this life I will neuer rejoyce for all his kingdomes Vnhappie is that man that sunders from Christ what euer he be is he a Lord an Earle a King and in the meane-tyme hes he nothing adoe with God vnhappie is he For the greater blessinges worldly if he be not joyned with God and the Church the greater shall be his damnation Then last here looke what he speakes of loue and of the aboundance of loue it is not single loue but loue that is double and mutuall Mâ—tuall loue that is to say the loue that commes from my hart to thy hart and againe the loue that commes from thy hart to my hart that is mutuall and double this is the loue that he praises the double bond of loue and it must not be a double bond onely betweene two there are sundry thinkes they loue wel-eneugh if they loue one and that one loue them again No the Apostle sayes here Euery member of the body must loue all from the highest to the lowest The hand of a man in the owne sort loues the whole members of the body from the head to the foot honorable or vnhonorable high or low be what it wil no member in the body but it loues all So the loue the Apostle craues is that loue that one hes to all and againe that loue that all hes to one So that there should be no member in the body of Christ but it should be linked in with loue to Christ and euery member of his body There is no member of the body of man but it hes a certaine linke whereby it is linked to the rest The finger of the hand hes a link with the toe of the foot albeit they be far distant So there should be no member of the body of Christ but it shold be linked with euery one of the rest of the members albeit they lay ten thousand myles sundrie It lyes not in our power to cause all men loue 〈◊〉 it lyes not in my power to cause al men loue me nor in thy power to cause all men loue thee but I tell thee what thou should doe looke thou loue all for thy part and if they loue not thee againe they haue to answere to God For he cranes this mutuall loue of vs. This is the mutuall loue that holdes the brethren together if it be not the members cannot be joyned together in the bodie It is true we will neuer get it perfite in this earth for so long as the deuill the flesh and our lulles abydes there wil be euer distraction yet we should striue against the deuill and our owne cankerd nature to be linked and joyned with the members of the bodie vntill we be perfitely joyned with Christ where there shall be no seuering If we were once perfitly joyned with him we shal neuer be seuered hereafter There shall neither be deuil nor canker in nature to leuer vs then Therefore this should be our prayer Lord joyne vs to thee that we may no more be seuered from thee and thy Church by the deuâ—le by sin nor our owne corruption Now in the next verse he amplifies this their faith and great loue Their faith and loue was so great that he was forced to preach their praises in all the Churches wherein he resorted he came to no Church but remembring their great faith and loue he was compelled to preach their praises and to set them forth as an example to be followed Before he thanked God for them and for their faith and loue now he glories in the graces they had receiued before the world men and the churches wher he came in his journey When he thanked God concerning them he vtters neuer one word of their praise but comming among men and speaking to men and to the Church there he praises them Mark this difference Then brethren there is a great difference in speaking of the graces of men when we speake to God and before him when we speak to men and before men When thou speakst to God of man let no praise of man be heard before him be ware of that but let God haue al praise and glory if thou be speaking to God if it were of all the kings of the earth vtter no praise of any king there for in comparison with God kings are but dust and worse nor the dust that is trode vnder foote So let God haue al the praise of any grace he hes giuen to any man and say not Lord I praise thee for this parte of the grace and I giue man praise for that parte of the grace No but say Lord I giue thee the vvhole praise of the grace because all the grace he hes gotten is of thee But when we speak to men and tels them of the graces of God men hes gotten then we may glory in men but with this prouision that it be in God We may commend men before men for their faith loue patience but looke that all this commendation be in God first and then to this end to make men whom thou commendst as examples in wel doing See that thou look to the well of them thou speakst to that they should follow them whom thou praisest for wel-doing If thy minde be puft vp without reuerence of God without respect to the wel of him thou speakst to thou derogatst Gods glory we should be ware when we speak to the praise of any man that we derogate nothing from the glory of God Yet marke further the order he vses He glories not first before men and then begins to thank God but first he turnes to God and giues God the glory of the grace he hes giuen to them We ought to thank God sayes he alvvaies for you as it is 〈◊〉 Then he commes to men and glories of their graces in the presence of men Then brethren it is dew tyme to praise men and to giue them their owne commendation for the graces God hes giuen them when first thou hast glorified God giuing him the first praise and commendation This is the order When thou giuest God the first praise and then commes to men and praises the graces in them before men that praise is in God and he allowes of it But vvhen thou beginnes in praising men to men and remembers not God the giuer of all thou spoilest God of his glorie So vve should take verie good heed hovv vve praise godlie men for verie narrovvlie shall vve escape derogation to Gods glorie except the Spirite connoy the vvhole hart and mouth And therefore in praysing men vve should be vvart vve derogate nothing to the glorie of God vvho is the cheefe giuer of all All the kings of the earth should stoup and giue all honour and glorie to God Now in the end of this verse he sets dovvne the matter of this his glorying Faith namely and with Faith he joynes Patience because of your patience and faith in all your persecutions that ye suffer In
al in al thy speaking and doing on the glorie of that God I confesse there are many impediments casten in betwixt thy eyes and the glorie of God but striue to get a sight of that glorie or else thou shall neuer be partaker of that glorie Thou may haue a shadow of glorie in the world for a while but as the must before the Sunne vanishes away so shall thou and thy glorie vanish away to thy euerlasting confusion if thou striue not to haue the glorie of God before thy eyes Then hes thou anie good graces in thy selfe giue God the glory What hast thou that thou hast not receyued 1. Cor. 4. 7. Giue him the glorie and praise of all if it were eating and drinking at thy dinner looke that thou eat to his glorie and drinke to his glorie 1. Cor. 10. 31. And say in the meane-tyme I doe not this so much to feede this mortall bodie as I doe it to glorifie thy Majestie When thou liues liue to him deying die to him consecrate thy life and death to him Fye on vs that can not learne to giue the glorie of all to our Redeemer As for mee brethren I craue nothing more nor that the glorie of God may shine before my eyes in my vocation that when I speake or thinke all maye be to his glorie that in the end I may haue this assurance that I shall bee glorified vvith him for euer But yet to sticke to the wordes He sayes not I giue thanks but vve giue thankes I and Siluanus and Timotheus giue thanks Hee sayes not for an handfull or a certaine nomber of you but for you all He sayes not for a tyme but alvvayes Marke all these wordes He sayes vve all and that for all vve thanke euer It is a large thanking and it testifies that the graces shovvne on the Thessalonians vvere large When the graces of God are shovvne on me on thee or on anie people thy heart must not bee narrovv but it must bee enlarged and thy mouth must be oppenned vvyde to praise and magnifie God the geuer of all Or else I assure thee vvhen his grace is large if thy heart be narrovv and thy mouth be oppenned but a little the Lord shal draw in his hand diminish his grace to thee So is sene of it in Edinburgh this day the graces of god on thee ô Edinburgh were large but thy heart was narrow and thy mouh was not oppened wide Therefore the Lord is pinching his graces if it so continew woe will be to thee Go this grace of the Ministrie away and the Lord close mens mouthes and let them not speak to thee all thy grace is gone and I thinke the Lord is beginning to pinche his graces on vs for that glorious Gospell which was preached with great libertie and was so powerfull in the land hes lost the power and the nomber of the godlie of the land is contracted for the one depends vpon the other therefore cry that the Lord may make his grace abound and that he would continew with vs the light of his Euangell Now to the next words He joynes with thankes-geuing prayer Praier ioyned vvith thāks-geuing Making mention of you in our prayers It is not aneugh to thank God for the grace that eyther we or others haue receyued but also thou must pray Cry for grace and continuance of grace for I assure thee if vvith thankes-geuing there be not prayer for continuance the grace receyued shall decay Amongst all the rest of the meanes the Lord hes appoynted for continuance of grace earnest prayer to God is an especiall meane So as thou vvouldst haue thy selfe standing in grace pray euer for grace for there is no moment but vve are readie to fall away except the Lord hold vs vp The meane to entertaine grace is earnest prayer The Lord holde vs vp and let vs not fall but if the meane be not vsed fall shall vve thogh all the vvorld had said the contrair It is to be marked farther He sayes in our prayers As hee would say in our daylie prayers we are accustomed to pray to God in our daylie prayers we forget you not but we remember you Marke this Brethren He is not meete to pray for others that can not pray for himselfe nor hes no acquaintance nor accesse to God Who can solist for any man when he hes no accesse to him vvhom hee folists Canst thou pray for me to my God and thou haue no accesse to him He vvho vvill pray for others must be vvell acquainted vvith God and haue a daylie accesse to him And hovv svveete a thing is it to haue familiar accesse to him for all the joy of the world is not comparable to that joy which the soule findes when it is exercised with the Lorde familiarlie for when thy heart is with him no doubt he is with thee Alasse beastlie man fy on thee that euer thou was borne and thou haue not that svveete sense of joy that flowes from the meditation on the Lord wilt thou let thy soule be euer stupide and senslesse vvilt thou neuer be a Citizen of Heauen expecting for the glorious comming of Christ but ay ly as a sowe muzling and grountling vpon the earth vvilt thou neuer look vp with thy eyes to Heauen vvilt thou ay be looking dovvn If thou doe so thou shalt fall dovvn at last to that euerlasting damnation The Lord raise vs vp for heauy are we we are dead lumps ay tending downward can get no rising vp the Lord raise vp our soules therfore to heuen Now followes the cause wherefore he rejoyses with them in the next verse Without ceasing remembring your effectuall faith That is one and diligent loue that is tvvo the third is and the patience of your hope in the Lord Iesus Christ in the sight of God euen our Father Heere brethren not to escape the wordes I see first an vncessant and perfite remembrance of the graces God hes geuen his people as Faith Charitie and Patience I see then in the example of Paul Siluanus and Timotheus that in the memorie and heart of the godlie the graces of God showen eyther on themselues or others makes a deepe impression when they see the graces of God they take a deepe apprehension of them In the wicked it is otherwise let God raine down graces from Heauen on them selues and others also as they come so they goe they remember neuer a good turne doen to them Now on this remembrance followes prayer they remember with joy euer praying remembring by night euer praying remēbring by day euer praying at lest in the hart if not outwardly in words Marke it a man that would pray wel to God must be of a good remembrance vvould thou pray well remember well Prepare thee to pray by remembrance of the blessings of God and pray then What matter hast thou of prayer when thou remembers not his blessings So all tends to this that thou
what was his calling He sayes The Gospell vvas committed to me That is his calling Therefore saye he so vve speake Looke what is euery mans calling Euery man in a faithful discharge of his own calling is bounde to please God He saieth not God allowed of me therefore I please him in playing the part of a king or magistrate but he hes called me to be a minister therfore I wil please him in speaking Then let euerie man set his heart to please God in his owne calling So there are two things vve should respect in seruing God First do all to please him Secondlie in the calling he hath placed thee into chieflie studie to please him Keep these tvvo and then thou shalt be acceptable vnto him In the end of the verse he subjoynes But God vvho approoueth our hearts These vvordes containe an assurance that Paule had in his heart that in speaking and discharging of his calling hee pleased God God within me had his secreete allowance God in my hart as he allowed of me first ere I had grace and placed me in the Ministrie so now when he has geuen me grace to please him he allowes of me There are two sorts of Gods allowing The first is when God allowes of any man before he haue anie grace 2. sorts of Gods allovving and by his allovvance makes him able to doe good the second is vvhen he allowes of him in the vvorke he hes geuen him by his grace The first allowance moues a man to serue his God and to do all things in his calling the second allowance is a warrand to him that he hes done well Alwaies the lesson is If thou set thy selfe to please God thou shalt neuer vvant a vvitnesse of thy doings thou shalt neuer want a secreete testimonie within thy selfe albeit all the vvorld should close their mouth and neuer speake to thee thou doest well settest thou thy selfe to serue God he shall round in thy eare and tell thee of thy wel-doing and giue thee a secreete joye By the contrair doest thou euill art thou an harlote settest thou thy selfe to displease God who hes geuen thee all things thou shalt get a bitter witnesse in thy hart saying false villaine thy pleasure is in displeasing God ô catiffe thou art adjudged to condemnation Iohn 1. Epist 3. 20. sayes If thy heart condemne thee God is greater then thy heart much more will he condemne thee take head to thy conscience if thy conscience tell thee thou doest well the Lord approues thy doing otherwise if thy conscience telles thee thou does euill the Lord disallowes thee Now as he hes remooued from him before all sortes of vnsincere doing and tooke to him sinceritie in speaking to please God in all things who gaue him his allowance he goes deeper in the verse following and he remoues from him the soull vyces out of the which springs the vnsinceritie in dealing The first is called flattering words the second auarice the third ambition insatiable greed of honour and estimation Foūtaines of vnsinceritie He remoues all these three which are as as many fountaines wherefrom vnsinceritie springs It is not my purpose to insist largelie on these vices Onelie I shall speake as accords to this place The first then is flatterie Flatterie for no man vsed he anie flattering wordes in preaching Marke the lesson When a Preacher is inclyned to flatter and fletche on earth either King Queene Councell or subject man or woman he is not sincere in his calling There is none of vs in no degree but we may be yea and would be flattered The Apostle is speaking heere of flatterie not of Kings or Princes but of the flattering of the Thessalonians Neither did vve vse flattering vvordes sayes he But my lesson is Where any Minister is set to flatter and fletche on the earth that man ere all be done will fall out in false doctrine he will frame himself so to the affection of them whom he would flatter that he wil be vnsincere in doctrine Why The fountaine of flatterie is the foull crooked affection of man or woman and so if the vaine man wil apply himself to the crooked affection of man the doctrine shall be crooked ere he faile in flatterie he shall fall out in false doctrine The heart of them who speakes in the name of the Lord Iesus must be set onelie on God and not vpon any man on earth Well the Apostle takes them to be witnesses of this and sayes As ye knovv It easie to knowe a flatterer his wordes will bewray him he will commonlie call God to witnesse but not men Men shold behaue themselues so that they take not ay God onelie but also good men to be witnesses to their doinges Paul heere takes not God but the people of Thessalonica to be witnesse saying ye knovv It is true brethren albeit the words wil bewray the flatterer yet such is the blindnes of man who vvith selfe-loue is set to pleasure his foull affection that if a man wold neuer so plainelie flatter him in his face yet oft times he can not perceiue the flattery and he beleues this fained flatterer to be his greatest friend The Lord keepe vs from such flatterers lighten our eies vs grace that we may discerne them The next verse The seconde vice is auarice and he calles it the pretence of auarie Auarice your books turnes it nor coloured couetousnes Auarice in anie man is dangerous but chieflie in a Minister it will make him to do much euill for if his heart be set on auarice and that be his end and purpose to vvin the worlde he will in the end fall out in corrupt doctrine for the rule of his teaching being his ovvne bellie and gaine ere he faile to get his purpose hee will teach false doctrine It maye be there be some men in this lande vvhose hearts are so set on this sort of auarice that they vvould say masse ere they should vvant their gaine After that this vice of auarice raigne in anie man it vvill misguide him maruellouslie he wil leaue nothing vndone to get his filthy hart satisfied in anie estate in the vvorld an auaritious heart workes much mischiefe In the next words he takes God to be witnes sayes God is my record Auarice is not sodanely perceiued because it comes in with so faire a colour the colour of godlines the fairest colour that is and the sight of man is so short that it can not looke in to the corners of the heart full of guile But the Lorde hes an eye that can looke through thy bodie in to thy hart and he can tell thee whether auarice be in thee or not And therfore Paule takes God to be vvitnes that his heart was cleane of auarice Then learne there is nothing so hid in man but he will get a witnes thereof if man can not be vvitnes God vvho sees all things hee shall be vvitnes to thee and
childe so he takes a similitude from a mother toward her infant there is no busines nor care the mother wil leaue vndone for the infant nor respecting her hyre or gaine but vpon an inteere affection to the infant Then learne shortlie A pastor must be like a mother Paul Gall. chapter 4. verse 19. compares him selfe to a mother trauailing in birth vntill Christ be reformed in them O my little children vvith vvhom I trauaile in birth vvhile Christ be reformed in you Novv he coÌ„pares the pastor to a nource taking paines to nourish them when they are borne vpon a motherlie affection without eyther respect to goods or honor and he compares the people who by the pastor are fed in Christ nourished by the sincere milk of the vvord to infants As a yong infant craues no other nourishment but milke no more shouldst thou craue to be nourished with any other food but the sinceere milke of the word and as the infant would die except he be fed with milke so all they that refuses to be nourished with this sincere milke of the word if they continew die shall they Thou Lord Laird or Barron Husband-man die shall thou if thou be not nourished with this sincere milke of the worde If it be so betweene the people and the Pastor Affection of the Pastor to the flocke as betwene the childe and the mother the Pastors lesson is Looke what tender affection the mother hes to her birth to cherishe it to take paines and trauaile to wake and watch ouer it and all vpon a motherly affection without respect of honour or gaine the lyke shoulde thy affection be towards thy flocke and on paine of thy lyfe looke thou seeke them and not theirs The Mother seekes the well of her childe and not his goods nor honour so seeke thou the well of thy flocke and not their goods nor honour and let thy affection be motherlie and when thou sees the motherlie affection of the mother to the childe say The Lord giue me such an affection to my people as this mother hes to her childe let my honour and gaine be to get them nourished The honour of a Minister is in Heauen and not in earth his gaine is in Heauen So Paul sayeth 1. Thess 219. What is our hope or ioy or crovvn of reioysing are not euen you it in the presence of our Lord Iesus Christ at his comming to glorifie his elect To this Christ with the Father and the holy Spirite be glorie and honour for euer AMEN THE SIXT LECTVRE VPON THE FIRST EPISTLE OF PAVL TO THE THESSALONIANS 1. THESSA CHAP. 2. vers 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 8 Thus being affectioned tovvard you our good vvill vvas to haue dealt vnto you not the Gospell of God onelie but also our ovvne soules because ye vvere deare vnto vs. 9 For ye remember brethren our labour and trauaile for vve laboured day and night because vve vvould not be chargeable vnto any of you and preached vnto you the Gospell of God 10 Ye are vvitnesses and God also hovv bolilie and iustlie and vnblameablie vve behaued our selues among you that beleeue 11 As ye knovve hovv that vve exhorted you and comforted and besoght euerie one of you as a father his children 12 That ye vvoulde vvalke vvorthie of God vvho hath called you vnto his kingdome and glorie THE Apostle ye remember brethren leauing off for a tyme the purpose that was in hand to witte that rejoysing he had with them for the graces of God was in them In the second chapter he falles out to a discourse concerning himselfe making mention of his manner of entrie among them how it was not in vaine For when he entred among them he entred with libertie although that hee had suffered immediatlie before at Philippi notwithstanding of the battaile he had in the meane tyme while he preached to them Thereafter ye heard the last day he remoued from him selfe all suspition of vnsincere dealing in preaching the Gospell chalenging to him self sincerity in preaching Seing in preaching and speaking he had not man before his eyes but God not content onlie to remoue from him vnsinceritie in 〈◊〉 he discends to the fountaines of vnsinceritie and vncleane dealing which are three namelie flatterie auarice 〈◊〉 and these three rootes of vnsincere and vncleane dealing in the 〈◊〉 he remoues from him he flattered them not he was not greedie of their goods he was not greedie of honour Albert saieth he I might haue beene chargeable to you as the Apostle of Christ ye were addebted to me both of your goods and honour yet I would haue none of them but I liued in the midst of you vnburdensome submitâ—ing my selfe to all fashâ—ie and paines for your sakes as a mother nourishing her childe will vndertake all paines for the childe so did I for you Now in the first vvords of this text we haue red that vvhich he spoke of the nource cherishing her childe he applyes to him selfe Thâ—â— sayes he 〈…〉 tovvardâ— you The vvord is in the first language I was desirous of you I had a longing desire of you such desire as a mother hes to her infant she can not suffer her infant to be out of her sight to be absent from her incontinent she grieâ—es for it she is not well vvhile thee haue it in her sight The same affection sayes the Apostle I beare tovvards you I loue you I can searcelie vvant your presence for being absent from you I haue a continual care of you There is the meaning of the wordes in the which ye see that loue that motherlie affection to call it so the Apostle bare to this Church of Thessalonica The first grace in the Pastor is to loue his flock this is the ground of all the rest if he want it all the rest is deare of the hauing if he had all the learning and eloquence and vtâ—â—â—ance of men and Angels all is nothing if there be not loue and affection in his heart to his flock Paul 2 Cor. 6. recounting our many marks of the Apostle which he bare amongst the rest in the 6. verse of that chapter he accountâ— vnfamed loue to be one for nombring those marks he declares what spirituall loue he bare to the Corinthians saying in the 11. verse O 〈◊〉 my mouth is open to you our heart is made large so that if it were possible I vvould take you in my heart ye dvvell not narrovvlie in me but ye dvveâ—l 〈◊〉 in your ovvne bovvelles I loue you but ye loue not me so intirelie as I doe you In the 11. chapter of that Epistle verse 28. stryuing vvith the â—alse Apostles he shovves vvhat carefulnesse he had of the Church Beside sayeth he 〈…〉 I haue the care for 〈…〉 of the vvorlde 〈…〉 but I am afflicted I vnderstand there are none afflicted but I am afflicted vvith him 〈…〉 It is vvonderfull to knovve vvhat affection hee bare to the Church of Christ Ye
