world that we will stand up in the defence of it according to that of S. Paul Stand fast in the faith play the men and be strong The man that standeth is alwayes readie to resist his enemie but he that sitteth or lieth is a vantage to him according to the verse made of the devil Est leo si sedeat si stet quasi muscarecedit If man doth sit the devil will Lion be But if he stand the devil a Lion's he Standing therefore is the fittest and comeliest of all gestures for the professing of our faith and putting us in minde of being constant in it For as we stand in the faith so without the faith we cannot stand therefore the Apostle saith By faith ye stand Take away from man his faith and presently he falls Faith is a mans rock and as long as he stands upon it fall he cannot For this cause our Saviour called Simon Peter quasi Petra because his faith was his rock and against this he told him the gates of hell should not prevail Wherefore seeing our faith is so pleasing to God and so profitable to us we ought often to offer it to him in profession Next we shall do more reverently to stand up at the reading of the Psalmes before after and between the holy lessons and at Gloria Patri because in these we speak unto God and it is not good manners in a publick assembly to speak unto God sitting as if we were his fellows Lastly we are to stand up at the reading of the Gospel in regard of the authour of the speech which is our Lord Christ As also because they do alwaies historically declare something that our Saviour either spake did or suffered in his own person for us most miserable and wretched sinners Whereupon in token of greater reverence to our ever-blessed Redeemer it hath been the custome of Christian men and women to stand up and at the rehearsall of the Gospel to utter certain words of acclamation as Glorie be to thee O Lord and at the end thereof to say Thanks be to God for his glorious Gospel or the like But you will say You teach us to bowe to kneel and to stand up yet these are but outward ceremonies and humane civilities fitter for men then for Gods high holinesse of which you treat I answer that ceremonies and civilities to men when they are applied to God change their nature and become holinesse The reason whereof is because all actions are specified ab objecto fine as the School teacheth but in these acts of religion the object is God and his glorie their highest end next to which consequently follows mans reward Therefore it cannot be that these actions of the bodie accompanying those of the minde should from their end be otherwise then spirituall duties As S. Thomas of Aquine hath it Adoratio corporalis in spiritu fit in quantum à spirituali devotione procedit ad eam ordinatur quia per sensum Deum attingere non possumus per sensibilia tamen signa mens nostra provocatur in Deum ut tendat Bodily worship is performed in spirit inasmuch as it proceeds from spirituall devotion and is ordered to it And because by our sense we cannot attain unto God yet by sensible signes our minde is incited to tend towards him Thus you see these expressions be not onely outward but inward too For what makes thee to bowe to God in his Sanctuarie doth not thy soul set thy knee on work and what sets thy soul on work is it not faith and charitie the two principall graces of Gods Spirit How then should not this be holinesse which proceedeth from such holy roots The sixth office of holinesse is To come to the Sacrament with due preparation First in reconciling our selves to our neighbours where is cause of offence Secondly by coming in right faith with true understanding of the thing in discerning the Lords bodie Thirdly by coming in charitie because charitie is the life of our souls and the thing to be fed Fourthly to come fasting where men are able because S. Augustine saith Placet Spiritui sancto ut in honorem tanti Sacramenti priùs intret in os Christiani corpus Dominicum It pleaseth the holy Ghost that in honour of so great a Sacrament the Lords body should first enter into the mouth of a Christian. And S. Paul faulteth this among the Corinthians For every man when they should eat taketh his supper before and one is hungry and another is drunken He that was hungry was in good case but he that was drunken was not fit for the place Fifthly to receive it kneeling because to receive it sitting is to receive it as we receive our bodies supper yet is there a great difference between the one and the other the one being the food of our souls and received in the sanctuary and the other being the food of our bodies and eaten in private houses The 7 office of holinesse is To keep all the holy feasts of the Church and they which neglect this cut off a great part of Gods worship and lose all the holy lives and examples of the saints and divers mysteries of our salvation besides The lives of the saints are our looking glasses and the reason why we come so short of them in good life is because we do not see our sinnes in their lives and partake not of their holinesse For he which honoureth God with the saint is partaker of the saints holinesse So likewise they which come to Gods house upon the day of Christs nativity coming in faith and love as they ought are partakers of Christs birth they which come upon the day of his circumcision are with him circumcised from the dominion of the flesh they which come upon the day of purification are presented with him to his Father they which come upon Goodfriday are partakers of his precious death they which come upon Easter day are partakers of his glorious resurrection they which come upon Ascension day ascend with him in holy desires in present and hereafter shall ascend in person they which come upon Whitsunday shall partake of those white gifts that God bestowed upon his Church upon that day and they which come upon Trinity sunday shall enjoy the blessed Trinity of Father Sonne and holy Ghost So again they which come upon S. Stephens day are in affection partakers of his martyrdome and prepared for holy suffering they which come upon S. Johns day partake of S. Johns love and charity they which come upon Innocents day partake with them in their deaths for Christs cause they which come upon S. Michaels day shall enjoy the blessed Angels in their administration and they which come upon the day of All Saints shall be of that blessed number to stand with them on Christs right hand in the day of judgement and so of all the rest Thus in observing saints daies and in
of works As the bodie without the spirit is dead so faith without works is dead also for where no works are there is no charitie and where no charitie is there faith and works and all is dead Therefore the Apostle saith Though I feed the poore with all my goods and have not charitie it profiteth me nothing Why because without charitie works are dead as well as faith and knowledge and other graces And where there is charitie that is to say a divine love to God and all goodnesse there all things are alive and every grace working to salvation Faith beleeveth to salvation hope hopeth to salvation knowledge knoweth to salvation all work by charities spirit Hence the School calleth charitie the form of vertues But you may say How prove you that divine love and charitie is the spirit that giveth life and motion to all other graces Thus because faith which is the first grace worketh by it Gal. 5. 6. For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing nor uncircumcision but faith which worketh by charitie Then as all the members of the bodie work by the power of the soul so faith and other graces in the spirituall body work by the power of charitie First because charitie is the impulse of the Christian soul. Neither can you with reason say that because faith is the first grace in spiritualitie therefore all animation and motion proceedeth from it because in generation the matter goeth before the form and in the body of man there is vegetation and animalitie common to other creatures before the reasonable soul come which is the sole beginning of actions reasonable Secondly I prove this because where is no charitie there all is dead as S. John sheweth He that loveth not his brother abideth in death Again We know that we are translated from death to life because we love the brethren Where love is there is life and where no love is there is no life Thirdly I prove this because God is our life but God is charitie as Saint John sheweth God is charitie and he that remaineth in charitie remaineth in God and God in him If God be charitie then charitie in the Christian must needs be his life because our charitie floweth from his charitie Fourthly I shew that charitie is the life of all vertues and graces because it is the root of the spirituall tree within us as S. Paul teacheth Ephes. 3. 17 18 19. That ye being rooted and grounded in charity may be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth and length and depth and height and to know the love of Christ which passeth knowledge that ye may be filled with all the fulnesse of God Here ye see charitie to be the root therefore so long as the root lasteth no vertue or grace can wither in us but if the root die all die All comes from the root the leaves the blossoms the fruit If there be either ornament of vertue or fruit of grace in us all comes from the root of charitie Yea the life of vertue not onely comes from this root but there it is kept and preserved too for when winter and cold storms come then the sappe for shelter runnes down to the root and there it is preserved till the next spring so again when the winter of Gods wrath and storms of persecution assault the profession of the Gospel then by and by we retire to the root of charitie and there is our profession preserved till the storm be over Thus Peter denied his Master thrice when he was going to his death yet because he still loved his Master therefore his life remained in him in the time of persecution it lay hid in the root of charitie The Apostle goeth forward That ye may be able to comprehend with all saints what is the length and breadth and height and depth Charity breaks forth into all the dimensions of spirituall growth The prophet Isaiah rather then he would forsake his God was sawn asunder in the midst others were racked and would not be delivered they would not be delivered but held out to the death The blessed Marie Magdalene washt our Saviours feet with her tears and wiped them drie again with the hairs of her head Oh blessed charitie If thou hast this root in thee thou also shalt comprehend this breadth and length height and depth and thou shalt with these holy Saints say If I had been in their coats or had their occasions I would have done as they did This is that love of Christ which passeth knowledge and this is the fulnesse of God To proceed Charitie is the most excellent grace because it is the divine seed of a Christian by which we are born of God and freed from mortall sinne 1. John 3. 9. Whosoever is born of God sinneth not for his seed remaineth in him This seed S. Hierome in his 2 book against Jovinian and S. Austine in his 5 tract upon 1. John calleth charitie for in it is contained the beginning of our conversion to God which is a holy desire For no man desireth any thing untill he loves it but when he loves it then he desires it when he desires it then he seeks it after he hath sought it then he findes it according to that in the Gospel Seek and ye shall finde knock and it shall be opened and when a man hath found because he loves it entirely he will so cleave to it that he will not be removed from it So is it between the regenerate heart and God When God hath given a man a heart to love him then he beginnes to desire him when he desires him then he seeks him then he knocks at heaven gates by prayer and will not away till God open to him because his seed remaineth in him And after he hath found him then he so cleaves to him by hope and hangs so fast upon him that he will die before he leave him because faith hath perswaded him that God is his maker and redeemer and that he is moreover a rewarder of them that diligently seek him Heb. 11. 6. And how will he reward him not with gold and silver which are corruptible but with life everlasting and the joyes of heaven Oh here is enough we will seek no further Thus you see how love and charitie sets the soul to desire and seek God above all things and so charitie is the beginning of our conversion and after it hath begun it will never cease seeking untill it hath found and obtained Were a man by faith perswaded that God is the authour of all happinesse and that all the goods in heaven and earth lay in him treasured up yet if he should love the goods of the world more then God then he would never set his heart to seek and desire him But when faith hath enlightned the minde to know God then if the love of the heart will forsake the world and things
