make us happy but the Knowledge of God and Conformity to the life and death of the holy Jesus Here therefore are the great Hinges of all Religion 1. Christ is already risen from the dead 2. We also shall rise in Gods time and our order Christ is the first fruits But there shall be a full harvest of the Resurrection and all shall rise My Text speaks onely of the Resurrection of the just of them that belong to Christ explicitely I say of these and therefore directly of Resurrection to life eternal But because he also sayes there shall be an order for every man and yet every man does not belong to Christ therefore indirectly also he implies the more universal Resurrection unto judgment But this shall be the last thing that shall be done for according to the Proverb of the Jews Michael flies but with one wing and Gabriel with two God is quick in sending Angels of peace and they flye apace but the messengers of wrath come slowly God is more hasty to glorifie his servants then to condemn the wicked And therefore in the story of Dives and Lazarus we find that the beggar died first the good man Lazarus was first taken away from his misery to his comfort and afterwards the rich man died and as the good many times die first so all of them rise first as if it were a matter of haste And as the mothers breasts swell and shoot and long to give food to her babe so Gods bowels did yearn over his banish'd children and he longs to cause them to eat and drink in his Kingdom And at last the wicked shall rise unto condemnation for that must be done too every man in his own order first Christ then Christs servants and at last Christs enemies The first of these is the great ground of our faith the second is the consummation of all our hopes the first is the foundation of God that stands sure the second is that superstructure that shall never perish by the first we believe in God unto righteousness by the second we live in God unto salvation But the third for that also is true must be consider'd is the great affrightment of all them that live ungodly But in the whole Christs Resurrection and ours is the Α and Ω of a Christian that as Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and to day and the same for ever so may we in Christ become in the morrow of the Resurrection the same or better then yesterday in our natural life the same body and the same soul tied together in the same essential union with this onely difference that not Nature but Grace and Glory with an Hermetick seal give us a new signature whereby we shall no more be changed but like unto Christ our head we shall become the same for ever Of these I shall discourse in order 1. That Christ who is the first fruits is the first in this order he is already risen from the dead 2. We shall all take our turns we shall all die and as sure as death we shall all rise again And 3. This very order is effective of the thing it self That Christ is first risen is the demonstration and certainty of ours for because there is an order in this oeconomy the first in the kind is the measure of the rest If Christ be the first fruits we are the whole vintage and we shall all die in the order of Nature and shall rise again in the order of Christ They that are Christ's and are found so at his coming shall partake of his resurrection But Christ first then they that are Christ's that 's the order 1. Christ is the first fruits he is already risen from the dead For he alone could not be held by death Free among the dead 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Death was Sins eldest daughter and the Grave-clothes were her first mantle but Christ was conquerour over both and came to take that away and to disarm this This was a glory fit for the head of mankind but it was too great and too good to be easily believ'd by incredulous and weak-hearted Man It was at first doubted of by all that were concerned but they that saw it had no reason to doubt any longer But what 's that to us who saw it not Yes very much Valde dubitatum est ab illis ne dubitaretur à nobis saith S. Augustine They doubted very much that by their confirmation we might be established and doubt no more Mary Magdalene saw him first and she ran with joy and said she had seen the Lord and that he was risen from the dead but they believed her not After that divers women together saw him and they told it but had no thanks for their pains and obtain'd no credit among the Disciples The two Disciples that went to Emaus saw him talk'd with him eat with him and they ran and told it they told true but nobody believ'd them Then S. Peter saw him but he was not yet got into the Chair of the Catholick Church they did not think him iâ—fallible and so they believ'd him not at all Five times in
