from above First of all this letts us see that it is a vain thing to be astonished at the fury of Princes it is but miserable weaknes of men that know what God is certain it is if we serve God aright we would not be moved with the fear of anie man in the world Ye see when as Ieroboam would have apprehended the Prophet that God sent to threaten his judgments upō him for his idolatry when he stretched out his hand to apprehend him God so decred that his hand withered that when he had stretched it out he could not pull it in again This God that could make the hand of a King to wither when he did oppose the counsell of God what need anie man to feare whenas our Saviour and God is on our side We know what Saule did unto David he did use all his skill to destroy him but it was unpossible for him to do it because God who is the King of Kings was with David and God did shew his power against Saule in this when he put Sauls life into Davids hands but hee never put Davids life into Saules hands We knowe what enmity Ahab had against Elias the Prophet yet the Lord cōmaūds him to goe to him the Prophet answered the Lord that he sought his life but the Lord answered him saying goe be not afraid and the Prophet goes to him tells him that it was he that troubled Israell and the Lord restrained him that he could doe the Prophet no harme Infinite examples in the Scriptures wee have of this to let us see that he can hold Kings that they shall doe no more harm then God will suffer them to prove this truth of God that he is King of Kings and Lord of Lords To come yet to make more use of this why doth the Apostle lay this before us the use is partly for Kings and partly for us the first lesson for Kings is this that I touched before concerning Nabuchadnezar how God forced him to learn how to know God to be the King of Kings therfore let all Potentates learn to know that God hath rule over them and their Kingdoms and it is he that makes them Kings and serts them in their thrones and if they doe not this it is just with God to make them will they nill they to acknowledge this to their destruction for the saying of Isaie shal be accomplished which the Lord there speaks all knees shall bow to him and every mouth shall confesse him to bee the Lord for the Lord will not suffer himself long to be despised but in his own time hee will challenge his right in despite of the world it were a blessed thing if Kings would consider this that it is by God that they doe reigne observe what it is Christ shall doe in the last day the proper effect of this Kingdom shall be to put down all principallityes and powers and to give up his Kingdom to God that God may be all in all 1. Corin 15 then shall they see the trueth of this that he is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords if Kings would consider this that the time shall come that the world shall not have a Kingdom nor King but God alone me thinks they would then reverence this God in greater measure then they doe but this sort of doctrine is harsh to Princes eares to think that there is a God above them or that there should be anie of whom they hould their scepter and yet they must know this or feele the truth of it by experience in Gods judgment The second use for Kings and Lords is this that the Apostle doth teach them to doe that which is right to all men that they oppresse no man because they have a King over them in heaven unto whom they must give an accompt of their doings This Argument the Apostle useth to Maisters in sundry places that they should doe that that is right to their servants knowing they have a maister in Heaven If superiours would but acknowledge this that they have a Lord over them that shall take a reckoning of them aswell as they take a reckoning with their inferiours surely it would make them to doe nothing but that which is right these are the uses that doe concern Kings and rulers Now there is great use of this likewise for ourselvs besides the incouragement it gives us not to be afraid of anie power in the world but it teacheth us this lesson not to resist power nor authority because there is no power nor authority but it is from God as the Apostle shewes Now since all authority is of God he that resists authority hee resisteth God but some object what if they be tyrants and merciles men and such as make no conscience to doe wrong I answere even as the Apostle doth to servants whom hee commands to be subject not onely to their good masters and such as are gentle but also to them which are froward so I say if thou wilt doe thy duty thou oughtest rather to suffer wrong and to suffer thyself to be oppressed rather then to lift up thyself against authority which thou art under for if this bond of subjection to Princes were loosed Kingdoms could not stand if every servant should stand against their master and every subject against his Prince when he is wronged no common wealth could stand it is true wee may use all lawfull means to eschew wrong and Magistrates may plead in Parliament with their Princes for they have also their authority from God wee ought to use all lawfull meanes to escape wrong but if there