heavenly kingdome to his Apostles giving to them like commission and equall authority to preach and teach the same through all the world saying in the last chapter of Matthew after the words before declared that all power was given to him in heaven and in earth Goe ye forth and teach all nations baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Sonne and of the holy Ghost teaching them to keepe all those things which I have commanded you Christ also in the 30. chapter of Iohn said the evening after his resurrection when he appeared to his Disciples the dores being shut As my Father hath sent me I doe send you and after he had so said he breathed upon them saying Whose sinnes soever ye shall forgive be forgiven and whose sinnes ye shall retaine be retained And likewise had said to them all before his death in the 18. chapter of Matthew what things soever ye shall binde upon earth I shall be bound in heaven and what things soever ye shall lose upon earth shall be loosed in heaven which power hee gave to theâ— all equally alike as wâ— to all the residue as to Peter Which authority Christ declareth in the 20. chapter of Iuke to be high and to be regarded of all men and not to be contemned in any wife saying He that heareth you heareth me and he that heareth me heareth my Father of heaven that hath sent me and he that despiseth you despiseth me and he that despiseth me despiseth my Father of heaven that hath sent mee At the day of iudgement Sodome and Gomorrah which heard not of Christ shall be in better case then such despisers shall be But here the Bishop of Rome steppeth in and saith Peter had authority given to him above all the residue of the Apostles for Christ said to him in the 10. chapter of Matthew Thou art Peter and upon this make I shall build my Church and I shall give thee the keyes of the kingdome of heaven and whatsoever thou shall binde upon earth shall be bound in the heavens this said Christ and Saint Peter is buried at Rome whose successor I â—…and ought to rule the Church as Peter did and to be Porter at heaven gates as Peter was And Christ said also to Peter after his resurrection Feede my sleepe which words he spake to him onely so that thereby he had authority over all that be of Christs flocke and I as â—is successour have the same and therefore who so will not obey me King or Prince I will curse him and deprive him his kingdome or seignorie for all power is given to me that Christ had and I am his Vicar generall as Peter was here in earth over all and none but I as Christ is in heaven This ambitious and pompous objection is made by him and his adherents and hath of late yeeres much troubled the world and made dissention debate and open warre in all parts of Christendome and nourished the same But if the Bishop of Rome would take those places after the right sense of them as both the Apostles themselves taught us and all the antient best learned and most holy interpreters doe expound them the world should be more at quietnesse then it is where now by wrong interpretation the Scripture is perverted and another Gospell in that poynt preached unto us than ever the Apostles preached so that though an Angell came from heaven and would tell us such new expositions of those places as is now made to turne the words which were spoken for spirituall authority of preaching the word of God and ministring of the Sacraments to a worldly authority wee ought to reject him as Saint Paul saith in the first chapter to the Galathians But to open the true sense of the Scripture in the places aforesaid it is to be observed that Christ in the said 16. chapter of Matthew asked his Disciples whom men did say that he was whereunto after answer given by them diversly some saying that he was Iohn Baptist some saying that he was Elias some saying that he was Ieremie or one of the Prophets Christ asked them whom doe yee say that I am whereunto Peter answered for them all for of all of them the question was asked as he was alwaies ready to make answer Thou art Christ the Sonne of God that liveth Iesus answered Blessed be thou Simon the sonne of Iona for flesh and bloud hath not revealed this unto thee but my Father which is in heaven And I say to thee Thou art Peter and upon this rocke I shall build my Church and the gates of hell shall not prevaile against it that is to say upon this rocke of thy confession of mee to be the Sonne of God I shall build my Church for this confession containeth the whole summary of our faith and salvation Which confession first was spoken by the mouth of Peter Who of all the twelve Apostles that Christ chose to send into the world to preach his word was the first that with his mouth uttered that confession and knowledging by which all christian men must be saved and without which no man can be saved as it is written in the 10. chapter to the Romans by Paul The word of saith that we doe preach is at hand in thy mouth and in thine heart for if thou confesse with thy mouth our Lord Iesus and with thy heart doe beleeve that God raised him from death to life thou shalt be saved Vpon this first confession of Peter and not upon the person of Peter the Church is builded As Chrysostome expoundeth that place in the 26. Sermon of the feast of Pentecost saying Not upon the person of Peter but upon the faith Christ hath builded his Church And what is the faith This thou art Christ the Sonne of God that liveth What is to say upon this rocke that is upon this confession of Peter And with this saying of Chrysostome all antient expositors treating that place doe agree For it we should expound that place that the Church is builded upon the person of Peter we should put another foundation of the Church than Christ which is directly against Saint Paul saying in the 3. chapter of the first Epistle to the Corinthians no man may put any other foundation but that which is put already which is Christ Iesu and therefore that exposition that the person of Peter should be the foundation of the Church should make of the Trinitie a quaternitie and put a fourth person besides the Trinitie to be the foundation of the Church And this first confession of Peter by faith that Christ is the Sonne of God is the preheminence and primacy that Peter had before the other spoken of in the tenth of Matthew wherein reciting the names of the twelve Apostles chosen by Christ it is written The first is Simon Peter For he first confessed that faith that all men must be saved by For who so doth agree with Peter in
