that Christian joy The first part is Christ Preached The second part is Christ Practised The third part must be your own that is Christ Purchased which from the bottom of his heart and in the bowels of Christian Charity he wisheth unto you who is Your Brother and Servant in Christ E. H. A Prayer in honour of Christs Nativity OBlessed Jesus thou Lover and Redeemer of souls God manifest in the flesh who camest unto men and didst become man to bring true light into the world from the Father of Lights grant we beseech thee unto us miserable sinners so to glorifie thee for thy coming to us and being in us and reigning over us that though of our selves we are in darkness and in the shadow of death yet in thee we may come to see the true light of Grace and by thee may come to enjoy the true light of Glory to glorifie thee eternally who livest and reignest with the Father and the Holy Ghost one God eternal world without end Amen A short Scheme of the whole Christ welcomed in his Nativity Hath three Chapters The first sheweth the Motives of that welcome The second sheweth the Reasons of that welcome The third sheweth the joyful manner of that welcome CAP. 1. Shewing the Motives of Christs welcome from God and from Gods Church both Triumphant and Militant Hath fifteen Sections Sect. 1. CHrists image repairs the loss of Gods image in man The Churches desire tâ—… Christ should be formed in us Christs humiliation is the Christians exaltation Sect. 2. Christs humiliation was in the fulness of time Sect. 3. The fulness of time in which Christ came to humble himself was the perfection of time Sect. 4. God observed the fulness of time for the sending of Christ to fill our souls with Patience and with Piety which two make up the true Christians fulness Sect. 5. The authority of God and of his Church for a solemn Festival to celebrate the coming of Christ and that the Church did no more then her Duty in appointing that Festival and an Advent Sunday to prepare for it and that we cannot justly or safely gainsay that Appointment Sect. 6. Christmass no superstitious word and Christmass-day observed not for it self but for its duty takes off all controversies and can fall under no just exceptions and may not fall under any unjust cavils much less calumnies Sect. 7. The difference betwixt a Iewish and a Christian observation of daies This latter is a moral part of Gods service and may not be neglected without scandal Sect 8. To oppose the celebration of Christs Nativity is a scandal to Christians and a stumbling block to Iews keeping them from Christianity Sect. 9. The Iews equally scandalized by Idolatry and by Profaneness especially that profaneness or irreligion which immediately dishonoureth our Saviour Christ Sect. 10. That those Christians who oppose Christmass-day do give occasion to other good Christians to suspect them as not well grounded in the Christian Religion Sect. 11. The first Christmass-day was kept by the holy Angels therefore no will-worship in keeping Christmass but rather a necessity to keep it from Heb. 1. 6. The Kingdom of Christ as Creator and as Redeemer Sect. 12. We must embrace all opportunities of glorifying Christ that we may not be thought to desert either our Saviour or our selves whiles we are defective in our Devotions either for want of Preparation before them which hath hitherto made us so bad Christians in so good a Churâ—â— or of Affection in them which will keep us from being good Christians or of Thankfulness after them which will keep us from worthily magnifying the name of Christ Sect. 13. A new song for the coming of Christ God the Father Son and Holy Ghost carefully observed the time of our Saviours coming into the world therefore it can be no true piece of Reformation for men not to observe it Sect. 14. Everlasting thankfulness is due to God for this everlasting mercy Sect. 15. Time not perfect in Gods account from our Creation but from our Redemption The Iews not destroyed and Time not untimed meerly in relation to the coming of Christ Time still continued for the world to make a right use of his coming No other time perfect in Gods account but that wherein he gives his Son And no other should be perfect in our account but that wherein we receive him CAP. 2. Shewing the Reasons of Christs welcome because of the infinite love of God the Father Son and Holy Ghost bestowed on man in his Redemption Hath nine Sections Sect. 1. GOds first gift to man was his love in Christ his second Gift was Christ in our nature No Gift can prove a blessing unless God give it in love Not Government not the Gospel though the one be the best temporal the other the best Spiritual Gift Sect. 2. Gods love in Christ though it be Universal in the diffusion yet is it particular in the Obligation Sect. 3. Gods love to man in Christ was the ground of his Consultation with himself how to bring us to eternal life Sect. 4. Gods love to man in Christ was not in vain or without Success though his Churches love to us in daily Praying for us and teaching us to pray for our selves often proves unsuccessful And yet our best proof that God hath loved us in Christ is That we love him again both in his Authority and in his Ordinances and in his Members Sect. 5. Gods love to us in Christ was not in vain or without a cause for as much as Christ was the ground of our Election as well as the Author of our Reconciliation More men Reconciled by Christ to God then Recommended to Him Or more men reconciled Potentially then Actually Sect. 6. Gods love in Christ is not a fond love therefore he scourgeth whom he loveth The Christian Church not taught in the New Testament to expostulate for being scourged though she be crucified as Christ was between two thieves Sect. 7. Christs love to us that he would come from the bosom of his Father to teach and to redeem us The title of the chief corner-stone blasphemously applyed to his pretended Vicar Christ was not an Apostle one sent from God but an Ex-apostle one sent out of God Sect. 8. Tht mother of Christ so a Woman as still a Virgin The Prayer of the seventy Interpreters Christs love to us that he would be made the Son of a woman whereby he hath exalted men above Angels A mercy not to be forgotten till there be no man to remember it That the Iews corrupted not the Text proved from the Prophecies concerning Christ Sect. 9. Christs love to us that he would be made under the Law That man is a Son of Belial not a Member of Christ who will not be under the Law All good Christians follow Christ both in Active and in Passive obedience CAP. 3. Shewing the joyful manner of Christs welcome as proceeding from joy in the Holy-Ghost
the zeal of our piety and the constancy of our saith by the unweariedness of our piety that neither faith nor piety may be reproved in thy sight when thou shalt come to Judge us who rulest and governest all things with the Father and the Holy Ghost ever one God world without end Amen Christ communicated in the coming of the Holy Ghost CAP. I. Of the Communication of Christ to his Members SECT I. That we being born in sin our condition is very miserable till Christ be communicated to us but after that very comfortable for the time of sin is a time of warfare captivity banishment The time of Grace a time of Peace of Restitution of Liberty The admirable liberty of Gods servants the woful slavery of those who serve themselves IT is no small part of mans misery who is born in sin and sorrow and therefore born in sorrow because in sin that the afflictions of this world may grieve his soul but all the comforts of this world cannot rescue or release it from grief The Spirit may be perplexed from the flesh but cannot be relieved from it it is only the lover of souls that can exhilerate the soul only the God of Spirits that can comfort the Spirit And till this lover of souls shew his love to us we are hateful to our selves till this God of Spirits do comfort our spirits we cannot but remain altogether comfortless For we are of our selves strangers and aliens from the Common-wealth of Israel and consequently from the comforts and immunities of that Common-wealth being alienated from God as far as earth from heaven in our affection as far as hell from heaven in our condition T is a sad truth which may be lamented but may not be denied for in its denyal though a man may shew himself a good Sophister yet he must shew himself a bad divine and cannot shew himself a good Christian That we are all by nature children of disobedience and children of wrath The Jew though he came of the stock of Abraham yet came not into the world without disobedience nor without wrath no more then the Gentile for so saith Saint Paul we were born the children of wrath even as others that is we Jews who came of Abraham no less then the Gentiles who came of the most unworthy and most unrighteous stock in the world Among whom sc the children of disobedience we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh and were by nature the children of wrath even as others Eâ—h 2. 3. as if he had said we were children of disobedience in our affection children of wrath in our condition strangers from God in our affection for being under such lusts strangers from God in our condition for being under such wrath The Apostles intent is fully to declare unto us the state of mans misery which he is in by nature till he be relieved by his blessed redeemer and we may reduce all his doctrine to these four Heads First that our misery consisteth of two parts that we are under the dominion of sin and that we are under the guilt and punishment of Sin Secondly that all men in general as well Jews as Gentiles as long as they are without Christ and his Grace are subject to this misery that is are dead in trespasses and in sins and obnoxious to punishment for the same Thirdly that this our misery is meerly voluntary in regard of the sin though not in regard of the punishment for it is the course of this world and the fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind i. e. perverse and inordinate desires both external of the body and internal of the Soul for body and soul both are alike infected both are corrupted by sin and the desires of the mind are sinfull no less then the desires of the flesh This course of the world we are all desirous to run these desires of the flesh we are all inclined to nourish and to fulfill So that our misery is altogether voluntary in regard of our sin though it be altogether involuntrary and necessary in regard of the punishment we are willingly under the sin as pleasing our corruption but unwillingly under the punishment as bringing our destruction we are contented with the disobedience but we are afraid of the wrath and yet as long as we are under the sin we cannot but be under the punishment as long as we are children of disobedience we are also children of wrath Fourthly and lastly that as it is not in our will so it is not in our power to redeem our selves from this misery for that our corrupt nature doth not so much as desire and therefore cannot recover the state of true liberty either from sin or punishment but t is only the infinite goodness and mercy of God that recovers us by his Grace which is as far beyond our desires as above our deserts such a grace as we could not imagine and therefore did not desire such a grace as we did not desire and therefore could not deserve as saith the Apostle But God who is rich in mercy for his great love wherewith he loved us even when we were dead in sins hath quickned us together with Christ The first Adam communicated nothing to us but sin and death t is only the second Adam that hath communicated to us Grace and Life and therfore t is only in relation to him to our Saviour Christ that the Prophet begins his Sermon of Comfort Isa 40. 1 2. Comfort ye comfort ye my people saith your God speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem and cry unto her that her warfare is accomplished that her iniquity is pardoned The beginning of the pardon is the end of the war Her warfare is accomplished and her iniquity is pardoned do both signifie the same peace Completa est malitia ejus saith the Latine translation for militia by a small mistake of the letter and that in the printer not in the translator but none of the sense for our malitia is our militia our iniquity is our warfare the Hebrew word is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is both her work and her time of war Kimchi in his gloss saith thus 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 vult dicere tempus quod in captivitate vel exilio dâ—buit transigere He means the time that she was to pass in banishment or captivity we may well admit the gloss For sin is a time of war banishment and captivity of war with God of banishment from God and of captivity not under God for he can be no tyrant but under the devil A sad time surely And therefore the time of Grace must needs be a joyfull time wherein this warfare this captivitâ— this banishment is brought to an end For Christ being communicated the sin is pardoned and the Sin being pardoned the sinner is in peace and in prosperity and in liberty to say this is to speak truly to the heart 〈◊〉
were first Angels secondly men yet men only not Angels appointed by him as witnesses of his Ascension though not All men And that the disturbers of these witnesses that is of the Orders of Christs Ministers in his Church do sin against this Article of Christs Ascension which however is it self and puts all true believers above all disturbancet CAP. 3. Christ considered after he was Ascended Hath three Sections Sect. 1. WHat is meant by the right hand of God and by Christs sitting there Sect. 2. That Christ as man sitteth on the right hand of God Sect. 3. That to sit at the right hand of God is proper only to Christ and therefore invocation of or adoration to the blessed Virgin is not agreeable with this article of our Christian Faith That the Author of no Religion but only the Christian is said to be at the right hand of God and to administer his Kingdom and therefore no Religion to be compared with it and no power to prevail against it Christ Communicated in the coming of the Holy Ghost Hath two Chapters The first Chapter is of the Communication of Christ unto his members The second Chapter is of the coming of the Holy Ghost where Christ is Communicated CAP. 1. Of the Communication of Christ to his members Hath three Sections Sect. 1. THat we being born in sin our condition is very miserable till Christ be Communicated to us but after that very comfortable for the time of sin is a time of warfare captivity banishment the time of Grace a time of peace of restitution of liberty the admirable liberty of Gods servants the woful slavery of those who serve themselves Sect. 2. That Christ is generally Communicated to all Christians by Baptism wherein the Holy Ghost is given to regenerate and sanctifie them by taking away the imputation or guilt of Original sin and making them the members of Christ How the Apostles baptized in the name of Christ and their infidelity and uncharitableness who deny Baptism to Infants Sect. 3. That Christ is more peculiarly communicated to some Christians by the Spirit of adoption whereby they cry Abba Father calling upon God with greater earnestness confidence and comfort then did the Jews and yet they also had the Spirit of adoption though not in the same degree as well as Christians CAP. 2. Of the coming of the Holy Ghost where Christ is Communicated Hath six Sections Sect. 1. THat the Holy Ghost is the Spirit of Christ that is the spirit of the Son as well as of the Father and that the Greeks were unjustly and uncharitably rejected by some of the Latines as Hereticks concerning the procession of the Holy Ghost Of the addition of Filioque to the Constantinopolitan Creed and that the Pope hath no authority to change any Article of Faith The Greek Church agreed with the Latine about this controversie insense though not in words Therefore not anathematized by the Western Churches which use the Athanasian Creed Bellarmines heavy doom concerning the Greek Church fitter for a souldier then a Divine Sect. 2. That the coming of the Holy Ghost for the communicating of Christ after an extraordinary manner is not now to be expected That preaching and praying with the spirit come not by infusions Enthusiasts are the worst separatists and the greatest blasphemers guilty of the worst kinds of sacriledge and idolatry in robbing God of his publick worship after such a manner as he hath commanded and idolizing their own pretended gifts Sect. 3. Hypocritical Christians who make Prayers for pretences worse Atheists then the Heathen pretenders to the spirit are the greatest enemies to the spirit and shew the least fruits of the spirit Therefore must be silenced by the Ministers of Christ and shunned by his people who have no excuse if they are misled by them because they are to be known by their works whereof the weakest and the meanest men are competent Judges Sect. 4. Vnsetledness in Religion shews we have not learned it from our heavenly Master or from Gods Exapostle The Holy Ghost being given us from the Father by the Son sheweth there is no salvation to them who believe not the Trinity The mixture of praises with prayers in the Psalms was the Abba Father of the Old Testament and proceeded from joy in the Holy Ghost which is a joy both unsequestrable and unspeakable The sacrifices and Hymns answerable to that Joy Sect. 5. Folly and Filiation are together in Gods best adopted children whilst they are in this world The three priviledges of the Saints of Gods not of their own making because of the spirit of adoption 1. That of enemies they are made servants of God of servants they are made sons 2. That being made Sons of God they have the spirit of his Son 3. That having the Spirit of his Son they have also the mind and language of his Son crying Abba Father having their hearts true to God by inward affection and their mouths true to their hearts by outward profession Sect. 6. The having the spirit and language of the Son farther explained by three questions 1. How Abba Father is called the language of the Son and whether Saint Mark borrowed not that expression from Saint Paul 2. Who it is that cryeth Abba Father or that prays by the spirit whether he that hath most cordial affections or he that hath most voluble effusions 3. Whether the spirit may be in the heart Believing whiles t is not in the mouth crying Abba Father or whether the spirit of Adoption once truly had be not retained to the end Christ received in the State of true Christianity Hath three Chapters The first Chapter is of the state of true Christianity The second Chapter is of the knowledge of that state The third Chapter is of the comfort of that knowledge CAP. 1. Of the state of true Christianity Hath five Sections Sect. 1. THE happiness of Christians who have their conversation with Christ that lovers of themselves or of the world have not this happiness for though Christ spaek to all yet he answers only to good Christians that is to sheep not to Wolves or to Christians not to Heathen for such he accounteth all persecuters teaching the one to their instruction and contentation the other only to their conviction and condemnation The reason why so many Christians come not to the state of true Christianity Sect. 2. Many Christians not so careful of their spiritual as of their temporal estate or condition The state of true Christianity is not external in the profession but inetrnal in the love of Christ which will make us hate all sin No malitious man can be in the state of true Christianity The ground of true Christian charity generally abused to most unchristian uncharitableness charity is more safely mistaken then not maintained Sect. 3. That the state of true Christianity is best taught by our Saviour Christ and best learned of him and how far the Jews may be said to
