Selected quad for the lemma: death_n
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A89440
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A mystery which the angels desired to look into. 1 Pet. 1. 11. 12.
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1647
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Wing M3192; Thomason E386_15*; ESTC R201484
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11,645
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A Mystery which the Angels desired to look into 1 PET. 1.11.12 THe end why the Eternall Father did send the Apostles and now sends his Ministers is as St. Paul sets it down Ephes 3.9 To make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God Ephes 3.10 To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places i. to the Angels even of highest degree might be known by the Church the manifold wisdom of God But what was this manifold wisdom When God had suffered Adam to fall Gen. 3.24 that he might see his own pride and folly Divine Justice drave him out of Paradise and placed at the East end of the garden of Eden Cherubims and a flaming sword which turned every way to keep the way of the tree of life that so flesh nor blood neither might nor could enter But Divine Wisdom hath found out a way whereby a re-entrance is made And yet the Decree of Gods justice stands unaltered His wisdom goodnesse and mercy manifested and miserably fallen men restored Which when the Angels saw they sang for joy saying Luk. 2.24 Glory be to God in the highest on earth peace good will towards men The way and mystery was thus That as in pleasing the flesh the eyes and the minde Paradise was lost for so it was Eve seeing that the forbidden fruit was good for food pleasant to the eyes and a tree to be desired to make one wise took and did eat and gave Adam and he did eat also And so both they and their whole posterity according to a Decree of Almighty God were cast out of Paradise left without God in a miserable world subject to labour and sorrow till death seized on them and then also were without hope of a resurrection or second life But Divine Wisdom out of a bottomlesse Fountain of love ordained that as in pleasing the flesh the eye and the minde Paradise was lost and consequently all misery wo and death it self purchased So in displeasing these three viz. the flesh the eye and the minde and passing by those fiery Cherubims suffering death for a good conscience or at least resigning our self thereunto Paradise with a second life might be regained But this when frail man because he was but flesh Rom. 8.3 could not do The Son of God was content to take our flesh upon him and in this flesh make his own life exemplary for all men shewing them how they must follow him in way of regradation that as they had lost Paradise by pleasing the flesh the eyes and the minde by which death had passed upon all So they should regain it by renouncing them and following him in a voluntary abased humiliation to the losse of all worldly things Rev. 2.7 They that thus overcome as he overcame shall go in and eat of the tree of life which is in the midst of the Paradise of God and live for ever be with him live and reign with him for ever and ever This is that everlasting Gospel or glad tydings preached unto men But because for this work the Son of God was to leave his Fathers bosome and the glory which he had with him in the highest heavens and so descending upon the earth must take mans frail nature upon him and in that nature must be abased and abused suffering hunger cold nakednesse induring ignominy shame Heb. 2.5.10 reproach and at last dye the most cursed and painfull death even the death of the Crosse for this his great humiliation he obtain'd of his Father by way of reward an extraordinary exaltation It was decreed he should not onely be received up into glory Heb. 1.6 but in the highest heavens sit on the right hand of God Almighty where all the Angels of God should worship him And he should be Prince of this his Church which he had purchased with his own blood and should have all power put into his hands both of things in heaven and things in earth and things under the earth and should be judge of men and Angels Yea moreover it was granted that for his sake and for his great humiliation all his followers should have their sins forgiven them but the spots and stains thereof must be washed away by the water of affliction For there are foure things considerable in sin the act the guilt the stain the scandall The act is soon over the guilt remains till removed by repentance and then though in the Court of heaven atonement be made by Christs blood 2 Sam. 12. as in the case of Davids murther and adultery yet the stain and scandall continues and according to the nature of the offence is washed away by the water of affliction through the Word a figure of which was the Ark saving of eight persons in the old world by water Ephes 5.9 26. 1 Pet. 3.20 21 and the like figure whereunto doth Baptisme now save observed by St. Peter to be both figures Now this is performed either by a mortified life or the afflicting hand of God or both As appears by that example of David also of Miriam her murmuring against Moses and many that sinned in the wildernesse And therefore it is saith St. Paul that the Lord doth judge and chastise men that they should not be condemned with the world And that this should be the condition of Gods children Gen. 7. Exod. 3.2 Exod. 14 29. 1 Sam. 14. Dan. 3. Ioh 3.6 Matth. 14.24 was long ago plainly prefigured by Noahs Ark floating upon the roaring floods by Moses burning bush by the Israelites passing thorow the Red sea by the taking of the Ark of God by the uncircumcised Philistines by the three Children walking up down in the fiery fornace Again under the Gospel by John baptizing the people in Jordan By St. Peters ship tossed to and fro with a winde which was contrary Rev. 12. Exod 2.3 and by the Dragons persecuting the woman in the wildernesse It was so in the time of the Law Moses no sooner born but layed in the flags by the river side Gen. 37.26 Isa 53.4 Exod. 13. Joseph sold into Aegypt David a man of sorrows The Children of Israel no sooner from under Pharaohs hard bondage but they are in the wildernesse where they must wander fourty yeers It were too long to run through all their miseries besides their two captivities Yet all this they hoped would end when Messiah came then they expected Halcyon dayes But it 's no better yet for since the dayes of John the Baptist Matth. 11.12 the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence and onely the violent take it by force His Disciples indeed thought that he would have restored the Kingdom to Israel Act. 1.6 but he tels them they were deceived in looking for a kingdom here They that would be his followers Luk. 10 13. must carry a Crosse upon their
