Eighty Sermons, miscellaneous · Sermon 80
SERM. LXXX. Preached at the funerals of Sir William Cokayne Knight, Alderman of London, December 12. 1626.
JOH. 11.21.
Lord, if thou hadſt been here, my brother had not died.
GOd made the firſt Marriage, and man made the firſt Divorce; God married the Body and Soule in the Creation, and man divorced the Body and Soule by death through ſinne, in his fall. God doth not admit, not juſtifie, not authorize ſuch Super-inductions upon ſuch Divorces, as ſome have imagined; That the ſoule departing from one body, ſhould become the ſoule of another body, in a perpetuall revolution and tranſmigration of ſoules through bodies, which hath been the giddineſſe of ſome Philoſophers to think; Or that the body of the dead ſhould become the body of an evill ſpirit, that that ſpirit might at his will, and to his purpoſes informe, and inanimate that dead body; God allowes no ſuch Super-inductions, no ſuch ſecond Marriages upon ſuch divorces by death, no ſuch diſpoſition of ſoule or body, after their diſſolution by death. But becauſe God hath made the band of Marriage indiſſoluble but by death, farther then man can die, this divorce cannot fall upon man; As farre as man is immortall, man is a married man ſtill, ſtill in poſſeſſion of a ſoule, and a body too; And man is for ever immortall in both; Immortall in his ſoule by Preſervation, and immortall in his body by Reparation in the Reſurrection. For, though they be ſeparated à Thoro & Menſa, from Bed and Board, they are not divorced; Though the ſoule be at the Table of the Lambe, in Glory, and the body but at the table of the Serpent, in duſt; Though the ſoule be in lecto florido, Cant. 1.16.in that bed which is alwayes green, in an everlaſting ſpring, in Abrahams Boſome; And the body but in that green-bed, whoſe covering is but a yard and a halfe of Turfe, and a Rugge of graſſe, and the ſheet but a winding ſheet, yet they are not divorced; they ſhall returne to one another againe, in an inſeparable re-union in the Reſurrection. To eſtabliſh this aſſurance of a Reſurrection in us, God does ſometimes in this life, that which he hath promiſed for the next; that is, he gives a Reſurrection to life, after a bodily death here. God hath made two Teſtaments, two Wills; And in both, he hath declared his Power, and his Will, to give this new life after death, in this world. To the Widows ſonne of Zarephtha, 1. King. 17.he bequeaths new life; and to the Shunamites ſonne, he gives the ſame legacy,2 King. 4. in the Old Teſtament. In the New Teſtament, to the widow of Naims ſonne,Luk. 7.8. he bequeaths new life; And to Iairus daughter he gives the ſame legacy: And out of the ſurpluſage of his inexhauſtible eſtate, out of the overflowing of his Power, he enables his Executors to doe as he did; for Peter gives Dorcas this Reſurrection too.Act. 9.40. Divers examples hath he given us, of the Reſurrection of every particular man, in particular Reſurrections; ſuch as we have named; And one of the generall Reſurrection, in the Reſurrection of Chriſt himſelfe; for, in him, we all roſe; for, he was All in All; Con-vivificavit, Epheſ. 2.5.ſayes the Apoſtle; and Conſidere nos fecit, God hath quickned us, (all us; not onelyonly S. Paul, and his Epheſians, but all) and God hath raiſed us, and God hath made us to ſit together in heavenly places, in Chriſt Ieſus. They that are not faln yet by any actuall ſinne, (children newly baptized) are riſen already in him; And they that are not dead yet, nay, not alive yet, not yet borne, have a Reſurrection in him, who was not onelyonly the Lambe ſlaine from the beginning, but from before all beginnings was riſen too; and all that ſhall ever have part in the ſecond Reſurrection, are riſen with him from that time. Now, next to that great Propheticall action, that type of the generall Reſurrection, in the Reſurrection of Chriſt, the moſt illuſtrious Evidence, of the Reſurrection of particular men, is this Reſuſcitation of Lazarus; whoſe ſiſter Martha, directed by faith, and yet tranſported by paſſion, ſeeks to entender and mollifie, and ſupple him to impreſſions of mercy and compaſſion, who was himſelfe the Mold, in which all mercy was caſt, nay, the ſubſtance, of which all mercy does conſiſt, Chriſt Jeſus, with this imperfect piece of Devotion, which hath a tincture of Faith, but is deeper dyed in Paſſion, Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not dyed.
This Text which you Heare, Martha's ſingle words,Diviſio. complicated with this Text which you See, The dead body of this our Brother, makes up between them this body of Inſtruction for the ſoule; firſt, That there is nothing in this world perfect; And then, That ſuch as it is, there is nothing conſtant, nothing permanent. We conſider the firſt, That there is nothing perfect, in the beſt things, in ſpirituall things; Even Martha's devotion and faith hath imperfections in it; And we conſider the other, That nothing is permanent in temporall things; Riches proſperouſly multiplied, Children honorably beſtowed, Additions of Honor and Titles, fairly acquired, Places of Command and Government, juſtly received, and duly executed; All teſtimonies, all evidences of worldly happineſſe, have a Diſſolution, a Determination in the death of this, and of every ſuch Man: There is nothing, no ſpirituall thing, perfect in this world; Nothing, no temporall thing, permanent and durable; And theſe two Conſiderations ſhall be our two parts; And then, theſe the branches from theſe two roots; Firſt, in the firſt, we ſhall ſee in generall, The weakneſſe of Mans beſt actions; And ſecondly, more particularly, The weakneſſes in Martha's Action; And yet, in a third place, the eaſineſſe, the propenſneſſe, the largeneſſe of Gods goodneſſe towards us, in the acceptation of our imperfect Sacrifices; for, Chriſt does not refuſe, nor diſcourage Martha, though her action have theſe imperfections; And in this largeneſſe of his Mercy, which is the end of all, we ſhall end this part. And in our ſecond, That as in ſpirituall things nothing is perfect, ſo in tempoporall things nothing is permanent, we ſhall, by the ſame three ſteps, as in the former, looke firſt upon the generall conſideration, the fluidneſſe, the tranſitorineſſe of all ſuch temporall things; And then, conſider it more particularly, in Gods Maſter-piece, amongſt mortall things, the body of man, That even that flowes into putrefaction; And then laſtly, returne to that, in which we determined the former part, The largeneſſe of Gods goodneſſe to us, in affording even to mans body, ſo diſſolved into putrefaction, an incorruptible and a glorious ſtate. So have you the frame ſet up, and the roomes divided; The two parts, and the three branches of each; And to the furniſhing of them, with meditations fit for this Occaſion, we paſſe now.