regenerate soul acteth all And whereas bonum is by Divines distinguished into verum apparens the true good and the appearing good the true good is that which hath order to the best end which is Gods glorie and our eternall good of this kinde are all holy habits qualities and good works commanded by God The appearing good is that which hath no order to the best end but is onely for this world and appeareth glorious to the naturall man And this is expressed by S. John in these three particulars the lust of the flesh the lust of the eyes and the pride of life The lust of the flesh is fleshly concupiscence the lust of the eyes is covetousnesse and the pride of life is a mans animositie appearing in anger arrogancie and the like All these as S. John saith are not of the Father but of this world and are the devils baits to hook the unwise generation Lastly here may the question be moved Whether the goodnesse of substance in man be better then the goodnesse of qualitie To this I answer that the goodnesse of substance is de esse but the goodnesse of qualitie is de bene esse which is Gods grace qualifying substance and therefore the better For the souls of the damned have their esse in hell and are miserable but the souls of the Saints by Gods grace and the good qualitie are in heaven which is their chief good Grace and the good qualitie is the perfection and complement of substance A holy and a good man is better then a man because holinesse and goodnesse is the perfection of a man As the soul is the form of man so grace and goodnesse is the form of the soul it healeth nature it giveth to man quoddam supernaturale it is the root of vertues it is the greatest of gifts it is correspondent to eternall glorie by it the holy Ghost inhabiteth in us and therefore in this life this good is maximè appetibile Thus farre of the goodnesse of God in the state of grace but the greatest of his goodnes is to be seen in the state of glorie because the state of glorie is the end and perfection of the state of grace In this state his goodnesse consisteth of joy and glorie Joy is the crown of the heart and glorie is the crown of the head the one is the complement of the will and appetite the other of the minde and intellect The intellect shall there be filled with the vision of God the will and affections with the fruition of his love and the lower part of the soul with its proper objects And that this may the better be effected in that blessed estate God hath ordained certain means for the possessing of it which S. Thomas calleth dotes dowries and these are certain glorious habits or dispositions fitting the souls and bodies of the saints for the enjoying of eternall blisse because without means nothing may be applied And these dowries are three vision which answereth to faith in this life apprehension answering to hope and fruition answering to charitie Besides in that blessed estate there are degrees of joy and glorie insinuated by our Lord saying In my Fathers house are many mansions and by S. Paul comparing As one starre differeth from another in glorie so is the resurrection of the dead again by the parable of the seed sown in good ground which brought forth some an hundred-fold some sixty some thirty-fold To this agreeth S. Gregory Quia in hac vitanobis est discretio operum erit proculdubio in illa discretio dignitatum ut quo hîc alius alium merito superat illîc alius alium retributione transcendat So also hath S. Cyprian In pace coronam vincentibus candidam pro operibus dabit in persecutione purpuream pro passione geminabit further thus Certent nunc singuli ad utriusque honoris amplissimam dignitatem Accipiant coronas vel de operibus candidas vel de sanguine purpureas Here shineth Gods justice in distributing rewards according to the varietie of his own grace in this life bestowed and Christians works by their free-will to the best end employed And because there are certain excellencies of works in overcoming the greatest difficulties therefore the School after the former demonstration argueth certain priviledged crowns which they call aureolae to be due to them which have conquered best to Martyrs for overcoming persecutions to Virgins for conquering the flesh and to Doctours for putting the devil to flight from their flocks And this goodnesse of God is so great that in the kingdome of glorie he giveth not even rewards to any but exceeding to all according to his riches in the parable expressed Give and it shall be given to you good measure pressed down and shaken together and running over shall they give into your bosome Lastly so great is Gods goodnesse every way that it sustaineth even the worst things that is to say all evil for such an infirmitie is evil that it cannot exist except it lean upon some good as on a subject for there can be no sicknesse but in the bodie no blindnesse but in the eye no lamenesse but in the member no more can there be the evil of pain but in the organ of sense nor sinne which is the evil of blame but in the soul receding from grace for sinne in the action is nothing else but the leaving of the divine order to the good end The subject is good and the action as it is an action is good but the running of it without order to a wrong end that onely is evil and is no way to be righted and resisted but by the other evil which is the evil of pain but of the two the evil of blame is the worst and greatest because it is opposite to Gods goodnesse as the evil of pain is opposite to the creatures good Consectaries The profitable consectarie is that whereas all true good proceedeth from God as from the cause both efficient and appetible the one being the beginning and the other the end of all true delights therefore he above all things is to be desired of us as the most appetible but with this caveat that he can never be enjoyed of us except we first become good like unto him by divine charitie and further that as he is good to all by causing his sunne to shine and his rain to rain as well upon the bad as the good so should we be good to all in praying for our enemies in converting sinners and in shining upon all our poore distressed neighbours with the light of mercie and liberalitie Gods Life The fourth attribute is Gods Life from which in holy scripture he is called the living God By his life he is distinguished from idols images and statues which are dead gods wherefore to countenance the great idol Bel with this attribute his priests with their wives and children eat up for him
and reasonable answer Quanquam res est in utramque partem disputabilis mihi tamen magis probatur ipsos verè in eum locum adductos esse Neque enim absurdum est quum Deus corpora animas habeat in sua manu mortuos ad tempus in vitam ejus arbitrio restitui dum ità expedit Tunc autem Moses Elias non sibi resurrexerunt sed ut praestò adessent Christo. Calvin Harm Evang. in loc Though the thing be disputable on both parts yet to me saith he it seemeth more probable that they were truely brought into that place Neither is it absurd seeing God hath in his hands bodies and souls that at his will the dead should for a time be restored to life when it is so expedient c. But for this businesse the coming of Enoch and Elias is most expedient for that it is said of Antichrist that he shall come after the working of Satan with all power and signes and lying wonders and therefore they who are to buckle with him had need to be more then ordinarie men such to whom none were like as Ecclesiasticus reporteth of Enoch and Elias and endued with true miracles And this is further confirmed by the prophesie of Malachi Behold I will send you Elias the prophet before the coming of the great and terrible day of the Lord. But this our late Divines turn aside by applying it to John the Baptist and to Christs first coming according to that in Matt. 17. 12. I say unto you that Elias is already come To this I reply that as there are two comings of Christ a first and a second so there are also two Eliahs the true and proper Elias who was the Prophet and the spirituall Elias which was John the Baptist so called because he came in Eliahs spirit This spirituall Elias as our Saviour most truely reporteth came before Christs first coming and the proper Elias is to come before his second coming And this as Jansenius on this point in the Gospel saith communiter intelligitur Thus are both true Elias is come and not come The spirituall Elias is come and hath done his part but the proper Elias is yet to come because Malachi saith He shall be sent before the great and terrible day of the Lord. Now it is manifest that Christs first coming was not that great and terrible day because the scripture calleth it the day of salvation and the acceptable time Therefore it is left that the true and proper Elias is yet to come before the great and terrible day so called of the prophets because it is a day of judgement and revenge Vers. 5. Remember ye not that when I was yet with you I told you these things Vers. 6. And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time After the Apostle hath laid out the two antecedents of the worlds end the apostasie and the Antichrist now he confirmeth his doctrine and chideth these Thessalonians for being so soon removed from the tradition of the truth as if he should have said Did ye heare me so slightly that ye have so soon forgotten me I told you something then which is not fit to be written namely that the apostasie cannot yet be ripe nor the man of sinne be revealed for that the Romane Emperour will not suffer it He will admit no man to play Rex or to display the banner of Antichrist But the time shall come when his date shall be out then shall defection flourish and after that the man of sinne shall be in his colours This S. Paul would not write lest the publick prediction of the ruine of the Romane Empire should spurre them up to an exasperation against the Christian profession for it is not good to wake a sleeping dogge nor to draw troubles which will come too fast of their own accord When sheep are sent among wolves they had need to be wise as serpents and innocent as doves And this doctrine both S. Ambrose and S. Chrysostome confirm upon these words Ye know what withholdeth S. Ambrose saith Post defectum abolitionem regni Romani appariturum Antichristum After the defect abolishing of the Romane kingdome Antichrist is to appeare And S. Chrysostome 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 When the Romane Empire shall be taken away then shall Antichrist come Antichrists originall and seed Vers. 7. For the mysterie of iniquitie already worketh Here is demonstrated Antichrists seed and originall which is iniquitie Iniquitie in the Greek text is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 anomie or a life without law and is the mother of apostasie and apostasie is the breeder of Antichrist In the primitive Church before canons were made and government established men would preach what they listed for without law no man is confined and then were heresies broacht in plentie Satan wrought cunningly and by degrees upon their green wits and therefore their anomie S. Paul calls a mysterie Anomie began in the Apostles dayes and continued to Mahomets time apostasie stood up in Mahomets time and to this day expecteth Antichrists time The Turks daily look for their Mahomet and the Jews for their Messias when both these are met in one then shall be that great monster the man of sinne Then if we will not be deluded in the birth and originall of Antichrist we must look for him out of the apostasie there is the fittest matter of his breed He must be no Christian that shall be the Antichrist by reason of the opposition But it is wondered at that he should be so long in breeding for the mysterie began in the Apostles time and S. John saith that then were many Antichrists which were his fore-runners and yet as yet he is not come I answer As the great Comet is a longer time in gathering then the ordinarie stella cadens and as all great works have long and great preparations so hath this man of sinne In the first six hundred yeares after Christ he was an embryon since that time to this he hath been in his animation and now we expect his viperous birth Vers. 7. Onely he who now letteth will let till he be taken out of the way Why doth the Apostle applie this let onely to the Romane empire seeing there were other and farre higher causes of this dilation as Gods will of sufferance and the administration of angels Of the first it is said Psalme 115. 3. Our God is in heaven and he doth whatsoever he will And S. Paul Rom. 9. 19. saith Who hath resisted his will Of the second we reade in Daniel 10. 13. that the angel who was prince of the kingdome of Persia withstood that other angel who was prince of the holy nation untill Michael one of the chief princes came in to his help To this we say that where divers causes be concurring to one end there the naming of one doth not exclude the other but