hes beene afflicted before him and scarcelie shall he see a godlie man but vvith his burdene on his backe all is not laid on him alone But aboue all let the persone that is afflicted first set his eye on the Lord Iesus Let him looke ouer to Golgotha vvhere Christ is hanging on the Crosse and in Christ let him looke to tvvo thinges first to the glorie worthinesse of that personage who sufferes next to the extremitie and ignominie of that passion looke to these two things in him and then looke down to thy selfe and looke what thou art first not a Lord if thou were a King but a seruant all the Kings on the earth are but seruants in respect of him then go to the affliction thou suffers and thou shalt finde thou suffers not the thowsand part of the affliction he suffred for thee there is great inequalitie betweene thee and him and then beginne to reason The seruant is not greater nor his Lord the disciple is not greater nor his Maister The Lord Iesus is my Lord I am not but a seruant yet the Lord Iesus my Lord suffers and in such great extremity then may I not be content to suffer the thousand part of his suffering Of this comes contentment of heart and patience to suffer for the Lord. For except thy eye be set vpon that personage of Iesus Christ it is not possible for thee to suffer with joy the simplest crosse that is for the Lords sake The next point of their dittay they haue slaine their ovvn Prophets Persecution of the Prophets This they did ere they slevv the Lord albeit it be set in the second rovvâ—â—e They haue slaine vvhom Prophetes vvorthie men Whose Prophets not strangers but men of then own nation Iewes as they vvere their ovvne Prophets sent by God to them to teach and prophecie to them to bring them to the way of life yet they haue runne vpon them and haue slaine them all aggreages their fact Ye vvill aske vvas these Ievves that slevv the Prophets the same that slevv the Lord Iesus they wer not in the Prophets dayes they came long after I answer he vnderstands the whole bodie of that people fathers and children which makes vp a bodie The fathers slew the Prophets Therfore Steuen sayes Act. 7. 52. Which of them is he vvhom your fathers haue not persecuted Then he comes to the children as for you that are children ye haue betrayed and slaine the iust one This is it that Christ sayes in the 23. chap. of Matt. vers 32. Ful 〈◊〉 out that or follow out that that your fathers haue left vndone slay me and my Apostles Yet there may be an other answere made to this It may be that he will lay to the charge of them that slew the Lord Iesus the slaughter of the Prophets as though they had slaine them with their owne hands Posteritie guilty through their fathers For ye must vnderstand that the children that come after their Fathers are inuolued in the whole guiltinesse that their fathers were in before them Was he a murtherer thou art guiltie of murther were thy Grandfather and his father murtherers thou art inuolued in the same guiltinesse and except thou by grace be transplanted out of the rotten stock of thy fore-fathers in Iesus thou shalt die for that murther of thy fathers All the sinnes of thy progenitors shal be hung about thy neck if thou be not exeemed and â—lanted in Iesus Christ Yea that sinne of Adam for eating of the frute shall be laid to thy charge and thou shalt pay for it if thou be not transplanted out of rotten Adam and ingraft in Iesus Christ the second Adam Rom. 5. 14. Not onelie is this naturall corruption drawen to children throgh propagation but the children are inuolued in the guiltinesse of the verie action of the progenitours All serues to this to make fathers to be waie and to take head to their actions that they slay not themselues allone but the multitude of their posteritie as Adam slew vs all Yet there is an other ground and answere to this These Iewes that slew the Lord Iesus are counted to haue slaine the Prophets before them The ground and cause is this I would that all murthereis did heare this Slayest thou an innocent man such as Abel the whole innocent bloud that was shed since the beginning lights vpon thee thou art guiltie of it And therefore Christ Matt. 23. 36. layes to the Ievves charge the whole innocent bloud shedde since Abell vnto Zacharias that vvas slaine betweene the temple and the altar Therfore murtherer take head thou shalt drowne in bloud for by thy act thou giuest approbauen to al those murtherers that were from the beginning Thou makest it a pastime to dip thy hand in innocent bloud but wo to thee if thou be not washed in the bloud of christ This for the answer to the question Now marke brethren When he speakes of the slaughter of the Lord Iesus committed by these Iewes he forgets not the old Prophets and with the Lords he joines his seruants neither forgets he the Apostles Both the persecution the persecutors are recent in Gods memorie and vs also haue they persecuted al are put in one catalogue the olde Prophetes the Lord Iesus the Apostles and Martyres that were slaine And who doeth this It is not so much Paul as the holie Spirite that doth it which is a token that all the martyrdomes that haue bene is and to be was not is not nor shal not be forgot of the Lord they are all in recent memorie And suppose there were not a booke of Martyres vvritten in the earth yet there is a booke in Heauen written and all the Martyres from the beginning are registrate in it and that book shall be laid oppen before man Angels ye shall see them not in pictures but in face And again he remembers the Iewes who did it so as there is a booke of Martyres in heauen so is there a booke of persecuters wherein all their names are written and in that great day the booke shall be laide oppen and shall be presented to their eyes to their rebuke shame and eternall confusion So the Lord hes all in remembrance the Lord hes a recent memorie a thousand yeeres are but like a day to him and a day as a thousand yeeres albeit we will forget all yet all is recent in his memorie And this is verie comfortable to the afflicted and it is terrible to the persecutors Woe is that man that hath not his sinnes forgote and pardoned of the Lord. There is not one teare of the sufferer but it is put vp in his bottle This for the second point of their dittay Let vs novve come to the third point The Iewes vvere not content with the slaying of the Prophetes and of the Lord Iesus himself but when he is away they persecute his Apostles A wonderful thing that this people can not hold
seuere them that should be joined as it is the worke of God to joine them together Now let vs goe to the last part of this text containing a weightie reason first of his desire and next of his purpose to come to them These are the wordes For vvhat is our hâ—pe ioy vvhat is crovvne of my glorying There is the question and demand The answere of it is Are not ye in the presence of our Lord Iesus at his comming Then he doubles it yea sayes he yee are my ioy and my glorie and so he endes Where a mans hope is there is the thinge he hopes and lookes for where his joye and crowne and glorie is there he would be that is to say where his blessâ—â—â— is there wold he be Noâ— Paul vvold say Ye Thessalonians are my hope my joy my crown of the which I glorie therefore I woulde be with you There is the force of the argument Now the style of the language would be marked for the same Spirite that dytes the matter dytes the style and spirituall matter craues a Spirituall style 1. Cor. 2. 13. The holie spirite of Iesus must be the speaker as wel as the dyter His language ryses vp by degree by degree the lowest degree is in the vvord hope the next degree is in the word joy the last and hiest degree is in the vvord crowne vvhereby is meaned a most high and excellent glorie This learnes vs this lesson Heauen would haue an high style that crowne would haue an hie style the grace of Iesus Christ woulde haue an hie style when it is spoken of And brethren if Heauen be in the heart as it is in the mouth and if glorie be in the heart as it is in the mouth and if the Crovvne of glorie be in the heart as it is in the mouth the mouth vvill euer be readie to speake of grace of joye and of glorie in a glorious style for it is true Of the aboundâ—nce of the heart the mouth speaketh And I vvould demaund of you what is the occasion that men doe speake so couldlie and careleslie of the Lord of glorie and so baselie of so glorious thinges as of heauen and of the joye thereinto Alas the occasion is the vvant of sense in the heart the heart is not filled with such thinges and therefore an emptie heart an emptie mouth if thy hear be full of vanitie thy mouth vvill be full of vanitie and euanish in painting out of vanitie for looke as thou art disposed in heart in like manner shalt thou bee disposed in mouthe Therefore seeke to haue thy heart furnished fullie vvith the Spirite of Iesus No man sayes the Apostle can call Iesus Lord but by the Spirite 1. Epist Corin. 〈◊〉 12. 3. Yee more Speaking of this joye he passes vp by degrees The lowest is hope then he comes to an higher my â—oy then the highest is 〈…〉 on their glorie The greatest glorie in the earth is a crowne and when a man is crowned in the earth he can be no higher But there is the difference The crowne in the earth is corruptible but the crowne of heauen is incorruptible It is of this crown of heauen he speaks Yet not these three degrees for I marke this passing vp by degrees in sundry 〈◊〉 parts for when the Apostle begiâ—â—nes to speake of Iesus he can be satisfie himselfe in vvords and 〈…〉 Praying iâ— God 〈◊〉 yee may 〈◊〉 sayes hee vvhat is theâ— hope of his calling there is the first step he stands not there he goes vp to see what the 〈…〉 his glorie what glorie of his 〈…〉 〈◊〉 among his saints this is the second degree yet he stands not there and vvhat is that excellent greatnes of his power according to the efficacie of his strong strength There he stands Brethren these are not vvords but this rising vp tels vs the hight of the glory of heaueÌ„ is wonderful that thou mayest attaine to it thou must rise to it by degrees that is thou must passe from sense to sense from grace to grace from light to light from oye to joye from glorie to glorie as the Apostle speakes 2. Corinth 3. 18. So long as thou liuest thou must finde this climming of thy heart sensiblie that thou growest in joye and that thou hast more joye this yeere then before and so striue continually vntil thou come to the point euer striuing for perfection in this lyfe which shall be compleat when we shall see our Lord Iesus Christ Now he calles it the crowne of glorying that is that makes him to glorie in God who crownes him Brethren when the heart is filled with glorie in Iesus christ the mouth shall not be dumbe but it shall oppin and vtter that passing joy and the persone shall euer glorie in him vvho hes set that crowne on him O that infinite glorie and rejoysing that shall be in that glorious Majestie now we tyre searcelie are we begun to glorie in him but the heart beginnes as soone to tyre but then there shall be no tyring nor wearying the voice shall neuer cease but glorie in that Creator for euer and ever Byde in patience while ye attaine vnto this glorie and in all troubles let the hope of this glorie comfort thee Rom. 5. 2. For there is nothing that abydes but this glorie col Now if hope made vs to rejoyce how much more present sight present joy and the crovvne put on our heads vvill make vs to rejoyce and vvith gladnesse and loude voyce to praise him who â—â—es crowned vs for euer In the latter end of the verse he makes an answer to his owne demand are not ye sayes he c. He calles the Church â—isâ—oy and his crowne not that properlie his blessednesse was in them for onelie Iesus Christ is called our hope our joy our glorie and crowne Onelie Iesus Christ is our lyfe onelie Christ is our solace he hes no companion but he calles them his hope and joy in an other sense Because they wer the meane and matter wherby he attained to the joy solace and crowne which is in Iesus Christ It is then an improper fashion of speaking for the people in whom our ministrie is effectuall to saluation is the meane whereby we shal be glorified in the Heauen Marke this speaking of the matter of his joy He speakes not of his Apostleship and sayes not it is the meane of my joy but he sayes the blessing giuen me in my Apostleship in sauing you is the meane of my joy Faithfull discharge of a calling a mater of ioy The matter of thy joy in the lyfe to come and of thy crowne where-with thou shalt be crowned in Heauen it is not so much a calling if it were the calling of a King it will not be that that wil make thee be crowned in Heauen no it must be the faithfull discharge of thy calling toward them with whom thou hast adoe Art thou a King the faithfull
discharge of a King in keeping the people in good order and peace will be the meane of thy crowning in heauen Art thou a pastor intending to win manie soules to the kingdome of heauen it shall be a meane of thy crowning in that great day When a crowne shall be set on a kings head or a pastors head it shal not be his calling that shal be the cause of his crowning he was an Emperor therefore he must haue a crovvne in heauen it vvill not follow if there be no more He vvas a pastor therfore he must haue a crovvne in heauen no it shall be that blessing and frute that God gaue thee in the faithfull discharge in thy calling heere that shall be the meane of thy crowning And therefore let neuer fleshe glorie in any calling if there be no more if the blessing of the Lord be not with thy calling thou hast cause of mourning and thou shalt say in that day woe to me that euer I was a King an Emperour a Pastor if there be not a faithfull discharge of thy calling the greater damnation falles vnto thee the greater thy calling be Now to end he is speaking of this rewarde that he was to receiue at Christs comming and he speakes not of these earthlie stipends how beit their be much adoe and stryfe for them in the land if they wer neuer so selie he speakes not of these goods or anie thing that pertained to them but the reward of his Apostleship he speaks of is that he claimes themselues ye are my hope sayes he ye are my ioy euen ye your selues So in one worde the rewarde of a faithfull Apostle shall not be the 〈◊〉 of this earth for as niggard as men are of it no it shall not be his manâ—e his 〈◊〉 two or three â—halders of â—â—â—uall or an hndreth marke rest all not be this but it shall be the soules of all them hee did vvinne heere on earth and the Lord shall say to him take them and let them be a matter of joy of glorie and honour for euer to thee Well he will not wishe ought of the durt of the earth but their owne selues whom he will professe as the rewarde of his faithfull calling to his euerlasting joy I goe forward before whom and in whose presence shall this joy and crowne of glorying be He sayes before the Lord Iesus Christ it must be done in his sight hee must be before hee must be the doer of all it must be he that shall take thee by the hand and giue thee to the Apostle and pastor and saye Take man there is the matter of thy glorie and crowne make it a matter to thee of thy joy for euer Brethren there is no joy but in the face and presence of Iesus there is no light but that that comes from his face and countenance It is true the pastor ministers light but if in the meane time the light of Iesus shine not in thy heart all is but vaine and lost labour And therefore Paul 2. Cor. 4. 6. sayes all this light must come from Iesus Christ and thou must holde vp that heart of thine that the light of Iesus may shine in it And he sayes also as soone as the heart is turned the vaâ—le is remoued 2. Cor. 3. 16. and the face of the Lord illuminates thee For what trow you the light be the joy be the glorie be that we shall receiue in one word vvhat trow you heauen be Al the light in heauen is nothing but as a reflexe of that light that is in Iesus Christ al the light and glory of heauen is 〈◊〉 like sparkles scattred from him for all glorie is in him And therefore if ever thou looke for joy and glorie addresse thy selfe for Ieses Christ and as thou wouldst liue either here or hence 〈◊〉 to his presence and thinke neuer thou art well vntill you get 〈…〉 that presence Let nothing so bewitch thee 〈…〉 of heart vntill thou getst some light of Iesus Christ 〈…〉 is no life nor joye within him I aske thy conscience Didst thou euer feele that solide joy and life but when thy heart was set on that countenance of Iesus Foole thou mayst rejoice like a dog or beast with a sensuall pleasure but woe to thy joye and peace there is no peace to the vvicked for when thou art so passing thy time out of Iesus the judgement shall sodainelie ouertake thee for there is no saluation out of Iesus When shal this be At this comming It is true we vvalke heere in his presence and that joye that comes downe from Heauen it comes through that glorious bodie wherewith he is cled but the sacietie of all shall not be vntill the eye see it thy glorie shall not be perfited while then I tell you all the light we haue now the Apostle calles it the light of the Euangell of the glorie of God it is his face that shines in a mirror thou seest him no otherwise but then this mirror shall be taine avvay and the face of Iesus shall be holden vp in your sight Brethren while we are here the light coÌ„mes from heauen and ouer shadowes and transformes the soule onlie and that not fullie but in a part but when he shall come he shall transforme not the soule onelie but these vilde bodies and make them conforme to his glorious bodie Phil. 3. 21. And so there must be a greater force in his owne presence nor is in the mirror of the Gospell And thou that takest a pleasure to see Iesus in the mirror of the Gospell and to be ouershadowed with the light of the Gospell the face of Iesus shall shine on thee and by the contrair thou that takest no pleasure in the mirror of the Gospell thou shalt neuer attaine to the sight of Iesus Wilt thou continue in hatred of the ministrie of Iesus Christ thou shalt neuer see the glorious countenance of Iesus In the end of this chapter not being content to tell this once he sayes it againe yes ye are my ioy This doubling proceedes of a persuasion that he had of that glorie in a word let a Minister be faithfull to winne many soules to pleasure God and Iesus Christ who will recompence him so aboundantlie The glorie is sure the joy is sure and if he finde faithfulnesse and a blessing in his calling in this lyfe as the joye and glorie is certaine so when he is going out of this lyfe he may be sure and may say with confidence I shall enter in my joy and my soule and bodie shall be crowned with his crowne of joy and glorie and all in the presence of the Lord Iesus To whom with the Father the holie Spirite be all praise AMEN THE TENTH LECTVRE VPON THE FIRST EPISTLE OF PAVL TO THE THESSALONIANS 1. THESSA CHAP. 3. vers 1. 2. 3. 4. 1 Wherefore since vve could no longer forbeare vve though it good to remaine at Athens alone 2 And haue