under the arms of all the Enemies of the Roman greatness This is a less wonder than the former for admonetur omnis aetas jam fieri posse quod aliquando factum est If it was done once it may be done again for since it could never have been done but by a power that is infinite that infinite must also be eternal and indeficient By the same Almighty power which restor'd life to the dead body of our living Lord we may all be restor'd to a new life in the Resurrection of the dead When Man was not what power what causes made him to be whatsoever it was it did then as great a work as to raise his body to the same being again and because we know not the method of Natures secret changes and how we can be fashioned beneath in secreto terrae and cannot handle and discern the possibilities and seminal powers in the ashes of dissolved bones must our ignorance in Philosophy be put in balance against the Articles of Religion the hopes of Mankind the Faith of Nations and the truth of God and are our Opinions of the power of God so low that our understanding must be his measure and he shall be confessed to do nothing unless it be made plain in our Philosophy Certainly we have a low Opinion of God unless we believe he can do more things then we can understand But let us hear S. Paul's demonstration If the Corn dies and lives again if it layes its body down suffers alteration dissolution and death but at the spring rises again in the verdure of a leaf in the fulness of the ear in the kidneys of wheat if it proceeds from little to great from nakedness to ornament from emptiness to plenty from unity to multitude from death to life be a Sadducee no more shame not thy understanding and reproch not the weakness of thy Faith by thinking that Corn can be restor'd to life and Man cannot especially since in every creature the obediential capacity is infinite and cannot admit degrees for every Creature can be any thing under the power of God which cannot be less than infinite But we find no obscure foot-steps of this mystery even amongst the Heathens Pliny reports that Appion the Grammarian by the use of the plant 0siris call'd Homer from his grave and in Valerius Maximus we find that Aelius Tubero return'd to life when he was seated in his Funeral pile and in Plutarch that Soleus after three dayes burial did live and in Valerius that Aeris Pamphilius did so after ten dayes And it was so commonly believ'd that Glaucus who was choked in a vessel of honey did rise again that it grew to a Proverb Glaucus poto melle resurrexit Glaucus having tasted honey died and liv'd again I pretend not to believe these stories true but from these instances it may be concluded that they believ'd it possible that there should be a Resurrection from the dead and natural reason and their Philosophy did not wholly destroy their hopes and expectation to have a portion in this Article For God knowing that the great hopes of Man that the biggest endearment of Religion the sanction of private Justice the band of Piety and holy Courage does wholly derive from the Article of the Resurrection was pleased not onely to make it credible but easie and familiar to us and we so converse every night with the Image of death that every morning we find an argument of the Resurrection Sleep and Death have but one mother and they have one name in common Soles occidere redire possunt Nobis cum semel occidit lux brevis Nox est perpetua una dormienda Catul. Charnel-houses are but 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Cemeteries or sleeping-places and they that die are fallen asleep and the Resurrection is but an awakening and standing up from sleep but in sleep our Senses are as fast bound by Nature as our Joynts are by the grave-clothes and unless an Angel of God awaken us every morning we must confess our selves as unable to converse with Men as we now are afraid to die and to converse with Spirits But however Death it self is no more it is but darkness and a shadow a rest and a forgetfulness What is there more in death what is there less in sleep For do we not see by experience that nothing of equal loudness does awaken us sooner then a Mans voice especially if he be call'd by name and thus also it shall be in the Resurrection We shall be awakened by the voice of a Man and he that call'd Lazarus by name from his grave shall also call us for although S. Paul affirms that the trumpet shall sound and there shall be the voice of an Archangel yet this is not a word of Nature but of Office and Ministry Christ himself is that Archangel and he shall descend with a mighty shout saith the Apostle and all that are in the grave shall hear his voice saith S. John So that we shall be awakened by the voice of a Man because we are onely fallen asleep by the decree of God and when the Cock and the Lark call us up to prayer and labour the first thing we see is an argument of our Resurrection from the dead And when we consider what the Greek Church reports That amongst them the bodies of those that die Excommunicate will not return to dust till the Censure be taken off we may with a little faith and reason believe that the same power that keeps them from their natural Dissolution can recall them to life and union I will not now insist upon the story of the Rising Bones seen every year in Egypt nor the pretences of the Chymists that they from the ashes of Flowers can re-produce from the same materials the same beauties i◠colour and figure for he that proves a certain Truth from an uncertain Argument is like him that wears a Wooden leg when he hath two sound legs already it hinders his going but helps him not The Truth of God stands not in need of such supporters Nature alone is a sufficient preacher Quae nunc herba fuit lignum jacet berba futura Aeriae nudantur aves cum penna vetusta Et nova subvestit reparatas pluma volucres Night and Day the Sun returning to the same point of East every change of Species in the same matter Generation and Corruption the Eagle renewing her youth and the Snake her skin the Silk-worm and the Swallows the care of posterity and the care of an immortal name Winter and Summer the Fall and Spring the Old Testament and the New the words of Job and the Visions of the Prophets the prayer of Ezekiel for the resurrection of the men of Ephraim and the return of Jonas from the Whales belly the histories of the Jews and the Narratives of Christians the Faith of Believers and the Philosophy of the reasonable all joyn in the verification of
