The Merchant Real, Sermon · Lesson 10
The tenth leſſon.
In the former place vve hauehave hard his Onenes. Novve lett vsus ſee his peareleſnes, & pretiouſnes. For Chriſt is not only one, but a pearle alſo of great price. So then the doctrine is this. That Chriſt Ieſus our Sauiour is the one, & only pearle both peareles, & priceles vvhichwhich vvas giuen as a ranſome to redeeme vsus from hell.
1. Cor. 6.29The Apoſtle Paule ſayth ſo ſpeaking indefinitly you are bought vvith a price, but the price vvas priceles. So Peter alſo, ye are not bought vvith gold, or ſiluer, or pretious ſtones, but vvith the bloud of Ieſus Chriſt vvhichwhich is vnvaluable, & matchles, & ſoe ſayth my text in the reſemblance of the pearle, & in the Hebraiſme of great price. The reſemblāce very appoſite both in Name, Nature, Generation, Quantity, & Quality.
Phil. 2.9.For the firſt a pearle is rare in Name. Soe Chriſt for god hath exalted him highly, and giuen him a name aboue eueryevery name.
Secondly, a pearle is illuſtious in Nature, So Chriſt Thou art fairer then the ſonnes of men: grace is povvred in thy lips, becauſe god hath bleſſed thee for euer,Pſal. 45.2.7. thou haſt loued righteouſnes, & hateſt vvickednes, becauſe God, euen thy god hath anoynted thee vvith oyle of gladnes aboue thy fellovves.
Thirdly a pearle is maruelous in generation being ingendred of the devve of heauen in the mother of pearle on earth. So Chriſt miraculous in his generation hauing his father in heauen, & his mother on earth.
Fourthly a pearle is ſmall, & litle in quantity So Chriſt abaſed himſelfe to nothing. He like the ſunne in the diall of Ahaz that vvas gone dovvne ten degrees backvvards.Ioh. 14.28. So he ten degrees beneath his father The father is greater then I. Ten degrees beneath the angells For he made him lovver then the angells.Pſal. 8.5. Ten degrees beneath men I am vvorme & noe man, yea ten degrees beneath vvormes. for a liue doge is better then a dead lion. Liuing Barrabas the murtherer acompted better then the dying lord Ieſus.
Laſtly pearle is ſoueraigne in effectuall qualities to cure infirmitys, & diſeaſes among the people. His bloud is a ſoueraigne antidote,Math. 4.23.24. & the ſinners bathe to cure our burning feauers of incontinencie, The feare of the lord is cleane, & endureth for euer: the iudgmēts of the lord are truth, they are righteous altogether.Pſal. 19.9. Our phlethorie of pride to become litle children. Our lethargie of forgetfulnes Remember thy creator in the dayes of thy youth whiles the euill dayes come not,Marc. 10.15 nor the yeares approch, vvherein thou shalt ſay.Eccl. 1….1. I hauehave noe pleaſure in them. Our ſtaggers of inconſtancie. For vve shall not be afraid of euill tidings for our harts vvill be fixed in the lord.Pſa. 112.7. And our apoplexie of coueteouſnes For this reall marchant ſelleth all, & buyeth it ſaith this preſent text. Thus you ſee the ſutablenes of the reſemblance.
Secondly this appeareth vntounto vsus from the Hebraiſme vvhichwhich ſayth that this one pearle vvas of great price. There are three ſtates of ſingular eminency in the vvorld, a preeſt, a prophet a king In all theſe our Chriſt is ſupereminent Illoque TENUS SUPEREMINET OMNES Chriſt vvas a preeſt after the order of Melchiſedec vvho vvas king of righteouſnes for there vvas noe guile found in his mouth. King of Salem for he made both one. Without father on earth, vvithout mother in heauen, without begining vvithout ending. Who vvas the temple,Auguſt. 4. li. de trin. cap. 24. & alter, the preeſt, the ſacrifice, & him to vvhom it vvas offered. A prophet of infallibility a voice from heauen ſpake it Heare him, & the ſoule that doth not heare him muſt be cut of from the people vvho by his povver ſends forth the prophetts,Math. 17.5. Deu. 18. Mat. 23.34. Apo. 19.10. Pſal. 24.10. Pſal. 45.6. & vvhoſe teſtimony is the ſpirit of prophecie. A king of regall dignity euen the king of glory, vvhoſe ſcepter is only righteouſnes, the extent vvhereof is ouer the vvhole vvorld, & the continuance beyond all tyme, vvho after all tyme shall deliuer vp a kingdome purchaſed vvith his bloud that god,1. Cor. 15. may be all in all.