Bishop of Rome called Vitalianus did the same as it is written in the decrees in the 63. distinction in the chapter beginning Agatho and as Saint Gregory and Saint Ambrose had done before them as it is written in the chapter cum longe in the same distinction the Bishops of Rome at that time followed the doctrine of Saint Peter and Saint Paul left unto them to be subjects and to obey their Princes The Gospell also teacheth us in the 22 Chapter of Luke how the Apostles fell at contention among themselves the night before the passion who among them should bee superiour and above the other Which their contention Christ discussed saying on this wise The Kings of people and nations have dominion over them and those that have power over them bee called benefactors of them But so it shall not be amogst you but whosoever amongst you is the greater shall bee as the younger and whosoever amongst you shall be chiefe shall be as a servant and a minister For who is superiour hee that sitteth at the table or he that serveth at the table is not he superiour that sitteth But I am amongst you as he that ministreth and serveth And yee bee those that have bidden with mee in my temptation and I ordaine for you as my father hath ordained for me a kingdome that ye shall eat and drinke at my board in my kingdome and shall sit upon seats judging the twelue tribes of Israel Here wee doe see that Christ would have the meekest and most humble to be chiefe in his flocke by humility and by service done to other As Christ by example had washed the feet of his Apostles the same night a little before And it appeareth also that he would not leave amongst his Apostles a worldly kingdome wherby they should worldly reign over other but that he ordained for them a heavenly Kingdome to reigne with him in heaven and to sit with him in judgement to judge the 12 tribes of Israel that is to say by the example of their faith who beleeved in Christ to condemne the infidelity of the Iewes that would not beleeve in him but shamefully put him to death So that hereby it is proved plainely that Christ left to his Disciples no worldly kingdome here in earth to have Princes under them A like discussing of this contention of superiority which another time rose also among the Apostles is conteined in the tenth Chapter of Marke and the twentieth Chapter of Mathew and by like words absolved that meeknesse and not superiority should be regarded among them for the Apostles before the comming of the holy Ghost after the time of the resurrection even at the time of Christs ascention asked him whether hee would restore againe the worldly kingdome of Israel for which kingdome at that time they did looke as Cleophas said in the last chapter of Luke unto Christ appearing to him and his fellow going in to Emaus we trusted that he was the man that should have redeemed Israel And yet unto this day the Iewes doe looke for their Messias to come and to raigne among them by a worldly kingdome in Ierusalem as David did but Christ left to his Disciples no such worldly kingdome but said it should not be so among them as it was amongst the Princes of the world And where Christ in the last chapter of Matthew said after his resurrection All power is given to me in heaven and in earth so that both in his godhead and in his manhood also inseparably unite in one person that is to say in one Christ and two natures God and man he had all power given to him as man which from the beginning he ever had as the Sonne of God with God his Father Yet neverthelesse he never changed the authority of worldly Kings and Princes but by his owne word commanded them still to be obeyed by their subjects as they had been before his incarnation saying in the 22. chapter of Matthew when the Iewes asked him whether they should pay tribute to Caesar or no he bade them give to Caesar those things that be his and to God those things that bee his signifying unto them that tribute was due to Caesar snd their soules were due to God And in the 17. chapter of Matthew it appeareth that Christ bade Peter pay tribute for him and his Disciples when it was demanded of him And Christ as man would not change the order of obeysance to worldly Princes by their subjects which he as God with his father had ordained before his incarnation as Saint Paul testifieth saying Worldly powers be ordained of God and therefore whosoever resisteth them doth resist God And that Christ himselfe would not raigne here in earth by a worldly and temporall kingdome it appeareth in the 6. chapter of Iohn where after he had fed five thousand Iewes besides women and children with five barley loaves and two fishes and the Iewes would have taken him and made him their King he fled from them and would not consent unto them for the kingdome that he came to search here in earth was not a worldly and temporall kingdome but a heavenly and spirituall kingdome that