<!DOCTYPE ETS PUBLIC "-//UMDLPS//DTD EEBOPROOF 2.0//EN">
<ETS>
<TEMPHEAD>
<REVDESCR>
<CHANGE>
<DATE>2014-11-11</DATE>
<RESPSTMT>
<NAME>Olivia Bottum</NAME>
<RESP>MURP</RESP>
</RESPSTMT>
<ITEM>Corrected markup.</ITEM>
</CHANGE>
</REVDESCR>
</TEMPHEAD>
<EEBO>
<IDG S="marc" R="UM" ID="B43856">
<STC T="W">R2046</STC>
<BIBNO T="oclc">318212051</BIBNO>
<VID>208406</VID>
</IDG>
<TEXT LANG="eng">
<FRONT>
<DIV1 TYPE="title page">
<PB REF="1">
<PB REF="2" MS="y">
<P>Chri&s;t the Saviour AND Governour of His CHURCH. OR, Two Sermons on <HI>I&s;aiah</HI> 9.6. The former concerning the &s;aving benefit of the Incarnation of the Son of God; The latter concerning Chri&s;t His governing his People, by the Scepter of his Word.</P>
<P>Preached in the Pari&s;h-Church of <HI>Flordon</HI> in the County of <HI>Norfolk. Decem.</HI> 25. &amp; <HI>Ian.</HI> 4. 1646.</P>
<P>By THOMAS Rous Ma&s;ter of Arts, and Mini&s;ter of the &s;aid Pari&s;h of <HI>Flordon.</HI></P>
<P>Now publi&s;hed for the Vindication of the Author.</P>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Phil. 2.8 9, 10.</HI></BIBL> And being found in fa&s;hion as a man, he humbled him&s;elf, and became obe|dient unto death, even the death of the Cro&s;s; Wherefore God al&s;o hath highly exalted him, and given him a Name, which is above every Name; tha<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">at the Name of Je&s;us every knee &s;hould bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth.</Q>
<P><HI>London,</HI> Printed for <HI>W. Franklin</HI> Book&s;eller in <HI>Norwich.</HI></P>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="dedication">
<PB REF="3" MS="y">
<PB REF="3" MS="y">
<HEAD>To the Honourable Committee for Plundered Mini&s;ters, &s;itting at <HI>We&s;tmin&s;ter.</HI></HEAD>
<P>_ALthough my pre&s;ent condition wherein I &s;tand clouded with the &s;candalous infor|mations of malicious Adver&s;aries, might ju&s;tly di&s;courage me from adventuring the&s;e Papers into your Pre&s;ence: yet that impartiall Ju&s;tice, which ought to be con&s;picuous in all Courts of Judicature, together with the Con&s;cience of mine own Innocency, hath embold|ned me hereunto. It is now full three Months, &s;ince I received a Coppy of an Order for the Seque&s;tring of the Rectory of <HI>Flordon</HI> in the County of <HI>Norfolk</HI> from me, wherein were mentioned the things whereof I am accu|&s;ed, and for which that Order was granted out again&s;t me: Concerning which, as in the generall, all of them are mo&s;t unju&s;tly layd to my Charge, &s;o in particular, touching that bla&s;phemous, and dangerous A&s;&s;ertion, that <HI>The Scriptures lead men to de&s;truction,</HI> (my Witne&s;s is on High, my Record is with the Almighty) it was &s;o far from my Tongue to utter, that it never entred into my heart to conceive. It was my endeavour to have cleered my &s;elf of this horrible Scandall, before the Committee for Examination at <HI>Norwich;</HI> for one of the Witne&s;&s;es produced again&s;t me, having affirmed that about New-years-time, three years &s;ince, preaching on <HI>I&s;a</HI> 9.6. <HI>The Government &s;hall be upon his &s;houlder,</HI> I did &s;ay tho&s;e words; repairing to my Papers, out of my briefer notes, I drew out the &s;ub&s;tance of all that ever I delivered upon
<PB REF="4">that Text, &amp; having there tendered the &s;ame, I offered to atte&s;t it upon Oath: but the Commi&s;&s;ioners were plea&s;ed rather to receive my Sermon upon my bare word (none of the Witne&s;&s;es again&s;t me being examined upon Oath) that they might tran&s;mit it to be peru&s;ed with my Cau&s;e: But contrary to their Intention, and my Expectation, by what means I know not, that my Sermon, though tran&s;mitted, never came to your judiciall view: whereupon all was taken for granted, which my Adver&s;aries had Affirmed again&s;t me.</P>
<P>I have therefore here humbly pre&s;ented the &s;ame un|to you, having added thereunto my Sermon upon the foregoing words, humbly craving your Honourable Te|&s;timony thereunto. I had taken a far more compendious way for my Vindication, than this, had not a long and te|dious &s;ickne&s;s prevented me; In which time my Adver|&s;ary <HI>Witherell,</HI> knowing I was not able to &s;tir out of my Chamber, much le&s;s to be pre&s;ent at <HI>We&s;tmin&s;ter</HI> to make my defence, (he having had three &s;everall daies before again&s;t me, but without &s;ucce&s;s) procured a day again&s;t me, whereof I had not the lea&s;t notice, that &s;o he might with the more facility effect what maliciou&s;ly he had intended again&s;t me. This his pro&s;ecution of me, however acted under Religious Pretences, yet upon con|&s;ideration of &s;ome Circum&s;tances, it will ea&s;ily appear to all indifferent and unbya&s;&s;ed men, to have been but a <HI>Ma|chevillian</HI> practice of his, turning Religion into Policy, and making it but a No&s;e of wax, or a &s;talking hor&s;e to &s;erve his own ends: imitating &s;editious <HI>Clodius,</HI> who although he were not only an Enemy to Religion, but al&s;o a contemner, and de&s;pi&s;er of the &s;ame, yet would he pretend Religion in the behalf of all the Villanies he committed in his Tribune&s;hip.</P>
<P>This Man was &s;ometimes an Apprentice in <HI>Norwich,</HI> from whence (having married his Ma&s;ter's Daughter) he went into Holland: And in proce&s;s of time having there run him&s;elf very deeply into debt, he repaired unto &s;ome of his Friends in <HI>England</HI> for relief: and about two years and four months &s;ince came to this Town of <HI>Flordon,</HI> to
<PB REF="4">a certain Farm, which one Mr <HI>Brian Witherell,</HI> &s;ometimes of <HI>Silam</HI> in <HI>Suffolk</HI> his Uncle (at who&s;e co&s;t and charge he was maintained in <HI>Holland</HI>) gave unto three of his Children: Here therefore he &s;etled him&s;elf, and &s;old Tobacco, and &s;uch like Merchandize; but neither the be|nefit he received by his Trading, nor his Uncles bounty could &s;atisfie him, unle&s;s he might &s;wallow a Pecce of Gleabland belonging unto me, and without any contra|diction ever yeelded to my Predece&s;&s;ors: In which his irregular and unju&s;t de&s;ires becau&s;e I with&s;tood him, ha|ving in <HI>April</HI> 1649. taken away &s;ome Firing that grew there, his malice and hatred hath ever &s;ince been &s;o great towards me, as that he endeavoured to deprive me of all that I had, &amp; to render me odious, where&s;oever he could: 'twas his dayly practice to enquire fir&s;t of one, then of another concerning me, if po&s;&s;ibly he might have where|of to accu&s;e me: He went about to per&s;wade divers of my Town&s;men to joyn with him again&s;t me, telling them, that if I were once ejected they &s;hould pay for their Tithes but after the rate of twelve pence in the Pound: at the length he compo&s;ed Articles (apparently more ma|licious than true) and procured &s;ome Witne&s;&s;es who (God forgive them) did in part affirm them: Nay, he was not a&s;hamed, at the time, when his Witne&s;&s;es were examined, to Dictate unto them what to &s;ay (as he did this gro&s;s Slander concerning the holy
<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">Though he never heard me Preach, but only <HI>Nov.</HI> 24. <HI>Anno</HI> 1648.</NOTE> Scriptures) till up|on my reque&s;t one of the Commi&s;&s;ioners Commanded him to forbear; and that all this was done again&s;t me out of private Intere&s;t, appears from his own Mouth; for he &s;aid, that had I not taken away that Firing, he had never mole&s;ted or di&s;quieted me; and that he might the better mannage this his unju&s;t pro&s;ecution, and the more di&s;|able me for the making of my defence, he hath detained, and doth yet again&s;t all right, equity or con&s;cience keep back from me all Tithes and Profits due from him for the two years la&s;t pa&s;t.</P>
<P><HI>May it therefore plea&s;e you of this Honourable Com|mittee, to take this great and in&s;ufferable wrong into your &s;erious con&s;ideration; &s;o as that upon a re-hearing I may
<PB REF="5">receive &s;o much favour as the ju&s;tne&s;s of my Cau&s;e may &s;eem to de&s;erve: More I must not expect from your Ju&s;tice; le&s;s I cannot expect from your Goodne&s;s. The more the wrongs be that I have received by tho&s;e &s;landerous Imputations, the more nece&s;&s;ity is laid upon me to crave your Honourable Aide and A&s;&s;i&s;tance. As none would ever have offered to tax me in &s;uch an opprobrious manner but this malicious Accu&s;er; &s;o there is none for whom it is more proper to help me in this ca&s;e than your Selves, to whom I have here humbly repre&s;ented my oppre&s;&s;ed condition, re&s;ting</HI></P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>Yours in the Service of chri&s;t and his Church mo&s;t humbly Devoted THOMAS ROUS.</SIGNED> <DATELINE><HI>Flordou</HI> <DATE><HI>Octob.</HI> 19. <HI>Anno</HI> 1650.</DATE></DATELINE></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="to the reader">
<PB REF="5">
<HEAD>To the Chri&s;tian, and Indifferent Reader.</HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>Chri&s;tian Reader,</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>_THe&s;e following Sermons, when at the fir&s;t delivered from the Pulpit, I thought full little to have &s;ent to the Pre&s;s; what was then tran&s;ient to the Ear, I had no purpo&s;e to make permanent to the Eye. Nor would I now have adventured them into the common Light, were I not nece&s;&s;itated thereunto, for the Vindication of my Doctrine, therein delivered, from tho&s;e foul a&s;per&s;ions, which &s;ome of malicious and perver&s;e Spi|rits, &s;ometimes my Auditors, have cast upon it.</P>
<P>Ever &s;ince I entred into the Office of the Mini&s;try, it hath alwaies been my care, and endeavour, faithfully to per|form the duties of my Calling among tho&s;e of my Cha<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ge, both by in&s;tructing them wherein &s;oever I perceived them to be Erroneous, or Ignorant: and by re&s;olving them in matters wherein they &s;eemed he &s;itaneous, or doubtfull.</P>
<P>E&s;pecially, before any time of Admini&s;tring the holy Sa|crament of the Lords Supper, it hath been my u&s;uall cour&s;e, both publikely and privately, both at the Church on the Sabbath, and Week daies, and at home in their Families, and mine own hou&s;e, to urge upon them the nece&s;&s;ity of pre|paration, and to &s;hew unto them the means whereby they might be rightly prepared.</P>
<P>Once in <HI>December, Anno 1646.</HI> Intending within a little while the Celebration of the Lords Supper, (ac|cording to my u&s;uall manner) I went to divers of my Pari&s;h, at their Hou&s;es, and admoni&s;hed them not to turn
<PB REF="6">their backs on &s;o Sacred and &s;aving an Ordinance, as &s;ome had formerly done:
<NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg"><HI>Stephen Mat|chet,</HI> and <HI>Mar|tha Hawke</HI> &s;pake to me to this purpo&s;e.</NOTE> Two of them then an&s;wered me, that they dur&s;t not receive that holy Sacrament, becau&s;e they could not re&s;olve with them&s;elves, in what Ge&s;ture or po&s;ition of the body they &s;hould Receive, whether &s;tanding, &s;itting, or kneeling, the Word of God not Commanding any of the&s;e: And &s;ure they were, that to do any thing not ex|pr<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;ly commanded in the Word of God, were to di&s;honour God, and to &s;in again&s;t their own &s;ouls.</P>
<P>My an&s;wer was, That Actions which are in their own nature meerly indifferent and circum&s;tantiall, are not al|waies expre&s;ly pre&s;cribed in the holy Scriptures, but are left to the Judgement of the Church; what therefore law|full Authoritie, in &s;uch ca&s;es, had pre&s;cribed, the Word of God, and right rea&s;on not contradicting, ought by us with all humble &s;ubmi&s;&s;ion to be put in practice, by vertue of that Apo&s;tolicall Injunction,
<NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">Rom. 13 1.</NOTE> <HI>Let every &s;oul be &s;ubject,</HI> &amp;c. And having &s;poke many words to this purpo&s;e, but leaving them un&s;atisfied, The Sabbath day following (&s;peaking on tho&s;e words <HI>I&s;a 9.6. The Government &s;hall be upon his &s;houlder)</HI> out of a tender re&s;pect toward them, the con|&s;cience of my place and duty, and an earne&s;t de&s;ire of &s;atis|fying and re&s;olving them in their doubts, (as God who knoweth all things, knows that I lie not) I did
<NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">Pa&s;&s;ing by what el&s;e I had thought to have &s;poken.</NOTE> purpo&s;ely endeavor to &s;hew them in what things we are guided only by the light of Scripture, and in what things we are left to the guidance and direction of our own Judgement and Rea&s;on.</P>
<P>But how ill this my care and pains for their &s;atisfaction was requited, is made too too evident to the World: For no &s;ooner came I out of my Pulpit, but they pre&s;ently charge me with what I neither &s;pake nor thought, <HI>viz.</HI> the averring an in&s;ufficiency in the Sacred Scriptures. Nay, according to that wicked Maxime of bold undertakers, That had Acti|ons mu&s;t be &s;econded with wor&s;e, and rather not begun, than not carried on; thinking the Retreat more dangerous than the A&s;&s;ault, and hating repentance, rather than per&s;eve|rance in a fault, they have again rai&s;ed up, and augmented
<PB REF="6">this their &s;lander (more than three years buried in &s;ilence) with a far greater mea&s;ure of malice, and bitterne&s;s again&s;t me. For &s;o &s;oon as
<NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">Tho. Withere<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters"></NOTE> one unworthy and cau&s;le&s;s Enemy of mine (de&s;iring to rai&s;e his broken and decayed E&s;tate by my ruine) and by his means
<NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">John Hawk. John John&s;on.</NOTE> &s;ome others had maliciou&s;ly endeavoured my Ejection, and to this end had exhibited divers fal&s;e Articles again&s;t me, which they could not prove;
<NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg"><HI>Stephen Mat|chet, Nicholas Hawk</HI> Son of the &s;aid <HI>Mar|tha Hawk.</HI></NOTE> <HI>The&s;e fal&s;e witne&s;&s;es, being procured, as tho&s;e Sons of</HI>
<NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">1 King. 21.10.</NOTE> <HI>Belial,</HI> do affirm,
<NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">At <HI>Norwich Jan.</HI> 15. 1649.</NOTE> that I bla&s;phemed God, and the Sacred Scriptures, [&s;aying that There is an in&s;uffic<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ency in the Scriptures concerning Man's Salvation; That the Scriptures lead men to de&s;truction, and that a man may be led by his own &s;en&s;e in matters concerning Salvation] that &s;o when all other means failed to bring about this their unchri&s;tian De&s;ign, as <HI>Naboth's</HI> Vineyard, &s;o that poor livelyhood, that God hath given me, might by this their fal&s;e Testimony become their po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion.</P>
<P>I have therefore (Courteous Reader) brought the&s;e (though rude and unpoli&s;hed) Notes (which I prote&s;t in the word of a Chri&s;tian, are the &s;ame, without any alte|ration of the &s;en&s;e or &s;ub&s;tance, that were delivered by me upon the time and Text
<NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">In the Title-Page.</NOTE> afore mentioned)
<NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">Though my Adver&s;ary <HI>Wi|therell</HI> would have per&s;wa|ded &s;ome of the Commi&s;&s;i|oners at <HI>Nor|wich</HI> that they were not the &s;ame.</NOTE> into Pub|like view: that upon the peru&s;all thereof, the World may &s;ee, how &s;hamefully I am wronged, and take notice how un|de&s;ervedly I am charged with that damnable, and dange|rous Doctrine of the Church of <HI>Rome, viz.</HI> That there is an in&s;ufficiency, &amp;c.</P>
<P>The latter of the&s;e Sermons (concerning which I am now que&s;tioned) was at the fir&s;t intended for the &s;atisfying of their doubts, who are at this time, without any cau&s;e, my cruell Adver&s;aries, but now through their malice is be|come an occa&s;ion of my pre&s;ent
<NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg">My Living being Seque|&s;tred <HI>I<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ly</HI> 16. <HI>Anno</HI> 1650.</NOTE> my&s;eries, I pray God it prooves not at the length an occa&s;ion of their own per|p<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters"> exities.</P>
<Q><L>Raro Antecedentem &s;cele&s;tum de&s;eruit</L>
<L>Paena pede claudo.
<NOTE PLACE="marg">Horat<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"></NOTE></L></Q>
<PB REF="7">
<P> Their &s;eared con&s;ciences will, (I beleeve) in a &s;horter time than they are aware of, both confute, and revenge this black and fal&s;e &s;candall, they have ca&s;t upon me.</P>
<P>In the mean time I &s;hall comfort my &s;elfwith the Con|&s;cience of my Innocency; I know a good Con&s;cience hath alwaies enough within-doors to reward it &s;elf, though the &s;ucce&s;s fals not out, according to the merit of the endea|vour.</P>
<P>As for Neatne&s;s of Stile, Quaintne&s;s of Phra&s;e, or Rhetoricall &s;treines, it mu&s;t not be expected, herein to find any, the occa&s;ion of publi&s;hing the&s;e Sermons (Preached to a very &s;mall Audience, the greater part whereof being of very mean and common Capacities) not permitting to Print more or le&s;s than was &s;poken.</P>
<P>However, Chri&s;tian Reader, if any thing may be found in this worthle&s;s Peece, that may build thee up further in the &s;aving Knowledge of Je&s;us Chri&s;t, thou &s;halt not alto|gether lo&s;e thy labour, nor &s;hall I mi&s;s of my aime, and de|&s;ire: Certainly &s;omething may be found therein, that may help forward thy Souls health; If thou gaine&s;t any thing, let God have the Prai&s;e, and him thy Prayers, who is</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>Thine and the Churches THOMAS ROUS.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
</FRONT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="sermon">
<PB N="1" REF="7">
<HEAD>Chri&s;t the Saviour, and Governour of his Church.</HEAD>
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>I&s;aiah 9.6.</HI></BIBL>
<P>For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is gi|ven, the Government &s;hall be upon his Shoulder, his Name &s;hall be called Wonderfull, Coun&s;ellour, the Mighty God, the Everla&s;ting Father, the Prince of Peace.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>_ALL the waies of God are Mercy and Truth;
<NOTE PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 25.10.</NOTE> no other path hath Divine Pro|vidence to walk about the World in, but in Mercy and Truth; no other way hath the Almighty to come down unto the Children of Men in, but it mu&s;t be in the Goodne&s;s of his Mercy, or in the Truth of his Ju&s;tice. Both the&s;e Paths doth the Spirit of God in the Sacred Volume guide us in, that we may as well &s;ee VVicked|ne&s;s puni&s;hed, as Goodne&s;s Rewarded. Do you in the one path meet with an
<NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">Gen. 4.4.</NOTE> <HI>Abell</HI> accepted; an
<NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">Gen. 5.24.</NOTE> <HI>He|noch</HI> tran&s;lated; a
<NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">Gen. 9.26.</NOTE> <HI>Shem</HI> ble&s;&s;ed; a
<NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">Gen. 8.18.</NOTE> <HI>Noah</HI> &s;aved? Turn your Foot into the other Path, and you &s;hall meet with an
<NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">Gen. 3.</NOTE> <HI>Adam</HI> ca&s;t out of Paradi&s;e, and eating his Bread with Sorrow; a
<NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">Gen. 4.</NOTE> <HI>Cain</HI> accur&s;ed, and branded with a fearfull Mark; and a world of dead Corps floating
<PB N="2" REF="8">in the generall
<NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">Gen. 7.</NOTE> Floud. <HI>The eyes of the Lord are upon the Righteous, and his Ears are open unto their Prayers; but the Countenance of the Lord is again&s;t them that do evill, to root out the remembrance of them from the Earth,</HI> P&s;a 34.15, 16. The eighth and ninth Chapters of this Prophecie may well be termed <HI>Canticum I&s;aiae,</HI> the Pro|phets Song, not much unlike that of <HI>Davids,</HI> of Mercy and Judgement; a Song of Judgement in the
<NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">Chap. 8.7.</NOTE> <HI>A&s;&s;y|rians</HI> Inva&s;ion; a Song of Mercy inour Saviour's
<NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">Chap. 9.6.</NOTE> In|carnation. As God is gracious in &s;hewing Mercy abun|dantly to his faithfull Servants; &s;o is he ju&s;t in rendring Vengeance unto his Adver&s;aries: He &s;o pittieth the one, as that in the mean time he doth not ju&s;tifie or acquit the other; He &s;o puni&s;heth the Guilty, as that in the mean time he forgets not to be gracious unto the Innocent.</P>
<P>In the foregoing Chapter, there is mention made of grievous
<NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">Ver. 7, 8, &amp; 22.</NOTE> trouble and affliction that &s;hould come up|on <HI>I&s;rael</HI> and <HI>Judah,</HI> by the Power and Ho&s;tility of the King of <HI>A&s;&s;yria.</HI></P>
<P>In this Chapter, le&s;t they &s;hould de&s;pair under the Bur|den of &s;o great Affliction, the Almighty Comforts them with a gratious Promi&s;e of a timely Deliverance, he tel|leth them, that their Calamity &s;hall not alwaies
<NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg">Ver, 1, 2, 3, 4.</NOTE> con|tinue, Heavine&s;s may endure for a Night but Joy com|eth in the Morning; In&s;tead of a dark Night of Adver&s;i|ty, they &s;hall be ble&s;t with a light&s;ome Day of Pro&s;pe|rity; In &s;tead of Mourning, they &s;hall have an abundance of Joy; In &s;tead of Bondage and Captivity, they &s;hall have perfect Freedom and Liberty; and all this by and through the Merits and Mediation of Je&s;us Chri&s;t, who was to be Incarnate and given to them.</P>
<P>He only is that true light, in Compari&s;on of whom all other Lights and Comforts are meer darkne&s;&s;es; He alone is that Supreme Object of Joy and Gladne&s;s, in compari&s;on of whom all worldly Injoyments are irk&s;ome and grievous; He alone is that Victorious Champion, trampling under foot the Power of Sin, Satan, and Death, leading Captivity Captive, and re&s;toring us to a for ever
<PB N="3" REF="8">ble&s;&s;ed and glorious Liberty of the Sons of God. Glori|ous indeed was that Victory which &s;ometimes Gods Peo|ple, the Jews, obtained over the
<NOTE N="m" PLACE="marg">Judg. 7.19, 20, 21, &amp;c.</NOTE> <HI>Midianites,</HI> under the Command of <HI>Gideon:</HI> But much more glorious is this which we have through the Almighty Power of Je|&s;us Chri&s;t; In that their potent Adver&s;aries were mi&s;e|rably confounded; but in this, all our Enemies are expo|&s;ed to a more horrible de&s;truction; they &s;hall be made the
<NOTE N="n" PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 9.5.</NOTE> fuell of everla&s;ting flames. Chri&s;t Je&s;us only gives this Victory, Light and Joy to his Church and Peo|ple; If once we have an Intere&s;t in Chri&s;t, we &s;hall not want our &s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">are in other Mercies.
