Corpore deposite liberam si scandis in aethram Tunc dem aeternus fies mortalia linquens If quite from earthly drosse thou soare Then shalt thou be a God and dye no more But as yet all our labours are like vnto the husbandmans seede castinto the earth which seemes to rot and vtterly to perish It is reported of Hillary that from the fourteenth yeere of his age to the 84. had serued the Lord in sowing this seede yet it seemed to him lost while he vttered this sentence Goe foorth O my soule goe foorth why art thou afraide why doubtest thou Likewise Iob saide What shall I doe whether shall I turne when the Lord shall-comc to iudgement Thus the godly are subiect to trouble of spirit and vexation of conscience The world sees not the fruite and we perceiue not the fulnesse of our sowing as yet onely here is our comfort our workes are with the Lord and the crowne of righteousnesse shall come hereafter Secondly the husbandman receiues not the benefit of his labours as soone as he hath sowne his seede it is long in growing vppe in ripening and at the length is cut downe and brought into the barne Euen so is it with the godly now they sowe and reape hereafter This world is the seede time the next is the haruest time and so much the wise man shewes saying Cast thy bread vp on the waters and after many dayes thou shalt finde it The like saith the Apostle Paul I haue fought a good fight I haue kept the faith Here is his seēde time the haruest sollowes Hence foorth is laide vp for mee the crowne of righteousnesse In this world the children of God are but in their apprentiship to learne their arte they shall be truely free men onely in heauen this is their time of feare and trembling the haruest of full-ioy and happinesse is hereafter The Church is compared to a vineyard that is first digged then planted groweth bloweth and afterward commeth the liquor Sometime also to a shippe that goes to the Sea and is beaten with the waues tossed with the windes and then at the length comes home full fraughted with Merchandies Also to a building wherein there is much hewing squaring and great paines taking before it be a fit habitation To a fielde that is plowed sowne harrowed growes ripens and then comes the haruest The child of God is a planter a Merchant a builder and a husbandman but the wine is not yet tasted of the shippe is not yet returned the house is not yet inhabited and the seede is not yet in the barne Therefore I say vnto you as the Apostle said to his hearers ye haue neede of patience 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that after yee haue done the will of God yee may receiue the promise yet a little and hee that shall come will come Post lacramas risus post exilium Paradisus After weeping comes laughing and after banishment comes Paradise After sowing comes haruest and after obedience comes glory The husbandman comforts himselfe with the presedence of his labours and feedes vpon future hopes His well dunged and manured ground his seasonable tillage and his good seed will surely bring a plentiful haruest in the end more then answerable to his paines The husbandman cannot so much hope for an ensuing crop as the child of God hath an assurance of his future glory His well manured soule with the grace of God his seasonable and good seed of obedience puts him in such an hope and giues him such assurance of a blessed haruest that he will not sell his future estate for a present Monarchy Moyses had rather forgoe his present dignities then loose his future hopes Thirdly it is fitly compared to sowing because as one corne brings foorth many and a little increaieth much so the seede of righteousnesse brings foorth an vnspeakable weight of glory Eye hath not seene care hath not heard neither hath it entred into the heart of man what God hath laid vp for those that loue him so great is the reward as that it cannot be numbred so precious as that it cannot be valued so lasting as that it euer endureth O ioy aboue all ioyes mirth without sorrow life without labour light without darkenesse aglorious reward for so small a worke Here is a blessed increase and yet no vsurie an hundred for tenne yea a thousand for one yet no extortion our seede finite the reward infinite A cup of cold water giuen to a pious vse shall be put in the Chronicles of heauen and rewarded with no lesle then a kingdome Fourthly obserue that out of one hand comes many graines and cornes which are dispersed into many parts of the field So the good childe of God must bee as plentifull in good workes doing good vnto many The seruant is not aboue his Lord. If Christ so sowed wee ought to follow For omnis Christi actio nostra debet esse instructio Euery action of Christ ought to be our instruction who went about doing good vnto all people Among the Iewes none might be a Rabbin till he could speake seuen languages the tree is not accounted a good tree till it bring forth much fruit and who can bee a good Christian till hee bee found fruitfull in good workes A Christian must be like the tree that Clusius reports of calling it the Indian figgetree and Gorobius calleth it the tree of Adams transgression Let it be what it is it groweth vp with one