suggestions of Satan and the dulnesse of our owne flesh good Lord remoue these impediments and giue vs eueâ—â— â—ne grace to heare thy word in feare and â—â—uerence as in thy presence and to receiue the same not as from man but as from Iesus Christ and when we haue heard thy word graunt that it may be not the sauor of death to our deeper condemnation but the sauor of life to our eternall comfort and saluation For this cause write the same in euery one of our hearts and tranforme vs into the obedience of the same in our life and conuersation And because Satan is a deadly enemie to the ministerie of thy word good Lord confound Satan dissolue in euery one of vs the cursed workes of the Diuel worke thine owne good works shew thy selfe more merciful in blessing of thy word then Satan is or can be malicious in hindring of the same Heare vs we beseech thee in these requests and graunt these graces to euery one of vs not for our owne merits for vnto vs belongeth nothing but eternall shame and confusion for our sinnes but for the merites of thy deare sonne Iesus Christ in whom thou art well pleased to whom with thee and the holy Ghost be giuen of euery one of vs all praise honor and glory both now and for euermore Amen The voice of a person 1. Carnall of Euill I do it and will do Good I do it not nor will do 2. Regenerate of Euill I do it but would not do it Good I do not that I would 3. Glorified of Euill I do it not neither 〈◊〉 I do it Good I do it and will do it To the right Honorable and vertuous Ladies the Countesse of Cumberland and the Countesse of Warwicke grace and peace RIght Honorable in the former 〈◊〉 is the combat of Christ in this latter is set downe the combat of a Christian. He that fought with our head will fight with the members and he that assaulted Christ will assaile all Christians But Christ did beare troubles and was borne out of them we must haue troubles and shall be borne out of them If our afflictions were plagues as to the Egyptians curses as to Cham destruction as to Sodome desolation as to Israel then had we cause to flie from them as Moses did from that miraculous serpent But since they are but the trials of faith corrections of a father visitations from the Bishop of our soules since they are as Phlebotomie to a Pleurisie and a purgation to a Plethora they are to be endured with all patience How Christ did endure them you may reade in that Treatise how a Christian must you may see in this The former Treatise I presented to your honorable brother this latter to you most honorable sisters I desired to annex this to the former discourse because it is sutable to that present argument and I know not to whom I may better present it then to you who haue experience of this Christian warfare If it please you but to reade these holy meditations and to entertaine this poore mite into your rich treasury by the reading I doubt not but you shal haue much comfort and by your entertaining the church shal haue much good Now that good God who hath giuen your mind to know him giue you also an heart to loâ— him and as you are Honorable in the eyes of this world so he make you most honorable in the eyes of his Maiestie And thus crauing pardon I commit you to the grace of that God who will honor them that loue him and comfort them that seeke comfort from him Your Honors in the Lord Robert Hill A comfort for the feeble minded wherein is set downe that spirituall combat which is betwixt a Christian and Satan Lidia SIr I heard you with much comfort when you preached vpon the temptations of Christ. I pray you instruct me concerning the temptations of a Christian and giue me leaue to aske you certaine questicâ—s Paul Say on Lidia What is it which we call Christiâ—â— warfare Paul Christian warfare is concerning the right way of fighting in the spirituall battel Lidia Which be the parts thereof Paul The parts thereof are the preparation to battell and the combat it selfe Lidia How may I prepare my self vnto it Paul To the preparation you must vse the complete armor of God Eph. 6. 13. For this cause take vnto you the whole armour of God that ye may be able to resist in the euill day and hauing finished all things stand fast Lidia How many parts hath this armor Paul The parts thereof are especially six 1. truth 2. iustice 3. Euangelicall obedience 4. faith 5. the word of God 6. continuall and feruent prayer with watching as you may reade Eph. 6. 14. Stand fast therefore your loynes girded about with veritie and hauing oâ— the brest-plate of righteousnesse 15. And your feet shod with the preparation of the Gospell of peace 16. Aboue all take the shield of Faith wherewith ye may quench all the fierie darts of the wicked 17. And take the helmet of saluation and the sword of the spirit which is the word of God 18. And pray alwayes with all maner of prayer and supplication in the spirit and watch thereunto with al perseuerance and supplication for all Saints 1. Pet. 5. 