In entring upon the firſt branch of our firſt part,1. Part. In ſpiritualibus, nihil perfectum. Scientia. That in ſpirituall things nothing is perfect, we may well afford a kinde of ſpirituall nature to knowledge; And how imperfect is all our knowledge? What one thing doe we know perfectly? Whether wee conſider Arts, or Sciences, the ſervant knows but according to the proportion of his Maſters knowledge in that Art, and the Scholar knows but according to the proportion of his Maſters knowledge in that Science; Young men mend not their ſight by uſing old mens Spectacles; and yet we looke upon Nature, but with Ariſtotles Spectacles, and upon the body of man, but with Galens, and upon the frame of the world, but with Ptolomies Spectacles. Almoſt all knowledge is rather like a child that is embalmed to make Mummy, then that is nurſed to make a Man; rather conſerved in the ſtature of the firſt age, then growne to be greater; And if there be any addition to knowledge, it is rather a new knowledge, then a greater knowledge; rather a ſingularity in a deſire of propoſing ſomething that was not knowne at all before, then an emproving, an advancing, a multiplying of former inceptions; and by that meanes, no knowledge comes to be perfect. One Philoſopher thinks he is dived to the bottome, when he ſayes, he knows nothing but this, That he knows nothing; and yet another thinks, that he hath expreſſed more knowledge then he, in ſaying, That he knows not ſo much as that, That he knows nothing. S. Paul found that to be all knowledge, To know Chriſt; And Mahomet thinks himſelfe wiſe therefore, becauſe he knows not, acknowledges not Chriſt, as S. Paul does. Though a man knew not, that every ſin caſts another ſhovell of Brimſtone upon him in Hell, yet if he knew that every riotous feaſt cuts off a year, and every wanton night ſeaven years of his ſeventy in this world, it were ſome degree towards perfection in knowledge. He that purchaſes a Mannor, will thinke to have an exact Survey of the Land: But who thinks of taking ſo exact a ſurvey of his Conſcience, how that money was got, that purchaſed that Mannor? We call that a mans meanes, which he hath; But that is truly his meanes, what way he came by it. And yet how few are there, (when a ſtate comes to any great proportion) that know that; that know what they have, what they are worth? We have ſeen great Wills, dilated into glorious uſes, and into pious uſes, and then too narrow an eſtate to reach to it; And we have ſeen Wills, where the Teſtator thinks he hath bequeathed all, and he hath not knowne halfe his own worth. When thou knoweſt a wife, a ſonne, a ſervant, a friend no better, but that that wife betrayes thy bed, and that ſonne thine eſtate, and that ſervant thy credit, and that friend thy ſecret, what canſt thou ſay thou knoweſt? But we muſt not inſiſt upon this Conſideration of knowledge; for, though knowledge be of a ſpirituall nature, yet it is but as a terreſtriall Spirit, converſant upon Earth; Spirituall things, of a more rarified nature then knowledge, even faith it ſelfe, and all that grows from that in us, falls within this Rule, which we have in hand, That even in ſpirituall things, nothing is perfect.
