our sinne but no remedie against the sting therof so that it maketh vs feare and with trembling looke for the reward of sinne which is euerlasting death But the spirite of adoption by the preaching of the Gospel telleth vs that in Christ we haue remission of sinnes we are reconciled vnto God and adopted by him we are his chosen children and may boldly and ioyfully call him father And this certainetie of our saluation the spirit of God testifieth to our spirit whereby we put away all seruile feare of punishment beeing assured of Gods constant fauour and eternall loue towardes vs who neuer leaueth vnfinished that which he hath begun nor forsaketh him whom he hath chosen 15 Therefore daungerous and desperate is that doctrine of the Papists which doth teache vs euer to be doubtfull and in suspence of our saluation A lamentable discomfortable and miserable estate Here it is in one woord confounded For Zacharie saith we are redeemed to serue him without feare or doubtfulnesse For where doubt is there is feare and what greater feare than of a thing so fearefull Hee that will serue God must serue him in a quiet and ioiefull conscience with a sure and vndoubted confidence of mercie and saluation in Christ the Lord of mercy With thee is mercie saith the Prophet that thou maist be feared As if hee should say Thou art full of clemencie and compassion and therfore we serue thee with a reuerent and without a seruile feare being perswaded of thy great mercie 16 Feare is euer of the inferior to the superior It is not required in the prince to feare the subiect the master the seruaunt the father the childe or the husband the wife but contrarie in all God feareth not man his creature man ought to feare God who hath created him to feare him as a louing father and not as men doe feare a fierce tyrant 17 The true feare which is required of vs is euer ioined with loue The good childe feareth to offende his father for that loue and reuerence he beareth to him and not in respect or for feare of punishment The honest and well natured wife that truely loueth her husband for the same cause feareth and taketh great heede least in any thing she should offend him Euen with such feare ought we to serue our God who is our father our Christ who is our spouse Of this godlie feare the Prophet Dauid saith Serue the Lord in feare And againe Feare the Lorde all yee his Saints Of this Christ speaketh Feare him which can destroie both bodie and soule This feare great goodnesse and happinesse doe accompany It is the beginning of true wisedome For all wisedome without the feare of God is but earthly fleshly and diuelish They that haue it shall be satisfied with all good things There is no want to them that feare him It causeth men to decline from euill it banisheth sinne woorketh repentance in mans heart and happie are all they that feare the Lorde as they cursed which feare him not If the Angell had feared the Lord he had still kept his place and glorious estate and not beene made of an Angell a diuel cast out of heauen into hell If Adam had loued and feared God hee had not beene banished out of paradise and throwne vpon the face of this cursed earth If the feare of God had not of old wanted the whole world had not beene drowned If the citie of Sodoma had feared God they might haue remained in prosperitie vntill this day If Cain had feared God he had not so trecherously murthered his brother If Cham he had not so shamefully discouered his father If Laban he had not so deceitfully dealt with Iacob If Pharao he would haue let Israel depart when GOD commaunded If Israell had loued and truely feared God they would not haue loathed Manna despised magistrates followed fleshly lusts murthered the Prophets crucified Christ and persecuted his Apostles If the Corinthians had feared God they would not haue beene so contentious so proude so adulterous neither would they so vncharitably haue iudged their brethren in things indifferent they would not haue condemned mariage the institutiō of God neither in such sort prophaned the holy Sacramēts of Christ. The feare of God wold haue brought forth better fruit in all these and the want therof brought forth this bad fruit 18 If the feare of God dwelt in our hearts the Gospel so truly and plentifully preached among vs would no doubt bring forth far more fruite after so many monitions perswasions and entreaties we would leade a better life When there are amongst vs many that breede contention and make diuision that lend out their monie vpon vsurie that pollute their neighbours bed with adulterie that shut vp the bowels of mercie and compassion and suffer Christ to begge crie and starue in the streetes that neither regard the heauenly message of their saluation nor esteeme the messenger by whom it is brought that shewe no reuerence to the woord of God but manifestly hate loath and despise it is it not too cleare and manifest that we feare not the Lord 19 If the feare of God were in vs would wee deale with the seruaunts of God as wee nowe doe The dealing of Hanun the sonne of Nahash towards Dauids seruaunts was not more villanous than the dealings of the world are with the honorable Embassadors of the most high God at this day Dauid sent his seruauntes to the king of the children of Ammon to comfort him straight vpon the death of his father The malitious Ammonites misconstruing their intent whispered in the eare of their Lord Thinkest thou that Dauid doth honour thy father or that he hath sent comforters vnto thee Are they not rather sent as spies to searche the citie and so to ouerthrowe it He had no sooner heard the name of a spie but hands were laide vpon Dauids seruants they were sent away with their beards halfe shauen and their coates cut off in the vnseemeliest place to his owne euerlasting ignominie and shame which so despitefully vsed men sent vnto him of meere loue and heartie meaning For the good king had no other drift or purpose in his heart but this I will shewe kindenesse to Hanun as his father shewed kindnesse vnto me The true Dauid the most mightie Prince the king of all kings hath in fauour mercie and reconciled loue sent his embassadors his ministers vnto you to comfort you in your griefes and to bring you ioiefull tidings of a kingdome which it hath pleased his father to bestowe vpon you These messengers ought of right to be honourably receiued Entreate such with honour saith the Apostle Nay such messengers are woorthie of double honour But behold they are taken as if they were spies they are accounted as the offscourings refuse baggage of the world not as the embassadors of the great
I looke for to come out of such a schoole and from such a schoolemaster This would worldly wisedome and flesh bloud haue said vnto him but faith putteth no such perill but readily obeyeth whatsoeuer God commaundeth It doubteth not it stackereth not but if God saith goe it goeth if GOD say coÌ„me it commeth if God say doe this it doth it Beholde to obey is better than sacrifice and to hearken is better than the fat of rammes 18 He sendeth two of his seruaunts and a godlie souldier that attendeâ—â— vpon him Here was the reward of his labour in bringing vp his houshold in the feare of God He had taught his seruaunts truely and syncerely to feare God and God had taught his seruaunts faithfully and willingly to serue him For he saith the Scripture that doeth serue his master faithfully and heartily serueth Christ Iesu who rewardeth all faithfull seruice Abraham brought vp his familie in the feare of God and he reaped the fruite of it He had a most faithfull seruaunt whom hee sent to procure a wife to his sonne Isaak whosoeuer therefore will be trustily serued let him traine vp his houshold in the feare of God and expell out thence all that be not godlie as godly Dauid did It is dangerous for any man to nourish serpents in his bosome they will at one time or other sting him Faithlesse seruaunts haue beene the confusion of many good masters And godlesse children the destruction of many good fathers Ophâ—ni and Phinees were the death of their father Ely the high priest And Iudas conspired against his master Christ the innocent sonne of God 19 But to come to that which I set downe for the last Note in Cornelius with what humanitie and reuerence hee receiued Peter the preacher of Gods word he called to him his kinsemen and friends and expected him he fel downe prostrate to doe him honour he thanked him for his comming declaring how readie he was to heare him And because faith doth labour for Gods glorie and breake foorth into loue towards our neighbour hee called his friends and kinsemen to be partakers of that great treasure of God with him Hee was not Caine-like who had no care for his brother Cornelius teacheth vs howe desirous we ought to be of Gods word howe glad and readie to heare it and howe that in duetifull loue wee should prouoke others to the hearing and imbracing of it For it is the woord of trueth and saluation Which S. Iames considering exhorteth his brethren to receiue the word that is able to saue their soules And let vs consider one another saith S. Paul to prouoke vnto loue and to good woorkes not forsaking the fellowship that we haue among our selues as the maner of some is but exhorting one another The arrogant Iewes puffed vp with selfe-loue would not ioine themselues in the congregation with Gentiles Which thing the Apostle reprooueth exhorting them not to contemne their brethren but rather one prouoke another charitably to ioine together in pietie in hearing of the woord and receiuing of the Sacraments As Esay did foreshewe that the faithfull in Christs time should say one to another Come and let vs goe vp to the mountaines of the Lord to the house of the God of Iacob and he will teache vs his waies and we will walke in his pathes But alas this zeale of the glorie of God this loue towardes our brethren is worne away in vs I feare me wee will neither goe our selues to heare the word neither suffer others but dehort them so much as we may pretending I knowe not what to couer our arrogant malitious heart withall Such a man is an vsurper I cannot heare him with safe conscience hee weareth a surplisse I will neither heare him nor trust him Another is a shrinker another halfe a papist leaue them heare them not This is the common crie I will not vse their owne speeche it is too proude and too bitter I trust we all preache Christ crucified Howsoeuer it be saith S. Paul so that Christ be taught I reioice in it If we mislike the minister shall we mislike the message also If we cannot brooke the messenger shal we be at defiance with him that sent him God graunt vs such hearts as Cornelius had that in liking and loue we may prouoke one another to pietie and godlinesse that wee may hunger after Gods truth heare the word without respect of the messenger and so heare it that we may liue by it Cornelius fell downe prostrate before Peter Hee considered of him as of the embassador of God hee reuerenced him as his spirituall father he gaue vnto him that double honour which S. Paul saith is due vnto him The Elders that rule well are woorthie of double honour specially they who labour in the woord and doctrine He looked not on the man but regarded his office Wee beseeche you brethren that you knowe them which labour among you and are ouer you in the Lorde and admonish you that you haue them in singular loue for their workes sake S. Paul doeth greatly commend the Galathians in this behalfe that they loued him as an Angell of God yea as Christ Iesus yea if it had beene possible they would haue plucked out their owne eyes and giuen them him But our times are altered men are otherwise affected They enuie and mutter against Moses and Aaron They are become such of whom God complaineth by his prophet Hosea Thy people are as they that rebuke the Priest I would to God they would remember Christ saying He that despiseth you despiseth me 20 But the honour which Cornelius gaue vnto Peter was more than was fit to be giuen to a man For Peter refused it with thâ—â— reason I my selfe am a man too The zeale and reuerence that he had to the woord made him ouerreach in honouring the minister of it So did the men of Lystra honour Paul and Barnabas but they saide in like sort O men why doe ye these things We are men subiect to the like passions that ye be Iohn would haue woorshipped the Angel likewise but the Angel refused See thou doe it not I am thy fellowe seruaunt Worship God Here we learne howe dangerously religious honour is giuen to any creature It cannot be thought that either Cornelius or Iohn would robbe God of his glorie and giue it to Angel or man But yet they were forbidden to doe that which they did least they should attribute more to the messenger of God than they ought through preposterous zeale It is not so great a daunger to honour a prince with al humilitie therein men cannot so easilie exceed because the honour is ciuill But the danger is in a spirituall person least in respect of his holie office they honour him too much And here is the insolent pride of the pope reproued who vaunteth himselfe for Peters successor
must all offer 15 At the handes of the minister it is required that hee feed the flocke committed vnto his charge this is righteousnesse in him it is his sacrifice God will haue no blinde no lame no vncleane thing to be offered therfore let as many as offer the sacrifice of righteousnes take heede to that they doe The wordes of the Lorde are pure wordes like siluer tried in a fornace of earth fined seuen times He therefore that speaketh let him speake as the wordes of God 16 Furthermore as it is reason that they which sacrifice at the altar shoulde liue of the altar euen so it is against all equitie and right that the labour of preaching the Gospell shoulde rest vpon any mans backand the maintenance due for the same be withheld and kept from him It hath beene tolde you often and some haue beene angrie to heare it so often tolde that the ministerie is too much pinched the liuing of the Church so fleesed that manie worthy ministers haue scarce nay they haue not wherewith tolerablie to sustaine themselues 17 To come from the minister to the magistrate when heynous crimes are detected and brought to light there is then a speciall sacrifice of righteousnesse required at his handes such a sacrifice as Ioas offered who following the good aduise of Iehoida the high priest his faithfull counsellour put Athalia which had murthered the kinges children and vsurped the kingdome to the sworde The Lorde sometime doth so deale with his people that they plainely see his wrath to be kindled and his heauie indignatioÌ„ impossible to be appeased til this sacrifice be offred him The Israelites were ouerthrowne in battle till Achan was stoned to death King Dauid founde no rest in his kingdome till AbsoloÌ„ Adonias had that which their rebellious practises did deserue God requireth as well the sacrifice of iustice as of mercie yea he sometimes accepteth iustice for a sacrifice and plagueth mercie as a grieuous sinne If Dauid had not spared his sonne for murther his sonne had not troubled him with rebellion For rebellion he woulde also in fatherly pity and compassion haue spared him this God coulde not suffer but tooke execution of iustice him selfe stretched out the arme of an oake and strangled the gallant in his owne haire Saul suffred Agag but he felt the wrath of the Lorde for it to the losse of his kingdome Quiparcit lupo mactat gregem hee that spareth a wolfe spilleth the bloude of the flocke saith Chrisostome God appointeth the magistrate to be a reuenger vnto wrath vpon him that committeth euil They which glorie to haue the sworde rustie in the sheath when they woulde drawe it out peraduenture shall not so well be able Let magistrates therefore from the highest to the lowest execute iustice without feare or fauour when neede requireth and so they shall offer vp the sacrifice of righteousnesse 18 As this sacrifice belongeth peculiarlie to them so there are others belonging although to them yet not to them alone but to all Christians Wee must all sacrifice vnto the Lorde with our goodes with our mindes and with our bodies For all these we haue receiued to serue him withall With our goodes the needie must be relieued the naked clothed the hungrie comforted and fed For this sacrifice S. Paul commendeth to the PhilippiaÌ„s I was euen filled after that I had receiued of Epaphroditus that which came from you an odoure that