8. Be sober and watch for your aduersarie the diuel as a roring Lion walketh about seeking whom he may deuoure Lidia What then is the combat Paul The combat is a mutuall conflict of them that fight spiritually Lidia Who are the warriors Paul The warriors are the tempter and the Christian souldier Ephes. 6. 12. For we wrastle not against flesh and bloud but against principalities against powers and against the worldly gouernors the princes of the darknesse of this world against spirituall wickednesses which are in high places Lidia Whom call you the tempter Paul The tempter is the Prince or his helpers The Prince is Satan and his Angels which are spirituall wickednesses in high things His helpers are the flesh and the world Lid. What is the conflict of these warriors Paul The conflict of all these is temptation whereby a man is prouoked to commit such wickednesse as is hurtfull to the saluation of his soule 1. Pet. 2. 11. Dearely beloued I beseech you as strangers and pilgrimes abstaine from fleshly lustes which fight against the soule Lidia What must I note in this Christian souldier Paul In the souldier two things are to be considered his resisting and his fall Lidia VVhat is his resistance Paul Resistance is an action whereby the souldier doth withstand temptation through grace working inwardly in him 1. Iohn 2. 14. I write vnto you babes because ye haue knowne the Father I haue written to you fathers because ye haue knowne him that is from the beginning I haue written to you yong men because ye are strong and the word of God abideth in you and ye haue ouercome the wicked 1. Pet. 5.
her sonne to cause him to heare their prayers which is to make her euen aboue God himselfe And therfore in truth they giue more to Saints then the Diuell required of Christ. Againe they answer That which may be done to earthly Princes may much more be done to Saints in heauen Now say they we kneele and bow to earthly Princes and do reuerence to the chaire of Estate why then may we not to Saints But we answer them It is true we do kneele and bow vnto earthly Princes but all this that we do we do it not so much to their persons as to that authoritie God hath laid vpon them and we do it onely to shew our subiection vnto thē But to kneele to Saints is no token of ciuill honour as this is which we giue to earthly Princes but a part of diuine honour For by that they do acknowledge that the Saints can heare their prayers search the hearts that they be omnipotent and present in euery place which honour is due to God alone Yet though we may not thus adore Saints as the Papists do we do acknowledge a certaine honour due vnto them this honour stands in three things First by giuing thāke◠to God for them in that the Lord hath giu◠his Church in former times such worthy instruments Secondly by a reuerent estimation of them in that we accompt of them as the friends of God Thirdly by honouring them though not with diuine worship yet by imitating their vertues and this is all that honour we owe vnto the Saints departed Now if that the adoring of Saints be flat vnlawfull and forbidden then it is not lawfull to appoint and dedicate solemne dayes vnto them to fast for them to worship the◠to worship their reliques all these be vnlawfull and yet common among the Papists Neither can the Church of Rome iustly accuse vs of the like though we haue and retaine the names of Saints dayes in the church of England because we dedicate those dayes not to the worship of Saints as they do but to the seruice and worship of God alone We must mark how our Sauiour Christ in alleaging and expounding of Moses ioynes worship and feare together to shew that none can truly worship God but they that do truly feare God Men commonly think they haue done enough if they come to church on dayes appointed listen a while to the word receiue the Sacraments they thinke this is all the worship of God that he requires though they want the feare of God in their hearts but alas all this is to no purpose if men want the feare of God practise iniustice in their particular callings Reade the first of Esa. vers 14. The Lord hates all the seruice and worship which the Iewes offered him not simply because these things were vnlawfull in themselues for the Lord had commaunded them but because they ioyned not not so much to their persons as to that authoritie God hath laid vpon them and we do it onely to shew our subiection vnto thē But to kneele to Saints is no token of ciuill honour as this is which we giue to earthly Princes but a part of diuine honour For by that they do acknowledge that the Saints can heare their prayers search the hearts that they be omnipotent and present in euery place which honour is due to God alone Yet though we may not thus adore Saints as the Papists do we do acknowledge a