are free from want so are they free from warres with all the mischieves that are concomitant and all the miseries that are consequent The Kingdome of glory can never be turned into an Aceldama The field of Blood Mat. 27. 8. John 6. 70 71. Mat. 26. 15. Mat. 26. 3 4. 27. 1. Numb 16. 1 2 3. No forraine enemy can invade it Nor home bred enemy infest the happinesse of it No bedevilled Judas can come there to betray his Lord and Master the King of Kings for halfe a Crowne Nor can any Jewish Elders assemble there to condemne him or conspire against him Moses and Aaron shall never be confronted there by any gain-saying Corahs or mutinous Abirams or complying Dathans or any of their confederates and good King David shall there be free from the 2 Sam. 15. 2 4 5 6 10 12. 16. 5 6 7 23. pride of all ambitious Absolons from the presumption of all seditious Shebas and from the wicked counsells of all contriving Achitophels No cursing Shimeis Nor railing Rabshakehs shall come there to belch infectious gorges forth to poyson the Hearts of any subjects in that Kingdome of glory to confound the glory of that Kingdome into an Anarchie No Polupragmaticall Machiavelians Nor crafty Boute-fewes shall interrupt that Kingdomes endlesse peace No bold Seianus can insinuate into that glorious Presence to corrupt it No malecontented Cataline can lurke there either to traduce the glorious Majesty of the King of Kings or to seduce inferiour Officers Nor is there any War-like Ammunition Magazined there No Civill Warrings can destroy that glorious Kingdome nor can any factious jarrings deface that glorious Church No New-fangled Athenians nor Schismaticall Corinthians can disturbe the unity or destroy the uniformity of that Church No over-mastering Pope nor under-mining Jesuite No New-Church-making Familist nor No-Church-making Atheist can gaine such favour or get such footing there as to eject the setled Saints and worke the ruine of all that Church No ravenous Wolves in Sheepes cloathing can creep by any Posternes gates into that fold to flea or fleece the flock and mistake feeding on them for feeding of them That ancient Hierarchie of Arch. Angels and Angels and other Ministring spirits can never be deemed so superstitious as to demerit an utter Extirpation The Militant Church may be infested with some of these destructive Pests at all times and with all of them at some times But the Church Triumphant is at all times freed from all these Nothing that worketh any abomination can come there and therefore every thing that tendeth towards the grand Abomination of Desolation must needs be for ever exiled thence The glory of all there must last for ever And all in that glory must live for ever Being free from sinne they shall be free from Death from Death spirituall in it from Death temporall by it and from Death eternall for it That presence of the Ever-living God doth set them free from all for ever Here we beginne to die so soone as we begin to live All here are borne to die and many are but borne and die Nascentes morimur finisque ab origine pendet Being born we die as saith Manilius the last of our days does pend upon the first Our Death does hang about us from our Birth We all are bound towards the Womb of ourgreat grandmother the Earth so soone as wee be loosed from our Mothers Wombe Hee that is borne to day is borne to die and is not sure to live an other day But in the glorious presence of God there is no dying they that are there are sure to live for ever free from the sting of Death and from the stroke free from all tendencies unto Death and from all feares of dying When the Naturall Body of a Saint comes there it does become a spirituall Body It is there spiritualized in the manner of subsistence though not in the Nature of the substance It is still a Body though it be spirituall and it is said to be spirituall saith S. Augustine because it there lives the life of a spirit For first like a spirit there it liveth without any hunger without any thirst without feeling pinching cold or parching heat It needs no meate it needs no drinke it needs no summers stuffe nor winters cloath Againe it liveth like a spirit there free from sicknesse free from Aches free from all sorts of Diseases It cannot bee distempered into a Fever nor dissolved into a Flux nor corrupted into Ulcers Againe like a spirit it liveth there without decaying by living long No time can dimme the Eyes or dull the Eares or lame the Legs or feeble the Hands or cripple the Feete or crooke the Back or furrow the Face or disfigure the feature Though it lives Mathusalems age a thousand times over yet it never growes crazie or decrepit or Shrinkes into a Skeleton And lastly like a spirit it is immortall Death can have no more Dominion over it This life it but the shaddow of that 〈◊〉 Suigâ—i 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in