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A06192
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The merchant reall. Preached by VVilliam Loe Doctour of Diuinitie chaplaine to the kings sacred maiestie, and pastour of the Englishe church of merchants adventurers residing at Hamboroughe in Saxonie
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Loe, William, d. 1645.
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1620
(1620)
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STC 16688; ESTC S119918
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69,019
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116
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〈◊〉 The light of this appeares in the vvord of the text vvhich signifieth beautifull coÌ„modious amiable superexcellent pearls Beautifull is goodnes in it selfe for if it could be portrayed in orient colours set out to the life vvonderfull vvould be the loue that men vvould be stirred vp to beare vnto it CoÌ„modious for godline is the goodliest riches Phil. 4.8.9 Amiable in effecte making them amiable that are good superexcelleÌ„t so sayth the Apostle whatsoeuer things are true vvhatsoeuer things are honest Whatsouer things are iust vvhatsoeuer things pure vvhatsoeuer things are louely vvhatsoeuer things are of good report if there be any vertue if there be any praise think on these things Those vvhich ye haue both learned and receaued hard seene in me doe the god of peace shall be vvith you The feete of them amiable that bring vs the meanes that makes vs to be good The promise that god vvould be present vvith it 2. Chro. 19 11. For Jehosaphat told his iudges that they should be of good courage doe it god vvould be vvith the good Mich. 6.8 And the declaration of this shevves it to be good For god hath shevved thee o man vvhat is good vvhat the lord requireth of thee surely to doe iustly to loue mercy to humble thy self to vvalke vvith thy god Secondly this appeares by the distinction of goodnes Naturall Morall Deuine Just Mar. For Christian Marchants doe not only desire accidentall good things as a good vvife good children good seruants Titus 2.12 such like vvhich are all gods good gifts And Morall goodnes in themselues but also Deuine goodnes vvhich leads them to this kingdome Heb. 10.24 2. Pet. 1.10 And these things doe soe neare touch vs that vve by goodnes the effecte thereof doe signe to others â— Tim. 1.7 seale to our selues the certainty of our election Wherein also our faith doth not only shevve it selfe but exercise Eph. 4. â—0 inflame vs to a godly seale Thirdly it abandoneth vs from sinne For as by euills vve greeue the holy ghost that sealeth vs vnto god soe by goodnes vve ioy our conscience in the holy ghost Fouerthly as by doing evill vve call to our selues many miseries Deut. 28. so by doing the good vve shall auoyd many euills of punishment see the goodnes of god in the land of the liuing Lastly goodnes is the vvay vvherein gods childreÌ„ ordinarily trade Eph. 2.10 for they are his vvorkmaÌ„shipe created for that purpose Thirdly there is a necessity of being good in gods children Not a necessity of coaction for gods children doe the good Chearfully Not of cause for goodnes is but the vvay and gods children vvalke therein but it is of necessary duty that vve should be good For that 's the vvill of god euen your santification 1. Thes 4.3 It is the commandement of god Let your lights so shine before men that they may see your good vvorkes Matt. 5.16 and glorifie your father vvhich is in heauen Tit. 2.12 it is the end of all preaching Noe good actioÌ„ can be done but by a good man vvho doth it out of a pure hart othervvise it is base sordid out of a true faith vvhich else is a glittering sinne to the glory of god Vae justitiae nostrae siremota justitia Christi judicetur Nam quâ—equid in te est sine Christo Sathan est August vvhich othervvise is but hiprocrisie And this is the cause vvhy it is accepted of god for Christ his sake othervvise all our goodnes vvere menstruous monstrous The right of this appeares forasmuch as reall Christians knovve that god regardeth goodnes more then greatnes Nay there is nothing but foolish man regardeth greatnes Nature doth not for the sonnes of royalty are borne naked the god of nature is noe accepter of persons nor the destroyer of nature for death visits the crovvne assoone as the clovvne Againe it is the end scope of the reall Christians lyving vvhich hath three aspects in doing good First to the praise of god O lett my soule liue it shall praise thee sayth