S. Paul neither to eate flesh nor to drinke wine nor any thing whereby thy brother stumbleth or is offended or is made weake Againe he saith Now when ye sin so against the brethren wound their weake consciences ye offende against Christ. Wherefore if meate offende my brother I wil eate no flesh while the worlde standeth least I shoulde offende my brother He that hath once made a shipwracke standeth watchful euer after not onely to escape that rocke or sande whereat he had lost before but al other the like rockes and sandes whatsoeuer Therefore Abstaine from al appearaunce of euil be not like the wicked of this worlde You are the salt of the earth You should not be parteners of their corruption but pouder and season them You are the light of the worlde you may not be parteners of their darkenesse but lighten and guide them Dissemble not Serue God in the simplicitie of your heart and in the sight of al the world Let it be written in your forehead what you think in your heart Why should anie man be ashamed of Gods trueth V. 23. Now the very God of peace sanctifie you throughout and I pray God that your whole spirite and soule and bodie may bee kept blamelesse vnto the comming of our Lord Iesus Christ. Our God is the God of peace He giueth peace and quiet to his Church He doth mussel the Lion amaze the tyrant make blunt the sworde and quench the fire prepared against his seruantes He giueth his sonnes peace and quietnesse among themselues He abhorreth discorde and malice betwéene brethren God is loue sayth Saint Iohn And he that dwelleth in loue dwelleth in God and God in him He that loueth not his brother abideth in death God hath made vs al members of one bodie There is no respect of persons with him no difference of learned and vnlearned wise or foolish rich or poore His wil is that wee al shoulde be as one of one minde and that we should al thinke one thing speake one thing that we should be one folde vnder one shepheard and with one month glorifie the father of our Lorde Jesus Christ. For this peace Christ prayed sanctifie them through thy trueth Blesse them take away al â—…itternesse and swelling from among them Make them Citizens of thy heauenly Hierusalem that they may liue in peace and loue one an other and delite one in other That they al may be one as thou ô father art one in me and I in thee God is the God and giuer of peace Whence then commeth diuision dissention of mindes What is the cause that the whole worlde is so shaken with sectes and troubles Al are not the children of peace Christ himselfe y e lambe of God in whose mouth there was no guile came into his owne and his owne receiued him not Cain is alwayes against Abel Esau wil neuer loue Iacob The darkenesse and the light can neuer agrée This is the cause of al vnquietnesse and trouble These thinges sayth Christ to his Disciples haue I spoken vnto you that in mee yee might haue peace in the worlde you shal haue affliction The wicked shal not onely hate but betraie and cause them to die which prosesse the name of Christ. Whosoeuer killeth you will thinke he doth God seruice And these thinges will they doe vnto you because yee haue not knowen the Father nor mee The setting foorth of the Gospel of Christ is that which the worlde can not abide It reuealeth things that were hidden it discloseth the couetousnesse of those who kept the people in ignoraunce to make gaine and marchaundise of their soules it ouerthroweth mightie buildinges and holdes of Merites of pardons of Masses of Purgatorie which by the policie and wisedome and power of this worlde were exalted against God This is the onelie cause of al this strife and trouble We haue néede of peace of the peace of conscience within our selues of peace from the rage and furie of the world and of peace and loue among those that are of Gods honsholde Let vs séeke peace at the handes of God and he wil stablish vs in the peace of his gospel and so giue vs the rest and peace of our soules Sanctifie you throughout The God of peace blesse you kéep you vnoer the shadow of his wings that your whole spirit and soule and bodie maie be kept blamelesse vnto the comming of our Lord Iesus Christ. Here marke that the Apostle diuideth man into thrée partes The spirite the soule and the bodie So that hée séemeth to make the spirit one thing and the soule an other Howe is it then that we diuide man into two parts the soule and the bodie and saie that he doth stand but of two parts There is no difference the matter is al one For Paul diuideth the soule into two parts The first is reason and vnderstanding which he calleth the Spirit The other is will affection which he calleth the Soule For as God hath giuen vs reason to sée what is good so hath he giuen vs wil to séeke after that which is good Reason hath eies Wil is blinde and cannot sée the waie Therefore wil must be ledde and guided by Reason Reason must go before Wil must follow after Therfore Reason is compared to the husband and Wil to the wife If Wil take in hand to rule Reason it is no lesse disorder than if the wife will aduenture or take vppon her to rule her husband Therefore in this place Reason which is the principal part of our soule is called the Spirit and Will which is the other part is called the Soule So the spirit is not a seuerall substance but the soule and the spirit are one soule euen as the bodie and the fleshe are one bodie Thus therefore Paule praieth for the Church the God of peace sanctifie you throughout that your spirit your reason and vnderstanding your soule your will and affection your bodie and your flesh may altogither be pure and holie that they may be found innocent and vpright in the daie of the Lord. V. 24. Faithful is hee which calleth you which wil also doe it Hée hath begunne a good worke in you he will finish it He will leade you from vertue to vertue from strength to strength from glorie to glorie Hée hath called you hée wil also kéepe you faithful vntill the daie of the appearing of our Lord Iesus Christ. You are Christs shéep No man shal take you out of his bands He hath not lost one of al them whome his father had giuen him He knoweth his shéepe None shalbe confounded that put their trust in him There is no condemnation to them that be in Christ Iesus He is faithfull he will performe this vnto you not for your merites but for his owne name and for his mercie sake Bicause he is faithfull he wil not despise the worke of his owne handes V. 25. Brethren praie for
