A Pleasant New Nosegay, Flower 2
¶The second floure / named Pure Innocency.
Philemon.
BEhold here is the second floure of your Nosegay.Gen. xvii. I am the almighty GOD. VValke before me and be perfecte. And I vvyll make my couenaunte betvvene me and the, and vvyll multiplye the beyonde all measure.
Euse.
Was not this the sayenge of God the father vntounto Abrahā?
Phil.
Yies verely, & pertaynethe now vntounto vsus no lesse than it dyd at yt tyme to hym.Rom. xv. For what so euer thynges are wrytten, are wrytten for our learnynge. Ye shall receaue moche pleasure of this your floure, yf ye marke the vertue of it well. Fyrst ye shall note that God calleth hymselfe the almyghty God, wherby we maye easely discerne hym frō those gods,Psa. lxxxxv yea rather Idolles and dyuels, whome the Hethen dyd worshyp & call vpō. For our God is omnipotent, that is to say, almyghty, plenteous in power, aboundant, o… sufficient, ful of all good, nedy of nothynge.…iii. Reg. xix The Gods of the Gentiles are of no power, puissaūce & strēgth full of all imbecillite, weakenesse & misery. Our God made all thinges of nothing by ye power of his word. The Gods of the Hethē make not,Baru…. vi. Psa. cxiiii. but they are made of other and are none other thynge than wood, stonnes, syluer, gold, or wicked spirites.Ioan. iiii. Oure God is able to helpe so many as call on hym in spirite & truethe. The Gods of the Gentiles are not able for to helpe thēselues, neyther do they heare ony man, that cal on them, as we maye perceaue by the prestes of Baal. Oure God lastethe for euer & euer euen worldes worldes withoute ende.iii. Re. xviii Psal. …i. The Gods of ye Hethen perysh and are more vayne than the smoke. Thus se ye, what a God we hauehave. None eyther in heauen,Note here well of god. earth or hel is able to compare wt this our God. He alone is good, mercifull. gentle, pacient, long sufferynge, almyghty, ryghteous, omnisufficient, plenteous of power, & full of all good. In him all thinges abunde, nothinge wanteth. He is ye omnisufficient protectour & valeāt defender for all them, that repose theyr affiaunce and truste in hym. Who therfore wyll not hauehave a pleasure to serue this God? Who is so madde to forsake this God, & to folowe ony other? Who beynge godly mynded wyll not seake the glory of this God? euen frō the very harte? Who hauyng but a carnell of Christen salte in his brest, wyl not hāge wholy on thys God, as alone altogyther sufficient for the faythefull abundantly in all thynges wherof they hauehave nede, eyther pertaynyng to the soule or to the bodye?Iere. xvii. Cursed be that mā, that putteth his truste in man, & that takethe fleshe for his arme, & he, whose herte departe the from the LORDE. For he shal be lyke the Heath, that groweth in the wildernes. As for the good thyng that is for to come, he shall not se it, but dwell in a drye place of the wyldernes, euen in a salte & vnoccupyed londe. O but blyssed is the mā that putteth his truste in the LORDE, & whose hope the LORDE is hymselfe. For he shallbe as a tree that is plā ted by the waters syde, which spreadeth oute the roote vntounto moystnes whom the heate can not hurte whē it cōmeth,Psal. i. but his leaues are grene & in the tyme of drowte shall he not be carefull, neyther shall he cease at ony tyme to bring forth his …ruite.
Secondely ye shall note, that after God hath described him selfe to be almyghtye, that is, passynge all other in power, it is so greate, infinite, & vnmeasurable, he expresseth the duety of so many as wyll serue hym, as they ought. VValKe before me, Our dutye toward godsaythe he, and be perfecte. Loo here is your flour Pure Innocency. He that obserueth this precepte of god, canne not displease, erre or offende, butte worke pure innnocency before god. WalKe before me, sayth he, & be perfecte.What it is to walke be before God
Theo.
What meanethe God by that I praye you?
Phil.
To walke before God is to serue hym according to his worde, so purely and innocētly, as though GOD hymselfe were euer present before oure eyes.
Chri.
This is a hard thīge.
Phil.