veniunt qui 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Lectores habeat judicio graves Non praejudicii quos malesana mens Raptos turbine latura per invias Ignotas aliis sibi sit vias Non hîc quae metuat saxa Capharea Erroris scopuli per mare turbidum Incertis animi fluctibus appetens Coelestem trepidus navita patriam Hîc sincera Patrum dogmata veritas Non fucata suis nuda coloribus Hîc Templi decor hîc unica numine Summo relligio digna per improbam Gentis sacrilegae saepius ô scelus Subnervata fidem Non neglecta Fides spreta Scientia Spes calcata trias nobilis inclyta Quin hîc ut decuit regia Charitas Primas obtinuit Caetera non loquar Quae fundata sacris omnia literis Sustentata Patrum munific â manu Felici liber hic praebeat alite Rich. Watson Caio-Gon Ad eos qui Authorem pro novatore sunt habituri NOn nova fert veterum satur at provectior annis Scit veterum facies queis fuit esse nova Idem De conjunctione amoris fidei in Tractatu de charitate piè vindicata QUae bis quina fuêre priùs praecepta feruntur Ad duo lex jubet haec haec facit unus amor Quin ergò quid summa fides cluet una triumphat Servit amor fidei nec comes esse queat Justificat beat una fides facit omnia quid non Credam ego factura haec si siet una fides At fidei nisi juncta foret dilectio fallor Aut haec vana foret si foret ulla fides Quae dum dissociant alii Shelforde beato En tuus in patriam foedere junxit amor In patriam dixi felix Ecclesia nexu Hoc quae per duo sic juncta fit una simul Idem ¶ To the Authour concerning his learned and pious Treatise of Gods house RIch soul and blest for so I dare go on To voice that man whose life 's religion Who fears not to be good gives God his due In this our age and in the Temple too Who scorns these lothsome times and dares learn us To be lesse bold lesse superstitious Not to make God a man joyn heav'n with earth Use him familiarly who gave us birth Nor man a God by following praising such Who neither pray nor preach yet teach they much Lord when I view our Temples which now be Ruin'd by time beauties worst enemie Or rather by neglect crumbling to dust Can I perswade my self or may I trust Those ancient Fathers those pure Saints should then Fables or fruitlesse stories write ev'n when They praise yea blesse their founders and condemne Their puft up Catharists those chair-preaching men Can I conceive S. Pauls expression weak Not like himself when thus I heare him speak Ye are Gods Temples Did th' Apostle mean Our clay-like houses should be kept unclean All cobwebd o're with vices that a lust Should there inhabit and that it should rust The Berill Jasper Amethyst those three Celestiall graces Faith Hope Charitie Or when the Priest the soul must sacrifice A comely Altar should he then despise A pure well furnisht heart must not the place Be hung with well knit vertues where blest grace Resides Yes sure and he whoe're hath done The contrary dilapidation Of that Temple shall to his charge be laid Because his body Gods house thus decayd Now as these walking churches must be drest And purg'd from filth by all as well as Priest So must the other that 's Gods Temple too Though made with hands which carelesly if thou Profane demolish or perhaps abridge That of its honour 't is proud sacriledge Reader no more That God may have his due Turn o're this book and it will teach thee how E. Gower Coll. Jesu Soc. Raptim De hoc opere verè Orthodoxo in Novatores DOgmata qui fingunt novitatis rara supremae Quà m facili applausu nullóque examine cudunt Quin si fortè Patrum sancita ad prela propinquant Dente Theonino lacerant probrisque lacessunt Rodere sic solitus maledictis Zoile castum Relligionis opus calcans mysteria coeli Antiquanda doces veterum monumenta cremanda Tu Shelforde tuum noli curare libellum Novimus hoc omnes te posse problemata sacra Edere non virus malesanae effundere linguae Hinc mea si tantum possint mandata valere I liber invidiâ major victórque triumpha Intimi amoris ergô exoptat R. LONDON A SERMON Shevving How we ought to behave our selves in Gods house PSALME 93. 6. Holinesse becometh thy house O LORD for ever OUt of this Text I must undertake three great tasks The first to shew what Gods house is because this is the subject of my Text. The second to shew what God is because he is the owner of it The third to shew what is that holinesse and behaviour which becometh this house and the owner For the first I must follow holy Scripture in describing of it Gods house began with an Altar as all creatures arise from small seeds built in the place where God appeared to Abraham the father of the faithfull Gen. 12. 7. And the Lord appeared to Abraham and said Unto thy seed will I give this land and there builded he an Altar unto the Lord who appeared unto him In the eighth verse following it is said that he built another and called upon the name of the Lord. With this consent were our churches built where God appeareth to us by his word read and preached Secondly by the Sacrament of the Altar as it is called by the fathers and styled so in our own statute laws in which the sacrifice of our Lord Christ is remembred and represented unto his Father Thirdly by promise of salvation and the kingdome of heaven And lastly by prayer in which God is called on according to that of Isaiah 56. 7. My house shall be called the house of prayer From hence appeareth that the Altar is the principall part of Gods house as being the cause and originall of all the rest Secondly Gods house is described in Gen. 28. by a stone of which in the plurall number an house is made and by a ladder whose top reached up to heaven as Jacob upon the stone dreamed the angels went up and down by it and from thence the Lord spake to Jacob and when Jacob awoke he said This is none other but the house of God and this is the gate of heaven From whence we are taught that seeing Gods house is both Scala coeli and Janua coeli The ladder of heaven and the gate of heaven and that the angels use it therefore we also should use and respect it as the ordinarie and beaten way to that blessed place Thirdly as Gods house is here described by a dream so in Exod. 3. it is described by a vision the second mean of Gods appearing to the holy nation according to that of Joel Your old
men shall dream dreams and your young men shall see visions In this vision Moses saw a bush burning with fire and yet was not consumed The bush burning expresseth the manners of Gods people in his house who are to him as thorns to his sides yet so mercifull is he that he doth not consume us though we be wood and he A consuming fire Can he ever be praised enough For his mercy endureth for ever After this God spake to Moses and bad him to put off his shoes because the place whereon he stood was holy ground From hence Gods house is called A Sanctuary that is to say a holy place and why in regard of Gods speciall presence and conference between him and man as God here spake to Moses and Moses to him about the delivering his people from the hand of the Egyptians Thus afterward the Tabernacle and the Temple were called Gods sanctuary because there was the visible signe of Gods presence called the Mercy-seat from whence God spake to the high priest and the high priest to the people So again to this day all our churches are called Sanctuaries as in many other regards so especially in regard of the Lords table or high Altar at the upper end of them which is Jesus Christs Mercy-seat because there the memorie of the everlasting sacrifice is made and presented to the holy Trinity But why was Moses here commanded to put off his shoes To teach us that when we come before God in his sanctuary we should reverence him by putting off our vices and especially our covetousnesse and earthly affections which cleave to our souls as the dust of the earth cleaveth to our shoes And according to this every sunday and holiday we shift our common and worldly clothes to insinuate that we should put off our secular thoughts and be endued with heavenly and spirituall thoughts not doing our own will nor speaking our own vain words but Gods words and his ordinances Fourthly Gods house is set forth in the old law by the Tabernacle which was a tent or pavilion to be pitched and taken up as they travelled to the land of Canaan the figure of heaven which signifieth that Gods Church in this life is a pilgrimage and a passing to the place above for which the 15 Psalmes of steps or degrees were made and used in the Temple to teach that we ought continually to travell from the valley of tears to the heavenly Jerusalem by all the holy paces of vertues and especially of charitie The Psalmist speaking of this travell saith They go from strength to strength till every one appeare before God in Sion Which if we apply to their Tabernacle and to our going into Gods house every time we go an holy strength and refreshing is supplied unto us toward heavens Sion In this Tabernacle first was a laver of pure water set at the doore of the Tabernacle of the congregation for the priests to wash before they executed any part of their service to which answereth our holy Font placed at the doore of our Sanctuaries to wash all Christs people with the water of regeneration before they be admitted to be of his number And this is to teach us that ever after we should come to this place with pure hearts to worship God and the holy Font is to put us in minde of it Next to this was the Altar of burnt-offering which continually burnt not with common fire but with fire sent from heaven as appeareth Lev. 9. But because the law is now altered from materiall things to spirituall things therefore our Altar next under the Altar of Christs sacrifice once offered is the Altar of our hearts and our fire is the heavenly fire of charity sent down into us from Christs Spirit and whosoever offereth with any other fire his sacrifice shall be no better accepted with God then Nadab's and Abihu's incense was Levit. 10. Besides this was the candlestick full of lamps shining with great light which signified the exceeding light of the Gospell prophesied Isaiah 30. 26. when the light of the moon should be like the light of the sunne and the light of the sunne should be seven-fold and like the light of seven dayes which cannot be understood but of the spirituall light of the Gospell in holy doctrine Wherefore to mend this among our selves let our light be the light of faith kindled with charity and not the light of idle and proud knowledge which can profit nothing Further there was the table of shew-bread and the pot in which Manna was put signifying the heavenly bread of Christs body from whence comes unto us the bread of his grace in holy charity by which all good desires and endeavours are fed and maintained in our souls as naturall heat is maintained by materiall bread Lastly there was the Altar of incense which figured the most pleasant and sweet sacrifice of Christ for us whereby we are brought into Gods favour after our many offences toward him And thus much for the Tabernacle Fifthly Gods house is described by the Temple at Jerusalem which was situate upon mount Sion the mountain of holinesse expressed in the 48 Psal. 1 2. Great is the Lord and greatly to be praised in the city of our God in the mountain of his holinesse Beautifull for situation the joy of the whole earth is mount Sion Again in Psal. 87. 1 2. God layed his foundations among the holy mountains The Lord loveth the gates of Sion above all the habitations of Jacob. Lastly in the 48 Psal. 3. Gods house is described by a kings palace God is well known in her palaces for a refuge from hence the fathers call our greater and mother churches Basilicae the palaces where the high King of heaven dwelleth and where God is a refuge to his people that call upon him there in any trouble or difficultie As when the subjects of a king are by their enemies assaulted if they can get into their kings palace then they think themselves safe enough so is it with Gods people who flie to his house for refuge But some will say I can pray and serve God as well at home in mine own house Thou mayest serve God there but not so well because God hath made choice of this house before all private houses in regard of his solemne and publick worship Therefore the Psalmist saith The Lord loveth the gates of Sion above all the habitations of Jacob. In this house God hath put his name and made promises to it above all places I have hallowed this house which thou hast built to put my name there for ever and mine eyes and mine heart shall be there perpetually If Gods heart be here then my heart shall be here too and if his eyes be here then will I humble soul and body before him lest I offend him Again God hath commanded his house to be a house of prayer by way of excellency Isa.
