Jews every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins And presently after that he added save your selves from this untoward Generation 1 Pet. 3.21 The same Apostle elsewhere speaking of the Ark of Noah wherein they were saved who entred into it adds the like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us c. And the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper is also a pledge of God's favour and our reconciliation We are admitted to feast upon the great Sacrifice which was offered upon the Cross This was not allowed in Sacrifices under the Law that were expiatory to the People We partake of the body and bloud of Christ of that body which was offered upon the Cross and of that bloud of the New Testament which was shed for many for the remission of sins Matt. 26.26 6. Our Lord Jesus sent forth his Messengers into the World to declare pardon to the penitent He took care that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all Nations Luk. 24.46 They were entrusted with the Power of the Keys to bind and loose to let into the Kingdom of God and to exclude from it It were easie to shew that the Christian Religion does upon other accounts besides what have been named excell the Law of Moses It had a better Mediatour and was better confirmed It was more succesfull and farther spread and affords both more and more conspicuous Examples than are to be found under that Law It is attended with greater motives to obedience as well as greater motives of Credibility The Jews are pressed to obey God because he brought them out of Egypt The motive had great force but 't was peculiar to that People We are constrained by the Love of God in Christ Jesus We are moved by the love of Christ which passeth knowledge His death and passion the comforts of the Holy Ghost the unspeakable love of God and hope of pardon and of Eternal life these are our motives to obedience These are great enough to thaw and unlock the most obdurate heart to work upon the most benummed minds I proceed to consider The usefulness of the foregoing discourse And that is very great where it is duly weighed and considered It would be of great use to the Jew would he but consider it and lay it to heart And is of very great use to the Christian to awaken him to the greatest regard to his holy Religion and to a very hearty embracing of it I shall at present onely consider this one advantage which it will afford us viz. that it gives us a fair occasion of inquiring into the grâ—at Ends and Causes for which the Law of Moses was given I will not here undertake to insist upon all the Causes of the Law of Moses Much less will I goe about to inquire into the reason of the particular Precepts of that Law I make no doubt but that God gave the Jews that Law to keep them from Idolatry and to that purpose to preserve that People separate from the neighbour Nations Many of the rites appointed I doubt not were therefore prescribed because they ran Counter to those rites which did obtain among Idolaters then in being I will onely consider the ends of this Law as far as my present argument is concerned And that I shall doe in the following particulars 1. The Law was given to restrain the Jews and keep them from a loose and licentious Course of sinning The promise of the Messias was made to Abraham above four hundred years before the giving of the Law But though the Messias were then promised God did not think fit to send him presently In the mean time the Jews the Children of Abraham whom God had chosen for his Church were to be restrained from living as they list They were very prone to wickedness and needed a restraint in the mean time Therefore was the Law given and given with great solemnity and terrour It denounced many evils against transgressours and left them liable to a curse the more effectually to oblige them to obedience It was not given as God's last revelation nor to give life and to justifie them Gal. 3.19 Wherefore then serveth the Law It was added because of transgressions God did not think it fit that they should be left unrestrained 1 Tim. 1.9 with Gal. 5.22 The Law is not made for a righteous man but for the lawless and disobedient 2. The Law was given as that which contained types and shadows of good things to come and was therefore given that they might have among them a pledge of those spiritual good things to be bestowed in the days of the Messias The great promise which God made to Abraham was the promise of the Messias this promise was renewed afterward when Isaac was born it was repeated by Jacob to his Sons before his death The Messias was the desire and expectation of the more wise and devout Israelites They receive a Law in the mean time full of types and shadows of what they were to expect in the latter days or the days of the Messias Hence it is that the Gospel as it is distinguished from this Law is called truth not as truth is opposed to falsehood but as it is opposed to types and shadows and as it speaks the substance of what was but symbolically represented before Thus it is said that the Law was given by Moses and that grace and truth come by Jesus Christ John 1.17 And the Gospel is called the word of truth Eph. 1.13 Joh. 14.6 Joh. 4.23 Heb. 8.2 Our Saviour tells us that he is the way and the truth and tells the Woman of Samaria that the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth They that obey the Gospel are said to walk in the truth and obey the truth And Heaven is called the true Tabernacle Heb. 10.1 ch 8.5 The Law had a shadow of good things to come and not the very Image of the things The Priests under the Law are said to serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things Coloss 2.17 Heb. 3.5 That Law was a pledge of a better and the things therein commanded were but a shadow of things to come Moses was faithfull as a servant for a testimony of those things which were to be spoken viz. by Jesus and his followers For so the Syriack hath it for those things which were to be spoken by him 3. To dispose men for the reception of the Gospel of Christ It was well fitted for this end And that this was the end of it is very evident from the words of the Apostle Gal. 3.22 23 24. The Scripture hath concluded all under sin that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe But before faith came we were under the Law shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed wherefore the Law was our