this Mystery And amongst these heaps it is not of the least consideration that there was never any good man who having been taught this Article but if he serv'd God he also relied upon this If he believ'd God he believ'd this and therefore S. Paul sayes that they who were 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 were also 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 they who had no hope meaning of the Resurrection were also Atheists and without God in the world And it is remarkable what S. Augustine observes That when the World saw the righteous Abel destroyed and that the murderer out-liv'd his crime and built up a numerous family and grew mighty upon Earth they neglected the Service of God upon that account till God in pity of their prejudice and foolish arguings took Enoch up to heaven to recover them from their impieties by shewing them that their bodies and souls should be rewarded for ever in an eternal union But Christ the first fruits is gone before and himself did promise that when himself was lifted up he would draw all men after him Every man in his own order first Christ then they that are Christ's at his coming And so I have done with the second Particular not Christ onely but we also shall rise in Gods time and our order But concerning this order I must speak a word or two not only for the fuller handling tâ—e Text but because it will be matter of application of what hath been already spoken of the Article of the Resurrection 3. First Christ and then we And we therefore because Christ is already risen But you must remember that the Resurrection and Exaltation of Christ was the reward of his perfect obedience and purest holiness and he calling us to an imitation of the same obedience and the same perfect holiness prepares a way for us to the same Resurrection If we by holiness become the Sons of God as Christ was we shall also as he was become the Sons of God in the Resurrection But upon no other terms So said our blessed Lord himself Ye which have followed me in the regeneration when the Son of Man shall sit on the throne of his glory ye also shall sit upon thrones judging the tribes of Israel For as it was with Christ the first fruits so it shall be with all Christians in their own order as with the Head so it shall be with the Members He was the Son of God by love and obedience and then became the Son of God by Resurrection from the dead to life Eternal and so shall we but we cannot be so in any other way To them that are Christ's and to none else shall this be given For we must know that God hath sent Christ into the World to be a great example and demonstration of the Oeconomy and Dispensation of Eternal life As God brought Christ to glory so he will bring us but by no other method He first obeyed the will of God and patiently suffered the will of God he died and rose again and entered into glory and so must we Thus Christ is made Via Veritas Vita the Way the Truth and the Life that is the true way to Eternal life He first trode this Wine-press and we must insist in the same steps or we shall never partake of this blessed Resurrection He was made the Son of God in a most glorious manner and we by him by his merit and by his grace and by his example but other then this there is no way of Salvation for us That 's the first and great effect of this glorious order 4. But there is one thing more in it yet Every Man in his own order First Christ and then Christ's But what shall become of them that are not Christ's why there is an order for them too First they that are Christ's and then they that are not his Blessed and holy is he that hath his part in the first resurrection There is a first and a second Resurrection even after this life The dead in Christ shall rise first Now blessed are they that have their portion here for upon these the second death shall have no power As for the recalling the wicked from their graves it is no otherwise in the sense of the Spirit to be called a Resurrection then taking a Criminal from the Prison to the Bar is a giving of liberty When poor Attilius Aviola had been seized on by an Apoplexy his friends supposing him dead carried him to his Funeral pile but when the fire began to approch and the heat to warm the body he reviv'd and seeing himself incircled with Funeral flames call'd out aloud to his friends to rescue not the dead but the living Aviola from that horrid burning But it could not be He onely was râ—stor'd from his sickness to fall into death and from his dull disease to a sharp and intolerable torment Just so shall the wicked live again they shall receive their souls that they may be a portion for Devils they shall receive their bodies that they may feel the everlasting burning they shall see Christ that they may look on him whom they have pierced and they shall hear the voice of God passing upon them the intolerable sentence they shall come from their graves that they may go into hell and live again that they may die for ever So have we seen a poor condemned Criminal the weight of whose sorrows sitting heavily upon his soul hath benummed him into a deep sleep till he hath forgotten his grones and laid aside his deep sighings but on a sudden comes the messenger of death and unbinds the Poppy garland scatters the heavy cloud that incircled his miserable head and makes him return to acts