Selected quad for the lemma: nature_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
nature_n	divine_a	humane_a	personal_a	3,580	5	9.3191	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A16506	The true vvay of a Christian, to the nevv Ierusalem Or, a three-folde demonstration: first, of the excellencie of the true and sauing knowledge of Christ; and the meanes to attaine it: with the antiquitie, necesitie, and benefit of catechisme. Secondly, of our vnion and communion with Christ, and his Church. Thirdly, of our new creation in Christ, by the blessed Spirit. With diuers questions, and cases of conscience, most comfortable for a Christian. Deliuered first in briefe, in a sermon preached at Paules-Crosse, the first Sunday in the new yeere, 1617. And newly reuised and enlarged by Immanuel Bourne ...	Bourne, Immanuel, 1590-1672.	1622 (1622)	STC 3419; ESTC S106545	102,817	130

〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 If any man be in Christ Expositio Beza in Annotat Here is the Adiectiue us any But the Substantiue man is vnderstood yet necessarily implyed both in the Greeke and Latine and wel expressed in our English translation If any man A word or two therefore of this That you may know man and what man our Apostle here speakes of consider his name First in Hebrew 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which is as much as Earth or earthy to teach man that hee is mortall and as hee was taken from the earth so hee must turne to earth againe Gen. 3.19 The name of Man In Hebrew first Adam red Earth To teach man to remember his end Gen. 3.19 And therefore hee should studie to liue in this life here as euer remembring hee must once die and so change this life if he liue well Dan. 12. Mat. 25.2 Bu●aeus lib. de cont●mptu reru n so●tunarum psum ●oelum suffi●ere h●●●mi natura dedit vt nom●● Gra●ū indicat for a better a life of glorie and happinesse in heauen But if he liue ill for a worse a life of woe and miserie for euer in hell Secondly in Greeke his name is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which seemeth to signifie as much as 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is tending vpwards as Budaeus intimates To shew that he onely liueth as becomes his name who lifteth vp his eyes to heauen and heauenly things to God in thankefulnesse who gaue him both his name and his nature with all the good that hee hath Man should h●ue his eyes towards heauen both for his soule and body But for that man who hath his eyes the eyes of his body and minde alwayes fixed down-wards towards the earth and earthly things as he hath the nature so he deserues the name of a beast rather then that excellent and noble name of Man In Latine to teach man obedience to God Steph. Paris serm Thirdly in Latine the name of Man is Homo which as learned Varro inferres hath his signification ab Humo from the moyst and plyable ground easily following the turne and winding of the Potters wheele that men might learne from the proper name of their owne nature To teach vnitie betweene man and man Dominicus Nauus in Peliante tit hom socialis est homuus ac benefica natura quo solo cognationem cum deo habet Lactantius lib. 5. insititut easily to be turned and guided in obedience to the will and command of God But some deriue the Latine name Homo from the Greeke 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which signifieth vnity concord and agreement of minde To shew that men should striue to be at vnity and charitie one with another like Pylades and Orestes who had but one minde in two bodies so true was their loue But I goe no further concerning his name If you consider his nature First after a Philosophicall manner I find there were three opinions amongst Philosophers concerning man The first did teach that man was onely ap●orporall substance that his soule it selfe was a body The nature of man Opinions of Philosophers and b● consequence the whole man corporeall So Democritus Leucippus and a sort of Philosophers called Epicures The second did teach that man was only incorporeall that is all soule for they would haue only the soule of man to pertaine to the substance and essence of man and his body to bee but an instrument to the soule as the ship is to the pilot So Plato and other Stoicall of philosophers like himselfe The third sort did affirme that man was composed of both as of his essentiall parts of a soule as of his formall and of a body as his materiall cause and both required to make vp the essence and being of man Thus Aristotle and the Peri-pateticks his followers And this is most agreeable to the Scriptures for when God made the body of man of the earth he made his soule from heauen and vniting them both together in a wonderfull manner Psal 139.14.15 man became a reasonable creature or