of this countrie They thinke it eneugh here if they put in any man to be a show in their offices ô if thou knew what count thou must giue to the Lord for thy doing thou wouldest doe the worke of the Lord more carefullie Yet to insist on this commendation of Timothie It is an high commendation and all tends to this that he shoulde be well accepted of the Thessalonians to whom he was directed that so he might doe them the more good Therefore the Apostle sent him adorned with this faire testimone Good meÌ„ deserue good commendatioÌ„ Brethren When we see good men in Church or common-weal we should giue them their own commendation why should not the Prince haue his ovvne commendation in sight of the people vvithout flattrie why should not the Pastor haue his honour but to this end Paul looked to that they might be well accepted among the people the next end that being honoured among them they may get obedience So euerie good man should haue his owne authoritie among the people to doe his goode turnes The Lord grant that euerie man who hes office may haue matter of recommendation within himselfe that when he is praised he be not flattered The Lord grant that the Prince may haue matter of his commendation and the Pastor matter of his commendation to this end that their labours be not in vaine Now to go forward with the words Wherefore is this good man Timothie sent to the Thessalonians not to play him not to looke about him but to confirme the Thessalonians in that faith in the which they were grounded by the Apostle The office of the Euangelist vvas to confirme men in that faith which was had down by the Apostles to watter that which the Apostles had planted Paul planted Apollo vvattred 1. Cor. 3. 6. So Timothie was sent to do his ovvne office his owne office was to confirme them vvho were grounded Brethren ye haue heard heere before a great deale spoken of that singulare faith which the Thessalonians had and read in the whole Epistles of Paul ye shall not finde such a commendation giuen to anie Church as to these Thessalonians they were examples to the whole Churches about them as to Macedonia Achaia c. the word of them went abroad to all people and yet Timothie must be sent to them to establishe them Marke it There is none in this life so vvell grounded on the faith of Iesus ConfirmatioÌ„ of faith necessarie to all men on this life but night and day they haue neede of confirmation yea euen at the last breathe when thou art going out of this world thou must craue a confirmation for there is no perfection in this lyfe nothing in this lyfe but beginning of grace Let none thinke he standes if he thinks so he deceyues himselfe and the man who thinkes he stands he is readiest to fall There is nothing heere but either to grow or decay no standing So we haue neede continuallie of a confirmation faith in Christ is set downe to vs as a ground wherevpon we are established Continuallie euerie houre and moment we craue a setling on that ground for why the sea of the ovvne nature is not so subject to commotion and slovving as the heart of a man When it is set dovvne once in that faith vvhich is the foundation leaue it there it shall returne to the ovvn nature againe Then ye see the sea vvhen it flowes on a rock immediatlie the jaw returnes backe againe in the sea So our heart set on Christ except by grace it be daylie hourlie momentlie setled it vvill returne backe againe to the ovvne nature of it There vvas neuer moe vvindes nor stormes on the sea to cause it rage nor is daylie and hourelie brangling our faith if it were possible to beate thy faith off the grouÌ„d-stone Thou neuer seest thing with thy eye but it is a blast of wind to beat thee off thy ground thou neuer hearst thing but it is a blast to beate thee off thy ground Prosperitie a blast of wind to thee aduersitie a blast off winde to beate thee off thy rocke Christ Iesus the scorning vvorld is a winde to beate thee from Christ all â—â—nâ—ations are as manie windes to tosse thee heere and there that thou settle not Looke then if we haue neede to be confirmed more and more in the faith of Christ The next words telles the maner of the establishing of our faith And to comfort The first word was borrowed the next vvorde makes it plaine The maner is seeing the heart of man is ay fleeting Therefore we haue sent to comfort you touching your faith The verie same ministrie which Paul had for the tyme Timothie for his tyme the Pastors and Doctors hes this day That same ministrie which consistes in instructing exhorting comforting admonishing and rebuking them for their misdeedes for all are included within this word exhorting and all these serues to confirme men in the faith of Christ Paul to the Ephesians 4. 11. sayes When the Lord Iesus ascended to heauen after that glorious resurrection leauing this earth he left behinde him some to be Apostles some Euangelists some Pastours and Doctours to the end vve should not be ay children fleeting flovving and caried avvay vvith euerie light vvinde of doctrine What meanes all this That the vse of the ministrie is to establishe the heart of man to holde the heart that the winde of affliction and tentation blovve it not avvay and to settle it on Christ vvho is the ground-stone Then turne it ouer take avvay the ministrie that men vvoulde haue so faine avvay giue men their teyndes they vvould be content neuer to heare a Minister no stablitie shall be in the heartes of the people thy heart shall be blovvne avvay from Christ and thou shalt perishe Alas vve haue ouer great experience of this and especiallie in this Cittie of Edinburgh the Lord amende it Count all thinges vanitie but to be established in Christ Alas that vvee are so senslesse of this A vaine heart vvaites not vvhat this word meanes but a solide heart mournes for the vvant of the meanes of the vvorde Now to come to the next verse The end of this establishing confirming and exhorting of these people by the ministrie of Timothie is this that none of them should be commoued for the affliction vvherevvith they vvere exercised for the present For the Thessalonians at that tyme were afflicted by the Iewes enemies to God and man Then the end is that they should not be commoued with the afflictions that laye on them It is easie to a man to stand in a calme but when winde blowes it is hard to stand sure It is easie to professe Christ in calmnesse but when the blast of tentation strikes on thee then it is much to stand and hold Christ In tentations vve must staÌ„d on Christ by faith We are not yet wel acquainted with this So all tends to this Albeit
end our life in Iesus Christ we passe vp to a wonderfull glorie Now how comes this glorie Comes it on any thing we haue done heere in earth Comes it of our workes or merites No as holinesse in this life comes of the free mercie of God in Christ so the crowne of glorie in that life onelie comes of the mercie of God in Christ We shall be glorified in Heauen but hovv Through the grace of God that he will giue vs in Christ And as the crowne of glorie shall be giuen vs of free grace so the standing in that estate of glory shall indure for euer of grace So all comes of grace Perseuerance of holinesse in this lyfe is onely by the grace of God All perseuerance in glorie in the life to come of grace and mercie nothing in earth nothing in Heauen but free grace in mercy Wherefore is this the Lord will haue nothing in Heauen nor earth but mercie To this end that all the glorie of our saluation may be giuen to him and he that glories in it should glorifie him Grace free mercie onely in him And let this be our song on earth vvhen vve speake of the grace of God on earth Glorie to God mercie to vs onelie in God The Lord giue vs grace that we may giue al and the onely praise of mercie and of glorie in this life and in the life to come To this God with the Son and the holy Spirite be immortall praise and glorie foreuer AMEN THE XVI LECTVRE VPON THE FIRST EPISTLE OF PAVL TO THE THESSALONIANS 1. THESSA CHAP. 4. vers 9. 10. 11. 12. 9 But as touching brotherlie loue yee neede not that I vvrite vnto your for ye are taught of God to loue one another 10 Yea and that thing verelie ye doe vnto all the brethren vvhich are throughout all Macedonia but vve beseech you brethren that ye increase more and more 11 And that ye studie to be quyet and to meddle vvith your ovvne businesse and to vvork vvith your ovvn hands as vve cōmanded you 12 That yee may behaue your selues honestlie tovvards them that are vvithout and that nothing be lacking vnto you THE Apostle brethren after hee hes set downe his general exhortation to sanctification and holinesse This is the will of God sayes he euen your sanctification that ye be holie in soule holie in bodie holie in all your actions within and without He discends and comes to the particulare parts of this generall exhortation The first part of it respects a man or vvoman in their own person that they keepe their person to God as the vessell of honor keepe it from fornication which is a sinne that especiallie and in the highest degree fyles the person of a man both in bodie and soule which should be keeped in holinesse to God who made it The next part of this sanctification concernes our brother our neighbour that wee doe no wronge nor oppresse him by violence we circumvene him not by fraude and guile in businesse concerning this life but in all affaires we be as carefull he haue aduantage as we are that our selues haue aduantage When thou art onelie set to make vantage to thy selfe by thy own selfe loue that aduantage is wrong We heard the arguments the Apostle vses to moue them to this First the will of God If the will of God will not moue thee from harlotrie from doing euill vnto thy neighbour let the vengeance of God moue thee for that is the second argument and it shall ouertake thee in the end if thou continue therein Then he came to that holie and Christian calling that should moue vs to liue holie We are called to be holie let vs keepe therefore our owne person holie let vs be holie to our brother let vs be holie in our hand holie in our faculties Then he goes forward to another argument He that will not be holie when he is called by man he saies it is not with man he hes adoe but with God It is God that bids thee keepe thy bodie cleane from harlotrie thy hand from wrong Therefore thou disobeying thou disobeyes not man but God What is it to disobey me or him that speakes It is that great God that thou rebellest against and in that great day thou shalt be challenged as a rebell to that great God These argumentes are all set downe to this end to moue vs to holinesse Then at last in the end of the last verse he castes to an argument from the holie Spirite giuen vs by God to this end Getst thou the holie Spirit to play the harlote getst thou that holy Spirite that glorious gift the third person of the glorious Trinitie dwelling in thee as in a Temple to the effect thou shouldst commit filthinesse No as all things oblishes thee to be holie so especiallie the holie Spirite of God dwelling within thee crauing an holie Temple craues holinesse otherwayes with thy filthinesse thou shalt disludge him and anger him vntill at last he shall depart from thee and then that foull spirit of wickednesse shall possesse thee Nowe to come to the text In the first part thereof he goes forward to another particulare part of this sanctification which is brotherlie loue So the third part of this sanctification stands in brotherlie loue called beneficience and liberalitie to thy brother a grace and vertue crauing an open hand to bestow on the necessitie of thy brooher So when he hes exhorted not to doe wrong to thy neighbour not to oppresse him by violence or surprise him by deceite then he exhorts that thou be beneficiall to him liberall to him to support his want and necessitie Hee sayes then But as concerning brotherlie loue bountifulnes towards thy brother ye neede not that I vvrite vnto yo◠The reason of it is What need haue I who am a man to be ouer diligent in teaching outwardlie when God is the inward teacher of you and when he teaches this point of doctrin in special to loue euerie one another Ther is the substance of the first words Now to obserue something on the wordes Ye see it is not eneugh not to do euil but true sanctification craues that we do good also De◠〈◊〉 from euill sayes Dauid in his 34. Psal vers 15. and doe good There are two things It is not eneugh not to do wrong to our neighbour or brother not to oppresse him not to beguile him but true holines craues that we benefite him we bestowe on him a goode deede we supplie his necessitie want and pouertie All the parts of this which we call sanctification holines of life that are as manie graces of God in Christ are so inseparablie linked together as the linkes of a chaine are one in another All the parts of sanctification link it together that if anie of them be a missing in anie person man or woman and be not in him in some measure I cannot saye that that person hes truelie anie
eate none It is the will of God that they who vvill not vvorke and may worke that they should die for hunger They who are strong and may get labour and will not vvorke there should be an inhibition laid on them not to eate and they who eate if they eate not the bread conquest with their owne labour their eating is cursed to them It is not permitted to a King to eate bread except he labour for it and surelie his labour is an heauie labour No for al the warrands Charters and securities which thou hast of thy lands be thou Earle or Lord or Barron except thou eate the labour of thy owne hands thou eatest not lawfullie but thy eating is accursed This Inhibition is not to beggers onelie but to the greatest dominators of the earth for it was injoined to Adam Thou shalt eate thy breade vvith the svveate of thy brovve and all Lords and great men were then in the loynes of Adam Goe keepe sheepe or nolt or digge dykes if it please God thou haue no other trade and be ay doing something Now Labour both honest and profitable in the end he addes two reasons to cause them labour the first for honestie the other for commoditie He is the honester man that will put to his hand to labour and will sit downe vvith gray bread conquest by his labour nor he who eates all delicates with idlenesse When thou hast laboured and win thy dinner then thou art an honest man idlenes is no honestier an idle bodie I cannot count him honest He that eates without labour set him at the table head he hes no honestie Now this honesty should be seene by them that are without euen the heathen Brethren we should be honest if it were no more but onely for our enemies cause for regard of our holy profession The Enemie the Pagane lookes vpon thee vvho art an idle body and labours not and sees nothing but a bellie and a denourer of the creatures of God and then will he not slander thy profession Therefore if it were but to saue this profession from the slanders of wicked men labour continuallie ere thou should be idle labour in any exercise Yea more nor this Labour is the moyen vvhere by the Lord hes ordained thee to win thy enemy vvhen he sees thee labour and win thy liuing vvith the sweat of thy browes and by the contrare thy idlenes holds others back vvho vvould embrace the Gospell Woe to them vvho are stumbling blocks to holde men back from Christ As for the profit the laborer gets I not will insist in it he who in his labor hes God before his eies labors not so much to win his liuing thereby as to glorifie God according to the command of the Apostle 1. Cor. 10. 31. Whither ye eate or drinke what euer ye doe doe all to the glorie of God he vvho vvorkes let him not worke as an Oxe or an Asse but to glorifie God He who in labour sets himselfe to glorifie God to be holie be it to 〈◊〉 pottes to hold the pleugh to dig dykes those men they shall neuer vvant the thing the Lord thinkes may suffice them at the least they shall haue coâ—â—enâ—ment When they sit at dinner they shall haue greater contentation then they that are fed with most daintie dishes Therefore haue ay God before thy eyes labour ay to God and then thou shalt haue here in this life sufficient to serue thee and hereafter shalt haue heauenlie riches in aboundance Therefore stand not be not idle in thy calling but labor And how euer to God and his glorie and then thou shalt not want thou shalt haue plentie and sacietie of joy in that full sight of the countenance of Christ all this worlde will away Then blessed is that man who will set himselfe to serue God in his calling while he is heere for when this worlde goes away he shall obtaine that glorious kingdome that lastes for euer not by him selfe but onelie by Christ for in him onelie we and our labours are blessed And therefore to him with the Father and the holie Spirite be all praise for euer AMEN THE XVII LECTVRE VPON THE FIRST EPISTLE OF PAVL TO THE THESSALONIANS 1. THESSA CHAP. 4. vers 13. 14. 15. 13 I vvoulde not brethren haue you ignorant concerning them vvhich are a sleepe that ye sorrovv not as others vvhich haue no hope 14 For vve beleeue that Iesus is dead and is risen euen so them vvhich sleepe in Iesus vvill God bring vvith him 15 For this vvee say vnto you by the vvord of the Lord that vvee vvhich liue and are remayning in the comming of the Lord shall not preuent them vvhich sleepe THese Thessalonians brethen to vvhom the Apostle writes they were not altogether ignorant of the estate of them vvho departed this life No question they vnderstoode and knew the resurrection of the dead for not knowinge that vvhat could they know of Christianitie Yet as appeares of this place by the Apostle it was not a setled knowledge in the heart they had they knevv no so as they shoulde haue done the resurrection of the bodie And therefore when their friends whom they loued wel departed their dolour was excessiue When they saw the godlie who professed in the beginning drawne to torments martyred and execute they tooke displeasure out of measure euen as if they who departed this life had perished altogether and shold neuer haue bene more The Apostle vnderstanding this among other things he writes to them he casts in this doctrine of the estate of them that are departed to the end they should leaue off that excessiue sorrow and lamentation and not lament as the Gentiles who were vvithout hope Then to come shortly to the wordes and purpose of the Apostle He settes downe this proposition I vvould not brethren haue you ignorant concerning them vvhich are a sleepe the end wherefore he would not haue them ignorant is that they sorrovv not as others vvho hes no hope Now concerning the estate of those that are departed he instructs them in sundry heads of it First he telles them that they are but a sleep that is now their present estate in graue Then he teaches them what shall follow the rising again when that they haue sleeped a time as one after sleep awakes so shal they awake Next he instructes them of the honor they shall haue in the resurrection vvhen they shall meete the Lord of glorie Suppose they be dead first they shal not be last in meetting the Lord yea they who shall be aliue at that day shall not be first but they who are departed shall be in the first rank to meete the Lord in the clouds Of this he taks occasion to speak of the Lords comming of the glory thereof to this end that euery one in thinking vpon these things shold receiue comfort Ther is the summe of this doctrine I vvoulde not haue you brethren ignorant as
to God If thy conjunction be not with Iesus in this lyfe the power of God in the latter day shall not raise thee to joyne thee to God Take this first cause away the second shall not follow Then againe if the hand of God at the day of the resurrection should not be put as it were out of Heauen to take vp thy bodie thou wouldst ly still Therfore joyne these two First the conjunction with Christ that is by Faith then joyne with Faith the power and vertue of God and so ryse shalt thou and be joyned with God in glorie Now as to the power of God to raise vs it is not extended to vs heere but we shall see it in that great day but the thing vve haue to care for is to looke that we haue saith and of necessitie the second must follow Hast thou faith and art thou joyned with Christ by Faith of necessitie the power of God must reache to thee to raise thee out of the graue Thou needest not to feare if thou be found in Christ All mercie power and glorie is in him if thou be out with Christ no glorie nor mercie but damnation for thee for the power of God shall be extended to thy destruction Now to the next verse Yet he goes forward and teaches them that not onely they shall rise and be broght to God and be joyned with him But he sayes This say vve vnto you by the vvord of God that vve vvho liue and are remaning at the comming of the Lord shall not preueene them vvho sleep He speakes heere of himselfe as thogh he should haue bene liuing at the day of judgement and yet he died more nor a thousand yeere since To teach vs euer to be in readinesse no houre nor moment should be but we should look for the cōming of Christ and think we shall be liuing whē he commes This is our vain thoght we think we shal die before the day of judgment No Paul spok not so we should not speak so but be ay ready to meet the Lord at his glorious appearance Now the third head wherein he instructed them is the order and ranke of men that shall meete the Lord in the cloudes All that judgement shall passe by order The God of order shall be judge Order in meeting the Lord after resurrectiō and all shall be in order and men shall be in ranke they who shall be raised vp from this earth to meete the Lord shall haue their own place and ranke Now the Apostle would teach them that they shal haue this order They who hes departed first this lyfe shall not be preuented they vvho shall be aliue shall not be put in the ranke before them but they who are dead shall be in the first ranke and order and ere euer that sodain change be made of them vvho shall be found alyue changing them from mortalitie to immortalitie vvhich change shall be in the twinckling of an eye the dead in the graue shall be raised vp first by the power of God their bodies shal be first glorified and then shall come on that sodain change of them who shall be aliue then all shal be rest vp to the clouds first they that were dead next they that were changed and so we shall come all to meete our head Christ This is the order Now to be short This same verie speaking of the Apostle and his instructing of them in this preferment teaches vs that there should be in vs such a desire to meete with Christ that we should striue who shal meet with him first striue to be first and not to be last cast vs to haue a parte of this preferment and considering this preferment is promised to them vvho dies first it should make vs joyfull to die first and to say to them vvho are standing about vs vvhen vve are on death-bed I vvill get a preferment I am called to death first before you I shall be preferred to you in meetting vvith my Lord in Heauen Ye shall liue after me but I shall meete first vvith my Lord. O vvhat it is to get preferment in heauenlie glorie Ye vvill count of preferment vvith Kinges of this earth and men vvill striue vvho shall first meete vvith the King O then should vve not striue to meete vvith the King of Kings in Heauen The Lord grant vs faith that we may be joined with Christ in this bodie that at that last day soule and bodie may be glorified in Heauen vvith Christ our Head To vvhom with the Father and the holy Spirite be all glory and praise for euer AMEN THE XVIII LECTVRE VPON THE FIRST EPISTLE OF PAVL TO THE THESSALONIANS 1. THESSA CHAP. 4. vers 16. 17. 18. 16 For the Lord himselfe shall descend from heauen vvith a shout and vvith the voyce of the Archangell and vvith the trumpet of God and the dead in Christ shall rise againe Then shall vve vvhich liue and remaine be caught vp vvith them also in the cloudes to meete the Lord in the aire and so shall vve euer be vvith the Lord. 18 Wherefore comfort your selues one another vvith these vvords THE Apostle brethren in this present text by the way as it were instructs the Thessalonians in that head of doctrine that concernes those who are departed this lyfe Of the which either they were ignorant or thought not of it as they should haue done And therefore in the death and departure of their kins-folke and friendes whom they loued well they mourned excessiuely as though there estate had beene miserable as though after this world there should haue been no more of them but they should perish like beasts And therfore the Apostle to the end that for death they shold not mourne so desperatlie he instructs them in certaine heades of doctrine concerning the departed The first was that they that died died not so much as sleeped this death is not so much to be called a death as a sleepe for there shall be a waking againe as a man lying down to sleepe shall awake againe The second point Their resurrection shall be glorious Being laid down in the graue they shall not ly for euer but shall be gloriouslie raised againe for heere he speakes of the resurrection of the elect and chosen Now the third thing he instructs them in is an peece of honour they shall haue in their resurrection They that are dead first shall see the Lord before them that shall be found aliue for the dead shall ryse first and then the change shall be made of them who are then liuing And as the dead shall rise first so they shall be first in ranke among them who shall goe to meete the Lord in the aire first the dead after their resurrection shall be rest vp to the cloudes then they who shall be liuing shall be rest vp after them So the dead shall get the first sight of Christ then they who shall be found alyue shall be