The right of reaſon thevves this alſo vntounto vsus. For there is valuation in pearle vvherein conſiſteth their dignity, their luſtre, & povver. What valuation is comperable to Chriſts dignity vvhichwhich ſurpaſſeth that of gold, & ſiluer. Ye vvere not redeemed vvith corruptible, things as gold, & ſiluer, from your vaine conuerſation receiued by the traditions of the fathers.1. Pet. 1.28.29. But vvith the pretious bloud of Chriſt, as of a lambe vndefiled, & vvithout ſpot. That of beaſts, & cattle. For thou deſireſt noe ſacrifice,Pſal. 51.16. though I vvould giuegive it: thou delighteſt not in burnt offering. That of angells. VntoUnto vvhichwhich of the angels ſayd he at any time ſit at my right hand till I make thine enemies thy footeſtoole.Heb. 1.13. Pſ. 116.11. That of men for all men are liars. Farre aboue the value of the offence. For if through the offence of one, many are dead, much more the grace of god,Ro. 5.15.16 & the gift by grace, vvich is by one man Ieſus Chriſt, hath abounded vntounto many.
For if by the offence of one, death raigned through one, much more Shall they which receiue the abundā ce of grace, & the gift of righteouſneſſe raigne in life through one, that is, Ieſus Chriſt.
Secondly there is luſtre in pearle, but in our Chriſt in his light vve shall ſee light. Yea the deuils, & the reprobate ſee ſo much to make them vnexcuſable.
Thirdly pearles are povverfull in their effects▪ Gen. 49.8.Chriſt hath excellency aboue Juda, preheminence ouer diſeaſes, povver of the influence of the ſunne, moone, & ſtarrs, yea ouer the graue, & death, & hell.
Practice. 1 The vſe of this is diuerſe. Firſt of Acceſsion. Come ye Marchant Ievvellers that a… faithfull ſoules, & ſee vvhat Ievvells your Sauiour hath prepared for you,1. Cor. 12. Ioh. 14. Can. 1. they are ſuch that cannot be expreſſed by vvords. Yet is he gone to prepare them for you Jt remaines that you hauehave an affection to ſeeke, & runne after this your ievvell that you may at the laſt attaine him. Come bleſſed ſoules that hauehave hope in CHRIST though your ſinnes be as red as ſcarlet he hath made them of a pearle colour. Let eueryevery religious ſoule ſee his ſauiour, this pretious pearle hovve vile he hath accompted of himſelfe being ſold for thirty peeces of ſiluer, & hovve pretious he hath eſteemed of vsus that shed his pretious bloud for vsus, one drop vvhereof vvas vvorth ten thouſand vvorlds. And let the languishing ſoule come hither, & ſee hovve god hath giuen vsus his only ievvell to be our JESUS. What then vvill he deny vsus vvith him? For he made him of noe reputation, & vile in the ſight of the vvorld, that vve might be pretious pearles in the ſight of god.
Practice. 2 The ſecond vſe is of Expoſtulatiō ▪ vvhat price is there that you can deſire that is not to be found in this pearle of great price? The price of your redemption is in his paſſion, of abſolution in his condemnation, of remiſſion of ſinnes in his croſſe, of ſatisfaction in his ſacrifice, of n…vvnes of life in his reſurrection, of immortallity in the kingdome prepared for you, & of purgation in his bloud. For he that vvas a diamond hath made himſelfe a ruby all red in his ovvne bloud, that vve might be diamond… in the ſight of his father.