a liuing soule Gen. 2.7 Not that he is only a liuing soule for he is a liuing body as well as as a liuing soule the body liuing by the soule but hee hath his denomination in that place from the better part which is his soule And thus you see mans nature philosophically If we consider him theologically Man considered Theologically 3. Estates 1. Estate of creation wee shall finde him changeable according to the diuers estates whereunto he is subiect And in this life there is a threefold estate of man The first our excellent estate of creation in Adam when God did giue vs our portion with large endowments of all graces both spirituall and temporall The second our state of nature and naturall corruption since Adams fall 2. Of nature corrupted in whom like prodigals we spent our patrimony and lost the excellency of that image wherein God did make vs. 3. Of grace The third and last is our state of grace and regeneration in Christ for whose merits God the Father doth freely embrace vs in the armes of his mercy and accepts vs in him to bee sonnes and heires of eternall glory And this is the estate of a Christian man of that man of whom our Apostle speakes in my Text If any man be in Christ And thus hauing gathered some fruite from the branch which is man and euery Christian man let vs see what we can finde in the vine which is Christ 2. Branch If any man bee in Christ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 In Christ The Scripture doth as well teach that Christ is in vs as that we are in Christ I will giue you a few places for many which are most emphaticall At that day ye shal know that I am in my Father and you in me and I in you saith Christ to his disciples Iohn 14.20 Know you not that Christ Iesus is in you except ye be reprobates saith Saint Paul 2. Cor. 13.5 And if any man be in Christ An admirable vnion betweene Christ and his Church A threefold vnion of Christ and Christians Greg. lib. 6. epist 61. Verbum carnē dicimus factum non immutando quod erat sed suscipiendo quod non erat nostra auxit sua non minuit Hil. lib. 12. de Trinit Cyril lib. 1. c. 16. Chrys Hom. 10 Ambr. de Incarn Dom. c. 6. is my Text. So that hence we may learne that there is an admirable vnion and Communion betweene Christ and his Church betweene our Sauiour and euery faithfull soule And to vnderstand this we must know that there is a threefold Vnion and Communion of Christ with vs. The first in nature the second in grace and the third in glory The first is that Hypostaticall or personall Vnion of our humane nature with the divine of which Saint John speakes Iohn 1.14 And the word was made flesh and

weake and feeble and wantest helpe Christ is that vertue and power that is able and willing to succour thee If thou fearest death Christ is the life If thou desirest heauen Christ is the way If thou be pressed downe with the burden of thy sinnes Christ is that righteousnesse that will take thy yoake of sinne vpon him Mat. 11.28 which is heauy and put his yoake of righteousnsse vpon thee which is light to ease thee If thou flyest darknesse Christ is the light to lighten thine eyes that they steepe not in death Ioh. 1.9 yea that light who lightneth euery man that commeth into the world If thou seekest foode Christ is that bread that came downe from heauen to feede and nourish thy soule body to eternall glory where is freedome from euill E●t omnibus omnia quia isto ha●●o omnia habentur sine ipso nihil est quicquid est Chrysost ibid. and fulnesse of good for euermore Quid plura charissimi What shall I say more beloued as the Father concludes Christ is all things to all men because he that hath Christ he hath all things and he that wants Christ had he the whole world he hath nothing All this we haue by Christ and the meanes of hauing Christ and this is the true knowledge of Christ of which our Apostle speaks So that here you see againe the excellency of this true knowledge of Christ from whence hee inferres our new creation And further that of Saint Bernard Bernard super Cant. serm 37. Ornat animam eruditeam facit vt p●ssitetiam alios erudire is truely verified againe of this divine knowledge this knowledge of Christ It decketh and garnisheth the soule and instructeth it and makes it able to teach others also And hence Saint Paul did so highly esteeme it that he counted all things losse for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Philip. 