changed and get the next sight This before ye heard taught to you Now in the text we haue red the Apostle takes occasion of that which he spoke of immediatly before concerning the ranking and order of those that shall bee found dead on that great day To enter in this matter more deeplie and to fall out in a description of the Lords comming in that latter day He pointes out the manner of it and that glorie that shall appeare Thereafter he commes to that effect that shall follovv there-vpon The first effect shall be the resurrection of the dead ere euer they vvho are alyue be changed vvhich shall be in a moment the dead rysing first shall be rest vp to the cloudes and then they vvho shall be changed shall be rest vp after them The estate of both is they shall meete the Lord and bee vvith him for euer Then in the last verse he desyres the Thessalonians vvith such speaches as these euerie one to comfort another vvhether he sorrovv for his owne or for anothers death and to speake one to another of the resurrection and of the glorie that shall followe on it Now this text standes in a narratiue of the forme of Christes comming vvhereof I vvill speake no farther nor I can gather thereof out of the Scripture and with as great shortnesse as I may For it is follie to speake any thing heerein vvhich is not reuealed and spoken of in the Scriptures Now Brethren I shall speake first according to the Scriptures of God of the signes and tokens that shall appeare in the world before Christes comming For ere he be seene they who shall be found aliue at that great day shall see signes and tokens of his comming Next I shall speake of his comming and of the manner of it And in the third rovvme I shall speake of the effectes that shall followe in the vvorlde immediatlie on his comming As for the signes that shall be seene ere he be seene There are some of them that shall goe before his comming immediatlie before he ryse out of his Throne vvhere he sittes at the right hand of his Father euen immediatlie before his rysing there shall some signes be shovven to vvarne the vvorlde that the King of Glorie is comming Then there shall be some other signes that shall be adjoyned vvith his comming as hee commes through the Heauens and aire to judge the world So the signes are of tvvo sortes some signes before his comming immediatlie Signes immediatly preceding Chrâ—stes comming some joyned with his comming The signes immediatlie preceeding the Lords rysing out of his Throne to judge the vvorld are The vvhole vvorlde shall shake Heauen and earth shall trimble they who shall be liuing at that day shall see it The vvhole povvers of the Heauen shall be shaken The Sunne the Moone shall be darkned all shall be obscured the Sunne shall haue no light the starres shall fall downe or at the least shall appeare so because they shall giue no light and light shall be away nothing in the face of the earth but darknesse nothing in Heauen but darknesse Ye may read this Matt. chap. 24. verse 29. Luke chap. 21. verse 25. Christ giues these same signes himselfe that shall be immediatlie before his comming What shall be the estat in the mean-time of those who are liuing when these signes shall appear Al consciences shall be wakned all shall get vp there shall be no sleeping The murtherer vvho hes his conscience sleeping now shall be wakned then the harlots conscience shall waken There shall be two sorte of folke found liuing then some reprobate some elect the world is neuer vvithout these tvvo As for the reprobate vvhen they shall looke vp and see such a wonderfull alteration the shaking of the Heauens the darkning of the Sunne and Moon then they shall beginne to shudder and to be striken with such a terrible fear that they shal be as they wer dead and for fear of that judgment that is to follow they shall run and seeke holes and secret places to hide them from the face of the Lord and cry Hilles fall dovvn on vs Mountains couer vs Yea euen ere they see the Lord before his comming down Read of this in Luke 21. 27. Reuelat. chap. 6. verse 16. c. Now as to the elect that shall be found aliue at that tyme they shall conceiue at the sight of these first signes an vnspeakable joye and shall not be afraide but shall avvaite for that Redemption which they shall see to be at hand that full Redemption in the Redeemer the Lord Iesus And therefore they shall not runne away and seeke holes to hyde them in but they shall stand vp and lift vp their heades and faces to the Heauens and shall looke greedilie for the comming of the Lord Iesus Christ indeede it is true they shall conceiue a sorrowe and shall be touched vvith a remorse and shall vveepe bitterlie but a sweete weeping they shall weepe that euer their sinnes procured the death of the Lord Iesus Christ that Lord of glorie Therefore they shall be both joyfull and sorrowfull joyfull because the Redeemer is at hand sorrowfull for their sinnes that Christ should haue died for them that they should haue peirced him through with them Reade of this at length Luke chap. 21. verse 28. Zachary chap. 13. verse 11. Reuel chap. 1. verse 7. yea they who peirced him through with their sinnes shall bewaile him All the godlie Kinges of the earth shall bewaile him all the elect shall sorrow that their sinnes should haue procured the death of this sweete and glorious Lord. This for the signes immediatly going before his comming Vnderstand brethren that there shall be a processe of tyme in the day of judgement so that one thing shall by a certaine space goe before another It shall be sodaine but not so sodaine but they who are aliue shall see one thing done by a space of time before another it shall be so sensible that euerie one that is liuing at that day shall see euery thing done sensible Now to come to the signes joined with his comming At his down comming Signes ioyned vvith the comming of Christ when the Lord rises out of his Throne before he be seene the whole world that shooke before he rose shal be set on fyre and there shall be a terrible dissolution All thinges shall be dissolued and so shaken lowse that the world shall not appeare vnto the tyme it bee made a nevv Worlde a nevv Heauen a new Earth as Peter speakes Come to the particulares As to the Heauens they shall bee burnt vp and being burnt vp they shall passe away with a sound and noyse saies Peter as the sounding of Chariot-wheeles The elements the aire the water all shall be consumed with fire and be burnt vp and euanish The earth and all the workes on the earth planting building all shall be burnt vp with fire nothing shall be spared
Eue shall be with the first and in the first ranke For before they vvho in the vvorlde shall be changed which shall be in the twinkling of an eye and it shall stand to them in stead of death ere this change be made the dead shall ryse first 1. Corint 15. 51 52. Some of them who are dead shall ryse to lyfe and honour to witte the elect Some of them to wit the reprobat to dishonour ignominie and death and a worse death nor they ly in presently Then when the dead is raised vp and compeares first then shall follow that sodaine change of them who shall be alyue the elect that shall be alyue shal be altred in a moment in the twinckling of an eie to a glorious estate The reprobat aliue shall be altered to but if they wer ignominious before they shal be more ignominious then for not only their soule but soule and body shal be vgly and if they had any beauty Estate of the bodies of the elect it shall bee changed in a wonderfull foulues But to speak of the body of the elect for the Scripture speaks most of them Paul 1. Cor. 15. verse 35. moues the question with what bodies shall they ryse what bodie shall the elect haue For he is not curious of the bodies of the reprobate but he markes narrowlie the rising of the bodies of the godlie at that day And the first qualitie he giues them is that whereas their bodies wer naturall when they were laid down in the graue their bodies in that day shall be made spirituall Not that our bodies shall be changed in spirites no our bodies shall be bodies indeed of that same substance they haue now The verie same substance of the bodie thou hast in this lyfe the same verie substance thou shalt haue in that lyfe and no other It shall be present at that day that same verie bodie that same very hand and foote c. and no other bodie nor no other hand nor foote c. And there shall be none of the ashes of the bodie but it shall be keeped vntill that day and shall be gathered vp and joined better nor euer it was before Then the bodie shall abyde Our lyfe shall be much better I liue heere a naturall lyfe by a naturall power in my soule but in the resurrection my lyfe shall be spirituall and I shall not liue a naturall lyfe Now I liue by a naturall power in my soule but then I shall liue spirituallie by a spirituall power in Christ Yet there shall be more Another propertie of the bodie shall follow on this This bodie if it were neuer so faire yet in respect of the glorie it shall take vp it is but ignominious but the bodie shall rise glorious and shyning as the Sunne not by this naturall skin and colour that we haue here but by a passing light and brightnesse conforme to that brightnesse of Christ when he was transformed on the Mountaine Reade Matt. 17. 1. and conforme to his glorie in Heauen as the Apostle telles Philipp chap. 3. verse 21. Yet more ye see our bodies weake The strongest man is soone beatten downe for all his strength all the povver of man is feeble and weake but in the resurrection the bodie shall be strong and pithie One man to be homely with you stronger in the resurrection nor an hundreth yea nor thousands are now For all feeblenesse shall be left behinde him in the graue and he shall ryse strong lyke the Angels in glorie and strength Yet more then this What matter of all this former glorie if it were possible that this spirituall bodie could perish The Apostle addes to this We shall rise incorruptible immortail to lyfe euerlasting when we shall ryse in that strength that power and freedome immortalitie shall follow after mortalitie glorie after ignomnie strength after weaknesse spiritualitie after naturalitie In lyfe we shall be spirituall in qualitie glorious in tyme euerlasting there is no end of it This is the propertie that Paul speakes of our bodies in the resurrection Now to goe forward There shall followe more in this conuention That same power that shall conueene all men together Separation of the elect from the reprobats that same power shall make a seuering The Angels the Ministers of that glorious judge shall stoppe in betweene the elect and the reprobate and putte them a sunder They shall seuere the sheepe from the goates they shall put the sheepe at the right hand of the judge and the goates at the left hand Reade Matt. chap. 25 verse 33. Appearantlie Paul heere would meane to vs another kynde of seuering and yet all is one This appearantlie vvoulde be his meaning They shal al be gathered together on the earth and all shall stand together in a troup and then this seuering shall be made Then all the elect shall be rest vp to the cloudes to meete the Lord in the cloudes As for the reprobate they shall all stand still on the earth and shall not get that honour to be rest vp in the aire but shall byde on the earth and receyue their judgement there For Paul vvhen he sayes they shall be rest vp to meete the Lord in the aire he speakes onely of the elect Then there shall be a seuering after which there shall neuer be a meetting againe a great golfe shall be betweene them that none may passe We are all mingled heere through other and none knowes other The sheepe oft-tymes are taken for the goates and the goates for the sheepe but at that great day the sheepe shall be seuered from the goates and shall neuer meete againe be it man with wyfe parents with children There are two effects a conuention of all and a seuering of all Yet the Iudge and the power of the Iudge shall passe forwarde and the third effect followes When the Judge hes all gathered together and none avvay vvhen the rovve is called and all are present Then vvhen one sorte shall be placed at the right hand IudgemeÌ„t pronounced and the other at the left hand then shall he fall to judgement He cannot judge before he seuere the verie seuering telles the judgement but before the seuering the judgement shall not be pronunced Then generallie he shall judge all according to their workes The bookes shall be opened the book of conscience shall be opened the booke of workes shall be opened and al their judgement shal be according to their works 〈◊〉 vnderstand this The elect man shall be judged according to his works not that his works shall be the cause that shal proâ—â—â— his lyfe but he shall be judged by his works as a testimony of his faith in Christ and of the maner of lyfe that he hes liued in the worlde as a member of Christ So he shall be judged by his workes not as a cause but as a token of the true cause as ye would judge a man by a witnesse for the
pointe and that pointe of his calling knowe him to be a Preacher set ouer you by God know him to be an admonisher and instructer and againe when ye come to your owne duety knowe the pointes of your duetie I should doe this I should meete him with this duety with that duety other waies thou knowes nothing neither in the Pastor nor in thy selfe Therefore the Apostle layes them out openly to thee to know them But to come to the wordes Ye haue first a short description of a true Pastor Description of a true Pastor The first pointe of the description of a true Pastour is this He is a laborer among the people not an idle man He sayes not acknowledge them that sittes idle but acknowledge them that labours among you He labours and how He labours in the worke of God As the Apostle speaks to Timothie in the first Epistle chap. 5. verse 17. Elders sayes he is vvorthie of double honor especially those vvho labours in the vvord of God he labours in opening vp the scriptures of God the preaching is thought by men to be no labour as though preaching were no more but onely to stand vp and tell a taile yet the Apostle calles that labour yea I say they labour aswell as they who holds a pleugh labours Wherein labor they In word and Discipline in taking ordour with your maners Not onely labour they in preaching but also they take ordour with the maners of the people Then to gather the lesson This part of the description of a true Pastour excludes from the ministry and Pulpet idle bellies Ministers that beare the name of ministers and in the meane-tyme are but idle bellies away with them let them neuer face the Pulpet Fy on them that takes the Ministrie on them for an idle lyfe and and to serue their affections an idle Bishop that neuer opened his mouth to preach an idle Pope that vvill sit vp in a throne fy on him why should he take the name of Minister on him and doe no good therein The next part of the description of a true Pastor is they are ouer you not vnder you but aboue you set ouer you as it were ouer your heads to looke downe to you in a kinde of superioritie ouer you Then a Pastour a Minister sent of Iesus Christ the Pastour of Pastours the great Pastour he hes a kinde of superioritie and preheminence aboue the flock But brethren he is not ouer them as a Lord the onely Lord that is ouer the people is Iesus Christ He is not ouer them then in thinges ciuill in thinges bodilie concerning the bodie concerning their temporall liues concerning thinges politicke for entertaining of this temporall lyfe but he is ouer them in the Lord not as a Lord but in the Lord the Lord Iesus Christ Not ouer them in thinges ciuill but in matters of the Lord in thinges spirituall in things Ecclesiastick in things concerning the consciences of men Therefore Paul speakes to Philemon verse 8. I haue great libertie to command thee as a superiour but how Not of my owne authoritie but in the Lord I am ouer thee as a superiour but not as a Lord. Take heede There are sundrie sortes of superiorities A Steward in a familie in a maner is ouer the familie he hes a preferment by reason of the office And yet for all this if the steward would take vpon him to bee Lord of the familie he would be a knaue and would vsurpe the place of his master So a Minister in the familie of the Lord he is a superiour but not superiour as a Lord but as a steward to dispence the misteries of God to the soule and no other superiour for none can sit ouer the conscience of any man but onely the Lord Iesus All the Kinges of the earth cannot haue a dominion ouer the consciences of men the Lord is onely Lord and supreame superiour thereof all the Ministers and office-bearers in the Church onely stewards with spirituall stewardrie dispensing the spirituall foode I meane the word of God Now brethren this second parte of this description of the Pastour condemnes the Pope who vsurpes a spirituall jurisdiction ouer the soules of men vvho vvill stryue also for a ciuill jurisdiction with the Emperour and Princes of the vvorld Now to come to the third parte He sayes and admonishes you There is the last parte of the description of the true Minister of God Admonishing standes in calling back againe men in the vvay vvho hes made desection either in doctrine or maners In this poynte consistes their labour So that by this word I vnderstand the whole parts of the office of a Pastour as exhorting rebuking comforting and teaching It is not for nothing that he hes made a chuse of this word admonishing to teach vs if he could doe all these thinges neuer so well labour in teaching comfort exhort If he cannot doe this admonishe a sinner tell him sinner thou art in the vvrong vvay if he faile in doctrine tell him thou failest in doctrine if he faile in maners tell him he failes in maners if he cannot doe this he is not meete to be a Minister if he cannot admonishe them that are sinners if he cannot admonishe them that are in the vvrong vvay he is not meete to be a teacher Now see the peruersitie of our nature for manie there are vvho vvill heare comforting exhorting but not admonishing but Paul teaches thee the Pastour must be an admonisher There is the Pastour set downe in three parts of his calling Now to end this doctrine concerning them I shall take vp this one note I gather of this as it were the nature of the ministrie What is this Ministrie It is first a labour an exercise not an idlenes but a labour it is a burdene and he that takes it not on as it were a load on his back he is not meete for it he that enters to be a Minister he must lay downe his shoulders and take on his loade on his back as you see an horse take on his loade on his back So it is a burdene and an heauie burdene a labor and an heauie labour But brethren there are sundrie sortes of burdenes and labours in this world There are some that are vylder some that are honourable Now what a labour is this Ministrie Indeede it is true this ministrie is thought a vyle burdene and of all exercises the labour of the ministrie is thought most vyle in the sight of our prophane men in Scotland this day The verie name of a minister is thoght vyle in the earth so oft as they speak of him names him it is thoght a vyle name the name of a cooke is not so vyle as the name of a Minister But in despyte of thee and all the vvorld the Spirite of God vvill call him an honourable labourer a person exercised in an high and honourable exercise 1. Timoth. chap. 3. verse 1. The King
