especially of such as are olde in yeares and yet remaine ignorant without knowledge they must turne to the Lorde by repentance otherwise if they continue still profane and wicked they must knowe this that their damnation comes post hast to meete them and they to it And thus much for the dueties Nowe followe the consolations which Gods Church reape from this that God the father is omnipotent First the wonderfull power of God serueth to strengthen vs in prayer vnto God for he that will pray truly must onely pray for those things for which he hath warrant in Gods word all our prayers must be made in faith and for a man to pray in faith it is harde therefore a speciall meanes to strengthen vs herein is the mightie power of God This was the ground and stay of the leaper whome our Sauiour Christ clensed Lord saith he if thou wilt thou canst make me cleane And in the Lords prayer when our Sauiour Christ hath taught vs to make sixe petitions in the ende he giueth vs a reason or motiue to induce vs to stand vpon and to wait for the benefits before craved in these words Thine is the kingdome thine is the power c. Secondly hence we learne this comfort that all the gates of hell shal neuer be able to preuaile against the least mēber of Christ. I doe not say they shal neuer be able to assault or tempt them for that may be but they shall neuer ouercome them How will some say may we be resolued of this I answer By reason of faith for if a Christian man do beleeue that God the father and in Christ his father is almightie no enemie shall euer be able to preuaile against him So S. Iohn reasoneth Little children yee are of God and haue ouercome them that is all false teachers because greater is he that is in you that is Christ Iesus by his holy spirite who is God and therefore almightie then he that is in the worlde that is the spirit of Sathan therefore you neede not to feare So Dauid compareth him selfe to a sillie sheepe and saith Though I should walke through the valley of the shadow of death that is as it were in the mouth of the lyō yet I will feare none evill why so because the Lord is with him thy rodde saith he and thy staffe comfort me Thus much for the benefits Now whereas it is saide the first person is a father as also almightie ioyne these two together and hence will arise singular benefits and instructions First whereas we are taught to confesse that the first person is a father almightie we and euery man must learne to haue experience in himselfe of the mightie power of this almightie father Why will some say that is nothing for the deuil and all the damned soules feele the power of the Almightie True in deede they feele the power of God namely as he is an almightie Iudge condemning them but they feele not the power of an almightie father this is the point whereof we must learne to haue experience in our selues Paul prayeth that the God of our Lord Iesus Christ the father of glorie would giue vnto the Ephesians the spirite of wisdome to see what is the exceeding greatnes of his power in them which beleeue according to the working of his mighty power which he wrought in Christ. Which place must be cōsidered for here the Apostle would haue vs haue such a speciall manifestation of Gods power in our selues like to that which he did once shew forth in Christ. But how did Christ see and find the power of God as he was man Answ. Diuers waies I. On the crosse he died the first death which is the separation of bodie and soule and he suffered the sorrowes of the second death For in his soule he bare the whole wrath of God and all the panges of hell and after was buried and laide in the graue where death triumphed ouer him for the space of three daies Now in this extremitie God did shew his power in that he raised Christ from death to life And looke as his power was manifested in Christ the head so must it be manifested in all his members for euery man hath his graue which is naturall sinne and corruption which we draw from our first parents and looke as a man lies dead in the graue and can mooue neither hand nor foote so euery man by nature lieth dead in sinne Now as God did shewe his power in raising Christ from death so euery one must labour to haue this knowledge and experience in him selfe of the mightie power of God in raising him from the graue of sinne to newnes of life For thus Paul makes a speciall request that he might knowe Christ and the vertue of his resurrection that is that he might feele in him selfe that power whereby Christ was raised from death to life to raise him also from the bondage of his sinnes to a new life more more Furthermore whē Christ was vpon the crosse and all the gates of hell were open against him then did hee vanquish Sathan he bruised the serpents head and as Paul saith he spoiled principalities and powers and made a shew of them openly and hath triumphed ouer them in the crosse he ouercame the deuill and all his angels by the power of his almightie father and by his owne power as he is God And euen so must Christian men labour to finde the same power in themselues of this almightie father by which Christ did triumph ouer sathan◠that by it they may tread him vnder their feete which men can neuer doe by any power in themselues Againe Christ praieth that that cuppe might passe from him and yet he saith Not my will but thy will be fulfilled For it was necessarie that Christ should suffer And this request was heard not because he was freed from death but because God his father Almightie gaue him power and strength in his manhoode to beare the brunt of his indignation Nowe looke as this power was effectual in Christ Iesus the head to make him able and sufficient to beare the panges of hell so the same power of God is in some measure effectuall in all the members of Christ to make them both patient and of sufficient strength to beare any affliction as Saint Paul saith beeing strengthened with all might through his glorious power vnto all patience and long suffering with ioyfulnes And this is a notable point which euery one ought to learne that wheras they confesse God to be their almightie father they should here withall labour to feele and haue experience in themselues that he is almightie in the beginning and continuing of grace vnto them and in giuing thē power and patience to suffer afflictions Further Christ Iesus when the worke of our redemption was accomplished was lifted vp into heauen and set at the right hande of God in
heauenly places farre aboue all principalities and powers c. euen by the power of his father well as this power was made manifest in the head so must it be in the members thereof Euery child of God shall hereafter see and feele in himselfe the same power to translate him from this vale of miserie in this life to the kingdome of heauen Wherefore to conclude we haue great cause to be thankefull and to praise God for this priuiledge that he sheweth his power in his children in regenerating them in making them die vnto sinne and to stand against the gates of hell to suffer afflictions patiently as also that he translates thē from death to life And euery one should shew his thankfulnes in labouring to haue experience of this power in himselfe as Paul exhorteth vs in his epistles to the Colossians Ephesians yea read all his epistles we shal finde he mentioneth no point so often as this namely the mightie power of God manifested first in Christ secondly in his mēbers and he accounteth all things losse that he might know Christ the vertue of his resurrection This point is the rather to be marked because his power in the matter of grace is not to be seene with eye fewe there be in respect that haue felt the vertue thereof in themselues for the deuill doth mightitily shew his cōtrary power in the greatest part of the world in carrying them to sinne and wickednes Secondly hence we learne that which Paul teacheth namely to know that all things worke together for the best vnto them that loue God God is almightie therfore able to do whatsoeuer he wil he is also a father therfore is willing to doe that which is for our good But some will say we are subiect to many crosses yea to sinne what can our sinnes turne to our good Ans. If God almightie be thy father he wil turne thine afflictions yea thy sinnes which by nature are euill beyond all exspectation vnto thy saluation And this God will doe to all such as be obedient vnto him yet no man must hereupon presume to sinne Thirdly whereas we beleeue that God is a mightie father it serues to confirme Gods children in the promises of mercie reuealed in his word The chiefest whereof is that if men will turne from their sinnes and beleeue in Christ they shall not perish but haue life euerlasting I know some men wil make it an easie thing to beleeue especially those which neuer knewe what faith meant But such persons neede no meanes of confirmation of faith therfore let all those which haue tasted of the hardnes of attaining vnto it learne how to stablish their wauering hearts in the promises of God by the consideration of these two points God is a father and therefore he is willing he is also almightie and therefore he is able to performe his promises He that will be truly resolued of Gods promises must haue both these setled in his heart and build on them as on two foundations It followeth Creatour of heauen and earth We haue spoken of the title of the first person of his attributs now we come to speake of his effect namely the creation but before we come to it we are to answer a certaine obiection which may be made At the first it may seeme strāge to some that the worke of creation is ascribed to the first person in Trinitie the father whereas in the Scripture it is common to them all three equally And first that the father is Creatour it was neuer doubted as for the second person the Sonne that he is Creatour it is euident all things are made by it that is by the Sonne who is the substantiall word of the father without it was made nothing that was made And againe it is said that God by his Sonne made the worlde As for the holy Ghost the worke of creation is also ascribed vnto him and therefore Moses saith the spirit mooued vpon the waters and Iob saith his spirit hath garnished the heauens How thē is this peculiar to the father being cōmon to al the three persons in trinitie I answer the actions of God are two-fold either inward or outward The inward actions are those which one person doth exercise towards another as the father doth beget the sonne this is an inward action peculiar to the father for all inward actions are proper to the persons from whome they are So the Sonne doth receiue the godhead frō the father the holy Ghost frō thē both these are inward actions peculiar to these persons So likewise for the father to send his sonne it is an inward action proper to the father cannot be cōmunicated to the holy Ghost the sonne to be sent by the father onely is a thing proper to the sonne not cōmon to the father or to the holy Ghost Now outward actions are the actions of the persons in the Trinitie to the creatures as the worke of creation the work of preseruatiō of redemption These all such actions are cōmon to all the three persons the father createth the sonne createth the H. Ghost createth so we may say of the works of gouernment of redemption of all outward actions of the persons to the creatures But some again may say how then can the work of creation being an outward action of God to the creature be peculiar to the first person the father I answer the work of creation is not so proper to the first person the father as that it cannot also be common to the rest for al the three persons ioyntly created all things of nothing onely they are distinguished in the manner of creating For the father is the cause that beginneth the worke the sonne puts it in execution the holy Ghost is the finisher of it And againe the father createth by the sonne by the H. Ghost the sonne createth by the holy Ghost frō the father the H. Ghost createth not by the father nor by the sonne but frō the father the sonne And this is the reason why the work of creation is ascribed here vnto the father because he alone createth after a peculiar manner namely by the sonne and by the holy Ghost but the sonne and the holy Ghost create not by the father but from him Thus hauing answered the obiection we come to speake of the creation it selfe In handling whereof we must withal treat of the Counsell of God as being the cause thereof of the Gouernment of the creatures as beeing a worke of God whereby he continues the creation And the order which I wil obserue is first to speake of the Counsell of God and secondly of the exequution of his Counsell which hath two speciall branches the first the creation the second the preseruation or gouernment of things created The Counsell of God is his eternal vnchangeable decree
must not imagine it to be an inclination or prones to one or two faults but a prones to all and euery sinne that is practised in the world and that in all persons yong and old high and low male and female It is a most horrible villanie for a man to kill his father or his mother or his child yet some there be that doe so at the hearing whereof we vse to wonder and to testifie our dislike by saying that the doers thereof were wicked diuelish persons and it is truly saide Neuerthelesse we must vnderstand that although we abstaine from such hainous practises yet the very root of such sinnes that is a disposition vnto them is found in vs also Iulian the Apostata both liuing and dying blasphemed Christ. Herod and Pontius Pilate the wicked Iewes crucified him and Iudas betraied him Men vse to say that if Christ were now aliue they would not doe so for all the world But let vs better consider of the matter The same naturall corruption of heart that was in theÌ„ is also in vs we being the childreÌ„ of Adam as well as they and by the force of this corruption if Christ were now liuing on earth thou wouldest if like occasion were offered either doe as Iudas did in betraying him or as Pilate did deliuer him to be crucified or as the souldiers thrust him through with their speares or as Iulian pierce him with all maner of blasphemies if God withhild his graces from thee and leaue thee to thy selfe In a word let men conceiue in minde the most notorious trespasse that can be though they doe it not nor intend to doe it nor neuer doe it yet the matter beginning and seed thereof is in themselues This made Ieremie say The heart of man is deceitfull and wicked aboue all things who can know it It is like an huge sea the bankes whereof cannot be seene nor the bottome searched In common experience we see it come to passe that men protestants to day to morrowe papists of Christians heretikes nowe friends but presently after foes this day honest and ciuill men the next day cruell murderers Now what is the cause of this difference surely the hidden corruption of the heart that will thrust a man forward to any sinne when occasion is offered This point must be remembred and often thought vpon From originall sinne springeth actuall which is nothing els but the fruit of the corrupt heart either in thought word or deede Thus much touching mans fall into sinne by Gods iust permission Nowe followes the good vse which we must make thereof First by this we learne to acknowledge bewaile our owne frailtie For Adam in his innocencie beeing created perfectly righteous when hee was once tempted by the deuill fell away from God what shal vve doe then in the like case vvhich are by nature sold vnder sinne in our selues a thousand times weaker then Adam vvas Many men there be that mingle themselues with all companies tell them of the danger thereof they vvill reply that they haue such strong faith that no bad companie can hurt theÌ„ But alas silly people Satan bevvitcheth them and makes them to beleeue falshood to be truth they knovve not their miserable estate If Adam saith Bernard had a dovvnefall in Paradise vvhat shall vve doe that are cast foorth vpon the dunghil Let vs therefore often come to a serious consideration of our ovvne vveaknes and follovv vvithall the practise