Dauid Secondly to comfort our selues in making our election sure by goodnes Lastly to ouercome others euill vvith our good â— Petr. â— 10 Secondly reall Christians are pertakers of the diuine nature For vvhen god tooke a vevve of vvhat he had made he savve it vvas exceeding good but vvhen maÌ„ tooke a suruay of vvhat he had done behold it vvas nothing but vanity vexation of spirit Thirdly good examples of good men doe encite gods children to goodnes For albeit none are absolutly good but god only 2. Chro. 32 32 2. Chro. 35 26. Yet the scripture stiles Hezekias Iosias to be good kings The goodnes of gods children hath a threefold povver Of Preseruation Vnion Communication It is a preservatiue to pull some out of the fire Iud. Epist 23. Of vnion to make peace Of communication by extending their goodnes to the saincts on earth Thy Christians faith is a proper a peculiar good betvvixt god thine ovvne soule but a Christians goodnes is extensiue delated to all demensions of goodnes The very profession of a Christian is goodnes See in the rule of addition in Christian arythmetike that S. Peter setteth dovvne for sayth he Adde to your faith vertue 2. Pet. 1â— 5.6.7.8 to vertue knovvledge to knovvledge temperance to temperance patience and to patience godlines to godlines brotherly kindnes to brotherly kindnes charitie For if these things be in you abound they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor vnfruitfull in the knovvledge of our lord Iesus Lastly let vs reason from the povver of Christ bloud vvas it shed that vve should be vile still farre should any such thought be from vs that vve should professe religion deny the povver thereof By this then that hath bine spoken both from the light of Illumination in gods vvord by the right of Demonstration in reasoning from the vvord It is plaine that the high vvay to heauen is to consult and resolue to doe all the good vve can vvhile vve are here trading tovvard heauen The vse of this is manifold Practice 1 First of ansvvere to the cauills of popery vvho accuse vs Protestants for contemners of goodnes because vve teach that man is iustified by faith only And here vpon they accuse vs that we preach negatiue priuatiue doctrines not affirmatiue positiue And here vpoÌ„ they say that the tymes are novve become Ablatiue vvhich vvere heretofore Datiue branding vs vvith the heresies of the Synomians Eunomians Jovinians such like vvhereas vve in one vvord ansvvere directly that these are meere slanders vntruths For vve teach onlie that good vvorkes haue noe iustifying quality in themselues before god but that faith only is like Iohn the deuine leaning on
of our lord Iesus Christ Of vvhom is named the vvhole familie in heauen in earth That he might graÌ„t you according to the riches of his glory that ye may be strengthned in the inner man by his spirit That Christ may dvvell in your harts by faith that ye being rooted grounded by loue may be able to comprehend vvithall saincts what is the bredth length depth height And to knovve the loue of Christ which passeth knowledge that ye may be filled with all fulnesse of god Vnto him therefore that is able to doe exceeding abundantly aboue all that vve aske or thinke according to the power that worketh in vs be praise in the church by Christ Iesus throvvout all generatioÌ„ for euer Amen The eleuenth lesson Thus you haue hard vvhat is meant by that One pearle of great price in heauen Novve see vvhat is that One pearle of great price on earth which this reall marchant findeth here The former interpreters haue expounded it to our hand shevving that it is Charity The learning then is That Christian Charity is that one only pearle in earth both peareles priceles vvhich is found only among the children of god The light of this appeares most euidently from S. Paules vvords 1. Cor. 12.31 1. Cor. 13. per tout Wherin first S. Paule sayth That he vvould shevve a more excellent vvay in the chapter follovving doth make it demonstrable The Analysis vvhereof is thus breefly First it callengeth the best things Secondly it combateth vvith the vvorst things and Thirdly it conquereth the last things Christian Charity callengeth the best things For angellical euangellicall eloquence vvithout Charity is as sounding brasse or as a tinckling cymball The gift of prophecie all knovvledge all faith yea miraculous faith in comparison of this is nothing Almes deeds martyrdome vvithout Charity profitteth nothing In the second place it combateth vvith the vvorst things In vvrath it suffereth long base couteousnes it caÌ„not endure for