God will stirre vp your harts not to be long or much behinde him And in trueth I â—â—â—â—der that this noble Cittie of London hath not heretofore looked into this want and had â—are to supply it 〈…〉 in there is no charitable wâ—â—ke almost vndoâ—â— or at the least vnprouided for You haue sundry not able frâ—e schooles founded in this Cittye where by you giue â—uâ—ture to the rude and learning to the ignorant You haue many goodly hospitals endewed wherein yoâ—â—eâ—e me and allowe Phisick to the 〈…〉 â—â—rgerâ— to the sore meate to the hungry drink to the thirsty cloaths to the naked houseroom for the h 〈…〉 ourles and good and godly education to Orphanes and infants And you haue store of faire and sweete Conduits wherebye you spare not for any coste to conuey water into euery place almost of this populus citty Yea there cannot be a fountaine heard of or a deuise thought of to yeelde store of water but lyke good and careful gouernours your hands are in your purses to laye out what so euer it will cost And will you bestow nothing vppon the blessed Pypes and sugred Conduites which bring you the water of lyfe You cannot bring water a quarter of a myle to the Cittie without your own great charges And doo you thinke it reason that the water of life should be brought you 40 or 50. myles at other mens charges Consider but of the excellency thereof and thinke but of the happines of these our daies wherein wee may haue it either for loue or money The waters of Sylaris in Lucania maketh soft things hard as a wand laid in it all night wil be as hard as a stone by the morning But the water of lyfe will make hard thinges soft as your hard stonye heartes it will turne into tender fleshy hartes The water of Sinnesana in Campania maketh mad men wise and sober and so this water chaungeth worldly folly into Heauenly wisedome The water of Clytumnus if Oâ—enor shéep being neuer so blacke vse to drinke of it it wil make them as white as the driuen snowe So this water albeit sinne hath made you as blak in soule as any Ethiopian is in bodye yet it will wash you and purge you and make you cleane and white And as the water of Bethesda when it was moued by the Angell cured them which stept into it whatsoeuer disease they had So this water will cure and recouer al the infirmities of your sicke soules if ye step into it and embrace it when Gods ministers moue it and poure it out before you To be shorte as Varro writeth of Zame a fountaine in Affrica that it runneth with such sweete singing noise that thereby bothe men and beasts are allured to drinke of it So the waters of lyfe running and falling in this publik and famous place through such learned pipes and gratious Conduites as comes from the Vniuersities are moste pleasant and of maruellous force to allure all men bothe cleane and vncleane to taste of them and to hath their sinfull soules in them Wherefore the vertue and excellencie of this water being so singuler and soueraigne as you haue heard I hope it will not grudge you with all spéede to prouide that it maye haue moste frée and plentifull passage to this Cittie thorow your Christian relief and lyberalitye I am not the first that hathe moued this sute but you may be the first that euer tendered it or prouided for it two and fifty poundes a yere would bountifully performe it a good parte whereof as I haue toulde you a Reuerend and moste learned Bishoppe meaneth to yeld And if you would vouchafe to ioyne with him and to lay out the rest and so make vppe the somme out of your common treasurye for the cittie you should not onely be thankfully remembred in this place vnto the worlds end but also this good woorke of your compassion shall be recorded in the booke of the Lords Remembrance and at the last day you shall reap the frute of your well doing finde that with such sacrifice God is highlye pleased Lastly in this booke of Remembrance shall be written the sorrow and remorse of our penitent and broken harts And hereof what better testimony then this present Scripture The Lord caused a booke of Remembraunce to be written c. It is doubtles a great and gratious fauour when the Lord sayeth At what time soeuer a sinner shall repent I will blot his wickednes out of my Remembrance Ezech. 18. But this passeth and is with out all comparison that he will make a memoriall of it and write a booke of Remembrance of our repentaunce and recorde it in the booke of lyfe So that with Israel we shal not onelye escape all euill or the greatest euill in this lyfe but also at the last and most deâ—adfull time be tide what shall come the day of the Lord neuer so glowmingly sound the trumpet neuer so fear fully arrise the dead neuer so sinfully approch the deuils neuer so fiearsly smoake the mountaines melt the hilles tremble the earth vanishe the sea flash and flame the whole vnâ—uersall worlde neuer so furiously yet this shal be our comfort and refuge that we haue repented vs of our sinnes and that our Repentance is of record and written in the booke of the Judges remembrance And so to come to the next obseruation in this comfort Seing the Prophet in plaine termes saith that this booke was written for them that feared the Lord and thought vpon his name let all the woorkers of