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<DATE>2014-06-12</DATE>
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<NAME>Simon Charles</NAME>
<RESP>MURP</RESP>
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<ITEM>Proofed and reviewed.</ITEM>
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<DIV1 TYPE="title page">
<PB REF="1">
<PB REF="1">
<P>A Sermon preached before the Prince, at <HI>Richmond,</HI> this pre&s;ent yeere, 1606.</P>
<P>By <HI>B: Charier,</HI> D: of Diuinitie, and one of the Prince his Chaplaines.</P>
<P><FIGURE>
<FIGDESC>printer's device of J. Roberts (McKerrow 112)</FIGDESC>
<Q>NOSCE TE IPSVM</Q>
<Q>NE QVID NIMIS</Q>
<Q>LOVE AND LYVE</Q>
</FIGURE></P>
<P>AT LONDON, &leaf; Printed by I. R. for <HI>Edmund Matts,</HI> dwelling at the &s;igne of the hand &amp; <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="OXF" EXTENT="1 word"> in Fleet&s;treete</P>
</DIV1>
</FRONT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="sermon">
<PB REF="2">
<PB REF="2">
<EPIGRAPH>
<BIBL>Iames. 1. ver&s;e 15.</BIBL>
<Q><P>Lust, when it hath conceiued, bringeth forth &s;inne, and &s;inne, when it is fini&s;hed, bring|eth forth death.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>_ALl wicked men haue been wont to lay the fault of their &s;innes vpon God: but the holy Apo&s;tle in this place teacheth vs, that in inquiring the cau&s;e of &s;inne, there is no further &s;earch to be made, then to our owne lu&s;t. In the de&s;cription whereof, we are heere to ob&s;erue foure things: Fir&s;t, the concepti|on of &s;inne, <HI>Lust when it hath conceiued;</HI> then the birth of &s;inne, <HI>it bringeth forth &s;inne;</HI> thirdly, the growth of &s;inne, <HI>&s;inne when it is fini&s;hed;</HI> and la&s;tly the fruite of &s;inne, <HI>it bringeth forth death&punc;</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lust, when it hath conceiued, it bringeth foorth &s;inne, and &s;inne when it is fini&s;hed, it bringeth forth death.</HI> Of which that I may &s;peake profitably, to the killing of &s;inne, to the preuenting of death, and to the curing of &s;oules, I &s;hall de&s;ire you to ioyne
<PB REF="3"> with mee, in humble and hartie prayer vnto Al|mightie GOD, in the Name and mediation of his &s;onne Ie&s;us Chri&s;t, that it would plea&s;e him to a&s;si&s;t vs with his holie Spirit, and to graunt to eue|rie one of vs true repentance for all our &s;innes, a liuelie fayth in all his promi&s;es, a godlie conuer&s;a|tion according to his holie commaundements in all our liues.</P>
<P>And in the&s;e prayers, let vs not be mindfull of our &s;elues alone, but as feeling members of the mi&s;ticall bodie of Ie&s;us Chri&s;t, let vs pray for all our fellow members, di&s;per&s;ed ouer the face of the whole earth; and more e&s;peciallie, let vs pray for this Church wherein we liue; and heerein for the Kings mo&s;t excellent Maie&s;tie, <HI>Iames</HI> by the grace of GOD, King of great Brittaine, Fraunce, and Ireland, defender of the faith, and &s;upreame Go|uernour of this Church, in cau&s;es both Eccle&s;ia&s;ti|call and Ciuill. For our gracious Queene <HI>Anne,</HI> for the noble Prince <HI>Henry,</HI> and for all that Royall familie, that it may plea&s;e GOD to inlighten the~ with his Spirit, to inrich them with his Grace, to pre&s;erue them with his mercie, and to crowne them with his glory.</P>
<P>Let vs pray for all that are of his Maie&s;ties mo&s;t honourable priuie Councell, for all the Nobilitie, for all the Clergie, by what name or title &s;oeuer
<PB REF="3"> they be called; for both the Vniuer&s;ities, Cam|bridge, and Oxford; for all the Commons of this Land; for all that are afflicted, e&s;pecially tho&s;e that fight vnder the banner of Chri&s;t, and labour vnder the burden of their &s;innes.</P>
