earnestly beleeue when you are baptiz'd Hee then regenerates when you pray together He is then in the mid'st when you receiue the Communion it is then his body and bloud when you heare the word He then speakes when you confesse your sinnes you then confesse to him when you are absolu'd by the Keyes Hee then absolues you when you releeue He then receiues when you forgiue your enemies Hee then forgiues when you entertaine defend or aduance the Prophets you then euen then entertaine defend and aduance euen Christ himselfe And this is some vertue more that our times are certaine and at his appointed times let the meanes be dead and all reason and probability buryed and seal'd vp from vs yet we are sure of Him Hee is there then and He keepes his time duely But yet this is not all He has done for our times we are not yet come to times full redemption To conclude all as I began and to keep time too Touch the Person of Christ Iesus we must with that Faith onely that beleeues only and adores the mystery of grace so are we iustified in Him made members of Him Touch the Garment of his works we must with that Faith only that does not only beleeue but works thorow and resembles his loue so are wee sanctified in him and couered with His righteousnes Touch the Hem of His garment the circumstances of His workes we must with that Faith only that does not onely beleeue and worke in grosse but is the measure and proportion fashioning our conuersation to His in heauen our time place meanes manners to His onely so are wee glorified in Him with the glorious liberty of the sonnes of God Now to shew in some sort this measure and proportion betwixt Christ vs S. Paul tels vs 1. Cor. 15.23 1. Cor. 15.23 There Ordo Resurgentium An Order of Risers erected by Christ himselfe and himselfe is the president of that order First Christ and then they that are Christs in order and this I dare say is Gratus sermo an acceptable saying For all men desire to be of this order It is neither scandall to greatones nor imputation to meaner in Kings Courts to say wee courteirs would all verygladly rise and bee install'd in this order of risers But if you would doe so you know there is a credit and a Creed to be remembred To get into this order you must follow your Prince president And to keepe order with him you must keepe his times duly his very dayes and those are but three dayes now no more for I haue yet another mystery to tell you Abbreuiatum faciet Deus opus super terram Thom. Presat in decal So the olde ones read that place of Esay cited by S. Paul Rom. 9.28 which wee read thus Ashort worke will the Lord make vpon earth and this short worke say they is the worke of our redemption from eternall euill Phil. 2.7 with restauration into eternall good Wherein as God the sonne our Lord abbreuiated the equality with God into the fashion of man and that man the meanest of men a poore Minister and seruant to redeeme the diuision between God and man and make the Highest God and the lowest man at one againe so the same Lord seruant has wrought out and perfected this redemption and vnion amongst men by abbreuiation onely and making short worke in all Generations persons place words time all the measures by which either the kind coÌ„dition content knowledge or the actions of men are differenc'd and diuided they are all now abbreuiated and made shorter we are redeem'd now from distinctions of kindred and all generations are abbreuiated into the Newbirth in the lauer of regeneration wherein wee are all now of one kind and blood we are redeemed now from distinction of condition for all persons are abbreuiated into the Person and body of Christ wherein wee are all members of one Person of one suffering and honour we are redeem'd now from all distinctions of contents for all places are abbreuiated into the Church and Communion of Saints wherein meum is tuum and tuum is meum Our desire the same because our possession and content is one and the same we are redeem'd now from distinction of knowledge diuision of vnderstanding for all wordes are abbreuiated into these three faith hope and charity These are all our study and the study of all alike for the measure of all knowledge Lastly we are redeem'd now from the distinction of indeuours and diuision of will and choice in doing for all time the measure of all actions is abbreuiated in these three daies of Christ the Preparation the Sabhath the Resurrection And as wee haue no kinred to deriue to but the Newbirth no condition of honour but in the Person of Christ no content in place but in the Communion of Saints no words to study but faith hope and charity So we haue no time to obserue for the measure of all our aâ—tions but only these three dayes and we haue no actions at all to will chuse or doe but what are measured and fitted to these three Dayes the Preparation the Sabbath the Resurrestion