faire body the branches spreading themselues very large reaching downe vnto the earth taking hold thereof and springeth vp againe into little trees that often it comes to passe that the ground is couered and ouerspread for the space of a mile with the ouer spreading branches The Christian is compared in Scripture to a figge tree It seemes that this is the cause of it to teach the childe of God to be as farre spreading with his workes We reade that when Christ fed the people he fed them by multitudes to teach vs to doe good vnto many While wee haue time saith the Apostle let vs doe good vnto all When the ayre hath giuen influence the cloudes sent downe the seasonable deawes of grace and the sunne of righteousnes bestowed his kindly heat then a Christian becomes fruitfull Man is compared to the earth that brings forth herbes of all colours and fashions and of seueral smelles These herbes are as dumbe masters to teach vs our duety to be plentifull in good workes of all sorts as Peter teacheth Ioyne vertue with faith and with vertue knowledge with knowledge temperance with temperance patience with patience godlinesse with godlinesse brotherly kindnes and with brotherly kindnesse loue See what a golden chaine of vertues are here linked together That which was prophesied of vs must bee made true in vs Our roabes namely our workes must bee wrought with diuers collours It must not bee with vs as it
are in the state of grace or no. Knowe yee not that Christ is in you except yee be reprobates Me thinkes the same wisedome should bee obserued with the soule as is with the body A man prooues his horse that he be not deceiued a man casteth vp his estate that he prooue not a begger and shall wee not prooue the state of our soules that we bee not damned A man be he neuer so poore will not out of one house till he be sure of another and shall we depart this life and not bee sure of heauen O no. The Mandarins hold it a thing vnfortunate to die before they haue made ready their sepulchres I hope a Christian then should be more wise for his soule to worke out his saluation with feare fearing to depart before hee hath finished the same Therefore let vs liue well as long as wee haue time for neither the Pilot when the shippe is drowned nor the Physition when the sicke man is dead profiteth any thing at all and therefore make your calling and election sure that you may liue in comfort die in peace and rise in glory And thus you haue heard and seene the haruest of grace The next circumstance obiects to our meditation the haruest of glory and here I must confesse I want a head to inuent a heart to conceiue knowledge to vnderstand iudgement to determine memory to retaine and a tongue to expresse What a croppe the haruest of glory is for as it is written Eye hath not seene care hath not heard what God hath prepared for those that loue him Situ altissimum it is high in situation quantitate maximum great in quantity natura purissimum pure in nature luce plenissimum full of light capacitate amplissimum and exceeding large for continuance eternall and for quantitie infinite I may with more peace of conscience to my selfe and greater profit to you shewe you how to come to so great a glory then to tell you what it is The manner THe last branch of this haruest is the manner which is according to merey so saith my text lephi chesed and we may reade and turne it thus to the face of mercy or to the fauour of grace or to the mouth of beneuolence or the fauour of hope all meeting as so many lines in one center shewing that all things temporall and spirituall are of the mercy of God For neither our plowing nor sowing deserueth this haruest but Gods mercy giuing it It is not in him that willeth or in him that runneth 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 but in God which sheweth mercy This is that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 grace for grace First God giues grace to serue him and then hee giues a second grace as the reward So Augustine on this obserues Ipsa fides gratia est faith it selfe is grace Et vita aterna gratia est progratia And life eternall is grace for grace But is it come to this to bee for all our plowing of repentance and sowing the seede of obedience still of mercy Obserue then that man hath nothing of deseruing and by vertue of merit so doeth Christ tell vs that when we haue done all that we can yet are wee still 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 vnprofitable And if it please you to take another witnesse you may from the Syriach word battila vnprofitable And thus by the mouth of two witnesses this sentence is firme when all is done wee are vnprofitable Siinutilis est qui fecit omnia c. If hee bee vnprofitable which did all what reward is due to vs then Surely none of the blessed promises of God but a fearfull looking for of iudgement And therefore the Apostle desired not to bee found in the puritie of his owne workes because thereby he could not be saued but in the righteousnesse of Christ. It is manifest therefore that there is no saftie in our workes because the spirit teacheth vs to flee from them as not a sure refuge to trust vnto And to this tends that