3.8 So that as Plutarch Plutarch aduersus Colotem relates of that wise counsell 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Know thy selfe that amongst all those sayings which were written or giuen by the Delphian Oracles that was generally accounted to bee most divine so may we conclude of the knowledge of Christ that amongst all those things which are giuen from God for man to know and beleeue there is none more excellent more necessary more comfortable then is this divine and sauing knowledge of Christ Quest 1 But before I come to the vse To explaine this Doctrine a little further Wherein the true knowledge of Christ consisteth Answ What is this knowledge may some man demand or wherein doth it consist which is so excellent so necessary so comfortable for euery Christian soule And I answer it consists first in the knowledge of Christs person and secondly of his offices His person is manifested first by his names and secondly by his natures His names in the new Testament are commonly two The 1. Iesus which signifieth a Sauior so interpreted by the Angell and the reason giuen for he shall saue his people from their sinnes Mat. 1.21 Name Iesus Mat. 1.21 A name that is full of ioy full of comfort and full of vnspeakeable gladnesse to the soule of a Christian Iesus it is hony in the mouth Bernard in Cant. musick in the eare and a iubile of reioycing in the heart as Saint Bernard sweetely a name vnder which no man may despayre since the mercy of God in Iesus is abundantly sufficient for all that beleeue in him This is his firist name His second is Christ We haue found the Messias saith Peter which is Name Christ being interpreted the Christ Ioh. 1.41 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is Vnctus Christ the annoynted yea annoynted with the oyle of gladnesse aboue his fellowes Psal 45.8 Christ is that annoynted who giueth freely to vs that oyntment of the Spirit 1. Ioh. 2.20 by whom we haue comfort in the beloued And as his names are so is his nature gracious and full of goodnesse And this is twofold Diuine and Humane First Christ is God the second person in the blessed Trinity that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that eternall word of his Father begotten of his Father from all eternity Ioh. 1.1 The nature of Christ is twofold 1. Diuine nature Athanasius Creede Est patri 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Zanchius in Epist 1. Ioh. c. 1. loc 2. Euseb ecclesi Hist lib 10. cap. 1. Luk. 1.35 Galat. 4 4. Coequall and Consubstantiall that is of one substance with the Father and the Spirit as it was decreed in the Nicen Councell against Arius the Hereticke And so the Scripture affirmes him to be the Eternall God Esay 9.6 The brightnesse of his Fathers glory and the expresse image of his person Heb. 1.3 And necessary it was that hee should be God First in respect of that intollerable waight of euill with which mankind was oppressed which could be taken off by no creature in the world and therefore the Sauiour must needs be God And secondly in respect of that inestimable good that freedome from euill and fullnesse of ioy restored by Christ who is made vnto vs of God wisedome righteousnesse sanctification and redemption 1. Cor 1.30 And therefore the Redeemer must needes be God Yea Christ is not onely God but Man which is his second nature 2 Humane nature For 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 The word was made flesh and dwelt amongst vs and we beheld his glorie as the glorie of the onely begotten of the Father full of grace and trueth Iohn 1.14 Ditata est illa humanitas propter vnionē ad verbum omni sapientia gratia saith Damascen Damaescen li. 3. De Fide ca. 22. For that admirable vnion of the Flesh with the Word the humanitie of Christ was inriched with all wisdome and grace And expedient it was that Christ should be man that the nature of man might satisfie the iustice of God for man who hath sinned against God Therefore hee tooke not vpon him the nature of Angels but the seed of Abraham saith S. Paul Heb. 2.16 Lastly he is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 God and man in one person Athanasius Creed Apostles Creed God of the substance of his Father before all worlds and man of the substance of his mother conceiued of the holy Ghost and borne of the blessed Virgin in time according to the Scriptures The Offices of Christ 1 Propheticall Mat. 5.1 Ioh. 10.11 Mat. 28.19 Zanchius in 1. Ioh. c. 1. loc 3. Iesus verus Messias id est rex ill● sacerdos prophetae vnicus promissus in lege Bucan loc com Alsted Theolog. Catechet 2 His Priestly Office Iohn 1.29 1. Iohn 2.2 Hebrews 10.10 Zanchius in Epist. ad Philip. Capit. 2. Vtraque pars obedientiae Christi id est tota eius obedientia nostra facta est cessitque in salutem nostram His offices are three The first is his Propheticall office by which first in his