The yoke of Christ is swete, ye burdē is lyght, neyther are his preceptes heauy.Math. xi. i. Ioan. v. Roma. viii. Ioan. viii. For where the spirite of the LORDE is, there is liberte. And if the sonne hath made you free, than are ye truly free. And yf ye be endewed wyth strēgth frō aboue, than is nothyng harde, but all thynges easy thorow the spirite, that worketh in you.
Theo.
I praye you declare vntounto vsus, howe we may walke purely & innocētly before God.…ote
Phil.
To walke before God is on such sort to īstitute our lyfe, as he hath appointed ī his holy scripture, & not as carnal reasō imaginethe,Rom. x. or good zeale wtoute knowlege deuiseth cōtrary to ye prescripte of Gods worde, as we hauehave sene here to fore in our mōstruous Mōckes, which laborīg to establish theyr own ryghteousnes, were not made obedient to ye iustice of God. That ye may walke before god,Offayth certayn thīges are to be obserued, first yt ye hauehave a sure, cōstāt, stedfast, tru & lyuysh fayth, to beleue yt, whiche ye holy scriptures tech of god, & of his workes. Ye herd ye God is oīpotēt, almighty, plenteous in power, abū dāt, o… sufficiēt, full of all good:Psal. xv. nedy of nothing. This must ye beleue vndoubtedlye, yf ye wyll walke before God. Ye herd also, yt as God is able, so wyll he healpe so many as call on him in spirite & truethe. Thisalso must ye beleue wtoute ony hesitaciō or doutyng.Ioan. iiii. Heb. li. For wtoute thys fayth no man can please god, nor come vntounto hym aryght. For this fayth is ye foūdacion and grounde of the christen religion. This fayth maketh a christen man.Ioan. xii. Thys fayth makethe vsus the sonnes of lyght. This fayth prouoketh and callethe vntounto God. This Faythe trustethe not in her owne ryghteousnes and good workes, but on the promyses of God.i. Ioan. iiii. Thys fayth maketh vsus to be borne of God. This fayth mitigatethe y• wrath of God. Thys faythe obtayneth al good thynges of God,Ioan. iii. as it is wryttē,Ioel. ii. Act. ii. Rom. x. he that beleueth on him hath euerlastynge lyfe. Beleue in y• Lord, sayth the scripture, & ye shall be safe, & wtoute ony daunger. Agē, EueryEvery one yt calleth on ye name of ye lord, shalbe safe For ther is but one, LORDE of all,Gal. iii. Rom. vi. Ioan. i. sufficiently rytche for so many as call on him. This fayth maketh vsus the sonnes of God, as ye Apostle sayth, all ye are the sonnes of God, bycause ye hauehave beleued in Christ Iesus. Agayne So many as receaue hym, he gaue them power to be made the sonnes of God, in as much as they beleued in his name.Oze. ii. This fayth maryeth vsus to God, as he hym selfe testifyethe, I wyll marye the vntounto me in faythe, and thou shalt knowe that I am the LORDE, Act. xiii. i. Pet. v.Thys fayth purifyeth our hartes. This fayth ouercommeth Satan.i. Ioan. v. This fayth vanquissheth ye worlde.i. Cor. iii. This fayth makethe vsus the Tēples of the lyuyng God.Esa. xxviii. This fayth wyl not suffer vsus to be confounded.Rom. x. This fayth bringeth to vsus the mercy of God in al our aduersite.Esa. lvii. This fayth is the fulfyllynge of Gods cō maūdemētes.Mat. xvi. Rom. v.This fayth makethe vsus the enheritours of the earthe, & possessours of Goddes holy mountayne This fayth maketh vsus to vnderstonde the truethe.Gal. ii. This faythe causeth that hell gates can not preuayle agaynst vsus. This fayth iustifyeth vsus. This Fayth bryngeth all good thynges vntounto vsus.De fide ad Petrum. This fayth as S. Austen saythe, is the begynnynge of mans helth,Libri. De caim et Abel. without this no man can reach or come vntounto the nomber of the sonnes of God wyth out this all the labour of manne is frustrate & voyde. This Faythe, as S. Ambrose saythe, is the roote of all vertues, and that thou byldeste on this foundacion, that alone profyteth vntounto ye reward, of thy worke fruyte & vertue. This fayth, sayth he, is rytcher thā all treasures, strō ger thē all corporall power,Libro de virginitate. & more healthful than all Phisicions. This faythe, as Chrisostome saythe, is a lampe. For a lampe lyghteneth the house,In mat. xxv In illū simb Credo in deum. so doth fayth the soule. This faythe of the Catholyke religion, is the lyght of ye soule, the dore of lyfe the foundaciō of euerlastyng helth. Thus se ye, what an excellent treasure this christen fayth is, without the whyche by no meanes ye canne walke worthely before the LORDE our God.
