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A43869
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A short but cleare discovrse of the institiution, dignity, and end of the Lords-day upon occasion of those words of St. Iohn ... / written by George Hakewill ...
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Hakewill, George, 1578-1649.
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1641
(1641)
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Wing H209; ESTC R18460
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22,776
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41
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faintly or formally but attentively and devoutly as knowing that God is a Spirit and will be worshipped by us in Spirit and Truth with a perfect heart and with a willing minde as the good King David taught his Son Solomon Withall we must remember that works of charity are not to be neglected on this day they being the marks and effects of the Spirit And that we may the better intend these Spirituall works in a Spirituall manner we are still to carry in our mindes that this Day is the Lords Day and not the devills or ours and that not a part onely but the whole day is his the devils day we make it if we employ it in sinfull acts our own if in the servile works of our particular callings or in bodily recreations which further not but hinder the practice of our Spirituall duties For sinfull acts we must be carefull that we incurre not justly the censure of Tertullian Siccine exprimitur per publicum gaudium publicum dedecus Haeccine solennes dies decent quae alios non decent Malorum licentia pietas erit Occasio luxurâ—…ae religio deputabitur Is our publike joy thus expressed by the publike disgrace Shall that be thought to become an holy Day which doth not become any day Shall wicked licentiousnesse be accounted Piety and occasions of luxury Religion If wantonnesse if drunkennesse if fighting if railing if reviling if swearing if cursing be sinnes on every day surely much more on the Lords Day Saint Hierome likewise in his Epistle to Eustochium seems much to mislike excessive Feasting and feeding upon these dayes as being the occasions of luxury and consequently of quarrelling and wantonnesse Valde absurdum est nimia saturitate velle honorare Martyrem quem scias Deo placuisse jejuniis It is most absurd to inâ—…end the honour of that Martyr with excessive Feasting whom we know to have pleased God with Fasting and if it can be no honour to the Martyr who lost his blood for the Lords sake much lesle to the Lord who redeemed the Martyr by his blood Of servile works is that noble Constitution of Leo the Empe. to be understood We ordain according to the true meaning of the holy Ghost and of the Apostles thereby directed that on the sacred Day wherein our own integrity was restored all do rest and surcease labour that neither Husbandman nor other on that day put their hands to forbidden works for if the Jews did so much reverence their Sabboth which was but a shadow of ours are not we which inhabite the light and truth of grace bound to honour that day which the Lord himself hath honoured and hath therein both delivered us from dishonour and from death Are not we bound to keep it singular and inviolable well contenting our selves with so liberall a grant of the rest and not incroaching upon that one which God hath chosen to his own honour Were it not wretchlesse neglect of religion to make that very day common and to think we may do with it as with the rest Which religious Edict of his though it were indeed chiefly bent against bodily labour yet may it well be extended against such pastimes and recreations on that Day as cannot but withdraw us from the keeping of it inviolable That unlawfull recreations may not be used on that day no Christian I think will deny since they may not be used on any dayes so as all the doubt is touching lawfull recreations whereof some also there are which I think no man will affirm to be lawfâ—…lly used on the Lords Day as Hawking Hunting and the like which are not unlawfull in themselves but unlawfull on that Day because it is the Lords Dâ—…y And for other recreations if bodily labour which on other dayes is not onely lawfnll but necessary be forbidden because it is the Lords Day methinks by the same reason even lawfull recreations should be forbidden on the same day as tending no lesse to the violating of that Day than bodily labour If on that Day I may nor sow nor reap nor carry my Corn no not in the most uncertain and catching weather though it carryes a fair shew of keeping those precious fruits of the earth from spoiling which God of his goodnesse hath sent me shall I presume to use those recreations on that Day which commonly end in the abuse of those good blâ—…ssings Manlike exercises are doubtlesse very requisite but coâ—…sidering the number of other holy dayes in our Church under favour be it spoken I see no necessity of putting them in practice on the Lords Day nor of ranking the Lords Day with-other holy dayes Some reformed Churches in other parts may perchance give way to the use of them on the Lords Day which in them is somewhat the more excusable because they have none other holy days though for mine own part I think it better if they had yet that the very same Pastors of those Churches who admitted or connived at the use of such manlike exercises as severely cryed down effeminate sports on that Day let one speak for all If we employ the Sunday saith Calvin to make good cheer to sport our selves to go to games and pastimes shall God in this be honoured is it not a mockery Is not this an unhallowing of his Name And if you please to Calvin we may adde Bellarmin the great Champion of the Romish Church who in his explanation of the title of the 91. Psalm according to their account which is a Psalm or song for the Sabbath-day thus writes Errant Iudaei qui otium Sabbati sibi datum esse existimant ad vacandum conviviâ—…s deambulationi The Jews erre in thinking that the rest of the Sabboth was given them for feasting and walking abroad wherein he seems to have followed Saint Augustine in his Enarration upon the same passage who in particular there censureth them for their dancing holding it more allowable to plough then to dance upon the Sabbath Melius est arare quà m saltarc these be his very words and then goes on Illi a bono opere Vacant ab opere nugatorio non vacant they rest from honest works from vain works they rest not Et Iudaeos imitantur Christiani saith Bellarmine and those Christians imitate the â—…ews who do the like Nay Saint Augustine in another place comes fully home to the same point where speaking of the Lords day Ideo Dominicus appellatur saith he ut in eo a terrenis operibus vel mundi illecebris abstinentes tantùm divinis cultibus serviamus therefore it is called the Lords day that abstaining from earthly labours and worldly pleasures we may wholly intend Gods service And again in severall places of that Sermon The holy Doctors of the Church decreed to transferre all the glory of the Jewish Sabbath upon this day That what they in figure the same we might celebrate in Truth Let us therefore my brethren observe the Lords
