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B12377
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The sinners acquittance. A checke to curiositie. The safest seruice Deliuered in three sermons at the court. By Iohn Denison Doctor of Diuinity, and one of his Maiesties chaplaines then in attendance.
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Denison, John, d. 1629.
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1624
(1624)
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STC 6594; ESTC S114588
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46,645
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163
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not see death So those that walke with Christ in these holy pathes shall be partakers of eternall life according to that in the twelfth of Iohn Ioh. 12.26 If any man serue me let him follow me for where I am there shall also my seruant be As he that followes some great Riuer shall by it be guided to the Sea So those that follow Christ shall by him be conducted to the Ocean of eternall felicitie And so our Sauiour told his Disciples and that with an asseueration for ratification Verely I say vnto you Mat. 19.28 that when the Son of Man shall sit in the Throne of his Maiestie you that haue followed me in the regeneration shall sit also vpon Thrones and iudge the twelue Tribes of Israel Application THus haue you heard the matters the manner the motiues for our following of Christ Now it remaines that I conclude all with some words of application and so finish my speech S. Augustines discourse in his seuenth Sermon De Verbis Domini Ordine ali quantulum mutato shall be my ground There were saith Saint Augustine three men of seuerall dispositions and inclinations that came to Christ with whom he dealt accordingly 1 Vnus differebat culpatus est One deferred to follow him and he was blamed So are there many that deferre and neglect this following of Christ Some intend to become his followers but they put it off till sicknesse or old age seaze vpon them till Sinne and Satan hath cassiered them and they are able to do Christ little seruice Some there are who doe totally neglect this following of Christ They are entertained by the Flesh the World and the Deuill yea any thing but Christ though the waies wherein they walke yeeld nothing but vanitie and miserie Thus the young man in the Prouerbes followes the strange woman Prou. 7.22 like a foole to the stockes and an oxe to the slaughter till a dart strike through his Liuer Thus Demas imbracing the world 2 Tim. 4.10 forsooke the Apostles Thus riches caried away the man that ran to Christ Marke 10.22 For when he had giuen him histaske he became a flincher went away sorrowfull Caroclamat ego inficiam Diabolus clamat ego decipiam mundus clamat ego deficiam Ego reficiam But what can these Masters promise to their followers Only that which S. Bernard mentions The world it cries I will faile thee the Deuill he cries I will deceiue thee the Flesh it cries I will infect thee But come to me saith Christ and I will refresh thee Satan is a master like Pharaoh Exod. 5.14 who set the Israelites all day on worke and scourged them at night For so doth the Deuill employ his Vassals in the workes of iniquity in the time of their life but at the day of their death rewards them with the scourges of a troubled Conscience at the day of Iudgement with hellish torments To Witches and such other wretches he promiseth faire but the end is cōmonly a shamefull death to their bodies eternal condemnation to their Soules The world is a master like Laban Gen. 31.41 that changed Iacobs wages ten times and would haue sent him away emptie Who would serue that master which will keepe him hard in toyling and in the end strip him out of all he hath and turne him away naked Behold the world is such a master 1 Tim. 6.7 for as wee brought nothing into the world so it is certaine that we can carie out nothing Naked came wee out of our mothers wombes Iob 1.21 and naked must we returne againe Saladine at his funerall had one going before his corps who carrying his shart vpon a launce cried Saladine that Conqueror of Asia caries nothing with him but this Plat. in vit Clem 3. Ier. 2.13 The greatest Monarches as that great Saladine did well consider haue only a winding sheet or peraduenture some Monument a meere monument of the worlds vanitie mans mortalitie I may truly say therefore that those who leaue Christ Iesus to follow the world the Flesh or the Deuil commit those two euils that Ieremie mentions They leaue the Fountaine of liuing waters to dig to themselues broken Cisternes that can hold no water 2 Alius se obtulit reprobatus est Another offered to follow Christ and he was reiected And indeed such bad followers our Sauiour hath many Some respectu formae some respectu finis Some in respect of the forme some of the ends As it was in the daies of his infirmitie so is it now in the daies of his maiestie Some followed him for by-respects some for bad respects Some followed him to entangle him as the Herodians Mat. 22.16 Some to betray him as Iudas Mat. 26.15 Some only to gaine by him as those that followed him for the loaues the