in our estimation The three persons in the sacred Deity God the Father the Son and the Holy Ghost their Trinity in Unity and Unity in Trinity The three-fold state of man to wit deformed reformed and transformed corrupt regenerate and glorified The three-fold coming of Christ in the flesh by his Spirit and at the day of judgement Those three grand enemies of mans salvation the flesh world and the devil The three Theological graces Faith Hope and Charity The three principal duties of Religion Prayer Hearing and Almes are plainly set before us in this parcel of Holy Writ Nay yet once more Those three things which every Christian man ought to be acquainted with for his souls health to wit the Creed the Lords Prayer and the Ten Commandments are here at least summarily comprized Our blessed Saviour telleth us the whole Law is reducible to these two great Commandments the love of God and our neighbour both which are here amply taught us The Lords Prayer is intimated in that we must aske according to Gods will which cannot be unlesse according to that patterne yea in that we are called sonnes of God it teacheth us to cry Our Father and that chief Petition in it Forgive us our sins is once and again inculcated Finally if you please we may out of this Epistle compile a Creed not much unlike that of the Apostles no lesse justly then commonly heretofore received amongst us though now almost forgotten by us in these or the like words I believe in God the Father invisible just holy pure and faithful who knoweth all things and is no lesse Almighty to do all things who is love it self whereby he vouchsafed to make the heaven and earth And in Jesus Christ his only begotten Son who came in the flesh to wit by being conceived of the Holy Ghost and borne of the Virgin Mary and laid down his life for us being crucified dead and buried and having life in himselfe rose from the dead and ascended to heaven where he sitteth at Gods right hand is our Advocate with the Father and at that day of judgment shall come and appear again to wit to judge the quick and dead I believe in the Holy Ghost the fellowship or communion of Saints the forgiveness of sins and eternal life By this time you cannot but see beloved what a body of divinity what a treasury of spiritual knowledge this Epistle is well might Fâ—rus say Ipsam Evangelicae Doctrinae summam brevissimam complectitur the summe of Evangelical Doctrine is succinctly and yet distinctly comprehended in it and now me thinketh every one is ready to say with that Father Adoro plenitudinem sacrae Scriptura I adore and admire the fulnesse of Holy Scripture wherein every drop is as it were a rivulet every rivulet a great river and river an Ocean every branch a tree every tree an orchard an orchard a field I mean every Verse as it were a Chapter every Chapter an Epistle every Epistle a Volumne for the abundance of precious truths contained in them and yet more particularly by these considerations sufficient reason cannot but appear as for my discussion so your attention and thus this discourse serveth to make way for the following But before I begin I have one request to make to you and that from my very soule that as I hope you have not are not so you will not be wanting in your requests to God for me and what you should aske for me I shall not go out of this Epistle to tell you even that unction from the Holy One whereby we may know all things that anoynting which teacheth us all things and is truth and no lie Let this be the matter of your prayer both for me for your selves that it may teach me how to expound apply you how to hear receive both you me how to understand and obey the sacred saving truths which are delivered to us in this First General Epistle of St JOHN I shall not at this time enter upon the Epistle it self only in a few words take notice of the Title which is prefixed wherein we have two things considerable Namely The pâ—nman John and the writing which is set down for the nature of it to be an Epistle for the order the first and for the extent of it a general Epistle First The Epistle is asserted to be St. JOHNS Indeed we do not finde him setting down his Name in any part of the Epistle the other Apostles are express in this particular Iames and Peter and Iude and Paul in all Epistles except that to the Hebrewes but Saint IOHN in this Epistle is altogether silent in the other two he only giveth himself the common title of an Elder when he hath any occasion to mention himself in his Gospel and that in things much tending to his dignity it is done in a third person by way of circumlocution only in his Apocalypse he specifieth his Name but that without any addition of honour or dignity It lets us see in general the humility of this holy Apostle who thought so meanly of himself that he accounts himself not worth the naming Indeed on the one hand though it s often too true of many who arrogantly affect to blazon their own names and titles we are not to imagine that when the other Apostles prefixe their namâ—s and most of them their high calling that it is done out of vain glory But on the other hand we may justly conclude it a testimony of great humility in this Apostle that he suppresseth his Name his Office by silence Thus whilest he was high in Christs he became lowly in his own eyes whilest he was rich in grace his veâ—y Name carrying as it were grace as Benjamines sack did money in its mouâ—h he was poor in spirit scarce thinking himself worthy of a name Oh let us learn by his pattern not to affect our own praises nor speak high things of our selves ever remembring that as artis est celare artem it is an art to conceal our art so to neglect our own names and honour is the best way to true honour and a good name Besides this notion of humility it may further be conceived and not improbably that this concealment of his Name was an act of prudence especially considering the time when it is most rationally conjectured to be written to wit as the learned English Annotatour hath observed to my hand not long before the destruction of Ierusalem when as the Church was under a sharp persecution occasioned no doubt by those many Antichrists then arising in which S. IOHN was peculiarly involved yea of which he warneth those to whom he writeth and therefore wisely forbeareth to publish his Name which might have been prejudicial to him There is no doubt a policy consistent with piety which as all Christians so Ministers may use in persecuting times It was that our Saviour at least allowed his