smelleth sweete a sacrifice acceptable pleasant vnto God The like he hath also to the Hebrewes To doe good and to distribute forget not for with such sacrifice God is pleased 19 To haue the sacrifice of the bodie offered S. Paul is verie earnest with the Romaines I beseech you brethren by the mercies of God that yee giue vp your bodies a liuing sacrifice holie and acceptable vnto God Let not thine eye behold the thing which is euill and it is made a sacrifice let no vncleane word escape thy tongue and it is an offring let thine hande doe no harme and it is an oblation saith S. Chrysostome To the like effect Origen when thou subduest pride thou dost affer a calfe when wrath a ram when lust a goate a doue when a vaine and wandring cogitation But the most precious sacrifice of the bodie is when being mortified it is also offered to the crosse for the testimonie of Iesus Christ in whose cause the death of the Saints is deere in the sight of God If the Prophetes the Apostles the martyrs of all ages haue offred vp the glorious sacrifice of righteousnesse why should wee be acounted faithfull as they were vnlesse wee be willing to doe and to suffer as they did Wee haue a longe time had faire weather wisdome would that we should prouide for stormes Christs Church must be tried such is Gods woont A rough storme was rising but the Lord such are his mercies raised vp a winde which scattered the clowdes he hath in great fauour and tender loue deliuered vs from the Lions mouth Let vs therefore liue no longer in this our senslesse securitie but offer him sacrifice as of our bodies so likewise of our mindes repentance and praise 20 Our sinnes no doubt haue prouoked his wrath our ingratitude hath grieued him our iniquities haue kindled his indignation wee haue grieuouslye offended by despising his worde from the highest to the lowest The Magistrates are for the most part colde in Gods cause they are not eaten vp with the zeale of his house iustice iudgement they commonly omit wickedly peruert The guides and Pastours of the Church seeke themselues and not those things which belong to Iesus Christ. And the people not well guided nor â—euerely corrected are of all other farthest out of frame Now if the most high haue power ouer the kingdome of men to giue it to whom soeuer he will and to appoint ouer it most vile persons when pleaseth him and if because of our vnrighteous dealing he should as he hath done many a time and oft vnto nations farre greater and mightier then ours power vs as it were out of one vessell into an other translate the scepter of this kingdom from hand to hand in steede of a gracious and religious Lady cause an hypocrite to raigne ouer vs which the Lord neuer suffer these eyes to see what could we saie but God were iust in al his waies had brought that vpon vs which our sinnes haue deserued To appease his wrath and to staie these or the like plagues from breaking in and from ouerwhelming the land there is no other waie but speedily to offer vp the sacrifice of righteousnesse This is the sacrifice of righteousnesse euen a broken and a contrite heart 21 The other sacrifice of the minde is praise which consisteth in thankesgiuing and petition Let vs thanke our God for his manifolde mercies For it is the Lordes mercies that
that worketh all in all Wherfore as not onely Paul Apollos Cephas but all are ours and we are Christs and Christ is Gods so let vs comfort and strengthen one another in our holy faith holding nothing more deere vnto vs then the saluatiō ech of others and in Gods holy feare commend we one another to that faithful creator who is father of all aboue vs all and through vs all and in vs all To him be rendred all thanks and all honour geuen for euer and for euer The order and matter of the Sermons 1 The first Ho euerie one that thirsteth come to the waters c. Esa. 55. 1. 2 Be this sinne against the Lorde far from me that I shoulde cease to pray c. 1. Sam. 12. 23. 3 Take vs the little foxes which destroie the vines for our vine hath florished Cant. 2. 15. 4 I exhorte therefore before all thinges that requestes supplications c. 1. Tim. 2. 1. 5 Be like minded hauing the same loue being of one accorde c. Phil. 2. 2. 6 Teach mee thy way O Lorde and I will walke in thy truth Psal. 86. 11. 7 Drawe neere to God and he will draw neere to you Iac. 4. 8. 8 Seeke the Lorde while he may bee founde call vpon him while hee is neere c. Esay 55. 6. 9 All the daies of this my warfare do I waite till my changing come Iob. 14. 14. 10 That being deliuered out of the hands of our enemies we may serue him c. Luc. 1. 74. 11 Owe nothing to any man but this to loue one another for hee that loueth c. Rom. 13. 8. 12 He hath shewed thee O man what is good and what the Lorde requireth of thee c. Mich. 6. 8. 13 And Iesus went into the temple of God and cast out all them that soulde and bought c. Matth. 21. 12. 14 Then Peter opened his mouth and saide Of a truth I perceiue that God c. Act. 10. 34. 15 We therfore as helpers beseech you that ye receiue not the grace of God in vaine c. 2. Cor. 6. 2. 16 Mariage is honorable in all Heb. 13. 1. 17 After these thinges Iesus went his waie ouer the sea of Galile c. Ioh. 6. 1. 18 Then there shalbe signes in the sunne and in the moone c. Luc. 21. 25 19 And when he was entred into the ship his disciples followed him c. Mat. 8. 23. 20 The end of all thinges is at hand Be ye therefore sober c. 1. Pet. 4. 7. 21 Offer the sacrifices of righteousnesse Psal. 4. 5. 22 For the rest brethren fare yee well be perfect be of good comforte c. 2. Cor. 13. 11. A Sermon made in Paules on the day of Christes Natiuitie ESAY 55. 1 Ho euerie one that thirsteth come to the waters and ye that haue no siluer come buy and eate come I say buy wine and milke without siluer and without money 2 Wherefore doe ye lay out siluer and not for bread and your labour without being satisfied Hearken diligently vnto me and eate that which is good and let your soule delight in fatnesse 3 Encline your eares and come vnto me heare and your soule shall liue I wil make an euerlasting couenant with you euen the sure mercies of Dauid OVR Euangelical Prophet Esaias through the spirit of reuelation hath in the former part of this his prophecie 800. yeres before the birth of Christ euen as if the thing had alreadie beene performed such is the certainetie of his prophecie most liuely described and set foorth the natiuitie the preaching the persecution the apprehension the death the resurrection the ascension yea and the latter comming of our Sauiour Christ to iudge the quicke and the dead in such wise that for the substance thereof no Euangelist hath more perfectly or plainly set foorth this great mysterie of our saluation He foretelleth that Christ shall be borne of a virgin that his name shalbe Immanuel that his office shalbe to preache the glad tidings of saluation to the poore in spirit that he shalbe led as a sheepe to the shambles to be slaine that he shall be stricken for our sakes and beare the burthen of al our sinnes vpon his backe 2 His birth foreshewed so long agoe by this heauenly Prophet was in fulnesse of time accomplished as this day in Bethlem a citie of Dauid according to the testimonie of that Angel sent from heauen to proclaime the birth of the sonne of God at the same time saying Behold I bring you tidings of great ioy that shalbe vnto all the people because this day is borne vnto you a Sauiour which is Christ our Lorde in the Citie of Dauid This is that seede of the woman which breaketh the serpents head that meeke Abel murthered by his brethren for our sinne that true Isaack whom his father hath offered vp to be a sacrifice of pacification and attonement betweene him and vs. This is that Melchisedeck both a king and a priest that liueth for euer without father or mother beginning or ending This is Ioseph that was solde for thirtie pieces of monie This is that Sampson full of strength and courage who to saue his people and destroy his enemies hath willingly brought death vpon his owne head This is that Lorde and sonne of Dauid to whom the Lord sayde Sit thou on my right hand This is that bridegroome in the Canticle whose heart is so inflamed with heauenly loue towards his deare spouse which is his Church This is he whom holy Simeon imbrasing prophesied that he should be a light to the Gentiles and a glorie to his people Israel he vpon whom the holy Ghost descended and of whom the father testified from heauen This is my welbeloued Sonne This is that lambe of God pointed at by Iohn and sent to take away the sinnes of the world to redeeme vs from thraldome not with golde nor siluer but with the inestimable price of his pretious bloud to be made our wisedome iustification sanctification and redemption This is the childe that is borne for vs the sonne that is giuen for our cause the king whose rule is vpon his shoulders whose name is maruellous the giuer of counsell the mightie GOD the euerlasting father the prince of peace the same Messias which was shadowed in the ceremonies and sacrifices of olde which was prefigured in the Lawe and is presented in the Gospel and hath beene approoued to the worlde by signes and wonders by so cleare euidence as cannot bee either dissembled or denyed Let vs therefore embrace this babe with ioie let vs kisse the sonne let vs with the Angels of heauen praise the Lord let vs sing their Psalme to the honour of his name Glorie be to God on high and on earth peace 3 The Prophet Esaias hauing in spirite espied Christ and seene the day though farre off wherein the Sauiour of the world should be borne
common wealth What stirs diuersities of religion hath raised in nations kingdoms the histories are so many so plaine and our times in such sort haue told you that with further proofe I need not trouble your eares One God one king one faith one profession is fit for one monarchie common wealth Diuision weakneth Concord strēgtheneth The storie of Scilurus the Scythian is knowen who vpon his death bed taught his lxxx sons the force of vnitie by the strength of sticks weake by themselues when they are tyed in a bundle Let conformitie and vnitie in religion be prouided for and it shal be as a wall of defence vnto this Realme 26 And as these things are especially to be regarded as our principal care must be for the highest matters synceritie and vnitie in religion so we may not neglect or passe ouer smaller things which neede redresse For as diseases and sores in the basest and vilest parts of the body doe grieue and may endaunger the chiefest vnlesse they bee cured betimes so the least abuses by sufferance may worke the greatest harme Gorgeous apparel and sumptuous dyet with such like matters may seeme small things but they are the causes of no small euils They eate vp England and are therefore to bee repressed by straite Lawes It is a part of true seruice done vnto God to see euen vnto these things 27 Wee may seeme to cast our eyes very lowe when wee looke into the dealings of euerie officer vnder the Prince Yet euerie one must be seene vnto They waxe sodainely rich by the spoile of the Prince Reforme it by Lawe that all may walke in trueth If merchaunts with other artificers and meaner trades doe inriche themselues by impouerishing others through deceitfull shifts the common wealth suffereth dammage by their vneuen dealings If we wil haue God serued in trueth wee must by Lawe reforme them 28 That biting worme of vsurie that deuouring wolfe hath consumed many many it hath pulled vpon their knees and brought to beggerie many such as might haue liued in great wealth and in honour not a fewe This canker hath corrupted all England It is become the chiefe chaffer and merchaundise of England We shall doe God and our countrie true seruice by taking away this euill Represse it by Lawe else the heauie hand of God hangeth ouer vs and wil strike vs. 29 That vile sinne of adulterie in Gods common wealth punished with death so ouerfloweth the bankes of all chastitie that if by sharpe Lawes it be not speedily cut off God from heauen with fire will consume it Preuent Gods wrath bridle this outrage so shal you serue the Lord in truth 30 There is nothing more hurtfull to the common wealth than these corner contracts without consent of parents contrary to the woorde of God the Lawe of nature the Lawe ciuil and all right and reason The inconueniences that followe are not sufferable Euaristus a Bishop of Rome saith It is not wedlocke but whoredome when the consent of parents is wanting God cannot bee better serued than if by Lawe yee restraine this vnlawfull contracting The children of this inconuenient mariage may scarsely bee termed lawfull The deuill that hath euer hated wedlocke and loueth whoredome was the first author of this great disorder God graunt you vnderstanding heartes and willing mindes faithfully and in trueth to trauell to represse and take away these euils 31 And as euill is to be controlled by Lawe so that which is good is also by Lawe to be procured God hath made vs many wayes riche For what wee haue freely at his hands we haue it But he himselfe is become very poore in so much that for want of reliefe he is forced to begge and for want of lodging and meate hee lieth and dieth in our streetes This great ingratitude God cannot but reuenge Oh what shame is this to a Christian common wealth in a reformed countrie Obstinate Iewes would neuer shew themselues so vnthankful Their auncient Lawe forbidding beggars is euen to this day most straitly kept amongest them Lawes in this behalfe haue beene prouided but as they wanted perfection so haue they in manner in no point or any where had execution Serue God in trueth prouide that Christ craue not Such as wil not feede him here he wil neuer feede in his kingdome Thus haue I point by point let you see disorders and wants in the common wealth Ye haue authoritie by Lawe to reforme them Consider duetifully of it and serue God truely as ye ought alwayes remembring the saying of the Prophet Esay Woe be to them that make wicked Lawes 32 When good Lawes are made they must be put in execution Lawe is the life of the common wealth and execution the life of the Lawe And better not to make Lawes than not to execute Lawes when they are once made This is the dutie of the publike ministers of the common wealth They must first keepe Lawes themselues then see that others in like sort may obserue them If the officers and ministers of the common wealth contemne lawes doubtlesse the people wil neuer reuerence them if they breake them the people wil neuer keep them Which Solon wisely considering wisely aunswered being demaunded what was chiefe safetie for a common wealth If the Citizens obey the Magistrate and the Magistrate the Lawes You that are appointed to this purpose and put in trust therewith lay aside dread and meede fauour and friendship gift and gaine and with simplicitie of heart punish the transgressor of the Lawe according to the Law Make not Anacharsis webbe of the Lawe Let not the hornet escape and the litle flie bee caught Fewe Lawes well made and well kept would serue the turne This is Gods seruice the execution thereof he hath set ouer to your hands Serue him in trueth and singlenesse of heart Cursed is he that negligently doeth the worke of the Lorde 33 Thus much hath beene spoken concerning higher powers and of their duetie in the seruice of God Samuel speaketh not to them alone to the people it is spoken as well as to the prince Feare and serue ye the Lorde in trueth Feare God embrace the Gospel leade your liues in holinesse and righteousnesse according to the word of trueth The Lorde is a strong defence to them that feare him They that feare him want nothing 34 Giue vnto the Lordes annointed due reuerence and honour Let euerie soule be subiect not by constraint but for conscience sake Imitate those worthie Israelites who were so willingly obedient to Iosua that they cryed with one voice Whosoeuer shall rebell against thy commaundement and will not obey thy woordes in all that thou commaundest him let him die Grudge not repine not at higher powers say not in your hearts Let vs breake their bands and cast away their chaines from vs. 35 Seeke the peace of the common wealth and