<P>La&s;t of all&punc; for our &s;elues heere gathered toge|ther, for the hearing and &s;peaking of Gods mo&s;t holie Word, be&s;eeching him to make it vnto vs, as it is in it &s;elfe, a Word of power to the beating downe of &s;inne in vs, and to the rai&s;ing vs againe vnto newne&s;&s;e of life: that we beeing made con|formable vnto our Sauiour Chri&s;t his death, and humiliation in this life, may be made pertakers of his Re&s;urrection, and glorification in the life to come. In who&s;e Name let vs conclude our pray|ers, in that forme which hee him&s;elfe hath taught vs in his holie Go&s;pell, &s;aying&punc; <HI>Our Father which art in heauen&punc; &amp;c.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Lust, when it hath conceiued, bringeth forth &s;in, and &s;inne, when it is fini&s;hed, bringeth forth death.</HI></P>
<P>You &s;ee heere the Apo&s;tle, in the de&s;cription of &s;inne, v&s;eth an Allegorie, taken from the genera|tion of man. And if you doe ob&s;erue it, you &s;hall find, that there is <HI>eadem methodus generationis, et corruptionis,</HI> the &s;ame methode in the naturall ge|neration of man vnto life, and in the vnnaturall
<PB REF="4"> corruption of man vnto death. Heere is a Father, and a Mother, and a Midwife, and a Nur&s;e.</P>
<P>The Father of &s;inne, is the deuill, the Mother is Lu&s;t, the Midwife is Rea&s;on, the Nur&s;e is Hi|pocri&s;ie. For the deuill by wicked &s;ugge&s;tion be|getteth &s;inne as a Father, Concupi&s;cence by wic|ked imaginations conceiueth &s;inne as a Mother, Rea&s;on, by wicked con&s;ent, bringeth forth &s;inne as a Midwife, and Hypocri&s;ie by wicked conceale|ment, bringeth vp &s;inne as a Nur&s;e.</P>
<P>When Concupi&s;cence lay fir&s;t in Child-bed in the great Chamber Paradi&s;e, and gaue life vnto Sinne, that &s;inne might fill all the World vvith death, &s;hee tooke this very order for the bringing forth of her fir&s;t begotten, as may appeare in the third chapter of Gene&s;is. Fir&s;t &s;he kept companie with the deuill, who &s;ugge&s;ted vnto her, di&s;tru&s;t in GOD, and tru&s;t in her&s;elfe, which is the &s;eede of all &s;innes.</P>
<P>Secondly, &s;hee conceiued &s;inne by thinking of it: The forbidden fruite was faire to the eye, plea|&s;ant to the ta&s;t, and a thing to be de&s;ired for the ex|perience of good and euill.</P>
<P>Thirdly, &s;he came vnto <HI>Adam,</HI> and got him to con&s;ent, &s;hee gaue vnto him, and he did eate.</P>
<PB REF="4">
<P>La&s;tly, lea&s;t her young borne babe &s;hould per|ri&s;h for want of keeping, &s;hee co~mitted it to Nur&s;e Hypocri&s;ie, who &s;owed together the figge leaues of excu&s;e, and nur&s;ed it by concealing it.</P>
<P>This old beldame Concupi&s;cence, the Mother of &s;inne, is now very old, aboue 5000. yeeres, and yet &s;he is not pa&s;t children.</P>
<P>The deuill was neuer more bu&s;ie to beget &s;inne, Lu&s;t neuer more pregnant to conceiue &s;inne, Rea|&s;on neuer more ea&s;ie to be intreated to bring forth &s;inne, and Hypocri&s;ie neuer more ready at hand to &s;et new-borne &s;inne vpon her lap, and to dandle it by excu&s;ing it.</P>
<P>And for the fir&s;t, the Father of &s;inne the deuill, hee doth not onely beget tho&s;e horrible villanies, and prodigious exployts, which euery one may perceiue to be his children, and to come from hell: but hee is much more dangerous, whil&s;t hee doth &s;ecretly infinuate him&s;elfe vnder another &s;hape, and come vnto vs like an Angell of light, for by this meanes, there is no member of our bodies, nor no corner of our &s;oules, wherein he hath not a bed of fornication.</P>
<P>Hee begetteth fal&s;hood in our harts, lightnes in our heads, adulterie in our eyes, bla&s;pemie in our
<PB REF="5"> tongues, oppre&s;sion in our handes, and intempe|rancie in our whole bodies. Hee turneth beautie into wantonne&s;&s;e, &s;trength into violence, wit into wilfulne&s;&s;e, learning into di&s;cention, deuotion in|to &s;uper&s;tition, religion into trea&s;on. Alwaies cor|rupting the meaner gifts with hypocri&s;ie, as put|ting <HI>Colocinthis</HI> into the poridge pot, and the grea|ter with pride, as putting <HI>Cantharides</HI> into the oyle pot.</P>
<P>Now for the preuenting of the deuill, the father of &s;inne, that hee doe not beget &s;in vpon vs, there be two thinges nece&s;&s;ary, fir&s;t, to &s;ee the deuill by fayth, and then to &s;hut him out by good works.</P>