ye shal haue tribulation ten daies be thou faithful vnto death I wil giue thee the crowne of life Thus god suffereth his seruants to be sifted to be tried as pure golde in the furnace receiueth them as a swéete smelling sauour of burnt sacrifice And this is it whereof the Apostle putteth the Thessalonians in remembraunce that they are strengthned by the holy ghost not only to abide such afflictioÌ„s as they suffer because they haue receiued the gospel but also to reioice because they are assured whatsoeuer shal happen vnto them they be the children of God V 7. So that you were as ensamples to all that beleeue in Macedonia and Achaia 8 For from you sounded out the word of y e Lord not in Macedonia and Achaia only but your faith also which is toward God spread abroade in all quarters that wee neede not to speake any thing 9 For they themselues shewe of you what maner entring in wee had vnto you and howe you turned from idols to God to serue the liuing and true God 10 And to looke for his sonne from heauen whome hee raised from the dead Iesus whiche deliuereth vs from the wrath to come The countries rounde about them were drawen by the example of the Thessalonians to beléeue the Gospel preached vnto them You are sayth he as y e bright sunne beames They beholde you and reioyce of you euen as of the morning light You are an holy Citie sette vppon an hil you cannot be hid your saith is a paterne of saith your life is a patern of life vnto them They haue learned of you howe to guide their wayes You haue called them backe from errour and from vngodiâ—…nesse to serue the true and liuing God You are made vnto them a swéete smelling sauour of life vnto life For so it hath pleased God to make his Gospel knowne in al places through you to make you the builders of his church When they beholde your godly conuersation which is in Christ they are ashamed of themselues When they behold your light they find fault with their owne darkenesse O say they this is a holy people this is a people that feareth God Let vs heare them what they teach let vs leade our liues in holinesse and righteousnesse as they doe Let vs by hearing these wordes enter into our selues God hath giuen his light to â—…hine vppon vs hee hath blessed vs with the knowledge of his Gospel Let vs take héede we turne not the light into darkenesse nor the truth of God into lies Manie thousande eyes are set vpon vs to looke vpon and beholde vs. Let vs be an example of godlinesse Let vs be as a light to them that yet abide in darkenes Let not the name of GOD be euil spoken of through vs. His name is holy Woe be vnto the worlde sayth Christ because of offences for it must needes be that offences shal come but woe be vnto that man by whome the offence commeth Whosoeuer shal offende one of these little ones it were better for him that a milstone were hanged about his necke and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea It were better for that man if hee had neuer béene borne For the bloud of them that perishe by his offence shal be required at his handes The wrath of God is reueiled from heauen against those that are such because they withholde the truth in vnright conâ—…sse The kingdome of God shal be taken away from them and giuen to a nation that wil bring foorth the fruites thereof It followeth From you sounded the word of the Lord not in Macedonia Achaia only c. If a man carrie in his hande a light burning candle it giueth not light to him only that carrieth it but to al those which be in the house and they also sée it which are without Euen so if any be the child of knowledge and carrie about him the light of-God he doth not onely tast of the comfort thereof himselfe and worke comfort to those that appertaine to the Church of God but lightneth also the hearts of Paganes and Jâ—…dels which are abroade Such as are bathed or persumed with precious ointments or pouders haue not only the pleasure to themselues but the sauour therof casteth if selfe out and is pleasant to al those which stande by The Gospel is the light of God It shineth in the darkenesse of this worlde It is the swéete incense and sauour of God Wheresoeuer the breath thereof is receiued it bringeth life But your faith also which is toward God spredde abroade in al quarters As the lightning is séene from one part of the ayre to the other and as the sounde of great noise spreadeth it selfe farre and wide so deeth the light of good conuersation in the godly shewe if selfe foorth And therefore he telleth them they haue filled al the Countrie of Macedonia with knowledge with wonder at their faith and â—…nesse in the truth As if he had saide great is the renowme of your king Alexander and your countrey is famous He hath ouerrun the whole world and subdued it He hath conquered Graecia Asia Arabia Phrygia Armenia Scythia and India Kings and princes sel downe before him The whole world stoode in awe of his name Yet Alexander had but the power force of men He had great treasures of golde and siluer He had numbers of horses and camels and Elephants He had sworde bils speares and dartes and such like artillerie and armor These were the things wherewith he ouercame his enemies Hereby both he and his people were renowmed What then may be said of the battaile which you haue fought or of the victorie which you haue gpttâ—… you haue won y e Alexander could neuer win You haue ouercome your selues You haue ouercome the world He conquered the bodies of many had them at coÌ„maundement But their soules stoode out would not be conquered You haue subdued your soules brought them to the obedience of the Gospel You haue ouerrun al the countrie and triumphed among the people And al this is brought to passe without force without policie without arâ—…ur without artilerie onely by your patience and suffering for the Gospel sake That wee neede not to speake any thing To make the commendation of their faith more euident he telleth thenâ—… the same of their zeale and constancy is kno 〈◊〉 in al places Whither seener I go saith he they know you and speake of you and bearken to you Hereby appeareth how néedeful it is that chief townes and cities he wel gouerned that vice in them be senerely punished that â—…tne and godlinesse be maineteined and the people instructed because the examples of such places spread abroad in al quarters nigh them They themselues shewe of you what maner of enteraunce wee had vnto you After what sort you receiued me and ginedeare I was vnto you Al places were laide and beset for me to séeke my life but
thee a defenced citie and an iron piller and walles of brasse against the whole land Thou shalt not bend thou shalt not yéeld Thou shalt be a consuming fire they shal be stubble before thée Likewise saith God to Abraham Feare not Abraham I am thy buckler and thine exceeding great reward When Moâ—…es sought to refose the message thâ—…ught himselfe ouer simple to goe vnto Pharao God answered Certainely I wil be with thee â—…nd after he saith I haue made thee Pharaâ—… God he shal tremble and quake at thy voice So saith Christ What I tell you in darkenesse that speake you in light and what yee he 〈◊〉 the care that preach yee on the houses And â—…are ye not them which kill the bodie but are not able to kill the soule but rather fearâ—… him which is able to destroy both soule and bodie in hell The consideration hereof euer mooued the Prophets and Apostles to warrant their sayings with authoritie from God and to set apart al feare when they spake in his name When Ahab reprooued Elias Art thou hee that troubleth Israel He answered I haue not â—…ubled Israel but thou thy fathers house in that yee haue forsaken the commandements of the Lorde and thou hast followed Baalim The Prophet Esaie is bolde with the Princes of Iuda and Ierusalem and saith Heare the word of the Lorde O Prince of Sodome hearken vnto the law of our God O people of Gomorrha Iohn the Baptist nothing feared to tell Herod a mightie Prince It is not lawfull for thee to haue her to wife If Balaac woulde giue mee his house ful of filuer and golde saieth Balaam