and the Decalogue righteously taken into our Liturgie but unrighteously omitted by Innovators who vainly obtrude Variety to mens consciences instead of Certainty Sect. 11. The Gift of Prayer examined That it is not a Gift of sanctifying Grace That Prayer as a Duty is above Prayer as a Gift That the Spirit of Prayer is often without the Gift of Prayer and yet the Gift of Prayer is not perfect without the Spirit of it Those Christians who have attained the Gift of Prayer most compleatly that is joyntly with the Spirit of it are not thereby qualified to be the mouths of the Congregations Those Ministers who have not attained that Gift are not for that reason to be despised as not sufficiently qualified for the Ministry And those Ministers who have attained it may not for the exercising thereof be allowed to reject set forms of Prayer in their Congregations because set forms in publick are more for the Ministers and the Peoples good more for Gods glory and more agrecable with Gods command Sect. 12. Set forms and conceived Prayers compared together That set forms do better remedy all inconveniences and more establish the conscience Are not guilty of will-worship nor of quenching the Spirit nor of superstitious formalities and that it is less dangerous if not more Christian to discountenance the Gift then the Spirit of Prayer Sect. 13. That forms of publick Prayer are not to be disliked because they cannot or at least do not particularly provide either Deprecations against private mens occasional miseries or thanksgivings for their occasional mercies yet our Church not defective in occasionals though chiefly furnished with eternals The danger of contemning Religious forms of Prayer and gadding after conceived Prayers Sect. 14. The third and last part of the Churches Trust concerning Religion is touching the holy Sacraments wherein our Church is not faulty either in the number or in the administration of Them as exactly following our Saviours Institution Nor in the manner of Administring as following it with reverence CAP. 3. That the Communion of the Church of England is conscionably embraced and reteined by all the People of this Nation and not rejected much less renounced by any of them but against the rules of conscience Sect. 1. EVery particular man ought to labour to be of such a Communion as he is sure is truly Christian both in Doctrine and in Devotion The Rule whereby to choose such a Communion the Proofs whereby to maintain it Sect. 2. That the Communion of the Church of England is truly Christian in Doctrine free from Hereâ—ie and from the necessary cause thereof a false ground or foundation of faith That is Believeing upon the Authority of men instead of God Sect. 3. That the Communion of the Church of England is truly Christian in Devotion free from impiety either by corrupt Invocation or Adoration Sect. 4. That the Communion of the Church of England obligeth those in conscience who are members of that Church to retein â—â— and not to reject it much less to renounce it by no less then five Commandments of the Decalogue Errata PAge 7. line 4. read Menologie p. 26. l. 35. r. fatlest p. 34. l. 19. r Tria p. 39. l. 4. r. brightness p. 47. l. 3. r. ut p. 56. l. 28. r. They p. 60. l. 20. r. It is p. 61. l. 11. 12. r. likeness p. 66. l. 22. r. protension p. 77. l. 26. r. This p. 78. l. 28. dele not p. 82. l. 17. r. as p. 100. l. 23. r. He p. 101. l. 16. r. greater p. 105. l. 3. r. Turning p. 106. l. r. r. their p. 116. l. 32. dele that p. 120. l. 14. r. without p. 126. l. 36. r. Nor p. 148. l. 14. r. bring p. 150. l. 14. r. of p. 169. l. 1. r. we p. 178. l. 2. r. fully p. 178. l. 15. r. take p. 180 l. 1. r. iniquities p. 182. l. 32. r. affective p. 198. l. 22. r. before p. 208. l. 17. 1. Quid p. 208. l. 18. r. Nam p. 292. in the Contents l. 6. r. Them p. 319. l. 5. r. comely p. 345. l. 3. r. sound p. 415. l. 31. r. Then p. 449. l. 1. r. persection ibid. l. 31. r. such a division p. 549. l. 19. â— beats p. 634. l. 14. r. certainty p. 656. l. 30. r. unpremeditated p. 674. l. 5. r. Obsecration p. 680. l. 4. r. bind ibid. l. 5. r. hands Christ wellcomed in his Nativity CAP. I. The Motives of Christs welcome from God and from his Church both Triumphant and Militant SECT I. Christs image repairs the loss of Gods image in man The Churches desire that Christ should be formed in us and that Christs humiliation is the Christians exaltation IN the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost one God everlasting Blessed be the Holy and undivided Trinity world without end Amen I had once the image of God the Father in my creation and I soon lost it wherefore I now desire to have the image of God the Son in my Redemption which I may never lose O thou eternal Spirit proceeding from the Father and the Son vouchsafe to breath in my soul this breath of life that I may live eternally O thou who didst form the eternal Son of God in the womb of a pure Virgin be pleased also to form him in my impure and sinful heart That Christ being formed in me I may not be an Abortive to the life and light of righteousness Thy holy Apostle travelled as in birth till Christ was formed in the Galatians so doth thy holy Church travail as in birth til Christ be formed in me Oh then let the end of her travail be the beginning of my rest that my Saviour being formed in me I may be fitted and prepared for his salvation He once condescended to be made man for me Oh that he will now give me the benefit of that condescention and be made man in me That I may put on the Lord Jesus Christ even as he hath put on me That as he dwelleth in my flesh by a personal union so he may also dwell in my Spirit by a powerful Communion That as by dwelling in my flesh he emptied himself so by dwelling in my Spirit he may fill me For Christs emptiness is the Christians fulness He that filled Heaven and Earth from the beginning of the Creation did in the declining Age of Time Empty himself that he might fill us Them he filled with his Majesty but us with his Mercy And if his emptiness was our fulness what is his fulness but our glory If his fall was our rising what is his resurrection but our salvation If the humiliation of Christ was the riches of the world how much more his exaltation If he enriched us by his Poverty how much more will he enrich us by his Glory The Apostle can mention nothing but fulness when he treats of Christ emptiness Gal. 4. 4 5. SECT II. Christs
behold him as my Judge For if I be ashamed of him in his infirmity how shall he not be ashamed of me in his glory Therefore I dare not be ashamed of this day least I should seem to be ashamed of him also no nor of his prayer least I should seem to be ashamed of his words since himself hath said Whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation of him also shall the Son ef man be ashamed when â—e cometh in the glory of his Father with the Holy Angel Mar. 8. 38. SECT XI The first Christmas-day was kept by the Holy Angels therefore no will-worship in keeping Christmas but rather a necessity to keep it from Heb. 1. 6. The Kingdom of Christ as Creator and as Redeemer IN keeping of Christmas the Church militant follows the example of the Church Triumphant for the First Christmas-Day that was ever kept on Earth was kept by the Holy Angels that came of purpose from Heaven to keep it Luk. 2. 13 14 And suddenly there was with the Angel A multitude of the Heavenly Host Praising God and saying Glory to God in the Highest and on Earth Peace good will towards men Shall that be accounted Superstition in men which was undoubted Religion in the Angels or can we be called will-worshippers for doing no more then they did unless you will first call them so Let will-worship go in Epiphanius his language for 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for wilful and for superfluous worship for what it hath of mans will or wilfulness it cannot but have of superfluity But let us take heed of calling that will-worship for which there is a Precedent in the Text and so great a reason for that Precedent for it is most certain that the blessed Angels in Heaven had great reason to joy for the incarnation of Christ since he was the Repairer of their ruine in their fellows and the confirmer of their â—â—ay or standing in themselves whence Alensis tels us plainly that the Angels joy and bliss was greater after the incarnation of Christ then it had been before For though the substantial Joy of the Angels consist in the contemplation of the Divinity yet their accidental joy consists in the contemplation of the Humanity of our blessed Saviour as it is united to his Divinity Accrevit igitur gaudium Angelorum licet non quod substantiam tamen quantum ad multitudinem quia pluribus modis habent modò gaudium in beatitudine quà m ante Incarnationem Par. 3. q. 12. Therefore the Joy of the Angels is increased by the Nativity of Christ though not in its substance yet in its Variety for that now they rejoyce more several wayes then before for whereas before the Incarnation they rejoyced to see God in God now since it They rejoyce to see God in man And we find that they did sing and triumph that they might express their joy surely not to teach us Christians who in that we are men have much greater cause of joy from thence then the Angels could have I say surely not to teach us men a lesson of silence and of fullenss But if we will not regard Precedent yet we must regard Precept And the Angels seem to have a Precept to worship our Saviour Christ at his Nativity For the Apostles words seem to look towards a Precept Heb. 1. 6. When he bringeth in the first begotten into the world He saith And let all the Angels of God worship him I know this Text chiefly aims at the Proof of Christs Divinity but if the Holy Spirit thought he had sufficiently proved the first-begotten of the Father though brought into the world in the form of a servant to be no less then God when he had said And let all the Angels of God worship him It is evident they do what is in them to invalidate this Proof who at the very time that he was thus brought into the world do cry out as loud as they can let not the the sons of men worship him But where doth the Holy Ghost say this Epiphanius in his Ancorate plainly cites Moses's song for this Text which is in Deut. 32. where v. 42. The Greek interpretation hath these words 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Let all the Angels of God worship him but with some various lections to make the Interpretation disputable at least if not questionable However since no such thing is to be found in the Hebrew and we are not assured that the Holy Ghost spake in Greek by the Septuagint supposing their Translation hath been preserved incorruptible we may not ascribe this Greek Translation to the saying of the Holy Ghost we must therefore appeal to the Hebrew Original which we are sure came immediately from Gods holy Spirit and then we shall find this Injunction Worship him all ye Angels of God in Psal 97. 7. And indeed the whole Argument of that Psalm is nothing else but a Prophecy of the Kingdom of Christ and an exhortation both to Angels and men Joyfully to celebrate the magnificence and thankfully to acknowledge the power of his Kingdom For the Kingdom of Christ may be considered either as he is Creator Eternal God with the Father and the Holy Ghost and so the Jews themselves will not deny him to be their King or As Redeemer God and man in one Person and and so the Jews do stiffly deny his Kingdom and we Christians had need beware least we may seem to encourage or at least to confirm and Harden them in that Denial SECT XII We must embrace all opportunities of glorifying Christ that we may not be thought to desert either our Saviour or our selves whiles we are defective in our Devotions either for want of Preparation before which hath hitherto made us so bad Christians in so good a Church or of Affection in them which will keep us from being good Christians or of Thankfulness after them which wil keep us from worthily magnifying the name of Christ THe best course I know to prevent the hardening either of our own or of others Hearts is to take all the opportunities that are offered us of glorifying our blessed Saviour for he that is willing to neglect an opportunity can scarce be zealously inclined to lay hold of another time he that will not Honour Christ on his own Day will scarce pick out another Day to honour him though he may pretend to keep Christmass all the year or if he be indeed zealously inclined to honour Christ yet other Christians cannot be easily inclined to think him so and Jews must necessarily think him not so And though we ought not to judge them also that are without 1 Cor. 5. 12. yet we ought not to offend them and much less them that are within for this is the way to cause God to judge us we will therefore take that for granted which cannot be denied that we have all great need to imploy very much and cannot imploy
my hands accept of any offering SECT XIII A new song for the coming of Christ God the Father Son and Holy Ghost carefully observed the time of our Saviours coming into the world therefore it can be no true piece of Reformation for men not to observe it THE Church had a new song put into her mouth meerly for the knowledge of the great mercy of her Saviours Nativity How much more then for the enjoyment of it He hath put a new song in my mouth saith the Psalmist even a Thanksgiving to our God Psalm 40. 3. And Saint Paul tells us wherefore this new song was put into his mouth in that he applyes this very Psalm to the coming of our Saviour Christ Heb. 10. 5 c. Wherefore when he cometh into the world he saith Sacrifice and offering thou wouldst not but a body hast thou prepared me which words are quoted out of this same very Psalm and point as directly at Christs coming into the flesh as that finger of the Baptist did point at him after he was come when he said Behold the Lamb of God which finger for that very cause as some would perswade us could not be burnt with the rest of his body Gentiles ossa collegerant cumbusserant sed digitus ille quo Dominum ad Jordanum venientem monstravit dicens ecce agnus Dei non potuit comburi Durandus in rationali lib. 7. de decollatione S. Johannis This was indeed a sufficient cause why a New song should be put in the mouth even of the sweet singer of Israel To shew that great was his Thanksgiving yet greater his Thankfulness for this inestimable and undeserved mercy as it appears Psalm 40. 6 7. O Lord my God great are thy wonderous works which thou hast done like as be also thy thoughts which are to us-ward If I would declare them and speak of them they should be more then I am able to express And all these wonderous works and thoughts are summed up together by the Apostle in this saying when he cometh into the world as indeed they were consummated and compleated by Christ himself in his coming when he cometh into the world he saith And yet the words were said above five hundred years before he came It seems God the Son was so long before observing the time of his own coming into the world surely not that the sons of men should labour to forget and resolve not to observe it And God the Father did the like Heb. 1. 