her fruit Then neighbours if you desire the cry of our poore to cease and the judgements of God to forbear us let us give God his due and respect his house There was a time when our holy fathers spared no cost nor labour to build Gods houses now let us take our time to adorn them as many of our devout brethren have begun So forward were good people in the old world to this service that Moses made proclamation to stay their devotions as we reade in Exod. 36. O that but half this willing heart were among us Christians to shew our love to God in this kinde The second office of holinesse is a holy preparation before we enter Gods house This is taught by Solomon Eccles. 5. 1. Take heed to thy foot when thou entrest into the house of God as if it had been said Thou canst not enter as thou oughtest without a preventing and preparing thought Why sayest thou not to thy self Whither goest thou what art thou about to do If thou sayest To serve God then consider what God is Is he not the maker of all things and the mover of all things made canst thou see any thing that is not his canst thou heare any thing which his hand hath not made canst thou wear any thing which his fingers have not spunne canst thou set thy foot on that which his power hath not founded All this week before thou hast sitten at his table and tasted of his cates and canst thou come at any time to his house to thank him for all this and not deeply consider what thou art to do The third office of holinesse is To reverence Gods Sanctuarie and as by other acts of reverence so by keeping off our hats while we stay in it whether there be Service or no Service and this reverence is commanded in generall Levit. 19. after such an emphaticall manner as if the breach of it were equall to the sinne of not keeping the fourth commandment for they are joyned together both in the same precept vers 30. Ye shall keep my Sabbaths and reverence my Sanctuarie I am the Lord. Where ye see why God commands his house to be reverenced because it is his house and the honour that is done in it and to it is done to himself I am the Lord. As the good usage which we give to the family of a nobleman reflecteth from the family to the nobleman so is it between God and his house When we go into our kings chamber where stands his chair of state though the king himself be not there yet we put off and are uncovered in remembrance of his majestie but our heavenly King as he is in all places because he is infinite so he is in this his palace by a more speciall resemblance of his holinesse but then chiefly when Gods people are met together there for Gods house is a little heaven on earth here dwels the Father Sonne and holy Ghost the Father in receiving our devotions the Sonne in directing them and the holy Ghost in sanctifying them Thus saith the Sonne of God Where two or three are gathered together in my name there am I in the midst of them Thou wilt say I cannot see either Father Sonne or holy Ghost in this place I answer God is a Spirit therefore not to be seen with bodily eyes yet hath he given thee bodily eyes to inform thy spirituall eyes Seest thou not Gods Minister here speaking to God and bowing his knees to him when he speaks Seest thou not the Sonne of Gods seat here the holy Altar at the upper end of this house and seest thou not the holy Font at the nether end where the holy Ghost is alwaies ready to receive all into his kingdome If the Sonne and holy Ghosts seats be at both ends of this house must not the Father needs be all the house over because both Sonne and holy Ghost proceed from him and are but one Spirit and one God Moses saith The Lord our God is one Lord. He is in the light that shines in at the window he is in thy breath by which thou prayest and speakest Thou mayst say further I cannot see the holy angels here attending on him Wilt thou beleeve no more then thou canst see then art thou no better then S. Thomas in this case to whom our Lord preferreth all them that beleeve have not seen See with S. Pauls eies in the 1. Cor. 11. 10. where men are directed to be uncovered on their heads in Gods house women to be covered because of the angels that is to say lest the holy angels in the congregation should be offended at the womens irreverent carriage with bare heads and long hair and at the mens hats on their heads Wherefore good fellow-brethren if you respect God and his holy place have a speciall care to maintain good orders and manners in it lest God and his holy angels be offended at us To conclude as all the holy saints in heaven behold Gods face there so all the saints of the earth are here in this lower heaven beholding the beauty of his holinesse Now if God be here his seat here his angels here his saints here his word and worship here then what reverence and holinesse becometh this house above all places in the world Wert thou in the kings chamber the king there speaking to thee and thou to the king how wouldest thou tremble what passions wouldest thou have within thee what thoughts of humilitie what cares of oversights But because thou canst see none but thy neighbours here here thou art bold and servest God with lesse fear then men serve the work of his fingers Si quis regem hominem saith Erasmus alloquuturus circumstante procerum coronâ nec caput aperiat nec genu flectat non jam pro rustico sed pro insano ab omnibus haberetur Quale est ergò illîc opertum habere caput erecta genua ubi Rex adest ille regū immortalis immortalitatis largitor ubi vener abundi circumstant aetherei spiritus nec refert si eos non vides vident illi te nec minùs certum est illos adesse quà m si videres illos oculis corporeis It skilleth not whether thou seest them when as they see thee for it is as certain that angels are present in Gods house at such times as if thou sawest them with thy bodily eyes Open therefore all thy eyes the eyes of thy minde and the eyes of thy body the eyes of thy body to behold the outward beauty of this house in divine service and the eyes of thy soul to behold the inward beauty of Gods holinesse majesty and greatnesse and thou canst not choose but be reverent more then our usuall manner is The 4 sort of reverence and office of this holinesse beseeming Gods house is at the entring in before we take our seats to bend the knee and to bowe our body to him
dedicating Temples to God in their names we have the blessed saints still living and dwelling among us Oh blessed we And this doctrine is confirmed by the Article of the Communion of saints therefore they which neglect this holy fellowship in joyning with them to serve and worship God in this lower house as they serve and honour him in his higher house do as much as in them lies cut themselves from this holy Communion and have a great losse which none can see but they that have spirituall eyes But what will worldlings say If we come to Gods house every saints day we shall come short of our houshold businessâ— and our poore should be hindered from providing their necessaries I answer Because you come short with God in his service therefore he comes short with you in his blessing where Gods service is wanting there means want foison Saith not Hagge so Ye have sown much and bring in little ye eat but ye have not enough ye drink but ye are not filled with drink ye clothe you but there is none warm and he that earneth wages earneth wagâ—s to put it into a bag with holes What is now either gotten or saved this way by sparing from God We pull from him and he pulls from us who is the stronger The eighth office is To use all the responsals or answers prescribed in the holy Liturgie The people must not onely joyn with the minister in heart but in voice too because of all outward means this is most significant and effectuall as being the hearts eruption and interpreter And for such as are unlearned it is fit for them to learn them and to have them printed in their hearts to make them their own and to use them at other times because no pattern of prayer can equall this And this dutie of praying and praising God together with Gods ministers is by S. Peter prescribed to all the faithfull where he tells them that they are an holy priesthood to offer up spirituall sacrifices acceptable to God by Jesus Christ. These spirituall sacrifices are three Prayer Fasting and Almes by Prayer we sacrifice our souls to God by Fasting we sacrifice our bodies and by Almes our goods These three we have to give to God and no more and these three are bettered to us by our giving to him Our souls are bettered by his accepting and sanctifying of them our bodies are bettered by being freed from surfetting and diseases and our goods are bettered by Gods blessing of them The charitable mans cow casteth not her calf his corn is not blasted his fruit not eaten with caterpillers and the borrower runnes not away with his money Therefore Ecclesiasticus saith A mans almes is his purse as if it were said It keeps his â—â—â—te Further he saith Bestow thy treasure aâ—â—â—â— the commandment of the most high and it shall bring thee more profit then gold And again Lay up thy almes in the secret chambers and it shall keep thee from all afflictions What are the secret chambers they be the hungry bellies of the poore little see we what they want But to proceed Shall we think our souls to be sacrificed by all manner of prayers No for Isaiah prophesieth This people draw neare unto me with their mouth and honour me with their lips but their heart is farre from me The sacrifice of prayer is no lip-labour but a breaking of the heart before God for sinne 't is sobs and sighs and an ardent desire of obtaining Gods favour in Christ before all the goods of the world This is the fire of Gods Sanctuarie to kindle and enflame our sacrifice of prayer For Fasting this is not as many use it to abstain onely from flesh and care not to swallow up sinne but it is to beat down the body by abstinence and to bring it into subjection to the spirit it is to abstain from flesh and other delightfull food that thereby we might be taught and brought to abstain from fleshly pleasures from hunting after strange women from excesse of eating and drinking carding dicing and other vanities which feed the greedy appetite of flesh and bloud and the soul unreformed to abstain on fasting daies from meats forâ—â—dden and before thou comest to Gods house to be of an empty stomack that God may fill thy soul with his graces and after the sinnes of thy flesh to punish and keep down thy body with the coursest nourishments Lastly for the sacrifice of our goods this is not to give them when we cannot well keep them any longer When thy coat is moth-eaten then the moth gives it when thy bread is mouldie and thy meat smells then the mould and ill savour bestows it This is no true sacrifice of our goods because it smells not sweet in Gods nostrills But neighbours I cannot fault you in this kinde for that I know you to be more charitable and readier to give then others are worthy to receive Therefore I exhort you that when you give bodily food to some you would give some spirituall food with it admonish them of their idlenesse rebuke their sinne chide them for filching and stealing and other misdemeanours which you heare of or know This is as necessarie for them as their meat and drink and more too But here I cannot but suspect that our carnall Gospellers will object that our bodies and goods are no spirituall sacrifices but things materiall and so not fit for the Gospel Let such learn that though body and goods be by nature materiall yet by the principall whereby they are offered which is the soul and spirit they become spirituall Therefore David saith Not my heart alone but â—sh also shall rejoyce in the living God And S. Paul saith I beseech you brethren by the mercies of God that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice holy and acceptable unto God which is your reasonable service And to the Corinthians he urgeth it from the redemption of both Ye are bought with a price therefore glorifie God in your bodie and in your spirit which are Gods And Joannes Sarisburiensis presseth this yet further even from the glorification of both in heaven Sensu coli voluit qui sensum dedit qui animam glorificabit carnem utriusque fidelem expetit famulatum se quoque voluit etiam corporaliter honorari ut quantavis tarditas infidelitatis aut negligentiâ— excusâ—tionem non habeat He would be worshâ—pped sensibly who gave the sense and he which shall glorifie both flesh and spirit looks for the unfeigned service of both and he likewise will be honoured bodily that the dulnesse of unbelief and carelesnesse of his service may have no excuse Wherefore let us endeavour with all fear and reverence to practise that unto which the blessed Apostle exhorteth us viz. to give our bodies as well as our souls a living sacrifice to our God in his service which differeth farre from the dead