I cannot passe the commandement of the Lord to do good or bad of mine owne minde What the Lord shall commaund that same will I speake Moses was bid to tell Pharao The Lord God of the Hebrewes hath sent me vnto thee Christ calleth Iames and Iohn the sonnes of Zebedeus Boanerges which is the sonnes of thunder bicause they shoulde not flatter but raise tempest and lighten and thunder in the eares and hearts of their hearers Saint Paul saith I am not ashamed of the Gospell of Christ for it is the power of God vnto saluation to euerie one that beleeueth It is the worde of God and shall endure for euer He hath not giuen vs the spirit of feare to flatter but the spirite of might and of power to speake roughly and couragiously where occasion so requireth And therefore saith If I would please men I were not the seruaunt of Christ. But I preach Gods doctrine and not the doctrine of men I séeke to please God and not men The Pharises sought to please men and to deceiue the people They taught them to walk in the waies of their forefathers to beléetie as they beléeued to doe as they had done They flattered them and saide you are the Church of God you are Gods people you are the sonnes of Abraham you can not erre you can not be deceiued They that in this sorte flatter the people and deceiue them they serue not Iesus Christ but their bellie and through flatterie and faire spéech seduce the hearts of the simple Nor coloured couetousnesse The Scribes the Pbarises deuoured vp widowes houses vnder pretense of their long praiers they praied and made mony of their praiers they gaue almes and made monie of their almes giuing they fasted and made monie of their fasting This did the Scribes the Pharises their doings continue stil they be dead their name is takeÌ„ away but their prosessioÌ„ abideth As they made gains of their praiers alms fasting so do some now make great gaines war rich vnder pretence of holines They haue brought in a professioÌ„ of wilful chastity forbiddeÌ„ mariage in some whole estate of men No doubt â—…astitie is a holy thing But they haue giuen licence for money to such as would to forsake their vowe of chastity They haue forbidden to eate certaine meates vppon certaine dayes God left meates as frée to the choise of euery man as he left his sunne to shine fréely to the vse of al men And they make frée libertie for money to eate what euerie man liketh They make money of Purgatorie money of pardons and money of their Masses They make money of Peter and of Paule of the Apostles and Martyrs and of Christ himselfe These are they of whom Saint Peter speaketh Through couetousnesse shal they with fained wordes make marchaundise of you One sayth of them Curia Romana non captat ouem sine lana The court of Rome careth not for that sheepe that hath no fleece I wil not lay foorth at large how they doâ—… al thinges for couetousnes I haue no pleasure in speaking it God graunt vs so to deliuer the gospel aright that we vse not the trueth of God for a cloake of couetousnesse Neither sought wee praise of men neither of you nor of others This is an other hinderaunce of the course of the Gospel when the ministers thereof loue the praise of men more than the praise of God Howe can ye beleeue sayth Christ which receiue honour one of an other and seeke not the honour that commeth of God alone how farre the Apostle was from this ambition it appeared For he was reuiled and euil spoken of and counted the filth and outcast of the world V. 7. When we might haue beene chargeable as the Apostles of Christ but we were gentle among you euen as a nourse cherisheth her childrem 8. Thus being affectioned to you our good wil was to haue dealt vnto you not the Gospel of God onelie but also our owne soules because ye were deare vnto vs. 9. For ye remember brethren our labour and trauaile for wee laboured day and night because wee woulde not be chargeable vnto any of you and preached vnto you the Gospel of God 10. You are witnesses and GOD howe holilie and iustlie and vnblameablie wee behaued our selues among you that beleeue I might haue required meate and drinke other thinges necessarie at your hands For who féedeth a flocke and eateth not of the milke of the flocke who planteth a vineyard and eateth not of the fruite thereof who goeth a warfare at any time of his owne cost who mousleth the mouth of the ore that treadeth out corne we plant the vineyarde of the Lorde of hoastes Wee féede Christes flocke We goe to warfare and stande in the watch defence of your safetie We are the poore oxen that treade out the corne which wil féede you to saluation We are your seruaunts we labour to doe you good we are ordained to minister in the Church of God It were great reason wee should reape your carnall thinges which haue sowen to you spiritual thinges The workeman is woorthie his wages Yet taught I the Gospel fréely and without rewarde and was readie to giue my bloud my life and my soule out of my bodie for
Iesus Christ. When this worde is read Princes and Emperours stande vp and laie downe their sword and vncouer their head and bowe their bodie and doe reuerence bicause they knowe it is the worde of GOD which God himselfe vttered that it should be as the deaw of heauen to moisten our soules as a well of water springing vp to euerlasting life as a sauour of life vnto life and the verie power of God vnto saluation to euerie one that beléeueth Without this worde wée can receiue no comforte wée can not sée the light nor growe in saith nor abide in the Church of God It is the word of reconciliation By it God maketh atonement betwéene himselfe and the sonnes of men Therfore when the Epistles the Psalms the Chapters and the Gospell are read in our hearing let vs remember whose worde wée heare Let vs thinke thus with our selues These are the words of our gracious GOD. My God openeth his mouth from heauen aboue Hée speaketh to me that I maie be saued he speaketh to me to kéepe mée from errour to comforte mée in the aduersities and troubles of this life and to leade me to the life to come What is the cause why so manie so little regarde the worde of GOD Why they doubt it and suspect it Why they are so soone wearie of it and beare it not that reuerence that belongeth to it Bicause they thinke not neither from whome it commeth nor with whose bloud it is sealed nor to Inhose benefite it is written Let vs not be ashamed to giue place to the worde of GOD to awake our senses and to submit them and our wisedome and learning and bodies and soules vnto it Let vs not harden our hearts Let vs humble our selues before God and saie Beholde here am I let him doe to me as seemeth good in his eies Which also worketh in you that belceue Whosoeuer heareth the wordes of God and doth them not shall be likened to a foolish man that buildeth his house vppon the sand If yee know these things saith Christ blessed are yee if ye doe them The same worde of God which Paule taught the Thessalonians which was preached by Peter and the rest of the Apostles to the faithfull which Christ receiued of his father and deliuered to his Church is this day by the mercie of God purely and truly set downe vnto you By it you are required to amend your liues and comforted in the promises of GOD to the forgiuenesse of your sinnes If there