A Sermon Preached vpon Sunday beeing the twelfth of March Anno. 1581. within the Tower of London In the hearing of such obstinate Papistes as then were prisoners there By William Fulke Doctor in Diuinitie and M. of Penbroke Hall in Cambridge Imprinted at London by Thomas Dawson for George Bishop 1581. A Sermon preached by M. D. Fulke THe place of Scripture which I haue chosen to speake of at this time and vpon the present occasion is written in the 17. Chapiter of the Gospel after Saint Iohn and the 17. verse of the same being part of the wordes of our Sauiour Christ vnto his heauenly Father in that most vehement and heauenly prayer which hee maketh for his disciples and his whole Church a litle before his Passion Iohn 17. Sanctifie them in thy trueth thy word is the trueth AFter that our Sauiour Christ had accomplished his office of preaching and sealed the doctrine of his redemption by institution of his holie Supper finally as it were taking his leaue of teaching his Apostles had instructed them of pacient bearing of his Crosse by setting foorth such comforts whereunto they should leane and by promising the comming of his spirite lifted them vp to a better hope then the present miseries did portende discoursing of the glorie and Maiestie of his kingdom wherof they should be partakers as is conteined at the full in the thrée Chapiters going immediately before The Euangelist declareth in the beginning of this seuenth Chapiter howe hée conuerteth himselfe to prayer that this his most heauenly doctrine might be made effectuall first in the heartes of his Apostles which then were his hearers and afterwarde in all true members of his Churche which by their Ministerie shoulde bée gathered in his name Wherfore among other requestes that hée maketh for his Disciples in this prayer this is one especially that his father would sāctifie them in his truth which is his holie worde the only outwarde witnesse of his will which is as much in effect as that it woulde please his Maiestie of his infinite goodnesse and for his sake who sanctified him selfe for them to be a sacrifice propitiatorie to dedicate them vnto his father to consecrate or hallowe them by his holie spirite vnto him selfe as his chosen and peculiar possession according to that most holy trueth which hée hath reuealed in his worde and doctrine of saluation conteined in the Gospell of his sonne that béeing truely vnited vnto him hée may be glorified in them and they made by him partakers if eternall felicitie Sanctifie them O Father saith hée in thy truth thy worde is the trueth There are two speciall reasons why our Sauiour Christ commendeth his Disciples vnto the holie and sanctifying protection of God his heauenly Father the one conteined in the verse going immediately before the other in the verse that followeth immediatly the one being the great daunger they stood in the other the great and high office also that they were called vnto Concerning the former he said they are not of the world euen am I am not of the worlde In that they were not of the worlde it could not be auoided but that they should be hated of the world as he said also in expresse wordes They therefore that shoulde be hated of all the worlde had néede to bée mightily protected They that had so many enemies must needes haue a strong defender and where should they haue any rest that had all the worlde against them but in God who is greater then the worlde And therefore in consideration of that great perill they were in which must remain in the world although they were not of the worlde although they were hated and persecuted of the worlde our Sauiour Christ committeth them in this prayer to his fathers holie tuition Forasmuch as they are not of the worlde but inheritours of heauen Sanctifie them in thy trueth Againe cōsidering how waightie a charge is laide vpon them as hée sheweth in the nexte verse As thou hast sent mée into the world so haue I sent them into the world hée desireth his Father to make them able to execute that charge saying Sanctifie them in thy trueth thy worde is the truth As though hée should say Knowing that they are men in whom naturally dwelleth the spirit of errour and not of trueth and yet such men as I haue chosen to testifie vnto the worlde the same trueth which thou O heauenly Father hast sent vnto them by mée I confesse they are not able of them selues to know the trueth to speake the trueth to loue the trueth for that mueterate corruption that beareth the sway in all the children of Adam therfore I beséech thee holy Father to sanctifie them in thy trueth euen in thy holy word which is the witnesse and expresse declaration of thy reuealed trueth that by thy sanctification they may be renued in the inner man to will and loue those things which thou commaundest by thy trueth they may be deliuered from errour blindnesse and ignoraunce in which they are holden Captiues and by thy holy worde they may be instructed from time to time that no