refuse to heare it reade it followe it if the seede of God doe not fructifie in our hearts if the peace wee haue with God bring not foorth pietie if our ciuill peace bring foorth no better fruite than beastly securitie if plentie worke nothing in vs but pride if with Adam in our presumption wee disobey the Lorde if with Sodome when we are ful our care be onely to satisfie our lust if we neglect the poore and deride the iust if with Israel we lust after flesh and despise Angels foode if we hunger after poperie and thirst not after the water of life if wee fall away from God and fall downe to creatures if wee runne a whoring and defile the flesh and prophane the temple of God if we tempt God being wearie of our profession hauing wauering mindes and backesliding hearts if we despise gouernement and speake euil of them that be in authoritie if wee mutter and murmure against the principalitie of Moses and Aaron if wee loath the present state and seeke after alterations then shall all these godlie blessings of God turne into cursings the message of life shall be vnto vs a fauour of death the words of the sonne of God spoken vnto vs for our saluation shall beare witnesse against vs and condemne vs our vineyard shall be laide wast wee shall be made a byword and a woonder to the world and for a iust reward of this our wickednesse our former benefites shall but adde a greater waight vnto our woe But this be farre from vs and from our children for euermore Wherefore to returne and to conclude this part when we shall behold the great mercies of God so plentifully powred vpon vs howe hee hath regarded his vineyard blessed and inriched this his Church with so great gifts and so maruellous treasures you see how truely we may say Vinea nostra floruit Our vine hath flourished This is the goodnes of God towards vs. 13 Let vs nowe cast our eyes another way and see how men haue dealt with the Lords vineyard Great hath beene the fauor of God towards it and great also hath beene the malice of Satan and the ingratitude of man in labouring by all meanes to lay it wast These enemies of the vineyard are termed foxes vnder which name be comprised all heretikes all Schismatikes all hypocrites Atheists Epicures Conspirators Persecutors with all the rable of the wicked They are termed litle foxes either for that they are more rash more wilfull and more hurtfull to the vineyard than the olde foxes because they shunne no peril or else they are so called in contempt For although they seeme mightie strong and fierce yet when God shal arme himselfe against them then they wil appeare sillie weake cubbes not able to kicke against the pricke There is no wilinesse no force no power no counsell against our God If Christ say It is I all his enemies doe stagger and fall flat to the ground The litle cubbes perhaps are animated by reason of their wilinesse and because they know they are many in number It is true The children of this worlde are wise in their generation subtile they are as serpents But God confoundeth the counsels of all craftie Achitophels and taketh foxes in the snares they set for others The number is great and as the maner is of euil weedes it groweth apace they are tenne for one But one Dauid is worth not onely tenne but tenne thousand Philistines because he commeth in the name of the Lord. He that fighteth vnder Christs banner and is protected vnder the shadowe of the wings of the almightie he is safe be he in neuer so great perils Gedeon with three hundred crying The sworde of the Lorde and Gedeon slewe and put to flight an infinite number the huge armie of the Madianites It is all one with God to ouercome with fewe or many So the enemies then of God the enemies of the Church they are but sillie weake cubbes be they neuer so wilie neuer so many 14 But the enemies of Gods vineyard are therefore chiefly called foxes because they are of like condition vnto foxes whom they singularly resemble in foure peculiar properties The foxe is rauenous greedie on his pray And these cubbes enemies to the crosse of Christ haue vnder pretense of long praier deuoured widowes houses spared no estate or conditon of men beguiled Princes of their possessions gotten to themselues the riches and wealth of the whole worlde with false merchaundise selling that for bread which is no bread making their gaine of masses merites pardons and such like stuffe Vnsatiable dogges they are euer barking and neuer satisfied The olde gray foxe is become the Lord of the whole earth the king of kings his Cardinals Abbots and Bishops great Princes and Lordes of whole Countries the litle foxes as Monkes Fryers Massing priests what with singing and what with begging haue raked no small heapes together 15 Foxes doe feede on bloud in desire whereof they kil more than they can deuoure Christ calleth Herod Foxe partly for his sauage and cruel murthering of Infants What thousands of the children and lambes of God these Herodians these Romanists these rauening wolues and bloudie foxes haue deuoured looke into the histories of all times you shall woonder at it and abhorre them Doubtlesse the righteous bloud which they haue shed vpon the earth shall come vpon them the bloud of the Saintes whom they haue cruelly butchered crieth vnto the Lord against them for reuenge and the Lord wil heare it Whomsoeuer thou shalt see take delight in the bloud of persecution he is a Foxe 16 As they liuely resemble foxes in greedinesse and crueltie so in wilinesse also they are like vnto them craftie they are subtile as false as a foxe The foxe will not woorry neere his bele but raungeth farre abroade least he be espied So these subtile deceiuers goe farre off they compasse sea and land to make a proselite of their owne profession they shut themselues vp in their beles in the day time they dare not abide the light but seeke lurking holes and corners disguising themselues in strange apparell least their woonted attire should bewray them wilie foxes deepe dissemblers double hearted double tongued double faced speaking them full faire whom they hate full deadly promising and not performing shifting off and seeking time nowe humble as sheepe but when time serueth as fierce as Lyons By subtile slightes and breache of faith they brought Iohn Hus to the Councel at Constance and there cruelly murthered him they promised him a Safe-conduct to come and to goe but those holie Fathers agreed vpon a newe point of religion that Promise is not to be kept with heretikes and so cruelly and treacherously consumed with fire the Saint of God These faithbreakers be no more to be trusted than foxes 17 The last propertie that I note in the foxe is that hee casteth an euil sauour I will not
to the idle and Idol pastor to the dumme dogge to the vnpreaching minister For the bloud of all these that perish for lacke of taking through his negligence shall be required at his hands 31 The second net is godlie conuersation good example of life This net holdeth hard Examples are a great deale stronger than words and the voice doeth not so fully instruct as the life Therefore Peter saith Be a platforme for the flocke to followe He that liueth otherwise than he speaketh teacheth God to punish him saith S. Chrysostome Paul termeth such teachers as are fertile in speeche and barren in life tinckling cimbals They send foorth a sound and inwardly are hollowe Christ did what hee taught His innocencie and patience chaunged the hearts of the verie souldiers that put him to death And as the godlie example of a good life draweth many to Christ so an euill life giueth great offence The bad demeanor of Helies sonnes caused men to loath the offering of the Lorde And you saith Iacob to his two sonnes Simeon and Leui haue made me to bee abhorred among the inhabitants of the Land Let vs therefore haue our conuersation honest among these men that as now they speake euil of vs as euil doers so hereafter they may by our good workes which they shall see glorifie God in the day of visitation 32 The third net to take these foxes in is discipline Where the former nets faile this will take hold it helde that incestuous Corinthian whom no other way could haue taken Hereby Ambrose brought the Emperor Theodosius himselfe to vnfained humilitie and heartie repentance Doeth it not appertaine vnto pastorall diligence saith S. Augustine with feare yea if they resist with feeling of stripes to recall to the fold of the Lord those sheepe when wee finde them which haue not beene violently caried away but by faire and soft vsage being seduced haue gone astray and began to be held in possession of straungers Those wilfull cubbes which neither by teaching nor by example will be reformed must feele the smart of the rod. We haue saith Paul in a readinesse punishment against all disobedience Such as will not come to feede with Christ willingly must bee compelled against their wils Constraine them to come in Thus the minister should take these litle foxes and winne them vnto the Lord with the net of Gods word of good example and of discipline Now if they cannot be so recalled that themselues perish not they are to be cut off or tyed vp that they destroie not others 33 The magistrate therefore must also set traps to catch these foxes withall The chiefe trap the magistrate hath is the Lawe Artaxerxes writeth his letter vnto Esdras whom hee sent to Ierusalem to see the people gouerned and requireth him hoth to place Magistrates and Iudges ouer the people and to see that they might liue according to the Lawes of God and the king adding thereunto a sharpe commination against transgressors Whosoeuer will not doe the Lawe of thy God and the kings Lawe let him haue iudgement without delay whether it be vnto death or to banishment or to confiscation of goods or to imprisonment The kindes of punishment here set downe are foure Death Exile Confiscation Incarceration These lawfull meanes are wisely to be vsed of Christian Magistrates as traps to take these litle foxes 34 The first is death It is the Lords commaundement Let the false Prophet die Let the adulterer and the adulteresse be put to death Let the blasphemer be stoned Moses obserued this in destroying Idolaters and hanging vp them that committed whoredome The Magistrate beareth not the sword in vaine Asa the good king of Iuda gaue commaundement that if any would not seeke the Lord God of Israel he should die from the least to the greatest from the man to the woman Thus zealous Magistrates haue indeuoured to take rebellious foxes 35 Exile is also a punishment fit for foxes Zerubabel and Ieshua together with the rest of the fathers of Israel agreed not to suffer the enemies of their religion those wilie foxes to ioyne with them but banished them out of their companie It is not for vs and you to builde a house to our God The Emperor Theodosius likewise being mooued thereunto by that zealous Bishop Amphilochius draue all the Arrians out of his dominion These foxes must be remooued the further the better And it were wel with Christs Church if they were all as farre as Rome hence from whence many of them came who now wander and raunge amongst vs. God spared not to expel Angels out of heauen men out of paradise And when Absolon had put off the duetifull minde of a naturall sonne then Dauid laying aside the tender affection of a louing father banished him his countrie 36 The third trappe to take withall is confiscation of goods which way is the easiest and not the woorst For the most men loue Mammon better than God their riches more than their religion When the riche man heard that hee and his wealth must part he went away very sorowfull If he from Christ it is to bee hoped these wil from Antichrist There can bee no sharper punishment to a worldlie minded man than to be taken in this trap God therefore commaunded the Egyptians to be spoiled than which there could be no plague more grieuous vnto them being so greedily set vpon their gaine When the Philistims would keepe the Iewes in good order and disable them to rebell they tooke their weapons and instruments of warre from them It is no euill or vnlawfull policie to weaken these enemies which are readie to vse the strength of their wealth to the ouerthrow of the Church if occasion did serue Touche them by the purse It is the most easie and readie way whereby to take and tame these foxes 37 The last way set downe by wise Artaxerxes is Incarceration When Ioseph had cast his brethren in prison then they remembred their fault and repented then they thought Wee suffer these things deseruedly for the hardnesse of our heartes against our brother Manasses was neuer reclaimed vntil he was inclosed in prison He was miserable in his kingdome and blessed in his captiuitie Thus it is the duetie aswel of the Magistrate as the Minister to obey the commaundement of the almightie and by all meanes to preuent wicked enterprises to roote out euill and to seeke the safetie of Gods vineyard his beloued Church Which God graunt them once effectually to doe for their owne discharge and benefite of the people so deerely redeemed by the bloud of Christ. To whom c. A Sermon preached in the same place and vpon the same occasion with the former 1. TIM 2. 1 I exhort therefore before all things that requests supplications intercessions and giuings of thankes be made for all men 2 For Kings and for all that
instituted by Christ to be receiued of Christians By the one which is Baptisme we are receiued and incorporated into the Church of Christ by the other which is the Eucharist or Lords supper wee are nourished and fed vnto life euerlasting These are pledges and assurances of remission of sinnes and saluation purchased by the death of Christ. These are Gods seales added vnto his most certaine promises for the confirmation of our weake faith weake by reason of the infirmitie of our fleshe For if we were spirituall saith Chrysostome wee should not neede these corporall signes We being now prepared and purposed to be partakers of this holie mysterie the sacrament of the bodie and bloud of Christ it standeth vs vpon to haue that due consideration which the waight of a matter so neerely concerning our saluation doeth require to the end that we may to our comfort and profite receiue the same Deepely to enter into this matter the shortnesse of this time wil not permit yet somewhat I will say and giue you a tast of things needefull 21 In this sacrament there are two things a visible signe and an inuisible grace there is a visible sacramentall signe of breade and wine and there is the thing and matter signified namely the bodie and bloud of Christ there is an earthly matter and an heauenly matter The outward sacramentall signe is common to all as well the bad as the good Iudas receiued the Lords bread but not that bread which is the Lord to the faithfull receiuer The spirituall part that which feedeth the soule onely the faithful doe receiue For he cannot be partaker of the bodie of Christ which is no member of Christs bodie This foode offred vs at the Lords table is to feede our soules withall it is meate for the minde and not for the bellie Our soules being spiritual can neither receiue nor digest that which is corporall they feede only vpon spirituall foode It is the spirituall eating that giueth life The flesh saith Christ doeth nothing profite We must lift vp our selues from these externall and earthly signes and like Eagles flie vp and sore aloft there to feede on Christ which sitteth on the right hande of his father whom the heauens shall keepe vntill the latter day From thence and from no other Altar shall he come in his natural bodie to iudge both quicke and dead His naturall bodie is locall for else it were not a naturall bodie his bodie is there therefore not here for a naturall bodie doth not occupie sundrie places at once Here we haue a sacrament a signe a memoriall a commemoration a representation a figure effectuall of the bodie and bloud of Christ. These termes the auncient Fathers Ireneus Tertullian S. Augustine S. Ierome S. Chrysostome doe vse Seeing then that Christ in his naturall bodie is absent from hence seeing he is risen and is not here seeing hee hath left the worlde and is gone to his father howe shall I saith S. Augustine laie holde on him which is absent how shall I put my hand into heauen Send vp thy faith and thou hast taken hold Why preparest thou thy teeth Beleeue and thou hast eaten Thy teeth shall not doe him violence neither thy stomacke conteine his glorious bodie Thy faith must reache vp into heauen By faith he is seene by faith he is touched by faith he is digested Spiritually by faith wee feede vpon Christ when wee stedfastly beleeue that his bodie was broken and his bloud shed for vs vpon the crosse by which sacrifice offered once for all as sufficient