Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n
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A44072
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The necessity dignity and duty of Gospel ministers discoursed of before the University of Cambridge.
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Hodges, Thomas, d. 1688.
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1685
(1685)
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Wing H2321; ESTC R13341
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17,011
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31
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occasions and occurrences to be able 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to speak upon the wheels that his words may be like Apples of Gold in Pictures of Silver Prov. 25.11 A wise Man will not send a Fool upon his Errand and surely then a most wise God would have his Ambassadours seasoned with Salt to be throughly furnished to every good word and work and to be wise unto the Salvation even both of themselves and of them that hear them And as Ministers must have Salt in themselves so they must season others and this may be done two ways by their Doctrine and their Conversation or by their Preaching and by their Practice 1. They must be sure to preach always sound savoury wholsome Doctrine they must always avoid all unsound rotten or unsavoury Doctrine especially they must preach Christ he that is the Center yea in a sense the α and ω of the Scripture should be all in all in our Sermons We should above all as desire to know nothing but Christ and him crucified so preach nothing in comparison of Christ and him crucified 'T is thought by the Salt required with every Sacrifice both in the Tabernacle in Solomon's Temple and in Ezekiel's Temple and in Christ and by him it is that God hath entered into a Covenant of Grace with Man and this Covenant is an everlasting Covenant and so may be called a Covenant of Salt with this Covenant let Ministers endeavour as to season themselves so to season their Sermons and their Auditours Again Ministers must not dawb and flatter preach pleasing things sow Pillows under Peoples Elbows or throw Sugar upon them when Salt is necessary Their Sermons must have acrimony in them what though it makes Mens wounds smart It will keep them from rankling 'T is a sign of a weak and giddy Constitution of Soul to desire to have our Soul-food powdered with Sugar rather than with Salt God of old under the Law required Salt in every Sacrifice but yet he forbad Honey to be used in Sacrifices and 't is thought the reason was because Honey doth ferment This may teach us not to preach Doctrines that are likely to puff up our selves or others but let our Sermons rather when occasion serves rebuke Sinners sharply and let our Sermons be salted with sincerity I find that the Apostle Paul his Spirit was stirred in him at Athens Acts 17. When he saw the City wholly given to Idolatry Ministers must be savoury Salt they must season others by a good Life and Conversation and this by their words and by their works 1. Their Speech must be savoury season'd with Salt such as may minister Grace to their Hearers and this too out of the Pulpit viz. in their Converse and Communication with Men. No filthy Communication or rotten or unsavoury words must proceed out of their Mouths their Throats must not be like an open Sepulchre sending out Stench and Corruption These Watchmen must especially set a watch at the Door of their Lips lest they offend with their Tongue The Priest's Lips should preserve knowledge and there should always stand ready at the Door of their Lips some good or savoury Speech either a word of Instruction or of admonition or of reprehension To this purpose he had need to pray that God would touch his Tongue with a Coal from the Altar and be with his Mouth as sometimes with Moses that he may open his Lips and shew forth his praise 2. Ministers must season others by their good works by works of Piety Charity Mercy as they must be lively in their preaching so their Lives must be a Sermon They must walk exemplarily before their Family and before their Flock labour they must that they may say with the Apostle Paul to others be ye Followers of us as we also are of Christ 2. As good Ministers are like Salt in its primitive and pure Estate so are bad Ministers like Salt too but 't is in its unsavoury and degenerate Estate Salt may lose its savour and so Ministers if they be if they prove unfaithfull they are but unsavoury salt It