forgetfulnesse of thy truth do take them but hauing recourse alwayes vnto it as to a light shining in a darke place they may be méete to accomplish the work of so high a calling And this is generally the summe and effect of the wordes of our Sauiour Christ in this his praier Sanctifie them in thy trueth thy word is the trueth But that I may speake of them more particularly I will diuide my Treatise vpon this text into two parts In the former I wil set foorth the request of our Sauiour Christ vttered in these wordes Sanctifie them in thy trueth in the other the exposition whiche hée maketh of the trueth when hée saieth Thy word is the trueth Concerning the request which hée maketh for their sanctification wée haue to cōsider first that it is neither lawfull nor possible for any man to haue any accesse vnto God to stand before his presence to looke for any benefit at his hands without true holinesse For the Lorde béeing holie abhorreth all that is prophane polluted and defiled testifiyng both by Moses and by the Apostle Peter that if wée will approch or come neare vntoo him wée must be sanctified wée must be holie be you holie or sanctified saieth the Lorde for I am holie According to him which hath called you which is holie be you holie saieth the Apostle To shewe that sanctification is necessary the Lorde ordeined all the sanctifying rites of the lawe by which the Tabernacle the Altar the Priestes the sacrifices and all the people were first sanctified and made holie before they coulde be accepted of him to be the Lordes Tabernacle his Altar his Priestes his sacrifice his people Yea this light of God shined euen in the darknesse of naturall vnderstanding so that without reuelation from heauen the Gentiles acknowledged that no man coulde come neare
that the Councell of Basill lacked the Popes confirmation No truely for although I might alledge the confirmation of Pope Foelix whiche was chosen by the same Councell after they had deposed Eugenius for his contumacy the Bull of Pope Nicholas the fift which succéeded Pope Eugenius and confirmeth all thinges decreed in the Councell of Basill yet I will stande vpon the very same Eugenius the fourth which gathered held the Councell of Ferraria and Florentia against the Councell of Basill For euen the same Eugenius after he had in thrée solemne Buls in which hée complayned that the Councell of Basill vsurped authoritie aboue the Pope decreed the dissolution of the same condemning all the doings thereof at the length was compelled to reuoke his own Bulles and to declare that the Councell was lawfully coÌ„tinued notwithstanding his Bulles and decrees to the contrarie His Bull of reuocation is to be seene in the 16. Session of the Councell of Basill Beside this in the nexte Session hée was sworne by his legates when they were incorporated into the Councell to defende that Councell and by especiall wordes to defend the decrée of the Councell of Constance made in the fourth Session therof by which the Councell is decreed to bée aboue the Pope and the Pope bounde to obey the Councell and the decrées therof Last of all by his Presidentes hée accepted such presidency of the Councell as the councell would graunt which was without all iurisdiction of compulsion béeing him selfe compelled to retaine that order of proceeding with the councell before his presidency was admitted had obserued and woulde not change now that they were content to make him in his legates there president What certaintie of truth therefore may bee looked for in the determinations of Popes and generall councelles you may easily perceiue You haue heard the couÌ„cell against the pope and the pope against the Councell Councell against Councell one pope against another pope and the same pope against himselfe and all this is one question whether the pope or the generall Councell ought to bée taken as an infallible rule of truth that cannot erre Out of which contrarie decréees no other certaintie can bée concluded but y t it is certaine they may both erre and therfore it is euident that there is none other certaine and vndoubted recorde of the worde of truth but onely the newe Testament and the olde the holy Canonicall bookes of the holy Scriptues as it were easie to confirme euen by the iudgement of the most auncient and best approoued Fathers but that I haue alreadie helde you so long as I may not procéede any further After the sufficiencie of the holy Scriptures to teach vs al truth being thus maintained and the obiections made by the aduersaries coÌ„futed I had thought to haue added an other discourse concerning the right certain way of interpretation and vnderstanding of the holy Scriptures but because the time is so far spent y t I shall not be able to go through it I will altogether omitt it desiring God of his infinite mercy that as hee hath testified by his sonne our sauiour Christ Iesus y t we can haue no accesse vnto his Maiestie without sanctificatioÌ„ in the word of truth so it would please him by his holy spirit to coÌ„secrate dedicate vs wholy vnto his pleasure that following the infallible rule of truth described in his holy word we may glorifie his name in this life and after be partakers of eternall felicitie purchased vnto vs by the only merites of our Lord Sauiour Iesus Christ vnto whome with the father the holy Ghoste one eternall God be al honor glory power dominioÌ„ now and euer Amen ¶ Imprinted at London at the three Cranes in the Vintree by Thomas Dawson for George Bishop 1581. 