superstition that moued them they were to celebrate the Passâ—ouer and this was the day of their preparation they were preparing them by crucifying the innocent the Lorde of glorie Was this an holy preparation This was the Fryday and the morne was the Paâ—che Iohn sayes that was an high day or a great Sabbath because they kept two holy dayes together both their owne ordinarie Sabbath and the extraordinarie Passeouer and this they did contrarie to the ordinance of GOD for they should haue celebrated the Passeouer on Thurseday as the LORD did for He celebrated it that night that He was betrayed by Iudas and led away captiue by the Iewes So they did cast in the two Holy dayes together according to their custome for when y e Passeouer fell to bee on Thurseday they vsed to delay it vntill the Satterday which was their Sabbath day lest y t if these feasts which are so neare other had bene both kept the people should haue wearied and if Christ the other had not bene taken downe thaâ— y t Holy exercise wold haue bin defiled So they thought if they had bin taken down from the crosse and put away they had bene holy eneugh And vpon that same pretence when they were to accuse Christ they would not enter in the common Hall lest they should haue beene polluted They were Hypocrites they polluted the world and defiled the earth that they tread on A polluted body who hath no sanctification in Christ there is nothing that he touches meat or drinke yea the earth he walkes on but he defiles all yet these foule Hypocrites thought that if Iesus who sanctifies the Sabbath and sanctifies the heart had beene taken away they had beene holie eneugh An Hypocrite is a foule body defiles all that he handles All his religion is outward standing in bodily exercises and when he hath polluted all yea the very earth he treades on he will say Handle not touch not taste not that will pollute thee Coloss 2.21 There is his religion When the foule body defiles the aire the earth the Heauen hee bids thee touch it not lest it defile thee when he defiles all that he touches Nowe they get the request granted them and gets a commandement of Pilate and so The men of warre came forward and brake the legges of the one first and then they came to the other and brake his also They brake both their legges with great paine and torment Now will ye see these 2 thieues they are like in their death both are crucified in end both their thighes are brokeÌ„ yet for al this the one of them is a vessell of glorie and he had a promise of glorie and an assurance of it in his heart the other had none So Brethren take heede though the death of the wicked and the godlie bee alike yet they are not alike in condition Iudge not of mens estate by the outwarde miserie measure not Heauen and Hell by the outwarde death The Elect and the wicked will be oft times alike in death and oft times the Elect will die in the greatest torments Who suffered more painefull deathes than the Martyres did Beware that thou say as the Papistes who are enemies to Christ say They teach albeit that in Iesus Christ thy sinne be forgiuen yet the paine is not forgiuen and they say that the paine that the godly suffer in death is a satisfaction for sinne They say that the paine of the penitent thiefe was the punishment of his sinne but they lie and the Lord shall justifie it The Elect suffer no paine for sinne torment them as they will burne them scalde them all is but a mercifull chastisement and death to them is a faire port to Heauen He makes darknesse to be light to His owne Well this for the execution of the two thieues They come to the Lord to see whether He was dead or not they are not rash they finde Him dead they finde no sponke of life in Him therefore they offer not to breake His thighes See how the word and prouidence of God takes effect The Lord had said One bone of Him should not be broken and therefore to preueene the breaking the Lord miraculously tooke the Spirit from His Sonne His death was miraculous as ye heard before by the strength of nature He might haue liued longer as that great and mightie voyce which he vttered last testifies and so His sudden death was a meane to performe the Lordes ordinance Hee would vse this as the ordinarie meane to execute the eternall decree of the Father It is a follie to thee to say thou wilt depend on the prouidence of God and in the meane time to leaue off meanes for by so doing thou temptest God who as He hath ordained the ende so He hath also ordained the meanes to the end As for example If thou wouldest goe to Heauen thou must vse the meanes the hearing of the word c. Yet many will contemne the meanes and yet bragge they are assured to come to Heauen they will contemne the preaching which is the instrument that God vses But I say to thee thou deceiuest thy selfe for I denounce if thou werest an Emperour thou shalt neuer see Heauen nor life who contemnest that meane and instrument which the Lord hath ordained to bee vsed to bring thee to Heauen which is the preaching of His trueth Now Brethren ye see here the testimonie of the death of Christ giuen by the buâ—rioes they preach His death as though they had said Marke all people This Iesus whom we haue crucified is dead and therefore in token that this is true wee will not breake His bones after that comes another burrio a man of warre and giues the last witnesse Hee smites Him with a speare so that out of the wound gushed out blood and water As though the knaue had said I shall let you see that Hee is dead that there is no life in Him and so hee smites Him to the heart with a speare The Lord would haue the death of the Lord testified sundrie wayes for thy comfort for the most shamefull thing that euer was is death except it be sanctified it is the greatest miserie that can come to man if thou gettest no remedie against it for that death of the body is a port to that death euerlasting It is no childrens play to haue the soule dislodged No it was an ignominie to the Lord of glorie to be holden vnder the bands of death and to be tread vnder the feete of death yet the Father will haue His death testified sundrie wayes First Hee will haue it testified with a cry when He cried with a loude voyce Father into thine hands I commend my Spirit Next Hee will haue the burrioes to testifie His death and then He will haue a speare thrust to His heart to testifie His death besides the testimonie that all the creatures gaue of His death Is this for nothing No for suppose
well the blood from the water and the water from the blood I see heere something aboue nature and I am compelled to thinke and saye that there was something heere extraordinarie As all thinges that fell out in the death of the LORD IESVS was extraordinarie and shewed Him to bee more and greater than anie common man that euer died The giuing vp of the ghoste with a loude voyce shewed that Hee was more than a man For Brethren to leaue the speaking of this matter let vs see what this blood this water meanes and to what vse the gushing out of the blood the water serues for No question the gushing out of the blood and the water out of the wounde testifies that the Lord was verily dead What man will liue when his heart blood is shed The heart is the most vitall part of the bodie It is the seat of the life Perse it and there is no life for the man So this effusion of the blood water testifies that the Lord was dead and there was no life in Him Yet Brethren this blood this water meaned more than this they testified of the force of that death they testified not of a death only but of a powerfull death No mans death was euer so powerfull as the death of the Lord Iesus All the Emperoures in the world had no such power in their death as Christ had It testifies of a power to purge the sinnes of man What Emperoures bloode ransomed sinfull man or could purge him from his sins What water came there euer from an Emperours heart which washed away the corruptioÌ„ of thy nature Now to speak it in a word This blood and this water testified of a power that flowed from the death of Christ to the remission of sinnes and the washing of our foule nature with the bloode bracke out remission of sinnes and with the water burst out regeneration Yet to make this plainer By the bloode of Christ which is the bloode of God God and man in one wee are ransomed from death and Hell the guiltinesse of all our sinnes is taken awaye the punishment with the guilt is taken awaye Hell is taken awaye the justice of God that required our blood is satisfied by that bloode of Christ that wrath that would haue sucked vp thy bloode it woulde not haue left one droppe of thy bloode vnsucked and that vvrath which cannot be satiate vvithout bloode is satiate by the onelie bloode of CHRIST Marke vvell It vvas not bloode onelie that came out of His side but it was bloode and vvater it vvas a vvaterie bloode IOHN vvho stoode by left this in register That sensiblie in the bloode hee perceiued vvater to testifie That by that bloode of IESVS vvee obtaine not onelie remission of our sinnes but by this same bloode the foulenesse and vncleannesse of our nature is vvashen away for vvater serues to vvash away filthinesse This same IOHN in his first Epistle Chap. 5. vers 6. saies that Christ came into the world by water meaning the vvater vvhich gushed out of His side IOHN coulde neuer forget this sight Hee came by vvater to vvashe awaye this inherent corruption vvhich is in vs for if it bee not purged there is no entrie to HeaueÌ„ I fore-warne thee thou shalt neuer see Heauen if thy corruption be not purged away Then he saies He came by water and blood not by water onely but by water and blood meaning this blood was waterie and this water was bloodie Not only to wash away the inherent corruption but also to ransomâ— vs to obtaine to vs remission of our sinnes and to take away the guiltinesse of our sinne both originall and actuall and that punishment and wrath that was due to vs In that same Chapter Iohn poyntes out the three witnesses of Christ in the Heauens and three witnesses of Christ in the earth And for the witnessing in the earth hee counts these same two the blood and the water the third the Spirit who testifies thâ—t Iesus came died for thee where we may see that this blood and this water that came out of the side of the Lord neuer leaues the earth neuer ceases to crie The Redeemer of the worlde is come If thou be in Iesus that blood sprinkling thine heart conscience within thee shall testifie vnto thee that Iesus is come in the world for thy purgation So that Brethren I affirme this that all the words in the world and all the hearing shall not put that perswasion in thine heart that Iesus Christ is come for thy Redemption except that blood and that water cry within thee certainly we haue no better assurance that the Lord is come than when we feele that effectuall working of the remission of our sinnes and the purgation of them by the mortifying of sinne Now we haue dayly in our Sacraments of Baptisme the Lords Supper outward signes of this water and this blood whereby they are outwardly represented to our eyes In the Sacrament of the Lords Supper we haue the signe of the blood in the Sacrament of Baptisme we haue the signe of the water and therefore the blood the water remaine euer in the earth as witnesses testifying that Christ is come and they are euer represented to vs in these outward signes and symboles in the Sacraments So in a word this blood gushing out of the Lords side and this water testifies First that the Lord was truely dead Next that His death is forceable to the remission of our sinnes and to our regeneration Vnto these two vses we may joyne the third this gushingouâ— of the blood and water out of the Lords side testified that the sacrifices purgations and washing of the Law were now abolished they were now no more to haue place because they were only certaine types and shadowes of the blood and water to come whicâ— gushed out both together out of the Lords side Now I come tâ— the testimonie of Iohn concerning the breaking of the thighes oâ— the Lord y e piercing of His side with y e speare Iohn seales vp this first he saies I testify this J beare witnes to this theÌ„ he aggreages hiâ— testimonie in sundry words First I as an eye-seeing witnesse stood by and I sawe with mine eyes that the thies of the Lorde were not broken and that a souldier pearced Hâ—m thoâ—ow â—he side vnto the heart and that bloode and water came out of His side Next As I saw these so I tell thee that my testimony is true Thirdly I know am perswaded my testimonie to bee true my conscience perswades me that it is true I belieue it my selfe to the end that yee may beleeue it So therefore as I beleeue beleeue thou This he saies to all to the end of the world yea who heares this beleeue it as well as I. Yee see heere IOHN is earnest to testifie the death of Christ that verily He died And he testifies it
appearing heire to a kingdome men will count of him Much more then when we see a man or woman ordained to that Heauenly kingdome and to that glory shoulde we not honour them for that respect of glory Paul to Tim. saies In a great house are many vessels some to honour some to dishonour Yee see in a Noble mans house howe honourably they will handle golden and siluâ—r vessels Then when we looke to a faithfull man should we not count greatly of him because hee is so glorious a vessell and is to be partaker of that glory All the glory of this world appertains properly to the faithfull Indeede often times they haue least part thereof that they maye knowe their happinesse standes not in this earthly glory but in that glory of Heauen the wicked haue most of it Yet I say All the glory euen of this world appertaines to the faithfull only No honour appertains to a king who is a reprobate He is but a violent vsurper of these worldly things and he shal one day giue account of his violent vsurpation nothing but shame appertaines to him and all his honour shall bee turned into shame Now I goe to the next thing The boldnes that Ioseph had in coÌ„ming to Pilate Hee lurked before but nowe when Iesus is lying in greatest ignominy as wee vse to speake At the Gallowes foot The man takes boldnes steps in to Pilates Hall makes his request His riches his substaÌ„ce honour held him abacke awhile but now he comes out forgets all interceades for the body of Iesus to burie it Thy riches honour of the worlde are like as many fetters yron chaines to retaine thee hold thee abacke from Christ Yet all the riches honour in the world cannot hinder nor hold backe GODS calling when Hee puts out His hande to drawe thee in to Him But if He put not out His hand draw thee out thou art so fast detained that all the strength in the worlde will not be able to draw thee It is true that Paul saies 1. Cor. 1.26 Ye see your calling how that not many wise men after the flesh nor many noble are called It is a rare thing to see the Lord draw such men He vses not to call many wise men out of the hands of their wisdome nor many rich men out of the hands of their riches nor many Noble men out of the handes of their Nobility No He lets them be We reade not of any potent men among the Jewes whom the Lord pulled out to be His Disciples except these two Ioseph Nicodemus There might haue beene moe among the Princes of the Iewes but wee find the names of no moe registrate O how hard a thing it is to draw a wise maÌ„ a mightie man or a Noble man to Christ for it is true that Christ saies It is as hard to drawe a rich man to Christ as to draw a Camell thorowe a needles eye To draw a great body thorow a needles eye is no lesse difficulty than to draw thee to Christ who art a Noble man who wilt sit vp talke of thy kinred of thy blood This doing of Ioseph may bee marueiled at Think ye not y t Ioseph should haue manifested himselfe rather in Iesus lifetime than nowe after His death When Hee was going working wonders and speaking such sweet sentences as neuer man spake yet all this moued him not to come foorth and shew himselfe But now Christ being in shame he comes out Whereunto shall I ascribe this I ascribe it to the force y t came from the death of Iesus There was neuer a liuing man in the world that had such force as y t dead body had No I say He had more power hanging dead on the crosse than when Hee was liuing in the world more mighty was His death than His life The Lord giue vs a sense feeling of y e force of y e death of Christ it is able to cause a dead body rise from death to life Iohn 12.24 He foretold y e power of His death When the corne of wheat lyes in the ground and dies it fructifies and brings foorth much fruit so the dead body of Iesus fructifiâ—d and brought with it out of the graue to life many thousand soules so does it to the end of the world Hast thou life into thee From whom came that life Euen from the death of Iesus Christ if Christ had not died thou hadst neuer felt life Hee vses also for this purpose another similitude Where euer the dead carcasseâ—s thither resorte the Eagles Meaning where His dead body was the faithfull where euer they were they should take them to their wings from all the ends of the earth leaue their riches and honour and by Faith flee to Him to feede vpon Him for His deade body casts such a sweete smell thorow the Heauens and the Earth a carioun casts such an euill smell but the body of Iesus hath a sweete smell that it will allure men women to come to it The Lord giue euery one such a taste of His sweetnesse as Ioseph and Nicodemus found that with pleasure we may flee to Him and feede on Him Now followes the request he comes in to Pilates Hall and desires leaue to take vp the dead body of Iesus as yee saw before the body of Iesus was not taken from the crosse without the licence of the Iudge Pontius Pilate so they durst not burie the body of Iesus without leaue Why The Lord vvas condemned and the man who is condemned is yet in the hands of the Iudge vntill he giue Him ouer If we consider wel this whole Historie of the suffering of Christ vve shall finde one thing vvorthy to be marked Albeit the Lord Iesus vvas the moste innocent man that euer vvas in the vvorlde yet hauing to doe vvith Magistrates both ciuile and ecclesiasticall as Pontius Pilate Caiaphas and the rest from the beginning to the end Hee will haue nothing done but vvith their leaue vvhen the Magistrate sent out men of vvarre to take Him He vvould not suffer Peter to resist them but He reprooued him for drawing his sword Hee would not haue His body taken downe from the Crosse without the leaue of the Magistrate Hee would haue nothing done to Him Hee would not be buried without the leaue of the Magistrate Hee leaues thee His example to teach thee if thou werest neuer so innocent yet if thou fallest in the handes of the Magistrate suffer nothing to be done to thee with offence and with the disgrace of justice and judgement hee who would die well and in the Lord let Him protest that nothing be done to him that will disgrace justice albeit he suffer innocently I might let you see an higher ground of this matter but I wil touch it only The Lord that came in the world to relieue thee from that great Iudge and from all
than all the vexation that was done to Him it was heauier than the crucifying of him it selfe and when thou hearest this name thou shouldest say He was not a deceiuer but it was I that was a deceiuer Hee was called a deceiuer for me who was damned for deceit that I should be deliuered from the debt punishment of deceit and deceiuers Now to end shortly Ye haue a watch saies he goe and make it sure keepe it as yee please Hee was an easie man to graunt to any man whatsoeuer thing he sought of him either good or euill Hee granted to Ioseph his sute to burie Christ so he grants to the Priests and Pharises this sute to keepe Him in the graue The reason is because being an Ethnick he serued not God but the affections of meÌ„ whether good or euill he looked not to God but hee had a respect to his owne standing and therefore hee cares not to grant a sute suppose it were against God and Christ Hee had a respect to his owne standing when he commanded Christ to be crucified Such like he respected his owne standing when hee gaue Ioseph leaue to burie Him and likewise now when he grantes this sute to the Priestes to vvatch His graue he respected his owne standing Marke this Brethren It is a miserable thing vvhen a King or a Iudge hath not God before his eyes wo to y t king who hath not God a good coÌ„scieÌ„ce before his eyes for he will be a slaue to the affections of any varlot in the Countreye A Begger a Horse-rubber and the vilest slaue that can be among men is not so vile a slaue as he who serues the affections of men and hath not God and a good conscience before him and euer the higher and the greater his estate be he is the greater slaue Nowe hauing gotten leaue of Pilate they set men of vvarre to keepe Him in the graue they make the sepulchre sure with the watch to the ende Hee shoulde not bee stollen awaye and for the more securitie they sâ—aled the stone and signated it vvith Pilates ring and then it vvas death to anie man in the vvorlde to touch it Yet the more busie they are and the more they striue to hold Him in the graue the more the Lorde glorifies Him and the more cleare and manifest was his Resurrection Could Pilates seale holde him in the graue Could the men of vvarre holde him in No they coulde not keepe him but yee will haare They fell all downe dead at his Resurrection and they had not a worde to speake suppose such was the impudencie of the Priests that although they knew that he vvas risen Yet they hired the men of vvarre to say that he vvas not risen but his disciples stole him away by night And this errour continues in the vvorlde among the Iewes euer since But the Lord Iesus arose vvith great power and glorie and now is in infinite glorie in the Heavens at the right hand of the Father To vvhom vvith the Sonne and holy Spirit from our hearts vvee render all praise honour and glorie for euer and euer AMEN THE XXVIII LECTVRE OF THE RESVRRECTION OF CHRIST MATTH CHAP. XXVIII NOw in the ende of the Sabbath when the first day of the weeke began to dawne Marie Magdalene and the other Marie came to see the sepulchre verse 2 And beholde there was a great earth-quake for the Angel of the Lord descended from heauen and came and rolled backe the stone from the doore and sate vpon it verse 3 And his countenance was like lightning and his raiment white as snowe verse 4 And for feare of him the keepers were astonied and became as dead men MARKE CHAP. XVI ANd when the Sabbath day was past Marie Magdalene and Marie the mother of Iames and Salome bought sweete ointmentes that they might come and anoint him verse 2 Therefore earlie in the morning the first day of the weeke they came vnto the sepulchre when the Sunne was now risen LVKE CHAP. XXIIII NOw the first day of the weeke early in the morning they came vnto the sepulchre and brought the odours which thâ—y had prepared and certaine women with them IOHN CHAP. XX. NOw the first day of the weeke came Marie Magdalene early when it was yet darke vnto the sepulchre and sawe the stone taken away from the tombe THESE dayes past beloued Brethren in Christ wee haue heard at length of the death and Passion of our Lorde Iesus Christ and in ende wee heard of His Buriall after His death and passion Now it followes as the Lord shall giue vs grace that we speake of His glorious resurrectioÌ„ from the dead In speaking of the Resurrection of Iesus Christ wee shall follow out the whole foure Euangelistes Matthew in his last Chapter Marke in his last Chapter and Luke in his last Chapter sets downe the Historie of the resurrection of Iesus Christ but John insists more largelie than the rest for he hath two Chapters of the Historie of the Resurrection Then to come to the purpose Wee finde in none of the foure Euangelists the time and the houre when the Lord arose from the dead preciselie noted We finde not the manner of His rising out of the graue Wee finde no mention made of any witnesses that sawe Him rise out of the graue It hath pleased the Lord in His wisedome to conceale all these thinges yet it is certaine He arose out of the graue in the morning what houre he knowes Himselfe in the morning after y e Iewish Sabbath which was the beginning of the thirde day after His Buriall for the Iewes counted their day from euen till eueÌ„ so the third day began at euening As it is certaine that the Lord arose out of the graue in the night so we find in the foure Euangelists that when He is risen He testifies a little after His glorious Resurrection by many witnesses And first of all the emptinesse and roomnesse of the graue testifies thâ—s Resurrection Marie Magdalene and the other Marie and Salome testifie of it The Angâ—ls of Heauen testifie of it The Lord Himselfe testifies of it by appearing to the vvomen And these vvomen testifie of it to His Disciples And then the Lord witnesses His Resurrection by His owne appearing vnto them To come to the Text that we haue read We haue first of all out of the Gospel of MARKE noted the occasion how it comes to passe that these women are made witnesses to the Resurrection of Iesus Christ Next wee haue the coÌ„ming of these holy women out of Hierusalem with odours to anoint the dead bodie of Iesus which they supponed to haue bene in the graue Thirdly wee haue the rehearsall of some things that fell out whilest the women were comming to the graue There falles out a great earthquake because their was a glorious Angell comming from Heauen to the graue And last of all we shall speake of the part of Marie Magdalene
his glorie There is the necessitie It behooued that the Lorde Iesus by manie and sore sufferings shoulde enter into His glorie Marke this vvho can tell it clearer than Hee Himselfe tolde it So I will tell it againe Iesus by His suffering behoâ—ued to enter into His glorie IESVS CHRIST once leauing His glorie got no entrie againe into it till Hee was so inanited as neuer creature was The LORDE putteth to a necessitie of suffering saying Jt behooued him to suffer and so saye I There was such a necessitie layed vpon Him that Hee behooued to suffer and all the vvorlde coulde not saue Him from it beeing once come downe into this vvorlde Therefore the LORDE by His Prophets had fore-tolde this necessitie That hee shoulde suffer death and therefore seeing Hee fore-telles it it behooued him to suffer All the vvorlde shall not bring it backe againe The Lorde as Hee had fore-tolde it so Hee had ordained it from all eternitie Wilt thou call backe againe that that the LORDE hath decreede Thou mayest reduce the decreet of man but all the world cannot reduce the decreet of GOD. These are the causes of His suffering but I shall come to a lower and a subordinate cause I saye to thee thy sinne made this necessitie The LORDE taking vpon Him the burthen of thy sinne and becomming Mediator that immaculate Lambe that had no sinne neither in bodie nor in soule Hee taking once the burthen of our sinne vpon Him Hee was in a manner holden out of Heauen for a time and Hee was made accursed and therfore before He suffered for sinne He could not get entrie into Heauen for wheresoeuer sinne is there is death bee it inherent within thee if thou get not one to die for thee thou must die for this is plaine talke but would to God it were vvell learned death must euer followe sinne if thou laye it not on Him and Hee die not for thee thou shalt die for euer Thou makest but a pastime of harlotrie and murther and theft but I say There is no satisfaction of thy harlotrie and murther but death I saye to thee harlot thou art dead murtherer thou art but dead albeit thou be a lord I tell thee thou art but dead if thou get no reliefe in the Mediator without satisfaction for thy sins thou shalt neuer see HeaueÌ„ Christ saw not HeaueÌ„ after He tooke on our sin till He was dead and offeâ—ed His blood The high Priest durst not enter into Sanctum sanctorum without a basen full of blood vnder paine of death Euen so Christ entered not into heauen but with his owne blood And if thy sinne helde an innocent out of heauen O miserable bodie thinkest thou that thou who art altogether defiled canst come to heauen Nothing can enter there that is defiled Murtherer thou shalt neuer see heauen except thou goe to Iesus and laye on the burthen of thy sinne vpon him and saye Lord take this burthen from mee and if thou canst saye this from thine heart he will take it from thee Now Brethren a question would be asked If Iesus hath died for thy sinnes and mine that we might get an entrie Thou mayest say to mee What to doe haue I to suffer seeing the Lorde hath prepared the way What to doe haue I to suffer in soule or body or why shoulde I bee afflicted seeing the Lorde hath made the way patent I will not answere with the Papistes for they will saye Thou must paye one part but I saye to thee in despite of thine heart if thou paye anie part thou must paye the whole But I answere All these sufferinges is no satisfaction to bring thee to Heauen Then thou wilt saye Why should I suffer if it helpe not to bring me to HeaueÌ„ I answere All the afflictions which are laide on thee are laide on thee for the slaughter of the remaining corruption feelest thou not a remaining corruption within thee All th'afflictioÌ„s which are laid on thee as sicknesse want of goods losse of friendes c. all is laid on thee to slaye that remaining corruption Brethren I will tell you plainlie The death of Iesus and His suffering is the only meane to enter into Heauen in despite of all the Papistes Againe I saye Looke what neede wee haue of His death wee haue as much need of affliction in our owne persons to slaye that sin which remaines in vs Suppose there be manie wayes to slay sinne yet except thou be chastised and vexed with affliction outwardly and inwardly as it pleases the Lord to laye it on thee thou shalt neuer see Heauen So cast thee not to sleepe but make thee for affliction and trouble to mortifie thy sinne or else thou shalt neuer see Heauen And vvell is thee that art afflicted and made like Christ by thine afflictions What wordes can be tâ—uer than the words of Paul and Barnabas Act. 14. It behooueth you to enter into heauen by manie tribulations The Apostle sayes there is a necessitie And againe he sayes Heb. 12.14 without holinesse affliction brings holinesse no man shall see the Lord. Well thou that delitest to polâ—ute thy body I tell thee if thou be not holie thou shalt neuer see God And I saye more Without affliction either in soule or bodie thou shalt neuer bee holy Thou that sleepest securely and hast mind of nothing but thy dinner and thy supper good chiere and good companie I tell thee once twise yea thrise thou shalt neuer be holy and thou shalt neuer come to Heauen and if thou sleepest on in this estate thou art not one of His compt Booke Let him or her who is afflicted thanke God and take it out of His hand and saye The Lord hath sent it to sanctifie me Lord giue me thy Spirit that I may bee holy that I may see thy blessed face one day to my euerlasting joye in Iesus To whom with the Father and Holy Spirit be glory for euermore Amen THE XXXIX LECTVRE OF THE RESVRRECTION OF CHRIST LVKE CHAP. XXIIII verse 27 And he beganne at Moses and at all the Prophets and interpreted vnto them in all the Scriptures the thinges which were written of him verse 28 And they drewe neare vnto the towne which they went to but hee made as though he would haue gone further verse 29 But they constrained him saying Abide with vs for it is towardes night and the day is farre spent So he went in to tarrie with them verse 30 And it came to passe as hee sate at table with them hee tooke the bread and blessed and brake it and gaue it to them verse 31 Then their eyes were opened and they knew him and hee was no more seene of them verse 32 And they saide betweene themselues Did not our heartes burne within vs while he talked with vs by the way and when hee opened to vs the Scriptures WEE insist yet Beloued in Christ in this part of Historie concerning the two Disciples of CHRIST who in the
BELOVED in CHRIST IESVS vvee haue in hand as yet the Historie of the appearing of Christ after His glorious Resurrection First Hee appeares to MARIE MAGDALENE at the graue Next He appeares to another companie of vvomen as they returned from the graue Thirdlie Hee appeared to two of His Disciples that same daye of His Resurrection as they went from Hierusalem to Emmaus Fourthlie Hee appeared to Simon Peter alone And now last and this is His appearing which vvee haue in hand He appeares to a companie of His Disciples to the eleuen Thomas being excepted with others of the common sort where they were gathered together in the night in a secret place of Ierusalem The last day as God gaue the grace we spake of this conuention of the disciples of His miraculous and sudden comming and standing vp in the middes of them the doore beeing shut Wee heard when Hee stood vp amongst them what He did He salutes them after His olde fashion and sayes Peace be vnto you in such sort that they might haue vnderstood that it was the Lord by the voyce and that salutation wherewith they were acquainted but ye see what effect His presence His voyce and His salutation workes in them In the beginning of this Text which wee haue read when they see Him and heare Him it is said That they are abashed troubled in heart and terrified with Iesus Why Because they thought they had seene a spirit or an Angell in the shape of a man this His presence should haue confirmed and strengthened their Faith which euen they pretended to haue of the Resurrection of Christ but it falles out otherwise This is an hastie change and litle before they are speaking confidently one to another of Him and of His Resurrection These that were conueened at Ierusalem before were speaking of Him and assuring the two disciples that He was risen indeede then the two assuring them that Hee was risen now in an instant they are astonished so abashed and afraide that when they see Him they cannot beleeue that it is He their Faith almost euanisheth A litle before in their minde there was light there was knowledge now in steade of that light comes in blindnesse and dimnesse in the eyes of the minde a litle before there was Faith in the heart and joy in the Resurrection of Christ now there is such infidelitie that they wil not beleeue their owne senses in stead of joy there is trouble this is a sudden change from the better to the worse yee see howe suddenly the soule of man will bee changed now he will beleeue now Faith in an instant will bee turned in infidelitie now he will rejoyce and euen now his joy will bee turned in dolour This is our estate so long as we liue in the world but Brethren it would be marked where begins this change There are two partes in the soule of man there is the minde the eye of the soule that giues light to the soule and to all the partes of it and to the whole man then there is the heart and the affections that should be guided by the minde which is the eye of the soule both are changed in the disciples in an instant but where beginnes the change Not at the heart nor the affections first No but it begins at the minde the minde deceiues it selfe and she beleeues when she sees Christ she sees a Spirit when she sees one thing she supposes shee sees another shee blindes her selfe and when she hath blinded her selfe then followes terrour and all the affections of the heart are troubled by reason of the false imagination of the minde Brethren there is not one of vs but we haue this minde this heart these affections and these mutations Why then should wee not knowe them I marke this to let you see the vanitie of the reason of man the best thing in man is his reason but she is full of vanitie shee that should haue guided all the inferiour powers of the soule she is first out of order It is a miserable Commonwealth where the head is out of order for then it beeing out of order all is misordered commonly it is this minde that puts all the affections out of order and by her vaine imaginations reasonings and toyes she will giue in such terrours in the soule as is wonderfull If there be any power of the soule that hath need to be reformed and renued in IESVS CHRIST I say the wit and minde of man hath most need to be renued and illuminate by the Spirit of IESVS CHRIST And therefore the Apostle exhortes the Ephesians To be renued in the spirit of their minde Ephes Chapter 4 verse 23. Plato was a foole and Aristotle and all the Philosophers who were accounted wonders in the world for their wisdome in naturall things who said the minde of man was perfect and placed reason as a Queene in the soule to guide and holde all the affections in order The Papistes are a litte better than the Philosophers for they ascâ—ibe too much to the minde and reason of man they set themselues to aduance man and to extenuate grace and their wisdome is farre from the wisdome of God The Spirit of God sayes in the Epistle to the Romanes Chapter 8. verse 7. That the wisdome of the flesh is enimitie against God for it is not subject to the Law of God neither can it be But to goe forwarde When they see CHRIST They supposed that Hee had beene a spirit I doubt not but He appeared in some glorious forme they may not abide the sight of Him without great terrour and feare they are blinded with the sight of Him this eye of the bodie subject to mortalitie all is mortall the eye and all is so infirme and weake that it may not abide to see a thing immortall glorious and heauenly All that vve see is mortall the Earth the Heauens are mortall an heauenly spirituall thing the eyes of the bodie cannot behold I say more let be the eyes of the body and this outvvarde sense the eye of the soule that should be clearer in sight than the eye of the body may not abide any immortall and heauenly object so long as we are in this life it may not beholde an heauenly thing I speake by naturaull disposition a man that hath but nature may not looke to God and heauenly things but so soone as these glorious objects are laide before the eye of the minde there goes a great dimnesse ouer it and that exceeding brightnesse blindfoldes it so that it is not able to beholde it The fault of this is not so much in the glorious object as it is in thy soule and if it vvere right heauenly thinges should comfort thee The fault is in the euill disposition of the eye of thy soule it is but a bleered eye like the eye of the body looking to the Sunne growes blinde is worse than of before so is it vvith