saue him he slayes him as it were with his owne hand This is thought hard dealing fleshe and bloude would wonder at this dealing and yet is the Lords will Men sayes commonlie he hes done me a wrong I will doe him no euill but as for my good he shall get none of it I will neither be friend nor foe to him Then he thinkes he hes done eneugh Christ telles thee heere If the man inlacks or if he be hurt through the holding back of thy good deed if it might haue helped him thou art the doer of it Alas why flatters thou thy selfe I tell thee albeit thou doe him no euill with thy hand if thou beare malice in thy hart thou art a murtherer and shall be challenged for a murtherer in that great day Degrees of patiēce in bearing vvrongs Brethren there are two degrees of patience in bearing with injuries The first degree of patience is not to doe euill for euill The second and higher degree is to doe good for euill if thou would haue perfite patience go vp these two steps do not only no euill to thy enemie but doe him good striue euer to a further perfection thy strife in this life shall be crowned with victorie in that life to come They who striues not to perfection in this earth shall neuer be perfite in the life to come Well is him that can striue to perfection albeit he come not to it heere he shall obtaine it heereafter Doe good saies he How long euer There is no word heere in vaine doe good to thy enemie euer on so long as thou hast an hand Galat. 6. chap. 9. vers he speakes this matter more planely let vs not wearie in doing good and he addes to the promise we shall reape the frute of our good deeds in our owne tyme if we long not but goe forward ay to the end This language is borrowed from the laboring of the husbandman He will till the land and goe forward and then cast the seede in the land but if he begin then to thinke he hes done eneugh alreadie and let the land be vnharrowed or when the corne commes vp he doe not weed it how shall the frute prosper shall he haue a great haruest if he harrow it not the foules shall gather it vp the weather shall wash it away and at haruest he shall get little of it to reape So it is with vs if we begin to do good and continue in well doing for a little space and then begin to close our hand and our purse and thinke we haue done eneugh Alas when it commes to the haruest tyme in that great day of the Lord there will be no shearing nor reaping to life euerlasting except by perseuerance we continue to the end no frute of our labours He that striues not continuallie he shall not ouer come therefore let vs euer perseuere while we liue and then when our haruest and reaping commes we shall haue a faire barn-yarde Blessed is that man that can perseuere Then hee saies in that 6. chap. to the Galath While wee haue tyme let vs ay doe good and he makes two rankes of them to whom we should doe good First to the familie of faith and then to all maner of men This tyme would be well marked For there is a season of all things a season of tilling a season of sawing and a season of reaping The season of sawing in the spring-tyme If thou saw not in that season thou shalt not reape frute in Haruest So it is in spirituall things in this life is the time of polwing sawing and harrowing The life to come is the time of reaping and reaping the frute of our labours Lose thou the tyme of thy sawing harrowing here thou wilt neuer get it againe and when thou commest to the season of reaping thou shalt not finde frute Alas I haue sene great men when they haue bene on death-bed and found death to be at hand wold say I haue abused my time Lord if I had my tyme againe I should spend it better nor I haue done Alwaies many neuer gets this repentance And well are they who hes repentance for the tyme that is mispent but where one gets this grace twentie gets it not Now all tends to this to go forward in well doing while that we meete our head Christ saw harrow and go forward vntill the tyme of our Haruest and reaping for if thou he sluggish here and saw not thou shalt not reape hereafter Now to whom should they do good To your selues First euerie one to other first to them whom he calles the family of faith Gallat chap. 6. verse 10. He that would showe a good deed let him begin at Christians for we are all of one familie euen of the familie of Christ I assure thee that name Christian bindes thee to show a good deed to them that caries it It is a sweete name I tell the more albeit that bodie be thy enemie yet that name of Christian in him bindes thee to loue and helpe him and do good for euill to him It is no small obligation binding euerie man to do good Then he ads to and sayes doe good to all men To Christian to no Christian to Iew Gentile Turke Pagane what euer he be Marke this The Lord requyres that this beneficence and liberalitie to men and wemen be extended to all men in the whole corners of the earth beare they the name of men and wemen thy liberalitie should ay extend to them Looke what reasons Paul Rom 12. 20. vers giues in recommending the same well doing to our enemies He saies If thy enemie thirst giue him drinke if he hunger giue him meate Giue him not it bitterly with the buffet but giue him it with chearefulnesse and pray the Lord to mend him the reason is For in so doing thou shalt heape coales on his head For if he repent not for all thy doing good to him the meate and drinke thou giuest him shall be as many firy coales on his head Another reason Be not ouercome vvith euill but ouercome euill vvith good He wins the better that suffers the wrong and renders good for euill for at last he shall be crowned with glory The Lord bring vs to this glorie for Christs sake To whom with the Father and holy Spirit be all honour and glorie for euer AMEN THE XXIV LECTVRE VPON THE FIRST EPISTLE OF PAVL TO THE THESSALONIANS 1. THESSA CHAP. 5. vers 16. 17. 16 Reioyce euermore 17 Pray continuallie THERE are three precepts heere brethren which the Apostle joines together The first is the precept of patience in suffering wrong and not rendering euill for euill but doing good for euill Of this we heard the last day There is next the precept of joy and peace of conscience in the first wordes we haue presentlie red Last there is the precept of prayer seeking to God and thanking God for the benefites resaued in the next
he sayes not Onesiphorus deserues well at Gods hand and I pray that the Lord would rewarde him according to his demerites No but he sayes The Lord shovv mercy on Onesiphorus And he doubles it ouer againe and he saies God grant as I haue found mercy at Onesiphorus so he may finde mercy at the Lords hands in that day He sayes mercie not reward but free mercie and so I end Nothing but mercy and free grace when we haue done all we can nothing but mercy mercy in earth mercy in heauen On paine of lyfe when thou hast done all the good thou may doe beware thou think of any deseruing at the hands of God But cast thy selfe on thy knees and hold vp thy hands and cry for fre mercy and pardon of thy sinnes and say away with all my workes they are but dung and filth I craue pardon for my sinnes of thy free mercy in that bloude of Iesus Christ Except thou craue this thou shalt neuer haue solide joy in thy hart And shall I say that one of these false quenchers of the Spirit felt euer this sweetnes in Christ which onely ryses of the assurance of the free mercy of God Therefore let our onely reposing be vpon this free fauour in Christ To whom with the Father and the holy Spirit be all praise for euer AMEN FINIS LECTVRES VPON THE SECOND EPISTLE OF THE APOSTLE PAVL TO THE THESSALONIANS PREACHED BY THAT FAITHFVLL seruant of God Maister ROBERT ROLLOK some-tyme Minister of Gods vvord and Rector of the Vniuersitie of EDINVRGH EDINBVRGH PRINTED BY ROBERT CHARTERIS Printer to the Kings most Excellent Majestie Anno Dom. M. D. CVI. Cum Priuilegio Regiae Majestatis THE ARGVMENT OF THE SECOND EPISTLE TO THE THESSALONIANS THIS second Epistle to the Thessalonians seemes to haue beene written soone after the first The occasion of the wryting thereof may be gathered of the Epistle it selfe The Thessalonians were at that tyme persecuted and heauily troubled for the faith of Christ and lykewise there entered in amongst them false teachers and deceiuers who went about to perswade them that the comming of Christ was instantly at hand taking occasion as it appeares by the Thessalonians mistaking of certaine speeches vttered by the Apostle in the first Epistle especially these wordes in the fourth chapter We vvhich liue and are remaining in the comming of the Lord shall be caught vp in the cloudes vvith them that are dead in Christ after their resurrection to meete the Lord in the aire and so shall vve euer be vvith the Lord. Where-vpon the Thessalonians concluded that Christ should come before they died and they should be on lyfe at his comming The deuill to confirme them in this errour raises vp these deceiuers who went about to perswade them of it as though it had beene true that they should haue beene liuing at the comming of the Lord alledging that they had it both by the reâ—elation of the Spirit of God and also by the tradition of PAVL The Apostle therefore thought it needfull to 〈◊〉 this second Epistle to the Thessalonians partly to comfort them against the persecutions of their enemies partly to admonish them that they giue not eare to these false deceiuers assuring them that before Christ come the Antichrist should come and there should be an vniuersall defection from the trueth The Epistle may fitlie be diuyded in six parts The first part is the salutation in the two first verses in the first chapter The second is the Preface wherein he rejoyceth for their perseuerance and increase of Faith of Loue and Patience in all their persecutions and tribulations from the third verse to the fift In the third part he comfortes them against the troubles and persecutions that they sustained for the faith of Christ from the fift verse to the end of the first chapter In the fourth part he admonishes them that they giue not eare to these false teachers that said Christs comming was at hand showing them that before the second comming of Christ the Antichrist should be reueiled and there should be an vniuersall defection from the faith of Christ Yet he comfortes them against the feare of defection and exhortes them to abyde constant in the doctrine they had receiued from him crauing 〈◊〉 comfort and constancie to them at Gods hands This parâ—e is conteinde in the whole second chapter The fifth part containeth exhortations to good maners and Christian dueties from the beginning of the third chapter to the sixteenth verse In the last part he concludeth the Epistle with prayer and salutation from the sixteenth verse to the end THE FIRST LECTVRE VPON THE SECOND EPISTLE OF PAVL TO THE THESSALONIANS 2. THESSA CHAP. 1 vers 1. 2. 3 4. 5. 1. PAVL and Siluanus and Timotheus vnto the Church of the Thessalonians which is in God our Father and in the Lord Iesus Christ. 2 Grace be vvith you and peace from God our Father and from the Lord Iesus Christ 3 We ought to thanke God alvvaies for you brethren as it is meete because that your faith grovveth exceedingly and the loue of euery one of you tovvard another aboundeth 4 So that vve our selues reioyce of you in the Churches of God because of your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that ye suffer 5 Which is a token of the righteous iudgement of God that ye may be counted vvorthie of the kingdome of God for the vvhich ye also suffer HAVING ended Brethren as God gaue the grace the first Epistle of Paul to the Thessalonians I thought it meetest to goe forward in the second Epistle for otherwayes the worke would seeme not to be perfyted and the matter conteined in the second Epistle is very worthie to be insisted vpon And it appeares very well among all the Epistles that Paul vvrote that these two directed to the Thessalonians were the first This second Epistle which we presently haue in hand appearantly hes beene written soone after the first The occasion of the wryting of it appeares well of the purpose and argument it selfe The Apostle in this Epistle comfortes the Church of the Thessalonians vvhich vvas persecuted and heauily troubled for the faith of Christ Another occasion we take vp in the second chapter There entered in this Church for the deuill can neuer be idle false teachers and deceiuers who went about to perswade the Thessalonians that the comming of Christ was instantlie at hand The Apostle therefore taking occasion hereof admonishes them not to giue eare to these men and he telles them that before Christ come the Antichrist should come and that there should be an vniuersall defection in the world I take these to be the two occasions of his wryting There are three chapters of this Epistle In the first after he hes saluated them and giuen thanks to God for them he enters in to comfort them against all the troubles they were in for the present In the second chapter he admonishes them not to
other according to the just nature of God Now in the end he addes to this word vvith vs. He shall render relaxation to you and to me also I am troubled as you are And therefore I hope for the same deliuerance and relaxation that I promise to you Promise nothing to the people but the thing thou thinkest to get a parte of thy selfe Promise no resurrection except thou thinkest to get a parte thereof But the thing I marke is this I see all grace and glorie is in a societie vvith the Saintes resurrection lyfe euerlasting is vvith the godlie For as there is a communion vvith the Saintes in afflictiones 1. Peter chap. 5. verse 9. so there is a communion with the Saintes in rest in grace and glorie Ephes chap. 3. verse 14. 1. Thessa chap. 3. verse 13. And this thing we may take vp euer in this Apostle he speakes of no grace but euer together vvith the Saintes all is in one conjunction Let none therefore prease to come to Heauen but in this conjunction Thou wilt leape from the Church but I assure thee leape as thou wilt and think to come to Heauen without that societie thou shalt neuer come to Heauen thou shalt neuer get relaxation but in this society Thinke it no small matter to be of the number of the godly thou shalt neuer be glorified in that latter day if thou be not one of that nomber Then marke another thing He sayes they shall get relaxation with him Then it followes that he was afflicted with them Who gettes rest but they who are troubled Who will come to Heauen None but they who for Christs sake on the earth hes suffered some affliction either within or without No look not that a man will come sleeping to Heauen Heauen is a relaxation out of bondes who can be lowsed but they who haue â—ene bound This may learne vs to take in patience to be bound to be euill spoken of and to suffer either one thing or other for the hope of that lyfe euerlasting Novv to goe forvvarde in the text follovving ye haue a short but a pithie description of the Lord Iesus comming to judgement to render and repay When shall this rendring be When shall affliction be rendered to the afflicters and relaxation to the bound and troubled When our Lord Iesus Christ shall come to iudge the vvorld Not till then There is the dyet nothing but patience vntill then Thou art ouer sudden Thou would haue the Lord rendering to thee rest and to thy enemie trouble at the first moment Thou would haue him to put thee in Heauen at the first hand and thy enemies in Hell at an instant No byde till the tyme of the manifestation come Tyme of rendring Then the tyme of rendering is the tyme of manifestation of light it is the day of light of such a light as was neuer in the world for while Christ come all is hid Heauen is hid Hell is hid Right is hid wrong is hid damnation is hid saluation is hid lyfe hid death hid godlie men is hid reprobate men hid all hid till Christ come to judgment 1. Iohn chap 3. verse 2. When Christ shall come he shall be first reuealed from Heauen an infinite light shall come from Heauen accompanying that glorious Majestie Then Hell shall be seene Heauen shall be seene faire and broad lyfe shall be seene death shall be seene all shall appeare then as they are So byde still a whyle and byde in patience thou who would haue relaxation and thy bondes shall be loused in patience byde till that tyme. Thou that would see afflicters afflictedâ—ly still in patience for in that moment when thou shal see the Lord comming from Heauen thou shalt see an end of all these thinges such rendring as euer thou would haue desyred So nothing but patience Now marke the style the Lord gettes in this reuelation and comming He is called The Lord A style of glorie a name of power So the Lord in his comming and manifestation shall be manifested lyke a Lord and in a surpassing power ouer quick and dead Rom. chap. 14. verse 9. He died and rose againe that he might be Lord both of the quick and the dead Then againe he is called Iesus that is a Sauiour as he shall be manifested at that day as a Lord so shall he be manifested as a sweete Sauior Iesus to the just and godly of this world So then his appearance shall be as a Lord and Sauior to the comfort of his elect and as a Lord in power to the destruction of the wicked Now to goe forward I shall not be â—urâ—ous but shall open onely the wordes The Lords comming and reuealing himselfe as Lord and as Iesus the Sauior is descriued and set out in an high glorie Christ shal come froÌ„ heauen His reuelation shall first be from the Heauen That word Heauen is not put in lightly He is reuealled not from the earth or from any low part No Monarchs that euer reuealled themselues in the world came downe yet from Heauen The Lords reuelation when he shall show himselfe to the world shal be from the Heauen The Heauen now is a vaile casten in betweene our eyes and the Lord. So that we cannot see him but at that day the Lord of glorie shall break downe throâ—gh the vaile and come down to the aire to be seene by vs. Now if ye wil aske what an Heauen this is Paul 4. chap. to the Ephes vers 9. 10. saies he was caried to an heauen aboue aâ— theâ—e heauens which we see And therefore these Heauens from the which the Lord shal appeare is a place aboue He shall break throgh all these Heauens while he offer himself to be seene in the clouds Then this comming from Heauen lets vs see he shall come to his in glory The greater glorie the greater comfort to vs the greater discomfort to the wicked the greater feare and trembling to the reprobate Take heed to this ye who takes pleasure in sin what feare and terror shall ouertake you in that day So this is the first part Now in the next wordes he is desâ—ryued from his companie that shall conuoy him Angelles shal accoÌ„pany Iesus in his coÌ„ming The Lord in his second comming he shal not come his alone in the first comming he came in the world basely like a poore man accompanied with no glorious traine The Lord was made poore that thou should be made rich the Lord took vpon him igâ—â—miny that thou shold get glory Now in the second comming he shall be gloriously aâ—companied No neuer Monarch was so accompanied when they came to their kingdom as the Lord Iesus shal They shal woÌ„der that he going in his first comming in the world so poorely should haue such glory The first company he shal come with shall be Angels the gloriousest creatures that euer was not one or two but millions of Angels principalities and powers Iude