<P>For the fir&s;t, it is a matter of faith to &s;ee the de|uill: for hee that doth not belieue there is a deuill, doth not belieue there is a God. And now adayes, fayth is waxed &s;o very weake, that many beginne to make que&s;tion whether there be a deuill or no, becau&s;e they neuer &s;aw any. Indeede in the time of &s;uper&s;tition, the deuill did often appeare in &s;ome bodily &s;hape, and hee had rea&s;on for it: for by that meanes hee draue men forward vnto de&s;peration, to which in tho&s;e dayes they were very much in|clined: but in the&s;e dayes of prophanenes, the ca&s;e is altered, he will not now appeare in his likene&s;&s;e, lea&s;t he &s;hould hold men backe from pre&s;umption, vnto which they are running head-long.</P>
<PB REF="5">
<P>If we will &s;ee any thing with our bodily eyes, it is requi&s;ite that the obiect be rightly placed, that is, that it be not placed on the &s;unne &s;ide wee &s;tand, nor that it be not placed too neere vs. Wee can|not &s;ee a thing on the &s;unne &s;ide wee are, neither behind vs, or if it be placed iu&s;t be&s;ide vs.</P>
<P>If a man would plainly behold one on this &s;ide of the roome, he mu&s;t goe to the other &s;ide, &s;o hee that would &s;ee the deuill in pride, &s;hall neuer per|ceiue him as long as he is proude, he &s;tands on the &s;ame &s;ide the deuill is, but let him goe ouer to the other &s;ide of humilitie, and then he &s;hall plainly &s;ee the deuill in his pride: &s;o in drunkenne&s;&s;e, &s;o in whoredome, &s;o in any other &s;inne; if a man will &s;ee the deuill, he mu&s;t fir&s;t goe to the oppo&s;ite ver|tues, before he can po&s;sible perceiue him.</P>
<P>The &s;econd thing is, that we doe not &s;tand too neere, for if our eye be too neere the obiect, the beames of the &s;ight will be co~founded; there mu&s;t be a mediocrity of di&s;tance: For as in the Optikes, if a man would perceiue the arte of a pro&s;pectiue picture, hee mu&s;t goe a di&s;tance from it, and looke with artificiall eyes, or Spectacles fitted for the purpo&s;e, euen &s;o, if a man would perceiue this pro&s;pect of the deuill, with all his deepe &s;hadowes, and profound deceits, he mu&s;t fir&s;t endeuor to goe from him, that he may perceiue him: &amp; then looke
<PB REF="6"> not with the eyes of nature, or rea&s;on, which will neuer, or very hardly di&s;cerne him, but with the eyes of faith, and of Gods word, which will plain|lie di&s;couer him.</P>
<P>The &s;econd meanes to preuent his &s;ugge&s;tions, is to &s;hut him out by good workes. <HI>Adam</HI> was ap|pointed by GOD to worke in Paradi&s;e, and to dre&s;&s;e the Garden; as long as hee was at his worke he was &s;afe enough, but when he gaue him&s;elfe to idlenes, and to heare the talke &amp; dalliance of <HI>Eue,</HI> he was &s;ubiect to the deuils temptation. And ther|fore S. <HI>Hierome</HI> dooth very fitly exhort his friend <HI>Rusticus</HI> that hee would be alwaies dooing &s;ome good thing, <HI>Vt quando diabolus venit, inveniat oc|cupatum,</HI> that the doores may be &s;hut, and hee not at ley&s;ure to giue him entertainement.</P>
<P>For as a birde, as long as &s;hee is flying is &s;afe e|nough from the Fowler, but if &s;he &s;it &s;till vpon the perch, &s;hee is euery bodies marke, euen &s;o a man, who was borne to labour, as a bird to flie, as long as he is &s;tudying, reading, praying, or about any hone&s;t exerci&s;e, or worke of his vocation, the de|uill will not much meddle with him, hee hath no opportunitie, he cannot hit him; but if once a man giue ouer him&s;elfe vnto idlene&s;&s;e, and di&s;&s;olue his minde with &s;loth and negligence, hee is a fayre
<PB REF="6"> marke for the deuill to &s;hoote at, hee will be &s;ure to be &s;ugge&s;ting the &s;eede of one &s;inne or another.</P>
<P>Well then, if we will exclude the deuill, let vs al&s;o be alwaies tilling the Paradi&s;e of our &s;oules by one good worke, or other, that GOD may de|light to walke therein: and &s;o Chri&s;t him&s;elfe will become <HI>Ianitor cordis</HI> vnto vs, and will be as rea|die to be the doore-keeper of our harts, to keepe out our enemies, as <HI>Dauid</HI> was willing to be the Doore-keeper of Gods hou&s;e, to let in his friends.</P>