We conſider this therefore in Credendis, Fides.In things that we are bound to Beleeve, there works our faith; And then, in Petendis, In things that we are bound to pray for, there works our hope; And laſtly, in Agendis, In things that we are bound to doe, and there works our charity; And there is nothing in any of theſe three perfect. When you remember who they were,Luk. 17.5. that made that prayer, Domine adauge, That the Apoſtles themſelves prayed, that their faith might receive an encreaſe, Lord increaſe our faith, you muſt neceſſarily ſecond that conſideration with a confeſſion, That no mans faith is perfect. When you heare Chriſt ſo often upbraid, ſometimes whole Congregations, with that,Mat. 6.30. Modicae fidei, O yee of little faith; And ſometimes his Diſciples alone, with the ſame reproach,Mat. 8.26. Modicae fidei, O yee of little faith; when you may be perplexed with the variety of opinions amongſt the ancient Interpreters, whether Chriſt ſpoke but to the incredulous Jewes,Mat. 17.17. or to his own Diſciples, when he ſaid, O faithleſſe and perverſe generation, how long ſhall I be with you? how long ſhall I ſuffer you? (for many Interpreters goe one way, and many the other) And when you may be cleared without any colour of perplexity, that to whom ſoever Chriſt ſpoke in that place, he ſpoke plainly to his owne Diſciples,Verſ. 20. when he ſaid, Becauſe of your unbeliefe you cannot doe this; In which Diſciples of his, he denies alſo, that there is ſuch a proportion of faith, as a graine of Muſtardſeed, can ye place a perfectneſſe of faith in any? When the Apoſtle takes knowledge of the good eſtate and condition of the Theſſalonians, and gave God thanks for their Workes of faith, for their labours of love, for their patience of hope, in our Lord Ieſus Chriſt: 1 Theſ. 1.2.3.10.does he conclude them to be perfect? No; for after this he ſayes, Night and day we pray exceedingly, that we may perfect that which is lacking in your faith. And after this, he ſees the fruit of thoſe prayers, We are bound to thanke God alwayes, 2 Theſ. 1.3.becauſe your faith groweth exceedingly; ſtill, at the beſt, it is but a growing faith, and it may be better. There are men that are ſaid to be Rich in faith; Iames 2.5.men that are come from the weake and beggarly elements of Nature, or of the Law, to the knowledge of the precious and glorious Goſpell, Galat. 4.9.and ſo are Rich in faith, enriched, emproved by faith.2 Cor. 8.7. There are men that Abound in faith; that is, in compariſon of the emptineſſe of other men, or of their owne emptineſſe before they embraced the Goſpell, they abound now; But ſtill it is,Rom. 12.3. As God hath given the meaſure of faith to every man; Not as of his Manna, a certaine meaſure, and an equall meaſure, and a full meaſure to every man; no man hath ſuch a meaſure of faith, as that he needs no more, or that he may not loſe at leaſt ſome of that. When Chriſt ſpeakes ſo doubtfully, When the Son of man commeth, ſhall he finde faith upon earth? Luke 18.….Any faith in any man? If the Holy Ghoſt be come into this preſence, into this Congregation, does he find faith in any? A perfect faith he does not.
Deceive not your ſelves then, with that new charme and flattery of the ſoule, That if once you can ſay to your ſelves you have faith, you need no more, or that you ſhall alwaies keepe that alive; The Apoſtle ſayes, All boaſting, that is, all confidence,Rom. 3.27. is excluded; By what Law? ſayes he, by the Law of faith, Not by faith, but by the Law of faith; There is a Law of faith; a rule that ordinates, and regulates our faith; by which law and rule, the Apoſtle cals upon us, To examine our ſelves whether we be in the faith, or no;2 Cor. 13.5. not onelyonly by the internall motions, and private inſpirations of his bleſſed Spirit, but by the Law and the Rule, which he hath delivered to us in the Goſpell. The Kings pardon flowes from his meere grace, and from his breſt; but we muſt have the writing and the Seale, that we may plead it: So does faith from God; But we muſt ſee it our ſelves, and ſhew it to others, or elſe we doe not obſerve the Law of faith.Rom. 4.11. Abraham received the Seale of the righteouſneſſe of faith, ſayes the Apoſtle; Hee had an outward teſtimony to proceed by; And then, Abraham became an outward teſtimony and Rule to the faithfull, Walke in the ſteps of the faith of Abraham, ſayes that Apoſtle in that place;Ver. 12. Not a faith conceived onelyonly, but a faith which you ſaw, The faith of Abraham; for, ſo the Apoſtle propoſing to us the example of other men ſayes, Their faith follow you, Heb. 13.7.Not faith in generall, but their faith. So that it is not enough to ſay, I feele the inſpiration of the Spirit of God, He infuſes faith, and faith infuſed cannot be withdrawne; but, as there is a Law of faith, and a practiſe of faith, a Rule of faith, and an example of faith, apply thy ſelfe to both, Regulate thy faith by the Rule, that is, the Word, and by Example, that is, Beleeve thoſe things which the Saints of God have conſtantly and unanimely beleeved to be neceſſary to ſalvation: The Word is the Law, and the Rule, The Church is the Practiſe, and the Precedent that regulates thy faith; And if thou make imaginary revelations, and inſpirations thy Law, or the practiſe of Sectaries thy Precedent, thou doeſt but call Fancie and Imagination, by the name of Reaſon and Underſtanding, and Opinion by the name of Faith, and Singularity, and Schiſme, by the name of Communion of Saints. The Law of thy faith is, That that that thou beleeveſt, be Univerſall, Catholique, beleeved by all; And then, that the Application be particular, To beleeve, that as Chriſt dyed ſufficiently for all, ſo he dyed effectually for thee. And of this effectuall dying for thee, there ariſes an evidence from thy ſelfe, in thy conformity to him; Thy conformity conſiſts in this, That thou art willing to live according to his Goſpell, and ready to dye for him, that dyed for thee. For, till a man have reſiſted unto blood, he cannot know experimentally what degrees towards perfection his faith hath: And though he may conceive in himſelfe a holy purpoſe to dye for Chriſt, yet till he have dyed for Chriſt, or dyed in Chriſt, that is, as long as we are in this valley of tentations, there is nothing, no not in ſpirituall things, not in faith it ſelfe, perfect.
