but our men in doing as they doe doe sin against their conscience Vnhappy Parents which destroy your children in Popish and Atheisticall houses What are you inferiour to them that sacrificed their children vnto Deuils If your selues be righteous and Christians cast not away your seed your children the price of the precious bloud of Christ You haue made them in their Baptisme when they were young to confesse Christ will you make them now growne to yeeres to deny Christ O let the words of wise Ecclesiasticus chap. 13.1 bee precious in your memories He that toucheth pitch shall be defiled therewith and doubtlesse your children placed in Atheisticall or Popish houses will themselues become Atheisticall or Popish Suffer I beseech you a word of exhortation in your childrens behalfe Binde them to none but to Christ put them to none but to Christians sell them to nothing but to the Gospell commit not your young ones into the hands and custody of Gods enemies A third vse Is it not lawfull to commit the children of beleeuers into the hands of infidels for the reason aboue specified that they be not withdrawne from the true seruice of God Then neither is it lawfull for you of your selues to keepe away your seruants from the seruice of God It is reputed for a tyranny in Pharaoh Exod. 5.3 4. That he would not suffer the children of Israel to goe three dayes iourny into the desart to sacrifice to the Lord their God and how can you free your selues from the impeachment of tyranny if you deny your seruants to goe but one houres iourney to this place to serue their God Thinke it not enough that your selues come hither to performe some duty to Christ your Lord and Master how can you performe your duty to him if you deny him your seruants You know what charge is giuen you in the fourth commandement not your selues only but also your sonnes and your daughters and your seruants men and maidens and the stranger that soiourneth with you are to hallow and Sanctifie the Sabbath day with the Lords seruice In this holy worke and seruice of God vpon the Sabbath day regard not what the multitude and greater sort of men doe Suppose all the world besides your selues would bee carelesse to performe this duty yet let your holy resolution be the same with Ioshua's chap. 24.15 I and my house will serue the Lord. Thus farre of my first doctrine grounded vpon Gods dislike with the Philistines for selling away the Israelites his faithfull people into the hands of the Edomites an vnbeeleeuing nation To ground a second doctrine hereon we are to note that the Philistines sold away the Israelites to the Idumaeans at such time as they were their captiues and so did adde affliction to the afflicted The doctrine is It is a very grieuous thing to adde affliction to the afflicted Witnesse the complaint made by the captiue Iewes against the insolency of the Chaldeans Psal 137.3 They that led vs away captiue required of vs songs and mirth in our heauinesse saying Sing vs one of the songs of Sion They the Chaldeans the Babylonians and Assyrians in whose country wee were prisoners required of vs scornfully and disdainfully thereby to adde to our griefes they required of vs songs such songs as we were wont to sing in Sion Ierusalem and our owne country before the destruction of the Temple and our captiuity They required of vs not songs only but mirth also they scoffingly desired vs to be merry when they saw vs so heauy hearted as nothing could make vs glad They required of vs songs and mirth in our heauinesse saying Sing vs one of the songs of Sion sing for vs or in our hearing some one or other of those Songs which you were wont to sing in Sion when you were at home in your owne country Intolerable is the hard heartednesse cruelty and scoffing nature of the wicked when they haue gotten Gods children into their nets God cannot away with such vnmercifulnesse and want of pity He reproueth it in the Babylonians Esa 47.6 where thus saith the Lord I was wroth with my people I haue polluted mine inheritance and giuen them into thine hand thou didst shew them no mercy but thou didst lay thy very heauy yoke vpon the ancient therefore now heare destruction shall come vpon thee Magna abominatio eoram Deo est afflicto addere afflictionem clamatque in coelum vox sanguinis The words are the obseruation of Oecolampadius vpon the now cited place of Esay It is a great abomination before God to adde affliction to the afflicted the voice of bloud cryeth vp to Heauen for vengeance Yea we are assured by Psal 102.19 that the Lord looketh downe from the height of his sanctuary and out of heauen beholdeth the earth that he may heare and so take pity of the sighings groanings and lamentable cries of such his people as are in affliction The time will not suffer me now to trouble you with more Texts of Scripture let the now alleaged be sufficient to confirme my propounded doctrine that it is a grieuous thing to adde affliction to the afflicted The vses of this doctrine I can but point at One is to reproue the Nimrods and tyrants of this world which haue no pity no compassion vpon the poore and distressed Such in the end shall know by their owne lamentable experience that to be true which Salomon hath vttered Prou. 21.13 Hee that stoppeth his eare at the crying