quaked greatly These things were very terrible and so were other works which we read of afterward which spoke indeed the presence and power of God but then they spoke his anger too The Sons of Aaron were destroyed by fire Miriam is struck with leprousie the earth swallows up Korah and his company and the fiery serpents plague the people On the other hand our Lord saves but does not destroy Instead of killing or inflicting plagues and diseases upon men he feeds the hungry cures the sick cleanseth the Lepers restores the blind and lame dispossesseth the Demoniacks and raises the dead 4. Our Saviour confirmed his doctrine by raising himself from the dead Moses dyed as well as the other Prophets And though the Jews tell us upon a trifling ground that he did die by the kiss of God's mouth and not after the ordinary manner of men yet they cannot deny that he dyed and 't is not affirmed by any that he rose from the dead He dyed on this side the Land of Promise and was buried over against Beth Peor Deut. 34.8 but the Jews are so far from affirming that he rose again that they knew not where his Sepulchre or place of burial was So that there was no room left for their fraud None could take away his Body and pretend he was risen from the dead Our blessed Saviour did rise from the dead notwithstanding all the art used to prevent it aswell as the spreading of it He had many witnesses of his Resurrection some whereof sealed the truth with their Bloud I shall now consider the pretended miracles of the Church of Rome not that I think them worthy to be compared with those of our blessed Saviour But that Church hath boasted of Miracles and we have large accounts of the wonders which have been wrought within the verge of her own Communion And not to inlarge too far I shall confine my self to those three marks or 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which a learned Writer discoursing of this argument hath pitched upon 1. Whereas the miracles which Jesus wrought were grave and serious works substantial and such as proclamed the power and goodness and the wisedom of the Authour of them there is nothing more ridiculous and trifling than many of those which are reported to be done in the Church of Rome Such are the many stories which are told of our Saviour and the Virgin Mary They tell us that she frequently comes from Heaven offers her self in Marriage and brings knacks along with her and bestows them upon her friends and familiars They tell us also of our Saviour that he appears in his Mother's armes as a little Child that sometimes he goes from her and that he was once almost lost in the Snow They tell that the Virgin Mary's house in Nazareth upon discontent removed from thence and travail'd from place to place for the space of about two thousand miles Durand Rational Divin Offic. till it sate down at Loretto They tell that when one of their Preachers who was blind preached though there were no auditours to do it yet the stones that were about him cryed out Amen at his concluding I am ashamed to report the ridiculous stories which they tell of men who carried their heads in their hands after they had been Beheaded for several miles together of others who spake after they were dead of Sheep and Asses running to hear St. Francis preach and of Swine falling dead under his curse Of St. Dominick who hung in the air like a bird and at his Devotions forcing the Devil to hold a light and burn his fingers at that service of Christina who contracted her self at prayer into a round form like that of an Hedgehog and who could climb the highest trees like a Squirrel and swim in rivers like a Fish Of Catharine of Sienna who desired a new heart and thereupon Christ came to her opened her Breast took out her heart goes away with it and brings another and tells her that was his own I will not entertain you with the Stories of the sweating and speaking and motion of their Images of the great feats which have been done by the relicks of Saints and holy water and such like things Such Pranks as these are reported which look more like the feats of Demons of Hob-goblins and Fairies than the finger of God The works of Jesus spake the great wisedom power and goodness of God they were works of great mercy and relief But these stories are Romances and false representations or which is worse they look like the works of an evil Spirit who is abroad ready to deceive them who obey not the truth These things can serve no good and wise purpose and that is not all for they serve a very evil one These false stories are a temtation to men to question the true Men will be too ready to suspect the miracles of Christ when they find themselves imposed upon by those who profess themselves his followers 2. The miracles which Christ did were to confirm the truth of the Christian doctrine But these pretended miracles are brought to confirm a doctrine which Christ and his Apostles never taught Christ and his Apostles taught all Christian doctrine and all the necessary matters of faith And now though an Angel from Heaven should Preach any other Gospel we ought not to receive him Gal. 1.8 9. Were the works of the Church of Rome like our Saviour's works and their doctrine the same with his these works would be of great use to convince unbelievers but not at all requisite where the doctrine was believed before For the doctrine of the Church of Rome it is the same with that of the holy Scriptures or it is not If it be the same there is no need of miracles especially among them who believe the holy Scriptures to confirm that which hath been sufficiently confirmed already But if it be not the same we are not to regard miracles in that Case Nay if an Apostle or Angel from Heaven should Preach another Gospel let him be accursed We shall find that the pretended miracles in the Church of Rome are alledged for the confirmation of the Novel doctrines of that Church not of the Christian doctrine taught by Christ and his Apostles We are told that Christ spake intelligibly several times out of the Wafer to a Spanish Franciscan Again that upon the Altar he turned himself from the form of a Consecrated Wafer into that of a little Child and then from that of a Child to that of a Wafer Again that a Woman's Bees not thriving she stole a Consecrated Wafer and put it into one of her Hives The devout Bees in honour to that fall to work and with their honey-combs make a little Church with windows with roof and door with belfry and Altar upon which they laid the Host and did fly about it continually praising the Lord All this is for the confirmation of the doctrine of Transubstantiation