sayes 14. vers the Lord 〈◊〉 come vvith thoulands of his Sâ—ints And I say as I think there shall not be an Angell in Heauen but all shall come with Iesus And what shall be then habite They shall come like an armie al as it were in aâ—mes Men who are in their armour in their harnes they appeare most glorious to the world So all the Angels shall come as an army armed with power and therefore it is said Angels of his povver terrible to the wicked because they shall be enarmed against them comfortable to the godly for they come for their defence The Angels in their owne nature are strong by their creation potent they are principalities powers by vertue of their own nature But the word would import more They shall not onely be strong with their owne power but they shall come enarmed with the power of Christ with an exceeding and extraordinary kinde of power such a power that they were neuer sene in before in such a majesty as neuer was seene of before and al to the glory of that glorious Lord Iesus who is Lord and judge blessed for euer An earthly king when he is in his greatest glory is but accompanied with selie infirme creatures who hes little strength But the Lord Iesus who is King of kings shall be accompanied at his comming with Angels of such an infinite strength that the deuill and all the world shall not be able to withstand any one of them Now to goe forward the next companie that shall be with him shall be creatures something inferior Not so glorious as the Angels Flaming fyre shall accoÌ„pany Christ. but very glorious a flamming fire a fire with a great flame and therefore fire that shall cast downe from it exceeding great heat and light to the world Ye will aske what fire will this be I will not be curious heerein but I think that that fyre that shall be at that day shall be that same naturall element that the Lord created when he made the rest of the creatures This appeares very vvell of Peter in his second Epistle chap. 3. vers 6. 7. When he sayes the first world was destroyed by vvater and the second vvorld shall be destroyed vvith fyre Certainely as the first vvorld vvas destroyed by a naturall vvater so shall the second vvorld be destroyed by a naturall fyre This fyre shall then appeare in such a glorie quantitie and light as it vvas neuer of before because it is imployed in the seruice of a most glorious Lord. Would ye knovve vvhat shall be the vse of this glorious fyre Read 2. Epist of Peter chap. 3. This fire going before him shall burne first the heauens then it shall come to the elements and melt them all vvith heat It shal next come to the earth and shall burne vp the earth and all the works Would ye know what shall come after There shall be a new heauen and a new earth And so this fire shall serue for the purifying and burning of the drosse of the creatures for all the creatures the Heauen the Earth the Sunne the Moone heâ— drawen on a corruption through our sinnes But is there no other vse of this fire This fire shall also in the Lords justice be a fire to deuoure the aduersaries Heb. chap 10. verse 27 to burne the reprobate for eeuer And therefore vaine man who takes pleasure in thy sinnes let â—he memorie of this flamming fire terrifâ—e thee that in tyme thou may repent Now this much for that glorious companie where-with the Lord Iesus shall be accompanied in that glorious comming Now come to the effects in the next words When he is come from the Heauen accompanied with the glorious Angels and flamming fire certainely he will not come for nothing Kings in the earth may fliâ— their campes for nothing but the King of glorie will not doe so Now the effect in one word is rendering repaying recompencing the judgement is in rendering to euery one his owne due In rendering first he beginnes at the godles and wicked after his comming in such a glorie He shall render the wicked that which is due to them that is vengeance To whom To them that knovv God on this earth 〈◊〉 them that obeyed not the Gospell of the Lord Iesus Marke it The Lord keepe vs from the causes of this rendering There shall be none that knew not God Faith accoÌ„panied vvith a troup of graces and obeyed not the voyce of Christ in the Gospell but vengence shall ouertake them in that glorious appearing of that judge in the world These are the two great â—aultes and sinnes that shall procure in the day of judgement vengence from Iesus Christ Now as there are two thinges that procures this vengence so there are two things that brings life at that great appearance of the Lord Iesus Christ The first is the knowledge of God The next is the knowledge of his Sonne the Lord Iesuâ— Christ Iohâ— chap. 17. verse 3. This is lyfe euerlasting to know thee to be the onely God and whom thou hast 〈◊〉 Iesus Christ knowe these two knowe God knowe Christ in his Gospell 〈◊〉 vengence shall not ouertake thee Then by the plaine contrare There are two grounds and causes of death and damnation The misknowing of God and the 〈…〉 of Iesus heere 〈◊〉 in his Gospell and these two are 〈…〉 gether Then brethren in one word Let not the Iew be bold to say he knowes God when he knowes not his Son all the knowledge a man can haue of God when he knowes not his Sonne is nothing for God the Father cannot be knowne but in his Son Iesus Christ and without the knowledge of God in his Son there is no saluation from judgement The Son is the Image of God and God will be knowne in him Heb. chap. 1. verse 3. He is the brightnesse of his glory and the ingraued forme of his person So that there can be no sight of God but in the face of Christ the man Ioyne these two together know God know the Son know the Son that thou may know the Father for no sight of the Father but in the Son This further wold be marked When he speaks of obedience to Christ He sayes not they that obeyed not the Lord Iesus but he sayes They vvho obeyed not the Gospell of the Lord Iesus This is spoken to the commendation of the Gospell and of the preaching of it and this base ministry which men esteemes so litle of Looke how he rankes this Gospell and the preaching of it with Christ himselfe He counts them that obey the Gospell to obey Christ and he counts them who are rebellious to the Gospell to be rebels to Christ And therefore say I boast as thou wilt of Christ and of the knowledge of him if thou despise this Gospel and this base ministry vengence shall light on thee Thou wilt say thou knowest Christ and in the meane time there wil be nothing in
the purpose of the Apostle in this place was to comforte the Thessalonians against the afflictionâ—s vvhere-vvith for the tyme they vvere exercised The first and the cheefest argument of consolation vvas taine from that just jugdement of God when he commes for the afflictions that the godly and innocent suffers in this lyfe for the name of Iesus Christ are as a mirror vvherein we may see the Lord Iesus comming to judgment to take vengence on the afflicters and to render and to giue rest 〈◊〉 his own The Apostle taking occasion of this argument points out the Lord Iesus comming to judge the world He notes the place from which he shall come an Heauen aboue all these visible Heauens he notes the companie where-with in his comming he shall he accompanied First the Angels of his power enarmed with the power of the Iudge the Lord Iesus to execute his just judgement The next company is a flamming fire This fire at the comming of the Lord Iesus shall burne vp the Heauen shall melt the elements shall burne vp this earth and all the workes that is in it as Peter declares in his 2. Epistle chap. 3. and at last shall consume and deuore the wicked and that euerlastingly euer burning without end When he hes painted out the Lords comming to judge the world he subjoynes the effects that shall follow vpon his comming and judgement The first effect is he shall inflict vengence to them who in this world knew not God and would not obey the Gospell of our Lord Iesus Christ And after this he descryues this vengence more particularlie it shall be an vtter destruction so that they shall neuer get vp their head againe and this destruction shall be endlesse a death without a death the sorest death that euer man died the cause of the perdition shall be the face and angry countenance of the Iudge his face shall be as fire and they shal be as waxe the heate of his face shall melt them as the fire melts the waxe the cause of the eternitie of their perdition shall be the glorie of his power his power shall neuer haue an end and therefore their paine anguishe and perdition shall neuer haue an end The power shall euer holde them still in a torment and so this vvraith euerlasting shall sease and feede vpon them for euermore And so they shall euer be doing and neuer be dead Now in this text we haue the second effect that shall follow on the comming of the Lord to his judgement The first effect concerned the wicked This effect concernes the godly To come to the wordes shortlie He sayes When he shall come to be glorified in his Saintes The meaning is this vengence of perdition euerlasting shall be inflicted on the rebels of God and Christ at that tyme when he shall come to glorifie his owne the Saintes that in their glory and lyfe euerlasting he may be glorified himselfe Chief end of Christs coÌ„ming is to glorifie the soules This is the meaning shortly Now if ye will marke the first wordes When he shall come Ye may see that the first and cheefe end of the comming of the Lord Iesus to judgement is not the wrack of the reprobate but his cheefe end in his comming to judgement shall be the glorifying of his owne that in their glorie he may be glorified for euer The order of the giuing out of their doome and sentence of lyfe and death at that day makes this master plaâ—ne Read the order of the giuing foorth of this sentence in the 25. chap. of Matthevv vers 34. c. Iohâ— 5. cha 29. vers The sentence shall be giuen first to the godly and the Lord shall say first to them ere he open his mouth to the other Come ye blessed of my Father and 〈◊〉 that kingdome that is prepared for 〈◊〉 Then when that sentence is past he shall draw the godly to be assessours to him and with their consent and approbation in a maner he shal come to the doome of the reprobat and shal say Depâ—â— from me to the deuill and his Aâ—gels Iohn 5. chap. vers 28 29 The houre shall come vvhen all that are in the graues shall heare his voice and they shall come forth that haue doâ—e good to the resurrecâ—â—â—â— of life but they that haue done euill to the resurrection of condemnation This his order of proceeding showes that the cheefe end of Christs comming is the glorifying of his owne The cause is because in the glorifying of his elect cheefly shall God be glorified And seeing the Lord cheefly respects his owne glory therefore the first respect he shall haue in judging shall not be to punish the wicked for â—e shall cast them by his hand as dogges but to glorifie his owne To goe forward in the words When he shall come to be glorified in his Saintes That is to say when he shall come first to glorifie his Saints and so consequently to glorify himself For he cannot be glorifyed in his Saintes except he glorifie them first And therefore it must be vnderstood that he must glorifie them that in their glorie he may be glorified Now marke As the first and cheefe end of the comming of the Lord to judgement shall be the glorifying of his Saintes So the cheefe meane whereby the Lord shall be glorified shall not be the damnation of the reprobate but it shall be the lyfe and saluation of the godlie because in the godly at that day shall be manifested to the whole world the goodnesse of the Lord Iesus his mercy his omnipotent power in one word his Majestie and his glory cheefly shal be manifested in them So that the whole world when they see them stand vp as it were in a shout shall cry Glorie glorie glorie be to the Lambe that sits on the Throne when they shall see the elect so shining in glorie they shall brust forth in crying glorie glorie glorie and nothing shall be heard but glorie euer more These are the thinges we shall once see and heare either to our euerlasting glorie or to our euerlasting destruction It is true the Lord Iesus that day shall be glorified also in the damnation of the reprobat and that in his justice Ye read in the 14. of Exod. I shal be glorified in Pharao and his armie in powring out a vengence on them I shall drowne them But yet the justice God the justice of Christ serues not so much to his glorie as his mercie does And it is a greater matter yea and more glorie shall come to him by the sauing of one soule at that day nor by the condemning of an hundreth Came Christ Iesus in the world for this end cheeflie that God should be glorified in his justice No. Christ came and the Gospell of mercy is giuen vs that men and Angels in that day should glorifie God cheeflie in his mercie Now to goe forward And to be made marueilous in all them that beleeue
and the 〈◊〉 Christ is both the beginning and the ending the shining begins at him and ends at him And therefore it is said Rom. 11. chap. 36. verse For of him and throgh him and for him are all things to him be glory for euer Now what shall be the cause of this glorie of ours He sets it downe in these words according to the grace of our God and of the Lord Iesus Christ Grace is the cause of our shining Grace from the Father grace from the Sonne Then there is nothing but grace there shall be nothing but grace in Heauen grace in earth no merite in this earth no merite in Heauen No merite in this earth but Iesus merite no merite in Heauen but onely grace grace and mercy in earth all standing here and in Heauen is only by grace And so the cause of our euerlasting standing is euerlasting grace the onely grace of God in Christ To whom with the Father and the holy Spirit be all glory for euer AMEN THE FOVRTH LECTVRE VPON THE SECOND EPISTLE OF PAVL TO THE THESSALONIANS 2. THESSA CHAP. 2. vers 1. 2. 3. 1 NOW vve beseech you brethren by the comming of our Lord Iesus Christ and by our assembling vnto him 2 That ye be not suddenly mooued from your mynde nor troubled neithr by spirit nor by vvord nor by letter as it were from vs aâ— though the day of Christ vvere at hand 3 Let no man deceiue you by any meanes IN the chapter preceding ye haue heard brethren first of the saluation of the Apostle wherein he wishes to the Thessalonians grace from God the Father and from the Lord Iesus Christ Then we came to his preface wherein he rejoices and giues thanks to God for the increase of grace of faith of loue they had receiued And thirdly we came to that consolation that he ministers to them against the affliction and trouble vnder the which they lay for the faith of Christ Now to come to this chapter In it the Apostle first admonishes the Thessalonians that they giue not eare to deceiuers and false teachers who would perswade them that the comming of the Lord Iesus was at hand and thereafter â—e enters in a refutation of this pointe of false doctrine and heresie Now to make this more plaine The occasion as it appeares of that which the Apostle wrytes in this chapter is this In his first Epistle written to them and fourth chapter thereof he spoke concerning the second comming of the Lord Iesus 〈…〉 and beside other thinges as we may read there he specifies these wordes We sayes he vvhich liue and are remaining in the comming of the Lord shall be caught vp in the cloudes vvith them vvho are departed this lyfe after their resurrection The Thessalonians reading this incontinent concludes Christ shall come ere euer we die we shall be found on lyfe at his comming and we shall be reâ—t vp in the aire to meete the Lord in the cloudes vvith them who are departed Now in this meane-tyme the deuill is busie to confirme them in this error and therefore he raises vp deceyuers and false teachers that went about to perswade them of the trueth of this as though it had beene true that they should be liuing at the Lords comming These false teachers alledged for them partlie the reuelation of the Spirite of God partlie a tradition of Paul which both were false Therefore the Apostle vnderstanding this tooke occasion to vvryte this Epistle and especiallie this second chapter wherein he admonishes or rather effectuouslie requestes them that they suffered not themselues to be deceiued as though the comming of the Lord were at hand and thereafter falles out in a refutation of this error To returne to the wordes In the wordes we haue read in the first verse we haue the earnest request of the Apostle together with an obtestation adjuring them with all grauitie by the comming of the Lord Iesus by the assembling of the elect to him at his comming that they should not suffer themselues so to be deceyued as though the comming of the Lord were at hand Now to insist in this first verse Novv vve beseech you sayes he by the comming of the Lord Iesus Christ and by our assembling vnto him The words bears a great obtestation wherein he straites them vnder the paine of lyfe and death that as euer they wold look to haue joy in Christs comming and to communicat with his glory they shold not suffer themselues to be deceiued Then brethren ye see in requesting and that in lenity he obtests and adjures them in grauity and in some seuerity He joines and tempers two contrare things together sweetnesse and lenity on the one part sowrenes and seuerity on the other part First he dravves them on and intreates them vvillinglie to obey that vvhich he requyres of them and then againe in a maner violentlie he pulles them He both leades and dravves Requesting in lâ—â—â—tie he leades them obtesting in seuerine he dravves them as it vvere violentlie Commonlie ye shall finde he vses this forme of requesting In the 2. Epist to the Cor. 10. chap. 1. verse 〈◊〉 I Paul myselfe beseech you by the meeknesse and gentlenesse of our Lord Iesus Christ. There ye haue the request vvith an adjuring and charging of them Novv brethren take these tvvo take lenitie vvith seueritie together they vvill haue a great force in the hearers to bring them forvvard sunder them none of them vvill be so effectuall lenitie the alone hes lesse force seueritie the alone is ouer sharpe It will destroy more nor vvin bind them together they haue a great power In the 2. Epistle to Timothie 4. chap. 2. verse 〈…〉 there is â—eueritie and againe exhort vvith all 〈◊〉 suffring and 〈◊〉 there is meeknesse Looke that these two be not seuered This was the Apostles maner of doing and thus forme â—e vses bindes euerie one of vs that speakes in the Church of God to the end of the world to vse the lyke Yet to insist in the vvordes I beseech you by the comming of the Lord Iesus Christ and by our assembling vnto him Ye see tvvo thinges heere vvhereby he adjures them to obey his request The first is the coâ—â—â—ing of Christ The second is our assembling to him at his comming Then it fellowes that seeing he obtesâ—s by these two thinges that we should not doubt but the Lord Iesus will come and when he commes that we shall assemble vnto him for all obtestations are made by things which are counted vndoubted trueths The things whereby any man objures and obtests another man should be sure grounds Now the Apostle obtests them by these two things Therefore we should not doubt but these two are true Christs secâ—nd comming to the cause of our assembling vnto him that Christ shall come and we shall assemble vnto him Yet compare these two together the first is the cause his comming the second is the effect our assembling vnto him
earth that the Church of God could not stand one day except the Lord did cast in impediments in the way of the deuil and wickedmen to hold them off And so all the glorie of the standing of the Church in the earth is to be ascriued to that God that holdes off and shall hold off by his prouidence â—ill they will they the deuill wicked men from their wicked interpryses and the Lord forbid the Antichrist should preuaile for if he preuaile assure thy selfe if thou stand steedfast in the faith thy bloud shall pay for it for of all Tygers in the earth he is the most bloud-thirstie Now the wordes following telles wherefore these in pediments are casten in That he should be reveiled in his ovvne tyme As he would say his tyme is not yet come that article of tyme God hes appointed and decreed from all eternitie he should be reueiled in is not yet come Brethren this is true and al the Scripture makes it manifest The Lord from all eternitie hes appointed tymes opportunities houres moments when euerything should be done that falles out in this world euery action hes the owne moment prescriued to it be it good or bad The Lord hes written the houre of it in his booke when it should be done Now ye see by experience the deuill euer seekes to preuent the tyme yea the best of vs all when the Lord hes appointed a time to our deliuerance or to doe anything cannot byde that tyme but are euer freatting and fuming Therefore the Lord castes in stayes both to the deuill and to men on earth When they are running forwarde he will cast in a stay and thou must stand there and thou must stand vntil that same tyme and article come that he hes appointed and it shall not ly in the power of the deuill and of all the earth to preuent that tyme. Now to come to the next verse There are two things concerning the Antichrist The first his comming in the world The second his reueiling after his comming There is a difference betweene these two His comming to the height and his reuelation As concerning his comming to his height it might haue bene asked by the Thessalonians Is he come yet we vnderstand by thy speaking he is not reueiled yet but is he come yet He answeres Euen novv the misterie of iniquitie is in doing shortlie the meaning is The Antichrist the Antichristianisme false religion Heretical doctrine is come alreadie albeit it be not reueiled and come to the hight He calles Antichristanisme iniquitie for of all iniquitie false doctrine is the greatest iniquity and of all sinners on the earth a false teacher and deceiuer of the people of God is the greatest sinner Therefore he is called the man of sinne a man addicted to sinne as a slaue to his master Further he calles it the misterie of iniquitie It is called a misterie because it came not to the light at the first but lay vp hid in a misterie It was not knowne not detected in the owne cullour nor came not to an height that men might know it Then marke ye see the Antichrist and Antichristianisme that is false religion beganne verie soone Euen novv there are many Antichrists sayes Iohn 1. Epist 4. chap 3. vers It beganne in Pauls and the Apostles dayes It was conserued as it were in the mothers bellie in those dayes but it lay long and many yeeres hid vp in a misterie and it lay long time lurking in Rome and in the Church thereof and then at last broke vp there the great Antichrist It lay so hid vp not comming to the perfection to the yeere of the Lord six hundreth and three yeeres and then it was broght to a great maturitie and perfection by Phocas the Emperour and Pope Bonifacius the third It layth the mothers wombe getting forme and grouth ere it came to the reuelation so the Antichrist is an olde childe Mark it there are many misteries in the world and among all the rest there is a mistery of sin as there is a mistery of godlinesse 1. Tim. 3. chap. 16. verse so there is a mistery of vngodlinesse and sin lyes very long hid ere it break out and appeare in the owne cullor in any person Alas thy sin will ly long hid as it were clocked vnder a clock in thee ere it come to an height for sin is a deceyuing thing but at last it will bud out in spyte of thy teeth And to speake of this sinne of false doctrine in particulare It lay hid many yeeres ere men knew of it No question in the dayes of the olde fathers Chrysâ—stome Augustine and the rest of them many corruptions broke in which they saw not because they lay hid vp in a misterie so that they could not see them vntill it hes pleased the Lord now to reueile them Wonder not that the doctors reproued not this Heresie and that Heresie no sin lyes hid vp wonderfully The greatest sin will ly hid vp vnder the greatest holinesse Then in the end of the verse he returnes againe to the impediment and he speaks two thinges of it First how long it shal lust and then what shal follow from once it shal be â—aine away to wiâ— that man of sin shall be reueiled Now to the words ye layes He that vvithholds shall let till he be taken out of the vvay that is to say the Romane Emperor for he speaks of the succession of Emperours as of one man because there was one kingdome to wit the Romane Empyre as before he spoke of the Antichrist He shall withhold that head of the Romane beast from using vnto the time he be taken away Then what time shall he be taken out of the way Euen at that article the Lord hes appointed then the Lord suffred him to be taken out of the way Who took him one out of the way Mahomet with his 〈…〉 the 〈◊〉 and Turks in the East wer the first subuerted the Romane Empyre and then Boniface and his successours ouerthrewit in the West Mark this When as the point of time prescriued by the Lord to things to be done commes then all impediments that hold back that thing if it were the Empyre of all the world shall be put out of the way and shall haue no standing but will vanish away By the contrare before that point of time come I shal mak one stray stay a man one word shal hold him the least thing in the world shall hinder him were he raging neuer so fast To let you see that al goes by the effectuall working and dispensation of God that workes all Iâ—standis not in this man or that man albeit he were an Emperour or Monareli but onely in God who hes appointed a tyme to euery thing that all glory may be giuen him That men say not I did this or that No it is the Lord that from time to time hes wrought it Ye will see some times a