certaine honour due vnto them this honour stands in three things First by giuing thākes to God for them in that the Lord hath giuē his Church in former times such worthy instruments Secondly by a reuerent estimation of them in that we accompt of them as the friends of God Thirdly by honouring them though not with diuine worship yet by imitating their vertues and this is all that honour we owe vnto the Saints departed Now if that the adoring of Saints be flat vnlawfull and forbidden then it is not lawfull to appoint and dedicate solemne dayes vnto them to fast for them to worship the◠to worship their reliques all these be vnlawfull and yet common among the Papists Neither can the Church of Rome iustly accuse vs of the like though we haue and retaine the names of Saints dayes in the church of England because we dedicate those dayes not to the worship of Saints as they do but to the seruice and worship of God alone We must mark how our Sauiour Christ in alleaging and expounding of Moses ioynes worship and feare together to shew that none can truly worship God but they that do truly feare God Men commonly think they haue done enough if they come to church on dayes appointed listen a while to the word receiue the Sacraments they thinke this is all the worship of God that he requires though they want the feare of God in their hearts but alas all this is to no purpose if men want the feare of God practise iniustice in their particular callings Reade the first of Esa. vers 14. The Lord hates all the seruice and worship which the Iewes offered him not simply because these things were vnlawfull in themselues for the Lord had commaunded them but because they ioyned not to the seruice of God the feare of God but their hands were full of crueltie iniustice and they practised no mercie to men and whatsoeuer men professe in the worship of God and shew not the feare of God conscience in their particular callings and dealings with men all is but hypocrisie Whereas we teach that a man may be certainely perswaded by faith of his election and saluation the Papists say we cannot proue it out of the word of God Now what though we cannot find this sentence in so many words I am elected yet as our Sauiour Christ by alleaging Scripture gathered the sense of it so may we without blame gather that out of the word which is the same in sense which we hold in this point We see it is our dutie not only to worship God with outward worship of the bodie but with inward worship in the soule mind will affections and in the conscience Paul he preached the Gospell of God vnto the the Corinthians to bring their very thoughts into subiection that is so to order them that they might not thinke any thing but that which was holy and according to the will of God Then the diuell left him c. In this verse is set downe the third and last part of the conflicts of Christ with the diuell namely the issue and euent of them which is that glorious victorie and conquest which our Sauiour Iesus Christ got against the diuell And this is the most principall part of all the rest For what comfort could we haue had in Christs temptations in the preparation in the conflicts seuerall temptations vnlesse Christ had vanquished Satan and
knee and kneele to Princes to giue thē this ciuill honour thereby shewing we do acknowledge them to be placed aboue vs in authoritie and dignitie in the world by God The second kind of honour is diuine or religious worship when we giue such honor to another that thereby we do ascribe diuinitie diuine power vnto it acknowledging thereby that it is some diuine thing aboue all creatures And this we do first when we ascribe the godhead to it and make it God secondly when we ascribe Gods attributes to it as omnipotencie prouidence c. thirdly whē we acknowledge it to be the creator and maker of all things fourthly when we acknowledge it to be the giuer of those good things we enioy and the defender of vs from euill This diuine worship is either inward in the heart or outward in the body Inward diuine worship is whē a man giues his heart to any thing by beleeuing in it by louing of it and reioycing in it aboue all other creatures and that because it hath in it the god-head or diuine nature or is God because it hath the attributes of God because it is the Creator and defender of all things or else because it giues vs all good things and keepeth vs from all euill The outward diuine worship is when a man any wayes by prostrating himselfe and bowing of his body doth it to manifest his faith hope loue confidence feare or any gift in his hart thereby confessing it is his Creator defender and preseruer So then here is a manifest difference betweene outward ciuill worship and that diuine worship which is outward because by that ciuill worship we do only acknowledge them to whome we do it to be our superious but by this outward diuine