Christ and his Church and in these to that heauenly newnesse in and by which we must all passe through the manifold Labyrinths and dangerous temptations of our spirituall enemies from the old Iericho of this world to that new Ierusalem in the kingdome of heauen And this is the summe of all that we can teach or you can desire to learne Being therefore now by Gods prouidence to take my leaue of you my last request shall be both to you and to God for you That not onely these meditations but also all my poore endeauours may by Gods blessing so remaine with you that they may work in you all such a measure of this excellent knowledge this blessed Vnion Communion and new creation that you may haue peace that true peace of Conscience and comfort of soule for euer that the Lord of peace may giue you peace alwaies by all meanes 2 Thess 3.16 and that the gracious presence of God the Father God the Sonne and God the holy Ghost may be with you blesse preserue and keepe you all in the kingdome of Grace to the kingdome of Glory for euer And thus not ceasing to pray for you I rest From my study at Sr. Samuel Tryons in the Parish of St. Christophers April 1622. Yours and euery one of yours in Christ Iesus IMMANVEL BOVRNE A briefe Glasse wherein you may behold the principall Contents of these ensuing Meditations 1. Occasion and connexion of the text from whence is obserued 1. THE Excellencie of the true Knowledge of Christ with the nature and benefit of it 2. Wherein this true Knowledge consisteth in which is set forth the Names the Natures and Offices of Christ 3. With what kinde of Knowledge a Christian must know Christ and in that the difference of true and false Knowledge and o● true professors and hypocrites 4. Reprehension of those who teach ignorance with a lamentation for them which delight in it and in this what are the causes of so much Ignorance in the light of the Gospel first in the Hearers secondly in the Teachers 5. The want of Catechisme and necessitie of it And herein the care of the Primitiue Church to vse it the diuers orders of Christians in those times with the Industrie of religious men in all ages to plant this true and Diuine Knowledge 2. Parts of the Text. 1 Part. Branch 1. 1. Of the name and nature of man with his three-fold estate in this life 2. Of the true and false Vnion and Communion The first of the Church The second of Heretikes 2. 1. How we are in Christ and Christ in vs. 2. How we may know if we be Christians 3. 1. How our second Creation is a greater worke then our first 2. What those are who obtaine this Grace 3. What this new Creation is 4. Who is the Author of this change 5. What kinde of creatures we are new made 6. By what meanes we may attaine vnto it 7. How we may know whether we be new Creatures 8. Comforts against doubting if we want the signes Shewing the true state of a Christian in this life 9. How to know whether temptations of doubting come from God or from Satan 10. Many Cordials to answer Satans obiections concerning the weakenesse of our faith and obedience and to keepe vs from despaire 2. Part. Branch 1. 1. What old things are past away 2. What errors confuted therein and the truth confirmed 2. 1. What things are become new to a Christian 2. When this newnesse in Christ is required namely in the Canaan of Grace that by this we may come to the Ierusalem of Glory THE TRVE VVAY OF A CHRISTIAN TO THE NEW IERVSALEM OR A THREE-FOLDE DEMONSTRATION First of the Excellencie of the true and sauing knowledge of Christ and the meanes to attaine it with the Antiquitie necessitie and benefit of Catechisme Secondly of our Vnion and Communion with Christ and his Church Thirdly of our new Creation in Christ by the blessed Spirit With diuerse Questions and Cases of Conscience most comfortable for a Christian 2. Cor. 5. vers 17. Therefore if any man be in Christ he is a new creature old things are past away Behold all things are become new DIuine and profound St. Augustine Sanct. Augustin Hipponens Epis●op circa ann Dom. 420. sicut ipse in Epist ad Isichium 80. Confess lib. 8. cap. 12. that worthy Bishop holy Father of the Church of God after many deuout prayers humble supplications and bitter teares with strong cryes of the Spirit for peace of conscience and comfort of soule in that his most terrible combate the Flesh rebelling against the Spirit the Old man against the New he receiued that diuine Oracle that voyce from heauen for so he conceiued it Tolle lege tolle lege Take vp and rea●e take vp and reade by which he was sent to the Sacred Scriptures as to a guide in distresse to a Physitian in the sickenesse of his soule while he lay groaning vnto God as it were in an agony with Quandiu quandiu cras cras Quare non modò quare non hac hora finis turpitudinis meae How long how long to morrow to morrow why not now why not in this very houre should there not be an end of my sinfull impuritie And being obedient to that heauenly counsell he tooke vp the booke of Saint Paules Epistles which he had layed downe by his friend Alipius and hauing opened it he read those words of the Apostle vpon which he first cast his eyes Not in rioting and