sacrifice of the old Law And according to this our Church-service enjoyneth us to come fasting and not full-gorged to holy feasts because as the book of Wisdome teacheth the body is heavy to the soul and thâ—â—â—ller it is the heavier it is Therefore S. Chrysostome saith that fasting and almes are to the soul wings to mount it up in prayer and contemplation to heavenly things Experience teacheth that the stronger the body is the weaker the spirit and grace is and that by the bodies delicates the soul becometh carnal and so adversary to things spirituall The ninth office is To sing holy psalmes and hymnes to Gods honour in his house and this is taught Ephes. 5. 18 19. Be not drunk with wine wherein is excesse but be filled with the Spirit Speaking to your selves in psalmes and hymnes and spirituall songs singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord. And again Coloss. 3. 16. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdome teaching and admonishing one another in psalmes and hymnes and spirituall songs singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. In which words is signified not onely the spirituall edifying of the soul in knowledge and understanding but further the speciall grace of holy singing in stirring up all our powers to praise God and to petition unto him with greater fervencie and alacritie By this trumpet of heart and mouth the devil is put to flight we encouraged to the spirituall warre and our sacrifice of praise pierceth the clouds And here by the way I am put in minde of the exceeding commendation which the ancient Divines give to the book of Psalmes above other Scriptures The tenth office respecteth Gods Ministers First in putting on the holy vestments for it is not fit that the maker of heavens ornaments should be served with common garments Gods house is a house of holinesse therefore holy vestments set apart for so high service best beseem it These intimate to all sorts in what a reverent manner God is to be served When the great Alexander the worlds conquerour came to Judea the holy nation to win it Josephus reporteth that the high priest Jaddus went out of Jerusalem to meet him wearing about him his priestly robes with which he served God in the Temple whom when he beheld in this solemne and sacred habit the storie sheweth that he reverenced him as Gods Minister fell prostrate on his face before the name of God which he bore on his breast-plate gave him his hand offered sacrifice to God according to his direction and granted what immunities and priviledges he would request for his nation It is likewise credibly reported by historians of no mean note and renown that Attilas king of the Hunnes in Germany who was called too truely as the Christians of those times by wofull experience testified THE SCOURGE OF GOD and TERROUR OF CHRISTIANS he having now made havock of the most part of Italy by sacking their towns burning their cities wasting their countrey demolishing their temples and savagely massacring â—â—ose primitive Saints in all furie and madnesse marches to Rome utterly to rase down that Metropolis of Europe At which time Leo firnamed for his pietie the GREAT being Pope came out in ornaments truely pontificall to meet him but after a pious and learned oration little prevailing yet the storie affirms Pontificali indutus ornatu ipsam religionis majestatem conspicuè arguente non precum pondere sed vultu gravi habitúque sanctimoniam indicante venerandam nè Roman vastatum iret benignè persuasit Apparelled in his priestly vestments which plainly proved the very majestie of religion not with the fervencie of entreaty but with gesture grave and habit declaring his reverend sanctitie he gently perswaded him not to lay waste Rome And were our Churches and Priests naked of this ornament when Turks and Ethnicks should enter them would they not say Is the God of Christians so mean that he is no better served By this is signified the principall robe of Ministers fit for this house and service which is righteousnesse signified by the Urim and Thummim on the high priests breast-plate and rehearsed in Psalme 132. 9. Let thy priests be clothed with righteousnesse For that Minister who liveth innocently towards his neighbours and holily towards God alwaies beareth about with him his Urim and Thummim one signifying the light of knowledge and the other the perfection of charitie The second and principall part of the Ministers office is not onely to be clotheâ— with righteousnesse and to be an honest and just man but it is further the true understanding distinct reading and decent ministerie of the Church-service contained in the book of Common prayer This is the pith of godlinesse the heart of religion the Spina or Vertebrae the backbone of all holy faculties in the Christian body Which way soever you turn you here you shall finde the saying of our Saviour fulfilled Thus it becometh us to fulfill all righteousnesse Desire you new life here is Baptisme to give it Are you gone from it here is the Baptisme of tears and penance to restore it Want you weapons for the spirituall warre here is the Catechisme and Confirmation Need you food for the new life here is the bread and wine of Christs body and bloud Want you supply of vertuous young souldiers here is Matrimonie and Christian education Need you leaders and governours here are Christs Ministers Want you provision for the journey to the high Jerusalem here is the viaticum of the heavenly Manna expressed in the Communion of the sick After this a wise and discreet Sermon not made by every Minister but by a man of reading and discretion right well beseemeth this holy place Preaching is Gods mouth to his people therefore great care must be had that it be not abused either with false doctrines or unsavourie speeches In this case S. Paul makes his exclamation Who is sufficient for these things How this is regarded none but the learned see Not how well but a Sermon of the vulgar is expected But would you know what Sermons are fit for our holy assemblies they are such as are suitable to our book of Common Service and the two heads of religion faith and good life If you would know what faith we are to follow it must be that which S. Paul calleth the one faith As there was but one Tabernacle and one Temple in the old Law to preserve the unitie of their religion so here must be but one faith amongst us Christians to keep us from diversitie of opinions all the world over This one faith Titus 1. 4. is called the common faith and of Divines it is called the Catholick faith to shew that they which hold not it cannot be of the Communion of saints And this faith is contained in the three Creeds of the Apostles of Nice and Athanasius And the false faith is that which is contrary to this
the private faith or fancie rather by which men beleeve to be saved by themselves absolutely without condition or regard of the faith of the Church And this is that which is mother and nurse to vice and enemy to all good life And that this is not the catholick faith it shall appeare because that faith hath not a speciall object as a mans private self or Gods speciall favour to this or that particular man which is hopes object but a catholick object which is the whole first truth and every member of Gods word as the School teacheth This faith goeth but to the truth and esse of divine things according to that of the Apostle Heb. 11. 1. Faith is the substance of things hoped for the evidence of things not seen Faith gives them a subsisting and being in our minde and after this Hope layes hold of them in the will and affections and applies them to our selves and Charity goes into them Again the Apostle saith He that cometh to God must beleeve that God is and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him not a rewarder of thee and me as if the Article of the faith were personall but of them that diligently seek him Here is the condition If thou and I seek him diligently then is he a rewarder of thee and me and not otherwise if the condition be kept the Article is just and the faith is stedfast Secondly if faith be to beleeve all the parts of Gods word then none can be absolutely sure of their salvation by faith because the threatnings against sinne which none are without do as much discourage us as the promises pull us on and the one must be beleeved as well as the other Thirdly whereas all hope of salvation depends upon the promises there is no promise but in one part of Gods word or other hath conditions tied to it as repentance after sinnes keeping of Gods law and perseverance to the end from whence it follows that none can be secure of the promises though he have all the faith in the world except he be sure of the conditions keeping of which none can be secure because no man is his own judge Fourthly if men might be saved by such a faith or by faith onely then prayer to God might sleep care of standing might stand by and good life which is the nearest bond of our conjunction with God might be forborn which God forbid Wherefore that we might preach the right way and you walk the right way we must joyn S. James justifying of works with S. Pauls justification by faith and then have we the two principalls of faith and good life observed by which the hope of our salvation is confirmed and strengthened and if you would have a breviary of good life it is to keep all the commandments of Gods law and the Canons of the Church as farre as we can it is to flie sinne to follow vertue to live justly to give to every one his own mercy to some and love and charity to all because Charity is the fulfilling of the law Thus much for Sermons fit for Gods house Where such cannot be had because such are not common there the distinct and sensible reading of the two lessons and the Churchhomilies with Sermons heard abroad sometimes upon occasions will supply this want and were these read as the Canon directeth aptly that is by just distinctions and by a sensible reader observing all the rules of reading with pronuntiation fit for the matter and with due attention of the hearer the profit and edifying would be much Thirdly and lastly to this office on the peoples part belongs attention and devotion without which the former office freezeth Attention is to separate our thoughts from all other things whatsoever and to give them onely to divine doctrine and service according to holy Ephrems counsel Cave nè aurum tuum aere vel plumbo misceas hoc est Nè animam improbis immundis cogitationibus contamines c. Take heed that thou mix not thy gold with brasse or lead that is Defile not thy soul with wicked or unclean thoughts For as a virgin espoused to an husband if she be deflowred by others becomes execrable unto him even so the soul distracted with filthy and immodest thoughts becomes abominable to Christ her heavenly bridegroom For these impure thoughts contaminate our attention which gives life to that we receive into us and devotion is the soul of that which goes out of us the one gives form to our hearing the other perfection to our praying Attention is commanded in Proverbs 5. 1. My sonne hearken unto my wisdome and encline thine eare unto my knowledge The enclining of the eare is attention without which Gods word goes in at the one eare and out at the other Attention is the souls concurrence with the eares and mouths organs What is the reason why Gods word read and the Church-service is to many so fruitlesse They attend it not they neither mark it nor respect it Wouldest thou have God to heare thee saith S. Chrysostome and thou hearest not thy self Had we a sermon preached by angels yet if we did not mark it what would it profit Gods service is common therefore it is not regarded The sunne shines daily is it therefore the worse every day we say the Lords prayer is it therefore the weaker No but Vis unita fortior Force united is stronger The sunne by its often beating upon the earth makes the greater heat so the oftener we beat upon Gods word and repeat the Church-prayers the more the Sonne of Gods light reflecteth upon us and the more heat of devotion is stirred up in us If God or the Church make a prayer for our use that is slighted but if men make an extemporarie prayer or frame a prayer of their own that is extolled For shame let us gather our wits together let us put a difference betwixt God and man and let us attend his stablished ordinance in his Church before the rolling wits of men So running is mans head that it will stay no where Should the best wits in the world make a new liturgie applauded of all yet would it not long be liked except it might roll as mens wits roll that is as continually to alter as the winde bloweth and the weather changeth People now are grown so cunning and proud in their learning that if the preacher speaks any thing which they distast they will fleere at it in the very house of God such come not to heare with attention but to sit judges on him they come to catch something from him as the Scribes and Pharisees came to take Christ in his doctrine This is contrary to sanctified attention and a vice to be shunned when thou comest to Gods house thou must not bring a chair with thee to sit down and judge but if thou canst not presently assent to all that thou
