Godly Meditations Upon the Lords Prayer, Part 7 – Part 10
A MEDITATION of the comming of Chriſt to Iudgement and of the rewarde bothe of the faythefull and vnfaithfull.
OH lorde Ieſus Chriſt the ſōne of the euerliuing god, by whō al thinges were made, are ruled and gouerned, as of thy louelove for our redemption thou diddeſt not diſdaine to be our mediatour and to take vppon thee oure nature in the wombe of a virgyn puerly and with out ſinne by the operacion of the holy ſpirite, that both thou mighteſt in thyne owne perſon wonderfullye beutifye and exalte oure nature and worke the ſame in vsus alſo, firſt aboliſhing the giltines of ſinne by remiſſyon, then ſynne it ſelfe by death, and laſt of al death by reiſing vp againe theſe our bodies, that they may be like vntounto thine owne glorious & immortall body, according to the power wherwith thou art able to ſubiect all thinges vntounto the: As I ſay of thy louelove for oure redemption thou becameſt man, and that moſte poore and afflicted vpō earth by the ſpace of xxxiii. yeares at the leaſt, in moſt humilitie, and paideſt the price of our raunſom by thy moſte bytter death & paſſion, for the which I moſt hartely geue thankes to thee: So of the ſame thy louelove towards vsus in thy good time, thou wilte come againe in the cloudes of heauen with power and great glory, with flaming fyer, with thouſandes of Sainctes, with Mat. 25.Angells of thy power, wt a mightie crie, ſhoute of an Archangell, & blaſt of a trompe, ſuddenlye as the lightning which ſhineth from the eaſt &c when men thinke leaſte, euen as a thefe in y• night, whē mē be a ſlepe, y• wilt ſo come (I ſay) thus ſuddenlye in the twinkling of an eye, all men that euer hauehave bene, be and ſhalbe, with wemen & children, appearinge before thy tribunal Iudgemēt ſeat, to render an accompte of all things whiche they hauehave thought ſpoken … done againſt thy lawe, openlye and before all Angells, ſaintes, and deuilles, and ſo to receiue the Iuſte reward of thy vengeaunce, if that they hauehave not repented and obeyed the goſpell, & ſo to departe from thee to y• deuil & his angells & al the wicked which euer hauehave bene, be, or ſhalbe, into hol…ſter, which is vnquenchable & of paines intolerable, eaſeles, endles, hopeles, euen frō the face of thy glorious and mightie power: but it they hauehave repented and beleued thy goſpell, if they be found watchynge with their lampes and oyle in their hands, if they be founde ready appareled with the wedding garment of innocencie, if they hauehave not hardened their hartes, & hourded vp their treaſure of thy vengeaūce in y• daye of wrathe to be reueyled, but hauehave vſed y• time of grace, the acceptable time, the tyme of ſaluatyon, that is the tyme of this lyfe in the whyche thou ſtretcheſt oute thy hande and ſpreadeſt thyne armes callinge and cryinge vntounto vsus to come vntounto thee which art meeke in harte and lowely; for thou wilt eaſe all that labour and are heauy loden, if they hauehave viſyted the ſycke & priſoners, comforted y• cōferties, fedde y• hungry, clothed y• naked, lodged y• harbourles, if they hauehave not loden theyr hartes wt glotteny and ſurfeting and carefulnes of this life, yf they hauehave not digged & hid their talent in the ground doing no good there with, but hauehave bene faithfull to occupie thy gyftes to thy glory and heare waſhen their garments in thy bloude by hartie repentinge them: Then ſhall thy Angells gather them together, not as the wicked which ſhalbe collected as fagotts and caſt into the fier, but as y• good wheat that is gathered into thy barne, then ſhall they be caught vp to meete thee in the cloudes, then ſhall their corruptible bodye put on incorruption, then ſhall they be indued with immortalitie and glory, then ſhall they be with thee and goe whether thou goeſt, then ſhall they heare, come bleſſed of my father poſſeſſe the kingdome prepared for you frō the beginning &c, then ſhal they be ſet on ſeates of maieſty iudgeing y• whole world, then ſhal they raign with the… for euer, then ſhal god be al in al with them and to them, then ſhal they enter & enherete heauenly Ieruſalem and the glorious reaſtful lād of Canaā, where is alwaies day and neuer night, where is no maner of weping, teares, infirmity, hunger cold, ſicknes, enuy, malice, nor ſinne, but alwaies ioic wtout ſorrow, mirth without meaſure, pleaſure without paine, heauenly harmonie, moſt pleaſant melodie, ſaying & ſinging holy holye, holye lorde god of hoaſtes &c: Suma the …le hath not ſene the eare hath not heard, neither hathe it entered into the hart of man that they ſhal then enherete & moſt ſuerly enioye, although here they be tormented priſoned, burned, ſollicited of Sathan, tempted of the fleſhe, and entangled with y• world, wherthrough they are enforced to crye, thy kingdome come: come lord Ieſu &c: howe Apoc. 22.amiable are thy tabernacles? Like as y• hart deſireth y• water brokes &c: Pſa. 42.Now let thy ſeruāt depart in peace: I deſire to be diſſolued & to be with Chriſt: we morne in our ſelues waiting Rom. 8.for the deliuerāce of our bodies &c. Oh gracious lorde when ſhall I find ſuch mercy wt thee, that I maye repente, beleue, hope and looke for this geare, with the full fruition of theſe heauēly ioyes which thou haſt prepared for al them that feare thee, and ſo reſt with thee for euer more.
