Selected quad for the lemma: power_n
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A73533
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Jesus Nazarenus, Rex Judaeorum. Or, a tract concerning the inscription fastned by Pilates command
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Bourchier, John, Sir, d. 1660.
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1637
(1637)
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STC 3412.3; ESTC S124700
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38,853
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214
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the beginning of the world but unto the otheâ— Goe yee cursed into everlasting fire prepared for the Devill and his Angels Thus is Christ Iesus an impartiall King punishing all the wicked within his Dominions and rewarding the good wherfore we may say that our King of the Iewes is Rex severus A severe King The sixt and last property of a good King is that hee be Pacificus A peace-maker and that both in his owne Kingdome and abroad This is the commendation that Plutarch gives to Numa Pompilius in whose daies the Temple of Ianus was kept shut for the spâ—ce of Forty yeares And this praise in the Scripture is given to Solomon that during his Reigne Israel was neither molested with civill Wars at home nor forraigne with other Nations herein being a Type of our King of the Jewes who was called long before he was borne Princeps pacis The Prince of peace Esay 9.6 He was borne in a time of a generall peace when he wrought our peace on Earth he is our Peace He came and preached peace unto them that were a farre off and to them that were nigh Eph. 2.17 Justly did Christ merit to bee called The Prince of peace for before his comming there were many Questions in the World which at his comming hee fully determined The first question was in the sacred Trinity and that was this Whether Man having transgressed should be redeemed seeing the Angels that fell were not to be redeemed And it was determined Affirmatively that Man should be redeemed though the Angels were not Because the Angels sinned by no suggestion but of their owne accord whereas Man sinned by the suggestion and fraud of Satan Secondly because the Angels were spirits and should have stood firmely in Obedience whereas Man did consist of flesh and blood which is alwayes prone to fall according to that of our Saviour Math. 26.41 The Spirit indeed is willing but the Flesh is weake Thirdly because the whole Nature of Angels fell not but onely some that were Rebellious whereas the whole Nature of Mankinde fell as having sinned in the roote and pitty it was that so noble a Creature should wholly perish Fourthly because the fall of an Angell was the ruine of an Angell and made him past recovery Whereas the fall of man made him not past recoverie The second Question in the Holy Trinity was who should worke this Redemption whether the Father or the Sonne or to Holy Ghost And it was determined that the Sonne should doe it Because unto the Father is attributed Power unto the Sonne Wisedome unto the Holy Ghost Goodnesse Now Lucifer ambitiously desired Gods Power and therefore sinned against the Father Man desired Gods Wisedome Yee shall be as Gods knowing good and evill and therefore sinned against the Sonne Antichrist usurpes the Goodnesse of the Holy Ghost and therefore sinnes against the Holy Ghost and is the sonne of perdition and cannot be saved Now Ejus est liberare c. It behooveth him that receiveth the injury to give the Indulgence and Man that had offended against the Son must be redeemed by the Sonne The third Question in the sacred Trinity was How Man should be redeemed whether by power or condigne satisfaction And it was determined not by power but by punishment And seeing man had offended by Pride Disobedience and carnall delight Christ the Sonne of God made satisfaction by Humility Obedience and the suffering of Death The fourth Question was betweene God and Man for God complained against Man that hee had offended him and Man complained against God that God had forsaken him Christ tooke away this difference by becomming a Mediator Now a Mediator must have three properties Community Authority and Power Community hee must be indifferent betweene both so was Christ having Community with God as God and Community Authority with Man as Man Hee must have Authority too to argue the Cause on either side So had Christ pleading for his Father that Man had broken his Law pleading for Man in making satisfaction He must also have Power upon the determination of the cause to make a Reconciliation so had Christ having made