Pastours vvho before vvere called themselues But to goe forward When He hath charged them to goe out to preach the Gospell because it was a very weightie and painfull charge therefore He encourages and strengthenes them the more willingly to vndertake it First by bestowing vpon them the Holy Spirit and His graces Next by arming them with power and authoritie To come to the first it is said When Hee had saide this Hee breathed on them and saide vnto them Receiue the Holy Ghost In giuing to them the Holy Spirit He vses an outward and visible signe Hee breathes vpon them for this breathing vpon them was not the sending and giuing of the Holy Spirit it selfe but it was an outward signe and Sacrament to represent to signifie and assure them of the giuing of the Holy Spirit the outward breathing vpon them was a signe of the inward breathing of the Holy Spirit vpon their soules and a signe verie fit and conuenient to expresse the thing signified for the wind serues very well to represent the Holy Spirit and is vsed for that same purpose by the Lorde Himselfe Ioh. 3 8. Thâ— wind blâ—wes where it listeth c. But it would be marked that the Lord vses not only the bare and naked signe No that could haue profited them very litle but to the signe He joynes words telling the meaning of it He sayes Receiue the Holy Ghost For the Lorde in all Sacraments vses commonly to joyne the word to the Sacrament As in Baptisme and the Lords Supper to the end that not only Hee may declare and open vp the meaning of the signe but also to worke and confirme Faith in mens heartes that so the Sacrament may be powerfull and effectuall in them for the outward signe alone is not able to worke Faith in the soule but it is the word chiefly that workes Faith the worde is the life of the Sacrament and therefore except the word be joyned with the outward signe it cannot bee a true and effectuall Sacrament Nowe it is to be considered that this breathing of the Lord vpon His Apostles was not a thing that Hee would haue to bee kept ordinarily in His Church but it is an extraordinarie signe vsed extraordinarily by the Lorde in the sending out of extraordinarie men the Apostles to an extraordinary calling whereby the Lord at that time endued them with extraordinarie graces necessarie for that great calling And therefore foolish and damnable is the practise of the Pope his Cardinalls and his Bishops which they vse in sending out their shauelings into the world for when they admit them with their vile and stinking mouths they breath vpon them and say Receiue the Holy Ghost filthily abusing this action of the Lord as if it lay in their hands with their breathing to giue the Holy Spirit whereas the Lord hath reserued this power to Himselfe alone and communicates it not to any man they are but counterfaiters of such things as the Lord will not haue to bee counterfeited for this His action in all pointes was extraordinarie and therefore ought not to be vsed ordinarily but I leaue them to their owne vanitie A question may bee heere mooued How agrees this doing of Christ on His Disciples and giuing them the Holy Ghost recorded here by Iohn with the wordes that we heard before out of the Gospell of Luke where the Lord sayes Beholde I doe send the promise of my Father vpon you but tarie in Ierusalem vntill ye be endued with power from on high Which wordes importe that at this fift appearing to His Disciples which is one with this that John recordes He gaue them not the Holy Ghost but only promised to send Hâ—m to them I answere Both these places agree well enough together for in Luke the Lord promised to send His Spirit with His graces in a full measure vpon them which promise indeed hee performed on the daye of the Pentecosts when they beeing gathered together there appeared vnto them clouen tongues like fiâ—e and sate vpon each one of them and they were all miraculously filled with the Holy Ghost Act. 2.1 But the Lord heere only giues them the Holy Ghost and His graces in a small measure to be as it were a beginning of that full accomplishment which they were to receiue in the daye of the Pentecoste for wee may not thinke that the Holie Spirit and all His graces were giuen fully and compleetely to the Apostles at one time No but they were giuen piece and piece by degrees for first they got the fruites of the Spirit when the Lorde was conuersant with them in the flesh in the dayes of His infirmitie Next after He rose from the death they receiued them in a greater measure as we may see in this place of Iohn and last after the Lordes ascension Hee powred downe in abundance His Spirit with all His graces according as He had promised to them Luke 24.49 and was long before foretolde by Ioel Chap. 2. verse 28. But why would Hee not giue them the Holy Spirit and His graces in a full measure at the first Because there behooued to be a certaine proportion and correspondence betweene the Head and the members the Lord Iesus was their Head they were members of His body so long as He was not fully glorified Himselfe it was no reason that they should haue receiued the fulnesse of grace but when He was fully glorified He filled them abundantly with grace Ephes 4.10 The Lord now glorified in the Heauens hath store and abundance of grace to giue to His Church but our heartes are not prepared to receiue grace wee offend Him continually with our sinnes and grieue His Holy Spirit for this is the last age of the world wherein sinne aboundes and thâ—refore that vve are not so skant of grace the fault is not in the Lorde there is no scarcitie nor want of grace with Him but the fault is in our selues who entertaine sinne in our heartes whereby wee banish grace out of them and makes the Spirit who should be our Comforter to be a witnesse against vs in that great day of the Lord. Now after that the Lord hath encouraged His Apostles by giuing them His Holy Spirit and His graces in the words following to make them the more willing He armes them with power and auâ—hoâ—itie before He send them out He sayes Whosoeuer siâ—nes ye remit thâ—y are remitted vnto them and whosoeuer sinnes ye retaine they are reteined As if Hee had said to them I will not send you out powerlesse with a fectlesse worde in your mouth but to the end ye may the better discharge your commission I enarme you with power I will giue you power to binde and loose to forgiue sinnes and retaine sinnes The Lord sendes none out to his warfare till first Hee furnish them with weapons and armour But what weapons are they Euen spirituall weapons Paul sayes The weapons of our warfare are not carnall but mightie through
retuâ—ne to Hierusalem with great joy when they come there they goe vp to an vpper chamber but they stay not there but they goe to the Temple remain there continually praising lauding God and last they went out preached the Gospel euery where and the Lord gaue them a good successe for He wrought with them and confirmed the word with signes that followed Luke in th' Acts telles vs that while they looked stedfastly toward heauen as he went behold two men stood by them in white apparell As they were worshipping Him the Lord sent incontinent from His Heauenlie Throne Legates Ambassadours And who were they eueÌ„ Angels two in number and in forme outward shape like to men therefore they are said to be two men and were clothed in white and glorious apparell Marke the lesson in a word Christ sits no sooneâ— down at the right hand of the Father but He makes His disciples whom Hee left in the earth behind Him not only to know y t He had a kingly power whereby He commands the very Angels themselues but also to know that singular care affection that Hee caried to them which He testifies by sending these Angels from heauen for their cause for their consolation This kingly power of Christ this care that He hath of His own continues eueÌ„ this day in the Kirk euery of y e faithful find the proofe experience of it to their great joy comfort Now let vs see what these Angels say to y e Apostles in their speech to them First they reprooue then they comfort them first they said Ye men of Galile why stand ye gazing vnto Heauen they reprooue them because they stood idly gazing looking to the heaueÌ„ whereas the Lord had coÌ„manded them to returne to Jerusalem that there they might wait for the Spirit that was promised them that hauing gotten the Spirit they might goe out to the world preach the Gospâ—l to euery creature as the Lord had commanded them This reproofe of th'Angels imports that they contented themselues too much w t idle looking gâ—â—ing that they were too vnmindfull of that great high calling whereunto the Lord had ordained them Of this reproofe we learn this lessoÌ„ it is not the Lords wil that any maÌ„ should be idle in the world nor that he content himselfe w t a bare idle contemplatioÌ„ of y e creatures of God No not of y e best of them it is not the Lords will y t we stand idly gazing vpon the very heauens whereunto the Lord hath ascended now is in glory No it is His will that all men all their dayes be painfully exercised in some calling wherein they may both glorifie God doe good vnto men Indeed it is true it is the Lords wil that men should alwaies haue their affectioÌ„s set aboue their hearts lifted vp to heaueÌ„ that they haue their eyes set vpon God vpon Christ vpon that glory which is to be reuealed but in the meane time while men are thus exercised they should be exercised likewise in some honest lawful calling Th' Apostle Paul by his practise lets vs see what should be the behauiour of a Christian While hee looked not to the things that are seene but to the things that are not seene 2. Cor. 4.18 While he choosed to remoue out of the body to go dwell with Christ 2. Cor. 5.8 While he minded not earthly things but had his conuersation in heauen from whence he looked for his Sauiour euen the Lord Iesus Philip. 3.20 contented hee himselfe thinke ye with this speculation Was he in the meane time idle had he not another calling Yes hee was very diligently exercised in the Ministry For sayes he we couet that both dwelling at home remoouing from home we may be acceptable to Him for we must all appeare before the Iudgement seat of Christ that euery man may receiue the things which are done in his body according to that he hath done whether it be good or euill therefore knowing that terrour of the Lord we perswade men bring them vnto the faith 2. Cor. 5.9 10 11. So Paul wheÌ„ he was looking to heauenly things he was in the meane time diligeÌ„tly exercised in his Apostleship in bringing men to Christ eueÌ„ so it becomes euery faithfull man so to haue his heart his affections set vpoÌ„ heauen heauenly things y t in y e same meane time in some honest lawful calling he may be doing some good in y â— earth on the other part wheÌ„ he is busie labouring exercised in his calling he shuld haue his eyes lifted vp to God should haue his heart his affections conuersatioÌ„ in y e heauens for except that in all things which we do we haue y e Lord His glory before our eyes it is not possible y t we can do any thing well vprightly Then in a word ye see here y e Lord by these Angels coÌ„demnes idle speculatioÌ„ coÌ„templatioÌ„ without any exercise in any lawfull calling This serues to coÌ„demne these idle bellies y e Monks of y e Romane Kirk who coÌ„tent theÌ„selues w t bare idle speculatioÌ„ hauing no regard in y e meane time y t they may be exercised in any lawful calling wherin they may either glorify God or do good to meÌ„ yea they are so far froÌ„ doing good y t by y e coÌ„trary they hurt y e Kirk of God exceedingly by bringing in their dreames faÌ„tasies y t they haue deuised in their idle braines to corrupt peruert mens minds y e Lord neuer allowed nor blessed such a life y e Lord abhors such idlenes if y e Angels reproue y e Apostles for gazing to heaueÌ„ where they saw w t their eyes y e Lord Iesus to ascend which by appearaÌ„ce to maÌ„s judgment was a very good exercise to haue their hearts fixed on Christ their eyes vpoÌ„ y e place whither He ascended what wold y e Angels say to these idle belly gods who withdraw theÌ„selues froÌ„ all honest callings liue vpoÌ„ y e sweat of other meÌ„s browes vnder y e preteÌ„ce of spiritual exercise now after y e Angels haue reprooued y e Apostles next in y e 2. part of their speech they raise theÌ„ vp coÌ„forts theÌ„ while they say This Iesus which is taken vp froÌ„ you into heauen shall so come as ye haue seene Him goe into heauen They comfort them by putting them in hope that Hee shal returne yea returne in glorie and such a glorie as they saw Him ascend vvith and so vpon hope of His glorious returning in that great daye they wil th'Apostles to comfort themselues against all trouble distresses that they might be subject vnto y e time of their remaining in y e earth Whereupon we may perceiue what is the ground whereupon the solide consolation of a Christian soule arises It arises euen
from the hope of the glorious returning of the Lord Iesus againe to Iudge the world There is nothing that furnishes such joy to the faithfull soule as this hope does Indeed it is true the Lord giues vs other grounds of consolation while we are heere namely He giues vs His Spirit to counsel guide vs through al the difficulties of our pilgrimage the joy that the faithfull finde in His presence is very great He giues vs Faith also to coÌ„fort vs whereby in some measure presently we feele the presence of Christ His spirituall graces in our soules but except with y e Spirit Faith we had a hope y t the Lord Iesus should returne againe in His own time in glory we could not haue solide joy consolatioÌ„ for if in this life only we hoped in Christ had no hope y t He would returne againe in glory raise our mortall bodies froÌ„ y e dead theÌ„ as y e Apostle saies of all men we were most miserable 1. Cor. 15.19 why shuld not y e hope of this returning coÌ„fort our soules make them to rejoyce for at His returning we look hope for y e glorifying of these our bodies for eternall life Paul sayes That froÌ„ the heauens we look for the Sauiour euen the Lord Iesus who shall change our vile body that it may be fashioned like vnto His glorious body Philip. 3.20.21 And when it shal be made manifest we shal be made like Him for we shall see Him as He is 1 Joh. 3.2 Yea we haue greater cause of joy comfort of the hope of His returning againe thaÌ„ all y e Apostles had of y e sight of His ascending to heauen in their preseÌ„ce for y e ascension of y e Lord albeit it was very glorious coÌ„fortable to theÌ„ yet it chaÌ„ged not their bodies nor made theÌ„ like His glorious body but His glorious returning again froÌ„ the heauens shall change both their bodies our vile corruptible bodies and make them conformable to His glorious body Now happie is y e man who earnestly lookes waits for the blessed glorious coÌ„ming againe of the Lord to judgement for y t hope shall comfort vphold him in all his troubles distresses Now come to y t disciples part we haue suÌ„dry things expressed what they doe y e first is after y e Angels reproued them for their standing gazing to y e heauens it is said They returned to Jerusalem with great ioy They take well with the reproofe they stay no longer gazing there but according to y e Lords directioÌ„ they go to Jerusalem to waite for y t Spirit which He promised to them they obey y e Lords coÌ„mandemeÌ„t they obey with great joy But what made them so to rejoyce This joy proceeded partly from y e sight of His glorious ascensioÌ„ into heaueÌ„ which they saw with their eyes partly froÌ„ y t which they heard by y e Angels of His glorious returning descending again out of y e heauens yet all this which both they saw heard would not haue wroght so great a joy in theÌ„ except y e Lord Iesus who was sitting in y e heauens at y e right hand of y e Father had bin effectuall in them had powerfully wroght this joy in their soules for this joy that y e holy Spirit works in y e hearts of y e Lords Elect is a sure argumeÌ„t infallible demoÌ„stratioÌ„ y t y e Lord Iesus is reigning in y e heaueÌ„s for the Kingdome of God is righteousnes ioy peace in the holy Ghâ—st Rom. 14.17 Now if ye will coÌ„pare this joy which at this time they had with all the joy y t euer they had before yea euen when y e Lord Iesus was walking with them in the flesh they enjoyed His bodily presence ye shal find y t this joy surpassed by many degrees all their preceeding joy whereby we may learne this lesson that neither y e bodily presence of y e Lord Iesus augments or perfectes y e joy of y e soule neither His bodily abseÌ„ce stayes or hinders any wise y t joy but y t all this joy which y e faithfull find proceedes from the effectual preseÌ„ce powerful operatioÌ„ of y e holy Spirit in the soule The grosse carnal Papists think they caÌ„not haue mater of rejoycing except in y e Lords Supper they haue y e body of Christ bodily locally present that is except y t with y e mouth of the body they eat deuoure swallow vp the very body flesh of Iesus Christ except that after that same manner they drinke His blood but vaine Papist thou deceiuest thy selfe for neither does the bodily presence furnish joy neither does the bodily abseÌ„ce hinder joy but all true joy that the soule finds proceedes from the effectuall presence operatioÌ„ of the Spirit Yet to speak something further of this purpose It would be narrowly considered what could be the cause ground of this joy of the Disciples for if we looke to it by the outward appearance they had litle matter or cause of rejoycing at this time when the Lord is gone froÌ„ them Indeede when the Lord Iesus was with them when He led them out into Bethania any man might thinke they had matter of rejoycing to follow such a gracious guide but now when He hath left the earth ascended to heauen left them behind Him what matter could they haue of so great joy in their returning to Jerusalem I answere notwithstanding they wanted now the bodily presence of Christ yet they wanted not matter of great joy for in stead of His bodily presence the Lord gaue them Faith Hope Faith apprehending taking holde of the Lord Iesus sitting in the heauens in glorie at the right hand of the Father Hope waiting constantly for His blessed glorious returning againe in the appointed time to Iudgement This Faith Hope that the Lord giues vs in this pilgrimage recompenses sufficiently the bodily absence of the Lord Iesus from vs if wee haue Faith Hope we haue euermore matter of rejoycing where Faith Hope is they bring euer with them patience joy euen in the mids of all afflictioÌ„s The Apostle Paul declares this by his own experience For the Gospels sake sayes he I suffer these things but I am not ashamed for I know whom I haue beleeued and I am perswaded that hee is able to keepe that which I haue coÌ„mitted to him against that day 2. Tim. 1.12 There he lets vs see what made him to bee so patient vnder afflictions to wit the sense of the power of Christ which hee founde in his soule by faith by the which power hee was perswaded that Christ was able to keepe in the heauens that life which hee had committed vnto him and the hope that hee had of His glorious returning in that great day wherin the Lord should render
Priest on this rises another temptation Some say Art thou not one of his disciples there he denies saying I am not First ye haue the occasion of the temptation Secondly the temptation it selfe Thirdly the second fall and deniall The occasion is he is standing warming him in such a companie the words import a great securitie in Peter he is so farre from a remorse that is carelesse thinke yee not that hauing denied his Master once that hee should haue gone aside mourned wept bitterly but ye see he did not so Sin when it is committed bringeth on commonly a carelesse security when a man hath fallen into a great sinne he will commonly ly still in a deadnesse senslesnesse as a man who falles downe from an high place for a certaine space lyes without sense is dammished with the fall euen so what is sinne but a fall from God after that once we are fallen froÌ„ God we are senlesse altogether we ly without sense or motion the greater alwayes that the sinne be whereinto we fall the greater is the senslesnesse but aboue all sinnes the deniall of the Lord Iesus of His trueth bringes on most fearfull deadly senslesnesse especially if that sinne proceede of a malitiousnesse of the heart as that sinne of Iudaâ— did he was senslesse he was so impudent in sinning that he kissed His Master to shew Him to his takers It is true the sin of Iudas was of the hatred of the heart but the sinne of Peter was not of malice but of infirmitie yet hee falles into a deadnesse and sleepe So Brethren euer beware to fall for after a fall comes a securitie The estate of securitie is the most dangerous estate that euer was better to be mourning day night than to be in this securitie so then falling he lyes still senslesse But looke what followes lying still in security another tempter coÌ„meth againe to wit One of the seruants of the high Priest his cousin whose caâ—e Peter smote off sayd Did not I see thee in the garden with him looke what the estate of securitie bringes on it neuer wantes temptation if thou shalt be put to that pinch that thou should denie thy Lord let a man ly still in securitie froÌ„ houre to houre he shall neuer want temptation when the deuill lulles thee asleepe in securitie then he thinkes that he gets his will Peter sayes I am not his disciple the temptatioÌ„ is but light yet for all the lightnes of it he denies his Lord for denying Him to be his disciple albeit he spake slenderly he denies Christ to be his Master in effect he denies the Messias then Brethren a man or a woman lying in securitie the least thing in the world will draw him away as a sleeping man with a small motion will fall so when thou art sleeping if the deuill commeth the least finger of the tempter will put thee ouer aboue all things in the world keepe thee from securitie for the smallest temptation will put thee away froÌ„ thy God so men in this life should euer be groaning vnder the burthen of sinne had Peter bene groaning after his first deniall hee had not beene so easily ouercome Now to take it vp in one worde sinne bringes on securitie when one lyes in securitie the deuill is busie to tempt him that person is easily put ouer so beware of sinne and striue to get a waking conscience that thou sleep not in securitie for the end of securitie is death euerlasting when hee is crying peace peace then commeth a sudden judgement like the paines of a woman in trauel Now come to the last deniall of Peter he hath denied the Lord twise after his second deniall he is no more touched than he was of before the second fall bringes on a greater senslesnesse than the first fall the oftener that a man or woman falles they are the more senslesse once falling falling againe thou contractest the greater securitie There is not a man or a woman that continues in sinne but after the second fall that person shall be more senslesse than after the first so growing in sinne bringes on a growing in deadly securitie continuance in a dead sleepe thou shalt finde thy selfe after the second sinne more senslesse than after the first Well then Peter contiâ—ues in a securitie as Luke noteth there interuâ—enes one houre betweene the second third deniall yet he is without remorse he is not moued so continuing in this dead sleepe of securitie commeth on the third temptation by a cousin of Malchus whose eare hee smote off if thou sleepest in securitie thou shalt not want new temptation when thou sleepest thy tempter is busily waking about thee the more thou sleepest and lyest in securitie the more busie is the deuil to tempt thee albeit thou feelest it not Now when Peter hath denied Him once and twise as the other Euangelists doe note hee putteth to a curse Marke as continuance in securitie bringeth on continuance in temptation so continuance in temptation bringeth on continuance in sinne Now I thinke if the Lord had not stayed him in the ende hee had denied Him a thousand times euen so oft as they had asked of him So there is neuer an ende of tumbling ouer and ouer till the creature tumble in hell where there shall be a blacke wakening for if thou deniest the Lord once thou shalt denie Him againe and againe it is noted when he denied the third time Then the cocke crew and Luke noteth euen as the cocke crew the Lord looked ouer his shoulder there goes two things together the crowing of the cocke the looking of the Lord. S. Marke notes the cocke crew the second time well then doth Peter waken at the crowing of the cocke beganne hee to get a remorse by it No all the crying crowing of the world wil not waken the soule out of sinne except the Lord looke in by the beames of his countenance and strike in to the heart if the gratious beames of the Lords face had not strucken on Peters heart he had neuer wakened This is to let you see how hard a thing it is to raise a dead body that lyes in sinne what crying in the world wil raise a dead body so there is no crying or remedie in heauen or in earth to thy dead soule except Iesus Christ looke fauorably vnto thee make his gratious countenance to shine in thy soule who would haue that remorse of sinne that Peter got and that waking conscience let that person striue to turne the heart to Iesus Christ wheÌ„ the heart is turned to the Lord theÌ„ the vaile shal be taken away all the light of knowledge is in the face of Iesus Christ no heat in the worlde is able to mollifie thine heart except that heat that commeth from the face of Iesus Christ so hold euer thine heart vp to the face of Iesus
dash themselues on the sworde to deuoure them It is a miserable thing to want the light of the soule so the Iewes saw not with whome they had to doe they had no conscience as Pilate had and therefore beeing through malice and appetite of reuenge incensed against the Lord Iesus blindfolded they regard not what imprecations they vtter for they saw not Hell or els if these Iewes had a light of conscience they did so rashly against Iesus with knowledge which is most likely theÌ„ it followes that they were marueilous malitious as ignorance is hardie so is malitiousnesse more hardie albeit such a man should see yet against the light his malice will make him to runne ouer the bellie of his conscience Yee knowe the voyces of prophane men Ere I were not reuenged of him I had rather be in Hell this commeth of malitiousnesse to get the soule spirit within him satisfied but if thou felt one twitch of Hell thou wouldest recant these wordes for it would cause thee shoute and squeele hiddeously I incline to this judgement that this wicked action is more to be ascribed to malice than ignorance the Iewes and the High Priestes had the word of God and the Prophets whereby they might haue knowne the Messias When I read of the Prophets that speake of induration in the time of Iesus Christ I say it hath come of an hardnesse and induration of heart And when I see the wordes of the Apostles that say O stiffe necked people I thinke that they put their owne fingers in their eyes that they should not see The Lord saue vs from malitiousnesse and namely from such malitiousnesse as is not without knowledge when a man sees and will pull out his eyes Compare the Iewes with Pilate now Pilate sinneth hee kâ—lled himselfe in the end and the Lord made his owne hands to be his burrio No doubt he sinned who can excuse him he sinned malitiously he had a conscience goes against it malitiously But Brethren to speake the trueth it was not so much malice that pushed him forward as great infirmitie and feare for first he feares to be accused of treason against Cesar it was no maruell to such a man to feare who had no God but Cesar â—hen hee saw appearance of great tumult to rise amongst the Iewes What necessitie was laide on them to haue the blood of the innocent So I see nothing in them but malice if it were but in this respect that the sinne of the Iewes weigheth downe the sinne of Pilate and their damnation is a thousand times greater What had this man He had nothing but nature The contrauension of the light of nature will neuer make vp the sinne against the Holy Ghost which gets no mercie but come to them They had the light of nature and the light that commeth from Heauen they had the worde of GOD amongst them they contraueened an heauenly light that came downe from Heauen and was wrought into their heartes by the Spirit Steuen sayes in the 7. Chapter and 51. verse of the Actes of the Apostles Yee haue alwayes resisted the Holy Ghost as did your fathers so doe you that is not a naturall light but a light that came from aboue There were some of these men who sinned malitiously against the Holy Spirit What maruell was it then that they got no grace to repent for of all sinnes the sinne against the Holy Spirit is the most dangerous they that commit this sinne haue no grace to repent therefore no mercy to them the Lord strikes their soules with impenitencie so that soule is euerlastingly hardened and so beeing strucken with impenitencie they got neuer grace to say God bee mercifull to me Seeing then their sinne against Christ was so great seeing it was not so much of ignorance as of malice it was not only against the light of nature but also against the illumination of the Holy Spirit what maruell was it that such a terrible Iudgement ouertooke them as neuer lighted on any nation The Iewes found this innocent blood in experience laide to their charge Ioseph that saw all these thinges with his eyes writeth what heauie vengeance and judgement fell vpon Jerusalem the Iewes for he testifies that there was slaine at the siege of Ierusalem eleuen hundreth thousand beside ninetie thousand that were tane captiues thereafter the towne was lamentably destroyed and sacked So the blood of the innocent neuer left them these y t remaine yet feele the judgement of the blood of the innocent for according as they desired y t His blood should be vpon them their posteritie so the wrath of God came vpon them to the vttermost 1. Thess 2.16 It is a wonder that a Iew should be safe if ye heare of a Iew to be conuerted thinke it to be a great mercie Now to apply this shortly to vs if it were but this terrible example of vengeance which folowed the Iewes it should terrifie to the end of the world all soules to take on the blood of the innocent take on one take on all if thou takest on the blood of one seruant of God thou shalt take on all the innocent blood from Abel to that man whom thou hast slaine Fye vpon foule butchers who are more meete to be butchers dogges than men What care they to wash their handes in innocent blood But I say to thee if euer thou gettest grace it is a wonder fye vpon the butchers of Scotland No if the Lord would waken thy conscience to torment thee present to thee the sight of Him of whose blood thou hast shed it would bee so terrible that it would make thee to curse the time that euer thou did it one day fearefully without comfort it will torment thee when will these bloodie men leaue off y e sheading of innocent blood in this bloodie barbarous nation oâ— all nations it is the most barbarous and bloodie Aboue all things dip not thine hands in the blood of Iesus Christ Thou who sheadest innocent blood is a persecuter of the seruants of Iesus Christ and who resistest the trueth thou wilt say If thou hadst bene in Christs dayes thou wouldst not haue coÌ„sented to His death but thou who sayest so if thou hadst fallen in these dayes thou hadst malitiously bene partaker of the death of Christ hadst put handes in Him thou wantest nothing but time I will tell you who is it that sheds the blood of Iesus Christ takes His blood on them what euer he or she be that will resist this knowne trueth of Iesus Christ and persecute the professours thereof I affirme they are as guiltie of the blood of Christ as the Iewes the High Priests were and that same blood shall bee laide to their charge in the great daye of the Lord Read ye not in the Epistle to the Hebrewes Chap. 6. and 10. of them who haue repined haue begun to cast off that