drunkennesse Rom. 13.13 14. not in chambering and wa●●tonnesse not in strife and enuying But put yee on th● Lord Iesus Christ and make not prouision for the flesh to fulfill the lust thereof And closing the Booke againe he concludeth with this resolution as he himselfe expresseth it in that eight booke of his Confessions chapt the twelfth Nec vltra volui legere nec opus erat Neither wold I reade any further nor was it needfull for that was sufficient to mooue that good Father to deny himselfe and to follow his Sauiour to forsake the first Adam and be reformed according to the image of the second to be conuerted and become a new-man in Christ In like manner Right Honourable right Worshipfull and beloued or not much vnlike to this though not in the Oracie and heauenly vision yet in the effect and conclusion desiring at this present to finde out both for you and my selfe as a word of exhortation so a word of consolation in his time and season I opened the booke of Saint Paules Epistles and hauing found out the words of my Text I re-resolued with St. Augustine to cease from seeking Nec vltra volui legere nec opus erat neither would I reade any further nor was it needfull for this one Text is instar omnium as it were one of a thousand fitting and conuenient both for the time and persons of this Assembly First for the time for now

dwelt amongst vs and we saw the glory thereof as the glory of the onely begotten Sonne of the Father full of grace and truth The Word that is the Divinitie of Christ was made flesh that is did take vpon him our humane nature he tooke on him the seede of Abraham saith the Apostle Heb. 2.16 and did dwell 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in vs as it is in the Originall that is in our humane nature as Saint Hilary S. Cyrill S. Chrysostome S. Ambrose and others obserue And so they vsed this place against those heretickes who affirmed that the Word was conuerted into the flesh for if he dwelt in the flesh that is in our humane nature then he remained still what he was and therefore could not bee conuerted into the flesh as they falsly imagined This exposition is true in the substance though it doth not fully explicate this vnion of Christ with vs for Christ doth not onely dwell in our nature as a man in his mansion house but is vnited vnto our nature as the soule to the body yea after a farre more excellent and wonderfull manner The two natures of Christ the divine and humane being vnited make one person saith Damascen Damasc lib. 3. cap 4. there is one Christ not by conuersion of the Diuinity into the flesh but by assumptiō of humanity into his Godhead one altogether not by confusion of essence but by vnity of person as Athanasius Athanasius in Symb. affirmes And by this admirable vnion Christ the eternall Word of his Father did assume in most neere maner vnto himselfe our whole humane nature without any conuersion confusion alteration or separation as the Chalcedon Chalcedon Symb. creede doth testifie and that as Damascen addeth the proprieties of both natures being safe Therefore the Ancients did affirme that the mystery osthis vnion was Mirabiliter singulare singulariter mirabile Wonderfully singular and singularly wonderfull it is that great mystery of godlinesse 1. Tim. 3.16 Of which there is no example in nature which 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in all respects is answerable vnto it for howsoeuer 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in some kind there are some to illustrate it as that vnion of the soule and the body of the fire and the yron red hotte of the Sunne and the light which Iustine Martyr Cyrillus Athanasius and others vse in their writings yet none can fully explicate this great and wonderfull mystery To conclude this vnion is not imaginary onely but true and reall though supernaturall and the foundation of our spirituall with Christ both in grace and glory depends vpon it For had he not taken our nature vpon him and so freely marryed himselfe vnto vs Hosh 2.19 we could neuer haue beene vnited to him But Christ vniting himselfe to vs in nature and God accepting vs as iust and righteous for his merits we are vnited to him in grace which is the second vnion betweene Christ and vs. The second vnion is of our persons with Christ here Zanchias in comment in Ephes Gen. 2.24 And this is the vnion of our persons of our whole man both soule and body vnto the whole person of Christ God and man by the excellent bond of our spirituall marriage in which Christ hath vnited vs vnto himselfe as the whole person of Adam was ioyned in wedlocke to the whole person of Eue so are we to our heauenly bridegroome For that carnall marriage betweene Adam and Eue was a type and figure of this spirituall betweene Christ and his Church as S. Paul witnesseth