is to say to raigne spiritually by grace and faith in the hearts of all christian and faithfull people of what degree or of what nation soever they be and to turn all people and nations which at his comming were carnall and lived after the lusts of the flesh to be spirituall and to live after the lusts of the spirit that Christ might spiritually with his father of heaven reigne in the hearts of all men which heavenly Kingdome Saint Iohn Baptist in the desert preached oft to the Iewes saying Repent you and amend your lives for the kingdome of heaven is at hand After whose death Christ intending to manifest himselfe to the world began his preaching likewise saying Doe penance for the kingdome of heaven is at hand And it is plainely expressed in the 13. chapter of Matthew in the parable likening the kingdome of heaven to a man which did sow good seed in his field and after whiles he sleeped his enemy did sow evill seed in the same for Christ expounding that parable saith The good seed bee the children and inheritours of the kingdome so the kingdome that Christ seeketh here in earth is a spirituall and heavenly kingdome And Christ said to Pilate in the 18. chapter of Iohn My kingdome is not of this world And therefore those that goe about to make of Christs spirituall kingdome a worldly kingdome doe fall into errour of some heretikes that looke that Christ after the day of iudgement shall raigne with all his Saints here in earth carnally in Ierusalem as the Iewes doe believe that Messias is yet to come and when he shall come he shall raign worldly in Ierusalem So we doe see that Christ left the worldly kingdomes to princes of the world as is before expressed But hee committed the preaching of this
A SERMON PREACHED ON PALME-SVNDAY BEFORE KING HENRY the VIII By CVTHBERT TONSTALL Bishop of DVRESME LONDON Printed by Thomas Harper M. DC XXXIII TO The Honourable Knight Sir IOHN TONSTALL Servant to her Sacred Majestie AND To the Right Noble Lady his WIFE The Publisher Consecrates This Devotes Himselfe Wishes all Happinesse T. H. Hoc sentite in vobis quod in Christo Iesu c. Ad Philippen 2. Let the same minde be in you which was also in Christ Iesus who being in the forme of God thought it not robbery to be equall with God But made himselfe of no reputation and tooke upon him the forme of a servant and was made in the likenesse of men And being found in fashion as a man he humbled himselfe and became obedient unto death even the death of the Crosse Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him and given him a Name which is above every Name That at the Name of Iesus every knee should bow of things in heaven and things in earth and things under the earth and that every tongue should confesse that Iesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father THis is in English the sentence of the Epistle of this day And first I doe intend by your patience to declare particularly the literall sence therof containing the infinite and inestimable humility and obedience of our Saviour Iesu Christ Secondly I doe intend to speake of disobedience of men by pride done to man against Gods law And how that may be eschued Thirdly I intend to speake of disobedience of all men by pride done to Almighty God against Gods law And how that may be amended And so to make an end And to returne to the first Saint Paul in the second chapter to the Philippians next before the words of the Epistle of this day commanding humility with charity to be used saith Yee must thinke by humility every man to be your superiour not considering every one of you his owne furtherance but the furtherance of other And therefore he exhorteth all men by the example of Christ not to regard nor to take heed to their owne advancement but the advancement of other saying See the same minde be in you that is in Iesu Christ that is to say shew humility and patience for the wealth of other as Christ did Whose high degree the Apostle Paul here first speaketh of From which he was content to come downe for our sake For he being in the forme of God thought it no robbery to be equall with God what is this to say in the forme of God The sense thereof is this He was in full substance in full essence in full glory in eternitie equall with his father As for to put for our better erudition of things incomprehensible farre above our capacitie an example of things that we may understand to direct us in some part to the attaining of higher things As the brightnesse is in the fire and as the image or print is in a seale and as a word is in the minde so the Sonne of God is in the Father For the brightnesse is as soone as the fire is and the print is within the seale as soon as the seale is And the word that man will expresse is in the minde as soone as the minde hath conceived it Saint Paul in the beginning of his Epistle to the Hebrewes saith that the sonne of God is the shining of the glory of the Father As in the foresaid example the brightnesse is of the fire and figure of his substance as the print is of the seale supporting all things by the word of his strength and vertue as the minde bringeth forth the word And where saint Paul saith that Christ thought it no robbery to be equall with God he meaneth that he made not himselfe equall to God by usurpation but God the Father begate him in the beginning equall to himselfe For if he should have made himselfe equall to God not being so by nature he should have save fallen by ravyn as Lucifer did For he because he would make himselfe equall to God being but a creature did fall and of an Angell was made the Divell and this his pride he perswaded to man by which he was overthrowne himselfe saying to Eve before the fall of