he anie in whom it worketh not this effecte if there be anie which though they heare it beléeue it not nor are thereby renewed in their mindes it is a token that they haue not receiued the lous of the trueth of the Gospell they despise the worde of saluation and it shall iâ—…dge them in that daie V. 14. For brethren you are become followers of the Church of GOD which in Iudea are in Christ Iesus because yee haue also suffered the same things of your owne countrie men euen as they of the Iewes 15. Who both killed the Lorde Iesus and their owne Prophetes and haue persecuted vs and God they please not and are contrarie to al men 16. And forbid vs to preach vnto the Gentiles that they might be saued to fulfil their sinnes alwaies For the wrath of God is come on them to the vtmost Wherein became they followers In suffring as they did This is the badge and cognisance of the sonnes of God Christ sayth If any man wil come after me let him deny himselfe and take vp his crosse dayly and followe mee They followed others not in pleasure and glory but in trouble and persecution For that was the way of the prophetes and Apostles and of Christ himselfe Esay the Prophet was cut in sunder with a Sawe What more cruel death His bodie was rent his bowels torne and yet hee not quite dead In such sort it liked the cruel tormentors to sport themselues Why what had he done he was a prophet They néeded no other matter against him It was ynough that they found him to be a prophet Hieremie was stoned to death Wherefore because he called the people to repentaunce that they might be saued Because he was a prophet Amos was slaine with a barre poore olde man No reuerence giuen to his gray head no regarde or pitie was taken of him Wherefore because he rebuked iniquitie Because he was a Prophet Zacharie was sâ—…aine when he was in his prayers and doing sacrifice in the holy place betwéene the entraunce and the alter Wherefore Because he declared the trueth because he was a prophet This hath béene the malice and hatred of the Diuel The Prince of the darkenesse of this world hath raged so euen from the beginning By this meanes he hath sought to deface the truth glorie of God and to establish his owne kingdome in shedding the bloud and murthering the saints of God The Churches of God in Iudea were miserably bered and afflicted they were hated of al men and counted vnworthie of life Wherfore because they turned to the true liuing god did beléeue in the name of Jesus Christ. Therefore they were stript spoyled headed quartred drowned burnt and put to most reprocheful death Who would become their â—…ollowers Who would willingly learne to be so persecuted and made gazing stockes to al the worlde is discouraged not the Thessalonians They were a thousand mileâ—… distant from Iudea but were ioyned in fellowship of the Gospel and in brotherly loue vnto them They hearde of their mildenesse and of their constancie and were stirred vp by their example They did hearken after them and were carefull for them as for their brethren and the members of the same bodie You haue heard what numbers of late haue béene persecuted and put to death among vs. Wherefore because they turned from idols to serus God as he hath commanded and did put their trust in him You haue hearde how patiently and méekely they went to their death and what a plentiful haruest God hath raised of their bloud For the death of his saintes is precious in the sight of the Lorde Their bloud cannot be spent in vaine Wee must remember their patience and zeale and the cause why they suffred We must not despise or set light by the Gospel of Jesus Christ for which they so ioyfully gaue their liues And it is not ynough that we be mindeful of such examples as we haue had at home We must also carefully consider of other Churches abroade God hath kindled a fire he wil haue it burne O what formentes doe our brethren daily suffer What crueltie is deuised daily against them I speake not of death onelie but of rackings and wonderful extremities more painefull than death Wherefore are these thinges done vnto them Because they are turned to the true and liuing God and beléene in the name of Jesus Christ. Some they hang by the hands and drawe vp with
to doe as others doe It is a small matter to looke vp and holde vp thy hands at the sacring If it be an offence thou shalt be excused because thou arte forced to doe it by authoritie GOD is mercifull he will forgiue thée Thus and thus doth Sathan â—…empt vs and sifteth vs to leade vs from our stedfastnesse These deuises he practised of latedaies before our eies with manie constant professours of Christian religion but through the mightie power of GOD they quenched all his fierie dartes and through manie tribulations entred into glorie Thankes be to God which doth make vs able through his grace not onelie to beléeue in him but also to suffer for his sake He is faithfull and will not suffer vs to be tempted aboue that we are able but will euen giue the issue with the temptation that we maie be able to beare it He hath bidden vs call vppon him in the daie of trouble and he will deliuer vs. Commit thy waie vnto the Lorde and trust in him saith the Prophet and hee shal bring it to passe I haue set the Lord alwaies before mee for he is at my right hand therefore I shall not slide And againe The Lord is with mee Therefore I wil not feare what man can doe vnto mee It is better to trust in the Lord than to haue confidence in princes When our sauiour foretold his Disciples of the troubles to come he also maketh comforte to them of the strength and the helpe which they shall receiue of GOD saying When they deliuer you vp take no thought how or what yee shall speake for it shall bee giuen you in that houre what yee shall saie he telleth them by whom they shall be persecuted Yee shall be betrayed also of your parents and of your brethren and kinsemen and friends And in what sorte They shall laie handes on you and persecute you and deliuer you to the Synagogues and into prisons and bring you before Kings and Rulers And for what cause For my names sake Then what the godlie in this case must doe Feare them not Hee that endureth to the ende shall be saued Last of all hée promiseth to be with them and to strengthen them This shal turne to you for a Testimoniall Laie it vp therefore in your heartes that you premeditate not what yee shall aunswere For I wil giue you a mouth and wisedome whereagainst al your aduersaries shal not be able to speake nor resist Thus were the things spoken of long béefore which we haue séene lately done Whosoeuer will sette downe the storie thereof nowe they are passed muste néedes declare it in the manner as it was forespoken Their owne kinsfolkes and friendes betrayed many and brought them to the Bishoppes who deliuered them into prisons for the name of Christ and for the loue of his truth The blessed witnesses or martyres of God feared not but endured Manie were simple yong men yong maidens men and women of great age labouring men and men of occupations Yet God gaue them such a mouth and such wisedome as al their aduersaries were not able to speake against it nor resist it Who readeth that Scripture diligently and considereth this storie of our time aduisedly can not but confesse