know further of this Divine Method which is the Aquaeduct the Ventiduct the Luciduct which way still doth Christ in his Spirit conveigh this Holy water this gentle Air this blessed Light to our Spirits I confess this is one of the most necessary important and most usefull Queries we can make and which being clearly resolved will shame both Papists that hide away as much as they can and other Hereticks that blaspheme the Scriptures and pretend to a Spirit enthusiastick which is nothing but the Devil of delusion and spirit of Giddiness And therefore for our best Resolve upon this question Let us do as our Saviour in the point of marriage enquire how it was in the Beginning Look back then to the Creation consider how came Light at first At first the Spirit moves and broods over that which is in it self a confusion a depth and a darkness and then his mighty Word Fiat Lux. He spake and it was Light then Then when all was dark he made material Light and Christ Jesus is the WORD 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 For as Speech is the Image of the mind so he the brightness of his Fathers Glory and the express Image of his person Heb. 1.3 The immaterial Light that was never made and the Spirit of the true God in declaring the true Way of his Worship and mans true way thereby to obtain eternal life as the very heathen trusted to the false gods fained Oracles which of necessity must be revealed before man could find or follow it goes that way still that is by the WORD His Word wherein is his Will revealed from Heaven both makes and is our Light This world is Gods Book wherein as in a Glass of wonders we discern him but that print being Dim to us that are sin-blind it pleased him by lively Oracles to make a Mirror far more clearly revealing his mind And as God engraved his form on his Son before all worlds so what that Son is and what the Father is to us in him the Spirit proceeding from both delivers in the Scriptures of both Testaments And as the Sun guilds and enamels clouds and streams and hill Tops with his raies but thrusts his own pure Light his own living sire through the bodies of the stars so other Authors can but yield a faint reflexion of that beam which is direct and native in his book where the very Law he stiles a flaming Light The Prophecies a more sure Word then any Eye-evidences of the Apostles to which we do well to look saith St. Peter himself as to a Light shining in a dark place till the day dawn the day-star rise in our hearts But then the Gospel written and spread by his Evangelists and held out by his spouse the Catholick Church is his marvellous Light He brought life and immortality to Light by the Gospel 2 Tim 1.10 and in Acts 26. 16. I have appeared to thee saith our Saviour to that choice vessel of his Grace and name to make thee a Minister and a witness c. And now behold I will send thee to the Gentiles to what end A glorious end to open their eyes and to turn them from Darkness to Light from the power of Satan unto God and accordingly we find it 2 Cor. 4.3 4. If our Gospel be hid it is hid in them that perish in whom the god of this world hath blinded their unfaithfull minds that the Light of the Gospel of the Glory of Christ who is the Image of God should not shine unto them And in the sixth verse he shews the Walk and Circuit of this Light God who commanded Light to shine out of Darkness hath shined in our hearts there first and then the casting of the beam to give light of the knowledge of the Glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ O then you have the means of Light and Grace among you Ministers you are the Light and Salt of the earth and who shall question that truth which the Truth himself hath testified And would it not be a very dark and desolate and a very flash and unsavory world without a publique Ministry of the Word and Sacraments The Clergie however despised are all out Spiritual Fathers Propter quos hanc suavissimam Lucem aspeximus But yet you and they both must know how they have it and the Apostle tells us that too in the next words We have this Treasure in our earthen vessels that the excellency of the Power might be of God and not of us You are not sent to a Means and Medicine of our preparing or any humane but to Gods Divine Ordinance that which is his Power and Wisdom to Salvation to every one that believes And therefore this may be enough to give all humble Christians satisfaction and acquiescence Speak then thy Word O Lord and thy servant shall be healed shall be undarkened and though like Bartimeus though sin-blind have my eyes opened with a word Mar. 10.12 St. Peter spake but words unto Cornelius but words whereby he and his house should be saved words so richly blest that the Text saith while Peter spake these words the holy Ghost fell on all them that heard the word Did not our hearts burn within us said those Disciples Luke 24. to whom our Saviour opened the Scriptures And the Apostles hearers prickt at their Hearts cried Men and Brethren What shall we do to be saved And what a large field of the Fathers testimonies do I here forsake to break by your patience into an Inclosure or two of the very Papists our enemies and the enemies of