guilty in a higher degree And here let me mention only those that we are most in danger of and troubled with at the present these Hereticks polluters of the Temple of God are 1. The Antinomians they over-throw the Law Morall they hold that Christ came to abolish it that a beleever hath nothing to do with keeping the Commandements that the Gospell takes away all obedience to the Commandements they are against all urging of doing of duty of Humiliations of Repentance for sins after Iustification of praying for pardon of sin by a beleever they hold that the Law ought not to be Preached to beleevers with a great deale more of the like pernicious Leaver all which savoureth of ignorance pride and conceitednesse and of affectation of licentiousnesse and lawlesse liberty the spirit of Libertinisme inspireth these men 2. The Anti-Sabbatarians They evert the fourth Commandment teaching that it is Ceremoniall and so taking away all conscience of sin against the Commandment of God though no day be kept a Sabbath in the week and thereby all preaching and attendance on duties of Gods Worship publike and private on the Lords day in conscience to Gods Commandment laid aside they at one blow lay flat all that would uphold the power of godlinesse 3. The Germane Anabaptists that hold that a Christian ought not to be a Magistrate that Christians may not take the sword nor wage war these evert the fifth Commandment I call them the Germane Anabaptists for there divers Sects of them are and have been for this hundred of yeers past through Gods just judgement their errours some of them begin to spread in England these ghosts can passe the Seas and swim thorow the billows and waves of mighty waters they are in their first spawning to be looked unto for who knows unto what destructive Principles and Practices such giddy self-willed spirits may run Bellarmine slanderously calls them Proles Lutheranismi the off-spring of Lutheranisme they are indeed the off spring of hell for hell it selfe is moved when God rents the heavens and comes down to the great work of the Reformation of his Church Satan that sent these Furies out to defame the work of Reformation which God began by Luthers glorious Ministery he is Satan still and sends these Furies among us for the very same end For the present I will name no more that are against the Commandments of God Against the faith of Iesus I shall onely mention two 1. The Arminians that teach universall grace and the falling away of the Saints and deny that the efficacious working of internall grace from Gods Spirit is necessary to conversion and to the begetting of faith in a sinner They teach that the grace of conversion is resistible that we cannot have assurance and the like 2. The Socinians which among other damnable errours run into these two First they deny the Deity of our Lord Iesus Christ who is the great God our Saviour God blessed for ever Secondly they deny that Christs death was for satisfaction Isa 53. 5 6. Gal. 3. 13. 1 Pet. 2. 24. or for merit 1 Pet. 1. 18. 19. Act. 20 28 and that it was a price 1 Cor. 6. 20. 1 Tim. 2. 6. of our redemption but onely hath in it the nature of an example how we should suffer that Christ is our Redeemer not by being a ransome or paying a price or as our Surety Heb. 7. 22. making satisfaction but onely by leaving us an example that we should follow his steps The foregoing Texts of Scripture are expresly against this most hellish heresie These and the like to these are Dogs Wolves in Sheeps-skins evill workers the Concision as those that urged Circumcision are called Phil. 3. 2. they are to be named with such names of disgrace as tell truly what they are that all may beware of them they cut themselves others that hearken to them off from Christ and from his Church◠in Jucunda prosonomasia conjunxit interse 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 conciditur enim quod discerpitur plan◠distrahitur circumciditur quod supervacancis resectis purgatur Bullinger in locum this respect all the hereticall teachers are the Concision they are evill-workers for they should build up the Church of God but they pull it down and destroy it like dogs they bark at the truth they grin at Orthodox Ministers and fasten on the simple the fangs of their poisoned doctrine There 's the Wolfe beware and thrice beware 4. Antichrist and the Spirit of Popery which hath turned Zion into a Babylon I mean Rome-Christian into Rome-Antichristian and it is now a cage of unclean and hatefull birds a den of beasts a stie of foule spirits This Spirit of Antichrist discovers it self in four things 1. In Self-exaltation and Domination over the Church that the Pope might sit in the Temple of God as God 2 Thess 2. 4. 5. 2. In Apostacy from the faith that the man of sin might be the head of the Church thus he becomes the head of that Apostasie and of the Popish Apostaticall Synagogue farre from the Apostolicall Church of which Christ is head 3. In spirituall fornication and adultery which is Idolatry Superstition and Will-worship thus the Popish Synagogue is the Whore of Babylon 4. In lyes taught in Hypocrisie and doctrines of Devills 1 Tim. 4. 