saying of Iuda where he saith we should looke not for the reward of works but the mercy of God which as it did initiat vs into grace so it must consummate vs to glory The trueth whereof will yet more plainly appeare by this proposition Those works which are not perfit deserue nothing But the workes of the Saints are not perfit Ergo Our workes deserue nothing For how can an euill cause produce a good effect We know that Qualis causa talis effectus Such a cause such effect Man is not so iustified not so sanctified Vt non sit in nob is peccatum That there should bee no sinne in vs and while it is in vs it is a stayne to our workes as a little milke changeth the fountaine of water and a cloud obscureth the light of the Sunne And so what patience without murmuring what faith without doubting what zeale without coldnesse what loue without hatred what charity without couetousnesse what knowledge without ignorance what chastitie without concupiscence and what obedience without defect So saith Esai that our righteousnesse is as a stayned cloth And as Augustine saith Multum boni facit sed non perfectum bonum facit He doth much good but not that which is perfectly good So that wee haue neede to goe to God and aske pardon rather for the sinne in the worke then a reward for the good Then to conclude the Saints reape this haruest Non pro merito not for merit sed pro gratia but for grace I must not let passe now the doctrine of Popery which teacheth a doctrine contrary to this namely that wee are not simply beholding to God but in some sort to our selues as to workes And they make two kindes of workes or merits the one is Meritum de congruo merit of congruity which are preparatiue workes that goe before iustification Such were the works of Cornelius as they say which though they be not meritorious ex debito institiae by due debt of iustice yet do deserue at Gods hands of congruity The other they call Meritum de condigno merits of condignity when the reward is iustly due by debt and such are the works of the Saints But this distinction of workes wee approoue not of For these workes done before iustification though they seeme to haue a shew of goodnesse in themselues yet are they not pleasing to God because the persons are not iustified and his worke that is not iustified is abominable in the sight of God Secondly they are not done in faith and Whatsoeuer is not of faith is sinne so that these cannot be preparatiue workes Againe for those workes done after sanctification we deny not but that they are pleasing and acceptable to God yet doe they deserue nothing by vertue of their worth as Ambrose saith In respect of others that is other men they are worthy but in respect of the thing
the Papists against the same The Apostles wrote certaine things not that their writings should be aboue our faith and religion but rather that they should bee vnder saith Albertus See what an imputation hee layes vpon the Apostles Epistles that they are not able to direct vs in faith and true religion Obserue yet another blasphemie of his The Scriptures are double iudges Now we know that a double Iudge is altogether vnprofitable and not fit for that place Euen so are the Scriptures by his argument and of lesse account then their traditions So it appeares by the saying of Andradius Neither in those bookes wherein the sacred mysteries are written is there one iote of diuinitie which by any force of religion can bind vs to beleeue what is there in contained By whose saying you heare that the word is not able to bring men to the knowledge of God religion and faith Thus he doth conclude them not to be holy pure and perfect Lodouicus saith The Scripture is as it were dead ynke fit for no vse but to bee caitaway So the Papists esteeme of Gods holy word as an vnholy writing saying What aduantage hath this fable of Christ brought vnto vs So the whole Gospel is reckoned by them as a fable In a word the whole Scripture is accounted vnholy But whether it be more meete to beleeue God or man let the world iudge Dauid saith that the Scriptures are pure and vndefiled And Christ saith that they are true and holy And I say let Gods word be righteous and the Papists blasphemers Now I come to the workes of righteousnesse which wee must sowe yet not as the Papists Necessitate efficientiae They are necessary as efficient causes together with faith of our saluation but necessitate praesentiae they are necessary for the present and we cannot be without them For faith doth iustifie and workes doe testifie Credis in Christum fac Christi opera vt viuat ' fides tua Doest thou beleeue in Christ do thou Christs workes that thy faith may liue There is a three-fold vse of the workes of righteousnesse first Gods glory secondly the good of others and thirdly our owne comfort How shall it appeare that wee are iustified if the fruit of righteousnesse be not seene as Barnard saith As we discerne the life of the body by the motion of the body so the life of faith by good works And that you may the better know how to doe the workes of righteousnesse obserue first that they be commanded of God secondly that they be well done thirdly that they be done to a good end Vt sit