of life that he may quickly descend into death and be no more So is every sinner that lies down in shame and makes his grave with the wicked he shall indeed rise again and be called upon by the voice of the Archangel but then he shall descend into sorrows greater then the reason and the patience of a man weeping and shrieking louder then the grones of the miserable children in the Valley of Hinnon These indeed are sad stories but true as the voice of God and the Sermons of the holy Jesus They are Gods words and Gods decrees and I wish that all who profess the belief of these would consider sadly what they mean If ye believe the Article of the Resurrection then you know that in your body you shall receive what you did in the body whether it be good or bad It matters not now very much whether our bodies be beauteous or deformed for if we glorifie God in our bodies God shall make our bodies glorious It matters not much whether we live in ease and pleasure or eat nothing but bitter herbs the body that lies in dust and ashes that goes stooping and feeble that lodges at the foot of the Cross and dwells in discipline shall be feasted
at the eternal supper of the Lamb. And ever remember this that beastly pleasures and lying lips and a deceitful tongue and a heart that sendeth forth proud things are no good dispositions to a blessed Resurrection 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 It is not good that in the body we live a life of Dissolution for that 's no good harmony with that purpose of glory which God designs the body 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 said Phocyllides for we hope that from our beds of darkness we shall rise into Regions of light and shall become like unto God They shall partake of a Resurrection to life and what this can infer is very obvious For if it be so hard to believe a Resurrection from one death let us not be dead in trespasses and sins for a Resurrection from two deaths will be harder to be believ'd and harder to be effected But if any of you have lost the life of Grace and so forfeited all your title to a life of Glory betake your selves to an early and an entire piety that when by this first Resurrection you have made this way plain before your face you may with confidence expect a happy Resurrection from your graves For if it be possible that the spirit when it is dead in sin can arise to a life of righteousness much more it is easie to suppose that the body after death is capable of being restor'd again And this is a consequent of S. Pauls argument If when ye were enemies ye were reconciled by his death much more being reconciled we shall be saved by his life plainly declaring that it is a harder and more wonderful thing for a wicked man to become the friend of God then for one that is so to be carried up to heaven and partake of his glory The first Resurrection is certainly the greater miracle But he that hath risen once may rise again and this is as sure as that he that dies once may die again and die for ever But he who partakes of the death of Christ by Mortification and of his Resurrection by holiness of life and a holy Faith shall according to the expression of the Prophet Isaiah Enter into his chamber of death when Nature and Gods decree shall shut the doors upon him and there he shall be hidden for a little moment But then shall they that dwell in dust awake and sing with Christs dead body shall they arise all shall rise but every man in his own order Christ the first fruits then they that are Christs at his coming Amen I have now done with my Meditation of the Resurrection but we have a new and a sadder subject to consider It is glorious and brave when a Christian contemplates those glories which stand at the foot of the Account of all God's Servants but when we consider that before all or any thing of this happens every Christian must twice exuere hominem put off the Old man and then lie down in dust and the dishonours of the Grave it is Vinum Myrrhatum there is Myrrhe put into our Wine it is wholsom but it will allay all our pleasures of that glorious expectation But no man can escape it After that the Great Cyrus had rul'd long in a mighty Empire yet there came a Message from Heaven not so sad it may be yet as decretory as the Hand-writing on the wall that arrested his Successor Darius 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Prepare thy self O Cyrus and then go unto the Gods he laid aside his Tiar and his beauteous Diadem and cover'd his face with a cloth and in a single Linen laid his honour'd head in a poor humble Grave and none of us all can avoid this sentence For if Wit and Learning great Fame and great Experience if wise Notices of things and an honourable Fortune if Courage and Skill if Prelacy and an honourable Age if any thing that could give Greatness and Immunity to a wise and prudent man could have been put in bar against a sad day and have gone for good plea this sad Scene of Sorrows had not been the entertainment of this Assembly But tell me where are those great Masters who while they liv'd flourish'd in their studies Jam eorum praebendas alii possident nescio utrum de iis cogitant Other men have got their Prebends and their Dignities and who knows whether ever they remember them or no While they liv'd they seem'd nothing when they are dead every man for a while speaks of them what they please and afterwards they are as if they had not been But the piety of the Christian Church hath made some little provision towards an artificial