of Dauid vvho being priuie to himselfe touching his ovvne corruption praieth to God on this manner Knit my heart to thee O Lord that I may feare thy name Secondly vve learne hereby absolutely to submit our selues to the authoritie of God and simply to resolue our selues what soeuer he commaÌ„ds is right and iust though the reason of it be not known to vs. For Eve condiscended to listen to the speach of the serpent and without any calling shee reasoned with it of a most vâ—â—ightie matter and that in the absence of Adam her head husband namely of the truth and glorie of God hereby was brought to doubt of Gods vvord so ouerturned Thirdly if all men by Adams fal be shut vp vnder daÌ„nation there is no cause vvhy any of vs should stand vpon his his birth riches wisdome learning or any other such gifts of God there is nothing in vs that is more able to couer our vilenes and nakednes then figgetree leaues were able to couer the offence of Adam from Gods eyes VVe stand vnder the wrath of God by nature and cannot attaine to euerlasting life of our selues VVherefore it doth stand euery one of vs in hande to abase our selues vnder the hand of God in that we are become by our sinnes the very basest of all the creatures vpon earth yea vtterly to dispaire in respect of our selues and with bleeding hearts to bewaile our owne cases There is no danger in this it is the very way to grace none can be a sound member of Christ till his conscience condemne him and make him quite ont of heart in respect of himselfe And the want of this is the cause why so fewe perceiue any sweetnes or comfort in the Gospell and why it is so little loued and imbraced now adaies Lastly if all mankinde be shut vp vnder vnbeleefe the dutie of euery man is to labour in vsing all good meanes whereby we may be deliuered from this bondage and to pray to God with David Create in me a cleane heart O God and renewe a right spirite within me And cry out with Paul O wretched man that I am who shall deliuer me from this bodie of death And we must neuer be at rest till we haue some assurance in conscience that in Christ wee haue freedome from this bondage and can with the Colossians giue thanks that we are deliuered from the power of darknes and translated into the kingdome of Christ. This should be the affection of euery man because the spirituall thraldome vnder sinne is of all miseries most loathsome and burdensome And in this respect the day of death should be vnto vs most welcome because it doth vnloose vs froÌ„ this miserable estate in which we do almost nothing but displease God For this is the greatest griefe that can be to the children of God by their sinnes to offend their mercifull father And as for all those which feele not the weight of their naturall guiltines and corruptions but lie slumbring in the securitie of their hearts they are therfore the more miserable in that beeing plunged in the gulfe of all miserie yet they feele no miserie Thus much of the permission of the fall of man Nowe we come to the Couenant of grace Which is nothing else but a compact made betweene God and man touching reconciliation and life euerlasting by Christ. This couenant was first of all reuealed and deliuered to our first parents in the garden of Eden immediately after
be inferiour to the father yet doth it not hinder but that he may be equall to him as he is the second person in trinitie or as he is God by one and the same Godhead with the father IV. He that is made of God to be this or that is not God but Christ is made of God as Paul saith Christ is made vnto vs wisdome righteousnes c. Answer Christ is said to be made not because there was any beginning of his Godhead or any chaunge or alteration in his person but because in the eternall counsell of the father he was set apart before all times to exequute the office of a Mediatour and was withall in time called and as it were consecrated and ordained thereunto in his baptisme he is made therefore in respect of his office but not in respect of his person or nature V. God hath no head Christ hath an head as Paul saith God is Christs head Answ. God that is the father is head of Christ not as he is God simply but as he is God incarnate or made manifest in the fâ—esh and in respect of the office to which he willingly abased himselfe VI. Hee which giues vp his kingdome is not God Christ giues vp his kingdome Then saith Paul shall be the end when he hath deliuered vp the kingdome to God euen the father Answer Christ is king two waies as he is God and as he is Mediatour as he is God he raignes eternally with the father and the holy Ghost but as he is Mediatour in the ende of the worlde when all the companie of the elect are gathered his kingdome shall cease not simplie but in respect of the â—â—tward manner of administration for the exequution of civill and ecclesiasticall functions shall cease And whereas in the same place it is said that Christ shalbe subiect vnto God eternally after the ende it must be vnderstood partly in regard of the assumed manhood partly in respect of his mysticall bodie the Church most neerely ioyned vnto him in heauen VII The first borne of euery creature of many brethren is a creature not God but Christ is the first borne of euery creature of many brethren Ans. He is called the first borne by allusion to the first borne in the old testament for as they were principall heires hauing double portions allowed them the chiefe or gouernours of the familie so Christ is made heire of the world and the head of Gods familie which is his Church elected and adopted in him And againe he is called the first borne of euery creature because he was begotten of the substance of his father before any creature was made and therfore it is not here said that he was first created but first begotten By the reasons which haue bin alleadged as also by the insufficiencie of the contrarie arguments it is more then manifest against all heretikes that Christ is very God Yet to stoppe the mouthes of all Atheists to satisfie all wauering doubtings minds I will adde one reason further The gospel of S. Iohn was chiefly penned for this end to prooue the dietie of Christ among other arguments alledged this is one that Christ gaue a resolute a constant testimonie of himselfe that he was the sonne of God very God now if any man shall say that sundrie persons since the beginning of the world haue taken vpon theÌ„ that falsely to be gods I answer that neuer any creature tooke this title honour vpon him to be called God but the fearefull iudgements of God were vpon him for it In the estate of mans innocencie the deuill tolde our first parents that by eating the fruite of the tree of knowledge of good and euill they should be as gods knowing good euill now they beleeued him affected diuine honour but what came of it surely Adam with all his posteritie is shut vp for it vnder eternall damnation Herod likewise araied in royall apparell sitting on the iudgement seate made an oration to the men of Tyre Sidon who gaue a shout saying the voice of God not of man Now because he tooke the glorie of God to himselfe did not returne it to him to whoÌ„ it was due immediatly the angel of the Lord smote him And so if Christ had bin but a meere man not very God as he auouched vndoubtedly the hand of God would haue bin vpon him likewise for his confusion but when he suffered for vs and bare the punishment due for our sinnes he most triumphed And the iudgements of God were vpon Herod Pontius Pilate Caiphas vpon all those that were enemies to him and to his church afterward that partly in life partly in death Wherefore seeing that God can not abide that his glorie should be giuen to any creature seeing for that cause he takes reuenge on all those that exalt themselues to be gods it remains that the testimony which Christ gaue of himselfe that he was God is vnfallibly true without all question to be beleeued of vs. And to conclude I would haue all the deuils in hel with the cursed order of Lucians Porphyrians and Atheists whatsoeuer to answer this one point howe it could come to passe that Christ by publishing the doctrine of the Gospell that is as contrarie to mans reason will and affections as water to fire should winne almost the whole world to become his disciples and to giue their liues for him vnlesse he were God indeed as he confessed himselfe to be There be sundrie speciall reasons wherefore it was necessarie that Christ should be God I. There is none which can be a Sauiour of bodie soule but God I euen I am the Lord and besides â—e there is no Sauiour And I am the Lord the God from the land of Egipt and thou shalt knowe no God but me for there is no Sauiour beside me II. There must be a proportion betweene the sinne of man and the punishmeÌ„t of sinne now the sinne of man in respect of the offence of the maiestie of God is infinite in that he is infinitely displeased with man at the breach of his lawe therefore the punishment of sinne must be infinite and hence it followeth that he which suffereth the punishment beeing man must withall be God that the manhood by the power of the Godhead may be supported that in suffering it may vanquish death and make a satisfaction III. He that must be a Sauiour must be able 1. to deliuer men from the bondage of their spirituall enemies namely sinne and Satan 2. to restore the image of God lost by the fall of Adam and to conferre righteousnes and life euerlasting 3. to defend them from hell death damnation the flesh the deuill the world 4. to giue them full redemption from all their miseries both in bodie and soule and to place them in eternall happines all which none can doe
the death The properties of Christs death are two The first that it was a voluntarie and willing death The second that it was a cursed death For the first whereas I say Christes death was voluntarie I meane that Christ died willingly and of his owne free accord gaue up him selfe to suffer upon the crosse Howsoeuer the Iewes did arraigne and condemne and crucifie him yet if he had not willed his owne death and of his free accord giuen him selfe to die not the Iewes nor all the whole world coulde euer haue taken away his life from him Hee dyed not by constraint or compulsion but most willingly and therfore he saith No man taketh my life from me but I saith hee lay it downe of my selfe I have power to lay it downe and have power to take it againe And our Saviour Christ gaue evident tokens hereof in his death for then Iesus cryed with a loude voice and gave vp the ghost Ordinarily men that die on the crosse languish away by little and little and before they come to yeelde up their lives they loose their speech and onely ratle or make a noise in the throate but Christ at that verie instant when he vvas to giue up the ghost cryed with a loud voice which sheweth plainely that he in his death was more then a conquerour ouer death And therefore to give all men a token of his power and to shew that he died voluntarily it pleased him to crie with a loud voice And this made the Centurion to say that he was the sonne of God Againe Christ dyed not as other men doe because they first give up the ghost and then lay their heads aside but he in token that his death was voluntarie first layes his head aside after the manner of a dead man and then afterward gives up the ghost Lastly Christ died sooner then men are wont to doe upon the crosse and this was the cause that made Pilate wonder thar he was so soone dead Now this came to passe not because he was loth to suffer the extremitie of death but hecause he woulde make it manifest to all men that hee had power to die or not to die And indeed this is our comfort that Christ died not for vs by constraint but willingly of his owne accorde And as Christs death was voluntarie so was it also an accursed death and therefore it is called the death of the crosse And it contained the first and the second death the first is the separation of the body from the soule the second is the separation of bodie soule from God And both were in Christ for beside the bodily death he did in soule apprehend the wrath of God due to man for sinne that made him cry My God my God why hast thou forsaken me And here we must not omit a necessarie point namely how farre forth Christ suffered death Answ. Some thinke that he suffered onely a bodily death and such paines as follow the dissolution of nature but they no doubt come to short for why should Christ haue feared death so greatly if it had bene nothing but the dissolution of nature Some againe thinke that he died not onely the first but also the second death but it may be that is to goe to farre for if to die the first death be to suffer a totall separation of bodie and soule then also to die the second death is wholly and euerie way to be seuered from all fauour of God and at the least for a time to be oppressed of the same death as the daÌ„ned are Now this neuer befell Christ no not in the middest of his sufferings considering that euen then he was able to call God his God Therefore the safest is to follow the meane namely that Christ died the first death in that his bodie and soule were really and wholly seuered yet without suffering any corruption in his bodie which is the effect and fruite of the same and that withall he further suffered the extreame horrours and pangs of the second death not dying the same death nor being forsaken of god more then in his owne apprehension or feeling For in the verie middest of his sufferings the father was well pleased with him And this which I say doeth not any whit lessen the sufficiencie of the merite of Christ for whereas hee suffered truly the verie wrath of God and the verie torments of the damned in his soule it is as much as if all the men in the world had died the second death and had bin wholly cut off from God for euer and euer And no doubt Christ died the first death only suffering the pangs of the second that the first death might be an entrance not to the second death which is eternall damnation but a passage to life eternall The benefites and comfortes which arise by the death of Christ are specially foure The first is the change of our naturall death I say not the taking of it away for we must all die but whereas by nature death is a curse of God upon man for eating the forbidden fruite by the death of Christ it is changed from a curse into a blessing and is made as it were a middle way and entrance to conveigh men out of this worlde into the kingdome of glorie in heauen and therefore it is saide Christ by his death hath delivered them from the feare of death which all the daies of their lives vvere subiect to bondage A man that is to encounter vvith a Scorpion if he knovve that it hath a sting he may be dismayed but being assured that the sting is taken away he need not feare to encounter therewith Now death in his owne nature considered is this scorpion armed with a sting but Christ our Saviour by his death hath pulled out the sting of our death and on the crosse triumphantly saith O death where is thy sting O grave where is thy victory therefore euen theÌ„ wheÌ„ we feele the paÌ„gs of death approch we should not feare but conceiue hope considering that our death is altered and changed by the vertue of the death of Christ. Secondly the death of Christ hath quite taken away the secoÌ„d death froÌ„ those that are in Christ as Paul saith There is no condeÌ„nation to them which are in Christ Iesus which walke not after the flesh but after the spirit Thirdly the death of Christ is a meanes to ratifie his last will and testament For this cause was Christ the Mediatour of the new testament that through death vvhich was for the redemption of the transgressions which were in the former tâ—stament they which were called might receive the promise of the eternall inheritance For vvhere a testament is there must be the death of him that made the Testament for the Testament is confirmed when men are dead for it is yet of no force as long as he is alive that made it And