Psal This is but a dying Life a kinde of living Death but that is vera non interitura vita A Life indeed never to end in Death as Victorinus Strigelius very truely Now tell mee who would not gladly live in such a privileged place where that boldest Sargeant Death cannot come to arest such is the Sanctuary of Gods glorious Presence A Liberty indeed free from all kindes of Death and free from unkinde Devills too from Devills infernall and Devills incarnate â—ullus ibi Diaboli metus nullae inâ—idiâ— daemonum Terror gebennae procul Mors neque corporis neque animae sed immortalitatis munere uterque solutus S. Chrysost de reparatione lapsi too No evill Angels can ascend from the bottomelesse pit into that presence to tempt any there to sinne Nor hellish furyes to torment for sinning in times past No Devill of the lower Hell nor any of this wicked World above it can find any entrance thither There is indeed free quarter for Saints but none for Sinners The free Men of that City and all the Denizons of that Kingdome are allwayes freed from all unwellcome troublesome intruders The spirit of Debate and Strife can never thrust the Devills mysterious cloven foote into that presence to set Divisions to cause distractions to bring Seditionum popularium author est Diabolus Vedelius de pruden veter Ecc. lib. 1. c. 2. destruction No carnall pride can ever beget fond fashionists in the streetes of that most holy City Nor spirituall Pride breed up fantasticall factionists in the Houses No hiddeous Blasphemies nor filthy obscenities nor thumping Oaths nor hellish cursings nor peevish censurings are used by any in that presence All prophane and black-mouthed Monsters of Men are exiled for ever from that Society of Saints And so are all insinuating Sycophants and false hearted Pharisees The Devill is never more mischievous then when hee is most cunningly
to usward Ego ante mortem prae malis sum mortua Eras Some pleasant their lives as if the world should alwayes laugh upon them QuaÌ„vis pâ—jor est mundus cum blanditur quam cum indignatur Manchest Al Mondo's Cont. Mortis Jmmortal Sueton. de vita Tiberii Si salvabor salvabor Si praedestinatus sum nulla peccata poterunt mihi regnum coeloruÌ„ auferrâ— Si praescitus nulla opera mihi illud valebunt conferre Heisterbach l. 1. de memor Hist c. 27. VVe are instruments though not causes of our own salvation VVe bring nothing for it but something to it Nothing worth it but somthing with it Dr. Donne not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance saith S. Peter 2 Epist c. 3. v. 9. Both perishing here and perishing hereafter too may be prevented by repenting here in time Euripides brings in Hecâ—ba crying out amain 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Iam even dead with the very terrors of deathâ— And many in these evil Times have even killed themselves with the feares of being killed But others are still running neerer unto Death and to Damnation â—oo and yet are further every day then other from thinking of either They think they shall not die as yet and therefore as yet they think not of preparing themselves for death by turning of themselves Yea many live as if they thought they should ever live and therefore never think of turning themselves that they might live for ever Tiberius thought that all things came by destiny and therefore neglected all endeavours to prevent or alter any thing And many are like Tiberius at least in deportments if not in judgments They do not endeavour to turn themselves to turn the times to save their lives either in this present world or that to come Yea some are ready to say as that Italian Ludovicus did If we shall be saved we shall be saved And as that Lantgrave of Thuring did which Heisterbachius writes of If we be elected no sinnes can keep us out of Heaven but if we be reprobate no sorrows can keep us out of Hell This is a most irreligious kind of reasoning This is not the way for men to work out their own salvation with feare and trembling This is not the way to perswade them to give all diligence to make their calling and election sure True it is that all that Man can do is but in vain unlesse that God bestows his blessing on it But all in vain it is for Man to expect a blessing from the hands of God unlesse that he will do what God expecteth at his hands for the procuring of it For God will not do all things all alone for them that will do nothing for themselves with him when he is doing for them When God is working in men and for them then they in him must needs be 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 workers together with God In vain it is for men to call to In vain do men call to Heaven for help when they withstand the help of Heaven Many do invoke it and yet do hinder it They require help from others and abandon themselves and by