Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n
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A20734
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A funerall sermon preached at Watton in Hertfordshire, at the buriall of the ancient and worthy knight, Sir Philip Boteler, Decemb. 9. 1606
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Downame, George, d. 1634.
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1607
(1607)
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STC 7116; ESTC S110134
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29,412
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80
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A FVNERALL SERMON PREACHED AT WATTON IN Hertfordshire at the buriall of the ancient and worthy Knight Sir PHILIP BOTELER Decemb. 9. 1606. By G. Downame Doctor in Diuinitie AT LONDON Printed by FILIX KYNGSTON and Martin Clarke 1607. A FVNERALL SERMON PREACHED at Walton in Hertfordshire at the buriall of the ancient and worthy Knight Sir Philip Boteler Decemb. 9. 1606. REVEL 14. 13. And I heard a voice from heauen saying vnto me write Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from thenceforth â—ea saith he spirit that they may rest from their labours and their workes doe follow with then THE holie Ghost hauing in the former chapter from the II. verse to the end described Antichrist as all doe agree and hauing in the 8. verse of this chapter foretold the â—uine of the Antichristian seare signified â—y the fall of Babylon which was to follow vpon the preaching of the eternall Gospell foreshewed vers 7 he endeuoureth in the verses following euen vnto the end of this text by two most forcible arguments to draw men out of Babylon and to withdraw them from Antichrist the one importing those fearefull punishments which shall befall them who after the reuelation of Antichrist by the preaching of the Gospell shall ioyne themselues vnto him the other expressing the happie estate of those who not suffering themselues to bee seduced by Antichrist doe die in the true faith of Christ. The former argument is propounded vers 9. 10. 11. If any â—an saith he worship the beast and his image and receiue his marke on his forehead 〈◊〉 vpon his hand that is as I haue euidenty proued in my treatise of Antichrist vhereunto for breuitie sake I doe now referre you whosoeuer liueth and dieth a reâ—lute and absolute Papist acknowledging the Popes supremacie professing the Antichristian faith and practising the Idolâ—tries and superstitions of the apostaticâ— Church of Rome He shall drinke of tâ— wine of Gods wrath yea of the pure wine powred that is prepared to be drunke in the cup of his wrath whereby is meant euerlasting damnation prepared for the wicked wherein iudgement not to bee allaied with mercie shall bee executed vpon them Which iudgement for the greatnes is most horrible for they shall be tormented in fire and brimstone for continuance is not only without end for the smoke of their torment shall ascend euermore but also without intermission for they shall haue no rest day nor night And lest any man should think it hard that men being either terrified by the crueltie of Antichrist or seduced by his craft to ioyne with him shal euerlastingly bee tormented in fire and brimstone the holy Ghost preuenteth this obiection vers 12. Hereby saith he the patience of the Saints is tried and here are they that keepe the commaundements of God and the faith of Iesus discerned For howsoeuer the vnsound Christian may be peruerted by Antichrist yet it is impossible saith our Sauiour that the elect should finally be seduced by him Matth. 24. 24. By this argument therefore men are to be perswaded as they tender the saluation of their soules so to beware that they doe not encline to Poperie or if they be Papists alreadie to come out of Babylon as they are exhorted Reue. 18 4. For as Chrysostome rightly obserueth on 2. Thess. 2. 10. Antichrist preuaileth in them that perish or as Ierome speaketh in them who are prepared vnto destruction Vpon whom saith the Apostle because they haue not receiued the loue of the truth that they might be saued the Lord sendeth the efficacie of error that they may beleeue lies that all they might be damned which beleeue not the truth but haue pleasure in vnrighteousnes whereby hee meaneth the mysterie of iniquitie which is Antichristianisme that is to say Poperie The other argument expressing the blessed estate of those that die not in the religion of Antichrist which the Papists doe but in the true saith of Christ opposed to the religion of Antichrist and professed in the Churches which are reformed by the preaching of the eternall Gospell is contained in these wordâ— which I haue read vnto you And therefore as the former reason must if wee would not be damned disswade vs from Poperie so this argument must perswade vs if wee would be saued to bee sincere and constant professors of the true faith of Christ which by the vnspeakable mercie of God towards vs is professed among vs. For if we shall liue and die in this faith as true and sound professors thereof as our hope is this worthie Knight did then shal our estate so soone as this life is ended bee most happie and blessed as the holy Ghost doth assure vs in this text Wherein that I may now come to the words themselues the present felicitie of all those that die in the Lord is not onely affirmed viz. in these words Blesâ— are the dead which die in the Lord from thenceforth but also confirmed and prooued both by authoritie and reason The authoritie is first a voice from heauen not only auouching this truth but also commanding Iohn to write it Secondly the testimonie of the spirit Euen so saith the spirit The reason why those which die in the Lord are presently happie is because they rest from their labours and molestations and their works meaning the blessed reward of their workes follow with or accompanie them As if hee should haue said They which die in the Lord are foorthwith happie because death to them is the end of all miserie trouble and the beginning of euerlasting happinesse Now whereas the holy Ghost doth not onely deliuer this assertion that the dead which die in the Lord are blessed but is so carefull to countenance and prooue the same vnto vs and well are wee to be assured that his care is not superfluous this is therefore an euident token that men commonly in the world be of another opinion which is the cause why the holy Ghost saw it needfull not onely to deliuer this truth but also to ratifie and confirme it For first men commonly account it a miserable thing to die and naturally are so affraide of death as to saue their liues they will not sticke to commit any sinne almost as to denie Christ and his religion and to ioyne with Antichrist and by their sinne to cast away their precious soules which they would not doe if they could be perswaded that death brings happinesse with it Againe to die in the Lord as it is here vnderstood with opposition and not in the subiection and faith of Antichrist not in the communion of the now apostaticall Church of Rome of the Papists who falsely tearme themselues Catholikes is counted a damnable thing of the carnall and backsliding Gospellers a more miserable thing than to liue in the saith and subiection of Antichrist That therefore wee may die willingly when God shall call vs and may be readie to lay downe our liues for the