Moreouer thys your fayth must be conioyned wyth a reuerēt feare towarde God.Of feare Prouer. i. Eccle. i. Prouer. ix. Psal. xiii. For the feare of the LORDE, saythe the wyse man, is the begynnynge of wisdome, and expelleth synne.Note Psal. cxi. Psal. xxxii… Withoute this feare no man can purely walke before God. For he that feareth God truely, feareth also to displease hym, yea he sekethe all meanes possible to accomplysh the wyl of god, as the Psalmo graph sayth, blyssed is that man, yt feareth ye LORDE, for all his delight & pleasure shal be in his cōmaundementes. Unto this feare of GOD dothe Dauid exhorte vsus, sayenge, feare ye the LORDE all ye that are his seruauntes. For they shall neuer wante ye feare hym. The sonne honoreth the father,Ma…a. i. & the seruaūte his Lord, yf I be your father,What feare we ought to hauehave toward god. wher is my honoure? And yf I be youre LORDE, where is my feare, saythe ye LORDE of Hoostes? But this feare ought not to be a seruile and bonde feare, procedynge from an vnwyllynge harte, but a reuerent & gētle feare flowynge oute of louelove.Of louelove. Therfore wyth this your faythe & feare, must ye also hauehave a syncere & pure louelove towarde God cōbyned, so that ye shall both truely beleue in God, reuerently feare hym, & vnfaynedly louelove hī.Deut. x. And this is it, that Moses wryghteth, and now O Israel, sayth he, what doth the LORDE thy god require of the, but that yu shouldest feare the LORDE thy God, and walke in his wayes, & louelove hym, & serue the LORDE thy God in all thy herte & in all thy soule. Nowe hauehave ye herd partely what it is to walke before God.
Euse.
I praye you, what remayneth there behynde?
Phil.
After that ye hauehave conceaued in your hertes this faythe,We muste-e…presse our fayth, feare & louelove towarde God by external good workes. feare & louelove toward God thorow the operacion of the holy Ghoste, so that ye hauehave entred the pathe waye of oure LORDE god, nowe doth conueniēt tyme require, that ye walke not only secretly but also openly before God, tha… is, that ye do not only inwardly in your hertes beleue in God, feare& louelove god, but also that ye outwardly shew forth this your fayth, feare & louelove buryed wythin you by externall workes,Math. v. that men seynge your godly conuersacion, maye then glorify your father, which is in heauē For this is to walke before god,Mark well euē to beleue ī god, to feare god, to louelove God, and to lede an innocēt lyfe accordynge to his holy worde. Without thys innocēcy & purite of lyfe,Deut. xiii. I se not what al fayth, fear or louelove profyt. Followe your LORDE God, sayth Moses, feare hym & kepe hys cōmaūdementes, & heare his voyce,Miche. vi. ye shall serue hym and cleaue vntounto hī. The Prophet Miche also sayth, I wyll shewe the, O man, what is good, & what the LORDE requireth, of the, euen to do iudgement and to louelove mercy, & studiously to walk wt thy God. Here se you, yt yf ye wyll walke before God, ye muste do good dedes, leade a pure & innocent lyfe, study to accomplyshe Gods wyll, & in all poyntes laboure to fasshyon your manners after the rule of goddes worde. Farewel they that bost so much of faythe,Agenste the vayne bosters of fayth. & yet are wicked in all theyr workes. They professe to knowe god, as the Apostle sayth but wythe theyr dedes they denye hym, seynge they are abhominable, disobedient and vnapte to all good workes.Tit. i. Such bosters of fayth do not only slaunder the true & christē fayth, whiche worketh by Charite, but also they deceaue them selues,Gal. v. seynge they hope frely & only to be iustified by thatfayth, which is barren, vnfruytfull & voyd of all good workes.Note here. Let them crake so muche as they lyste of theyr faythe & louelove towarde God, yet are they wicked gosp…llers. For ye louelove of god, sayth saynt Gregory, is neuer ydle. For it worketh great thynges,Gregory. if it be the louelove of god