Selected quad for the lemma: death_n
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A19504
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A preparatiue for the new Passeouer very profitable to be perused and read of all those who are called to the holy table of our Lord / by Maister William Cowper ...
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Cowper, William, 1568-1619.
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1607
(1607)
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STC 5933.3; ESTC S2563
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54,238
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126
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in like manner who had sate al his daies with Mathew at the receipt of custome that is who had liued in y e sinful trade of vnlawful gaine wold now in like manner forsake it but where the Lord by effectuall calling works not in the heart an earnest loue of God no maruaile they lie stil in the graue of their sins rise not to walk after the Lord. We are therfore so much the more to vse all the ordinary meanes which may entertain in vs y â— little spark of the loue of god til it grow vp vnto a great flame for the farther vnion coniunction of our soules with Iesus Christ and this for our dispositioÌ„ towards God As concerning our Christian disposition to our neighbour it is vsuall to the spirit of God to comprise it vnder loue Our Sauiour saith that loue is the cognisance of his Disciples the Apostle calleth it the band of perfection and fulfilling of the law no maruell for loue speaketh with the tongue of euerie vertue All the sundrie precepts we are commanded to doe vnto our neighbour are summarily comprehended vnder this one Loue one another As this sacrament sealeth vp the coÌ„munion of the members with the head so it seales vp the communion of the members amongst themselues for this bread whereof we eate is of many graines of wheat made vp into one bread the wine is the iuice of many berries collected vnited into one to teach vs that all the communicaÌ„ts at this holy table how many soeuer they be ought to agree together in one like meÌ„bers of one body as hauing one Father one faith one Baptisme one inheritance as Brethren quickned al by one the selfe same spirit which is not to bee found againe in all the world except in this excellent brother-hood as we cannot be ioyned to the heade without faith so can we not be knit to the member without loue Stones and timber cannot make vp a building till they be ioyned and sundry peeces of mettall cannot bee melted in one worke without fire no more can ChristiaÌ„s be vnited in one mistycall body without loue and therefore our Sauiour at the celebration of this Sacrament recommended louâ— to his Disciples by a new commaundement which he so called because it should neuer wax olde yea so much doth he account of it that he will accept no seruice wee owe to himselfe without that duety of loue we owe to our bretheren If thou bring thy gift to the Altar there remembrest that thy brother hath ought against thee leaue thy offering goe thy way and â—â—rst be reconciled to thy Brother then come and offer thy gift of this it is euident that without loue to our brethren wee can doe no acceptable seruice to the Lord. In this therfore let vs trie and examine our selues what compassion finde we in our hearts toward our brethren what willingnesse to do them the good we can what loue to beare one anothers burden what readinessâ— to forgiue when wee are offended what humblenesse of minde to aske them forgiuenesse against whome we haue sinned practising these precepts While ye haue time to doe good to all men And againe for beare one another forgiue one another euen as God for Christs sake foâ—gaue you The Maiestie of God suppose first offended did firsâ— seek man to be reconciled with him and shall man that hath offended thinke euill to seeke his brother to be reconciled with him but alasâ—e are thesâ— fruites of godlinesse now to be found amongst men it thou seeke them thou shalt finde th em as the Sommer gatherings or as the grapes of a vintage cut downe though thy soule desire to eat the fruiâ— thereof thou shalt not find it for the good man is perished out of the earth such as are Christians by name they liue like Iewes and the Samaritans of whome it is written that they might not conuerse together to forbeare and forgiue one another to them are precepts of an vncouth language which they vnderstand not as a sparckle of fire easily kindles a heape of powder so a smal offence remooueth all their affections they are not slowe vnto wrath like the Lord and farre lesse like him in readinesse to forgiue As men saith Lactantius are mortall so should their anger be mortall our Sauiour saith the sunne should not go down vpoÌ„ our wrath the Apostle coÌ„maunds vs to be children concerning anger maliciousnesse who as they doe not deepely conceiue it so they do not long reteine it but are shortly familiar with them with whome they were a little before offended but as it was doubted of Sylla Syllane prioâ— an Syllae iracundia sit extincta so is it out of all doubt that in many vipers of this age anger dieth not tilâ— they die themselues And as for doing of good to their neighbors and brethren they liue in the world like moÌ„sters or like these Gyants The sonnes of Anak they alone will bee Lordes of the earth as ifthe world were made for theÌ„ only or they at the least were born for theÌ„ selues churchlish like Nabal shall I take saide hee my bread and my flesh giue vnto Dauid al that they haue they account so to be theirs as ifthey had not receiued it or were not the Lords stewards bouÌ„d to distribute to the necessities of his saints the rich gluttoÌ„s they vse it as a morsell for their own mouth Now my soule thou hast enough for many daies let Lazarus find as he may they thinke with Caine they are no keepers of their Brethren That which dieth let it die These and many moe are the common and sâ—ene corruptions of this age wherein we are to examine our selues how farre the renewing grace of the Lord hath made vs to depart from them and what holy loue we haue put on For hee that loueth not knoweth not God because God is loue and he that loueth not his Brother whome hee hath seene how can he loue God whom he hath not seene hereby wee know that wee are translated from death to life because we loue the Brâ—thren And thus much we are content to haue touched of our disposition toward our neighbour Now last of all concerning our disposition in our selues let vs be sober esteeming basely of our selues highly of the Lords mercie hungring and thirsting for his saluation and in verie deed the more we shall consider how God hath magnifieâ— his holy name by his maruelouâ—mercies towards vs the more shall we be compelled to cast downe our selues befoâ—e him in all humilitie and submission of our spirits When Dauid promised to Mephiboseth that hee would shew him kindenesse for Ienathan his faâ—hers sake Mephâ—bosheâ—h humbled himself to the ground and said what is thy seruant that thou shouldest looke to such a dog as I am but heere the Lord oâ—r God not onely promiseth vnto vs kindenesse