6. When he bringeth in the first begotten into the world he saith And let all the Angels of God worship him Pointing as it were at the very day of Christs Nativity or coming into the world yet some men perswade themselves they do enough if they believe his going out of the world and think only upon his Death and Passion And God the Holy Ghost did the same as being the Pen-man and Interpreter of these Texts and the Applyer of them to our blessed Saviour For he it was that spake both by the Prophets and by the Apostles God the Father God the Son and God the Holy Ghost did look and point very punctually at Christs coming into the world Telling the Angels of it that they might worship him and the Angels accordingly sing a most heavenly Hymn of Thanksgiving at his Birth not only in heaven for their own Joy and Exultation for which they are alwaies singing to him there but also on the earth or at least very near it so near as that the Shepherds did both hear and see them singing for our comfort and imitation And therefore it cannot justly be accounted a Piece of Reformation to teach men to look away as far as they can from that time wherein the Church doth celebrate the memorial of Christs coming as if God who had bid the Angels worship him had bid men not worship him which is surely a strain of very bad Logick and of far worse Divinity SECT XIV Everlasting Thankfulness is due to God for this Everlasting Mercy THE Psalmist teacheth us a Lesson of everlasting Thankfulness for this everlasting Mercy as appears Psalm 72. The chief argument of the Psalm is Christ as is proved in the 8. and 9. verses from the extent of his Dominion far beyond Solomons even to the worlds end and much more in the 10. and 11. verses from the excellency of his Person That All Kings should fall down before him And particularly That the Kings of Arabia and Saba should bring him gifts which was literally fulfilled in the Presents of the wise men Mat. 2. who by the Antients were both called and reputed Kings And the Conclusion that is inferred from these Premises is Thanksgiving The argument of the Psalm is everlasting mercy even the mercy of God to man in Christ and the Conclusion of it is everlasting Thankfulness for so it follows ver 18. 19. Blessed be the Lord God even the God of Israel which only doth wonderous things and this wonderous thing above all the rest That the Son of God was made the Son of man that we who were by nature the children of wrath might be made the Sons of God there 's the Thankfulness And blessed be the name of his Majesty for ever and all the earth shall be filled with his Majesty Amen Amen There 's the everlasting Thankfulness Heaven was from the first instant of its creation filled with his Majesty but now the earth was also filled with it And if heaven and earth are both filled with his Majesty what shall we say if our sinful souls be empty For if we be not filled with his Majesty How shall we come to be filled with his Mercy SECT XV. Time not perfect in Gods account from our Creation but from our Redemption The Jews not destroyed and Time not Vntimed meerly in relation to the coming of Christ Time still continued for the world to make a right use of his coming No other Time perfect in Gods account but that wherein he gives his Son and no other Time should be perfect in our account but that wherein we receive him GOD accounted that only the Perfection of Time wherein he wrought the work of our Redemption as if all that had passed before that from the beginning of the Creation had been but an imperfect Time He had no rest in the Creation till he made man He had no rest after it till he Redeemed him Divinely Saint Ambrose in his Hexameron and not the less Divinely because he took it out of Saint Basil for the Latine Fathers borrowed of the Greek-Fathers as later Divines have since borrowed from them Fecit Deus coelum non lego quod requieverit fecit solem lunam stellas nec ibi lego quod requieverit sed lego quod fecerit Hominem tunc requieverit habens câ—i Peccata dimitteret God made Heaven and I do not read that he did rest He made the Earth and I do not read that
yet he will not forsake us for ever The Psalmist that asks the question Will the Lord absent himself for ever and will he be no more intreated Is his mercy clean gone for ever and is his promise come utterly to an end for evermore Hath God forgotten to be gracious and will he shut up his loving kindness in displeasure Answers it negatively in that he checks himself for asking it saying It is mine own infirmity Psalm 77. 8 9 10. And agreeable to this Doctrine is that distinction of the Schools desertio explorationis Poenae There is a twofold spiritual desertion a Desertion of tryal and of punishment by the first God may and often doth withdraw his presence from his best servants to prove them but not by the second to punish them taking punishment properly not as the chastisement of a loving Father but as the vengeance of an angry Judge Thus saith the Evangelist Jesus having loved his own which were in the world he loved them unto the end John 13. 1. If he had not loved them he would never have come to them and loving them to the end how shall he depart from them And lest we should think this peculiarly spoken of the Apostles contrary to that rule of Rom. 4. 23 24. Now it was not written for his sake alone that it was imputed to him but for us also to whom it shall be imputed where we may plainly see that the Scripture though it often is but particular in the occasion yet is alwayes universal in the instruction I say lest we should think this occasionally spoken of the Apostles Saint Paul saith it also Doctrinally of all others whom God hath been pleased to call to his communion Who shall also confirm you unto the end that ye may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ 1 Cor. 1. 8. And he gives the reason of his Doctrine in the next verse God is faithful by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord as if he had said he hath converted you and he will confirm you not for a while but unto the end and the reason is because he is faithful He hath called you to the fellowship or the communion of his Son Jesus Christ and he will keep and confirm you in it unto the end He forsakes not the fellowship which himself hath ordained for he is faithful He hath ordained that you should have fellowship with him in his Son and he is so faithful to his own ordination that he gives his Holy Spirit to call you to and keep you in that fellowship to the intent you may be joyned with him in the communion of grace till he bring you to the communion of glory So that the fault is wholly our own if God make not his perpetual abode with us after once he is come unto us T is because either we do not stick to our Saviour the Son of his love or because we do stick to our sins which he cannot love For he will not constantly abide either with an unfaithful or with an unfruitful soul The unfaithfull soul forsakes his communion the unfrui tfll soul forgets it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 saith Aristotle Children are the bond of Wedlock Nay God saith so too Now this time will my husband be joyned unto me because I have born him three sons Gen. 29. 34. Therefore was his name called Levi The Levite had his name from conjunction for shame let him not be the author of separation And again yet more fully God hath endued me with a good dowry now will my husband dwell with me because I have born him six sons and she called his name Zebulon Gen. 30. 20. Zebulon id est donum cohabitationis saith Tremelius Donatum filium ad conciliandam cohabitationem viri a pledge or pawn of the husbands dwelling with his wife and delighting in her society So is it also in the Spiritual Matrimony in the Marriage of the soul with Christ That he may betroth us unto himself for ever he doth betroth us in righteousness and judgement in loving-kindness and in mercies and in faithfulness Hos 2. There is righteousness and faithfulness as well as there is loving-kindness and mercy in this blessed wedlock Righteousness and faithfulness required on our parts as well as loving-kindness and mercies on his part and we must take heed of losing the righteousness and the faithfulness for fear we should lose the loving-kindness and the mercies Gratia est habitus mentis totius vit◠ordinativus Grace is a habit of the mind ordering the whole life saith Alensis par 3. qu. 61. m. 2. In what but in righteousness Grace ordereth the whole life in righteousness will not suffer any part of it to be spent in unrighteousness so likewise saith Saint Paul Grace reigneth through righteousness to eternal life Rom. 5. 21. Take away the righteousness take away the reign of grace take away the reign of grace and farewell to the reign of glory unless you will look for glory without eternal life O blessed Jesus who art the only guest and joy of religious souls I confess that I am not worthy thou shouldest once come under my roof yet I beseech thee to make me fit for thine everlasting abode That I being faithfull and fruitfull in all righteousness unto the death may receive of thee a Crown of life who didst dye for my sins and rise again for my Justification and now sittest on the right hand of God making intercession for me Thou hast been the Mediator of this blessed communion betwixt God and my soul O be thou also the preserver of it that in it and for it I may bless and praise thee with the Father and the Holy Ghost one God world without end Amen Christ reteined in the true Christian Communion Now I beseech you brethren mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the Doctrine which ye have learned and avoid them for they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ but their own belly and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple Rom. 16. 17 18. Nec Haereticus pertinet ad Ecclesiam Catholicam quae diligit Deum Nec Schismaticus quoniam diligit Proximum Aug. de fide Symbolo cap. 10. Neither doth a Heretick belong to the Catholick Church because she loves God nor a Schismatick because she loves her neighbour The Prooem Christian Communion is to be considered in its Authority in its Excellency and in its Sincerity GReat are the divisions of wicked and ungodly men whilst at first they run away from God and as great are their distractions when at last they run away from one another It is their sin that they will needs be at enmity with God it is their punishment that they cannot but be at enmity among themselves This small Treatise endeavours either to keep us from this great misery or to recover us out of
bind If we break one of those bonds asunder how shall we be held by the other If we cast away Religion what do we talk of communion it is more just to call it a conspiracy If we cast away communion what do we pretend Religion it is more just to call it an apostacy Let both Religion and Communion be truely for the honour of Christ or let neither be called Christian For indeed this is the only true touchstone whereby we may try which Churches are the dross of Christendom and which are the gold of it they who most labour to glorifie Christ are the best Christians according that short but pithy prayer of the Latine Church Et quia tuum est quod credimus tuum sit omne quod vivimus Orat. in Sabbato quatuor temporum quadragesimae And because that all our Faith is from thee grant that all our Life may be for thee and to thee All our faith is from Christ all our life must be to Christ or we shall live infidels though in belief Christians Therefore they who most labour to glorifie Christ both by their Faith and by their life are undoubtedly the best Christians They who most labour to glorifie him as King to be ruled by his government as Prophet to be guided by his Word as Priest to be reconciled by his satisfaction they are clearly the best Christians and they who are defective in any of these as they less glorifie Christ so have they less the purity and truth of Christianity Great is the preeminence of Christians above other men that they know Christ but greater is their preeminence above other Christians that they glorifie him agreeably to their knowledge such are truly 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 The faithful in Saint Chrysostomes sense 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Christians are called the Faithful not only for trusting in God but also for being trusted by him in that they have been entrusted with those mysteries of Christ which not the Angels themselves did know before them They were accordingly best take heed they do not betray that trust which they did not could not deserve and they will certainly betray it if once they seek to take the preeminence to themselves and not give it to their Saviour We may not judge some of the antient Churches for so doing because they were swallowed up by an Earth-quake soon after they had received Christianity as Coloss Laodicea and Hâ—erapolis in the reign of Nero saith Orasius But we most look carefully to our selves that we may not do so who dayly hear many amongst us saying We are of Paul others we are of Cephas others we are of Apollos meerly to divide the Church and others saying We are of Christ meerly to contemn it For they intend not to advance our Saviour but to debase his Ministers not to come neerer Christ but only to run further from his Church I say we must look carefully to our selves leâ—t some such dreadful Earthquake swallow us up also who have provoked heaven wearied earth and therefore may justly go down quick into hell or lest we be swallowed up by the Earth without an Earth quake as were Corah Dathan and Abiram who were the first notorious authors of divisions in the people of God and themselves perished by a strange division for saith the Text The ground clave asunder that was under them Numb 16. 31. And the ground is still cleaving asunder under us in so much that it is to be feared That the Earth the sons of the earth 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Filii terrae as the Text calls them Psalm 49. 2. the lowest and meanest of the people will at last quite swallow up both Moses and Aaron that is all authority and preeminence both Civil and Ecclesiastical This we are sure of the only way for the Kings and Potentates of this world to keep their own authority is by it to defend and maintain the authority of Christ who is the blessed and only Potentate the King of Kings and Lord of Lords 1 Tim. 6. 15. nor is it just they should look to have any preeminence without and much less against him whose proper right it is in all things to have the preeminence Col. 1. 18. Therefore give glory to the Lord your God before he cause darkness in despite of all your new lights and before your feet stumble upon the dark mountains and while ye look for light he turn it into the shadow of death and make it gross darkness But if ye will not hear it my soul shall weep in secret places for your pride and mine eye shall weep sore and run down with tears because the Lords flock is carried away captive Jer. 13. 16 17. Carried away captive from the communion of the Lord to the divisions and distractions of his enemies A captivity beyond that of Babylon because of a confusion beyond that of Babel for there only tongues but here minds and spirits also are confounded O sweet Jesus restore again to thy communion those that have departed from it retain and confirm those that still abide and continue in it Thou blessed Mediator betwixt God and Angels and men and by that thy mediation the blessed author to the Angels of union to men of reunion to both Angels and men of communion with the everliving God be pleased so to joyn all Christians in one communion here on earth that thou mayst joyn them all in one communion hereafter in heaven even that eternal and most blessed communion wherein thou our Head now livest and reignest with the Father and the Holy Ghost one God world without end Amen Deo Trin-uni gloria THE IVSTIFICATION OF THE Church of England According to the true principles of Christian Religion and Communion consisting of three Chapters The first Chapter sheweth that the Church of England is Gods Trustee for the Christian Religion as to the people of this Nation The second Chapter sheweth that the same Church of England hath carefully discharged that Trust as a most Christian or most Catholick Church The third Chapter sheweth that the Communion of the said Church of England is conscionably embraced and reteined by all the people of that Nation but unconscionably declined or deserted by any of them I marvel that you are so soon removed from him that called you into the Grace of Christ unto another Gospel which is not another but there be some that trouble you and would pervert the Gospel of Christ Gal. 1. 6 7. I would they were even cut off which trouble you Gal. 5. 12. LONDON Printed Anno Domini 1658. The Preface to the Iudicious and unprejudicate Reader I Hope it will not be said I seek to justifie a Church which is not for the truth and righteousness whereby it was a Church are the same they ever were or that I seek to justifie a Church which ought not to be for no man can shew a better truth and righteousness whereby to make a better Church Till