<P>When you haue thus kept out the deuill, the Father of &s;inne, the next care is to looke to Lu&s;t, or Concupi&s;cence the mother of &s;inne. Where by the way we are to ob&s;erue, that by Concupi&s;cence is meant, not onely the de&s;ire of fle&s;hly company, but al&s;o the generall corruption of our nature, prone to all &s;inne. So the Apo&s;tle taketh it in the fift to the Galathians, where hee reckneth vp as fruites of the fle&s;h, not onely adulterie, fornicati|on, and vncleanene&s;&s;e, but al&s;o drunkennes, mur|der, enuie, Idolatry, witchcraft, and &s;uch like.</P>
<P>For Concupi&s;cence is as fruitfull of all manner of &s;inne, as the Egyptian Ilands are of all manner of vermine, of which <HI>Diodorus Siculus</HI> reporteth, that for the &s;peedines of generation, you may &s;ee
<PB REF="7"> the former part a formed Ratte, &amp; the hinder part an vnformed lumpe in the &s;ame peece of earth.</P>
<P>The deuill hath no &s;ooner &s;ugge&s;ted the &s;eed of Pride in Honor, but Lu&s;t conceiueth it by think|ing of it, and trauaileth in the imagination of high places, and groweth bigge with Sedition and Re|bellion; and as &s;oone as it can get Opportunitie, it bringeth it foorth.</P>
<P>The deuill hath no &s;ooner &s;ugge&s;ted the &s;eed of Wrath in priuate offences, but Lu&s;t conceiueth it, by thinking of it, and trauaileth with the &s;weetnes of Reuenge, and groweth bigge with Murther and Crueltie, &amp; as &s;oone as it can get Opportunitie, it bringeth it forth.</P>
<P>The deuill hath no &s;ooner &s;ugge&s;ted the &s;eed of Couetou&s;ne&s;&s;e in Gaine, but Lu&s;t conceiueth it, by thinking of it, and imagineth to it &s;elfe quirkes, and aduantages of Law, and groweth bigge with Iniurie and Oppre&s;sion, and as &s;oone as it can get Opportunitie, it bringeth it forth.</P>
<P>The deuill hath no &s;ooner &s;ugge&s;ted the &s;eed of Vncha&s;tne&s;&s;e in Beautie, or any wanton &s;peech or behauiour, but Lu&s;t conceiueth it, by thinking of it, and trauaileth in the conceit of Fle&s;hly plea&s;ure, and groweth bigge with Adulterie, and Fornica|tion,
<PB REF="7"> and as &s;oone as it can get Opportunitie, it bringeth it forth.</P>
<P>In a word, the deuill hath no &s;ooner &s;ugge&s;ted the &s;eede of any &s;inne in any temptation, but Lu&s;t conceiueth it, by thinking of it, and dooth growe quicke and bigge with the fruites of Wickednes, and as &s;oone as it can get Opportunitie, it bring|eth it foorth: &s;o fruitfull is Concupi&s;cence of all manner of &s;inne.</P>
<P>Hee then that will preuent the conception of &s;inne, mu&s;t watch Concupi&s;cence, &amp; looke to his inward thoughts, and affections very carefully, &amp; not onely make con&s;cience of his deeds and of his words, but euen of his mo&s;t &s;ecrete thoughts, and inward imaginations; for they that accu&s;tome the~&s;elues to euill thoughts, can hardly bring forth good words, but neuer good deedes.</P>
<P>As the Corne is, &s;o will the Floure be, if the Floure be badde, the fault is not in the Mil&s;tones that ground it, but in the Miller that put in the Corne; the vnder&s;tanding and thoughts of a man, are like Mil&s;tones, they cannot chu&s;e but grinde what&s;oeuer they receiue, and yeeld a Floure both in words and deedes accordingly.</P>
<P>As the wood is, &s;o will the fire be, of wet and vn&s;auerie wood, you &s;hall haue a &s;mokey and vn|whol&s;ome
<PB REF="8"> fire, but if the wood be &s;weet and dry, it will perfume the roome with a very good and plea&s;ant ayre; euen &s;o it is in the &s;oule, &s;uch wood as you lay on in your thoughts, &s;uch fire &s;hall you haue in your actions.</P>
<P>The Wi&s;e man in his be&s;t in&s;tructions to wi&s;e|dome giueth this rule, Prouerbs 4, 23. <HI>Cum omni diligentia ob&s;erua cor tuum,</HI> If thou wilt bee wi&s;e, looke well not onely to thy hands and thy feet, al|though they al&s;o are to be looked vnto, but e&s;pe|cially looke to thy hart, and thy inward affections, and thinke vpon thy thoughts.</P>
<P>That vnder&s;tanding is the mo&s;t diuine, which is reflected, and doth inwardly behold it &s;elfe, and GOD, that which is proiected, and gazeth vpon outward things, is common to vs with bea&s;ts, and tho&s;e likewi&s;e are the be&s;t affections, that are kept at home, &amp; occupied in the examination of them|&s;elues.</P>