<NOTE N="o" PLACE="marg">Rom. 8.32.</NOTE> <HI>He that &s;pared not his own Sonne,</HI> &s;aith that &s;acred Oratour, <HI>but delivered him up for us all, how &s;hall he not with him freely give us all things?</HI> Even in our lowe&s;t Conditions, and greate&s;t Afflictions, we cannot want matter of great Joy and Re|joycing, &s;eeing that <HI>unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given,</HI> &amp;c. The&s;e words contain a de&s;cription of him who is the very Ba&s;is, Ground &amp; Foundation of all Chri|&s;tian Comfort, Je&s;us Chri&s;t. He is here de&s;cribed by his Natures, Names and Offices; his Natures are &s;et out unto us in the former part of the Text, <HI>Unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given.</HI> His Names and Offices in the words following, <HI>The Government &s;hall be upon his Shoulder,</HI> &amp;c.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, of the former part of the de&s;cription of Chri&s;t, <HI>viz.</HI> By his Natures, where we have his Incarnation, and the end thereof; His Incarnation, or A&s;&s;umption of Humane Nature into the Unity of his Per&s;on, in that he is here cal|led <HI>a Child,</HI> and <HI>a Son;</HI> he is &s;aid to be <HI>a Child</HI> becau&s;e tru|ly Man, born of a Woman, taken out of the Ma&s;s or Lump of Mankind, propagated from <HI>Adam;</HI> he is called <HI>Son,</HI> to denote his Divinity, for not only is he the Son of <HI>David,</HI> as the Jews Imagined, but al&s;o of the mo&s;t high and glorious
<NOTE N="p" PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 2.7.</NOTE> God; the end of Chri&s;t his Incarnation is here manife&s;ted, in that the Prophet &s;aith, <HI>Unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given;</HI> that is, for us, for our Salvation who beleeve in him, and expect Salvation
<PB N="4" REF="9">by him became he Incarnate:
<MILESTONE UNIT="Ob&s;erv."> Hence the Ob&s;ervation is, That the Eternall Son of God became really and truly
<NOTE N="q" PLACE="marg">Rom. 8 3. Gal. 4.4.</NOTE> Man for the Salvation of them that beleeve; of this Doctrine there be three parts or members, <HI>viz.</HI></P>
<P N="1">1. The Son of God was made Man.</P>
<P N="2">2. The Son of God was made man for the Salvation of mankind.</P>
<P N="3">3. Only &s;uch as beleeve &s;hall have benefit by the In|carnation of the Son of God. Fir&s;t of the fir&s;t, The Son of God was made Man.</P>
<P>It was St <HI>Peters</HI> Confe&s;&s;ion,
<NOTE N="r" PLACE="marg">Mat. 16.16.</NOTE> <HI>Thou are Chri&s;t the Son of the living God:</HI> And St <HI>John's</HI> Affirmation to this purpo&s;e was plain,
<NOTE N="&s;" PLACE="marg">Joh. 1.14.</NOTE> <HI>The Word was made Fle&s;h, and dwelt among us.</HI>
<NOTE N="t" PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign">. Dama&s;c.</NOTE> The Father and the Holy Gho&s;t (&s;aith <HI>Dama&s;cen</HI>) had no Communion in the Incarna|tion of the Word, but only by approbation and con|&s;ent.</P>
<P>Not the Father, nor the holy Gho&s;t, but the Son only, the &s;econd Per&s;on in the Sacred Trinity became man.</P>
<P N="1">1. By the Son were all things
<NOTE N="u" PLACE="marg">Joh. 1.3.</NOTE> made; wherefore It was meet that he &s;hould become Man, that as he was the Author of the Being, &s;o al&s;o he might become the Author of the well-being of Mankind; that as the In&s;ti|tution, &s;o al&s;o the re&s;titution or re&s;toring of faln Man might be wrought by his own hand.
<NOTE N="x" PLACE="marg">Heb. 2.9, 10</NOTE> We &s;ee Je&s;us, &s;aith the Apo&s;tle, who was made little lower than the Angels, for the &s;uffering of Death crowned with glory and honour, that he by the grace of God &s;hould ta&s;te death for every man; he adds the rea&s;on, &s;aying
<NOTE N="y" PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"></NOTE> <HI>De|cebat enim,</HI> for it became him for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, <HI>&amp;c.</HI></P>
<P N="2">2. He is the
<NOTE N="z" PLACE="marg">Col. 1.15.</NOTE> Image of the Invi&s;ible God, the ex|pre&s;s
<NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign">.</NOTE> Caracter of his Per&s;on, and therefore it was mo&s;t meet that he &s;hould become Man, that through his Suffering, Merits, and powerfull operation he might re|pair Gods Image in us, which we lo&s;t in <HI>Adam;</HI> this E&s;|&s;entiall and perfect Image of God, did the Almighty &s;end into the World, to be the only and all &s;ufficient means
<PB N="5" REF="9">whereby to re&s;tore and repair faln and forlorn mankind;
<NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg"><HI>Ni&s;i per hane imaginem, ad Dei imaginem e&s;&s;e non potes,</HI> Ambr.</NOTE> we &s;hall never become like unto God, unle&s;s we be made like unto him by this his Image, &s;aith St <HI>Ambro&s;e.</HI> Nor may this Doctrine of our Saviours Incarnation be taken without this threefold Caution.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, we mu&s;t not conceive that the A&s;&s;umption of the Humanity in the Son of God became any detriment to his Divinity; he is
<NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign">.</NOTE> God-man; he &s;o emptied him&s;elf of his glory, as to take upon him the form of a
<NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">Phil. 2 5, 6, 7, 8.</NOTE> Servant; yet not as thereby to lo&s;e the form of his Godhead; he is therefore called
<NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign">. I&s;a. 7.14.</NOTE> <HI>Imanuel,</HI> God with us, he would have his re&s;idence in our Nature; <HI>The Word was made</HI>
<NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">Joh. 1.14.</NOTE> <HI>fle&s;h, and</HI>
<NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign">.</NOTE> <HI>dwelt in us,</HI> he took not upon him the nature of Angels, but the Seed of
<NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">Heb 2.16.</NOTE> <HI>Abraham,</HI> not any particular Per&s;on, as the per&s;on of <HI>Abraham, Peter,</HI> &amp;c. le&s;t only that Per&s;on &s;o a&s;&s;umed by him &s;hould be glorified; but that he might &s;ave many he built his Hou&s;e in that Nature which was common to many; he cho&s;e not this or that particular Per&s;on for his Habitation, but dwelt in us, that is, in our Nature. He a&s;&s;umed our Nature which he had not before, but did not by his a&s;&s;uming thereof cea&s;e to be what he was before.</P>
<P><NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg"><HI>Si in lapideo Templo Judaei adorarunt Do|minum, ubie|rant Area &amp; Cherubini, &amp; qui Templum viderunt e&s;&s;e la|pideum non ideo arbitrati &s;unt Dominum e&s;&s;e lapideum; ergo mul o magis in carne utpote in templo ado|randus e&s;t Chri|&s;tus Dominus; non ideo autem mera creatura cen&s;endus.</HI> Athana&s;.</NOTE> The Jews, &s;aith <HI>Athana&s;ius,</HI> wor&s;hipped God in a Temple made of Stone, where were the Ark and the Cherubins; and though they &s;aw the Temple to be of Stone, yet did not they therefore imagine that God whom they wor&s;hipped was of the &s;ame matter; And now Je&s;us Chri&s;t having a&s;&s;umed our Nature and Fle&s;h to dwell and to be wor&s;hipped in the &s;ame as in his Tem|ple, we mu&s;t not therefore fancy him to be a bare Crea|ture, a meer man and nothing el&s;e; Doubtle&s;s his Man|hood can be no detriment to his Godhead: Je&s;us Chri&s;t the
<NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">Heb. 13 8.</NOTE> &s;ame ye&s;terday, to day, and for ever, from ever|la&s;ting to everla&s;ting he is God.</P>
<P>Secondly, although we hold two di&s;tinct Natures to be in Chri&s;t, yet we deny in him to be two di&s;tinct Per|&s;ons. Therefore what&s;oever appertains to him, though only according to his Humane Nature, we mu&s;t apply to
<PB N="6" REF="10">the Per&s;on of the Son of God, as to be
<NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg">Luk. 1.35.</NOTE> born, to
<NOTE N="m" PLACE="marg">Act. 20.28.</NOTE> dye, to &s;hed his
<NOTE N="n" PLACE="marg">1 Joh. 3.16.</NOTE> bloud, to be
<NOTE N="o" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 2.8.</NOTE> crucified, <HI>&amp;c.</HI> for to &s;ay that the per&s;on of Man in Chri&s;t is the Subject of the&s;e things, what were this, but to entrap our &s;elves in the Ne&s;torian Here&s;ie?</P>
<P>Thirdly, Through the Union of the two Natures in Chri&s;t the properties of neither are impaired, or dimini|&s;hed, but remain intire and unaltered; Only the Humane Nature being united to the Divine is much bettered; as a Sword made hot in the fire, both cuts by rea&s;on of its &s;harpne&s;s, and burns by rea&s;on of the heat it received from the fire: So the Humane Nature by rea&s;on of its Union with the Per&s;on of the Son of God hath a greater excellency than otherwi&s;e it could po&s;&s;ibly have, it being thereby furni&s;hed with all po&s;&s;ible perfections whereof it is capable. In
<NOTE N="p" PLACE="marg"><HI>In Chri&s;to agit utraque forma quod proprium e&s;t; verbo ope|rante quod ver|hi e&s;t, &amp; carne exequente quod carnis.</HI> Leo.</NOTE> Chri&s;t Je&s;us, &s;aith <HI>Leo,</HI> both Natures do operate according to their &s;everall properties, his Godhead working what appertains to him as God; his Manhood executing what belonged to him as Man: the one of his Natures &s;hines forth by miracles; the other is made apparent by his &s;uffering Injuries. According to the one he
<NOTE N="q" PLACE="marg">Joh. 11.35, 43, 44.</NOTE> weeps for <HI>Lazarus</HI> being dead, and ac|cording to the other he re&s;tores him to life. So much for the Incarnation of Chri&s;t, now followeth the end there|of, which is the &s;econd Member of the Doctrine, <HI>viz.</HI> That the Son of God became Man for the Salvation of Mankind;
<MILESTONE N="2"> And this appears by tho&s;e words of our ble&s;&s;ed Saviour him&s;elf, &s;aying,
<NOTE N="r" PLACE="marg">Joh. 3.16.</NOTE> <HI>&s;o God loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son;</HI> to what end? <HI>that who&s;oever beleeveth on him &s;hould not peri&s;h, but have everla&s;ting life:</HI> and that this was the end of our Saviours Incarna|tion is made plain by that &s;aying of his fore-runner <HI>John</HI> the Bapti&s;t,
<NOTE N="&s;" PLACE="marg">Joh. 1.29.</NOTE> <HI>Behold that Lamb of God that taketh away the &s;in of the World;</HI> and al&s;o by that of the Apo|&s;tle Saint <HI>Paul,</HI>
<NOTE N="t" PLACE="marg">1 Tim. 1.15.</NOTE> <HI>This is afaithfull &s;aying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Je&s;us Chri&s;t came into the World to &s;ave &s;inners.</HI> Nor could the Salvation of Man have been, had not the Son of God become Man.</P>
<PB N="7" REF="10">
<P> Fir&s;t, becau&s;e Divine Ju&s;tice required that &s;atisfaction &s;hould be made in that nature which had &s;inned; Now Sin was committed in our Nature,
<NOTE N="u" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 15.1 22.</NOTE> <HI>Adam</HI> &s;inned, and all his Po&s;terity being then in his
<NOTE N="x" PLACE="marg">Heb. 7.9, 10.</NOTE> Loyns; therefore it was nece&s;&s;ary that the Son of God, the Saviour of the World, &s;hould be made Man; and without his Incarnati|on the Salvation of Mankind had been impo&s;&s;ible, not in regard of Gods Power, as if he could by no other means &s;ave Man, but in regard of his &s;ecret Will and Coun&s;ell, whereby he determined to
<NOTE N="y" PLACE="marg">Rom. 8.3, 4. Act. 4.12.</NOTE> &s;ave Man by no other means, than by the Death of his Son.</P>
<P>Secondly,
<NOTE N="z" PLACE="marg">Heb. 9.22.</NOTE> without &s;hedding of Bloud there could be no Remi&s;&s;ion, and therefore that Je&s;us Chri&s;t might purcha&s;e Remi&s;&s;ion of Sins for his Elect, it was mo&s;t requi&s;ite that he &s;hould become Man: For as he was God he could not be &s;ubject to Death, or any Pa&s;&s;ion, the Godhead it &s;elf being altogether impa&s;&s;ible; therefore he became Man that he might dye for his Elect, and purchace to him&s;elf a People with the price of his own
<NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">Act. 20.18.</NOTE> Bloud.</P>
<P>Thirdly, It was nece&s;&s;ary that the Son of God &s;hould be Man, that he might be a fit
<NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">1 Tim. 2.5. Gal. 3.20.</NOTE> Mediatour between God and Man; a Mediatour being a Middle Per&s;on, as it were, between two Parties, &s;peaking unto them both; hence it was requi&s;ite, that Chri&s;t Je&s;us the Saviour of the World &s;hould not only be God, to &s;peak unto his Father for us, and to pre&s;ent our Supplications unto him; but al&s;o Man, that God might &s;peak unto us, and we unto God by him.
<NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg"><HI>Divinitas &s;ine humanitate non e&s;t mediatrix, nec humauit as &s;ine divinitate e&s;t mediatrix: &s;ed inter &s;olam divinitatem &amp; humanitatem &s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">|lam mediatrix e&s;t divina hu|manitas, &amp; hu|mana divinitas Chri&s;ti.</HI> Aug.</NOTE> The Divinity of Chri&s;t, &s;aith S <HI>Augu&s;tine,</HI> without his Humanity, or his Humanity without his Di|vinity, cannot Mediate between God and Us; but be|tween them both, by his Divine Humanity, and Humane Divinity, he wrought our Reconciliation with God. So much for the &s;econd Member of the Doctrine, <HI>viz.</HI> The end of Chri&s;t his Incarnation is the Salvation of Man|kind; there remains yet the third, <HI>viz.</HI> They only that beleeve &s;hall have benefit by the Incarnation of the Son of God; this appears by that
<NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">Joh. 3.61.</NOTE> fore-named place: and to go no further than my Text, <HI>Nobis na&s;citur, nobis da|tur;
<PB N="8" REF="11">unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given, viz.</HI> us that beleeve. Chri&s;t Je&s;us is given to divers men, in a different and divers re&s;pect.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, He may be &s;aid to be given to all Men, in as much as he took upon him that Nature which is common to all men; thus he may be &s;aid to be given to the whole World. He is offered to all Mankind. God the Father cals upon all without exception from out of Heaven, &s;aying,
<NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">Luk. 9.35.</NOTE> <HI>Hear him.</HI> Yea, the Lord him&s;elf gives a Com|mi&s;&s;ion to his
<NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">Mat. 28.19.</NOTE> Apo&s;tles to go into all the World, and Preach the glad tydings of the Go&s;pell to every Crea|ture.</P>
<P>Secondly, He is in a &s;ingular manner given unto <HI>A|braham, David,</HI> and their Po&s;terity, for as much as God made an e&s;peciall promi&s;e of him unto them he
<NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">Acts 3.25.</NOTE> came of them according to the Fle&s;h; fir&s;t was he offered un|to
<NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">Acts. 13.26.</NOTE> them; and among them was he fir&s;t made known to be the Saviour of the World.</P>
<P>Thirdly, He is given effectually for Salvation unto all and only &s;uch as beleeve, whether they be Jews or
<NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 42.1. Luc. 2.32.</NOTE> Gentiles. It will be no advantage to any man to have Chri&s;t Je&s;us given unto him the two former waies, if he be not this way given unto him; without we have this way an Intere&s;t in Chri&s;t, by a true and lively faith, the other two waies of having an Intere&s;t in him will no|thing availe us to our Salvation: But will rather &s;erve as a means to aggravate our Ingratitude and Condemnati|on. To &s;uch only as beleeve will Chri&s;t Je&s;us prove
<NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 32.2.</NOTE> a hiding place from the Wind, a Covert from the Tempe&s;t, <HI>&amp;c.</HI> To &s;uch only will he be for a
<NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 8.14.</NOTE> Sanctua|ry, and a &s;ure Refuge; They only &s;hall become the Adopted Sons of God that
<NOTE N="m" PLACE="marg">Joh. 1.12.</NOTE> beleeve on his Name. All and only they who walk in the &s;teps of <HI>Abrahams</HI> Faith, whether they be Jews or Gentiles, whether they be carnally de&s;cended of him or not, are accounted for the Seed, and the true <HI>I&s;rael</HI> of God, to whom Je&s;us Chri&s;t is effectually given, and for who&s;e Salvation &s;ake the son of God was made Man. <HI>Unto us a Child is born,
<PB N="9" REF="11">unto us a Son is given.</HI> So much for the Doctrine, the Application followeth.</P>
<P><MILESTONE UNIT="Application."> Since then the Son of God was Incarnate for our Sal|vation, what remains but that we behold with admira|tion, and admire with thankfulne&s;s, this great and inef|fable mercy of our good God; that for our &s;akes he would &s;end his only begotten Son into this lower Region of &s;or|row and death; that he would cau&s;e him to lay a&s;ide his glorious Robes of Maje&s;ty, to be clad with the Rags of our Fle&s;h; and to become Man, that we might be made the Sons of God? If <HI>David</HI> that Princely Prophet con&s;idering the work of Creation, and beholding there|in Gods love to Mankind, mu&s;t needs bur&s;t out into that Exclamation, <HI>Lord what is man,</HI> &amp;c.
<NOTE PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 8.</NOTE> If he con&s;idering Gods wonderfull mercy towards him in his deliverance from the fury of <HI>Saul,</HI> cho&s;e one day in the year, where|of he &s;peaks with principall note, &s;aying,
<NOTE PLACE="marg">P&s;a. 118.28.</NOTE> <HI>This is the day which the Lord hath made, we will rejoice,</HI> &amp;c. How much more &s;hould we &s;tand amazed at the con&s;ideration of the Infinite, and Fathomle&s;s depth of Gods love in the Redemption of Mankind by the Death of his Son? How &s;hould the remembrance of the Day of Chri&s;t his Nativity and Incarnation affect our hearts with Joy and Gladne&s;s? Surely as the &s;peciall Pre&s;ence of God doth &s;anctifie and hallow &s;ome places above others, &s;o do the extraordinary works of God worthily challenge &s;ome days and times to be &s;et apart for the commemoration thereof, which we ought to e&s;teem above other Sea&s;ons: As e&s;pecially the work of this day, which we now commemorate, wherein the Ble&s;&s;ing of all Ble&s;&s;ings, the Light of Lights, that Victorious Champion, where, by we have perfect deliverance from the Power and Ma|lice of all our Gho&s;tly and Bodily Enemies, came into the World.</P>
<P>The news of Chri&s;t his Nativity, the ble&s;&s;ed Angels call Tidings of great
<NOTE N="n" PLACE="marg">Luk. 2.10.</NOTE> Joy to all People. Joy to old <HI>Adam,</HI> for according to the Promi&s;e this day was brought forth that
<NOTE N="o" PLACE="marg">Gen. 3.15.</NOTE> Seed of the woman that &s;hould break the
<PB N="10" REF="12">Serpents head. Joy to <HI>Abraham,</HI> for this day in his Seed are all the
<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">Gen. 22.18.</NOTE> Nations of the Earth ble&s;&s;ed. Joy to the Prophets, for this day their Prophecies are accompli&s;hed. Joy to the &s;ick, for this day came the Phy&s;ician of our Souls into the World. Joy to In|fants, for this day the great God of Heaven and Earth became a little
<NOTE N="p" PLACE="marg">Gal. 4.4.</NOTE> Babe. Joy to all men, for this day he that was from the beginning, the everla&s;ting Fa|ther, was born of a Virgin, and
<NOTE N="q" PLACE="marg">Luk. 2 7.</NOTE> wrapped in &s;wad|ling clouts. The holy Angels
<NOTE N="r" PLACE="marg">Luk. 2.13.</NOTE> &s;ang in the Air when they made known his Nativity, and &s;hall we &s;it de&s;olate in heart, to whom he is born, and for who&s;e &s;akes he be|came Incarnate? O let us rouze up our dull and drow&s;ie Spirits to ble&s;s and prai&s;e the Name of God for this &s;o un&s;peakable a Mercy; Let us not prai&s;e God only with our &s;ongues, but even with our very Souls al&s;o; with all that is within us let us ble&s;s his holy name. Let every one of us with the ble&s;&s;ed Virgin &s;ay,
<NOTE N="&s;" PLACE="marg">Luk. 1.46.</NOTE> <HI>My &s;oul doth magni|fie the Lord, and my &s;pirit hath rejoyced in God my Savi|our.</HI> Let us ble&s;s the Almighty with <HI>Zacharias,</HI> &s;aying,
<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">Luk 1.68.</NOTE> <HI>Ble&s;&s;ed be the Lord God of I&s;rael,</HI> &amp;c. Let us joyn with the ble&s;&s;ed Angels, tho&s;e glorious Creatures, in &s;inging,
<NOTE N="t" PLACE="marg">Luk. 2.14.</NOTE> <HI>Glory be to God on High.</HI> Doubtle&s;s if we be not by this extraordinary mercy of God provoked unto thank&s;|giving and prai&s;e, the Heavens will wonder, the Earth will &s;tand amazed; yea, we may ju&s;tly fear, that the very Stones them&s;elves will to our &s;hame and confu&s;ion, be&s;peak the prai&s;es of God, and cry out upon our Ingra|titude. <HI>John Bapti&s;t,</HI> no &s;ooner had the Virgin <HI>Mary</HI> the Mother of the Lord &s;aluted <HI>Elizabeth,</HI> but pre&s;ently he
<NOTE N="u" PLACE="marg">Luk. 1.44.</NOTE> leap'd in the Womb for Joy. Old <HI>Simeon,</HI> no &s;ooner had he &s;een the Saviour of the World, but pre&s;ently as it were overcome with Joy, he began to breath out his
<NOTE N="x" PLACE="marg">Luc. 2.29.</NOTE> <HI>Domine nunc dimittis,</HI> &amp;c. Wherefore let us al&s;o, who look for the &s;ame benefit from Chri&s;t Je&s;us, prai&s;e God for him as cheerfully, as cordially. Let us now Joy before the Lord
<NOTE N="y" PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 9.3.</NOTE> according to the Joy in Harve&s;t, and as men rejoice when they divide the Spoil. Let us by all
<PB N="11" REF="12">po&s;&s;ible means labour to pre&s;erve this Affection of Joy in our hearts: I mean not that fond and vain Joy of Worldlings, and voluptuous Epicures, ari&s;ing only from the momentany enjoyment of the plea&s;ures and profits of this life; but that &s;ound and &s;olid Joy of Chri&s;tians, which is a cheerfull affection cau&s;ed by the apprehen&s;ion of our gracious reconciliation with God through Je&s;us Chri&s;t; To this end let us fir&s;t,</P>
<P>Take heed of placing our affections on the things of this life. Impo&s;&s;ible it is for earthly and worldly-minded men to have true or &s;olid Joy. <HI>Non e&s;t gaudere inepiis,</HI> as the old Tran&s;lation hath it,
<NOTE N="z" PLACE="marg">I&s;. 57.21.</NOTE> <HI>there is no joy to the wic|ked:</HI> Well may they have &s;ome merry fits of madne&s;s, but never can they have any ta&s;te of true joy. It is no matter of Mirth, but a &s;ign of Famine, when men feed upon &s;uch nouri&s;hments as are appointed for Bea&s;ts; even to it is no joy, but a ca&s;e of extremity, when the rea&s;ona|ble &s;oul feeds upon &s;uch delights, as properly belong to the bruti&s;h appetite: with &s;uch did that rich
<NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">Luc. 12.19.</NOTE> Glutton feed him&s;elf, he &s;eemed a while to take delight in his purple, fine Linnen, and delicate fare, but pre&s;ently we read how the&s;e things vani&s;h away as in a dream, and helli&s;h torments &s;ucceed in their place; Thus ambitious
<NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">Act. 12.22.23</NOTE> <HI>Herod</HI> &s;eemed to joy in his royall power and orna|ments, in the flattering acclamations and &s;houts of the People, but he was &s;uddenly &s;mitten of an Angell, his Body eaten of Worms, and his Soul made &s;ubject to a wor&s;e Worm for ever. This is the fearfull end of all &s;uch as for&s;aking God &s;eek their joy in worldly vanities. If therefore thou feele&s;t thy heart to cleave unto any of the&s;e earthly things, Imitate the care and providence of Hu&s;|bandmen, who, if their Corn by lying too neer the ground be in danger of being mu&s;ty, they carry it up into an higher room, and &s;o pre&s;erve it &s;weet and good: Much more oughte&s;t thou, when thy heart is endangered to be corrupted by lying among the&s;e earthly matters, to en|deavour to remove it to an higher place, <HI>viz.</HI>
<NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">Col. 3.1, 2.</NOTE> Heaven, whereby it may be kept pure and &s;ound. Do thus, and
<PB N="12" REF="13">then boldly &s;ay with <HI>David, Laetifica animam &s;ervi tui;</HI>
<NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">P&s;a. 68.4.</NOTE> Rejoyce the &s;oul of thy Servant, for unto thee O Lord have I lift up my &s;oul.</P>
<P>Secondly, let us &s;eriou&s;ly meditate on this wonderfull work of God, namely our Redemption through the death of his Son. Meditation doth deeply fix the works of God in our minds, and at the length will breed much joy and delight for them in our hearts. Ob&s;erve what the thoughts of Injuries will work in the envious and malicious man; the quite contrary effects will the due Meditation of Gods Mercies produce in the Child of God: For as tho&s;e heat the heart, and at the length &s;et it on fire with hatred and de&s;ire of revenge; &s;o doth this never cea&s;e from whetting the Affections, till it hath enflamed them with Love and Joy.
<NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">P&s;a. 119.97.</NOTE> <HI>Lord how do I love thy Law?</HI> &s;aith that Princely Prophet, <HI>my medita|tion is therein day and night;</HI> his frequent meditations were the means that did enflame his Affections. Oh Be|loved, whence is it that the &s;weet mercies of God are bu|ried in oblivion and forgetfulne&s;s? Whence is it that the holy Ordinances of God are &s;o much &s;lighted, &s;o many Sermons quite lo&s;t and peri&s;hed, the holy Sacraments &s;o little reli&s;hed, and the memory of our Saviour's Nativi|ty &s;o ingratefully neglected, but from the want of due and &s;erious Meditation? Wherefore that we may be affected with the &s;weet Mercies of our good God, that we may delight our &s;elves in the marvelous operations of his hands, take plea&s;ure in doing his Commande|ments, and ob&s;erving his &s;acred Ordinances, let us fre|quently meditate thereon. The more Meditation, the more joy and delight.</P>
<P>Thirdly, Let us truly and &s;eriou&s;ly repent. Godly &s;or|row for our &s;ins doth no way hinder this &s;piritual Joy, but doth further and improve it rather; yea, it is &s;o far from bani&s;hing it out of the heart, as that it cau&s;eth and exer|ci&s;eth the &s;ame. They are not Contraries, but Compani|ons, the one alwaies ayding the other.
<NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg"><HI>Eju&s;dem e&s;t rationis gaudere de aliquo bono, &amp; dolere de ejus Impedimentis.</HI> Aquin.</NOTE> It is all one, &s;aith <HI>Aquinas,</HI> to joy in the pre&s;ence of any good thing,
<PB N="13" REF="13">and to grieve for its impediments or hinderances. It is po&s;&s;ible therefore for the Soul to Joy in God, and to Mourn for Sin, which like a
<NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 59 2.</NOTE> Cloud &s;trives to hide the brightne&s;s of his Countenance from it. nay it is impo&s;&s;i|ble for us to joy in God, unle&s;s we do truly &s;orrow for our &s;ins: for faith is alwaies accompanied with true re|pentance, and as faith breeds joy by a&s;&s;uring us of remi&s;|&s;ion and reconcilement to God, &s;o repentance breeds grief and dete&s;tation for &s;ins which we have committed again&s;t God. By &s;orrowfull repentance the Soul for&s;akes Sin, and &s;o d<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">aws neer unto God, and the neerer it comes unto him, the more it participates of &s;pirituall joy, ac|cording to that of the P&s;almi&s;t,
<NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">P&s;a. 94.19.</NOTE> According to the multi|tude of the &s;orrows I had in my heart, thy comforts have refre&s;h'd my &s;oul; he &s;aith not after my &s;orrows were over, but even in the mid&s;t of them I found &s;pirituall Joy.</P>
<P>To whom is Chri&s;t Je&s;us appointed to preach the glad Tidings of the Go&s;pell, but to the
<NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 61.1, 2, 3.</NOTE> meek and broken hearted? to whom is he to proclame Liberty, but to the &s;ad and afflicted Captives? whom is he to comfort, but &s;uch as mourn? to whom will he give Beauty for A&s;hes, Joy and the Garment of Prai&s;e for the &s;pirit of heavi|ne&s;s, but to &s;uch as mourn in <HI>Sion!</HI> whom will he de|fend from the violence of all &s;orts of Enemies, but &s;uch as mourn, as
<NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">Zach. 12.8, 9, 10.</NOTE> one that mourneth for his only Son, and &s;uch as be in bitterne&s;s, as one that is in bitterne&s;s for his fir&s;t born? Wherefore let us now &s;ow the Seed of Godly &s;orrow, that we may reap the heavenly fruit of &s;pirituall joy; let us now repent &s;ea&s;onably, that we may rejoice perpetually; let us now mourn for our Sins, that we may be comforted; let us now acquaint our &s;elves with hearty grief for the Commi&s;&s;ion of &s;in, that &s;o we may have a true &s;en&s;e and feeling of &s;pirituall Joy for the remi&s;sion of &s;in.</P>
<P>Many there are who be very loath to venture upon the practice of repentance, very much afraid are they of growing religious, le&s;t hereby all their joy and mirth
<PB N="14" REF="14">&s;hould be dampt, and put to an end; but indeed there is no cau&s;e of &s;uch fear; for all things con&s;idered, it will ea&s;ily appear that religious &amp; holy men are the only Joyful men in the World: for if they look up to heaven, there they find the Fountain of all joy for their &s;ouls to bath in. If they look into them&s;elves, and e&s;py their &s;ins and infir|mities, they joy in beleeving that they are pardoned. If they con&s;ider any graces which they have, they rejoice in them as &s;igns of their Adoption and furtherances of their Salvation. If they look into externall matters, what&s;oever they do, what&s;oever they &s;uffer, what&s;oever they hold, what&s;oever they lo&s;e, and occa&s;ions of joy un|to them. Hath God given them Authority, Honour, Wealth? They rejoice in the&s;e, as means to advance the glory of God, and the benefit of their Brethren. Hath he denied them, or &s;uffered them to be deprived of the&s;e, through the malice and inju&s;tice of men? yet they re|joice in that they &s;uffer lo&s;&s;e and di&s;grace in the World for righteou&s;ne&s;s &s;ake. Thus when we give our &s;elves to the practice of Repentance, true Piety and Holine&s;s, our hearts &s;hall be every way filled with joy and gladne&s;s. The &s;ad events and mi&s;eries we meet with in this World, &s;hall not be able &s;o much to deject us, as the comfortable per&s;wa&s;ion of our reconcilement with God in Chri&s;t &s;hall cheer and revive us.</P>
<P>La&s;tly, that we may have an abundance of &s;pirituall Joy, we mu&s;t truly and unfeignedly beleeve in Je&s;us Chri&s;t: for &s;uch only as beleeve &s;hall have benefit by his Incarnation. It &s;hall be no advantage unto us that the Son of God was conceived in the Womb of the Virgin <HI>Mary,</HI> if he be not
<NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg">Gal. 4.19.</NOTE> formed, conceived and born in the Womb of our hearts by a true and lively faith. O let our hearts from henceforth become his Cradle, that &s;o we may &s;ay with the ble&s;&s;ed Apo&s;tle, It is not we but
<NOTE N="m" PLACE="marg">Gal. 2.20.</NOTE> Chri&s;t that liveth in us, and the life that we now live, is by the faith of the Son of God, who loved us and gave him&s;elf for us. This conception and birth the World thinks not of, far different are the conceptions and births
<PB N="15" REF="14">of the men of this World; there is a conception and birth of
<NOTE N="n" PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 59.4.</NOTE> wickedne&s;s,
<NOTE N="o" PLACE="marg">Job 15.35.</NOTE> mi&s;chief, fal&s;hood, &s;in and death: he
<NOTE N="p" PLACE="marg">P&s;a. 7.14.</NOTE> traveleth with wickedne&s;s, conceiveth mi&s;|chief, and brings forth fal&s;hood, &s;aith holy <HI>David,</HI> concern|ing <HI>Cu&s;h</HI> the <HI>Benjamite;</HI> and St <HI>James</HI> tels us, that
<NOTE N="q" PLACE="marg">Jam. 1.15.</NOTE> Lu&s;t when it hath co<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">ived brings forth &s;in, and &s;in when it is fini&s;hed brings forth Death. The&s;e, the&s;e be the odious conceptions of this World; the&s;e are the mon&s;trous Births of the&s;e wretched Daies; O let us weep and mourn even for the barrenne&s;s of our hearts, that we do &s;o little conceive of the Grace of Chri&s;t in our minds, and bring forth &s;o little good fruit in our lives and con|ver&s;ations. We account the Virgin <HI>Mary</HI> ble&s;&s;ed who had the honour to be the Mother of our Lord, and indeed &s;o &s;he was, but had &s;he only conceived him in her Womb, and not in her heart, &s;he had without all doubt been eternally mi&s;erable; &s;o likewi&s;e it will be no advantage to us, that Je&s;us Chri&s;t did take upon him our Nature, unle&s;s being conceived and born in our hearts, he make us partakers of his
<NOTE N="r" PLACE="marg">2 Pet. 1.4.</NOTE> Divine Nature: And this is only through a true and a lively faith in him. Faith is the Buc|ket wherewith we may
<NOTE N="&s;" PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 12.3.</NOTE> draw tho&s;e living Waters out of this Fountain and Well of Salvation. Faith is the Mouth wherewith we eat that Cele&s;tiall and Divine Food of our Souls. Faith is the hand wherewith if we do but touch that heavenly Phy&s;ician, we &s;hall pre&s;ently feel our Corrupt Natures to be healed, and his Divine Nature to be communicated unto us. By Faith his Me|rits, Sufferings, and Righteou&s;ne&s;s are made Ours; if we do but put on this Wedding Garment of Faith we &s;hall become Gods own
<NOTE N="t" PLACE="marg">Joh. 1.12.</NOTE> Sons; Chri&s;t Je&s;us will be|come our Saviour, our Sanctuary, and our &s;ure Refuge and Defence from the Wrath of his Angry Father. If <HI>Pilate</HI> appea&s;ed the Wrath of angry <HI>Cae&s;ar</HI> by putting on Chri&s;t his Coat; how much more &s;hall God Almighty be pacified towards us, when as by a true and lively Faith we &s;hall have put on Chri&s;t him&s;elf? O let us &s;ee that we have this Garment upon us, e&s;pecially addre&s;&s;ing
<PB N="16" REF="15">our &s;elves to the Lords Table.