1 2 3. 5. They defile and destroy Gods Temple that by pernicious errours destroy and evert either of the two great ordinances of God the Magistracy and the Ministery the Authors the fautors cherishers or nurses the receivers abettors or applauders of such errours these strike the very Pillars of the Temple 1. For Magistracy those that erroneously teach that Magistrates have nothing to doe in the first but only in the second Table of the Law that they are to preserve the Peace and judge about meum and tuum mine and thine but for Religion and Gods Worship and Doctrine they have not to do◠with their power in those But God saith I will give Kings to be thy nursing fathers Esa 49. 23. as speaking of the Church under the New Testament David saith Psal 122. 9. because of the house of the Lord I will seeke to doe thee good And againe Psa 101. 8. I will betimes cut off evill doers from the City of God Restauration of the true Worship and Religion and the demolishing and extirpation of the false were the chiefe praises of godly Princes Asa Iehosaphat Hezekiah Iosiah and of Nehemiah the renowned reformer Neh. 13. Obj. That 's the Old Testament Sol. What are the Damned Manichees again raised from Hell Shall we againe be haunted with the Ghosts of the old Heresies sentenced to the bottomlesse Pit one thousand four hundred yeares agoe for rejecting the Old Testament 2. Do◠you hold the New Testament to be in force you must then receive the Old The New Testament is not to be received but as it agrees with the Old Christ bids Search the Scripture Ioh. 5. 39.
many degrees out-going old famous Achitophel 2 Sam. 16. 21 23. the Seditious that love to make divisions and sow discords and plant an inveterate odium in the hearts of King and Prince and people against all the godly and faithfull in the Land with all evill Counsellors against the Lord Nah. 1. 11. Psa 2. 2. and flattering bloody Edomitish Doegs Ps 52. Beloved what a griefe is it to think that by the ennumeration of particulars not this Doctrine alone should be so clearely and fully demonstrated by twenty severall sorts of offendors that there are many Temple-defilers within the Temple of God but also that in our English Church and Temple such Temple-vermine should swarme at this day wherefore to descend to some short application 1. Prayer becomes us with complaints to God that dwells in his Temple Prayer that he would looke downe from Heaven and behold that he would not make us to erre from his waies and harden our hearts from his feare but returne for his servants sake that he would rent the Heavens and come down with demonstrations of zeal strength and sounding of bowels with terrible unexpected workes of wonder with Gospell-blessing that he would not be wroth very sore nor hold his peace at these things nor afflict us very sore Pray O remember not against us former iniquities let thy mercies speedily prevent us for we are brought very low Prayer with fasting and deepe humiliations become all that love Gods house in these our daies untill God raise up some Nehemiahs that they may cleanse Neh. 13. 8. Gods Temple 2. We should not be scandalized hereby but remember that in the great house of Gods Church there are Vessels of severall sorts and rather be purging our selves from these them forsaking and deserting the true Church of God if a man purge himselfe from these he shall be a vessell unto honour 2 Tim. 2. 17. 20 21. sanctified and meet for the Masters use and Prepared unto every good worke 3. And then the zeale of Gods house should eate us up though there be many things in these troublous times that befall us or may feare us and distresse us from without yet the care of all the Churches should somewhat come 2 Cor. 11. 28 29. upon us especially upon Christs faithfull and painfull Ministers whatever befalls the Churches we should lay it to heart as if it befell our selves the fire of consuming zeale for Christs honour the Gospells purity the Churches safety should melt and fashion us to that of blessed Paul Who is weake and I am not weake who is offended and I burne not 4. Lastly attending to our owne growth in Faith Prayer love and hope we should have compassion of some making a difference Jude 21. 22 23. and others save with feare pulling them out of the fire hating even the Garments spotted by the flesh not hating the men but hating the filthy affections and lusts which pollute the man and come from the flesh mans nature corrupted hating them first in our selves all envie and vye in Religion vaine-glory self-seeking self-love pride spirituall strife emulation variance self-pleasing in our gifts and parts and dis-union of heart c. for who can number all wisedome love and sincerity will by these direct enough Thus of the second Doctrine The third Doctrine is this that God will certainly punish all defilers and violaters of his Temple with punishments proportionable to their sin they are not all of a sort nor all alike guilty and God that will doe no man wrong that he should have the least ground of entring an action against him the righteous God will deale out his punishments accordingly What punishments you will say or how doth he punish these sinners Ans 1. Their workes shall perish though themselves may be saved 1 Cor. 3. 