St. James esteemes the wisdom strength layed out upon these to be earthly sensuall divellish Of the same speaks St. John 1 Ioh 2.15 16 saying Love not the world nor the things that are in the world For all that is in the world the lusts of the flesh the lusts of the eyes Gal 1.4 and the pride of life is not of the Father but is of the world And our Lord dyed to deliver us from this present evill world from which S. James saith Iam. â— 27 he that is religious keeps himself unspotted Every offence that in this world is committed is either for a beastly pleasure a trifling commodity or for some vain estimation with man And as in a glasse face answers face so do these three kinds of transgressions to those three qualities of the forbidden fruit Gen. 3. And therefore it is that the Christian in Baptisme promises to renounce these three the world the flesh and the devill and to follow our Lord under the Crosse the performance of which through Christ is that which saveth called by the Apostle not the washing away the silth of the flesh but the answer of a good conscience And this is that spirituall and fiery Baptisme of Christ namely a Baptisme into his death unto which whosoever subscribes stands ingaged to a crucifixion and daily death for a good conscience 1 Cor. 15. and is in jeopardy to dye every houre As it is written if the dead rise not why are we baptized for the dead and why stand we in jeopardy every houre I protest saith the Apostle by our rejoycing which I have in Christ Jesus I dye daily therefore it is that the Lord Christ to the baptized is a Captain a Leader and every such that hath resigned up himself to be his Souldier and to follow the Lambe where-ever he goeth this his skilfull Captain will lead through crooked paths and bring fear and dread upon him Ecclu 4.11 18. and torment him by discipline but after will comfort him and shew him secrets Therefore saith the Apostle After ye have suffered a while 1 Pet. 5 10. he shall stablish strengthen settle you This is the Lords way to save the sons of men And as Eiihu said these things God worketh thrice yea often with man to bring back his soul from the pit to be enlightned with the light of the living Iob 23. That man whom God intends to dignifie he visits every morning and tryes him every moment Iob 7. Hebr. 12. and chastiseth him for his profit that so he may be made partaker of Gods holinesse indeed be regenerated made one with the Father and the Son as our Lord said Verily ye which have followed me in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit upon the throne of his glory ye shall sit upon twelve thrones judging the Tribes of Israel Every one that hath forsaken houses or brethren or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands for my Names sake shall receive an hundred fold and shall inberit everlasting life This in our Lords opinion is the very means of mans regeneration namely Isa 51.2 3. Ps 1 44. Iob 34.7 Isa 50.6 a patient following him through all afflictions to be as a lambe dumbe before the shearers to lay the body as the ground and as the street to them that passe over patiently bearing reproaches and drinking down scorning like water to give the back to the smiters the face to the spitters and the checks to them that pluck off the hair But this doctrine to flesh and blood seems strange that the Scripture saith Lord who hath beleeved our report 1 Cor. 1 23. To the Jews it is a stumbling block to the Greeks foolishnesse Hab. 2.10 and 5.9 but to the Christian beleever it is the power of God to salvation For by means of the Crosse the Christian is made like his Master fitted for heaven and perfected as he was perfected Hab 1. â—0 59. and he that endureth most for him in this life that comes neerest to him in suilerings shall come neerest to him in glory in the next Therfore let us not think afflictions when God sendeth them so strange a thing Job 7.17 11. but rather with holy Job in secret admiring that God should take such care for to make us partakers of his holinesse say Heb. 12.10 Lord what is man that thou shouldst dignifie him that thou shouldst set thy heart upon him that thou shou'dst visit him every morning and try him every moment But Lord what may be thought of those men that take up the sword against the Cresse Those that have caused so great effusion of Christian blood for liberty Iesuites and heady Sectariâ—s yea liberty to the flesh which must be crucified that so they mayserve God as themselves please and that without any trouble in this world How are these ignorant and also Enemies of the Crosse of Christ The holy Apostle wept to think that there should be any such among Christians Phil. 3.19 telling the Philippians that such made their belly their God their glory their shame earthly minded men their end was destruction Alas alas what shall become of those among Christians that for this end because they may not have liberty speak evill of Dignities and despise Dominions following the foot-steps of Cain Corab Dathan and Abiram and will not be warned by their judgements Which examples as standing Pillars of Salt remain to all generations Wo is them wo is them for them in especiall saith St. Jude is reserved blacknesse and darknesse for ever Jude 8.13 Did the blessed Trinity in their wisdom finde out this onely means for the restauration of lost mankinde Did the holy Apostles rejoyce in it the Angels admire it the universall Church imbrace it and do we fight to make it void The very thoughts thereof cause my knees to tremble my lips to quiver and rottennesse to enter into my bones For God with vengeance will come with thousands of his Saints as Enoch prophesied to execute judgement on all belly gods that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him These Iude 19. saith that Apostle are those that separate themselves sensuall Ier 7.29 not having the Spirit O Lord what have we done that thou shouldst suffer us to stray and in knowing times to be so strangely deluded By what degrees of sins have we ascended to such unmatchable wickednesse O! the Christian Religion how it is disgraced Cut off thy hair Ier. 7.29 O Christian and cast it from thee and take up a lamentation in all thy publick places and say O Lord if it be possible open our eyes Deuâ— 19.18 Act 1.23 and remove this bitter Gall forgive this great iniquitie When Israel had sinned in making the golden Calf thou shewedst mercy upon thousands To Manasses which