Martyres hath euer proued this that the Antichrist coulde neuer bee satisfied in drinking of their blood The persecuters of the Trueth will neuer be satiate there is no satietie of the malice of the haert of y e childe of darknes against the child of light If thou hadst slaine a mans father it may be he would haue forgiuen thee but and if thou bee the childe of GOD and if hee bee the childe of darkenesse hee vvill neuer bee satiate till he gette thine heart blood The IEVVES and the Souldiours could neuer bee satiate till they had gotten the heart blood of the Innocent But Brethren we must looke vp higher for it was not so much with these Iewes and Souldiours that IESVS hath to doe as with an angrie GOD and thâ—t because Hee bare the burthen of our sinnes these torturers were but instrumentes of that terrible wrath of the Father vpon the Sonne It was not so much their wrath as the wrath of the Father that pursued Him so ardently After Hee was once deliuered into the hands of these HangmeÌ„ wrath begins so to be powred foorth on Him froÌ„ Heauen that He got no rest till He was crucified dead on the crosse It is a terrible thing for a sinner yea if hee were a king who is not in Iesus and partaker of His suffering to fall into the hands of an angrie God and a consuming fire if thou bee out of Christ thou shalt feele it the terriblest sight that euer was howbeit wanton men and women make their pastime to anger that great Iudge going to murther defiling their bodies and soules by harlotrie it may be for a time that they get rest but after that once that righteous Iudge put hands in thee I promise thee that thou shalt neuer get rest The verie reprobate when they shall see that there is none ende of wrath shall crie O Lord shall neuer this wrath haue an end if thou goest to Hell thou shalt finde none end of wrath Now blessed is that sinner that gets grace to haue recourse to Iesus Christ to lurke vnder His suffering When they haue vsed Him so vnworthily within the common Hall and when all is made readie Then they leade out Iesus caries Him out of the Portes of Hierusalem to an ignominious death and as they lead Him out so Iesus Christ goes out willingly to suffer at the good pleasure of His Father knowing that now His houre was come God forbid but that wee should thinke that Iesus Christ suffered willingly No Brethren in this example of Iesus Christ the innocent and that His willing going to death wee see that it is the innocent who goe to death willingly and namely they who are innocent in the blood of Iesus Christ that haue their conscience sprinkled with the blood of the immaculate Lambe As for men who are not cled with this innocencie alas for them It is not possible that these can haue consolation or can with gladnesse offer vp their liues it may bee that some will pretend willingnesse but that is but a shew Againe it may be that there bee some senslesse bodies that knowes not how terrible death is and what euill is in it O! death is terrible for either Heauen or Hell followes on the taile thereof and wilt thou count litle of that port by the which thou passest from this life to eternitie So some may be senslesse as a Kow goes to the shambles and some may haue a false conscience but if thou haue not an assurance that thou art washed with the blood of Iesus Christ Woe shall come to thee wrath shall light on thee There is no consolation in death to any but to these who die in the innocencencie of Iesus Christ I marke the manner how He goes out He goes out bearing His owne Crosse or rather drew it after Him this was after the manner of the Romanes that the man whome they condemned to die this death they commanded to beare His Crosse and therefore they were called Furciferi gallowes bearers now they practise this on the innocent Iesus Nowe to come to it that falles out whilst Hee is bearing His Crosse As they are going out They meete a man by the way whose name was Simon the father of Alexander and Rufus a man in a towne of Africa and the towne was called Cyrene a laborious man retuâ—ning from the Countrey to Hierusalem they meete the poore man and compelles the man to take vp the one ende of the Crosse Iesus goes before and he goes behind they would not haue Iesus relieued No they pitied Him not but they would haue Him formest in the burthen Thinke not Brethren that this reâ—ieuing was of any compassion they had to Iesus No they had no pitie vpon Him but it came to pâ—sse because Christ Iesus was faint weake and weâ—ried vnder the burthen and no wonder He was a man He tooke on our nature and all the infirmities thereof that wee might bee made strong After that once the Lord had fallen in their handes Hee got no rest Hee got no sleepe that night Hee fasted and His soule was vexed and then all that night and all that day following from the morning to the noone-tide hee got no rest but was twise scourged and buffeted As for the souldiers they thought themselues too gay As for the Iewes they thought themselues too holy and in end He was made a curse but for our cause And therefore meeting with this Gentile Simon they compelled him to helpe Him This wants not a Mysterie This Simon was a figure of the Gentiles and this calling albeit of compulsion signifies our calling beeing Gentiles to take vp our crosse and followe Iesus out of the portes of Hierusalem And as the Apostle to the Hebrewes Chap 13. verse 13. sayes Goe foorth of the Caâ—â—â—e bearing His reproach for here we haue no continuing citie but wee seeke for one to come As for the Iewes they would neither touch Christ nor His Crosse with their finger because they judged Him accursed Indeede I grant GOD made Him accursed but Hee was made a curse that wee should bee the blessing of GOD through Hâ—m As Paul sayes to the Galathians Chap. 3. verse 13. Wouldest thou know thy felicitie in this worlde and in the worlde to come it stands in joyning with that man that was accursed whosoeuer thou be y t shalt not joyne with this man who is accursed I giue thee this doome Cursed shalt thou be euerlastingly vengeance malediction shall lie on thine head euerlastingly We are GeÌ„tiles not Iewes let vs theÌ„ with this Simon of Cyrene take vp y e Crosse of Christ follow Him out of the portes of Hierusalem to beare His shame y t we may be partakers of His glory if thou be not partaker of His ignominie and shame I denounce to thee thou shalt not be partaker of His glorie thou who wast not humbled with Christ thou shalt neuer be exalted with Him this
it is impossible that that body can attaine to glory They thinke him as an out-cast and will scorne his profession They will saye Are these your Christians of all men they are the moste miserable if that be the waye to Heauen I will renounce to goe that way this is rather the waye to goe to Hell This is the voyce of the worlde And the cause is because miserable catiues know not what sinne is which at that time behooued to bee purged by the Crosse for the justice and Majestie of GOD beeing offended required that it shoulde bee so and nowe in vs sinne thorowe manifolde crosses and afflictions must bee mortified Let the vvorlde thinke and speake as it pleases the onely waye whereby thou shalt come to life is suffering and affliction and thou must thinke this that wee must bee racked thorowe Hell ere wee come to Heauen Our redemption is wrought by the Crosse thou shalt not come to Heauen but by the Crosse The ground of all is sinne But alas the world sees it not The word will teach thee that there is no other vvay to come to Heauen but by affliction and it will thee that if thou bee not purged and changed by trouble and affliction thou shalt neuer see Heauen Alas that wee coulde once grone vnder sinne And blessed is the soule that hath a sight of the weight of sinne and vvoe to that soule that hath no sight of sinne To goe forwarde I see in this Thiefe vvho rayles on Christ some speciall thing hee hath a particular of his owne hee is in torment and therefore hee saies Jf thou bee that CHRIST saue thy selfe and vs. Brethren a torment vvhatsoeuer it bee if it bee not the better sanctified it vvill mooue the creature to fall out in blasphemie thou vvilt blaspheme both in heart and mouth and thou vvilt saye that there is no power in GOD to saue thee And the Thiefe in effect saide this There is no power in thee to saue mee I renounce thee as a Sauiour and if thou confesse His power thou wilt denie His mercie and vvilt saye GOD is but a Tyrant And if thou vvilt saye Hee is mercifull bee mercifull to vvhome Hee vvill Hee cannot bee mercifull vnto mee This last distrusting of mercie to thy selfe is a great sinne And that to saye altogether that there is no mercie in GOD it is a plaine blasphemie And last to saye there is no power in GOD it is to denie GOD to bee GOD For howe can Hee bee GOD if Hee vvant power So I thinke that this catiue hath beene a great blasphemer of that Majestie and vvhen I looke on it I see in him the image of the death of the reprobate vvhen they are dying and changing this life The Lord giue vs grace to die well The reprobate shall thinke that in their doing God hath no power to saue them for of all men in the worlde the reprobate is the most Ioath to die for either they shall thinke that God is not mercifull at all or else at least that there is no mercie in Him for them and so the miserable creature will turne his backe on GOD and immediately shall cast himselfe into Hell and damnation Wee reade of Sidrach Mesach and Abednego that they were so farre from this blasphemie that when the Tyrant falles out in blasphemie they meete him and saye Our GOD is Almightie and Hee hath power to deliuer vs if Hee please Neuer come thou to despaire though thou shouldest die tenne thousande deathes but sleepe in His bosome hang on Him and saue His honour and thinke not that which maye derogate His honour and saye Though thou shouldest slaye mee LORD yet will I trust in thee and so die sweetlie resting in His armes Well I see this hath beene a miserable bodie and hath died miserablie blaspheming the God of Glorie and this is euen as the reprobate shall doe at the latter Iudgement And yet when I compare him with the Pharises and Priests I find their blasphemie greater than his Well shall it bee to the Thiefe in respect of them for they had knowledge and hee wanted Who shoulde haue had knowledge but they They had no torment hee had sore torment What neede had they to blaspheme Therefore their condemnation shall bee greater than his And vvhen I compare this blasphemie of the Thiefe with the blasphemie of some men in these dayes vvho when anie crosse falles vpon them without their expectation vvill saye What can GOD doe more vnto mee so in effect denying power to bee in GOD and in IESVS CHRIST I count the blasphemie of these men to bee greater than his vvas For nowe IESVS is in Glorie and the Thiefe saw Him on the Crosse in miserie vvith himselfe If thou now blasphemest Him so it were well done that thy mouth were sowed vp that thou neuer spakest a vvorde Nowe to ende vvith this The LORD giue vs grace that neither in thought nor in vvorde vvee dishonour that MAIESTIE but maye acknowledge His mercie and power towardes vs in IESVS CHRIST To vvhome bee all Honour Glorie Praise Power and Dominion both nowe and euermore Worlde vvithout ende AMEN THE XVII LECTVRE OF THE PASSION OF CHRIST LVKE CHAP. XXIII verse 40 But the other answered and rebuked him saying Fearest thou not GOD seeing thou art in the same condemnation verse 41 We are indeede righteously heere for wee receiue things worthie of that we haue done but this man hath done nothing amisse verse 42 And hee saide vnto Iesus Lord remember me when thou commest into thy Kingdome WEE heard the last day Brethren of all these railings and blasphemies that the Lord Iesus suffered of all rankes and estates of persons whilest Hee hang on the Crosse naked liuing in torment Pilate began fixed on the Crosse an ignominious inscription That Iesus was a Traitor against Caesar and that He suffered death for His treason Then the Hang-men foure in number in despite and in His sight tooke his garmentes and diuided them in foure partes and because his coate had no seame but was wouen thorowout therefore they cast lottes for it who shoulde haue it whole Then comes on the people with their part and raile vpon Him and blaspheme Him saying Nowe if thou bee that Christ come downe and saue thy selfe Then followe the high Priestes the Scribes and the Elders who raile on Him and saye Is this hee who will saue others let see if hee can bee able to saue himselfe Then the men of warre and Gentiles beginne to raile if thou bee the King of the Iewes saue thy selfe and come downe from the Crosse And then one of the Thieues railes out on Him If thou be that Christ saue thy selfe and vs both but nowe so like as thou art the Christ thou art adying as vvell as vvee and art neither able to sâ—ue thy selfe nor vs and therefore thou art not a King Nowe Brethren yee maye perceiue that it was no prayer that
places of the Newe Testament as namely 2. COR. 12.4 where PAVL speakes of his rauishing to Paradise and also REVEL 2.7 But to leaue the vvordes and to come to the meaning This Paradise signifies none other thing but that House of the Father in the which is manie mansions as wee saide in the foureteenth Chapter Nowe woulde yee knowe the place of it PAVL saies It is farre aboue these visible heauens where Christ himselfe ascended EPHES. 4.10 It is the place of the Throne of that Majestie of that Glorie and of that euerlasting rest of the Kirke of Iesus Christ and of His Sainctes where they shall rest in a wonderfull glorie euerlastinglie The vvorde is borrowed from that Paradise that Parke of pleasure in the vvhich ADAM and EVAH vvere planted to liue in a vvonderfull pleasure for euer if they had stoode vvithout sinne But to come to the matter First in this answere that the Lord makes to the penitent Thiefe yee may see a vvonderfull readinesse in Christ to heare the petition of a miserable sinner for hee hath scarcely spoken the worde when the Lord makes an answere and no maruell for Hee that preuentes thee with grace ere thou thinkest of grace Hee will followe after with grace Hee who giues grace to begge grace Hee will giue a gracious answere ROMAN 8.26 The Spirite of GOD interceadeth for vs with sighes vnspeakeable That is the first grace Then hee subjoynes The Lord who searcheth the heart knoweth the sense and meaning of his owne Spirite There is the seconde grace Thou shalt not so soone open thy mouth to speake to Him with the Spirite but Hee shall as soone heare thy vvorde thou shalt not so soone haue a meaning but it shall as soone touch the heart of the Lorde as it touches thine heart because it is not thy spirite but the Lordes Spirite who speakes in thee So all the difficultie and hardnesse is to gette the first grace to praye there is no difficultie of the next And there are wonderous fewe vvho gettes this grace to begge to sigh to sobb c. yea where one hath it ten wantes it and when this is once gotten the other followes of its owne will for if thou askest spirituall graces of necessitie thou shalt gette thy petition graunted And if wee aske earthly thinges either shall wee gette our petition or else the Lord once shall shewe vs why Hee will not graunt it and so wee shall haue contentment to vndertake His will and shall heartily thanke Him There is more yet in this answere Besides this easinesse to heare marke an abounding mercie and exceeding liberalitie of the Lord passing aboue the petition The Thiefe onely prayed the Lord to remember him when He came in His Kingdome The Lord aunsweres Beholde euen I giue thee more than thou requirest for thou shalt be with me this day in Paradise so thou needest not to feare that I forget thee The Thiefe seekes but a little thing the Lord giues him more than hee can seeke the hande of the Lorde is not so scarce Wilt thou seeke a litle thing the Lord shall giue a thousand times more than thou canst seeke the Lord hath neither scant nor want Brethren the glory which we shall finde one day shall bee greater than we can looke or hope for in this world No things Heauenlie which He shall giue surmountes further aboue our capacitie than the Heauen does aboue the Earth Yea if thou speakest of earthlie things findes not many by experiēce that they get such an estate in the world as they would neuer haue looked or hoped for I sought but life saies Dauid Psal 21. 5 yet the Lord gaue me to be a king that is He gaue me not only a priuate obscure life but a glorious life in the sight of the people Besides this easinesse and liberalitie of the Lord to grant to a poore man aboue that that he durst presume He prescribes no time but this same day I know not if he durst haue bene so bold as to haue sought such a time that same day Marke further here a wonderfull power in the Lord at that time when Hee was in a most vile and ignominious death which was the image of Hell to pull a man quicke on the Crosse to breake Him on a Crosse The Lord is weakned the Iewes thought more of the dirt they trode on than of Iesus yet ye see what a wonderfull power which strikes out from Him to the thiefe this is the power of a King This day thou shalt be with Me in Paradise What Emperour durst speake this Yea He vtters the power of GOD Himselfe This promise is proper to GOD only to promise participation of that heauenly Kingdome What Angell durst doe this None but the eternall and immortall GOD. It is true the LORD Iesus whilst as Hee hang vpon the Crosse was wonderfully weakned and that glorious Godhead that dwelt in the humane Nature kept it selfe closse for a time and held in the beames of His glorie for a time within that vaile of His bodie for if Hee had not kept closse that Glorie of His Godhead the world could not haue crucified Him yet He kept Him not so closse but in the Crosse Hee manifests Himselfe Hee does the part of a King and fought a fiercer battell than all the Kings in the world Hee fought against all the enemies and in the ende Hee triumphes in that Crosse as in a Chariote and leades them all as thieues before Him And if there were no more to shewe that Hee was a King than this hastie conuersion of the thiefe it may tell you if Christ had such a power whilst as Hee hang in such weaknesse on the Crosse What power hath He now when He is in the Heauen exalted in the Throne of glorie If it bee so that wee feele not CHRIST powerfull in vs to life as the thiefe felt Blame not IESVS as if Hee wanted power sufficient nowe in glorie who had such power in His humilitie but blame thy selfe Thou wants that which the thiefe had thou wants Faith in Christ glorified the thiefe may shame thee who beleeued in Him whē He was in extreame ignominie Then to end all this y t hath bin spokē of this answere in a word Seeing y e Lord of lords y e Lord Iesus is so readie Neuer was there King so ready to heare a subject as Iesus is if thou werest the vilest bodie that goes a Thiefe a Harlot c. yet if thou wilt saye this Lord remember on mee and giue mee a part of thy Kingdome if thou prayest to Him from a penitent heart with confidence and assurance I promise vnto thee Heauen and Earth shall goe together ere thou vvantest thine asking Seeing our Lord Iesus is so liberall then seeke more than enough more than a Kingdome and thou shalt get more The only cause why we want is in vs we haue no hearts to seeke it And last Seeing He is so
occasion of this voyce wherby the Lord vttered this heauie complaint to His Father before He yeelde vp the ghoste when He saies My God my God why hast thou forsaken me we shall speake this day of that inwarde agony and anguishe of the soule that the Lord was in when Hee vttered this voyce I perceiue three groundes whereby we maye bee able in some measure for who is able to attaine to the perfect knowledge of the greatnesse of that agony that the Lord suffered to come to the knowledge of that agony The first grounde I shall take out of the vvordes of Scripture vvhereby that agonie is expressed The second ground I take from these effectes that the Lord vttered partly in prayer and partly in heauie complaint in that agonie And the thirde ground I shall take from our owne feeling What auailes all the knowledge in the vvorlde without feeling of His Passion and of His Resurrection Then to goe forward in order and to open vp euerie one of these grounds The last day I began to bring to you the words of Scripture some out of the old TestameÌ„t some out of the New by the which this inward agony y t the Lord suffred in his soule is expressed most viuely I cited to you those words that are in the 53. chap. of Esay where there is a viue and liuely prophesie of Iesus to come into the world The Lord saies the Prophet tooke pleasure to breake him This breaking is not onely of the body on the Crosse but chiefely in breaking of the soule for the soule of Iesus was rent with sorrow Then I cited out of the 116. Psalme the words of Dauid being the type of Christ The dolours of death haue compassed me the sorrowes of Hell haue ouertaken me Then I came to the Gospel of Matthew and I cited these words out of the 26. CHAP. My soule is heauie on all sides to the death There is the heauinesse of the soule and an heauinesse without any joy and a heauinesse to death euen to euerlasting death Then I came to Luke who in his 22. CHAP. hath these words And he was in an agony there is a battell But where In the GardeÌ„ With whom None was fighting with Him no man was neare Him Whom with but with the heauie wrath of the Father that He felt in His soule In the 2. of the Acts I cited the wordes of Peter Whome God raised vp againe when He had loosed the dolours of death The word in its owne languague signifies that paine that women suffer in trauelling wherby the Scripture vses to expresse the paine of Hell And last of all I came to the words of Marke in his 14. Chap. where he not onely vtters this inward paine that the Lord had in His soule but also the greatnesse of it and the degrees and partes thereof The wordes are When the Lord was in the Garden he began to be afraid and astonished and then to bee in a wonderfull heauinesse The words in their owne language are more significatiue Nowe Brethren wee shall examine and weigh these wordes of Marke The first word that Marke vses signifies an astonishment a feare and an horrour whereby the Lord in the Garden was troubled suddenly from the Heauen so that all the members of His bodie shooke and trembled It is not a matter of jestes it arose vpon a sense of the wrath of God comming from HeaueÌ„ and a most vehement sense thereof that lighted on Him suddenly because Hee bare our sinnes and this terrible wrath ouer-tooke all the powers of His soule and occupied them Brethren I take this to be none other thing but that first stroke of euerlasting death whereby the reprobate shâ—ll bee stricken in the first entrie to Hell when they set in their head first to Hell the wrath shall so strike them that all the powers of the soule shall be dammished The suffering of Christ in His soule is the viue image of the suffering of the reprobate in Hell And â—t is it that Paul in the 1. Epistle to the Thessalonians sets downe When they shall crie peace all things are sure then sudden destruction approaches the wrath and vengeance from Heauen lightes on suddenly so that all the haires of their heads shall stand on end and it shall come vpon them suddenly euen as the showres and dolour comes on a woman who is trauelling in birth I can giue no better example of it than ye haue in the Prophecie of Daniel in Belshazzar the prophane man he is sitting with his Princes banketting and prophaning the holy vessels of the House of the Lord. What falles out hee sees come out of the wall suddenly an hand writting he sees it not so soone look the first stroke of Hel but he is stricken with a feare horrour his knees shiuer smite one another he becomes like a dead man a viue image of Hell This for the first worde that Marke vses and the first part of that agonie that IESVS CHRIST suffered for vs in His soule Now wee haue to weigh the second word Hee sayes Hee beganne to bee astonished and to be in a wonderfull heauinesse The word in its owne language signifies an extreame paine in the soule Who is able to tell it The Lord saue vs from the extreamitie thereof it rose vpon that horrible wrath that He was stricken with and was lying on Him and pressing downe His soule First Hee was stricken then the heauie wrath of GOD lyes still on the soule so that Hee hath dolour in His soule that all the powers of His soule is full of wrath Who can beare the wrath of the Omnipotent GOD No not CHRIST as He was man only no not all the Angels in Heauen The LORD saue vs from it When the wrath of the great GOD strikes on any in the Hell all the powers of the soule faile and all leaue off to doe their duties beeing full of displeasure It is a marâ—eilous thing for as carefull as the LORD was wount to bee of the redemption of man for that was His only care night and day it was His meate and drinke yet all that care was nowe away and He forgets it and Hee falles out in a Prayer and Hee sayes Take away this cuppe from Mee and that was the cuppe of His Passion for our Redemption yea Hee bids His Father take it away which if it had beene taken from Him neuer a soule should haue beene redeemed Consider then if Hee was in an agonie or not when Hee forgate the worke of our Redemption Now we must not thinke that this forgetfulnesse came of sinne our forgetfulnesse comes of sinne the Holy one had no sinne but it rose of an infirmitie of Nature wherewith Hee was cled for our sinne Yee see if a man be in a distresse in the soule the senses and all the powers of the soule are so occupied about that sorrowe that they forget their owne functions and operations
blindnesse of y e Iewes y t cannot know Him to be the Mediator but after that once a man be giuen to a reprobate sense he will say the Sun in y e noone-tide is but darknes The Gospel is hid sayes Paul 2. Cor. 4.4 to them who perish if thou see not beleeue not y e Gospell thou hast an earnest pennie in thy bosome y t thy damnatioÌ„ is sealed vp Thus farre for His thirst they gaue Him a drinke There is a vessell full of vineger This was a custome that they vsed they had a drinke beside them who were crucified Some thinke it was for this end that the paine might be stanched There is a drinke of vineger standing beside the Lord but I knowe not if they gaue such a sowre drinke to the thieues So this vessell standing beside one of them steps to it in scorne and takes a water sponge and puts it on a reede and puts it to His head he got litle thanke for his worke I take this giuing of this drinke to the Lord at this time to haue proceeded from bitter malice The wrath of His Father was begun to be asswaged yet the wrath of the Iewes could not be asswaged There is none end of the malice of the Iewes so long as breath is in Him they neuer cease to rage against Him WheÌ„ He was dead they persecute Him wheÌ„ He was in glorie they thought to shame Him WheÌ„ y e Lord looses y e raines of y e deuill of wicked men to chastise his own they run headlongs to wracke His Church y e Lord seekes but chastisemeÌ„t they seek wrack of body soule he y t knowes not this he knowes nothing if these persecuters got their will they would not only seeke y e wracke of y e body but also of y e soule What doth y e Lord for this when y e Lord hath pulled in their raines Hee takes y e scourge casts it in y e fire because they run far beyond their coÌ„mission This shal be y e end of their miserable soules O y t damnation y t shal ouertake them when y e Lord hath chastened vs by them they shal be cast in y e fire for euer Refuses y e Lord y e drinke indeede before He was raised vp on y e Crosse He tasted of this but would not drinke but He beeing on the Crosse it is said He dranke it It may by that after such a troublesome labour that His drought was so great that Hee was glad to drinke any liquour Alwayes this I know except the Lord had had a thirst of thy saluation Hee had not drunken it The thirst of thy saluation made Him as Hee dranke out the cuppe of the wrath of His Father So to drinke out this bitter cuppe that was propined to Him out of the bitternesse of their heartes Hee dranke out the wrath of God and the wrath of man that thou shouldest drinke the water of Life I say remember vpon that drinke that Iesus dranke when thou drinkest delicious drinkes it is not thy money that buyes the wine except it be bought with the precious blood of Iesus not a piece of bread or any thing pertaines to thee if it bee not bought with the blood of Iesus to them who are sanctified all thing is sanctified if thou be not in Him thou shalt bee accused as a violent possessour of all things in y t great day Now I goe to the next voyce when He hath drunkeÌ„ He saies Jt is sinished that is y t wearisome worke is now put to an end now the ransom is payed now the work of RedemptioÌ„ is ended Brethren that yee may vnderstand this The Lord when He was in the Garden had two workes The first was to buy Heauen to conquere life to vs The second to put vs in possession of it The first worke He beganne it in the first moment of His conception and continues still from that time to that moment He gaue vp the Spirit to the Father Now that worke beeing ended He proclaimes on the Crosse cries out in the audience of them all Consummatum est it is finished Now that wearisome worke is ended the deare worke is ended Heauen and life and righteousnesse is conquered to the worlde for euer This is the summe of the Gospel the worke of our Redemption is ended this is all our preaching Heauen life glorie is conquered againe to the lost world Thou needest not to giue one pennie out of thy purse for Heauen Cursed are they from the High Heauen to the low Hell that open their mouth to say Thou must pay some of that ransom out of thy purse Woe to the Papistes who will stand vp say Thou must pay some part of that ransome wo to that foule mouth that dare be so bold to open it and say pay thou a part of that ransome with thy money seeing that Iesus Christ hath proclaimed that all is finished bought by His blood woe vengeance and euerlasting damnation shall light on the Pope and all the Papistes that dare open their mouthes to speake such presumptuous wordes Yet there is another worke remaining which is to put vs in possession of Heauen and He began this at His resurrection and He holdes it on yâ—t and shall continue it vnto His comming againe And at that day of His comming yee shall heare Him crying All is ended not on His Crosse but in glory and all the Angels and all the Sainctes shall crie All is ended Glorie to him who hath ended all no more shall bee Looke downe to His heart and to the sense from whence this voyce arose wheÌ„ He saies this ye shall find that Iesus felt the wrath of His Father asswaged Before Hee was in an agony now Hee feeles the agony to cease where before He fouÌ„d no joy now joy returnes On the sense of all these thinges falles out this voyce All is ended WheÌ„ I looke to this I thinke I see y e image of a godly Sainct dying for the godly are like to him in death and life Before the last moment they are in a battell and suddenly they will say I haue gotten the victorie in Iesus and theÌ„ last they will yeeld vp the spirit Come to the last voyce It is a voyce of joy I am of that opinion that before the Lord yeelded vp the ghost the agony left him and that joy that had left him returned againe and made him to vtter joyfull words The Euangelists say He cryed with a loud voyce What voyce this is Luke expresses Father into thine hands I recommend my spirit All that were standing about might haue heard him vttering this powerfull voyce Now ye would wonder that a man immediatly yeelding vp his spirit should haue such a strong voyce Ye see men and women in death their voyce will faile them some will not haue any voyce and some not any signe some if they get that grace to speake
yet it will be a weake voyce because the strength of nature failes Yet Iesus all the day before vttered not so shrill a voyce So it must follow that naturall strength was not failed in Iesus Christ and that by the strength of nature hee might haue liued long for the other two liued long and were not dead till they came and brake their legges Iesus died against nature neither was hee broken as they were What followes of this Iesus Christ in that same moment that he yeelded the spirit hee had a power aboue nature and a diuine power against nature which puts out the life and if he had power against nature to put out his life hee vttered before the Iewes that they had no power to put out his life and that hee had a power to keepe his life if it had pleased him And that is it which he saies None takes my life from mee but I laye it downe and I take it vp againe Yee will heare that when worde came to Pilate that IESVS was dead hee wondered and all the world wondered at this yeelding vp of the spirit And by this the Lord would shewe that hee was not a common man hee would shewe that he was God either to keepe his life or to put it out at his pleasure Hee saies Father into thine handes I commende my spirite These wordes are farre from this My God my God why hast c. for those words proceeded of great sadnesse mixed with confidence but of no joye but these wordes Father into thine handes c. as they proceeded of confidence so they proceeded of a wonderfull joye No doubt at this time hee feeles that sweete hande of the Father dealing with him moste sweetelie not as the reprobate Alas the hande of the Lorde in justice striking the soule of the reprobate looses it from the bodie with the sense of extreame wrath But the Lord feeles the hande of the Father loosing his soule from the bodie with sweetnesse And all they who die in CHRIST will feele the Father loosing the soule with sweetnesse as these last wordes vtter Looke to the Martyres they neuer vtter the first voyce My God my God c. No but the second Father into thine handes I commende my spirite because they find joye in torment Steuen the first Martyr vttered the second voyce ACTS CHAP. VII VERS 59. And the rest of the Martyres followed him which testifies plainelie that this was a voyce of joye that IESVS vttered But marke the wordes of CHRIST yee see that euerie man and vvoman beside the bodie they haue a spirite and more beautifull and farre more precious of substance than the bodie and yet it lodges in an house of claye and in an earthlie Tabernacle Next there will bee a separation of the soule and the bodie Thou thinkest euer to liue but whether thou wilt or thou wilt not thy soule shall bee separate from the bodie and then the bodie shall die Shall thy soule die No if thou bee in CHRIST the Father shall take thy soule Nowe againe Brethren see how carefull the Lord is of his soule at the poinct of death If Iesus who had no sinne is so carefull of his soule I pray thee who art a sinfull bodie how carefull shouldest thou bee thereof It must liue either in Heauen or in Hell if the Lord cryed so loude that the earth quaked again till the Temple rent asunder wilt not thou a sinfull creature bee carefull of thy soule A man should haue care of the soule at all times but chiefly at the houre of the separation for at that time the Deuill is busie to deuour thee and the golfe of Hell to swallowe thee vp Then looke how carefull thou shouldest be in following the example of Iesus to recommend the soule into the handes of the Father and looke how carefull thou art to render the soule into the handes of the Father the Father shall be as carefull to loose the soule if thou bee in Iesus Christ to conuoy it with Him to rest for euermore in His blessed bosome The LORD giue vs grace to commende our soules into the hands of that faithfull keeper in the houre of death and that wee maye finde Him readie to receiue and conuoye them with Him to that euerlasting rest purchased to vs through Christ To whom with the Father and the blessed Spirit be praise for euermore AMEN THE XXII LECTVRE OF THE PASSION OF CHRIST MATTH CHAP. XXVII verse 50 Then Jesus cryed againe with a loud voyce and yeelded vp the ghost verse 51 And beholde the vaile of the Temple was rent in twaine from the top to the bottome and the earth did quake and the stones were clouen verse 52 And the graues did open themselues and many bodies of the Saincts which slept arose verse 53 And came out of the graues after his resurrection and went into the holie Citie and appeared vnto manie verse 54 When the Centurion and they that were with him watching Iesus saw the earthquake and the things that were done they feared greatly saying Truely this was the Sonne of God MARKE CHAP. XV. verse 37 And Iesus cryed with a loude voyce and gaue vp the ghost verse 38 And the vaile of the Temple was rent in twaine from the top to the bottome verse 39 Now when the Centurion who stood ouer against him saw that he thus crying gaue vp the ghost he said Truely this man was the Son of God LVKE CHAP. XXIII verse 46 And Iesus cryed with a loude voyce and saide Father into thine handes I commende my spirite And when hee had thus said hee gaue vp the ghost verse 47 Now when the Centurion sawe what was done hee glorified God saying Of a suretie this man was just verse 48 And all the people that came together to that sight beholding the things that were done smote their breasts and returned IOHN CHAP. XIX verse 30 Now when Iesus had receiued of the vineger hee said It is finished and bowed his head and gaue vp the ghost WEE heard the last daye vvelbeloued Brethren the sundrie voyces and speaches vvhich Iesus Christ vvhilest Hee hung quicke on the Crosse and vvas nayled thorow handes and feete vttered in the audience of the vvhole people The first two voyces vvere the voyces of pittie and mercie The one of mercie to one of the Thieues that vvas crucified vvith Him Verily saies the Lord this day shalt thou bee with mee in Paradise The other of pittie to His owne Mother vvho stood by looking on Him when as Hee hung vpon the Crosse in extreame paine recommending her to IOHN His welbeloued Disciple Other two voyces were voyces of sadnesse and heauinesse of heart The one an heauie complaint to His Father My God my God why hast thou forsaken mee The other proceeding from an extreame drought that came of that sense of wrath and paine which Hee felt during the time that Hee hung vpon the Crosse I thirst The last two