These are the measure samplar and patterne to our dayes or else of Christs order we cannot be The dayes of our life must be our day of Preparation our Good Friday as was Christs and as it was His and no otherwise In it wee must labour against sinne and Sathan as Christ did we must suffer from sin Sathan as Christ did we must die in conquest of sin Sathan as Christ did And now how like the order But be not dismaied for after this will succeed our Iewish and Typicall Sabbath the day of our rest in the graue as Christ did in the hands of Christ onely and not of deeath at all no more then he did And then will yet follow the spirituall and heauenly Sabbath the Lords day and the day of Lords the day of resurrection vnto life and full enstallment in this order This the order Both habited armed and tim'd like your President you must be and then as in other orders it is a fellowship as well as an order August in 29 Psal Hoc sperate mea membra quod in capite praecessit sayes Saint Augustine and t' is the Word Motto of your order What the Head enioyes let the member expect what is gone before in the Head according to his vertue let the member expect in his measure and condition As let our first day bee troublesome as Christs was yet it shall be short and the shortest of the three as Christs was Let our second day of death be longer by many houres as Christs was yet it shall bee as long in rest as Christs was Let our third day bee long before it come yet it will come and come earely as Christs did and when it does come it shall neuer know euening as Christs did And that 's a
beleeues most It vses no helpe of fence but the fence of hearing only Rom. 10.17 It comes by hearing only and what it heares was foreshewne in the typicall body and done and perform'd in the Naturall and reall body of Christ Iesus that it verily beleeues is communicated to His Mysticall body And what it so heares and beleeues it beleeues euidently though it see it not It tasts really though it chew it not It feeles and enioyes substantially though it touch it not nor finger it or els it is not simple but sensuall Another comfort therefore wee must finde for simple Faith in the third Day And S. Chrysostome giues it The comfort Loco sup sayth he that simple Faith in his friends expected and Deuillish malice in his enemies would haue hindered it was that vnseene comfort that S. Paul speakes of 1. Cor. 15.20 1. Cor. 15.20 That Christ rising the third day was manifested to be Primitiae dormientium The first fruits of them that sleepe in hope of Resurrection to life This was the comfort simple faith look't at and the Deuill had good cause not to abide He the first fruites of the mysticall body and therefore as He so all the rest of his kinde and generation with Him And He therefore the first fruites and no other that was raysed from the dead because He only and no other was rays'd the third day Heere was the cause of the Deuils watch and seale Iayrus daughter was rays'd but vpon the first day The widowes sonne was rays'd but vpon the second day the buriall day Lazarus was rays'd but vpon the fourth day The Deuill neither watch'd these nor seal'd their graues Only Christ was rays'd the third day and therefore Hee onely and no other the terrible and comfortable first fruites of them that sleepe Doe you question the reason yet and thinke the argument weake I le resolue you in a word First in the Legall and Typicall first fruites though we finde no expresse Law necessity nor mention of the third day for their offering Yet this Law we read Leuit 23.15 Leuit. 23.15 and a statute for euer that the sheafe of the fruites to be accepted for them was to be wau'd before the Lord the morrow after the Sabbath seuen Sabbaths complete before the feast of Pentecost And this morrow after that Sabbath was iust this third day and houre when Christ only no other was wau'd and lifted vp from the dead the first fruits of all his kinde So the type is sure for vs that He was onely the prefigured first fruits because Hee onely was rays'd vpon this morrow But if this will not serue In this Euangelicall and substantiall first fruits we finde an expresse necessity of this third day according to Gods Oeconomy and Dispensation of grace vnto vs. 1. Cor. 15.21.22 And S. Paul tenders it in the place before nam'd Almighty God of his meere mercy purposing to recouer mankinde from vnder the curse of death so sweetly disposed of it that as by man came death so by man also should come the Resurrection from the dead As by the first Adam whose flesh and bloud we are by generation Death So by the second Adam whose flesh and bone we are by Regeneration Resurrection to life As and So in due proportion and resemblance As therefore in the first Adam the first fruites of all liuing to the world all die and from him Ecclesia morientium a congregation of fallers into death