Adam Taste of the fruit that is forbidden you and ye shall be as Gods That is to say in effect take upon you by usurpation that thing that yee have not by creation for so was I overthrowne But Christ was borne in the beginning equall to his Father not made after equall and borne of the substance of the Father Wherefore he did not usurpe equality unto God but was in that equality in which hee was borne in the beginninâ—… It followeth in the text But he did abase himselfe taking upon him the forme of a servant which he did not losing the forme of God in which he was before but taking the forme of man which he was not before And thereby he was made inferiour to his Father And yet he abode still equall with him both in one person that is to say by reason that he was the word of God equall to his Father and by reason he was man inferiour to him one sonne of God and the same sonne of man One the sonne of man and the same the Sonne of God Not two Sons of God God and man but one Sonne of God and man God without beginning man from a certaine beginning our Lord Iesu Christ For as God doth grant to his creatures being temporall and subject to suffering that they may beget the same thing that they are how much more God the Father being eternall and impassible did beget his sonne not of another substance than he himselfe is but of the same Which is yet to our great admiration because he begat him without any alteration and in such equality with himselfe that neither in power nor in age the Father goeth before the Sonne But the Sonne doth attribute unto the Father and not to himselfe all that he hath and may because hee is not of himselfe but of the father He is equall to the Father but he had that same of his Father Nor he tooke not of himselfe to be equall but he is equall by nature As he was ever borne he was ever equall Wherefore the Father begat him not inequall to himselfe And after he was borne gave to him equality but in begetting him gave it unto him because he begat him equall not inferiour to himselfe But yet he saith his Father is superiour to him because he tooke the forme of a servant not losing the forme of God by which forme of a servant he was made inferiour not onely to his Father but also to himselfe as to the Sonne of God and to the holy Ghost Nor onely he was inferiour to the Trinity in his forme of manhood but also he was made inferiour under Angels And he was also inferiour unto
forth in the forehead of a christian man then the signe of the Crosse Here we may note what high reward in heaven is reserved to a christian man when Christ hath given such an honour to the forme of the Crosse representing to us his passion for now the forme of the Crosse is so honoured amongst christian men that if a man worthy to dye should be crucified if should be thought amongst christian men that he should thereby rather be honoured then punished The Crosse is now every where amongst christian men erected and set up as an arch triumphall against the devill declaring unto us the victory and triumph that Christ upon the Crosse obtained against the devill in cancelling the bond of our sinne wherein we were bound to the devill and fastening it cancelled to his Crosse as Saint Paul saith in the second chapter to the Colossians It followeth in the Text. Therefore God hath exalted him and hath given to him a name that is above all names Here it is to be noted that God gave to Christ his exaltation as to man and not as to God For there was never no time before he was made man that he in the forme of God was not exalted nor no time that all things did not bow downe to him that be in heaven earth and hell And for that cause he saith therefore that is to say for his manhood and forme of a servant taken upon him and united to his godhead and for his obedience unto death of the Crosse For in the same forme of man in which he was crucified in the same he was exalted And a name was given to him above all names that he being in the forme of a servant rising from death of the flesh to life and ascending up into heaven should be called the onely begotten Sonne of God which name he as the Word and Sonne of God eternally begotten of God and equall to God had before Whereof the Angell sent to the blessed Virgin Mary before his birth prophecied saying in the first chapter of Luke That holy birth that shall bee borne of thee shall be called the Sonne of God This high exaltation of Christ given to him for his manhood and sufferance of death for mankinde is like to that that Christ himselfe spake in the last chapter of Matthew saying All power is given to me in heaven and in earth which he spake of his manhood and not of his godhead for by his godhead he had it before he was man It followeth in the Text That in the name of Iesu every knee shall bow down of all things that be in heaven or that be in earth or that be in hell That is to say of Angels of men and of devils For the Angels of heaven at his ascention glorified in him the nature of man bowed downe to him exalted above all Angels And men in earth doe glorifie him and doe kneele downe to him and adore him as their Redeemer and God and man The devils doe stoope downe to him for feare and one of them whom he expelled from a body possessed by him said to him I doe know that thou art the holy one of God And all the devils shall know his power when he shall sit in iudgement rewarding good men and punishing the evill And the bowing downe of every knee is meant the submission of all creatures to their maker not that either Angels or Devils have bodily knees but because we men that have bodies in our submission doe bow our knees And therefore submission of all creatures to their Maker is meant