the Scripture Yet see the excellency of Gods word even those enemies being Judges Cardinal Bellarmine himself is in his superlatives Certissima tutissima regula credendi lib. 1. de verb. Dei ca. 20. and need we any more after so full a witness I 'le name but another but one Instar omnium 'T is he that in a traiterous itch of wit took on him purposely the abuse of Scripture that by mis appliance and prophane wresting he might so abuse our Princes and our Church Mark yet what he is forc'd to say and sure 't is worth our observation if I diminish him not in my English There is in Scripture sayes he an invisible Majesty an hidden splendour a Glory unperishable a wisdom in-exhaustible The solace of humane and the beginning of a Divine life made by the holy Spirit making our spirits holy compat'd with which the Egyptian sages will look pale and poor the Chaldee impure the Grecians blockish Plato no body and Philosophy it self a fool 'T is the print of Heaven on earth and if any where the Joy of Paradise or at least a brave Resemblance of Divine Light be shewed 't is in Scripture containing all that is severed from the actual Vision of God himself Again The paper burns me not yet am I all inflamed in reading it 'T is no composure no artificial tread the Scripture uses
and Wresters of a Text would force them up That only I intend and yet will crave leave a little to insist upon which that question seems to others of sound Judgement to imply and is no coacted no violent expression namely the Misery and desolation of Adam and consequently of all his Race by disobedience Quanta de spe but here is more Quanta de re decidit 11. First then his condition in general notice calls to mind that Gourd of Jonas now green and flourishing and anon blasted and eaten down by that Rerum destructrix that corroding blind worm of disobedience And as on Jonas it brought the Tempest and the Whale and confounded all his joyes in the Gourd after so here it was the confusion the dispersion and dissipation of all that beauteous flock of Graces in our first Parents bosoms and their exclusion from the pleasures of the Terrestrial and danger of Deprivation o◠coelestial Paradise 12. In which consideration Let us first discipher as we may the sin and take then an account as we are able of the loss As for their sin we find the School-men anxious and perplext as indeed a little thing will trouble them to what species to what head to refer it 13. Disobedience That 's the Ocean or the sink rather into which all sin runs Though in special distribution Perjury is rankt under Sacriledge as Usurpation under this General of Theft and so of other sins marching under several Banners yet all is Disobedience and all Disobedience rises from that cursed root of Covetousness That is an inordinate Desire and Affectation of things prohibited by the Law of God And apparently this offence of our Delinquents here issued from that wild and insatiat desire But yet even that Desire that evil Covetise arises and springs from another and a deeper root and that is Pride Initium omnis peccati Superbia Ecclus 10.14 And the Devil that had tried it so himself knew that was the way to lift up mans heart against his Maker by an Infusion and Inflation of becoming like God Hearkning after false Riches and Ambition of false knowledge beggered us all and left us all in Ignorance and Darkness till a new Light and Day-spring from on high do visit us till that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 do reddert diem rise in our hearts and reimplenish us from his fulness in whom all knowledge and all the Treasures of Wisdom are both hidden and as far as they can concern us are also made manifest 14. This for the sin Now secondly what the losses are Non mihi si centum and again Quis talia fando For alas Besides those natural Endowments and Abiliaments Life of the body to be perpetuated as the Angels and that plenary knowledge arguable from mans imposing apt names on all the Creatures and Gods framing of man then in perfection of all things by man acquirable there was a supernatural Influx of divine Faith in admirable clearness both of the Object and the internal Power with lucide Notions of the Trinity and of the then future Incarnation too as some great Wits have imagined because the adventurous and dazling School-men daring to flie at all and to prie into the secret Cabinet of Gods Council have thought and taught that if man had persisted in his station of integrity yet God would have dwelt in fulness in a body of derivative clay and have been manifest in the flesh both to witness his infinite Power therein that being an act of incomprehensible greatness which in all the Fabrique of Heaven and Earth and all their various furniture to those great rooms God had yet wrought no such piece as could demonstrate it and then also for the evidencing of his infinite Love unto that Creature Man to whom he desired to descend in a nearer Union then was testified by his first inspiration And even Saint Austin is of opinion that God as now to Angels did then impart to Man the science of many things in simul quae non simul fiunt in his eleventh book De Genesi ad Literam cap. 13. But above all