Selected quad for the lemma: soul_n
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A42520
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Exochē tou Christou, Christ's preeminence in a question propounded, discussed, & resolved, that Christ was the first, that with flesh and blood entred into the kingdome of heaven / by Nicholas Gawen.
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Gawen, Nicholas.
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1668
(1668)
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Wing G395; ESTC R23944
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29,971
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56
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holy mount in their Humane bodies from Heaven therefore Christ was not the first that entred into heaven with humane body because if the two former brought their bodies along with them from heaven it is likely they carried the same bodies along with them to heaven sol Answ That this Argument hath contain'd in it three Articles or petty questions First whether Moses and Elias appeared unto our Saviour with true real and substantial humane bodies 2ly whether they were the very self same Humane bodies and earthly tabernacles wherewith they were invested and cloathed during their peregrination and pilgrimage here on earth Thirdly whether brought these their bodies from Heaven Though I may easily grant that they appeared to our Saviour in true real and substantial Humane bodies as may easily be concluded and confirmed from those bodily and corporal actions that they performed on the mount speaking and discoursing with our Saviour face to face concerning his death and departure that he was to accomplish at Jerusalem And though I easily grant in a second place that those true and real bodies were the same bodies wherewith their soules were cloathed whiles they were on earth for had their bodies bin others they could not properly have been said to be Moses and Elias yet cannot I so easily grant in the third place that they brought their bodies along with them from Heaven Full well I know that it was an opinion embraced by many yea very many of the Ancient Fathers that the bodies of Henoch and Elias are reserved and kept alive in a third mansion house distinct and separate both from Heaven and earth which they call Paradise and that they shall returne and bodily appear on the earth before the day of Judgment yea and John the Divine and the Prophet Jeremie too whose death is not read of saith Hyppolitus If this opinion be true then doubtlesse Moses and Elias brought not their bodies from Heaven along with them to the holy mount But leaving that opinion as we found it concerning Moses the Scripture plainly concludeth concerning him that his body went not to Heaven together with his soul Deut 34.5 6. there we read So Moses the servant of the Lord died in the land of Moab according to the word of the Lord and he that is either God himself or an Angel of God buried him in a valley in the land of Moab over against Beth Peor but no man knoweth of his Sepulcre unto this day And this as I conceive accasioned that grave and solemne dispute and controversie according to St Judes Ecclesiastical tradition and relation v. 9. of his Epistle betwixt Michael the Archangel the devil about the body of Moses The devil urging as I conceive the necessity of the revelation of the place of sepulture thereof that by that meanes he might yeeld the Jewes a copious and abundant occasion of committing Idolatry who he well knew were apt enough by nature to honour God's faithfull servant too much and to neglect his Lord. Contrariwise the Arch-Angel pressing home the expediencie and necessitie of the concealment of it's place of burial for the prevention and disappointing of the occasion and introduction of Superstition and Idolatry Wherefore if the body of Moses went not together with his soul to heaven but as the Scripture teacheth remained on earth then surely could he not bring it along with him from heaven when he appeared on the holy mount and why may not the same be said of Elias that his body by the hand of God's omnipotencie had as sudden a restitution at his soul's descent from Heaven the very case of the soules of God's elect at the resurrection as it had dissolution at it's evection and transportation thither Sure I am whatsoever other men thinke the conceipt and opinion of the sons of the Prophets was that his body was not carried up into heaven but rather that the spirit of the Lord had taken him up and cast him upon some mountain or into some valley which made them so earnestly to sue unto Elisha That fifty strong and able men might goe and make search and inquisition after him 2 King 2.16 And these sons of the Prophets as I conceive were no plain or simple men but even Prophets themselves as man and son of man are all one in Hebrew phrase belonging and appertaining to the Schole or Colledge of Elias and Elisha whom a great Antiquary and Chronologer from prophane writers calleth by the name of Elulaeus Armagh Chron One objection remaineth that may be made that seems somewhat weighty and ponderous it is this Arg 4 Christ had his messengers and fore-runners his servants the Prophets going before his face to prepare his way before himself bodily and personally oppeared in flesh and blood here on earth to gather his Church and enter upon his Kingdome of grace what hurt then if we suppose some Saints and holy men of God corporally went before him as his 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 