It is not In credendis, in our embracing the object of faith; we doe not that perfectly;Spes. It is not In petendis, in our directing our prayers faithfully neither; we doe not that; our faith is not perfect, nor our hope is not perfect; for, ſo argues the Apoſtle, Ye aske, Iames 4.3.and receive not, becauſe ye aske amiſſe; you cannot hope conſtantly, becauſe you doe not pray aright: And to make a Prayer a right Prayer, there go ſo many eſſentiall circumſtances, as that the beſt man may juſtly ſuſpect his beſt Prayer: for, ſince Prayer muſt bee of faith, Prayer can be but ſo perfect, as the faith is perfect; and the imperfections of the beſt faith we have ſeene. Chriſt hath given us but a ſhort Prayer; and yet we are weary of that. Some of the old Heretiques of the Primitive Church abridged that Prayer, and ſome of our later Schiſmatiques have annihilated, evacuated that Prayer: The Cathari then, left out that one Petition, Dimitte nobis, Forgive us our treſpaſſes, for they thought themſelves ſo pure, as that they needed no forgiveneſſe, and our new men leave out the whole Prayer, becauſe the ſame Spirit that ſpake in Chriſt, ſpeakes in their extemporall prayers, and they can pray, as well as Chriſt could teach them. And (to leave thoſe, whom we are bound to leave, thoſe old Heretiques, thoſe new Schiſmatiques) which of us ever, ever ſayes over that ſhort Prayer, with a deliberate underſtanding of every Petition as we paſſe, or without deviations, and extravagancies of our thoughts, in that halfe-minute of our Devotion? We have not leaſure to ſpeake of the abuſe of prayer in the Roman Church; where they wil antidate and poſtdate their prayers; Say to morrows prayers to day, and to dayes prayers to morrow, if they have other uſes and employments of the due time betweene; where they will trade, and make merchandiſe of prayers by way of exchange, My man ſhall faſt for me, and I will pray for my man; or my Atturney, and Proxy ſhall pray for us both, at my charge; nay, where they will play for prayers, and the loſer muſt pray for both; To this there belongs but a holy ſcorne, and I would faine paſſe it over quickly. But when we conſider with a religious ſeriouſneſſe the manifold weakneſſes of the ſtrongeſt devotions in time of Prayer, it is a ſad conſideration. I throw my ſelfe downe in my Chamber, and I call in, and invite God, and his Angels thither, and when they are there, I neglect God and his Angels, for the noiſe of a Flie, for the ratling of a Coach, for the whining of a doore; I talke on, in the ſame poſture of praying; Eyes lifted up; knees bowed downe; as though I prayed to God; and, if God, or his Angels ſhould aske me, when I thought laſt of God in that prayer, I cannot tell: Sometimes I finde that I had forgot what I was about, but when I began to forget it, I cannot tell. A memory of yeſterdays pleaſures, a feare of to morrows dangers, a ſtraw under my knee, a noiſe in mine eare, a light in mine eye, an any thing, a nothing, a fancy, a Chimera in my braine, troubles me in my prayer. So certainely is there nothing, nothing in ſpirituall things, perfect in this world.
Not In credendis, Charitas.In things that belong to Faith; not In petendis, In things that belong to Hope; nor In agendis, In things that belong to Action, to Workes, to Charity, there is nothing perfect there neither. I would be loath to ſay, That every good work is a ſin; That were to ſay, That every deformed, or diſordered man were a beaſt, or that every corrupt meat were poyſon; It is not utterly ſo; not ſo altogether; But it is ſo much towards it, as that there is no worke of ours ſo good, as that wee can looke for thanks at Gods hand for that worke; no worke, that hath not ſo much ill mingled with it, as that wee need not cry God mercy for that worke. There was ſo much corruption in the getting, or ſo much vaine glory in the beſtowing, as that no man builds an Hoſpitall, but his ſoule lies, though not dead, yet lame in that Hoſpitall; no man mends a high-way, but he is, though not drowned, yet mired in that way; no man relieves the poore, but he needs reliefe for that reliefe. In all thoſe workes of Charity, the world that hath benefit by them, is bound to confeſſe and acknowledge a goodneſſe, and to call them good workes; but the man that does them, and knows the weakneſſes of them, knows they are not good works. It is poſſible to Art, to purge a peccant humour out of a ſick bodie; but not poſſible to raiſe a dead bodie to life. God, out of my Confeſſion of the impuritie of my beſt actions, ſhall vouchſafe to take off his eyes from that impurity, as though there were none; but no ſpirituall thing in us, not Faith, not Hope, not Charitie, have any puritie, any perfection in themſelves; which is the generall Doctrine wee propoſed at firſt; And our next Conſideration is, how this weakeneſſe appeares in the Action, and in the Words of Martha in our Text, Lord, if thou hadſt beene here, my brother had not dyed.