was the choicest Jewel of Original Justice wherein rested the Image of God in a special manner mingled with a manifold linage and a numerous brood of excellencies all adorning that soul which sat enthroned in the radiance thereof without clouds of trouble or error in the pure contemplation of her Creator entirely holy yet and bridled and becalmed in those we call the Irascible and Concupiscible parts All which was ruined by admitting Satans question first which makes them here unable to sustain themselves or endure Gods question now and occasioned all their Off-spring all th sons of men to vex themselves with intricate and thorny and infinite questions and drew on man that description which every one finds true in his own trial Animal Aevibrevissimi infinitae solicitudinis 15. And now nothing hinders no man can forbid us to call this opening of the case for so is a point of Divinity in our Profession though the fee be not ever after one a Doctrine if you please so to accept it from my mouth which in effect in the matter of this question and in the present mystick sense it bears is so delivered from the mouth of God himself and dropping so as a Dew as a balmy showr and coelestial influence will if we open our Bosoms our Hearts and Understandings and Affections to receive and cherish it with care and conscienscious Devotion produce many usefull flowers But if I should now adventure on a collection or distribution of those flowers I could not but extend your patience beyond the ordinary limits and therefore shall refer them to another opportunity and now commend all we have heard thus far to the Grace and Blessing of God in Christ Jesus to whom c. S. D. G. THE FOURTH SERMON on this TEXT GEN. 3.9 The Lord God called unto the man and said Adam where art thou AT the first entrance on this Text I called it an Introduction to the judicial proceeding of God against man after his sin for after sin comes Judgement ever so aborigine Adams case the first book-case that ever was And Judgement saith St. Peter begins at the house here is more It begins at the Son of God so saith St Luke expresly of Adam which was the Son of God An impudent hope then for any son of man to look for impunity Rather all must look in several one day to hear this call of God Where art thou Wheresoever thou shalt be or howsoever found dead among those that live in pleasures drowned and soaked in fleshly lusts or choakt in worldly cares or quick from the dead from that dispersion and resolution to watety slime and mud to earthly dust or aery Atoms All the mass and collective body of mankind once made and then at once remade by his Almighty Word shall hear his Almighty Word that Voice and Trump of God Return
Lastly As it is implyed that our Saviours victory on the Cross was his purchase of the Gentiles Rev. 2.26 27. and Phil. 2. His stooping even to the Cross precedes his exaltation and then a Genuflexion and universal Acclamation All tongues to confess him c. So the mission of his Apostles to the Gentiles was after his passion and a little before it we find in John 12.24 some Greeks desired to see him and he answers in a Riddle If the grain of wheat die it will bring forth much fruit which was meant of himself saith St. Austin He was to die by the unbelief of the Jews and then to be multiplyed in the faith of all Nations as we see it come to pass But that faith saith St. Paul Rom. 10. it grows not in nature comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God And this hath brought us a little on our way in the understanding of our second part which we now pursue Lux in Domino Light That 's the matter here and the manner is in Domino or the other way for the matter indeed is in Domino and the manner by way of Illumination For what is meant surely that great work of God Mans restoring is meant included in a second great work Illumination of our minds and that in a third great work The light of the Sun in our eyes How rare and choice a fruit must that be which hath such curious Coverings The very Metaphor or rather Box and Nest of Metaphors is observable Is God a Metaphorical God saith one D. D. And he answers himself In a pious and humble meaning respecting the Scriptures heights and Excellencies in Allegories not only sinews in the Milk of Gods Word and things in his Words but spreadings and strange Rhetorical passages and curtains of figures flowing into figures Where are those Sophisters and Grand Seniors and grave Rabbies with their old dissembled Ensigns of Ignorance the Beard the Habit and the Title that will allow men no use of humane Learning in disclosing Divine Mysteries Is the Grape therefore harsh because such Strainers cannot reach it Theology shall remain the crowned Queen of Sciences but will admit her Hand-maids to carry keys to her Cabinets But ere we look in here be pleased to arrest your consideration on the covering of this Ark that is the Light of Heaven And as before in Darkness so here again we are blind with dazling How many are the opinions of those rowling Torches of Heaven the Sun and Moon St. Austin and in his old age too for it is in his Euchir ad Lauren. knew not whether he might account them to the Angels And for the