therefore the death of Christ doeth make his last will and testament which is his couenant of grace authenticall unto us Fourthly the death of Christ doth serue to abolish the originall corruption of our sinnefull hearts As a strong corasive laide to a sore eates out all the rotten and deade flesh euen so Christs death being applyed to the heart of a penitent sinner by faith weakens and consumes the sinne that cleaues so fast unto our natures and dwelles within us Some will say how can Christes death which now is not because it is long ago past and ended kill sinne in vs now Ansvver Indeed if vvee regard the acte of Christs death it is past but the vertue and power thereof endureth for euer And the power of Christes death is nothing els but the power of his godhead vvhich inabled him in his death to ouercome hell the graue death and condemnation and to disburden him selfe of our sinnes Now when wee haue grace to denie our selves and to put our trust in Christ and by faith are ioyned to him then as Christ himselfe by the power of his godhead ouercame death hell and damnation in himselfe so shall wee by the same power of his godhead kill crucifie sin corruption in our selues Therfore seeing we reape such benefite by the death of Christ if wee will shewe our selues to be Christians let us reioyce in the death of Christ and if the question be what is the chiefest thing wherein we reioyce in this world we may answere the very crosse of Christ and the least droppe of his blood The duties to be learned by the death of Christ are two the first concernes all ignorant and impenitent sinners Such men whatsoeuer they be by the death of Christ upon the crosse must be mooued to turne from their sinnes and if the consideration hereof will not mooue them nothing in the world will By nature euery man is a vassall of sinne and a bondslaue of Sathan the deuill raignes and rules in all men by nature and wee our selues can doe nothing but serue and obey him Nay which is more we lie under the fearefull curse of God for the least sinne Well now see the love of the sonne of God that gaue himselfe willingly to death upon the crosse for thee that he might free thee from this most fearefull bondage Wherefore let all those that liue in sinne and ignorance reason thus with thēselues Hath Christ the Sonne of God done this for us and shall we yet live still in our sinnes hath he set open as it were the very gates of hell and shall we yet lie weitring in out damnable waies and in the shadowe of death In the feare of God let the death of Christ be a means to turne us to Christ if it can not moue us let us be resolued that our case is dangerous To go yet further in this point euery one of us is by nature a sicke man wounded at the very heart by sathan though we feele it not yet we are deadly sicke beholde Christ is the good Phisition of the soule none in heauen or earth neither Saint angell nor man can heale this our spirituall wound but he alone who though he were equall with the father yet he came downe from his bosome and became mā lived here many yeres in miserie contēpt and when no hearb nor plaister could cure this our deadly wound or desperate sicknes he was content to make a plaister with his owne blood the paine hee tooke in making it caused him to sweat water blood nay the making of it for us cost him his life in that he was content by his own death to free us from death which if it be true as it is most true thē wofull wretched is our case if we will still liue in sinne will not use meanes to lay this plaister unto our hearts And after the plaister is applyed to the soule we should doe as a man that hath bene grievously sicke who whē he is on the mending hand gets strength by litle little And so should we become new creatures going on frō grace to grace and shew the same by liuing godlily righteously and soberly that the worlde may see that wee are cured of our spirituall disease O happy yea thrise happy are they that haue grace from God to do this The second duty concernes thē which are repentant sinners Hath Christ giuen himselfe for thee is thy conscience setled in this then thou must answerably beare this minde that if thy life would serue for the glorie of God the good of his Church thou wouldst then giue it most willingly if thou be called thereto Secondly if Christ for thy good hath giuen his life then thou must in like manner be content to die for thy brethren in Christ if need be He saith S. Iohn laid down his life for us therfore we ought to lay down our liues for our brethren Thirdly if Christ was cōtē◠to shed his own hearts blood not for himself but for the sins of euery one of us thē we must be thus affected that rather then by sinning we would willingly offend god we should be content to haue our own blood shed yea if these two things were put to our choise either to doe that vvhich might displease God or els to suffer death we must rather die then do the same Of this mind haue bene all the martyrs of God who rather then they would yeild to Idolatrie were content to suffer most bitter torments cruell death Yea euery good christian is so affected that hee had rather choose to die then to liue not moued by impatience in respect of the miseries of this life but because he would cease to offend so louing a father To sin is meat drinke to the world but to a touched repētāt hart ther is no tormēt so grievous as this is to sinne against God if once hee be perswaded that Christ died for him Thus much for Christs death novv follovv those things vvhich befell Christ when hee was newly dead and they are two especially The first that his legges were not broken as the legges of the tvvo thieves vvere Of the first S. Iohn rendreth a reason namely that the scripture might be fulfilled which saith not a bone of him shall be broken which wordes vvere spoken by Moses of the paschall lambe and are here applyed to Christ as being typically figured therby And hence we obserue these tvvo things First that Christ crucified is the true paschall lambe as S. Paul saieth Christ our passeover is sacrificed and S. Iohn saith Behold the lamb of God distinguishing him thereby from the typicall lambe In this that Christ crucified is the true paschall lamb the childe of God hath vvonderfull matter of comfort The Israelites did eate the passeouer in Egypt and sprinkled the blood of the lambe on the postes of their dores that when
finite for his humane nature beeing but a creature and therefore finite could not receiue infinite graces and gifts of glorie And hence it is more then manifest that the opinion of those men is false which hold that Christs bodie glorified is omnipotent and infinite euery way able to doe whatsoeuer he will for this is to make a creature to be the creator Thus much of Christs exaltation in generall Now let vs come to the degrees thereof as they are noted in the Creede which are in number three I. He rose againe the third day II. He ascended vnto heauen III. He sitteth at the right hand of God the father almightie In the handling of Christs resurrection we must consider these points I. why Christ ought to rise againe II. the manner of his rising III. the time when he rose IV. the place where V. the vses thereof For the first it was necessarie that Christ should rise againe and that for three especiall causes First that hereby he might shew to all the people of God that he had fully ouercome death For els if Christ had not risen how should we haue bin perswaded in our coÌ„sciences that he had made a full perfect satisfactioÌ„ for vs nay rather we should haue reasoned thus Christ is not risen therefore he hath not ouercome death but death hath ouercome him Secondly Christ Iesus which died was the sonne of God therefore the author of life it selfe and for this cause it was neither meet nor possible for him to be holdeÌ„ of death but he must needes rise from death to life Thirdly Christs priesthood hath 2. parts one to make satisfaction for sinne by his one onely sacrifice vpon the crosse the other to apply the vertue of this sacrifice vnto euery beleeuer Now he offred the sacrifice for sinne vpon the crosse before his death and therefore beeing deade must needes rise againe to performe the second part of his priesthood namely to applie the vertue thereof vnto all that shall beleeue in him and to make intercession in heauen vnto his father for vs here on earth And thus much of the first point Nowe to come to the manner of Christs resurrection fiue things are to be considered in it The first that Christ rose againe not as euery priuate man doth but as a publike person representing all men that are to come to life eternall For as in his passion so also in his resurrection he stood in our roome and place and therefore when he rose from death we all yea the whole Church rose in him and together with him And this point not considered we doe not conceiue aright of Christs resurrection neither can we reap sound comfort by it The second is that Christ himselfe and no other for him did by his owne power raise himselfe to life This was the thing which he meant when he said Destroy this temple in three daies I will build it vp againe more plainly I haue saith he power to lay down my life and I haue power to take it again FroÌ„ wheÌ„ce we learn diuers instructions First wheras Christ raiseth himselfe from death to life it serueth to proue that he was not only maÌ„ but also true god For the body being dead could not bring again the soule ioyn it self vnto the same make it selfe aliue againe neither yet the soule that is departed from the bodie can returne againe quicken the bodie and therefore there was some other nature in Christ namely his Godhead which did revnite soule and bodie together and thereby quickned the manhoode Secondly if Christ giue life to himselfe being dead in the graue then much more now being aliue and in heauen glorified is he able to raise vp his members from death to life We are all by nature starke dead in sinne as the dead bodie rotten in the graue and therfore our dutie is to come to Christ our Lord by praier intreating him that he would raise vs vp euery day more and more from the graue of our sinnes to newnes of life He can of men dead in their sinnes make vs aliue vnto himselfe to liue in righteousnes and true holines all the daies of our life The third thing is that Christ rose againe with an earthquake And this serueth to prooue that he lost nothing of his power by death but still remained the absolute Lord of heauen and earth to whome therefore the earth vnder his feete trembling doth him homage This also prooueth vnto vs that Christ which lay dead in the graue did raise himselfe againe by his owne almightie power Lastly it serueth to conuince the keepers of the graue the women which came to embaulme him and the disciples which came to the sepulchre would not yet beleue that he was risen againe But how came this earthquake Answer Saint Matthew saith there was a great earthquake For the angell of the Lord descended from heauen c. This shewes that the power of angels is great in that they can mooue and stirre the earth Three angels destroied Sodom Gomorha An angel destroied the first borne of Egypt in one â—ight In the host of Senacherib one angel slue in one night 14500 meÌ„ Of like power is the deuil himself to shake the earth and to destroy vs all but that God of his goodnes limits restrains him of his libertie Well if one angel be able to shake the earth what then wil Christ himselfe do when he shal come to iudgemeÌ„t the secoÌ„d time with many thousand thousaÌ„ds of angels oh how terrible will his comming be Not without cause saith the holy Ghost that the wicked at that day shall cry out wishing the hills to fall vpon them and the mountains to couer them for feare of that great and terrible day of the Lord The 4. thing is that an angel ministred to Christ being to rise again in that he came to the graue rolled away the stone sate vpoÌ„ it Where obserue first how the angels of God minister vnto Christ though dead buried whereby they acknowledge that his power maiestie authoritie is not included within the bondes of the earth but extends it selfe euen to the heauens themselues and the hosts thereof and that according to his humanitie Wicked men for their parts laboured to close him vp in the earth as the basesâ— of all creatures but the angels of heauen most readily accept him as their soueraigne Lord and king as in like manner they did in his temptation in the wildernes and in his agonie in the garden Secondly that the opinion of the papists and others which think that the bodie of Christ went through the graue-stone when he rose againe is without warrant For the ende no doubt why the angel rolled away the stone was that Christ might come foorth And indeede it is against the order of nature that one bodie should passe through another without corruption or alteration of either
I let them passe Thus much of the appearances of Christ after his resurrection the witnesses thereof are of three sortes I. angels II. women that came to the graue to embalme him III. Christs owne disciples who did publish and preach the same againe according as they had seene and heard of our Sauiour Christ and of these likewise I omit to speake because there is not any speciaâ—l thing mentioned of them by the Evangelistes Now follow the uses which are twofold some respect Christ and some respect ourselues Vses which concerne Christ are three I. whereas Christ Iesus being starke deade rose againe to life by his owne power it serueth to prooue unto us that he was the sonne of God Thus Paul speaking of Christ saieth that he was declared mightily to be the sonne of God touching the spirit of sanctification by the resurrection from the dead And by the mouth of Dauid God saide Thou art my sonne this day I have begot thee Which place must be understood not so much of the eternall generation of Christ before all worlds as of the manifestation therof in time after this maner This day that is at the time of thine incarnation but especially at the day of thy resurrection have I begotten thee that is I haue made manifest that thou art my sonne so is this place expouÌ„ded by S. Paul in the Acts. Secondly Christs resurrection by his own power prooues unto us euidently that he is Lord ouerall things that are this use S. Paul makes hereof for saith he Christ therefore died that he might be Lord both of the dead and of the quicke And indeed wheras he rose againe thus he did hereby shew himselfe most plainely to be a mightie prince ouer the graue ouer death hell condemnation in that he had power to ouercome them Thirdly it proues unto us that he was a perfit priest that his death and passion was a perfit satisfaction to the iustice of God for the sins of mankind For whereas Christ died he died for our sins now if he had not fully satisfied for them all though there had remained but one sin for which he had made no satisfaction he had not risen againe but death which came into the worlde by sinne and is strengthned by it woulde haue helde him in bondage and therefore whereas hee rose againe it is more then manifest that he hath made so full a satisfaction so as the merite thereof doth and shall countervaile the iustice of God for all our offences To this purpose Paul saith If Christ be not risen againe your faith is vaine and you are yet in your sins that is Christ had not satisfied for your sinnes or at least you could not possibly haue knowen that he had made satisfaction for any of them if he had not risen againe The uses which concerne our selues are of two sortes comforts to the children of God and duties that are to be learned and practised of us all The comforts are especially three First Christs resurrrection serueth for the iustification of all that beleeue in him euen before God the father as Paul saith Christ was given to death for our sinnes and is risen againe for our iustification which wordes haue this meaning when Christ died as we haue shewed before we must not consider him as a priuate man but as one that stood in the stead and roome of all the elect in his death he bare our sinnes and suffered all that we should haue suffered in our own persons for euer the guilt of our offences was laid upon him therfore Esai saith he was nuÌ„bred among the wicked Now in his rising