mandatum a Deo That it be commanded of God that is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 according to the Scriptures Then is it not so much to be inquired whether it bee good and equall as whether God hath commaunded the same or no for sometimes lawfull things are vnlawfull Againe sometimes vnlawfull things are lawfull As thus to kill and murther a mans owne child is vnlawfull yet if God command it then is it lawfull as for example in Abraham which was commanded to kill his-sonne which if he had refused had sinned and to haue done it without command had been a sinne likewise Or thus It is lawfull to pray one for another yet when God forbids it then is it a sinne to pray not in respect of the subiect of prayer but because it is a disobedience vnto Gods command as appeareth by the Prophet Ieremy Againe lawfull things done by some are vertues which being done by others are sinne As thus It is lawfull for a Magistrate to put a murtherer to death but for a priuate man it is a sinne Therefore that is a false rule that many examine things by Whether it be good or equall and not whether God hath commanded it or no. By this rule the vsurer examines his vsury In deed saith hee God hath forbidden it yet marke what profit comes hereof Men that can vse no calling may liue if they haue money Besides marke what good it doth vnto the borrower Many are made by borrowing and to giue ouer the same would doe much hurt But this is a false rule if God hath not commanded the same it is altogether vnlawfull By the same rule we measure our charitie saying If I shall giue vnto the poore and relieue the needie then I my felfe may want Likewise in their callings If I shall tell the trueth in selling vse good wares and true weights and measures it is the way to be a Beggar and the like But this is a false rule I denie not but that it is good for a man to keepe his estate and not to grow into pouertie yet not by such a meanes as God hath not commanded By such a false rule Saul examined his obedience Shall I kill the King and the chiefe cattell no I may haue a great ransome for the King and for the cattell they will serue for sacrifice or for breede or the like and therefore it is better to preserue the King and the best cattell aliue But for all his wisedome God told him that he was a foole and had sinned in so doing and therefore hee receiued a iust recompense for his desert It is dangerous to call Gods precepts into question touching the purity thereof If he hath said it or commanded it it is righteous and we must obey it Secondly as it must be commanded of God so it must be well done as it must be bonum so it must bee bene That you may take your worke along with you obserue there must be first knowledge secondly faith thirdly readinesse 1. There must bee knowledge for euery action is to be knowen before it can be well done either we shal doe more then we ought or lesse then we should The heathen man could say that he that knoweth not what he seeketh cannot tell when to finde that which he lacketh as Cato obserues Ignotum tibi nolito praeponere notis Cognita indicio constant incognita casu Doe not thou preferre any thing vnknowen before things that are knowen Knowen things stand in iudgement and vnknowen in chance As the common Prouerbe is A blind man may catch a Hare and as well may an ignorant man light vpon some of the precepts of God yet seldome seene Pithagoras hath a pretie saying He that knoweth not what he ought to know is a brute beast among men He that knoweth no more then hee hath neede of is a man among bruit beast and He that knoweth all that may be knowen is a God among men And because knowledge is the ground of all Arts God taught his people first to know and then to doe for the way to doe well is to know the good 2. It must be done with the heart that is in zeale loue reuerence feare and the like Vt sit ex vera fide That it be of true faith not so much the things
a coniunction copulatiue ioyning of things together and this is ruach Elohim God the Spirit In a word the Father hath but one respect that is he is produceus non productus producing and not produced The Spirit hath one respect likewise hee is productus produced not producens producing But the the Sonne hath two respects that is he is productus a Patre vna cum Patre producens spiritum sanctum produced from the Father and is one with the Father producing the holy Spirit This is the Trinitie in vnitie and the vnitie in Trinitie three Persons yet but one God And now what is it that you would haue Is it Power to protect you Mercy to forgiue you and Grace to sanctifie you Then seeke eth Iehouah for as Salomon sayde get wisedome get vnderstanding so get Iehouah and get all things For they alone possesse all things which possesse the possesser of all things Well might Dauid say our helpe standeth besham Iehouah for there we haue power and protection mercy and redemption grace and sanctification But this is a Sunne so glorious that wee are not able to behold it a Sea so deepe we cannot sound it and a maiestie so great wee cannot comprehend it I must say with Barnard To enquire of the Trinitie is a peruerse curiosity to beleeue and to hold as the