The Supper of the Lord, Part 5
¶At laste, consyder vntounto what ende all thingis tended in that last souper, how the fygure teched the verite, the shadew the bodye, and how the verite abolesshed the fygure, and the shadewe gaue place to the bodye. Loke also with what congruence, proporcion, and similitude bothe in the accion and the speche, all thinges were consonāt and finesshed, and all …o lede vsus by siche sensible sygnes frome the fygure vntounto the verite, from the flesshe vntounto the spirit, And take thou here this infallible and assuered sayng of Cryste neuer to fall fro thy mynde in this last souper.Lu. 22. Do ye this into the rememberāce of me. And also of Paule, sayng 1. co. 11. So oft as ye shal ete this brede, lo this heretike calleth it brede euen aftyr the wordis of the popis consecracion, and drincke of this cuppe, prayse, declare, and geue thankes for the dethe of the lorde, vntyl he shal come agene to iugement. Remember thou also: what Cryste sayd to the carnall iwes takinge the etinge of his flesshe and drinkinge of his blood so carnally, answeringe them. My flessh profiteth n… menīg to ete it bodely.Ioh… ̄. … but the spirit maketh lyfe. And to this set the prophet A…a…uke sentence. The iuste lyueth of his faithe.Abac. …
And now (Crysten reder) to put the …le…e oute of doute, that Crystis bodye is not here present vnderunder the forme of brede (as the papistis hauehave mocked vsus many a daye) but in heuen, euen as he rose and ascended, Thou shalt knowe that he tolde his disciples almoste twnty tymes betwene the .13. and .18. cap. of Iohan, that he shulde, and wolde go hence, and leue this worlde. where to conforte them agene for that thei were so heuy for his bodely absence, he promised to sende them his holy goste to be their conforter, defender, and techer: in whom, and by whom, he wolde be presēt with them and all faithful vntounto the worldis ende. He sayd vntounto his disciples. I go hence, I go to the father, I leue the worlde, and now shal I no more be in the worlde. but ye shall abyde stil in the worlde. Father I come to the. Pore men hauehave ye eue… with you, but me shall ye not alwais hauehave with you. And when he ascendid vntounto heuen,…. 2. thei did beholde him and sawe th… clowde take his bodye out of their syght: and thei fastening their eyes aftir him, the two mē clothed in whight, sayd vntounto them. ye men of galyle, wherfore stande ye thus lokinge vp in to heuen? This is Iesus that is taken vp frome you into heuen, whiche shal so come agene, euen as ye hauehave sene him goynge hence. Here I wolde not More to …itte from his litteral playn sense. All these so playne wordis be sufficient, I trowe, to a crysten man to certifye his conscience that Cryste went his waye bodely ascending into heuen. For when he had tolde his disciples so ofte of his bodely departing from them: they were meruelouse heuy and sadde. Unto whom Cryste sayd. Because I tolde ye that I go hence,Io. 14. &. 16. your herts ar ful of heuenes. If they had not beleued hym to hauehave spokē of hys very bodely absence: they wolde neuer hauehave so morned for hys goyng away And for because they so vnderstode hym, and he so ment as hys wordis sowned: He added (as he shulde hauehave sayde) be ye neuer so heuye or how heuely so euer ye take my goyng hence, yet do I tell ye trouthe. For it is expedyent for you that I go hence… For if I shuld not go hence, that counforter shall not come vntounto you. But and if I go hence, I shal sende hym vntounto you. And agayn in the same Cap. I am comē frome the father, and am comen into the worlde, and shall leue the worlde agene and go to my father. what mystery, thynke ye, shuld be in these so manyfeste wordis? Dyd he speke them in any darke parables? Dyd he mean other wyse then he spake? Dyd he vnderstāde by goyng hence so ofte repered, to tary here styll? or dyd he mene by forsakyng and leuyng the worlde to be but inuisible beyng styll in the worlde wyth hys bodye? No suerly. For he ment as faithfully and as playnely as hys wordis sowned… and euen so dyd hys disciples wyth out any more meruelynge vnderstode him. For they answerd him sayng: Lo now spekest thou apertely: nether spekest thou any ꝓuerbe. But what a derke prouerbe and subtyle rydle had it bene: if he had ment by hys goynge hence to hauehave