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B00991 A nicke for neuters. A most godly and fruitfull sermon, begun and preached at Paules Crosse, the 30. day of October last, and continued & finished in Paules Church, on New-yeeres day at night. / By Thomas Burt, Preacher of the Word. Burt, Thomas, preacher of the word. 1604 (1604) STC 4132; ESTC S126041 28,214 88

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of God and furtherance of iustice And thus much for these words in Christes second title The faythfull and true witnesse That beginning of the creatures of God CHrist is sayd to be the Author and Beginner of the creatures of God two maner of wayes First as it is Ioh. 1.3 All things were made by it and without it was made nothing that was made So that he is beginning without beginning for he that giueth beginning to all things must needs haue none himselfe hee that is before all things cannot after be made to be he that created all other cannot himself be a creature he that sustaineth and giueth Being to all must needs be himselfe an eternall and infinite Being which neuer began to be nor neuer shall make an end to be Therefore he is not the beginning amongst creatures that is the first amongst creatures that began to be but the beginning that is the Beginner Former of all things whatsoeuer be This Maiesty of God in the creation not a little setteth forth the dignity of the message for how materially should we regard his pleasure that is Prince of all power who as hee made vs of nought so can hee bring vs to nought and can make vs heires of heauen or firebrands of hell Secondly he is said to be the beginning of the creatures of God as hee is in this sence Eph. 1.4 As he hath chosen vs in him before the foūdation of the world that we should be holy and without blame before him in loue c. 2. Thes 2.13 The Apostle affirmeth that God hath from the beginning chosen them to saluation through sanctification of the spirit and the fayth of truth c. Whereby we may see God looked on the countenance of Christ when hee first made man that whereas in Adam we all perished so wee should in Christ all be repaired and this was his eternall decree from the beginning Therefore is he sayd to be the Lambe slain from the beginning and Iesus Christ yesterday and to day and the same for euer Now as Christ is sayd to be the Beginning of the creatures of God two maner of wayes so is the creature to be considered two maner of wayes that is not onely by creation but by renouation as it is implied Psa 51.10 Gal. 6.15 2. Cor. 5.17 Eph. 2.10 Whereby it appeareth that mans last renewing is as great a worke of God and as mighty as the first In the first creation Adam of nothing was made good In the second man was of ill made good Now to draw one contrary out of another is of no lesse diuine power then to make good of nothing for in ill is a naturall hatred and resistance to be made good but in nothing is no resistance Aug. Par sit vtriusque potestas iustos creare impios iustificare yet must the latter bee of more mercy then the first The first was of the earth earthy 1. Cor. 15.47 And by this creation not only the earthy that is to say the corruptible nature which doth onely sauour terrene and earthly things is made diuine hauing in this life the heart made heauenly with diuine faith the conscience heauenly with diuine peace the vnderstāding heauenly with diuine knowledge the affections heauenly with diuine loue the life heauenly with diuine works but being thus prepared in this life present shall in the blessed heauens of wretched be made blessed of maymed be made perfit of stayned be made pure of caducall immortall and of corruptible eternall So in the like maner in the first was created in the humane body being life and sence and in the humane soule reason memory and wil But such a being as without this last renouation better not to be being indeed nothing else but a perpetuall languishing such a life as was and is to be dissolued such sence as was and is to bee perplexed such reason as was and is to be deceyued such will as was and is to be disordered such memory as hath often fayled But in this second is not onely a being but a happy being not life alone but eternity not only sence but iocundity reason without obscuring wil without disturbing and memory without forgetting So in the first the body was drawne out of dust life out of breath sence out of life mortality out of nature and misery out of sinne But in this second both body and soule are drawne out of hell life out of death and sence out of torment eternity out of mortality and felicity out of misery Moreouer in the first as we must thankfully confesse though man was most royally and magnificently seated and made Lord of this inferiour world had Paradise for his Palace all creatures to serue him all treasures to enrich him all elements to help him the earth to sustain him and heauen to conserue him yet in this second my heart doth melt to thinke it O wonderfull thing mortall man is made heire of the