A MEDITATION CONCERning the ſober vſage both of the bodye and pleaſures in this life.
THYS our body which god hath made to be the tabernacle and manſiō of our ſoule for thys life if we cōſidred accordingly, we coulde not but vſe it otherwiſe then we do, that is we would vſe it for the ſouls ſake being the geſte therof, and not for the body it ſelf, and ſo ſhuld it be ſerued in things to helpe, but not to hynder the ſoule. A ſeruant it is and therfore it ought to obey to ſerue the ſoule that ye ſoule might ſerue god, not as the body wil neyther as the ſoule it ſelfe wyll, but as god wyll, whoſe wil we ſhuld learne to know & behaue oure ſelues therafter. The which thig to obſerue, is hard for vsus nowe by reaſon of ſinne which hath gotten a manſyon houſe in oure bodies, and dwelleth in vsus as doth the ſoule, to y• which (ſinne I meane) we ar altogether of our ſelues inclined, becauſe we naturally are ſynners & borne in ſinne, by reaſon wherof we are ready as ſeruantes to ſynne and to vſe oure bodies accordingly, making the ſoule to ſytte at rewarde, & pampering vp the ſeruaunt to oure ſhame. Oh therfore (good lord) that it wold pleaſe thee to opē this geare vntounto me, and to geue me eyes to conſider effectually this my bodie what it is, namely a ſeruant lent for the ſoule to ſoiorne in & ſerue thee ī this life: yea it is by reaſō of ſinne y• hath his dwelling there, become nowe to the ſoule nothing els but a priſon & that moſt ſtraite, vile, ſtinking, fylthy, and therfore in daunger of miſeries, to many in al ages, tymes, & places, till deathe hathe turned it to duſte whereof it came and whether it ſhall returne, that the ſoule maye returne to thee from whence it came, vntil the day of Iudgement come, in the whiche yu wilte reiſe vp that body, that then it may be partaker with the ſoule & the ſoule with it inſeparably of weale or woe, according to that is done in & by the ſame body here nowe in earth.
Oh that I could conſyder often and hartely theſe thinges, then ſhoulde I not pamper vp thys body to obey it, but brydle it that it might obey y• ſoule, then ſhould I flye the paine it putteth my ſoule vntounto by reaſon of ſynne and prouocation to al euyl, & continually deſyre the diſſolution of it wt Paul, & y• deliuerance frō it, as Philip. 1.much as euer dyd priſoner his delyueraunce out of priſon, for alonelyr by it the deuyl hath a dore to tempt and ſo to hurte me: in it I am kepte frō thy preſence, and thou from being ſo conuerſant with me as els yu wouldeſte be: by it I am reſtrained from the ſenſe and feeling of all the ioyes and cōfortes (in maner) which are to be taken as ioyes and comfortes in dede. If it were diſſolued and I oute of it, then coulde Sathan no more hurt me, then wouldeſt thou ſpeake wt me face to face, then the conflicting time were at an end, then ſorow would ceaſe and ioye woldencreaſe, and I ſhuld enter into ineſtimable reſte. Oh that I conſidered this accordingly
AN OTHER mediation to the ſame effecte
THE begynning of al euyl in our kind of lyuinge ſpringeth oute of the deprauatyon and corruptnes of our Iudgement, becauſe our wil alwaies foloweth-that whiche reaſon Iudgeth to be folowed. Now that which eueryevery man taketh to be frendly and agreing to his nature, the ſame doth he Iudge neceſſarely to be good for him and to be deſyred. This is meate, drinke, apparell, riches, fauour, dignitye, rule, knowledge, and ſuche like, becauſe they are thought good and agreing either to the body or to the minde or to both, for they helpe either to the cōſeruatiō or to the pleaſure of mā, accompted of euerye one amongeſt good thinges.
