Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n
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A67311
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A divine theater, or, A stage for Christians delivered in a sermon at Christ-Church in Oxford / by John Wall ...
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Wall, John, 1588-1666.
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1662
(1662)
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Wing W468; ESTC R5262
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16,628
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106
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Iohn in the fifth chap of the Revelat Iews and Graecians Cretes and Arabians they shall all heare they shall all see the Wonders of God and the Power of his Salvation They which liv'd before with Corporall eyes they which come after with Spirituall eyes the eyes of faith and knowledge and a right understanding of Heavenly Mysteries They shall beleive and see they shall tast and see by true experience and sure evidence how good the Lord is in the remission of sin and the free donation of aeternall Righteousnesse For the Promise is made to us and to our Children and to such as are afar off and to as many as the Lord our God shall call Acts the 2. and the 39. This Doctrine is most agreeable with the meaning of the Baptist who was a praecursor to our Lord and Saviour in his first coming though some extend the words to his latter coming when Christ shall be manifest to us and we shall be manifest to him before the Tribunall of his Justice But I wave that as somewhat indirect and desire much you would Suck the milke of Divine truth from the breasts of consolation that are open to you by the revelation of Christ Iesus and the sweet influence of his Evangelicall mercies when he came as raine into a fleec of wooll and did first visit us with his Corporall praesence Gabrill came the Angels sang the Babe sprang the Aire rang and a fountain of Oyle brake forth in the midst of the earth as a signe to all the Nations a miraculous signe of flowing bounties and healing mercies It is not to be imagined that any man now living should have seen him with bodily eyes unlesse it were Iohannes de temporibus as some conceit that was taken up to Heaven in a cloud above sixteen hundred yeares agoe But if we consider the power of his Salvation that came forth of Sion in perfect beauty the whole earth is full of it and we of this Land have found it above other Nations in a singular way and peculiar manner Sicut audivimus sic vidimus As we have heard so we have seen in the City of our God in the City of our King Salvation Corporall Salvation Spirituall the one of the Soul from Haeresy and distraction the other of the Body from Calamity and destruction while there are no tumults no fightings no violence no complaining in our streets Blessed are the people that are in such a case blessed are the people that have the Lord for their God Is it not a precious thing to see Holinesse and order meet together Doctrine and Discipline kisse each other Thanks be to God we enter the Sanctuarie and go to his Altars heare the word and partake of his Mysteries without the disturbance of Lunatick men and Fanatick spirits That Israel may rejoyce in him that made him and the Children of Sion be joyfull in their King There was a time when the Heavens were shut and the Seales of grace in a manner seal'd up by a marveilous restraint of Sacramentall Dispensations but now we see them open again with that blessed Saint and Proto Martyr Stephen when he be held the Son of man at the right hand of God having a great light round about as the Apostle had at his conversion the light of joy and comfort safety and deliverance When the wise men came to Ierusalem they cryed out Vidimus stellam ejus We have seen his star in the East and are come to worship him in like manner we that are inhabitants of this Mysticall Ierusalem may dry out Vidimus stellam ejus We have seen his starre and that as it were in the East from the Orientall praesence of our rising Sun and the sweet reduction of our Gracious Soveragin The starre of his Word the influence of his Grace the light of his Truth the motion of his Providence the working of his Power the power of his Doctrine the brightnesse of his Gospell and the glory of his Kingdome that Evangelicall Kingdome whereby he doth rule in the heart of every Christian O that we might as truly say we are come to worship and to serve him with Singlenesse of heart and Purity of mind in the beauty of Holinesle and the fervency of our Spirit But I feare we come short of those performances and do not present him as the men of the East are said to have done with Gold Myrrh and Frankinsense the Gold of Faith and Heavenly wisdome the Myrrh of Repentance and bitter Contrition the Frankinsense of Prayer and hearty Devotion Where is the Honour and the Worship the Duty and the Service the Labour and the Patience the Tribute and the Obedience we owe to the Power of so Great a Majestie Insteed of all these we do often meet with contempt and infidelity profanenesse and impiety whil'st some despise others deride the Grace which brings Salvation with it placeing themselves as the Prophet hath it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in the Chaire of pride or the Seate of the scornfull not unlike unto those VVho laughed and said hail King of the Jewes if thou be the Son of God come down from the crosse be saved others himselfe he cannot save I tremble to recount and am afraid to mention that Execrable speech which a Pope used to one of his Cardinalls when he said quantum nobis profuit de Christo â—abula Cursed Atheists and Prodigy of men Dic quâ Tysiphone quibus exagitare colubâ—is What aileth thee to Blaspheme the Lord of Glory hast thou more Devills in thy heart then were cast out of Mary God forbid any Christian should ever harbour so vile a thought and yet the Apostle sayes there shall be mockers in the last Dayes denying the Lord that bought them we also find by experience that many live as if they tooke the Mystery of Godlynesse for a History of deceivablenesse and held the Gospell of the Kingdome little better than a Golden Legend But let these Men know there is an auferatur impius for the wicked and though God be merciful to the penitent Soul they which provoke the eyes of his Glory shall never see it in the 26th Chapter of the Prophet Isaiah Oh how suddenly do they consume perish and come to a fearful end as the Psalmist speaks with condoling admiration Amongst divers instances of Divine Justice that of Alexander the sixth is very famous who invited his Cardinals to a great Feast with an intent to poyson them for their means and being very frolick dyed lamentably in the midst of his joviality of a poyson'd cup which he provided for others by the Providentiall mistake of his owne servants as you have it recorded in his life by Onuphrius Nec enim lex justior ulla est Quà m necis artifices arte perire suâ Beware then my deare brethren of profane Scurrility and mischievous practises whereby God is dishonour'd or man injured That you turne not the Grace into wantonnesse which teaches us