that the light of Gods Gospell is come among vs and that we are they vpon whom the latter ende of the world is come and in whome he doth shew foorth the great might of his power Therefore such temptations as Sathan vseth can not make the name of GOD fal from his ancker holde His hope is safely laid vp in his breast Hée knoweth in whome hée putteth his trust and therefore saieth I presume not of knowledge I estéeme not to know anie thing saue Christ Iesus and him crucified I beléeue not in my fathers I reuerence them and loue them but I beléeue onelie in GOD. I feare not the sworde I feare not what man can doe vnto me but I feare him that can kill my bodie and soule It is better for me to abide the fire and lose my life that I may liue for euer than to denie GOD for safegarde of my life and be caste into hell fire If there be so manie partakers of their errours and so fewe that cleaue to the trueth the multitude of them shall not saue mée and it is no triall of Gods trueth whether it be receiued of many or of fews Cardinalles and Bishoppes and doâ—…ours may be wise and learned So were Annas and Caiaphas the high priests and Scribes and Pharises which did put to death the Lord of glorie I dare not doe ill bicause other men do it I may not tempt God My conscience is truely assured by Gods worde what is idolatrie and the dishonour of God If I should come into the Church and make such shew as you aduise me and be partaker with Idolaters I should doe hurt to others in mine ill example I should do against mine owne conscience which would be a heauie witnesse against mée both whiles I liue in this world and in the dreadfull daie of iudgement V. 11. Now God himselfe euen our father and our Lord Iesus Christ guide our iourney vnto you 12. And the Lord increase you and make you abound in loue one toward an other and toward al men euen as wee doe toward you 13 To make your heartes stable and vnblamable in holinesse before God euen our father at the comming of our Lord Iesus Christ with his Saints I haue planted you you are my children whom I haue begotten in Christ. I loue you and haue care ouer you I haue an ercéeding desire to sée your face But Sathan hath withstoode my purpose and found meanes to kéepe me from you I commit my voyage to God if it please him that I may come vnto you to reioice with you and comfort you He knoweth what is good for me and what is profitable for you The cause is his owne Hée will doe all things to his glorie Hée will treade Sathan vnder our féete We can not purpose and dispose of our selues I know that the way of man is not in him selfe neyther is it in man to walke and to direct his steps The Lord increase you in al godlinesse that you may abound more and more euen as you haue heard of vs how you ought to walk You are but a little flocke God increase your number and make all them partakers of his kingdome with you which heare of your faith and conuersation in Christ. To make your hearts stable and vnblameable That nothing moue you or trouble youâ—… that your hearts and consciences be quiet that you may stand vpright and shewe your lelues in great confidence before his iudgement seate that when you shal sée Gods haud stretched out his plagues prepared against the wicked you be not afraid This is the hauen of rest whereto no man commeth but he that hath a quiet conscience this is the tabernacle
vnto the resurrection of life but they that haue doone euill vnto the resurrection of condemnation And againe I am the resurrection and the life hee that beleeueth in mee though hee were dead shal liue and whosoeuer liueth and beleeueth in me shall neuer die For if wee beleeue that Iesus is dead and is risen that he was deliuered to death for our sinnes and is risen againe for our iustification if we beléeue that he is ascended vp into heauen and sitteth at the right hand of GOD his father he will also raise vp our mortall bodies and bring vs with him Nowe Christ is risen from the dead and was made the firste fruites of them that sleepe He is our head wée are his bodie Wee are flesh of his flesh and bone of his bone Hée hath giuen vs his Spirite to dwell in vs. But if anie man hath not the Spirite of Christ the same is not his Christ our head liueth His bodie then can not he dead Where I am sayeth he there shall also my seruaunt be Wherefore if we be dead with Christ we beleeue that wee shal liue also with him What then shal become of the infidelles which haue no faith which haue not the spirit of God Shal not they rise againe Yes verily They shal rise but not with Christ. They shal not rise the resurrection of the iust Some shal rise vnto life some vnto death some to saluation others to damnation some to glory others to shame Wee must al appeare before the iudgement seate of Christ that euerie man may receiue the thinges which are doone in his bodie according to that he hath doone whether it be good or euil The wicked shal rise vp again with their bodies and their portion shal be with the Diuel and his Angels they shal come foorth of their graues to the resurrection of condemnation their bodie and soule shal be cast into hel fire Their worme shal neuer die their fire shal not be quenched It had béen better for them they had neuer béene borne V. 15. For this say we vnto you by the word of the Lord that we which liue and are remaining in the comming of the Lorde shal not preuent them that sleepe 16. For the Lorde himselfe shal descende from heauen with a shout and with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God and the dead in Christ shal rise first This that we declare vnto you is not of our selues It is the truth of God it shal stand good be found true for euer God wil raise our bodies out of the graue 〈◊〉 restore theÌ„ from death to life You may not reason howe or in what order this shal be doone or who shal be the first or the seconde or the third that shal rise vp in the resurrection Such questions are unfit and not to be moued We shal al be chaunged in a moment in the twinckling of an eye At that houre some shalve aliue and some shal be dead For he shal come to iudge both the quicke and the dead We that are remaining in the comming of the Lorde shal not preuent them that sleepe Neither is their part better in the resurrection that shal then be founde aliue nor their part worse that haue béene dead manis yeares before For they which were dead shal as soone be partakers of the glory of the sonnes of God as the other Touching the state of men that shal liue in the end of the world Christ sayth As the daies of Noe so likewise shal the comming of the sonne of man be I doubt not but you remeÌ„ber the storie what dreadful plague of rain tempest fel when al the world was drowned and destroyd with water Vice and vngodlines encreased and al flesh had corrupt his way vpon earth They had no shame there was no feare of God before their eyes Gods wrath was kindled against them He sent Noah a preacher of righteousnes to reforme them to tel them of the destructioÌ„ at hand that they might repent and be saued But they regarded it not They laught Noah to scorne grewe desperate and continued in sinne Sodenly al the fountaines of the great déepe were broken vp the windowes of heauen were opened As they were eating drinking