thereby His godhead once knit by his incarnation to his body and his soule never departed after from either of them both but still abode with them that is to say with his body in the sepulcher and with his soule descending into hell never departing from neither of them after his incarnation It followeth in the Text. And every tongue shall confesse and knowledge that Iesu Christ is our Lord to the glory of God his father That is to say to the high preferment thereof for the glory of the Father is to have such a Sonne Lord of all maker of all and God of all To whom all be subjects and doe obey to whom all creatures doe bow downe and whom all tongues doe exalt and glorifie The glory of God the Father is that the Sonne every where be glorified like as where God the Sonne is despised there God the Father is despised and blasphemy spoken against God the Sonne is spoken also against God the Father Like as amonst men dishonour done to the sonne soundeth to the dishonour of the father For betwixt God the Father and God the Sonne there is no difference but that that riseth and commeth by diversity of their persons And therefore the honour or dishonour of God the Son stretcheth to the honour or dishonour of God the Father Where the Sonne is perfect in all things it is the honour of the Father that so begat him of whom he had it And where he needeth nothing it is the honour of his Father of whom he hath all plenty And where he by his godhead is not inferiour to his Father it is the honour of his Father of whom he hath the same substance and the same essence and where he is wise it is the honour of the Father whose wisedome he is and where he is good it is the honour of the Father of whom he hath it And where he is Almighty it is the honour of the Father whose arme he is In all these things it is the high honour of God the Father that he eternally begat a Sonne of so much glory And it is a great demonstration that Christ the Sonne of God is God by nature because he humbled himselfe taking mans nature upon him For he knew that by his humility he could suffer no dammage in the highnesse of his godly nature for his godly nature could not be hid nor kept under nor oppressed by any humility His humility therefore is an evident argument of his naturall godhead And therefore if any man doe desire to be great in vertue let him humble himselfe for humility sheweth the greatnesse of vertue Let him follow Christ in humility and he shall gaine great things thereby He that is poore in vertue feareth to humble himselfe lest he should fall from his fained and dissembled height And he that is rich in vertue doth humble himselfe knowing that he hath in him vertue whereby he shall be exalted which vertue cannot be hid As a candle burning cannot be hid in a dark house nor a sweet smell hid in any corner but it will by the good savour thereof disclose where it is and allure men to take up the thing that so smelleth So we doe see in the Epistle of this day that Christ for his humility hath received exaltation as he himselfe saith in the Gospell in the 23. chapter of Mat. And for his
obedience he hath received high honour to have a name above all names And for his patience and passion he hath received power over all that all creatures doe bow down to him And for his infinite charity against mankinde he doth receive of all faithfull people laud praise and glory And thus have we hitherto declared the literall sense of the Epistle of this day by which ye may see that the humility and obedience of Christ doth furmount all examples of humility and obedience of the old testament as farre as the bright shining of the sunne is above the dimme light of an old lanterne For if we should compare the humility and obedience of Abraham who left his Country of Chaldee by Gods commandement and went forwards not knowing whether he should goe to the humility and obedience of Christ who descended from heaven to be incarnate and suffer death for us in forme of man there is almost no comparison for where all the world is full of misery Abraham went but from one wretched place therof to another much like But Christ being the Sonne of God from the beginning ever in glory and in heaven with his Father where no misery never was nor none can be came downe from heaven to be incarnate and to live in this wretched world knowing it before to be the vale of misery Likewise if we should compare Isaac who when his father went to sacrifice him bare the fagot that should make the fire of his sacrifice to Christ bearing his Crosse when he went to his death whereof Isaac was a figure The obedience of Isaac is farre beneath Christs obedience For Isaac going with his father knew nothing what his father did meane when he bade him beare the faggot which appeareth by that when he asked his father where the sacrifice was that should be burnt But Christ the Son of God before he was incarnate knew all the counsell and secrets of the Father of heaven and yet he was content willingly for our sake to be incarnate and to suffer death upon the Crosse and shewed before to his Disciples that he would and should so doe so that in comparing the great and infinite humility and obedience of Christ with the humility and obedience of other that were in the old Testament we shall finde them to be as Saint Paul saith but figures and shadowes as figures of men painted be farre under the living bodies of men And as the living body of a man farre passeth in substance the shadow of the same so the vertues of Christ so farre doe exceed the vertues of good men that were in the old Testament figures of him that his vertues be further above theirs than heaven is above the earth HItherto we have declared