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ID Title Author Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication) STC Words Pages
A27616 The loss of the soul the irreparable loss, opened and demonstrated ... in a sermon, on Matt. XVI, 26 / by T. Beverley. Beverley, Thomas. 1694 (1694) Wing B2161; ESTC R20343 27,012 36

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irremediable notwithstanding the most passionate desires of an exchange or remedy which shall ever enflame the loss Now a Corn of Wheat saith Christ to this purpose except it die abides alone it can never be any more than a Corn of Wheat and at last as such it putrifies but if it be cast into the ground and die it rises in all the flourish of Nature So if a man say He 'll be this great man this rich man this man of Power and Honour this man of Mode and pleasure in this World and adventure for what is to come say what you will saith he I will not diminish from the Figure I am or can hope or attain to make Why if so saith Christ you may as you can be that Figure but you shall never be any more and when you come to die what becomes of that Figure And besides beyond that viz. when That Figure is to be no more there arises the Loss of a Soul and of Life Eternal which is beyond all expression a Loss dreadful and without any reprisal or recovery And to this very purpose is that so known Discourse of the Apostle James Thus the Truth of that Faith which justifies appears by the mighty Operations of it in self-denial self-resignation and of all our Interests in this World as Abraham and Rahab made Such Acts of Faith as the Apostle gives a Catalogue of Heb. 11. by which the Elders obtained so great so good a Report which if well consider'd would much abate the Controversal part of that Scripture the Apostle being not in discourse upon the constant Ordinary Works of Moral Obedience but of those Heroick Acts opposing to the Body of Profession that mighty Spirit of Justifying Faith giving up all to God and Christ I will therefore but name the Particulals wherein this is to be shewn that we are ready to forsake all to follow Christ 1. It is certain the very forsaking of all in the plain Letter or Matter of Fact was the Case for three hundred years and more after the Resurrection of Jesus Christ it was so dispos'd by the Supreme Lord of Time if a man would be Christ's Disciple if he would take up him to be a Christian at that time he must undervalue for the sake of Christ the whole World and all Relations and Interests in it or else he could not be so So that this was continually brought to the Beame to the Scale whether a man 's own Soul or the whole World weighed most Indeed after three hundred years and something more the Kingdom of Christ made some appearance in the Christian Empire and the Christians came to be in a Condition of Honour and Estate and outward prosperity and the Bishops and Hierarchy as they call'd themselves became the greatest of the Earth But if we believe Ecclesiastick History there was a Voice from Heaven at that time This day is Poyson diffus'd into the Church But whether that were so or not certainly the thing was most true For hence arose an Opinion That Christianity in such a low and impure state as the World was then in and hath continued in to this day did yet advance to worldly honour and greatness or that the profession of Christ and his Gospel made men with no greater Influences of holiness appearing at the same time great and rich and Lords then which nothing is more contrary to the Kingdom of Christ and which brought in Antichristianism a mock Kingdom of Christ immediately upon and even out of the Christian Empire But this was the State of what we call Antiquity before the Christian Empire or the time of the purest Christianity it was a laying down all at the foot of Christ 2. It is certain every one of us ought to be prepared to have a Mind Fixed and ready to give up All to Christ else we cannot be Disciples of Christ suppose any of us have Advantages of Descent of Place of Estate of Credit of Reputation of Great Abilities of Understanding of all the Splendor of Living Attendance Equipage Garb If we cannot be willing to lay all this aside for Christs sake and to be wrapt up in the vilest Appearance we cannot be Christs Disciples and so cannot be Christians For Disciples are called Christians by Oracle And as I said before of the Christian Empire until it came in there was nothing but Poverty Persecution Disgrace and all the Torments the wits of Pagans could invent upon Christians so in After Times when Antichristianism came to a height there was no enjoying the Purity of Christianity but the Name of Hereticks Entitled all those who would be Christians not according to what they call'd Holy Church but according to the Gospel it self to all the Cruelty Persecution and Torments the Heathen had before found out and Practised upon Christians which now Antichristians took up against sincere Christians But for this last Age and almost another to it our Reformation hath brought in a greater Liberty of the Protestant Profession and the same Honour Titles and Grandieur on Protestants But we had need take care we do not abuse it For if we are not in the preparation of our Hearts Dying as a Corn of Wheat we cannot in the Sense of the great Master and Founder of Christianity be his Disciples or Christians And it is much to be consider'd All things of Worldly greatness and Enjoyment are still under this Perjudice that the Kingdoms of this World are yet in Beastian Hands of the Last of Daniels Beastian Powers the Antichrist the Pope so that the Succession of Christ's Kingdom cannot yet be The Kingdoms of this World are not yet become the Kingdoms of the Lord and of his Christ It is therefore very observable that Counterfeit of the Kingdom of Christ as it is a Mock Kingdom in regard of the Worldly Grandieur of Popery Cardinalls Arch-Bishops Bishops c. So it hath served it self of the Counterfeit of the Self Denial of the Gospel in tho●● Austere Self Denying Orders under such strict Laws of Mortification and Despisal of this World Both Teaching us if we would Learn That there is indeed a Time of the Glory of Christianity in that Kingdom of Christ but not Carnal and Worldly yet full of outward Glory and Enjoyment but that at the present All is in Patience and Affliction 3. Every one ought at least to look to this to see what instances of Secret Mortification Self Examination Humiliation and profoundest Abasement of Himself before God Self Condemnation in Sense of his own Unworthiness and manifold Transgressions with all the Aggravations of Them Self Denial Holy Self-Resignation he Lives in the Practise and Exercise of laying our selves low at Christs Feet bringing all the Glory to Christianity and bringing as many into it as we can Seeking not our own but the Things that are Jesus Christs Suffering Affliction with the People of God in the State of our Minds and Contributing All we can to the