Ephe. 5.33 And this is in the kingdo me of grace in this life The third vnion is our union with Christ in glory in the kingdome of heauen A vnion with Christ in glory by which we shall enioy the presence of our Sauiour yea wee shall haue vnion with God and his Angels and be filled with abundance of glory and happinesse for euermore of this our Sauiour speakes John 14.3 J goe to prepare a place for you and if I goe to prepare a place for you I will come againe and receiue you vnto my selfe that where J am there may you bee also And for this vnion our Sauiour prayeth to his Father Iohn 17.24 Father I will that they also whom thou hast giuen me be with me where I am that they may behold my glory which thou hast giuen me for thou louedst mee before the foundation of the world And this vnion the blessed Apostle did so earnestly long after Philip. 1.23 Idesire to be dissolued and to be with Christ Neither is it to be doubted but that our Sauiour in the first vnion the vnion of our nature was willing to praemonstrate the second our vnion in grace and in the second to manifest the third that by that vnion which we enioy in present we might bee confirmed in the hope of that which wee shall enioy hereafter Amandus Polanus s●ntag The first vnion is referred to the second and the second to the third as nature is ordinated to grace and grace to glory The first vnion is the cause of the second and the second is the cause of the third For we cannot be vnited to Christ in glory in the life to come except we be ingrafted into him in this life by grace but we could not haue been vnited to him in grace except Christ had vnited himselfe to vs in nature by taking our nature upon him Whosoeuer therefore will be vnited to Christ in glory it is necessary that he be first vnited to him in grace and whosoeuer is vnited in grace it is necessary that he should haue bin vnited to him in nature Thus you haue a briefe view of our threefold vnion with Christ But it is the second of these our vnion with Christ in grace of which I am now to speake And therefore to illustrate this a little further I shewed you it was a vnion of our persons soule and body with the person of Christ both God and Man For as in the first vnion the vnion of Christ with our nature the whole person of the Sonne of God did assume into the vnitie of himselfe the whole man that is his whole humane nature not the body alone nor the soule alone but both together So is it when Christ is vnited to a Christian he is vnited to the whole man both soule and body as a Christian is vnited to the whole Christ both God and Man Therefore the Apostle doth not onely witnesse that he which is ioyned to the Lord is one Spirit 1 Cor. 6.17 1 Cor. 12.13 but that our bodies are the members of Christ in the 15 verse of the same Chapter Yea wee which are many are one body in Christ Rom. 12.5 So that Christ is vnited both to our soules and bodies And thus are we vnited vnto whole Christ To his humanitie not after a carnali but a spirituall manner For thus Heb. 2.14 wee are members of his

body yea of his flesh and of his bones saith the Apostle Ephes 5.30 This he speakes for that neere coniunction which we haue with Christ He that eateth my flesh saith Christ dwelleth in me and I in him Ioh. 6.56 From whence we must consider saith Cyrill Cyrillus in Ioh. lib. 10. cap. 13 that Christ is not in vs only by habitude as hee dwelleth in vs by Faith and Charitie but also by a naturall participation not in respect of the matter for it is supernaturall but in respect of the manner or of the thing participated which is the true flesh of Christ Not grosly and carnally as the Papists imagine in their imaginary Transubstantiation but spiritually by a true and reall vnion of Faith The bread that we breake it is the Communion of the body of Christ 1 Cor. 10.17 That is that thing by which we are receiued into Communion with the body of Christ as Zanchius interpreteth it yea by this wee are vnited to his Diuinity as S. Peter affirmes Who according to his diuine power saith he hath given vnto vs all things that pertaine vnto life and godlinesse through the knowledg of him that hath called vs to glory and vertue wherby are giuen vnto vs exceeding great and pretious promises that by these you might be partakers of the diuine nature 2. Pet. 1.3.4 hauing escaped the corruption that is the world through lustes And thus it is manifest that there is a vnion of our persons in grace with the person o● Christ not that we are made one person with him but that we which are many are one body of which Christ is the head wee are one wife and Christ our Husband But to explaine it a little more The question may be demaunded What kinde of vnion is this Question by which we are so wired vnto Christ and Christ to vs I answere If wee respect