their deeds contrarying their words they shew not to have desired what they have intreated and to have intreated that they might not be heard Malvez Romul Tarq. translated by the Earl of Monmouth Heaven for help if they will not use the help of Heaven which they call for In vain it is for men to have any Talents of Grace if they wiâ—l not put them out to use And they that have them and will not improve them deserve to have them taken away from them By Nature indeed we are all dead in trespasses and sinnes and cannot help our selves But when God by the Spirit of Life hath helped us unto the Life of the Spirit then we like men of spirit must bestir our selves to use his help When God Dr. Love's Watchmans Watchword hath begun with us then we must go on with him when he is turning of us then we together with him must turn our selves And being turned we must live too Turn live An early endeavour is then to purpose when it is put on with an earnest endeavour to persevere But it were better to begin late and hold out unto the end then to begin betimes and be presently weary of well-doing There is a Penny Maâ— 10. 22. Gal. 6. 9. promised to him that comes to labour in the Lords vineyard at the eleventh houre of the day But no Salary promised to him that ends his labour before the day of his life be ended We must go on then as well as begin It is Perseverance that crowns Repentance Turning it is that prepares the way of Living And Living it is that perfects the work of Turning Optima paenitentia nova vita Luther We must do the last as well as the first Indeed we can do neither well unlesse we do both But by doing both we may do well And that we may be sure to do so let us both turn and live Wherefore turn your selves and live ye Fâ—NIS St. PAVL'S CONCRVCIFIXION Preached in two Sermons at Hoxne in the County of SUFFOLK By Edw. Willan M. A. Vicar of Hoxne Galat. 6. 14. God forbid that I should glory save in the Crosse of our Lord Jesus Christ by whom the World is crucified to me and I unto the World LONDON Printed for RICHARD ROYSTON at the Angel in Ivie-lane 1651. TO THE VVORSHIPFULL ROBERT STYLE Esq his very Generous and bountifull Patron AND TO THE VVORSHIPFULL NATHANEEL THRUSTON Esq his very Worthy Parishoner VVORTHY SIRS IT was by both your Worships that I was placed in the Pulpit where these two Sermons were preached By the one of you it was that I was perswaded and by the other it was that I was presented to it and therefore by both your Worships may both these Sermons be joyntly and justly claimed I shall not disclaime the right of either to them They were both my Service in that pulpit long agoe upon one of your Sabbaths one of my Working dayes But neither of your Worships ni memini male were that day neere to hear them as they were presented to the care be pleased to let them come so neere unto your Worships now that you may reade them as they are represented to the eye Mine Office doth bind me to live not to my selfe but others It makes me a Servant to all by Common Duty But my place to officiate doth make me by Speciall tyes and Service Sirs Your Worships devoted beadsman and poore Vicar EDVV. WILLAN S. PAULS CONCRUCIFIXION GAL. 2. 20. I am crucified with Christ neverthelesse I live yet not I but Christ that liveth in me THat we are all alive and here together this Day we see But how many Dayes we shall be here Jam. 4. 13 14. Psal 89. 48. Heb. 9. 27. Moriendum enim certum est sed
id incertum an ipso die Cicero de Senectute Mat. 28. 5 6. Mark 16. 6. Acts 2. 24 25. Rev. 1. 18. Rom. 1. 1. or alive we cannot say And that we shall all die we all know But how many here amongst us all are now both dead and alive together God knowes Indeed S. Paul was so He was both dead and alive indeed and so may some here be But it may be all here are not so Saint Pauls Condition was never Common Our Lord and Saviour dyed once and lived againe But his Servant Paul was dead and alive at once The Lord of life our Saviour Christ was crucified for Paul and lost his life But Paul the Servant of Christ was crucified with Christ his Lord and lived neverthelesse Some men have lived here the lesse by being crucified for Gal. 2. 7. Linus Episcopus de passione Petri. Eusebius Pamphil Ecclesi Histor lib. 2. 