Iniquitye which forget God and put farre from theâ— the euill day which saith in their hartes tush God hath forgotten hee wil not sée it which are at their leagues with death and at their bargaines with hell let them all stand backe and know that there is no place for their names in this booke And why the Lord himself yeelds the reason Whosoeuer sinneth against me I will put his name out of my booke Ex. 32. And againe I will make their rememberance to cease from among men No No Ieremie telleth them plaine enough where they shal be writen euen in the dust or in the earth Ier. 17. and why because they haue forsaken the Lord the fountaine of liuing waters Therefore let them write their names vpon their owne stately houses and vpon their sumpteous tombes and Sepulchers no man will controll them But it is their JudgemeÌ„t to be scattred lyke the chaffe before the wind Psal 1. To be withered lyke grasse before the Sonne Psal 37. and to melt or consume lyke waxe before the fire Psal 68. that is to be forgotten and to be raked vppe and buried in the forlorne ashes of all obscuritye and obliuion And yet their punishment shall not be forgotten I warrant you for that is written and set downe in another kinde of booke then we haue yet spoken off I meane the blacke booke of Gods most bitter vengeance wherof Ezechel speaketh Chap. 2. Which
A GODLY SERMON preached at Paules Crosse the 31. day of October 1591. By VVilliam Fisher Master and Keeper of the Hospitall of Ilford in Essex Prouerbs 22. verse 3. A wise man foreseeth the plague and hideth him selfe But the foolish runne on still and are punished Seene and allowed ¶ Imprinted at London 〈◊〉 Edward Allde for Edward Aggâ—…â—â—92 Malachi 3. verse 16 17. 16 Then spake they that feared the Lord euery one to his Neighbour and the Lord hearkned and heard it and a booke of Remembrance was written before him for them that feared the Lord and thought vpon his name 17 And they shall be to me saith the Lord of Hosts in that day that I shal do this for a flock and I will spare them as a man spareth his owne sonne that serueth him THis Scripture was denounced by that Prophet whome the Lord sent to giue a farewell to his people for Malachi was the last Prophet in Israell and after him there was noe moe vntill Iohn Baptiste came It is thought of some that the Lord in his wrath and in a iuste Judgement against Israell would not vouchsafe them any moe Prophetes after Malachi either to 〈…〉 forte them in their distresses or to call vppon them for the amendment of their liues But of other some it is supposed that there was not so great a misery ment against them as a misterye for their good which was this that they should the more instantly and feruentlye looke for longe after the King of Prophetes Jesus Christ him self But howsoeuer it was of this I am well assured Malachi performed his function so fully and so faithfully that he was reputed generallye to haue béene an Angell sent downe from Heauen rather then a man borne and bred vpon the earth Not so muche because Malachi doth signifie an Angel as that his doctrine did showe an Angellike spirite and did woork an Angellike effect Gregorye 1. being Bishop of Rome when he sawe certaine English children brought thether to be solde asked of what countrey they were it was answered Angli Englishe children where vpon the alluded thus Immo Angeli qui vultu nitent vt Angeli Nay rather they are Angelles for that in countenaunee they shine and shew them selues to be Angels So we may say of Malachi he was no question a maÌ„ and his name being Malachi not Malach doth importe no lesse by the termination therof And Epiphanius by good proofe â—â—es warrantise thereof yet looke we vpon the perfourmance of his office function and then we shall finde that non solum vultu sedctiam spiritu nitet vt Angelus not onely in countenaunce but also in spirite he doth shine lyke an Angell For therein he bewrayed an Angellike parte farre passing humane operation otherwise he would neuer haue wrought such a sudden and straunge conuersion in suche a senseles and generall corruption wherin both Priest and Prophet were far from all signes of grace and not neare any hope of remorse But sicut populus sic Sacerdos Imo sicut populus sic Sacerdos as the people were so were the priests For the priest they dispised the name of the Lord and yet they said wherein haue we despised thy name ver 6. Chap. 1. They offered vncleane bread vpoÌ„ the Alter of the Lord and yet they said wherein haue we polluted it Verse 7. Chapter 1. they sacrificed the corrupt the blinde the lame the sick such as they durst not present to a mortall Prince yet they thoght theÌ„ good enough for the Lord of Hostes who is a great King ver 14. chap. 1. They were out of the way they caused many to fall by the lawe they brake the couenant of Leui ver 8. chap. 2. They defiled the holynes of the Lord and maried the daughters of a straunge God ver 11. chap. 2. To be shorte they said that euerye one that dooth euill is good in the sight of the Lord and he deliteth in them ver 17. chap. 2. And nowe for the people did not the Lorde himselfe charge accuse them that they were soothsayers adulterers false swearers detainers of the hirelings