glory Thus Aristotle lib. 6. Eth. cap. ult ingeniously answereth their objection who would make Prudence to be above Sapience because Prudence commandeth Sapience and he answereth it by this distinction 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Illius causa praecipit non autem illi Prudence commands for Sapience but not over her we are willing to look upon Christs Church as upon the best Prudence in the world but withall we must look upon Christ himself as the only Sapience the only true and eternal wisdom and accordingly say That the Church commandeth for Christ but not over him He that commandeth over another is certainly his superiour but he that commandeth for another is not so but rather his inferiour As Physick commandeth or prescribeth for health and therefore in that regard is not superiour but inferiour to health being made subservient to its recovery or continuance And if we will not allow this distinction we must according to Aristotle affirm the state or Common-wealth to be above God himself for she prescribeth his worship and if we will allow it we may not deny the Church to be under him 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 saith Aristotle wherefore if it be absurd in the judgement of a heathen to allow the civil state a power eminent above or equal with the false Gods because she commandeth their worship Then much more ought it to be absurd in the judgement of a Christian to allow the Ecclesiastical State a power eminent above or equal with the true God meerly upon the ground and reason of the same command Yet on the other side as Prudence ought to prescribe for Sapience so the Church ought to prescribe for Christ And as he that neglecteth the particular prescriptions of Prudence is the further from attaining the general dictates of Sapience So he that neglecteth the particular directions of Christs Church is the farther from apprehending the General instructions of Christs Word I must then take both Christs Word and Christs Church for my guides in the choice of my Christian Communion His Word for my guide that I be not guilty of superstition His Church for my guide that I be not guilty of Faction And having taken these two guides either I shall meet with no objections from mine own conscience and it is no matter what I meet with from other mens tongues against my Religion or I shall meet with very good solutions to answer them As for example Let this be the Catechism concerning my Religion Quest 1. Vpon what authority do you profess your Religion Answ Upon the highest authority in heaven and in earth the authority of God and of his Church The authority of God for 't is consonant to his word as my Rule The authority of Gods Church for 't is consonant to her Practice as my Example Quest 2. Do you think that you are bound to ground your Religion upon this twofold authority Answ I do especially as to the publick exercise or profession of it For without the first I shall have superstition instead of Religion without the second I shall have faction instead of Communion Quest 3. How can you prove that your particular Church hath authority from God to order you in the outward exercise of Religion Answ By the same proofs of the Text which prove any Church whatsoever to have that authority For Christs commission to Saint Peter Feed my sheep John 20. 16. is by him derived unto other Pastors Feed the Flock of God which is among you 1 Pet. 5. 2. He saith not Feed that part of my flock which is among you to help or to assist me but Feed the Flock of God to honour and obey him And he saith the flock of God which is among you to shew that the flocks needed no more look abroad for their Pastors then the Pastors needed look abroad for their flocks since they were actually one among the other And yet if the words had been less punctual they had not been less prevalent For feed the flock of God must alike concern all Churches since no prophesie or command of the Scripture is of any private interpretation 2 Pet. 1. 20. and therefore this command must alike concern all Churches Quest 4. What need you look after the Authority of God in the choice or practice of your Religion is not his Church allotted you for your only guide Answ No it is not for my Religion though it be for my Communion For if I serve God with a blind obedience I cannot serve him with my conscience and that is no other then a blind obedience to serve him upon anothers not upon his own command They that would perswade me to this should make the ninth Article of the Apostles Creed the First and teach me to say I believe the holy Catholick Church before I say I believe in God the Father Son and Holy Ghost For all the world cannot deny but my belief in God is the only ground of all my Faith even as my love of God is the only ground of all my obedience And since all Religion consists in faith and obedience well I may look upon my Church as the conveyance but I must look upon God only as the Donor and Giver or the Author of my Religion SECT II. That the Communion of the Church of England is truly Christian in Doctrine free from Heresie and from the necessary cause thereof a false ground or foundation of Faith that is Believing upon the Authority of man instead of God I had little Reason and should have less Religion to be true to my Church if my Church were not true to my Saviour the eternal Truth Therefore I must needs acquit my Church from Heresie that I may keep my self from Apostasie For if she hath fallen away from Christ I might lawfully fall away from her at least internally by with-drawing my affection which ought to be fixed upon Gods Truth if not externally by with-drawing my person which ought not to disturb the Churches Peace Let me see then how my Church hath kept Gods Truth that I may learn how to keep my Church And herein I cannot but perswade my self that what our blessed Saviour once spake to those Jews which believed on him he still speaketh to us Christians who profess the same belief If ye continue in my word then are ye my Disciples indeed And ye shall know the Truth and the Truth shall make you free John 8. 31 32. And by the rule of contraries If we continue not in his word then are we not his Disciples in deed but only in shew and we shall not know the Truth and the Truth shall not make us free Therefore no Church can boast of being his Disciple which doth not continue in his Word that she may continue in his Truth And in this respect I cannot but continue in my Church that I may continue both in his Word and in his Truth because I see she hath continued in both so that the Truth
give an ear to the holy Prophets Exhortation O Praise the Lord with me and let us magnifie his name together Psal 34. 3. For where God is praised and magnified in the Religion I am very strictly bound to joyn my self in the Communion Nay more Let me alwaies give my heart to the holy Prophets resolution I was glad when they said unto me We will go into the house of the Lord Psal 122. 1. where God calleth to the practice of godliness t is not for another to say to me You shall not go nor for me to say to my self I will not For I must be glad of the Call and much more of the Practice Now Christ the eternal Son of God calleth us to the practice of the true Christian Religion three several waies By his Word by his Example and by his Communion By his Word for he commandeth us to perform all the duties of Religion By his Example for himself whiles he was upon earth did perform them And by his Communion for now he is in heaven he recommendeth to his Father all our Religious performances so making intercession to God for us as also with us How shall I answer him at the last day if I neglect his Word if I reject his Example if I renounce his Communion His Word pierceth mine Ear his Example pierceth mine Eye but his Communion pierceth my Heart His Word and his Example pierce my sense but his Communion pierceth my soul For if it were said of Sauls Messengers nay of Saul himself when they saw the company of the Prophets prophecying and Samuel standing as appointed over them that the Spirit of God was upon them and they also prophesied 1 Sam. 19. 20. Then surely when I see a company of Christians praying and Christ himself standing as appointed over them for so himself hath avowed where two or three are gathered together in my name there am I in the midst of them Mat. 18. 20. if the Spirit of God be in me I will also pray with them and it must be some evil Spirit in me that makes me either reject or renounce their prayers For if there be indeed The Communion of Saints saying unto me We will go into the house of the Lord I am bound to have the affection which is due to that Communion and say I was glad when they said unto me we will go for this indefinite Particle When not defining one set time will suffer me to exclude no time T is like a general Commission which not prescribing what day to do the business leaves it to be done any day and to neglect no opportunity of doing it Indefinitum in materià necessarià aequipollet universali when the duty it self is absolutely necessary though it be set down as indifinite yet we must look upon it as universal for though the Casuists do tell us concerning affirmative precepts Ligant semper sed non ad semper That they bind us at all times but not to all times yet we must understand their meaning only of our actual exercise and performance of those duties not of our habitual disposition and desire to perform them For there is not one minute of our life wherein we are not bound to be in a disposition and desire of serving God And thus doth Solomon Jarchi expound the Prophets 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Shamacti Laetatus sum I was glad I did hear saith he the sons of men saying When will this David die that his son Solomon may succeed and build the Temple that so we may go to the house of the Lord 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Vaani Shomeach And I was very glad to hear them say so Thus saith he David preferred Gods service before his life And so will every man who knoweth he hath such a Religion as if he rightly follow it will bring him to salvation Aben Ezra goes further in his gloss and saith That All the people of Israel was of Davids mind and that every one of them did say as well as he 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 I was glad when they said unto me we will go into the house of the Lord Why should we Christians have a worse Zeal upon better Hopes For he that will not be glad when others say unto him We will go into the house of the Lord may live to be sorry That there is not a house of God for him to go to But O Thou who camest to give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death Remove not the Candlestick away from us because we have neglected and abused the light of Grace But let the Priests of the Lord still serve the Lord between the Porch and the Altar weeping and saying Be favourable O Lord be favourable unto thy People Let not thine heritage be brought to such confusion lest the Heathen be Lords thereof Wherefore should they say among the Heathen where is now their God And let us thy undutiful unthankful unworthy people still enjoy the inestimable freedom of thy Gospel Publick Communions in thy Church and Publick Prayers and Praises in thy Name Heal our back-slidings and repair those great and wide breaches which we have lately made in our Piety in our Fidelity and in our Charity And amidst the many inconstancies and many more impieties of this wicked world make thine own sheep still hear thy voice and thine own people still secure and glad in thee That notwithstanding all obstacles and oppositions they shall yet more and more worthily praise and adore thy most holy and Reverend name among the faithful in this life and in the great Congregation of Saints and Angels in the life to come being all of us joyned now in affection hereafter in possession with that heavenly consort and holy Communion which is alwaies saying Hallelujah Salvation and glory and honour and power unto the Lord our God Father Son and Holy Ghost world without end Amen Una est in trepida mihi re medicina Jehovae Cor patrium Os verax omnipotensque manus FINIS Deo Trinuni Gloria in aeternum
love and then in the gift of Christ Gal. 2. 20. I live by the faith of the son of God who loved me and gave himself for me First he gave me his love then he gave me himself for even himself had been no gift to me without his love 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 saith Saint Chrysostom What dost thou say blessed Apostle did he love thee only did he give himself only for thee no he loved the whole nature of man all the world besides 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 But I think my self as much bound to my Saviour as if he had only loved me and given himself only for me I think my self as much bound to live to him as if he had died only for me and to give my self as entirely to him as if he had given himself onely for me A large soul which can readily comprehend much more which doth willingly embrace and entertain the obligation of the whole world and yet there is no Christians soul but must be thus enlarged For Gods love in Christ though universal in the diffusion yet is it particular in the obligation obliging every particular man to love the Lamb of God as if he had been slain only for his sake as if in him alone he had taken away the sins of the world For indeed in him alone be he never so righteous hath he taken away both the sin of the world and a world of sin the sin of the world that is the original corruption contracted in his nature and a world of sin that is a numberless number of actual transgressions committed in his person SECT III. Gods love to man in Christ was the ground of his consultation with himself how to bring us to eternal life WE have seen Gods eternal love given us in Christ the main reason of our Christian joy and we must now endeavour to see the fruits and effects of that love that we may accordingly rejoyce in him even in our blessed Saviour And truly Saint Paul makes eternal life to spring from no other root but only from this root of Jesse when he saith in his Epistle to Titus cap. 1. v. 2. That God promised eternal life before the world began I ask to whom did he promise it Saint Hierom thinks to the Angels but they not having been before the world it was impossible a promise made before the world began should be made to them It is much safer to say That this promise of eternal life was made to our blessed Saviour in our stead and that God the Father promised to God the Son before the world began That as many as should live according to the Faith of Gods Elect and the acknowledgment of the Truth which is after Godliness should in him have eternal life For thus the same Saint Paul makes a dialogue betwixt God the Father and God the Son in the Love and Communion of God the Holy Ghost to which the Angels were not admitted Heb. 1. 13. To which of the Angels said he at any time Sit on my right hand until I make thine enemies thy foot-stool And the Psalmist tells us plainly the persons that were in this Dialogue saying The Lord said unto my Lord Sit thou on my right hand c. Psal 110. v. 1. whence we may safely conclude that there was a great consultation betwixt God the Father Son and Holy Ghost concerning the Redemption of mankind from the vassalage of sin and Satan and what can we think was the ground of this Consultation but only Gods everlasting love to us in our Redeemer SECT IV. Gods love to man in Christ was not in vain or without success though his Churches love to us in praying for us and teaching us to pray for our selves often proves unsuccessful And yet our best proof that God hath loved us in Christ is that we love him again both in his Authority and in his Ordinances and in his Members GOD will have love for love and never casts away his love in vain Man may love where he may be hated for his pains it fared so of old with the best of men the Church of God among the Iews whose sad complaint is registred Psal 109. 3. 4. for the love that I had unto them lo they take now my contrary part but I give my self unto prayer Thus have they rewarded me evil for good and hatred for my good will we may be sure this complaint was made by the Church for none else could say but I give my self unto Prayer or as it is in the Hebrew 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 but I am Prayer save onely the Church which being more peculiarly consecrated to the service of God knew Her self bound more then any other to Pray Continually Thus it is said of the singers chief of the Fathers of the Levites who remaining in the chambers were free for they were imployed in that work day and night 1 Chron. 9. 33. that is to say in the work of singing Gods praises according to that of the 134. Psalm ver 1. Behold now Praise the Lord all ye servants of the Lord ye which by night stand in the house of the Lord. But least we should think that these words they were imployed in that work day and night did only shew the continual obligation of the Levites duty not their continued actual discharge thereof we are told the particular times of the day and night wherein they did actually discharge the same 1 Chron. 23. 28 30. Their office was to wait for the service of the house of the Lord and to stand every morning to thank and praise the Lord and likewise at even It was their office every morning and evening to sing Gods praises publickly in Gods house and not to content themselves only with and much less to confine themselves only to their Sabbath as if God by claiming or challenging that day had thereby denyed and rejected all the rest Had this practice of praising God daily in the Temple been superstition or will-worship in the Jewish Church we should have found it not commanded and commended but reproved and reformed by their Pious Kings and Prophets for their Kings did not reform without the advice of their Prophets but not finding this Practise Reproved or Reformed by them how comes it among some Christians to be accounted as a main Piece of their Reformation to shut up the doors of Gods house all the week daies and to open them only upon Sundaies and then in truth to open them for such a worship of God as is publick rather for its accidents then for its substance rather for its time and place then for its matter and form rather for its notice and for its noise then for its Communion For though a man may go to Church as a Judge wherein he chiefly serves himself and pleases his curiosity upon unknown and uncertain terms yet he can scarce go to Church as a Communicant wherein alone he serves his God and