immortall God and succeedeth in the inheritance of his vnmeasurable glory hath heauen for his folace Angels to helpe him Gods spirit to sustayne him his grace to enrich him Gods Sonne to redeeme him God himselfe to adorne him Furthermore God made man at the first when he was thē as the earth is now sencelesse without feeling and liuelesse without mouing so that if he had no praise of well doing hee had no blame of ill deseruing But now at the last when man had fallen from the God of life into the power of the king of death and in preferring the credit of the lying Deuill before the truth of the liuing God had not onely rendred disobedience for duty and great vngratefulnes for Gods great bounty but also had sence of feeling and torments for euer abiding then the gracious and bountifull God to shew not onely a patience in suffering compassion in pittying a mercy in pardoning but also a loue in retayning a bounty in restoring a magnificence in inlarging his estate againe doeth argue his loue to haue so much the more exceeded in how much mans loue had the lesse deserued Opus sine exemplo gratia sine merito charitas sine modo sayth Bernard Besides the first creation was made by the might of Gods Sonne but the second by the death of Gods Sonne so God labored to make the first but Christ suffered to make the last so that in the first man was exalted but in the last God was debased that so interchangeably as that by how much the Sonne of God was humbled in so much was the sonne of man aduanced for God came downe to earth and man went vp to heauē God took our humane flesh and man his diuine spirit God was made the sonne of man man was made the sonne of God yea God was condemned man was acquited Christ suffered and man was redeemed he was done to bitter death and man receyued to eternall life he sustayned the paynes of hell and man
possessed the ioyes of heauen he was crowned with pricks thornes to crowne man the King of blisse Thus was God depressed to mans misery and man exalted to Gods glory Now what greater loue could God shew to man then to preferre man to the glory of God and yet in doing it by detruding himselfe to our misery he doth double the bounty by suffering which he bestowed in aduauncing for in giuing his glory what soeuer he had he gaue him all But in suffering our misery he freely gaue himselfe and all Now if we can neuer satisfie for the greatnes of that glory what shal we render for this his vnmeasureable loue Thus then to conclude was the Sonne of God by the first our beginning of life but in the second hee brought vs an end of death by the first mold was made a man by the second sinne was made a Saint the first made man the image of God the second the sonne of God by the first was made a humane soule by the second a diuine spirit by the one he is made Lord of earth by the second King of heauen by this he hath a world full of creatures by that he hath an heauen full of ioyes so by the one he is wonderfully created by the other inestimably redeemed whereby the Sonne of God declared by the first his vnmeasurable greatnes by the last his incomparable goodnes Loe behold here Beloued what wonderful great things the Lord hath done for vs we ought if it were possible to be answerable in all kindnes and thankfulnes to his great loue and goodnes which thing since wee cannot possibly performe yet when we haue done all that we are able we must of necessity confesse wee haue done much lesse then we ought how ought we notwithstanding to cōtend to do all things to the vttermost of our power that by our readines in doing that which we can wee shew our willingnesse that we would doe that as we cannot where if it be so we do far lesse then our duty euen when we endeuour to do more then our power what duty doe they performe who when they should doe more then all performe lesse then nothing nay not onely seeke not to aduaunce any duety but shame not to requite so great goodnes with all impiety by falshood fraud and periury seeking onely to anger most grieuously to offend him which hath most egregiously deserued of thē But if it be a sauage and brutish thing for a man so to behaue himselfe as to be I say not onely vnworthy but vanquished of a good turne how monstrous prodigious a thing is it to render immeasurable wickednesse for incomparable goodnesse and that especially to Gods eternall Maiesty And if we should not suffer our goodnesse to be ouercom by others wickednes as the Apostle sayth how incredible obstinate are we if our wickednes cannot be ouercom by Gods mighty diuine goodnes We are to know blessed Brethren that the Lord hath not placed vs therefore in this world that we should by sauage vngratefulnes become worse then brute beasts but that as humane creatures we should excel in all humanity and shew our great loue towards him for his great loue towards vs acknowledging our gratefulnes for his deseruednes and with all our might honour him that doth with all his boūties pleasure vs. Wherefore let vs learne by the pattern of his vvorthynesse to be made like to his goodnesse because hee hath promised vs in Christ that they vvhich are like vnto him in grace should raigne vvith him in glory And thus we are assured of that looke what is in Christ promised because he is God Amen shall bee performed vndoutedly Which thing that the Lord may effectually doe indeed let vs with all our hearts beseech him to blesse vs that wee may with all our hearts serue him that after this life present wee may with him eternally enioy the life to come which God graunt for his Christ his sake Amen The second part Reue. 3. 