buying selling building purchasing stirring and trauailing as they were in the middest of their ioyes trauailes and pleasures the raine came vpon them and the flouds grewe so great that it destroyed the whole worlde except Noah and a fewe of his companie Their landes their goods Cities Castles nor any other their pleasure or wealth could saue them so shal it be in the comming of Christ. As it was in the daies of Lot and as it betel to Sodome and Gomortha they liued and increased in filthinesse Their heartes were blind and regarded no counsel Their bodies were filthie their soules their liues their houses cities were ful of filthinesse The Angel of God departed from them Loth went out from among them and fire came downe from heauen and consumed them to ashes and caried them downe quick into hel There was no father left to lament his child no child left to lament his father So shal it be at the comming of Christ. He shal come as a théefe sodenly when no man looketh for his comming he shal come at such season when mens harts wil be asléepe and thinke not of him S. Peter sayeth There shal come in the last dayes mockers which will walke after their lustes and say where is the promise of his comming for since the fathers dyed al things continue alike from the beginning of the creation They skorne the threatninges of Gods indgement When shal the world come to an ende We haue winter and sommer raine snow day and night as before The sonne kéepeth his course the fioudes runne the frâ—… beare fruit al things are as they haue béene O sayth Peter know this that god hath made the heauen and earth and al the furniture in them They are his creatures he doth holde theÌ„ vp and preserue them by the power of his word When God shal withdrawe his word they shal decay and haue an ende As for our Lorde he shal come and not tarie at his comming heauen shal depart away as a scrol that is rold the element shal melt with heat and the earth with the works that are therin shal be burnt vp and consumed before his face Deceiue not your selues with lying wordes For when you say peace peace and al thinges are safe then shal sodaine destruction come vpon you Then two men shal be in the fieldes the one shal bee receiued and the other refused Two women shal be grinding at the mil the one shall be receiued and the other refused So shal also the comming of the sonne of man â—…ée The number of the faithful that shal remain at his comming shal not be many So sayth Christ When the sonne
of man commeth shal he finde faith on the earth S. Iohn prophecying of that day sayth The sunne was as blacke as sackecloath of hayre and the Moone was like bloud The beautie of the Church shal be defaced the light of the Gospel shal be put out Then shal few be left of those that shal behold the glory of God These shal giue witnesse vnto the truth And albeit they be but few yet are they ynough to condemne the vngodlinesse of the wicked We shal not go in rowtes for we shal be but few we shal then be in the bodie and liue in this world and looke vp and sée these things yet when the Lord shal come we shal not preuent them that sléepe Although we liue and they were dead yet shal they be as readie as we Why For the Lord himselfe shal descend with a shout c. Here is laide before vs the true maner of the terrible iudgement of God For our better vnderstanding let vs compare heauen with earth and the iudgement of God with the iudgement of men The Judges sitte on high accōpanied with noble men and Justices attended on with Constables and baylifes and the state presence of the countrey the théefe is brought foorth piniond and bound in chaines and fetters The poore wretch standeth in great feare his conscience accuseth him and sayth thou didst steale thou art worthie to die The boyce of the Judge is as a blast of thunder the face of the Judge terrible to him as hel fire But the innocent that is wrongfully imprisoned and hath not offended he séeth himselfe cleare his conscience ercuseth him and therefore reioyceth at the comming of the Judges He thought it long before they came These saith he wil strike off my shackles and set me at libertie Their voice vnto him is as the voyce of life he beholdeth them and they are as the angels of God Such shal bee the shewe and sight of the sonne of GOD he shal come downe with maiestie from heauen the Trumpet of God shal sounde and be hearde from the one ende of the heauen to the other and whosoeuer shal heare it shal quake for feare Then shal he be the iudge ouer al flesh Then be shal shew him selfe to be King of Kings and Lorde of Lords Then shal he not come in humilitie méeke nesse and mercy but with dread and terrour of iudgement and iustice Not with twelue poore Apostles but with twelue thousande Angels to attende vpon him Not in the preaching of the Gospel calling sinners to repentance but in the sounde of a Trumpet wherewith al the corners of the earth shal be amazed Then shal he not say come vnto mee al ye that trauaile and be loaden and I wil refresh you I am sent to the lost Shéepe of Israel He shal not say Father forgiue them for they knowe not what they do But you haue béene ashamed of me and of my worde before men therefore now wil I be ashamed of you before my heauenly father Then shal they that despired y e word of God know what they despised and the blasphemers shal reape the fruit of their blasphemie Then the carelesse Sheaphearde which hath not fed the Lords shéepe but neglected them and left them at al aduentures which hath betrayed his flocke and giuen them to bee a praie vnto the Woolfe shal receiue a iust rewarde for his treason Then the adulterer oppressour and Vsnrer shal haue their life layde open before them Then shal euerie eye sée him They shal see him whome they pearced through they shal sée his woundes which they did not regarde They shal sée his Sworde readie drawen to slaie all his enemies and shal fal downe for feare of him that sitteth vpon the throne and of the Lambe But the harts of the righteous shal reioyce They shal lift vp their heades and sée him in whome they haue trusted Then they shal say this is the day which the Lorde hath made let vs reioice and be glad in it Come let vs reioice vnto the Lord let vs come before his face with praise lette vs sing lowde vnto him with Psalmes Such shal be the state and countenaunce and honour and maiestie of our God when he shal come downe from heauen for our deliueraunce And the dead in Christ shal rise first The earth shal open yéelde foorth her dead bodies that so they may be ready with vs that remain to go before the presence of our iudge Which are dead in Christ. Who are they They whom he chose out of this world and which haue chosen God for their portion whome God hath sealed vnto the day of redemption Which haue saide Christ is to me both in life death aduantage And I liue not I now but Christ liueth in me And againe whether we liue or bie we are the Lords Which say I haue boūd my selfe to serue the Lord all the daies of my life They are dead in Christ which commend them selues wholie vnto him and say O Lord in thée haue I trusted let mée neuer be confounded I desire to be losed and to be with Christ. Into thy handes O Lord I commend my spirite thou hast redéemed mée O Lord of truth