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A04368
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The picture of patience. Or, a direction to perfection Most needfull and vsefull in these dangerous daies of sinne, and publike feares.
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Jeffray, William.
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1629
(1629)
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STC 14483; ESTC S100758
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29,169
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97
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art both the glasse for my Patience and a reward for mee Patient if then I seeke for the reward I must imitate the patterne draw me therfore after thee deare Iesus and grant me so to imitate thy patience vpon earth that thou mayst crowne my patience with thee in heauen To this agreeth that of S. Peter 1. Pet. 2 2◠Christ hath suffered for vs leauing vs an example that wee should follow his stepps Wee are not then worthy of the Merit of his sufferings vnlesse we desire to imitate his blessed example who from his Cratch at Bethlem to his Crosse at Ierusalem liuely decyphered the perfection of Patience For here we may see the Sonne of God whose power is boundlesse as his Mercy is endlesse hungring thirsting who feeds vs with Manna giues vs pleasure to drinke as out of a Riuer wearied with want who had no want of wearinesse dying for sinners that sinners might not die bound with bonds that frees vs from fetters Accused by whom we are excused condemned by whom wee are absolued Crowned with Thornes that adornes vs with Roses nayled to the Crosse who redeemed vs from the losse we felt by Adam Counted with Theeues that doth match vs with Angels all which Torturing torments tormenting tortures patiently he indured to teach vs Patience Shall we not then follow his stepps He was innocent but we are nocent he deserued glory by his Obedience we shame by our Disobedience he merited life by his Death wee Death by our wicked liues Thus was he pure but we impure and yet all these things he indured for vs and shall we indure nothing for him Art thou persecuted so was he 1. Sam. 26 20. yea euen as a Partridge vpon the Mountaines Doest thou want So did he for Foxes haue holes and Birds of the Ayre nests Mat. 8.20 But the Sonne of Man had not whereon to lay his head Art thou hated so was he yea euen of those for whose saluation he was Incarnate Art thou falsly accused so was he though he were the truth it selfe Art thou iniustly condemned so was he though he be the Iudge of the world Art thou punished with death so was he yea euen with the death of the Crosse Phil. 2.8 what canst thou indure which he hath not indured Temptations from Satan Tribulations from the world yet all this which This All could inflict vpon him he indured patiently for thy sake Violls of Gods wrath from Heauen and of Mans enuie from Earth the first in the Garden at Gethsemane and the second on the Crosse at Mount Caluary Oh blessed Iesus what an Agony did est thou endure in the Garden when the burthen of our sinnes made thee fall into a bloody sweate Luk. 22.44 and that in great dropps trickling downe to the ground The torments of the body are sull of misery but those of the soule doe farre exceede these Por. 18.14 for A wounded spirit who can beare The paine of the body is but a body of paine but the sorrow of the Soule is the very soule of sorrow yet this painfull sorrow he was pleased to suffer for vs to teach vs patiently to suffer all sorrowfull paines for him Let then Patience haue her perfect worke that we c. But let vs not stay here but with weeping eyes looke to the bloody stepps he set climbing to Mount Caluarey Consider how barbarously he was apprehended vnciuilly arraigned vniustly condemned and most cruelly murthered Stay stay you bloody murtherers of the Son of God who is that you go about to appreahend is it not he that came to saue you why then doe yee endeauour to destroy him Why doe yee bind him in the bonds of sinners that came to loose you from the bonds of sinne But so it must be for so his owne good pleasure hath decreed that it should be bound then they bring him before the high Priests where by iniurious scorne and scornefull iniurie innocencie is arraigned truth accused and righteousnesse condemned this could not choose but be the darkest night that euer was wherein the light of the world euen the Sunne of Righteousnesse was so Eclipsed Hence in the morning of that mourning day was he posted to be presented before Pilate whose ambitious selfe-loue made him without further