be no possibility of escaping wee must rather suffer them to wrong us for power and authority is to be reverenced as being of God and indeed God doth sometimes in justice give bad rulers to avenge himself for the sins of his people hee gave to Israel a King in his wrath and hee stirred up a wicked King in Israel to avenge himself upō the people for their idolatrie doe you not think but that the divell is Gods instrumēt against the wicked so is every wiked king th◠Lords scourge the rod of his justice to inflict upō his enimies when as good rulers are the blessings of God upon a people that are carefull to please him the Lord will make them nursing Fathers and Mothers unto his church and so God in his infinit wisedom makes Kings and Rulers to subjects as hee sees cause either to plague them or to preserve them this is the secret of Gods providence thus to order the World according as he sees they carry themselvs towards him we see that so long as Israel did not know God so long God gave them into their enimies hands and they had tyrants to rule over them but when they sought the Lord as they should and ought the Lord gave them gracious judges to deliver them out of the hands of their enimies and assoone as they fell from
power last his power is this because he is the onely Potentate that is he is the Lord of al powers and principalityes the argument is this he that is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords he must needs be the onely potentate in heaven and earth and so it is that God is the head of all principallityes and powers therefore he must needs bee the onely Potentate It is strange that this argument should hold since it is graunted that there are manie Kings and Lords besides God how then can this prove God to be the onely Potentate there being other Kings and Lords besides him It would seeme by this property here ascribed unto God that it would confirme the false fancyes of the Anabaptists who hold that now under the Gospell there should be no Magistrate but God onely because in the New Testament he is called the onely Potentate and this is one of their grownds wherupon they build their opinion but the argument of the Apostle doth manifest the contrary so the argument is set down by the Apostle in great wisdome for this argumente doth not take away all Magistrates in the world but onely makes God to be over them all to be the King of Kings and Lord of Lords now if there were no more Kings nor Lords but God alone how could he then be the King of Kings and Lord of Lords So that the very words of the Apostles argument doe confute this vanity and lets us see that the authority which he claymes to God doth not take away mans authority over their subjects but lets that remain still notwithstanding that God is King of Kings and Lord of Lords But to understand aright what is the Apostles meaning in his argument it is of great force for God is said to be King of Kings in divers respects first because there is not a King or Lord but by him it is and by him Kings reigne it is he onely that rayseth to authority and none but he so for this reason God is said to be the King of Kings and Lord of Lords because they have not their authority but from God and this is that for which Nabuchadnezar that great king of Babell did suffer such a great judgmente from God as to be cast out from amongst men and to live among beasts for the space of seven years that he might know that the most high had rule over the Kingdoms of men as Daniel tells him in plain termes because he in the pride of his heart did think he had raysed himself to his honour when these words came out of his mouth Js not this great Babell which I have built for mine honour and Honour of my Kingdom Immediately his kingdome was taken from him untill he was forced to acknowledge that the most high had rule over men this is a fearfull spectacle to teache kings to know from whom they have their kingdoms and their authority Pilate when he did boast of his authority to Christ saying unto him knowest thou not I can save thee or take thy life from thee Christ answered him thou couldest not have anie power over mee except it were given thee from above This is the first reason why God is called the king of kings and Lord of Lords because it is not by succession nor by birth that kings come to rule over others but by the speciall providence of God and this is the reason why we must reverence them that are in authority because saith the Apostle all authority is of God The second reason why God is called the kinge of kings is this because he never made king yet of absolute power he never yet made an absolute king on earth but allwaies made them substitutes to himself in authority reserving to himself the supream authority over them to thrust them out of their thrones whensoever it pleased him All the kings of the world are but subjects to the king of heaven so that even in their ruling and exercising of their power they are to know there is another power above them unto which they must give an accompt of all their doings for the Lord will not let the power he hath over them to goe out of his own hands so that