for all our sinnes were freely remitted blotted out and washed away This is our heauenly bread our spirituall foode This doth strengthen our soules and cheere our hearts Sweeter it is vnto vs than honie when we are certified by this outward sacrament of the inward grace giuen vnto vs thorough his death when in him we are assured of remission of sins and eternall life Better foode than this thy soule can neuer feede vpon This is the bread of euerlasting life They which truely eate it shall liue by it 32 Thus I haue briefly simply and plainely vnfolded vnto you the meaning of this most holy mysterie Time wil not suffer me to let you see the absurdities of the popish vnsauourie opinions in this matter neither to confute their vaine allegations and false collections abusing the scriptures dreaming euermore with the grosse Capernaites of a carnall and a fleshly eating Beholde the one part of this sacrament consecrated is termed bread the other a cup by the Apostle himselfe Because what they were according to the substance of their natures before consecration the same they remaine after saith Bertram The like hath Theodoret Those mysticall tokens after they be sanctified doe not leaue their proper nature for they abide in their former substance figure and shape This sacrament was deliuered to the Corinthians in both kindes As Christ saith so saith Paul Bibite ex hoc omnes Drinke ye all of this That the whole sacrament should be receiued of the people and no mutilation permitted the auncient writers are most cleare as Ambrose Ierom Chrysostom Gelasius Cyprian c. This sacrament is to be receiued in remembrance of Christ crucified As oft as yee shall eate this bread and drinke of this cup ye shewe the Lords death vntill his comming 23 In what maner we ought to prepare our selues thereunto Paul teacheth saying Let a man prooue himselfe and so eate of that bread and drinke of that cuppe This condemneth Anabaptists which thinking themselues to be without sin communicate with none but such as they thinke like to themselues Euerie man shal beare his owne burthen It behooueth therefore euerie man to trie him selfe and not other men Trie whether ye be in the faith or no. Faith hath his fruites It worketh repentaunce it causeth sorowe for sinnes committed feare of sinning againe and hope of pardon It breedeth loue towards God and loue towardes our brethren If incredulitie if impenitencie if hatred and malice haue possessed thine heart then abstaine from the Lords table least with Iudas thou receiue the Lords bread against the Lord the foode of saluation to thy condemnation But if thou beleeue repent thee of thy sinne purpose to liue a charitable and godlie life if thou be cloathed with the sweete garment of the sonne of God then sit thee downe at the table of the Lorde and at the feast of the lambe For this is his feast this is doone onely in remembraunce of him this is the blessed Eucharist a sacrament of praise and thankesgiuing as for al other godly benefites so particularly and principally for the death and passion of Iesus Christ Gods onelie sonne and our onelie Sauiour 24 These dueties being thus performed vnto God wee must also endeuour to liue and leade an honest life Peace is a great meane to procure pietie and pietie should breede honestie in vs. The one
compassion vpon the poore Let vs seeke vp Christ and prouide for him He sought vs and found vs when we were robbed spoiled and deadly wounded let not vs turne away our faces from him seeking crauing so small help at our hands He became poore to make vs riche let vs out of the aboundance of our riches spare somewhat nowe to the reliefe of his pouertie He will well requite it It is not lost which is bestowed vpon him in his poore afflicted members that which wee put in the handes of the poore we lay it vp in the Lords bosome where neither dice nor cards hawkes nor hounds horses nor harlots can consume it rust and canker can not eate it theeues can not robbe and bereaue vs of it Vnwoorthie we are to be called Christians if wee suffer our head Christ Iesus to be naked and cloath him not if we see him hungrie and giue him no bread Woorse wee are than Iewes if we suffer this ignominie to bee doone vnto Christ this ingratitude to be shewed to so gratious a God O let vs be mercifull that as children we may resemble our heauenly father for he is mercifull Vnto this mercifull God the Father the Sonne and the holie Ghost be honour glorie and praise nowe and euer Amen The ninth Sermon A Sermon made in Pauls at the solemnization of CHARLES the 9. the French Kings funerall IOB 14. 14 All the daies of this my warrefare doe I waite till my changing come THE custome of funerals as it is auncient so is it commendable Abraham the father of our faith purchased a peece of ground to burie his dead in And in that place he himselfe Sara Isaak Iacob and Ioseph were buried with great solemnitie much mourning Tobias is commended for burying the dead So is Marie Magdalene for preparing of ointment for the burying of our Sauiour So is Ioseph and also Nicodemus for the care that they had about Christs funerall 2 Causes of funerals S. Augustine giueth three First it is the office of humanitie the duetie of charitie decently to commit the dead corps to the earth out of which they came This charitable dutie is commended in Toby and others whose names I mentioned before and was of the verie Heathen religiously obserued Secondly it is a thing verie seemely and conuenient with reuerence to laie the corps in graue because our bodies are the temples of the holie Ghost wherein by which as by liuely instruments both God hath beene glorified and his people haue receiued good Knowe yee not that your bodie is the temple of the holie Ghost which is in you That which hath beene so notable an instrument would not be vnreuerently entreated though dead Thirdly our faith is hereby confirmed touching the article of our resurrection For we laie downe the bodie in the earth vnder hope that This mortall must put on immortalitie as confessing with Iob I beleeue that my redeemer liueth and that I shall see God in my fleshe mine eyes shall behold him and none other But the Christian Church doeth not neither ought to vse funerals thereby to relieue or benefite the dead All these things saith S. Augustine furniture of funerals order of burying and the pompe of exequies are rather comforts to the liuing than helps to the dead The glutton of whom S. Luke speaketh in the Gospell was buried no doubt with pompe ynough yet his wicked soule was plunged into hell There commeth therefore no part of blessednesse to the dead by funerals but Blessed are the dead that die in the Lord. Lazarus wanted as it is to be thought his funerall but the want thereof bereaued him not of his happie estate he died in the Lord and so was blessed 3 Sith therefore death bringeth with it our particular iudgement sith he that beleeueth on the sonne hath euerlasting life but he that beleeueth not on the sonne shall not see life but the wrath of God abideth on him Let vs liue as we will die and die as they that hope to rise againe and liue with Christ hereafter As euerie man departeth hence so shall he be iudged at the last daie And Euerie man shall sleepe with his owne cause and with his owne cause rise againe At our particular death is our particular iudgement at the glorious comming of Christ shall bee the generall reuelation of the iudgement of the whole world After this life there is no helpe remaining to the dead to the liuing there is mercie offered to the deade there remaineth onely iudgement He that is not purged heere shall be iudged as filthie there 4 Vaine therefore and dangerous is the opinion of Purgatorie Vaine because it hath no foundation at all in Gods woord Moses prescribing all kindes of sacrifices in the old Lawe maketh no mention either of sacrificing or praying for the dead Paul instructing the Thessalonians what they ought to doe in funerals neither doeth remember vnto them sacrifice nor praier Iust Simeon neuer dreamed of Purgatorie when as he saide Lorde now lettest thou thy seruant depart in peace according to thy word Small peace is there in Purgatorie as Papists report It neuer came into Saint Pauls minde when he said I desire to depart hence and to be with Christ. It was not reuealed to the Angell when he said Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord they rest from their labours There is no rest but intollerable paine imagined in Purgatorie euen to them which die in the Lord. Neither Lazarus not the rich man were acquainted with it the one was immediately caried into heauen the other cast into hel He which said to theefe This day thou shalt be with me in Paradise knewe onely two waies the straite way to heauen the broade way to hell hee who knewe all things was ignorant of this third way For there is no such waie to knowe This opinion is perilous The hope of helpe in Purgatorie hath sent many deceiued soules into hell This opinion is iniurious to the bloud of Christ. For if any sinne remaine to bee purged by these after paines then The bloud of Christ doth not cleanse vs from all sinne and then â—e make God a lyer It destroieth repentance without which there is no remission of sinnes here and with which satisfaction for sins afterward cannot stand For faith and repentance cease with this life He that hath not his pardon heere deceiueth himselfe if he hope to haue it hereafter elsewhere Euery man after life shal beare his owne burthen as euerie man hath wrought in his bodie There commeth nothing to the spirits of them that bee dead but that which they wrought while they were aliue Worke thou righteousnesse before thy death for in the graue it is too late And thus it doth appeare that although the vse of funerals be auncient and that for good causes they are
may more easily eate vs vp He setteth the generals together by the eares The captaines they enuie one another The souldiers take parties and are diuided The generals captaines souldiers and all contemne the watcheman and will not giue eare or regarde the sound of the trumpe The kingdome the citie the house thus diuided can it thinke you stand long The diuell plaieth his part and plieth it busilie but we like cowards yeeld and doe not resist are at variance amongst our selues and thereby at agreement with that aduersarie whom who so hateth his brother serueth Our second enemie is the world the world which is altogether set on al wickednesse The third our flesh our flesh which rebelleth and lusteth contrarie to the spirite Fleshly lusts fight against the soule And thus we haue enemies on euerie side yea and that which is most dangerous of all within vs which daily giue vs fore assaults For loue of the victorie and shame of this cowardlinesse and feare of that dreadfull and eternall captiuitie let vs put on our armour the girdle of trueth the brest plate of righteousnesse the helmet of saluation and the buckler of faith a sure defence against all the fierie darts of Satan and let vs take in our hand the sword of the spirite the woord of God the dint whereof he dare not abide Resist the diuell and he will flee from you Resist him in faith in prayer and in the word Be crucified vnto the world euen as strangers which are not of the world For we haue here no abiding Citie Chastise the bodie with watchings with labour with fastings It is a great victorie to ouercome the diuell a greater to ouercome the worlde and the greatest of al to ouercome thy selfe euen thine own flesh To him that ouercommeth shal be giuen a crowne But he that is ouercome shall be the continuall bondman of Satan our vile and cruell enemie Let vs so striue that we may ouercome He onely that striueth lawfully shall be crowned 13 This warre at length will haue an end a change Man is mutable subiect to change and desirous of change No man is long contented with his owne estate be it neuer so excellent The Angel would change to be like vnto God Adam would change to be as wise as hee that made him Absolon would change and sit in his Fathers seate Salomon would haue chaunge of wiues The Israelites woulde chaunge Moses and Aaron both magistrate and minister They would needes chaunge their Iudge for a King their Samuel for Saul The Sichemites would change their religion The Israelites would change Manna the foode of Angels for the flesh pots of Egypt The wauering Iewes changed Christ for Barrabas their Sauiour for a murtherer We are like affected to them in liking and louing change change of meate change of apparell change of maners Wee change simple dealing into craftie vndermining faithfulnesse into trecherie truth into falshood liberalitie into couetousnesse humilitie into pride chastitie into lewdenesse mercie into malice light into darkenesse day into night all vertue into all vice And that which is more monstrous sheepe are chaunged into goates sheepeheardes into wolues and as Bernard saith Prelates into Pilates Nurces of the Church into robbers of the Church The hearts and tongues of men are changed and of single both made double Our times breede men of the nature of the fish Polypus which can chaunge it selfe into all colours to deceiue And as he saith in the Comedie There is a change of all things 14 But while wee are thus occupied about these choppings and changings we seeme neuer to remember that great change whereof Iob here speaketh which hee daily looked and longed for And that is the change of this mortall life looking for that great and glorious resurrection Death is here termed a change This change is certaine all fleshe must die The time till this change doth come not long the daies of man are short and miserable The time when this change will come vncertaine 15 We all must die God gaue a Lawe to our father Adam forbidding him to eate of the fruite adding the penaltie of death if he did Adam transgressed the penaltie was inflicted The sentence of death was this Dust thou art and into dust thou shalt In our fathers fall wee fell and of his punishment his children are partakers This is a statute made by the three states It is appointed to all men once to die Thou hast appointed man his bonds which he cannot passe This is the waie of all flesh what man is he that liueth and shal not see death Neither king nor kesar could euer be dispensed withall from this statute The good king Ezechias sought and sued vnto God for a dispensation but it would not be graunted only he obteined the prolonging of his daies for a fewe yeres This Lawe standeth fast this debt is due vnto all flesh And the time that wee haue before the daie of paiment is not long 16 The daies of man are short the number of his moneths is knowen onely to the Lord. All creatures now waxe olde with the aged world This is euen the last houre the worlde cannot continue long Mathusela liued 969. yeres If in our age wee reache to 80. it is with sorowe and labour Thou hast made my daies as it were a spanne long saith Dauid All flesh is grasse saieth the Prophet and all the glorie thereof as the flower of the fielde both the grasse and the flower quickely fade and fall away and the flower sooner than the grasse 17 The people are the grasse and wil abide the withering The flower is the Nobilitie set aloft in great beautie yet euerie frost causeth the flowre to fade and euerie blast of winde ruffleth the leaues and euen shaketh them off This all times doe teache and the action we haue in hand doth presently put vs in mind therof This mightie king this great Prince CHARLES THE FRENCH KING whose funerall we now celebrate in his young yeeres in his flourishing age in the perfect strength of his bodie when he minded weightie matters and great attempts euen then was hee stopped in the midst of his race and the line of his life cut off This glorious flower is faded and falne away How soone how sodainely It falleth out in experience true which is written by Ecclesiasticus The life of Potentates endureth not long Some though fewe are consumed with the cares of the common wealth The good king Dauid complaineth that his bones were euen dried vp with the cares he tooke for his countrie Some are wasted away by wantonnesse as Commodus Claudius Nero Alexander the great Some are shortened by ambition they wil neuer leaue climing till they catche a fall That cut off the daies of Absolon that brought Haman to the tree Some God