vs and the Papists do affirme that whiles we consider the mercies of God and merits of Christ wee haue cause of assurance as the Protestants teach but when wee looke into our selues wee haue iust cause to doubt according to the doctrine of the Papists But I answere if we looke into our selues as we are in our selues considered a part from Christ the best of vs all shal haue iust cause not onely to doubt as the Papists teach but also to despaire Yea it were presumption for a man in that case to make but a doubtfull matter of it But although we are to be humbled in the conceit of our owne vilenes and are not onely to doubt but also to despaire of saluation in our selues wee being not considered as in Christ yet this hindreth not but that wee may and ought to be assured of saluatioÌ„in Christ. For though wee be sinfull in our selues yet are wee the righteousnes of God in Christ though in our selues wee haue broken the law and are therefore subiect to the curse thereof yet in Christ we haue fulfilled the law and are freed from the curse though in our selues we are the children of wrath and seruants of sinne yet in Christ we are the children of God and heires of eternall life As therefore the faithfull most certainly be in Christ so let them learne to conceiue of themselues as they be in Christ that what cause soeuer they haue in themselues to doubt they may in Christ assure themselues of their iustification and saluation Many a one that indeede beleeueth in Christ doth himselfe wrong by not thinking of himselfe as hee is in Christ. For the more assured wee are of Gods loue in Christ the more shall our heart bee enflamed with loue towards God and our brethren for his sake the more zealous we shall be of Gods glorie the more cheerefull in his seruice And that which is the happinesse of a Christian here wee shall leade our liues in the expectation of a better life For the life as it were of this life mortall is the assurance of life immortall Thus you haue heard that the faithfull be in Christ and the vse which wee are to make thereof now wee are to shew that this being in Christ is the ground of our happinesse For it is not our liuing nor our dying in it selfe that maketh vs happie but our being in Christ whilest we liue maketh vs happy beatitudine viae that is with such a happinesse as in this time of our pilgrimage is incident vnto vs whilest we are in the way and our being in Christ when we die maketh vs happie beatitudine patriae that is with complete and eternal felicitie when we comming to the end of our way doe arriue into the hauen of rest and heauen of blisse which is the countrey and kingdom which the Lord hath prepared for all those that be in Christ. Now that our being in Christ is the ground of all our happinesse I shew it thus For first if we be not in Christ we are in the state of damnation And contrariwise the cause why any man is exempted from damnation is because he is in Christ. There is no condemnation saith the Apostle to them that are in Christ Iesus Rom. 8. 1. Secondly If wee be not in Christ wee are dead in our sinnes neither can we do any thing being out of him which belongeth to a spirituall life But being in him we liue in him and he in vs a spirituall life which neuer shall haue end For as in the vnion of the bodie with the soule the bodily life consisteth so in the vnion of the whole man with Christ consisteth our spirituall life And as the bodie seuered from the soule is dead so the whole man seuered from Christ is spiritually dead how liuely or cranke so euer he may seeme to be in respect of the bodily life Thirdly if we be out of Christ we are altogether foolish in respect of spiritual things yea our wisedome is â—mitie against God we are in our serues vniust and guiltie of sinne vnholy and defiled with manifold corruptions and laffly in our selues are bondflaues of fin and Satan but being in Christ he is made vnto vs of God wisedome righteousnes sanctification and redemption For being in Christ wee haue communion with him and he with vs. So that as our sinne was his by imputation so is his obedience ours he being made sinne for vs that we might be the righteousnes of God in him And as his sufferings be ours so ours be his But wee are not onely made partakers of his merits to our iustification but also being in him we are made partakers of his graces vnto sanctification For as the sacred oyle being powred on the head of the high Priest who was a figure of Christ rested not there but descended to his lower parts so the oyle of grace wherewith Christ our head was annointed without measure is from him deriued to his members For of his fulnes wee doc all receiue euen grace for grace Ioh. 1. 16. Fourthly being in Christ we haue not onely communion with him in respect of his merits and efficacie but also haue vnion with him in respect of his person wee being made one with him and hee with vs from which vnion the asortsaid communion doth proceede And therefore in him as our head wee may truly be said to haue fulfilled the law in him wee haue satisfied the iustice of God And that which is more in him are wee not onely risen againe but also are ascended into heauen and set in the heauenly places in Christ Ephes. 2. 6. And our life is hid with Christ in God Col. 3. 3. Al which doe argue the assurance which the faithfull ought to haue of their iustification of resurrection vnto glorie and of eternall life For so long as the head is aboue the waters the other members cannot be drowned so while our head is happie in heauen the saluation of all his members is most sure and certaine Lastly being in Christ we are not only vnited vnto him but in him wee are also vnited to the whole Trinitie and being vnited vnto it we shall haue with it euerlasting fellowship in which fellowship and fruition of God perfect felicitie doth consist Thus haue you heard that the faithfull are in Christ and that all which bee in Christ are happie and blessed Now if we beleeue as our dutie is this vndoubted truth namely that al which by faith are in Christ be blested then will we in our iudgements esteeme and in our affections desire to be in Christ aboue all the things of this world For what is our happinesse that is esteemed and affected of vs as our chiefest good If therefore this be our happinesse to bee in Christ then will wee with the Apostle esteeme all other things as drosse and dung that hauing gained Christ