voyces vvere of joye for it appeares well that before the Lord gaue vp the ghost comfort and joye returned to Him againe And I am of this mind that there are none who are Gods owne but before their departure out of this life sooner or later they will get a sense of that joye which they are to passe vnto immediatelie The first voyce of joye was All is ended As though Hee vvoulde saye This wâ—â—ke is done and ended and nowe the ransome of the redemption of man is payed to the least farthing Nowe the last voyce vvas vvhen Hee vvas immediatelie readie to render vp His spirite into the handes of the Father sayes with a feeling of joy in the heart Into thine hands Father J commend my Spirit Now this day we haue to speake by His grace First of His death and the yeelding vp of His Spirit Next of those wonders that fell out immediatly after the Lord had rendered the Spirit and thirdly we haue to speake how the multitude were mooued when they sawe these wonders Novve as concerning His death the words are but few Iohn sayes When Hee had spoken and cried with a loude voyce Hee bowed downe His head and He rendered His Spirit The wordes are to be marked Hee renders His Spirit first as it were Hee tooke His soule in His owne Hande and deliuered it in the handes of the Father desiring Him to keepe it well to the day of His glorious resurrection for Brethren this is the difference betweene the godly vngodly in their death as they differ and are vnlike to other in their life so especially in their death The vngodly cast away the soule and life and cares not where it goes but woe is to them that doe so they will neuer take vp such a life againe when they haue cast it awaye not regarding where it goes to but thinking lightly of it No let no man nor woman cast away this life or dislodge this soule lightly if the soule goe from thee lightly and thou carest not for it better it were for thee neuer to haue had a life a soule or a body But againe Brethren The Lord Iesus as all His lifetime Hee is carefull for the soule that is lodged in an earthly tabernacle so chiefly in the moment when it is to fllit The godly they will not let the soule flit out of the body vntill they know that the hand of the Lord is sweetly loosing the soule to keepe it vntill the day of their glorious resurrection Brethren it would be well marked There is not one of the foure Euangelists Matthew Marke Luke or Iohn but they note very precisely the death of the Lord and the yeelding vp of His Spirit As for the circumstances that fell out in His Passion some will note one thing and leaue another As for example These voyces that He vtters on the Crosse not one of the Euangelists hath them all some hath one and some another But when it comes to the yeelding of the Spirit they all in one harmonie note The Lord gaue vp the Spirit This is a thing not to be passed by nor to be lightly looked on and it lets vs see the death of our Sauiour the separation of His soule from His body is so substantiall and so needfull a thing both to Him to haue suffered and vs to knowe that except the Lord had suffered the death all the crucifying of Him inwardly outwardly all the rest of His suffering had auailed vs nothing the ransome of our sinnes had not bene payed for that was the curse that was laide vpon vs to pull our soule from our bodie and as it was needfull that He should suffer the death for vs so it is needfull to euery one of vs to knowe this that my Sauiour died and His soule was really separated from His body it is needfull that thou haue euermore the Lord Iesus crucified before thee and know that the soule was separated from His blessed body for grace and remission of sinnes is conquered thorow the death of the Mediatour if thou hast not Faith of the death of the Mediatour it is vnpossible that thou canst beleeue that thy soule shall come to Heauen The Apost Heb. 9. hath a notable comparison hee sayes When a man hath made a Testament and his legacie wherein hee leaues such inheritance to any man his Testament can neuer bee sure nor ratified before the man be dead and if he ratifie not the Testament with his death it cannot bee sure for the man in this life may alter the Testament But after that once he die there it stands it cannot be reuoked Euen so sayes the Apostle The Heire of the world Iesus Christ hath made a Testament and such one as neuer man made leauing such goods and heritage to His Saints as neuer man left euen that heauenly Heritage that exceeding Glorie Now sayes the Apostle If the Heire of the World Iesus Christ had not sealed vp His Testament by His blood it had neuer beene sure but His death interueening and closing it then the Testament is sure all the world is not able to alter one jote of it to adde or diminish it Woe be to him that will adde any thing to the Testament of Iesus Christ he is counted a villaine who will adde to a mans Testament Wilt thou adde or diminish any thing at thy pleasure from the Testament of Iesus Christ This Newe Testament is the best Testament that euer was Let Worldlings bee content with the Testaments of their forefathers yet count thou nothing at all except thou get a part of the legacie left in His Testament Woe bee to thee albeit thou get Eaâ—ledomes and Kingdomes and great possessions left to thee by the Testament of thy forefathers if thou gettest not this Testament Well Brethren this Testament can not be ratified but by the blood of the Testator How can I beleeue it except I know that He died and that the soule was as verily separated from the body as euer the soule of man was so when I consider the death of my Sauiour who hath made such a Testament I am so farre from that to bee offended at that shamefull death that the death is the ground of my saluation and that in His death is all my glorie the assurance of my life is in the assurance of His death and His ignominie and shame is my glorie Now thus farre for the death of the Lord Iesus Now come to the consideration of these wonders that fell out immediately as He gaue vp the Ghost The Vaile of the Temple rent asunder from the toppe to the bottome The earth quaked Such things neuer fell out in all the deathes of men in the world No not in the deathes of all the Kings in the world The stones were clouen the graues of the dead did open These are the foure wonders that are noted to haue fallen out immediatly when the Lord gaue vp the Ghost Brethren
greater wonder to see a regenerate man from whome that scroofe is taken away than that all the rockes should rent This for the first wonder now followes the second The Earth quakes No doubt but with the quaking of the earth there was a sore dinne whilst the soule of the Lord separated from the body O! what a thing was it to draw the soule of the Sauiour of the world from the body No the renting of the rockes was nothing in respect of that drawing of the soule of the Mediatour from the body The Earth is holden vp by the mightie hand of the Lord and when it shakes the mightie hand of the Lord shakes it When the Lord begins to shake His arme all the mountaines shakes it is no jesting for if Hee hit thee Hee will bruse thee in pieces although all the world were about thee What is miserable man doing that will not knowe the power of the Almightie God This shaking meanes a threatning to this people and the earth threatens to swallowe them all vp for their indignitie they wrought to their Lord their Maker If thou dishonourest thy Maker the earth shall open and swallow thee vp as it did Core Dathan and Abiram who withstood Moyses No it is a wonder that the earth should beare men No I protest I would not wonder so much if the earth opened and swallowed some men as I wonder that the Lord in His long suffering patience spares them and holds His hand and Iudgement off them It is a wonder that the houses fall not downe on the blasphemers and the chambers where they commit their filthinesse should not smoother them But Hee shall cause an heauier thing fall on the body and soule than a thousand mountaines were tumbled on them thou doest nothing but heapes vp wrath as the Apost sayes against the day of wrath No wrath and heauie wrath shall be heaped on them So the earth threatens thâ—m for the indignitie they did to their Lord. Yee see that after the earth quaked it will swallow vp townes and people but shee swallowes them not vp now but the earth vomites them out as not worthie to beare them in her bellie No she thought them ouer bitter to be within her who had dishonoured her Creator but afterward looke what came on them The earth will reuenge that foule thing done to her Lord the land of Iudea spued them out and the earth will not let that cursed kinde haue a foot-breadth of her O! what is it to haue battell with the Creator when He begins to arme the earth or any creature against thee we would thinke that this shaking of the earth should haue mooued them yet tâ—ey take no thought for it At the voyce of the Lord the earth did shake but did the Priests and the Scribes shake Are they mooued at the dinne and shaking of the earth So againe I say there is nothing so vnmooueable No not the earth as thine hardened heart will be at all the denunciations that will come from Heauen or Hell saue thy selfe from a reprobate sense or else thou shalt neuer bee wakened till thou bee thrust into hell where thou shalt bee tormented vvith endlesse vexation without any hope of comfort This for the second wonder Nowe let vs come to the clieuing of the Mountaines This followes on the former as the earth opened to swallow them so the mountaines cloue to tumble vpon them The mountaines will not suffer them to dishonour their maker What mooued this the Iewes Euen as much as the other two No question it was a great and terrible noyse when the mountaines cloue Woe to a senselesse heart The mountaines may clieue and shiuer and quake but if thy soule bee giuen to induration the stones mountaines shall bee mooued and broken but thine heart shall neuer breake Woe againe to a senselesse heart which is not mooued at the word of God that Scepter of yron whereof ye reade 2. Psal shall light on thee bruise thee in pieces Therfore cast away that vaile froÌ„ thine heart and striue to keepe light in thy soule conscience and walke in sobriety till thy God call on thee and then thou shalt see a blessed ende Nowe wee come to the last wonder which was wrought The graues doe their duetie they forget not their maker but in their manner they glorifie their Lord God and honour Him yea death it selfe with the graue doe Him homage and honour But miserable man will not honour Him The graues laye open from three a clock after noone for about three a clock the Lord gaue vp the ghost and they lay open all that day all that night all the daye following and the next night till the morning that the Lord rises and then the bodies of the Sainctes also arole by vertue of His resurrection and went into the Citie The graues will tell the miserable people that the Lord Iesus had loosed the bandes of the graue by His death By death He slew death with her owne sword He slew her as wee speake Shee would teach them that the bodies in that Great day shall rise vp by the vertue of that resurrection of Iesus Christ This question may bee asked What became of those bodies which arose went into the City Did they lay them down againe in the graue or ascended they to Heauen I will not bee curious in this purpose But in my judgement they were taken vp to the heaueÌ„s with Iesus Christ to be an argumeÌ„t of our resurrection going to the heauens This was a faire lesson but this miserable people was not moued Woe to a stonie senselesse heart the graue may open but nothing will open a senselesse soule Therefore I beseech you striue to get a soft and mollified heart The voyce of Iesus made the earth to quake the rockes to rent the graues to open the deade to rise but the voyce of the LORD opened not their heartes then He opens the graues It is an easier thing to raise a dead body out of the graue than to raise thy soule if it bee once haâ—dened it is more wonderfull to raise a deade soule and to see that soule get a sense of Heauen than to see all the bodies of the Church-yard rising Nowe to compare these wonders There are two of them The first and the last that teach this people The other two the second and the third that threatens them The quaking of the earth and the renting of the rockes threaten a damnage and destruction to them and in this temperature of His wonders As the power of God so the wisdome of God appeares wonderfully He threatens this people for the indignitie that they had done to the LORD of glorie with Hell and death yet Hee holds vp His handes O! how vnwilling He is to strike but if He light on thee Hee will cause thee squeele He is ayming Hee is shaking that terrible arme and threatning them in the meane time
with great weight and manie graue wordes Wee haue hearde before sundrie testimonies of His death The Lord in the last wordes Hee testifies of His owne death when Hee cryes Father into thine handes I commende my spirite All those wonders from the Heauen testified that the Lorde had giuen vp the ghoste His Heauenlie Father made the Burreoes and the men of warre to testifie that Hee was dead and to preach it to all the people about Now IOHN comes in last and with many words and wordes of great weight testifies that the Lorde gaue vp the ghoste What meanes all this Ye see there is not any thing in all the historie testified by so many testimonies The Spirit of God labours not to perswade vs of any thing in all His Passion so much as that He died and to certifie this that Hee was pearced with a speare To leaue the Heresies which fell in the worlde concerning the death of Christ for it was much to perswade the world of it they would not beleeue that IESVS died truelie All these testimonies lets vs see such a necessitie to bee in the death of IESVS that except the LORD had died as truelie as euer man died Hee coulde not haue beene our Redeemer And except Hee had died truelie wee coulde neuer haue beleeued to haue beene saued by Him Except I knowe as truelie as euer I knewe any thing in the worlde that my Redeemer died for mee I woulde neuer goe seeke life out of His death Indeed a wanton sinner who is ladeÌ„ with sin feeles not the weight thereof so loÌ„g as his coÌ„science is sleeping that he feeles not y e burreo sees not y t fearfull wrath that caÌ„not be quenched without bloode that terrible justice of God y t cannot be satisfied but by death will count little of the death of Christ It is alike to him whether He had died or no so loÌ„g as thou sleepest al is alike but after the coÌ„scieÌ„ce is wakened the Lord once let thee feele the weight of thy sinnes wherewith thou art ladned No if thou diddest but feele the weight of an euill thought thou wouldest groane as fast as if the mountaines and rockes were tumbled on thee and then thou wouldâ—st thinke no life nor saluation for thee but Hell and damnation if thou gottest not a Sauiour for thee and if thou feelest that Iustice of God and the terrours of Hell before thee the sight of the death of Iesus would be the most joyfull and comfortable sight that euer thou sawest and all thy joy glorie would be in that death of Christ Paul sayes Gal. 6.14 Far be it from me that I should reâ—oyce in any thing but in the death of Christ he fouÌ„d all his life to be in that death 1. Cor. 2.2 he sayes When I came amongst you to speake of the death of Christ to you who knew not what it meant a vaine companie they were who delited in vaine oratorie I would not begin to clawe your itching eares but I decreed to know nothing but Iesus Christ and Him crucified Nowe Brethren besides this In these wordes that IOHN sets downe and 〈◊〉 the which hee aggreadges his testimonie marke another lesson Will ye see from whence our Faith comes from whence comes our Faith from whence flowes it IOHN sayes And he that saw it bare record and his recorde is true and he knoweth that hee saith true that they should beleeue From whence then comes Faith in this death it comes by hearing Faith is of hearing of a testimonie and recorde and if thou hearest not a record thou shalt not beleeue and if thou beleeuest not thou shalt neuer see Heauen And if thou contemnest the recorde I giue thee this doome thou shalt neuer see Heauen with thine eyes if thou werest a King So Faith is wrought in the heart by the Holy Spirit by a recorde and witnesse bearing So ere thou gettest Faith some witnesse must stand vp and beare recorde The Lord must send out some witnesse to cry and preach but what witnesses must these be IOHN sayes He that saw these things hath testified of them The witnesses must be seeing witnesses it must be Iohn and such as saw Him and felt Him with their handes Then who must bee the witnesses They must be the Apostles that were conuersant in this world with Iesus Christ who heard Him preach and saw Him vvorke vvonders and savv Him dead and savv Him crucified and savve Him pierced thorovv the side They must be the first witnesses But more Brethren Is it enough that they savve Him with their bodily eye No Iohn addes more that hee vvas persvvaded that his testimonie was true The vvitnesses as they testifie that vvhich they savve so they must beleeue it vvith their heartes There were great multitudes hundreths thousands vvho heard Him touched Him and savv Him crucified and some of them crucified Him too yet none of these are made vvitnesses to preach to the vvorld but the Apostles vvho savv and beleeued these are set vp as witnâ—sses in y e world that all should beleeue TheÌ„ the first ground of thy Faith is the very eye of the Apostles their sight and sense The next ground is Faith in the heartes of the Apostles And if yee will say to me Why beleeue ye the Gospell of Iohn and the Gospell of Matthew and the Epistles of Paul c. I answere because these were men who heard and saw Christ and I will say more I beleeue them because they beleeued in their heartes that thing which they saw and goe before not onely by sight of the body but also by Faith in the heart When yee heare these recordes albeit the men be not liuing yet we haue that same thing that they wrote and that which they themselues beleeued I beseech you consider them and passe not ouer lightly when yee reade of Iohn or Paul or the rest I beseech you passe not lightly seeing the ground of thy Faith is not onely their sight but the sense of their heartes and Faith ye who would read with judgement trauell to goe into the heart to seeke that Faith into the heart and that joy and that sadnesse that they felt and pray LORD seeing these men vtter a feeling of these things that they saw and which they wrote touch mine heart and giue me thine Holy Spirit that I may attaine to the sense and feeling of these things If ye would haue a testimonie of this beholde what PAVL sayes in the second Epistle to the Corinthians the fourth Chapter and fourteenth verse I beleeue that I my selfe shall gloriously rise and then he brings in Dauids wordes J beleeued and therefore I spake Alwayes looke that in reading we striue to haue a feeling and sense in our heart of that which we read otherwise we make no fruit of our reading we speake like parrats wee know not what we speake I say to thee if the word of grace rise not from the
bee charged with fire and sworde but woulde slippe ouer in wealth and quietnesse But true faith must abide the triall of the fire of manifolde temptations and afflictions Well the daye shall come when it will bee seene who among vs hath this fined faith They haue the fined faith who will seeke to Iesus Christ and to His promise in the fire I woulde haue spoken of these two Testimonies but I leaue them vntill the next occasion and so I ende heere beseeching the Lorde to haue a care of euerie one of vs and to furnishe vs vvith grace and strength that wee maye sticke fast vnto Him and His promises Not onelie nowe in peace but euen in the middest of the fire and in death it selfe That after this life bee ended vvee maye bee glorified in the Heauens thorowe Christ To whome vvith the Father and the Holie Spirite bee all Honour and Glorie for euermore AMEN THE XXV LECTVRE OF THE PASSION OF CHRIST MATTH CHAP. XXVII verse 57 And when the euen was come there came a rich man of Arimathea named Ioseph who had also himselfe beene Iesus disciple MARKE CHAP. XV. verse 42 And now when the night was come because it was the day of the preparation that is before the Sabbath verse 43 Ioseph of Arimathea an honourable Counsellour who also looked for the Kingdome of God came and went in boldlie vnto Pilate and asked the bodie of Jesus LVKE CHAP. XXIII verse 50 And beholde there was a man named Ioseph who was a Counseller a good man and a just IOHN CHAP. XIX verse 38 And after these things Ioseph of Arimathea who was a disciple of Iesus but secretly for feare of the Iewes bâ—sought Pilate that hee might take downe the body of Iesus And Pilate gaue him licence Hee came then and tooke Iesus bodie THese dayes past beloued Brethren in Christ we haue spoken of the taking downe of y e Lord from the Crosse after He was dead which came as yee heard by a request made to Pilate these who made the request were the Iewes his enemies they requested that he should be taken from the crosse not for any loue they bare to him but because it was the time of the preparation to the Passeouer they beleeued that Iesus the other two crucified meÌ„ who hung on y e Crosse should haue polluted their holy feast holy actioÌ„ request Pilate that y e thies of the crucified men might be brokeÌ„ that therafter they might be takeÌ„ down from from the Crosse The souldiers came first to the one thiefe broke his thie theÌ„ they came to the other broke his thie also last they came to Iesus finding Him to be dead they would not break His thie but one of the souldiers came with a speare in his hand and to put the matter out of doubt he thrust Him thorow y e heart so that out of the wound ran blood water in abundance WheÌ„ Iohn hath made a rehearsal of these things he joynes to a weighty testimony He who saw these things hath testified of them his testimony is true he knowes that they are true that ye might beleeue Last he sets down the end of these things first wherfore the thies of Iesus were not brokeÌ„ theÌ„ wherfore His side was pearced These things were done sais Iohn that y e Scripture might be fulfilled for this he alledges first y e which is spokeÌ„ of the type Exod. 12 Not one bone of the Pascal lambe might be brokeÌ„ and Zachar. 12. They shall see him whom they haue pearced thorow The last day Brethren we left off at these testimonies of Scripture therfore this day as God shal giue vs grace we shal speak first of these 2 testimonies therafter we shal enter to the next History y t is to the burial of Iesus Then to speak of the first testimony Not one bone of him shal be brokeÌ„ Moses speakes these words Exod. 12 of the pascall lamb he giues a commandement that in the eating of the pascall lamb not one bone of it should bee broken That which Moses speakes of the pascall lambe Ioh. drawes it vnto Iesus Christ because the Lord Iesus was the true pascall lambe and that lambe that the Iewes ate was but a figure shadow of that true lambe the Lord Iesus who tooke away the sinnes of the world therfore seing the type shadow had ceased by the death of Iesus Christ there was not a pascall lambe any more and all the celebration of the Passeouer that the Iewes vsed after the death of Iesus Christ was but vanitie it was good reason that Iohn shoulde draw that which was spoken of the figure to the thing signified by the figure for these wordes that Moses spake of the pascall lambe were accomplished in Christ there was not one jot of it but it was perfected and accomplished in Him Paul 1. Cor. 5 drawes to Christ the very words which Moses vsed in prescribing of the eating of the pascall lambe Put away the olde leauen that wee may bee a newe lumpe as wee are vnleauened for Christ our Passeouer is sacrificed for vs. Marke this lesson for our instruction When thou readest of the Types and Figures in the olde Testament cast away the Types and keepe the veritie and applâ—e it to CHRIST who is figured by the Types We are euer reading y t olde Scripture y t speakes of the types vsed in the old Church of the Iewes as that Scripture of the Paschal lambe and all the other ceremonies of the Iewes but take heede how yee read them read them not as the Iewes read them read not these Scriptures as though they were to bee vnderstood of as many types yet to bee kept in the earth bevvare of that Heare them not as though they vvere any figures and shadowes vnfulfilled for that were to exclude the Lord Iesus vvho only is the body But in reading cast avvay the types because they haue alll ceased at the comming and after the death of Christ Cast not away the Scripture but dravv it vnto Iesus and that vvhole Scripture which the Iewes vnderstood of the type vnderstand thou of Christ As for Example In reading of this Scripture Exod. 12.41 Cast aside the type the Paschall Lambe but cast not away the Scripture Ye shall not breake one bone of Him Take this Scripture and vnderstand it of Iesus Christ that Lambe of God and His bones And vve must not thinke Brethren that this is any vvrying and vvresting of the old Scripture by the ovvne sense because the same Scripture vvhich spake of the Type spake of Iesus but mediatly by the Types and the Fathers of olde by reading of the Types got a sight of the body looking in thorovv the shaddovv to the body This is no vvresting of the Scripture But novv seeing all Types are avvay it is good reason that those Scriptures novv immediatly be vnderstood of Christ vvhich before mediatly vvere applied to
if there bee no more they are little worth Therfore the Spirit of God describes him from the inwarde grace of the heart from faith and hope And it is saide Hee waited for the kingdome of God All his riches closed not his eyes from the sight of that life to come Then as hee hoped for y t Kingdome so hee vsed the meanes Hee beleeued in Iesus Christ and was His Disciple So then if thou bee not a scholler to Christ in this earth looke neuer to dwell with Him in Heauen Yet there is something wanting Hee durst not avowe himselfe openlie for feare of his riches and honour But now at last when it comes to extreame persecution hee manifestes himselfe When they sate in the Counsell concerning the death of Christ IOSEPH would not giue his counsell nor consent thereunto But yet there is an impediment in this man for he should not only haue refrained to haue giuen his consent but should haue opponed himselfe against them as Nicodemus did for he opponed himselfe boldly vnto them Doeth our law saies he condemne a man before he be heard IOH. 7.50 where learne yee that So yee see it is an hard and dangerous matter to bee a Counseller either in Kirke or in Policie There will bee many impedimentes in Counsellers yea euen in the best of them and yee see that when harde matters doe come in question men will absent themselues from the Councell but that is not well done For if thou bee a Counseller albeit there were neuer so hard a matter in hand thou art bound in conscience to bee present But indeede it is better to absent thy selfe than to come and giue an euill vote Againe there are some who will come but will not consent to euill as IOSEPH here did But this is not enough there is an infirmity here for thou that art a Counseller art bound to make opposition to euill Again there are other some who will come not only refuse to consent to that which their cōscience judges to be euil but also wil oppone themselues boldly thereunto as Nicodemus did And these are the best sort of Counsellers Alwayes wee see this It is an harde matter to be a good Counseller for often times this terrour and that terrour will bee casten in to thee if thou incline either this waye or that way and somtimes the matter will fall out so ambiguously that thou wilt not know howe to vote or what way to turne thee So that of all men he who is a Coūseller either in Kirke or Policie in these dangerous dayes wherein such terrours are casten in hath most need to depēd vpon the coūsel of God reuealed in His word in all things to keepe a good cōscience Let no man offer to doe against his consciēce for then the cōscience shall take hold on him intend a processe against him and challenge him conuict him and torment him with anguish before the Lords Tribunall This for the description of the man We must not thinke y t by fortune or chance or of his owne accord rashly he came to this point No the prouidence of God guided him led him out for that purpose And in this action God had respect not only to the Heauēly honour of Christ but also to the worldly things to riches power The Lord chose a worldly rich potent man to bury Him to this end that the Iewes who by all meanes sought to heape shame ignominie vpon the Lord should not oppone themselues staye Him to be buried for if it had bene a poore or meane man that had taken this in hande doubtlesse they had opponed themselues hindered His buriall Againe an honourable man is chosen to bury His Sonne honourablie The Father will haue an Honourable riche man to burie His deare Sonne Indeede Ioseph of Arimathea got neuer such honour as by y t buriall of the blessed body of Iesus the Son of God His calling was nothing he had neuer bin registrate for y t he was a Senator in Iudea except that the Lord had put in his hand the buriall of His deare Son It is true the buriall of the Lord Iesus is the last point of His humiliation for what is the buriall of the body but the continuance of y e body vnder death And if thy burial be not sanctified it is a terrible thing to be casten in a hole to be bound vnder the earth Woe to that bodie who is casten into a hole and in the bellie of the earth and if it bee not sanctified in the buriall of IESVS CHRIST So I say the buriall of Iesus Christ was the last poinct of His humiliation Hee was holden in the fetters of death Yet the Lorde begins the glory of the Son at that which was ignominious in it selfe He will not employ euery man in this work but the most honourable man in the Citie And then Hee will haue His Buriall not in a vile place nor in a backside but in a notable faire place couered with a stone So the Heauenly Father will haue the honour of the Sōne His glory to begin at the buriall which was shamefull in it selfe and then Hee goes forward till His resurrection and to His ascending to Heauen sitting at the right hand of the Father To worldlinges this honour of their buriall is but a part of worldly honour but heere vnto Christ that same piece of honour was y e beginning of his heauenly glory If thou be in Iesus this same honour which is done to thy bodie in this life in thy buriall is the beginning of thy glory which thou shalt enjoy in the Heauens The dishonour of the faithful in this life shal be turned to their honour and glorie and it shall be turned to their weale All things worke together for the best vnto them that loue God saies Paul Rom. 8.29 If thou louest the Lord that shame that shall be heaped on thee in this earth shall bee the beginning of thine honour Then much more shall the honour that thou shalt get in this life bee the beginning of that euerlasting honour Now when Ioseph takes vp the body of y e Lord lying so low at the Gallowes foot and intends to bury that body I doubt not but he hath an eye to that glorious resurrection and he saw that glory wherewith that body should be glorified should glorifie the bodies of the faithfull make them like His glorious body If there were no more but that respect of the resurrection of the bodies of the faithfull in that daye it shoulde make vs count of the bodies of the faithfull of their death and buriall 1. Pet. 3.7 Ye reade that husband shoulde giue honour to their wiues because they are the infirmer and weake◠vessels and because that with them they are to bee heires of the kingdome of glorie and of that life Yee see this that if there vvere but an earthly body who were