againe he freed disburdened himselfe not from any sinnes of his own because he was without sin but from the guilt punishment of our sins imputed unto him And hence it comes to passe that all those which put their trust affiance in the merit of Christ at the very first instant of their beleeuing haue their owne sins not imputed unto them his righteousnes imputed Secondly the resurrection of Christ serueth as a notable meanes to worke inward sanctification as S. Peter saith We are regenerate to a lively hope by the resurrectioÌ„ of Iesus Christ from the dead And S. Paul Wee are then saith hee buried with him by baptisme into his death that like as Christ vvas raised vp from the dead by the glorie of his father so vvee also should walke in newnesse of life For if we be grafted vvith him to the similitude of his death wee shall be also to the similitude of his resurrection Which wordes import thus much that as Christ by the power of his owne godheade freed his manhood from death and from the guilt of our sinnes so doth he free those that are knit unto him by the bond of one spirite from the corruption of their natures in which they are dead that they may liue unto God In the naturall body the head is the fountaine of all the senses and of motion and therefore by sundry nerves dispersed through the body the power of moouing and of sense is deriued euen to the least partes so as the hands and the feete moue by meanes of that power which comes from the head and so it is in the spirituall body of Christ namely the Church he is the head the fountain of life therfore he coÌ„veieth spirituall life to euery one of his members and that very power of his godhead whereby he raised up himselfe when he was dead he conveieth from himselfe to his members thereby raiseth them up from the death of sinne to newnesse of life And looke as in a perfect body when the head hath sence and motion the hand that is of the same bodie hath also sense and motion conuenient for it So likewise Christ beeing the resurrection and the life as there is spirituall life in him so euery member of his shall feele in it selfe spirituall sence and motion whereby it is raised up froÌ„ sinne and liueth unto God For the better conceiuing of this we must consider two things the outward meanes of this spirituall life and the measure of it For the meanes if we will haue common water vve must goe to the well and if wee vvould haue vvater of life we must goe unto Christ who saith If any man thirst let him come unto me and drinke Now this vvell of the water of life is very deepe we haue nothing to draw with therefore we must haue our pipes conduits to convey the same unto us which are the word of God preached and the administration of the sacrameÌ„ts Christ saith The dead shall heare the voice of the sonne of God they that heare it shall live where by dead is meant not the dead in the graue but those that are dead in sinne And againe Christ saith the wordes which I speake are spirite and life because
the word of God is the pipe whereby he conveieth into our dead hearts spirit and life As Christ when he raised up dead men did onely speake the word they were made aliue and at the day of iudgement at his voice when the trump shall blowe all that are dead shall rise againe So it is in the first resurrectioÌ„ they that are dead in their sinnes at his voice uttered in the ministerie of the worde shall rise againe To goe further Christ raised three from the deade Iairus daughter newly dead the widowes sonne dead and wound up and lying on the hearse Lazarus dead and buried stinking in the graue and all this he did by his very voice so also by the preaching of his word he raiseth all sortes of sinners euen such as haue lien long in their sinnes as rotting and stinking carrion The Sacraments also are the pipes and conduits wherby God conveigheth grace into the heart if they be rightly used that is if they be receiued in unfained repentance for all our sinnes and with a true and liuely faith in Christ for the pardon of the same sinnes and so I take it they are compared to flagons of wine which reuiue the Church being sicke and fallen into a sownd As for the measure of life derived from Christ it is but small in this life and giuen by little and little as Ose saieth The Lorde hath spoiled vs and he will heale us hee hath wounded us and he will bind us up After two daies he will revive us and in the third he will raise us vp and we shall live in his sight The Prophet Ezechiel in a vision is caried into the middest of a field full of dead bones and hee is caused to Prophesie ouer them and say O ye drie bones heare the vvorde of the Lord and at the first there was a shaking and the bones came togither bone to bone and then sinewes and flesh grew upon them and upon the flesh grewe a skinne Then he prophesied vnto the windes the second time and they liued and stood upon their feete for the breath came upon them and they were an exceeding great armie of men Hereby is signified not only the state of the Iewes after their captivitie but in them the state of the whole Church of God For these temporall deliverances signified further a spirituall deliuerance And we may here see most plainely that God worketh in the heartes of his children the giftes and graces of regeneration by little and little First he giueth no more then flesh sinewes and skin then after he giueth them further graces of his spirite which quickeneth them and maketh them aliue unto God The same also wee may see in the vision of the waters that ranne out of the Temple First a man must wade to the ancles then after to the knees and so to the loines then after the waters grovve to a riuer that can not be passed ouer and so the Lord conueieth his graces by little and little till at the last men haue a full measure thereof Thirdly the resurrection of Christ serueth as an argument to proue unto us our resurrection at the day of iudgement Paul saieth If the spirite of Christ that raised up Iesus from the deade dvvell in you hee that raised Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortall bodies Some will say that this is no benefite for all must rise againe as well the wicked as the godly Ansvver True indeede but yet the wicked rise not againe by the same cause that the godly doe They rise againe by the power of Christ not as hee is a saviour but as hee is a iudge to condemne them For God had saide to Adam that at what time he should eate of the forbidden fruite he should die the death meaning a double death both the first and the second death Nowe then the ungodly rise againe that God may inflict upon them the punishment of the second death which is the rewarde of sinne that so Gods iustice may be satisfied but the godly rise againe by the power of Christ their heade and redeemer who raiseth them up that they may bee partakers of the benefite of his death which is to enioy both in bodie and soule the kingdome of heauen which he haâ—h so dearely bought for them Thus much for the comfortes Now follow the duties and they are also three First as Christ Iesus vvhen he was deade rose againe from death to life by his owne power so we by his grace in imitation of Christ must endeauour our selues to rise up from all our sinnes both originall and actuall vnto newenesse of life This is worthily set downe by the Apostle saying We are buried by baptisme into his death that as Christ was raised vp from the dead by the glorie of the father so we also should walke in newnesse of life and therefore vve must endeauour our selues to shevve the same power to be in us euery day by rising up from ouâ— owne personall sinnes to a reformed life This ought to be remembred of us because howsoeuer many heare know it yet very â—ewe doe practise the same For to speake plainly as dead men buried vvould neuer heare though a man shoulde speake neuet so loude so undoubtedly among us there be also many living men which are almost in the same case The ministers of God may cry unto them daily and iterate the same thing a thousand times and tell them that they must rise up from their sinnes and lead a new life but they heare no more then the deade carkasse that lieth in the graue Indeede men heare with their outward eares but they are so farre from practising this dutie that they iudge it to be a matter of reproch and ignominie And those which make any coÌ„science of this duty how they are laden with nicknames taunts who knoweth not I need not to rehearse theÌ„ so odious a thing now a daies is the rising froÌ„ sinne to newnes of life Sound a trumpet in a dead mans eares he stirres not and let us crie for amendment of life till breath goe out of our bodies no man almost saieth what haue I done And for this cause undoubtedly if it were not for conscience of that dutie which men owe unto God we should haue but fewe ministers in England For it is the ioy of a minister to see his people rise from sinne and to lead a new life whereas alas men generally lie snurting in their corruptions and rather goe forwarde in them still then come to any amendment such is the woonderfull hardnes untovvardnes that hath possessed the heartes of most men He which hath but halfe an eie may see this to be true Oh how exceedes atheisme in all places contempt of Gods worshippe profanation of the Sabbath the whordomes and fornications the crueltie and oppression of this age it cryes euen to heauen for vengeance By these such like
obiected that Christ made a promise that hee would be with his Church to the ende of the worlde Answer That promise is to be vnderstoode of the presence of his spirite or Godheade not of the presence of his manhoode Againe it may further be alleadged that if the Godheade be on earth then must the manhoode be there also because they are both vnited together Answer It is not true that of two things conioyned where the one is there must the other be also For the sunne it selfe and the sunne-beames are both ioyned together yet they are not both in all places together For the bodie of the sunne is onely in the heauens but the sunne-beames are also vpon the earth The argument therefore followes not Christs manhoode subsibsts in that person which is euery where ergo his manhoode is euery where And the reason is because the Sonne of God subsists not onely in his diuine nature but also by it wheras he doth not subsist at al by the manhood but onely in it for he subsisted before all eternitie when the manhoode was not Nay rather because the manhoode doth subsist by the person of the Sonne therefore the person extendes it selfe further then the manhoode which is assumed and sustained by it and hath his existing thence For that very thing whereby any other thing either essentially or accidentally is extends it selfe further then the thing whereby it is As the humane nature whereby Peter is a man extendes it selfe further then to Peter namely to all other men and the whitenesse whereby the snow is white extendes it selfe further then to that snowe which a man holds in his hande The third point is that in the ascension a cloud tooke Christ from the sight of his Disciples And whereas hee caused a cloud to come betweene their sight and himselfe it signified vnto them that they must novve be contented with that which they had seene and not seeke to know further what became of him afterward and the same thing is taught vnto vs also we must content our selues with that which God hath reuealed in his word and seeke no further specially in things which concerne God For the like ende in the giuing of the law in Sinai God appeared in a cloud and when he did manifest his glorie in the temple which Salomon made a thicke cloud filled the same The fourth point to be considered is concerning the witnesses of his ascension which were his owne disciples in the mount of oliues at Bethanie and none but them Now it may be demaunded why he would not haue all the whole nation of the Iewes to see him ascend that so they might know that he was risen againe and beleeue in him Answ. The reason may be this â—t was his good pleasure that the points of faith and religion whereof this article is one should rather be learned by hearing then by seeing Indeed Christs owne disciples were taught the same by sight that they might the better teach others which should not see whereas nowe the ordinarie meanes to come by faith is hearing The vses to be made of Christs ascension are of two sorts some are comforts to Gods Church and people and some are duties The coÌ„forts are especially foure The first is this Christ Iesus did asceÌ„d vp into heaueÌ„ to lead captiuity captive a most worthy benefit By captiuitie is meant 1. sinne and satan which did and doe lead men captiue into perdition 2. death and the graue which held him captiue and in bondage for the space of three daies And he leads them all captiue two waies First in himselfe in that he began his triumph vpon the crosse as I haue shewed and continued the same till his very ascension secondly in all his members because by his mightie power being now ascended he doth subdue and weaken the power of sinne and satan which he manifesteth euery day by killing the corruption of their natures and the rebellion of their flesh But it may be demaunded how Christ doth lead his enemies captiue considering the deuill raignes euery where and the world and death and hell Answer Christs victorie ouer his and our enemies hath fiue degrees First it is ordained by God secondly it is foretold thirdly it is wrought fourthly it is applied lastly it is accomplished The ordaining of it was before all worlds the foretelling of it was in all the ages of the old testament the working of it was vpon the crosse and afterward the applying hath bin since the beginning of the worlde more or lesse and it is onely in part in this life that while Christ is in bruising of the heade of satan he againe may bruise his heele the accomplishment shall not be before the last iudgement From this great benefite bestowed on Gods Church there are many dueties to be learned First here is an instruction for all ignorant persons and impenitent sinners which abound among vs in euery place Whosoeuer they be that liue in the blindnes of their mindes and hardnes of their hearts they must knowe this that they are captiues and bondeslaues of sinne and Satan of hell death and condemnation and let no man flatter himselfe of what state or degree soeuer he be for it is Gods truth if he haue not repented of all his sinnes he as yet is no better then a captiue and vassall yea a very drudge of the deuill Nowe then what wilt thou doe in this case the best thing is to lay to thy heart this benefite of Christ. He is ascended vp to heauen to leade captiue and to vanquish the deuill and all his angels vnder whome thou liest bound and that not onely in himselfe but in his members Now then if thou wilt become a true member of Christ he will free thee from this bondage Therefore take heede how thou continuest longer in thy old sinnes and in thy grosse ignorance and seeing Christ hath made a way to libertie let vs come out of this spirituall bondage he is ascended for this ende and purpose to free vs from it therefore if we refuse this benefite our state will be the more damnable Any man that lies bound hand and foote in a darke dungeon and the keeper comes and sets open the prison dore and takes off his boults and biddes him come out if he refuse and say that he is well will not all men thinke that he is a madde man and will any be sorie for his case No surely Well this is the state of all impenitent sinners They lie fast fettered and bound vnder the power of sinne satan And Christ it is who is ascended into heauen to vnloose them of this bondage he hath set opeÌ„ the prison dore and hath vnlocked our fetters if we refuse to come out and lie still in our sinnes there remaineth nothing for vs but euerlasting thraldome Let vs therefore in the feare of God if wee haue a care of our owne soules receiue and