daily looke for our change Let vs expect the comming of Christ. Hee commeth in post the forewarnings are fulfilled Iniquitie aboundeth Christian charitie is frosen the Gospell is preached Then is the ende Let vs not slumber in securitie or driue off to returne vnto our God For it is hard for the buried in sinne to rise Man often is sodainely smitten that he hath no time to repent In his last daie he is disquieted by sickenesse by Satan yea by his friendes yea by his owne conscience Let vs liue in reuerent expectation of the Lord with our loines girt and with our lampes light and let the trumpet of iudgement euer sound in our eares it will wel stirre vp our hearts Let vs liue these fewe daies that remaine vnto the Lord whom we ought to haue serued all our daies And lastly recounting the vanitie of the worlde the miserable state of this life and the inestimable blessednesse of the life to come let vs with Iohn Paul Elias the blessed seruants and Saints of God looke for the appearance of the comming of Christ Iesus who will place vs vpon the right hand of his father and giue vs possession of our inheritance that we may haue the perfect fruition of all the treasures prepared for vs by our God in heauen To him euen the Father the Sonne and the holie Ghost three persons and one God of eternall maiestie be all honour c. The tenth Sermon A Sermon preached at his first comming to Yorke Lvc. 1. 74 That being deliuered out of the hands of our enemies we may serue him without feare 75 In holinesse and righteousnesse before him all the daies of our life THE greater and better part of holie Scripture either setteth foorth Gods goodnesse towards vs or our duetie towards him In these fewe but most pithie woords of Zacharie both are comprehended The great benefite we receiue from God is our redemption in Christ. The dutie which wee owe to him againe is in holinesse and righteousnesse of life continually to serue him He toucheth our redemption in one word but in many words explicateth the dutie which we owe for it vnto our redeemer giuing vs hereby secretly to vnderstand that men are easilie taught to knowe but hardly brought to doe their masters wil. We are rich in al speech and vnderstanding but in deedes ful poore and barren We know much but litle doe we although amongst other things knowne this be one that He which knoweth his masters will and doth it not shall be beaten with many stripes and this another that Not euerie one that saith Lord Lord but he which doth the will of the father shall enter into the kingdome of heauen Wee are for all this such as those Pharisees were whom Christ reprooueth because they saide and did not Euen such we are become as Iude doth describe Wels without water Clowdes without raine Trees without fruite dead though not as yet pulled vp by the rootes Wee are hearers of the woord and yet skantly that but workers of the woord we are not God graunt that the woord wherein wee nowe glorie bee not one day to our shame that the Gospel of saluation beare not witnesse against vs and condemne vs that the words which Christ hath spoken vnto vs heape not iudgement vpon our heads that this be not our condemnation also that light beeing come into the worlde wee loue darkenesse more than light Surely if wee continue to professe in woords and denie in deedes to crucifie to our selues our Sauiour Christ afresh to feede vpon our vomit and to welter in the lothsome myre of our filthie sinne wee shall make our selues vnwoorthie of the kingdome of God wee cannot claime the benefite of Christs merits neither bee partakers of that glorious redemption which Zacharie heere remembreth vnto vs but the bloud of Christ shall be vpon our heads and wee shall perish in our sinne as being guiltie of our owne damnation Thy destruction O Israel is of thy selfe 2 Wherefore to auoide Gods perpetual indignation and our perpetuall confusion let vs followe the counsel of Zacharie who instructed by the spirit of wisedome teacheth vs First that wee are redeemed secondly that the ende of our redemption is that we may serue him that hath redeemed vs thirdly after what sort we should serue him Where he saith that wee are deliuered out of the hands of our enemies it argueth that we once were in their hands We are freed therefore we were bond And in this point we haue to consider First our bondage then the meane of our deliuerance and lastly the cause by which we were deliuered 3 Adam through his rebellion lost his freedome and became a bondman and all we through him and in him are bond conceiued and borne in sinne the children of wrath bond vnto Satan and seruaunts vnto wickednesse the deserued reward whereof is death euen double death this our present mortalitie and euerlasting damnation As by one man sinne entred into the world and by sinne death so death went ouer all men in asmuch as all men sinned With Adam we lost Gods first fauour and protection with him the gratious image of God was blotted out in vs also with him we were expelled out of paradise cast vpon the face of the cursed earth throwen into the hands of our cruell enemie whose liuerie wee did put on and vnder whose miserable thraldome wee liued In this fall from God we lost our immortalitie we lost our freewill wee lost our wisedome our vertue our light our glorie our ioie our heauen our God Our peruerse heart became prone to all euill and full of all sinnefulnesse we became vnwise in our iudgement disobedient to our God deceiued and deceiuing seruing lusts and deadly pleasures liuing in malitiousnesse and enuie hatefull and hating one another We were without hope and without God in this present world all blinded in ignorance and wrapped in all sinne For as we changed our master so changed we our mindes and maners also and for Christ we serued Antichrist we threwe away the loue of Gods eternall truth and according to the ignorance of our blinded hearts hungerly fed vpon all poisoned error and plunged our selues into all wickednesse This was our most miserable estate thus we were thus we are by nature This was the pitifull condition of all humane flesh 4 Let vs now see the meane of this our deliuerance from this deadly captiuitie Wee are ransomed out of the handes of our enemies pulled out of the iawes of Satan freed from the seruitude of Antichrist of ignorance and of sinne onely by the mediation of our redeemer Iesus Christ. He is the Lyon of the tribe of Iuda which alone hath trodden the winepresse alone hath fought the battell in fighting atchieued the victorie and by vanquishing brought our enemie Satan vnder our feete for euer On the crosse with his bloud hee
For he is our God not whom we professe but in whom we repose our trust and whom we serue and obey When the Lord commaundeth one thing and his monie perswades an other will not his obedience declare whom he maketh his God God saith Lend freely and looke for no gaine But wil the vsurer whose monie is his God remit his interest because of this because the Lord hath so charged him No he will not so let goe his tenne or twentie or thirtie in the hundred To him the glorie of God yea and his owne soule is vile nothing is pretious but onely money What the Prophet speaketh of putting foorth monie to vsurie he full litle regardeth but feedeth still vpon his mast and blesseth himselfe when hee waxeth fat not perceiuing that God hath alreadie plagued him with a plague of all plagues the obduration of his heart And although that God hath giuen him ouer into a dull and senselesse minde his eares beeing so dammed vp that nothing can haue entraunce to mooue or touche his hard heart yet he still blesseth himselfe and his accursed soule Thou vsurer thou idolater that doest glorie in thy shame in thy euill gotten golde doest thou not knowe that thy wealth shall melt like snow before the sunne thinkest thou still to holde it O foole this night shall they tâ—ke away thy soule perhaps this instant and then whose is all this After that Zacheus fell to the seruice of Christ and that Christ entred into his house hee presently forsooke the seruice of Mammon made a large restitution of that which he had gained by such vnlawfull meanes and then began to bee liberall not onely to lend freely but to giue for nothing he gaue the one halfe of all his goods to the poore If God would at this day work thus in the heart of one Zacheus a rich vsurer how many poore might be relieued by such a restitution He might mainteine many a needie man and saue his owne soule Well this one thing we knowe This woord that proceedeth out of Gods mouth against vsurie shall not returne in vaine if it cannot worke reformation it wil worke confusion 11 As these serue their monie so there are some Domino non seruientes sed suo ventri seruaunts to the bellie and not to the Lord. He serueth the bellie who frameth himselfe to be of any religion so that in this world he may liue by it when poperie hath the vpper hand then a papist when the Gospell is in due estimation a protestant all things to all men that somewhat may be gained or saued to himselfe Hee maketh no difference betweene the Masse and the Communion Christ and Beliall but for his bellie sake wil halt on both sides serue all times and turnes Such a one was Leontius Bishop of Antioch who being in heart an Arrian couered his religion and ioined with the counsell of Nice in outward profession of the trueth So his soule was led by the diuel and his bodie by the world 12 Some and those many are seruauntes of men as those which in matters of religion wholly hang their soules vpon humane authorities and iudgements So did the Corinthians I hold of Paul I of Cephas and I of Apollos So doe al the Popes fauorites And so doe those that choose to themselues newe masters newe teachers according to their itching and wandering â—ares esteeming such and despising others So doe they which praise and flatter men in their follie thereby to winne themselues estimation with them which haue mens persons in admiration for gaines sake Finally so doe they which repose their trust in the merits of men that seeke iustification or remission of sinnes eyther by their owne woorkes or by the desertes of others For to knowe that hee is our redemption sanctification and iustice is no small part of Gods seruice to giue this to any other is to take it from him which who so doeth is not woorthie to bee named his seruaunt He that serueth him must serue him alone 13 Not him and the worlde For the worlde is wholly set on vanitie and mischiefe it hateâ—h him and therefore wee must hate it If ye be his seruaunts let not sinne beare rule in your bodies or haue dominion ouer you We must die vnto sinne that we may liue vnto God through Iesus Christ our Lord. He that doth sinne is the seruaunt of the diuell the diuel is but a bad master to serue he is a lier a theefe and a murtherer And hee entertaineth no seruants but such as be like himselfe whose wages are fire cheines brimstone darkenesse wailing howling and gnashing of teeth in a word euerlasting death and damnation Wee are nor ransomed out of the hands of our enemies to serue these masters mammon the bellie men sinne the world or the diuell But wee are redeemed to serue him onely to serue our Christ our redeemer that hath full deerely bought vs. Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God and him onely shalt thou serue 14 Him we must serue without feare In the Psalme it is saide Serue the Lord with feare and reioice vnto him with reuerence And here wee are taught to serue him without feare As there is but one God so the scripture is alwaies one There is a feare which children haue towards their parents and a feare of seruants towards their masters God will be feared of vs as children but not as seruaunts or if as seruaunts not as slaues The beleeuing Christian the regenerate childe of God who through faith in Christ is certaine of his deliuerance from the diuell and from hell assured of remission of sinnes and of life euerlasting in the death and resurrection of Iesus Christ our Sauiour he serueth in the reuerent feare of loue and not in that dreadfull feare of death and euerlasting damnation wherewith the reprobate minde is daunted He feareth not death for hee is sure of life hee feareth not damnation for he is assured of saluation he beleeueth that which Christ hath promised and doubteth nothing of the obteining of that which Christ hath procured for him He is surely perswaded with S. Paul that neither death nor life nor tribulation nor affliction nor any thing present or to come shall separate him from the loue of God which is in Christ Iesus Hee feareth therefore neither the sting of death nor the power of Satan But this certaintie of Gods loue towards him in Christ and the testimonie of his loue towards God againe casteth out all feare of eternall punishment For ye haue not saith the Apostle receiued againe the spirite of bondage vnto feare but ye haue receiued the spirit of adoption by which wee crie Abba father This spirit testifieth with our spirit that God is our gratious father and if he our father wee his children and if his children heires of his glorious kingdome The preaching of the Lawe letteth vs see
Gospell bee hid it is from them that perish whom the God or rather the diuel of this world hath blinded We are in the light the way of truth lyeth plaine and open before our faces Let not vs walke nowe as the children of darkenesse For darkenesse and the night are past 27 The day draweth neere The day of euerie mans particular dissolution and the day of that generall iudgement of all men Although the day of our death be vncertaine yet because all our daies are fewe our first day is no sooner come but we are sure and certaine that the last draweth neere Wherefore it behooueth vs continually to watch to looke for our ende and to put our selues in a readinesse for it For as we are found in that day so shall we finde in the day after that the day of the glorious appearing of Christ when all secrets shall be vnsealed al faults made manifest and euerie man receiue a blessing or a curse as he hath wrought in his bodie good or bad Many daies are past since Christ and his Apostles did count it neere therefore nowe it must needs drawe much neerer and be euen at the doore We may nowe say iustly It is time to rise from sleepe Our saluation is neerer than when wee beleeued The night is past the day draweth on 28 Let vs walke honestly therefore as in the day We are created and redeemed to walke and serue God in whose seruice if we goe not forward we goe backeward we may neither lie down nor stand still but take paines and walke And that honestly hauing our conuersation according to our good profession Wee are set as it were vpon a stage the worlde Angels and men fixe their eies vpon vs. And if the eies of all these were closed yet he to whom the night and the light are all one in clearenesse our eternall God hee seeth our cogitations and searcheth our heart he vnderstandeth all our waies All things lie open and vncouered vnto him hee beholdeth all practises all deuises all trecheries all treasons all sinne Let vs walke vprightly and liue honestly as in his sight 29 This we shall doe if we followe the counsell and exhortation of S. Paul that is if we first cast away the workes of darkenesse Sinnefull actions are called woorkes of darkenesse First because much sinne springeth out of ignorance which is blindenesse and darkenesse wherefore S. Paul alledgeth ignorance to be the cause why hee persecuted the Church of Christ Secondly for that sinners because their workes are euil hate the light which discouereth them and loue darkenesse wherein they may conceale them Thirdly because the workes of sinne are to bee cast into that perpetuall and vtter darkenesse of hell and bound in euerlasting cheines of darkenesse vnto the iudgement of that great day 30 Howbeit for that it sufficeth not to abstaine from euil but it is required that we should doe good therefore the Apostle exhorteth vs not onely to cast away the woorkes of darkenesse but to put vpon vs the armour of light Wherein looke what was saide why sinne should be called by the name of darknesse the like may on the contrarie side be saide why righteousnesse should bee termed by the name of light First for that good woorkes are the fruits of the light of knowledge wherein if we encrease more and more in loue and in all spirituall vnderstanding we shall not onely put a difference betwene those things that are more excellēt but bee pure also and without offence vnto the day of Christ filled with the fruites of righteousnesse which commeth by Iesu Christ vnto the glorie and praise of God Secondly because they that walke honestly as in the day time delight in the light For he that doth the trueth commeth to the light that his deedes may be made manifest that they are done in God who is light and in him is no darknesse at all And therefore insomuch as they well vnderstande that the night will come wherein no bodie shall be able to worke while they haue the light they giue themselues to walk in the light that they may be the sonnes of the light And thirdly because as Bernard saith Bona opera non sunt causae regni sed via regnandi Good workes are not the causes of but the way vnto the kingdome so they leade vs the way to the inheritance of Saints in light and to the fruition of that God who as hee is the father of lights in whom there is no variablenesse nor shadowe of change so he dwelleth in a light that cannot as yet be commen vnto we shall come to it heereafter when we shall drinke of the well of life when in his light wee shall see light To the which euerlasting life and light hee bring vs who is not onely the way the trueth and the life but God of God light of light euen Iesus our Sauiour to whom with the Father and the holie Ghost three persons and one God c. The twelfth Sermon A Sermon preached at an Assises MICH. 6. 