Immortality for brave and worthy persons and the Friendships which our dead contracted while they were alive require us to continue a fair memory as long as we can but they expire in monethly minds or at most in a faint and declining Anniversary 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 And we have great reason so to do in this present sad accident of the death of our late most Reverend Primate whose death the Church of Ireland hath very great reason to deplore and we have great obligation to remember his very many worthy Deeds done for this poor afflicted and despised Church S. Paul made an excellent Funeral Oration as it were instituting a Feast of All Saints Who all died having obtained a good report and that excellent Preacher in the 11. chap. of the Hebrews made a Sermon of their Commemoration For since good men while they are alive have their conversation in Heaven when they are in Heaven 't is also fit that they should in their good names live upon Earth And as their great Examples are an excellent Sermon to the living and the praising them when Envy and Flattery can have no Interest to interpose as it is the best and most vigorous Sermon and Incentive to great things so to conceal what good God hath wrought by them is great unthankfulness to God and to good men When Dorcas died the Apostle came to see the dead Corps and the friends of the deceased expressed their grief and their love by shewing the Coats that she whilest she lived wrought with her own hands She was a good Needle-woman and a good Huswife and did good to Mankind in her little way and that it self ought not to be forgotten and the Apostle himself was not displeased with their little Sermons and that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which the women made upon that sad interview But if we may have the same liberty to record the worthy things of this our most venerable Father and Brother and if there remains no more of that Envy which usually obscures the splendour of living Hero's if you can with your charitable though weeping eyes behold the great gifts of God with which he adorned this great Prelate aâ—d not object the failings of Humanity to the participation of the
their souls our Primate had so great a Veneration to his memory that he purpos'd if he had liv'd to have restor'd his Monument in Dundalke which Time or Impiety or Unthankfulness had either omitted or destroyed So great a lover he was of all true and inherent worth that he lov'd it in the very memory of the dead and to have such great Examples transmitted to the intuition and imitation of posterity At his coming to the Primacy he knew he should at first espy little besides the Ruines of Discipline a Harvest of Thorns and Heresies prevailing in the hearts of the People the Churches possess'd by Wolves and Intruders Mens hearts greatly estranged from true Religion and therefore he set himself to weed the fields of the Church he treated the Adversaries sometimes sweetly sometimes he confuted them learnedly sometimes he rebuk'd them sharply He visited his Charges diligently and in his own person not by Proxies and instrumental Deputations Quaerens non nostra sed nos quae sunt Jesu Christi he design'd nothing that we knew of but the Redintegration of Religion the Honour of God and the King the Restoring of collapsed Discipline and the Renovation of Faith and the Service of God in the Churches And still he was indefatigable and even as the last scene of his life intended to undertake a a Regal Visitation Quid enim vultis me otiosum à Domino comprehendi said one he was not willing that God should take him unimployed But good man he felt his Tabernacle ready to fall in pieces and could go no further for God would have no more work done by that hand he therefore espying this put his house in order and had lately visited his Diocese and done what he then could to put his Charge in order for he had a good while since receiv'd the sentence of death within himself and knew he was shortly to render an account of his stewardship he therefore upon a brisk alarm of death which God sent him the last January made his Will in which besides the prudence and presence of spirit manifested in making just and wise settlement of his Estate and provisions for his Descendants at midnight and in the trouble of his sickness and circumstances of addressing death still kept a special sentiment and made confession of Gods admirable mercies and gave thanks that God had permitted him to live to see the blessed Restauration of His Majesty and the Church of England confess'd his Faith to be the same as ever gave praises to God that he was born and bred up in this Religion and prayed to God and hop'd he should die in the Communion of this Church which he declar'd to be the most pure and Apostolical Church in the whole world He prayed to God to pardon his frailties and infirmities relied upon the mercies of God and the merits of Jesus Christ and with a singular sweetness resign'd up his soul into the hands of his Redeemer But God who is the great Choragus and Master of the Scenes of Life and Death was not pleas'd then to draw the Curtains there was an Epilogue to his Life yet to be acted and spoken He return'd to actions and life and went on in the methods of the same procedure as before was desirous still to establish the affairs of the Church complain'd of some disorders which he purpos'd to redress girt himself to the work but though his spirit was willing yet his flesh was weak and as the Apostles in the Vespers