15 I know thy works that thou art neyther cold nor hote c. 16 Therefore because thou art luke-warme and neyther cold nor hote c. 17 For thou sayest I am rich c. THE Lord Iesus hauing before premised the description of his dreadfull Maiesty but especially of his infallible knowledge which cannot be deceiued of his immutable truth which cannot be changed of his inuiolable faythfulnes which cannot be corrupted Hauing thus I say premitted as a thunderbolt the excellency of his nature he proceedeth to note downe the faultinesse of their behauiour giuing them to conceyue thereby that it is in vayne to make false semblance with God For by reason of his infalliblenesse he will not be deceyued by them because of his faithfulnes he will not deceiue them But as by vertue of his knowledge hee seeth what they are so for his inuiolablenes hee will vse them as they are assured they may be whatsoeuer he promiseth because hee is true hee assuredly performeth because he is faythfull The Laodicians being thus assured to find reward according to their desert he commeth to declare both what they haue deserued and how they shall be rewarded Wherein the Lord setteth downe to them First the cryme Secondly the cause of the cryme Thirdly the punishment First the crime is to be neither hote nor cold Secondly the cause worldly riche and spirituall pouerty Thirdly the punishment to be vomited out of the Lords mouth The grieuousnes of this crime we shall the more euidently perceiue when wee marke throughly first who they are that are hote Secondly who they are that are cold Thirdly and consequently a third sort Neuters that are neyther hote nor colde They are hote in Religiō whom Christ baptizeth cum Spiritu sancto igni for so were the Apostles Acts 2. when the holy Ghost sate in fiery clouen toungs on euery one of them First in fiery tongues to make them lucent and ardent Secondly in tongues to make them prudent cloquent Thirdly these tongues were clouen to shew that as euery tongue was made many by cleauing so should they haue diuersity of gifts and multiplicity of languages Rom. 12.6 And as one sayth Omnium gentium linguas loquitur Ecclesia For as in fire there are many notable qualities perceptable to the sences as clearenes beauty burning heat drynesse and many singular effects answerable therevnto as to make pure adorne manifest separate and consume So this alluding of the holy Ghost vnto fire putteth vs in mind that Gods spirit worketh like fire in the Saints an illustrious brightnes yet not of the eyes but of the vnderstanding clearenesse not of colour but of conscience heat not of fire but of zeale and a thirst drynes not vnto moysture but vnto goodnes making men to shine in the darknes of this world Phil. 2.5 to be adorned with the beauty of holinesse as the world with the beauty of heauen and to be made pure in heart
preferre the peruersnes of our owne wils before the Law of God which is the pleasure of his will lest hee make the law I say his reuealed will to be a trayne to the frowardnes of our owne will to bring vs by the consent of our froward will vnto destruction according to the iust purpose of his vvill And thus haue ye heard both the foulenesse of the cause and of the crime NOw followeth to bee expressed The greatnesse of the payne which is no lesse then to be vomited out of the Lords mouth Whereby if this were only meant that all Neuters for their hypocrisy and dissimulation should be cast out of fauor with the Sonne of God it were a most wofull and importable chastisement if we consider of his diuine nature rightly what the Sonne of God is that is the same God that is vnto vs the cause of all our being the fountayne of all life the founder of all ioy the mirrour of all goodnes for he is the Word eternall that is God almighty by whom all things are made in whō is life and of whose fulnesse we receyue whatsoeuer good we haue Whereby it must of necessity follovv that vvithout the fauour of this vniuersall cause vvhich is all in all vvee must needs be annihilated to nothing and being nothing yet remayne such a thing notvvithstāding as is vvithout him in death vvithout life subsisting without being desisting vvithout dying in life neuer ioying in death euer dying But now by this vomiting is meant more then a bare eiecting out of fauour for herein is expressed a fearefull and violent casting out in anger For in this Simile the Church is compared to the stomacke the luke-warme Neuter to the luke-warm water and their