Now leſt we ſhould attribute this weakeneſſe,Marthae fides onelyonly to weake perſons, upon whom we had a prejudice, to Martha alone, we note to you firſt, that her ſiſter Mary, to whom in the whole Story very much is aſcribed, when ſhe comes to Chriſt, comes alſo in the ſame voice of infirmity,Ver. 32. Lord, if thou hadſt beene here, my brother had not died. No perſon ſo perfect, that hath not of theſe imperfections; Both theſe holy Siſters, howſoever there might be differences of degrees in their holineſſe, have imperfections in all three, in the conſideration of their Faith, and their Hone, and their Charity; though in all three they had alſo, and had both, good degrees towards perfection. Looke firſt upon their Faith; they both ſay, Lord, if thou hadſt beene here, our brother had not died. We cannot ſay ſo to any Conſultation, to any Colledge of Phyſitians; not to a Chiron, to an Eſculapius, to a God of Phyſicke, could any man ſay, If you had beene here, my friend had not died? though ſurely there be much aſſiſtance to be received from them, whom God hath endowed with knowledge to that purpoſe. And yet there was a weakeneſſe in theſe Siſters, in that they ſaid but ſo, and no more to Chriſt. They thought Chriſt to be the beſt amongſt good men; but yet they were not come to the knowledge that he was God. Martha ſaies, I know, that even now, whatſoever thou askeſt of God, Verſe 22.God will give it thee; but ſhe does not know him to be God himſelfe. I doe not here inſtitute a confutation, but here, and every where I lament the growth, and inſinuation of that peſtilent Hereſie of Socinianiſme; That Chriſt was a holy, a thrice-holy man, an unreproachable, an irreprehenſible, an admirable, an incomparable man; A man, to whom, he that ſhould equall any other man, were worſe then a Devill; A man worthy to bee called God, in a farre higher ſenſe then any Magiſtrate, any King, any Prophet; But yet hee was no God, ſay they, no Son of God; A Redemer, by way of good example; but no Redeemer, by way of equivalent ſatisfaction, ſay thoſe Heretiques. S. Paul ſayes,Epheſ. 2.12. He is an Atheiſt, that is without Chriſt; And he is as much an Atheiſt ſtill, that pretends to receive Chriſt, and not as God; For if the receiving of Chriſt muſt redeeme him from being an Atheiſt, there can no other way be imagined, but by receiving him as God, for that onelyonly, and no other good opinion of Chriſt, overcomes, and removes his Atheiſme. After the laſt day, whatſoever is not Heaven, is Hell; Hee that then ſhall be where the Sunne is now, (if he be not then in heaven) ſhall be as farre from heaven, as if hee were where the Center of the earth is now; Hee that confeſſes not all Chriſt, confeſſes no Chriſt. Horribile dictu, dicam tamen, ſayes S. Auguſtine in another caſe; There belongs a holy trembing to the ſaying of it, yet I muſt ſay it, If Chriſt were not God, hee was a devill that durſt ſay he was God. This then was one weakneſſe in theſe Siſters faith, that it carried them not up to the conſideration of Chriſt as God; And then another roſe out of that, That they inſiſted ſo much, relied ſo much, upon his corporall, and perſonall preſence, and promiſed themſelves more from that, then hee had ever given them ground for; which was that which Chriſt diverted Mary from, when after his Reſurrection manifeſting himſelfe to her, and ſhee flying unto him with that impatient zeale, and that impetuous devotion, Rabboni, Maſter, My Maſter, Chriſt ſaid to her,Ioh. 20.16. Touch mee not, for I am not aſcended to my Father; that is, Dwell not upon this paſſionate conſideration of my bodily, and perſonall preſence, but ſend thy thoughts, and thy reverence, and thy devotion, and thy holy amorouſneſſe up, whither I am going, to the right hand of my Father, and conſider me, contemplate mee there. S. Peter had another holy diſtemper of another kinde, upon the perſonall preſence of Chriſt; He was ſo aſtoniſhed at his preſence in the power of a Miracle, that he fell downe at his feet, and ſaid,Luke 5.8. Depart from me, for I am a ſinfull man, O Lord. Theſe Siſters longed for him, and S. Peter longed as much to be delivered of him; both out of weakneſſe and error. So is it an error, and a weakneſſe to attribute too much, or too little to Chriſts preſence in his Sacraments, or other Ordinances. To impriſon Chriſt in Opere operato, to conclude him ſo, as that where that action is done, Chriſt muſt neceſſarily bee, and neceſſarily work, this is to ſay weakly with theſe Siſters, Lord, if thou hadſt beene here, our brother had not died. As long as we are preſent at thine Ordinance, thou art preſent with us. But to baniſh Chriſt from thoſe holy actions, and to ſay, That he is no otherwiſe preſent, or works no otherwiſe in thoſe actions, then in other times, and places, this is to ſay with Peter, in his aſtoniſhment, Exi à me Domine, O Lord depart from me; It is enough that thy Sacrament be a ſigne; I do not look that it ſhould be a Seal, or a Conduit of Grace; This is the danger this is the diſtemper, to aſcribe too much, or too little to Gods viſible Ordinances, and Inſtitutions, either to ſay with thoſe holy Siſters, Lord, if thou hadſt been here, our brother had not died, If we have a Sacrament, if we have a Sermon all is well, we have enough; or elſe with Peter, Exi à me, Leave me to my ſelfe, to my private motions, to my boſome inſpirations, and I need no Church-work, no Sermons, no Sacraments, no ſuch aſſiſtances.