the true sense of the Epistle of this day read in the Church containing so great humility and obedience of our Saviour Christ that neither by the tongue of man it can be worthily expressed nor yet in any wise by mans thought comprised But now let us somewhat speake of the vice and sinne of Disobedience which shall more set forth the incomparable vertue of Christs humility and obedience and also open unto us how farre they be from Christ and how contrary to his doctrine that doe give themselves to disobedience Which disobedience was the first sinne that man after his creation did commit and is alway joyned with all other sinnes as a companion never departing from them For every sin that men doe fall in is done against Gods law so that the transgression and disobedience of Gods law is coupled with every sinne For if we obey Gods law as we ought to doe then we should not sinne And that disobedience was the first sinne done by man after his creation it plainely doth appeare in the third chapter of Genesis where after Adam was put in Paradice by Almighty God and commanded to eate of all the fruits in the same except the tree of knowledge of good and evill which he was commanded to forbeare and not to touch nor eate of the fruit of it the devill in the Serpent said to Eve God that forbade you to eate of that tree knoweth that what day soever ye doe eate of that tree your eyes shall be opened and ye shall be as gods knowing good and evill By which false perswasion the woman induced did eate of the tree forbidden and gave unto her husband who eate also of the same disobeying Gods commandement who commanded that in no wise they should touch it upon paine of death to follow for their disobedience for which disobedience not onely they were forthwith expelled out of Paradice but also they and all mankinde was by the sentence of Almighty God made subject to death and to mortality Disobedience hath also pride evermore annexed unto it which maketh him that disobeyeth to contemne to obey and to care nothing at all to disobey as doth appeare by the fall of the devill described unto us by the holy Ghost in the person of Nabuchadonozor the very childe of the devill in the 14. chapter of Esay where Lucifer an high and bright Angell full of beauty and all cleerenesse as soon as he was create not giving thanks to Almighty God for his naturall gifts given to him in his creation but by pride reputing to have them of himselfe and not of God said in his heart I shall ascend into heaven I shall exalt my seat above the starres of God I shall ascend above the height of the clouds I shall be like to Almighty God But his fall and ruine is forthwith there described where the Prophet addeth saying But yet for all this thou shalt bee plucked downe to hell into the bottome of the lake And Christ also in the Gospell of Luke in the 10. chapter testifieth his fall saying I saw Sathan fall from heaven as a lightning So we see that disobedience of the devill not keeping the order of his creation but surmounting farre above it and contemning the degree that his Maker had put him in was the cause of his fall Now what shall we say of those whom God hath create to be subjects commanding them by his word to obey their Princes and governours Who not onely doe refuse to obey Gods commandement but contrary to his word will be above their Governours in refusing to obey them and furthermore also will have their Princes prostrate upon the ground to whom they owe subjection to adore them by godly honour upon the earth and to kisse their feet as if they were God where they be but wretched men And yet they looke that their Princes should doe it unto them and also all other christian men owing them no subjection should of duty doe the same doe not these as ye thinke follow the pride of Lucifer their father Who make themselves fellowes to God contrary to his word But who I pray you be these that men may know them Surely the Bishops of Rome bee those whom I
devill and his disciples be against thee for God thy protectour is stronger then he and they and shall by his grace give him and them a fall And to shew unto thee that God is on thy side consider that it is written in the 6. chapter of the Proverbs that amongst many crimes there rehearsed that God hateth chiefly he doth detest those persons that sow discord among their brethren as all we christian men be brethren under our heavenly Father also it is written in the 8. chapter of Iohn that those that doe stirre men to murther be children of the divell which was from the beginning of mankinde a murtherer and brought Adam to sinne and thereby to death as the Iewes his children stirred the people to put Christ to death Saint Paul also in the last chapter to the Romans warneth them to beware of those that doe make dissention and debate among them against the doctrine that he had taught them and biddeth them eschue their company wherein the holy Ghost wrought in Paul for these many yeeres past little warre hath beene in these parts of Christendome but the Bishop of Rome eyther hath beene a stirrer of it or a nourisher of it and seldome any compounder of it unlesse it were for his ambition or profit Wherefore since as Saint Paul saith in the 14. chapter of the first Epistle to the Corinthians that God is not God of dissention but of peace who commandeth by his word peace alwaies to be kept wee are sure that all those that goe about to breake peace betweene Realmes and to bring them to warre are the children of the divell what holy names soever they pretend to cloake their pestilent malice withall which cloaking under hypocrisie a double divellishnesse and of Christ most detested because under his blessed name they