<P>You know when <HI>Dinah</HI> would needes be gad|ding abroad, to &s;ee the Daughters of <HI>Canaan,</HI> Ge|ne&s;is 34. &s;he was defloured by <HI>Sechem</HI> the &s;onne of <HI>Hamor.</HI> And if we &s;uffer our affections to be night|walkers, they will certainly returne home quicke with child.</P>
<PB REF="8">
<P>Concupi&s;cence in it &s;elfe, as it is a facultie of the &s;oule, and a gift of GOD, is no &s;inne, but may be made a helper vnto Vertue, if it be well looked vn|to, although I confe&s;&s;e Concupi&s;cence is co~mon|ly taken in the euill part for originall &s;inne: but if &s;hee be kept at home, and &s;et a worke, in &s;weeping of the hou&s;e, and lighting the candle, &s;hee may in the end proue a cha&s;t virgin, fit to meete the bride|groome at his comming.</P>
<P>And thus you &s;ee the meanes howe to &s;ue a di|uorce betwixt the deuill &amp; Concupi&s;cence, and to put enmitie betwixt the &s;eede of the Serpent, and the &s;eede of the Woman, that although the deuill be neuer &s;o bu&s;ie in &s;ugge&s;ting, yet Concupi&s;cence &s;hall not be able to conceiue &s;inne.</P>
<P>Now hauing &s;eene how &s;inne is conceiued, let vs con&s;ider how it is brought forth. And heere, al|though Lu&s;t be neuer &s;o willing to conceiue &s;inne, yet let not Rea&s;on, which is the <HI>Adam,</HI> and the manly part of the &s;oule, become his Midwife, to bring it forth. For concupi&s;cence, although it be alwaies &s;infull, yet it cannot bring forth &s;inne, with out the con&s;ent of Rea&s;on, which will neuer con|&s;ent to bring it foorth, &s;o long as her eyes be open.</P>
<P>For &s;inne is a thing &s;o vgly and deformed, and &s;o like the father the deuill, that it is very vnrea&s;o|nable
<PB REF="9"> that a mans &s;oule &s;hould yeeld vnto it. And therefore it is called aworke of darkne&s;&s;e, not one|lie becau&s;e the deuill hideth it fro~ other men, when it is brought foorth, but al&s;o for that hee hideth it from our &s;elues, in the very birth, and comming forth thereof.</P>
<P>And therefore it is true beeing rightly vnder|&s;tood, that <HI>Nemo &s;ciens peccat,</HI> no man doth know &s;inne, to be &s;inne, at the in&s;tant when he commit|teth it: For how &s;oeuer he haue the habit of know|ledge in the generall, yet he hath lo&s;t the act there|of in particular.</P>
<P>The meanes the deuill v&s;eth to hide his young|ling in the birth, is the very &s;ame that deceitfull Trades-men v&s;e, to vtter theyr wares, they &s;hut out the true light, and let in fal&s;e lights, to ca&s;t the better glo&s;&s;e vpon their &s;tuffe. So doth the deuill.</P>
<P>In the time of Super&s;tition, hee put out <HI>Verbum predicatum,</HI> the light of the Word generally prea|ched, &s;o that men did &s;carce know &s;inne in gene|rall, in the&s;e dayes he puts out <HI>Verbum applicatum,</HI> the light of the Word applied in particular, &s;o that few doe con&s;ider what &s;inne is in practi&s;e: And in &s;teede of the&s;e true lights, he &s;ets vp fal&s;e lights, to ca&s;t a fayre glo&s;&s;e vpon &s;inne.</P>
<PB REF="9">
<P>The&s;e fal&s;e lights are e&s;pecially two, the one is humane Lawe, the other is humane example. By the one you &s;hall neuer be able to prooue &s;inne to be &s;inne, vnle&s;&s;e you can &s;hewe an Act of Parlia|ment for it. By the other, you &s;hall neuer be able to proue &s;inne to be &s;inne, vntill all great men be good men, which will not be yet a while.</P>
<P>By the&s;e fal&s;e lights it comes to pa&s;&s;e, that things are &s;o vnlike them&s;elues, as few things are knowne by their names: Wee call good euill, and euill good, and light darkne&s;&s;e, and darkne&s;&s;e light, as the Prophet E&s;ay complaineth in his 5. Chapter. So that Drunkenne&s;&s;e pa&s;&s;eth currant vnder the name of Good-fellow&s;hip; Adulterie, vnder the name of Good-nature; Couetou&s;ne&s;&s;e, vnder the name of Good-husbandry; Murder, vnder the name of Good-courage; Sedition, vnder the name of Good-reformation; and Trea&s;on, vnder the name of Good-religion; and Rea&s;on beeing blin|ded by the deuills &s;leights, becomes a Midwife to bring forth &s;inne.</P>