was the Punishment of Lot's Wife for looking back to Sodom that she was turn'd into a Pillar of Salt and 't is the Case and Condition of Ministers who are called Angels in Scripture if they leave their station if they Apostatize to be like unsavoury Salt to be cast out and to be trodden under foot of men Yet as we reade of fallen Angels and of Stars falling from Heaven so there are Ministers Angels of the Churches and that are sometimes compar'd to Stars and in this our Saviour's Sermon call'd the Light of the World some Ministers there have been who have proved faln Angels and falling Stars who have neither the Vrim nor Thummim neither purity of Doctrine nor integrity of Life but become unsavoury salt altogether useless and unprofitable We reade in Scripture of wicked Priests Sons of Belial Priests who made the people abhor the Sacrifices of the Lord we reade of a Judas a Devil amongst the twelve Apostles of our Saviour of false Teachers and false Apostles and false Prophets St. Cyprian in his time complained Non in Sacerdotibus Religio devota non in Ministris fides integra non in moribus Disciplina there was a great defection it seems as to their Religion their Faith their Works their Manners their silver was become dross and their wine mixt with water The truth is the true Prophets had no greater enemies than the false Prophets of old Ahab's Prophets opposed Micaiah Hananiah Jeremiah Amaziah Priest of Bethel the Prophet Amos Am. Chap. 7. the Scribes and Pharisees and Priests our Blessed Saviour the false Apostles the Apostle Paul the Arians the Orthodox and afterwards none more cruel or greater Persecutors under the Papacy than their Bishops and Priests Corruptio optimi est pessima Men of the best Calling if corrupted prove the worst But this truth that salt may prove unsavoury that there may be clouds without water and wandring and falling Stars false Teachers and bad Ministers this hath more need of a lamentation that it is so than of any proof or confirmation that it may be so But if it be so why is it thus How is the Gold and Silver become dross How comes this salt to be unsavoury To this I answer That salt is sometimes made of water taken out of the Sea and if you put it into the Sea again it loses its virtue Ministers are called and taken out of the World that troublesome Sea that always is casting out mire and dirt and if they trn thither again if they desire and affect to live in trouble in Law-suits Quarrels and Brangles with their Neighbours this renders them and their Ministry useless and unprofitable Contentiousness marrs a Ministers good Savour 2. Some Salt or at least the matter of which it is made is taken out of the Earth and if it be laid into the Earth again if buried in
and render them acceptable to God he will not spew them out of his mouth that believe and obey their word Sal terrae dicuntur saith one quia totus orbis doctrinâ Apostolorum condiendus A little salt seasons a great deal of Provision So the Apostles though a few in number did season many Nations Jews and Gentiles Greeks and Romans and others yea they prevailed by their preaching Vniversum hominum genus insipidum Deóque ingratum quinimo abominabile quippe quod ejecit ex ore suo jam olim insulsam agens vitam sapidum Deóque gratum ac jucundum reddere So Ludovicus Brugensis 1. By the preaching of the Gospel to the world and their receiving of it mens persons were made gratefull and acceptable and well pleasing to God which else he would have loathed and abominated Hereby saith one Cibus Diaboli fit cibus Dei 2. Mens Services and Sacrifices which they performed were seasoned to acceptation by means of the Covenant of grace revealed in the Gospel that covenant of Salt else God would not have had that respect to them he had for the sacrifices of the wicked are an abomination to the Lord and the reason is because they want this salt for the Law saith Every sacrifice must be seasoned or salted with salt Levit. 