satisfies his conscience unless he be sure and certain of the terms of his Communion for the conscience cannot be satisfied and much less can God be served upon uncertainties And since the Apostle hath expresly said That whatsoever is not of faith is sin Rom. 13. 23. Those men do very indiscreetly who in their publick worship do rather exercise their Phansies then their Faith and those do very irreligiously who labour all they can to spread and to promote that exercise For in the work of serving God above all other works it is evident That the diminution of Faith is the addition of sin wherefore men have little reason to bring themselves and less Religion to seek to bring others to any the least diminution of their Faith in Gods service for that is to come under the hazard of Judas his curse Let his prayer be turned into sin Psalm 109. v. 6. We must then take it for an argument of true love even the love of our souls and of our salvation that the Christian Church did in imitation of the Church of the Jews offer up daily Prayers and Praises unto Almighty God for us and also teach us to offer up daily Prayers and Praises for our selves And it is to be feared That men have rewarded the Church of Christ evil for good hatred for her good will in that the dismal curse which follows in the next verses hath fallen upon so many Nations of the Christian world For it is evident that this curse set thou an ungodly man to rule over him and let Satan stand at his right hand let his days be few and his children be vagabonds c. is ushered in with this sin For the love that I had unto them loe they take now my contrary part ver 3. and is continued and confirmed for it is because his mind was not to do good but persecuted the poor helpless man that he might slay him that was vexed at the heart and ver 16. His delight was in cursing and it shall happen unto him he loved not blessing therefore shall it be far from him For nothing is more offensive to God then that men will not return love for love And yet this hath been always the portion of his Church she hath still found returns of hatred for love For there is no true Christian Church but may truely say with Saint Paul 2 Cor. 12. 15. I will very gladly spend and be spent for you it is in the Original Greek for your souls though the more abundantly I love you the less I be loved No love affectionate like this which loves the soul no love abundant like this which makes the lover spend and be spent for his affection and such is the love of every true Christian Church which is the grand Apostle of its nation it loves affectionately it loves abundantly for what it wants of this charity it wants of true Christianity but doth seldome receive back again love for love It was Luthers complaint that whilst he Preached and practised mans Inventions he found too much love but after he preached Gods truth the Gospel in its own sincerity he found too little so hath it been ever since his time with Protestant Churches for those which have most deserved the peoples thanks for teaching them the true and the right way to heaven have least found their love Thus we see to our grief no less then to our mischief that the best of men may love in vain but God never loves in vain For he never loves but he is beloved again so saith the beloved Disciple 1 Joh. 4. 19. We love him because he first loved us As he loves us so we love him again though he love first we afterwards and therefore if we love not him the reason is because he hath not loved us in the Son of his love I say not if we love not God in himself for that 's impossible acccording to that excellent position of Aquinas Deus secundum essentiam suam à nullo potest odio haberi sicut neque bonitas At secundum quosdam Justitiae suae effectus potest 22. qu. 34. God cannot be hated by any man as he is in himself no more then goodness can be hated but he is hated only for some effects of his Justice therefore I say not if we love not God in himself but if we love not God in his Vice-gerency or Authority whether Civil or Ecclesiastical by our dutifulness and fidelity If we love not God in his Commands and Ordinances by our Obedience and Piety Lastly If we love not God in his image and likeness by our brotherly and Christian Charity we do indeed not love God for himself hath said I ye love me keep my commandments Joh. 14 15. And if we do not love God the reason can be no other but this because he hath not loved us And it were to be wished that some men who most think themselves the darlings of heaven would try their spiritual estate by this touchstone for if we are indeed in the love of God and in the Son of his love it will appear by our returning love back again to him And the Apostles consequence being as good for the Negative as for the Affirmative it must needs follow that if we love not God it is because he first loved not us SECT V. Gods love to us in Christ was not vain or without a cause for as much as Christ was the ground of our Election as well as the Author of our reconciliation More men reconciled by Christ to God then recommened by him or more men reconciled potentially then actually GOD had a good reason of his love to us thoug not in our selves yet in our Saviour the Son of his love For he began his first Epistle or message of love unto our souls as Saint John began his second and third Epistles Vnto the elect and welbeloved whom I love in the truth the same in effect with salutem in Christo or dearly beloved in the Lord which salutations have since been used by the Church God loves us in the truth that is in our Saviour Christ who is called the truth John 14. 6. And as no man cometh to the Father but by him so no man abideth with the Father but in him so saith Saint Paul 2 Cor. 5. 19. God was in Christ reconciling the world unto himself not imputing their trespasses unto them where is punctually set down both the meritorious cause of our reconciliation Christ and the formal cause of it Gods not imputing our sins to us for Christs sake For God cannot be reconciled to a sinner whilst he looks upon him as a sinner because sin is directly opposite to his own goodness and therefore he cannot but hate sin as he cannot but love himself and God cannot but look upon a sinner as a sinner whilst he looks upon him in himself not in his Saviour who hath expiated his sin Hence Scotus tels us
how God proceeded in primo secundo tertio quarto Instanti concerning Judas and makes Judas a sinner before he supposeth God to hate him at all and a final sinner before he supposeth God to hate him finally and we being all sinners by the same reason must needs also be under Gods hatred till he look on us in Christ the only ground and reason of his love According to which the learned Grotius saith Distinguenda sunt tua ut ita dicam momenta divinae Voluntatis circa hominem peccatorem We must distinguish as it were three Moments in Gods will concerning sinful man Grotius his Moment comes very neer to Scotus his instant Primum est ante Christi mortem The first moment is before the death and pason of Christ In this God is altogether angry Secundum est positâ jam Christi morte the second moment is after Christs satisfaction made In this God is willing to be reconciled Tertium est quum homo verâ fide in Christum credit Christus credentem Deo commendat The third Moment is after Christs satisfaction is actually laid hold on by a lively faith and Christ actually recommendeth the believer to his Father And in this Moment God is actually reconciled and well pleased with the sinner and gives him all the benefits if not the comforts of that reconciliation For Christ may be said to reconcile where he may not be said to recommend He is said in Saint Paul to reconcile the world unto God 2 Cor. 5. 19. But himself saith in Saint John he did not recommend the world unto God John 17. 9. I pray not for the world His reconciliation it seems concerns the whole nature of man but his recommendation concerns only the persons of some particular men even such as lay hold on his reconciliation by faith and repentance saying Lord I believe help my unbelief For there is a meritorious or potential and there is a personal or actual reconciliation wrought by Christ The potential reconciliation belongs to all mankind because it is founded on the infinite merit of Christs satisfaction But the actual reconciliation belongs only to the true believers because it is founded on the Application of that merit unto our souls Still the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is only in Christ God is well pleased in him for his own sake but in us only for his sake Excellently Zanch. lib. 4. de tribus Elohim cap. 1. glosseth upon those words Mat. 3. 17. This is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Tria beneficia iis paucis verbis docet Pater per Christum nobis communicari dilectionis reconciliationis adoptionis seu regenerationis three blessings doth God the Father teach us in these few words to be communicated to us by Christ The blessing of dilection of reconciliation and of adoption or regeneration we beloved in him there is the dilection we sons in him there is the adoption we accepted in him there is the reconciliation And indeed the words added to this voice Hear ye him Mat. 17. 5. plainly shew that the voice it self came not for Christs sake but for ours that we might think our selves in him beloved and sons and such in whom God is well pleased The voice was from heaven and the comfort is heavenly Blessed be the God of heaven for them both And we beseech him to repeat this heavenly voice and to renew this Heavenly comfort by his own Holy Spirit unto our souls SECT VI. Gods love in Christ is not a fond love therefore he scourgeth whom he loveth The Christian Church not taught in the New Testament to expostulate for being scourged though she be crucified as Christ was between two thieves AS God loves us in order to our Saviour and therefore not causelesly so also he loves us in order to our salvation and therefore not fondly or preposterously Gods love is not a fond love◠for whom he loveth he chastneth but it is a saving love for when he chastneth he chastneth us for our good that we might be partakers of his holiness Heb. 12. 10. He loves not like a fond mother who had rather venture to break her own heart then her childs stomack For God will make his sons by adoption like his Son by nature whom he most loved and yet he most scourged He will make those whom he intends to save like the Captain of their salvation by wearing a crown of thorns before he will make them like him by wearing a crown of Glory Hence happily it comes to pass that though we find many and great expostulations with God in the Old Testament concerning the persecutions of his Church as particularly Psalm 74. and Jer. the twelfth Yet we scarse find so much as a direct complaint which is much less then an expostulation concerning it in all the New Testament The reason is plain that the Christian Church might be taught by Christs Doctrine as well as by his Example not to look to fare better then her Master and sure she is she cannot fare worse Therefore is the Christian Church in a manner ashamed to say with David Psalm 74. 1. O God why hast thou cast us off for ever Since she knows the Son of God himself hath said my God my God why hast thou forsaken me or with the Prophet Jer. 12. 1. Righteous art thou O Lord when I plead with thee yet let me talk with thee of thy judgements Since she knows Saint Peter hath said For the time is come that judgement must begin at the house of God 1 Pet. 4. 17. or again with the same Prophet Wherefore doth the way of the wicked prosper Since Christ himself hath said this is your hour and the power of darkness Luke 22 53. Or lastly with the same Prophet Wherefore are all they happy that deal very treacherously Since our blessed Saviour himself had a Traytor among his own Apostles and hath shewed us that true happiness consists not in having power to persecute but in having patience to be persecuted for righteousness sake Mat. 5. 10. Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness sake for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven Christ himself was crucified between two theives and that 's reason enough why his Church should not greatly complain though she be crucified not only between but also by two thieves The one robbing God of his honour the other of his Patrimony Saint Paul hath given a hint of them both in one piece of a verse Rom. 2. 22. Thou that abhorrest Idols dost thou commit Sacriledge For in truth Idolatry and Sacriledge have a long time been the two grand scourges of the Christian Church Idolatry whipping God out of his Temple to let in other petty Dieties and Sacriledge whipping him in it They that abhor the Sacriledge committing the Idolatry they that abhor the Idolatry committing the Sacriledge SECT VII Christs love to us that he would come from his Father to
in us ariseth only the necessity or want of adoption for there is only so much of it left as to shew how great need we have to be made his children that we may be made more like him then we are by nature But the adoption it self is founded in our new begotten Image or likeness with our heavenly Father which is after the similitude of his only Son by Grace in this world and by glory in the world to come and may accordingly be called either incompleat or compleat adoption Concerning the first Saint John saith that we are made the Sons of God as being already partakers of the Divine nature in the likeness of grace concerning the second he saith It doth not yet appear what we shall be but we know that when he shall appear we shall be like him that is we shall hereafter be made the Sons of God after a more perfect manner by being made partakers of the divine nature in the likeness of glory Blessed be that eternal Son in whom we are made Sons and blessed be that day wherein he took on him our nature that he might give us his SECT VI. Christians are more eminently the Children of God in Christ then were the Jews The difference betwixt the Adoption and all other Spiritual blessings of the Jews and of the Christians That though they were adopted to be heirs as we are yet were they tutored as infants till the coming of Christ by whom was wrought a true Reformation THE Spirit of adoption though it were given under the Law yet was it not so fully given as it is now under the Gospel For though it were the same Covenant of Grace to the Jew and to the Christian to be saved by Christ yet was this Covenant much different in the manner of its administration And therefore we must consider the Church before Christ came in the flesh though as an heir that had a right from Gods fidelity though not from his strict Justice to all Spiritual Gifts and Graces whatsoever yet withal as an infant that had not the full possession of that right And this distinction Saint Paul himself teacheth us Gal. 4. 1. Now I say that the heir as long as he is a child or rather an infant 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 such an one as cannot speak differeth nothing from a servant though he be Lord of all but is under Tutors and Governors until the time appointed of the Father And himself plainly applies this distinction to the Church before Christs time verse 3. saying even so we when we were children or infants were in bondage under the elements of the world that is as long as we continued in the Jewish Religion For the Church before the coming of the Son of God was so an heir as that she was also an infant As she was an heir so she was free but as she was an infant so she was a servant under Tutors and Governors As she was an heir she had spiritual hopes but as she was an infant she had carnal Ordinances Heb. 9. 10. As she was an heir she had the Spirit of adoption but as she was an infant she had the Spirit of fear and bondage which makes the Apostle say Rom. 8. 15. For ye have not received the Spirit of bondage again ye had it once sc whiles ye were under the Law but ye have it not again sc now ye are under the Gospel to fear but ye have received the Spirit of adoption whereby we cry Abba Father Hence it is that the Jews had then the same spiritual blessings in dark representations and figures which we Christians now have in full revelations and substance I will set down some few examples concerning the chiefest spiritual blessings by which we may easily be able to judge of all the rest and not be mistaken in our judgements 1. What a vast difference is there betwixt those words of Moses The seed of the woman shall bruise the Serpents head Gen. 3. 15. and those words of Saint Paul the God of peace meaning our Saviour Christ who was our peace-maker and gave himself to make it shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly Rom. 16. 20. or those words of Saint John For this purpose the Son of God was manifested that he might destroy the works of the Devil 1 Jâ—â—n 3. 8. And yet both alike speak of the same redemption 2. What a vast difference is there betwixt that of Gen. 25. 23. the elder shall serve the younger and that of Rom. 9 16. Not of him that willeth nor of him that runneth but of God that sheweth mercy yet both alike concern the same Doctrine of Election 3. What a vast difference is there betwixt Abrahams being called to go out of his Countrey and from his Fathers house Gen. 12. 1. and our being called out of darkness into his marvellous light 1 Pet. 2. 9. and yet both alike confess the same Vocation 4. What a vast difference betwixt the sacrifices of the Jews and the sacrifice of Christ upon the Cross and yet both alike assure us of the same Justification in so much that Saint Paul explaineth the one by the other Eph. 5. 2. as Christ hath loved us and given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling Savour 5. What a vast difference is there betwixt the Sons of Abraham according to the promise under the Law and under the Gospel for as Isaac was so also we are the children of the Promise Gal. 4. 28. The one having the promise of an earthly the other of an heavenly inheritance and yet both promises alike belong to the same Adoption 6. What a vast difference betwixt the Cirumcision of the flesh and of the heart betwixt the outward purifications of the Jews and the inward purgings of Christians for the blood of Christ purgeth our consciences from dead works to serve the living God Heb. 9. 14. and yet both of them do set forth the same Sanctification 7. Seventhly and lastly what a vast difference betwixt their entring into Canaan and our entering into the heavenly Jerusalem and yet both of them declare one and the same Glorification They were all partakers of the same spiritual blessings that we are they had the same Redemption Election Vocation Justification Adoption Sanctification and Glorification that we have but they had them in a dark representation not in an open revelation so that they could not so fully know them and they had them in types and figures not in reality and substance so that they did not so fully enjoy them For they all had carnal Ordinances imposed on them until the time of reformation Heb. 9. 10. that is till the time of Christs coming to plant the Christian Religion which was a true reformation indeed because it proceeded from a true cause and to a true end from a true cause a more perfect knowledge of Christ who before had not been fully discovered and to a true