25. Christ But others much the more for being crucified with Christ The great Apostle of the Jewes was crucified for Christ and dyed But the great Apostle of the Gentiles was crucified with Christ and lived The Crosse of Christ did bring that one to death but not this other It brought Death to Saint Peter but life unto Saint Paul It can bring life as well as death It giveth life sometimes and sometimes it taketh life away It taketh life away sometimes that it may give it It taketh one away to give another It taketh this away to give a better And sometimes it kills and saves alive together It can doe both at Severall times and it can doe both at once It can doe both to severall men and it can doe both to one It can doe both by severall wayes and it can doe both by one sometimes it bringeth Life with Death and sometimes after Death it bringeth Life With the Death of sinne it brings the Life of Grace And after the Death of Nature it brings the Life of Glory True it is that the End of Life is ever by Death And yet it is as true that Death is not ever at the end of Life The Apostle dyed before his life was ended In the midst of Death a Man may be in Life And in the midst Life a Man may be in Death 1 Cor. 15. 31. I dye dayly sayd this Apostle when as yet he lived He had both Life and Death together in him He was in Death and Life at once A living dead man vivus crucifixus Crucifi'd with Christ and yet alive I am crucified with Christ neverthelesse I live yet not I but Christ c. This Text you see is full of turnings The Apostles Conversion is the Subject of it and well may it be the Subject of many conversions to quicken my discourse upon it Would my discourse upon it might quicken as many Conversions by it Now the Chiefe Considerables in it are these two 1. A Contradiction in Seeme 2. A Reconciliation in Substance In the first we have a Riddle Propounded In the Second we have the Riddle Expounded And in both together we may both Read the Riddle and the Reading of the Riddle I am crucified with Christ neverthelesse I live there 's the Riddle Yet not I but Christ that liveth in me there 's the Reading of the Riddle In the Riddle there are two Remarkables 1. The Mannr of it 2. The Matter in it It is the Manner of it that makes it seem so intricate a Riddle as indeed it is for it is proposed in a seeming Contradiction First the Apostle sayes that he is crucified with Christ and thereby seemes to say as much as that he is not living but dead For Christ was crucified to Death And then he sayes that he is neverthelesse alive and thereby seemes to say and sayes it in more then seemes that he is not dead but living Now thus to say it and to unsay it is to make a contradiction of it at least in seeme It is to speak a Paradox in it And all Paradoxes are admirable Propositions saith the Romane Oratour And this Text for a Paradox is as admirable as any other Every Riddle hath something mysticall in it But this Paradoxicall Riddle is a very mystery Yea whole Armies of Mysteries do keep their Randezvous within the quarters of this grand Paradox I am crucified with Christ neverthelesse I live And for the Matter in it it could not be more clearely expressed then it is by this very Manner of expression The Subject matter of it is S. Pauls Regeneration And that 's a matter very Mysterious It is mirabile magnum as Musculus calls it a John 3. 1. great Wonder When our Saviour first propounded the Doctrine of Regeneration to Master Nicodemus that great Ruler of the 3. Jewes and Master in Israel 10. it seemed a very Riddle to him and such a Riddle as he neither apprehended nor beleeved And therefore his Reply was not by unriddling but rejecting of it with a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 How can these things be It did so 9. puzle his Reason and so perplex his Faith that it seemed 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a thing impossible a thing incredible though it were proposed by Truth it selfe in the plainest Dialect of the Gospell John 14. 6. What would it have done if it had beene lapped up in Aenigmaticall Language like this of Saint Paul How would Rationis humanae in mysteriis regni dei caecitas in Nicodemo apparet cui omnia ista quae de regeneratione proponuntur absurda apparent Theodoricus in Analys Evangel Domin Trinit 1 Cor. 15. 45. it have posed his Mastership had it beene proposed in the Wonderment of a Riddle or seeming contradiction Yet in this Seeming Contradiction we may plainely see the parts of Saint Pauls Conversion and in that the parts of a perfect Regeneration The first part is Mortification The second is Vivification The first is a Death unto Sinne The Second is a New Birth â—nto Sanctimonie The first is the killing of the first Adam The Second is the Quickning of the Second in him I am crucified with Christ there 's his Mortification His Death unto sinne The killing of the first Adam in him Neverthelesse I live there 's his Vivification His New Birth unto Righteousnesse The quickning of the Second Adam I an crucified with Christ there 's his putting off of the Old Man which Ephes 4. 22. is corrupt concerning the former Conversation Neverthelesse I live there 's the putting on of the New-Man which after God â—â— Ephes 4. 24. created in righteousnesse and true holinesse I am crucified 〈◊〉 Christ there 's the Mortifying of the flesh The members upon the Coloss 3. 5. Rom. 8. 13. 4. Earth The deedes of the Body Neverthelesse I live there 's the Quickning of the Spirit The walking after the Spirit The life of righteousnesse by the Spirit for the spirit is life because of righteousnesse Rom. 8. 10. I am