indicâ—…is saith he Dominica dies extat insignis By these and such like Characters is the Lords-day become renowned And again in his 154. Sermon of the same Book Venerabilis est hic dies qui dominicus dies dies primus atque perfectus est dies clarus in quo visa est prima lux This Lords day is a venerable day The first day a perfect and shining day in which the light was first seen Nay Pererius the Jâ—…suite in his Commentaries upon the work of the first day having recounted no lesse then thirteen speciall Prerogatives thereof at last he thus concludes Haec sunt primi illius diei insignia atque ornamenta quibus ea dies mirabiliter nobilitatur atque decoratur These are the ensignes and ornaments of this first day wherewith it is wonderfully ennobled and garnished Likewise the Hebrew Author of the Book called Sedar Olam Rabba cap. 7. Recordeth many memorable things which were done upon the first day of the week as so many types that the chief worship of God should under the new Testament be celebrated upon this day As that on this day the cloud of Gods Majesty first sate upon his people Aaron and his children first executed their Priesthood God first solemnly blessed his people The Princes of his people first offered publikely unto God The first day wherein fire descended from heaven The certainty of these I leave to the Author to prove but sure I am that the Primitive Church for more than a thousand yeers after Christ to expresse the greatnesse of their joy upon this day neither fasted nor kneeled Nay Tertullian goes further in his Book de corona militis cap. 3. Die dominico jejunare nefas ducimus de geniculis adorare We hold it unlawfull upon the Lords Day either to fast or to pray kneeling And Saint Hilary in his Prologue set before his explanation of the Psalms gives the reason thereof ne festivitatem spiritualis hujus â—…eatudinis impedirit lest it might hinder the joy of our Spirituall happinesse on that day Look then what the fire is among the Elements the Eagle among the Fowls the Whale among the fishes the Lion among the Beasts Gold among the other Metalls and Wheat among the other Grains the same is the Lords Day among all the dayes of the week this Day differing as much from the rest as doth that Wax to which the Kings great Seal is put from ordinary Wax or that Silver upon which the Kings Arms and Image â—…re stamped from Silver unrefined or in Bullion And for other holy dayes it is as farre transcendent above them too as they are beyoud other ordinary dayes the other holy dayes consecrated by the authority of the Church and amongst us religiously observed may not unfitly be resembled to those honorable women spoken of in the 45 Psalm Kings daughters were among thy honorable women but the Lords Day ordained by the Lord himself and from him derived unto us by his Apostles is as the Queen here standing at the Kings right hand in Gold of Ophir gloriously apparelled the rest are as waiting-Ladies she as the Empresse gradiensque Deas superem net omnes and were they all brought into one Chain the Medale of this Chain could be no other than the Lords Day This was doubtlesse the generall aâ—…d constant opinion of antiquity touching thâ—…s Day but I know not how it came to passe that after ages by insensible degrees much degenerating from the simplicity of those primitive times so infinitely multiplied and magnified their holy dayes beyond all measure and reason that the Lords Day began to be fleighted and at last with many to be accounted a common holy day nay perchance inferiour to some of the Saints insomuch that with us it had lost not onely the honour due unto it but the name by the Apostles imposed upon it Which no doubt a speciall occasion of that thick cloud of superstition which afterwards over shadowed the face of the Church and in appearance the reducing of this day to its originall honour and name would prove the readiest means to restore the Church again to her originall lustre and beauty even in those parts where that cloud is not yet dispelled as in all likelyhood the preserving of that name and honour with us would likewise serve to preserve that soundnesse of religion which now by Gods blessing we have long enjoyed under three such Princes as the world in their severall kindes and in succession cannot shew the like And so I passe to my fourth and last generall part The duties of the Lords Day which in a word is to be in the Spirit that is in Sptrituall exercises as Saint Iohn upon this day was Though he were then banished into the solitary Isle of Patmos where he had no means to converse with any Christian much lesse to communicate with their Assemblies in religious duties yet was he present with them in spirit as Saint Paul was with the Colossians though absent in body much desiring to be present with them and joyning with them even in his private devotions A good lesson for such as cannot have accesse to the publique Congregation considering they cannot do what they would yet to do what they may which is religiously to observe the Lords Day in their private houses or chambers in the ship or in the prison if their condition be such as they cannot come to the Lords House This is it which Saint Augustine adviseth discoursing of the duties of this day veniat cuique possibile est oret in conventu Ecclesiae pro peccatis suis Deum He who possibly can come let him come and in the Church let him there pray to God for the pardon of his sinnes Qui vero hoc non possit saltem in domo sua oret non negligat Deo solvere votum reddere pensum servitutis but he who cannot come to the Church let him pray in his house and let him not neglect the paying of his Vows to God and the rendering of that service which is exacted Now for such as have free accesse to the Congregation these spirituall exercises are either publike or private publike in the Lords House private in our own houses with our families or in our chambers and closets in our Gardens or in the Fields The exercises to be performed are confession of our faith and our faults absolution thanksgiving humble and hearty prayer reading and expounding the sacred Oracles of God the private readiâ—…g of the Scriptures or other godly books the administration and participation of the holy Sacraments the singing of Divine Hymnes meditation and conference as well touching those things we have read and heard as touching the wonderfull works of God in the Creation and Government of the world This is to be in the Spirit specially if these dutiesbe practised by us in a Spirituall manner that is if we perform them not