it is bountifull it is voyd of spight for it enuies not it is not frovvard for it doth not beast it selfe it is noe sovvlen bladder of pride for it is not puffed vp it is farre from reproach that it vvill doe noe vncomly thing it is so farre from iniury that it seeketh not its ovvne in it is noe bitternes at all for it cannot be provoked to wrath noe surmises of euill for it thinketh none noe vniustice for it reioyceth not in inquity but reioyceth in the truth beleeueth the good hopeth the best endureth all In the third place it conquereth the last things For vvhen the vvorld hath done it shall endure vvhen faith vvhich beleeueth all things of god hope vvhich expecteth all doe cease yet shall Charity vvhervvith vve loue god man endure for all eterinty It is also one Io. 13.34 for it is that one commandement from mount Sion vvhich is the complement of the other ten from mount Sinai vvhich Christ calls the nevve commandement affirmes that it is the marke of his chosen It is also a pearle of perfection for the Christians house vvhich he builds to god hath faith for its foundation vvhere vpon it is grounded hope the vvalls vvhereby it is erected but Charity is the roofe vvhich perfecteth couereth all It is of all price vvhether vve respecte the nearenes of it vnto vs It is not in heauen that thou shouldest say vvho shall goe vp for vs bring it vnto vs that vve may beare it doe it Neither is it beyond the sea that thou shouldest say vvho shall goe ouer the sea bring it vs that vve may heare it doe it But the vvord is very nigh vnto thee in thy mouth in thy hart that thou mayest doe it Or the breefnes The commandement is shortened that euery man might be vnexcusable that noe maÌ„ in the day of iudgmeÌ„t as saith S. Augustine might implead god or complaine that he could not retayne this lesson in his memory Therefore saith that father the vvord is this If yee loue me you vvill loue one another Matâ— 11.30 Or if vve respect the easines of this lesson It is an easie yoke For both old young rich poore vveake and vvhole may performe this duty Or if vve respecte the preâ—iousnes of it It is the bond of perfectioÌ„ yea pretious it is in all dimensions In lenght it endureth euer In breath it is dilated to all to the good of duty to the bad of pitty In deepenes it fayleth neuer it vvill not forsake a frend in misery noe nor in extremity noe not in death it selfe Cant. 8.6.7 For loue is as strong as death ielousie is as cruel as the graue the coales thereof are fierie coales a vehement flame Much vvater cannot quench loue neither can the flouds drovvne it if a man should giue all the substance of his house for loue they vvould greatly contemne it Or in height it is of a noble disposition it loues our frends in the lord our enimies for the lord In a vvord it is pretious in extension In this vvorld universall it doth good to all In the other vvorld it is eternall Pretious in this vvorld for vse for a mans faith is his ovvne proper good but Charity is profitable and vsefull to others In the other vvorld it is pretious for continuance for it endureth to the end in the end after the end vvithout end Ignatius Christs martyr shall conclude vvho saith that faith is the beginning of our Christianity Charity the end best pillovve vvhereon to repose our head at the last gaspe The right of this appeares in the subject of Charity for it svvimmes not in the braine vvith fancifull imaginary opinions but setleth in the hart by deuine and Christian affections It is not conceitfull but truly cordiall In the obiect it is pretious for god is the obiect thereof vvhatsoeuer god vvill haue beloued as men all men yea our enimies for that 's the exaltatioÌ„ thereof Angels saincts Christ himself according to his humane nature vvhereby he doth not disdaine to call vs brethren Lastly in the effects pretious for it bringeth vnto vs the ioy of the spirit peace of our conscience patience mercie bounty the like Practice 1 The vse of this is first of Confutation of the Papists vvho make Charity the forme of faith they argue thus If Charity be greater then Faith hope more pretious for vse continuance as Paule affirmeth Then are vve not iustified by faith only I ansvvere that these conclusions vvill as vvell follovve A king is better then a boore therefore he can till the earth better A man is better then a beast therefore he can runne svvifter then a horse he can carry more then an Elephant Who sees not the absurdities Let Faith haue her prerogatiues It is the cause of gods loue Galat. 5.6 For in Iesus Christ neither circumcision aueileth