heaven and earth and all things in them above them and below them did so fully set forth the power of God as did this condescention that God was made man saith the same Father He looked upon it as an act of great power That God had emptied himself then that he had filled all the world CAP. III. Christ admired in his Satisfaction SECT I. The necessity of Christs satisfaction for that he was the only sacrifice to expiate sin NExt those Hereticks that oppose Christ in his person they are in the saddest condition who seek to oppose him in his Satisfaction for as the one overthroweth the foundation so the other hindereth the edification of the Christian Faith both acting the wicked parts of Sanballet and Geshem whiles true Christians with Nehemiah are labouring to build up the Temple of God For if there needed no satisfaction for sin why was the eternal Son of God offered up as a sacrifice for our sins And if we be indeed pattakers of his satisfaction what madness is it for us to rely upon our own Let the first question be seriously pondered there will be no Pelagian to deny original sin for fear he find not cause enough for the death of Christ if there were no sin of mans nature to be expiated Let the second question be seriously pondered there will be no Pharisee to maintain personal righteousness for fear he make not a right use of Christs death in that he thinks he hath not so great need as others of that his expiation Alexander Hales who was reputed and called the irrefragable Doctor is opposed by Aquinas his greatest admirer and by Bonaventure his choicest Schollar for teaching that Christ should have come into the world though with flesh not capable of suffering â—arne tamen impassibili if so be that Adam had not sinned The Angelical and Seraphical Doctors thought it unreasonable that Christ should come in the flesh not to suffer and shall not we think it irreligious to extenuate the vertue of his sufferings Sure we are that the whole creation of men and Angels are not able to satisfie the justice of God for one sin because there is no proportion betwixt their Satisfaction and his Justice for the one is finite the other is infinite And as sure we ought to be That God did not give us his Son to satisfie for our sins that we should question the necessity much less that we should undervalue the efficacy of his satisfaction For all other sacrifices were but Types of this great sacrifice which in the end of the world appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself Heb. 9. 26. Judah desired to be a bondman for Benjamin but he was his brother Saint Paul said He could wish himself accursed for the people of the Jews but they were also his brethren and his kinsmen But our Saviour Christ was contented to be made both a bondman and a Curse for us whiles we were yet his enemies His bondage was our freedom His Curse was our blessing but let not his love be our enmity for though he came to save us whiles we were his enemies yet he will not save us if we continue so O thou art my Priest to bring me unto God and my sacrifice to reconcile me to him make me to present my self body and soul as a living sacrifice unto thee that thou maist at the last day present me both in soul and body without spot and blemish unto thy heavenly Father in thine eternal and everlasting kingdom that though thou wilt then cease to be my Priest yet thou maist never cease to be my King SECT II. The commemoration of Christs sacrifice enjoyned not the repetition of it and that the Ordination of Ministers for administring the Sacraments not of Priests for the offering of Sacrifice is most agreeable with the institution of Christ and the constitution of a true Christian Church WE cannot consider Christ as a sacrifice but we must consider that sacrifice as a full expiation of and satisfaction for all our sins and consequently we must look upon it as such a sacrifice as may only be remembred but not repeated For other sacrifices shewed their own insufficiency by their often repetition they were offered year by year continually because they could not make the Commers thereunto perfect Heb. 10. 1. But this sacrifice is proved to have been sufficient because it is not again to be repeated So saith the Apostle ver 10. We are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all to say there is more offering were to say there is less Sanctification to say his body is more offered were to say that our souls are less Sanctified ver 11. And every Priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices which can never take away sins¿ This saepe in the Sacrifice is nunquam in the Satisfaction because there is an oftentimes in the offering there is a Never in the taking away of sins ver 12. But this man after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever sate down on the right hand of God This man hath so fully expiated all sin by one sacrifice that it is as absurd to think he may be sacrificed again as to confound his state of exaltatation with his state of humiliation or to think he may be brought again to his cross now he is sate down at the right hand of God And indeed our blessed Saviour himself in that he saith Do this in remembrance of me doth evidently call for the commemoration of his sacrifice upon the cross till his coming again for as long as he shall be out of sight He may not be out of mind whiles he cannot be seen he must be remembred But he that cals only for a commemoration doth in effect dissallow of a Repetition So that the burning of the blessed Sacrament into a sacrifice properly so called is neither sound divinity as they teach it nor sound devotion as they use it who by pretending to repeat and renew the corporal Sacrifice of Christ do in effect according to the Apostles rule bring it under the suspicion or at least leave it under the imputation of insufficiency for what is done once sufficiently as to all intents and purposes is in vain desired to be done again yet we deny not that Christ is offered in the holy Eucharist but we say he is offered mystically not corporally We deny not that he is also there Sacrificed but we say it is by way of Commemoration and representation not by way of renovation or repetition when Christ was corporally offered and sacrificed he himself alone was the Priest who was the Offering and the Sacrifice But he is still mystically offered and sacrificed by those Priests or Ministers who are obliged to continue the representation of his corporal offering and sacrifice though not the repetition of it Accordingly it is much to be observed that such as was
or 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 He was received up as unto that which he had so fully merited and deserved Again the same twofold expression shews a twofold miracle if we consider Christ in the unity of his person as those two natures of God and man made but one Christ the first miracle was the conquest over earth in his body which was taught to ascend upwards contrary to the nature of Earth 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 He went up in that body The second miracle was the conquest over heaven in his soul which for his singular piety was taught in some sort to descend downwards contrary to the nature of heaven in that the light clouds were made to come down that they might minister to his Ascension So that these must be our considerations of our blessed Saviour from the act and manner of his Ascending his twofold Title in claiming heaven and his twofold miracle in possessing it his first title to heaven was as the Son of God for so he claimed heaven by inheritance and the word used in the Apostles Creed intimates that claim or title 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 he went up sc to take possession of his own he went by his own power to enter upon his own right claiming heaven as his natural inheritance because he was the Son of God And this right of his Saint Paul exactly describes Heb. 1. 2 3. Where he saith God hath appointed his son heir of all things by whom also he made the world who being the brightness of his glory and the express image of his person and upholding all things by the word of his power when he had by himself purged our sins sate down on the right hand of the Majesty on high In which words the Apostle teacheth us to say to the son of God what the Son taught us to say unto the Father For thine is the Kingdom the power and the glory For he fully setteth forth unto us the Kingdom of Christ both as Redeemer and as Creator As Redeemer when he saith God appointed him heir of all things in which respect Christ himself saith All things are delivered unto me of my father Mat. 11. 27. and all power is given unto me Mat. 28. 18. and the Father loveth the Son and hath given all things into his hand John 3. 35. And he setteth forth unto us the Kingdom of Christ as Creator when he saith By whom also he made the worlds for in that respect our Saviour had all power in heaven and in earth without its being given or delivered unto him as he was the eternal Son of God coequal with his Father Which his coequality the Apostle expresseth from three particulars First in that he was the brightness of his glory that is the natural brightness of his glory by necessary generation not by voluntary communication even as the Sun naturally begets brightness and not voluntarily upon choice or deliberation Secondly In that he was the express Image or character of his person not only representing his essential glory as God of which representation it is said No man hath seen God at any time the only begotten Son which is in the bosome of the Father he hath declared him John 1. 18. but also representing his personal glory as father because the person of the Father is wholly and fully expressed in the person of the Son as in a lively Image or Character thereof in which respect Christ himself saith If ye had known me ye should have known my Father also and from henceforth ye know him and have seen him John 14. 7. and again he that hath seen me hath seen the Father ver 9. Thirdly In that he upheld all things by the word of his power to wit by the same word by which he had made them ver 2. All this being said t is no wonder if it follow immediately after that he sate down on the right hand of the Majesty on high as taking that place in the nature of man which was his proper right as the Son of God But what comfort is this to us who are born the Sons of wrath and so have title only to the place of wrath and vengeance as to our inheritance T is true we have no title from our selves save only to hell such a title as we care not to claim though we labour to make good But we have also a title of inheritance to heaven from our blessed Saviour as saith the Apostle And if children then heirs heirs of God and joynt heirs with Christ Rom. 8. 17. For the Son by adoption is admitted to the inheritance as if he were a Son by nature And we being adopted in Christ cannot be denyed to have a title to his Inheritance But we were best take heed that we abuse not this title or at least mistake it not as some do who cry Abba Father and are no sons or who are so the Sons of God as not led by the Spirit of God or so led by the Spirit of God as not doing the works of the Spirit but of the flesh being guilty of hatred variance emulations wrath strife seditions heresies envyings murders such horrid murders as have out-faced heaven and amazed the earth and will not believe the Apostle though he tell it before and after though he say it and say it again that they which do such things shall not inherit the Kingdom of God Gal. 5. 21. Let the man after Gods own heart both ask and answer this question for us Psalm 24. ver 3 4. Who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord or who shall rise up in his holy place Even he that hath clean hands not defiled with blood and a pure heart not corrupted with Faction or Sedition and that hath not lift up his mind to vanity by taking fancie for faith or vain imaginations for holy inspirations nor sworn to deceive his neighbour convenanting for spoil and robbery to be not only impiously but also blasphemously guilty of theft He shall receive the blessing from the Lord and righteousness from the God of his salvation For such a man as hath clean hands and a pure heart is led by the Spirit of God and with his pure heart thinks the thoughts with his clean hands doth the works of the Spirit This man is heir to an inheritance in heaven because he is the Son of God and he is the Son of God because he is led not by his own private Spirit but by the Spirit of God for as many as are led by the Spirit of God they are the Sons of God Rom. 8. 14. He that saith as many doth in effect say no more they are and none but they are the Sons of God who are led by the Spirit of God He that lifts up his mind to vanity cannot lift up his mind to heaven he that hath sworn to deceive his neighbour is sure to deceive himself he that hath no share in the righteousness may not look
name of the Father c. thereby distinguishing them from those who are not my Disciples even by Baptism Here is such a commission for the Minister to execute his calling both for Word and Sacraments as all the Magistrates in the world can neither give nor take away For they have a power only from Christs power in earth but this calling of the Ministry is founded upon the power of Christ which he hath also in heaven And they who make it their business to discountenance and oppose the Ministers of the Gospel whilst they preach and pray and administer the Sacraments according to the appointment and command of their Master do but in effect strive to justle Christ out of the heads and hearts of men and to thrust him away from the right hand of God Surely he that hopes to be set one day at the right hand of Christ will now willingly acknowledge and reverently adore Christs sitting at the right hand of God And they who do not willingly now put themselves under his power shall at last be brought under it against their will for he must reign till he hath put all his enemies under his feet and though he shall still reign after that for his Kingdom shall have no end as being an everlasting Kingdom 2 Pet. 1 11. yet he shall not after that exercise his government so visibly by the cooperation of his humane nature as now he doth but only by the essential power and presence of his Godhead in which respect it is said And when all things shall be subdued unto him then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him that God may be all in all 1 Cor. 15. 28. For the office of his Mediatorship will then be at an end no less as King then as Priest and Prophet when he shall have brought all men either to his Father or under him though the Majesty of his person be immortal and everlasting And therefore as the Man Christ Jesus did not actually sit at the right hand of God till he was exalted into heaven and yet was potentially there that is in right and power by virtue of the hypostatical union even from the first instant of his incarnation so when he shall have exalted and drawn all his mystical body thither after him though he shall still sit there in the same person yet not in the same respect or to the same end for not Man but God shall then administer the Kingdom of the Father that as from all eternity so also to all eternity God may be all in all Excellently Saint Augustine Ipsam Dexteram intelligite potestatem quam accepit ille homo susceptus à Deo ut veniat judicicaturus qui prius venerat judicandus Non enim Pater judicat quenquam sed omne judicium dedit Filio ut omnes honorent Filium sicut honorant Patrem By the right hand of God understand the power which that man hath received who is taken into God that he may come to judge who at first did come to be judged For the Father judgeth no man but hath comâ—… all judgement to the Son that all men should honour 〈…〉 As they honour the Father So that this 〈…〉 at the right hand of God is to be expounded of ouâ— blesâ—ed Saviour not according to his Divine but according to his humane nature as the Apostle hath fully declared Eph. 1. 21. When he raised him from the dead and set him at his own right hand in heavenly places 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 saith Saint Chrysostome These words cannot be spoken and therefore may not be understood of God the word for he was never dead and therefore t is not said of him that he is set on Gods right hand So likewise Saint Cyprian Dominus ascendit in coelum non ubi verbum Dei prius non fuerat quippe qui erat semper in coelis manebat in Patre sed ubi verbum caro factum ante non sedebat The Lord ascended into heaven not where the word was not before for he was alwayes in the bosome of the Father but where the Word made flesh never sate before But let Saint Augustines determination decide this controversie who purposely handleth it lib. 3. de Symbolo cap. 8. Quis est qui sedit ad dexteram patris Homo Christus Nam in quantum Deus semper cum Patre ex Patre quando ad nos processit à Patre non recessit Who is it that sitteth at the right hand of the Father The Man Christ For as God he was alwayes with his Father and of his Father and when he came to us did not depart from him Therefore Christ was alwayes at the right hand of his Father as God but since his ascension he is there also as Man SECT III. That to sit at the right hand of God is proper only to Christ and therefore invocation of or adoration to the blessed Virgin is not agreeable with this Article of our Christian Faith And that the Author of no Religion but only the Christian is said to be at the right hand of God and to administer his Kingdom and therefore no Religion to be compared with it and no power to prevail against it IF it be demanded whether to sit at the right hand of God be proper only to Christ it must be answered Yes For none else is none else can be there but only he For by this argument doth the holy Apostle prove him to be the Son of God Heb. 1. 13. But to which of the Angels said he at any time Sit thou on my right hand And if he hath not said so to the Angels much less hath he said so to any man And â—ow then shall we say unto either sit thou on the right hand of God by our invocation and adoration placing the creature in the throne of the Creator God blessed for ever And what else do they who thus invest a Bishop saying Accipe pallium plenitudinem sc pontificalis efficii ad honorem omnipotentis Dei gloriosissimae Virginis Mariae genitricis ejus Beatorum Apostolorum Petri Pauli Take this pall and with it the fulness of Episcopal power to the honour of Almighty God and the most glorious Virgin Mary his Mother and his blessed Apostles Peter and Paul for to joyn the blessed Virgin and the Apostles in the same honour and glory with Almighty God is in effect to joyn her and them in the same Kingdom and power with him since they all go together For thine is the Kingdom and the power and the glory for ever and ever Therefore Laus Deo Virginique Matri Mariae used by Bellarmine at the end of each general controversie must needs beget a new controversie were all the rest amicably concluded among those Christians who love not to think but to know they do God good service in their prayers and praises For such a form of worship