wages oppressours of the widowes and the fatherles ver 5. chap. 3. such Atheists that they said it is in vaine to serue God ver 14. chap. 3. Such Mammonistes that they would néeds know what profit they should haue by kéeping his Commandements ver 14. ibi And such rakehels that they counted the proude blessed and the tempters of God worthy to be aduaunced ver 15. chap. 3. In which ripenes and outragiousnes of their sins Malachi was presentlye sent to denounce Gods heauy Judgements and Indignation against them which hee so throughlye executed that thereby he not only ripped vp ransackt their coÌ„sciences but also persed their soules and deuided their spirites with the two edged sworde which came out of his mouth in somuch that they spake c. Now in this scripture we haue chéefelye to note two points 1 A blessed conference and mutual prouocation of the people for the amendement of their lyues Then spake they c. Secondly a thréefolde comforte and encouragement which the Lorde gaue them to procede in their Repentance 1. Because he hearkened and heard them 2. For that he caused a booke of Remebrance to be writen c. 3. Because hee gaue them the promise of his mercisull protection And they shall be to me in the day c. 1. Pars. THen spake they which feared the Lorde c. So mightie and effectuall were the Prophets woords in the heartes of as manye as feared the Lord that by and by thereupon they conferred about the reformation of their lyues and spoke euery one to his Neighbour as by the circumstance we gather to this effect Deare Neighbours we haue often and desperatly prouoked the Lords wrath against vs and needes must wée grant our selues guilty of all the crimes whereof Malachi doth accuse vs. What shall we doo then We are now called to repentance both by the voice of Gods vengeance saying I will come now to you in Iudgement and I wil be a iust witnes against you ver 5. chap. 3. and also by the voice of his mercy saying Returne to me and I will returne to you ver 7. chap. 3. All this notwithstanding shall wee still runne on with remorse Why then the wrathe of God must néedes come vpon the children of disobedience Therefore let vs humble our selues vpon the lowest pauement of vnfained repentaunce that it may repent him of his purposed vengeaunce To this end and in this sense they spake euerye one to another Whereby right Honorable and dearelye beloued wee may sâ—e and obserue not onelye that the feare of the Lord is a wel-spring of life to auoid the snares of death for so saith the wise man Pro. 14. But also that y â— word of God is sharper then any two edged swoorde and pearceth cutteth wheresoeuer it commeth euen to the hard bones and marrow
for so saith the Apostle Hebrewes 4. And therfore so it preuailed with this people that it wrought in them a resolute conference for their conuersion and bettering of their conuersations And so it preuailed with Iosias and his people for at the reading of the booke of the law by Shaphan there was renting of cloathes and melting of harts and shedding of teares in all humility 2. King 22. And so it preuailed with the King of Niniuie and his People for at the preaching of Ionas there was proclaming of fastes and putting on of sackcloath and sitting downe in ashes and crying mightilye vnto God from the greatest to the least Iohn 3. And so it preuailed with the Israelites at the preaching of Esay for they letted not to inuite one another saying Come ye house of Iacob let vs walk in the light of the Lord Esay 2. And so it preuailed with the people which heard Peters heauenly sermon for they were thereby euen pricked in their hartes and said men and brethren what shall we do Act. 2. But I do not sée beloued in the Lorde that it hath so preuailed with vs and yet how mightilythe Lord hath called vpon vs both Judgelike Fatherlike in punishing and in fauours I knowe you can not be ignorant Haue not the mountaines trembled the foundatioÌ„s of y e earth béen shakeÌ„ in your daies Haue not bloodthirstye conspirators swarmed like grashoppers here at home in our own bosomes Haue not the furious executioners of Gods vengeance couered our seas with their ships and attempted to inuade vs Haue not the messengers of the Lord lyke so many truÌ„pets sounded daily in your eares that tribulation anguish wéeping gnashing of téeth vnquenchable fire vtter darknes the worme y â— neuer dieth euen the portion of hypocrites is prepared for all hard harted stifnecked sinners surely eueÌ„ these wer the voices of Gods vengeance and in euerye one of them hee hath said I will come nere to England in Judgement and will be a swift witnes against you And on the otherside wherhence is it that we haue receiued such gratious gouernment for such bloudy tyrannies such sunshine of the Gospell for such darkenes of Idolatrie such dayly preaching for suche damnable Massing such plenty for such scarsety such peace for such warre such health for such sicknes such fatherly blessings for such Pharaolik persecutioÌ„s as is meruellous in our eyes manifest to al the worlde As this is the Lords doings and in euery one of these his good graces he hath engrauen the voice of his mercy saying Returne to me and I will returne to you But I knowe not how we make