8 He hath shewed thee O man what is good and what the Lord requireth of thee Surely to doe iudgement and to loue mercie to humble thy selfe and to walke carefully with thy God FOR the better vnderstanding of the Prophet in these fewe words recited it shall bee requisite to open vnto you a fewe circumstances concerning them wherein I will be short We learne in the text that goeth before in this chapter that God was displeased with his people the Israelites And that it might appeare how iust cause hee had of offence giuen him hee challengeth them that his gratiousnesse towardes them and their vnthankefulnesse towardes him might be examined and tried in iust iudgement And God appointeth the mountaines to be Iudges heerein that is as Ierome expoundeth it the Angels of heauen whom God often vseth as ministers for his glorie and for the benefite of man God declareth therefore here by his Prophet first that hee neuer wronged them and therfore they had no cause to complaine secondly that he hath bestowed his manifold benefites vpon them that he deliuered them out of the house of bondage from the tyrannicall hands of cruell Pharao whose slaues their fathers were that he had giuen them woorthie magistrates and good Priestes to rule direct and instruct them Moses Aaron Myriam and lastly that hee had turned Balaams cursings against them into blessings towards them Nowe after that God had thus set forth his great goodnesse towardes them hee chargeth them with their great vnkindenesse towards him howe they fell from the seruing of him to the woorshipping of false gods by running a whoring after Idols and sacrificing on their hill altars committing most grosse Idolatrie and foolish superstition howe altogether they contemned the woord of the almightie the preaching of the Prophets were drowned in sinnefull securitie and fed themselues with their owne phantasies the inuentions and vaine
they would learne two short lessons of S. Paul and learne withall to followe them the matter easilie might be amended The one is to loue men not their monie Non quaero quae vestra sunt saith S. Paul I seeke not yours but you This lesson is hard but good and the other is like it I can doe nothing against the trueth but for the trueth saith the Apostle Nothing in a bad cause but in a good cause all things These lessons well learned would quickely cut off many euil pleas and driue back causelesse controuersies 15 You to whom the sword of iustice and iudgement is committed take heede vnto it Let it not spare mightie men for their sinnes are mightie sinnes If such offend their fall draweth down others with them God therefore commaunded Moses to hang vp the princes of the people vpon gibbets that they might be examples of punishment who had beene examples in sinning The good Consul Iunius Brutus spared not his owne sonnes but cut off their conspiring heads And Aulus Fuluius in the like case did the like thing Pilate abused his office when vpon sute hee spared Captaine Barrabas the murtherer and killed Christ our sauiour Spare not traitors murtherers or theeues least you bee partakers of their sinnes Your lenitie towardes them is crueltie towards the common weale the enemies of whose peace they are Serue God in feare loue his trueth promote his Gospell The seate the iudgement the sword is the Lordes defend therefore his cause see to the keeping of his statutes enlarge his kingdome aduaunce his glorie for he hath promised to glorifie them that honour him but they that despise him shall be full base hee shall make them vile and contemptible 16 Doing of iudgement may also generally be taken for iust dealing Iustice is a vertue which giueth euery man his own Render vnto euerie man y ◠which is his Let euerie man performe his office fulfil his dutie let euerie man do right one to another do as you would be done vnto If this Law were obserued the people shold be eased of great expenses iudges iustices of great trauel Christ saith if a man take thy coat frō thee rather than striue giue him also thy cloake There is verily a fault amongst you because ye goe to Lawe one with another why doe you not rather suffer wrong Why doe yee not rather sustaine any kinde of tollerable harme Abraham gaue place to Lot and would not contend his onely reason was wee are brethren But brotherhoode is nowe adaies no argument of agreement our times are so vnlike their times and we so vnlike them There were no better meane in my opinion to bridle these quarelling and contentious mindes of wranglers than to burthen such as faile in their cause with great expenses amerciaments It would make them beware of quarels and vniust contending if they were sure to paie well for it Doe iudgement deale iustly one with another paie vnto al men that which is due that which is not due seeke not to haue at any mans hands 17 The second duetie to our neighbour is mercie Hee hath shewed thee O man what is good and what the Lord requireth of thee surely to doe iudgement and to loue mercie Bee mercifull saith our Sauiour as your father is also mercifull This mercie as Christ there teacheth wil shewe forth it selfe in three properties First it will bridle that vncharitable rashnesse of iudging and condemning others Nolite iudicare Iudge not Mercie will not bee hastie to iudge There be iudgements ciuill and iudgements Ecclesiasticall iudgements publike and priuate iudgements Christ neither forbiddeth the magistrate neither the publike minister to iudge according to the Lawe neither the parent or master to iudge and correct their offending children or seruaunts It is vncharitable priuate iudgement which God forbiddeth when men vnaduisedly take vpon them to giue sentence of others as if God had resigned his owne right into their handes they condemne whom they list and say what they list euen as they fancie so they iudge This man is a Saint and that man a sinner he the seruant of God and hee the childe of death Who art thou that so iudgest anothers seruaunt Is it not to his own master only to whom he stands or fals Who art thou that takest such seueritie vpon thee that dealest so vnmercifully with thy brother He is a sinner so thou either art or hast beene or maist be iudge therfore thy selfe trie and examine thine owne woorkes Iudge I say thy selfe and iudge not him least thou be condemned of the Lord for both not iudging and iudging If a brother be ouertaken with a fault ye that are spirituall shew mercie restore him with the spirit of meekenesse considering thy selfe least thou also be tempted Verily this mercilesse iudging of others is the cause why wee fall into many perils and secret temptations Loue mercie therefore and iudge not Hee that iudgeth with the Pharisee with the Pharisee shall be iudged 18 Another fruite of mercie is forgiuenesse They who are hastie to iudge are for the most part in forgiuing slowe But forgiue and yee shall bee forgiuen Howbeit such as sit in iudgement ought to correct and not to remit because they deale not with iniuries doone to themselues but to the lawes and common wealth or church But in priuate iniuries wee must all remember the words and followe the example of our Sauiour Be mercifull and forgiue Christ forgaue them that put him to death Stephen them that stoned him Ioseph them that solde him the king his vnthriftie seruaunt 1000. talents If wee forgiue not others it is in vaine to praie that which wee dailie praie Forgiue vs. For so doth Ecclesiasticus wel teache vs. He that seeketh vengeance shall finde vengeance of the Lord and he will surely keepe his sinnes Forgiue they neighbour the hurt that he hath doone to thee so shall thy sinnes be forgiuen thee also when thou praiest Should a man beare hatred against man and desire forgiuenesse of the Lord Hee will shewe no mercie to a man that is like himselfe and will he aske forgiuenesse of his owne sinnes If hee that is but flesh nourish hatred and aske pardon of God who will intreate for his sinnes And our Sauiours commaundement is If thou bring thy gift to the altar and there remembrest that thy brother hath ought against thee leaue there thine offering before the altar and goe thy waie first bee reconciled to thy brother and then come and offer thy gift Whereunto S. Chrysostome alluding saith That God had rather want thy sacrifice due to him than reconciliation should not be made betweene thee and thy brother 19 The next and third fruite of mercie mentioned by our sauiour is Giue and it shall be giuen vnto you He that loueth mercie giueth almes but the couetous man is cruell God is so carefull to haue the
not into the temple as did Aaron wil hardly behaue themselues in the house of the Lord as Aaron did Iason obteined a superioritie in the Church by monie But howe behaued he himselfe in this his purchased function Began he not immediatly to drawe his brethren to the customes of the Gentiles Did hee not by and by change their Lawes and policies and bring vp newe statutes contrarie to their Lawe As the good sheepeheard entring in at the doore when he is entred guideth his sheepe as Dauid in the discretion of his hands feedeth them carefully with wholesome doctrine walketh in all vprightnesse of holie and vndefiled conuersation before them so he that climeth vp an other way after hee hath gotten himselfe in seeketh nothing but to steale kil and destroie The theefe commeth not but to steale to kill and to destroie Hee hath no other ende or purpose 13 The onely thing that should be desired by the pastor is the weale and benefite of his flocke For if the marke whereat wee shoote be but to make our commoditie by the Gospell of Iesus Christ wherein doe we differ from theeues and robbers Is not our intent and purpose the very selfesame with theirs Wherefore S. Peters exhortation is Feede the flocke of God caring for it not for filthie lucre but of a readie minde If a man haue al knowledge in so much that he be able to speake with tongues yea and to prophecie yet if the thing for which he laboureth be his owne gaine if he vse this vocation than which nothing is more pretious and holie onely as a way or trade to liue by whatsoeuer hee receiueth with such a minde he stealeth rather than receiueth it This is that whereof the Lorde complaineth so grieuously by his Prophets The priests teache for hire the prophets prophecie for monie yet will they leane vpon the Lord and say Is not the Lord among vs And againe These sheepeheards cannot vnderstand they all looke to their owne way euerie one for his aduantage and for his owne purpose Moses blessing Leuie before his death saith first They shall teache Iacob thy iudgements and Israel thy Lawe they shall put incense before thy face and then addeth Blesse O Lord his substance accept the worke of his hands As if he should haue saide So long as Leuie and his sonnes doe not seeke their owne commoditie but thy glorie thou art righteous and canst not forget to prouide in large maner both for them and theirs As indeede till the men of that sacred order tooke fleshhookes in their hands and sought to better their estate by force til they became like to greedie mastiues rauening curres who euer sawe the Leuite of the Lord forsaken or the sonne of the Leuite begging his bread So likewise the Church of GOD was neuer spoiled till her pastors were ouercarefull to be inriched In the prime and first appearing of Christian religion as long as that heroicall contempt of earthly things continued in the guides and leaders of the people what heapes of worldly treasure were brought and laide downe euen at their feete Men thought themselues to performe nothing worthie of that profession into which they were entred vnlesse they sold away their lands goods and possessions and gaue al to make thē rich by whose meanes thēselues were become righteous The contrarie to which affection as in other parts of the Christian world so in this also hath taken such roote and is growen nowe so strong that God may iustly charge vs as sometime he did his owne people saying Ye haue spoiled me euen this whole Nation If therefore we be grieued as who is not grieued to see the hauocke that is made of the Church of GOD let vs change our earthly and worldly affection that he may change the condition of his Church God is no puruey or for theeues and robbers Let vs in synceritie and in truth heartily and in deede despise our own gaine for his glorie and prooue him if hee will not rebuke these deuourers for our sakes 14 The next thing which Christ obserueth in theeues is this they destroie the flocke and make as litle conscience to kill as to steale They kill not the bodies but the soules of men The life of the soule is the word of truth wherein whosoeuer hath taken vpon him to instruct the flocke of Christ and either cannot or wil not doe it what doth he else but kil and destroie Moses speaking of the obedience of Israel to the Lawes and statutes of their God This is saith he your wisedome But howe came Israel by that wisedome Did they naturally knowe the Lord as beasts doe naturally knowe their dammes No The Lord said vnto me saith Moses Gather the people together and I wil cause them to heare my woordes that they may learne to feare me all the daies that they shall liue vpon the earth and that they may teache their children So they came neere and stoode vnder the mountaine and were taught of God which spake vnto them out of the midst of the fire Thus God taught Israel then Afterward he raised vp prophets among them of their owne brethren and they were taught by men like vnto themselues Neither hath God at any time ceased and left off but from the beginning of the world to this verie houre he hath giuen men knowledge by instruction and saued his elect by teaching Can not God then giue wisedome from aboue without a teacher Yes God is able to mainteine the life of man without bread But why doe we talke of his absolute power when his wil is that Cornelius be taught by Peter Lydia by Paul Paul by Ananias the Eunuch by Philip euerie soule that is wise in the doctrine of saluation by Apostles Prophets Euangelists teachers appointed for the gathering together of the Saints for the worke of the ministerie and for the edification of the bodie of Christ. As therefore he that wil liue must eate so he that will bee saued must haue a teacher Wherefore when the Lorde meant a blessing to his people hee made them this promise I will giue you pastors according to my heart which shall feede you with knowledge and vnderstanding When their pastors were voide of knowledge and vnderstanding this was euer a token that their ruine and destruction was at hande Come nowe saith the prophet all ye beasts of the field come to deuoure euen all the beasts of the forrest this people cannot continue nowe they must needes perish for their watchemen are all blinde they haue no knowledge they are all dumme dogges and cannot barke they lie asleepe and delight in sleeping We are vnworthie of our liues if we doe not acknowledge the woonderfull blessing of God in our ministerie at this day For howsoeuer it bee debased by some yet is it so farre off God be thanked from the state of the Iewish Clergie in those daies that I am perswaded