<P>The meanes to make &s;inne an Abortiue, and to keepe it from comming into act, is to keep open the eye of Rea&s;on, both by the doctrine of the Truth in generall, and the application thereof in particular. The knowledge of the Truth in gene|rall is more ea&s;ie, for which of vs is ignorant what
<PB REF="10"> &s;inne is? Rea&s;on whil&s;t &s;hee walketh in generalls, is in her owne iuri&s;diction, &s;ence, and affection; hath nothing to doe with her, but &s;hee may freelie giue her &s;entence; but when &s;he de&s;cendeth to par|ticulars, wherein all actions doe con&s;i&s;t, and di&s;|puteth whether this or that particular bee a &s;inne, there &s;ence and affection haue a &s;peciall intere&s;t, &s;o that Rea&s;on cannot giue in her verdict, vnle&s;&s;e &s;hee can ouer-rule them.</P>
<P>Heere is the true v&s;e of priuate Monitors, Tu|tors, and Preachers, who may &s;peake freely when time is, that they helpe vs to retaine the truth in particular. Admonition is called by the Greekes <HI>Noythe&s;ia,</HI> as it were the re&s;toring, or putting of the mind in order; for when the vnder&s;tanding is as it were be&s;ide it &s;elfe, and out of ioynt, beeing tran&s;puted by &s;ome &s;uddaine pa&s;sion, or euill cu|&s;tome: it is then a great benefit to haue &s;uch a one at hand, as may repo&s;e it by good admonition, and put it into order againe.</P>
<P>This continuall publike Preaching, is very good and nece&s;&s;arie, as a candle &s;et vpon a candle&s;ticke, to giue light to all that are in the hou&s;e. But if in this night of &s;inne, wee will doe any profitable worke, we mu&s;t eyther our &s;elues haue a particular light of our owne in our hand, or if we cannot doe both, wee mu&s;t get another to hold the candle to
<PB REF="10"> vs, that wee may &s;ee the deformitie of &s;inne, lea&s;t Rea&s;on be deceiued, and &s;o taking the children of Babilon, for the children of Ieru&s;alem, do giue her con&s;ent, and become a Midwife for the bringing forth of &s;inne.</P>
<P>And if Rea&s;on be deceiued, &amp; ouertaken in the birth of &s;inne, yet when it is borne, &s;hee &s;hall per|ceiue it plainly; and if &s;hee can neither hinder the conception nor the birth of &s;inne, yet let her like the Midwiues of Egipt, kill it betimes, lea&s;t it grow vp to the full height, for &s;inne when it is fini&s;hed, will certainly bring forth death.</P>
<P>Indeede, euery &s;inne without repentance, is fi|ni&s;hed, and bringeth forth death; but yet there is a growth in &s;inne, <HI>Nemo repente fit pa&s;simus,</HI> no man becomes a very bad man at the fir&s;t da&s;h, there bee three degrees, as it were &s;o many ages in &s;in; there is 1. <HI>peccatum occultum, 2. peccatum apertum, 3. pec|catum frequentatum,</HI> &s;ecret &s;inne, open &s;inne, and cu&s;tomarie, or confirmed &s;inne.</P>
<P>Sinne, whil&s;t it is &s;ecrete, and as it were in his cradle, it hath a Nur&s;e, and that is Di&s;simulation, or Hypocri&s;ie, who if &s;he can, will keepe &s;in with|in doores, and if it mu&s;t needes goe abroade, &s;hee prouides a Mantle, or a Cloake to couer it with|all.</P>
<PB REF="11">
<P>The carnall man, as long as hee can, will keepe his adultery and vncha&s;tne&s;&s;e clo&s;e, but if it mu&s;t needes out, he excu&s;es it, and cloakes it with a na|turall infirmitie, as <HI>Adam,</HI> Gene&s;is 3. <HI>Mulier quam dedisti mihi,</HI> the woman which thou gaue&s;t vnto me, &s;he gaue vnto me, &amp; I did eate. So the proud man, if he can keepe his di&s;obedience and trea&s;on within dores, he will, but if it mu&s;t needs come a|broade, hee will couer it with a cloake of fal&s;e pre|tence, either with a pretence of iu&s;tice, as <HI>Ab&s;olon,</HI> when hee intended trea&s;on again&s;t his father, hee pretended iu&s;tice for the people, &s;aying to euerie &s;utor, the matters are good and righteous, but the King hath appointed no man to heare thee: O that I were made a Iudge, that I might do iu&s;tice to the people, 2. Sam. 15.</P>
<P>Or el&s;e with a pretence of zeale, as <HI>Korah,</HI> when he practi&s;ed a &s;chi&s;me again&s;t <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> and <HI>Aaron,</HI> he &s;eemed zealous for the people of God; You take too much vppon you, &s;eeing all the congregation of the Lord is holy. Numb. 16.</P>