fore-runners and messengers before he himself personally and in his Humane body entred and actually took possession of his Kingdome of glory Answ Be it granted that Christ had his messengers and fore-runners before he came personally himself to plant his Church to gather his Saints together and to enter upon his Kingdome of grace yet hence it follows not that he had any that did fore-run him bodily before himself bodily and personally entred into his Kingdome of glory A necessity there was of the Antecedent but no necessity at all of the Consequent For the better and clearer Demonstration of my sense and meaning in this Answer we must observe and mark that the whole my stery of man's redemption is grounded and established on a threefold foundation First on God's eternal purpose before all time Secondy on his free promise at the beginning of time Thirdly on his mercifull performance in the fulness of time The first is God's eternal purpose before all time of this we must conceive thus that God to whose eternall knowledge all things are present and nothing past or to come foreseeing man's fall before all time purposed to send his Son Jesus Christ into the world to redeem him Ephes 1.9 Act 2.23 The second is God's free promise at the beginning of time when immediately upon the fall of Adam God promised Christ unto him saying unto the serpent I will put emnity between thee and the woman and between thy seed and her seed He that is to say Christ the seed of the woman shall break thy head and thou shalt bruise is heel This promise of Christ the woman's seed was the Gospel and the only comfort of Adam Abel Henoch Methuselah Noah and the rest of the godly Fathers till the time of Abraham At the time of Abraham this promise was turned into a covenant with Abraham and his seed and oft times repeated That in his seed all Nations should be blessed Gen 12.3 and 18.18 and 22.18 which promise and
Lord's salvation even the Lord Jesus Christ the Lord of life who is indeed as St John saith Apoc 22.2 A tree of life to every faithfull soul according to the former Aphorisme of the wise Solomon Hope deferred maketh the heart sick but when the desire cometh it is a tree of life Prov 13.12 Reas 4 Fourthly the servants went so long before before the Lord and Master himself came that so the disease might have time to come to it 's full height for the aggravation of Adam's sin that it might appear exceeding sinfull and the manifestation of the corruption of our Humane nature flowing from thence which by most certain and evident arguments of so many ages and generations was so far from being bettered and amended that aetas parentum pejor avis it still grew worse and worse The venime of Adam's sin was so strong and mortal the gulf and whirl-pool of his transgression so unsearchable as saith Musculus and thereupon to give us occasion the more dangerous and desperate the disease was the more to magnifie and admire the most profound skill of our Heavenly Physitian Reas 5 Fifty this was done for the declaration and manifestation of the most wonderfull goodnesse patience and long sufferance of the Lord who notwithstanding the whole earth was filled with violence and all flesh had corrupted its way for the space of almost 4000. yeares yet for bore all this while to destroy the world for it's iniquity and as the Apostle saith winked at the times of this ignorance And in this the Lord performed the part of a patient and long suffering creditor who suffers his debtors to run on long and far in his debt before he calls for payment and satisfaction and even then gives them mony of his own to pay the debt so God suffered the world to run on long in skore with him almost 4000 years and then sent Christ to pay the debt and make satisfaction whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation thorough faith in his blood to declare his righteousnesse for the remisston of sins that are past thorough the forbearance of God Rom 3.25 Reas 6 Sixthly and lastly The Father promised and sent his servants so long before before he sent at last his only begotten Son for the greater amplification illustration and magnification of the honour and dignitie of his Son For the greater and more noble the person the more the servants be to attend and guard him and likewise to run before him This appears plainly First from that Oracle of Solom Prov 14.28 In the multitude of people is the Kings honour This doubtlesse made David in pride and vain glory to number the people Secondly from Samuel instruction to the children of Israel concerning the order custome and manner of Kings 1 Sam 8.11 He will take your sons and appoint them for himself for his chariots and to be his horsmen and some shall run before his chariots And thirdly from Absolom's practice 2 Sam 15.1 who to declare unto the world his pomp power and Majesty prepared him chariots and horses and 50 men to run before him Now if Christ had had no messengers before his face to prepare his way before he came bodily and personally himself into his Kingdome of grace the royaltie state and Majestie of this great Lord and King both of Heaven and earth might have well seemed lesse then that of the Centurion who had souldiers under him and who could say to this mangoe and he goeth and to another come and he cometh and to his servant do this and he doth it Math 8 9. This Royall State and Majestie of Christ himselfe typifies to the life under the Parable of a certain housholder that planted a vineyard and let it it out to husbandmen and sent his servants