beleeue that really and visibly he ascended into heauen and there abides till his seconde comming to the last iudgement who then hauing but common reason would imagine a communication of the bodie of Christ pent up in the element of bread and conveyed into our bodies by the mouth and stomacke The third point is whether we are not Lordes of Christ he being thus giuen unto us Ans. No for this donation is not single but mutuall As Christ is giuen to us so wee againe are giuen to Christ as he himselfe saith Those whome thou hast given me Father I have kept And wee are giuen unto him in that our bodies and soules are made his not onely as he is God but also as he is our redeemer and our sinnes with the guilt thereof are made his by imputation the punishment thereof is wholly laide upon him This is all the dowrie which the Church being the spouse of Christ hath brought unto him The fift point is how any man in particular may know that Christ is giuen unto him of the Father Ans. When God giues Christ to man he withall giues man grace and power to receiue Christ and to apprehend him with all his benefits and this we doe when wee utterly renounce our selues this world and all things therein bewaile our sinnes past resting on the death of Christ for the pardon of them all and as it were with both the armes of faith catching hold vpon him in all estaâ—es both in life and death When the heart of any man is truly disposed and inclined to doe these and the like things we may truly say that God hath giuen him grace to receiue Christ. The second thing required to make us one with Christ is the Mysticall vnion which is a Coniunction whereby Christ and his Church are actually coupled into one whol Mysticall bodie Now that we may the better conceiue the nature of it sundrie questions are to be mooued The first what kinde of Coniunction this is Ansvver In the scripture we meete with three kind of Coniunctions The first is coniunction in nature when sundry things are coupled all by one and the same nature As the Father the Sonne and the holy ghost being three distinct subsistances are all one and therefore ioyned in one godhead or diuine nature Now Christ and the beleeuer are not ioyned in nature for then they twaine should haue one body soule The second coniunction is in person when things in nature different so concurre togither that they make but one person as body and soule make one man and the godhead of the sonne with his manhood make but one Christ in whome there is an union of distinct natures with unitie of person Now Christ and a Christian are not ioyned in person for Christ is one person Peter a second and Paul a third distinct from them both and so many men as there be so many seuerall persons The third coniunction is in spirit and this is the coniunction meant in this place wherby Christ and his Church are ioyned togither for the very same spirit of God that dwelleth in the manhood of Christ and filleth it with all graces aboue measure is deriued thence and dwelleth in all the true members of the church and filleth them with the like graces in measure and therefore S. Iohn saith Hereby wee know that wee dwell in him and hee in us because he hath given vs of his spirit Hence it followes that the bond of this coniunction is one the same spirit descending from Christ the head to all his members creating also in them the instrument of faith whereby they apprehend Christ and make him their owne The second is what are the things united Ansvv. Not the bodie of the beleeuer to the body of Christ or the soule to his soule but the whole person of the man to the whole person of Christ yet in this order wee are first of all immediatly ioyned to the manhoode of Christ and by the manhood to the godhead The thirde question is what is the manner of this coniunction Answ. Wee must not thinke that Christ and his Church are ioyned by imagination as the mind of man and the thing whereof he thinkes or by consent of heart as one friend is ioyned with another and as the Iewes conuerted were all of one heart and soule or by any abode in one place or by touching as sea and land are both ioyned togither and make one globe or by any composition or commixtion of substances as when many ingredients are put togither to make one medecine But this coniunction is altogither spirituall as the former giuing was and incomprehensible to mans reason and therefore we must rather labour to feele it by experience in the heart then to conceiue it in the braine Yet neuerthelesse it shall not be amisse to consider a semblance of it in this comparison Suppose a man hauing the partes of his bodie disioyned farre asunder his head lying in Italy one arme in Germanie the other in Spaine and his legges with us in England suppose further all these partes or quarters haue all one soule extending it selfe unto them all and quickening ech of them seuerally as though they were nearely ioyned togither and though the partes be seuered many hundred miles asunder yet the distance of place doeth not hinder the coniunction considering one and the same soule doth inlarge it selfe and giue life vnto them all In the same maner the head of the Mysticall bodie Christ our Sauiour is now in heauen and some of his members in heauen with him and some in earth and of these some in England some in Germanie some in Italie some in Spaine distant many thousand miles asunder and the spirit of God is as it were the soule of this body which giueth spirituall life to all the members distance of place doth not hinder this coniunction because the Holy ghost which linketh all the partes togither is infinite The benefites which we receiue by this Mysticall union are manifold For it is the ground of the conveiance of all grace The first that by meanes hereof every Christian as he is a Christian or a man regenerate hath his beginning and being in Christ howsoeuer as he is a maÌ„ he hath his being subsisting in himselfe as Paul saith Ye are of God in Christ. And Wee are members of his body of his flesh and of his bones How will some say can this be After this maner The comparison is taken from our first parentes Eve was made of a rib taken out of Adams side he being cast into a slumber this being done Adam awaked said This now is bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh Christ was nailed on the crosse and his most pretious blood was shedde and out of it arise and spring all true Christians that is out of the merite of Christes death and passion whereby they become newe creatures Secondly euerie one that
this is the reward of all those that walke on in their euill waies Hauing consulted in the next place they come to the garden vvhere Christ was to be apprehended And here wee are to consider who they were that came namely the Scribes and Pharises the high priests and their servants a band of soldiers and the servants of Pontius Pilate and the Elders of the Iewes all which came with one consent to the place where Christ was that they might attach him VVhere we may learne a good lesson that all sorts of wicked men disagreeing among themselues caÌ„ agree against Christ. The Scribes and Pharises were two contrary sectes and at discord one with another in matters of religion and Iudas was one of Christs disciples the Elders differed from them all the souldiers were Gentiles all these were at variance among themselues and could not one brooke another So also we read that Herode and Pontius Pilate vvere not friends but at the same time when Christ was apprehended Pilate sent him to Herode and they were made friends Now as these wicked men did all conspire against Christ so doe the wicked ones of this vvorld in all cuntries and kingdomes bande themselues against the Church of Christ at this day And howsoeuer such be at discorde among themselues yet they doe all ioyne hand in hande to persecute Christ in his members And the reason is plaine because Christ and his religion is as flat opposite to the corrupt disposition of all men as light is to darkenesse Againe vvhereas we see so many sortes of men so amiably consenting to take Christ we may note how all men naturally doe hate and abhorre him and his religion And looke as then it was with Christ so hath it bene with all his members and will be to the end of the world They are accounted as the offscouring of the world men not worthie to live on the face of the earth as Christ tolde his disciples saying Ye shall be hated of all nations for my names sake Let us also marke how all these came furnished to apprehend Christ the text saith they came with clubs staves as vnto a thiefe All the whole nation of the Iewes knevve right well that Christ was no man of violence but meeke and humble and yet they came armed to apprehend him as though he had ben some mightie potentate that would not haue beene apprehended but haue resisted them Where wee doe see the propertie of an euill conscience which is to feare where there is no cause at all This causeth some to be afraid of their owne shadovves if they see but a vvorme peepe out of the ground they are at their wits end and as Salomon saith The wicked flee when none pursueth them After that they are now come to Christ we are to consider two things in their meeting I. Christs communication with them II. The treason of Iudas Concerning their conference it is said Iesus knowing all things that should come vnto him went forth and said unto them Whome seeke yee they answered him Iesus of Nazareth Iesus answered I am he Now so soone as he had said I am he the stoutest of them fell to the ground as being astonished at the maiestie of his word Where note that the word of God is a vvord of power The same povver vvas in his vvord vvhen he raised up Lazarus for when he had â—yen in the graue had entred into some degrees of corruption he did no more but said Lazarus come forth he that vvas dead came forth And hence we may also marke vvhat a wonderfull might and povver is in the vvord preached for it is the very worde of Christ and therfore being preached by his ministers lawfully called by him therunto hath the same power force in it which Christ himselfe shewed vvhen he spake on earth It is the savour of life unto life to saue those that heare it or the savour of death unto death It is like to a vapour or perfume in the aire which in some mens nosthrilles is savourie and pleasant and doeth reviue them and others it striketh starke dead And therefore everie one that either now or heretofore hath heard this vvord preached shall find it to be vnto them either a word of povver to saue their soules or through their corruption the ministerie of death and condemnation Againe if a vvorde spoken by him being in a base and lovve estate be able to overthow his enemies then at the last day when he shall come in his glorie and power and maiestie to iudge both the quicke and the dead vvhat povver shall his vvordes haue Goe you cursed of my father into everlasting fire which was prepared for the devill his angels The consideration of this that the word of Christ shall euen be as povverfull at that day must be a motiue to euerie one of vs to cause us to come vnto Christ and vvhile vvee haue time in these dayes of grace and mercie to seeke to be reconciled vnto him for all our sinnes least at the last day wee heare that dreadfull voice of Christ sounding against vs Goe ye cursed into everlasting fire c. And thus much for the communication Now followeth Iudas his treason wherein vvee are to obserue these things I. the qualities and conditions of the man that did the treason He vvas by calling a disciple chosen to be an Apostle vvhich is the chiefest in Ecclesiasticall callings among the Disciples he was in some account because hee vvas as it were a stewarde in Christes family and bare the bagge but yet hee was a traitour and did more against Christ then all the Iewes did For he brought them to the place where they might apprehend him and when they were come did point him out unto them and delivered him into their hands nay he gaue them a signe and token saying VVhome I kisse he it is take him and lead him avvay warily Here we see the cause why Christ called Iudas a Divell for he said Have I not chosen you twelve and one of you is a divell Hee became to be a devill and a traitour by nourishing a wicked and a covetous heart And here we are taught that the ministers of Christ if they make no conscience of sinne by the iust iudgement of God do prooue deuils incarnate this exaÌ„ple of Iudas doth manifest the same and the reason is plaine for the more knowledge a man hath the more wicked he is if he vvant grace They are like in this case unto a man that hath meate drinke enough but no stomacke to digest it and so the more he eateth the more it turneth to his hurt This I speake not to deface the callings of ministers but that those vvhich preach Gods vvorde should not doe it with impenitent hearts living in their owne sinnes For it is a fearefull thing for a man to speake unto the people
iustification sanctification and redemption then we must labour to be partakers of it to haue our bodies and soules purified and clensed by his blood and sanctified throughout by the holy Ghost that thereby we may be made fit to doe sacrifice acceptable to God in Christ. This is the vse which the Apostle maketh of the doctrine of Christs priesthood in that place which also euery man should applie vnto himselfe for why should we liue in our sinnes and wicked waies euery houre incurring the daunger of Gods iudgements seeing Christ hath offered such a sacrifice whereby we may be purged and clensed and at length freed from all woe and miserie Thus much of Christs sacrifice now follows his triumph vpon the crosse That Christ did triumph when he was vpon the crosse it is plainly set downe by the Apostle Paul where he saith that putting out the hand writing of ordinances that was against vs which was contrarie to vs he euen tooke it out of the way and fastened it vpon the crosse and hath spoiled the principalities and powers and hath made shew of them openly and hath triumphed ouer them in the same crosse This triumph is set forth by signes testimonies of two sorts I. By signes of his glorie and maiestie II. by signes of his victorie on the crosse The signes of his glorie and maiestie are principally seauen The first is the title set ouer his head vpon the crosse Iesus of Nazareth King of the Iewes The ende why titles were set ouer the heads of malefactours was that the beholders might know the cause of the punishment and be admonished to take heede of like offences and be stirred vp to a dislike of the parties executed for their offences And therefore no doubt Pilate wrote the title of Christ for the aggrauating of his cause and that with his owne hand Yet marke the strange euent that followed for when Pilate was about to write the superscription God did so gouerne and ouerrule both his heart and hand that instead of noting some crime he sets downe a most glorious and worthie title calling him Iesus of Nazareth king of the Iewes which words containe the very summe and pith of the whole Gospell of Christ deliuered by the Patriarkes and Prophets from age to age We must not thinke that Pilate did this of any good minde or vpon any loue or fauour that he bare to Christ but onely as he was guided and ouerruled by the power of God for the aduancement of the honour and glorie of Christ. The like did Caiphas who though a sworne enemie to Christ yet he vttered a prophecie of him saying that it was necessarie that one should die for the people nor that he had any intent to prophecie but because the Lord vsed him as an instrument to publish his truth And when Baalam for the wages of vnrighteousnes would haue cursed the Lordes people for his life hee could not nay all his cursings were turned into blessings By this then it appeares that it is not possible for any man doe what he can to stoppe the course of the Gospell of Christ nay as we see God can raise vp the wicked sometime to spread abroad and to publish the truth though they themselues intend the contrarie Furthermore let vs marke that when the Iewes did most of all intend to bring disgrace and ignominie vpon our Sauiour Christ then did they most of all extoll and magnifie his name they could not for their liues haue giuen him a more renowmed title then this that he was king of the Iewes