taryed here styll? and by forsakynge the worlde, to abyde …tyll in the worlde? and by hys goyng hence to hys father by hys very bodely ascencion, to be but inuisible? who wolde interprete thys playne sentence thus? I go hence, that is to saye: I tarye here styll I forsake the world and go to the father, that is to saye I wyll be but inuisible and yet here abyde styll in the worlde bodely? For as concernyng hys godhed, whiche was euer wyth the father, and in all placys at once, he neuer spake syche wordis of it. whan Cryste sayde, hys dethe now at hande, vntounto hys disciples: now agene I forsake the worlde and go to my father, but ye shall tary styl in the world. If they wyl expowne by hys forsakyng the worlde, to tarye here styl bodely, and to be but inuysyble: why do they not …y lyke exposicion interprete the tarynge here styl of the disciples at that tyme, to be gone hē ce bodely and to be here visible? For Crist did set these contraryes one agenst a nother to declare eche other. as if to tarye here styll, dyd signyfye to the disciples that they shulde abyde in the worlde, as it dothe in dede: thē muste nedis his goyng hēce & forsakyng the worlde signifie his bodely absence as both the wordis plainely sowne, Cryste ment, & they vnderstode them. But in so playne, a mater what nede all these wordis? Be thou therfore suer, Crysten reder, that Crystis glorified body is not in this worlde, but in heuen, as he thyther ascended in whiche body he shall come euē as he wēt gloriously wythe powr and grete maiestye to iuge all the worlde in the laste daye, Be thou therfore assuered, that he neuer thus i…geled no… mocked hys so dere beloued disciples so ful of heuines now for hys bodely deꝑtynge. For if he had so ment as our papistis hauehave paruerted his sayngis, his disciples wolde hauehave wondered at so strange maner of speche, and he wolde … …xpressed his mynde playnly, sithe at thys tyme he was so full set to leue them in no doute, but to counfort them with hys playne and confortable wordis. And yf he wolde hauehave bene but inuisible and still bodely present: he woulde neuer hauehave couered himselfe wyth the clowde shewynge them and testifyenge also by those two men his very bodely ascension oute of theyr syghtis. we maye not make of his very bodely ascension, siche an inuysyble iugelynge caste as oure papistis fay…e, Fasshoning and fayning Cryste a bodye nowe inuisible, now in manye placis at once, and then so greate and yet in so lytel a place, not discerned of any of our sensis nowe gloryfied, now vngloryfied, now passible, and then impassible, and I wote ner what they imagyn and make of theyr maker, and all with oute any worde, ye clene agaynste all the wordis of holy scripture. For suerly, in thys theyr imaginacion and so sayng thei bringe in a fresshe the heresye of that great hereti… Marcyon, whiche sayd that Criste toke but a phā tasticall bodye… and so was nether verely borne, nor suffered, nor rose, nor ascended verelye, nether was he very man. whiche heresye Tertullian cōfuteth. Cryste toke verely oure nature, siche a passible and mortal body as we here aboute with vsus, saue that it was with oute all maner of synne. In siche a body he suffred verely, & rose agen frome dethe in siche a glorifyed body now immortall &c. as eueryevery one of vsus shall ryse in at the general iudgement. It is appropryed onelyonly to his godhe… to be eueryevery whore and not to be circumscribed nor contaned in no place. And as for our papistis prophane voyde voyces, his bodye to be in many places at once, indiffinitiue incircūscripti…e non permodum quanti ne que localiter &c. whiche includeth in it s…lfe contradiccion, of whiche Paule warned Timothe. 1. Timo. 6: &. 2. Tim. 2. callyng them thopposicions of a false named scyence (for that their scolasticall diuinite muste make obiec…ions agaynste eueryevery trouthe, be it neuer so playne wyth pro & contra: whych scyence many that ꝓfesse it saith Paule. 1. Tim. 2. hauehave erred from the fai…he) as for this contē cion and bataill aboute wordis profitable for nothynge els, but to subuerte the herers I care not for them. For I hauehave the almyghty testymony of the…erlastinge worde of God redy to soyle all their madde and vnreasonable reasons, to wype them clene a waye, & to turne them into their owne confusion.