<P>So the Couetous man, if hee can, he will keepe his iniurie and oppre&s;sion within doores with <HI>Ge|hezi,</HI> 2. Regum, 5. thy &s;eruaunt hath beene no where, I haue done nothing, but that I may doe: but if the bleating of the &s;heepe bewray him, then he excu&s;eth the matter with <HI>Saule,</HI> 2. Sam. 15. It
<PB REF="11"> was the fault of his Officers: but it is no matter, he meaneth to lay it vp in <HI>pios v&s;us:</HI> offer &s;acrifice to God, you &s;hall &s;ee one day he will found Ho&s;pitals and build Churches with it.</P>
<P>Thus &s;inne groweth from &s;ecret to open, from his child-hood to his young age, and then it needs a Nur&s;e no longer, but Lu&s;t doth prouide her of a Tutor, and that is Pre&s;umption, who will not di&s;|&s;emble the matter a whit, but openly defend it, like <HI>Aritio</HI> in the Comedie, <HI>Non est flagitium &s;cortari adole&s;centulum, non est neque potare, neque &s;ores ef|fringere,</HI> all the&s;e are no &s;innes, they are but tricks of youth.</P>
<P>So &s;inne is iterated and repeated vntill it getteth &s;trength by cu&s;tome and growth to mans e&s;tate, &amp; then is it manned with ob&s;tinacie, who like a &s;tout Champion will iu&s;tifie it again&s;t all commers, <HI>pec|cator cum venerit in profundum contemnet.</HI> Then will the Egiptian contemne <HI>Mo&s;es,</HI> Exod. 2. Who made thee a Ruler, &amp; a Iudge ouer vs? Then will <HI>Ahah</HI> reiect <HI>Micheah,</HI> I hate him, for he neuer pro|phecieth any good vnto me, 3, Reg, 2. Then will euery child in Iericho, de&s;pi&s;e <HI>Elizeus,</HI> and be bold to call him bald pate, 4, Regum, 2. And thus &s;inne groweth to his height, &amp; bringeth forth both pri|uate and publike, both temporall and eternall ca|lamitie.</P>
<PB REF="12">
<P>Which if you de&s;ire to preuent, you mu&s;t looke to &s;inne betimes, &amp; as the Prophet adui&s;eth, P&s;al. 137. Take the children of Babilon young, &amp; da&s;h their heads again&s;t the &s;tones. Take them young. Whil&s;t they are young, <HI>Dum parvus est hostis in|ter&s;ire, vt virtus eius elidatur in &s;emine. Hieron.</HI> For &s;inne when it is iterated, it is harder to be con|quered. <HI>Acta confirmant voluntatem, tam in bono, quam in malo,</HI> He that hath done well once, &s;hall the more ea&s;ily doe it the next time, and hee that hath done euill once, &s;hall the more hardly re&s;i&s;t it at the next a&s;&s;ault.</P>
<P>Take them young, whil&s;t you are young, other|wi&s;e, as &s;inne groweth &s;tronger, you will growe weaker, and that &s;inne which now you may ea&s;ily &s;ubdue, you &s;hall not heereafter be able to wre&s;tle with.</P>
<P>Our Sauiour began to purcha&s;e our &s;aluation when he was verie young, hee &s;hed &s;ome blood in the wound of circumci&s;ion when he was but eight dayes old, and he &s;hewed him&s;elfe in the Temple, when he was but twelue yeeres old&punc; and &s;hall not wee thinke it time to practi&s;e our &s;aluation, whil&s;t wee are young? Let vs therefore looke to it betimes, lea&s;t &s;inne growe to bee fini&s;hed, and then there bee no remedie, nor recouerie, but death.</P>
<PB REF="12">
<P>I am now come to the fourth and la&s;t part of my Text, namely&punc; the fruite of &s;inne, and that is death. <HI>It bringeth forth death.</HI></P>
<P>The fruite of &s;inne is double, the death of the bodie, and the death of the &s;oule. That the death of the bodie is the fruite of &s;inne, it appeareth in Romans 5, By the &s;inne of one, death came ouer all; for &s;urely, if there had neuer beene any di&s;or|der of the &s;oule, there &s;hould neuer haue been anie di&s;ea&s;e of the &s;oule.</P>
<P>But I will pa&s;&s;e ouer that which we mu&s;t all pa&s;&s;e thorough, that is the death of the body, and come to that which I pray God we may all e&s;cape, that is the death of the &s;oule. For as death cau&s;eth the &s;eparation of the &s;oule from the bodie, &s;o &s;inne cau|&s;eth the &s;eparation of God from the &s;oule, where|by the &s;oule beco~meth more loth&s;ome vnto God, then any dead carka&s;&s;e is to man. But yet as there is a difference in the &s;eparation of the &s;oule from the body, &s;o are there certaine degrees in the &s;epa|ration of God from the &s;oule.</P>