And the same is the case of all the members of Christ for let a man walke in good conscience before God and man he shall finde this to be true that when he is most disgraced in the world then commonly he is most honoured with God and men Further Pilate wrote this superscription in three languages Hebrew Greeke and Latine And no doubt the ende thereof in the prouidence of God was that the passion of Christ as also the publishing of his kingdome and Gospell might be spread ouer the whole world This shewes the malice of the Church of Rome which will not suffer the word of God to be published but in the latine tongue least the people should be intangled in errours Againe when Pilate had thus written the superscription the high priests and Pharisies offended thereat came to Pilate willing him to chaunge the title saying Write not the king of the Iewes but that he said I am the king of the Iewes but Pilat answeared them againe That which J haue written I haue written Though Pilate had bin ouerruled before to condemne Christ to death against his owne conscience yet will he not in any-wise condescend to change the superscription How comes this to passe Surely as he was ruled by the hand of God in penning it so by the same hand of God was he confirmed in not changing it Hence we learne sundrie instructions First that no man in the world let him endeauour himselfe to the vttermost of his power is able to stoppe the course of the kingdom of God it stands firme and sure and all the world is not able to preuaile against it Secondly whereas Pilate being but an heathen man was thus constant that he will not haue his writing chaunged we may note how permanent vnchāgeable the writings of the holy word of God are They are not the wordes of heathen men but were spoken by the mouth of the Prophets and Apostles as God gaue them vtterance The booke of Scripture therefore is much more immutable so as no creature shall be able to chaunge the least part of it till it be fulfilled Thirdly by Pilates constancie we learne to be constant in the practise and profession of the religion of Christ this is a necessarie lesson for these daies wherein mens professions doe fleete like water and goe and come with the tyde Many zealous professours to day but to morow as cold as water And the complaint of the Lord touching times past agrees to our daies O Ephraim what shall I say to thee thy righteousnes is like the morning dewe The second is the conuersion of the thiefe a most worthie argument of the Godhead of Christ. For by it when he was vpon the crosse and in the very middest of his passion he giues vnto all the world a liuely and notable experience of the vertue and power of his death so as his very enemies might not onely behold the passion it selfe but also at the same time acknowledge the admirable efficacie thereof And therefore with the passion of Christ we must ioyne the conuersion of the thiefe which is as it were a crystall glasse wherein we may sensibly behold the endles merit and vertue of the obedience of Christ to his father euen to the death of the crosse And therefore I will briefly touch the speciall instructions which are to be learned by it First let vs
our hearts will not rend when as hard rocks cleaue asunder Thirdly the mooving of the earth the rending of the rocks asunder may be a signe vnto vs of the vertue of the doctrine of the Gospell of Christ which is nothing els but the publishing of the passion of his death which being preached shal shake heauen and earth sea and land It shall moue the earthen hard and rockie hearts of men and raise vp of meere stones and rocks children vnto Abraham But the maine vse and end of this point is to prooue that he that was crucified was the true Messias the sonne of God and therefore had the power of heauen and earth and could mooue all things at his pleasure The sixt signe of the power of Christ is that graves did open and many bodies of the saintes which slept arose and came out of their graues after his resurrection and went into the holy citie and appeared unto many The use of this signe is this it signifies unto us that Christ by his death upon the crosse did vanquish death in the graue and opened it and thereby testified that he was the resurrection and the life so that it shall not haue euerlasting dominion ouer us but that he vvill raise us up from death to life and to euerlasting glorie The seuenth signe is the testimonie of the Centurion with his souldiours which stood by to see Christ executed S. Marke saith when he saw that Christ thus crying gaue up the ghost he said truly this was the sonne of God Thus we see it is an easie matter for Christ to defend his own cause let Iudas betray him Peter denie him and all the rest forsake him yet he can if it so please him make the Centurion that standeth by to see him executed to testifie of his innocencie But what vvas the occasion that mooued him to giue so worthy a testimonie S. Matthew saith it was feare and that feare was caused by hearing the loud crie of Christ by seeing the earthquake and thinges which vvere done And this must put us in minde not to passe by Gods iudgements which daily fall out in the worlde but take knowledge of them and as it were to fix both our eyes on them For they are notable meanes to strike and astonish the rebellious heart of man and to bring it in awe and subiectiō to God After that the two first captaines with their fifties commanding the prophet Elias to come downe to king Achaziah were consumed with fire from heauen the king sent his third captaine ouer fiftie with his fiftie to fetch him downe but what doth he it is said he fell on his knee before Eliah and besought him saying O man of God I pray thee let my life and the lives of these fiftie servants be pretious in thine eyes But what was the cause why he prayed thus Surely he obserued what iudgements of God fell upon his two former fellowe captaines Beholde saith hee there came downe fire from heauen and devoured the two former captaines with their fifties therefore let my life be pretious now in thy sight Thus laying to his owne heart and making use of Gods iudgements hee humbled himselfe and was spared with his fiftie And Habbaccuk saith When I hearde the voice namely of Gods iudgements rottennesse entred into my bones and I trembled in my selfe that I might be safe in the day of the Lorde Nowe what this feare of the Centurion was there is a further question and it is verie like that it was but a sudden motion or a certaine preparatiue to better things For he was but an heathen man and had as yet no knowledge of Christ and whether hee repented or not it is uncerten and wee must not maruell at this for there are many sudden motions in shewe verie good that upon like occasions rise in the heartes of naturall men When God plagued the land of Egypt then Pharaoh sent for Moses and confessed that the Lorde was righteous but he and his people were wicked and desired Moses to pray to God to take away the plague who did so but so soone as the hand of God was stayed he returned to his olde rebellion againe And as a dogge that commeth out of the water shaketh his eares and yet returneth into it againe so is the maner of the world when crosses and calamities befall men as sicknesse losse of friends or goods then with Ahab they outwardly humble them-selues and goe softly they use to frequent the place where the word is preached and Gods name called upon but alas common experience shewes that these things are but fittes arising of uncerten and flittering motions in the heart For so soone as the crosse is remooued they returne to their old byas againe become as bad as backwarde as euer they vvere being like to the tree that lies in the water which for a while is greene but afterward withereth And therefore wee for our partes when wee haue any good motions come into our hearts as the beginnings of further grace wee must not quench them but cherish and preserue them remembring that the kingdome of heauen is like a graine of mustard seed which vvhen it is sowne is the least of all seedes but afterward it groweth up into a tree that the foules of the heauen may build their neasts in it like to this are the first motions of Gods spirite and therefore they must be cherished and maintained And thus much for the 7. signes of the power of Christs godhead Now follovves the second part of the triumph of Christ which containeth signes of his victorie upon the crosse notably expressed by Paul when he saith And putting out the handwriting of ordinances which was against us which was contrary to us he euen tooke it out of the way fastened it upon the crosse hath spoiled the principalities powers and hath made a shew of them openly hath triumphed over them in the same In vvhich wordes hee alludeth to the manner of heathen triumphs for it was the custome of heathen princes when they had gotten the victorie over their enimies first to cause a pillar of stone or some great oke to be cut down and set up in the place of victorie vpon which either the names of the chiefe enemies vvere set or their heads vvere hanged or vvords vvere written in the pillar to testifie the victorie This being done there follovved an open shewe in vvhich first the conquerour prepares for himselfe a chariot of victory wherin he vvas himselfe to ride and then the chiefe of his enemies bound pinioned vvere led openly after him Novve on the same maner upon the crosse there was a pitcht field the Emperour on the one side was Christ his enemies on the other side were the vvorld the flesh hell death damnation the deuill and all his angels all vvhich banding themselues against him vvere all subdued by him
upon the same crosse he himselfe gaue tvvo signes of his triūph one vvas a monumēt of the victory the other an opē shevv of his cōquest Novv the monumēt of Christs victory vvas the crosse it self vvheron he nailed the obligatiō or bill vvhich vvas against us vvherby satan might haue accused condēned us before god For vve must cōsider that god the father is as a creditour and vvee all debters unto him hee hath a bill of our handes vvhich is the lawe in that it giueth testimonie against us first by the legall washings which did shewe and signifie that we vvere altogither defiled uncleane secondly by the sacrifices that were daily offred for propitiation for our sinnes Now Christ was our suretie and paid euery iotte of the debt vvhich we shoulde haue paid and requiring the acquittance taketh the ceremoniall law and the curse of the morall law and nailes them to the crosse Furthermore in the shewe of conquest the chariot is the crosse likewise for it was not onely a monument of victory but also a chariot of triumph And the captiues bound and pinioned which follow Christ are principalities and powers that is the deuill and his angells hell death and condemnation all which are as it were taken prisoners their armour and weapons are taken from them and they chained and bound ech to other The meditation of this point serueth to admonish vs to abandon all manner of sinne and to make conscience of euerie good duety if we will aright professe the gospell of Christ for vvhen vve sinne we doe as it vvere pull Christ out of his charriot of triumph and untie sathans bonds giue him weapons and as much as we can make him valiant and strong againe Now for any man to make sathan and sinne valiant and strong against himselfe whereas Christ hath weakened him and euen bruised his heade is no better then to become an enemie of the crosse of Christ. Againe hereby vve are taught to pray unto God that our blind eyes may be opened that vve may discerne aright of the passion of Christ. It is a wonder to see how men are caried avvay with a liking of vaine shewes games and enterludes how they spend euen vvhole daies in beholding thē and their money also that they may come to the places vvhere they are oh then how exceedingly ought our harts to be rauished with this mast admirable shevve in vvhich the sonne of God himselfe rides most gloriously in his chariot of triumph and leades his and our most cursed enemies captiue yea treades them under his foote This triumph is set forth unto us in the preaching of the Gospell and may be seene of us all freely without money or money-worth What wretches then shall we be if we suffer our heartes to be filled with earthly delights and in the meane season haue little or no desire to beholde with the eyes of our mind this goodly spectacle that is to be seene in the passion of Christ that serues to reuiue and refresh our soules to life eternall Thirdly if Christ when he was most weake and base in the eyes of men did most of all triumph upon the crosse then euerie one of us must learne to say with the Apostle Paul God forbid that I should reioyce in any thing but in the crosse of Christ Iesus our Lord. That we may say this truely first of all we must labour to haue the benefite of the crosse of Christ not onely in the remission but also in the mortification of our sinnes secondly wee must not be discomforted but rather reioyce and triumph therein A Christian man can neuer haue greater honour then to suffer for the Gospell of Christ when God calleth him thereunto and therefore S. Paul setteth forth another most glorious shewe which all those must make that suffer any thing for Gods cause They must encounter with the world the flesh and the deuill and are placed as it were on a theater and in this conflict the beholders are men and Angels yea the whole hoast of heauen and earth the umpire or iudge is God himselfe it will giue sentence of victorie on their side and so they shall ouercome We must not hereupon thrust our selues into danger but when it shall please God to call vs thereunto wee must thinke our selues highly honoured of him As when God sendeth losse of friends of substance or good name or any other calamitie wee must not dispaire or be ouer grieued but rather reioyce and addresse our selues then with our sauiour Christ to make a triumph Thus much of Christes triumph and the passion of his crosse Now followeth the second degree of his humiliation in these words And buried Where we must consider these pointes I. why it was needfull that Christ should be buried II. who was the authour of this buriall III. the maner or preparation to his buriall IIII. the place and time where and when he was buried Of these in order For the first the causes are many but especially foure why Christ was to be buried I. that the truth and certentie of his death might be confirmed unto us and that no man might so much as imagine that his death was a fantasticall death or his body a fantasticall bodie for men use not to bury a liuing but a dead man or a man in shewe but a true man II. that his buriall might be vnto him a passage frō the estate of humiliation to the estate of exaltation which began in his resurrection and he could not haue risen againe if hee had not bene first buried III. that the outward humiliation in the forme of a seruant which he tooke upon him might be continued upon him to the lowest degree of all and therefore it was not sufficient that hee should be crucified euen to death but being dead he must be also buried IIII. Christ vvas buried that he might not onely vanquish death on the crosse but euen after the maner of conquerours subdue him at his owne home and as it were plucke him out of his owne cabbin The authors of Christs burial were Ioseph of Arimathea Nichodemus who came to Iesus by night Now concerning them this their fact there are many things worthy to be considered in this place First of all they were disciples of Christ and the difference betweene them and the rest is to be considered The other disciples though in number they were but few yet in the feast before his passiō they openly followed him but when Christ was to be arraigned the persecution of the Church of the new Testament began in him then Iudas betraied him Peter denied him the rest fled away yet euen at the same instant these two secret disciples of our Sauiour Christ Ioseph of Arimathea Nicodemus take courage to themselues in time of daunger openly professe themselues to be Christes disciples by an honourable and solemne buriall God no doubt opening their heartes and