of the poore shall cry himselfe and not be heard A second vse is to stirre vs vp to the performance of this our Christian duty euen to take pity vpon all that are in any kind of misery if our neighbours be destitute of aid and help we may not like wilde beasts lift vp our selues against them and so tread them vnder foot No. How dare we molest and trouble them whom by Gods appointment we are to releeue and succour We are commanded Deut. 15.11 to open our hands to the needy and poore that are in our land to open our hands to them for their helpe and succour It is not enough for vs to abstaine from all iniury and harme-doing but withall must we endeuour to releeue the oppressed This seruice of ours will be acceptable vnto God God for it will giue vs his blessing God will blesse vs for the time of our being here and when the day of our dissolution shall be that we must leaue this earthly tabernacle then will the Son of man sitting vpon the throne of his glory welcome vs with a Venite benedicti Come ye blessed of my Father inherit ye the Kingdome prepared for you from the foundations of the world For I was an hungred and ye gaue me meat I thirsted and ye gaue me drinke I was a stranger and ye lodged me I was naked and ye cloathed me I was sicke and ye visited me I was in prison and ye came vnto me in as much as you haue
which sort are wine and strong drinke Salomon so accounts of them Prov. 20.1 For there he saith Wine is a mocker strong drinke is raging and whosoeuer is deceiued thereby is not wise Salomons Mother doth likewise so account of them Prov. 31.4 There her counsaile to her sonne is It is not for Kings O Lemuel it is not for Kings to drinke wine nor for Princes to drinke strong drinke left they being drunken forget the Law and peruert the iudgement of any of the afflicted For this cause also were the Priests forbidden wine when they were to goe into the tabernacle of the Congregation and that vpon paine of death The prohibition is Levit. 10.9 There thus saith the Lord to Aaron Doe not drinke wine nor strong drinke thou nor thy sonnes with thee when yee goe into the Tabernacle of the Congregation lest ye die It shall be a statute for euer throughout your generations Hitherto I referre that Exech 44.21 No priest shall drinke wine when he entereth into the inner court From the places now alledged ariseth this position Sobrietie is a vertue fit for all men but especially for Ministers of the word and Sacraments Especially for Ministers The reasons are First it is not for Ministers to speake foolishly or to doe any thing vndecently Yet can they not but offend both in the one and the other if they suffer themselues to be ouercome with swilling of wine or strong drinke Secondly it is for Ministers to be vigilant in their vocations to be diligent in their ministeriall imployments in reading in studie in meditation to be deuout in their praiers vnto God for themselues the people ouer whom God hath made them ouerseers to handle the word of life reuerently and to dispense it in due season to euery weary soule Yet must they needs faile in the performance of these duties if they giue themselues to the drinking of wine and strong drinke Here may all that serue at the Altar be admonished euermore to be mindfull of their calling and of the hatred which God hath of excesse in men deuouted to his seruice aboue all others as also of the fearefull iudgement that will in the end without all faile ensue For if of all it be true that the drunkard shal neuer enter into the kingdome of God which you know to be true and the holy Spirit hath passed it for a truth 1. Cor. 6 10. then must it needs be sealed vp in the conscience of any Minister that a Minister through his excesse in drinking causing the holy things of God to be despised shall neuer neuer come within the gates of that eternall ioy but in stead thereof shall reape the reward of his sinne in euerlasting torments both of bodie and soule But this by the way The thing wherewith the Israelites in my text stand charged is their giuing the Nazirites wine to drinke The Israelites knew full well that it was the peremptorie mandate and expresse commandement of the Lord that the Nazirites should absteine from wine and strong drinke yet did they contrary thereunto giue vnto the Nazirites wine to drinke Gaue they the Nazirites wine to drinke was this such an offence that God should take displeasure at it To what end then serues the precept of giuing wine to him that is readie to perish through the anxietie and bitternesse of his minde that thereby he may be cheared and comforted The precept is Prov. 31.6 Giue strong drinke vnto him that is readie to perish and wine vnto those that be of heauie hearts Let him drinke and forget his pouertie and remember his misery no more In vaine were this precept were the drinking of wine an offence whereat God should take displeasure And S. Paul doth amisse 1. Tim. 5.23 to wish him to drinke no longer water but to vse a little wine for his stomackes sake and his often infirmities if the drinking of wine be an offence If the drinking of wine be an offence why doth the same Apostle tell the Romans chap. 14.17 that the kingdome of God consisteth not in meate and drinke thereby giuing them libertie not onely to eate but also