2. Pet 1. Leuit. 11. 19. 20. 1. Pet. 1. In Psal. 96. In Epist. ad Eph. hom 18. In Psal. 9. 6. Apoe 19. 20. 22. Apoc. 7. Hebr. 12. Iam. 1. 1. Cor. 1. 2. Cor. 3. Gene. 8. Gene. 6. Iohn 15. Sess. 6. Can. â— Rom. 14. Heb. 11. Ephe. 2. Iacob 1. Rom. 4. Prou. 15. 21. Prou. 18. Rom. 4. Rom. 3. Ioh. 13. 15 Leu. 11. Ephe. 3. Ezech. 37. 1. Tim. 4. Rom. 8. In Epist. ad Himer 2. Thess. â— Psal. 51. Rom. 1. 1. Cor. 6. Prouer. 30. Deut. 12. Deut. 4. 12. Esaye 8. Iohn 5. Iohn 17. Rom. 5. Rom. 8. 2. Tim. 3. 2. Timo. 3 2. Tim. 3. Act. 17. Ioan. 5. Luk. 24. Deut. 13. 2. Thes. â— Ephes. 4. Hebr. 11. Rom. 10. Gen. 4. Gen. 5. Acts. 7. Lib. 3. Cáp. 2. Lib. 2. Cap. 35 Luke 3. Lib. 2. Ca. 26 Lib. 3. Cap 3â— â—usch lib. Cap. vlt. Ephe. 2. Rom. 10. 1. Tim. 4. Apoc. 2. Gal. 2. Rom. 3. Ioan. 16. Act. 10. Gal. 2. 1. Tim. 5. Ephes. 5. Gal. 5. Rom. 3. Iac. 2. Lib. 5. Cap. 26 In Catalog 5. Cap. Inpatifi Contra. 〈◊〉 lib. 1. Cap. 2. Contra. du Epist. Pelag. lib. 2. Cap. 4. 1. Cor. 11.
vnto God no man coulde please God no man coulde looke for rewarde of God without holinesse And this they testified euen in their manner of worshipping of GOD which although it were cleane contrarie to Gods expresse commaundement in visible shapes and bodily images yet they declared by their maner of consecrations dedications purifications and other lyke ceremonies of their owne deuising that such as will haue any thing to doe with God must be hallowed as God is holie and all thinges that apperteyne vnto him The Papistes also euen as the heathen whose religion and ceremonies in many thinges they followe in so many consecrations and sanctifications as they vse in their Idolatrous seruice meane to signifie euen so much And hereof commeth all that preparation pompe and furniture whiche they vse in woorshipping of their Images which they defende by the same reasons and worshippe after the same maner as the Heathen did their Images although nothing be more directly contrarie to the expresse commaundement of God The Papistes thinke their idolatrie to bée defended when they say that they worship not the stockes and stones the matter and fourme of their Images as Gods but worship God in them And did not the wiser sort of the Gentils bring the same reason to defende their Idolatrie Yes verely S. Augustine testifieth that one of them saide I worship not that stone nor that Image which is without senses for your Prophet could not know that it hath eies and seeth not and I be ignorant that this image neyther hath life nor seeth with eyes nor heareth with eares Therefore I worship not the thing but I adore that which I sée serue that which I sée not who is this A certaine inuisible diuine power which hath the preheminence of that Image Behold the Heathen man affirmeth that they worshipped not the Idolles but God by the Idolles euen as the Israelites in worshipping their golden Calfe pretended by it to worship the God that brought them out of the land of Egypt And Aaron proclaimed a holie day to be celebrated vnto Iehoua the only true God The multitude of their Gods which they worshipped also they excused euen as the Papists do for they acknowledge but one God as the principall highest and only gouernour of all the poeticall Gods euen as the Poet Horatius speaketh of Iupiter Qui res hominum ac deorum qui mare terras varijsque mundum temperat horis vnde nil maius generatur ipso c Which gouerneth all the affaires of men and Gods the sea and the lande and the whole worlde with diuers seasons wherefore nothing is brought forth greater then hée neither is ther any thing like him or seconde vnto him yet for all that Pallas hath obtained the next honour vnto him Sée what the opinion euen of the Poets was concerning the principall worship due vnto the highest God But the Philosophers and such as by the Christians were charged with worshipping of Images were yet more subtle and came nearer to the Papistes For they not only affirmed that they worshipped God by the Images as Chrysostome witnesseth but also béeing further vrged touching the multitude of Gods they answered that in Mars they worshipped the power of God in Pallas the wisedome of God in Venus the loue and pleasure of God and so of the rest yea they doubted not to affirme that those pettie Gods whom they worshipped as Augustine sheweth were the powers and Ministeries of that great God and euen the verie same which the Christians call Angelles To whom Augustine very well replyeth and saieth I