Nature of that law is not easily overcome so soone as wee begin to kill or crucifie the old man in our bodies he presently layes the law to us and pleads the law of Nature against us and so makes us very remisse and it may be lay aside our work of morall Concrucifixion There was peccatum habitans sinne dwelling in Rom. 7. 15 16 17 18 19 20. Concupiscentia in renatis est peccatum Daven Determ Quaest pr. Paul himselfe and that sinne made him doe the evill which he hated and made him leave und one the good he greatly desired Such sin there is in every man though he be regenerate and that sinne in him does make his Concrucifixion very difficult The Second thing that greatens the difficulty of it is the Old mans easie Recovering or his speedy Recruting of his forces within us when we thinke we have so farre worsted them as that they must needs yeeld It is storyed of the Giant Antaeus Antaeus gigas ex terrae filiis cum Hercule congrediâ—â—s ut deprehensus est ex telluris tactu vires excrescere Volatera Paralipom Nat. Comes Mytholog l. 7. c. 1. 1 Cor. 15. 47. the sonne of Neptune by the Earth that when ever his strength began to faile him tactu terrae recreabatur it was recruted or renewed by his touching of the Earth And this made it so hard for Hercules to overcome and kill him Natales Comes seekes to verifie this fable by other allusions but it is most true of the Body of sinne which is indeed Terrae filius The sonne of the Earthie part which is in Man The Old man is of the Earth Earthie And sinne is the Sonne of the Old Man and like the Giant Antaeus it reneweth strength by touching of Earth and Earthly things which maketh it so hard a matter for the Body of sinne to be Mortified by us so long as we have our Conversations upon the Earth I remember a story which I have read in Neubrigensis it is Q ippe ex Alienora quondam Francorum Regina susceptis 4 siliis Henricum natu majorem Regni Anglici Ducatus Normanici cum Andegavensi Comitatu successorem relinqâ—cre Richardum vero Aquitaniae Galfridum Britanniae praesicere cogitabat quartum natu minimum Joannem sine terra cognominans c. Gulielm Neubrigen lib. 2. c. 18. of King Henry the Second who having bequeathed no Land of inheritance to John his fourth and youngest Sonne by Queene Elinor surnamed him Johannem sine terra John without Earth or Land to live upon It was his Fathers Pleasure so to deale with him and so to miscall him He wanted such a portion of Earth without him as was given by his Father to his other Brothers but he wanted not his portion of Earth within him He had the inheritance of an earthie part in his Mortall Body derived from the Old man in his Father He was not Johannes sine terra in respect of the body of sinne he was of the Earth Earthy and so is every man living upon the Earth and the Earth within us doth strengthen sinagainst us and makes it very hard for us to crucifie it in us A Third thing that makes our Mortification difficult is the Time that the Old Man in us must have to dye in He must needs dye a lingring death for he must be dying all the dayes of our Naturall life Those two Malefactours that were crucified corporally when Christ was had lingring Deaths yea so long they were in dying that the Souldiers had Orders given them to breake their legs for the hastening of their Deaths And he that begins to crucifie the Old Man in himselfe shall finde him so loath to dye and so long in dying that new violences must be offered to him to make him yeeld The fastening of him to the Crosse does make him sick and the breaking of his legs does make him weak Yet will he not dye so long as the man does live nor wholly yeeld to the spirituall man untill that ye yeelds up his spirit The nature of this mysticall death does differ much from the death of Nature this is mors sine morte a death without death That may be a lingring death sometimes but this is ever a living death a death in life It is Martyrium vivum as Tertullian phraseth it a living Martyrdome a killing of the flesh and a leaving of the man alive Martyrium sine sanguine S. Bern. inter Sententias saith S. Bernard A Martyrdome without any Bloudshed a Mortifying of the Body without killing of it Other Martyrdoms Duo sunt Martyrii genera unum in habitu alterum in actu c. Pâ—imasius in c. 7. in c. 11. Apocalyp Josua 9. 