yet he followed the example of Daniel of the three young men of the blessed Apostles who did boldly preach and professe Christ when they were charged not to doe it We may not be ashamed of our religion we may not halt on both sides With the heart man beleeueth vnto righteousnesse and with the mouth man confesseth vnto saluation Whosoeuer shalbe ashamed of me and my woords of him shall the sonne of man be ashamed when he shal come in his glorie and in the glorie of the father and of the Angels Moreouer Cornelius instructed his familie and brought them vp in the feare of God A rare example in an Ethnike captaine nay a rare example in such as be christians and professe most pietie and by calling should be most religious yea and are placed as examples not onely to families but to cities to countries to nations He remembred well that he that hath a charge must aunswere for his charge He could not forget Redde rationem giue an account of thy stewardship Hee was afraide of the saying of the wise man An hard iudgement shall they haue that beare rule The sinnes of the subiects of the people of the familie will bee punished in the magistrates in the masters in the housholders For to euery one of these saith the Lord I will require the bloud of them that perish if through thy negligence euill example or want of correction any of them shall fall from God Not onely they saith Paul who commit such things are worthie of death but also they who consent to such as doe them And he consenteth doubtlesse which by office should correct sinne and by negligence or corrupt affection suffereth sinne The scripture chargeth Elie the priest with the sinnes of his vnruly sonnes at the which he winked and he was punished for it The sinne that the people of Israel committed in woorshipping idols is laide to the charge of the kings of Israel which either instituted them defended them or did not pull them downe The Queene of Saba commendeth Salomon greatly for the good ordering of his house Happie are thy men happie are these thy seruaunts which stand euer before thee and heare thy wisedome King Dauid was so careful that he would not suffer as much as a lyer to remaine within his court Abraham is commended of God for the good nurturing and godly bringing vp of his sonnes and his houshold That magistrate that feareth God will not suffer sinne in the citie vnpunished the swoord is giuen him to cut it off and beate it downe That pastor that feareth GOD will vse all meanes to bring his sheepe to the sheepefold if they goe astray That housholder that feareth God will by good order and due correction keepe it in the feare of God And so shall both the magistrate the pastor and the housholder deliuer their owne soules 11 Againe as Cornelius declared the fruites of his faith towards his familie so was he louing friendly towards his neighbours He gaue much almes to the people This is that sacrifice which God doth require chiefly of a christian I will haue mercie mercie and not sacrifice This is a sacrifice of a sweete smelling sauour a sacrifice acceptable to God and well pleasing him He that releeueth not his needie brother beeing of abilitie to releeue him doeth neither feare nor loue God Giue almes of thy substance and turne not away thy face from any poore man least the Lord turne away his face from thee Giue and it shall be giuen vnto you saith the sonne of God Hee that sheweth mercie shall finde mercie and iudgement without mercie to the mercilesse No treasure so wel bestowed as that which is giuen to the poore That is laide vp in heauen God doth binde himselfe to recompense that which is giuen to the poore for it is giuen to himselfe The mercifull shall receiue euerlasting life the mercilesse euerlasting death God gaue a Lawe to Israel Let there bee no begger among you This Lawe the Iewes keepe inuiolate to this day A great reproche and slander it is to vs christians that the Lord of Iewes and Gentiles the sonne of God our sauiour Christ who became poore to make vs riche at whose mercifull hands of his free gift we haue receiued whatsoeuer we haue to vs a great shame and confusion it is that we should fall so farre from all hūmanitie so vtterly forget our christianitie to shewe our selues so hard and stonie hearted so vnthankefull and without all naturall affection to suffer our God our Sauiour our Christ whom wee professe not onely to goe on begging but to lie hungrie colde naked sicke diseased pining and perishing in the streetes and at our doores This mercilesse minde this great ingratitude wil no doubt be requited with Ite Goe your waies ye cursed into euerlasting fier If it bee not reformed in time God no doubt will come downe and reuenge it Cornelius gaue liberal almes vnto them which were strangers to him God is careful for strangers He putteth the Israelites in minde not to afflict but to comfort the strangers that dwell among them Foryee your selues were strangers too By the prophet Zacharias he biddeth vs beware least we grieue them Oppresse not the widowe nor the fatherlesse the stranger nor the poore God ioineth the widowes the fatherlesse and strangers most commonly euer together as persons most destitute and such as haue most neede of helpe Egypt was blessed for the straungers that dwelt there but when the king of Egypt Pharao oppressed them they groned and called vpon God hee deliuered them and powred his manifolde plagues vpon Egypt The sinnefull citie of Sodome was of long time spared for Lot and his familie strangers there Such as are strangers for the gospels sake for the cause which we professe and maintaine are ioyfully to be receiued cheerefully and liberally to be releeued For in receiuing them wee doe not onely receiue Angels as Abraham and Lot did but we receiue releeue Christ Iesus whom they professe and whose members they are And whatsoeuer we giue to them we giue it him and he will reward it But whosoeuer shall vexe wrong or offend any of them better it were that a milstone were tied about his necke and hee hurled into the bottome of the sea I speake of godlie strangers that are strangers for the truths sake not of such as are of no religion of no church godlesse and faithlesse people some Papists some Anabaptists some Arrians some Libertines these are to bee expelled and cast out of the countrie least for their wickednes God plague the whole Realme God is woont euer to blesse the countrie for reteining and releeuing godlie religious strangers so is he woont to powre his plagues on them that nourish Cananites among them And thus much touching Cornelius the Italian by parentage by vocation a souldier placed in Cesarea who was deuoute
instrument to receiue it withall is faith He that beleeueth is made partaker of it and not of it onely but of eternall life also For he that beleeueth in me hath life eternall saith our Sauiour Christ. But this faith this iustifying faith doth worke through loue and sheweth it selfe by workes The good tree will be fruitfull The beleeuing iustified childe of God will feare God and worke righteousnesse 46 This doctrine of iustification by faith in the death and resurrection of Christ Iesu is witnessed by all the Prophets It is no newe doctrine but olde not onely proceeding from the Apostles but also from the Prophets For Moses and all the Prophets beare witnesse of him And as they so the Apostles after them Whose steppes we must followe and acknowledge that no doctrine is to be established but that which is testified by the Apostles and Prophets The true Church of Christ doth builde her faith on their foundation God will be worshipped and serued according to his prescript woord and not according to the braine of man The Prophets and Apostles with all such as be ministers of the woord are heere and elsewhere called witnesses Yea Christ himselfe termeth himselfe a witnesse of the truth For this cause am I borne and for this cause came into the worlde that I should beare witnesse to the truth And Christ saith to his Apostles Ye shall be witnesses vnto me both in Ierusalem and in Samaria euen to the vttermost endes of the earth 47 The truth is to bee testified by publike preaching Paul commendeth the Thessalonians for beleeuing his testimonie His testimonie was the Gospel which he did preache and testifie vnto them According to the voice that did speake vnto him when he was cast off his horse I haue appeared to thee for this purpose to appoint thee a minister and witnesse both of things which thou hast seene and of the things in which I will appeare vnto thee The truth is also testified by writing By the writings of the Prophets Apostles and Euangelists the truth of God Iesus Christ was most plainely testified As Iohn to name one of them among many This is that Disciple which testifieth of these things The truth is also witnessed when as it is testified in bloud for a martyr is a witnes Christ told Peter that when he was young hee girded himselfe and walked whither he lusted but when he waxed old other should gird him and carie him whither hee would not Nowe this saith Iohn he spake signifying by what death he should glorifie God Many Martyrs haue thus testified the truth with suffering for it But they ouercame by the bloud of the Lambe and by the woord of their testimonie not louing their life no not to the death That minister which will neither testifie it by publike preaching nor by writing will hardly testifie it by suffering but will rather say with Peter I knowe not the man But I must here make an end for the time hath ouertaken me and without repetition as you knowe the maner is To God the father God the son God the holie Ghost three persons one almightie almerciful God be rendred all thanks all glorie giuen for euer and for euer Amen The fifteenth Sermon A Sermon preached at Strausborough in the time of Q. Maries reigne 2. COR. 6. 2 Wee therefore as helpers beseeche you that ye receiue not the grace of God in vaine 3 For he saith I haue heard thee in a time accepted in the day of saluation haue I succoured thee behold now the accepted time beholde now the day of saluation THE Prophet to abate the hawtie conceit which naturally wee haue of our selues in such sort as euery man were his owne God and had no other whom to praise for the graces and gifts wherewith he is beautified and set forth as a mirror for al other creatures to beholde and woonder at indeuoureth to turn away our eyes frō too much gazing vpon our owne excellencie by pointing as it were his finger at him who is author of euerie good perfect gift saying Hee made vs and not we our selues For what end and purpose Zacharie teacheth namely that we might serue him in holinesse and righteonsnesse before him all the daies of our life For we are his workemanship created in Christ Iesus vnto good works which God hath ordeined that we should walke in them Ye are not saith S. Paul to the Corinthians your owne Why so For you are bought with a price Glorifie therefore God in your bodie and in your spirite for they are Gods Forsomuch then as we are all of the houshold of God all one in Christ all members of one and the same spirituall bodie woorshipping one Lord receiuing one baptisme professing one faith expecting one glorie to be reuealed vpon vs in that great day it is our duetie in token of our neere coniunction in the spirite with one heart one minde and as it were with one mouth to present our selues before his mercie seate to praise him to heare his word to receiue the seales of his merciful couenaunt in the Gospel and to offer him our needeful supplications together that in all things it may appeare that we are one as hee and the father are one euen one God to be blessed for euer 2 With what zeale desire Gods people of old were woont to do this we may gesse by that which we reade of y ◠Prophet Dauid who being persecuted of his wicked vnnatural son driuen from y e presence of that glorious tabernacle which with great triumph ioye himselfe had placed in the Citie of Dauid where he was woont with the rest of the people to call vpon the name of the Lord to heare the Lawe and to offer sacrifice vpon those beautiful altars conceiued such a deepe impression of griefe by the sorowfull meditation of those sweete and heauenly comforts whereof his soule had tasted in former times that forgetting quite the losse of all other royalties whatsoeuer he maketh mone for nothing but onely this that he might not nowe be partaker of those inestimable benefites and the comforts of minde and conscience which he was woont to receiue at the hand of God at such time as with the rest of the Israelites he resorted to the tabernacle where God promised to be present and fauourably to heare the petitions there made vnto him Of this his great miferie he complaineth him lamentably in diuerse of his Psalmes but especially in the 84 where he breaketh out into these woords of great zeale O Lord of hosts howe amiable are thy Tabernacles My soule longeth yea and fainteth for the courts of the Lorde mine heart and my flesh reioice in the liuing God He goeth on and magnifieth the blessed estates of those sillie birds which might haue their nests and lay their young euen
not trauell to tel you howe diuersly the name of grace is taken in the sacred scriptures but rather note vnto you in what sense the holie Ghost doth chiefly vse it in this place Grace is the fauour and mercie of God towards sinnefull men It is called grace because it is giuen gratis freely and vndeseruedly on our parts to whom it is giuen For vs it is purchased by the onely meane and meere merite of our Sauiour Christ and to vs it is both offered and exhibited by the voluntarie and vnprouoked operation of the spirite This grace in it selfe being large more than sufficient for all men the holy Ghost diuideth and bestoweth vpon eache breathing where and as he listeth according to the secrete pleasure of his will Thorough it we haue saluation whereas through sinne wee deserue death For out iniquitie was heinous in the sight of God first committed by Adam and since continued in vs but farre more exceeding was the mercie of our Lord who when we were his enemies sent foorth his sonne made of a woman and made vnder the Lawe that he might redeeme them which were vnder the Lawe and that we might receiue the adoption of sonnes No tongue can expresse neither any minde conceiue this gratiousnesse Yet let vs ponder it with such consideration as we are able Great therefore I say was the mercie of our creator who gaue his sonne and great the loue of our Sauiour who gaue euen himselfe for vs. Our thraldome was great that required a ransome of such value our guiltinesse much that could no otherwise be washed away but with the verie heart bloud of the innocent lambe of God Christ Iesus our Lord Yea inestimable and vneffable was the loue of our gratious Lord who to spare vs spared not himselfe He was content to become ignominious before men that we might be glorious with his father to be condemned that wee might be absolued to bee crowned with thornes to purchase vs a crowne of immortalitie to loose his life that we might gaine life to suffer death that we might escape it and to become as hated and accursed of God that we might find fauour and eternall grace with him In his death our sinne is pardoned by his bloud our filthinesse is washed away by his resurrection we are reconciled to his father and made at one with God Let vs not breake this so happie truce betwixt the Lord and vs let vs not through sinne condemne our selues againe nowe that we are iustified let vs not walke toward hell hee hauing made plaine and easie the path to heauen The image of God in vs defaced through Adam is repaired by Christ Let vs appeare therefore in this pure image before God that wee may be acceptable in his pure sight Through Christ we are called to be citizens with the Saints and Gods houshold-seruaunts let vs then put on the garments of trueth and innocencie that so it may appeare whose seruaunts we are by our Lords liuerie We are made the happie heires of his glorious kingdome and fellow heires with Iesus Christ wherefore let vs not seeke so possessions here that we loose a better inheritance aboue in heauen If wee doe it is in vaine that the grace of our Lorde Iesus Christ hath beene so largely offered vnto vs and plentifully powred on vs. Yea his grace will encrease the wofulnesse of our destruction 7 Grace is offered and receiued by two especiall outwarde meanes the preaching of the Gospel and the holie administration of the blessed Sacraments These two are the instruments or rather