in dede, but if it ceaseth to worke, than it is no louelove.Chrisostom Chrysostome also saythe. The sonnes of GOD are not content to syt ydle, but the spirite prouokethe them to take some great and commendable worke in hand. Uerely as impossible as it is for a good tre tobe wtout a good fruyte, whā the tyme of the yeare cometh,Note thys similitude. so impossible is it for true fayth to be wythout good and christen workes. And as the spirite of God can none otherwyse but do those thynges, that are pleasaūt before God, so in lyke māner a faythful mā, which is the son of god, can not cease frō workyng ye wyl of god. Let these rude raylynge readers of the Gospell therfore be once ashamed of theyr fayth & spirite, wherof so greatly they crake, seynge they are altogyther vnfruytfull and wt oute all good workes.ii. Cor. v. Ioan. xv. If ony man be in Christe, he is a newe creature. He that abydeth in me,Esa. xii. Ioan. vii. Math. vii. Luke. vi. & I in hym sayth Christ, bryngeth forth moche fruyte. And he that beleueth in me, as the scripture sayth, floudes of lyuysh water shall flow out of his bely. EueryEvery good tree bryngeth forth good fruyte. He yt hath not a lust & feruent desyre to worke the wyll of God, and to fasshon his lyfe in all partyes accordyng to the holy law of God, vndoubtedly he hath not y• christen fayth, neyther pertayneth he vntounto Christe, though he bablethe neuer so muche of faythe,i. Cor. iiii. of God, of Christ, & of all the diuine misteries. For the kyngdome of God is not in word,Mat. vii. Luke. vi. Luke. xiii. but in power. Not eueryevery one that sayth vntounto me, LORDE, LORDE sayth Christ, shall enter into ye kingdome of heauen, but he that doth y• wyll of my father, whiche is in heauen. Many shall saye vntounto me, at y• daye, LORDE, LORDE, hauehave not we prophecyed in thy name, & cast out dyuels by thy name,Psal. vi. Luke. vi. Ioan. xiiii. and wrought miracles by thy name? But than shal I saye vntounto them I know you not. Departe from me ye workers of iniquite. He that hathe my commaundementes & kepethe them, he it is yt loueth me. If ony mā loueth me, he wyl kepe my worde, & my father wyll louelove hym, & we wyl come vntounto hym, & dwell with hym. But he that loueth me not, kepethe not my wordes. God hathe not shewed to vsus his manifolde kyndnes, that we should lyue dissolutely and with oute all good order (for so were we vnworthy ony kyndenes at all) but that we should earnestly & wyth all diligence ēploy our selues to worke his wyl, to satisfy so much as lyeth in our power his godly mynd,i. Ioan. ii. Rom. viii. and to walke in all our conuersacion & lyuynge, as his derely beloued son w alked. If he dyd not spare his only begotten Sonne, but gaue hym for vsus all euen vntounto the death, how vnkynde creatures myght we righteously be recounted, if we shoulde not study with herty myndes to accomplysshe his holy preceptes? Are they worthye to be called chyldren,Ioan. iii. which neglecte theyr fathers wyll, & so greatly dissent from theyr Fathers manners?Chyldren oughte to follow ye mā ners of ther father. Oure celestiall father is holy, & shall we his chyldren be prophane and vnholy? Our celestiall father is good, godlye, mercyfull, pacient, & all spirite, & shall we his chyldren be euell, wycked, rygorous, impacient, & all flesshe? Be ye holy, saythe he, for I am holy. Certes god hath not called vsus vntounto vncleannes,Leuit. ix. i. Thes. iiii. but vntounto sanctificacion. Nether hath he delyuered vsus from Satan & his army, that we should lyue wyckedly, but practyse pure ī nocency & true godlynes in all oure lyfe, as Zachary the Preste father to S. Iohn̄ Baptist sayth:Luke. i. He hath performed the othe, which he sware to our father Abraham, for to giuegive that we delyuered oute of the handes of our enemies, myght serue hī without feare all the dayes of oure lyfe in such holines & righteousnes as are acceptable before hym.