21. Carranza in Sum. Concilior Apostolor Canon 23 24. Concil Nicaen Can. 1. Concil Arelaten Can. 7. are either in Minde or Body this is in both without the destruction of either A man may Mortifie his members with S. Paul without cutting of them off with Origen Gods people the Israelites did not kill those enemies of theirs the Gibeonites but brought them into subjection and made them serviceable And such as are godly people need not destroy their bodies or their affections naturall but subdue them and make them spirituall and serviceable Thus much the Apostle intimated to the Romanes in saying As ye have yeelded your members servants to uncleannesse and to iniquity unto iniquity even so now yeeld your members servants to righteousnesse unto holinesse Rom. 6. 19. Where observe that they still be members and still yours your members and still servants but not still in servitude to the same masters Their masters are newed and so is the manner of their service This Morall Concrucifixion may consist with Naturall Conservation This Mortification is not meant of the Common Death of Man saith Saint Chrysostome and S. Chrys Theophil in locum Quos Deus mortificat affligit postea vivificat Mendoza in lib. 1. Regum Tom. 1. after him Theophilact but of a Death unto sinne And with this Mortification of the Old man there must ever be the Vivification of the New man I am Crucified with Christ neverthelesse I live There is life with Death yea life by it When the Naturall Man beginnes to live then hee beginnes to die and when the Spirituall Man beginnes to die then hee begins to live Mans first Birth leads him unto Death His second lets him into Life Hee is borne at first to die But borne againe to live It is the beginning of Misery to be borne once But the beginning of Felicity to be borne againe The first Birth onely lets man into Naturall life and into that but onely for a time and that time but a short one too But the second Birth does let life into Man and that a Spirituall life and that 's the Pledge and Meanes of life eternall It is the Nature of mans first life to give him onely the
11. time but grievous And no time in affliction seemeth short but tedious unlesse with Paul we be perswaded that our light 2 Cor. 4. 17. affliction lasting but a moment shall worke for us a farre more exceeding and eternall weight of glory The Lord does make the bitternes of this life of sorrowes to seeme the more imbittered to his servants that the sweetness of the life of joyes may seeme the sweeter to them when they come to the enjoyment of it Yet that the bitterest sorrowes of this life may be the better relished the sweetest joyes of life are promised to them that in their sorrowes wait for joyes with patience And to perswade to patience in the midst of sorrowes we must observe them to be common What Militant Saint did ever beare the Ensigne of a Mortall life without some Crosse or Crosselet in it Who could ever blazon the Escocheon of his Militancy or Mortality and not finde the Field of his life to be charged with Crosses Gules or Crosses Sable The first Adam could not nor could the second And who indeed can wish for the heaven of happinesse or the happinesse of heaven here where the King of heaven went through an hell of miseries There can be no greater unhappinesse Nihil infelicius co cui nihil unquam evenit adversi Seneca Fortuna quem nimium fovet stultum facit Prov. 1. 32. Vexatio dat intellectum in this life than never in this life to have unhappinesse Perpetuall prosperity does make a foole so sayes one that was no foole And Prosperity perpetuall does marre a foole so sayes another and he the wisest of wise men Prosperity may sometimes foole a wise man unto folly and Adversity may sometimes tutour a foole to wisdome 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Many instructions are taught by afflictions God sendeth Crosses in stead of Blessings unto those he hateth but he often blesseth those with crosses which he loveth It is well for them Psal 119. 67. 71 that they are afflicted It is very true that Oppression makes the wise man mad for so sayes the wise man himselfe in his Booke of the Preacher Eccles 7. 7. And it is as true if we Preach it that oppression makes some madd men wise But who is willing to be Schooled by so curst a Pedagoge But volenter nolenter whether men will or no it must sometimes be so and better so then worse for ever Too much it is for one man to enjoy two Heavens And as great pitty it is that any one should endure two Hells And therefore I may truly say that God of his goodnesse and his wisdome hath appointed one of each for every man There is not onely an Heaven or an Hell for any one but an Heaven and an Hell for every one This present world is both but unto severall Men It is the Sinners Heaven but Hell it is unto the Saints on Earth The sinfull worldling takes his pleasure here he hath all his happinesse here that he is ever like to have here are all his joyes and all his hopes of joy He wishes for no other Heaven he lookes not after any other He thinketh not of that to be enjoyed hereafter Here would he live for ever if he might But alas It may not be This world must not