learn in these books what is good for thy bodie and not learn what is good for thy soul Open thy eyes wider and then thou shalt see that there could be no goodnesse in the creature except God had made it and that if the effect be good then the cause of this good must needs be infinitely more good and therefore he above all things is to be sought of us And this is so cleare a lesson that except a man will shut his eyes he must see it and understand it because the Apostle saith Rom. 1. 19 20. That which may be known of God is manifest in them For the invisible things of him that is his eternall power and Godhead are seen by the creation of the world being considered in his works that they should be without excuse And these preachers are of S. Paul acknowledged for preachers in the 10 chapter following and the 18 vers having relation to the 14 verse Have they not heard no doubt their sound went into all the earth and their words unto the ends of the world Secondly Gods Word is thy preacher And this is proved by the book of Solomon called Ecclesiastes for that book as the learned know signifieth a preacher Again turn to Acts 15. 21. and there the holy Ghost will tell thee that Moses was preached every day in the Synagogues while his words were read unto them If thou saist that Gods scriptures are too high for thy capacitie then what sayest thou to the 19 Psalm vers 7. which teacheth that the testimony of the Lord giveth wisdome to the simple And art thou so simple to think that when God gave his scriptures to the Church he gave them so darkly that men might not understand them then he might as well not have given them Thou wilt object that of the Eunuch in Acts 8. 30 31. where when Philip asked the Eunuch whether he understood what he read he answered How can I except I had a guide And I answer thee again that there is a great difference between the Eunuch and thee and this place of scripture which he read and the places of scripture which to thee are propounded for he was out of the Church which is the house of light and thou art in it Again that scripture was to him a mysterie but to thee it is no mysterie For in Isaiah no name is exprest but it is read He was led as a sheep to the slaughter but what he this was the articles of our faith expresse to the simplest that it was Jesus Christ the Messias of the world who was delivered by the Jews to Pontius Pilate to be slain for our redemption and therefore this excuse of darknesse is utterly taken from thee because the Gospel is the blazing of the Law and there is nothing so dark in one place but in some other it is so bright that the very blear-eied may see it Therefore Fulgentius saith In verbo Dei abundat quod perfectus comedat abundat etiam quod parvulus sugat Ibi est enim simul lacteus potus quo tenera fidelium nutriatur infantia solidus cibus quo robusta perfectorum juventus spiritalia sanctae virtutis accipiat incrementa In the word of God aboundeth that which the perfect man may eat and that which the little one may suck For there is both drink of milk whereby the tender infancy of the faithfull may be nourished and solid meat whereby the strong youth of the perfect may receive the spirituall increase of holy vertue Thirdly Gods holy Sacraments are our preachers while by visible and sensible signes they teach us what we are to beleeve for which they are of the learned called visibilia verba words visible Therefore when we see the water in Baptisme this bringeth to our remembrance the water and bloud which came out of our Saviours side and when we see the bread and wine this preacheth to us that his bodie was broken and his bloud shed for our sinnes as the water signifieth the washing away of our transgressions And these Sacraments do that for us that all the preachers of the land cannot do For they by their words can but onely teach us and enlighten our understanding but these preachers the Sacraments besides the light which they give to our understanding infuse through Christs power and effectuall ordinance grace into our souls and make us acceptable before God Yea so effectually do they this that they can never want grace after who rightly receive them and preserve the vertue of them Therefore our Lord said to the woman in John 4. 14. Whosoever shall drink of the water that I shall give him shall never be more athirst but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into eternall life This water is that grace which is bestowed upon us in Baptisme which after the Eunuch had received as we reade in Acts 8. 39. he went away rejoycing and we reade not that he heard any more sermons or received any other Sacraments for his well of water which he carried away with him into a farre heathen countrey was sufficient for him But oh the lamentation of our times Who shall make our people to beleeve that Christs Sacraments bestow grace they say they signifie onely and that faith cometh by hearing onely yet when they have heard what they can and beleeve what they will they shall never be saved without the grace of the Sacraments at least in desire I can shew you of some that are saved without the hearing of the word preached our baptized infants but I can shew you of none saved ordinarily without the Sacraments in regard of our Saviours exception in John 3. 5. Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdome of God Therefore the men which shut up all in the preaching of the word evacuate Christs Sacraments and do they know not what for preaching is but a preparation for the Sacraments and there the principall grace lies hid For this cause our Saviour said to his Apostles Matth. 28. 19. Go teach all nations baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Sonne and of the holy Ghost For people must first be taught that God bestoweth grace in the Sacraments or els they will not receive them And the principall Sacrament is Baptisme because that onely bestoweth new life and the rest strengthen and preserve it Fourthly printed sermons are thy preachers For assoon as there is any rare sermon preached by and by it is put to print and from the presse it is disperst all the land over There is scarce a house in any town but one or other in it by reading can repeat it to thee Then how shouldest thou starve for want of preaching when the best preachers in the land such as thou never sawest nor they thee yet by this means continually preach unto thee Fifthly Gods Spirit
mean teacher But if God be a good teacher and a plain teacher as may appeare in the articles of the faith in the ten commandments and the Lords prayer and if all things necessarie to salvation are manifest in the scripture as that learned S. Chrysostome sheweth then for shame gather thy wits together and understand Wilt thou ever be a childe Brethren saith S. Paul be not children in understanding in malitiousnesse be ye children but in understanding be of a ripe age Understandest thou these words they are plain enough and why canst thou not understand them when they are read to thee out of Gods book wilt thou ever be like a young bird fed out of the dammes bill canst thou not eat thy meat when it is before thee except another put it into thy mouth or chew it for thee as nurses do for young infants fie on this negligence But to conclude with thee After thou hast had so many preachers and heard so many sermons the creatures teaching thee Gods word teaching thee the Sacraments teaching thee printed sermons teaching thee Gods Spirit teaching thee thy conscience teaching thee good life and conversation teaching thee thy neighbours teaching thee parents teaching thee and lastly Gods Ministers teaching thee ten in all a compleat number and will not all this suffice thee No. Why because thou art out of thy self thou singest a note above Ela thou art puft up thou wilt be confined to no order and to no measure For whereas the Canons have tied thee to thine own Pastour and to thine own church thou runnest in the forenoon to one parish and in the afternoon to another no one place will content thee if there be not a sermon forenoon afternoon Would you not be loth say they to have but one meal a day What preacher taught thee that the food of thy soul is of no stronger nourishment then the food of thy body Eliah travelled in the strength of one meal 40 daies and 40 nights together If he went so long unfamisht with one meal of the food which perisheth then how long thinkest thou maist thou travel with the food which never perisheth but endureth to everlasting life John 6. 27. But what doth this singularitie work in thee but a contempt of government and a condemning of all other save thy self Government is contemned because they will not yeeld to it their own Minister is contemned els ask the woman of the next parish who called her Ministers preaching Bulls-bief yet she paid for good ox-bief before the Commissarie left her And what think they of their neighbours that follow them not oh they are but civil men and women they sit at home and starve their souls Are not these puft up when they take upon them Gods place and office do they starve their souls which make to God a most humble confession of their sinnes intreating him in Christs name to forgive them are they but civil men and women which make a publick profession of the Father the Sonne and the holy Ghost and do they starve their souls who pray to God for grace and for all blessings spirituall and temporall and are they but civil men who every Lords day lay up the law of God in their hearts and follow it in their lives all the week after If thy neighbours be in the state of salvation then why bearest thou not them companie but if thou condemnest thy neighbours and wilt be singular by thy self then I will say unto thee as the good Emperour Constantine said once to the Arch-puritane Novatus Scalam in coelum erigito c. Make thee a ladder and climbe up from us into heaven alone But thou wilt say Oh but knowledge is a good thing I would be glad to have more knowledge So is hony a good thing too and yet a man may eat too much of it as Solomon teacheth in Pro. 25. 16. If thou have found hony eat that which is sufficient for thee lest thou be over-full and vomit it Doth Solomon speak this of honies excesse onely and not of immoderatenesse in generall For as the weak stomack cannot well digest much meat so the common and plain people cannot govern much knowledge and when they cannot govern and well digest it then they vomit it as the weak stomack casteth up the sweet hony Then they wax proud and will contest with their Ministers as Miriam and Aaron did with Moses then they will talk of Antichrist then they will soar into points of predestination and will be moderatours between Papists and Protestants and what will they not do when they finde their wings but spoon-feathered they will offer to flie Were the learned at this time my auditorie I would ask of them at what time most heresies were broached and they would tell me that it was in the primitive Church when there was most preaching therefore afterward they slacked it And is it not so now too Then ask the cobler of Amsterdam There every tradesman will be a profest preacher Is not there the sink and drain of all false doctrine This the ancient and learned Fathers foreseeing inveighed what they could against it First S. Hierome in his epistle to Paulinus hath Quod medicorum est promittunt medici tractant fabrilia fabri sola scripturarum ars est quam sibi omnes passim vendicant Scribimus indocti doctique poëmata passim Hanc garrula anus hanc delirus senex hanc sophista verbosus hanc universi praesumunt lacerant docent antequam discant What belongs to physick physicians professe and tradesmen handle their tools onely the art of the scriptures is that which all men challenge Learned and unlearned write poems so the prating old wife the doting old man the wrangling sophister all presume upon the scriptures mangle them and teach them others before they have learned them themselves If plain men and women would professe what they know soberly desire to learn what they do not know and submit themselves to governours and live orderly good leave should they have to shew themselves but when they grow so proud that they will beard their governours be wiser then Canons and controll the learned this is not sufferable The great clerk Gregorie Nazianzen a long time abstained from preaching and his hearers carped at him for it to whom at his return he made this reply 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Ye sheep feed not you your pastours nor be ye lift up above them for it is enough for you if ye be fed rightly Judge not your judges nor give laws to your law givers for God is not a God of tumults and confusion but of peace and order Look how these men used this holy Father and learned man the like to us do our Puritanes they will hold consistories against us we must do so and so as they would have us or else we shall not be worthy of our livings are not these men taught long enough Again thus