no more account thereof then of a blast of winde naye as there was neuer that good or grace wroght to reclame these Israelites but the Lord hath vouchsafed the like or greater to vs. So what euill was there committed by them in Malachies time but it is doubled and tripled by vs in these daies and that in such measure both in Priest and People beginne where you will that it can not but irk our harts to think of it alas then why should it not vrdge our tongues to speake against it as the Israelites did euery man to his Neighbour For first as their Priestes polluted the Altar of the Lord in manye a foule abuse so doo we I may not conceale it cure it as I maye For some of vs are idle bellies do the worke of the Lord negligentlye for wee labour not but loyter in the Lordes Vineyard what is this but with the Priestes of Israell to offer vncleane bread and to present our worst gifts and to sacrifice the halt and maimed vnto him who is a great King Some of vs are men pleasers and such placebos that we laye pillowes vnder the eares and cushins vnder the elbowes of sinners and what is this but to say with the Priestes of â—uda that euery one that doth euill is good in the sight of the Lord Some of vs are brainsicke and fantasticall and euen like Narcissus are not only in loue with our owne shadows but wedded to our owne pestilent conceits so that no reason can perswade vs or aswage them and what is this but with the tribe of Leui to marry with y â— daughters of a strange God Some of vs are bitter contentious making ruptures in the Church our tender mother like so many vipers deuouring one another more like wolues then shéepherdes and deuiding the vnsemed coate of Christian vnity not vnlyke arrant théeues what is this but the miserye whereof Basile complaineth Hoc omnium miseratione vel maxime dignum est cum ea pars quae sana visa est in se deuisa est This is a most lamentable thing when that parte which séemeth to be sound is deuided in it selfe And the misery whereof Lactantius complaineth Gladium quisque habet quo hostem feriat sed nemo clypeum quo sedefendat euery one hath a swoorde whereby he may strike his enemie but no man hath a shéelde whereby he may defend him selfe And the misery whereof Barnard complaineth Omnes amici omnes inimici omnes necessarij omnes aduersarii omnes domestici nulli pacifici All are friendes and all are enemyes all are neighbours and all are aduersaries all are home-dwellers and none are peace-makers Now then beloued in the Lord is it possible for vs of the ministerie to finde and know these euils in our selues and yet to bée mute and silent surely these outrages are able to make him speake that is not wilfully tonguefyed Atys Craesus sonne was dumbe neuer spake in al his life as Herodotus reports yet when he saw Cyrus about to cutte his fathers throat he burst out into these spéeches saide O homo ne interficias patrem O man kill not my father Wee see what wée sée and I do not see how wee can say lesse to them which intreate our spirituall and Ghostly Fathers as they doe that is euen cut the throate of their honorable reputation through spitefull slaunder of their goodlye reuenewes through priuate lucre and of their lawfull authoritie through proud insolencie I doe not see I say how wee can say lesse than this O homo ne interficias patrem O man kill not my father Thus then is the Altar of the Lord at this day in the Church of England polluted in many a foule abuse by vs of the ministerie and therefore great cause there is to lay our heads and hearts together and to lay aside all bitternesse and cursed speaking one agaynst another and to speake euery man vnto his neighbour as Israel did for repentance and against sinne But now let vs leaue the Altar of the Lord come Ad Atria where the people vse to stand Alas if such iniquitie dwell in the middest of the Sanctuarie and amongst the Priests what maruaile is it if it be farre worse in the streetes and among
Judgement For otherwise as nothing els brought Philippe to his deaths wound but because he wold not hear the cōplaint of Pausanias And as nothing wrought that maine confusion vpon the Lacedemonian estate that neuer could be recouered but onlye their slacknes in hearing poore mens causes So indeed nothing more fretteth the hartes or astraungeth the minds of poore mē then delaying of their causes from hearing Which is doubtlesse a great faulte in our Courts in England both ecclesiastical ciuil that it is so long before poore mens causes can come to hearing Indeed some times I know they are the longer by meanes of their careles and couetous Lawyers careles of their cause and couetous of their money for they can tell how to spin or rather to spill a cause to draw it out like a thréede from tearme to tearme vntill their clyents coats be thréed bare and their purses money bare And therefore to be plaine I lyke not this same Ad idem in proximum which is so much vsed among the Ciuilians nor these same néedeles and trifling Demurrars which are so ordinary among the cōmon Lawyers for both these proue many tymes to be the very bane and murrain of many a good mans right But let a mans cause runne thorow all the delaies and pikes that the cunning of any drawlatch can