Light Who shall tell us what it is When it comes to our doors and beats upon our eves we know not whether it have a real Being in the Air or an Intentional The first the second both and neither of both are defended Look into the Microcosm and Fiat Lux else all invisible no form no distinction and all inglorious nor use nor beauty 'T is Plenitudo the filling of all the Creatures and gives them Cognition Life Motion View the Microcosm the Light of the Body is the eye and not the Organ so much as the visive Power the light within that sits behind those Glass-windows with a balance and a file and weighs and works upon the shapes of things that enter But both these Lights are Darkness if the Medium be not illuminated if the Air be dark and searching the Scripture though we find not what it is yet we find a world of wonders in it Five things imparted yet remain entire Knowledge Vertue Happiness Joy and Light and this the Embleme of them all No good thing but Light takes it in by comparison all good things but never any ill Wisdom Health Beauty Food Joy and Reputation All the Graces of God Knowledge Faith Love Hope Joy Consolation yea the very Glory to come all our Joy and endless Bliss in that vision of Light And if God should ask us What house we would make him or to what compare him Should we offend in saying LIGHT though nothing resemble God exactly yet something better shews how far he is beyond all resmblance and by that Light his Creatures afford our admiration of his Incomprehensibleness may be raised higher and higher and with it so raised our longing after him enlarged And sure as in the works of Grace none liker God then LOVE So in the works of Nature Light as it is the eldest so the amiablest and the likest to the Father and what the Fathers affection is to it we may see by his first giving Light to the Chaos It could yield him no delight who was the double Parent so long as it lay in Night and Darkness and so deep in too that nothing yet was day What stood thus blindly could not be pleasing in his eye who is all eye But when it saw the Text saith God saw that all was good Doth he not dwell in Light and cover himself with Light as with a Garment May we not say his House and Robe and Eternal Essence are all one boundless christal Globe of Light Doth not he say so God is Light the Father the Father of Lights and the Son is God of God and Light of Light and the Holy Spirit as in this wide Engine of the world it is an inward eye which moves and rowls Spiritus in us alit So in our Souls it is the Spirit of Illuminations directing us to that place where in his Light we shall see Light even see God face to face and know him even as we are known I had not staid so long on this this cover here but that I conceived it might be in our way to discover what remains remembring my Promise to pass this part in explanation so demonstrating in an Orb where every part gives Light unto one another Here by the way might be inferred the usefulness of our sight and how we are bound to bless God that enjoy that Comfort And secondly How to compassionate the blind that sit in darkness considering there is no perfect joy on earth without it no nor in Heaven it being one of the torments in hell Darkness and contrary to the Inheritance of the Saints in Light And thirdly Applying to such times as these Rejoyce in this favour of Heaven that earthly men cannot restrain or excise the comforts of the Air and Light c. But we pass to our fruit it self the meaning of this Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ in our restoring veil'd here under this God-like Creature of Light That illumination which we receive from him by his Spirit relieving us from our state of corruption and bondage of darkness and translating us into his marvelous Light and glorious liberty of the Sons of God For you were c. In Domino In Domino For he is Light in the abstract others by participation He the true Light the cause efficient
God going along with his people in the Light of his countenance and blessing in the midst of their Camp Tents Tabernacles And in the New Testament it is called a following of God of him who is the Light a walking worthy of the Lord worthy their vocation circumspectly wisely honestly orderly in Truth in Love in Knowledge in good works in newness of life in the fear of the Lord and in comfort of the holy Ghost And in this Church Christ walks amidst the seven golden Candelsticks and this Church shall walk with him in Albis in white stoles when all believing Nations shall walk in the light of the new Jerusalem Behold I have set before you light and darkness the good and the evil way but chuse the good eschew the evil and walk as Children of Light For first We may do so for the words are an exhortation and the Wisdom of God exhorts to nothing impossible No imposing upon his creature without a previous disposing He enforms us of no Duty but he gives means of performance We shall have a portion the danger is our running away from our heavenly Father and wasting our whole stock We shall not want Grace to help us in time of need if we receive it not in vain if we abuse it not if we turn not his Grace into wantonness He invites us to a race