peace through the blood of that his Crosse to reconcile all things to himselfe whether they be things in Earth or things in Heaven Colos 1.20 The fift Question was betweene Man and Satan The Devill pleaded right unto Mankinde who had sold himselfe to him for an Apple The difference is taken away by Christ who pleads the Apple to bee none of the Devils and therefore hee bought him not with his owne but Christ redeemed him not with Silver or Gold but with his owne precious blood 1 Pet. 1.18.19 And mans sinne could not so much exceede in Demerit as Christs sufferings did in Merit The sixt and the last Question was betweene Man and Woman For Man complained of the Woman that she had allured him and the Woman of the Man that he should have reprooved her but because they were both Authors of their owne perdition Christ hath made them both partakers of his Redemption Hee tooke flesh of a Woman that Women might not thinke themselves excluded but in the person of a Man that Man thereby might be redeemed Thus hath Christ in the world wrought a world of Peace for us not peace with the world For Non veni mittere pacem saith he but peace with God peace with the Angels peace with Men peace with the Creatures and peace with our owne Consciences Wherefore we may justly say that our King of the Iewes is Rex pacificus A peaceable King And thus we have seene the Condition of our Soveraigne Iesus Christ how he hath approved himselfe a good King For he is wise liberall powerfull indifferent severe and peaceable answerable to which qualities are all his Actions For every worke of his is either a worke of VVisedome or a worke of Mercy or a worke of power or a worke of providence or a worke of Justice or a worke of Peace as if he intended in all things to shew himselfe a King for our commodity But as the King of Israel changed his habit and disguised himselfe when he went into the Battell at Ramoth-Gilead 1 King 22.30 1 King 22.30 so Christ indeed disguised himselfe who being in the forme of God and equall with God took upon him the shape of a Servant continuing ever though unknowne to the wicked Iewes Iesus of Nazareth King of the Iewes Wherefore seeing wee have but one Soveraigne Monarch who is God and Man and King of the Iewes that hath the sole power to command our soules let us never deny our Alleageance to him Let us never make any confederacy or enthrall our selves to the World the Flesh or the Divell which would soone get the Dominion over us and make us their vassals And although all worldlings drunkards and uncleane persons and all that continue in wickednesse without repentance have made themselves bond-slaues unto these Tyrants yet let us
whom God hath called to the inheritance of his Saints in loue stand fast in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free not suffering our soules to be entangled againe with the yoake of bondage Gal. 5.1 Their service is nothing but misery and wretchednesse For Mundus decipit Caro inficit Diabolus destruit The World will deceive us the Flesh will infect us and the Devill will destroy us from such Kings Good Lord deliver us Onely O blessed King of the Iewes bee thou our spirituall Soveraigne thou art wise and wilt instruct us thou art liberall and wilt reward us thou art mighty and wilt defend us thou art just and wilt not forget us thou art severe and wilt not suffer the wicked to tryumph over us thou art peaceable yea our peace for thou hast wrought Reconciliation with God the Father who with thee bee glorified for ever-more Fly then thou sinner from bondage to liberty from death to life from misery to glory Behold The King of the Iewes calls thee Come unto me all yee that are weary and heavy laden and I will refresh you Math. 11.28 Here is a Proclamation of pardon for thy revolt if thou wilt seeke it if thou wilt embrace it He that is King of the Jewes waites when thou wilt become his Subject Behold saith hee I stand at the doore and knocke if any man open unto me I will come in and suppe with him and he with me Rev. 3.20 Set open the gate of thy heart and the King of glory will come in Psal 24.7 He will come tibi si credis contra te si non credis If thou receive him with faith and repentance hee will come to comfort thee if neither with faith nor repentance hee will come to confound thee If thou become a Subject hee will defend thee if thou continue an enemy hee will destroy thee Now is Christ comming into thy Soule as once hee came to Ierusalem Oh beleeve that he is thy King entertaine him joyfully cut downe the Branches of old Adams corruption put off the ragges of sinne spread them in the way and let thy Saviour trample on them Receive him with hearty