The Merchant Real, Sermon · Lesson 4
The fourth leſſon.
If you aske me vvhere vntounto this kingdome may be reſembled my text tels you It is like vntounto a man, A kingdome reſembled to a man. There is reaſon for both, A man is a little kingdome, yea a little vvorld, and the kingdome of heauen is prepared for man through the mercies of god, & by the merritts of the life, & death of one that vvas truly man, albeit not a meere mā euen by Ieſus Chriſt both god, and mā vvho is bleſſed for euer. This very reſemblance that the kingdome of heauen should be reſembled to a man shevves me this light. That man, in his Creation of God, & regeneration by the grace of God is the moſt perfecte modle of all Creatures, but in his degeneration, and falling from God is a moſt prodigious, & portentous monſter and euen as hell it ſelfe.Eccleſ. 7.31 The preacher preacheth ſoe, & shevveth it in one vewe ſaying God made man righteous but he hath ſought out many inventions. The creation of man shevveth it. For he vvas created in the image of god, both in the dignity of his ſoueraingty, in the proprieties of his perſon, and alſo in the entitie of his ſubſiſtence.Geneſ. 1. In his ſoueraingty. For as god is lord of all vvhatſoeuer, ſo god made man the ſouerainge of all corporall things. And as God is vvholy in the vniuerſe and in eueryevery part thereof, ſo mans ſoule quickneth, guideth, moueth the vvhole body and eueryevery part & parcell thereof. Man indede is the Epitome, and ſume of all things, hauing being, life, ſence, and intellectuall faculties. To noe other creature all thoſe but to him only. In the proprieties of perſonage a very reſemblance of the diety. For man is ſpirituall as he is a regenerate perſon. The ſpirituall man diſcerneth all things ſaith Paule. Inviſible in his ſoule, and impaſſible in the ſame by any outvvard things. In a vvord there are three men in one man, a carnall man, a naturall man, a ſpirituall man, and all trulie one man. In his entitie a very perfect reſemblance of the trinity. The trinity is three perſons in one eſſence. Mans cheefe entity hath three faculties in one ſoule Memory, Vnderſtanding, Will. In vvhichwhich vve may take a vevve of this perfecte modle in his ſtate of regeneration, In the Memory dvvells god the father.Pſal. 100.3. Pſa. 104.27 For vve record him to hauehave giuen vsus our firſt being Indeede he made vsus, and not vve our ſelues. Secondly he giues vsus temporallties to maintayne our being. He giues vsus our meate in due ſeaſon. Thirdlie he giues vsus his ſonne for our better being. In vvhom vve hauehave meaſures of grace, in this life, and aſſurances of glory in the other life for our beſt being. God the ſonne dvvelleth in our vnderſtanding by the knovvledge of our god, and of our ſelues.Pſal. 9. Of our god his majeſty to feare, of god his merciemercy to adore, of our ſelues that vve might knovve our ſelues to be but men, fraile men, eueryevery day ready to be diſſolued, vaine men lighter then vanity it ſelfe, vile men vvorthy to be abhorred, vvretched men eueryevery vvay deſpicable, vvicked men eueryevery day to become penetentiaries. God the holy ghoſt dvvells in the Will, by bovving it to the obedience of god lavves ſoe affecting, and cleanſing it by the vvord, that a regenerate man doth not only contemne all earthly things vvhichwhich are comberſome, but alſo all delectable things, yea and a mans ovvne ſelfe that he may enioy god. The priuiledges of this regenerat man vvho can declare? Doth he beleeue? he hath eternall life. Is he mercifull? he is gods deare ſonne. Doth he heare the vvord? he is the cozen, the ſiſter, the mother of Chriſt. Doth he pray? he ſurpriſeth gods maieſty as did Moſes.Ioh. 5.24. Matth. 5.7. Matth. 12.49.50. Doth he giuegive a cup of cold vvater? he shal not loſe his revvard. In a vvord all other creatures move in a right line, but a man moveth in a circular.Mat. 10.42. Other creatures hauehave taken that perfection they hauehave in themſelues, man hath his perfection in god, he came of one, in that one he hath his being, and to that one he muſt returne in his beſt, and moſt happie being for euer.Act. 17.22. Thus hauehave we all this vvhile bene ioyous in vevving the delectable things of paradiſe, in ſeing the light of the land of Goshen in telling the bulvvarkes, the cittadles, & tovvers of the heauenly Ieruſalem, in arriuing at the faire hauens, and conſidering man in his perfection, but novve vve muſt deſcend in to the vally of the children of hinnon to conſider, the darknes of Egipte to looke on the ruines of the holy citie, and to ſee our vveather beaten barke shaken, and ready to ſinke vvith the boyſterous blaſts of Furoclydon, yea novve vve muſt conſider man in his degeneration, as he is become a prodigious, and portentous monſter even as hell it ſelfe.
Practice. 1 Firſt by vvay of Demonſtration. For an vnregenerate man hath ſought out many inventions.