woulde you would truely worship the Angelles you shoulde easily learne of them not to worship them Euen so I woulde the Papistes woulde truely worship the Angelles they should learne of them not to worship them worship God saieth the Angell to S. Iohn who fell downe at the Angelles féete to worship him for I am thy fellowe seruant and fellowe seruant of all the faithfull the Prophetes and them that kéepe the sayinges of this booke And yet Saint Iohn was not fallen into so grosse idolatrie that hée woulde worshippe the Angell as God but euen as the papistes he was deceiued by humane affection to giue some parte of the honor which is wholy dewe to God to the angell as to a diuine creature and messenger of God Yee I woulde the Papistes woulde ryghtlie worshippe all the saintes of God for then shoulde they learne of them not to worshippe them but God the authoure of theire sanctification to whome all Saynts ascribe all honour all glorye all powre all myght all riches all wisedome all hollynesse all saluation There canne no greater honour bee giuen vnto Sayntes then to honor their Lorde their Sauioure their Redeemer their God their Father their sanctifyer And it is greate contumely and iniury to the blessed Saintes to robbe God of his glorie to bestow vpon them Wherefore if the Papists woulde truely honour them then they woulde follow their faith their obedience their humilitie and all their godly vertues Whereby they should be sure to honour and worship none with spirituall and religious worship but God only whome they alone honoured and worshipped if they were not deceiued as Saint Iohn was in worshipping the Angell Well it is plaine enough by that which hath béen spoken that no man can haue accesse vnto God no man can please God no man can be ioyned vnto God without holines without the which as the Apostle saieth that no man shall sée God Séeing therfore that sanctification is so necessarie we must séeke from whence it is to bee had Our Sauiour Christ in the words of this prayer doth plainly teach vs from whēce all true holinesse doeth flow and by what meanes wée may bée consecrated from whence sanctification is to bée receiued namely from God only the only fountain of all holines as of all good things Sanctifie them saith hée in thy trueth In vaine therefore doe men séeke sanctification but in him that is all holines Our Sauiour Christ by this his prayer teacheth vs not only that holines is necessarie for all the children of GOD but also from whence they must obteine the same For he desireth not at the handes of God that thing which men may either haue of thēselues or of any other Authour then of God only Whereof it followeth that God only sanctifieth his elect by this holy spirite of sanctification through the meditation of his only sonne our sauiour Iesus Christ who as S. Paule saieth is made vnto vs by God wisedome righteousnesse sanctification and redemption Therefore they that seeke sanctification in themselues or by any meanes of their owne labour all in vayne neyther is it possible for them to approach neare vnto God Wherefore the Gentiles although they did know that holinesse was necessarie for them which should haue to doe with God or thinges apperteyning to God yet whilest they sought it in themselues they
God That execrable and accursed praiers sacrifices doe not rather prouoke the wrath of God then his fauour Are not all the wayes of the impious vngodly man abhomination vnto the Lorde And howe shoulde that which God abhorreth dispose a man or how shoulde a man dispose himselfe by that which God abhorreth to bée a méete vessell to receiue the grace and fauour of God Forasmuch then as all men are vngodly or wicked before they bee iustified fréely by the grace of God all their works must needes bée vngodly wicked and vniust For they are only good and righteous workes which came from a righteous man from a man made righteous or iustified through faith by the grace of God according to the spirit of sāctificatiō which is giuen to thē only that are iustified although neither al the works of a iustified mā are good nor any perfectly good because we haue receiued y ◠spirit in measure our sanctificatiō is begunne not perfected in this life therefore our Sauiour Christe praieth that his father would sanctifie his Apostles in his truth of whō he confessed before y t they were holy cleane that is sāctificatiō was begun in thē by his word which they had hearde in which worde of truth he now praieth that they may more more be sanctified made holy Wherefore all Popish preparations vnto sanctificatiō howsoeuer they denounce the denier of thē to bee accursed are in the sight of God no better then abhominable accursed euen by this worde For God only is the authour beginner continuer perfecter of sanctification séeing that our sauiour Christe prayeth for the continuance perfection of sanctification who was alredy begun in his Disciples who were baptised who had receiued the holy Ghoste who were to bee preserued increased in y t holines which they had receiued by this we learne y t we must daily pray for y e increase of sanctification and séeke it at the handes of God alone who hath promised vpon our earnest prayers to graūt his holy spirite by which wée shalbée daily more and more renewed in the inner man to hate sinne and to loue righteousnesse that the fruites of mortification renouation which are the two parts of sanctificatiō may appeare daily in our life cōuersatiō For this grace of continuāce increase in sāctificatiō y e apostle boweth his knées to the father of our Lord Iesus Christ by the example of Christ himselfe for the Ephesians that he would giue vnto them according vnto the riches of his glory to bee strengthened in the inner man by his spirite And therefore as the beginning of sanctification is only frō Gods grace with out all merite or good disposition of ours so is also the continuance increase perfection of the same the frée gift of God giuen vnto vs according to the riches of his glory and not procured either in whole as the Pelagiās say or in part as the Papists teach by the merites and desertes of men Wherby they make not God the whole only authour perfector of sāctificatiō but ascribe vnto mans merites a portion of this his glory while they affirme that by well vsing of the first graces of God wée may and do merite and deserue the second whereas the Lorde God testifieth by the Prophet Ezechiel that hee will haue all nations to know that it is hée which sanctifieth Israel vnto whō also our sauiour Christe hath recourse in his prayer when he saith Sanctifie them in thy trueth By this hée declareth y t he desireth true sanctificatiō not coūterfet hypocrisie for fained holines dissembled sanctificatiō is worthily saide to bée double iniquitie The corrupte nature of man without the spirit of God is prone and readie vnto hypocrisie and feigned holinesse but all lying and dissimulation is abhominable vnto God wherefore that his Disciples might please God in true holinesse righteousnesse before him all y e daies of their liues He prayeth vnto his father to sanctifie thē in his trueth So shall they not séeke to mocke God with holinesse pretended and wickednesse intended but studie to serue him with an vpright heart vnfeignedly to seeke his honour walke in his wayes all the dayes of their life Moreouer where hée saith Sanctifie them in thy trueth hée sheweth euidently that as there is but one trueth which is the trueth of God so all other meanes and wayes of sanctification then in his trueth are false wayes and meanes and that no true holinesse is attained vnto by them but false holinesse false sanctification although it be neuer so well intended For true sanctification is only in Gods trueth Sanctifie them in thy trueth And this is the cause that the Gentiles in all their consecrations and blessinges could neuer attaine vnto true sanctification but were more more polluted in them because they presumed to séeke sanctification without the truth of God So that although euery thing which they tooke in hand and did was prophane vnholy yet their Temples their Gods their sacrifices their ceremonies their whole religiō was most of all vnpure vnholy vngodly yea most of all filthy detestable and abhominable and of all Christians to be abhorred forsaken because it was false holinesse sanctification and religion which they held and practised Euē so is it in the false religion holines sanctification of the Popists nothing is more abhominable detestable then y e which hath most of their false consecration and is accompted of them most holy as their holie water their holie bread their holie Candles Crosses and such like and especially their holie Masse wherof they make greatest account and their holie Father whom they name affirme not only to be most holy but to be holinesse it selfe But they will defend their coniured water and other their Popeholy ceremonies not to be false holinesse or vntrue consecrations for that they are sanctified in the trueth of God which is his worde for all the creatures of God are sanctified by the worde of God and prayer Thus doth Bristow take vpon him to defende their exorcising or coniuring water salt and suche lyke creatures that they may serue to bee vnto saluation both of bodie and soule Although I might easily answere that it is one thing to consecrate another thing to coniure yet who woulde beléeue they should be driuen to such impudent shifts and malicious wrestings of the scripture if they them selues did not professe it For the sense of the Apostles wordes in that place where he saith that al the creatures of God are good and none to be reiected being receiued with thanksgiuing for it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer the sense I say is manifest to be vttered of all y e creatures of God which are sanctified vnto Christians by Gods woorde and by prayer in the ordinarie lawfull vse of them and especially of meates forbiddē