holy Church holdeth is faith and securitie to see it as it is is most perfect and chiefe felicitie And now I say vnto you as Alanus saide to his auditours who told them that hee would open the misterie of the Trinitie and when hee was to speake hereof at the time appointed saide Sufficit vobis vidisse Alanus It is sufficient that you haue seene Alanus So it is sufficient that you haue heard thus much of the incomprehensible Trinitie and this great glorious name Iehouah Eth Iehouah wee will not so let him goe but as Iacob would not let the Angell goe before hee had got a blessing so we will not giue ouer till we haue found the Lord for though we cannot come neere him because of his glory yet let vs tread in his footsteps and that will bring vs to him at length For as the onely way to come to the sea is to follow the streame to the nearest way to follow the Lord is to follow him in his word and this will bring a man peace at the last saith Dauid And this is that which the Lord commaunded saying Seeke mee and you shall liue but seeke not Beth. el. His meaning is that they should obey his word and follow the same and not Ieroboams calues at Beth el. This was commended in Iofiah which sought the Lord that is the will and word of the Lord to doe accordingly Which thing beingsoneedful that the apostle saith Proue that good and acceptable will of the Lord that is to doe it for this is truely to seeke the Lord. When Christ said Seeke the kingdome of God and his righteousnesse hee meaneth that we should doe that righteousnesse And whosoeuer thus seekes the Lord shall finde him to his comfort But here take heede you seeke him not in Poetry Philosophie or in Historiographie for non est hic He is not here The wisedome of the world knew not God in the wisdome thereof Therfore well might the Apostle say Take heede that no man spoyle you through Philosophie A disease whereof many are sicke hauing more delight and being better experienced in humane stories then in godly Diuinity In the one they are cunning in the other they are ignorant When they come to the word they must doe as men that want their sight which put on their spectacles before they can reade so these must turne to the Table before they can finde the Booke Surely it is not like there can be a strong faith when the knowledge is so weake The men of this age are taken with a kinde of giddinesse in the braine and are sicke of curiositie in Religion more ready to enquire after Melchi sedecs father then the way to finde God Much like Adrian who would needes know who was Euandars nurse and great grandfathers granfather to Priamus Maximus reports that Eucledes who being asked wherewith the gods were delighted answered for other things I know not but this I am sure of they hate all curious persons It was strange that the Iewes should forsake the Manna and loue the Garlike and Onions of Egypt But more strange it is to see the men of this time to forsake the word of God and to loue the foame of mens inuentions How are our Sermons now despised if they bee not garnished ouer with historie or Philosophie How many come hither rather for affected wordes then to learne how to practise obedience and to fill their eares with curiositie rather then their hearts with grace There is no great difference betweene the foode of the body and the foode of the soule for good meate must be set out with floures good clothes with toyes and so sound Diuinitie with history These are seekers but for deuils diuintie Looke on the drunkard and you shall finde him a diligent searcher not for the Lord but for strong drinke Hee beginnes with the Sunne-rising and continues till it set and often hee calles for a candle because the whole day is too short and there he and others search till neither witte in their heads grace in their soules nor money in their purses is to be found The adulterer is a searcher not after the Lord but harlots He seekes all in the darke by owle-light lest the chaste birds of honestie should see him and wonder at him and at length findes a bodie going to the graue full of sores and a soule going to hell miserably sinfull The Incloser is a great seeker but to the poore mans cost and his beasts destruction he hedges in the poore mans Common and keepes pasture from his beast and so he is a murderer both of man an beast Not long since by God such an Incloser was strucken dead suddenly from heauen in the very acte of his sinne I could name him I will not The Ingrosser is a great seeker euen to the foure corners of the Land but in all this inambulation hee cannot or will not find the Lord not so much as set a foote in the path of obedience like those dogs running by the riuer Nilus not once giuing a lap at Iacobs Well These seeke not for grace but graine and commodities like the Pharises that compasse sea and land to fill their ware-houses with commodities Surely wee neede not complaine for want of bread were it not for these Inclosers The ambitious man is a diligent seeker hee lookes high and seekes in the ayre yet not for the Lord but for the honour of promotion like Haman that seeke to ride on the Kings horse and thinke the highest step of promotion too low for them