last alwayes and though it might yet might not his life in it his life is but of few dayes It soone must have an end What wise man then would wish to live his best life first seeing that it must so soone be lost Who would wish to have his heaven here where he can stay but a few dayes Yea where he cannot assure himselfe to stay one day or houre Againe this present world is a kind of Hell to others or in stead of Hell unto them It is a Place of Trouble a Place of Suffering But their stay here is short Now who would not rather endure the Hell of a few dayes miseries here and enjoy the Heaven of Eternall happinesse hereafter then enjoy the Heaven of a few dayes pleasure here and endure the Eternall miseries of Hell hereafter Temporall Pleasures are dearly bought with the losse of Eternall And temporall sufferings are well requited with eternall Pleasures That is a miserable happinesse that must end in such miseries as must never end And those are happie miseries that shall soone end in endlesse happinesse This life is but a journey towards Death and but a short one And Death is yet a shorter passage to a longer and a better life Indeed no Mortall Pilgrim can be wearie of the longest journey of life if by the way he does but well remember the endlesse joys that he shall enjoy at his journeys end But yet the shorter that his journey be the sooner shall he be at home possessed of those joyes And who would wish a long and tedious journey to himselfe to keepe him long from the enjoyment of them That life of joyes is worth the wishing that shall never have an End And that End of life is full as worthy of our wishes that shall begin the Joyes of that endlesse life And that end Theophra must be ere long for Vita brevis life is short Man that is borne of a woman is but of a few dayes and full of trouble saith holy Job Job 14. 1. He is of few dayes that he may not live too long in trouble And his dayes are full of trouble that he may not long for more of them then a few Mans dayes are full of trouble that a few may serve his turne and make him weary of them And his dayes of trouble are but few that he may not be too much wearied with them It is mans great Misery that his few dayes are full of trouble And it is Gods great Mercy that mans dayes of trouble are but few for if the Dayes of Mans life be full of trouble it is well for Man that his life of trouble is not full of Dayes It is ill for Man that the troubles of his few dayes are so many And it is well for Man that his dayes of trouble are so few The few dayes of Mans life are full of trouble that Man may dayly be minded of his duty in seeking 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 S. Chrysost Hom. 6. Corcydas for another life better then this present And Mans Dayes of Trouble are but few that Man may not be wearied so as to leave seeking for that other life before that this doth leave him Then let the Miseries which accompany Mortality weane us from all fondnesse towards this life present And let the felicity of life eternall win us to long after that The thoughts of the Elysian happinesse did so encourage a poore Grecian a meere Pagan at the instant of his death that he rejoyced much to think of going to Pythagoras and other learned Philosophers to Olympus and other skilfull Musicians to Hecataeus and other Hecataeus Misesius Historicus
favour it was that the gates of Heaven were fairly opened to him Upon his turning Paradise was promised Verily Isay unto thee to day shalt thou be with me in Paradise said our Saviour unto him See what a sudden return was here He does not say after so many ages or years or moneths or weeks or dayes but hodie mecum To day shalt thou be with me in Paradise This day thou hast turned thy self from an heinous Peccant to an humble Penitent and this very day thou shalt be turned from an humble Penitent to an heavenly Triumphant This is the day of thy Conversion and this shall be thy day of Coronation This day thou art truly humbled and this day thou shalt be highly exalted But this one Swallow makes no Summer This rare Example may not be made a general Rule to go by This Phenix had no Mate A pair of Malefactors were concrucified with Christ but both were not converted unto Christ Christ was brought with both unto the Crosse but the Crosse could not bring both of them unto Christ They both came to the death of the Crosse by the same way but they went not both the same way after death from the Crosse for that they turned not themselves the same way upon the Crosse before death One turned unto the Lord upon the Crosse before his death but the other was crosse and would not turn And therefore the Lord did turn to that one in mercy and turned his Crosse into a Crown But the other was turned into Hell And so shall all the ungodly that forget God One of the two was saved that none might