no kings nor Lords have anie power to doe as they list It is blasphemie to say that anie king hath absolute power for that is asmuch as to sett him in the throne of God for there is no absolute king but God alone and this is the second reason why the spirit of God describes the power of God after this māner to prove him the onely Potentate if he that is a king have another power above him which is the Lord thē must this Lord bee the onely Potētate but every king hath the Lord above him so as he cā hold it no longer then it pleaseth him neither can his race injoy it longer then God will suffer it therefore the Lord tooke away the kingdoms from some and gave it to others he tooke away authority from the house of David and gave it to Ieroboam and for the iniquityes of Ieroboam he tooke it from Ahab and gave it unto Iehu manie changes of kingdoms the Lord hath made taking kings out of their thrones and placing their enimies in their places to let us see that kings are not absolute Lords on earth but they are at the Lords disposing at his pleasure Thus we see the third reason proved wherfore the Apostle describes the power of God after this manner that by necessary evidences he concludes the main point Since there is not a power or Potentate but God is the onely Potentate to doe with men as himself please it is he that casteth down and it is he that rayseth up and thus he will have all men to know but specially his ministers to know this There is a fourth reason of this manner of describing God and that is for the comfort of his children which I have touched before to arm them against all the terrours of kings that the terrour of no power make them to dispence with the ordinaunces of this great Potentate therfore he would imprint this in their mindes that God is the king of kings therfore no king can doe more harm to them then it pleaseth God this is comfort and the same which Christ gives his desciples in the tenth of Matthew where he bids them not to fear them that can onely kill the body for he tells them that their lives are more precious then birds and are there not so manie sparrows sold for a farthing and yet not one of them shall fall to the grownd without the providence of God therefore Christ knowing that power was given over him though he could have prayed to his Father and obteyned legions of Angells yet he would not because he knew there was no resistance of Gods will therefore he comforts himself against the loosing of Pilate that hee had no power but was given him
the crosse despite the shame for the glorie that was set before him so must we endure all the afflictions that the world can lay upon us and we must stand stedfast to Gods trueth or else we may justly doubt whether ever God will save us or no so that Pastours must looke upon Christ learne of him meekenes and lowlinesse of heart piety and the true service of God This being the generall wee will come more particularly to this that the Apostle here sets downe especially in confession he sets downe Christes confession there are two things upon which depends our salvation the first is the inward action of the heart the second is the outward action of the mouth with the heart man beleeveth to righteousnes with the mouth he confesseth to salvation Now the Apostle having to do with Pastours not so much in regard of the inward disposition of their hearts as of their outward patterne therefore he speakes not a word of the inward disposition of the heart but of outward faithfullnesse and this is that which principally we are to looke into namely how Christ professed confessed witnessed this his confession for these two are to be distinguished there is confession which is the matter there is witnessing that is the fact so that we are to cōsider his confession the witnessing of it the place where that it was even under Pont. Pilate or before him so much the rather are wee to take this to heart because wee have a sad saying which Christ sets downe not onely to Pastours but to all Christians where he saieth that he◠which is ashamed of mee before men denies mee before men of him will I be ashamed before my father deny him but hee that confesseth mee before men him will I confesse before my father in heaven it is therefore a dangerous thing to erre in this seeing so heavy a sentence is given of them which confesse him not this is the point which wee are to looke unto it is not enough for Christians to glory as many foolishly do to wit of their faith that they do beleeve and yet in the meane time although they professe God in word yet they deny him in deeds as Paule saith to Titus Now God will not have this but he will have as man beleeves with the heart so he should confesse the truth with his mouth if ever he thinke to be saved the Apostles were not ashamed no not in the very sight of the scribes Pharises when they were accused and forbidden to preach in Christs name they said plainely to them judge yee whether it be better to obey God or man the whole world could not silence them when God Commanded thē to speake he wil never hold his peace frō that which Christ had made him a witnesse unto Now all Pastours