2.12 3. By the word of God mens actions are rendred more savoury to God and Man Omnis vÃtoe pars saith one sine verbo insulsa insipida sicut ergo oblatio quoevis sale condienda ita quoevis actio verbo condienda Salt its heat and acrimony doth resist putrefaction and so the Apostles and Ministers by preaching the word by being instant in season and out of season by reproving rebuking exhorting do withstand the corruptions of men their corrupt natures corrupt principles corrupt hearts rotten communications and corrupt and filthy conversations The word of God preached principally the Gospel is a means to dry up and staunch our fountain of Bloud and natural Corruption which else would stream from us continually Yea the Word especially the Gospel is better than salt for Sal ad diuturnitatem aliquam servat ministerii vero sal ad aeternitatem Again salt preserves fresh meat which is already free from corruption for a time but Sal ministerii homines jam antè naturâ suâ faetidos Deo abominabiles à foetore putredine eximit Further 't is to be noted that though the word resemble salt in the good qualities of salt yet not in the bad As for example 1. Sow a Land with salt and it makes a fruitfull Land barren and unfruitfull but let the Church God's field be sowed with the word and it becomes fruitfull some part of it to bring forth thirty some sixty some an hundred fold 2. Salt must be used in measure and moderation too much salt makes meat neither savoury nor wholsome but the Gospel admits of no nimium Preach the word saith the Apostle to Timothy be instant in season and out of season and divers of the Fathers of old and so Bishop Hooker and Mr. Calvin of late preached every day 3. Salt makes drink unsavoury Sal potum insuavem efficit hence James 3.12 salt water is opposed to sweet not so the word Thy word is sweet unto my taste saith David yea sweeter than honey unto my lips Ministers by reason of the word they preach are the salt of the earth Trahit ad personas quod est Doctrinae saith Calvin non tam ad Personas quà m ad munus saith Gualter to the Apostolical or Ministerial Function teaching us that 't is the part and duty of the Ministers of the word to season the Hearts of the Faithfull And this brings us to the Duty of Ministers Ye are the salt of the earth ye ought to be the salt of the earth Estis saith one id est esse debetis ad hoc electi ordinatià me estis Apostoli ut sitis Ministers must be savoury salt they must have salt in themselves and thus must season others Salt it self is earth saith Spanhem but 't is earth burnt and purged from its dregs Ipse sal terra est sed terra expurgata à foecibus So the Apostles and Ministers they are Earth but purified by the Spirit of God which is as Fire Ex se terra sunt sed terra expurgata excocta sacro igne Domini Spiritu 1. There is requisite for a Minister sal gratiae we come not into the world salted with this salt Yea Grande opus est insaliri saith the Father qui sale conditur gratiâ plenus est in communi proverbio salsus dicitur gratiosus à contrario insulsus qui non habet gratiam He that hath Grace in his Heart can speak experimentally can say That which I have heard and seen declare I unto you as 't is 1 Joh. 3.3 and with David This poor man cried and the Lord heard him and again Come ye children hearken unto me and I will teach you what he hath done for my soul 2. There is requisite for a Minister sal eruditionis that he be seasoned with good Learning some measure of Natural parts and some measure of acquired Learning is very requisite for a Minister some knowledge men ought to have in the Tongues especially the Original Tongues wherein the Scriptures were written else if they consult Interpreters onely in some places saith one the half hath not been told them The milk of the word is then most sincere when drawn immediately from those full Breasts the Hebrew and Greek Texts whereas it becomes more dilute saith one by being filed through a Translation wherein part of the Cream sliding in the passage it loses somewhat of its delicious and genuine relish This water of life being carried from its fountain by derivation into other Tongues sometimes loseth of its high gust and generous Spirit And as the Tongues so are also the Arts Logick natural Philosophy History Chronology Geography Astronomy c. usefull for a Minister as is excellently shewed in a Treatise to that purpose by Mr. Reyner of Lincoln 3. There 's requisite for a Minister Sal Sapientiae the Salt of Wisdom Sicut insulsum à cibo transfertur ad hominem ita fatuum ab homine transfertur ad cibum sic à Martiali betae insipidae vocantur fatuae an unwise or foolish man is insulsus or without Salt Apostoli sal terrae vocantur quia homines suâ sapientià docere debent suis moribus aedificare so Maldonat Ministers should be wise to divide the word of God aright to give every one their portion in due season as a Workman that needs not to be ashamed Aaron's Bells saith one must be wisely rung sometimes in one tune and sometimes in another as occasion serves A Minister had need be wise to discern mens Tempers and Dispositions to chuse the fittest seasons to deal with them to treat of sutable Subjects for variety of