deuise yet vnlesse he make earnest and great meanes to haue it heard it shal neuer be hearde vntill doomesday Be wise then ye Judges of the earth and learne to be forewarde ready to heare of him which one day shall Judge you all and suffer not good mē to be discouraged or poore men to be eaten out of all they haue thorow your delayes If you doe you shall finde that the Grand Judge him selfe will make no delay to rewarde you therafter to measure his vengeance accordingly Lastly the Lord heareth the voice of the penitent nay the very breath and the least thought in his heart tending to repentance And therfore it is said If any man be a woorshipper of God and doth his will him doth he heare Ioh. 9. Now this is his will euen your holynes 1. Thes 4. And he willeth not the death of a sinner but that he should be conuerted and liue And besides this very thing is warranted vnto vs in this Scripture why they did no soner wish wel in there harts but the Lord heard it We cannot so say of any mortall Prince his subiectes may speake and cry and call long inough and yet if they be not within his hearing they are neuer y ◠nere And therfore this is a flat dash to that peeuish reason of the papists which tell vs that as a mortall Prince must be laboured vnto by meanes and mediatours so must the Lord our God be solicited by Saints and Angells Alas there is no proporcion in this comparison for God only is himself Scrutator Cordis the searcher of our harts we cannot do it but by meanes And what iniury or rather villāy is it to make him in his hearing of no more capasity or excellency then a mortal creature And so let this suffice for our first encouragement to drawe vs on to repentāce for that the Lord vouchsafeth to hearken and hear all them which haue but any motion of so happy a purpose Of the second Comforte ANd a booke of remembrance was writtē before him c. Let vs now in these words consider of that which was a second cōfort encouragemēt for this people to procede in their repentance That it was acceptable to the Lord we perceiue by his attentiue fauour in hearing them But now you shall vnderstand that it was very honorable besides And y ◠he doth vouchsafe them the rarest welcome home to his mercye and grace that euer was heard of for he caused a booke of remembrance c. And to what end Surely that it might for euer be remembred how much he deliteth in al penitent sinners which assone as euer they forsake sin he will embrace honor in his bottomles and abundant mercy Also that it might neuer be forgotten that howe great and how generall soeuer the corruption was yet they were the people which became penitent and turned vnto the Lord at the preching of Malachi therefore some cause why all posterity should be encouraged not only to follow their example but also to haue them in Admiration It shall be expedient that here we consider first what is ment by the booke of remēbrance then to whom it doth apertaine For this book of remēbrance it is very strange We read of certaine stones of remembrāce which being ingrauen with the names of the children of Israell and set in golde Aron was to weare that he might remember them to Godwards And we finde that there was a sacrifice of Remembrance made by fire for a sweete sauour vnto the Lord to signifie that God will not forget him that offereth it Leuit. 2. And we vnderstand of a Saboth of Remembrance to be obserued and celebrated for a memorial of the blowing of Trumpets and of the Jubile Leuit. 23. And who can be ignorant of Absalons piller of remembrance which he erected because he had no sonne to kepe his name in memorie But what this booke of Remembrance should importe that wee doe not so easelye perceiue Surely some learned wryters are of opinion that hereby we are to vnderstand this booke of Malachies prophecy Which because it was writtē at the Lords appointment was doutles written before his face and because it can not be red openly in the congregation without recitall of this their conferrence therefore it may be termed iustly a booke of remēbrance Euen as the gospell it selfe is a booke of Remēbrance in respect of that which Marie Magdalen did to our Sauiour Christ for wheresoeuer this gospell shall be preached through out all the world there shal this also that she hath done bee spoaken of for a memoriall of her saith Christ Jesus himselfe Math. 26. And in this sence it doeth maruelouslye approue and confirme the authority of this booke of Malachies Prophecy as beeing written in his presence and at his appointment But by the censure and in the Judgement of the most learned and godly writers that I haue red there is another meaning to be vnderstoode by the booke of remembrance For thereby is signified the booke of lyfe wherein the righteous are written and whereof we read Exod. 32. Psal 69. Apoc. 3. And it is ment that therein the Lorde did write their names presently vpon their repentance for a memoriall thereof And that you may sée in what stéed it wil stād you to be writen in the booke of the Lordes Remembraunce and to be remembred in the booke of lyfe consider first of that which is set downe Daniell 12. ver 1. And thereby may you perseiue that albeit there fall out such a tyme of trouble as neuer was since the worlde beganne