What vvould you hauehave? One pearle vvithout pea…e. He is this one. For he is One god in the eſſence of the diety,Ioh. 11. One creator that made heauen, & earth. One man vvho died for vsus. One lord paramount vvho hath the preheminence,Matt. 23. Ioh. 10. Hebr. 10. One maſter not many. One father, One sheephard. One ſacrifice for our ſinnes.
Practice. 3 The third vſe is of caution, that vve bevvare howe vve become vile in gods ſight, for then vve become ſvvine,Mat. 7.6. & pearls muſt not be caſt before ſvvine, & the deuill deſireth to goe into ſuch kind of creatures,Matt 8 31. Ibidem. & hath permiſſion ſo to doe. But our caſe is as the caſe of Aaron vvhichwhich had a robe, bells, a tunacle, an Ephod, the Vrim, & Thumim, & blevv ſilke, & fine linnen, yet all theſe vvere none of his ovvne, but ornaments ordayned by god to be put vponupon him. So vve hauehave noe pretiouſnes in our ſelues, but all our luſtre commeth from this pearle.Eph. 5.8. Ie. 14. Ecc. 1.2. Matt. 7. Matt. 25. Gen. 8.21. For vve are in ourſelues darknes in the abſtract, Folly, Vanity, doggs, & hogs, death, & damned. If you vvill not beleeue me. Moſes vvill tell you that the imagination of mans hart is euill from his youth, & Iob vvill aſſertaine you, for ſayth he. If I vvash my ſelfe vvith ſnovve vvater,Iob. 9.30.31 & make my hands neuer ſo cleane: yet thou shalt plung me in the ditch, & mine ovvne cloths shall abhorre me.
Practice 4 The fourth vſe is of feare, & trembling. For S. Paul ſayth if any man louelove not the lord Ieſus Chriſt let him be Anathema, Maranatha,1. Cor. 16.22. that is accurſed vvhen the lord shall come. Yea ſurely they shalbe accurſed in their goods, as the curſed things of Iericho, their ſpecious manſiōs made a iakes, their poſſeſsiō a bloudy.Dan. 3.19. Acheldama, their gaines as the curſed guiles of Corban, their name as branded as Ieroboams, their fame rotten. Jf they be honerable, god vvill lay their honor in the duſt, if noble, they shalbe vile, & baſe in his ſight, if learned their learning shalbe a byvvord, & a hiſſing. If he be a king he shalbe made a beaſt vvith Nebuchadnezzer If a minion, or fauorite he shalbe hanged as vvicked Haman that loues not the lord.
Practice. 5 The laſt vſe is of petition vvherein I become an humble ſutor vntounto all that are here preſent, that there may not be amongſt vsus a prophane perſon of a ſvvinish, & boorish condition that vvill tread this pearle vnderunder his feete. For if there be any ſuch moſt fearfull, & fatall is the expectation of his vvoe. For ſaith the apoſtle vvhat punishment ſuppoſe yee shall he be vvorthy of vvhichwhich treadeth vnderunder foote the ſonne of god,Heb. 10.29 & counteth the bloud of the nevve Teſtament as an vnholy thing, & doth deſpite the ſpirit of grace. But let eueryevery one of vsus be of Paules reſolution to accompt all things doung, & dreſſe that vve may obtaine this pearle.Epheſ. 3.14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 And for this cauſe I bovve my knees for you all vntounto god the father of our lord Ieſus Chriſt, (Of vvhom is named the vvhole familie in heauen, & in earth.) That he might grāt you according to the riches of his glory, that ye may be ſtrengthned in the inner man by his ſpirit. That Chriſt may dvvell in your harts by faith: that ye being rooted, & grounded by louelove, may be able to comprehend vvithall ſaincts, what is the bredth, & length, & depth, & height: And to knovve the louelove of Chriſt which paſſeth knowledge, that ye may be filled with all fulneſſe of god. VntoUnto him therefore that is able to doe exceeding abundantly aboue all that vve aske, or thinke according to the power that worketh in vsus, be praiſe in the church by Chriſt Ieſus throvvout all generatiō for euer. Amen.