Four Sermons, Title page – To the reader
FOVR SERMONS Which doe manifeſt the true ſence of the 1. Epiſtle to Timothie 6. Chapter 13. 14. 15. & 16. verſes of that Chapter.
Preached by the reverend divine Mr. Iohn Forbes late preacher to the Companie of Merchant-Adventurers in Delft.
Matth. 15. 9.
But in vain they worſhip me, teaching for doctrines mens precepts.
Pſalm 31. 6.
I hate them that hould of ſuperstitious vanityes.
Pſalm 119. 113.
I hate vain inventions but thy law doe I love.
Mark. 8. 35.
Whoſoever will ſave his life ſhall looſe it, but whoſoever ſhall looſe his life for my ſake, and the Goſpells, he ſhall ſave it.
Publiſhed by S. O.
Anno 1635.
To the READER
CHriſtian Reader ſeeing the Holy-ghost hath lefte us an honourable memory of Davids worthies who helped him to attaine his Kingdom,2. Chron. 11. who was but a type of our King Ieſus Christ, I think it neceſſary to manifest ſome of thoſe famous doctrines this ſervant of Christ Mr. John Forbes taught in his life time, touching the right of Christ Ieſus, which God the father gave him to ordaine all things in his Church. This truth of God he witneſſed more than 30. yeares, not onelyonly unto the loſſe of his living, and unto bonds; but alſo unto baniſhment, for defending that it is not lawfull for anie Prince or Potentate to commaund anie human deviſes, for to compell them to be uſed in the worſhip of God, and for mainteyning this endured theſe great tryalls. And about 4. years after he was choſen preacher to the Compaine of the Engliſh Merchant Adventurers, and after he had ſerved them 22. years he was diſplaced by our King, and ſhortly after the Lord tooke him out of this world, he having ſerved in the Ministery 42. years, he now (as or hope is) is with the aſsembly of thoſe which have been killed for the Word of God, and teſtimonie which they mainteined, who doe cry, How long Lord, which art holy and true, doſt thou not judge and avenge our bloud on the perſecutours of thy truth? But this doctrine is thought ſtrange unto the world, for the Papists doe ſay, that the Pope hath authority to institute ceremonies in the Church, which he himſelfe doth judge fit, and our prelates, with their doctours, doe affirme that Princes and Potentates of the world have authority with the aſsembly of their Biſhops, to inſtitute ceremonies, rites, and orders, ſuch as they doe judge fitting to worſhip God by, and they are indued with deep Philoſophie, and learned arts, which I doe confeſſe are good, ſo as they be allwaies ruled by divine truth, but otherwiſe we are commaunded to avoyd them Col. 2.18. And the Holy-ghost calleth them, when they are not according to divine truth the deep learning of Sathan, as he hath in this epiſtle manifeſted. Againſt them both this ſervant of IEſus Chriſt doth clearly manifest, that no human deviſes or ceremonies that Chriſt hath not appointed for his worſhip, may be uſed in his worſhip, for God the Father hath placed him farre above all principallities, and powers, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not onelyonly in this world but alſo in that that is to come, as the Holy-ghoſt doth ſhew us in manie places, and that Christ is King and ruler in his Church.
Pilate and Caeſar were content that Chriſt ſhould be accounted High prieſt of his church, and that he ſhould be their Prophet, but for him to affirme he is a King, that coſt him his life, Caeſar could not indure it: So in this age, princes cannot indure that his church ſhould receive no ordinaunces and decrees but thoſe that the Apoſtles eſtabliſhed, for they will have their own ſuperſtitions uſed in the worſhip of God, yet here the Holy-ghoſt doth ſereouſly condemn it, and that Chriſt muſt have the whole preheminence in his worſhip, and that his miniſters muſt maintein this, as they will anſwer it at his glorious appearing, to judge all the world, theſe ſermons doe manifeſt this strait charge hee received from the Holy-ghoſt to withſtand all Human ſuperſtitions which are brought into Gods worſhip, they were taken by pen, by one of his ordinary hearers, the chief of theſe I had in writing two years before he departed this life, and I ſhewed them to him, and I tould him I would publiſh them without naming anie authour, he anſwered if I did publiſh them, the adverſaryes would know it to be his worke, to which I anſwered, that then I would not publiſh them, except I did ſurvive him.
If all the ſermons this reverend divine taught out of this epiſtle were publiſhed, it would be proffitable unto this generation, and to that to come, for he doth manifeſt that as God by Moſes ordayned him to be his penman to order his church under the law: So Chriſt hath made this Apoſtle his penman to appoint what ordinaunces his church muſt practiſe untill his ſecond appearing, and that with the ſtraiteſt charge we doe read of, that his ſervants may not admitt of anie other devices to be brought into his worſhip, as they wil anſwere it at the great and dreadfull appearing of all the world before Jeſus Chriſt, with his holy Angells, to recompence all oppoſers of his truth according to their works.
This Author doth mention that in all Ages God hath had his faithfull witneſſes as in the 48 page appears, and Mr. Foxe hath inſtanced manie, and here I think fitt to ad ſome others, in the dark time of Popery, which hee hath not.
Two Preachers in France, one named Peter Breves, the other is called Hendrick van de Tollhouſe, An. 1135:they were well known in France, and of good eſtimation for their great learning, and they did much bewaile the Apoſtacy of the church, and they ſpared no man of any degree, whatſoever they were, affirming that they were fallen from the eſtate of grace and from Christ, and they affirmed the Pope to be the Prince of Sodom, and the Citty of Rome to be the Mother of all abhomination, that all the Biſhops were cruel Wolves, they detested the doctrine of Tranſubſtantiation, and affirmed the maſſe, prayer for the dead, was Idolatrie before God, and that Images & the Croſſe might not be prayed unto, nor ſuffered in the Churches: That the Prieſts manner of ſinging was mockery before God…, that praying to Saincts and vowing of Chaſtity, and their manner of building Temples, and obſerving of Holydayes were ſuperſtitious and wicked, and all humane inventions in Gods worſhip wicked Idolatrie. Theſe mē continued in their preaching twenty years, and having great reſort coming to their preaching of all ſorts & eſtates, at laſt they were apprehended by the Popes commaund, by a Legate of his, and Peter Briſe was burned at St. Ioils, the other was apprehended & committed to priſon, but what came of him we finde not: but there followed great perſecution, & many of their Diſciples went to their death joyfully▪ Look the 65. and 66. Letters of Barnod to the Earle of St. Ioylls. There wrote againſt them Peter Abbott af Clugnam, which Barnod did record, and in likelyhood with envy. See the Cronicle of Paulus Meriam.
Doctour Fulck in his anſwere to the Rhemiſh Testament, doth ſay, that the Church of Leodium, before this, was under great perſecution under Pope Paſcus, for affirming him Antichriſt.
The Ieſuite ſaith that one Ceſarius writes, that ihe doctrine of theſe Waldenſes was ſpread in more then a thouſand cities, and that they had an army of 70000. that were deſtroyed by Simon of Momford, with a ſmall armie: but there is no mention of an armie, which they had in the Chronicles.