to keepe the sabbath so strictly as the Iewes were yet vvhen we haue any busines or worke to be done of our ordinarie calling vve must not take a part of the Lordes sabbath day to do it in but preuent the time doe it either before as Ioseph did or after the sabbath This is litle practised in the world Mē think if they go to church before after noone to heare Gods worde then all the day after they may doe what they list and spend the rest of the time at their owne pleasure but the vvhole day is the Lordes therefore must be spent wholly in his seruice both by publicke hearing of the word and also by priuate reading and meditation on the same To conclude the doctrine of Christes buriall Here it may be demanded how he was alwaies after his incarnation both god and man considering he was dead buried and therefore bodie and soule were sundred a dead mā seemes to be no man Ansvv. A dead man in his kinde is as true a man as a living man for though bodie and soule be not united by the bond of life yet are they united by a relation which the one hath to the other in the counsell and good pleasure of God and that as truly as man and vvoman remaine coupled into one flesh by a couenant of mariage though afterwarde they be distant a thousand miles asunder and by vertue of this relation euery soule in the day of iudgement shall be reunited to his owne bodie euery bodie to his own soule But there is yet a more straighter bond betweene the body soule of Christ in his death burial For as when he was liuing his soule was a meane or bond to unite his godhead his bodie togither so whē hee was deade his verie godhead was a meane or middle bond to unite the bodie and soule and to say otherwise is to dissolue the hypostaticall union by vertue wherof Christes body and soule though seuered ech frō other yet both were still ioyned to the godhead of the sonne The use and profite which may be made of Christes buriall is two-folde I. It serueth to worke in us the buriall of all our sinnes Knovve yee not saieth Paul that all who haue beene baptised into Christ have beene baptised into his death and are buried vvith him by baptisme into his death If any shall demaund how any man is buried into the death of Christ the answere is this Euery Christian man and woman are by faith mystically united unto Christ and made all members of one body whereof Christ is the head Now therefore as Christ by the power of his godhead when he was dead and buried did ouercome the graue the power of death in his own person So by the very same power by means of this spirituall coniunctiō doth he worke in all his members a spirituall death buriall of sinne and naturall corruption When the Israelites were burying of a mā for feare of the soldiers of the Moabites they cast him for hast into the sepulcher of Elisha Now the dead man so soone as he was down had touched the body of Elisha he revived stood upon his feet So let a man that is dead in sin be cast into the graue of Christ that is let him by faith but touch Christ dead buried it will come to passe by the vertue of Christs death buriall that he shalbe raised frō the death bōdage of sin to become a new mā Secōdly the buriall of Christ serues to be a sweet perfume of all our graues and burials for the graue in it selfe is the house of perditiō but Christ by his burial hath as it were cōsecrated and perfumed all our graues in stead of houses of perdition hath made them chambers of rest sleepe yea beds of downe therfore howsoeuer to the eye of mā the beholding of a funerall is terrible yet if we could then remember the buriall of Christ consider how he thereby hath changed the nature of the graue euen then it woulde make us to reioice Lastly we must imitate Christs buriall in being cōtinually occupied in the spiritual burial of our sins Thus much of the buriall Now followeth the third and last degree of Christes humiliation He descended into hell It seemes very likely that these wordes were not placed in the creed at the first or as some thinke that they crept in by negligence because aboue threescore creeds of the most ancient councels fathers want this clause among the rest the Nicene Creed But if the ancient learned fathers assembled in that councel had bin perswaded or at the least had imagined that these words had bin set down at the first by the Apostles no doubt they would not in any wise haue left them out And an anciēt writer saith directly that these words he descended into hell are not found in the Creede of the Romane Church nor used in the Churches of the East if they be that then they signifie the burial of Christ. And it must not seeme strange to any that a worde or twaine in processe of time should creepe into the Creede considering that the originall copies of the bookes of the old and new Testament haue in them sundry varieties of readings and words otherwhiles which from the margine haue crept into the text Neuerthelesse considering that this clause hath long continued in the creed and that by common consent of the Catholicke Church of God it may carry a fit sense expositiō it is not as some would haue it to be put forth Therfore that we may come to speak of the meaning of it we must know that it hath 4. usual expositiōs which we wil rehearse in order then make choise of that which shal be thought to be the fittest The first is that Christs soule after his passion vpon the crosse did really locally descend into the place of the damned But this seems not to be true The reasons are these I. All the Evangelists and among the rest S. Luke intending to make an exact narration of the life and death of Christ haue set downe at large his passion death buriall resurrection ascension and withall they make rehearsall of small circumstances therefore no doubt they woulde not haue omitted Christes locall descent into the place of the damned if there had bene any such thing And the end why they penned this historie was that we might beleeue that Iesus is Christ the sonne of God beleeuing we might haue life euerlasting Now there could not haue bene a greater matter for the confirmation of our faith thē this that Iesus the sonne of Mary who went downe to the place of the damned returned thence to liue in happinesse for euer II. If Christ did go into the place of the damned then either in soule or in body or in
to doe all the Prophet had said Wash and be cleane Now after that the women are come to the disciples and make relation of Christes resurrection the text saieth Their words seemed as fained things unto them neither beleeved they them Hence wee learne two things the first that men of themselues can not beleeue the doctrine of ChristiaÌ„ religion it is a harde matter for a man to beleeue sundrie things in the worke of creation The temporall deliuerance of the children of Israell seemed to them as a dreame and the resurrection of Christ euen to Christes owne disciples seemed a fained thing The second that it is an hard thing truly and vnfainedly to beleeue the points of religion disciples brought up in the schoole of Christ and often catechised in this very point of Christs resurrection yet dull are they to beleeue it This confuâ—eth and condemneth our carnall gospellers that make it the lightest and easiest thing that can be to beleeue in Christ and therefore they say their faith is so strong that they would not for all the world doubt of Gods mercy whereas indeede they are deceiued and haue no faith at all but blind presumption The thirde appearance was on this manner As two of Christes disciples were going from Ierusalem to Emmaus about threescore furlongs and talked togither of all the things that were done Iesus drewe nere and talked with them but their eyes were holden that they could not know him and as they went he communed with them prooued out of the scripture his resurrection expounding unto them all things that were written of him then they made him stay with them and their eyes were opened they knew him by breaking of bread but he was taken out of their sight In this notable appearance wee may obserue these foure points The first that Christ held their eyes that they could not know him they saw a man indeed but who he was they could not tell By this it is more then manifest that the use of our outwarde senses as seeing feeling smelling c. is supplied vnto us continually by the power of Christ and therefore euen in these things we must acknowledge the continuall goodnes of God Now if one man can not so much as discerne another but by the blessing of Christ then shall we neuer be able to discerne the way of life from the way of death without him therfore we must pray unto God that he would giue us his holy spirite to enlighten the eyes of our understanding wherby we may be able to see and know the way that leadeth unto life and also to walke in the same The second that as Christ vvas in expounding the scriptures vnto them their heartes burned within them By this we learne that howsoeuer the ministers of God publish the gospell to the outward eares of men yet is it the proper worke of Christ alone to touch inflame the heart by the fire of his holy spirit to quickeÌ„ raise men up to the life of righteousnes true holines it is he only that baptiseth with the holy ghost with fire it further admonisheth us that we should heare the worde preached froÌ„ the mouth of Gods ministers with burning melting hearts but alas the ordinary practise is flat coÌ„trarie mens eies are drowsie heauie their hearts dead frozen within them that is the cause why after much teaching there followes but litle profit The thirde thing is that Christ did eate with the tvvo disciples and was knowen of them in breaking of breade It is verie like that our Sauiour Christ did in some speciall maner blesse the bread which he brake wherby his disciples discerned him from others And in like maner we must by blessing our meates and drinkes distinguish our selues though not from such as are the seruants of God yet from all ungodly carelesse men Many being silent themselues do make their children to giue thankes and to blesse their meates And indeede it is a coÌ„mendable thing if it be done sometimes to nourture the childe but for men to disburden themselues wholly of this duty is a fault And it is a shame that that mouth which openeth it selfe to receiue the good creatures of God should neuer opeÌ„ it selfe to blesse praise God for the same Therfore in this actioÌ„ of eating and drinâ—king let us shewe our selues followers of Christ that as by blessing the same he was known from all other so we may also hereby distinguish our selues from the profane and wicked of this world Otherwise what difference shal there be betwene us the very hog that eats mast on the grouÌ„d but neuer lookes up to the tree from whence it falles And as Christ reuealed himselfe unto his disciples at that time wheÌ„ they caused him to eate meat with theÌ„ so let us suffer Christ to be our guest and let us entertaine him in his meÌ„bers no doubt he wil blesse us withal reueal himself unto us The fourth thing is that hauing eaten hee is taken out of their sight And this came to passe not because the bodie of Christ became spirituall but because either he helde their eyes as before or he departed with celeritie and speede according to the propertie of a bodie glorified The fourth appearance of Christ was to Peter alone mentioned onely by S. Paul He was seene of â—ephas The fifth appearance was to all the disciples togither saue Thomas In it we must consider three things which are all effectuall arguments to prooue Christes resurrection The first that hee came and stoode in the middest among them the dores being shut Now it may be demanded how this could be Ans. The Papists say his body was glorified and so passed through the dore but as I haue said it is against the nature of a bodie that one should passe through another as heate doeth through a peece of iron both bodies remaining entire and sound therefore we may rather thinke that whereas Christ came in when the dores were shut it was either because by his mightie power hee caused the dores to giue place the disciples not knowing how or else because he altered the verie substance of the dores that his body might passe through as hee thickened the waters to carrie his bodie when he walked upon the sea Now if this be true as very like it is that these dumbe creatures gaue place to Christ and became pliable unto his commandement then much more ought we to carry hearts coÌ„formable and pliant to the will of our Lord Iesus in all his commaundements The second point is that when as the disciples thought Christ to haue bene a spirit he to prooue the truth of his manhood sheweth unto them his handes and his feete and the wound in his side and calles for meat and eates it among them But it may be asked how this could be coÌ„sidering that a glorified body hath
sins the vvorld crucifies Christ againe For look as Pilates souldiours with the wicked Iewes tooke Christ and stripped him of his garments buffetted him and slue him so doe vngodly men by their wicked behauiour strip him of all honour and slay him againe If an infidell should come among vs and yeelde himselfe to be of our religion after hee had seene the behauiour of men hee would peraduenture leaue all religioÌ„ for he might say surely it seemes this god whome these men worship is not the true God but a god of licentious libertie and that which is moâ—e whereas at all times we ought to shew our selues new creatures and to walke worthie of our Sauiour and redeemer and therefore also ought to rise out of our sinnes and to liue in righteousnes and true holines yet we for the most part goe on still forward in sinne and euery day goe deeper then other to hel-ward This hath beene heretofore the coÌ„mon practise but let vs now learne after the example of Christ being quickned and reuiued by his grace to endeauor our selues especially to come out of the graue of sinne and learne to make conscience of euery badde action True it is a Christian man may vse the creatures of God for his delight in a moderate and godly manner but Christ neuer gaue libertie to any to liue licentiously for he that is free is yet seruant vnto Christ as Paul saith and therefore we must doe nothing but thâ—t which may be a worke of some good dutie vnto God to which ende the Apostle saith Awake thou that sleepest and stand vp from the deade and Christ shall giue thee life If this will not mooue vs yet let the iudgements of God draw vs hereunto Blessed is he saith the holy Ghost that hath part in the first resurrection for on such the second death hath no power where mention is made of a double death the first is the separation of soule bodie the second is the eternall condemnation of soule and bodie in hell fire Would we now escape the second death after this life we must then labour in this life to be partakers of the first resurrection that on this manner Looke what sinnes we haue liued in hertofore we must endeauour to come out of them all and leade a better life according to all the commandements of God but if ye will haue no care of your owne soules goe on hardly and so ye shall be sure to enter into the second death which is eternal damnation Secondly we are taught by the example of Saint Paul to labour aboue all things to know Christ and the vertue of his resurrection And this we shall doe when we can say by experience that our hearts are not content with a formall and drowsie profession of religion but that wee feele the same power of Christ whereby he raised vp himselfe from death to life to be effectuall and powerfull in vs to worke in our hearts a conversion from all our sinnes wherein we haue lien deade to newnes of life with care to liue godly in Christ Iesus And that we may further attaine to all this we must come to heare the word of God preached and taught with feare and trembling hauing heard the word we must meditate therein and pray vnto God not onely publikely but priuately also intreating him that he would reach forth his hand and pull vs out of the graue of sinne wherein we haue lien dead so