13. 15. yet so as by fire the fire of the Word and Spirit in the day of the Gospell in the powerfull opening and application of the bright and burning truthes thereof such a day as this when now you are before the Lord hearing this Text Preached upon this fire shall these defilers passe through and their errours and their ill worke they have made in Gods building their wood hay and stubble burne to ashes and their persons humbled and purified be saved the Lord grant it you need no other Purgatory you will thinke this hot enough and this or none will doe the deed The Pontificians would faine finde their Purgatory-dreame in this Scripture and they shall finde their Purgatory to purifie or consume-them not the Purgatory they seeke but the Purgatory God hath prepared for such Temple-wasters and Temple-defilers such foule beasts this is the breath of Christs lips this is the brightnesse of his coming which shall consume and destroy that man of sin they are in Purgatory and the fire now burnes hot upon them and so it will upon all the rest of the Templepollutors afore-named Doâ— you not see the Angels of God many of the Seraphims Esa 6. 6 7. with live-coales in their hands taken with the Tongs from off the Altar and laying them upon the mouthes of many faithfull able Ministers many an Esay 2. They shall faile of their ends their folly shall be manifest to all 2. Tim. 3. 9. that is all the Elect but evill men and seducers will waxe worse and worse deceiving and being deceived they shall not yet deceive the Elect. You 'le say many of the choicest Christians cleave to them and many of them are the precious servants of Christ Iesus we cannot be otherwise perswaded for them I said but even now they may be saved but their workes shall perish themselves shall be saved yet so as by fire and for the rest marke it that was their ayme to get the choice Christians those whose hearts are for Christ and Heaven their designe is mostly upon any in whom any worke of Grace appeares So have all deceivers ever that they might glory in their flesh as our Apostle according to the wisdome given unto him hath written Gal. 6. 13. but they shall not compasse their end they 'le returne perceiving the strangers voice these gracious foules thought it had been Christs voyce which they heard in these men in those their errours but finding at length their mistake and under the sheeps-skin of gifts and graces perhaps shew of Scripture manifestation of the Spirit finding the bloody wolfe of errour and falshood that soul-murthâ—rer they will embrace the truth and follow Christ perhaps hearing this you will for a while be froward for who can be willing to think he is in an errour or is deceived but Christ and his Father hold you in their hand and you cannot wrest your selves thence Another end they have they would be great and of same in the Church of God but their folly shall be manifest to all not only to the Elect but to all that will not deny the light of their reason and doe hold the Scripture
in the Word of God and so shall fall in their esteem in mens hearts within the Visible Church our Saviour hath said it they shall be least in the Kingdome of Heaven Mat. 5. 19. of no esteem in the Church of Christ although for a while they beare the bell See the truth of it in all the Hereticks Schismaticks Novellists Persecuters and the like of all former ages they have no name of memoriall left but a rot is upon their memory Another end they have and that is to spread and propagate their Opinions and waies that they might with the Pharisees and Herodians of old leaven all the lâ—mp of Gods people but their folly shall be manifest and that manifestation of their folly shall set them their bounds they shall proceed no further Thus have all the ancient Heresies and Schismes of the Pelagians Donatists and the like been bounded and the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 God defiles Church-defilers they faâ—le of their ends 3. There are for them from God apportioned Plagues in this world they make rents and trouble Gods building the repairing of his 〈◊〉 God will trouble them these Achans God will scatter them in Iacob 〈◊〉 disperse them in Israel They break and teach the breaches and violation◠〈◊〉 Gods Commandements the least of his Commandements that of his â—ay they shall be esteemed nothing in the Church be least in the Kingdome of Heaven Scandalous Brethren shall have their Milstone workers of iniquity strange punisHments Heresies and divisions swarm God hath his East wind whereby he can sweep away those Locasts and cast them into the Red Sâ—â— Persecutors have their doom notably in this life besides hereafter Remember Antiochus of whom you reade in the second of Maccab. 