the hands by the which the holie Ghost doth offer exhibite seale and deliuer the grace of God vnto vs. 8 And there bee two sorts of men to whom grace is offered by the word in vaine The one are they which wil not giue it so much as the hearing but doe vtterly contemne and vnkindely refuse that which the Lord doth so kindly and so gratiously offer to them The other they that heare it indeede reade it but consider it not receiue it but altogether without fruite and for fashions sake Of the former sort are all such as Pharao was who enioined Moses to come no more in his sight for hee would not heare him Such also were the Iewes to whom when Stephen preached they stopped their eares Such they of whom the Lorde complaineth by the Prophet saying I spake and they would not heare 9 Of the latter sort there be three kindes shadowed in the parable of the sower which went foorth to sowe his seede whereof some fell in the high way side some in stonie grauelly ground some also amongst thornes That which fell by the high waie side either the birds of the aire picked vp or men trod vpon with their feete Which our sauiour applieth vnto him that heareth the word of the kingdome and vnderstandeth it not and by and by the diuell taketh it away least he should beleeue and so be saued For it fareth with the woord preached as with the seede sowen Some are so dissolute and rechelesse that they let it in at the one eare and out at the other The hearts of some be so be so hardened and parched because they want the watering of Gods spirit which doth only mollifie that his word can take no roote in them The diuell and his deceitful Angels doe so bewitch them and fil their harts with vain cogitations so abalienate their mindes and trouble their memorie that they cannot tell what is saide it is forgotten by that it is spoken Yea the diuell doth so throughly occupie the hearts of many other with superstitious opinions and fond perswasions or with such worldly desires such fleshly lusts such froward affections that the hearing of the blessed word is a wearisome worke vnto them euery houre spent that way is as tedious as a yere and thought to bee wholly lost Many likewise both heare the woord preached and reade the Scriptures as the Pharisees did heare them that they may seeme to fauour the Gospel and so vnder pretence of holinesse blinde the eyes of others and purloine commoditie to themselues Such come in amongst the children of God as did Satan of old yet God knowes them to be children of darknesse not of light yea and oftentimes he so shaketh them out of their painted rags that the whole world may espie their ouglie and deformed nakednesse Whilest by their hypocrisie they labour to deceiue others they deceiue yea and damne themselues To this sort of men therefore the word is offered but all in vaine Either they receiue it not or they receiue it to their owne destruction 10 The second sort are resembled to the stonie soile which receiueth the seede and it taketh roote for a time but when the heate of the sunne commeth it withereth away Many such there be which haue gladly heard the Gospel haue frequented sermons with appearance of great deuotion and could freshly
and iust punishment These are his properties and hee chaungeth them not He seeth all he hath all power hee is a righteous iudge of all ouer all for euer By this which hath beene spoken we see that we haue to looke for a day wherein the worlde shall be iudged and we see who it is that in that day shall iudge the world 16 Of this the Lorde hath sufficiently assured vs. For when diuerse thinges are spoken of before they come to passe the perfourmaunce of the first is the assurance of the rest He which promised to raise vp Iesus from the dead hath also promised to iudge quicke and dead by the same Iesus so raised Sith the one is perfourmed how can we stande in doubt of the other We may assure our selues that there is a day of iudgement to come because the resurrection of the iudge is alreadie accomplished past and gone So then euerie one of vs shall giue accounts of himselfe to God There is no prince no potentate no prophet no Apostle no man no woman neither rich nor poore high nor lowe that can escape this iudgement We must aunswere for our facts euen as euery man hath wrought We must aunswere for euerie idle worde for euerie corrupt and wicked thought What can the vncleane fornicator the couetous vsurer the mightie oppressor the proude contemner the ambitious climer the enuious hypocrite the bloudie murderer the false deceauer the cruell prince the vnfeeding pastor the vniust iudge the deceitfull merchaunt what may they aunswere in that day but pleade guiltie and what can they looke for but Ite maledicti Go ye cursed Once againe I say O consider this ye that forget God 17 But when shall this iudgement be As this question is mooued by two sortes of men so there are in scripture two kinds of answeres made vnto it There are mockers which walke after their owne lustes and these aske Where is the promise of his comming Since the fathers died which were ouerwhelmed by the floude of Noah all thinges continue as they were from their first creation To whom Saint Peter maketh answere that they erre of set purpose Otherwise they that are so wittie in reasoning against the truth of Gods promises might knowe this that the power of the worde which created the worlde and kept it till the day appointed for the punishment of the wicked by water doth also nowe keepe the heauens and the earth in store and reserue them to fire against the day of iudgement and of the destruction of vngodly men Hauing stopped their mouthes with this aunswere he leaueth them without any further instruction because they were but swine and the doctrine of the iudgement to come is precious But the Disciples of Christ with an other minde making this demaunde Tell vs when these thinges shalbe and what signe of thy comming and of the ende of the worlde are abundantly instructed by their Lorde and maister which knoweth all thinges and withholdeth nothing from his which is any way needefull to be knowne Touching the time they are forbidden to enquire about it For as in the dayes before the floude they did eate and drinke marrie and giue in marriage and knewe nothing till the floude came and tooke them all away so shall also the comming of the sonne of man bee In the howre that ye thinke not will the sonne of man come in a day and in an howre which no man knoweth no not the Angels of heauen but the father onely It is therefore both vaine and daungerous which some haue attempted in setting this and that yeere beyond which the world cannot endure But such is the crookednes of our nature In watching which is commaunded howe carelesse are wee And howe curious in seeking out the time and season which to do we are so oft and so expressely forbidden 18 Touching the signes and tokens going before the comming of Christ to iudgement they are set downe for our benefit and instruction And therefore let vs make some stay in the due consideration of them There shall be sayeth the Euangelist signes in the sunne and in the moone and in the starres c. These signes shall appeare before the comming of Christ partly that the worlde may be admonished of the fearefull iudgement that is at hande and thereby prouoked to repentance partly that the wicked may in this life be punished by the creatures of GOD whom they haue abused partly that it may appeare that the creatures which haue serued sinnefull man against their will will nowe no longer serue the enemies of their creatour and partly to declare that the worlde is come to his iust olde age and shall haue an ende There shall be signes in the sunne What signes these shall be it is elsewhere in the scriptures declared The heauens shall shake the sunne and moone shall be darke and the starres shall withdrawe their shining Againe the sunne shall be turned into darkenes and the moone into bloud before the great and terrible day of the Lord come The like we reade in the booke of Reuelation I behelde and loe the sunne was blacke as sackecloth of heare and the moone was like bloud and the starres of heauen fell vnto the earth as a figge tree casteth hir greene figges when it is shaken of a mightie winde Whereunto the wordes of S. Matthew also do agree The sunne shall be obscured and the moone shall not yeelde hir light the stars shall fall from heauen and the powers of heauen shall be shaken The simple literall vnderstanding is that there shalbe wonderfull and terrible Eclipses in the sunne and in the moone which things in this last age in this last houre of the worlde since the ascension of Christ haue sundrie times and in most strange sort beene seene Or else euen as when Christ was crucified the sunne lost his light and darkenes for a time was vpon the face of the whole earth so shall it be at his seconde comming to iudge the children of darkenesse with eternal death Others expound it that whē Christ shal come in his glorie the beames of his brightnesse shall so farre surmount the shining of the sunne moone or starres that in comparison thereof they shall seeme darke giue no light Of this his brightnes he gaue a glimse when he was transfigured in the mount Tabor To seeke out many expositions of these woordes it shall not neede This wee may obserue in the writinges of the prophetes that with them it is vsuall when they foreshewe great plagues to vse these and the like spheeches So doth Esayas in his prophecie concerning the plagues of Babylon The starres of heauen the planets thereof shall not giue their light the sunne shalbe darkened in his going foorth and the moone shall not cause her light to shine Againe The earth is vtterly broken downe the earth is cleane dissolued the earth is moued exceedingly
the moone shall be abashed the sunne ashamed when the Lorde of hostes shal raigne in mount Sion The like we read in Ezechiel threatning destruction and desolation to Egypt I will couer the heauen and make the starres thereof darke I will couer the sunne with a cloude and the moone shall not giue hir light all the lightes of heauen will I make darke for thee and bring darkenes vpon thy lande sayth the Lorde I might alledge the like out of Ioel Ieremie Amos and Micheas but the matter is cleare inough needeth rather to be considered thaÌ„ prooued 19 The wordes being literally thus vnderstoode may be morally applied not without great fruite vnto the vnderstanding and wise hearer which can discerne betweene interpretation of scripture application thereof In the one we giue you the bare sense of the scripture in the other we teach you the profitable vse of it For the vse of scripture may be very well shewed not only by such collectioÌ„s as do probably gather or necessarily coÌ„clude one thing out of another but also by those allegoricall comparisons which shewe how in one thing another is shadowed a spirituall thing resembled in a corporall As for example if heere we refer the sun to Christ that sunne of righteousnes the moone to the Church and the starres to the pastors and doctors of the Church 20 The sunne in this sence is most euidently in this our age darkned Christ is obscured by that great enimie Antichrist the man of sinne who hath set himselfe in Christs peculiar place and will be exalted aboue all that is called God To make any other mediator betwene God and man sauing only Christ Iesus which is not onely man but also God To seeke else where remission of sinnes iustification redemption sanctification or saluation than only in this Iesus in him crucified doth darken make dimme both him and his merites And of this treason the Romish Antichristian Church which they terme Catholike is founde guiltie For the children of this harlot labour by al meanes to obscure the sonne of God to robbe him of the glorie of his desertes in our saluation I would neuer haue beleeued that any professing learning or hauing had but a glimse of the course of the woorde of God could haue beene so grosse in such sort to haue eclipsed the brightnesse of Christ Iesus by giuing his glorie vnto earthly creatures if of late I had not to my great greefe and their great shame heard their owne blasphemous conâ—essions therof Surely the Romish strumpet hath rubbed hir forehead hir children are become altogether shamelesse whatsoeuer shee determineth they make it equiualent with the written word of God There is no absurditie in poperie in which there are ful many and full grosse which they doe not defende to be right good and Catholike The Popes pardons purgatorie masses merites praiers both for to y e dead pilgrimages images reliques yea holy water and holy bread All these they will haue some one way and some another to bee forcible remedies against sinne and death This is their religion and seruing of God thus they honour the Lambe that was slaine for the sinnes of all the worlde If this doe not derogate from him and stoppe the brightnesse of his glorie who is the only once offered propitiation for all our sinnes by whose bloud we are only purged whose death only hath made vs free from death if this doe not obscure the glorious beautie of Christ Iesus if this doe not deface the woorthinesse of his merites what doeth or what can do Hath the glorious sonne of God sacrificed his precious life for our sakes vpon the crosse that Thomas of Caunterburies bloud powred out in an earthly quarrell should make passage to heauen for vs Is there any man in whose heart the light of the glorie of God hath shined which seeth not how this fogge doth darken this blessed sunne 21 Againe this sonne is obscured when as we professe that in our woordes which in our liues and deedes we doe denie After that king Dauid had committed adulterie Nathan the phophet charged him therewith in these words Thou hast caused the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme When men professe wel liue ill their life is not tolerated for their profession but their profession is slandered by their conuersation When the Iewes which professed the Law did not practise it the Law which they professed heard euill thereby For a bad professor of a good thing is a staine to that thing which he doth professe This is the speciall fault of our wicked dayes these our times are clowdie and full of this darkenesse our light doth not shine to glorifie God but our darkenes doth abounde to the obscuring of his Christ. The mercilesse rich men which wring and oppresse by deceitfull and iniurious dealing which neglect and despise their afflicted brethren the needie members of Christ doe not they blaspheme the woorthie name wherewith both they and we are named It were a great deale better neuer to haue professed then not to practise neuer to haue receaued then not to obserue neuer to haue knowne then not to obey the word of truth Vnto them which heare the word and keepe it being heard a blessing is promised but vnto theÌ„ of whom it is written Dicunt non faciunt They say do not woes againe and againe are denounced This knowe sayth the Apostle that in the last dayes shall come perillous times For men shall be louers of themselues couetous boasters proude cursed speakers disobedient to parentes vnthankefull vnholy without naturall affection truce breakers false accusers intemperate fierce despisers of them which are good traitours headie high minded louers of pleasure more than louers of God hauing a shewe of godlinesse but hauing denied the power thereof Let all the worlde iudge whether these be not the cloudes which haue darkned the sunne of our dayes 22 Now as the sun reseÌ„bleth Christ so the moone his Church For as the moone hath hir light from the sun so the Church hirs from Christ. And as the sunne being vnchangeable is at all times exceeding bright and glorious but the moone doth change and some times is at the full sometimes at the wane hir light to the eye of the worlde now encreasing and nowe diminishing nowe filling the whole globe and now in no part thereof appearing so Christ and his Church Christs glorie is alwaies great and alwaies one His Church vpon earth doth varie nowe she flowrisheth and nowe is blacke sometimes shee ouer spreadeth the face of the whole earth at other times she is brought to so narrowe streightes that mortall eye is vnable to espie hir When the Church of Christ is persecuted as it was in the dayes of those cruell Emperours which were of olde and as it is at this daie vnder Antichrist and Antichristian Princes this is as it were the chaunging