indeede is written within and without and there is nothing written in it but lamentation mourning and woe For alas howe should they lament and mourne and bewaile their cursed condition when because they are not founde written in the booke of lyfe therefore their owne consciences shall accuse them all creatures shall be suffred to exclame vpon them The Judge himselfe shall condemne them to be cast into the lake of fyre the blessed Angels shall thruste them out of Gods presence and the vgly deuils shall thereupon arrest theÌ„ for firebrands of hell And so to conclude this point I can say no more but onely wish with Iob. cap. 19. That my words were written in a booke and Ingrauen with an Iron pen in lead or in stone for euer id est in the harts and minds of you all so many as are here present whether they be like vnto a booke id est learned and wise and well able to instruct others or like vnto lead id est dui through grosse ignoraunce or like vnto stone id est obdurat and hard euen through sinne and wickednes yet the Lord graunt that the Iron penne of his ingrauing Spirite may imprint depe in your harts and soules the somme and effect of all that I haue spoken touching the booke of Remembraunce and that you maye esteeme with your selues how fearefull a thing it will be to fall into the handes of the Lorde at the last daye because your Repentaunce is not of Recorde nor written in the booke of his gratious Remembraunce Of the third Comforte ANd they shall be vnto me saith the Lorde for a flocke c. In these words the Israelites are mightely encouraged to procede in their repentaunce with a mercifull promise of the Lords protection wherein most gratiouslye he giues theÌ„ warrantise of two things First that they shalbe to him for a flock c. Who woulde not repent and bee obedient to the voice of the messengers of the Lord that might thereby become so happy as to be his flocke yea or a shéepe of his flocke A rare encouragement exceding farre the royaltye of all Princes and the Maiestye of all Emperours For as the Lord hath freelye chosen to him selfe of all the trées in the woode one Vine of all the flowrs in the garden one Lyllie of all the depthes of the sea one Riuer of all the buildinges on the earth one Syon of all the foules of the aire one Doue of all the cattell of the earth one shéepe and of all the Nations of the world one people So this people is his flocke and this flocke is his church and this Church is not Synagoga id est qualiscunque Congregatio any kinde of assemblye yea common riffe râ—ffe or disordred but it is more properly and worthily tearmed Eâ—â—le 〈…〉 id est Coetus ordinatus a Goodly assembly Ab 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 euocare for the manner of the Athenians was when they woulde haue the people assembled to heare the sentence of the Senate to send foorth a cryer to call vpon theÌ„ and so to â—uâ—l them out from the rascal sorte of the people And here vpon the Apostle translated the word to their purpose and gaue the Church it selfe that tearme because it is Caetus Dei praeconio verbi a regno saâ—hanae ad gratiam salutem in Christo Iesu eâ—ocatus An assemblye or flocke of God with the voice of his woorde called or câ—lled from the kingdome of sath 〈…〉 to grace and Saluation in Christ Jesus This is the way then beloued in the Lord â—â— become y e shepe of Christ his flock so to be reputed and taken to do as Israell did id est obey his voice and heare his worde My shepe know my voice Ioh. 10. And Moyses had incharge to tel the Israelites thus much from the Lord that if they wold here his voyce in deed kéep his couenaÌ„t then they should be his flock or chief tresure aboue al people Ex. 19. let this then stand â—or one of the most happiest prerogatiues of the flock of Christ that it is will be assembled at the sounde of his heauenlye worde from the rascall hearde of goates The voice of Gods worde makes his people flocke and throug together lyke shéepe to the folde Another prerogatiue of this flock is that as it is coÌ„uented and assembled by the call of the worde so it is continued and kept together thorow vnity and christian loue which is the bond of perfection This is like the folde that coopes vp the shepe together and keepes them from wandring and stragling It is lyke the band that preserues the shese or faggot from shattering Vnus Pastor vnum Ouile There is one sheepehearde and one flocke or sheepefolde And therefore in the behalf of Jesus Christ our head shepehearde I beséeche you and for your owne saluations sake I require you and charge you al to take heed how by scismes and sects ye seeke to scatter the flocke of Christ lest you bring it from Ouile to Hedile and from Hedile to Canile from a shepefolde to a hearde of Goates and from a heard of Goates to a keÌ„nell of dogges Alas alas it was not lawfull to break a bone of Christes naturall bodye but hée that breaketh the peace of the Church breaketh the verye backebone of his misticall body And it was as vnlawfull to part or deuide so muche as his vnseamed cote But they which practise to deuide the Church what do they else but teare his cote off his backe and rent in sonder his tender harte Wherefore as