who assists us also in the running and cals to us to cast off all that may hinder us And if he lay any thing upon us first he promises it shall be no more then he enables us to bear and then bids us cast our care upon him for he cares for us and he carries for us hath carried the most insupportable burden bore all our sins in his body on the tree that we might be at perfect liberty both in body and soul And if the Son so make us free then are we free indeed and being thus at this liberty by Christ we may well go on our way prescribed having our hearts enlarged as David saith I may go nay I can walk thy ways O Lord yea then I will run the wayes of thy Commandments And surely till then till the ripe season God doth not call upon men for mark the exhortation here and you shall see it leans back and listens to the words before and is like a pair of Compasses of which though one foot stand stifly here on 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the verb of Command and of present activity yet the other is as far removed as 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the adverb of time Draw them up together and we shall inclose the whole Will of God Put the adverb to the verb and it is together 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Now walk as the palsie-bed rid man now and not till now not till healed in case to walk When you were darkness you could not see to walk as Children of Light then you saw not you regarded not God and that time of your ignorance God oversaw too He regarded it not but now under the Gospel Dispensations he will have all men to come to Repentance and knowledge of the Truth In corrupt nature mankind lay as in fetters and manicles on hands and feet like St. Peter bound with two chains but if an Angel of Grace come down with a Light into the prison then Peter will up and follow the direction of that Light then he will when his Irons are knockt off and then shall nothing hinder him then the Iron gate flies openof its own accord strong prevalent lusts to which he hath been lockt and wedlockt and that Iron sinew in his soul that rock of Adamant shall dissolve and break into a bitter-sweet flood of Repentant tears Such advantage may we make of this little Particle Now now we have got it into the heart of the exhortation It is Gods Will ever now walk now or never to day while it is called to day lest hereafter you have no more dayes And now while it is this instant Now lest we never have another Now Now while we are called upon labor and pluck up our feeble knees and give all diligence to make our calling begin there and so our Election sure 2 Pet. 1. and so is St. Paul here and elsewhere to be understood While you have time and light and free Grace offered in the Word of Grace Now when called to labor in the Vineyard O delay not have a care of your precious souls and work out your salvation with sear and trembling Phil. 2.12 2. As we may let us do this work nay we must for the words are Imperative mood as well as present tense and none exempted they are in the plural number too And though the verb be of the active voice yet it implies our whole duty what we justiy own to Christ our Saviour which is both an active and passive obedience Active first And in that is first to be considered action immanent within the heart devotion there upon that Altar that 's most acceptable to God who is the Father of spirits John 4. seeks such to worship him I will marry her and speak unto her heart saith Christ by the Prophet to his Church his Spouse and betwixt spoused Pairs the offices are mutual God sanctifies your hearts by his Spirit and his holy Spirit calls upon you in his Word Sanctifie you the Lord God in your hearts 1 Pet. 3.15 We are renewed and purified and drest by him habitually But in use of his Graces in acts of Faith and Repentance and Obedience we must be dayly renewing and purifying like the spunging of a Statue or trimming of an Armor it is the Armor of Light Rom. 13. though done yesterday yet must be done to day again and in this sense we must be carefull for to morrow too Secondly In Actions transient for we are his workmanship Eph. 2.10 What then we to do nothing for our selves Yes that follows in due place and time His work-manship created in Christ Jesus To what unto good works which he hath ordained that we we should walk in them For whether that of Cajetan be exactly true or no that infused habits are of the same nature with acquisite Thus far it is true that both are preserved and maintained by works and action Hast thou Faith shew it Let your Light so shine and God is glorified when his Children of Light are seen walking in Love All vain pretences then Et utinam hoc esset bene latuit fallentis semita vita and so the monkish solitude with their Mors pretiosae are here all together shaken out of this walk and likewise the proud and painted Pharisee the swelling seeming Justiciary which sect repuliulates and comes up thick in every successive Generation Solomon saw a brood of them pure in their own eyes yet most impure of a strange alloy and medley religious and wicked And those of St. Paul's order he confesses to be Zealots very strict in appearance fast twice