grieuous disturbance to noysome vomitings The Church is cōpared to the stomacke because as the stomacke by altering and concocting the nourishment receyued feedeth preserueth the parts of the body so the Church by concocting disgesting the food of life doth nourish and preserue the body of Christ euen in such sort as frō out of food in the stomack the liuer draweth bloud the hart spirit the brayn sence the sinewes strength the veynes nourishmēt the body life so out of the food of immortality which is the word of God that is in the Church to euery mēber of Christ doth the hart draw faith the wil obediēce the vnderstanding knowledge the conscience comfort the body immortality and the soule all felicity and that also after so rare and stupendious an order that euen as the stomake so doeth it quicken by killing reuiue by destroying grow wise by foolishnes obey by rebelling against its owne flesh obtayne life through death felicity through misery and eternity out of mortality The Neuters are compared vnto luke-warme water which to a tasting stomack being receiued is hurtfull whiles it remaineth is grief-ful being eiected is shamefull because all Neuters are euen such in the Church of God not only by hindring the worke of Gods Spirit in the Church but also by the vnquieting and disturbing of the same Their great and grieuous disturbings are compared to noysome vomitings because as that which breedeth vomiting is cast out with hatred for that it is enemy to nature with violence because it oppresseth the stomacke with shamefulnesse because the defilings thereof are laid open to the eye and finally so eiected as neuer agayne to be receyued So all incorrigible Neuters shall by the LORD himselfe be throwne out of the Church as filthy vomitings out of the stomacke that with hatred because they are enemies vnto Christ and with violence because they hurt and oppresse the Church and vvith shame because their hypocrisy shal be made knowne finally cast out of the Church neuer againe to be receyued because that while they were in the Church they could neuer bee amended where the hatred of eiection doeth shew the detestation of the crime the violence the mightinesse of the payne the shame the horror of confusion and the neuer receyuing the eternity of destruction Then if it be such a wofull thing as it hath bene declared for Neuters to be cast out of fauour with the Sonne of God what is it I pray you thus to endure the fiercenesse of his anger If it be so miserable to be depriued of the comfort of his goodnesse how importable to beare the heauy wrath of his greatnes who is to the wicked in terrour the God of vengeance in nature consuming fire in wrath burning ielousie his face lightning his voyce thunder his displeasure death his breath a riuer of brimstone his lippes a floud of indignation his tongue a deuouring flame as the Lord doeth witnesse of himselfe Deut. 4. 32. Es 30. where the mighty terrour of Gods eternall Maiesty is described to make it knowne that as the peruersnes of sinners is incorrigible so his wrath towards them is implacable and as Neuters faults are intolerable so their punishments are vnmeasureable that so there may be a proportion of iustice betweene their crime and his doome that euen as in this world they would neuer want sin so in the world to come they should neuer want payne Wherefore to conclude seeing that the wrath of God is in this fearefull maner reueyled from heauen against all vngodlines and vnrighteousnes of men how carefully are we here to consider of our selues how neere this reprehēsion may touch vs. All men by the censure of Christ are either hote in Religiō or of necessity cold or else only luke-warm so either Saints in piety miscreants in iniquity or Neuters for hypocrisy What may herein iustly be deemed of vs are we Saints I would to God we all were as no doubt but the Lord hath his Let euery man iudge himselfe if wee be Saints where is then our workes if miscreants where is then our comfort if Neuters where is then our conscience when the Sonne of God shall come in flaming fire rendring recompēce vnto them that doe not know God and which obey not the Gospell of our Lord Iesus Christ Are wee baptized with the spirit and with fire are we feruent in spirit lucent in life ardent in zeale shining in works burning in loue or in the middest of light remayning in darknes in the time of truth abiding in errour in these dayes of grace liue still in sinne nay are we not cold rather which euery where preferre pleasure before piety that we will take no payne no not to purchase ioy which esteeme of gayne so much aboue godlines that we wil take no losse no not to win heauen in whō all affections grow so cold in respect of Lady Money that for her loue men are brought euen vniuersally to be vniust to their owne neighbours vnfaithfull to their owne friends vnkinde to their owne kinne vnnaturall to their owne parents vntrusty to their owne Country vntrue to their owne Prince impious to their owne God mercilesse to all others most miserable