despaire And but one that none might presume Our Saviours accepting of the Penitent upon the Crosse may encourage us to repent be it never so late his rejecting of the other bold impenitent Thief may discourage us from sinning be it never so soon As it is therefore now with us whether sooner or later Utendum est â—tate cito pede labitur aetas Ovid. l. 3. de Art amand Let us apply our selves to the season Let us neither despaire of time past nor presume of time to come but let us take the time presâ—nt and turn our selves Time is but a moment and Eternity depends upon it Ex hoc momento aeternitas Eternity it self depends upon this moment yea two Eternities depend upon this one Article of Time Eternity of Happinesse in Heaven and Eternity of Misery in Hell do both Erasmi Adag Qui arripit occasionem rei conficiendae dum illa sese offert ille sapit qui negligit desipil Cornel. à Lap. in Prov. c. 10. Psal 95. 7. Heb. 3 7. 8 15. depend upon the very 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of Temporal life man hath no more of Life or Time but the very present Post est occasio calva Time is bald behind Yesterday cannot be recalled To morrow cannot be assured Let this Present therefore be well imployed One To day is worth two To morrows to turn your selves in To day therefore if ye will heare his voice harden not your hearts but turn your selves Let impertinent mirth be turned into penitent mourning Let laughing at sinne be turned into lamenting of sinne He that hath not been a Prometheus in his life let him be an Epimetheus before his death He that hath not been fore-witted Do therefore the work of the day in die suo No man can promise himself a morrow Deferring as well as presuming makes many implicite Atheists Manchest Contemp mortis immortal in his actions let him shew himself after-witted in examining and amending them If the want of due advice hath occasioned any improvident act of Sinne let the betteradvised act of Sorrow prevent the final punishment of it And if the fear of Hell cannot make us repent in Time then Hell it self shall make us repent to all Eternity They that will not give so much for the love of God as a few penitential Tears shall have the hatred of Devils for nothing And they that will not take so much pains to go to Heaven as to turn themselves may go to Hell with ease Facilis est descensus averni It is an easie matter to go to Hell but not so easie to get out Ab inferno nulla est redemptio If a sinner be once but Sera nimis vita est crastina vive hodie turned into Hell he can never return Be perswaded therefore to turn your selves before you come there Turn your selves and ye shall never come there Turn your selves and ye shall live And live ye Turn your selves and live here Turn your selves and live hereafter 2 Chron. 7. 14. Luk. 15. 20. Life temporal and life eternal are both promised to all those that turn themselves or those that turn a natural life into a spiritual But now I perceive my preaching upon this Text to be like to most mens practising of it They are so long in turning of themselves that they leave themselves but a very little time to live in when they are turned And I have been so long in perswading you to turn your selves that I have left my self but a little time to speak of Living I must now do as the Time hath done I must make haste to have done with the Time The Evils of these Times do threaten every man with Death yea Death it self does threaten every man a Mischief in these Times of Evil. And what way is there for any man to turn away these Times of Evil from himself but by turning of himself from the Evils of these Times Who is it that doth not even long to see a return of better Times And who can make any doubt but better Times would yet ere long return to men would â—en but turn themselves to better the Times The Times grow good or bad to Men as Men grow in their Times The Times would soon be better would Men be so and Men must mend or the Times will not But evil Times can never amend whilest evil Men grow worse and worse Or whilest they sleep supinely in their Evil. No Times can make some Men to amend or turn themselves But would they turn themselves they might both turn the Times and save themselves from ruine See Jer. 3. 12. 13. 22. and see Joel 2. 12 13. 18 19 20 c. Ezek. Isa 1. 16 c. Promissa haec tua sunt quis falli timeat cum promittit ipsa veritas S. Aug. Jonah 3. 6 c. 33. 12. 14 15 16 19. At what instant I shall speak concerning a Nation and concerning a Kingdome to pluck up and to pull down and to destroy it If that Nation against whom I have pronounced turn from their evil I will repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them saith God himself Jer. 18. 7 8. So he dealt with Niniveh And so he hath often dealt with our Metropolis and with this whole Nation He is long-suffering