sin against all the first Table And they who are guilty of this sin even of putting down the true service of God are guilty of many sins together for as they sin against the third Commandment they are guilty of blasphemy as against the fourth they are guilty of sacriledge and prophaness and as they sin against the first and second Commandments denying men as much as in them lies to have God for their God and to worship him with internal and external worship according to his own holy will and command so they are downright guilty of Irreligion and of Idolatry Nay yet more which is a misery to think and the greater because t is not a mistake to say such men are guilty of worse Idolatry then many of the heathen For no Idolatry is so bad as that wherein a man doth make himself the Idol and have we not here that Idolatry when men set up their own pretended gifts against a known true and substantial worship of God for what is it for any man to pretend the gift of the spirit that all others may rely upon his lips in pouring out their souls to God but to make himself an Idol And what is it for others to rely upon pretences instead of Certainties in Gods worship but in effect to make themselves guilty of Idolatry For to speak the plain truth in this case the people do worship God not in their own Faith but in the faith of their Minister if they pray with him as Communicants before they know what he will pray which is to be guilty of will-worship whiles they resign up their souls in a blind obedience or the minister alone doth worship God whiles the People are present only as Judges not as Communicants reserving their souls unto themselves all the time he is praying till they see they can safely say Amen at the end of his prayer which is in effect to have no publike worship till the worship be quite done for publike worship is not rightly so called from its company but from its communion And Saint Paul would never have commanded all gifts whatsoever in that he commanded the first gift the gift of tongues which came immediately from the Holy-Ghost to submit to Edification if he would have allowed any other gift afterwards to oppose it self against much less to advance it self above true Christian communion since it is a plain case that Christian communion was at first commanded and ought to be still observed chiefly for Edification SECT III. Hypocritical Christians who make prayers for pretences worse Atheists then the heathen Pretenders to the spirit are the greatest enemies to the spirit and shew the least fruits of the spirit Therefore must be silenced by the Ministers of Christ and shunned by his people who have no excuse if they are misled by themselves because they are to be known by their works whereof the weakest and the meanest men are competent Judges THere is no Atheism so much dishonoureth God or deceiveth men as that of Hypocrites who make religion it self a meer pretence whereby to act their irreligious designs and practises So that the Christians Atheism is worse then the heathens for the heathen that hath not the true Religion is an Atheist not knowing God but the Christian who hath the true Religion and useth it for a pretence is an Atheist abusing and affronting him Hence is that terrible curse denounced by our Saviour against such men saying Wo unto you Scribes and Pharisees Hypocrites for ye devour widows houses and for a pretence make long prayer therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation Mat. 23. 13. T is not imaginable that our Saviour Christ should discourage either the gift of prayer or the use of that gift in making long prayers for himself continued all night in prayer to God Luke 6. 12. And spake a parable that men ought alwayes to pray and not to faint Luke 18. 1. Therefore we may be sure it is a grievous sin to make long prayers for a pretence when our Saviour himself may seem to dislike the prayers rather then he would not condemn the pretence And questionless such Hypocrites are most abominable Idolaters for whiles they make prayers meerly for pretences they make God an Idol and whiles they make them for pretences of devouring they make Mammon their God And this is the twofold Idolatry of Hypocrites they pray not to glorifie God and to do so is to make God an Idol they pray to enrich themselves and to do so is to make Mammon their God they pray that they may devour So that two grievous sins at once are laid to their charge one is that they are devourers for ye devour widows houses the other that they are pretenders and for a pretence make long rayers he that makes no prayers is in a sad condition because he neglects his salvation but he that makes prayers for a pretence is in a sadder condition for he increaseth his damnation therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation He that doth this may easily deceive men and is sure to deceive himself but he cannot deceive his God Thus to pretend the Spirit of God and to do the works of the flesh is little less then to blaspheme the spirit both speculatively and practically at the same time speculatively in pretending to act by him practically in acting downright against him This is to make themselves Edomites not in Edom but in Israel to speak with the smooth voice of Jacob that they may act with the rough hands of Esau to pretend to snuff the candle that they may throw down the Candlestick and put out the light of our hearts and of our eyes both together even the light of the Gospel no less then the light of Israel This is to go far from the Doctrine of Christ who made that exhortation a main part of his first Sermon Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorifie your Father which is in heaven Mat. 5. 16. For though such men are pleased to say they walk in the light more then all the world besides yet t is evident they heap up together so many works of darkness rebellion blood rapine sacriledge prophaneness injustice oppression as do even scandalize all good men and encourage and harden all wicked men and teach them who once frequently glorified their Father in heaven now not to glorifie him and those who before did carelesly glorifie him now openly to revile and to blaspheme him So direct a path have they chosen by following their new lights to make Protestants turn either Papists or Atheists and to keep not only Papists from turning Protestants but also Turks and Jews from turning Christians For what sober man can find any rational motives to be of that Church where men use their Religion not to serve their God but to serve themselves nay the worst though truest part of themselves their unbridled distempers and concupiscences
and therefore when we have the greatest joyes we should also have the greatest sacrifices For the analogie or proportion is not only historical but also causal which we find set forth betwixt the joy of Gods people and their Sacrifices Nehem. 12. 43. Also that day they offered great sacrifices and rejoyced for God hath made them rejoyce with great joy Because their joy was great their sacrifice also was great God had made them rejoyce with great joy on that day and therefore also on that day they offered great sacrifices And this is the reason why the Church of Christ recommendeth to us solemn Festivals as daies wherein the Lord hath made us rejoyce with great joy and as solemn sacrifices for those festivals particularly the receiving the holy Eucharist and the giving of alms the two proper sacrifices of Christians that our sacrifices may be in some sort answerable to our joy For all the sacrifices we can offer unto God cannot be answerable to the joy we have in him and from him and much less answerable to the joy which we hope to have with him And will you see the reason of this joy it is by reason of the comfort and consolation that good men have in and from God when they cannot have it in or from the world They have comfort from the Comforter and may well have joy with their comfort This made Saint Paul bless God for all the troubles and tribulations he had from men because the more they troubled him the more his God comforted him and enabled him to comfort others 2 Cor. 1. 3 4. Blessed be God even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort who comforteth us in all our tribulation that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble by the comfort wherewith we our selves are comforted of God that is with internal and spiritual comfort which proceedeth from the Spirit of God q. d. I will not repine for mens cruelties but bless God the Father of mercies whiles the more man is my Persecutor the more God is my Comforter enabling me to comfort both my self and others with such comforts as this world is not able to give and therefore sure is not able to take away And the same way doth God please to comfort the soul as the Prophet describes him comforting of Zion for what is Zion 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 but an illuminated or enlightened soul For the Lord shall comfort Zion He will comfort all her wast places and he will make her wilderness like Eden and her desart like the garden of the Lord joy and gladness shall be found therein thanksgiving and the voice of melody Isa 51. 3. What an immense an immortal comfort is this that the wast places of the soul are comforted and that her wilderness is made like Eden and her desart like the garden of the Lord for the waste place of the soul that needs be comforted is the conscience which is wasted by sin the wilderness or desart of the soul is the same conscience overgrown with cares as a wilderness is with thorns and over-awed with fears and terrours as with so many wild beasts and overcome with drouth and barrenness like the desarts of those hot Countries that starve their inhabitants This wast place this wilderness this desart must be quite changed before it can be comforted The Lord makes this wilderness like Eden a place of pleasure this desart like a garden of the Lord a place of fruitfulness before joy and gladness can be found therein thanksgiving and the voice of melody Till the conscience is purged from dead works it is like a wilderness unlovely and unfruitful unlovely it makes the man out of love with himself and much more his God out of love with him unfruitful it brings forth no fruits either of righteousness or of repentance But after it is purged from sin then it is like an Eden or a Paradise a place of pleasure and of plenty of loveliness and of fruitfulness Saint Paul joyns them both together That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing being fruitful in every good work Col. 1. 10. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to all pleasing of God of your neighbours and of your selves there 's the pleasure and the loveliness for no man truly pleaseth himself whiles he displeaseth his God 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 bringing forth fruit in every good work or bringing forth the fruit of every good work there 's the plenty and the fruitfulness for no man walketh worthy of God but he that is fruitful in every good work that is to say fruitful in the works of piety of temperance and of charity of piety towards God of temperance towards himself of charity towards his neighbour He that thus walks worthy of God cannot but exceedingly rejoyce in God For he cannot but say with the Psalmist And now shall he list up mine head above mine enemies round about me Psalm 27. 6. Hoc erit lentum est nimis He shall lift up mine head would make him stay too long for his joy He may therefore say He hath already lifted up mine head even my blessed Saviour above all mine and above all his enemies that I should not fear them and he is daily lifting me up to my head that I should not fear my self Therefore will I offer in his dwelling an oblation with great gladness I will sing and speak praises unto the Lord ver 7. Hoc erit lentum est nimis I will sing keeps him too long from his duty he therefore doth sing and say Praised be the Lord for he hath heard the voice of my humble petitions The Lord is my strength and my shield my strength to support me when I am not assaulted my shield to defend me when I am my heart hath trusted in him and I am helped therefore my heart danceth for joy and in my song will I praise him Psal 28. 7 8. All this and much more then this is set down to express the joy of the Holy Ghost and it is nothing but Abba Father in the language of those under the Law who though they did not see God in his Son and in his Spirit so clearly as we do under the Gospel yet they praised him as loud both for his Son and for his Spirit as we can praise him for though in some sort they came short of us in the Object of Faith because the Son and the Holy Ghost were not so fully revealed unto them yet they came not short of us in the Act of faith whether exercised in prayers or in praises for they prayed in the mediation of the Son and they praised in the joy of the Holy Ghost SECT V. Fâ—lly and Filiation are together in Gods best adopted children whiles they are in this world The three priviledges of the Saints of Gods not of their own making because of the Spirit of Adoption First