house of Abraham then testifie your consent by receiuing these hâ—lye tokens of his loue which in his name we exh bit vnto you but if yee will not then shall we stand vp as witnesses against you that we haue called you and ye refused to come O man what wilt thou doe for thy Christ that wilt not come and banquet with him at his Table how canst thou say thou louest him when so small an impediment keepâ—s thee back from going vnto him hast thou not cause to hang downe thy head for shame when thou art conuinced to haue lesse loue to thy Sauiour then Esau had to Iacobs pottage for loue of them he solde his birth-right which hee should haue kept but thou for loue of Christ wilt not forsake thy corrupted will which thou art bouÌ„d to abandon Abraham for the loue of God was content with his own hands to slay his onely lawful Son and thou for the loue of God wilt not slay thy vnlawful bastard affections nor do the holy wil of God except thy wicked will be first fulfilled This euidently proues that â—hou hast not AbrahaÌ„ for thy father but art of the race of wicked Cain that hated his Brother vnto the death Assuredly except thou repent that merciles iudgement abides thee presignified in that mercilesse seruaÌ„t who hauing gotten mercie from his King could shew none to his Companion Oughtest not thou to haue had pittie on thy fellow as I had pittie on thee Thy former sins shall bee imputed vnto thee and thou shalt be deliuered to the Iaylor til thou pay all that is due vnto thy Lord which thou shalt neuer be able to doe But that the pittiful ignorance of both these sortes of Recusants may the better appeare and farther light may arise to such as are willing to communicate wee are to consider what a banquet this is and what are the delicates vnto the participation whereof wee are here called The Apostle saith not let a man eate bread drink wine but let him eate of This bread drink of this Cup. The particle This tels vs it is no coÌ„mon bread wine no surely the comfort is greate that we are commaunded to eate of that bread wherof our Sauiour saith This is my body and to drinke of that Cup which he calles His blood of the New Testament shed for the remission of the sinnes of many He that eates of my bread drinks of any cup vnworâ—hily becomes guiltie of the abuse of Gods creatures but he that eates of this Bread and drinkes of this cup vnworthily becomes guiltie of the bodye and blood of the Lord and eates his own damnatioÌ„ becaâ—se he discerneth not the lords body And therefore that wee fall not into this fâ—arfull sinne wee are to know that this Sacrament is not a simple thing but a compound wherin are things of sundry kinds which must be distinguished and so the word of discerning imports that secret There are here things oâ— sundâ—ie sorts we must discerne euery thing in the owne kinde so our Sauiour taught vs and after him his Apostles and this truth from them the auncient Fathers haue deliuered vnto vs Eucharistia said Irenaeus ex â—uabus râ—buâ— constat â—errenâ— et caelesti The Eucharist coÌ„sists of two kinde of thinges the one earthly the other heauenly And Augustine calleth it vâ—sibile stâ—num inuâ—fibilis gratiae the visible signe of inuisible grace And Macarius calleth this bread wine 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Exemâ—lâ—râ—â— figurae seutâ—pâ— carnis et sauguinis Christs Resemblances figures types of the body blood of Christ Iesus Now it is â—uâ—e that a type patterne or figure must euer bee distinguished from that wherof it is a figure This sacrament then being a compound thing must bee considered not as a simple but as a compound thing If it bee asked whether a man be earthly or heaueÌ„nly because hee is a compound creature It must bee answered by a distinction If it bee asked how a Christian being on the earth the Apostle saieth that hee hath his câ—nconuersation in the Heauens it must bee answered by a distinction And if also it bee asked whether this Sacrament be an earthlye or an heauenlye thing how the signe is giuen how the thing signified how Christ Iesus is in the heauen yet present in this SacrameÌ„t All these I say must be answered by a distinction Sursum est dominus saide Augustin sedetiam hic est veritas dominus corpus enim domini in quo resurrexit vno loco esse potest veriâ—as eius vbique diffusa est Our Lord is aboue in heauen yet heere also is our Lord as he is the truth for the body of our lord in which he arose from death can bee but in one place but his truth is diffused into euerie place And againe Ibat per id quod homâ— erat manebat per id quod deus ibat per id quod vno loco erat manebat per id quod vbique erat He went hence by that which was Man hee stayed by that which was God he went away by that which was but in one place he stayed by that which was in al places And againe Ascendit super omnes coelos corpore noÌ„ recessit maiestate Hee ascended aboue all the heauens in his bodie but he departed not hence in his Maiestie And Cyrill in like maner Non enim quia nunc non adest in carne ex eo outes quoâ— spiritu medio hic noÌ„ adâ—it Think not that with his spirit he is not here amongest vs because hee is not now amongst vs with his bodie Thus ye see we must vse a distinction And yet albeit we are forced here to acknowledge the sundrie natures of things compound and consider them in their owne kinds wee must for all that take heed to the wonderfull vnion and sâ—cramentall coniunction that is betâ—eene them which is so strait that vnto the right receiuer they are inseparable for the which also the earthly thing receyues the name of the heauenly And this must also be considered least on the other hande separating those thinges which God hath conioyned we make this Bread and this Wine but naked and bare signes and so iustly incurre that blame which our aduersaries vniustly would lay vpon vs and in like manner this punishment which here the Lorde threatens against them who are euill discerners We are therefore to consider that for the right discerning of the Lords body these three rules are to be obserued First that in this Sacrament we take vp euery thing in the owne nature kind Next that we vse euerie one of theÌ„ in the maner appointed by Christ with reuerence that is due vnto them And thirdly that this SacrameÌ„t be celebrated vnto the right ends for which our Sauiour appointed it Against the first failes both Papists and bastard professors Papists are euill