How beit ſuche is the weaknes of our witte on y• one part, & the blindnes and to muche rage of our luſtes on the other part: that we being left to oure ſelues, cannot but in the deſire of thinges which we iudge good and agreinge to oure nature, by the Iudgement of our ſenſes and reaſō, we cannot (I ſay) but ouer paſſe the boundes wherby they might be profitable vntounto vsus, and ſo we make thē hurtful to vsus, whiche of the themſelues are ordained for our health. What is more neceſſarye then meate and drinke, or more agreing to nature? but yet how fewe be there which de not hurt thēſelues by them? In like maner it goeth wt riches, eſtimatiō, frendes, lerning &c. Yea althoughe we be ī theſe moſt. tēperate, yet whē there wanteth y• ſpirit our regeneratour, we are ſo drouned. in thē, … we vtterly neglect to lift vp our mīds to the good pleaſure of god, to the ends we mighte imitate and folowe god our maker by yelding our ſelnes oiuer dulye to vſe his giftes to y• common & priuate vtility of oure neighbours. But now, gōd only is life & cternity, & cannot but demaund of vsus his. handiworke, y• we ſhould render …ure ſelues & al we hauehave to the ende wherfore we were made, y• is to reſemble for our portion his goodnes, as thoſe which be nothinge els but witneſſes & inſtrumēts of his m…y. So y• when we wholly do naturally …riue agaīſt y• kind of life wherto he hath creat vsus, by ſeking alwaies ourſelues, what other thing ought to enſue, but y• he ſhuld again deſtroy vsus & take away his notable gifts, wher wt be endued vsus y• by al kind of wel doing we ſhuld reſemble his image, yea what other this may enſue but that he ſhuld leaue vsus & y• eternally, y• we might fele & by experiēce proue how bitter a thing it is to leaue y• lord … whō is al goodnes. Oh y• therfore I might finde ſuch fauour in thy ſight dere father, y• yu woldeſt worke in …e by thy holy ſpirit a true knowledge of al good thinges and harty louelove to the ſame through. Chriſt Ieſus our lord and only ſauiour Amen.
A MEDITATION FOR THE exercyſe of true mortification.
HE that wilbe readye in weightie matters to denie his owne w… & to be obedient to the wyl of God, the ſame had nede to accuſtome him ſelfe to deny his deſyres in matters of ieſſe weyght, and to exercyſe mortification of his owne wil in triſles. For if that … affectiōs by this daily cuſtome, be not (as it were) half ſlaine, ſurely ſurely when they lunge ſhal come, we ſhal fynd the more to doe, If we cannot watch with chriſt one howre, as he ſaieth to Peter, we vndoubtedly can muche leſſe goe to death with him. Wherefore that in great temptacions we may be ready to ſay with Chriſt, not my wyll but thine be done, in that this commōly commeth not to paſſe but where the rotes of our luſtes by thy grace (dere father) are almoſt rotten and rooted out by a daily deniall of that they deſire: I humbly beſech thee for chriſts ſake to help me herein. Firſt pardon me my cheriſhing, & (as it were) watering of mine affections, obeyinge them in theyr deuyſes and ſuperfluous deſyres: wherthroughe in that they hauehave taken depe roote, and are to liuely in me, I ſecondly do beſech thee to pul them vp by the rotes out of my hart, and ſo henceforth to order me, that I may cōtinually accuſtome my ſelf to weaken the principal rote, that the byrotes & braunthes may loſe al their power. Graūt me (I beſech thee) y• thy grace maye daily mortifie my cōcupiſcēce of pleaſant things, y• is of wealth, riches, glory, libertie, fauour of mē, meats, drinks apparel, eaſe, yea & life it ſelf y• the horror and impaciencie of more greuous things, may he weakened, and I made more pacient in aduerſytie. Whervnto I further deſire & pray thy goodnes (deare father, that thou wilt adde this, namely that I may for euer become obedient & ready to thy good wil in al things, hartely & willingly to ſerue thee, & doe whatſoeuer mai pleaſe the. For doutles, although we accuſtome oure ſelues in y• pleaſant things of this life to a mortificatiō & denyal of our ſelues, yet we ſhal find enough to doe when more bitter & weighty croſſes come. For if thy ſonne oure ſauiour (euer wōt to obey thy good wil) praied ſo hartely & oftē: not my wil but thy wil be don, whereby he declareth himſelf to be veri mā, how cā it be but we whoſe nature is corrupt not only in natiuity but in y• reſt of oure whole life alſo, ſhal find both our hāds ful ī great & greuoꝰ tēptations, wholy to reſigne our ſelues vntounto thee? Graūt therfore, dere father, for thy Chriſts ſake to me a moſt miſerable wretch, thi grace & holy ſpirit to be effectual in me, y• daily I maye accuſtome my ſelf to deny my wil, in more eaſye & pleaſant things of this life, y• when nede ſhal be I may come wt chriſt to thee wt a reſigned wil, alwaies ſtedfaſtly expecting thy mercye, & in the meane ſeaſon, continually obeyng thee with readines and willingnes, doyng what ſo euer may moſt pleaſe thee, through chriſt our lord, whiche liueth with thee &c.