So there was weakneſſe in their Faith,Marthae ſpes. there was ſo too in their Hope, in their confidence in Chriſt, and in their manner of expreſſing it. For, they did not goe to him, when their brother was ſick,Joh. 3.1. Mat. 8.5. Mark 5.25, 33. but ſent. Nicodemus came in perſon for his ſick ſoule; And the Centurion in perſon, for his ſick ſervant; And Iairus in perſon, for his ſick daughter; And the woman with the bloody Iſſue in perſon, for her ſick-ſelfe. Theſe ſiſters did but ſend, but piouſly, and reverendly; Their Meſſenger was to ſay to Chriſt, not Lazarus, not Our Brother, but He whom thou loveſt, is ſick; And they left this intimation to work upon Chriſt; But that was not enough, we muſt bring Chriſt and our neceſſities neerer together then ſo. There is good inſtruction in the ſeverall expreſſings of Chriſts curings of Peters mother in the Euangeliſts.Mark 1.29. S. Marke ſayes, They told him of her; And S. Luke ſayes, They brought him up to her; And S. Matthew ſayes, He ſaw her, and tooke her by the hand. I muſt not wrap up all my neceſſities in generall termes in my prayers, but deſcend to particulars; For this places my devotion upon particular conſiderations of God, to conſider him in every Attribute, what God hath done for me in Power, what in Wiſedome, what in Mercy; which is a great aſſiſtance, and eſtabliſhing, and propagation of devotion. As it is a degree of unthankfulneſſe, to thank God too generally, and not to delight to inſiſt upon the waight, and meaſure, and proportion, and the goodneſſe of every particular mercy: ſo is it an irreverent, and inconſiderate thing, not to take my particular wants into my thoughts, and into my prayers, that ſo I may take a holy knowledge, that I have nothing, nothing but from God, and by prayer. And as God is an acceſſible God, as he is his owne Maſter of Requeſts, and is ever open to receive thy Petions, in how ſmall a matter ſoever: ſo is he an inexhauſtible God, he can give infinitely, and an indefatigable God, he cannot be preſſed too much. Therefore hath Chriſt given us a Parable of getting Bread at midnight by Importunity, Luke 11.5.18.7.and not otherwiſe; And another of a Iudge that heard the widows cauſe by Importunity, and not otherwiſe; And, not a Parable,Matt. 15.21. but a Hiſtory, and a Hiſtory of his own, of a woman of Canaan, that overcame him in the behalfe of her daughter, by Importunity; when, but by importunity, ſhe could not get ſo much as an anſwer, as a deniall at his hands. Pray perſonally, rely not upon dead nor living Saints; Thy Mother the Church prayes for thee, but pray for thy ſelfe too; Shee can open her boſome, and put the breaſt to thy mouth, but thou muſt draw, and ſuck for thy ſelfe. Pray perſonally, and pray frequently; David had may ſtationary times of the day, and night too, to pray in. Pray frequently, and pray fervently; God took it not ill, at Davids hands, to be awaked, and to be called up, as though hee were aſleepe at our prayers, and to be called upon, to pull his hand out of his boſome, as though he were ſlack in relieving our neceſſities. This was a weakneſſe in thoſe Siſters, that they ſolicited not Chriſt in perſon; ſtill get as neare God as you can; And that they declared not their caſe particularly; It is not enough to pray, nor to confeſſe in generall termes; And, that they purſued not their prayer earneſtly, thorowly; It is not enough to have prayed once; Chriſt does not onelyonly excuſe, but enjoine Importunity.
And then a weakneſſe there was in their Charity too,Marthae charitas. even towards their dead brother. To lament a dead friend is naturall, and civill; and he is the deader of the two, the verier carcaſſe, that does not ſo. But inordinate lamentation implies a ſuſpition of a worſe ſtate in him that is gone; And if I doe beleeve him to be in heaven, deliberately, adviſedly to wiſh him here, that is in heaven, is an uncharitable deſire. For, for me to ſay, He is preferred by being where he is, but I were better, if he were againe where I am, were ſuch an indiſpofition, as if the Princes ſervant ſhould be loath to ſee his Maſter King, becauſe he ſhould not hold the ſame place with him, being King, as he did when he was Prince. Not to hope well of him that is gone, is uncharitableneſſe; and at the ſame time, when I beleeve him to be better, to wiſh him worſe, is uncharitableneſſe too. And ſuch weakneſſes were in thoſe holy and devout Siſters of Lazarus; which eſtabliſhes our Concluſion, There is nothing in this world, no not in ſpirituall things, not in knowledge, not in faith, not in hope, not in charity perfect. But yet, for all theſe imperfections, Chriſt doth not refuſe, nor chide, but cheriſh their piety, which is alſo another circumſtance in that Part.
There is no forme of Building ſtronger then an Arch, and yet an Arch hath declinations, which even a flat-roofe hath not;Non rejicit Chriſtus. The flat-roofe lies equall in all parts; the Arch declines downwards in all parts, and yet the Arch is a firme ſupporter. Our Devotions doe not the leſſe beare us upright, in the ſight of God, becauſe they have ſome declinations towards natural affections: God doth eaſilier pardon ſome neglectings of his grace, when it proceeds out of a tenderneſſe, or may be excuſed out of good nature, then any preſuming upon his grace. If a man doe depart in ſome actions, from an exact obedience of Gods will, upon infirmity, or humane affections, and not a contempt, God paſſes it over often times. For, when our Saviour Chriſt ſayes, Be pure as your Father in heaven is pure, that is a rule for our purity, but not a meaſure of our purity; It is that we ſhould be pure ſo, not that we ſhould be ſo pure as our Father in heaven. When we conſider that weakneſſe, that went through the Apoſtles, even to Chriſts Aſcenſion, that they looked for a temporall Kingdome, and for preferment in that; when we conſider that weakneſſe in the chiefe of them, S. Peter, at the Transfiguration, when,Mar. 9.6. as the Text ſayes, He knew not what to ſay; when we conſider the weakneſſe of his action, that for feare of death, he renounced the Lord of Life, and denied his Maſter; when in this very ſtory, when Chriſt ſaid that Lazarus was aſleepe, and that he would goe to awake him, they could underſtand it ſo impertinently, as that Chriſt ſhould goe ſuch a journey, to come to the waking of a man, aſleep at that time when he ſpoke; All theſe infirmities of theirs, multiply this conſolation upon us, That though God look upon the Inſcription, he looks upon the metall too, Though he look that his Image ſhould be preſerved in us, he looks in what earthen veſſels this Image is put, and put by his own hand; and though he hate us in our rebellions, yet he pities us in our grievances; though he would have us better, he forſakes us not for every degree of illneſſe. There are three great dangers in this conſideration of perfectneſſe, and purity; Firſt to diſtruſt of Gods mercy, if thou finde not this purity in thy ſelfe, and this perfectneſſe; And then to preſume upon God, nay upon thine own right, in an overvaluing of thine own purity, and perfectneſſe; And againe, to condemne others, whom thou wilt needs thinke leſſe pure, or perfect then thy ſelfe. Againſt this diffidence in God, to thinke our ſelves ſo deſperately impure, as that God will not look upon us; And this preſumption in God, to thinke our ſelves ſo pure, as that God is bound to look upon us; And this uncharitableneſſe towards others, to think none pure at all, that are not pure our way; Chriſt armes us by his Example, He receives theſe ſiſters of Lazarus, and accompliſhes as much as they deſired, though there were weakneſſes in their Faith, in their Hope, in their Charity, expreſſed in that unperfect ſpeech, Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not dyed: for, there is nothing, not in ſpirituall things perfect. This we have ſeen out of the Text we have Heard; And now out of the Text, which we See, we ſhall ſee the reſt, That as in ſpirituall things, there is nothing Perfect, ſo in temporall, there is nothing Permanent.