Act of sin doth not prevail against the habit of righteousness and much less above it So that the habit of righteousness cannot be captivated under an everlasting lethargie that it should alwaies forget its own act The Spirit of Christ which at first infused the habit so working in all those who belong to him that either they still retain the act of righteousness by their innocency or in due time recover it by their repentance God of his infinite mercy give unto us all this Spirit and continue unto us his own gift that we being his adopted sons may so honour and obey him as our Father that we may have the comfortable assurance of our adoption in this life and the glorious fruition of our inheritance in the life to come The one by the Spirit the other by the merits of his only begotten Son Jesus Christ our Lord who liveth and reigneth with the Father in the unity of the same Spirit one God world without end Amen Christ received in the state of true Christianity CAP. I. Of the state of true Christianity SECT I. The happiness of Christians who have their conversation with Christ That lovers of themselves or of the world have not this happiness For though Christ speaks to all yet he answers only to good Christians that is to Sheep not to Wolves to Christians not to Heathens for such he accounteth all Persecutors teaching the one to their instruction and contentation the other only to their conviction and condemnation the reason why so many Christians come not to the state of true Christianity IT is the special priviledge of Christians not only to have their appellation or name from Christ the eternal Son of God but also to have their Religion from him and their conversation with him The Jews could begin 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 with God and the Heathen learned it from them But we Christians can begin 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 with the salvation of God even with Jesus who had that name from salvation for he shall save his people from their sins Mat. 1. 21. Happy soul that is so well acquainted with the dialect of heaven as to understand the language of Jesus and so wholly taken up with that acquaintance as to maintain familiar colloquies with him to hear and to know and to love his voice For if the Psalmist could say with great admiration and greater comfort O how amiable are thy dwellings thou Lord of hosts Psal 84. 1. Then much more O how amiable art thou O Lord who makest thy dwellings so The hope of men and the joy of Angels the salvation of earth and the beauty of heaven No wonder if it follow in the next verse My soul hath a desire and a longing to enter into the Courts of the Lord my heart and my flesh rejoyce in the living God But where is the soul that enjoyeth this happiness for even one of his Apostles who daily seemed to converse with him enjoyed it not Saint John plainly excludes him in these words Judas saith unto him not Iscariot John 14. 22. As if the Spirit of God had been afraid least we should think that a Traytor could familiarly converse with Christ though he dipped with him in the same dish or have any comfort from that conversation Tremelius glosseth the word Iscariot two waies mercede inducitur ad defectionem ultro declinavit ad strangulationem Mat. 10. 4. The hopes of gain made him a Traitor the thought of his treason made him hang himself Such was this Iscariot A man whose heart was so settled and fixed on money as to sell his Saviour for the love of it Therefore he could not comfortably and much less familiarly converse with Christ by questions and answers For he durst not ask Christ a question to be informed of his Doctrine for fear the answer should have proved an Indictment to convine him of his treason whereof he knew himself already guilty in his heart which made him afraid least he should disclose the same who was the searcher of hearts Therefore he desired not to make any particular addresses to his Master when as the other Judas who had none of this Treachery or covetousness did as it were continually hang upon his lips and was wholly ravished with his Doctrine saying within himself How sweet are thy words unto my taste yea sweeter then honâ—y to my mouth Psal 119. v. 103. And accordingly our blessed Saviour answers the Jude but not the Iscariot answers the Confessor but not the Traytor For Jude was a name imposed from confession and praise Now will I praise the Lord therefore she called his name Judah Gen. 29. 35. that is praise or confession whence the Vulgar Latine doth often say Confitebor tibi Domine I will confess unto thee O Lord for I will praise thee O Lord because the same word in the Hebrew signifies both confession and praise Be it so then Christ will answer one that confesseth him but he will not answer one that betrayeth him This is the reason that though he speak so loud yet so few hear his voice That though his love be greatly extended yet it is but little diffused in our hearts For though he be most lovely in himself yet is he not so to them whose breast is filled with another love The Text tells us of a fourfold lover 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 A lover of himself A lover of his pleasure A lover of his profit and A lover of his God The first lover will not hearken to Christs voice for self-love and Saviour-love cannot be together since self ends and Saviour-ends are so far asunder The second and third lovers though they may a little hearken to Christs voice yet they cannot much regard it for if any man love the world that is his pleasure or his profit the whole world consisting of nothing else the love of the Father is not in him 1 John 2. 15. It is only the last lover the lover of God who heareth Christs voice and rejoyceth to hear it for every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him 1 John 5. 1. To such lovers he will not only speak but he will also answer which shews a familiarity of speaking For though he speak to very many yet he answers to very few that is only to those who are willing to discourse and advise with him He speaks to all that are Christians by outward profession calling aloud to them now in his Word as once he did to the Jews in his person and saying Repent for the Kingdom of God is at hand Mat. 4. 1. But he answers only to Christians by inward affection because indeed they only do hear his voice for why should he answer to those that will not give him the hearing Thus himself hath told us my sheep hear my voice John 10. 27. He must be a sheep that will hear the voice of Christ not a wolf one more ready
Halleluiah doth not close a part of a Hymn but breaks off a doctrinal exhortation surely not to distract our attentions but to enflame our affections and to possess our souls wholly with the joy and love of Christ without which neither our praying nor our preaching is acceptable unto God or available unto us And the Church seemeth to have borrowed this practice from the Apostles for it is much to be observed that Saint Paul delivers not any one Doctrine of the Christian verity without his Halleluiah that is without a peculiar doxology to God in Christ So in his Epistle to the Romans 1. 8. First I thank my God through Jesus Christ So to the Corinthians 1. 1. 4. I thank my God alwayes on your behalf So to the Galatians 1. 5. To God and our Father be glory for ever and ever Amen So to the Ephesians 1. 3. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ And so in the rest of his Epistles Nay he doth not only prefix his Halleluiah and lay it as the foundation and bottom of his work but he doth also familiarly interweave it whilst he is working as it were some choice and eminent thred to checquer and adorn the whole piece Thus in the Doctrine of Christian regeneration Rom. 7. 25. I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord speaks little or nothing to the argument but more to the soul of him that earnestly desires truly to understand it then the tongue of men and Angels is able to express Thus also in the Doctrine of the resurrection 1 Cor. 15. 57. Thanks be to God which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ are such words as do more then perswade the belief they do also enforce the love of that Christian truth which of it self is able to make not only one Foelix but also all mankinde to quake and tremble For Christ raising us from the death by vertue of his resurrection will also uphold us in the judgement by vertue of his satisfaction Lastly thus also in the Doctrine of Christian patience and preseverance concerning our being strengthned with might by the Spirit of God in the inward man and Christs dwelling in our hearts by faith and our own being rooted and grounded in love Ephes 3. He begins with prayer to God before it ver 14. For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ and he ends with praises after it ver 21. Vnto him be glory in the Church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages world without end Which manner of teaching by prayer and praise must needs make a deeper impression upon the soul then all the arguments of Logick or perswasions of Rhetorick that have been or can be invented by the art of man And indeed the same is also the Method of Saint Peter and of the rest of the Apostles to intermingle prayers and praises to God in all their writings and may not unfitly be called the Method of grace And Alensis gives this reason for it Alius est modus scientiae ad informationem affectus secundum pietatem Alius ad informationem intellectus secundum veritatem Alex. Ale qu. 1. mem 4. There is one method of teaching the will how to embrace piety another method of teaching the understanding how to embrace truth For the understanding is best informed by the evidence of demonstration but the will is best enflamed by the power of devotion And again sunt principia veritatis ut veritatis sunt principia veritatis ut bonitatis There are principles of truth which are to be learned as they are true and there are principles of truth which are to be learned as they are good other sciences proceed from principles of truth which are to be learned as they are true because their truth is most notoriously evident But Divinity proceeds from principles of truth which are to be learned as they are good because their goodness is more notoriously evident then their truth Vnde hec scientia magis est virtutis quam Artis sapientia magis quam scientia magis enim consistit virtute efficacia quam in contemplatione notitia Alen. ibid. in respon 2. Therefore is Divinity rather a science of power then of Art and consequently rather a Sapience then a Science for both in its being and in its knowing it consists more of virtue and power then of contemplation or knowledge Accordingly the Apostle himself saith Alensis professeth that his preaching was not with enticing words of mans wisdom but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power 1 Cor. 2. 4. which is such a demonstration as is more fitted to the will then to the understanding because it hath more of piety then of evidence mans wisdom teaching the understanding but Gods wisdom rather teaching the will and affections The one working more upon the head but the other working more upon the heart And therefore the Method which Gods wisdom useth in teaching man is not unfitly called the Method of grace For it is a Method that neither nature nor Art can teach us but only the Spirit of Grace and is accordingly used in no other science but only in Divinity In teaching other sciences he that should break out into a prayer or ejulation would either forget his principle or mistake his conclusion But in teaching Divinity this is the only way to strengthen both our memories against forgetfulness and our judgements against mistakes Here it is not 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 quod demonstrandum erat nor 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 quod faciendum erat but 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 quod orandum erat Not what we can shew nor what we can do but what we can pray makes us the best proficients in the School of Christ For doubtless we may best learn soul-saving Divinity in the way the Apostles taught it that is by intermingling prayers and praises with our endeavours since this is the only way to learn Christ for Christ cannot be learned till he be received and cannot be received in a soul not prepared by piety and devotion to entertain him This occasioned that expression of Saint Paul As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord so walk ye in him Col. 2. 6. In other sciences we need learn but the Doctrine that is taught no matter for the author that teacheth it But in Christian Divinity we must learn and receive Christ the author or we cannot rightly learn and receive the Doctrine Haec cloquentia quaedam est Doctrinae salutaris movendo affectus discentium accommodata saith Saint Augustine Epist 119. ad Januarium Whence we may gather the true definition of Christian eloquence It is that which most moveth our affections and raiseth them up to Christ this is the reason why the Apostles used this new kind of method in their writings not for the want of knowledge but for the abundance of love and charity which was wholly enamored on Christ
communion Thus doth Saint Paul briefly but pithily define a Christian Church 1 Thes 1. 1. To the Church of the Thessalonians which is in God the Father and in the Lord Jesus Christ We cannot imagine the Thessalonians were in God before they were with God so that the one presupposeth the other and we may hence collect this definition of a true Christian Church that it is a company of men Ministers and People though here Saint Paul chiefly write to the Ministers calling them the Church as appears in that he chargeth them to read this Epistle to all the Holy brethren cap. 5. v. 27. which sheweth that he sent it only to the Ministers I say that a true Christian Church is a company of Men Ministers and People who are with the God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ by their Religion nay more who are in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ by their communion And all the men in the world who are thus with and in God the Father and God the Son by the power of God the Holy Ghost do make up the whole present Christian or Catholick Church They may be several Churches in their Denominations and Jurisdictions They are but one Church in their Religion and in their spiritual communion Thus faith the same Saint Paul Now ye are the body of Christ and members in particular 1 Cor. 12. 27. that is ye Christians of all Nations are the mystical body of Christ aud ye Christians of Corinth of this or that Nation are members in particular of that body and members in particular one of another as all together make up that body or as all particular Churches make up the Catholick Church SECT IX What Trust is given to other particular Churches in the Holy Scriptures is also given to our particular Church of England from God the Father Son and Holy-Ghost That our Church is accordingly bound to magnifie her Trust and therefore we bound not to vilifie it And that it is both Rational and Religious to maintain the Trust and Authority of our own particular Church IF he be justly reproached for dishonesty who doth not carefully discharge his Trust which he hath received from man how much more they who do not carefully discharge their Trust which they have received from God And this is the case of Ministers above all other men who have received such a Trust from God as all the power of the world could not give them and all the malice of the world cannot deny them Indeed it is the case of every particular Minister much more of the whole Ministry or of a whole Church which is more eminently Gods Trustee and hath a much greater Trust then either the arrogancy of any one can challenge or the ability of any one can discharge And therefore if the spirit of God give that charge to one particular Archippus Take heed to the Ministery which thou hast received in the Lord that thou fulfill it Col. 4. 17. much more doth it give the same charge to the whole Church of Colosse which had in a more ample manner and for a more general end received the same Ministery And though the Church of Colosse it self was soon after swallowed up with an Earth-quake in the dayes of Nero as saith Orosius yet not so the Instructions nor the authority given to it they must remain till the worlds end Take heed to the Ministery which thou hast received in the Lord is not to be swallowed up by the cleaving and dividing of the earth no more then it is to be revoked or recalled by any voice from heaven And so was it also with the Church of Ephesus as appears from Saint Pauls charge to the first Bishop of that Church I give thee charge in the sight of God and before Christ Jesus that thou keep this commandment without spot unrebukeable untill the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ 1 Tim. 6 13 14. In that he chargeth him to keep the commandments he had received concerning Religion without spot unrebukeable he sheweth the Churches trust in that he addeth to his charge untill the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ he sheweth that Trust is to continue till the worlds end For in this case we must alwayes remember those words of our Saviour Mar. 13. 37. And what I say unto you I say unto all Watch For what Saint Paul said to the first Bishop of Ephesus he said to all Bishops that ever should be after him as well as to all that were then with him For the Apostolical Epistles though in their inscriptions or Title they concerned some special Churches yet in their Instructions and use they concerned all Churches as plainly appears from Saint Pauls own words Col. 4. 16. And when this Epistle is read amongst you cause that it be read also in the Church of the Laodiceans and that yee likewise read the Epistle from Laodicea So that what Instruction or Authority or charge was given to one Church was given to all Churches in that one And consequently we may thus argue by way of Induction The Trust of Religion was given by God to the Church of Rome and of Corinth and of Galatia and of Ephesus and of Philippi and of Colosse and of Thessalonica therefore the same trust is given by God to our own Church of England and indeed to all the several particular Churches in the Christian world For if each particular Bishop and Presbyter have his Trust originally from the Holy-Ghost though derived by the hands of men Then much more have all the Bishops and Presbyters their Trust from the Holy Ghost Hence that expression in the first Council of Bishops Act. 15. 28. It seemeth good to the Holy Ghost and to us Which hath in some sort been followed by other Councils since Particularly the sixth which confirming the five oecumenical before doth it in these words 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 This our holy and Oecumenical Synod hath by inspiration from God confirmed those former Councils Which is in effect as much as if they had said It seemeth good to the Holy Ghost and us to confirm them Concil Constant 3. Act. 17. Graece sed 18. Latine A sufficient proof that the Apostles spake not those words for themselves alone but also for the Church after them which was thereby authorized as to act by the power so to act in the name of the Holy-Ghost And if any shall be so refractory as to say otherwise he may look upon another place not only as a confirmation of this truth but also as a confutation of his own refractoriness Acts 7. 51. Ye stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears ye do always resist the Holy Ghost For whosoever is stiff-necked and will not hear nor obey the word of truth though in the mouth of a weak and sinful man sent from God to speak it doth make himself guilty of this detestable and damnable resistance even of resisting the Holy Ghost For