of Christs Passion so he in the Eve of his own Dissolution was heavy not to sleep but heavy unto death and look'd for the last warning which seiz'd on him in the midst of business and though it was sudden yet it could not be unexpected or unprovided by surprize and therefore could be no other then that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which Augustus us'd to wish unto himself a civil and well-natur'd death without the amazement of troublesom circumstances or the great cracks of a falling house or the convulsions of impatience Seneca tells that Bassus Aufidius was wont to say Sperare se nullum dolorem esse in illo extremo anhelitu si tamen esset habere aliquantum in ipsa brevitate solatii He hop'd that the pains of the last Dissolution were little or none or if they were it was full of comfort that they could be but short It happened so to this excellent Man his Passive Fortitude had been abundantly tried before and therefore there was the less need of it now his active Graces had been abundantly demonstrated by the great and good things he did therefore his last scene was not so laborious but God call'd him away something after the manner of Moses which the Jews express by Osculum oris Dei The Kiss of Gods mouth that is a death indeed foresignified but gentle and serene and without temptation To summe up all He was a wise Prelate a learned Doctor a just Man a true Friend a great Benefactour to others a thankful Beneficiary where he was oblig'd himself He was a faithful Servant to his Masters a Loyal Subjest to the King a zelous Assertor of his Religion against Popery on one side and Fanaticism on the other The practice of his Religion was not so much in Forms and exteriour Ministries though he was a great observer of all the publick Rites and Ministries of the Church as it was in doing good for others He was like Myson whom the Scythian Anarchasis so greatly prais'd 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 he govern'd his family well he gave to all their due of maintenance and duty he did great benefit to mankind he had the fate of the Apostle S. Paul he pass'd through evil report and good report as a deceiver and yet true He was a man of great business and great resort Semper aliquis in Cydonis domo as the Corinthian said There was alwayes somebody in Cydon's house He was 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 he divided his life into labour and his book he took care of his Churches when he was alive and even after his death having left 500 l. for the Repair of his Cathedral of Armagh and S. Peters Church in Drogheda He was an excellent Scholar and rarely well accomplish'd first instructed to great excellency by natural parts and then consummated by study and experience Melanchthon was us'd to say that himself was a Logician Pomeranus a Grammarian Justus Jonas an Orator but that Luther was all these It was greatly true of him that the single perfections which make many men eminent were united in this Primate and maâ—e him illustrious At at Quintilium perpetuus sopor Urget cui pudor justitiae soror Incorrupta fides nudaque veritas Quando ullum invenient parem It will be hard to find his Equal in all things Fortasse tanquam Phoenix anno quingentesimo nascitur that I may use the words of Seneca nec est mirum ex intervallo
any personal or collateral Duty that he may do but no more Ever remembring the Saying of our blessed Lord In the world ye shall have trouble but in me ye shall have peace and consider this also which is a great Truth That every degree of love to the world is so much taken from the Love of God Be no otherwise sollicitous of your Fame and Reputation but by doing your duty well and wisely in other things refer your selfe to God but if you meet with evil Tongues be careful that you bear reproaches sweetly and temperately Remember that no Minister can govern his people well and prosperously unless himself hath learn'd humbly and cheerfully to obey his Superiour For every Minister should be like the good Centurion in the Gospel himself is under authority and he hath people under him Be sure in all your Words and Actions to preserve Christian simplicity and ingenuity to do to others as you would be done unto your self and never to speak what you doe not think Trust to Truth rather than to your Memory for this may fail you that will never Pray much and very fervently for all your Parishioners and all men that belong to you and all that belong to God but especially for the Conversion of Souls and be very zealous for nothing but for Gods glory and the salvation of the World and particularly of your Charges Ever remembring that you are by God appointed as the Ministers of Prayer and the Ministers of good things to pray for all the World and to heale all the World as far as you are able Every Minister must learn and practise patience that by bearing all adversity meekly and humbly and cheerfully and by doing all his duty with unwearied industry with great courage constancy and Christian magnanimity he may the better assist his people in the bearing of their crosses and overcoming their difficulties He that is holy let him be holy still and still more holy and never think he hath done his work till all be finished by perseverance and the measures of perfection in a holy Life and a holy Death but at no hand must he magnifie himself by vain separations from others or despising them that are not so holy II. Of Prudence required in Ministers REmember that Discretion is the Mistress of all Graces