what is the joy of a godly Minister namely when the people by his declaring preaching writing are brought to fellowship with God and Christ and the more they gain to this fellowshâ—p the more is their joy enlarged and filled up Indeed that I may borrow Seneca's similitudes if it cannot but delight the husbandman when he seeth his plants grow his trees flourish his fruits ripen if it must needs rejoyce the Shepheard to behold his Sheep sound fat and fruitfull if it glad the heart of a Schoolmaster oâ— Tutor to observe his Schollers thrive in learning and increase in knowledge it must needs be matter of abundant joy to the Ministers of the Gospel when they reap the fruit of their labour in the conversion and confirmation of their people This is that which this holy Apostle John as here so elsewhere expresseth to be his temper when writing to the Elect Lady the saith I rejoyced greatly that I found of thy children walking in the truth and when writing to the well-beloved Gaius he saith I have no greater joy then that my children walk in truth the same spirit lodged in that blessed Apostle Paul who calls the Philippians his joy and his Crown and the Thessalonians his hope his joy his Crown of rejoycing his glory and his joy by which phrases is intimated an exceeding joy glorying being the height of rejoycing nay Emperours cannot take greater joy in their crownes then he did in those of whose conversion God had made him instrumental nay as if he knew not how enough to be thankful he breaketh forth into that pathetical question what thanks can we render to God for all the joy wherewith we joy for your sakes To this purpose was that pious speech of an holy Bishop to his flock implestis viscera mea cum implestis mandata divina your fulfilling Gods precepts is the filling up of my joy We read in the parable of a woman who having found her lost groat called her neighbours and friends to rejoyce with her that finding the lost groat is an embleme of a lost sinner gained to Christ and the woman represents the Minister who cannot but greatly rejoyce at his being the means of converting any sinner indeed as we find afterward in that Chapter There is joy in heaven over one sinner that repenteth the truth is there is joy both in heaven and in earth whilest both the Angels those heavenly Ministers and Ministers those earthly Angels rejoyce at the winning of soules to Christ. This is the joy of godly Ministers for the present and shall be yet much more at the last day in the presence of our Lord Iesus Christ at his coming when as St. Gregrory aptly Peter shall appear with his converted Iews and Paul with his converted Gentiles and all Pastors with their reduced sheep when they who have received any spiritual profit by us shall give in evidence for us and be as so many pearls set in our Crown of glory Oh then how should we that are the Ministers of Christ double yea treble our diligence in feeding the flock according to Christs threefold mandate how should we bestir our selves in all the wayes by all the means we can by preaching writing and that in exhorting reproving comforting that we may bring men to this fellowship since it will be the filling of our joy Indeed a lazy careless Minister is not more the peoples than his own enemy since as he hindreth their good so his own comfort for if it be uncomfortable when we sow much and reap little the success not answering our pains it must needs be much more doleful when conscience giveth in testimony against us that we have sowed but little having been careless and negligent in the discharge of our duty since whereas the other is but onely a cross this is a curse according to that of the Prophet Ieremy cursed is he that doth the work of the Lord negligently But further oh that you who are the people would upon this consideration labour to profit by what we preach and write to you that hereby you may fill our joy Many of you pretend a great deal of love and respect to us oh my brethren if you love us do not grieve us by your unprofitableness By your presence you fill our Churches by your maintenance you fill our purses but what is this if by your obedience you do not fill our joy many of you seem to pitty us when you see us exhausting our spirits wasting our bodies weakning our strength in preaching to you oh then why do you not refresh our minds revive our spirits rejoyce our hearts in requiting our pains with your fruitfulness it is true beloved our work in it self is difficult but your hard hearts are an heavier burden to us than our hard work Truly if our hearts deceive us not to finde good wrought upon you by our pains is the best cordiall you can give us as that godly Father said to his people of Antioch I feel not the weight of my labour because I am revived by the gain of you that are my Auditors Let me then bespeak you my dearly beloved parishiners and auditors this day in the same language St. Paul bespoke his Philippians fulfill you my joy in your endeavour to profit by my Ministery why shall we who are Evangelical sowers be forced to complain that we sow our seed if not among bryars and thorns which scratch and tear the usage that too many have found in these dayes yet among stones so as it yields no fruit why do you force us with our preaching and praying to joyn tears in weeping for and over you because of your barreness nay why should we come in at the last day of Iudgement as witnesses against you and be forced to give up our account with grief I end all if on the one hand you will not be won to Christ by our Ministery know that as it is our sorrow it will be your misery our heaviness your unhappyness if it be uncomfortable to us it will be unprofitable to you and if you put us upon a woe of condoling you will meet with a woe of condemning and on the other hand if our Ministery be effectual to bring you into fellowship with God and Christ know that it will not only be ours but your joy for so we may put both the readings of this clause together we shall have some and you will have much more cause of comfort in it For this end it is my brethren that we shew and declare and write Oh do not disappoint us of our hopes and frustrate our desires but for this cause do you hear beleive and obey that both your and our joy may be full THE FIRST EPISTLE OF St. IOHN CHAP. I. Ver. 5 6 7. This then is the message which we have heard of him and declare unto you that God is light and