<NOTE N="u" PLACE="marg">H. b. 3.12.</NOTE> Take heed le&s;t there be in any of you an heart of unbelief. You know how &s;everely the King in the Go&s;pel dealt with him that came to the Wedding-Fea&s;t, not having on his Wedding Gar|ment, he commands him to be
<NOTE N="x" PLACE="marg">Mat. 22.13.</NOTE> taken away, bound hand and foot, and ca&s;t into utter darkn<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">; with no le&s;s &s;everity will the King of Glory look upon &s;uch as pre|&s;ume to come to his holy Table without this &s;aving Grace of Faith. Take heed then that thy Faith thou bringe&s;t with thee be a true Faith, &s;uch as
<NOTE N="y" PLACE="marg">Act. 15.9.</NOTE> purgeth thy un|der&s;tanding from Errour and Ignorance, and thy heart from the Love, Cu&s;tome, and Dominion of Sin; See that thy Faith be &s;uch as
<NOTE N="z" PLACE="marg">Gal. 4.6.</NOTE> worketh by love,
<NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">1 Joh. 5.4.</NOTE> overcom|eth Temptations. Po&s;&s;ibly you may deceive men with &s;pecious preten&s;ions, yea, your &s;elves al&s;o with ground|le&s;s opinions and conceits of having tho&s;e Graces which indeed you have not, but God you can by no means de|ceive; All things are naked unto him; wherefore I be|&s;eech you that ye be truly humbled and grieved for your &s;ins pa&s;t: Look up unto Chri&s;t Je&s;us that brazen Serpent by an eye of Faith, with an a&s;&s;ured confidence of being healed by him; take up firm Re&s;olutions and Purpo&s;es again&s;t all manner of Sin for times to come; and being thus di&s;po&s;ed, come ye cheerfully to this heavenly Ban|quet of your Souls. Let not your former &s;ins di&s;may you; undervalue not the Bloud of Chri&s;t, &s;o as to think it in|&s;ufficient to wa&s;h them all a way: They &s;hall never be mentioned unto you; This holy Sacrament &s;hall &s;eal un|to you the remi&s;&s;ion of them all.</P>
<P>This holy Sacrament is not for tho&s;e that are already perfect, but for the help and comfort of tho&s;e that de&s;ire to tend toward perfection. It is our Saviour's own words,
<NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">Mat 9.12, 13.</NOTE> <HI>The whole need not a Phy&s;iclan, but tho&s;e that are &s;ick, I came not to call the Righteous but Sinners to repentance:</HI> And &s;uch as are &s;en&s;ible of the heavy burden of their &s;ins are invited by him, &s;aying,
<NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">Mat. 11.28.</NOTE> <HI>Come unto me,</HI> &amp;c. Not therefore &s;in &s;imply, but impenitency and the love of Sin it is that hinders a man from being a worthy Receiver of the holy Sacrament.</P>
<PB N="17" REF="15">
<P> Wherefore to conclude, Let us truly repent us of our former Sins; let us bath our Souls in the Fountain of Chri&s;t his Bloud, &s;et open to wa&s;h away our &s;in and un|cleanne&s;s, and then we need not fear but we &s;hall find Mercy at the hands of God by and through the Merits and Mediation of Je&s;us Chri&s;t. Yet far, far be it from us to re&s;t in our own Performances: Alas, our be&s;t Actions are accompanied with &s;o many Imperfections, that when we have done our be&s;t in attending on his holy Ordinan|ces, as in hearing his Word, receiving the holy Sacra|ments, or praying unto him, we have even then great cau&s;e to beg pardon at his hand for our manifold failings; yet our obedience and &s;ervice, though imperfect, if it be &s;incere and unfeigned, he will accept for Chri&s;t his &s;ake. Wherefore let us be
<NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">Mat. 23.25. Col. 3.27.</NOTE> &s;incere in the Wor&s;hip of God without hypocri&s;ie, di&s;&s;imulation, or the mixture of
<NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 5.8.</NOTE> malice, and wickedne&s;s; &s;o &s;hall we in this holy Or|dinance gratefully commemorate that Propitiatory Sa|crifice of Chri&s;t our Saviour; herein &s;hall our Faith be confirmed, our Communion with Chri&s;t increa&s;ed, the Pardon of our Sins &s;ealed, our Reconciliation with God, and Re&s;urrection unto life Eternall, a&s;&s;ured unto us.</P>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 N="2" TYPE="sermon">
<PB N="18" REF="16">
<HEAD>The &s;econd Sermon.</HEAD>
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>I&s;aiah 9.6.</HI></BIBL>
<P>The Government &s;hall be upon his &s;houlder, his Name &s;hall be called Wonderfull, Coun&s;ellour, the mighty God, the Everla&s;ting Father, the Prince of Peace.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>_IN the former part of the Ver&s;e you had a de&s;cription of our Lord and Saviour, by his Natures Divine and Humane, u|nited together in his Sacred Per&s;on; in the&s;e words you have him de&s;cribed by his glorious Offices, and Admini&s;tra|tions, which he exerci&s;eth in his Church. For Explicati|on; <HI>The Government &s;hall be upon his &s;houlder,</HI> that is, he only &s;hall have power, might and &s;trength, to rule and go|vern his Church and People; almo&s;t the like expre&s;&s;ion we have concerning <HI>Eliakim,</HI> who was to be &s;ub&s;tituted in the place of <HI>Shebna,</HI>
<NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 22.21.</NOTE> <HI>I will commit the Govern|ment,</HI> &amp;c. That is, he &s;hall rule, govern, and order the People. In this was <HI>Eliakim</HI> a Type of Chri&s;t, into who&s;e hand all Power and Authority is committed.
<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"></NOTE> He is called <HI>Wonderfull,</HI> in regard of tho&s;e marvelous and wonderous works that he wrought for the Salvation of the Sons of Men; as namely the A&s;&s;umption of the Humane Nature into the unity of his Per&s;on; the &s;hedding of his preci|ous Bloud for Man's Redemption; the Regenerating of his Elect by his holy Spirit, and the Glorifying of them after this life ended; the con&s;ideration whereof made
<PB N="19" REF="16">that cho&s;en Ve&s;&s;ell &s;tand amazed, and cry out,
<NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">Rom. 11.33.</NOTE> <HI>O the depth,</HI> &amp;c.</P>
<P>He is called <HI>Coun&s;ellour,</HI>
<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"></NOTE> becau&s;e he governs and di|rects his People by his word and &s;pirit.
<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"></NOTE> He is called <HI>the &s;trong God,</HI> becau&s;e by his mighty Power he continually defends and protects his Elect from the violence of their Enemies. He is called <HI>the everla&s;ting Father,</HI>
<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> pater aeternitatis</NOTE> becau&s;e he only is the Author of Eternall life to his Cho&s;en. He is called <HI>the Prince of Peace,</HI>
<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"></NOTE> becau&s;e he having once &s;ubdued, and wholly overcome our Enemies, he will endue us with perfect peace and quietne&s;s; to &s;um up all in one propo&s;ition, we may ob&s;erve this Point of Do|ctrine, <HI>viz.</HI></P>
<P><MILESTONE UNIT="Doctrine."> Chri&s;t Je&s;us is a Per&s;on immediately ordained of God, to rule, derend and reward his Church and People, whom he hath purcha&s;ed with his own Bloud. That Chri&s;t Je|&s;us is appointed to be a King, to rule and govern his Church, we &s;hall not need to go further than my Text for proof. <HI>The Government &s;hall be upon his &s;houlder.</HI> He executes this his Regal Office, by governing his Subjects; which he doth both by the Scepter of his Word, and the Mini&s;try of his Spirit; by the one he &s;hews what he would have done; by the other he gives power and abi|lity to do his Commands. God's <HI>dicere</HI> is his <HI>facere;</HI> what&s;oever he commands by his VVord, by his power|full operation he brings to pa&s;s. The Prophet <HI>David</HI> &s;peaking of the great power of God in the Creating of the VVorld, &s;aith of the Creatures,
<NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">P&s;a. 148.5. P&s;a. 33.6.</NOTE> <HI>He &s;pake the word and they were made,</HI> &amp;c. So
<NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">Gen. 1.3.</NOTE> <HI>Mo&s;es;</HI> So our Saviour no &s;ooner called <HI>Andrew</HI> and <HI>Simon</HI> from their fi&s;hing, but they
<NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">Mat. 4.19.</NOTE> obeyed him: By his word and call he &s;hewed them what he would have done; by his Spi|rit he made them willing and ready to obey him.</P>
<P>The Laws and Edicts of an Earthly Prince may give directions what to do, but can give no ability or power for performance: But the VVord of God accompanied with the
<NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 2.10, 11, 12.</NOTE> Spirit of Sanctification and Holine&s;s, is made a powerfull means unto us, whereby we may be
<PB N="20" REF="17">able both to know and do the things that are commanded us of God.</P>
<P>The VVord of God is the Rule whereby we are to regulate and &s;quare our lives and cover&s;ations; the holy Scriptures only can direct us in matters ab&s;olutely nece&s;|&s;ary to Salvation, though in matters meerly circum&s;tan|tiall and indifferent, we are not alwaies to look for any particular expre&s;s command in holy VVait, but we are left to the light of Rea&s;on for our direction in them; that this may the more clearly appear, we mu&s;t note that Mens Actions may fall under a double con&s;ideration; Ei|ther they are &s;uch as for them &s;imply God Almighty nei|ther approveth, nor rejecteth us, and &s;uch we call natural or indifierent Actions, which of their own nature are nei|ther good nor bad: Or &s;uch as are &s;o approved by God, that they are nece&s;&s;arily required unto our Salvation; if we neglect the doing of them we &s;hall never be &s;aved; and if we perform them we &s;hall never be condemned.</P>
<P>In the former &s;ort, we have a liberty in our &s;elves to do or not to do them; as when there are many waies and means for the obtaining of one end, there is a liberty in us to choo&s;e one Medium, or means, and to refu&s;e the other; for In&s;tance, for the &s;u&s;tentation and pre&s;erva|tion of the body, there are many kinds of meats and drinks, and cloaths expedient and u&s;efull: In the VVor|&s;hip of God there are divers outward Ceremonies and circum&s;tances, as namely, various times of wor&s;hipping, places, po&s;itions, and ge&s;tures of the Body, &amp;c.</P>
<P>Now the end is nece&s;&s;ary, and commanded expre&s;ly in the VVord of God, but not every thing conducing to the &s;ame end: It is nece&s;&s;ary that the body &s;hould be nouri&s;hed and cloathed, but it is not nece&s;&s;ary to u&s;e this or that kind of cloathing or nutriment. The VVor&s;hip of God is of ab&s;olute nece&s;&s;ity, but for that end, this or that time, or place, this or that kind of Po&s;ition of the body, are not of them&s;elves nece&s;&s;ary; the&s;e things we hold to be in their own nature indifferent, and the choice thereof to be in our own power, unle&s;s this Indiffe|rency
<PB N="21" REF="17">be taken away; and this happens in three Ca&s;es.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, when we deprive our &s;elves of our own liberty, as
<NOTE N="(g)" PLACE="marg">Act. 5.4.</NOTE> <HI>Ananias</HI> and <HI>Saphyra,</HI> who had liberty to &s;ell or not to &s;ell their Po&s;&s;e&s;sions, till &s;uch time as they had bound them&s;elves by &s;olemn purpo&s;e to &s;ell them.</P>
<P>Secondly, when Almighty God doth preci&s;ely tye us unto, or re&s;traine us from any one thing which in it &s;elf is altogether indifferent; there were many kinds of Garments of which <HI>Aaron</HI> and his Sons might have ta|ken their choice, had not
<NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">Exod. 28.4, 43.</NOTE> God &s;treightly tyed them to one kind of Habit. All kind of Meats in them&s;elves were indifferent, and the Jews without &s;in might have made u&s;e of Swines fle&s;h had not God Almighty forbid|den it.</P>
<P>Thirdly when lawful Authority hath commanded or in|terdicted any thing in its own nature indifferent, then the indifferency thereof is taken away. <HI>Jonathan</HI> might have eaten hony, or forborn eating, had not the King his Father expre&s;ly
<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">1 Sam. 14.27, 37, 38.</NOTE> forbidden it.</P>
<P>Thus in matters and things in their own nature indif|ferent, unle&s;s in tho&s;e three above-mentioned Ca&s;es, there is a power in us to choo&s;e or refu&s;e, to do or leave undon; what God neither commands nor forbids, the &s;ame he &s;uffers with approbation to be done, or left un|done. The Apo&s;tle per&s;onating the Chri&s;tian Gentile in a defence of liberty in things indifferent, &s;aith,
<NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 6.12.</NOTE> <HI>All things are lawfull for me, but all things are not expedient,</HI> &amp;c. In indifferent htings there is a choice to be u&s;ed, all are not alike expedient and convenient; the expediency or conveniency of them is &s;hewn unto us by our own Judg|ments and Rea&s;on, to the light whereof we are left for our direction in &s;uch Matters and Actions; but as for tho&s;e Actions of the &s;econd &s;ort, we can have our di|rection only from the Sacred Scriptures; Nature cannot teach us &s;ufficiently what we mu&s;t do for the obtaining of eternall life; the
<NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 2.14.</NOTE> naturall man (that is, man gui|ded only by the light of Nature) perceiveth not, &amp;c. Na|ture is altogether blind in matters concerning Salvation;
<PB N="22" REF="18" MS="y">but this in&s;ufficiency of Nature is &s;o perfectly &s;upplyed by the light of Scripture, that there needs no other means to this end.
<NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg">Joh. 20.21.</NOTE> The&s;e things are written &s;aith the Evangeli&s;t, &amp;c. Eternall life is attained unto by beleeving in Chri&s;t, and that we might rightly beleeve, the holy Scriptures are given us for our
<NOTE N="m" PLACE="marg">2 Tim. 3.16, 17.</NOTE> direction. The Te&s;ti|monies of the Lord are pure, and perfect, altogether &s;uf|ficient to their end, nor mu&s;t we think that God in them hath omitted any thing which may be &s;upplyed with Humane Inventions.</P>
<P><MILESTONE UNIT="Application."> Two &s;orts of opinions therefore may be hence ju&s;tly cen&s;ured, the one of the Papi&s;ts, teaching that the holy Scriptures contain not all things appertaining to Faith, and that they cannot perfectly and fully direct us in the way of Salvation, and therefore urge, as nece&s;&s;ary, the ob&s;ervation of Humane Traditions; the other of &s;uch as would needs have an expre&s;s Command in the Sacred Volume for all that they do, and judge every Action &s;in|full, for the which a man hath no Precept in the Word of God. As for the former, what can be more directly oppo&s;ite to the Word of God than it? for hath not the Lord him&s;elf evidently declared the &s;ufficiency of his Word by that expre&s;s prohibition?
<NOTE N="n" PLACE="marg">Deut. 4.1, 2.</NOTE> Nay, are not &s;uch as add unto, or take away from the Word of God threat|ned to have their Names raced out of the Book of Life?
<NOTE N="o" PLACE="marg">Rev. 22.18, 19.</NOTE> But to an&s;wer &s;ome of their Objections they make again&s;t the perfection of the Sacred Scripture.</P>
<P><MILESTONE UNIT="Object."> Fir&s;t &s;ay they, <HI>Many things there are nece&s;&s;ary to be beleeved, which are not contained in the holy Scri|ptures, as namely the Unity of the E&s;&s;ence, and the Trini|ty of Per&s;ons in the Godhead.</HI></P>
<P>I an&s;wer,
<MILESTONE UNIT="An&s;w."> a thing may be contained in the Scriptures two waies, <HI>viz.</HI> either according to the Letter, or Sence by a good con&s;equence; &s;ometimes only the &s;ub&s;tance of a thing, &s;ometimes the thing it &s;elf is expre&s;&s;ed in &s;igni|ficative words and voices: Thus the Unity of E&s;&s;ence, and Trinity of Per&s;ons in the Godhead are contained in the holy Scriptures, though not according to the Letter
<PB N="23" REF="18">yet according to the Sen&s;e by a &s;ound con&s;equence; though the&s;e words Trinity, Unity, E&s;&s;ence, <HI>&amp;c.</HI> are not therein expre&s;&s;ed, yet in the &s;en&s;e and meaning thereof in divers places of Scripture contained; as
<NOTE N="p" PLACE="marg">Gen. 1.1. <GAP DESC="foreign"></NOTE> <HI>In princi|pio Dii creavit, In the beginning Gods created,</HI> &amp;c. <HI>Dii</HI> denotes the Trinity of Per&s;ons; <HI>Creavit</HI> betokens the Unity of the E&s;&s;ence; &s;o
<NOTE N="q" PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 6.8. <GAP DESC="foreign"></NOTE> <HI>whom &s;hall I &s;end,</HI> I in the &s;ingular number, behold the Unity of the E&s;&s;ence; or, <HI>who will go for us,</HI> Us in the Plurall number, loe the Tri|nity of Per&s;ons; &s;o al&s;o in that Commi&s;&s;ion of our Sa|viour to his Apo&s;tles,
<NOTE N="r" PLACE="marg">Mat. 28.19. <GAP DESC="foreign">.</NOTE> <HI>Teach all Nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Gho&s;t; Into the Name,</HI> not Names, noting the Unity of E&s;&s;ence; <HI>Of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Gho&s;t,</HI> &s;hewing the Trinity of Per&s;ons. Thus though the&s;e words according to the Letter are not in the holy Scriptures, yet the &s;en&s;e, &s;ub&s;tance, and meaning thereof are in them; nor &s;hall we be &s;aved for approving of tho&s;e words, but by a firm and con&s;tant belief of the things them&s;elves &s;ignified by tho&s;e words; which things them&s;elves we find in the holy Scriptures.</P>
<P>Secondly,
<MILESTONE N="2" UNIT="Object."> <HI>St.</HI> Paul (&s;ay they) <HI>commends the</HI> Corinthi|ans <HI>for keeping the Ordinances that were</HI>
<NOTE N="&s;" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 11.2.</NOTE> <HI>delivered them, and promi&s;eth to &s;et things in order among them at his next</HI>
<NOTE N="t" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 11.34.</NOTE> <HI>comming unto them, therefore all things ne|ce&s;&s;ary to be ob&s;erved and done, are not expre&s;ly commanded in the holy Scripture.</HI></P>
<P>I an&s;wer,
<MILESTONE UNIT="An&s;w."> the ble&s;&s;ed Apo&s;tle in the&s;e places &s;peaks on|ly of matters Circum&s;tantiall and meerly Ceremoniall in the Church of <HI>Corinth,</HI> and not of any Articles of Faith, or things nece&s;&s;ary to Salvation; In the&s;e latter, only the holy Scriptures can direct us, but in the former we are to be guided by the Dictates of right Rea&s;on; what right Rea&s;on &s;hall &s;hew unto us to be mo&s;t decent and orderly, the &s;ame mu&s;t we do, according to that of the Apo&s;tle,
<NOTE N="u" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 14.40.</NOTE> <HI>Let all things be done,</HI> &amp;c, And hence is confuted that other opinion of tho&s;e who would needs have an ex|pre&s;s Command in Scripture for all that they do, and judge
<PB N="24" REF="19">every Action &s;infull, that hath no precept in the Word of God for its warrant; many places of Scripture there are which they u&s;ually wre&s;t to maintaine this their fond and groundle&s;s A&s;&s;ertion, for brevity &s;ake I will name only one, and that is,
<NOTE N="x" PLACE="marg">Rom. 14.23.</NOTE> <HI>What&s;oever is not of Faith is Sin,</HI> and hence they infer, <HI>That to do any thing for which we have not an expre&s;s Command in the Word of God, is &s;in; becau&s;e not of Faith, Faith being grounded only on the Word of God.</HI></P>
<P>I an&s;wer,
<MILESTONE UNIT="An&s;w."> Faith is taken in holy Scripture two waies, <HI>viz,</HI> &s;trictly, only for a firm and con&s;tant apprehen&s;ion of Chri&s;t and all his Merits as they are promi&s;ed and offered in the Word and Sacraments, &s;o <HI>Rom.</HI> 1.17. or largely for any kind of per&s;wa&s;ion of the truth of things credible: in the former &s;en&s;e and acception Faith is grounded only on the Word of God, the Promi&s;es of the Go&s;pell; but in the latter acception, the Object of Faith extends it &s;elf further, as may appear by the&s;e Scriptures
<NOTE N="y" PLACE="marg">Joh. 10.38.</NOTE>, <HI>Though ye beleeve not me,</HI> &s;aith our Saviour, <HI>beleeve my works,</HI> &amp;c.
<NOTE N="z" PLACE="marg">Joh. 20.25.</NOTE> <HI>Except I &s;ee the print of the nailes,</HI> &s;aith <HI>Thomas, I will not beleeve.</HI> Many of the <HI>Samaritans</HI> beleeved on Chri&s;t upon the Relation of the Woman
<NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">Joh. 4.39.</NOTE>. Can any thing then be more plain, than that there may be a Faith, belief, or per&s;wa&s;ion grounded on other a&s;&s;urance than Scrip|ture? Might not the Jewes have been fully per&s;waded that they did well to think (had they &s;o thought) that God the Father was in Chri&s;t, though they had no other ground for this their Faith, than tho&s;e his miraculous works which they &s;aw done by him? Might not <HI>Thomas</HI> have verily per&s;waded him&s;elf, that he did well to think that Body which was rai&s;ed, to be the &s;ame that was crucifi|ed, though it was his &s;en&s;e only that gave him this a&s;&s;u|rance? for &s;o it was; <HI>Thomas,</HI>
<NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">Joh. 20.29.</NOTE> <HI>becau&s;e thou ha&s;t &s;een, thou ha&s;t beteeved,</HI> Yea, might not tho&s;e <HI>Samaritans</HI> have &s;afely per&s;waded them&s;elves that they did well to beleeve in Chri&s;t upon the Womans words, which &s;aid,
<NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">Joh. 4.39.</NOTE> <HI>He told me all that ever I did?</HI> Now this kind of Faith the Apo&s;tle here intends, <HI>viz.</HI> a per&s;wa&s;ion that what we do
<PB N="25" REF="19">is well done, again&s;t which per&s;wa&s;ion, he counts it &s;in to enterprize any thing: Seeing then that this Faith, Be|lief, or Per&s;wa&s;ion, whereof the Apo&s;tle here &s;peaks, may be grounded on other a&s;&s;urance than Scripture, it cannot be hence proved that no Actions are lawfull or warranta|ble for which we have no expre&s;s Command in the holy Scriptures. Surely, not only the light of Scripture, but al&s;o that of Nature is given us for our direction in many of our Actions, nor may we imagine that God is di&s;plea|&s;ed with us for following the light of Nature in tho&s;e things which are no way forbidden in the &s;acred Scrip|ture. In tho&s;e things where Scripture is &s;ilent, we may &s;afely follow the guidance of our own Rea&s;on and Judg|ment. Not to admit this, what were it but clean to abro|gate the Law of Nature? Yea, were it granted that no|thing may be done without an expre&s;s Precept in the holy Scripture, what would the Scripture it &s;elf &s;eem but a &s;nare and a torment to weak Con&s;ciences, filling them with infinite perplexities, &s;cruples, and doubts? Not that the Scripture it &s;elf doth cau&s;e any &s;uch thing, but that the nece&s;&s;ity of this life urging men to do many things by the direction of the light of Nature, common Di&s;cretion, and Judgement; and on the other &s;ide, this Doctrine teaching them that to do any thing without direction in the Scripture, were to &s;in again&s;t God &amp; their own Souls; how can this choo&s;e but bring them even to their wits end? how can it choo&s;e but vex and amaze them? This once granted, it would follow that Parents &s;hould cau&s;e their Children to &s;in, &s;o oft as they cau&s;e them to do any thing before they be of years to have knowledge in the Scriptures. Nay this admitted, it &s;hall not be now with Ma&s;ters, as it was with the
<NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">Luc. 7.8.</NOTE> Centurion in the Go&s;pell, but Servants being commanded to go, &s;hall &s;tand &s;till, till they have their errant warranted unto them by Scripture.</P>
<P>The&s;e two opinions concerning the &s;ufficiency of Scri|pture extremely oppo&s;ite to each other, and both repug|nant unto the Truth, let us take heed of; let us not with the Papi&s;ts detract from the Scriptures perfection; nor
<PB N="26" REF="20">with the&s;e fondly think it to be our only rule in every Action.</P>
<P>Nor is this Doctrine of Chri&s;t's governing his Church to be applyed only by way of confutation of tho&s;e errone|ons opinions, but al&s;o by way of reprehen&s;ion of tho&s;e lewd and accur&s;ed practices of &s;uch as will by no means be per&s;waded to &s;ubmit them&s;elves to his Regall Power and Authority, but dayly through their vicious lives do, as it were, bid battell to this mighty God, this King of Glory: and &s;uch are they who live in affected Ignorance, Athei&s;me, Bla&s;phemy, Swearing, Drunkenne&s;s, Luxury, Pride, Covetou&s;ne&s;s, Maliciou&s;ne&s;s, and all kind of wic|kedne&s;s, not at all regarding the Prohibitions, or Precepts, Promi&s;es, or Threats contained in the Word of God; nor at all li&s;tening to the &s;ecret whi&s;perings, no nor to the bellowings and loud roatings of their Con&s;ciences there|again&s;t: The&s;e oppo&s;e the Regall Authority of Je&s;us Chri&s;t, and &s;ay in the language of their corrupt practices with <HI>Pharaoh</HI>
<NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">Ex. 5.2</NOTE> <HI>Who is the Lord that we &s;hould obey him?</HI></P>
<P>Oh, how de&s;perate is thy E&s;tate, how dangerous is thy Condition, who do&s;t not &s;ubmit thy &s;elf to the Govern|ment of Chri&s;t? Can there po&s;&s;ibly be any greater &s;in than that of Ingratitude? Can there be any greater In|gratitude than not to yeeld obedience to him upon whom thy being and well being dependeth?</P>
<P>Againe can there po&s;&s;ibly be any greater folly or mad|ne&s;s than to oppo&s;e thy &s;elf again&s;t God? What art thou that thou &s;hould&s;t provoke him? Art thou &s;tronger than he? <HI>Who art thou that pleade&s;t again&s;t God?</HI> &s;aith the Apo&s;tle,
<NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">Rom. 9 20, 21.</NOTE> in another ca&s;e, <HI>hath not the Potter power over the clay?</HI> As the clay is in the hand of the Potter, &s;o art thou in the hand of God, he can break and da&s;h thee all to peeces when&s;oever it plea&s;eth him. Who ever hardened him&s;elf again&s;t God and pro&s;pered? <HI>Pharaoh</HI> refu&s;eth to let I&s;rael go at Gods command, and what fol|lowed? He was plagued with divers very great and fearfull Judgements, and at the la&s;t him&s;elf and his Hoa&s;ts were drowned in the Red Sea
<NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 136.15.</NOTE>. <HI>Senacherib</HI> bla&s;|phemes
<PB N="27" REF="20">and railes again&s;t the holy one of I&s;rael, and what becomes of him? In one night all his Hoa&s;t becomes dead Corpes, and him&s;elf is &s;oon after murthered by his own Sons
<NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 37.23.</NOTE> <HI>Herod</HI> prides him&s;elf with the applau&s;e of the People, and gives not God the glory, and is pre|&s;ently &s;mitten to death by Worms.</P>
<P><NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">P&s;a. 50.22.</NOTE> O con&s;ider this then ye that forget God, <HI>&amp;c.</HI> 'Tis no le&s;s than a great Argument of folly for one King in|con&s;iderately to make war again&s;t another. <HI>What King,</HI> &s;aith our Saviour, <HI>&amp;c.</HI>
<NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg">Luk. 14.31.</NOTE> But far greater madne&s;s is it for a poor weak Creature to rebell again&s;t its Almighty Creator: thou feare&s;t to violate the Laws and Edicts of an Earthly Prince, who hath power to de&s;troy thy Body; and wilt not thou be much more afraid to violate the Commands of the King of Kings, who is able to de&s;troy thy Body and Soul in Hell? <HI>Where the word of a King is there is power,</HI> &s;aith <HI>Solomon,</HI> and wilt thou dare to &s;light and contemn the word of this Great King, the Mighty God? O let us all be exhorted now to &s;end our Lamb to the Ruler of the Earth,
<NOTE N="m" PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 16.1.</NOTE> to tender our Homage, offer our Service, and te&s;tifie our Allegiance with all humility and thankfulne&s;s unto this King of Kings, and Lord of Lords, our Almighty Redeemer. Let us throughout the whole cour&s;e of our lives fear him who is great above all Gods; Let us confe&s;s his Soveraignty, &s;ubmit to his Go|vernment, and tremble before him; Let us willingly a&s;|&s;emble our &s;elves together in the Courts of our God, and cheerfully flock to the Colours of our King, and ob&s;erve and do what ever he commands. To this purpo&s;e is that Caveat,
<NOTE N="n" PLACE="marg">Heb. 12.25.</NOTE> <HI>See that ye de&s;pi&s;e not,</HI> &amp;c. for motives con|&s;ider,</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, that Je&s;us Chri&s;t is ordained of God (as is al|ready &s;poken) to be the King and Head of the Church, and Prince over the People of God, having all power in his own hand.</P>
<P><HI>The Government is upon his &s;houlder.</HI>
<NOTE N="o" PLACE="marg">P&s;a. 2.6.</NOTE> <HI>I have &s;et my King,</HI> &s;aith God, <HI>upon my holy Mountain.</HI> Nay, he is ap|pointed to be the only
<NOTE N="p" PLACE="marg">Jam. 4.12.</NOTE> Lawgiver to his Church, and
<PB N="28" REF="21">
<NOTE N="q" PLACE="marg">Act. 17.31.</NOTE> Judge of the whole World. O how &s;hall we expect protection from this King if we rebell again&s;t him? how &s;hall we look for mercy from that great Judge, if we de&s;pi&s;e his Laws, and ca&s;t his Precepts behind our backs?</P>
<P>Secondly, He hath wonderfully redeemed us from the Cur&s;e of the Law, and from the Tyranny of Sin, Satan, and Death, through the effu&s;ion of his own
<NOTE N="r" PLACE="marg">Act. 20.28. 1 Pet. 1.17, 18.</NOTE> Bloud; and &s;hall we think that Chri&s;t Je&s;us hath been at this ex|pence and charge for us, that we might live as we li&s;t? &s;hall we imagine with profane Libertines, and corrupt Antinomians, that we are &s;o redeemed from the Law, that we need not yeeld any obedience thereunto? Cer|tainly we are redeemed to another end, namely,
<NOTE N="&s;" PLACE="marg">Luk. 1.74, 75.</NOTE> <HI>To &s;erve him in holine&s;s and righteou&s;ne&s;s,</HI> &amp;c. Chri&s;t Je&s;us hath given him&s;elf that he might redeem us from all Ini|quity, and purge us to be a
<NOTE N="t" PLACE="marg">Tit. 2.14.</NOTE> peculiar people, zealous of good works. Chri&s;t Je&s;us hath freed us from the burden of the Law, but hath not quitted us from our duty con|tained in the Law; <HI>The grace of God that bringeth &s;alva|tion,</HI> &amp;c.
<NOTE N="u" PLACE="marg">Tit. 2.11, 12, 13.</NOTE> If therefore we will by no means yeeld obe|dience to his &s;acred Word, what do we but unthankfully &s;light and de&s;pi&s;e all that he hath done for our Souls? What do we but Crucifie afre&s;h the Lord of Life, trample upon his Bloud, and count the Bloud of the New Te&s;ta|ment an unholy thing, and do de&s;pight unto the Spirit of Grace
<NOTE N="x" PLACE="marg">Heb. 10.29.</NOTE>? O let us not be &s;o damnably ingratefull to &s;o willing a Saviour; Let us not any longer live unto our &s;elves, but unto him that hath thus loved us, and given him&s;elf for us; Seeing we are his Purchace, let us hence|forth give up our &s;elves &s;ouls and bodies wholly to his Service. Let us wor&s;hip and glorifie him in our
<NOTE N="y" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 6.19, 20.</NOTE> Bo|dies, and in our Spirits which he hath redeemed.</P>
<P>La&s;tly con&s;ider what a ble&s;&s;ed and happy condition it is for us to be Subjects in the Kingdom of Chri&s;t. <HI>Let I&s;rael Rejoice in him that made him,</HI> &s;ings the P&s;almi&s;t, <HI>and let Zion be joyfull in her King</HI>
<NOTE N="z" PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 149.2.</NOTE>.</P>
<P>And indeed it will ea&s;ily appear that there is great cau&s;e of joy in being a Subject to this heavenly King, if
<PB N="29" REF="21">we will but &s;et before our eyes that infinite power, good|ne&s;s and greatne&s;s that is re&s;plendent in him: All which is implyed in tho&s;e glorious Names and Titles which are given him in my Text, namely, <HI>the mighty God, the Ever|la&s;ting Father, the Prince of Peace.</HI></P>
<P N="1">1. He is an Almighty God, al&s;ufficient, and depen|ding on none, his Subjects are not charged with &s;uppor|ting and defending him, (as it is with Earthly Princes) but he defends
<NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">Col. 2.9.</NOTE> and maintains them,
<NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 9.7. I&s;a. 32.1.</NOTE> he is the head of all Principalities and Powers, and the mo&s;t Potent Ruler of all People and Nations
<NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">Dan. 7.13. &amp; 14.27.</NOTE>.</P>
<P N="2">2. Nor is he only infinitely great, but al&s;o &s;uperabundant|ly good, hence he is called <HI>the Everlasting Father.</HI> It is the property of a good King to be <HI>Pater Patriae,</HI> a Fa|ther to his Subjects. Kings therefore are called Fathers, not only in divine, but al&s;o in prophane Writers; The Senatours of <HI>Rome,</HI> and chiefe Governours were called Fathers of their Countries.
<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"></NOTE> The common name of the Kings of the Phili&s;tins was
<NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">Gen. 20.3.</NOTE> <HI>Abimelech,</HI> fignifying my Father the King, and <HI>David</HI> &s;aith to his Subjects,
<NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 34.11.</NOTE> <HI>Come my children,</HI> &amp;c. And to &s;hew the greatne&s;s of Affection, and tho&s;e Bowels of Compa&s;&s;ion which Chri&s;t hath towards his People, he is here called <HI>the Everla&s;ting Father;</HI> he is alwaies (according to his gra|cious Promi&s;e) pre&s;ent with them,
<NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">Mat. 28.20.</NOTE> to protect, de|fend, and provide for them.</P>
<P>La&s;tly, He is <HI>the Prince of Peace,</HI> by who&s;e power|full and effectuall Mediation
<NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">Rom. 5.1.</NOTE> we have peace with Almighty God; and he having perfectly &s;ubdued and overcome our Enemies, we &s;hall be placed in Taberna|cles of Peace, and in &s;afe re&s;ting places. What Enemies then &s;hall we need to fear, if we be under the protecti|on of &s;o powerfull a King? What good thing can we po&s;&s;ibly want, if we be under the tuition of &s;o indulgent a Father? Who &s;hall be able at any time to trouble or mole&s;t us, if we be the Loyall, and true Subjects to this Prince of Peace?</P>
<P>The
<NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">1 King. 10, 7, 8, 9.</NOTE> Queen of <HI>Sheba</HI> admires the Wi&s;dome, Po|wer,
<PB N="30" REF="22">and Greatne&s;s of King <HI>Solomon,</HI> but behold a grea|ter than <HI>Solomon</HI> is here. That Earthly Monarch was but the &s;hadow, Chri&s;t Je&s;us is the true and reall &s;ub&s;tance. If &s;he therefore accounts them happy that &s;tood before him, and were his Attendants; &s;urely much more ble&s;&s;ed are they to be accounted, that are Subjects to this King of glory.</P>
<P>I will &s;hut up all in the words of the P&s;almi&s;t,
<NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 144.15.</NOTE> Ble&s;|&s;ed are the people that be in &s;uch a ca&s;e, yea, ble&s;&s;ed are they that have the Lord for their God; this Mighty God for their King. Wherefore (Dear Friends) let us now continue the true and faithfull Subjects of Je&s;us Chri&s;t. Let us take heed we do nothing where with we may di&s;|plea&s;e the eyes of his glory. Let us willingly relinqui&s;h and for&s;ake all our &s;ins, and intirely give up our &s;elves to his &s;ervice; &s;o &s;hall we be defended by his Power, pro|vided for by his Providence, and everla&s;tingly rewarded with that Peace which pa&s;&s;eth all under&s;tanding.</P>
<TRAILER>FINIS.</TRAILER>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT>
</EEBO>
</ETS>