fishes Iohn 6.26 Christ hath some followers that are like Comets they are not fixed by a liuely Faith in Christ the Sphere of holines but are caried about with an vncertain motion according to some star which rules them they vanish accordingly Againe some there are which faile in the manner of their following As S. Bernard speakes of praying so may I say of their following Bern. de quaedrages Ser. 4. Some follow Christ timidè some tepidè some temerariè 1. Some follow him timidè fearfully As Peter did when he was led to Annas Caiphas Iohn 3.2 As Nicodemus that came to him by night He durst not be seene to be a follower of Christ And those rulers in the 12 of S. Iohn which beleeued in him Iohn 12.42 but were afraid to confesse him Thus euerie little rub turnes them aside whilest they say A Lyon is in the way Prou 26.13 A Lyon is in the streetes These are like those Israelites who liked well of the Land of Canaan Numb 13.33 but were afraid of the Anakims It was a iust recōpence that they neuer entred into it Reu. 3. 2. Some follow Christ tepidè coldly like the Church of Laodicea These are like Solomons sluggard Prou 13. Vult non vult piger He could be content to follow Christ but he cannot abide to take too much paines These follow Christ so as that they were as good to stay behind he had rather haue their roome then their cōpany He that wil be a welcome follower of Christ Acts 11.23 must as Barnabas exhorted with full purpose of heart cleaue vnto the Lord. Cant. 1.3 He must say with the Spouse in the Canticles Draw me we will run after thee And be resolute with Ioshua Iosh 24.15 Chuse you this day whom you will serue but I and mine house will serue the Lord. 3. Some follow Christ temerariè rashly Some march furiously with Iehu An. dom 1535 Sleidon Com. lib. 10. As the Anabaptists did in horrible vprores combustions in Germany The Papists
who in Q. Maries daies breathed out nothing but fire fagots In Q. Elizabeths Pistols poisons And in the raign of our gracious soueraign fire and gunpowder Some inconsideratly betake themselues to be Christs followers but like foolish builders Luke 14.28 not counting what it may cost them they sit downe with disgrace when the parching sun of persecution or affliction comes vpon them Mat. 13.6 like the stony ground they wither away Some againe are so rash that they do Antecedere Christum Aug. in Ps 62. as S. Aug. saith Whereas they should follow Christ they goe before him Such as follow their own inuentions rather then diuine direction Such as haue zeale without discretion and iudgement that thrust their sickles into other mens haruests and run beyond the bounds of their calling as many priuate men who are very forward about the reformation of the Church yea before themselues be reformed Those that would be welcome to Christ must follow him boldly yet without presumption zealously yet without contention discreetly without precipitation Thirdly saith S. Austin Alius non audebat et excitatus est One dared not to follow Christ he was incouraged I doubt not but it fares with many as it did with that man Confessionum Lib. 7. 8. S. Austin confesseth that he himselfe was much perplexed when he was entring into religion He thought thus with himselfe what shal become of me when I become a professor of the Gospel I shall lose all my delights pleasures what comfort then shall I haue of my life But it pleased God that these mistes did vanish and he found more true comfort to his soule after he became a constant follower of Christ then euer he did before Insomuch that he could say forth of experience Aug. in Ps 117. Dulcioros sunt lachrymae orantium quà m gaudia theatrorum Euen the teares of a Christian shed in the middest of his prayers are sweeter then the ioyes and delights of the theaters Beloued Bonum Dominum habemus Amb. mentioned by Poss in vita August why should any one be discouraged to become a follower of Christ nay why should not euerie one be incouraged seeing he is such a good master as will not faile to reward his seruants aboundantly Reu. 22.12 Behold saith Christ I come shortly and my reward is with me to giue euerie man according to his workes If you remember consider the motiues you need no further incouragement The paths wherein you are to walke are comfortable and honorable they are the pathes of safetie eternall felicitie feare not neglect not therfore to follow Christ though it be through fire and water Your iourney may peraduenture cost you some paines cares teares yea fightings without 2 Cor. 7.5 terrors within but the end shal be ioyful comfortable Heauen shall be your habitation for Christ is gone before to prepare places there for his followers and there you shall enioy his blessed presence bee partakers of such ioyes as neither eie hath seen nor eare hath heard nor can enter into the heart of man The Lord for his mercies sake giue vs grace to be faithful and constant followers of our Sauiour Christ in the waies of holinesse and righteousnesse that by the merits of his death and passion we may be partakers of eternall blisse and happinesse To whom with the Father and the holy Ghost all honor glorie maiestie and dominion be rendred and ascribed world without end Amen FINIS