worship we do acknowledge that to which we do this worship to be God Creator and defender of vs and all other things Now in this place our sauior Christ meaneth not that ciuill worship but he vnderstandeth outward diuine worship There is another seruice mentioned which is feare when we giue performe obedience to another it is either a seruice absolute or in part absolute when we obey the commandement of another simply without all exception when we obey another not onely outwardly in body but inwardly in soule will affections with the conscience and this is proper to God alone neither may this absolute obedience be giuen to any creature onely God alone is to haue this absolute worship so as we must obey him without all exceptions or question and that in body soule will affections and in the very conscience There is a second seruice which is only in part which we may giue to men as to the Magistrate being in authoritie aboue vs vnder God for God hath giuen them leaue to make lawes and power to giue commandements and they must be obeyed in ciuill things yet with condition In the Lord so long as their commandements stand agree with Gods commandements Again they must be obeyed onely with our bodies their lawes cannot reach vnto mens hearts and consciences to bind them And of these two in this place we are to vnderstand that obedience which is absolute to obey the commandement of the Lord absolutely and simply without condition or exception euen in all things whatsoeuer he commaunds vs following herein our father Abraham who to performe obediēce to the Lord forsooke his natiue countrey was ready to offer his sonne his onely sonne his beloued sonne his sonne Izak the sonne of the promise Now followeth the person to whom this worship must be giuen This diuine worship whether outward or inward is due to God alone neither may it be giuen to any other creature though neuer so excellent And this is taught vs plainly by Christ his answer and it is agreeable to the first and second commandements where we are forbidden expresly to giue this diuine and religious worship either to any creature or to idols but we must haue acknowledge Iehouah to be our God alone Reuel 19 10. whē Iohn was about to worship the Angell and to giue him some part of this diuine worship he forbids him and tels him that he is but his fellow seruant and chargeth Iohn to worship God alone So then by this which hath bene said we see how fitly our Sauiour Christ answered the diuell alleaged this place of Scripture to stop his mouth The diuell had shewed him all the kingdomes of the world and the glorie of them all and tels Christ if so be he would but acknowledge him to be the giuer of them he would bestow them all vpō him Now our Sauiour Christ answereth that he may not giue that honour to him which belongeth to God alone and to none else First we learne from this answer of Christ that it is not lawfull for vs to giue this diuine worship either inward or outward to any creature though neuer so excellent neither to Angels nor Saints because it is peculiar and proper to God alone And therfore if any mā shal prostrate his bodie before Saints to pray vnto thē he maketh them no lesse then Gods in giuing them that priuiledge which is proper to God namely to search the heart that they can heare our praiers that they be omnipotent omni-present that is present in all places at once with all things which can be affirmed of none but God alone And yet this is the common practise of the Papists to yeeld this diuine worship to Saints and dead men and women and to adore and worship them But the Papists answer They do not worship Saints with that worship which belongs to God neither do they worship thē as Gods Why no more would the Diuell here haue Christ so to do neither durst he presume to tempt Christ to worship him as God but to acknowledge him to be the giuer of all the kingdomes of the earth And the Diuell requires no more but outward worship and yet our Sauior Christ tels him that this outward worship which he demaunded was proper to God alone none may or ought to haue it saue he alone Now the Papists do giue that to Saints which Christ denyeth to the Diuell for they auouch that Saints can deliuer them from this disease and that disease They make them patrons not onely of priuate men but of whole kingdomes coūtries as of Italie S. Martin of Spaine S Iames of England S. George c. Now to giue a kingdome which Christ denied to Satan is a lesse matter then to be a patron of a kingdome for one may giue a kingdome that cannot defend a kingdome Nay in truth whatsoeuer they say they make the Saints gods for they pray vnto them they make them intercessors for them vnto God to procure them fauour in things concerning the life to come They call the Virgin Mary the Queene of heauen they make Christ to be her vnderling a punie for they pray her to commaund