Cor. chap. 14. verse 25. it is said of the Prophets that God is in them Indeed he prophecyes not onely in the mouth but he enters in the hart and thereby he prophecyes aswell as by the mouth Paul sayes 2. Cor. 4. 13. We beleeue and therefore vve speak If the Prophet speake not with the tongue because he beleeues in the hart all his preaching is deare of a pennie See Coll. 1. 29. So Satan will be like God in this pointe he will enter in his minister namely the great Antichrist he will possesse his hart and all the inwarde affections of his soule and by them he will be powerfull in them that are ordeined for damnation before the world was made Now to goe forward in the text following The Apostle setdowne two meanes by the which the Antichrist when he shall come shall be effectuall in them who perishes Marke the two meanes and experience this day teaches the trueth of them The first meane he calles it all maner of povver then he expones himselfe what he meanes by this power by signes and lying vvonders wonderfull working that commes of a power Another meane in the verse following And in all deceiuablenesse of vnrighteousnesse that is doctrine that is first false secondly fraudulent hauing onely a cullour of the trueth So to take it vp shortly The two meanes the Antichrist shall haue is first working wonderfully next speaking vttering false doctrine first worke and wonders and then word Worke and word are the two means whereby the Antichrist deceiues you by his worke he deceiues the world by his word he propoâ—s false doctrine Now to speak of the first meane His first meane are wonders and miracles The Antichrist shall be effectuall by working wonders in them who are ordeined to perdition when he shall be reueiled in the world Brethren as the minister of Christ is effectuall by working of signes and wonders as the Apostles were and before them the Prophets in their owne tyme So the Antichrist the minister of Satan he will prease to be like them and he will be effectuall â—n these who perishes by working of wonders and miracles But what wonders are these that the Antichrist workes by The Apostle calles them lying signes and wonders lying first in respect of their end wherefore they are wrought to confirme false doctrine and lyes to men to establish falshood and againe lying because the wonders that are wrought are no true things in substance they are but ilusions and meere juglerie to deceiue the people Ye see the deuill would faine be like God and in the meane-tyme he is a plaine counterfairer and to call it so the ape of God counterfaiting God So the minister of Satan the Antichrist a plaine counterfaiter of Christs-Minister an ape set vp as he hes seene the Ministers of Christ worke so he will stand vp and counterfaite all are but apes all their miracles and working but apes playing Now brethren I thinke ye would aske this question whether if Satan and the Antichrist hes power to worke true miracles and wonders or not I answere shortlie In trueth I say Satan is not able to worke one true wonder he hes not power to worke one miracle DefinitioÌ„ of a true miracle that is true in substance and I prone it both by reasons â—n Scripture but shortlie By reasons a true wonder or miracle is a worke that is wrought aboue nature against nature contrare to the course of nature contrare to all second causes of the which when it is done none in the world is able to giue a natural reason wherfore it is so There is the definition of a true miracle I could let you see out of the Scripture many examples of these the rauishing of Enoch and Elias to the Heauen Who can giue a naturall cause for the lifting vp of two heauy bodies to the Heauen The preseruation of Noe with so many with him in the Arke a worke against nature The confusion of languages at the building of Babell a wonder Saraes conceiuing of a Son when she had past the date of conceiuing and bearing children The passing of Israell safe though the red sea and through the floode of lordane The standing of the Sun in the heauen wheâ— Ioshua fought The going back of the Son when Ezechias wasick The Eclypse of the Sunne when Christ was crucified The sauing of Daniell in the Lyons den The sauing of the three children in the fire The sauing of Ionas in the Whales belly The burning vp of Elias sacrifices with a fire from Heauen against nature Come to the new Testament the raising vp of so many dead bodies and the greatest wonder of al the incarnation of the Son of God his suffering his resurrection the greatest wonder that euer was wrought Satan caÌ„not vvork true miracles Who can giue a naturall cause of these things Now come to the assumption Satan cannot change nature it passes his power to impeed the course of nature to do any thing against the second causes it must be of as great power to change nature as to create nature the power that alters nature is as great as the power that creats nature Satan by al mens confession hes noâ— the power to create onely the Lord hes power to create It passes the deuils power to create the smallest creature on the earth and therefore it passes his power to change nature and to do any thing against nature and the second causes And therefore Rom cha 4. vers 17. these two the changing of nature and the creation are only ascryued to God as proper to him To God saies he vvho quickens the dead that is an alteration of nature and calles these thiâ—gs that are not as if they vvere that is creating by the word of his mouth at the naming of it the thing that was not standes vp and is And so we must conclude Satan hes no power to worke one true miracle This for the reason Come to the Scripture Read ye not 72. Psalme vers 18. Blessed be the Lord God euen the God of Israell vvho does onely vvondrous things And in the 77. Psalme vers 13. 14. Who is so great a God as our God thou are the God that 〈◊〉 vvonders as he would say there is none can worke wonders but God So this question is easily solued But there is another question Will not God vvorke â—vvonders by the ministrie of the Deuill and the Antichrist shovves not God his povver in vvorking vvonders by them as he did by the Prophets and Apostles his ovvne seruants Brethren I shall shovve you my opinion vvithout the prejudice of any mans judgement I thinke not for all the wonders that the deuill will worke are to this end to establishe lyes against God and his glory Novv I say the Lord vvill not lend his povver to Satan to work one true wonder to deface his owne glory and to establish false doctrine and I think I haue a
wrought by the Spirit of God thou must liue holilie in his sight and then thou must beleeue thou must haue faith that is throgh the trueth of Iesus Christ or else thou wert neuer chosen If thou hast not faith if thou hast not an holy life no saluation for thee Then shortly in the next verse Hauing spoken of faith he showes how a man commes by faith how he gets it He sayes vnto the vvhich ye are called Faith thou is gotten by calling if a man be not called and cryed on as it were with a shout from Heauen O the dead bodie will not waken for if thou be not cry edon thou wilt not get grace to beleeue if thou be not cried vpon by the cry of God in his word thou shalt neuer get faith for faith is kindled vp by the voice of the Euangell The Lord sayes Iohn 5. 28. 29. The houre shall come and novv iâ— vvhen the dead shall heare the voice of the Sonne of God and they that heare it shall liue meaning the dead in sinne So faith rises by a crye and call when he sayes come out of that death thou that sâ—eepest if thou heare thou shalt incontinent arise and beleeue O the power of the voice of God! It is his voice onely that makes the dead soule heare and to beleeue It is not thy free-will that makes thee to answere it is the cry of God onely that kindles vp faith in thee and what meanes vses he to call men by Euen the Gospell of Iesus Christ which is the voice of God For what is the word of God but the voyce of God shouting and crying vpon thee So calling is by a word and voice Now calles he thee by the voyce of the Law No long would thou haue lyeâ— ere thou had answered to the voyce of the Law the more it cry vpon thee thou wiltly the longer dead What is the voice then The sweet voice of the Gospell of Iesus Christ when it is tolde to thee that the Sonne of God is incarnate for thy sake he hes suffered and is risen that thou may get remission of sinnes and life euerlasting in one word the speach of the crosse of a dead man it is the speach that puts life in thee and so no faith without calling and no calling without the voice of the Gospell and no life without the voice of the Gospell Thou shalt neuer see the face of God without thou heare the voice of the Gospell Yet marke He sayes our Gospell that is that I Paul and my fellow laborers ministred Then I aske what is the mouth out of the which the voice of the Gospell sounds and by the which the Lord calles the dead man Euen the mouth of sillie simple men and therefore Paul cals it his Gospel Pauls mouth Peters mouth and the mouth of all the faithfull ministers are the voice of God to the end of the world calling thee to faith and therefore doe they call this Gospell their Gospell The Lord hes so ordeined that without the mouthes of sillie men no voice of God should be heard in the earth Goe to thy chamber read as thou wilt thou shalt nor come to Heauen if thou contemne the mouth of sillie men for without the voice of sillie men that soundes this Gospell there is no voice of God calling thee to faith And therefore without this base ministrie is no saluation for thee I say farther If the mouth of this ministrie whereby the Lord speaks be contemned by thee there is no faith no life appointed for thee God hes so bound himself to this ministrie that if thou contemne this ordinance thou shalt neuer see Heauen He will haue thee safe by a foolish preaching or else thou shalt neuer see heauen Say not might he not send Angels No close thy mouth for by foolish preaching thou shalt be safe and by no other means Mark this ye that contemne the preaching of the word of God out of the mouthes of sillie men Now in the end of the verse he sets downe another end of this calling the first end was faith the other is the participation of the glorie of Heauen in Iesus Christ all is in Christ glorie is in him so thou shalt not get either grace or glorie if thou get not Christ alwaies this is an end both of election and vocation life euerlasting Election is from all eternitie vocation is in tyme and lyfe euerlasting followes as the onely effect and end of both Now the calling beginnes here and what other thing is al our preaching but this come to Iesus Christ the Anchor of your faith and life and this cry holds 〈◊〉 till Christ Iesus come and then he will cry out that last cry Come ye blessed of my Father and inherite the kingdome prepared for you and then the chosen shall enter in the participation of that glorie through Christ that neuer shall end And therefore to this Iesus the Anchor of our life and the caller of vs to life and glory with the Father and holy Spirit we render al praise and honor for now and euermore AMEN THE NINTH LECTVRE VPON THE SECOND EPISTLE OF PAVL TO THE THESSALONIANS 2. THESSA CHAP. 2. vers 15. 16. 17. 15 Therefore brethren â—tand fast keep the instructions vvhich ye haue bene laught either by our vvord or by our Epistle 16 Novv the same Iesus Christ our Lord and our God â—â—en the Father vvhich hath loued vs and hath 〈◊〉 vs euerlasting consolation and good hope through grace 17 Comfort you harts and stablishe you in 〈…〉 and good vvorke AFTER the Apostle heâ— ended that Prophecy of the vniuersall defection from the trueth and faith of Christ Iesus and of the reueiling and manifesting of the Antichrist and his power he doeth three things in the end of this chapter First he comforts the Thessalonians against this Apostaâ—ie and defection assuring them it should not touch them because they were grounded vpon that stable foundation of the eternall election of God of the which they had sure tokens and testimonies the sanctification of the Spirit and faith in the trueth the calling of God to faith and participation of the glory of Iesus Christ Next in the text we have red there are conteined two things The first is 〈◊〉 exhortation to the Thessalonians to stand and perâ—euere to the end The other is a prayer conceiued by the Apostle to God the Father and to the Lord Iesus that it would please them first to comfort the harts of the Thessalonians next to establish them in euery good word and worke Then shortly to come to the text We haue set downe in the first words an exhortation to the Thessalonians that they should standfast But first we shall consider how this exhortation followes on the doctrine passing before Therefore sayes he Then it must be inferred by a consequent vpon the doctrine preceeding The cause of their standing and perseuerance must be in the text preceding
to wit their eternal election to saluation their sanctification their faith in the trueth of Iesus their effectuall calling to lyfe euer lasting and the glorie of Christ vpon these grounds he inferres this I herefore brethren stand fast as if he did say seeing ye are so sure grounded therefore stand fast on your ground Then thelesson is when a man findes in his owne hart that God hes chosen him to saluation from all eternitie when he findes he hes faith and the Spirite of sanctification and finds the Lord from Heauen to call on him and to put out his hand as it were and to take him by the hand againe and to leade him forwarde to that saluation to the which he hes appoynted him from all eternitie Then though Heauen should fall and all the world goe to ruine though thousands of men should fall away from the trueth at this tyme yet it becommes him not once to shudder or to suffer himselfe once to be shaken in the middes of all confusion and that not throgh any confidence or strength in himselfe for then he will be beguilde but onely through the power of the grace of his God which he hes found in experieÌ„ce ground himself on that ground which we haue Rom. 11. 29. The gifts and calling of God is vvithout repentance if once the Lord begin to bestow these spirituall blessings and to call a person to the glory of Christ effectually Heauen and earth shall goe together ere that person perish Now ere I goe further to the words I would solue a question that may fal out here Hes not the Apostle euen now before certified these Thessalonians of their election from al eternitie out of the which it followes necessarly that they are placed out of al danger of finall defection for it is impossible that they that are elected from all eternity can fall away finallie and perish how is it then that he exhortes them to stand considering this their sure election is vnchangeable I answere shortly It is true the chosen of God are placed outwith all danger of this defection vnto the which the reprobate is subject and it is impossible that they can fall away finallie indeed they may haue their owne stumblinges and stoppings but as concerning their finall defection it is a thing vnpossible that they can be subject to it by vertue of their election for brethren so many as are ordeined to life of necessity they are ordeined to finall perseuerance if thou be ordeined to life of necessitie thou must stand fast to the end in some measure but it is as true on the other part that they that are ordeined to perseuerance they are ordeined to stand by such and such meanes and of these meanes this is one exhortation another is admonition another is teaching another rebuking for if need be we should rebuke euen the chosen of God and threatten them yea the prayers also of the Saints and Pastors are meanes to make the chosen to stand fast And failing these meanes by the which the Lord hes ordeined that they shall perseuere and especiallie if thou contemne these meanes exhortation admonition rebukes doctrine and prayers of the faithfull thou shalt faile of perseuerance and failing of perseuerance thou shalt fall finally away And if thou fall finallie away thou shalt finde that thou wert neuer one of these that were chosen to life euerlasting And therefore brethren seeing these are the means of God to hold thee vp to the end till he glorifie thee thou should be glad when thou art admonished exhorted and taught for they are the tokens to thee of thy election if thou take them in a good part Beware then that ye contemne not any of these meanes Now to goe forward When he hes exhorted them to stand fast then immediatly he subjoines as it were the definition of this standing what it is Standfast sayes he What is that Hold a fast and a sure grip Whereof of the doctrine I haue taught you either by vvord or vvrit stand fast by it Marke then Ye see the perseuerance he craues is the perseuerance in the faith and in the â—ight of the word the doctrine of Iesus Christ is the light of the world and perseuerance in knowledge of this word is to hold it fast To make this plaine There are two sorts of perseuerance One is the perseuerance in the trueth in the Gospell in the faith of Iesus and in the light tvvo sorts of perseuerance and all these are one There is another perseuerance and that is an holy life well doing and in a godly conuersation Marke them both if ye will compare them together the first which is perseuerance in faith or in trueth must be the cause of the other and the other is the necessar effect of it where perseuerance is in the light of necessitie there is a perseuerance in godlinesse for a man that perseueres in the light of necessity that man walketh in the hie way to Heauen in his action and maner of liuing and must goe the direct way to saluation but once take away the light and let him reject and contemne the light and veritie of Christs Gospell he shall not goe one stop rightlie but he shall decline from the hie way Take the Gospell and the light of Christ out of his eyes and hart he shall neuer do one right action he may seeme to be good and haue a faire outward showe and his words may seeme glistring so that he shall not seeme to be a murtherer a theefe or an harlot but if the Gospel be out of his hart all is but hypocrisie and there is nothing in his hand that pleases God all is abomination and his rewarde for all his faire doing shall be with the hypocrites in Hell So let not man pleasure himselfe in his doing if his eye be not set on Iesus Christ shining in the Gospel If he walke not in the light of Iesus Christ he is in the wrong way when he thinkes he is in the rightest way Lord giue men this grace that when they think they stand they may grip to this light of te Gospell Yet to marke more narrowly these wordes Keepe sayes he hold a grip and stand fast How shall I stand By keeping of a grip no standing for man but by a gripping if thou let thy grip go fall shalt thou Now what shall they grip Doctrine keepe light the best thing in the world is to keepe knowledge There is no standing for men except by keeping light and knowledge Yet what doctrine is this he willes them to keepe He sayes vvhich I haue deliuered and teached you There is no standing but by gripping of doctrine And what a doctrine Euen the doctrin of the Apostles grip to it onely For grip as fast as thou wilt to the traditions and vanities of men they will not all make thee stand for there is no standing but by gripping of the doctrine of the Apostles Paul