the pointes of his Iustice it behoued Him to suffer all the points of Iustice vnder the earthly judge Pontius Pilate in His condemnation in His taking from the crosse in His burial this was all to the intent that thou mightest be fully freed from all the points of the Iustice of GOD for whatsoeuer thing He either did or suffered it was for thy cause There is another thing here that would not be passed by There is no question but it comes of the Prouidence of God that this body is neither reaued away by violence nor stollen away by slight but the taking away comes of a speciall request◠no question this matter was so dispensed that the death of Iesus should bee made notable and come to the eares of Pilate and all other men the death was to be made notable to the world likewise the buriall was to be made notable to the end that His glorious resurrection might be made knowne to the world These are the two pillars of our Faith the death of Christ and His resurrection these are the two points that the deuill and the Heretiques haue from time to time striuen to hew and cut downe that they should not appeare to the world because they are the chiefe pillars of our Faith but honour glory be to the Lord who of His grace hath kept these pillars constantly in His Church in despite of the deuill all his instrumēts Now the God of Heauen grant vs grace to take holde on His death and glorious resurrection that through His death and resurrection we may bee raised from death to newnesse of life here that hereafter wee may reigne in glory with Him To whome with the Father and the Holy Spirite bee all honour praise and glorie world without end AMEN THE XXVI LECTVRE OF THE BVRIALL OF CHRIST MARKE CHAP. XV. verse 44 And Pilate marueiled if hee were alreadie dead and called vnto him the Centurion and asked of him whether hee had beene any while dead verse 45 And when hee know the trueth of the Centurion hee gaue the bodie to Ioseph verse 46 Who bought a linnen cloth and tooke him downe and wrapped him in the linnen cloth c. IOHN CHAP. XIX verse 38 And after these things Ioseph of Arimathea who was a disciple of Iesus but secretly for feare of the Iewes besought Pilate that hee might take downe the body of Iesus And Pilate gaue him licence Hee came then and tooke Iesus bodie verse 39 And there came also Nicodemus who first came to Iesus by night and brought of myrrhe and aloes mingled together about an hundreth pound verse 40 Then tooke they the bodie of Iesus and wrapped it in linnen clothes with the odours as the manner of the Iewes is to burie THE last day welbeloued in Iesus Christ wee entered into the History of the Buriall of the Lord Iesus and wee hearde that the Buriall came by a request made to Pilate the Romane Deputie for the time The request maker was one IOSEPH Hee is set down and described by all the foure EVANGELISTES in all his properties Hee was a man of ARIMATHEA a Towne in IVRIE Hee vvas a rich man and also an honourable and graue Counseller Then as concerning the qualities of his person Hee was a good and an vpright man who liued vprightlie in the worlde and yet hee had a further respect than vnto this life for he waited constantlie for the Kingdome of God And therefore when Christ came into the worlde and tooke vpon Him that great office of the Mediator betwixt GOD and man hee enters into His schoole and became His Disciple howbeit for feare of the IEVVES hee durst not manifest himselfe but lurked secretlie for a time euen to this time that it came to the Buriall of the bodie of Iesus and then hee shewes himselfe to bee a Disciple of Christ In that Councell which was against the Lorde hee vvas a Counseller but hee vvoulde neither giue counsell nor consent to the condemning and slaying of CHRIST Thus much yee hearde before concerning this man and his properties Then wee hearde howe hee goes forwarde boldlie to Pilate to seeke the Lordes bodie Hee lurked before so long as Iesus was in the worlde working such wonders as neuer man wrought speaking with such a grace as neuer man spake with But nowe when Hee is dead hee comes out boldlie and goes to Pilate and hee manifestes himselfe To let vs see that IESVS in His death had greater force to drawe the soules of men vnto Him than Hee had in His life for from that death there came so sweete and sensible a smell to the soules of sinners that it drewe the soules of sinners vnto Him Namelie the heart of this man IOSEPH So that hee comes out boldlie as saide is and hee goes to PILATE and requestes him to giue him the bodie of IESVS to bee buried Thus farre vvee hearde the last daye Nowe this daye wee haue PILATES answere to IOSEPHS request PILATE wonders that He was dead so soone and for the more certaintie hee calles a Centurion and askes him if Hee was dead alreadie The Centurion affirmes that Hee was dead alreadie PILATE grantes the request After this we come to the maner of His Buriall Wee shall goe forward as time shall suffer God shall giue vs grace Pilate wonders that hee was so soone dead This wondering of Pilate no question imports that the death of Iesus was extraordinary It was not after the common fashion of men y t were crucified for men who were crucified they vsed to hing long on the Crosse before they yeelded the spirit dayes nights and in end ere they yeelded the spirite the life was taken from them by violence They were broken on the Crosse So Pilate hearing that the Lorde was so soone dead hee wondered as at an extraordinarie thing There are sundrie thinges that testifie that death of Iesus to haue beene extraordinary as first That mighty and loude voyce crying which the Lord vttered on the Crosse immediately before He yeelded the spirit for who will giue a loud crie at the yeelding of his spirit for at the poinct of death when nature failes it is a rare thing to finde a man to haue a voyce or a word Next The yeelding of His spirit so suddenly whē by the power of nature He might haue liued longer Last This wondering of Pilate testifies That His death was extraordinarie that there was a power in Iesus which controlled nature When nature would haue kept life the diuine power puts it out In a word This wondering testifies That the death of Iesus was the death of God the death of a man but God in the man glorious and blessed for euermore Now it is said Pilate vnderstood of the Centurion that Iesus was dead when hee granted the request of Ioseph and gaue the bodie to him to bee buried First I see Pilate is a good Iustitier the Romane Iustice was
a good Iustice the Romane Iustitiers were good he shewed him selfe to bee a good Iustitier in this a man condemned to die hee would not giue Him out of His hands till hee knew perfectly that He was dead The Iudge should not giue a man out of his hāds to any till he know he be dead Iustice requires that If they did so to the greene tree the Lord Himselfe saies what shall they doe to the withered If so precise justice was kept on y e innocent what shall become of the reprobate who must suffer euery point of justice Lord saue vs from that justice of the reprobate I put it out of doubt This justice kept on Iesus is a liuely image of that justice that shal be kept on the reprobate Thou shalt not escape one point of that justice but thou shalt suffer in thy carcage y e extremity if thou be not participate of His blood Another thing is to bee marked in Pilate I see a part of humanity in him hee grants the dead body humanely And surely this was by the fashion for the bodies of crucified mē were not giuē yeelded at the request of mē as their death was ignominious so was their buriall I put no doubt the cōscience of the innocencie of Iesus neuer left him the consciēce of His innocēcie made him to be so easie to grant the body of Iesus at the request of Ioseph Brethren if this matter had bene in the hands of Caiaphas the Priests and the Scribes the Elders they would not haue bene so ready to haue giuē the body to be buried for as they sought to shame Him in His death so would they in His buriall they had buried Him like an Asse castē Him out like a beast So who is this that dishonours the Saints of God in their buriall It is not Pilate or an Ethnicke or Turke or Pagan it is hypocrit professors hypocrits Caiaphas it is false priests knaues with a coloured religion it is the counterfet hie priests those shauelings those monks friers who murther the innocēts there was neuer bitternes nor gal of heart like their bitternes who wil cal thēselues the kirke they are a false a deceiuing kirke they haue not bene content to martyre the deare Saincts of God that bloody massacre shall neuer goe out of memory it shal be recent to their perpetual shame they shal pay for it one day but they haue raised vp y e bones of the dead to burne thē The vessels of dishonour seeke the dishonour of the vessels of honour but shame and confusion shall light vpon them whē the Saints of God shall get honour The Lord saue vs from them and that judgement which they shall receiue We goe now to the māner of the Buriall Looke the louing affection of this holy man Ioseph would to God we could learne at him who loued the dead Iesus so well to loue Him now liuing and glorified in the Heauēs When he hath gottē the body of the Lord he takes it puts it not in a foule cloth he takes not an old sheet but he buyes the cleanest linnē finest that culd be gottē the Spirit of God notes that it was a fine linnen cloth which had neuer touched any mans body before then he wraps the body of Iesus in that winding sheet I suppone it was with his owne hands for wee reade of none other that touched Him for hee thought his owne hands ouer vnworthie to winde such a precious and glorious bodie Nowe Brethren as the Buriall of the Lord was honoured by an honourable man who was the Burier of Him so it was honoured with a cleane winding-sheet which is a piece of the honour of the Buriall But looke to this mans doinges better When hee procures leaue to bury Him he departs not leaues another to bury Him he sais not I haue done enough I haue gottē his body he has other friēds thā I here he has his mother his disciples other womē who came with him out of Galile and others let them bury him doe y e rest to him No he saies not so So this is a cōmendable thing in him who hauing gottē leaue to bury him he perfects the worke he will bury him himselfe with his owne hands Let vs learne at Ioseph If we put to our hāds to the work of Iesus to honour him wo to him that honours him not if thou begin to do him any seruice leaue not off whilst thou haue ended it Count not that which thou hast done as men doe who will say I haue professed I haue suffered for religion more than the best of them But when thou art running that race neuer looke ouer thy shoulder vntill thou commest to thy races ende and say thou art an vnprofitable seruant suppose thou hadst done neuer so much goe forward the crowne is not in the middest of the race but at the end and hee who persistes to the end of the race he shall get the crowne not he who goes backe againe Yet the affection of the man would bee considered and weighed after that once that sweete smell the sweetest smell that euer was felt comes from the body of Iesus that sweet smell of loue for the sauour of that body is the sauour of loue such loue as man neuer bare to man such loue as made the Lord to die for sinners after that the smell comes to Iosephs soule it wakened vp in his heart loue towards the Lord for Hee must loue vs before wee loue Him and whilst Hee begins to loue Him he makes request for Him euer the nearer that he drawes to that precious body the sweete smell that came from that precious body was alwayes the greater and the heart of Ioseph warmed ay the more with Him so that he could neuer get rest vntill he got that body in his armes and wrapped it in linnen clothes So when we begin to taste that fragrant odour that sweet smell our hearts will be allured to draw neare to Him and as we draw the nearer to Him wee will ay finde the sweeter sauour proceeding from Him Thou shalt feele alwaies the more that sweet odour the more neare thou meete with Him and who euer thou bee that seekest Him once thou vvilt neuer rest vvhilst thou see Him and be vvith Him Paul speakes this of himselfe 2. Cor. 4.8 I approoue rather to be with the Lord than to dwell in this bodie And to the Phillipians 1.23 I desire to be loosed and to be with Christ For as vvell as vve loue this body vve vvill be content to slit out of it to let the body fall dovvne like a broken pitcher that vve may be conjoyned vvith Christ vve vvill be content to slit and to obtaine Iesus Christ euen vvith the dissolution of the body This for the part of Ioseph in the burying of Christ novve follovves the part of one Nicodemus Whilst as Ioseph is
see that all our honour stands in that that Iesus Christ may be honoured that we may be content with all men to glorifie Him he sayes not Nicodemus doe thou the rest of it I haue done my part I haue bought y e winding-sheete now I will goe my way doe thou the rest annoynt thou Him burie thou Him No he leaues Him not but when once he put his hand to Him he wil not leaue Him hast thou begun to serue Christ leaue Him not albeit a King should command thee leaue Him not if thou come not w t odours come with a windingsheet if not with y e windingsheet come put the towell about Him bind Him if thou doest no more stand by speake to His honur glorifie Him and if thou hast not a tongue to speake reuerently of Him think of Him reuerently honour Him in thy heart If thou honour Him not woe to thee if thou were a King wo to thee if y u glorify not y e God of glory this may let vs see by experience y t y e soule y t hath any will to glorify Iesus can neuer be at rest but wheÌ„ it is occupied in glorifying Him he saies this was done after y e custome of y e Jewes as they buried honorable men so they buried Iesus good reasoÌ„ was it y t so it should be there came neuer such an honorable man amoÌ„g them as Christ no not their kings Dauid Salomon c. were nothing to Him So it appeares y t this custome in y e buriall was according to their ceremonial law therefore these ceremonies y t y e Iewes vsed in these burialls their washing their odours the rest were all figures of Iesus to come of y t glorious resurrectioÌ„ of His which is y e ernest peÌ„ny of our resurrectioÌ„ for our resurrectioÌ„ depeÌ„ds on His glorious resurrection and if Hee had not risen we should neuer haue risen in glorie Seeing therefore they were shadowes after His death and resurrection all these ceremonies all this balming washing c. take an end and except thou wouldest say that Iesus is not risen and extinguish the sweet smel of His resurrection thou must leaue off all the ceremonies It is true buriall should be honoured and certainely in the buriall of men and women a great respect should bee had Why should the body of a man bee cast away the very light of Nature imprinted in the heart by the creation dites that the dead body of a man or a woman should be buried honourablie and that in hope of immortalitie Nature hath a smell of immortalitie and it causes the body be had in due regarde the beasts bodies ye see when they are dead they are cast avvay and no more is made of them Come to custome the custome of buriall that the Fathers vsed from the beginning teaches vs that the buriall of man and woman should be respected and that vpon the hope of resurrection Beginne at Adam goe to Abraham Isaac Iacob Joseph and all the rest of the holy Patriarkes they had a regarde of their burialls vpon hope of their resurrection for the bodies of the Sainctes vvho are buried shall rise gloriously in that great day and this they did not so much by Nature as by a reuelation of God and on this hope follovved these ceremonies the vvashing and balming of the bodies Acts 9.37 The very vvord the Scripture vses the vvord of slâ—eping shevv the bodie vvould not die for euer but that they laid downe the body in the graue to sleepe as if it vvere laide dovvne in a soft bed to sleepe not to lye for ay there but to rise againâ— in the morning vvhen the day shall rise Iesus Christ is the most glorious morning that euer vvas and the body that sleepes in Him shâ—ll rise againe to glorie vvhen Hee shall come in the cloudes vvâ—th millions of His Angels Come to the custome of the nations their buriall vvas honoured they did it of imitation follovving the Fâ—thers like Apes vvanting the hope of resurrection What hâ—lpeth thee thy buriall or the honours of it if thou vvantâ—st that hope of resurrection they vvanted the vvord of God the life of all ceâ—emonies what good doe all these ceremonies vvithout the vvord and promises of God by them only they are quickened by them only they liue vvithout them they are dead shadovves The very Ethnikes had a respect to buriall But this vvas in hope of resurrection but vpon a custome for pompe and vaine glorie As in all things the Lord gaue them vp vnto a reprobate sense so in buriall Hee gaue them vp to a reprobate sense They would cast out some dead bodies like dogges and some vsed to burne the deade bodies in the fire these are barbarous and inhumane fashions The body should be buried in the earth thou shouldest returne to the earth as thou camest of the earth Againe some amongst the Gentiles vsed ouer great gorgeousnesse and sumptuousnesse in their burialls placing the effect of the buriall in gorgeousnesse But to come to vs if thou werest a King thou shouldest not followe the Ethnickes in sumptuousnesse when the Lord brings a man low wilt thou exalt his head and exceede measure in gorgeousnesse vvilt thou hold vp his head when the Lord is casting downe his head the Lord will cast downe thine heade and his both to the dust Eschew two extremities First eschew contempt cast not away the body and secondly eschew gorgeousnesse and superfluitie keepe a Christian honour albeit thou werest a King or an Emperour thou shouldest keepe a mediocritie and Christian honestie and let that sweete smell of the death and resurrection of IESVS CHRIST sauour into his buriall What shall we say in burialls then Shall we make none exception No let vs looke to Circumstances Burie not a begger like a King looke to the place and time and person yet in all times places and persons let the buriall smell of that sweet smelling odour of IESVS CHRIST and let that simple Christian honestie be seene in your burialls Now because the time is spent and I will not wearie you I leaue the rest till the next daye and commend you to GOD beseeching Him that yee may bee like to Him both in life and death and in His buriall and resurrection that wee may dwell with Him for euermore in the Heauens To whome with the Father and the Holy Spirit be all honour praise and glorie world without end AMEN THE XXVII LECTVRE OF THE BVRIALL OF CHRIST MATTH CHAP. XXVII verse 59 So Ioseph tooke the bodie and wrapped it in a cleane linnen cloth MARKE CHAP. XV. verse 46 And layed him in a tombe that was hâ—wen out of a rocke and rolled a stone vnto the doore of the sepulchre LVKE CHAP. XXIII verse 53 And tooke it downe and wrapped it in a linnen cloth and layed it in a tombe hewen out of a rocke wherein was neuer man yet
it is joyfull sweet and comfortable to them who are in Iesus Christ but when it meetes with a sinfull heart and an euill conscience of all things it is most terrible if thou who art a sinfull man and who art not in the Lord Iesus if thou sawest Him shine in thine heart if thou gettest not a sight of thy sinne thou shalt finde such terrour and feare that all the world cannot comfort thee for that sight of all sights is most terrible to them who are not in Iesus Christ I grant indeede that the very children of God yea euen the best of them all so long as this remanent corruption abides in them they finde the Majestie and glorious presence of God makes them to be afraide We may see the example of this in these vvomen at the sight of the Angell they vvere afraid but after that once sinne be altogether abolished then His presence shall not be fearfull but comfortable Wee shall haue no feare but joy euerlasting As for the reprobate they cannot bee able to abide His glorious presence in that great day for if that glorie was so terrible that shined in one Angell how terrible shall it be to them that are out with Christ when not one Angell but millions of Angels in glorie yea the Lord Himselfe as Iudge of the world shall appeare in His incomprehensible glorie it shall be so terrible that it shall cause them to cry Hilles and mountaines fall on vs and saue vs from the presence of the Lambe The Lord grant that we may be found in the Lord Iesus Christ here and that we may haue our consciences sprinckled with His blood that we may finde the Lordes presence not onely comfortable to vs here but chiefly in that great day when we shall see Him face to face To this Lord Iesus with the Father and the Holy Spirit be all praise honour and glorie for euer AMEN THE XXIX LECTVRE OF THE RESVRRECTION OF CHRIST MATTH CHAP. XXVIII verse 5 But the Angell answered and saide to the women Feare yee not for I knowe that yee seeke IESVS who was crucified MARKE CHAP. XVI verse 2 Therefore earlie in the morning the first day of the weeke they came vnto the sepulchre when the Sunne was now risen verse 3 And they saide one to another Who shall roll vs away the stone from the doore of the sepulchre verse 4 And when they looked they saw that the stone was rolled awaye for in was a verie great one verse 5 So they went into the sepulchre and sawe a young man sitting at the right side clothed in a long white robe and they were sore troubled IOHN CHAP. XX. verse 1 Nowe the first daye of the weeke came Marie Magdalene earlie when it was yet darke vnto the sepulchre and saw the stone taken away from the tombe verse 2 Then shee ran and came to Simon Peter and to the other Disciple whome IESVS loued and saide vnto them They haue taken awaye the LORDE out of the sepulchre and wee knowe not where they haue layed him THe Resurrection of Iesus Beloued Brethren was without any witnesses no man saw Him rise therfore the foure Euangelists recorde not that anie man or womā saw the Lord rise out of the graue for so it pleased the Lord to arise from the dead that He would not haue neither man nor woman in this world seeing Him rise The Testimony of the foure Euangelists is That after He was risen without any witnesses then His Resurrectiō was known made manifest to y e world by many witnesses They set down two occasions of y e Resurrection of Iesus Christ The first occasion was thorow the womē Mary Magd. Mary the mother of Iames who after they had seene Him buried returned home to buy odours to embalme the dead body of Iesus where He lay in the graue Now whē the Sabbath had passed by the womē buyes the sweet odours in the night time which proceeded the Lords day as we term it in the night time they confect them y t in the day they might enbalme the precious body of Iesus These womē in the dawning of the day before the Sun rose wēt out of set purpose to anoint the Lord. There is y e first occasiō how his resurrectiō came to light The other occasiō As these womē came the Angel of the Lord came down his purpose is to testifie to these women y t came out of the Towne that the Lord was risen Now followes the manifestatiō of His Resurrection The Angell preuents the women and rolles the stone from the graue and abides still there to testifie to the women that the Lord Jesus was risen frō the dead After this the Lord Iesus Himselfe appeares to the womē and confirmes the Testimony of the Angel The women hauing receiued these two manifestations of His rising they get this honour to be made the first preachers of the Resurrection before all men yea euen before th' Apostles themselues and this preaching of the women is the third manifestation Then after the women had testified to His Apostles that He was risen the Lord appeares Himself to the Apostles and confirmes their Testimony that verily He was risen from the dead Now Brethren it is to be knowne first of all cōcerning these womē who next after the Angels were made witnesses of the Resurrectiō of Iesus Christ y t they came not all to the graue in one cōpany but as it appeares wel of the History there has bin two cōpanies of thē one cōpany y t came first to the graue wēt out of Ierusalē before sun rising another company y t came out after this company came to the graue of the Lord before the other companie If wee marke not this difference wee will see well howe the foure Euangelists aggree in that Historie of the Resurrection of IESVS CHRIST As for the first company There were two women especially named Marie Magdalene and Marie the mother of James not excluding the rest but they are named because among all the rest they were most notable and best knowne to the Apostles Marke notes three to bee in the first company these two and one Salome Luke notes none but calles them certaine women who followed Iesus out of Galile vnderstanding these same women Iohn names none but one Marie Magdalene not excluding the rest because she was best known for her loue for her zeale for her faith and for her affectiō to Christ her name is registrate Brethrē the last day we heard something of the first company the time whē they came in the dawning of the day before the Lords day which we cal Sunday Now we heard as they came out of Ierusalē the Angell of the Lord descēded from Heauē with a great earthquake No question the women were afraid at this but being strēgthned with the Spirit they came forwarde as they were comming to the graue they fell in question about the
praye night and daye so farre as is possible to thee to doe And if thou doe these thinges thou shalt seale it vp vvith the effusion of thy bloode and thou shalt haue more joye in thy death than euer thou hadst in thy life So that thy death shall bee the beginning of thy life and of that fullnesse of joye which thou shalt possâ—sse vvith Him in the Heauens for euer To Him therefore vvith the Father and His blessed Spirit be all Praise and Honour for euer AMEN THE XXXI LECTVRE OF THE RESVRRECTION OF CHRIST MATTH CHAP. XXVIII verse 8 So they departed quicklie from the sepulchre with feare and great joye and did runne to bring his disciples word MARKE CHAP. XVI verse 8 And they went out quicklie and fledde from the sepulchre for they trembled and were amazed neither saide they anie thing to anie man for they were afraide LVKE CHAP. XXIIII verse 1 NOw the first day of the weeke earlie in the morning they came vnto the sepulchre and brought the odours which they had prepared and certaine women with them verse 2 And they found the stone rolled away from the sepulchre verse 3 And went in but found not the bodie of the Lord Jesus verse 4 And it came to passe that as they were amazed thereat beholde two men suddenlie stoode by them in shining vestures verse 5 And as they were afraide and bowed downe their faces to the earth they saide to them Why seeke yee him that liueth among the dead verse 6 Hee is not heere but is risen remember howe hee spake vnto you when hee was yet in Galile verse 7 Saying that the Sonne of man must bee deliuered into the handes of sinfull men and bee crucified and the third day rise againe verse 8 And they remembred his wordes verse 9 And returned from the sepulchre and tolde all these thinges vnto the eleuen and to all the remnant verse 10 Nowe it was Marie Magdalene and Ioanna and Marie the mother of Iames and other women with them who tolde these thinges vnto the Apostles verse 11 But their wordes seemed vnto them as a fained thing neither beleeued they them I Shewed you from the beginning vvelbeloued in the Lord Iesus that there vvere two compainies of vvomen that came out of Hierusalem to the graue of the Lord First one company in the vvhich vvas Mary Magdalene Mary the mother of James Solome with some others TheÌ„ soone after that there came out another company of vvomen vvhose names vve finde not registrated Wee haue hearde alreadie of the Historie of the first vvomen vvee hearde of their outcomming vvee hearde vvhat they saw and vvhat they hearde vvhen they came to the graue of the Lord. Now this daye vvee haue the returning of the first companie home to Hierusalem set downe in few vvords Then we shall goe to the Historie of the second company of vvomen vvherein first vve haue their outcomming Secondlie vvhat they heare and see and thirdly their tidinges to the Apostles vvhat they had hearde and seene And this Historie concerning the seconde companie is written by Luke Chap. 24. vers 2. Matthew writes concerning the first companie and Marke also Iohn speakes onelie of Marie Magdalene Luke sets downe the whole seconde companie But nowe to returne to the home-comming of the first companie of women It is written by MATTHEVV and MARKE that when they had receiued direction of the Angell They returned home with feare and great joye to tell the eleuen Apostles for IVDAS was fallen awaye what they had heard and seene I note shortlie these three thinges in these women First I see that there was a feare in them Next I see that they had an exceeding joye And last of all I see in them obedience to the voyce of the Angell with all expedition The feare was because of the presence of that glorious Angell The joye because of the joyfull newes to wit That the LORDE was risen The obedience was because of the commaundement of the Angell to runne home and tell the APOSTLES All these three thinges are to bee commended in them And they teach vs this lesson howe wee shoulde depart from the presence of our GOD when wee meete to heare these glorious tidinges without the which there is no life and without the hearing whereof thou shalt neuer see Heauen Let no man deceiue himselfe they teach vs howe wee should depart from the worde Depart with feare and reuerence that is the first Then depart with joye that is the seconde And thirdly depart with a minde to obeye that which thou hast heard and this is the last Wee shoulde feare in respect of the presence of the Lord whereat all the Angels were afraid and where two or three are gathered together in His Name there is His presence And if thou seest not His presence in the Congregation it were better for thee that thou presentedst not thy selfe in the Congregation The joye shoulde bee of the hearing of these tidinges Thou delitest to heare tidinges but all the tidinges of the worlde is nothing to these to wit That Iesus is come into the world and hath died for thee And last of all Depart with obedience for thou gettest this commandement When thou goest home communicate these tidinges to others that thy joye may bee encreased The light of the Gospell requires holinesse and a godlie conuersation that thou liue soberlie in thine owne person justlie with thy neighbour and godly with thy God When the daye breakes out and when the Sunne rises the light of the daye is not for nothing it cryes vpon thee to thy labours to fall to an honest conuersation Then much more the Sunne of righteousnesse that light of lightes that LORDE vvhen Hee shines and cryes Shake off the vvorkes of darkenesse and put on the armour of light Shake off thy murther thy adulterie and oppression in paine of thy life Thou wilt come out and sticke and slaye a man in sight of the Sunne No that murther shall not so much bee layed to thy charge as the contemning of GOD vvho shined before thee vvhen as thou slewest that man Wee are fallen nowe to such a shamefull murther as vvas neuer heard of among the TVRKES What will become of this Kingdome Suppose there vvere none other sinne but this sinne of blood O it cryes for a vengeance Marke this sie vpon thee that in such a light and in the sight of that great GOD thou shouldest commit such villanie But I goe forwarde and I enter to the Historie of the seconde companie of women who went out to the graue of the Lord. The first company sawe but one Angell but this sawe two Angels and therefore they are diuerse The Historie is very plaine and there can be no other thing almost marked than that which is already touched and therefore I shall goe thorow it shortly as God shall giue the grace This second companie came out shortly after the first companie they draw neare
heades and they had more of that vvorldlie and fleshlie vvit than of that Heauenlie vvit and this drewe them to this securitie This is the nature of the Regenerate Suppose the Regenerate in this vvorlde compt in some measure of the crosse of Christ and of the power of God yet in the best of them there is some lacke some infirmities and vvantes and they will thinke sometime the preaching of the Crosse and Resurrection of Christ to bee but vanitie and a dreame of vviues as IOHN PETER MATTHEVV and the rest of the Apostles did for none of them vvoulde beleeue this That CHRIST vvas risen Wee vvill thinke that there is some great follie in these tidinges I vvill tell you my nature and the nature of the best man or vvoman but vvhen vve shall see That joyfull Morning as DAVID calles it then vvee shall saye vvith SARAH THE LORDE hath made mee nowe to laugh indeede Shee scorned vvhen shee hearde saye shee shoulde conceaue and beare a childe shee thought shee coulde not beare a childe and nowe vvhen shee sees it come to passe shee saies The LORDE makes mee to laugh indeede And so shall vvee saye one daye that thing vvhich vvee thought but jestes then wee shall saye I see this nowe that I coulde not beleeue vvell enough nowe I see it is true indeede So then in despite of all naturall vvit striue to gette an hope aboue hope and then shalt thou greatlie vvonder at that sight and maruell foreuer that there could be such a joy Now blessed is that man or that woman that gets a taste of it here for they shall be assured of it for euer But to goe forward I see that it auailes not much to speake to a sleeping person that is loadned with sin and feeles it not that is the worst estate in the worlde neuer to groane vnder this mortalitie vnder this burthen of death They can neuer say with the Apostle Miserable man that I am who shall deliuer me from this body of death And if yee speake to these persons of the Resurrection death of Christ it auaileth nothing to them What did the Apostles They thought it but a scorne if the Apostles thought so what wilt thou doe that sleepest in thy murther in thine adulterie in thy theft in thine oppression If the Apostles slept how wilt thou sleepe a sleeping sinner must bee once wakened as PAVL sayes in the Epistle to the Romanes the first Chapter and eighteenth verse The wrath of God is manifest from the Heauen against all the vnrighteousnesse of men And I say the wrath and the vengeance of GOD is manifest vpon the sleeping sinner and death comes on him that neuer shall haue an end But PAVL in the Epistle to the Romanes the third CHAPTER and the twentie and one VERSE hee comes on with other tithings and sayes That the righteousnesse of GOD through faith in Jesus Christ is made manifest to them that beleeue And I will say to thee that Iesus is come into the world and died for thee if thou beleeuest thou shalt be freed of that burthen of sinne and wrath and vvhen a man heares this he will thinke it the sweetest tithings that euer he heard for the sinner will finde life in that death and that blood will sprinckle his conscience as the Apostle sayes to the Hebrewes and thou wilt finde a wonderfull joy vvhen thy sinnes are remitted in Christ of all joyes vnder the Heauen this is the greatest The preaching of Christ auailes to none but to him who findes his soule loadned with sinne Now one word and so I shall ende I see in the Apostles and in their great infirmitie the great prouidence of GOD they will neither beleeue nor misbeleeue but by His Prouidence what euer vvas their part in it the worke was good of a good purpose The LORD will not haue them to beleeue the testimonie of the first companie nor yet of the second companie of women No no He vvill not haue them to beleeue vntill they see it with their eyes and feele it with their handes and ere they passe out to others He vvill speake to them and let them see that they may be perswaded that it was true I alwayes tell you this It is not a small thing to testifie of the Resurrection of Christ to preach His Passion and Resurrection and wilt thou of a light knowledge preach it No beware thou speake this or that vpon a report Of all men that speakes in this earth or is sent with a commission a Minister hath most neede to beware what hee speakes Speake hee of the Passion or Resurrection of CHRIST ere euer hee speake let him get a sight of Him suppose not vvith the bodily eyes lay hold on Him by Faith in thine heart Thinke it not enough to be an hearing witnesse but a seeing witnesse and vvhen thou hast gotten that persvvasion with vvhat confidence vvilt thou speake of His death thou wilt speake with such euidencie that the high heartes of men shall be humbled finding such weight in thy wordes The LORD giue vs grace that vvhen vve stand vp to speake of the Resurrection of CHRIST to others vvee may haue the perswasion of it in our ovvne heartes and that vve may finde His gracious Spirit working in vs and as vvee speake of Heauen and these joyes to others so vvee may finde some joy beginne in our owne hearts heere that after this life is ended we may reigne with Him in glorie for euer with CHRIST To whome with the Father and the Holy Spirit be all honour praise and glorie for euermore AMEN THE XXXII LECTVRE OF THE RESVRRECTION OF CHRIST LVKE CHAP. XXIIII verse 12 Then arose Peter and ranne vnto the sepulchre and looked in and sawe the linnen clothes layed by themselues and departed wondering in himselfe at that which was come to passe IOHN CHAP. XX. verse 3 Peter therefore went foorth and the other disciple and they came vnto the sepulchre verse 4 So they ranne both together but the other disciple did out-runne Peter and came first to the sepulchre verse 5 And hee stouped downe and sawe the linnen clothes lying yet went hee not in verse 6 Then came Simon Peter following him and went into the sepulchre and sawe the linnen clothes lie verse 7 And the kerchiefe that was vpon his head not lying with the linnen clothes but wrapped together in a place by it selfe verse 8 Then went in also the other disciple who came first to the sepulchre and hee sawe it and beleeued verse 9 For as yet they knewe not the Scripture That hee must rise againe from the dead verse 10 And the disciples went awaye againe vnto their owne home WE haue heard these dayes past beloued in the Lord Iesus of the two companies of women that went out of Hierusalem towarde the graue of the Lorde early in the morning The one company that came first wherein was Marie Magd. and Marie the mother of