<P>There is a Syncope or &s;ouning, there is an Epi|lep&s;y, or falling &s;icknes, and there is an Apoplexie, or cold Pal&s;y, which if it be totall, is al&s;o finall. To the fir&s;t an&s;wereth our ordinarie infirmities, which the iu&s;t man falleth into euery day. The&s;e the aun|cients
<PB REF="13"> haue called Veniall &s;innes, not becau&s;e they are not deadly in their owne nature, but becau&s;e they are recouerable by ordinary repentance, as it were by the &s;prinkling of water, or a little bending forward.</P>
<P>To the &s;econd an&s;wereth greater crimes, which they call deadly &s;innes, becau&s;e they do expell the Spirit of GOD, that for the time there is left no &s;ence, nor apparance thereof, neither doth it re|turne againe without &s;ome extraordinarie repen|tance, as it were by &s;triuing, by &s;weating, and bea|ring of it &s;elfe.</P>
<P>To the third aun&s;wereth cu&s;tomarie and ob&s;ti|nate &s;innes, which although there remaine a while a little appearance of breath, or naturall warmth, yet without a verie miracle, it is vnpo&s;sible to re|couer that &s;pirituall life, which it hath &s;o long, and &s;o vniuer&s;allie excluded.</P>
<P>Seeing then the fruite of &s;inne is &s;o dangerous, and yet &s;o vnpo&s;sible altogether to be preuented, what remedie is there left to recouer our &s;elues: &s;urely there is no other meanes in the world, but the grace of GOD in Ie&s;us Chri&s;t, offered vnto vs in his Word and Sacraments, by the mini&s;tery of his Church. For as Chri&s;t him&s;elfe did rai&s;e 3. kinde of dead bodies in the Go&s;pell, &s;o hath hee
<PB REF="13"> giuen power to his Church in his Name, to rai&s;e 3. kindes of dead &s;oules. Hee rai&s;ed one dead in the hou&s;e, and that was <HI>Iairus</HI> daughter, in the fift of Marke; another dead in the gate, and that was the widdowes &s;onne in the 7. of Luke; &amp; a third dead in the graue, and that was <HI>Lazarus</HI> in the 11. of Iohn.</P>
<P>The &s;ecrete &s;inner is dead in the hou&s;e; for the ray&s;ing of him, there is the word of Chri&s;t parti|cularly applied, which is a di&s;cerner of thoughts, &amp; intents of the hart. Hebr: 4, 12. and able to bring into captiuitie euerie thought, into the obedience of Chri&s;t. 2. Cor. 10.</P>
<P>The open &s;inner is dead in the gate, for the rai|&s;ing of him, there is the di&s;cipline of Chri&s;t; If thou can&s;t not reforme thy brother priuately, <HI>Die Eccle|&s;iae,</HI> tell the Church, &amp;c. Math, 18. Chri&s;t him&s;elfe when hee found open profanation of the Temple, hee made a &s;courge, and whipped them out. &amp;c. Iohn. 2.</P>
<P>But what &s;hall wee doe for the cu&s;tomarie and ob&s;tinate &s;inner, which is dead in the graue? All we can doe is to pray for him as <HI>Mary</HI> did. Lord, if thou had&s;t beene heere, my brother <HI>Lazarus</HI> had not died, neuerthele&s;&s;e, I know all things are po&s;|&s;ible vnto thee.</P>
<PB REF="14">
<P>But becau&s;e wee mu&s;t not alwaies &s;tay for mira|cles, the mini&s;terie of the &s;word, mu&s;t be ioyned with the mini&s;tery of the word, <HI>Atque immedica|bile membrum en&s;e recidendum est, ne pars &s;incera trahatur,</HI> that which cannot be cured, mu&s;t be cut off.</P>
<P>And thus you &s;ee the de&s;cription of &s;inne, with the true cau&s;es thereof, offered to your con&s;idera|tion by the Apo&s;tle, in the conception, the birth, the growth, and the fruite thereof. GOD of his goodnes ble&s;&s;e that which hee hath taught vs, that our &s;innes may be killed, our &s;oules cured, our death preuented, and our &s;elues euerla&s;tingly &s;a|ued, by the merits &amp; mediation of our deere Lord and Sauiour Ie&s;us Chri&s;t: to whom with the Fa|ther, and the holy Gho&s;t, three per&s;ons and one GOD, be all honor &amp; glorie, now and for euer.</P>
<CLOSER>Amen.</CLOSER>
<TRAILER>FINIS.</TRAILER>
</DIV1>
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<BACK>
<DIV1 TYPE="errata">
<P><HI>Page 8. line 3. &amp; line 5.</HI> for on the &s;unne &s;ide, reade on the &s;ame &s;ide.</P>
<PB REF="14" MS="y">
</DIV1>
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