enquirie into his cause to condemne himselfe first to the Post to be whipt and then to the Crosse to be crucified Crucified and that amongst Theeues amongst Theeues vpon Mount Caluarey before a stinking dunghill but made glorious by his blessed death And now marke here the admirable Patience of our dying Life who in the midest of their derision mixed with despite doth neither raue nor rage but makes that den of theeues a house of prayer for them that before had made his house of prayer a den of theeues with Pater ignosce Father forgiue them Thus he dyed Tanquam Ouis And opened not his mouth Let then this Lambe of God teach the Lambes of Gods Church humble Patience and patiente Humility shall our great Master reade vnto vs this lecture and shall not we indeauour to take it out Oh Beloued Let vs looke to Iesus and his blessed Patience and it will teach vs patience for blessed Iesus sake when the Captaine giues the Onset what Coward will stay behind The Bees follow their King and the Beasts their leader and shall we be more senselesse then Beasts or more witlesse then Bees No let vs with vndaunted hearts follow the stepps of his patience and though troubles arise neuer so fast yet to withstand their violence by the Bulwarke of Patience suffering her to haue her perfect work that we may be perfect c. Object I but may some say Christ that was naturally the Sonne of Man was also eternally The Sonne of God both Natures being vnited by a diuine Combination in one Hypostaticall vnion by which he became 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 God-Man in one Person by which Grace of Vnion he was able to indure more in his humane Nature then our Humane frailty can possibly indure But alas I am a Man whose weakenesse maketh me the Example of Imbecillity the spoyle of time The play of fortune The image of inconstancy The Ballance of Calamitie and therefore it may be no marueile if the Crosses of this life do sometimes driue me to impatience Well then if thy dull Eyes cannot Eagle-like behold the illustrious luster of Christ's diuine Patience Ans. yet looke lower and behold it in his Saints Men subiect to the same weakenesse that we are whose Nature was as subict to slide nay to fall as ours is or can be And since thy Bleare-eye dares not behold his sunne-exceeding brightnesse yet view it guilding the Mountaines or at least gliding vpon the waters Marke the wonderfull effect of his exemplary patience in all his holy Saints and Martyrs whose admirable Patience may serue as a Load-stone to thy iron-exceeding heart in respect of Hardnesse to draw
be perfect c. The second obiect of our knowledge which being knowne must be a motiue to induce Patience to suffer till Perfection is not onely to know that troubles and Crosses are Christs Legacy vnto vs by his last will bequeathed but which is more are Gods high-way to eternall felicity Iob. 5.17 Blessed saith Eliphas to Iob is the man whom the Lord correcteth correction you see is so farre from a curse that it is a meanes to obtaine a blessing so also our blessed Apostle affirmeth Iam. 1.12 Blessed is he that indureth temptation for when hee is tried he shall receiue a crowne of life on the contrary our Sauiour pronounceth a wee to them that laugh now Luk. 6.25 for they shall mourne and weepe thus one poore laughter is attended with a double mourning Shall we not then desire with our Sauiour to be crowned with a crowne of thornes that hereafter by our Sauiour wee may be crowned with a crowne of Starres Reu. 7.14 Those that come out of great tribulation haue white robes to teach vs that purity follows troubles reward afflictions tribulation being that Heauen-bred herbe of the celestiall dyer that dyes our soules in purity for as we haue beene afflicted so shall wee be comforted According to which saith holy Augustine As many persecutions and tribulations as we here indure by pouerty power and cruelty of our enemies so many Rewards after our Reâ—urrection shall we receiue in the Retribution of the Saints Let vs then desire rather with Lazarus to liue in misery and dye with comfort than with Dives and Polycrates to liue in iollitie and dye in miserie the one being that happily-painfull way which leadeth to endlesse happinesse the other that painfully-happilesse rode which leadeth to remedilesse torment resembling herein the Violets of America which in Summer please with a sense-delighting sweetnesse but in Winter kill with a life-deuouring poyson See the geeat worldlings the darlings of fortune with greedinesse gape after her pleasures in the Summer of their strength which speedily prooues their poyson in the winter of