5. chap. Remember Herod eaten up with wormes Act. 12. 23. Remember the Heritique Arrius that voided his bowels with his exâ—â—â—ments in a common â—akes and all other Heretiques and Schismatiques and the Plagues upon Papists mentioned in Rev. 16. and 18. chapters 4. It is not the least of punishments to give them over to their severall pernicious wayes that he that is filthy should be filthy still the spiritually proud should be so still where God saith they are joyned to Idols Let them alone They are Vain-glorious Let them 〈◊〉 They are given to errours and to make divisions Let them alone Thus you see how God will destroy the destroyers of his house The certainty of this just proceeding of the Lord appears in four things which are as so many reasons or grounds of this Doctrine 1. It is the vengeance of his Temple Jer. 51. 11. 5◠〈◊〉 which 〈◊〉 â—ore vengeance in the execution whereof the Lord Pleadeth 〈◊〉 of Zion throughly to give rest to his Church and disquiet his 〈◊〉 whose spirit can sustain it self in the day of Visitation when the Lord 〈◊〉 say Behold I am against thee 2. Secondly the Argument is strong here from the lesse to the greater â— God hath said and will not repent of his word concerning Death 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Grave O Death I will be thy Plague O Grave I will be thy destruction Hos 13. 14. Because they offered to touch the bodies of his Saints which are his Temple and destroyed his holy place Shall God say thus of Death and the Grave and resolve that Repentance shall be hid from his eyeâ—◠〈◊〉 this thing he will never alter his purpose that he determined And shall be not much more be the plagues and destruction of soul-polluters of destroyers of his Church of ropâ—â—â—ners of the Communion of his Saints and people Thirdly the Temple of God is holy and inviolable therefore the sin 〈◊〉 Prophaning and wasting of it is provoking and execrable Fourthly God is a jealous God and the vindicator and avenger of his glory 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Zelotes et vindex gloriae suae no gifts will pacifie jealousie no power can shelter and save from the jealousie of the Lord of Hosts It is he the mighty one of Jacob the holy one of Israel that saith Zach. 8. 2. I am jealous for Zion with great jealousie and I am jealous for her with great fury I have done with the explication and confirmation of the third Doctrine the application respecting the present Doctrine and the whole Text I shall draw up under two sorts of uses 1. Of Information 2. Of Exhortation 1. We may from hence inform our Iudgements in four truths First what is the Christian use of the Ceremoniall Law the practice of it is out of date and deadly but it is not cut out of the Bible Non observamus non quia damnata sed quia mutata sunt non ut res ipsae quae significabantur perirent sed ut rerum signa suis quaque temporibus convenirent Tom. 6. Aug. oratione cont Iud. c. 3. God hath left it as part of Canonicall Scripture that we may reade it preach and heart it that comparing the things themselves with those shadows we may with pleasing delight imbrace the body of those shadows here are also Emblems Similitudes and expressions of Gods own devising out of Gods own mint which with safety and profit we may and ought to use This fancifull age may here please their fancy and yet retain and grow more in the soundnesse of faith and love which is in Christ Iesuâ— Secondly that there is the same God in both Testaments the same Christ Evacuatur in Christo non vetus Testamâ—utum sed vâ—lameu ejus ut per Christum intelligatur quia si denudetur quod sinc Christo obscurum quiae adopertum est non igitur per Domini gratiam tanquam inutilia ibi legerentur ablata sunt sed tegmen potius quo utilia tegebantur Aug. Tom. 6. ad Honor Contra. Manichaeos de util Credendi 63. the same Covenant though there be different wayes of Ministery and degrees of manifestation and clarity that place in Heb. 8. 8. 10. taken out of Jer. 31. 31 32 33. which speaketh of a new old Covenant is thus to be understood not of two Covenants differing in substance not of the two Covenants the Covenant of workes and the Covenant of Grace but of one and the same Covenant of Grace distinguished in their different manner of Administration the one in Ceremonies Types shadows to signifie and lead to Christ that was to come the other in the substance of spirituall things themselves the body the truth exhibiting Christ now already come this place is much abused through inadvertency Here also we see that a proof out of the old Testament is as much Gospel if rightly applied as any in the New-Testament Thirdly that the Ministers of the Gospel ought to preach Gods wrath to evill Christians Fourthly that they ought to preach wrath not only to those Christians of evil life and manners but also to those of evil Doctrine of errors in Religion of Pride dissensions and faults in that kinde where they are not yet fallen to