were gathered so in the second Adam Christ the first fruites of all that die to the world all are made aliue and from him Ecclesia resurgentium a congregation of risers to God were gather'd As Adams congregation was gather'd by a rising to fall from life vnto death so Christs congregation was gather'd by a falling to rise from death vnto life As Adam rose and fell and gathered his congregation the third day after life so Christ rose and stood and gathered his congregation the third day after death And heere is Saint Pauls As and So. The full proportion betweene the two Adams whereupon simple Faith in hearing both determines her assent and to the conuiction of all malice gathers this comfort that Christ was indeede the Person in whose name He came Her second Adam her first fruites her perfect patterne and samplar of her nature estate and condition in that He onely and no other was raysed the third day and no other And this was Primitiue Diuinity what S. Paul cals the chaste virgin simplicity in Christ Iesus 2. 2. Cor. 11 3. Cor. 11.3 Nor in the second place The necessity of the third Day in respect of the Person wherein Christ rose does the schoole subtilty at all corrupt this virgin simplicity or obscure this light with any forc'd or false glosses It rather inlightens it more bringing more instruction with comfort to the touch of Faith in respect of the Person wherein Christ rose And thus they reason the third day to Faiths apprehension 1. Cor. 15. siō 14 to 20. Most certaine it is as Saint Paul sayes 1. Cor. 15. that were it not for the resurrection of the dead there is nothing so vaine as the assurance nothing so miserable as the preaching and preachers of Christ Iesus It is onely the hope of the resurrection that makes you serue Christ and vs serue you Now to hope for this it is fit we be fully instructed in it and to be instructed in it fully wee must first bee fully assured both of his Humane Nature that should rise but alone could not and of his Diuine Nature that could not but rise but alone would not without the other For to beleeue our resurrection we must first beleeue our selues to bee partakers of both these Natures Of both together or else no resurrection The Diuine without the Humane needs not the Humane without the Diuine cannot And to beleeue our selues partaker of both these our faith must first be confirmed in the truth of them both in our first fruits our second Adam with whose entire nature we participate by resurrection as with the first by generation Hee must haue both or we cannot if He haue both we want neither To confirme therfore our faith in the truth of Christs Diuine Nature that would die but should not it was necessary He should rise soone To confirme our faith in the truth of his Humane Nature that should rise but alone could not it was necessary He should not rise too soon And this soone for his Diuinity and not too soone for his Humanity was the third Day onely Soone sayes his Diuinity and not beyond the third Day not too soone saies his Humanity not before the third Day hastning his resurrection vpon the third Day it appear'd manifestly there was somthing in his flesh and that bodily that death might swallow with the flesh as a fish doth a hooke or a Hawke casting but death could not hold it
A SERMON PREACHED before his MAIESTIE at Oatelands on the 28. of Iuly 1622. By EDMVND MASON his Maiesties Chaplaine and Vicar of NEVVARKE in Nottinghamshire LONDON ¶ Printed by IOHN BILL M.DC.XXII MATTH 16.21 The last words of the verse are these The Third Day AS in the Garment of Christ The Nature of the Text. as well as his Body so in the Hemme of Christs Garment as well as the Garment the woman with the bloody issue Matth. 9.13 tells vs there is sauing vertue both benefit and comfort for sauing Faith to touch and take in the very Hemme His Body wherein He wrought and suffered for vs was that sacred Person of the Diuine and Humane nature together whereof wee are members and partakers by the Touch of that Faith 2. Cor. 10.5 that Saint Paul sayes Beleeues only and captiuates Reason in obedient adoration His Garments wherein Hee was seene and knowne of vs and for vs were the workes and sufferings of that most sacred Person His actiue and passiue obedience in our flesh to the whole Law wherewith our imperfect obedience is couered and accepted by the Touch of that fayth that S. Paul sayes does not beleeue only Gal. 5.6 but workes through loue Lastly the Hemme of these Garments wherwith the vnmeasurable obedience of this incomprehensible Person was cut out fashion'd and confin'd to vs and for vs This was the needfull Circumstances of Time Place Meanes Manner with other Virges and Borders of His workes and sufferings in all which as He showd He wrought as Man and for man and not as God onely so in and through them the Circumstances of our Actions their times place meanes