their age but christians must looke for winters continuall tempests here that doe expect to obtaine a Summer of glory which neuer shall be subiect to alteration hereafter For as the wood of the Aegyptian Firre-tree throwne into the water against the nature of wood sincketh to the bottome where hauing for a space beene deepely steeped and as it were drunken with that liquid humor doth immediately beyond natures ordinary course mount it selfe aloft vpon the euer-varying face of the water so a christian man hauing the floods of tribulation entring euen in vnto his soule may for a while seeme to be suppressed when indeed hee is but oppressed with so great an inundation but straight the hope of a harbour mounts him aloft and Patience easily wafts him to the Hauen of Felicity Let vs then not be dismaid when Tribulation like a Tempest heapeth billowes of sorrows vpon our backs for a calme shall follow when Christ shall say Be still Mark 4 3â— but of this point we shall speake more largely at the end Onely now let the sweetnesse of Felicity giue a relish to the bitternesse of Miseries that it may make vs patiently endure what God louingly inflicts that Patience may haue her perfect worke that wee may bee perfect c. And the rather because we reade in Ezechiel that he saw a strange beast with the face of a Man a Lion an Oxe and an Eagle and in the 10. Chapter hee sayth he saw the same beast againe but the face of an Oxe was now changed into the face of a Cherube Ezech. 10.14 To teach vs that labour toyle and affliction open vnto vs the Glory of Eternity making vs of Laborious Oxen Glorious Cherubins in Angelicall perfection For it is not the Beautie of the Face of Man The fiercenesse of the Lyon nor the quick sight and Agilitie of the Eagle that helpe vs forward in the way to perfection Only the Face of an Oxe the Trouble and Patience in that trouble vnder the yoke is changed into the face of a Cherub and this is not another but the same Beast for They were the same faces that he saw by the Riuer Chebah Ezech. 10.22 If then thou desirest to be loosed from the yoke of Humane affliction and be made partaker of Angelicall perfection Then let patience c. The second maine Motiue vnto this duty to let Patience haue her perfect worke that so we may be entire is Imitation and that of those perfect patternes of Patience which haue beene before vs for Examples vsually preuaile more them perswasiue arguments and herein the most perfect Patterne must needs prooue the most forcible motiue to induce vs to let Patience haue her perfect worke For as Aristotle commanded that Children should not looke vpon Pauson's vnperfect figures but vpon the perfect figures of Polignotus least they indeauouring to attaine perfection might by vnperfect patterns be inueloped in the Cimerian darke cloudes of Imperfection So I being about to build this absolute Aedifice euen the perfect worke of Patience in your hearts will not present vnto you an imperfect patterne of so needfull a vertue but will intreate you to behold the Patterne which Christ Iesus himselfe hath left vnto you he being the perfect Picture as of all graces so especially of Patience which blessed Iesus as in his diuine Nature he is the perfect Image of his fathers glory So in his humane Nature he is the absolute Image of perfect Patience let vs therefore follow his stepps as we are directed by the Spirit of God who to this end vouchsafeth to giue vs this holy and heauenly exhortation Heb. 12.1.2.3 Let vs runne with Patience the Race that is set before vs looking vnto Iesus the Author and Finisher of our Faith who for the ioy which was set before him endured the Crosse and despised the shame and is set downe on the righ hand of God For consider him that indured such contradiction of Sinners against himselfe least you be wearyed and faint in your minds See here the Synopsis of Christ his Patience together with with an exhortation to vs to insist in his stepps When the pillar of the Cloud went forward the Israelites followed it and when this Pillar of Health goes before shall we stand still and not follow him We desire to be called Christians and yet haue not learned Christ vaine is the name if the nature be wanting What shall we doe with the appearance when we want the Essence Ought not the masters conuersation be the disciples Instruction How willingly doe we see the Subiects of Kings imitate their Soueraignes example shall not we imitate the King of Heauen Bernard vpon these words Cant. 2.1 I am the flower of the field shewes that two things are therein signified either the forme of our fighting or the glorie of our Triumph and adds Lord thou