Thus se ye that if we wyl walke before God,Tit. iii. we maye not onlye beleue in God, feare & louelove God, but also lead a pure & innocent lyfe, be plēteous in good workes, & altogither studious of tru godlines.
Chri.
But I pray you,Why the scripture vseth thys worde walk why doth ye scripture vse thys terme, VValKe, rather than ony other?
Phil.
It is not with out a cause: Ye knowe, he that stondeth styl, moueth nothing forward nor hasteth not vntounto the end of his iourney. But he that walketh is euer goynge, & draweth alwaye nerer and nerer vntounto hys iourneyes ende. In consideracion wherof, the holy Scripture vsethe this worde, VValKe, Psa. lxxxiii Rom. ii.to put vsus in remembraunce, that if we hauehave begun well, in oure professiō, we should not there cease & stonde styll, but go forthe frō vertue to vertue, from fayth to fayth, vntyll at the laste we attayne vntounto ye perfecciō of pure innocēcy.Mat. xxiiii. For he yt cōtinueth vntounto ende, sayth christ, shalbe saued. Agē, be faythfull vntounto the death, and I shall gyue the the crowne of lyfe.Apoc. ii. This word we read in diuers places of the holy Scriptures, Christ sayth, walke whyle ye hauehave lyght,Ioan. xii. that the darkenes doth not ouerwhelme you. For he that walketh in darkenes, knoweth not whyther he goethe. S. Paule also sayth,Ephe. v. walke as the childrē of light, prouyng what is acceptable to the LORDE. Agayne, loke that ye walke circumspectly, not as vnwyse, but as wyse,Colos. iiii. redemynge the tyme, for y• dayes are euell. Hytherto pertayneth ye sayenge of S. Iohn,i. Ioan. ii. he that sayeth leth in Christ, ought to walke euen as he hath walked. These places wt all other suche lyke declare to vsus yt we ought so to walke in our profession by encreasynge dayely in vertues, that at the last we may be perfecte, & as S. Paule sayth,Colos. i. make eueryevery man perfecte in Christ Iesus. And this is it, that followeth ī the latter ende of the sentēce. And be perfecte. For we ought so to walk,Gen. xvii. that is, encrease in all godlynes, vertu & honeste, that we might be perfecte, as Christe saythe, be ye perfecte,Mat. v. as youre heauenly father is perfecte. Also Saynte Paule,ii. Cor. xiii. Reioyse and be perfect.Degrees of perfeccion. It is one degre of vertu to louelove my neyghbour, but it is an higher degre to louelove myne enemy, but the moost excellēt degre aboue all, is so to louelove oure verye enemyes, that we can be contented not only to do them good, but also euē to gyue our lyues to wynne them vntounto Christ. It is a poynte of mercy… to helpe my poore neyghbour with my superfluous goodes, but it is a poynte of perfeccion to sel all that euer I hauehave, & to gyue it to ye poore as Christe sayde to the rytche man, If thou wylte be perfecte,Mat. ix. Luke. xii. go, and sell all that thou haste, and gyue it to the poore, & thou shalte hauehave treasure in Heauen, and come on thy waye & followe me. It is a poynt of godlynes to beare an honeste herte towarde the worde of God, yet it is much more, openly to cōfesse it boldly before men, but the very perfecte poynte of godlynes is, not only to louelove & confesse it,Mat. x. Mark. viii. Lu…e. xii. but also manly to abyde by it, euē vntounto ye very death, if nede so requireth. Nowe therfore euē vntounto ye moost & greatest perfeccion in all thynges ought we to contend & labour, that we maye walke before God, and be perfecte.
Euse.
I thyncke there be but fewe, that attayne & come vntounto this perfeccion.
Phil.
This youre floure is in dede to the carnall man of a bytter and vnpleasaunt sauour,i. Cor. ii. but to the spirituall & truly regenerate, it smelleth sweter thā ony rose.
Theo.
God graunt, that we maye once be auncient in Christ.
Phile.