for all her loue her mourning passed measure No yee will not finde scarcely in all the Scripture such a mourning as was in this woman she mournes too much almost desperately for the body of the Lord she mournes in vaine where there was no cause of mourning but cause of joy The ground of all this mourning was ignorance and forgetfulnes she had forgotten that which He had tolde her that He should rise againe the third day shee remembred not but the third daye missing the body she thinkes it to be stollen away Marke this The godly when they thinke they doe best they are oft miscaried with their owne affections they are mourning for Christ and also louing Christ and yet in the meane time they are sinning against Him The ground of this in them is ignorance and forgetfulnes of the promises of the Lorde so that if yee would looke into that word ye need not be ignorant concerning God if thou mournest for ignorance blame thy selfe thou lookest not to the worde for if thou lookest into this word and mournest thou hast forgot as Marie Magdalene did and therefore thou deseruest to be casten in a perplexitie Yet to consider this somewhat better First when she came out to the graue shee ranne home and seeing the stone rolled away she tells false tithings and shee once conceiues a false opinion Novv she stands and abides in this opinion and vvill not goe in to the graue but stands without the graue and mournes desperately for a time Well Brethren after that once a vvrong opinion conceit enter into the head of any it is not lightly remoued againe thou mayest conceiue it lightly as Marie Magdalene did but thou shalt not lay it downe so lightly Beware of opinions concerning God religion ere euer thou suffer an opinion to enter into thine head consider it in the beginning had she considered it well shee had not beene ouer-come with it nowe Therefore let not opinions concerning GOD Religion and that Life to come lightlie enter into your heades Nowe at last she bowes her bodie goes in to the graue When she hath gone forwarde for a season in this vaine displeasure at the last the Lorde bowes her heart for if she had not bowed her heart she should neuer haue bowed her bodie to haue looked in to the graue Marke the goodnesse of the LORDE towardes His owne when they haue gone forwarde a while in their owne perplexitie the LORDE lookes vnto them and will not let them goe on so desparatelie to destruction but Hee wiil bowe thine heart first The first grace is not the giuing to thee the thing thou seekest but the moouing of thine heart to seeke is the first No Hee will not present Himselfe at the first before thee but Hee will haue thee to bowe thy selfe to seeke Him And it lyes not in the handes of anie bodie to bowe himselfe to seeke Him No as life is of mercie so seeking of life is of mercie And if thou gettest an inclination to seeke Christ and Heauen that is the first grace and He that hath gâ—uen thee the fiâ—st grace to seeke without doubt Hee will also giue thee the seconde to finde Him Nowe shee lookes in to the graue and her looking in is not in vaine for looking in shee seekes and seeking shee findes And marke what shee findes she findes not a dead bodie as she thought shee woulde haue beene glad to haue founde it but shee sees two gloriouâ— Angels sitting in the graue clothed in bright rayment the one where His head had layen and the other where His feete had layen So our lesson is this Bowe thy bodie and thou shalt see seeke and thou shalt finde yea I sâ—y to thee if thou wilt bowe thy bodie to seeke thou shalt get greater thinges than thou seekest MARIE sought but Christes deade bodie and shee findes Angels bearing witnesse that Hee was risen So in a worde Seeke and thou shalt finde greater thinges than euer thou soughtest Alas wee wâ—nt grace for fault of seeking And I testifie this that the worlde wantes grace and saluation for fault of seeking for their heaâ—te cannot bowe downe to seeke Nowe what sees shee Shee sawe Angels Peter and John saw something also but what sawe they when they went to the graue They sawe but a winding-sheete lying in one place of the graue and a kerchiefe in another but MARIE sawe not this onelie which might haue witnessâ—d that the LORD vvas risen and not stollen awaye for if Hee had beene stollen they vvoulde haue stollen the vvinding-sheete and the kerchiefe also Shee sees a fairer sight than IOHN and PETER did MARIE that vvas a vvoman sees a more glorious sight than two Apostles sawe they see but linnen clothes Marie sees two Angels and in this shee is preferred to the two Apostles That vvhich I saye of her I saye of all these vvomen that they vvere preferred aboue the Apostles Marke this yee that are vvomen All your sâ—xe is honoured in these vvomen The first and the seconde companie got the sight of Angels which none of the Apostles got And vvhen I consider this their preferment I finde it standes in these two poincts chiefelie First they get the first reuelation it is first tolde to them and secondlie it is not tolde to them by men but by Angels In both these the Apostles are postponed they get it tolde them by vvomen and then they get it tolde them in the seconde rowme So that all vvomen haue a prerogatiue in these vvomen In this That the LORDE giues this prerogatiue to this infirme sexe Hee shames the Apostles and that to this ende that all glorie maye be giuen to GOD. Yet I vvill not passe by the sitting of the two Angels Nothing heere fell out rashlie all vvas ordained hee that vvas appointed to sit at the head of the graue hee sate at the head and hee that vvas appointed to sit at the feete sate at the feete So the LORDE appointed that not onelie they shoulde speake vvith their tongue but also by their placing tell that Hee was risen And the Angell of GOD that sate at the head vvoulde saye Magdalene heere is the place where his head laye hee is risen And the other that sate at the feete vvoulde saye Heere is the place where his feete laye hee is risen It is euen so yet in the vvorld they whom Hee sendes to teache Hee disposes them so that by their sitting their going and standing Hee will preach and Hee vvill make their sitting to informe them that Hee ordained to life and saluation The Lorde vvorkes all for the weale of His Elect yea the least circumstance is for the weale and saluation of His owne Nowe to goe forwarde Marie hath seene a faire sight but stayes the grace heere and thinkes the LORDE Hee hath done enough because Hee hath let her see such a glorious sight No He will haue them also to speake They both
vvith one voyce saye Why weepest thou When the LORDE beginnes once to bowe the heart Hee vvill let thee see grace yea Hee vvill not let thee see onelie but Hee vvill also let thee heare Hee woulde not onelie let her see dumme Angels but Hee woulde haue them also to speake vnto her that shee might heare joyfullie When Hee hath once begunne ere Hee leaue Hee vvill fill all the senses vvith grace Hee shall fill the eye with sight the eare with hearing and in the ende Hee shall fill thine heart fullie with grace and mercie Nowe what heares Marie The Angels saye vnto her Woman why mournest thou For as shee looked in to the graue shee vvept bitterlie the teares went neuer from her eyes nor the sadnesse from her heart till the LORDE Himselfe saide MARIE why weepest thou Marke the vvordes The Angell no doubt rejectes her because shee wept without measure and in vaine because shee thought that the bodie of the LORDE had beene stollen awaye shee wept for Him who was liuing But as the Angell reprooues her so hee pitties her Then if thou weepe for the LORD Hee shall cause the Angels of Heauen to pittie thee Yet againe What saye the Angels They saye not Woman feare not as they did to the rest of the women that came before And why saye they not Feare not Shee was so ouer-come with displeasure and so sadde hearted that shee was not afraide of the Angels and was not astonied as the other women for they had not so sad an heart as shee had for her heart was so filled with sadnesse and displeasure that feare coulde not get place The Angell sayes Woman why mournest thou because it was mourning that ailed her The LORD giues alwayes medicine according to the sore If thou bee sad Hee will saye Why mournest thou The Angell applies the medicine and stilles her A mourning bodie for CHRIST woulde bee stilled If thou weepest for CHRIST suppose thou passe bounds yet thou shalt not want stilling though He should send his Angels to still thee No there was neuer any y t mourned for Christ that wanted stilling Nor there was neuer anie childe that got so sweete wordes to still them as thou shalt get who mournest for CHRIST Then Blessed are they sayes CHRIST that mourne for they shall receiue consolation Matth. 5.4 If thou mourne for the loue of the LORDE thou shalt bee stilled and comforted and blessed shalt thou bee one daye Alas this is a laughing worlâ—â—-woe vnto it few men or women are nowe mourning wiâ—◠〈◊〉 Magdalene alas vvhat neede haue vvee of stilling No vvee are laughing notvvithstanding of all thâ—se judgements that approach fast and are neare at hand they vvill cause vs all mourne one day But vvhat sayes the Angells to her Say they in an anger Why seeke yee the liuing amongst the deade Beholde the mercie of GOD to His children she merited if yee looke to her fault to haue beene reprooued more sharply shee forgot the vvord of our Sauiour and she vvould not looke in to the graue yet he reprooues her not hee sayes not to her Why seeke yee Him that is liuing amongst the dead as the Angell spake to the other vvomen This is our lesson in a vvorde The LORD lookes not vvhat thou meritest but He lookes vvhat thou needest Hee vvill not speake according to thy merite but according to thy neede and necessitie for if thou mournest for the LORD Hee vvill minister comfort to thee No He wil not make a sorrowful heart more sorrowfull he is a cruel person that vvil do so no the Lord wil not do so He will not bruâ—se the brokâ—n reede neither will He quench the smoaking flaxe as it vvas prophecied of Him long before Esay Chapter 42. and the third verse But if thou bee sad Hee vvill raise thee vp vvith such comfort as cannot be tolde Novve to goe forvvarde When they haue demanded Why vveepest thou â—hee ansvveres without any feare as their sight terrifies her not so neither is she terrified vvith their voyce What vvas the cause that shee feared not and that at the voyce of the terrible Angâ—lls shee is not mooued Euen because her heart vvas ouercome and loadned vvith dolour and sadnesse that there could be no place almost left to feare She sayes They haue stollen away the body of the Lord and I knowe not where they haue laid Him What could she doe vvith it wherefore vvas shee so carefull Shee tells vvhat shee vvould doe vvith it shâ—e sayes to Himselfe I would burie it nowe all this came of a suâ—passing loue and therefore looke not so much to her doing as to her loue Learne at Marie Magdalene to loue the LORD and shee may learne all the world This loue and zeale of GOD is almost out of the heartes of men and vvomen and when I consider her great loue I find it is more than any naturall affection as father to sonne or man to woman 〈◊〉 â—â—cept there had come a force vertue out of that body she could neuer haue loued the Lord so well No except He loose our heartes with that loue hee beares to vs wee cannot loue Him but when once Hee looses thine heart thou wilt hate thy selfe to loue Him so what euer I discommend in her I discommend not her loue No I shall neuer discommend loue nor zeale in any person Alas we haue too litle of it to discommend it and I doubt not but all these imperfections that vvere in her were couered by the LORD IESVS whome shee loued Our comfort is this if we loue the LORD our GOD well albeit wee had a thousand imperfections they shall be couered with the mantle of the righteousnes of IESVS yea He shall meete thy loue vvith vnspeakable loue Thus farre for the sight and hearing of the Angels The Text sayes assoone as shee had spoken She turnes her about againe Men would thinke this an vndiscreet behauiour to stand and heare two Angels and then like a vaine person to turne her about I will not excuse this altogether but I impute this to the exceeding dolour and sadnesse wherewith their soule was loadned there must be many faultes ouerseene in a sad person I had rather beare with twentie faultes in such a person as to beare with one in a vaine person Now as she is speaking to the Angels so the LORD comes neare toward her backe and ere euer He came or shee savv Him He touches her with a secret and powerfull presence of His Spirit for I doubt not as Hee came neare her but His Spirit both turnes her about and closes the mouth of the Angels for He is the LORD both of man and Angell and if He come His presence must turne thee and when Hee comes to speake all the Angels must holde their tongue and be dumbe Yee knowe that IOHN the BAPTIST vvas a great light before the LORD came and many followed him but vvhen CHRIST comes IOHN closes his mouth
tell my brethren Well gets a woman the commission where is Peter Iohn and Matthew and the rest of the Apostles alwaies in the beginning it is a woman that gets the commission The last day yee remember I spake of sundrie preferments of women that they gote before all men they gote the reuelation of His Resurrection before all men in the world and not by men but by glorious Angels but Marie is preferred to all men and women in this that shee first sees the Lord and then shee gets a reuelation of the Lord that the women got not she gets the reuelation of His ascension and yet there is more she got it not to her selfe alone but He sayes Tell the Apostles tell them sayes Christ I goe to my Father So this is a speciall grace that women got and especially Marie that was furthest casten downe possessed with seuen deuils What should I say The further thou be casten downe the higher shalt thou bee exalted But marke the wordes Hee sayes Tell my brethren Notwithstanding of their sluggishnesse notwithstanding they were offended in Him yet Hee sayes Tell my brethren In the 22. Psalme verse 23. DAVID sayes I shall preach to my brethren The LORD accomplished heere that prophecie heere Hee preaches to His brethren ye read in Heb. 2.11.12 Hee that sanctifies and wee which are sanctified are all of one that is wee are of one common nature and therefore He is not ashamed to call vs brethren and therefore he brings in this place of the 22. Psalme saying J will declare thy Name vnto my brethren the reason is this Hee hath a common nature vvith vs and therefore Hee is not ashamed of vs marke it well Nowe vvhen He is risen He calles them brethren and now vvhen Hee is in that passing glorie the LORD is not ashamed to call vs brethren if a man of small linage bee exalted in this world hee vvill not knovve his father or his mother But the LORD that is exalted aboue all the Angells is not the prouder Hee is also humble to His brethren as euer Hee vvas in the earth Hee is not ashamed to call vs poore wretches His brethren and sisters that are heere in the earth No if thou bee not ashamed of Him first Hee vvill neuer bee ashamed of thee Now to come to the commission He sayes Tell them I goe to my Father and to your Father and to my God and to your God Tell them this The commission that is giuen before by the Angells telles that Hee was risen but the commission that the LORD Himselfe giues to Marie is of an higher degree of glorification it is of His ascension for Tell them sayes Hee I goe to my Father and to your Father and to my God and to your God The LORD vvhen Hee comes in proper person brings euer a greater reuelation than vvas of before All the light that the Angels Prophets or IOHN the BAPTIST reueiled of Him vvas but darknesse in respect of that light that Himselfe brought Likevvise after His going to Heauen the Apostles the disciples and Ministers Ministers light to the end of the vvorlde but in that great day vvhen the LORD shall come thou shalt see a greater light thou savvest neuer light comparable to that light It is hard for thee novve to beleeue but sober thinges but then thou shalt see great things thou shalt haue no stoppe euen thinges that the eye hath not seene neither hath entered in the heart of man Yet let vs vveigh the vvordes better I goe vp to my Father I goe not dovvne let them not seeke mee in the earth I haue beene in it as PAVL sayes to the Ephesians the fourth CHAPTER and the ninth VERSE Hee descended into the lowest partes of the earth I goe nowe to the Heauen The vvorde importes that Hee vvas to leaue them and that vvorde vvas sad to them and to Marie and they tooke it heauie I goe sayes Hee to my Father and to my God Hee vvent not for His ovvne vvell to the Father that the Father might communicate His glorie to Him I goe sayes Hee to my Father and to your Father and to my God and to your God This imports that as Hee vvent to His Father for His ovvne glorie and vvel so Hee vvent for their glory and vvell and assoone as He should get that glorie He should communicate it to them and no doubt this vvorde your Father and your God raised their heartes to follow Him suppose our bodies bee heere our heartes are in the Heauen and vve are citizens there albeit thy body vvere burnt if thine heart be in the Heauen thou art vvell and if He had not gone to Heauen neither had He gotten glory neither had anie glorie beene communicated vnto vs but Hee going to that Father of glorie as the Apostle calles Him and so as the first begotten of GOD beeing filled with glorie wee are made partakers of His glorie as yee reade in the first CHAPTER of this Gospel of Iohn The oyle y t was poured down vpon the head of AARON stayed not there but ranne downe to his bearde his breast his girdle and the lowest partes of his garment So the graces that were in Iesus Christ our head stayed not there but flowed from Him euen to the meanest of all His members The Lord who is full of grace giues euery one of vs a part here and one day we shall bee all filled with grace and glory for euer and euer Marke the wordes well he calles Him first Father and then he calles Him God which imports two natures in one person The Father importes His Godhead and that he calles Him his God it imports that He is man so that these two wordes import that Christ is both God man blessed for euer But marke the order He sayes not I goe to your Father and mine No but to my Father and your Father Ere euer He be our Father He must be His Father Ere euer He be our God He must bee the God of Christ the man for if it had not bene for the bloode of Christ Hee had neuer bene thy God thou hast that bought vnto thee with the bloode of Christ wee come in vnder Christ our elder brother Nowe when Marie hath receiued the commission shee tarries no longer howbeit shee was loath to depart from Him yet because shee saw that it was His will she obeyes The godly would faine goe and dwell with the Lord Paul sayes I haue confidence in GOD and J choose rather to remooue out of this bodie and to dwell with GOD 2. Corint Chap. 5. Faine woulde the godlie soule bee with GOD and suppose it bee pressed downe with sinne yet it breaks aye vpward toward the Heauens to be with the Lord that this moâ—talitie may bee swallowed vp of Life for as long as wee lye heere vvâ—e liue vnder the burthen of sinne So faine woulde the godlie bee with Him yet seeing it is his vvill that
vvee bee Pilgrimes heere a vvhile that our joye maye bee the greater vvhen vvee meeâ—e vvith the LORDE vvhome vvee haue longed for vvee are contented for a time Now when Marie departs what does shee She tolde the Dâ—sciples that shee had seene the LORDE Shee is preaching and telling The LORD is going to heauen to your Father and your GOD. Nowe Brethren seeing vvee are Pilgrimes let vs take heede vvee bee well occupied and looke wee discharge our commission for there is no man nor woman but they haue a commission Thou that art a Preacher preache both in time and out of time to His glorie and if thou discharge thy commission faithfullie in thy calling then euen as Marie was welcome vnto Him againe so shalt thou bee also welcome when thou shalt meete with the LORD and Hee shall accept well of thee The LORDE enable vs to take heede to this that seeing wee must remaine absent from our LORDE for a time heere wee maye euer cast vs to bee vvell occupied and walke carefullie in that calling that Hee hath placed vs in And then when that the LORDE of Glorie shall appeare whome wee haue serued in this life our soules and bodies shall enjoye the full fruition of His presence in Heauen To whome be glorie for euermore Amen THE XXXV LECTVRE OF THE RESVRRECTION OF CHRIST MATTH CHAP. XXVIII verse 9 And as they went to tell his disciples beholde Jesus also met them saying God saue you And they came and tooke him by the feete and worshipped him verse 10 Then saide Iesus vnto them Bee not afraide Goe and tell my Brethren that they goe into Galile and there shall yee see mee MARKE CHAP. XVI verse 10 And shee went and tolde them that had beene with him who mourned and wept verse 11 And when they hearde that hee was aliue and had appeared to her they beleeued it not BELOVED BRETHREN these dayes past vvee haue heard first the Historie of Marie Magdalene how shee returned home and how shee came againe to the graue of her LORD and of her mourning and weeping at the graue of her looking againe in to the graue of the sight of th'Angels meeting with her of Christes wordes vnto her first Hee spake aloofe and afarre off vnto her Woman why weepest thou whome seekest thou Then Hee speakes homelie vnto her calling her by her name and sayes Marie Shee answeres Him Rabboni as Hee had named her homelie so shee answered Him homelie Hee named her like a Master and shee answered Him like a reuerende Disciple Hee calles her as a Sheepehearde and shee answeres Him as one of His flocke knowing Him by His voyce shee offers to embrace Him but Hee preuentes her and sayes vnto her Touch mee not for I am not ascended to my Father perceiuing her to bee ouer much addicted to His bodilie presence before Hee will permit her to touch Him Hee will haue her first to beleeue in Him and to touch Him in glorie by the hande of faith Then Hee sendes her in commission Goe to my Brethren so calling His Disciples A louing stile Tell them of other tidinges than euer they haue hearde yet They hearde of my Resurrection but they beleeued not but nowe I goe to the Heauens to my Father and to your Father to my GOD and to your GOD And this is the commission Marie receiuing it shee executes it and runnes to the Disciples to tell them and as Iohn sayes she preaches to them the thing that shee had heard of the LORDE MARKE sayes that when shee came to them shee founde them weeping This was a weeping time but shortlie after followed a time of joye This change of courses yee see in the worlde for though thou bee wanton and laugh heere neuer so much yet thou wilt weepe soone after But wilt thou weepe and mourne heere for a while when there is matter of mourning thou shalt laugh and rejoyce shortlie afterwarde Nowe when Marie findes the Apostles weeping and mourning shee telles them that the LORD is aliue shee confirmes it that Hee spake and sayes shee sawe Him with her eyes But howe takes the Apostles with this commission They remaine faithlesse for all that she could say they would not beleeue her No it is an hard matter to beleeue the Article of the Resurrection That a man that is dead can rise againe and take life fleshe and blood will neuer dite this vnto thee that one that is dead can liue againe The women vvho vvere more simple and not so vvise in vvorldlie vvit as the Apostles vvere are more readie to credite the Resurrection than the Apostles vvho vvere strong according to the fleshe The Resurrection is harde to be beleeued of anie man but this is sure The Resurrection is hardest to bee beleeued of them vvho are vvisest in this vvorlde No hee that hath this worldlie vvisedome hee countes these Heauenlie and Spirituall thinges but follie till hee bee made a foole that hee maye bee made wise as the Apostle PAVL speakes 1. CORIN CHAP. 3. VERS 18. That is till hee renounce this worldlie wisedome hee shall neuer beleeue these Spirituall thinges When I consider the wordes of MARKE I finde manie faultes in the Disciples They were lying mourning this vvas a vaine mourning What cause had they of mourning for Him whome they thought vvas dead but yet vvas aliue So they had matter of joye and not of mourning And from vvhence proceeded this mourning First they vvere ignorant of the Scriptures which had foretolde that he shoulde rise againe Then they had forgotten the vvorde vvhich the LORDE had spoken vnto them That hee shoulde die and rise againe the thirde daye Yet there is vvorse in them than this The first companie of vvomen vvho tolde them of CHRISTES Resurrection they woulde not beleeue them Then the next companie comes neither woulde they beleeue them one vvorde And last MARIE came vvho not onelie met vvith the Angels but also vvith the LORDE and receiued a commission and yet they vvoulde not beleeue her notwithstanding shee tolde them that she had seene Him So there is not onelie an vnbeliefe but a stiffenesse in them So that if yee will count these faultes their dolour is first without comfort and secondlie an ignorance of the Scriptures and thirdly a forgetfulnesse of the worde of the LORDE and last there is an infidelitie that they would neither beleeue the women who came from the Angels nor MARIE that came from the LORDE and sawe Him and spake with Him So that they are as new to enter to learn as though they had neuer seen nor known Christ Yet there was some good thing in them for certainly howbeit the dolour came of ignorance forgetfulnesse and incredulitie yet I am sure of this that the loue which they carried towardes CHRIST caused them to mourne for if they had not loued Him they had not mourned for Him No there was none of the High Priestes that wet their cheekes for His death So
for this was but the third day after He vvas crucified Yee see Brethren for all this leauing of the LORD and desparing euer to see Him yet heere is a piece of godlinesse in their heartes and a sponke of Hope that keepes them that they drowned not into despare for if they had not preuented they would haue perished with the rest of the Iewes and as they are thus wrestling betwixt Hope and Despare the Lord takes them by the hande to helpe them It is a good thing to haue if it vvere but one sponke of grace yea if it were but to speake of Him For none can call Iesus the Lord as the Apostle sayes except he haue gotteen the Spirit of Christ So holde on and speake of Him if thou canst doe no more Yet to goe forward When they are talking He comes in and goes with them Marke it This is an argument that the Lord heard what they were speaking and as He heares them Hee joynes with them side for side Well take heede to thine heart to thy words The Lorde is nearer to thee than thou thinkest walke as if thou werest speaking to Him and as if He heard thee or saw thee and when thou speakest abhorre not the presence of the Lord Thou that wilt runne to an hole wilt abhorre His presence but ay say this Lord be present at my speaking what meanes all this baudrie talke and blasphemie Euen this Thou seekest not to haue thine heart sanctified by the presence of thy God so if thou wilt speake say Lord be into mine heart and Lord rule my tongue and open my mouth then when He openeth thy mouth gracious words will come out So in a word seeke that presence to sanctifie your speech and actions It is said when He joynes with them Their eyes are so bound vp that they could not know Him They know not His face nor His voyce Marke sayes That he appeared to them in another forme Luke sets downe in plaine wordes how this was to wit not that He was of a diuerse forme indeed but because their eyes were holden closed that they could not know Him so the change was in them not in Him Hee remained in one forme and was euer like Himselfe in all His appearance He neuer altered His presence but He altered their eyes that behelde looked vpō Him I thinke some of you would aske In what forme appeared Hee Was Hee naked The souldiours got His clothes Whether was He naked or not No I thinke not that Hee was naked but Hee appeared with His Ioynes girded as a man addressed to a journey as He appeared to Marie cled like a Gardener yet ye will aske had He indeede cloathes on Him or not I haue no warrant of that alwayes He appeared to them to be clothed indeede they thoght He had cloths on Him these men thought He had clothes on for their eyes vvere bound vp It is a wonder that they could not know Him nor His voyce He altered not His voyce and yet they could not know Him albeit it be naturall by the sight of the eye to know one with whō wee are acquainted it is naturall by the eare to know the voyce yet this place lets vs see that the Lord hath a commandement of these gifts when Hee sayes looke that thou see not thou shalt not see and if He say to thee looke that thou know not thy father thou shalt not know him and more if He say know not the voyce of thy wife thou shalt not knowe her voyce All this tends to this We should beg our eyes our eares and all at the hands of God ay for that gift that thou hast thanke God hartily and say Lord I thanke thee for this that I can know the voyce of one creature frō another so all our lifetime should be a begging of His gifts if we moue we should thanke our God Now if we should beg this naturall sight that we haue much more are we bound to beg the thing we haue not to beg a spirituall eye to see heauenly things then when thou gettest it thou shouldest render thanks to Him Now of graces this is the best that the Lord giues an eye to see that life for if thou gettest one blencke certainly thou shalt see Heauen that joy and glorie at the which one day thou shalt wonder Now glory bee giuen to Him for all His giftes and euen for this that Hee hath giuen vs these bodily eyes I beseech Him to giue euery one of vs spirituall eyes that we may get a blencke of Him here and in the Heauens enjoy His presence for euermore through Christ our Lord. To whome with the Father and Holy Spirit be all praise and honour for euermore AMEN THE XXXVII LECTVRE OF THE RESVRRECTION OF CHRIST LVKE CHAP. XXIIII verse 17 And hee saide vnto them What manner of communications are these that yee haue one to another as yee walke and are sadde verse 18 And the one named Cleopas answered and saide vnto him Art thou onelie a stranger in Hierusalem and hast not knowne the thinges which are come to passe therein in these dayes verse 19 And hee saide vnto them What thinges And they saide vnto him Of Jesus of Nazareth who was a Prophet mightie in deede and in worde before God and all the people verse 20 And howe the high Priestes and our Rulers deliuered him to bee condemned to death and haue crucified him IN this Historie of the Resurrection of IESVS CHRIST welbeloued in Him wee haue heard hitherto of sundrie witnesses testifying His Resurrection from the death The Angels began and they testified His Resurrection to the women The women testified it to the Disciples who were conuened at Hierusalem and namelie to Peter and Iohn Then MARIE came foorth the seconde time and shee meetes with the LORD Then there are other women who came foorth and meetes vvith the LORDE And after these women there comes other witnesses to vvit enemies who were sent to watch the graue by PILATE and the High Priestes and they witnessed That Hee was risen But they solde their tongues to the high Priestes and the IEVVES to make a lie and to affirme that the LORDES DISCIPLES had come in the night and stollen awaye His bodie vvhile they slept And after these vvitnesses yee hearde the last daye wee returned to other two vvitnesses vvho both vvere the Disciples of the LORDE the one is named CLEOPAS but the name of the other is not expressed These two euen in a manner despairing that euer they shoulde see the LORDE they depart out of Hierusalem where they were with the rest of the Disciples to a Village not farre off called EMMAVS and they were talking by the waye of the thinges which immediatlie had fallen out before The Lorde who sawe them and hearde them addresses Himselfe shortlie to them and goes with them as a passenger going out the waye