let us look upon our black feet and as with one eye we behold the good that is done by us so with the other the evill that remaineth in us 2. Charitable towards their brethren If thy brother be overtaken in a fault restore him with a spirit of meeknesse give to thy neighbours actions the allowance of humane frailty and be not too rigid in censuring other mens faults If they offend in one thing perhaps thou art more guilty in another if they fall to day thou mayst tomorrow the same corruption that hath led another aside is still in thee and if grace withdraw will soon prevail over thee indeed if you practise the former duty you will soon learn this pride and censoriousnesse are ever companions and he that is lowly in his own esteem will be charitable towards others 3. Watchful over their own hearts indeed he that carrieth gun-powder about him had need beware the least sparks of fire what cause have we to take heed of every temptation who are at best so prone to be led into it Happy is the man saith SolomoÌ„ that feareth always no doubt he sinneth least that most feareth lest he should sin it is Jobs saying of himself according to the vulgar Latine verebar omnia opera mea I did fear all my works let the best do so fear themselves in all their actions lest they should fall into sin 4. Frequent in prayer to God for this shall every one that is godly pray to thee saith David for this what because of his sins and who not the wickedest but the godly in this respect have cause to pray and for what should he pray surely for renewed pardon for increase of grace and for the perfection of glory We cannot say we have no sin Oh then let us pray with David Enter not into judgement with thy servant oh Lord where there is a double emphasis observable it is not ab hoste but à servo though Gods servant yet he would not have God to enter into judgement with him and again ne intres it is the very entrance into judgment that he dreads and prayeth against not only do not proceed but do not so much as enter when we have done our best we have need to crave for mercy Again we cannot say we have no sin let us pray for more grace that we may every day have lesse sin so doth Paul in effect when he confesseth himself not to have already attained but resolveth to reach forward we must never cease to hunger and thirst after greater measures of righteousness till we are wholly and perfectly without any stain of sin and therefore we must continually say with the Apostles Lord increase our faith and all other graces of thy spirit in us Finally since we cannot now in this life say we have no sin how should we pray and sigh and long to be possessed of that future felicity indeed in this respect only it is lawful and commendable to desire death that we may be free not from pain or misery but from sin and iniquity upon this ground we may we ought and the stronger we are in grace the more earnestly we should groan for the day of our perfect redemption when we shall be cloathed with unspotted purity perfect felicity and that to all eternity AMEN THE FIRST EPISTLE OF St. IOHN CHAP. I. Ver. 8.10 If we say we have no sin we deceive our selves and there is no truth in us If we say we have not sinned we make him a lyar and his word is not in us IT is one of the sage counsels which the wise man giveth Turn not to the right hand nor to the left remove thy foot from evill the genuine and literal sense whereof no doubt is that we must keep the straight way which God hath chalked before us in his word not in the least declining on either hand but withall there are severall allusions and profitable applications made of these words by the Ancients Hugo taketh the right hand as an embleme of prosperity to which we must not turn by being too much lâ—fâ—ed up and the left hand of adversity which we must not turn to by being too much cast down veneâ—oble â—edâ— resembleth by the right hand 〈◊〉 to which we must not turn by being wise above what is written and by the left hand folly to which we must not turn by giving our selves up to its dictates once more to our present purpose according to St. Austin To turn to the right hand is by saying we have no sin to deceive our selves to turn to the left hand is to go on in sin and yet think our selves safe and our condâ—tion happy Both these our Apostle warneth us of in this Chapter and it is not mine but Aretius his observation where he saith the Kings high way lyeth betwixt two extremes the one whereof is to will a continuance in our sins the other to acquit our selves from having any sin the former of these which is secura delectatio peccati a secure delight in sin is that which is sharply reproved at the sixth verse which calleth those lyars who walk in darknesse live in wickedness and yet boast of communion with God the latter of these which is superba justitiae presumptio proud presumption of our own righteousness is no less severely condemned in these verses letting such know how vainly they cozen themselves and highly they injure God If we say we have c. Having already dispatched the first branch of the confutation which is the truth implicitely asserted proceed we now to the second which is the errour expresly refuted for the handling whereof be pleased to observe these two things The opinion wherein the errour consists and that is set down in the beginning of the eighth and the tenth verses If we say we have no sin if we say we have not sinned The arguments by which it is refuted and disswaded drawn from The folly of it in that we deceive our selves and the truth is not in us verse eighth The impiety of it in that we make God a lyar and his word is not in us verse tenth Begin we with the opinion it self which we see is not singly mentioned but ingeminated as if our Apostle would hereby insinuate that it is at once both a very common and very dangerous disease no lesse spreading then deadly infecting in some degree or other the greatest part of men of Christians The manner of committing this moral errour is saying which refers both to the tongue and the mind saying is not only peculiar to the lips every thought is interpreted by God a saying the heart may cry when the tongue is silent and we may say when we do not speak Hence it is that though this be not our open assertion or outward protestation yet if it be our inward thought our secret imagination we shall be found guilty before God The