to drinke what they would euen to drinke wine To this I say It is not of it selfe any offence to drinke wine or to giue others wine to drinke but herein consisteth the offence of the Israelites that they gaue the Nazirites wine to drinke contrary to the Law of God and his holy commandement Tolle verbum Domini et liberum est vinum bibere adde verbum Domini vinum exhibere aut bibere tam grande est nefas quà m adulterium aut latrocinium So Brentius Let there be no law no commandement of God against the drinking of wine and you may at your pleasure drinke wine But if Gods law and commaundement be against it then for a man to drinke wine himselfe or to giue others wine to drinke it s as great a sinne as adulterie or robbery Adam in Paradise had a law giuen him that hee should not eate of the tree of knowledge of good and euill The law is expressed Gen. 2.17 Of the tree of knowledge of good and euill thou shalt not eate of it for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die To eate an Apple was of it selfe but a small matter but the Law of God whereby the eating of the Apple was forbidden was a matter of great weight The very eating of the Apple God did not much care for it was the obseruance of his commandement and the obedience thereunto that he required Saul had a commandement giuen him that he should goe downe to Gilgal and tarry there seauen dayes till Samuel should come and direct him what to doe The commandement is expressed 1. Sam. 10.8 Thou shalt goe downe before me to Gilgal and behold I will come downe vnto thee to offer burnt offerings and to sacrifice sacrifices of peace offerings seauen dayes shalt thou tarrie till I come to thee and shew thee what thou shalt doe According to this commandement Saul went to Gilgal and tarried there e 1. Sam. 13.8 seauen dayes according to the set time that Samuel had appoynted The seauenth day a little before Samuel came Saul f Vers 9. offered a burnt ofring g Vers 10. As soone as he had made an end of offering the burnt offering Samuel came Saul vnderstanding thereof went out to meete him that he might salute him Samuel seeing what was done tells Saul that he had done h Vers 13 foolishly in not keeping the commandement of the Lord his God which he commaunded him and withall foretells him of a heauie iudgement to befall him i Vers 14. Thy kingdome shall not continue The offering of the Holocauste or burnt offering to the Lord was it not of it selfe a good worke Yet because Saul offered it out of due time namely before Samuel was come it was sinne vnto him and the losse of his kingdome Did the
also in particular I speake not now of the prouidence of God as it is potentialis immanens but as it is actualis transiens not as it is the internall action of God but as it is externall not as it is his decree of gouerning the world but as it is the execution of that decree This prouidence of God this his actuall and transient prouidence this his externall action and the execution of his inward and eternall decree is nothing else than a perpetuall and vnchangeable disposition and administration of all things or to speake with Aquinas it is nothing else than ratio ordinis rerum ad finem it is nothing else than the course which God perpetually holdeth for the ordering of the things of the world to some certaine end Such is the prouidence of God whereof I am now to speake which is by some diuided into a generall and a speciall prouidence by others into an vniuersall a special a particular prouidence Gods vniuersall or generall prouidence I call that by which he doth not only direct al creatures according to that secret instinct or inward vertue which he hath giuen to euery one of them at the time of their creation but doth also preserue them in their ordinary course of nature Of this vniuersall or generall prouidence of God Theodoret Bishop of Cyrus in his first Sermon concerning this argument discourseth copiously and elegantly You that say in your hearts there is no prouidence of God consider the things that are visible and are obuious to your eies consider their nature their site their order their state their motion their agreement their harmony their comlinesse their beautie their magnitude their vse their delight their variety their alteration their continuance and then if you can deny God's prouidence Gods prouidence is manifest in euery worke of creation you may behold it in the Heauen and in the lights thereof the Sunne the Moone and the Starres You may behold it in the aire in the clouds in the earth in the sea in plants in hearbs in seeds You may behold it in euery other creature euery liuing creature reasonable or vnreasonable man or beast and in euery beast whether it goeth or flieth or swimmeth or creepeth There is not any thing but it may serue to magnifie the prouidence of God But why runne I to the Fathers for the illustration of a point wherein the holy Scriptures are so plentifull so eloquent The 104. Psalme containeth an egregious description hereof a faire and goodly picture and a liuely portraiture of this prouidence of God drawne with the pencill of the holy Ghost I see therein the aire and clouds and winds and water and the earth and the like so ruled and ordered by the immediate hand of God that should he remoue his hand but