Labour & God wyl helpe. Enter in at the streyght gate. For wyde is the gate,Math. vii. Luke. xiii. & broad is the waye, that leadethe vntounto destrucion, and many there be, which go in therat. But streyghte is the gate, & narowe is the waye, whiche leadethe vntounto lyfe, & fewe there be, that fynde it.ii. Tim. ii. Mat. x.xvi. Luke. xiiii. i. Ioan. ii. Gala. v. If ye wyll lyue and reygne in glory with christ, ye must suffer with Christe, ye muste take y• Crosse of Christ & followe hym. Ye must cast awaye all the vayne pleasures and pompes of the world, the concupiscences & lustes of the fleshe ye must mortifye, Satan & all hys subtile suggestiōs ye must māfully resist.…. Petre. v. Iacob. iiii. Luke. xxiiii. Ye must dye vntounto synne, and lyue vntounto ryghteousnes. For christ dyd not enter into glory, before he had suffered, & thyncke ye the gates of heauen to be opēned for you, if ye lyue in this world in ioy, pleasure & after ye flesh? Na verely ye maye be sure. For ye Apostle sayth yf ye lyue after the flesh,Rom. viii. ye shal dy. But if ye mortify the dedes of ye body in ye spirite ye shal liue. And this is it, that remayneth of your flour.Gen. xvii. And I vvyll make my couenaunte betvvene me and the, and vvyll multiplye the beyonde all measure. God commaundynge Abraham to walke before hym, and to be perfect addeth this promyse aforefayde, & hath vndoutedly accōplyshed it. Let vsus also work before God & be perfecte, and ye promyse also shalbe fulfylled in vsus. God wyll multiply vsus beyond all measure both in this worlde, and in ye worlde to come, as Christ sayth, ther is no man y• hath forsaken house, or father & mother,Mat. xxix. Luke. xviii or brothers, or wyfe, or children for the kyngdome of heauē, but y• shall receaue moche more in thys tyme, and in ye world to come euerlastyng lyfe.
Chri.
GOD graunte vsus so to walke, that we maye be founde worthy this eternal lyfe.A brefe rehersal of this floure.
Phil.
wel neighbours, seynge that God is almyghty, plenteous in power, abundant, omnisufficient, ful of all good, nedy of nothynge, liberall, gentle, mercifull, redy to helpe at eueryevery houre, & wholly bente to beatifye and make welthye so many as call on hym in spirite and verite,Ioan. iiii. whome would it not delyght to do seruyse vntounto such a LORDE, & to walke before him and to be perfecte, seynge that for oure seruyse doynge he wyl encrease and multiplye vsus, that is to saye, gyue vsus in thys worlde abundans of all thynges necessary for this our lyfe, & in the worlde to come euerlastyng glorye?
Euse.
This is a swete floure, that ye hauehave nowe gyuen vsus.
Theo.
I beseche God, that we maye smell well of it.
Chri.
Yea and that the sauour maye longe continue in vsus.
Phil.
To that I say Amē. For if this cōe to passe, ye maye be sure to hauehave the fauour bothe of God and man, whiche of all treasures is the greatest. And of this shall ye not fayle, if ye labour to walke before God and be perfect, which I cal, Pure Innocēcy, He that is pure from synne, and innocent or harmeles in his conuersaciō, he muste nedes fynde grace and fauour in the eyes both of god and of all men. Therfore dere brothers cleaue stedfastlye to this one verye God almyghty by true faythe,An exhorta…ion vntounto true fayth & good workes. as ye onlye Author of all good thynges, feare him reuerently as a beneficiall LORDE, louelove hym tenderlye as a gentle Father, and so walke accordynge to his moost diuine pleasure in clennes of lyfe and pure innocē cy without ony faynynge, dissimulacion or Hypocrisye, that ye maye in this worlde be gouerned of hym in al your Actes thorow his moost holy spirite, & in the worlde to come enioye the glory eternall.
Euse.
Amē good LORDE.
Phil.
Your duties learned towarde youre selues & god, I wil now declare how ye ought to be hauehave your selues toward our moost Christen & excelente Kynge, and all other rulers that are sent of hym. And this shall be the thyrde floure of your Nosegay.
Theo.
Neuer in better tyme. It commeth wel in place. Let vsus se it, I praye you.