42. 8. Ego sum Jehova hoc est nomen meum I am Jehovah this is my name This name expresseth his eternitie Apoc. 1. 4. Which is which was and is to come This name Jehovah is derived from 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 esse to be In this name Jehovah are contained the 5 vowels which are the sinews of all languages As without them no tongue can be expressed so without the true knowledge of Jehovah no flesh can be saved This name Pagnine calleth ineffabile nomen This name of Gods essence was so reverenced of the Jews that they thought not themselves worthy to speak it therefore whensoever it came to be read in the old Testament they pronounced some other name of God for it as Adonai the Lord or Elohim God This expression of the name Jehovah is further confirmed in Isai. 43. 10. where it is said Ye shall understand that I am where is shewed that his essence is to be Again vers 13. Before the day was I am He was before the creation before there was day or night therefore he is the onely proper and true being All creatures yea the most perfect as angels are not perfect essences because there was a time when they were not and it is a thing possible for them not to be again It is as possible for them to have an end as to have a beginning but they had a beginning therefore for any thing that is in their being they may have an end and so their essence is not absolute but from God borrowed It sorteth with all creatures to be images and shadows of true being not to be true being it self The image is understood of men and angels because they come nearest to true and perfect life the shadow of sensitive and insensitive things Thus Plato denied things sensible truely to be And Seneca saith that they make a shew and for a time put on a countenance of being And for the immortalitie of angels and men mentioned in holy writing this is not to be derived from the immateriality or excellencie of their essence but from the speciall grant and charter of their Maker The Almighty hath ordained it to be so from their creation and therefore their immortalitie shall hold But here between the Fathers and Scholists there is difference about the essence of angels and spirits of men as we may reade in the second Nicene Councel and the fifth act where they are held to be materiate and corporate Their reason is to put a difference between Gods simple essence and their compounded which of necessity must be grosse in respect of Gods and to withstand their infinitenesse because that which may not be circumscribed or limited must be infinite but angels and spirits of men are not infinite therefore they must be bounded and defined with matter And this may be upheld by these reasons First because they are not absolutely eternal but frail in regard of their matter and eternal gratis Seneca epist. 58. Manent cuncta non quia aterna sunt sed quia defenduntur curâ regentis immortalia tutore non egent Haec conservat artifex fragilitatem materiae vi suâ vincens By this all things that are are frail or mortall in regard of the frailtie of their matter and immortall by God who keeps them so for things by nature immortall need no preserver Secondly there seemeth to be as much reason for spirits to be made of matter rarefied and sublimate as the Alchymists speak as for naturall bodies to be made spirituall bodies in the resurrection by rarefaction and sublimation 1. Cor. 15. 44. It is sown a naturall body it is raised a spirituall bodie There is a naturall bodie and there is a spirituall bodie Thirdly Berardus Bonioannes the expositour of S. Thomas insinuateth this Sum. par 1. q. 14. art 1. Formae secundum quod sunt magìs immateriales secundum hoc magìs accedunt ad infinitatem quandam From whence ariseth this argument In absoluta mera immaterialitate non est magìs minus In formis angelorum hominum est magìs minus immaterialitatis Ergò in illis non est absoluta mera immaterialitas Fourthly the materiality of mans spirit seemeth probable in regard of the union between the body and the spirit because contraries expell one the other hence there seemeth to be some materialitie in the spirit that the connexion and alliance might be the more easie and familiar Fifthly the materialitie of spirits is shewed because they suffer from the matter of fire in hell Matth. 25. 41. prepared for the devil and his angels but in immaterialitie there is no proportion for sense because sense is in matter qualitie without which there can be no passion Sixtly this may not seem strange to us if we compare the angels with the windes which in the holy tongue have the same name that angels and spirits have which is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ventus spiritus anima angelus So simple is the windes substance that it is no more subject to our sight then angels are and for strength it is little inferiour while it turmoyls the great ocean overturneth trees and houses and makes the stedfast earth to quake and tremble yet is this materiate and then why not the other though they be more simple and in a degree higher The Scholists following S. Thomas exclude materialitie and their reasons are these First because it is consonant to the universitie of things that some should be Gods images in intellect and will but intellect and will are immateriate for that they are distinct from sense which riseth from bodies As some things are purely materiate as the elements some things mixt of matter form as men some of matter spirit materiall as beasts some of matter and spirit intellectuall as men so it is requisite that some things should be purely spirituall as angels because it is requisite that in every kinde there should be some perfect but in mans soul his intellect is imperfect because it gets knowledge by corporall senses from things sensible therefore it is fit that some substances should be meerly intellectuall without bodies not to gain knowledge by so base means but to have the roots of intelligence innate in themselves which are their powers replete with principles or species This then is the difference between the spirits of men and angels the one have a bodie united to them to receive species and to understand from bodily objects but the other have species of intellect connate with them and separate from bodily reason which is by discourse Secondly they shew this because spirits and souls have not commensuration with places for that they want quantitie which bodies of matter have and have no situation in continuo The incorporeall substance rather containeth then is contained as the soul is in the bodie containing it by its vertue and power and not contained applied and not circumscribed Because it wanteth
and all things els were lost in him they might be found again Consectaries The consectarie doctrine is that whereas all things are but one in the individuall and have but one root or beginning which is God therefore we should not part his honour among others but give it wholly to himself and among our selves we should not break the bond of unitie by discord because there is but one heaven to which we tend there to meet with the one beginning and to come to this there is but one mean which is the will of this holy One written and sealed in his holy word By departing from Gods unitie truth and goodnesse men and angels were destroyed Division breaks unities bond by reuniting man is restored Gods Truth and Intellect The second attribute is his Truth which is the second in the three principall passions Unum Verum Bonum Unum noteth the first person from whom is the unitie of essence Verum the second which is the Fathers intellect and wisdome and Bonum the third person who is the Father and Sonnes goodnesse Now Gods truth is his perfect intellect in all things for truth according to our capacitie cometh from right and right from the light of intellect but because there is no composition in God as in the creature therefore in him there is no descent from thing to thing but his truth light and intellect is all one which we call his knowledge From hence proceedeth the rectitude which is to be found in his creatures for what in them is right is true and what is true is right Agreeing to this the Psalme hath O Lord how manifold are thy works in wisdome thou hast made them all the earth is full of thy riches They are true made because they are made by the light of Gods wisdome From which God is called Jam. 1. 17. the Father of lights and he is so called because as all the childrens goods descend from the father so the rectitudes and excellencies of all creatures are from God derived and are to him to be referred as to their fountain Every good and perfect gift saith he cometh down from the Father of lights with whom is no variablenesse nor shadow of turning Here God is compared to the sunne and moon the two great lights in the firmament to confound their light For the moons light as we know is variable because it is borrowed from the sunne by divers positures and therefore is not alwayes light-alike and the sunnes light leaveth a shadow behinde it by his turning from one horizon to another but Almightie God hath no variablenesse because his light is his own and he leaveth no shadow by turning because he is alwayes in the midst of his horizon which is every where And from hence is this comfortable saying of God to his people Malach. 3. 6. Because I the Lord am not changed therefore ye sonnes of Jacob are not consumed And in God is the truest knowledge because by how much any thing is remote from matter by so much the more it is intelligent for that it is not straitned by its matter to which it is united for the book of Wisdome hath The corruptible bodie presseth down the soul and the earthly tabernacle weigheth down the minde that museth upon many things And from hence it is that the angelical nature is more intelligent then the humane soul for that it is more immateriall and therein cometh nearest to God for God hath no matter but is purus actus without potentialitie and therefore his knowledge must needs be perfect And as I said before his intellect is not by discourse or successe because this implieth difficultie contrarie to omnipotencie but God seeth all his effects in himself as in the cause at once for that all things are to him alwayes present in regard of his eternitie and for this cause reason is none of his attributes but vision in place of it because reason hath discourse but vision hath none but is onely a direct aspect And after this manner mans reason in the next life shal be advanced when it shall behold God not any more by reason but by vision Now we see through a glasse darkly but then shall we see face to face now I know in part but then shall I know even as I am known Lastly the height of Gods knowledge is observed in beholding himself by which from eternitie he begat his Sonne who in holy Writ is called his truth wisdome image And this is illustrated by the looking-glasse as one demonstrateth For as when a man looketh in a glasse he produceth an image of himself so like as no difference can be found not onely in shape but also in motion for when the man moveth the image moveth too and this image is not long in making nor by instruments nor by labour but in a moment by one look in like manner Almighty God beholding himself in the glasse of his divinitie with the eie of his understanding doth beget and produce an image most like unto himself And because God hath given to this image all his own substance and being which we cannot do in beholding our selves in a glasse that image is the true Sonne of God though our images which we see in glasses are not our sonnes And for that God the Father hath alwaies and doth alwaies behold himself therefore his Sonne is not younger but full as ancient as his Father he alwaies begotten and his Father alwaies begetting according to that of S. Augustine Semper gignit Pater semper nascitur Filius And by this perfect image God the Father made all things created and daily upholdeth and governeth all and therefore all must needs be perfectly madè and governed according to this testimonie of S. Paul In these last daies he hath spoken to us by his Sonne whom he hath made heir of all things by whom also he made the worlds And again Bearing up all things by his mighty woâ—d Consectaries The consectarie doctrine is that whereas all the treasures of knowledge wisdome and truth are in Jesus Christ the Sonne of God treasured up and for that our chief happinesse consisteth in knowing and seeing of Christ who is the way the truth and the life therefore all other knowledge should seem base unto us in respect of this and we should desire this theorie above all things else Gods Goodnesse Gods third attribute is his Goodnesse and this is splendent in two respects First in that he is the cause efficient of things and next the cause appetible for good and appetible are convertibles what is good is to be desired and what is to be desired is good Therefore Aristotle saith Omnia bonum appetunt Thus we distinguish between the substance of things and their goods for substances are but emptie vessels without their goods adjected and these goods are certain similitudes or conveniences in which things rejoyce for like desireth like From whence