Lorde they haue seene such an homelinesse as they could neuer thinke of In the 3. of the Reuelation verse 20. The Lord Iesus sayes I will stande at the doore and I will knocke hee that will open to mee I will come in and suppe with him Once let me in I shall be so homely as thou neuer wouldest haue thought I shall insinuate mee in thine heart I shall not only sit at thy table but I will sit in thine heart and shall feede thine heart with joy and food euerlasting Nowe to goe forwarde the Lord who no question bound vp their eyes before opens them now if He close thine eyes the world cannot open them He only can oppen them The meane whereby Hee opens them apparantly was that forme of prayer Hee vsed before He brake the bread Next they vnderstood that it vvas Hee by the distributing of the bread for Hee vsed to feede them with His owne hande and therefore by these signes they are made to know Him I see here grace growes after that once grace begins none end of grace after that once He hath inuited them He suppes with them then He feedes them with His owne hand and then at the last their eyes were opened and judge yee what joy that was to them No doubt that was the most joyfull sight that euer they saw So hold on and entertaine the Lord a while and set Him at thy table and neuer be glad to eat nor drinke except thou findest some presence of thy GOD for it is a lothsome dinner if thou wantest Him and if thou entreatest Him on thou shalt finde in ende an exceeding joy Entertaine Him now as a passenger and in the ende thou shalt see Him to thy comfort thine eyes shall bee opened to see Him as He is Then it is said as their eyes were opened He was lifted from them yee must not thinke that the Lord made His body inuisible it is contrarie to the order of nature a thicke body to be inuisible nor yee must not thinke that He brake out at the house side as the Papists dreame this departure was by the holding of their eyes He was not changed in this forme or that forme but the change vvas in their eyes so that they see not howe Hee departes or in what manner as before their eyes were holden that they could not know Him To leaue this yee would maruell Hee giues them but one blencke in an instant He goes away from them why stayes He not No it was not meete for them that Hee should stay nor yet was it possible for Him to stay after that manner that they would haue had Him to haue stayed seeing nowe sufficiently they were assured that Hee was risen it was not needfull that Hee should stay with them as of before as yee see the Apostles in the 1. of the Actes speaking to Him they say Lord wilt thou at this time restore the Kingdome to Israel That is in effect Lord wilt thou not remaine with vs here on the earth No He would not stay with them but giues them a glance of Him then secondly Hee could not dwell amongst them the earth could not be capable of a glorious body glorifie a man or a woman the earth cannot keepe them glorifie a man or a woman this earth is too euill for them they cannot dwell in the earth No that Paradice wherein Adam was set that pleasant Garden that He was placed in could not keepe a glorious body and a glorified man So the Lorde beeing glorified could not dwell and abide amongst men as of before so then wouldest thou dwell with Christ and dwell in that pleasant place and thou shalt neuer haue happinesse nor joy till thou dwellest with Him Thinke not to bring Him downe to the earth but if thou wouldest dwell vvith Him flit out of the earth make thee for flitting Paul sayes I desire to flit and to dwell with the Lord Wouldest thou desire to dvvell vvith the Lord desire to flit out of thy bodie for if thou hast not a desire but art afraide to flit it is a token that thou hast no langour of God and that thou shalt neuer dvvell vvith Him but that soule that desires to flit to enjoy that presence that soule that hath groaned for it for the soule that is godly groanes as a man that groanes vnder a burthen shall enjoy the presence of God dvvell with Him and that soule shall be glorified thy body indeed shall not bee glorified vntill that time that Hee shall appeare and then thy bodie and thy soule both shall bee glorified with Him and then our eyes shall see Him and our bodies shall dwell vvith Him in the Heauen in that euerlasting Paradise Nowe Brethren hitherto the Lorde hath manifested Himselfe then see what effect followes and is wrought in their heartes of this manifesting Yee woulde thinke that so soone as the Lorde had bene taken from them they shoulde haue bene sadde For who would not bee sadde to want Him For if thou sawest Him for all the world thou wouldest not bee content to want His presence Yee would maruell why they make no mone for that short time that Hee abode with them No doubt that sight that they got left such a comfort in their heartes as cannot bee spoken And if the Lorde giue His presence to anie man his heart will haue such a joye that it will feede vpon it Yee reade in the eight Chapter of the Actes of the Apostles howe the Eunuche who came from the Queene of Candare when Philippe came and baptized him Philippe was carried awaye from him yet the Scripture sayes not that hee mourned when Philippe was taken away No it is saide that hee went on his waye rejoycing From whence comes this joye No doubt it was the presence of Philippe that left this joye behinde it So in a worde The presence of God leaues alwayes joye and if thou get a blinke of Him in the morning thou shalt bee joyefull of Him all the daye and that joye shall feede thee and when thou art eating and drinking that presence will feede thee Woe to thee who seekest not to get a blinke of Him for if thou gettest not a blinke of Him thou shalt neuer haue solide joye in thine heart But the wordes would bee marked And they saide betweene themselus Did not our heartes burne within vs while hee talked with vs by the waye and when hee opened to vs the Scriptures There are the vvordes When these two men hearde Him the worde was effectuall but they thinke Him not to bee their Lord till hee manifested Himselfe vnto them and then they call to minde by their burning that they found that it was Hee that spake vnto them This confirmes them that it was Hee The same burning of the heart that one will haue is a sure token of the presence of Christ for if the Lorde were not present in thine heart it woulde not burne at the
preaching No not an Angell hath power to set thine heart on fire So thou that hast this burning thou mayest saye that the Lorde Iesus is present in thine heart But marke this We see in these men that our eyes are so blind that we cannot discerne the Lord so long as we liue here we cannot get full sight but we are in a strife if the heart shall say The Lord is here the flesh will say He is not here so that we hing here betwixt hope and despaire But when Hee once manifestes Himselfe in glorie then that burning which we felt in this life that sense which we then felt shall bee brought to our remembrance Thinke not that thou shalt loose that sense No Thou shalt take it vp with thee to the Heauen and we shall say one to another Remember yee not what burning wee had when wee spake and hearde of CHRIST in the earth Then it behooued this LORDE to haue beene then with vs in the earth So the remembrance of that joye which thou felt in the vvorlde shall bee a part of thy joye which thou shalt haue in the Heauens in the life to come Therefore get much joye here and laye it vp in store in thine heart goe on in feeling and I promise thee in the Name of GOD it shall neuer depart but it shall euer augment and enlarge thy joye and glorie in the life to come No as the worde of GOD which is the immortall seede of GOD euanishes not so neither shall the effect of the worde euer euanish Then euer striue to get a sense of the working of this worde in thine heart Nowe a worde and so I shall ende Yee woulde thinke this a sober conclusion As wee walked by the waye when hee spâ—â—e to vs our hearts burned therefore it was he that spake with vs So they concluded that it must bee his Spirit onelie which settes the heart on fire May we not in like manner conclude At the preaching of Paule the Spirite settes the heart on fire therefore Paul is Christ This is a false conclusion And I answere to this That if these men had felt no more but a common feeling in an ordinarie measure their argument had not beene good But they had another feeling than can be at the preaching of a man for no doubt vvith the vvorde Hee sent His Spirite to vvorke in them extraordinarilie And I put it out of question They had such a vvonderfull feeling as they coulde neuer haue had at the preaching of anie man vvhosoeuer So their conclusion is sure Seeing as Hee spake Hee breathed His Spirite vpon vs Hee must bee CHRIST It is a vvonder of them vvho haue gotten GODS SPIRITE howe they vvill discerne of GODS SPIRITE in others And manie are beguiled for fault of this SPIRITE There is verie much spoken of our feeling at the PREACHING And vvhat serues all They call it a fire for the Spirite which raises that feeling is like a fire and therefore He is compared to a fire Matth. 3.11 And a fire hath euer an vp-burning and if thou haue true feeling thine heart shall bee set on fire that fire is mightie will burne vp the drosse of thy saluation which is in thy foule heart No speake not of feeling except thou be regenerate Thou that art an Harlot speake not of feeling except thou feele it burne vp thine harlotrie And thou that art a murtherer saye not that thou hast a feeling and if it burne not vp thy bloodie heart So I charge thee before God heare not one worde except thou findest that Spirit to burne vp thy corruption thou tellest mee that thou feelest and yet thou remainest an harlot fye vpon thine harlotrie let not that word come out of thy mouth Againe as the fire of Gods Spirit burnes vp the drosse of thy corruption so it will inflame thy loue to God it will inflame thine heart and all the power of the soule to the loue of GOD and righteousnesse so that it vvill binde thine heart to God as the Apostle sayes The loue of God constraineth me so that thou wouldest bee content to die to liue with Him and to pleasure Him thou wouldest not care to liue or to die and what more as a fire is nourished with some matter that is meete for burning so this fire once kindled in our soules is nourished and fed by the continuall presence of GOD in IESVS CHRIST and that precious oyle of the Holy Spirit Further a flame tendes alwayes vpward and it will lift an heauie thing that falles downe vpon it ye see a traine of powder will blow vp an house Wee are heauie by nature and loadned with sinne yet that fire of loue will raise thee vp and place thee with the Lord whom thou louest and thine heart will bee lifted vp to Him There is neuer one that loues IESVS in the Earth but they are dwelling with Him in the Heauen and shall enjoy that presence euerlastingly So yee see what it is to haue the heart set on fire till we meete with our LORD and then our heartes shall haue the full fruition of His presence for euer To this IESVS with the Father and Holy Spirit be glorie for euermore AMEN THE XL. LECTVRE OF THE RESVRRECTION OF CHRIST MARKE CHAP. XVI verse 13 And they went and tolde it to the remnant neither beleeued they them verse 14 Finally hee appeared vnto the eleuen as they sate together and reproched them for their vnbeliefe and hardnesse of heart because they beleeued not them which had seene Him beeing risen vp againe LVKE CHAP. XXIII verse 33 And they rose up the same houre and returned to Ierusalem and found the eleuen gathered together and them that were with them verse 34 Which saide The Lord is risen indeede and hath appeared to Simon verse 35 Then they tolde what things were done in the way and how Hee was knowen of them in breaking of bread verse 36 And as they spake these things Iesus Himselfe stood in the middes of them and said vnto them Peace be to you IHON CHAP. XX. verse 19 The same day then at night which was the first day of the weeke and when the doores were shut where the disciples were assembled for feare of the Iewes came Iesus and stood in the middes and said to them Peace be vnto you WEE haue heard Beloued in Christ these dayes past of the conference which was betwixt Christ and these two Disciples who were going to Emmaus Christ reproued theÌ„ sharplie because they thought that Christ being crucified all hope of Redemption was past Next He instructed them affirming that it behooued Him to suffer and by suffering to enter into His glorie This His doctrine which Hee prooued by manie Testimonies of Scripture beginning at Moses and from Moses Hee comes to the Prophets interpreting vnto them what they had spoken concerning Christ concerning His Passion and concerning His glorie after His Passion for the preaching of
confirmed To goe forwarde with the proposition of the argument vvhen He sayes It behoued all these things to come to passe He propones it not simply but whilst He telles it He secretly rebukes them Heard ye not of this before Are not these the words which I spake to you while I was yet with you Why haue ye novv forgote them seeing not long since I tolde you them I finde in the disciples of Christ a very great ignorance at the first Thinke ye that any of them knew one word of this notwithstanding they vvere foretolde in Moses in the Prophets and in the Psalmes No not a worde then vvith this ignorance I see a great forgetfulnesse albeit they knew not should they not haue remembred what their Lorde saide to them before His Passion and yet when they see Him suffer and see His Resurrection this cannot waken their memorie to say My Lord tolde me this therefore I will beleeue in them thou mayest see thy nature howe ignorant and forgetfull thou art by nature let thee ly still albeit thou werest Peter or Paul or the best of them let thee sleeepe on thou shalt die sleeping if these disciples had not beene wakened they had died this is the great and speciall mercie of God that He shewes to His own He wil let them fall in a slumber ly a while in ignorance but incontinently He will come giue them a putte with sharpnesse mercie waken them Thou who refusest sharpnes O that sharpe wakening that shall abide thee Therefore assoone as the Minister of God cries vnto thee O Catiue sleepest thou death and damnation abides thee if thou wakenest not but if thou wilt waken in time thou shalt finde mercy pray vnto the Lord that thou mayest be wakened for if thou wakenest not in time heauie shall the judgement be that shall ouertake thee wofull shall thy wakening be and the dolour that shall come on thee as the paine of a woman in trauell Our men for all our crying will not bee wakened but if they continue sleeping they shall goe to Hell Nowe to come to the assumption These things are written of mee that I should die and rise againe and no doubt when Hee telles this to them He falles out in a discourse of the Scriptures alleadging testimonies out of Moses the Prophets the Psalmes as the words following declare But to proceed Is the Lord content to alleadge the Scriptures simply Does He no more Marke it well as Hee alleadges and opened the Scriptures vnto them So Hee opens their minde and vnderstanding that they might vnderstand the Scriptures Would ye haue an effectuall preaching there is an effectuall preaching when these two goe together when the Scriptures are opened and the Lord puts in His hande and opens the heart and the dead soule that is sleeping to vnderstand that piece of Scripture which is opened Would yee haue the difference betweene the preaching of Christe and the preaching of His seruants all their preaching is nothing in respect of His Moses the Prophets and all the Apostles are nothing to Him when He preached that same LORD that spake had power in His owne hande and made His owne Spirite to open the heart neuer a preacher had that that the Lord Iesus had He had His owne Spirit to giue vnto His owne when Hee spake His owne word the preachers haue not that Spirit to giue but referres it vnto the Lord 1. Cor. 13.5.6.7 Paul sayes to the Corinthians who esteemed much of Paul O vaine men Paul is nothing he only plants Apollos is nothing he wateres but it is God that giues the increase if he blessed not the labour of Paul or of any other preacher all were lost labour if the Lord giue not His Spirit with the word man teaches in vaine In the 16. of the Actes verse 14. When Paul is preaching we read not that any are conuerted for all his preaching but only one woman Lydia happie Lydia When Paul preached it is not said that Paul opened her heart but that the Lorde opened her heart Paul deliuered the doctrine but the Lorde and not Paul had the Spirite to giue vvith the preaching therefore vvhen yee heare and come to heare euer crie Lorde open mine heart No creature no Minister none Angell yea all the Angels of Heauen will not open the heart of a sinner Crie for that Spirite that He would open thine heart that thou mayest feede vpon that food of life Nowe consider at what time it is that the mindes of the disciples are opened to vnderstand It was euen when Hee is exponing the Scriptures then their mindes are opened and at none other time to let you see in despite of the worlde that there is none opening of the heart none illumination of the Spirit but by this word by the hearing and by the reading of this worde Away with these fantasticke reuelations of the Anabaptistes awaye with the Pope and the crue of His shauelings who affirme that the Spirit will be effectuall at the preaching of his vnwritten verities at the dreames and fantasies of men which is not only not found in the Scripture but also is altogether contrarie and repugnant to the Scripture I pronounce let them heare albeit it were a thousand yeere the Spirite of Iesus shall abhorre that trash and peltrie Set me vp the Pope to preach these vanities to thee I denounce thy minde shall not be opened that Spirit shal neuer come to open the mindes neither of them who preach nor yet their mindes who heare them Goe vnto Rome sit and heare and lend thine eare to a flattering societie of their Clergie heare them on thy soule shall the more be blinded the more thou hearest the Spirit of Christ will only accompanie His owne word Looke what is our nature in the Disciples of CHRIST knowest thou it not their mindes were blinded sound sleeping while the Lord opened them They knew not what Moyses said or what the Prophets spake of Christ while the Lord opened their vnderstanding Nothing in nature but euill nothing but blindnesse in the mind Away with the Papist and his freewill fye on thee that thinkest thy selfe better than thou art fye on thee that knowest not thy naturall blindnesse and deadnesse thou wilt come and speake of thy Free-will and of the light of thy minde thou wilt saye that thou hast a Free-will to encline to heauenly things be not deceiued with the conceite of this engine naturall quicknesse Indeede in humane thinges a man will haue a great quicknesse and sharpnesse but bring him to the Scriptures of God to Moyses to the Prophets Apostles he is as blind as a Moldewarpe as fond as a foole the greater naturall wit and quicknesse that thou hast a sore thing the greater excecation and foolishnesse in spirituall things speake to the naturall man of the Scripture of all the fooles in this world he is the greatest the more
thou restrainest that grace that should bring poore soules to Heauen and saluation But to goe forward We haue heard the necessitie of preaching in whose name we should preach what we should preach and last to whome it should be preached to all Nations euen to the Gentiles O! if we Gentiles should not rejoyce that mercie and grace is preached vnto vs who were aliants from the grace of GOD. Now albeit this grace bee extended to all yet there is a difference in order of preaching for the Lorde sayes Beginning at Hierusalem As He would say this preaching must first be preached at Hierusalem and beginne there and before grace bee offered to the Gentiles grace first of all must be offered to the Iewes Grace pertaines first to the Iewes they were the people of God of olde and therefore they must haue their owne right and then when grace is offered to the Iewes grace is extended and runnes abroade ouer all the earth Paul sayes to y e Iewes It was necessary that the word of God should first haue beene spoken vnto you Actes 13.46 There is the order yet the Lorde loues Hierusalem forgets it not Hierusalem that crucified the Lord the Lord forgets it not the Lord will not cast it away but will send His Apostles to preach there first O how loth was He to cast away that Nation that He had chosen of olde from among all Nations a people that He hath once begunne with O how loth will He be to cast away that people Scotland hath a proofe of this I dare say it had not bene the patience that the Lord beares vnto this Land He had not spared vs so long because of the great contempt and disdaining of the Gospell But aboue all the rest that Nation which the Lorde hath chosen from among the rest to be a peculiar people to Himselfe He will offer grace to it first therefore the Iewes got this honour first to haue grace offered to them And as grace in this life is offered to the Iew so shall the Iew get first glorie in Heauen Paul Rom. 2.10 sayes Glorie and honour and peace shall be to euery man that doeth good to the Iew first and also to the Grecian And as the glorie shall belong vnto the faithfull Iew first so by the contrarie the vnfaithfull Jew shall first bee dishonoured for the Apostle sayes in the words immediatly preceeding Tribulation and anguish shall bee vpon the soule of euery one that doeth euill of the Iewe first and next of the Grecian But to ende heere I beseech you to striue vnto vnfained Repentance and to get an assurance of the remission of thy sinnes here if thou wilt be honoured in this life by grace and in the life to come by glorie in Heauen for neither grace nor glorie pertaines vnto impennitent sinners who lye like swine in sinne and delite in sinne But only to all penitent sinners where sinne aboundes grace and mercie superaboundes and that in the blood of Iesus Christ To whom with the Father and Holy Spirit be all honour and glorie for euermore AMEN THE XLIV LECTVRE OF THE RESVRRECTION OF CHRIST LVKE CHAP. XXIIII verse 48 Now yee are witnesses of these things verse 49 And behold I doe send the promise of the Father vpon you but tarie yee in the citie of Hierusalem vntill yee be endued with power from high AFTER that the Lord belooued Brethren in Christ in His fift appearing after His Resurrection by sundrie euidences hath gone about to perswade His Disciples that it was Hee Hee vtters a sweete Sermon for their instruction wherein first Hee instructes and informes them in two necessities the first is that all thinges that befell to Him as His Passion and Resurrection behooued to befell vnto Him the second is that as these things befell to Him of necessitie so of necessitie these things behoued to be preached in the world Next Hee giues them a direction to goe out and to preach this Gospell to the worlde We haue heard alreadie of the two necessities First that it behooued Him to suffer the death and to rise againe from death because these things were foretold of Him in Moyses and the Prophets and the Psalmes therefore of necessitie they behooued to come to passe We heard thereafter of the necessitie of the preaching of these thinges Profane men thinke preaching is for the fashion but they deceiue themselues for if there be a necessitie that thou shouldest beleeue that thou mayst be saued there is as great a necessitie that there should be preaching of the word for Faith is by hearing and without hearing no Faith no life no saluation In opening vp of this necessitie of preaching we marked vnto you the particular circumstances that are set downe in the Text Namely first in whose name this preaching behooued to be to wit in the Name of IESVS CHRIST Next whereof it behooued this preaching to bee to wit of Repentance and Remission of sinnes for that is the summe of the Gospel Thirdly to whome this behooued to be preached not to the Iewes only but to all Nations and last in what order this doctrine should be preached first to the Iewes beginning at Ierusalem and thereafter to the Gentiles Now in the Text that we haue presently read the Lord comes to the second part of His Sermon wherein Hee giues direction to the Apostles to bee Preachers and witnesses to the world of all these thinges promising againe to them that Spirit which Hee had promised to them before His suffering and that they might haue the greater securitie Hee giues them a commandement not to depart from Ierusalem vntill they were endued with power and vertue out of Heauen But to come to the wordes after that Hee hath set downe the necessitie of preaching Hee giues them a direction and charge to bee preachers of these thinges vnto the worlde Now sayes Hee yee are witnesses of these things that is These things that yee haue heard and seene come to passe according as they vvere foretolde yee must not keepe them close and secret with your selues but yee must declare preach and testifie them vnto the world Nowe it is not without great cause that the Lord directes and sendes them out to preach for looke how necessarie it is that the word bee preached as necessarie it is that some bee directed and sent out by the Lorde to preach for How shall they preach sayes Paul except they be sent Rom. Chapter 10. verse 15. A man must not runne vnsent but before hee preach hee must haue a commission from God If we will enter in a particular consideration marke all things set downe in this Sermon we will finde there is nothing either concerning Christ Himselfe His suffering and rising againe or concerning the Gospell of Christ and preaching of it or concerning the Ministers Preachers of the Gospell falles out rashly or by fortoun chance but that all things come to passe by the
he hath a speciall warrand from the Iudge otherwise hee cannot haue a good conscience in his intimation then how shall the Pastour knowe Gods sentence pronounced in Heauen that hee may haue a good conscience in his proceeding To this I answere It is true indeede the Pastour hath none extraordinarie reuelation of that sentence vvhich is past in Heauen but all the warrand that the Pastour hath is ordinary wrought by the Spirit accompanying His own word vvhich He left in vvrite vnto vs and the Pastour gets this vvarrand out of the vvord by the applying of the generall sentences of the vvorde to particular persons according as they finde their disposition and behauiour and by this meanes gets such a sufficient warrand out of the vvorde as his conscience may rest vpon As for example to speake first of the sentence of the Remission of sinnes Before the Pastour absolue a man and remit his sinnes he lookes first to the generall sentences set downe in the worde that may be his warrand as namely that sentence which the LORD Himselfe vtters Ioh. 3.13 Whosoeuer beleeues in the Sonne of God shall not perish but haue euerlasting life Nowe to Faith in Christ joyne Repentance for the Gospell joynes Repentance and Remission of sinnes together Luke 24.47 and sayes Whosoeuer beleeues and repents shall be safe To this generall proposition the Pastour will assume particularly This sinner repents and beleeues whereupon he concludes declaring the sentence that is alreadie past of Him in the Heauen therefore this sinner hath his sinnes forgiuen him and he shall be saued Againe before the Pastour binde a man and retaine his sinnes hee lookes to this generall sentence of the worde Hee that beleeues not and repents not is alreadie condemned Ioh. 3.18 Then he assumes particularly But this sinner beleeues not neither repents whereupon hee concludes the declaration of the sentence which is alreadie past in Heauen Therefore this sinner is condemned and is bound in Heauen The Lord worke in our heartes true repentance and Faith in the Lorde Iesus that not only wee may heare the voyce of the Pastour absoluing vs but likewise our owne consciences may assure vs of the Remission of our sinnes through the mercie of God in Iesus Christ To whome with the Father and the Holy Spirit bee all praise and honour for euermore AMEN THE XLVI LECTVRE OF THE RESVRRECTION OF CHRIST IHON CHAP. XX. verse 24 But Thomas one of the twelue called Didimus was not with them when Iesus came verse 25 The other Disciples therefore saide vnto him Wee haue seene the Lord but hee saide vnto them Except I see in His handes the print of the nayles and put my finger into the print of the nayles and put mine hand into His side I will not beleeue it verse 26 And eight dayes after againe His Disciples were within and Thomas with them Then came Iesus when the doores were shut and stood in the middes and saide Peace be vnto you WEE haue heard hitherto Welbeloued in Christ of fiue sundrie appearings of our Lord after His Resurrection The first was to Marie Magdalene The second was to other women The third was to two Disciples as they were going from Jerusalem to Emmaus The fourth was to Simon Peter The fift was to the eleuen assembled together in one place In this fift appearance the Lord hath a Sermon to His Disciples wherein first He lets them see the necessitie that He should suffer and rise againe and that these thinges behooued to be preached to the world and thereafter giues them a direction to goe out to preach Repentance and Remission of sinnes to the worlde in His Name and to the end He may encourage them the more willingly to vndertake this charge Hee promises to giue them the Holy Spirit with His graces y t was promised before for their further assurance He enters them presently in some measure in possession of the Spirit for Iohn sayes Hee breathed vpon them and saide vnto them Receiue the Holy Ghost and then Hee enarmes them with authoritie and power to forgiue and retaine sinnes And Hee sayes Whosoâ—uer sinâ—es ye remit they are remitted vnto them and whosoeuer sinnes ye retaine thâ—y are retained Now in the words that we haue presently read out of the Gospell of Iohn wee haue set downe a particular Hâ—storie concerning Thomas and his incredulitie this Thomas is he who is also called Didymus we read of him first that he was called and receiued to be one of the twelue Apostles Matth. 10 3. Next we â—ead that hee was offended that the Lord purposed to returne againe to Iudea beeing requestâ—d by Martha and Marie to come to Lazâ—rus their brother and that he burst out in words full of anger aâ—d iâ—dâ—gnation saying Let vs goe also that we may die with Lazarus Ioh 11.16 And last wee haue in this place set downe the Historie not only of his great incredulitie but also of his stubburnesse and wilfulnesse therein for neither did hee beleeue neither had hee a will or purpose to beleeue Of this doing of Thomas we may learne that by nature there was no difference betweene y e Apostles of the Lord Iesus other men albeit moste vile most vnworthie but grace made the difference they were as incredulous as stubburne as hard hearted as any other by nature while it pleased God of His mercie to open their heâ—rtes to make them to bâ—leeue And therefore the Lord Iesus when He calles them to be Apostles and ordaines them to preach the exceeding gâ—eatnesse of His mercy to others He makes them to stand for eâ—samples of that same mercie that they preach to others that they might y e more easily perswade others make them to come to seeke mercie in Iesus This was the ende why the Apostle Paul sayes The Lord shewed mercy on him who was a mâ—serable wreth and had called him to bee an Apost Iesus Christ saies he shâ—wed on me all long suffeâ—ing vnto the ensample of them which shall in time to come beleeue in Him vnto eternall life 1 Tim. 1.16 Thus much concerning the person of Thomas we come next to the Historie of his incredulitie first to the occasion of it the rest of y e Apostles Disciples who were assembled together in one to whom the Lord Iesus had manifested Himselfe declares preaches to Thomas y e ResurrectioÌ„ of Christ y e cause of their preaching thereof to him was because Thomas was absent when the Lord appeared to the rest What was the cause of his absence it is vncertaine neither will we curiously inquire what it was It may be that after Christ His Master was apprehended he kept himselfe close lurked secretly for feare of danger through the malice of the Iewes and durst not manifest himselfe so soone as the rest or it may be that he was entangled with his owne priuate affaires at that time when the rest met together and were speaking of
liuing GOD for Hee sayes vnto him Blessed art thou Simon the sonne of Iona for neither flesh nor blood hath reueiled that vnto thee but my Father which is in Heauen Matth. Chapter 16. verse 17. And therefore we must craue continually of the LORD that Hee would vouchsafe His Spirite on vs to worke Faith in our soules that beleeuing in IESVS CHRIST wee may get life and Saluation through Him To whome with the Father and the Holy Spirit be all honour and praise for euermore AMEN THE XLVIII LECTVRE OF THE RESVRRECTION OF CHRIST IHON CHAP. XXI AFter these thinges Jesus shewed Himselfe againe to His Disciples at the sea of Tiberias and thus shewed He Himselfe verse 2 There were together Simon Peter and Thomas which is called Didymus and Nathanael of Cana in Galile and the sonnes of Zebedeus and two other of His disciples verse 3 Simon Peter saide vnto Him I goe a fishing They saide vnto him Wee also will goe with thee They went their way and entred into a shippe straightway and that night caught they nothing verse 4 But when the morning was nowe come Iesus stood on the shore neuerthelesse the Disciples knew not that it was Jesus verse 5 Iesus then saide vnto them Sirs haue yee any meate They answered Him No. verse 6 Then Hee saide vnto them Cast out the net on the right side of the ship and ye shall finde So they cast out and they were not able at all to draw it for the multitude of fishes verse 7 Therefore saide the Disciple whome Iesus loued vnto Peter It is the Lord. When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord hee girded his coate to him for he was naked and cast himselfe into the sea WEE continue as yet Brethren Beloued in Christ in the Historie of Christs appearings after His Resurrection whereof this which we haue set downe in the beginning of the 21. Chapter of Iohn is the seuenth if wee reckone precisely all the particular appearings whereof any mention is made in the Gospel But if we count only the appearings vnto His Apostles assembled together this is the third in number as the Euangelist himselfe hereafter telles In the first two appearings He manifested Himselfe vnto the eleuen beeing assembled together in an house the doores beeing closed only Thomas was absent in the first appearing nowe heere Hee appeares only vnto seuen beeing together not in an house but without at the fishing As concerning the particular time of this appearing what day it was from the first daye of His Resurrection or howe many dayes it was from His last appearing vnto them it is not particularly set downe and therefore we will passe by it but the Euangelist markes particularly the place of this appearing for he sayes Iesus shewed Himselfe againe at the sea of Tiberias which sea is otherwise called the sea of Gennesareth for according to the accustomable forme of speaking among the Iewes a lake is called the Sea Before wee come to the rest of the circumstances of this appearing it is expedient that we answere to a question that may bee mooued It may bee asked What is the cause that the Lord appeared so oft times vnto His Disciples and so many wayes Had it not bene enough that He had appeared to them once or twise What needed there any moe appearings To this answere There are many great and weightie causes wherefore the Lord so oft times appeared and first because Faith in the Resurrection from the dead is a thing very hardly and with great difficultie is obtained for among all the Articles of Faith there is none more contrarie to Nature none appeares to be more vncredible therefore the Lord that He might assure them that He was risen and that they who are in Him one day shall rise againe Hee appeared so oft times after His Resurrection Next Hee appeared so ofâ— to His Disciples because they were to be the first witnesses of His Resurrection to the worlde and therefore they needed oft times to see the Lorde to haue heard to haue handled Him and beene conuersant with Him they needed all sortes of helpes to their Faith that they might haue full assurance themselues that the Lorde was risen to the ende that with the greater assurance and with a full perswasion as the Apostle speakes of himselfe 1. Thess 1.5 They might testifie of that Resurrection both by viue voyce and by writting vnto others euen to the comming of the Lord Himselfe indeede so it came to passe for because Hee appeared and reueiled Himselfe so oft times to them therefore they had exceeding great libertie and boldnesse both in their speaking and writting for the frequent seeing of Him hearing of Him speaking and conuersing with Him made them to haue a full perswasion and this full perswasion made them to haue great libertie freedome for he that hath not a full perswasion in his owne heart should not take vpon him to be a witnesse and preacher of the graces and benefites of God to others neither will he euer be able to speake of them with freedome to mooue others to beleeue Thirdly He appeared so oft vnto His Apostles not for their causâ— only but for our cause also who should liue in the ages to come Hee had respect vnto the weaknesse of our Faith for euery particular appearing of Christ serues to helpe and further something our Faith our Faith degree by degree is helped by euery one of them and all His appearings beeing joyned together are a sure and stedfast ground to our Faith to repose vpon they serue to consummate our Faith and to bring it to a full perfection for when wee heare or reade that our Lord appeared at any time to His Disciples wee should thinke and settle this in our minde that when Hee appeared vnto them Hee appeared vnto vs when they saw Him we saw Him when vvee reade that the Lord appeared vnto Peter I should thinke that He appeared vnto mee vvhen Iohn and the rest of the Apostles sawe Him vvith their eyes I should so esteeme that I sawe Him vvith mine eyes and whensoeuer they sawe Him I should lay my count that I saw Him for vvhen that Peter sayes That with his eyes he saw His Maiestie 2. Pet. 1.16 hee pointes out Christ as it were with his finger to bee seene with mine eyes When Paul sayes That the Lord was seene of him after His Resurrection 1. Cor. 15.8 hee pointes out the Lord to be seene by me When Iohn sayes Wee declare vnto you that which wee haue heard which we haue seene with these our eyes which we haue looked vpon these handes of ours haue handled of that worde of life 1. Ioh. 1.1 hee sets the Lord as it were before my face that I may see Him with mine eyes I may heare Him with mine eares and may handle Him vvith mine handes To the end that my ioy may be full as he speakes there verse 4. And therefore thou