for a moment this whole vniuerse would totter and fall and come to nothing I goe on to the 147. Psalme There I see God numbering the starres and calling them by name I see him couering the Heauens with clouds preparing raine for the earth giuing snow like wooll scattering the hoare frost like ashes casting forth his ice like morsells making grasse to grow vpon the mountaines giuing food to beasts to Rauens all this I see and cannot but acknowledge his vniuersall prouidence I looke backe to the booke of Iob and Chap. 9. I finde God remouing mountaines and ouer-turning them I finde him shaking the earth out of her place and commanding the Sunne to stand still I finde him alone spreading out the heauens and treading vpon the waues of the sea I finde him making Arcturus Oâ—ion Pleiades and the chambers of the South I finde him doing great things past finding out yea and wonders without number All this I finde and cannot but admire his vniuersall prouidence Infinite are the testimonies which I might produce out of the old Testament for this point but I passe them ouer contenting my selfe with only two out of the new That of our Sauiour Christ Iohn 5.17 My Father worketh hitherto and I worke is fit to my purpose The words are an answer to the Iewes who persecuted our Sauiour and sought to slay him for doing a cure on the Sabbath day vpon one that had beene diseased 38. yeares They held it to be vnlawfull to doe any worke vpon the Sabbath day Christ affirmes it to be lawfull The ground of their opinion was God the Father rested the seuenth day from all his workes This Christ denieth not but explicates the meaning of it It s true My Father rested the seuenth day from all his workes yet true also it is Pater meus vsque modò operatur My Father worketh hitherto He rested the seuenth day from all his workes and yet he worketh how can this be so It is thus according to Aquinas He rested the seuenth day à nouis creaturis condendis from making any new creatures yet notwithstanding hee euer worketh creaturas in esse conseruando preseruing his creatures in their being It may be thus enlarged Requieuit die septimo God rested the seuenth day from creating any new world or from making any new kinds of creatures but nor then rested he nor at any time since hath he rested from prouiding for and caring for and ruling and gouerning and sustaining the world Neuer resteth he but causeth his creatures to breed and bring forth after their kinds and restoreth things decaying and preserueth things subsisting to his good pleasure This is that saying of our Sauiours Pater meus vsque modò operatur my Father worketh hitherto My Father worketh hitherto Hom. 37. in Ioan. 5. Saint Chrysostome well discourseth thereupon If saith he thou shouldest aske How is it that the Father yet worketh sith he rested the seuenth day from all his workes I tell thee 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 He prouideth for and vpholdeth all things that he hath made Behold the Sunne rising and the Moone running and pooles of water and springs and riuers and raine 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and the course of nature in seeds and in the bodies of man and beast behold and consider these and all other things whereof 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 this vniuerse consisteth and thou wilt not deny the perpetuall operation of the Father but wilt breake forth into the praises of his vniuersall prouidence That branch of Saint Pauls Sermon to the Athenians Act. 17.28 In him we liue and moue and haue our being is also fit to the point we haue in hand In him that was to the Athenians the vnknowne God but is indeed the only true and euer-liuing God we liue we moue we haue our being Saint Ambrose in his booke De bono moutis cap. 12. thus descants vpon the words In Deo mouemur quasi in vià sumus quasi in veritate vinimus quasi in vitâ aeternâ In him we moue as in the way we haue our being as in the truth we liue as in the life eternall S. Cyprian or whosoeuer
Lord care for the preoccupation or preuention of so little time as if it were a matter of it selfe to be regarded No it was the obseruance of his commandement and the obedience thereunto that he required So for my text I say The giuing the Nazirites wine to drinke was not of it selfe a matter that the Lord much regarded but it was the obseruance of his commaundement and the obedience thereunto that he required The commandement I euen now repeated vnto you out of Num. 6. The summe of it is The Nazarite shall absteine from wine and strong drinke Contrary to this commandement did the Israelites here giue vnto the Nazarites wine to drink which is the thing wherewith they are here twyted to this sense Ye gaue the Nazarites wine to drinke in so doing you made proofe of your contempt of my Law and your disobedience thereunto I looked you should haue beene thankefull vnto mee for bestowing so great a benefit vpon you as is the order and calling of the Nazarites for the trayning vp of your yong men in pietie and religion but you vnthankfull you haue repaid me with contempt and disobedience you haue sollicited the Nazarites to breake their vow and contrary to my Law yee gaue them wine to drinke The doctrine we are to gather from hence is Disobedience