To be shorte whosoeuer liueth in the Lord he dieth in the Lord. He in whom Christ liueth which hath a tast and féeling of Christ in his heart he that reioiceth in Christ and looketh for that blessed hope and appearing of the glory of the mightie God and of our sauiour Jesus Christ he is a shéepe of his pasture he is a member of his bodie he is the apple of his eie he liueth and dieth in Christ. Blessed is he that so liueth and so dieth for he shall rise with Christ in the resurrestion of the righteous and shal haue his part in the land of the liuing V. 17. Then shal we which liue and remaine be caught vp with them also in the cloudes to meete the Lord in the aire and so shal wee euer be with the Lord. 18. Wherefore comfort your selues one another with these wordes We which shall sée al these things shal also be caught vp our selues But here you must note that Paul speaketh not this of his owne person and of them that liued in his time as if they should continue aliue vntil the ende or that the world should haue an ende before they should die but he sheweth what shal be the state of such whosoeuer shal then remaine aliue And againe marke that he saith not we which liue and remaine shall die soorthwith or our bodies shall be turned into dust and so our soules alone go to méete the Lorde but whether we be standing or sitting doing well or ill occupied Wee shall be caught vp For the Trumpet shall sodainely blow and then the dead shall rise and we shall be changed So saith Saint Paul Behold I shew you a secrete thing we shal not al sleepe but wee shal
al be changed In a moment in y e twinkling of an eie shal they that are dead arise and we shall be changed This our mortall bodie shall be changed and shal put on immortalitie this corruptible bodie shal be changed and put on incorruption Christ wil change our earthly bodies to the likenesse of his glorious heauenly bodie Then shall our flesh be pure and heauenly and spirituall and we shall be able to behold the glorie of God Then shall be brought to passe the saying that is written death is swalowed vp into victorie O death where is thy sting O graue where is thy victorie To meete the Lord in the aire c. This is a comfortable end of al troubles and persecutions which the godlie suffer in this life that they be receiued into the glorie of God and that both their bodie and soule doth liue with him and enioy his presence for euer Then shall they eate of the trée of life which is in the middest of the paradise of GOD. They shal hunger no more nor thirst any more neither shal the sunne light on them nor anie heate God shal wipe away al teares from their eies Then shal they féele those ioies which eie hath not séene nor eare hath heard nor hath entred into the heart of man Such an end shal they haue whosoeuer feare the Lord. Comfort your selues one another with these wordes You sée the turmoiles and troubles of the world what vexations and afflictions Sathan raiseth vp against al those that will liue godlie Open and notorious sinners are â—…borne Theft adulterie vsurie extortion wilfull murther rebellion treason are many times pardoned and vnpunished but true religion which is the turning from idols to serue the true and liuing God and faith in Jesus Christ that by him we shall be deliuered from the wrath to come findeth feâ—…e friends and seldome escapeth without strange and most cruel tormeÌ„ts What is this but to crucifie the Lord of glory and to set Barrabas a murtherer at libertie Dauid saith The Kings of the earth band themselues and the Princes are assembled together against the Lord and against his annointed They séeke to spoile the vine of the Lord and to destroy his little flocke They vse al meanes to put out the light of the Gospel But be you of good chéere coÌ„tinue you stedfast in the truth your redemption is euen at hand You shal be caught vp in the cloudes to méete the Lord and so shall abide with him for euer Let euerie neighbour comfort his neighbour and euery father his childe let vs al one comfort an other with these words CHAP. 5. BVt of times and seasons brethren you haue no neede that I write vnto you 2 For yee your selues know perfectly that the daie of the Lord shal come as a theefe in the night 3 For when they shal say peace and safetie then shal come vpon them sodaine destruction as the trauaile vpon a woman with child and they shal not escape WHen the Disciples came vnto Christ a part and saide Tel vs when these things shall be and what signe shal be of thy comming and of the ende of the world hee answered Take heede least anie man deceiue you It is not for you to know the times or the seasons which the father hath put in his owne power For of that daie and houre knoweth no man no not the Angels which are in heauen neither the sonne himselfe saue the Father vere not your spirite in vaine Séeke not for that you may not knowe you shall not be able to finde it Therefore saith Paul I néede not write of times and seasons in which these things shall be done Your selues haue béene taught the word of God you haue learned what his wil is you know the day of the Lord shal come vpon you as a théefe And how commeth a théefe not in the day time not when a man hath company about him not when he is watched but in the night in the darkenesse when al light is out when the good man of the house taketh his rest when the seruants are asléepe Euen so when the light of the truth is taken away when the hart of the goodman of the house is at rest and his eies are darkened that they cannot sée and al his senses drowned in worldlie pleasures when we care for nothing and think of nothing when we say peace and safety then wil the sonne of man come to iudgement then shal destruction sodainly fal vpon vs. Therfore let vs be readie for in the houre that we think not wil the sonne of man come Marke that Paul saith yée haue no néede that I write vnto you of times and seasons that our sauior saith it is not for you to know the times or the seasons What may we think then of them that write bookes almanackes and say such a yeare and at such a time Christ shal come and with these spéeches fray and mocke the world Paul was the Apostle of Christ an elect vessel of the holie ghost he said I haue no néed to write of it you cannot know it What néede is there nowe that such bookes and pamphlets should be written why should the world be troubled with such vanities Spare me your patience and giue me leaue a little to deale with these wisards Tell mee thou that doest measure and beholde the compasse of heauen and markest the coniunoions and oppositions and aspects of the starres and by that wisedome canst foretel the things that shalbe done hereafter where learnest thou this skil how commest thou by this déepe knowledge Paul was taken vp into the third héaueÌ„ heard words which cannot be spoken which are not lawful for man to vtter yet he knew not this secret nor might not know it What art thou then art thou greater than the Apostle of Christ hast thou béene taken vp into some place higher than the third heauen hast thou heard such words as are not lawfull to vtter if it be so why doest thou vtter them wilt thou take that vpon thée which the holie Apostle dareth not arte thou of Gods priuie counsel the angels and archangels know not hereof and shal we thinke that thou knowest it Art thou wiser than an Angel Consider thy selfe thou art a miserable man thy breath fadeth as the smoake Thou art nothing but dust and ashes thou canst not attaine to the knowledge hereof And what is that which thou boastest the knowledge of that terrible daie when all flesh shall appeare before the Judge Euen of that time which God hath put in his owne power O vaine man thou knowest not thine owne â—…aie thou knowest not when thy soule shall be taken from thée By what helpes and meanes camest thou vnto this knowledge by reading the writings of the Apostles by reading the Gospell of Christ or anie parte of the word of GOD No GOD wote thou hast no great skill in this learning Thou hast