and Humility is the greatest of all Miracles and without this all Graces perish to a mans self and without that all Graces are useless unto others Let no Minister be governed by the opinion of his People and destroy his duty by unreasonable compliance with their humours lest as the Bishop of Granata told the Governours of Leria and Patti like silly Animals they take burdens upon their backs at the pleasure of the multitude which they neither can retain with Prudence nor shake off with Safety Let not the Reverence of any man cause you to sin against God but in the matter of Souls being well advis'd be bold and confident but abate nothing of the honour of God or the just measures of your duty to satisfie the importunity of any man whatsoever and God will bear you out When you teach your people any part of their duty as in paying their debts their tithes and offerings in giving due reverence and religious regards diminish nothing of admonition in these particulars and the like though they object That you speak for your selves and in your own cases For a counsel is not the worse but the better if it be profitable both to him that gives and to him that takes it Onely do it in simplicity and principally intend the good of their souls In taking accounts of the good Lives of your selves or others take your measures by the express words of Scripture and next to them estimate them by their proportion and compliance with the publick measures with the Laws of the Nation Eccesiastical and Civil and by the Rules of Fame of publick honesty and good Report and last of all by their observation of the Ordinances and exteriour parts of Religion Be not satisfied when you have done a good work unless you have also done it well and when you have then be carefull that vain-glory partiality self-conceit or any other folly or indiscretion snatch it not out of your hand and cheat you of the reward Be carefull so to order your self that you fall not into temptation and folly in the presence of any of your Charges and especially that you fall not into chidings and intemperate talkings and sudden and violent expressions Never be a party in clamours and scoldings lest your Calling become uselesse and your person contemptible Ever remembring that if you cheaply and lightly be engag'd in such low usages with any person that person is likely to be lost from all possibility of receiving much good from your Ministry The Rules and Measures of Government to be used by Ministers in their respective Cures USe no violence to any man to bring him to your opinion but by the word of your proper Ministry by Demonstrations of the Spirit by rational Discourses by excellent Examples constrain them to come in and for other things they are to be permitted to their own liberty to the measures of the Laws and the conduct of their Governors Suffer no quarrel in your Parish and speedily suppress it when it is begun and though all wise men will abstain from interposing in other mens affairs and especially in matters of Interest which men love too well yet it is your duty Duty here to interpose by perswading them to friendships reconcilements moderate prosecutions of their pretences and by all means you prudently can to bring them to peace and brotherly kindness Suffer no houses of Debauchery of Drunkenness or Lust in your Parishes but implore the assistance of Authority for the suppressing of all such meeting-places and nurseries of Impiety as for places of publick Entertainment take care that they observe the Rules of Christian Piety and the allowed measures of Laws If there be any Papists or Sectaries in your Parishes neglect not frequently to confer with them in the spirit or meekness and by the importunity of wise Discourses seeking to gain them But stir up no violences against them but leave them if they be incurable to the wise and merciful disposition of the Laws Receive not the people to doubtful Disputations and let no names of Sects or differing Religions be kept up amongst you to the disturbance of the publick peace and private Charity and teach not the people to estimate their Piety by their distance from any Opinion but by their Faith in Christ their Obedience to God and the Lawes anâ— their love to all Christian people even though they be deceived Think no man considerable upon the point or pretence of a tender Conscience unless he live a good life and in all things endeavour to approve himself void of offence both towards God and man but if he be an humble person
modest and inquiring apt to learn and desirous of information if he seeks for it in all wayes reasonable and pious and is obedient to Laws then take care of him use him tenderly perswade him meekly reprove him gently and deal mercifully with him till God shall reveal that also unto him in which his unavoidable trouble and his temptation lies Mark them that cause Divisions among you and avoid them for such persons are by the Scripture called Scandals in the abstract they are Offenders and Offences too But if any man have an Opinion let him have it to himself till he can be cur'd of his disease by time and counsel and gentle usages But if he separates from the Church or gathers a Congregation he is proud and is fallen from the communion of Saints and the Unity of the Catholick Church He that observes any of his people to be zealous let him be carefull to conduct that zeal into such channels where there is least danger of inconveniency let him employ it in something that is good let it be press'd to fight against sin