nature forced the right mother to abhorre the deuiding of her owne childe 1. King 3. So the Lord graunt that grace may make vs all forbear to deuide the sweete Spouse of Jesus Christ the common mother of vs al Nature I say made the mother to abhorre to deuide the child and can not grace make the childe aborre to deuide the mother A third prerogatiue of the Lords flocke is that it is sustained and fostered after the best manner that may be possible For Dauid saith The Lord is my shepheard therfore I shal waÌ„t nothing Psal 23. And againe He shall feede me in a greene pasture and lead me besids the waters of comforte By the greene pasture we are to vnderstand the woorde of trueth Quod manet in aeternum Esay 40. For this alwayes flourisheth and neither the heat of Sommer can scorch it nor the colde of winter freese it And by the waters of comforte he meaneth the graces of the holye Ghost according to that which is written Io. 7. Hee that beleueth in me out of his belly shal flow riuers of the water of lyfe Fourthlye this flocke is sure to be guided and directed by the Lordes owne hand Hee shall lead mee in the pathes of righteousnes saith Dauid Psa 23. And againe Thou art with me thy rod and thy staffe comforte me By his rod he meaneth such correction as it shall please
Palme trée psal 92. Which for all the froste of Winter and scorching of Sommer and blustering of windes and pressing downe of waightes yet it will still bee greene and florishe and rise vp against and aboue the burtheng and therfore was giuen to Conquerors in token of victorye If you would knowe the reason hereof go no further theÌ„to the first promise The sedè of the woman shall bruse the Serpents head This is done by vertue of that seede Or go no further then the wordes of Elizeus They that are with vs be moe then they that be against vs 2. Reg. 6. And because Michaell and his Angels haue beene bee and shallbe to good for the Dragon and his Angelles for euer Appo 12. Therefore it suffiseth to resolue vs that it shall be so And heere as I haue spoken of the estate and condition of the Lordes flocke as it is in this lyfe present So if the time did not exclude me I had thought to haue laid before you the blessed prerogatiues thereof which it shall haue in the lyfe to come As first that it shall bee separated from all the noysome goates of this worlde Secondlye that it shal be scituate on the right hand of the Judge Thirdly that it shall be leased and possessed of that kingdome which was prepared for them before the foundations of the world Math. 25. But I come to the other thing which is gratiously warranted in this promise of the Lords protection which is specified in these wordes And I will spare them c. The like promise is made generally to all them that feare God Psal 103. Euen as a Father hath pittie on his children So hath the Lord compassion on them that feare him Indéed many Fathers haue béene vnkinde vnnatural to their children Saule made an odlawe when Ionathas his sonne was within the lurtch of it hee would haue cut him off had not the people stoode him in stead and rescued him 1. Sam. 14. Herode hauing but onlie two sonnes Alexander and Aristobolus vppon a false surmise strangled them both Whereupon Augustus said Melius est Herodis esse porcum quam filium It is better to bee Herodes hogge than his sonne Plutarch saith that in Rome rich men vsed to carry whelps and yong apes vp and downe the stréets in their armes which when Caesar sawe he would néeds know Ecquid apud ipsos mulieres liberos non parerent Whether women did not bring forth children with them But to let these monsters go which either praeter contra naturam haue thus rebelled repined against their own bowels do you but measure the tender affectioÌ„ of parents toward their children by olde Elie who hearing of the death of Hofni Phinehas his sons with very wo fell downe backward brake his necke 1 Sam. 4. Or by Dauid who at the death of that one sonne which was begotten in adulterie and after the death of that other sonne which letted not to coÌ„mit adultery with his fathers concubines I meane Absolon did so take on that very sorrow had almost broken his very heart insunder 2. Sa. 12. 2. Sam. 18. 33. And to read in histories that Gordianus wheÌ„ he heard of the death of his sonne strangled him selfe Or that Orodes king of Parthia hearing that his sonne Pacorus was slaine in war through extreame sorrowe fell madde Or that Pythias king of Bithinia when Xerxes had slaine his sonne left his kingdome to his wife and went to his sonnes graue and there ended his life with mourning Or that Aâ—geus surmising that Theseus his sonne had béene slayne of Minotaurus leapt into the sea drownd himself To read of all these infinit other the like examples how doth it demonstrate the deare and tender affection of fathers towards their sons therefore in that the Lorde promiseth to fill and to poure out his compassion after this rate and measure what a comforte is this But indéede our heauenly Father doth so entirely tender his children that there is no ende or comparison thereof to bee made And therfore as Esay saith he is our Father cap. 63. And as Ieremy saith He will be called our Father Ier. 3. So whye our Sauiour