are Christs witnesses as Christ saieth hee hath chosen them to be witnesses to the gentiles of that which they had heard seene Pastours are the witnesses of Christ and are appointed to beare record of his trueth if they be silent in this the feare of death or life make thē to shutt their lipps from speaking of Gods truth this sentēce shall meet them in the day of judgment the prince of Pastours shall be their conviction that they have not walked as became them because they did not do as hee did so this confession is the thing that the Apostle laies before us because feare many times makes men dissemble with the trueth of God the feare of death many times makes men to pervert the trueth of God to keepe it close when God requires it should be spoken the sonne of God is an example to us who never did pervert the truth nor concealed it for if every Christian be bound to the Apostles commandement to give a reason of his faith to every one that shall aske it how much more is hee bound to this that hee that teacheth others should owne and maintaine this trueth as occasion is offerred this is therefore the trueth the dutie that especially wee must looke unto we must confesse the truth acknowledge the trueth com what can come wee must not be ashamed of it Secondly the Apostle saieth that Christ witnessed a good confession hee did not onely confesse the trueth but hee did likewise beare witnesse unto the trueth ratifying it by his testimony which is more he ratifyed it at his death and that is that the Apostle cheifly aimes at for that which Christ confessed before Pontius Pilate hee ratifyed it confirmed it by his death hee confessed himselfe to be the sonne of God and he ratifyed it by his death this is the maine cause why in Matthew Luke that they said unto him wee have found him perverting the Nation saying he is a King and this is the Question that Pontius Pilate mooved unto him when hee said art thou the King of the Iewes and Christ said unto him thou hast said it this is that confessiō which the Apost aimes at it is set downe fully in the 18. of Iohn where fore to the intent that wee may the better know the meaning of the place let us consider the words there sett downe at the 33 verse then Pilate entred into the judgmēt hall againe called Jesus and said unto him art thou the King of the jewes Iesus answered him saiest thou this thing of thy selfe or did others tell it thee of mee Pilate answered am I a jewe thine owne Nation the cheife preists have delivered thee unto mee what hast thou done Iesus answered him my Kingdome is not of this world if my Kingdome were of this world then would my servāts sight that I should not be delivered to the jewes but now is not my Kingdome from hence Pilate therefore said unto him art thou a King then Iesus answered thou saiest that I am a King to this end was I borne for this cause came I into the world that I should beare witnesse unto the trueth every one that is of the trueth heareth my words and this is the confession which Iesus witnessed before Pontius Pilate First wee will consider the substance and matter of it secondly wee will consider the circumstances of it to wit the time and condition which Christ was in when hee made this confession the confession which hee witnessed hath these parts first that hee was a King secondly that his Kingdome was not of this world thirdly that hee was borne and came into the world to this end to beare witnesse vnto the truth and fourthly every one of the trueth did heare his voice these are the fower parts of his confession it is not therefore without great cause that the spirit of God chargeth Pastours in the name of Christ before him that witnessed this good confession before Pontius Pilate for it serves not onely for example but likewise for great instruction
the spirit upon all flesh it shewes the great aboundance of grace that Christ should give his elect hee being glorified being made the head of the Church and was possessed with all power to give grace so this worke of his Kingdome is that which wee must take to heart as being the ground of our comfort to wit that the King of Saints as hee is called in the Revelation hee is with us hee it is that fighteth our battells against the dragon and the whore his might and power onely prevailes and the scripture telleth us that if wee will fight valiantly Christ shall tread Sathan vnder our feet all our strength stands in his strength as the Apostle saieth hee was able to abound and to want and to do all things through Christ that strengthened him elsewhere hee saieth with what power hee laboureth to convert men vnto God by power from him which worketh mightily in him where he did acknowledge that all the power he had to doe any good in Gods howse was even in Christ the sonne of God alone therefore saith he it is not I but the grace of God that is in mee seing then that all the vertue of a Preacher and strenght of a Christian and all the vertue of Christs mediation suffering depends upon Christs Kingdome and power how much the more should we consider this with ioy as the Cheife ground of our consolation in all dangers to vvit that Christ the Lord hath all povver given him in heaven and in earth to give eternall life to those that the Father hath given vnto him as hee saieth of himselfe the end of Gods giving such great povver vnto Christ is that hee may bring his Children vnto glorie therefore is hee called the Prince of our salvation and he saieth Christ being to bring many to glory to consecrate the Prince of their salvation vvell then this point being of such high moment it is not vvithout cause that the Apostle in this case calleth this confession of Christ a good confession which is nothing but his professing himselfe to be King And the reason of it may likewise be this because Christs propheticall and Priestly office are in two respects more easily imbraced then his kingly office first in what respect they are more manifested and more sensible and more easie to be seene of the world then his Kingly power for hee was seene to teach on earth and hee taught with authoritie and not as the scribes and Pharises did and hee performed his Priestly office in the sight of all the world the world heard him preach and the world saw him die these are not things of much secrecie as this is to wit this man so base on earth that now they should see him Crowned with honour and glory there is great difference betweene the glory of his messengers here and the glory of the servants or messengers of earthly kings for the one is wholly earthly the other is wholly spirituall and heavenly so that so farre as heaven differs from earth so farre differs Christs Kingdome from the Kingdoms of the earth his Kingdome stands not in fleshly pompe but it stands wholly in the spirit and power of it So this brings us to the second point of his confession to wit that his Kingdome was not of this world the Iewes would have made Christ a King but hee refused as hee was a King so hee was constant to avouch the matter of his kingdome to be spirituall and not carnall why should we that are his ministers make his glorie and his kingdome a worldly kingdome Doe we not thereby falsify Gods trueth seeing our master refused all carnall and wordly authoritie but onely the power of the spirit why should we seeke after a carnall glory and pompe when the glory of the sonne of God and his kingdome is not of this world Certainly the lesse we are in the world and the lesse we are like to men in worldly honour the more like we are to the sonne of God if we be cloathed with grace with Sanctification and the trueth of God dwell in us plentifully this should be our honour and thus we see how we are bound to place the kingdome of Christ in this wherein it stands certainely all earthly power is so farre from appertaining to the kingdome of Christ as that those that seeke it walke not with an even foote in the ministrie neither doth he the part of a faithfull Minister the Apostle hath a strange saying and yet a true one if our gospell be hid it is hid in them that perish vvhom the God of this world hath blinded for we preach not our selves but Christ Iesus the Lord and our selves your servants for Christs sake and that the excellencie of the power may be of God and of Christ that all the world may see that the power of our Ministrie is not from our selves that we should force your consciences to submit vnto the sonne of God for our Ministrie is wholly spirituall as the Apostle tels us that all the weapons of our warfare are from God in heaven they are not carnall but mightie through God it is God that makes the gospell powerfull and that makes the labours of mortall men powerfull to subdue men to obedience Thus to be briefe the second point of Christs confession is to disclame his kingdome from being a worldly kingdome therefore vve should Disclame all worldly pompe and not compare Christ to any worldly pettie king for it is wholy spirituall as the Lord saith to his peoples to comfort them against the Egyptians hee saith the Egyptians are flesh and not spirit as if hee would say they are but flesh and therefore they can doe nothing against the spirit The 3. point of his confession was this that hee came into the world and was borne to this end to beare witnesse of the trueth wherefore this is to teach Pastoures to follow his footesteps and to know what is our calling wherefore the Lord hath sent us into this world which was to beare witnesse of the trueth God hath not sent us into this world to beare witnesse vnto a lye nor to justifie any falshood but to maintaine the trueth vntill death as Christ avouched this to be his office and hee did accordingly so should we that are Pastours acknowledge this to be our office not to justify mens lies but to beare witnesse and record to Gods trueth so we see this affords great instruction for us to shew us wherein our felicitie stands especially in witnessing him to be our King and his Kingdome not to be of this world thus the penitent theefe did beleeve that hee was a King and that his Kingdome was not of this world therefore he besought him to remember him when hee came in his Kingdome and that we are sent of God to beare witnesse vnto his truth and for this we are to lay downe our lives it is a wofull thing to