in the first place but last of all his only son and heir that they might receive the fruits thereof Math 21.33 34. Now there is no doubt to be made but by this housholder is meant God the Father whom Christ Joh 15.1 calls an husbandman by this vineyard the people of the Jewes representing the whole Church of Christ whom immediately after their deliverance out of the land of Egypt God nourished 40. yeares in the wildernesse and then planted as a Vineyard in a very fruitfull hill Esay 5.1 even the Land of Canaan flowing with milk and hony Of this David sings and tryumphs Psal 81.8 9. Thou hast brought a vine out of Egypt thou hast cast out the Heathen and planted it thou prepared'st room for it and didst cause it to take deep root it filled the land By those husband men are meant the Scribes Pharises and Ecclesiasticall Rulers and Governours among the Jews who by their impietie and ill husbandry prov'd perfidious traitors and rebels against this great housholder in abusing his servants the Prophets who came first and then in murthering slaying his own Son Heir who came last to demand fruits of his vineyard and these are the Reasons why Christ had so many messengers and servants to goe before him before he came personally himselfe to erect and raise up his Kingdome of grace These are the reasons why as saith Saint Paul God at sundry times and in divers manners spake in times past unto the Fathers by the Prophets but in these last daies hath spoken to us by his Son whom he hath appointed heir of all things Heb 1.1 2. But though Christ had many servants still going before him before his bodily introduction into his Kingdome of grace yet still I say hence it follows not that any of his Saints members went before him and prevented him before his own bodily induction investure into his Kingdome of glory A necessity there was of the former for the reasons before alleaged but there was no necessity at all of the later what necessity could there be that Christ should have his forerunners in the flesh to goe before him before himself bodily ascended into the Kingdome of Heaven what to carry news to God the Father his holy Angels and Saints of Christs's tryumphant victory over death his resurrection and to inform them that Christ himself would shortly bodily appear in his own person in Heaven As Ahimaaz the son of Zadoch ran speedily to carry David good newes concerning his victory over his rebellious son Absolom 2 Sam 18. there was no necessity I say of all this God his holy Angels and the Saints themselves doubtlesse by revelation from God knew sufficiently that Christ after he had finished his passion should himself bodily enter into his glory Lu 24.26 For it became him for whom are all things by whō are all things in bringing many sons unto glory to make the captain of their salvation and therefore their ringleader perfect thorough sufferings Heb 2.10 Nay there was a double necessity that no flesh and blood should enter into the Kingdome of Heaven before Christ himself First in respect of Christ himself Secondly in respect of his members First in respect of Christ himself for if any Saint had bodily entred into heaven before Christ himself then that Saint had bin the first fruits of them that slept and not Christ Secondly in respect of the members of Christ there was a necessity that some should not enter bodily into Heaven without others that so as the Apostle saith Some without others might not be made perfect Heb 11.40 But briefly to recapitulate what hath been spoken a necessity there was that Christ of all men should first enter bodily into the Kingdome of Heaven for those 6. causes or reasons before alleaged 1. Thereby to declare the Analogie and correspondence between the first and the second Adam Secondly Thereby to confirme that Christ is the first fruits Thirdly for that Christ is our High Priest and therefore ought first and before all other to enter into the holy place Fourthly for that his Humane nature was the first flesh that God assumed and therefore in all reason ought it first to be glorified Fifthly for that Christ is the head of the Church therefore to him belongeth the Preeminence of the first entrance Sixthly for that Christ is the Lord and heir of all things therefore to him appertaineth the first entrance and possession of the Kingdome of Heaven To these may be added vice coronidis in the seaventh and last place the confirmation and establishment of divers and sundry expresse testimonies of the Scriptures all avouching and confirming the same thing that Christ first of all bodily ascended and entred into Heaven Joh 3.13 saith Christ No man hath ascended up into heaven but he that came down from Heaven even the Son of man which is in Heaven This one Text of Scripture quite strangles and cuts the very throat-strings nerves and finews of all those counter-Arguments drawn and taken from the examples of Henoch Moses and Elias Coloss 1.18 saith the Apostle Christ is the head of the body the Church the beginning the first borne from the dead that in all things he might have the preeminence which could not possibly be if ever flesh and blood entred into Heaven before him and for this cause it is that the Apostle Saint Paul calls him our Captain or Leader Heb 2.10 And our fore-runner Heb 6.20 Whither the fore-runner is for us entred even Jesus that is made an High Priest for ever after the order of Melchizedech Deo Gloria In all this that I have here written I submit to the sounder and sincerer Judgement and censure of my Mother the Orthodox Church of England FINIS