manner gather Holinesse and acceptance by the Touch of that Faith which Saint Paul sayes Rom. 12.6 does not onely beleeue and worke but is the measure and proportion of our Actions to His. Rom. 12.6 The Garments of Christs workes must be hem'd in with Circumstances or else they cannot bee sutable to vs nor for vs. Ours they cannot be vnlesse they be of our Fashion No more then himselfe can bee Ours vnlesse He take our Forme And yet the fashion onely does not make them Ours we must touch a'm too take hold of a'm and put a'm on And that wee may do so the Summe of sauing Faith our Creed tels vs our Faith must touch gather vertue from the Hemme as well as the Garment the Circumstance as well as the substance the manner as well as the worke that Christ did for vs. It is not enough to beleeue He was borne in our flesh vnlesse we beleeue the meanes too of a Virgin and the Virgin Mary too No benefit nor comfort else It is not enough to beleeue He suffered for vs vnlesse both the manner Crucified the meanes Pontius Pilate the intent Dead the extent Buried vnlesse all these bee touched faith gathers no vertue It is not enough to beleeue He descended vnlesse our Faith reach to the very circumstance of place into Hell It is not enough to beleeue He Rose againe vnlesse our Faith touch and gather vertue from the very Hemme and circumstance of time The Third Day So we might go on The scope of it till He come againe to Iudgement at the last Day But heere the Third Day stayes vs. And this Hemme of time requires our Touch and consideration not of the worke of the day and the benefit of it for it is not Easter now but only of the day of the worke and the benefit of it the Third Day for it is the Lords Day And a Hemme it is and no better an historicall and drie circumstance of time onely But it is in our Creed and that touches vs neerely And in all our Creed it is the only circumstance of Time there mention'd Doubtlesse there is some Redemption in it With the woman with the bloody issue let vs but touch it a little there may chance come that vertue from it that may redimere tempus Eph. 5.16 as Saint Paul sayes at least show the Redemption of Time and turne the vanity and vexation of the Dayes of Earth into the certainty and Comfort of the Dayes of Heauen For that 's the purpose of the Text. And according to that purpose The Diuision Let vs diuide our discourse into a twofold touch and consideration One of Historicall faith the spirituall mans left hand touching the Hemme of Time only that Christ did rise vpon a Third Day Another of Iustifying and sauing faith the spirituall mans right hand Touching the vertue of this Hemme that For vs it was Necessary that Christ should rise vpon a Third Day and no other The Hemme I will touch in a word the Vertue by your patience I will handle but not in many words the Discourse The First Touch concerning the verity of the Third day and the Text shall be short alike And Touching the Hemme of time first It is touched a little too much Touched it is as God would not haue his Annoynted touched Angunt dum tangunt As the multitude touch'd Christ in Iayrus house when the woman with the bloody issue touch'd him too But in their touching Confligunt afflictant sayes Saint Peter In stead of gathering vertue from him they throng and presse him molest and afflict him with their Touching And so the old aduersary of Faith the Deuill he has taught many to touch this circumstance Where hee cannot hinder the Touch of Knowledge yet to corrupt or hinder the Touch of Faith he has taught a'm to presse it with doubts afflict it with questions Disputare malle quam viuere To dispute with it to doe any thing to it rather then beleeue and be whole Some dispute the Integrity of three dayes Others call the Houres to account and in their Auditt finde not aboue forty And yet let either of these bee touch'd with a Tertian Ague they will confidently say their fit return'd the third day when it is not yet aboue forty houres since the fit departed A Feuer it is and an euill spirit that vexes these disputers For the story in the Gospel is cleere enough in short Take we the Iewes reckoning of time according to Gods measure of a Day in the beginning Gen. 1. Gen. 1.5 from the beginning of the euening till the euening return'd againe and then it is plaine enough that vpon the day of the Iewes Preparation whereon Christ suffred Hee was both dead according to the Scriptures Math. 27.46 Mar. 15.42 Luc. 23.54 and as some gather buryed by Ioseph and Nicodemus three houres before Sun-set and that is one day For I preach to day though I preach not all the day Then all the euening and morning the whole day of the Iewes Sabbath He lay in his graue and that 's another day Then all the euening quite through vntill the morning of the first Day of the weeke Math. 27.66 He was sealed in His Sepulchre And that 's the