them the presence of the Lord himselfe to be with them all Last he salutes them and the effect of the saluatation is a prayer for them The grace of our Lord Iesus be with you all Amen So all consistes in prayer Then learne He beganne this Epistle with prayer and salutation throughout the whole Epistle prayer is mingled Now in the end he multiplies prayer What meanes this Euen this that in vaine is all doctrine exhortation admonition and precept whatsomouer all preaching is nothing except the Lord by his Spirit worke inwardlie in the harts of the hearers all is nothing but vvinde except he moue their affections Now the way to obtaine this inward and secreete operation of the holy Spirite is oft-tymes to turne to God by prayer beseeching him to be povverfull and to joyne his Spirite vvith the vvord and to joyne vvorking vvith speaking And therefore hovv oft so euer we teach and ye hear the hart and eye should be lifted vp and set vpon him who hes keeped Spirit and power in his owne hand to giue as he pleases No man can giue you it neither the Preachour nor no Angell can giue you it It is onely in the hand of God and Iesus Christ to giue thee Spirite and povver and to joyne vvorking vvith speaking And therefore the eye in preaching should euer be set on Christ The Pastour should pray and haue his hart aboue to dravve dovvne grace to himselfe and the people that the vvord spoken may be effectuall in the hart othervvise preaching and all hearing is in vaine Now to come to the words The first thing he prayes for and wishes is peace The Lord of peace sayes he giue you peace for euer and euery vvay The thing then he wishes is peace that is quyetnes rest and tranquillity concord agreement all these words expresses the meaning of the word Peace The contrare is vnquyetnes What peace is dissention c. This Peace is the blessednes felicity happy estate of Christs kingdome which is his Church both in earth and Heauen And all the graces we haue in Iesus Christ tends to this end that his subjects may liue in peace quyetnesse and joy for euer and that shall be the end when we are in Heauen peace and joy for euer Ye see the happy estate of a worldly kingdome what is it When men liues in rest and enjoyes peace and quyetnes that is the happines of a worldly knigdom therefore in the 1. Timot. 2. 2. he commaundes prayer to be made for all men For Kings and superiour povvers To what end Euen to this same end that vve may liue a peaceable and quyet lyfe Euen so the blessed and happie estate of Christs kingdome is an heauenlie peace concord and quyetnesse And therefore Rom. 14. 17. he makes this peace to be essentiall to the kingdome of God that he defines it by this peace saying The kingdom of God is righteousnes peace and ioy in the holy Ghost This Heauenly peace is onely in Christs kingdome in his Church in Heauen and earth And the subjects of the kingdome of Iesus Christ are onely they that enjoyes this peace here and after this life for euer for without the Church of Christ there is no true peace If thou be no subject in his kingdome thou hast no rest no true peace for there is no true peace for the vvicked sayes the Prophet Esay 57. 21. If thou be of that number that is without the kingdome of Christ no peace for thee and the end shall proue thou hadst neuer true peace in this world Now to go forward He craues that it may be giuen to them Then Peace the gift of god it is a gift Heauenly peace is the gift of God thou hast it not by nature None is borne with peace but with warre and inimitie by nature all are borne with dissention strife and debate there is no heauenly peace by nature And the whole lyfe naturall what is it but a continuance in war debate and strife first against God next with thy selfe and thy owne conscience And againe a strife against the Angels in Heauen and men on earth and all the creatures of God thou art an enemie to them and they vnto thee vntill the tyme thou attaine to that new birth in Iesus Christ and then by vertue of that birth thou getst this heauenly and spirituall peace for then thou beginst to liue at peace first with God himselfe and next with the Angels in Heauen and men in earth and with all his creatures So looke how needfull it is for thee to haue regeneration for if thou want it thou shalt be at war for euer thou shalt haue no peace But how getst thou it It is a gift And who shold giue it The Lord of peace The giuer of it must be the Lord with dominion and power with command And as vnder his Lordship other things must be so peace must be at his command either to giue it or hold it Now who is this Lord that hes this power of peace and war Who is he that sayes All povver is giuen to me in heauen and earth Matt. 2â— 18. This Lord is Iesus Christ And therefore ere euer he came in this world and tooke on him our nature Esay 9. 6. he styles him the Prince of peace And Paul Ephes 2. 14 styles him peace it â—elfe he is our peace-maker And in Iohn 14. 27. Christ speaking to his Apostles takes on him to be the giuer of peace and sayes My peace I leaue to you and giues you So this Lord of peace is the Lord Iesus Christ who hes in his handes all grace and glorie in Heauen and in earth Yet to goe forward The lords style ansvver able to the grace 〈◊〉 praier Why is it that he makes a choise of this style rather then of any other Certainely this style he receiues here agrees with the petition and thing asked at his hands peace is craued he is styled the Lord of peace what euer we aske of Christ it should be in faith that he hes power to giue it aske iâ— thou peace aske it not but in an assurance that it is in his hand and that he is able to giue it Now this assurance that all is in his hand it cannot be better vttered then by the Name and style we giue him askest thou wisdome say Lord of wisdome giue wisdome askest thou peace say Lord of peace giue me peace askest thou mercie say Lord of mercy giue me mercy So the name and style we giue to the Lord when we craue ought at his hands should be answerable to the grace and mercy we aske for then we vtter our faith and assurance that he hes such a grace and power to giue vs. This hes bene the forme of Pauls prayer and of godly men of old and should be imitate by vs. The Lord hes many styles he is called the Lord of peace mercy and justice the Lord
of glorie There is not a Monarch that prydes himself in honourable styles and names that is comparable with the great Creator the Lord of the world yea set them altogether all are nothing in comparison with him because all are his all grace power and dominion in Heauen and earth is his and therfore look by how many graces his Majestie hes spread it selfe through Heauen and earth look how many graces he hes in his hand to giue so many seuerall and honourable styles may he receiue there is no end of his glory nor no end of his Names from his wisdome he is called the Lord of wisdome from his justice the Lord of justice from his mercy the Lord of mercy from his peace the Lord of peace from his glory the Lord of glory Now to goe forward Tvvo properties of peace 1. It is euerlasting There are two properties giuen to this peace The first It is for euer alvvayes it is not for a tyme onely but for all tymes It is not for this lyfe onely but for the lyfe to come This worldly peace serues but for this lyfe onely but the peace of Iesus Christ serues for the lyfe euerlasting The peace of God is not peace in prosperitie onely but in aduersitie also It is not peace in life onely but in death also And therefore Symen in his song when he had seene Iesus he sayes Novv Lord 〈…〉 depart in peace Luke 2. 29. the seruant of God as he liued in great peace so also departed in peace so this peace lastes for euer And therefore Esay 9. 7. when he hes called him the Prince of peace he sayes the largenesse of his dominion and increase of his 〈◊〉 at and peace shall haue no end his kingdome is an endles kingdome and there is an endles peace in that kingdome I called this peace our blessednesse Now this is the nature of blessednesse it cannot be bounded within any tearms if it be true selicitie bound it not compasse it not within a yeere within twentie yeeres or within a thousand yea within ten thousand yeeres for the nature of true blessednesse is euerlasting And therefore ye see worldly men that places their happinesse in worldly peace will dreame an eternity and perpetuitie to that peace of theirs that neither they nor their peace will haue an end That rich man in the Gospel Luke 12. 19. said to his soule Liue at ease eate and drinke and take thy pastime thou hast store laid vp for many yeeres trow ye not but he thought to liue for euer and thought that that aboundance should abyde with him for euer and so faires it with all worldlings they dreame a rest and peace for euer but the end will proue that they wer dreaming all their dayes Therefore Lord set our harts on that peace of Iesus Christ that lastes for euer This is then the first propertie of this peace of his It lasts for euer The second propertie of it is It is 〈…〉 of vvay It is peace in all respects not in one respect onely nor in some respects onely 2. It is in al respects but in euery respect I shall make this plaine The peace of Iesus Christ is peace in respect of God when our soules standes in friendship with him when we are reconceiled to him by the bloud of Iesus as it is said Rom 5. 1. Being iustified by faith vve haue peace tovvards God Then it is peace in respect of our selues an euill conscience is an euill enemie when thou stryuest not against thy owne affections but satisfies them then thy conscience will let thee get little rest it will ay be accusing thee but when once this peace of Iesus be giuen thee so that thou beginst to be regenerate and to lead an holy and sanctified lyfe then thy conscience rests and thou beginst to enjoy a joyfull peace in thy soule Philipp 4. 7. The peace of God that passes all vnderstanding preserue your harts and myndes in Christ Iesus and Col. 3. 15. Let the peace of God rule in your harts And againe it is peace in respect of the creatures of God with Angels in Heauen with men on earth man is enemie to man by nature then hauing this peace thou art at peace with Heauen and earth man and Angell for all are enemes to thee so long as thou art outwith Iesus Christ we are enemies to them all and they all to vs but being in Christ all things are reconciled to vs in heauen and earth Ephes 1. 10. Col. 1. 20. so in all respects it is peace Looke how many sortes of enimities was as many sortes of peace must be we are enemies to God to our owne conscience to Angels and men yea and that that is most conjoyned to vs by nature be it bloude asfinitie or any other bond if there be no more but nature there is nothing but enimitie the conjunction of man and woman if there be no more but their natural bond is enimity the parents and the children without this spirituall peace of Iesus are at enimitie So looke how many sorts of enimitie there is there are as many sorts of peace and our blessednesse standes in this peace Now looke the nature of it As blessednesse must indure for euer so our blessednes must be perfite If thou hast that peace of Iesus thou must haue it in all respects if thou hast peace with God thou hast peace with all men so far as lyes in thee Rom 12. 18. otherwise thou hast no true peace with God Men oft-tymes beguyles themselues I will haue peace with God will he say and yet I shal be this man or that mans enemie I shall slay him folie folie if thou glorie in debate with man and does not that lyes into thy power to be at peace with all men thou shalt haue no peace with God that thing which the Lord joynes seuere not thou the Lords peace is with al if thou seuere it and pryde thee in enimitie with any thou shalt not haue peace with God nor with thy self What peace hes a murtherer with God or with his owne conscience Aske at him I demand thee ô murtherer knew thou what that peace of God meanes when that bloudie affection raged and caried thee to bloude Thou lookest for friendship with God folie thou art neither at friendship with God nor his Angels nor none of his creatures It is a wonder that the Heauens falles not on thee The earth is thy enemy and it is a vvonder that it swallows thee not vp for al that bloud that thou hast shed on it but once it shall present it to thy damnation if thou repent not This far concerning prayer for peace I goe to the next words The Lord be vvith you all He goes to a deeper ground Before he wished the grace of the Lord Iesus to them Novv he vvishes the Lord himselfe to them the presence of Iesus Christ in his ovvn person not onely that he shall
stampe that is with such a Majestie in speaking with such gratiousnesse and spiritualnesse both in words and matter that they that hes a spirituall eye to discerne betweene light and darknesse will take it vp to be of God I pray you tell me how was the olde Scripture tane vp to be of God The Papist will say because the Church said it they were of God Is that all the warrand And who told the Church If the olde and new Scripture bare not the markes of the Spirit in themselues the Church had neuer tane them vp to be of God So the marke of the Scripture is that stampe of the Spirit that Majestie in such a simplicitie of wordes that gratiousnesse and power which shows both in the wordes and matter these things telles vs they are not mans writs for mens writtes hes not the gratiousnesse and power that is in the Scripture Brethren this marke of Pauls subscription is away albeit we haue the Epistle but a better marke bydes the stampe of the Lord bydes and this telles that it is the Scripture of God and Pauls writing Now followes the saluation The grace of our Lord Iesus Christ be vvith you all I see the affection of the man in the end of his writ is powred out on this Church of Thessalonica and when he takes his leaue he burstes out in frequent prayer and al his praier is for heauenly and spirituall thinges Then first we learne we must not euer bide al together and we cannot haue euer conference either by word or writ But how is our sundring recompensed To wit with greatnesse of affection let thy loue grow And how shalt thou vtter it In prayer to God for them with whom thou may not dwell affection is nothing worth without praier And what should we pray for Especially for heauenlie things Pray for heauenly peace for the presence of Iesus Christ and that the grace of Christ may be with him Pray also for things earthly but so that they may further him to heauenlie thinges And I say the man that cannot pray for heauenly things cannot pray truely for earthly thinges Dare thou pray if thou seeke not first the kingdome of Heauen no thou cannot pray if it were for thy dinner except thou pray first for the kingdome of God Now the next word is grace that is free fauour of God I reade not of such a commendation of any people as of these Thessalonians He commended them in both these Epistles from their faith hope loue and all the dueties of loue Yet he sayes not The Lord render you a rewarde for your merite but he sayes grace be vvith you This is contrare to all merite Read the 2. Timo. 1 16. there ye will finde a very notable exemple to this purpose There he sayes Onesiphorus vvas very beneficiall to me he oft refreshed me he thought no shame of my bondes he sought 〈◊〉 Rome very diligently How should he be requyted for this He sayes The Lord grant that Onesiphorus may finde mercy vvith the Lord at that day He is but a miserable man when he hes done all this And therefore this shall be my prayer for him for it will not be his merite that will do him good but it is the free grace and fauour of God O foole all thy merites shall stinke in that great day and then thou shalt see what free grace shall do for in that day none shall stand but such as stands by free grace Now whose grace is it he prayes for It is Iesus Christs No there is no grace but Christs grace How is it the Lord Iesus Christs He hes boght of the hand of the Father all grace al gifts of the holy Spirit all glorie in Heauen and earth with a pryce euen the pryce of his precious bloude And therefore the Father hes giuen him all So there is no sparke of grace giuen to any creature but it must come through Christ his hand euen the hand of the man Iesus All righteousnesse sanctification and glorie must come from him he must be the giuer thereof Therefore it is said he gaue gifts to men Ephes 4. 8. The Father giues no graces immediatly but all are giuen through the hand of Iesus Christ Therefore let vs haue recourse to this Lord of grace and seeke not to the Father without him but seek all from the Father in him Now how far should this grace extend Euen as Iesus Christ is an head that extends himselfe to al so the grace that commes from him is sufficient for all it is sufficient if it were for a thousand yea infinite worlds Rom. 5. 15. The Heauens are not capable of the greatnes of the grace of Iesus Christ Greatnes of the grace of Christ so that if there were a thousand worlds there is sufficiency of grace in him for them all There is no inlack in him but the inlack is in thy narrow hart it is capable but of a very small portion Learne here then by the exemple of Paul that we should not haue narrow harts to wish this grace to a few but we should wish it to be giuen to all Looke what he sayes of himselfe 2. Cor. 6. 11. My meuth sayes he hes bene vvyde open vnto you my hart is dilated ye dvvell not narrovvly in my hart So all men should haue an open and a dilated hart in wishing grace spare not to be liberall in wishing fill thy hart and mouth with his grace and 〈…〉 with liberalnesse to others seeke that grace of Iesus to all that if it were possible all the world might be saued For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Sauiour vvho vvill that all men shall be saued and come vnto the acknovvledging of the trueth 1. Tim. 2. chap. 3. 4. vers Yet the Lord hes his owne and so many as he hes written in his booke shall be saued Therefore thou should seeke all the warrands thou can to assure thee that thou art Iesus Christs fore-ordeinde to lyfe euerlasting for if thou be of the number of the elect the grace of Christ shall extend to thee and thou shalt haue glorie with him for euer To this Iesus be all praise honour and dominion for euer and euer AMEN FINIS
they were so obliuious as to forget a thing so needfull for their saluation Now to take vp some lessons shortlie on these wordes Then Apostle then beganne verie soone to foretell the Thessalonians of the comming of the Antichrist and of that vniuersall defection that was to fall out so long after that for this prophecie is especiallie of that great Antichrist who came not a long tyme after this The estate of the Church of Thessalonica was floorishing at this tyme he castes in a matter of discouragement heere There shall be an vniuersall defection Defection of the Church euer to be feared Well brethren it iâ— good euer to foresee the euil that is to come on the Church of God on the earth yea eueâ— when she is most floorishing to feare a decay and that her state will alter For this is the nature of the visible Church of God heere on the earth she is not so stabled nor setled but she is subject to alteration and trouble to defection to falling away from God from Christ and the trueth and that both particularlie and vniuersallie our setlednesse is not in this world there are none so well stablished but they may fall and therefore we should be euer in a dread and feare of destruction and alteration And it is the parte of the Pastour aboue all other euen in the floorishing of it to be forwarning and foretelling of an alteration and defection to insew For he as a watch-man should haue a sharpe eye to foresee and he should craue a foresight of God to knovve thinges to insew that he may giue aduertismentes to the people and they may be prepared for all dangers to come Another lesson Ye see the Thessalonians hes bene forgetfull of that which the Apostle tolde them when he was with them and therfore that which he spoke then he wrytes now to them Naturaly vvee are forgetfull of spiritual things So obliuious we are especiallie of thinges concerning our saluation that we will receyue them in at the one eare and let them goe out at the other we heare to day we forget to morrowe The seede is not so soone sowne but the deuill as a rauenous foull is readie to pull it out of the very eares that it be to vs nothing but a vanishing sound and therefore it is the Pastors part euer to be calling to their remembrance the things that are heard Ye see in a schoole the master considering the weaknesse of the memory of the youth is euer repeating the thing they haue heard as needfull it is to the Pastour to be euer repeating the thing he hes teached for all are as infantes in thee schoole of Christ 1. Cor. 13. 11. and it is the peoples part to be as diligent to heare ouer againe these things that pertaines to saluation and to craue that the Lord wold blesse their memories there in that they may be the more able to gainstand all assaultes of the deuill and his suppostes how canst thou gainestand if thou be not furnished with the armour of the word of God Therefore the Lord grant me grace to forwarne you and sanctify your memories to receyue and keepe the things that concernes your saluation for it may be the day of tentation is neerer nor we beleue But mark the forme how he cals it to remembrance He does it with a rebuke and reproofe Remember ye not They who are forgetfull of thinges heauenly should not goe away without reproofe calling to remembrance should be with rebuke But marke againe the leâ—itie of the Apostle in rebuking Remembeâ— ye not sayes he I told you before Therefore all this rebuke should be with lenity and loue sharpnesse should euer be mingled with leâ—â—tie This is the thing I euer find this Apostle doing Now to goe forward to the next verse Because he said before the Antichrist was not as yet reueiled The Thessalonians might haue asked the Apostle What withholdes What stayes What impediment is there Why is he not reueiled The Apostle answers shortly Ye know what withholds it is not needfull I tell you I told you it else when I was with you call it to remembrance it is not needfull that I should lose tyme by oft repeating of it Yet brethren albeit he knew it and the Thessalonians knewe it because he had told them of it before yet we knowe it not for any thing he showes heere Therefore we must see what was the impediment that stayed the reuiling of the Antichrist till his hight and pryde The Romane Empyre and publishing of the Gospel are impedimeÌ„tes staying the reueiling of the Antichrist What was it Both the olde and late wryters agrees in this It was the Romane Empyre that floorished for the tyme. The euent and issue of thinges declared this to be true For so long as the Romane Empyre stoode and the Emperour keept his owne seat at Rome which now is vsurped by the Pope so long neither Mahomet in the East preuailed for he was one of the destroyers of the Romane Empyre neither the Pope in the West got vp his head for the Empyre suffered him not to come to his hight But when once the Romane Empyre decayed the Emperour changed his seat left Rome and remained at Constantinople Then vp gets the Mahomet his seate in the East the Pope in the West and he sits downe in the Emperours seate This is one impediment Latter writers joines to this another impediment that staied the reueiling of the beast and his comming to his hight to wit the decree of God concerning the publishing of the Gospell of Iesus Christ in the world Ere he should come to his perfection it behoued that the Gospel should be preached throghout the world Ere there be any falling there must be a standing ere there be any Apostasie there must be a receiuing of the word It behoued that before apostasie the word should be vniuersally teached Therefore the Romane Empyre decaying the course of the Gospell comming to an end the Euangell being vniuersally teached the Antichrist breakes in and takes vpon him both the jurisdictiones takes on him the earthly power and then the jurisdiction ouer the soules of men he killes the bodie with the temporall sword he killes the soule with the poyson of falle doctrine His kingdome is euer slaying either of the soules of men with false doctrine and poyson of Heresies or else if men will not obey he slayes their bodies with the sword These are the impediments helde him back vnreueiled Then learne heere it is the Lord vvho stayes and holdes back euill from the world and his manerâ—â— he castes in impediments before the deuill and before wicked men ere they rise The deuill and his suppostes is comming out rushing on the people the Lord casts in impediments to them and then they must stand vntill these impedimentes be some way remoued For brethren the power of the deuill and of darknes and wickednes is so great on the