I need not call in new Philoſophy, that denies a ſettledneſſe,2. Part. an acquieſcence in the very body of the Earth, but makes the Earth to move in that place, where we thought the Sunne had moved; I need not that helpe, that the Earth it ſelfe is in Motion, to prove this, That nothing upon Earth is permanent; The Aſſertion will ſtand of it ſelfe, till ſome man aſſigne me ſome inſtance, ſomething that a man may relie upon, and find permanent. Conſider the greateſt Bodies upon Earth, The Monarchies; Objects, which one would thinke, Deſtiny might ſtand and ſtare at, but not ſhake; Conſider the ſmalleſt bodies upon Earth, The haires of our head, Objects, which one would thinke, Deſtiny would not obſerve, or could not diſcerne; And yet, Deſtiny, (to ſpeak to a naturall man) And God, (to ſpeake to a Chriſtian) is no more troubled to make a Monarchy ruinous, then to make a haire gray. Nay, nothing needs be done to either, by God, or Deſtiny; A Monarchy will ruine, as a haire will grow gray, of it ſelfe. In the Elements themſelves, of which all ſub-elementary things are compoſed, there is no acquieſcence, but a viciſſitudinary tranſmutation into one another; Ayre condenſed becomes water, a more ſolid body, And Ayre rarified becomes fire, a body more diſputable, and in-apparant. It is ſo in the Conditions of men too; A Merchant condenſed, kneaded and packed up in a great eſtate, becomes a Lord; And a Merchant rarified, blown up by a perfidious Factor, or by a riotous Sonne, evaporates into ayre, into nothing, and is not ſeen. And if there were any thing permanent and durable in this world, yet we got nothing by it, becauſe howſoever that might laſt in it ſelfe, yet we could not laſt to enjoy it; If our goods were not amongſt Moveables, yet we our ſelves are; if they could ſtay with us, yet we cannot ſtay with them; which is another Conſideration in this part.
The world is a great Volume, and man the Index of that Booke;Corpus hominis. Even in the body of man, you may turne to the whole world; This body is an Illuſtration of all Nature; Gods recapitulation of all that he had ſaid before, in his Fiat lux, and Fiat firmamentum, and in all the reſt, ſaid or done, in all the ſix dayes. Propoſe this body to thy conſideration in the higheſt exaltation thereof; as it is the Temple of the Holy Ghoſt: Nay, not in a Metaphor, or compariſon of a Temple, or any other ſimilitudinary thing, but as it was really and truly the very body of God, in the perſon of Chriſt, and yet this body muſt wither, muſt decay, muſt languiſh, muſt periſh. When Goliah had armed and fortified this body, And Iezabel had painted and perfumed this body, And Dives had pampered and larded this body, As God ſaid to Ezekiel, when he brought him to the dry bones, Fili hominis, Sonne of Man, doeſt thou thinke theſe bones can live? They ſaid in their hearts to all the world, Can theſe bodies die? And they are dead. Iezabels duſt is not Ambar, nor Goliahs duſt Terra ſigillata, Medicinall; nor does the Serpent, whoſe meat they are both, finde any better relliſh in Dives duſt, then in Lazarus. But as in our former part, where our foundation was, That in nothing, no ſpirituall thing, there was any perfectneſſe, which we illuſtrated in the weakneſſes of Knowledge, and Faith, and Hope, and Charity, yet we concluded, that for all thoſe defects, God accepted thoſe their religious ſervices; So in this part, where our foundation is, That nothing in temporall things is permanent, as we have illuſtrated that, by the decay of that which is Gods nobleſt piece in Nature, The body of man; ſo we ſhall alſo conclude that, with this goodneſſe of God, that for all this diſſolution, and putrefaction, he affords this Body a Reſurrection.