the things which are vnited Answere and the verity or truth of the vnion it is a reall a substantiall an essentiall vnion And if wee respect the manner and order of it it is a vnion spirituall and supernaturall To illustrate the verity and reality of this vnion there are diuers similitudes in sacred Scriptures set forth vnto vs by the Spirit of God First as there is the vnion between the Husband and the Wife Similitude to illustrate our vnion with Christ which the Apostle S. Paul vseth Ephes 5.31 And they two shall be one flesh Which certainely is a substantiall vnion of the Husband and Wife because two persons are vnit●d and a true and reall vnion because they are vnited into one true flesh and are alwayes truely one flesh But how In respect of that coniugall bond in which they are vnited by the ordinance of God And this the Apostle applyeth to that spirituall vnion betweene Christ and his Church This is a great mysterie saith he but I speake concerning Christ and the Church Ephes 5.32 But this vnion of Christ with vs is more excellent for Christ doth not onely communicate vnto vs all needfull graces as the wife doth partake with the Husband in all his goods and he not onely dwelleth with vs as the Husband with the Wife but in vs in our hearts by faith and by loue and by his Spirit in a farre more absolute and perfect manner then the Husband can with the Wife Though this be an admirable similitude by which in a liuely manner is thus expressed the mysterie of that vnion betweene Christ and his Church Secondly this vnion is described by the similitude of the head and the members of the body 2. Simil Ephe. 4.15.19 which members are vnited and knit together not onely by veines and arteries but also by one liuing Spirit whereby is noted not onely our most neere vnion with Christ but also that we receiue our life from Christ as from the roote and fountaine from whence all the veines of our spirituall life doe spring and flow forth And this vnion without question is a substantiall true and reall vnion without which we cannot receiue the fruite of his Passion nor the gifts and graces of his Spirit as the members of the body cannot receiue their nourishment and life and motion being separated from the head and in which we grow vp to perfection as S. Paul intimates Thirdly 3. Simil. this vnion is confirmed by the similitude of a liuing foundation and liuing stones built vpon it which by the truely substantiall and reall coniunction of them with the foundation doe daily receiue an increase vntill the house or building be perfected So is it in our vnion with Christ Christ is a liuing stone saith S. Peter and wee as liuely stones are built vp a spirituall house 1 Pet. 2.4.5 We are built saith S. Paul vpon the foundation of the Prophets and Apostles Iesus Christ himselfe being the chiefe corner stone In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth vp vnto an holy Temple in the Lord. Coloss 2.19 Ephes 2.20.21 Fourthly this vnion is expressed by Christ himselfe in the similitude of eating and drinking 4. Simil. He that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood dwelleth in me and I in him Ioh. 6.56 But this with a manifold difference Tollet in Iohan. as interpreters obserue For first he that receiueth common meate and drin●e is said indeede to haue meate and drinke within him But yet he doth not remaine in the meate and drinke neither doth the meate and drinke remaine or continue in him for either it is corrupted and euacuated or conuerted into the substance of the flesh and blood of him that eateth it But Christ is not such meate and drinke vnto vs. Because the flesh of Christ is neither corrupted nor conuerted into the flesh of the eater But it remaineth still what it was and doth rather by a new qualification change vs into him or conforme vs vnto his image when we doe eate or receiue him by faith Secondly common meate receiueth life and vertue of nourishment from him that eateth it for a dead man that hath not life and heate in him yea a sicke man whose life and power of nature is so farre spent that he cannot digest what he eateth can receiue no life nor strength from his meate it being but dead flesh or the like till it be as it were quickened and raised to life by the heate and vertue of the eater it cannot nourish nor preserue life in him But it is not so with Christ our spirituall foode he doth not receiue life from vs but he rather giueth life vnto vs and therefore S. Ambrose affirmes that for this reason S. Ambrose lib. 6. de sacram Christ is that liuing bread that came downe from heauen Ioh. 6.51 So that Christ remaineth in the eater because he is so vnited vnto him that he cannot be corrupted nor conuerted into the substance of him that eateth but rather changeth it into him as I said before and the