Christ should forbid vs to call any other by the name of Father here in earth saying For one is your Father in heauen Math. 23. I knowe no reason but this for that no father on earth doeth so tenderlye loue his owne children as our heauenlye Father doeth affect and like of vs being but his adopted children He spareth vs in three respectes in two of them much lyke a naturall Father but in the third there is no comparison I am sure and so you will say First as a naturall Father will not Kill or destroye his childe when he is sicke and feeble and cannot eat his meat or aborreth such things thorow infirmity as should be a mean to recouer his health So our heauenly Father will spare vs and not coÌ„demne vs or confound vs for euer although we be sicke in spirite and weake in faith do euen loath often times his heauenly woord which is the health and saluation of our soules Secondly like a natural father he spareth vs in respect of our wilfull prodigalities and wastinges of his blessinges and graces not vnlike that same louing Father in the gospell who forgaue his sonne which had so leudlye consumed his fathers substance and his owne portion Our race we haue as wilfully runne Our tyme we haue as vainely spent His fauours we haue as ilfauâ—â—rdly bestowed and his displeasure we haue as desperatly incurred But yet come home to his mercy by repentaunce and say father we haue sinned against thee c. and then you shall finde that he wil spare you and embrace you in the armes of his mercifull compassion c. But now to speake of that respect of the Lords gratious fauour which is without comparison What naturall Father euer did as he hath done to spare vs which were but his adopted children hee hath not spared his onelie begotten Sonne Christ Jesus So that to vs ward he was woorth his promise heere made but hee hath laide it vppon his naturall sonne with a witnesse 〈◊〉 our sakes He was faine to resigne a royall kingdome to come to an Asses cribbe to relinquish the sweete societie of Angels to liue among malitious rakehels the Scribes and Pharisees to surrender a throne of glory for a cursed crosse of wood to yéelde vp a crowne of blisse for a crowne of thornes to loose the fauour of his heauenly father to pleasure his deadly foes and to suffer death that miserable wretches might be spared and saued aliue O kind and tender Sauiuiour to spare and to saue vs thou hast suffered thy selfe to become a very spoile for the malice of Sathan I graunt you Fabius Maximus was verie desirous to spare and saue the Romane Captiues when hee solde all his patrimony to redéeme them But our Sauiour Christ hath suffered himselfe to be solde to redéeme vs his very enemies in respect Mithridates was wondred at for his tender affection toward Leonicus his deere frend because hee gaue all the Rhodian captiues to redeeme him but yet he gaue his enemies to redéeme his friend But Christ Jesus our blessed Sauiour hath giuen himselfe to redeeme his enemies To bee short when there was in Rome a sodaine gaping gulph which they could by no meanes fill vp and the Oracle had signified that except the chiefest thing and that which the commons loued best were cast into it it could not be stopped Curtius vnderstanding that he himselfe was their onely Jewel without any more adoe threw himselfe into it and so it was fild vp presently Yet this was done for his country that loued him so well that they accounted nothing better or more worthy theÌ„ hée But when y e gaping gulph of Gods most dreadfull vengeance was to bee stopped our blessed sauiour cast himselfe into the middest of it and died a most bitter death this he did for the people which thought they had nothing worse or more vile than hee no not Barrabas that arrant cutthroat What shall I say then of this so rare so royall so vnspeakeable and so incomparable loue of his towards vs I can say no lesse than Barnard said Opus sine exemplo gratia sine merito charitas sine modo Such a worke as hath no example a fauour without desert and loue without measure The Lord therefore graunt that such bottomles compassion in him may presently work some thankfull compunction in you And that as the vaile of the temple rent in sunder from the toppe to the bottome when these thinges were performed So the consideration of the extreame miserie which hée endured that hée might spare and saue our forlorne soules may ransacke euery vaine in our hearts in all due remorse And y â— as the very earth did quake in horrour of so great violence wrongfully offered to him and méekely suffered for you So our heartes and consciences may quake and tremble considered that an innocent person hath endured the same to spare our guilty and damned soules To him therefore which hath so entirely oued vs that he hath not spared his onely begotten Sonne to saue vs and to him which hath so dearely bought vs that hee hath layde downe his life to redeeme vs and to him that hath so wonderfully purged and sanctified vs through the Lauer of regeneratioÌ„ that hee hath thereby sealed vs vntill the day of Redemption id est to God the Father God the Sonne and God the holy Ghost three distict persons and one euerlasting God bee al praise power and dominion world without end Amen FINIS