For Zeal is like a Cancer in the Breast feed it with good flesh or it will devour the Heart Strive to get the love of the Congregation but let it not degenerate into popularity Cause them to love you and revere you to love with Religion not for your compliance for the good you do them not for that you please them Get their love by doing your duty but not by omitting or spoiling any part of it Ever remembring the severe words of our blessed Saviour Wo be to you when all men speak well of you Suffer not the common people to prattle about Religion and questions but to speak little to be swift to hear and slow to speak that they learn to do good works for necessary uses that they work with their hands that they may have wherewithall to give to them that need that they study to quiet and learn to do their own business Let every Minister take care that he call upon his Charge that they order themselves so that they leave no void spaces of their time but that every part of it be filled with usefull or innocent imployment For where there is a space without business that space is the proper time for danger and temptation and no man is more miserable than he that knows not how to spend his time Fear no mans person in the doing of your duty wisely and according to the Laws remembring alwayes that a servant of God can no more be hurt by all the powers of wickedness than by the noise of a Flies wing or the chirping of a Sparrow Brethren do well for your selves do well for your selves as long as you have time you know not how soon death will come Entertain no persons into your Assemblies from other Parishes unless upon great occasion or in the destitution of a Minister or by contingency and seldome visits or with leave lest the labour of thy brother be discouraged and thy selfe be thought to preach Christ out of envy and not of good will Never appeal to the judgement of the people in matters of controversie teach them obedience not arrogancy teach them to be humble not crafty For without the aid of false guides you will find some of them of themselves apt enough to be troublesome and a question put into their heads and a power of judging into their hands is a putting it to their choice whether you shall be troubled by them this week or the next for much longer you cannot escape Let no Minister of a Parish introduce any Ceremony Rites or Gestures though with some seeming Piety and Devotion but what are commanded by the Church and established by Law and let these also be wisely and usefully explicated to the people that they may understand the reasons and measures of obedience but let there be no more introduc'd lest the people be burdened unnecessarily and tempted or divided IV. Rules and Advices concerning Preaching LEt every Minister be diligent in preaching the Word of God according to the ability that God gives him ever remembring that to minister Gods Word unto the People is the one half of his great Office and Employment Let ever Minister be carefull that what he delivers be indeed the Word of God that his Sermon be answerable to the Text for this is Gods Word the other ought to be according to it that although in it self it be but the word of Man yet by the purpose truth and signification of it it may in a secondary sense be the Word of God Do not spend your Sermons in generall and indefinite things as in Exhortations to the people to get Christ to be united to Christ and things of the like unlimited signification but tell them in every duty what are the measures what circumstances what instruments and what is the particular minute meaning of every general Advice For Generals not explicated do but fill the peoples heads with empty notions and their mouths with perpetual unintelligible talk but their hearts remain empty and themselves are not edified Let not the humours and inclinations of the people be the measures of your Doctrines but let your Doctrines be the measure of their perswasions Let them know from you what they ought to do but if you learn from them what you ought to teach you will give but a very ill account at the day of Judgement of the souls committed to you He that receives from the people what he shall teach them is like a Nurse that asks of her Child what Physick she shall give him Every Minister in reproofs of sin and sinners ought to concern himself in the faults of them that are present but not of the absent nor in reproofe of the times for this can serve no end but of Faction and Sedition publick Murmur and private Discontent besides this it does nothing but amuse the people in the faults of others teaching them to revile their Betters and neglect the dangers of their own souls As it looks like flattery and design to preach nothing before Magistrates but the duty of their people and their own eminency so it is the beginning of Mutiny to preach to the people the duty of their Superiours and Supreme it can neither come from a good Principle nor tend to a good End Every Minister ought to preach to his Parish and urge their duty S. John the Baptist told the Souldiers what the Souldiers should do but troubled not their heads with what was the duty of the Scribes and Pharisees In the reproof of sins be as particular as you please and spare no mans sin but meddle with no mans person neither name any man nor signifie him neither reproach him nor make him to be suspected he that doth otherwise makes his Sermon to be a Libel and the Ministry of Repentance an instrument of Revenge and so doing he shall exasperate the man but never amend