Firſt the vvay of invention of diſobedience he had rather be at his ovvne direction then at gods, and ſo is become a monſtrous rebbel like Chore, Dathan, and Abyram vnvvorthey to breath vponupon the earth.
Secondly the invention of doubting by putting in (Paraduentures) into the vvord as Euah did,Geneſ. 3. vvhichwhich god neuer ſpoke.
Thirdly the invention of Preſumption in plovving vponupon gods backe, and making long furrovves ſaying let him that made me ſaue me.
Fouerthly the invention of sleighting god euen in diſcourſe of reaſon, as the Ievves did in choſing Barrabas and refuſing Chriſt.
Fiftly the invention of Diſſimulation reſembling the generation of thoſe, that are pure in their ovvne conceipte, and are not cleanſed from their vvickednes.
Sixtly the invention of Perſvvaſion of euill to others, as if they had not ſinne enough of their ovvne to anſvvere for but they muſt entice others alſo.
Laſtly by the invention of shutting their eares and hardening their harts againſt vvhat ſoeuer they should heare from god or be perſvvaded by good mē for their good, & reſoluing deſperatly to liue in the vvorld vvith an iorn arme to doe any violence for aduantage, vvith an ants belly to liue neuer ſo baſely for their profitt, and vvith a dogs ſouls to doe any exployt neuer ſoe deuelishly ſoe they may hauehave their ovvne vvill.
Practice. 2 The ſecond paſſage is of Lamentation. For is it not a thouſand pitties, to ſee him that vvas a man of god should become a man of bloud to invent gunns, and torments to deſtroy his Species as did Bertholdus Schuuartz the Franciſcan Frier,Geneſ. 4.8 To become a man of death to cauſe his ovvne hands to murther his ovvne brother, as did Cain, to become a ſonne of Belial to ſel himſelfe to doe euill as did Ahab, and to become a man of ſinne as that great Archimandrites the Pope of Rome is.
Practice. 3 The third paſſage is of Deiection. Pſal. 49.12. Pſal. 59.20For tvvice in one Pſalme it is ſayd Man being in honor vnderſtood it not, & is compared vntounto the beaſts that perish. To beaſts in generall. Paule fought vvith beaſts at Epheſus,Iere. 51.17. and Ieremy ſaith that eueryevery man in his ovvne knovvledge is a veary beaſt. To beaſts in particular as to vipers,Maith. 3.7. Matt. 10.16 Luc. 13.32. Marc. 7.27 Matt. 16.12 Act. 13.10. 1. Tim. 4.1. vvolues, foxes, hogs, doggs. Yea compared to devills. HaueHave not I choſen you tvvelue, & one of you is a deuill, ſayth Chriſt, And Paule tells Elimas the ſorcerer, that he vvas the child of the deuill, yea & vve read of doctrines of deuills, & deepenes of Sathan. The fathers hauehave reſembled men to beaſts. A man of goodlie parts vvithout diſcretion to the Eſtridge, that hath goodlie feathers, and canot flie as Job ſpeaketh, a man of enuy, and deſpight ſtudying reueng to a camell, that forgetteth all things ſauing a shrevvd turne, a man that is apte for euill to a Dromedary that is ſvvift to batell. Oh hovve lamentable a thing it is to conſider, that a man that vvas made in the image of god, should novve be vvorſe then the men vvith vvhom he liueth running to that exceſſe of royot vvhichwhich other men doe not. Worſe then bird vvhichwhich praiſe their creator in their kind, vvorſe then beaſts vvhichwhich vvil drinke no more, but vvhat ſufficeth, vvorſe then deuills that beleeue and tremble.
Practice 4 Laſtly of Erection, For my deſire is that this ſunneshine should not ſett in ſo darke a cloud, ſeing god hath ſayd to man, vvhichwhich he ſayd not to the angells that fell. Shall man fall, and shall not he riſe? shall man turne avvay & shall nothe returne againe? Lett vsus, therefore as the Apoſtell ſayth quitt our ſelues like men, vve are all of vsus Ishbosheths ſonns of shame. When vve come into the vvorld our frends couer our shame vvith raggs, and in the end vvhen vve goe out of the vvorld they doe the like. All of vsus, are Mephibosheths, lame on both leggs both in our louelove to god, and in our charity one to another. We are all Lazaruſſes full of ſores, and lie begging at the gate of gods rich merciemercy. Lett vsus therefore remember our creator, that as vve are men ſoe by gods grace vve may become ciuill men, & Chriſtian men, and the men of god by the mediation of the man IESUS CHRIST our lord god bleſſed for euer, and by his, merritts may obtaine this kingdome vvhichwhich is reſembled to man, prepared for mā, merited by that man, vvhichwhich kingdome he shal render vp in the end of all (vvhen there shalbe noe man lyving on the earth) to god the father that god may be all in all. Euen ſo lord Ieſus.