doe play the divels part And therefore since Christ is on our side against them let us not feare them at all But putting our confidence in Almighty God and cleaving fast to the Kings Majestie our supreame head in earth next under Christ of this Church of England as faithfull Subjects by Gods law ought to doe though they goe about to stirre Gog and Magog and all the ravenours of the world against us We trust in God verily and doubt not but they shall have such a ruine and ouerthrow as is prophecied by Ezechiel in the 39. chapter against Gog and Magog going about to destroy the people of God whom the people of God shall so vanquish and overthrow on the mountaines of Israel that none of them shal escape but their carcasses there to lye to be devoured by Kites and Crowes and birds of the ayre And if they shall persist in their pestilent malice to make invasion into this Realme then let us wish that their great Captaine Gog I meane the Bishop of Rome may come with them to drinke with them of the same cup that he maliciously goeth about to prepare for us that the people of God might after surely live in peace And now that we have spoken of disobedience done to man against Gods law let us somewhat speake of disobedience daily done to God by us all against Gods law which our disobedience is so great that the tongue of man cannot expresse it for Christ saith in the 19. chapter of Matthew to him that asked what he should doe to come to everlasting life If thou wilt enter into everlasting life keepe the Commandements which he there rehearsed unto him when he asked which they were they be written in the 20. chapter of Exodus tenne in number And because I doubt not but ye know them for briefenesse of time I shall omit to rehearse them In the old law which expresseth rewards temporall for the capacitie of the grosse carnall people of Israel many worldly pleasures and rewards be promised to the keepers of those commandements and mervailous great troubles and paines be threatned to the breakers and transgressors of them All which be contained in the 28. chapter of Deuteronomie in so much that in the 8. chapter of that Booke the people of Israel is threatned by Almighty God to be expelled out of the land promised unto them if they should not keepe those Comandements and lawes by him given unto them The Prophet David saith also in the 88. Psalme If the children of David leave my lawes and keepe not my commandements I shall with a rod visite their iniquities and their sinnes with beatings But our Saviour Christ regarding the forgetfulnesse of mans memory lest he should not remember the whole number of tenne hath brought them all into two Commandements comprising in effect the whole tenne of the which two expressed in the 22. chapter of Matthew the first is Thou shalt love thy Lord God with all thy heart with all thy soule with all thy minde This is the first and greatest Commandement containing in it foure Commandements of the first table which be these Thou shalt have no other Gods in my sight Thou shalt grave no image of things that be in heaven above or in earth beneath or in the water under the earth nor with adoration worship them Thou shalt not take the name of God in vaine Thou shalt sanctifie thy Sabbath day No man will breake any of these foure Commandements that loveth God above all things The second Commandement given there by Christ is like unto the first that thou shalt love thy neighbour as thy selfe which comprehendeth all the sixe Commandements of the second Table which be these Thou shalt honour thy father and thy mother Thou shalt not commit adultry Thou shalt not steale Thou shalt not beare false witnesse Thou shalt not lust to have thy neighbours house nor his wife nor his servant nor his maide nor any of his goods No man that loveth his neighbour as himselfe will offend him in any of these for since he loveth himselfe so well that he cannot be content that his neighbour shall offend him in any of these hee in loving his neighbour as himselfe will not offend his neighbour in any of these In these two Commandements saith Christ all the law and the Prophets be contained But for all this we thus plainely being taught by Christ doe fall headlong into all kindes of vices for where we ought to love God above all things we love the world and worldly things above God against the counsell of Saint Iohn in the 2. chapter of his first Epistle For we be so given to concupiscence of the flesh that whatsoever it Iusteth to have we minister it unto it to the concupiscence of our eyes that whatsoever we doe see that liketh us we will have it by one meanes or other Wee be so high also of minde and proud in heart that wee will mount above our degree suffering none to be above us which three faults doe comprehend all vices of the world so that we may say with the Prophet Osee in his 4. chapter There is no truth