I can make no account of him He is not within Paules reckning The workman is worthie of his hire But what right hath hée to the hire which is not a workeman I might saith he haue receiued mainteinance at your handes but I tooke nothing that I might be an example for you to follow that none shoulde liue idlely but that They worke with quietnesse and eate their owne bread Idlenesse is the mother of all mischiefe An idle packe is as if he were alreadie dead His féete serue him not to trauaile his hands helpe him not to worke his eies serue him not to sée his estate his heart regardeth not the time and miserie of his age Beggerie falleth vpon him and gnaweth his bones but he feéleth it not For he is as if he were alreadie dead Salomon faith He that foloweth idlenesse hath no vnderstanding And againe He that followeth idlenesse shall be filled with pouertie He is vnprofitable to himselfe and vnto others His children shal begge at euerie doore Againe he saith The slouthfull wil not plough because of winter hee shall begge in sommer but haue nothing That is men that haue receiued encrease of Gods blessing by taking paines shall denie breade vnto such and vpbraide them for their idleuesse and so driue them to labour They will saie as it is deuised that the Ant said in like case to the Grashopper In the sommer thou diddest nothing but sing therefore thou maist sterue in the winter These extremities be great if a man wil weigh them aduisedly Yet Ecclesiasticus saith farther Idlenesse bringeth much euil It is an euil teacher He that doth nothing is ill occupied The minde of man is euer stirring and doing somewhat If it be not doing well it is doing ill Water is cleare and faire fresh comfortable yet if it stand still in a hole or be kept long in a vessel whence it hath no issue it wil rotte and smell and be vnwholesome Euen so it fareth with the sons of Adam if they haue nothing to doe no waie to bestowe their witte they will rotte and proue vnwholesome and deuise mischiefe al the daie long What is it that filleth the prisons and bringeth so manie to the gallowes and causeth so many parents to bewaile the vntimely death of their children but idlenesse when the poore wretches haue receiued their iudgement and come to the place of execution and stand on the ladder what counsaile giue they to young men and to children but to beware of idlenesse what is cause of such and so manie diseases in the bodie Aske the Phisitions and they will tell you idlenesse Whereof rise mutterings in Cities against Magistratrs whereof rise rebellions in kingdomes against Princes you can giue no greater cause thereof than idlenesse Beholde saith the Lorde this was the iniquitie of thy sister Sodome pride fulnesse of bread and abundance of idlenes This was it that called for fire downe from heauen and wasted so manie cities into ashes Christ saieth Of euerie idle word that men shal speake they shal giue an accompt thereof at the day of iudgement If we shal make accompt for our idle wordes what shall we doe for our idle handes for our idle féete for our idle bodie for our idle soule what accompt for al our idlenesse shall wée make at the daie of iudgement We warned you saith the Apostle that if anie would not work the same should not eatâ—… This is a hard saying yet saith Paule I my selfe haue kept it I haue fulfilled it in mine owne bodie He doth not saie if any be sicke or weake or impotent and can not worke but if anie be idle and froward and will not worke to such a one giue not to eate that so he maie sée the daunger of idlenesse and worke with his handes the thing which is good that he maie haue to giue him that needeth It is not lawfull to giue them the breade of the Church and the almes ordained for reliefe of the poore This bread they maie not eate But you will saie Kings and Counsailours Bishoppes Preachers and all other sorts of learned men neither plough nor sow nor hedge nor ditch nor vse such painefull labour of the body they sit at rest and liue idlely They that so thinke are deceiued The toile which princes take and the great cares wherwith they are occupied passe al other cares in the world Saint Paul calleth the office of a Bishop a good worke If a bishop or minister studie the Scriptures preach the gospel catechize the children and take a care of the soules of Gods people if he sowe the Lordes fielde féede the Lords flocke thresh the Lords corne and walke before the people carefully if he haue the care of the Churches and can say with the Apostle who is weake and I am not weake who is offended and I burne not any offence that is giuen to my brother is to mee as a fire or as a torment If he be instant in season and out of season if he do the worke of an Euangelist and make his ministerie fully knowen he shal finde himselfe occupyed and not be idle The maister of the shippe séemeth to bée idle to sit stil and to doe nothing He stirreth not the pumpe he driueth not the oares he soundeth not the déepe he rideth not the ropes he skaleth not the shrowdes hee runneth not hither and thither forewarde or backwarde vnder the hatches or aboue Hée sitteth stil holdeth his peace and looketh vpon the loade starre and in appearaunce doth nothing But his labour passeth all the rest Whithout his labor al the paines which the other Mariners take were lost Were it not for his labour the shippe woulde soone strike vpon rockes and be stayed in the sandes and they al should perish Euen so fareth it in the state of princes and of their counsaylors they séeme to doe nothing yet they doe al thinges which is for the peace and the wealth and the safegarde of al the people Be not wearie in wel doing many occasions to discourage you to doe wel The worlde is ful of lets but be you stedfast vnmoueable abundant alwaies in the worke of the Lord for as much as you know that your labour is not in vaine in the Lord. Stand fast and kéepe the instructions which you haue béene taught Distribute to the necessitie of the saints Doe good vnto al men especially to them that be of the housholde of faith Liue not after the lusts of men in wantonnesse drunkennesse gluttonie and in abhominable idolatrie Though they speake euil of you because you runne not with theÌ„ vnto that same excesse of riot though the Diuel cast you into prison and there you haue tribulation be you faithful vnto death They that haue afflicted you shal giue an account to the righteous iudge and the afflictions which you suffer in this present time are not woorthie of the glorie which