acclamations and say Hosanna to the Sonne of David Blessed is hee that commeth in the Name of the Lord Hosanna in the highest Thus much touching the Office of our Jesus He is a King Now for that a King does necessarily presuppose a Kingdome for they are Relatives the next thing wee are to treate of is his Kingdome There was never any earthly Empire but had his limits and was bounded with some parts of the habitable World The Assyrian Grecian Roman and Turkish Emperors though they spread themselves farre and wide yet was there alwayes some Lands Nations and Kingdomes exempt from their Dominion There was never any earthly Monarchy that was perpetuall but as it had a time of increase so hath it a time of decrease being either by sedition or forraigne invasion or some vice or other brought to ruine herein resembling the naturall body of man which hath a time to bee conceived a time to bee nourished and a time to bee brought unto perfection But when it hath attained his 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 His full growth it declines againe as the Sunne when hee is come to the Meridian and in tract of time either by its owne imbecility or it may be sooner by diseases or soonest of all by sudden Death droppes into the Grave As it is with this Little world Man so is it with that Great Man the world subject it is to change and alteration Now herein Christs Kingdome exceeds all Kingdomes which as it is boundlesse for place so is it endlesse for time infinite in extent and eternall for continuance Hee shall reigne over the House of Iacob for ever there is his perpetuity and of his Kingdome there shall bee no end there is his infinitenesse The Kingdome of Christ is twofold Superius and Inferius His Kingdome which is above and his Kingdome which is below Or rather they are one Kingdome differenced by two degrees though usually we call one The Kingdome of Grace and the other The Kingdome of Glory The Kingdome of Grace is that which our Saviour sayes is within us Regnum Dei intra vos est The Kingdome of God is within you Luke 17.21 Luke 17.21 wherein CHRIST solely reignes without substituting any Viceroyes or Depuâ—â—â—s For the greatest Monarch aâ—â— the most righteous Christian in the World is in this case but a fellow subject and therefore hath no rule over the Soule or command over the Conscience in matters divine tending to Gods worship though otherwise in matters Civill and Polâ—â—icall For as I have distinguished Christ from a temporall King so may his Kingdome bee distinguished from the other the one being wholly spirituall the other Per se directè wholly temporall This Kingdome or Grace is nothing else but our spiritual incorporation into the mysticall body of Christ being made lively branches of him who is the true Vine being established through faith in Christ This Kingdome consists not in worldly dignities terrestriall Tryumphs Citties Souldiers Councellours but in Righteousnesse peace and joy in the Holy Ghost Rom. 14.17 Rom. 14.17 All are not Subjects of this Kingdome that are visibly in this Kingdome For some there are that are dead Members rotten Branches having a shew of godlinesse but denying the power thereof Some againe there are which bee but Forraigners and Aliens though suffered to trade and traffique in it yet many of these have gotten the outward habite and have learned the Language of this Kingdome and doe so cunningly counterfeit that they cannot bee discerned from true subjects by any but by the King himselfe This Kingdome is but an initiation of the other Here have wee the first fruits there wee shall have the whole lampe this is but an earnest penny that other the full payment in this wee labour in that we receive the reward This is Christs Viâ—eyard that his place of payment this is his Worke-house that his Treasury this is the Field of War-fare that the place of Tryumph yet here we must reigne over our selves before we can be crowned there For Regnum Coelorum sperare non potest qui propria membra regere non potest Hee can never hope to reigne in Heaven who doth not first reigne over his owne members here on Earth This Kingdome is not so secure as the other heere many fall away others are cut off some intrude without their Wedding-garments and are therefore imprisoned as Spyes This Kingdome is often disturbed by sedition of Heresies and Schisme oft shaken by the gusts of persecution often shrewdly undermyned by privy temptations but never overwhelmed For he who is King thereof is the Rocke whereon this Kingdome is immoveably founded Unto this Kingdome all strangers are invited the gates or Ports are shut to none For Gremium Ecclesiae nulli clauditur But some are