of Luke proveth the same where a man having a Vineyard and in the same a Figge tree that bare no fruit bade cut it downe And at the request of his Gardiner suffered it yet longer to see if dung laid to the root would helpe it As oft Almighty God being the Lord of the Vineyard suffereth us being barren to have space to repent and bring forth fruit of good works For it is written in the third of Matthew that every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit shall be cut downe and cast into the fire After as our deeds be so shall our judgement be as Christ saith in the 16 of Matthew the Sonne of man shal come in the glory of his Father with his Angels and shall reward every man after his workes Saint Paul in the 2. chapter to the Romans saith also likewise that God will reward every man after his deeds good or evill And in the 4. chapter of the first Epistle to the Corinthians he saith that every man shall receive his hire after as his labour is so that for good deeds done with faith he shall receive reward and for evill deeds done after faith or out of faith he shall receive punishment Therefore those that say that God ragardeth not our workes done with faith doe say against Christ and his doctrine given to us by him and by his Apostles for since our workes done with faith be the measure of our reward to be greater or smaller as they shall be found to be greater or smaller who so saith that God regardeth not them saith he regardeth not the measure of our reward and yet he saith it shall be measured after our deeds done with faith and so he saith against Christ Saint Paul saith also in the 2. chapter to the Ephesians that by faith which is the gift of God we be of new create in Christ and in good workes that we may walke forwards in them and since he hath created us in good workes to walke in them hee must needs regard them or else he cared not what hee created which is blasphemy and denyall of his high providence Now this holy weeke we be bidden and called to come to the great supper of our blessed Lord Christ Iesus and to eate of the heavenly meate and of the bread of life that came from heaven the blessed body of our Saviour Iesu Christ in the Sacrament of the altar unto which we may not goe in our filthy and spotted coate lest we comming thither not having the cleane garment of our soule that we received at our Baptisme be expelled out of the feast And therefore we must make cleane our garment before we be bold to goe thither But I feare me sore lest many shall make such worldly excuses as be written in a parable in the 14. chapter of Luke some saying they be new married and therefore they may not come Which doe signifie men given so to carnall pleasure of the body that they care not to come to heaven some saying they have bought five yoake of Oxen which doe signifie those that follow the sensualitie of their five senses and worldly businesse some saying that they have bought a Village which signifie those that purchase lands here in earth and care not by faith and good living to purchase heaven All which sort of men shall not taste of that supper as it is there written but God forbid that any of us should be of that sort and therefore let us every man prepare our selves and make cleane our spotted and filthy garment Let us purge and purifie the Tabernacle of our soule and make it a lodging worthy to receive Christ into our house and not to disdaine us for the filthinesse of our uncleane living But how may this be done and by what meanes surely surely by no meane but by penance and repentance and calling for mercy to Almighty God with a sorrowfull heart that we having received so innumerable benefits of God so little have regarded our obedience to his commandements proudly and unkindely despising him and more regarding our own wretched concupiscence pleasure in all worldly delights then God Let us follow the exhortation of Almighty God spoken to us by the mouth of Ioel in the 2. chapter saying Turne ye sinners againe to me by fasting by weeping by much lamenting your miserable estate and teare asunder your hearts and not your cloathes Almighty God will rather regard a sorrowfull and contrite heart to dwell in it then all the Temples that we can build for him as it is written in the last chap. of Esay Let us acknowledge confesse our own faults first before we be accused of them at iudgement Let us weepe for our ungracious life and sure it is God will regard our teares David saith in the 55. Psalme Almighty God I have shewed my life to thee and thou hast put my teares in thy sight We that have used our eyes all the yeere in regarding worldly pleasures so that through vehement joy sometimes the teares have burst out with much laughing now let us weepe as David teacheth us in the 118. Psalme saying to Almighty God The teares have burst out of my eyes because they have not regarded and kept thy law Let us follow the counsell of Saint Paul in the 6. chapter to the Romans saying to us As ye have given your members to serve to injustice to doe wrong so likewise give your members to serve justice to your sanctifying David saith also in the 6. Psalme I have travailed in my wayling I shall wash every night my bed with weeping teares And after that he saith God hath heard the voyce of my weeping for GOD doth regard teares comming forth out of a sorrowfull and contrite heart If thou say thou canst not weepe thou dost confesse thy folly for if thou lose by example any substance of worldly goods as if thy house be robbed thy ship laden with merchandise perished in the Sea thy wife that thou didst love departed thy sonne dead then thou canst weepe much more then enough and where thy soule is by sinne departed from Almighty God which departing from him is the very death of the soule and lyeth stinking in sinne not foure daies as the body of Lazarus did in his grave but much more then foure moneths ye thrice foure moneths canst thou not weepe Surely thou hast great cause to lament thy selfe For what exchange canst thou devise to make so deere to thee as thy soule is Wherefore let us with the sword of the Spirit which as Saint Paul saith is the word of God make a quicke sacrifice of our selves with a sorrowfull heart because wee have broken Gods commandements applying the sharpe word of God to our sinfull life that we may therewith kill our concupiscences and all fleshly and worldly lusts and so making of our sorrowfull heart a sacrifice to Almighty God obtaine his mercy thereby as he hath promised to us by David in the