long And in so doing the Lord of his mercie according as he hath promised will send his spirit of grace into our hearts to worke in vs an inward sense and feeling of the vertue of Christs resurrection So dealt he with the two disciples that were going to Emmaus they were occupied in the meditation of Christ his death and passion and whiles they were in hearing of Christ who conferred with them he gaue them such a measure of his spirite as made their hearts to burne within them And Paul praieth for the Ephesians that God would inlighten their eyes that they might see and feele in themselues the exceeding greatnes of the power of God which he wrought in Christ Iesus when he raised him from the dead Thirdly as Saint Paul saith If we be risen with Christ then we must seeke the things that are aboue But how and by what meanes can we rise with Christ seeing we did not die with him Ans. We rise with Christ thus The burgesse of a town in the parliament house beareth the person of the whole towne whatsoeuer he saith that the whole town saith whatsoeuer is done to him is also done to all the towne so Christ vpon the crosse stood in our place bare our person what he suffred we suffred when he died all the faithfull died in him and so likewise as he is risen againe so are all the faithfull risen in him The consideration whereof doth teach vs that we must not haue our hearts wedded to this world VVe may vse the things of this life but yet so as though we vsed them not For all our loue and care must be for things aboue and specially we must seeke the kingdom of God his righteousnes peace of conscience and ioy in the holy Ghost VVe must therefore sue for the pardon of sinne for reconciliation to God in Christ for sanctification These are the pretious pearles which we must seeke and when we haue found them we must sell all that we haue to buie them hauing bought them we must lay them vp in the secret corners of our hearts valuing and esteeming of them as better then all things in the world beside Thus much of Christs resurrection containing the first degree of Christs exaltation Now followeth the second in these words He ascended into heauen in the handling wherof we are to consider these speciall points I. the time of his ascention II. the place III. the manner IV. the witnesses V. the vses thereof For the first the time of Christs ascension was fourtie daies after his resurrection when he had taught his disciples the things which appertain to the kingdome of God And this shews that he is a most faithfull carefull king ouer his Church procuring the good thereof And therfore Esay saith The gouernment is on his shoulder the Apostle saith he was more faithfull in all the house of God then Moses was Hence we gather that whereas the Apostles changed the sabbath from the seuenth day to the eight it was no doubt by the counsell direction of Chist before his ascension likewise in that they planted Churches and appointed teachers and meete ouerseers for the guiding and instruction hereof we may resolue our selues that Christ prescribed the same vnto them before his asceÌ„sion for these such like causes did he ascend no sooner Now look what care Christ at his ascensioÌ„ had ouer his church the same must al
will guide in the way and their eares shall heare a voice behinde them saying This is the way walke in it when thou turnest to the right hand and to the left Which voice is nothing els but the voice of the H. Ghost in the mouth of the ministers directing them in the waies of God The children of Israel were trauailing from Egypt to the lande of Canaan full fourtie yeares whereas they might haue gone the iourney in fourtie daies Their way was through the wildernesse of Arabia their guides were a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night the manner of their iourney was this when the pillars mooued they mooued when the pillars stood still they stood still and so long as the pillars either mooued or stood still they likewise mooued or stood still And by all this a further matter namly the regimēt of Christ ouer his church was signified Euery one of vs are as passengers and trauailers not to any earthly Canaan but to the heauenly Ierusalem and in this iourney we are to passe through the wide and desert wildernes of this world our guide is Christ himselfe figured by the pillar of fire and the cloud because by his word and spirit he shewes vs how farre we may goe in euery action and where we must stand and he goes before vs as our guide to life euerlasting The third worke of Christ is to exercise his Church vnto spirituall obedience by manifold troubles crosses temptations and afflictions in this world as earthly kings vse to traine and exercise their subiects When our Sauiour Christ was with his disciples in a shippe there arose a great tempest vpon the sea so as the shippe was almost couered with waues but he was asleepe and his disciples came and awoke him saying Saue vs master we perish Behold here a liuely picture of the dealing of Christ with his seruants in this life His manner is to place them vpon the sea of this worlde and to raise vp against them bleake stormes and flaes of contrarie windes by their enemies the flesh the deuill the world And further in the middest of all these daungers he for his owne part makes as though he lay asleepe for a time that he may the better make triall of their patience faith and obedience And the endes for which hee vseth this spirituall exercise are these The first to make all his subiects to humble themselues and as it were to goe crooked and buckle vnder their offences committed against his maiestie in time past Thus Iob after the Lorde had long afflicted him and laide his hande sore vpon him saith Behold I am vile and againe I abhorre my selfe and repent in dust and ashes In the same manner we beeing his subiects and people must looke to be exercised with temptations and afflictions which shall make vs bende and bow for our sinnes past as the old man goeth crooked and doubles to the earth by reason of age The second is to preuent sinnes in the time to come A father when he sees his child too bold and venterous about fire and water takes it and holds it ouer the fire or ouer the water as though he would burne or drowne it whereas his purpose indeede is nothing els but to preuent danger for the time to come In like maner Christs subiects are bold to sinne by nature and therefore to preuent a mischiefe he doth exercise them with affliction seemes for a season as though he would quite forsake his Church but his meaning is onely to preuent offences in times to come The third end is to cōtinue his subiects in obediēce vnto his cōmandemēts so the Lord saith when he would bring his Church frō idolatrie Behold I will stop thy way with thorns make an hedge that shee shal not find her paths The H. Ghost here borrows a cōparison frō beasts which going in the way see green pastures desire to enter in and therefore goe to the hedge but feeling the sharpnes of the thornes dare not aduenture to goe in So Gods people like vnto wild beasts in respect of sinne vewing the greene pastures of this world which are the pleasures thereof are greatly affected there with and if it were not for the sharpnes of crosses and temptations which are Gods spirituall hedge by which he keepeth them in they would range out of the way and rush into sinne as the horse into the battell The fourth and last worke of Christ in respect of his Church is that he sits at the right hand of his father to defend the same against the rage of all enemies whatsoeuer they are and this he doth two waies First by giuing to his seruants sufficient strength to beare all the assaults of their enemies the world the flesh and the deuill For Paul saith those to whome the Lord hath giuen the gift of faith to them he hath also giuen this gift to suffer afflictions And the same Apostle also praieth for the Colossians that they may be strengthened with all might through his glorious power vnto all patience and long suffering with ioyfulnes The euidence hereof we may most plainly see in the most constant deaths of the martyrs of Christ recorded both in the word of God and in the Church histories It is wonderfull to see their courage and constancie For at such times as they haue beene brought to exequution they refused to be bounde or chained willingly suffering most cruell torments without shrinking or feare such courage and strength the Lord gaue them to withstand the violent rage of all their aduersaries Secondly he defends his Church by limiting the power and rage of all enemies And hence it is that although the power of the Church of God on earth be weake slender in it selfe contrariwise the power of the deuil exceeding great yet can he not so much as touch the people of God And he more preuailes by inward suggestions and temptations then by outward violence And if it were not the power of Christ that doth bridle his rage there were no abode for the Church of Christ in this world Thus we haue seene what are the workes of Christ in gouerning his Church and we that professe our selues to be members thereof must shew our selues to be so indeed by an experience of these workes of his in our owne hearts And we must suffer him to gather vs vnder his owne wing and to guide vs by his word spirit we are to acquaint our selues with those spirituall exercises whereby his good pleasure is to nurture vs to all obedience Lastly we must depend on his ayde and protection in all estates And seeing we in this land haue had peace and rest with the Gospell of Christ among vs a long time by Gods especiall goodnes we must now after these daies of peace looke for daies of tribulation we must not imagine that our ease and libertie will continue
written of the Phoenix that first shee is consumed to ashes by the heat of the sunne and that afterward of her ashes riseth a young one and on this manner is her kinde preserued Againe swallowes wormes and flyes which haue lien dead in the winter season in the spring by vertue of the sunnes heat reuiue againe so likewise men fall in sounes and traunses beeing for a time without breath or shew of life and yet afterward come againe and to vse Pauls example before the corne can grow and beare fruit it must first be cast into the ground and there rotte And if this were not seene by experience men would not beleeue it Againe euery present day is as it were dead and buried in the night following and yet afterward it returns againe the next morning Lastly we reade how the old Prophet◠raised some from death and our Sauiour Christ raised Lazarus among the rest that had lien foure daies in the graue and stanke why then should any thinke it impossible for God to raise all men to life But let vs see what reasons may be alleadged to the contrarie First it is alleadged that the resurrection of bodies resolued to dust and ashes is against common sense reason Answeare It is aboue reason but not against reason For if impotent and miserable men as experience sheweth can by art euen of ashes make the most curious workemanship of glasse why may we not in reason thinke that the omnipotent and euerliuing God is able to raise mens bodies out of the dust Secondly it is said that mens bodies beeing dead are turned into dust and so are mingled with the bodies of beasts and other creatures and one mans bodie with another and that by reason of this confusion men cannot possibly rise with their own bodies Answ. Howsoeuer this is impossible with men yet it is possible with God For he that in the beginning was able to create all things of nothing is much more able to make euery mans body at the resurrectiō of his own matter to distinguish the dust of mens bodies from the dust of beasts and the dust of one mans bodie from another The goldsmith by his art cā sunder diuers metells one frō another some men out of one metell can draw another why then should we thinke it vnpossible for the almightie God to do the like It may be further obiected thus A man is eaten by a wolfe the wolfe is eaten by a lyon the lyon by the foules of the ayre and the foules of the ayre eaten againe by men againe one man is eaten of another as it is vsuall among the Canibals Nowe the body of that man which is turned into so many substāces especially into the bodie of another man cannot rise againe if the one doth the other doth not Ans. This reason is but a cavill of mans braine for we must not think that whatsoeuer entreth into the bodie is turned into the substance therof must rise again become a part of the bodie at the day of iudgement but euery man shall then haue so much substance of his own as shal make his bodie to be entire perfect though another mans flesh once eaten be no part therof Againe it is vrged that because flesh and blood cannot enter into the kingdom of God therfore the bodies of men shall not rise againe Answ. By flesh blood is not meant the bodies of men simple but the bodies of men as they are in weaknes without glorie subiect to corruption For flesh blood in scripture signifies sometime the originall sinne corruption of nature sometime mans nature subiect to miseries infirmities or the bodie in corruption before it be glorified and so it must be vnderstoode in this place Lastly it is obiected that Salomon saith The condition of the children of men and the condition of beasts are euen as one condition Now beasts rise not againe after this life therefore there is no resurrection of men Answer In that place Salomon expoundeth himselfe They are like in dying for so he saith as the one dieth so dieth the other he speaketh not of their estate after death The second point to be considered is the cause of the resurrection In mankinde we must consider two parts the Elect the Reprobate and they both shall rise againe at the day of iudgement but by diuers causes The godly haue one cause of their resurrection the vngodly another The cause why the godly rise again is the Resurrection of Christ yea it is the proper cause which procureth and effecteth their resurrection In the Scripture Adam Christ are compared together Christ is called the second Adam these were two roots The first Adam was the root of all mākind and he conuaieth sinne by sinne death to all that sprang of him Christ onely excepted the second Adam which is the root of all the Elect cōuaieth life both in body soule to all that are vnited to him by the vertue of his resurrection they shall rise againe after this life For looke as the power of the Godhead of Christ when he was dead in the graue raised his bodie the third day so shall the same power of Christ his Godhead conuaie it selfe vnto all the faithfull which euē in death remain vnited vnto him raise thē vp at the last day And for this cause Christ is called a quickning spirit Nowe the cause why the wicked rise againe is not the vertue of Christs resurrection but the vertue of Gods curse set downe in his word In the day that thou shalt eate of the tree of the knowledge of good and euill thou shalt die the death that is a double death both of bodie and soule And therefore they arise onely by the power of Christ as he is a iudge that this sentence may be verified on them and that they may suffer both in bodie and soule eternall punishment in hell fire Furthermore Saint Iohn setteth downe the outwarde meanes whereby the dead shalbe raised namely the voyce of Christ The houre shall come saith he in which all that are in the graues shall heare his voice and they shall come forth For as he created all things by his word so at the day of iudgement by the same voice all shalbe raised againe This may be a good reason to mooue vs to heare the ministers of God reuerently for that which they teach is the very word of God and therefore we are to pray that it may be as effectuall in raising vs vp from the graue of sinne in this life as it shalbe after this life in raising vs vp from the graue of death vnto iudgement Thirdly we are to consider what manner of bodies shal rise at the last day Answeare The same bodies for substance this Iob knew well when he said I shall see him at the last day in my flesh whome I my selfe shall see and none other