may assoon be abused as well used Therefore the managing of it is not for all men but onely for such as are of a stayed head long understanding and good life It is for men of age who are able to digest strong meat and through long custome have their wits exercised to discern both good and evil The more dangerous an instrument is the more carefull we should be into whose hands we put it Now the word of God Heb. 4. 12. is compared to a two-edged sword which if it be put into many mens hands some will do as much hurt with it as some do good Experience of former times and exclamation of our dayes prove this The second Antecedent And that man of sinne be revealed the sonne of perdition Having spoken of the first antecedent which is the falling away it followeth to treat of the second which is the unmasking of the man of sinne and is imminent to the worlds end This man of sinne by generall consent is the great Antichrist expressed by his description in opposing himself against all that is called God or that is worshipped but Christ is not onely called God but is the true God and worshipped and therefore the man that opposeth himself to him totally must be the Antichrist But here we must take heed what manner of Antichrist we mean because there are many Antichrists as S. John teacheth in his 1. epist. 2. chap. vers 18. Little children it is the last time and as ye have heard that Antichrist shall come even now are there many Antichrists These Antichrists were the hereticks of S. Johns time to whose number we are to refer all the rest which have followed as also all the persecuting Emperours from Nero to the Turkish Emperour Achmeth sending defiance to the renowned Christian king Sigismund of Poland in the yeare 1612. Christ is two wayes opposed by heresie and tyrannie the one fighting against the body the other against the soul of Christ in his members These Antichrists are the lesser Antichrists which in certain parts modo quodam oppose themselves to Christ but the man of sinne of whom S. Paul speaketh is the great Antichrist who is an universall opponent both in heresie and tyrannie to Christ and his whole kingdome Antichrist one man Next we must enquire whether this Antichrist is to be taken for one man or for a state or kingdome as some would have the reigne of Popes some the reigne of Turks to be the Antichrist and some would make Antichrist a twin like the image of Janus which hath two faces and looks contrarie waies affirming the Turk to be the elder brother of Antichrist and the Pope the younger But to such conceits I cannot yeeld First by reason of the denomination which is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and not 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is a contrary Christ and not a contrary kingdome Christ was but one person therefore his great and direct opposite must be but one person too Secondly because my text calleth him 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that man of sinne that sonne of perdition which Beza translateth homo ille sceleratus filius ille perditionis which signifieth that wicked man that sonne of perdition and not those wicked men those sonnes of perdition And therefore Antichrist as he is here described quoad literam must be but one person in the singular number Thirdly this is further confirmed by conference of Scripture Joh. 5. 43. where our Saviour prophesying of Antichrists coming speaks in the singular number and in the particular I am come in my Fathers name and ye receive me not if another shall come in his own name him will ye receive Our Redeemer here makes no feigned supposition but a true one which shall come to passe because he is no trifler but the God of prophesie and truth And that here he intendeth Antichrist it appeareth because the Jews to this day look for their Messias and therefore their Messias must be the Antichrist-Messias for that there can be but one true Messias Fourthly this appeareth because Antichrist shall come in his own name and not in the name of any God for that it is said Who opposeth himself against all that is called God or that is worshipped And thus it is prophesied of him Dan. 11. 36. He shall not regard the God of his fathers nor regard any God for he shall magnifie himself above all Fifthly from hence also it appeareth that Antichrist shall be but one person because our Saviour here opposeth to himself another man in the singular number and so he opposeth person to person and not kingdome to kingdome or sect to sect As Christ therefore was one man so that man of sinne which is the great Antichrist must be but one man too and it is evident that the Jews expect but one Christ and not many Christs Sixthly S. John in his first epistle and second chapter distinguisheth the great Antichrist from the multitude of Antichrists by the singular number Little children it is the last time and as ye have heard that Antichrist shall come even now there are many Antichrists whereby we know that it is the last time that is to say the last time is now entring Where ye see a manifest distinction between 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 between them that were present and him that was to come If we should make the Antichrist a state of men or a reigne of men then we should confound S. Johns distinction between the Antichrist and the multitude of Antichrists which are the forerunners of the main Antichrist And then we should feigne a huge and Chimerick Antichrist who with his hands should apprehend the Apostles time fasten his feet in the end of the world Then again we should make S. Paul and S. John to jarre if the one should affirm him already to be come and the day of Christ to be instant and the other at the same time to adjure the Thessalonians that by no means they should admit this but expect the falling away first and the removing of the Romane empire And to reconcile S. John with S. Paul about the last time and Christs coming we say that S. John intended by the last time the last age of the world which then was in inchoation to stirre them up to preparation and not the last time precisely because we know there have been a thousand and six hundred yeares since Seventhly this is proved from Antichrists figure in the 11 and 12 of Daniel upon which Calvine affirmeth Daniel to speak of Antiochus Epiphanes according to the letter and allegorically of Antichrist whose person Antiochus did present and so commonly the ancient Fathers understand But this Antiochus in the seventh chapter of that book is not called a kingdome or reigne but one little horn besides the ten horns of the fourth beast as appeareth in the 8 verse and one king besides those
limmed to the life First he is called by an emphasis that man that is that singular man singled from all other men as having no equall He is that man of sinne quia totus ex peccato He is made of sinne sinnes are his materials Other sinners have some good parts in them though but few but as there is no goodnesse in the father of sinne so there is no more in the sonne of sinne for he is a great masse or mountain of sinne Him doth Irenaeus thus anatomize in his 5. book and 23 chapter Diaboli virtutem suscipiet Antichristus qui veniet ut impius injustus sine lege quasi apostata iniquus homicida quasi latro diabolicam apostasiam in se recapitulans idola seponens ad suadendum quòd ipse sit Deus se autem extollens unum idolum Again in his 24 chapter he hath Omnis nequitia dolus vis apostatica confluit in Antichristum Antichrist shall take up the Devils vertue who shall come as unjust and impious without law like an apostate wrongfull and killing like a thief ingrossing in himself Diabolicall apostasie putting away idols to perswade that he is God and extolling himself the onely Idol All wickednesse deceit and force apostaticall flow together into Antichrist Vers. 3. That sonne of perdition 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that sonne of destruction In that he is called that sonne of destruction this argueth his relate father for he is sonne and heir to the Devil He was a murderer from the beginning as S. John saith and the same Apostle in Apocalyps the ninth calleth him in Hebrew Abaddon and in Greek Apollyon that is the destroyer Now of this destroyer comes this sonne of perdition And he is so called as Anselm saith because he destroyeth others both with temporall death and with false faith Them that will not yeeld unto him he will destroy with death and them that yeeld to him he will destroy with false faith This of the twain is the greatest destruction because the first is of the bodie which may be repaired but the second is of the soul which cannot be restored Therefore the Psalmist saith It ceaseth for ever And because Antichrist cannot kill the second way but by yeelding therefore our Master Christ bids us not to fear him Fear ye not them which kill the bodie but are not able to kill the soul but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell Vers. 4. Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God or that is worshipped Hitherto of Antichrists materials now followeth his form whereby he is distinguished from others And this consisteth in these two points that is in his opposition and exaltation From his opposition he takes his name from his exaltation he hath his actus or 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for pride is the spirit of sinne In this he outgoeth others and in this he shews himself to be indeed the Antichrist that is the man that is most opposite to Christ. For Christ was the most humble man that ever lived because when he was in the form of God he took upon him the form of man but Antichrist being a base man shall take upon him the form of God in which arrogancie and insolencie he shall outrunne the most insolent that ever were Pharaoh said Who is the Lord but he shall say I am the Lord. Sennacherib said Hath any of the gods of the nations delivered his land out of the hand of the king of Ashur but he shall promise to his followers the joyes of Paradise like a God Alexander he sought the kindred of the gods but Antichrist he shall not respect any God but magnifie himself above all Antiochus the figure of Antichrist he set up the statue of Jupiter in the Temple but Antichrist he shall set himself up in the Temple he shall exalt himself above all that is called God or that is worshipped Here is a full opposition and a full exaltation It is full in the parts and it is full in the main It is full in the parts because he shall exalt himself above all that is called God that is above all titular gods or inferiour gods as Monarchs Kings Judges and Idols In the main he shall exalt himself above the onely true God where it is said or that is worshipped 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 aut numen Against all these he shall proceed not onely like a Thraso by way of bragging and boasting but by way of opposition that is so seeking to set up himself as thereby to throw all other gods down Here is the Dragons throne and power to do two and fourtie moneths And this is further demonstrated by these testimonies of S. Chrysostome 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 He that is Antichrist shall not leade any into idolatrie but he shall be an opposite to God and shall destroy all gods and shall command himself to be worshipped for God and shall be set in the temple of God And again 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Professing himself to be God above all Antichrists seat Vers. 4. So that he as God doth sit in the temple of God shewing himself that he is God In these words Antichrists seat and end is set down the mark that he shoots at that is to shew himself to be God Because he cannot be God in deed he will be God in shew Therefore he shall be the arch-hypocrite We reade that Satan transformeth himself into an angel of light but Antichrist being more impudent shall transform himself into God And to do this he shall take the most gainsome way for he shall usurp Gods house and there place himself as the proper owner If my counter fail me not he shall erect his throne in the Sanctum Sanctorum the most holy place where the ark of the covenant in the old law stood where were the cherubims and the mercie-seat From hence he shall give oracles and receive the vows and prayers of his seduced crew with the greatest devotion and prostration they can devise Some of the Fathers say that this seat shall be the temple at Jerusalem which Antichrist shall labour to reedifie that there he might keep his court and some that he shall sit in the Churches of Christians and some that he shall usurp both which I deem to be the likeliest Irenaeus saith When Antichrist shall sit in the Temple at Jerusalem then shall the Lord come Hippolytus martyr He shall build the temple at Jerusalem S. Cyril of Jerusalem thus 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Antichrist shall hate idols that he may seat himself over the temple of God he meaneth he shall attempt to make up the dissolved temple of the Jews God forbid that it should be this wherein we are Hilarius A Judaeis susceptus loco sanctificationis insistet Antichrist being received of the Jews shall make the holy place his