against Gods holy lawes and commaundements is a sinne carefully to be eschewed by euery child of God As by the knowledge of light we may know what darkenesse is and by the knowledge of good what euill is so by the knowledge of obedience towards God we may know what disobedience against him is Of obedience towards God I entreated in my fift Lecture vpon this Chapter I then handled this conclusion Obedience to the commandements of the Lord is a dutie which the Lord requireth to be performed by euery child of his Whence by the Law of contraries followeth my now-conclusion Disobedience against the commandements of the Lord is a sinne which the Lord requireth to be eschewed by euery child of his For the illustration of this conclusion we are to note in man a twofold disobedience one in the state of corruption the other in the state of regeneration Disobedience in man in the state of corruption is an euill qualitie inbred in him by nature whereby he is made of himselfe altogether vnable and vnwilling to liue in subiection vnto God to heare his voice to obey his will or to doe what he commandeth By this disobedience man is not able to doe any thing but hate God his word his will and whatsoeuer is pleasing to him He euer rebels against God he euer resisteth the will of God he euer despiseth the commandements of God and embraceth with all his might what God forbiddeth How great this disobedience is the holy Scripture doth euidently demonstrate when it describeth the nature of man his thoughts his counsailes his affections his desires his actions in the state of corruption and before his regeneration So it calls vs k Num. 20.10 rebels Ezech. 2.3 impudent children and stiffe-hearted vers 4. Gods aduersaries and his enemies Esay 1.24 Children of l Ephes 5.6 Câ—lâ—s 3.6 diffidence and incredulitie Ephes 2.2 Children of wrath ver 3. Children of darknesse Ephes 5.8 Children of the m 1. Ioh. 3.8 Ioh. 8.49 Deuill 1. Iohn 3.10 It sayth of vs Gen. 6.5 that euery imagination of the thoughts of our hearts is onely euill continually It saith of vs Iob 15.25 that we stretch out our hands against God and strengthen our selues against the Almightie It saith of vs Ephes 4 17. that we walke in the varitie of our mindes that hauing our vnderstanding darkned we are alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in vs b cause of the blindnesse of our hearts that as men past feeling we haue giuen our selues ouer vnto lasciuiousnesse to worke all vncleannesse euen with greedinesse Such is the disobedience that is in man while he is in the state of corruption before he is regenerate There is another kind of disobedience in man when he is in the state of Regeneration This disobedience is common to euery child of God while he liueth in this world albeit in some it be greater in some lâ—sse as regeneration is perfecter in some then in others This I thus describe disobedience in man in the state of regeneration is an euil qualitie inbred in him by nature wherby he is made vnable to yeeld due subiection vnto God wholy on euery part with all his heart and all his might or so to obey his holy will simply in all things and alwayes without tergiuersation as neuer to decline from the rule of true obedience By this disobedience we are all made guiltie of the wrath of God of damnation and of eternall death The consideration hereof made Dauid Psal 130.3 to crie out vnto the Lord If thou Lord shouldest marke iniquities O Lord who shall stand It drew from him that humble supplication Psal 143.2 O Lord Enter not into iudgement with thy seruant for in thy sight shall no man liuing be iustified It wrested from him that same confession Psal 32.6 namely that the very godly haue need to pray for the remission of their sinnes There speaking of the remission of sinnes he saith For this shall euery one that is godly pray vnto thee For this for the remission of sinnes shall euery one that is godly pray vnto thee O Lord. From hence is it that our blessed Lord and Sauiour Iesus Christ taught his Apostles the most perfect Christians that euer were and therefore the most godly to pray for remission of their sinnes This disobedience which as yet resideth in vs in the best of vs S. Paul elegantly describeth Rom. 7.14 where thus he speaketh in his owne person as a man regenerate we know that the law is spirituall but I am carnall sold vnder sin n Râ—m 17.15 For that which I doe I allow not for what I would that doe I not but what I hate that doe I. o Vers 16. If then I doe that which I would not I consent vnto the law that it is good p Vers 17. Now then it is no more I that doe it but sinne that dwelleth in me q Vers 18. For I know that in me that is in my flesh dwelleth no good thing For to will is present with me but how to performe that which is good I find not r Vers 19. For the good that I would I doe not but the euill that I would not that I doe c. I am not ignorant that the Pelagians of old and diuerse of late as Erasmus Ochinus Castellio Faustus Socinus the Samosatenian Iacobus Arminius and their adherents doe affirme that S. Paul speaketh these words not of himselfe as a man regenerate but doth in them describe a man that is a prophane incontinent sensuall vnregenerate or doth describe the nature of man after his fall what and how