is evident that where Sacrifice was allowed toward the obtaining pardon yet sometimes the pardon was not obtained by the Sacrifice For the piacular Sacrifice was but one of the conditions upon which the pardon of the offerer did depend So that supposing the Sacrifice offered up exactly according to the Law yet the sinner was not thereupon remitted In case of trespass and wrong there was required by the Law of Moses confession of the sin and restitution also of the principal and sometime the addition of a fifth part as well as sacrifice Numb 5.7 As in some cases no Sacrifice was admitted so at other times where it was allowed yet it did not restore him to favour some other things being also required necessary to his pardon as well as that The Jews themselves tell us that the day of expiation did not procure the pardon of those sins Joma cap. 8. which men committed against their brethren till they had given satisfaction to their brethren whom they had injured If they had injured them in words they were bound to appease them and to be reconciled if they had done it in their goods they were bound to make restitution Eighthly It was a very hard thing for the Jew to know whether he were pardoned or not And notwithstanding the provision made by Sacrifices yet that provision could not ease the sinner's mind We will suppose the greatest care used to obtain pardon by an expiatory Sacrifice yet the offerer would be left uneasie in his own mind In such a multitude of precepts and of that nature also which the Mosaical were it was almost impossible for a man to know whether he had transgressed or not and consequently whether he was obliged to bring his sin or trespass-offering Hence it was that the Jews appointed a trespass-offering which they call 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or a doubtfull trespass-offering which they thought themselves obliged to bring when it was a doubtfull case whether they had transgressed or not Lastly It is very certain that these Sacrifices of the Law of Moses were not to continue for ever The Jews were given to understand so much and God taught them this more ways than one He annexed them to a certain place and to a certain family who were to offer them up and when that place was no longer in the possession of the Jews they were discharged from all their obligation to offer Sacrifices at once And besides that many of them were but types and shadows of things to come and were therefore in due time to cease God did expresly foretell this to the Jews and the Jewish writers themselves are forced to confess no less Of the Messias the Prophet Daniel prophesies that he should cause the sacrifice and oblation to cease Dan. 9.27 That is all the offerings made by fire whatsoever The Authour of the Epistle to the Hebrews tells us the same of burnt-offerings and sacrifices for sin Heb. 10.6 That is Sacrifices which were expiatory And there is a saying to this purpose among the Jewish writers Midrash Tillim in Psal 56.12 v. Abravenel de cap. fidei cum Vorstio c. 13. that every Corban or Sacrifice should cease but that the Sacrifice of praise should never cease And this saying of the Jews relates to the days of the Messias The Sacrifices allowed in the Law of Moses were of very little moment in their own nature They were never designed to continue longer than the City the Temple and Altar stood to which they were annexed v. Seder Tephilloth fol. 6. c. 3. Venetiis Anno 1566. The expiatory ones were shadows of an invaluable Sacrifice and the others that were Eucharistical as to the main continue still We now offer up our spiritual Sacrifices our Prayers and our Alms and our whole selves to the Great Creatour and Governour of Heaven and Earth the God and Father of Jesus Christ The holy flame upon the Altar during the Law of Moses was says Philo the Jew 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Phil. Jud. de Victim offerent a symbol of thanksgiving Thore things were types or symbols he tells us of spiritual things and that the gratefull mind of a wise man is God's Altar Thus I have given some account of the defects of the Jewish Religion as it was delivered to them by Moses and as it stands compared with the Religion which our Jesus taught I shall now proceed to shew That these defects are made up and supplied by the Gospel of Jesus Christ and that the Christian Religion is thereupon very far preferible to that of the Jews And to the making this evident I shall 1. Consider the Precepts of Christian Religion and look upon it as a rule of life and we shall find it the most accurate rule of life that ever was made known to the World There is not in any Religion whatsoever any parallel to the Christian The Precepts of this Religion are agreeable to the reason of mankind they tend to perfect humane nature and render it like the Divine They approve themselves to the Consciences of all wife and considering men and those very men who do not obey them cannot but approve of them and have an inward veneration for them who do As to that duty we owe to God we are taught to perform it becoming his Divine Majesty and his adorable perfections We are directed to believe him to fear him above all to love him with our whole heart to trust in him and depend upon him in all our straits and needs to submit quietly to his Government and to do his will To worship him with pure hearts to pray to him with great fervour and constancy To give him hearty thanks and to do what we do for his Glory And these duties are founded upon the greatest reason For if we believe his veracity we are obliged to give credit to his Revelation though we be not able to comprehend what he doth reveal He that is almighty ought to be feared above all and he who is onely good and most beneficial to us ought be loved with our whole heart Upon whom shall we trust and relye but upon him who is able and willing to help them that trust in him Is it not fit we should submit to him who is infinitely wise and who governs all things in Heaven and earth And whose will should we do but his who is without iniquity who is just and right If he be a Spirit it is fit we should worship him in Spirit and in truth And since we know that he hears it is very reasonable we should at all times and with great ardour pray unto him And since we receive all good things from him it is but just we should praise him as the Authour of all and that we should glorifie him as the ultimate end of all For the duties we owe to one another Christian Religion gives the most incomparable rules It requires a patient submission to our Superiors