The Lord who euer hath a regarde of His owne makes all their actions and their sufferings to tend to their vvell and comfort yea to serue and further them to eternall life When thou goest to performe any thing vvhen thou addressest thy selfe to any worke vvhat euer it be vvhether it be husbandrie fishing marchandise or any other exercise I giue thee my counsell endeuoure euer to entertaine in thy soule a sense and perswasion of the loue of God and if thou so doest thou shalt finde that when the members of thy body are exercised in their labour that thy soule likewise shall make a progresse straightway to Heauen Well they goe to the fishing but vvhat successe haue they at the first Not very great their successe was very slender for it is said That night they caught nothing How came this to passe Was it through their vnskilfulnes No it was by the secret prouidence and direction of God who often times delayes the successe of the labours of His owne and will not answere their expectation at the first to the ende that in His owne appointed time He may giue it more aboundantly to their greater coÌ„fort for this is the Lordes accustomed dealing vvith His owne children Of set purpose He vvill disappoint them for a time to their greater benefit and comfort thereafter When Paul vvrites to Philemon concerning his seruant Onesimus vvho had fled away from him he sayes It may be that he hath departed for a season that thou mightest receiue him for euer Next the Lord vses to disappoint the hope of His own for a season because that serues more to the glory of God than if they got it at the first time for vvhen men finde a prosperous successe in all their vvayes and all thinges answering to their desire scarcely doe they consider and discerne Gods blessing yea manie times it comes to passe that in such cases men ascribe the praise of all to themselues to their owne vvisedome their trauels and laboures they flatter themselues sacrifice to their owne nette But vvhen they see themselues notwithstanding of all their trauels disappointed of their hope and thereafter finde a blessing and good successe then they plainly discerne that all things proceed from the blessing and fauourable prouidence of God and therfore giues to the Lord the praise and glory of all Last vvhen He delayes the successe vvhich His owne hope for in their laboures Hee giues them a faire recompence for the vvant of the temporall benefit for a season and He giues them a spirituall benefit to their soule for vvhen thereafter He giues them a successe He makes them to see His blessing and opens their heartes and looses their mouthes to sounde His praise vvhich is better than any earthly benefit that can be bestowed vpon man When the Disciples had long laboured without successe at last the Lord comes for th'Euangelist sayes When the morning was nowe come Iesus stood on the Sea shore Howbeit the Lord vvill long absent Himselfe from His own and giue them no sensible blessing in their trauels yet at the last hee vvill come in his owne due time to their great comfort Nowe the time is marked vvhen the Lord comes to vvit in the morning hee tarries away all the night and comes in the morning The Scripture compares the time in the vvhich vvee liue vvithout Christ vnto the darke night for as in the night no man can vvalke nor be exercised in the vvorke of his calling no more can any man vvithout Christ vvalke in the vvay of saluation nor doe anie thing acceptable to God Againe his presence and comming is compared to the morning for as in the morning vvhen the Sunne rises men may see the way and walke in the way and bee exercised in the workes of their calling So when CHRIST that Daye-starre beginnes to arise that Sunne of Righteousnesse beginnes to shine vâ—to the soules of His owne then they see the way of saluation and they haue courage and pleasure to walke therein and to doe the workes of light which are acceptable vnto GOD when Hee is absent there is nothing but night and darknesse when He returnes againe there is light DAVID seemes to allude vnto this prâ—sence of Christ by His Spirite in the soule when hee sayes in the xxx PSALME vers v. Weeping may abide at euening but â—oye commeth in the morning Nowe howbeit the Lord stood before them on the shore Neuerthelesse the Disciples knewe not that it was IESVS Howe this comes to passe that they knawe Him not it is vncertaine for the cause is not set downe neither will wee curiouslie inquire for it it may bee and it is likelie that their eyes were closed that they could not discerne and knowe Him whome otherwise they sawe present before them The example of these Disciples lets vs see what is the naturall disposition of the children of God They sought not the Lord fiâ—st yea when Hâ—e offers Himselfe vnto them they know Him not So it is with vs all by nature neither can we seeke God neither can wee so much as once thinke of the seeking of Him neither when Hee offers Himselfe vnto vs vnsought can we dâ—scerne Him and knowe Him by nature Except God by His Spirite preuent vs and illuminate the eyes of our mindes open our hearts and make vs to knowe Him wee will neuer seeke Him nor knowe Him but wee shall euer remaine in darknesse Yet albeit they knowe not the Lord Hee beginnes to shew Himselfe vnto them and Hee breakes off conference vnto them Sirs have yee anie meate And by this speach Hee pâ—epares them to that good successe and blessing which He was to giue to their trauels And this Hee does by bringiâ—g them to a confession of their want and needfulnesse for when hee inquires at them if they had anie meate they answered him No. They confesse their want for marke Brethren how the Lord will haue thy soule to bee prepared before Hee communicate His blessing Thy skant thy neede and thy pouertie though it were neuer so great will not doe the turne it will not mooue the Lord to blesse thy trauels if there be no more No Hee requires further of thee Hee will haue thee to acknowledge to feele and to confesse thy pouertie The Lord pitties not but abhorres proude and sturdie beggers Hee does to His owne as a louing father does to his sonne Albeit the father see his sonne in great pouertie and neede lacking foode and rayment yet if hee come proudly and stubburnly by the doore presence of his father hee will not know him nor helpe him howbeit hee haue substance wealth enough vnto such time as he is humbled and come to himselfe Euen so the Lord when wee are in miserie in great want and neede and will not acknowledge nor confesse it vnto Him He will not know vs nor bestowe His blessinges vpon vs till we be humbled Now wheÌ„ the Lord has prepared
they saw Him they worshipped Him What made them to fall downe and worship Him What sawe they into Him No question they sawe in Him a glorious Majestie By all appearance at this time He has shewed himselfe in greater glory than Hee did of before So beholding His glorie on the one part and their owne vnworthinesse on the other as Hee approaches vnto them they humblie fall downne and worship Him This their behauiour teaches vs that wheresoeuer the Lord of Glorie is present there He should be worshipped and adored His presence requires adoration Seest thou the Lord present with thee Then in humilitie fall downe and worshippe Him But thou wilt saye I cannot see Him how then can I adore Him Th'Apostles saw His glorious presence with their eyes therefore they ought to haue worshipped Him but as for vs who liue in these dayes after His ascension to Heauen we see Him not and therefore how can wee worship Him But I answere thee It is true thou seest Him not nowe vvith the eyes of thy bodie but thou seest Him with the eyes of thy soule thou seest Him with the eyes of faith thou seest Him in the vvorde and Sacraments first crucified and then glorified And if thou wilt not worship Him when thou seest Him here present in the worde and Sacraments thou wouldest not haue worshipped Him if thou haddest seene Him with the eyes of thy body face to face These profane bodies vvho vvill not vvorship Him nowe vvhen they see Him present in the mirrour of the Gospell they vvill neuer gette leaue to worship Him in the Kingdome of Heauen Thinkest thou not that the Lord is seene present in His word What meanes Paul then vvhen he sayes that an vnlearned man comming into the meetinges of the faithfull where manie are prophecying finding himselfe rebuked and judged of all and the secrets of his heart made manâ—fest that hee will fall downe on his face and worshippe GOD and saye plainlie That GOD is among them indeede 1. Corinth Chap. 14. vers 24. and 25. What sees the vnlearned man among them that makes him to fall down and giue such a confession No question but the glorious light of the GOSPELL shines into his soule and Christ offers Himselfe present to bee seene by the eye of faith The faithfull this daye by experience finde in their meetings this same presence of the Lord And therefore it becomes vs in all our meetinges euer to vvorshippe the Lord and to sit vvith feare and reuerence to heare the worde and to prepare our heartes to receiue the Holie Spirite whome the Lord promises and offers with the preaching of the worde to all His Chosen Againe this their behauiour teaches vs what force and power there is in the glorious presence of Christ Iesus His presence is powerfull to humble and bowe both the bodie and soule of the creature This made Paul to saye that at the Name of IESVS euerie knee should bowe both of thinges in Heauen and thinges in earth and thinges vnder the earth Philipp chap. 2. vers 20. For that sublimitie and highnesse vvhereunto the Father hath exalted Him is so effectuall and powerfull in all creatures and of all sortes that either sweetlie willinglie it mooues them to worship Him in all humilitie or else it breakes bruises them with fearcenesse and violence and compels out perforce obedience of them The sight and sense of this sublimitie and highnesse makes the blessed Angels in Heauen in all reuerence to worshippe Him The sense of this sublimitie makes the Sainctes on earth when either they speake or heare of Him reuerentlie and in humilitie to bow both their bodies and their soules vnto Him And by the contrarie The sight and sense of this same sublimitie raises vp in the Deuill and his angelles such horroures and dread as cannot bee expressed The sense of this sublimitie makes the wicked howe proude and jollie soeuer they bee in their owne conceite oft times when they heare of Him to quake and tremble The Euangelist Matthew notes That notwithstanding of their worshipping of Him yet some of them doubted But who were these that doubted Euen some of these who before worshipped Him And what mooued them to doubt Apparantly that same that before moued them to worship Him moues them also now to doubt to wit that extraordinary vnaccustomed majesty and glory wherein Iesus appeared to them which scarcely they could haue deemed to bee so great wonderfull And certainly the glory of the Lord sitting this day in the HeaueÌ„s at the right hand of the Father is so exceeding great woÌ„derfull that if it were permitted to vs to behold it as it is with our bodily eyes such is y e corruption of our nature we could not but doubt whether He were y e Christ who vvas so far humbled abased in y e earth of whom we heard before in y e Gospel Beside this cause y e difficulty to belieue this article of the ResurrectioÌ„ of y e dead seemes likewise to haue furthered their doubting for indeed amoÌ„g al y e articles of our belief there is none more coÌ„trary to nature nor harder to belieue thaÌ„ this article of y e ResurrectioÌ„ of our bodies froÌ„ y e dead Nature can neuer be perswaded y t a dead body y t has bin a prey to worms is resolued in dust ashes can rise vp againe to life But as of all articles there is none harder to be belieued so there is none more necessary to saluatioÌ„ nor none that brings greater consolation And therefore the Lord that vve might haue the more full assurance and perswasion thereof tooke great paines vpon Himselfe and for the space of fourtie dayes Hee remained vpon the earth after His Resurrection and sundry times shewed Himselfe to His Disciples and manie other of the Faithfull that all occasion of doubting might bee remooued and so their joye and comfort might bee the greater Nowe this doubting of the Disciples lets vs see vvhat is the disposition of the heartes of the Godlie euen in their best exercises For euen their best exercises are euer accompanied vvith a piece of doubting of vvant of infirmitie c. their vvorshipping of GOD is vvith doubting their prayer is vvith infirmitie and vvauering of the minde their meditation falles from GOD and spirituall things to carnall and earthly things their hearing of the word is euer with some piece of loathing their Faith is mixed with infidelitie so that before they can come to any great measure of grace they must striue and wrestle through many infirmities and ouercome many difficulties and tentations so that the best man euen in his best workes hath no matter of rejoycing if the Lord would enter in judgement with him Yee haue heard the disciples behauiour now look how the Lord meetes them First He drawes nearer to them and then He enters in communing with them for it is said Iesus came and spake vnto them He
faith y t coms by hearing thoÌ„ of that faith y t proceeds of seeing for He sayes to Thomas Because thou hast seene mee thou beleeuest but blessed are these that haue not seene and haue beleeued Joh. 20.29 Marke a manifest difference betwixt y e suffering crucifying of the Lord His Resurrection Ascension When y e Lord was crucified al sort of people beheld Him there were gathered a great multitude not of the Iewes only but also of the GeÌ„tiles out of many natioÌ„s for it was a solemne time the time of y e Passâ—ouer but there were not so many y t beheld His Resurrection nor Ascension for it was His pleasure to manifest Himself after His Resurrection to a small number of His own familiars namely His disciples Apostles likewise it was His pleasure to make choise but of a few of that same sort to be eye-witnesses of His glorious AsceÌ„sion for He wold haue His glory to be made manifest to y e world rather by the preaching of y e Gospel than by the sight of the eyes Of this difference we learne this lesson for our instruction That the shame ignominy of Christ is offred to be seene of all sorts of meÌ„ but His glory is manifested only to a small number euen to those who are saued by His bloode The shame ignominy of Christ in His meÌ„bers is laid to th' eyes of all sorts of men there are none who sees not how vile contemptible the faithfull are vnder the crosse but the glory of the faithfull is seene but of a few eueÌ„ only of those who are ordained to be partakers of that same glory For albeit saies Iohn that now we are the sons of God yet it is not made manifest what we shall be 1. Epist 3.2 And as th'Apostle Paul saies of y â— Iewes Jf they had known the Lord of glory they would not haue crucified him 1. Cor. 2.8 So say we of the wicked of the world If they knew that glory of the children of God they would not so contemne them despise persecute theÌ„ The place y t He leades theÌ„ to is said to be Bethania and Act. 1.12 it is said They returned to JerusaleÌ„ from the mount that is called the mount of Oliues neare vnto which mouÌ„t was Bethania both were neare to Ierusalem about 15. furlonges or a Sabbath dayes journey about 2. miles Ioh. 11.18 The Lord of set purpose chose this place to manifest His glory wherin before He suffred ignominy It was in this place that He wrastled with the feare of death finding the terrours of the wrath of God ceazing on His soule when He said his soule was heauie vnto the death It was in this place that the bande of men of warre came and tooke him It was in this place that they bound him and led him away to that shamefull death of the crosse Therefore in this place the Lord makes a shew of His glory in this same place He addresses Himself to triumph from this same place ascends He to His Heauenly Throne Marke the lesson in a worde The Lord of necessitie must be glorified in that same place where before He was dishonored He must be honoured either in mercy by y e conuersion of a sinner who has despised Him or els by the executing of judgemeÌ„t pouring forth of vengeance vpon th'obstinate stubborne contemners But to goe forward to the coÌ„ference coÌ„munication that was betwixt the Lord His Apostles alittle before He asceÌ„ded to HeaueÌ„ This coÌ„fereÌ„ce is set down Act. 1.6 For after the disciples were come together to the mount of Oliues they asked him Lord wilt thou at this time restore the kingdome of Israel Th' occasion of this their question is not set down here but it is likely that the Lord at this time has bin speaking something of that Heauenly Kingdome that vpon His speach they haue taken occasion to aske this question of th' earthly kingdome In demanding of this question they faile many wayes First they faile in curiosity being too curious as the Lordes answere imports Next they faile in this that as yet they thinke y t He should haue bene an earthly king that His kingdome should bee of this world Thirdly they faile in this that they desired to reign triuÌ„ph before they had foughten sufficiently ended their warfare This might seeme strange that they profited so litle in so long time hauing such faire occasion Their ignorance cannot be excused for by the space of 3. yeeres more they were coÌ„uersant with the Lord hearing Him preach saw Him worke miracles after His resurrectioÌ„ sundry times He appeared to them spake to theÌ„ in this same time they saw in Him a majesty they saw Him clad inuested with HeaueÌ„ly glory yet for all this they are earthly minded and think of nothing but of an earthly kingdome In this example of y e disciples we may perceiue how dull we are by nature vncapable of spirituall HeaueÌ„ly things All th' outward meanes of y e worlde will not profit vs if there be no more albeit we heard al HeaueÌ„ly spirituall things neuer so loÌ„g albeit we saw all things neuer so loÌ„g we will neuer be a haire the better except y t wee be taught of God except our minds be illuminate our hearts be opened by the H. Spirit Therfore when we vse th' outward meanes we should pray coÌ„tinually y t the Lord wold send His H. Spirit to instruct vs inwardly and to joyne His blessing with them Now to come to the Lords answere first He reproues them for their curiosity he said vnto them Jt is not for you to know the times the seasons He giues them a good reason because the Father has put them in his owne power Men in all ages haue bin too curious to inquire the things which belong not vnto them Th'Apostles here began curiously to inquire of the time of the restoring of the kingdome to Israel euer since men haue coÌ„tinued curiously to inquire the times seasons namely the particular time of the Lordes coÌ„ming to judgement But the Lord here snibs represses this curiosity in th'apostles for what had they adoe to search out the things y t the Lord kept secret to Himselfe It is not y e Lords will that men at any time should be curious to inquire the particular times which He keepes close to Himself namely the particular diet period of Christs coÌ„ming to judgement for of that day houre knowes no maÌ„ no not th'Angels which are in heaueÌ„ Mark 13.32 Next in the answere He calles them to remembrance of y t promise which He made to theÌ„ before of y e sending of y e H. Spirit induing them with power froÌ„ an high But saies He yee shall receiue power of the holie Ghost when he shall come on you This putting them in remeÌ„brance
behoued to be in a greater humility w t greater reuereÌ„ce w t greater feruency thaÌ„ euer it was before Indeed they worshipped Him before knowing Him to be the Messias but their knowledge was but very mean sober but now they see know perfectly that He is the Lord of glory the glorious judge of the world therefore the worshipping of Him at this time behoued to be in greater reuereÌ„ce with greater perswasion boldnes than euer it was before The sight of that glorious majesty makes euer the creature in reuereÌ„ce to worship God the greater sight the greater reuerence The faithfull while they liue here in th' earth because by th' eye of faith in the mirrour of the Gospel they see the glory of the Lord therfore in humility they worship His majesty but because they see Him not clearly as He is but darkly and obscurely therfore their worshipping here is not like that worshipping y t shal be when they shal see Him face to face for when we shal see him as he is we shal worship Him with greater reuerence confideÌ„ce boldnes liberty than euer we did before for then vve shall be made like vnto Him that is vve shall bee made conformable to the image of His glory and vve shall shake off all this mortality corruption vvherewith th'Apostles vvere clad at this time vvheÌ„ they worshipped Him ascending to HeaueÌ„ So that that vvorshipping adoring of the Lord which the faithful shal giue Him in that great day wheÌ„ He desceÌ„ds from the HeaueÌ„s to judge the world shall surpasse exceedingly by many degrees that worship which the Apostleâ— gaue Him wheÌ„ they saw Him asceÌ„d into HeaueÌ„ for theÌ„ there shal be nothing to hinder them Now in the meane time while the Lord is ascending to Heauen as they worship Him so likewise they followe Him vvith their eyes and looked stedfastly toward heauen vvhere they saw Him ascending vvhich testifies plainly that their hearts were lifted vp to the Heauens together vvith Christ as Christ ascended so their hearts ascended vvere lifted vp to Heauen by the power veâ—tue of that same Ascention glorie of Christ in vvhome they beleeued for they that beleeue in Christ and are conjoyned to Him by faith of necessity must by that bâ—nd of faith be lifted vp together vvith Him to the Heauens for that soule that is linked to Him by faith caÌ„not be seuered from Him but it must follow Him vvhersoeuer He goes Mark this lesson wheÌ„ y e heart is lifted vp to Heauen it vvill lift y e eye of y e bodie to Heauen also y e sight sense of y e Ascension of Christ liftes vp the heart to Heauen for where there is in y e heart a sense feeling of y e power of Christs AscensioÌ„ of necessity both the soule th' eyes of the body must be lifted vp to Heauen And this lifting vp of th' eyes of the body proceeding froÌ„ the lifting vp of y e heart to Heauen this lifting vp of y e heart proceeding froÌ„ y e feeling of y e power of th'AsceÌ„sioÌ„ of Iesus which now y e faithfull find is a sure argumeÌ„t vndoubted warraÌ„â— to y e faithful y t one day th' eye y e heart y e soule y e body yea y e whole man shal be lifted vp to heaueÌ„ both soule body in y t great day wheÌ„ y e Lord appeares to judgemeÌ„t shal enjoy His glorious preseÌ„ce therfore y e godly haue great cause continually to be waiting looking for y t glorious apppearing of Christ happy art thou who art euer waiting for it for at y t glorious appearing thou shâ—lt be partaker of glory w t him to whoÌ„ with y e Father H. Spirit be all praise honor glory Amen THE LVI LECTVRE OF THE ASCENSION OF CHRIST MARKE CHAP. XVI verse 20 And they went foorth and preached euerie where And the Lord wrought with them and confirmed the word with signes that followed Amen LVKE CHAP. XXIIII verse 52 And they Worshipped him returned to HierusaleÌ„ with great ioye verse 53 And were continuallie in the Temple praising and lauding GOD Amen ACTS CHAP. I. verse 10 And while they looked stedfastly toward heauen as hee went beholde two men stood by them in white apparell verse 11 Which also said Yee men of Galile why stand yee gazing into heauen This Iesus which is taken vp from you into heauen shall so come as yee haue seene him goe into heauen verse 12 Then returned they vnto Hierusalem from the mount that is called the mount of Oliues which is neare to Hierusalem beeing from it a Sabbath dayes journey verse 13 And when they were come in they went vp into an vpper chamber where abode both Peter and Iames and Iohn and Andrew Philip and Thomas Bartlemew and Matthew James the sonne of Alpheus and Simon Zelotes and Iudas Iames brother verse 14 These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplications with the women and Marie the mother of Iesus and with his brethren THE last day welbeloued BrethreÌ„ in Christ we entred into the history of Christs ascension to heauen We heard of the circuÌ„staÌ„ces of it The Lord led them out to Bethania to the mount of Oliues from the which place He asceÌ„ded vnto heaueÌ„ we heard of the coÌ„muning y t was betwixt Christ his disciples who asked of him Lord wilt thou at this time restore the kingdome to Jsrael The Lord reproues this their curiosity It is not for you to know the times the seasons which the Father has put in his owne power And then he tels what they ought to doe First they shuld be mindfull of the promise of y e H. Spirit Next they shuld look to their own calling to beare witnesse of him to the world Wee heard how before his Ascension he blessed them we heard of the manner of his Ascension it was very sensible and visible He went a little space from them and was taken vp and receiued in a cloude hee was taken out of their sight and carried vp to heauen This was done the â—oth th'Apostle themselues might be perswaded and also with greater boldnesse assurance perswade others of His Ascension We heard that wheÌ„ He was taken out of their sight He was placed at the right hand of God and exalted to that sublimitie of glory that all the creatures in heauen and earth are subdued to him And last wee hearde what was the behauiour of th'Apostles In the meane time they worshipped him and looked stedfastly to â—he heauens This day by Gods grace wee shall follow out put an end to this history In the words which wee haue read we wil sâ—e what falles out While the disciples are looking vp to the heauens two Angels are sent to them by Christ who partly reproues them and partlie comforts them We will see likewise what the disciples doe after this They
Hierusalem according to the Lords coÌ„mandemeÌ„t til they got that promised Spirit with His graces Then assoone aâ— they haue receiued the H. Spirit with His graces and were sufficienly furnishâ—d theÌ„selues they goe out to coÌ„municate that grâ—ce to the world wherewith they themselues were replenished beginning at Hierusaâ—eÌ„ then going throughout all Judea then to Samaria last to the vtmost parts of th' earth This doing of the disciples serues to teach these who intende to entâ—r into that holy calling of the ministery how they ought to behaue theÌ„sâ—lues They must not suddeÌ„ly rashly goe out to preach the Gospel before they bee well furnished themselues but they should keepe themselues close vsing holy meanes and exercises till they find themselues to be furnished with grace in some measure but being once furnished with grace it is the Lordes will that they keepe themselues no more close but that they goe out and communicate that same grace vnto others for the Lord giues them no spirituall graces to keepe to themselues but to th' end that they may employ them to the weale edification of others Men should beware of these two extremities first that they presume not to goe out to preach to others till they bee first well furnished themselues next when they are furnished with grace that they let not Gods graces rest within themselues but that they vse them chearfully for the benefite of the Kirke But if we consider more narrowly this going out of the disciples we wil find it to be extraordinarie and miraculous it fell out altogether vnexspected of the Iewes no the Iewes neuer thought that thinges should haue fallen out so either concerning Christ Himselfe or His disciples for as coÌ„cerning Christ they thought they should neuer haue heard any more of Him except cursed and detestable speaches of Him for they had nowe handeled Him shamefully they had railed on Him and crucified Him putting Him to an ignominious death and after Hee was buried and risen they perswaded the guarde y t watched the sepulchre to noise abroad that his discipleâ— had come by night stollen him away so they thought there should haue bene no more of Him But beholde vpon a suddaine the Lord vnexspected of them by His powerfull prouidence makes His glory to be sounded throughout the whole world and whereas they thought He should haue bene buried for euer in shame Hee is exalted to a wonderfull glory And as concerning the disciples The Iewes thought they durst neuer haue presumed to haue opened their mouthes againe to speake of the Name of Christ for they thought they were all but sillie based bodies who sled away when their Master was taken and were offended at His ignominious death and terrified and astonished with that sorrowfull spectacle that they saw when He hung vpon the crosse neither durst they presume to meete together againe openly for feare of their liues But while the Iewes are thus thinking and beleeue that there shall neuer be any moâ—e worde of Christ behold vpon a suddain when they thinke nothing lesse His disciples come out publickly in their presence and before the whole world holding out bearing before them y t crucifiâ—d man boldly charging the worlde to beleeue in Him From whence comes this that they vvho before vvere so dâ—shed and based that sledde away before durst nowe meet together so openly and preach with such boldnesse and libertie Him of vvhome before they vvere ashamed Euen from that incomprehensible vvonderfull power of Christ their King who was now sitting in the Heauens in glory vvho according to His promise sent vpon them His holy Spirit and indued them vvith power froÌ„ an hight Now the last thing is the successe that the Lord giues vnto their preaching He saies The Lord wrought with them and confirmed the worde with signes that followed If ye reade th' Acts of th'Apostles ye vvill see the successe has bene marueilous for within a short space by their Ministery they brought gâ—eat multitudes not onely of the Jewes but also of the Gentiles to th' obedience of Christ and by them suddenly the face of the world was changed The cause of this great successe th'Euangelist marks to be the Lords vvorking vvith them confirming the vvord that they preached vvith signes and vvonders When it is said that the Lord wrought with them we may not thinke that they vvere the chiefe workers and the Lord but an helper to them No the Lord is euer the chiefe worker and His faithfull seruantes but worke together with Him in the building of that spirituall house vnto the Lord He being the chiefe builder and His seruantes but worke with Him So Paul calles them workers together with God 2. Cor. 6.1 All the successe of the Gospel is His His seruantes are only instruments vsing the meanes Paul plants Apollo waters but God giues th' increase 1. Cor. 3.6.9 Now as we saw in their going out to the worlde in their preaching with boldnesse that Christes power was wonderfully manifested euen so in this great and glorious successe that they haue in their preaching that same power of Christ is as wondefully manifested If we compare this successe which the Gospel had in that first age of the Kirke of Christ with that successe which it hath now adayes we will find a great difference Many more were called then than there are nowe for then at one preaching thousandes were conuerted but nowe at many preachings scarcely will one be conuerted And what meanes this seeing the Gospel is taught nowe in that same sinceritie that it was then Euen this that by all appearance the Lord hath gathered in alreadie the most part of them who are to bee saued and the number of these that rest to be called and saued is few in these dayes in respect of that great multitude of them who were called and saued in the dayes of th'Apostles The great haruest is gathered in already onely glaininges now remaine And on the other part it importes that there is a great number ordained to wrath and destruction and therfore they are not conuerted by the preaching of the Gospel If our Gospel saith Paul bee hidden it is hidden to them that perish 2. Cor. 4.3 Now to end here Seeing all the successe of the Gospel proceedes from the powerfull presence of Christ by His Spirit the Lord grant that so long as He giues vs liberty to vse these outward meanes He would make vs find the powerfull working of the Spirit concurring with the meanes that wee may turne to Christ and so bee assured that wee shall bee saued from that wrath which is to come in that great day of the appearing of the LORD IESVS To whom with the Father and the Holy Spirit bee all praise Honour and Glorie for euer and euer AMEN FINIS