The Gentils,Reſurrectio. and their Poets, deſcribe the ſad ſtate of Death ſo, Nox una obeunda, That it is one everlaſting Night; To them, a Night; But to a Chriſtian, it is Dies Mortis, and Dies Reſurrectionis, The day of Death, and The day of Reſurrection; We die in the light, in the ſight of Gods preſence, and we riſe in the light, in the ſight of his very Eſſence. Nay, Gods corrections, and judgements upon us in this life, are ſtill expreſſed ſo, Dies viſitationis, ſtill it is a Day, though a Day of viſitation; and ſtill we may diſcerne God to be in the action.Gen. 2. The Lord of Life was the firſt that named Death; Morte morieris, ſayes God, Thou ſhalt die the Death. I doe the leſſe feare, or abhorre Death, becauſe I finde it in his mouth; Even a malediction hath a ſweetneſſe in his mouth; for there is a bleſſing wrapped up in it; a mercy in every correction, a Reſurrection upon every Death. When Iezabels beauty, exalted to that height which it had by art, or higher then that, to that height which it had in her own opinion, ſhall be infinitely multiplied upon every Body; And as God ſhall know no man from his own Sonne, ſo as not to ſee the very righteouſneſſe of his own Sonne upon that man; So the Angels ſhall know no man from Chriſt, ſo as not to deſire to looke upon that mans face, becauſe the moſt deformed wretch that is there, ſhall have the very beauty of Chriſt himſelfe; So ſhall Goliahs armour, and Dives fulneſſe, be doubled, and redoubled upon us, And every thing that we can call good, ſhall firſt be infinitely exalted in the goodneſſe, and then infinitely multiplied in the proportion, and againe infinitely extended in the duration. And ſince we are in an action of preparing this dead Brother of ours to that ſtate, (for the Funerall is the Eaſter-eve, The Buriall is the depoſiting of that man for the Reſurrection) As we have held you, with Doctrine of Mortification, by extending the Text, from Martha to this occaſion; ſo ſhall we diſmiſſe you with Conſolation, by a like occaſionall inverting the Text, from paſſion in Martha's mouth, Lord, if thou hadst been here, my Brother had not dyed, to joy in ours, Lord, becauſe thou waſt here, our Brother is not dead.
The Lord was with him in all theſe ſteps;In vita. with him in his life; with him in his death; He is with him in his funerals, and he ſhall be with him in his Reſurrection; and therefore, becauſe the Lord was with him, our Brother is not dead. He was with him in the beginning of his life, in this manifeſtation, That though he were of Parents of a good, of a great Eſtate, yet his poſſibility and his expectation from them, did not ſlacken his own induſtry; which is a Canker that eats into, nay that hath eat up many a family in this City, that relying wholly upon what the Father hath done, the Sonne does nothing for himſelfe. And truly, it falls out too often, that he that labours not for more, does not keepe his own. God imprinted in him an induſtrious diſpoſition, though ſuch hopes from ſuch parents might have excuſed ſome ſlackneſſe, and God proſpered his induſtry ſo, as that when his Fathers eſtate came to a diſtribution by death, he needed it not. God was with him,Pſal. 81.11. as with David in a Dilatation, and then in a Repletion; God enlarged him, and then he filled him; He gave him a large and a comprehenſive underſtanding, and with it, A publique heart; And ſuch as perchance in his way of education, and in our narrow and contracted-times, in which every man determines himſelfe in himſelfe, and ſcarce looks farther, it would be hard to finde many Examples of ſuch largeneſſe. You have, I thinke, a phraſe of Driving a Trade; And you have, I know, a practiſe of Driving away Trade, by other uſe of money; And you have loſt a man, that drove a great Trade, the right way in making the beſt uſe of our home-commodity. To fetch in Wine, and Spice, and Silke, is but a drawing of Trade; The right driving of trade, is, to vent our owne outward; And yet, for the drawing in of that, which might juſtly ſeeme moſt behoofefull, that is, of Arts, and Manufactures, to be imployed upon our owne Commodity within the Kingdome, he did his part, diligently, at leaſt, if not vehemently, if not paſſionately. This City is a great Theater, and he Acted great and various parts in it; And all well; And when he went higher, (as he was often heard in Parliaments, at Councell tables, and in more private acceſſes to the late King of ever bleſſed memory) as, for that comprehenſion of thoſe buſineſſes, which he pretended to underſtand, no man doubts, for no man lacks arguments and evidences of his ability therein, So for his manner of expreſſing his intentions, and digeſting and uttering his purpoſes, I have ſometimes heard the greateſt Maſter of Language and Judgement, which theſe times, or any other did, or doe, or ſhall give, (that good and great King of ours) ſay of him, That he never heard any man of his breeding, handle buſineſſes more rationally, more pertinently, more elegantly, more perſwaſively; And when his purpoſe was, to do a grace to a Preacher, of very good abilities, and good note in his owne Chappell, I have heard him ſay, that his language, and accent, and manner of delivering himſelfe, was like this man. This man hath God accompanied all his life; and by performance thereof ſeemes to have made that Covenant with him, which he made to Abraham, Multiplicabote vehementer, Gen. 17.2.I will multiply thee exceedingly. He multiplied his eſtate ſo, as was fit to endow many and great Children; and he multiplied his Children ſo, both in their number, and in their quality, as they were fit to receive a great Eſtate. God was with him all the way, In a Pillar of Fire, in the brightneſſe of proſperity, and in the Pillar of Clouds too, in many darke, and ſad, and heavy croſſes: So great a Ship, required a great Ballaſt, So many bleſſings, many croſſes; And he had them, and ſailed on his courſe the ſteadier for them; The Cloud as well as the Fire, was a Pillar to him; His croſſes, as well as his bleſſings eſtabliſhed his aſſurance in God; And ſo, in all the courſe of his life, The Lord was here, and therefore our Brother is not dead; not dead in the evidences and teſtimonies of life; for he, whom the world hath juſt cauſe to celebrate, for things done, when he was alive, is alive ſtill in their celebration.
The Lord was here, that is, with him at his death too.In morte. He was ſerved with the Proceſſe here in the City, but his cauſe was heard in the Country; Here he ſickned, There he languiſhed, and dyed there. In his ſickneſſe there, thoſe that aſſiſted him, are witneſſes, of his many expreſſings, of a religious & a conſtant heart towards God, and of his pious joyning with them, even in the holy declaration of kneeling, then, when they, in favour of his weakeneſſe, would diſſwade him from kneeling. I muſt not defraud him of this teſtimony frō …y ſelfe, that into this place where we are now met, I have obſerved him to enter with much reverence, & compoſe himſelfe in this place with much declaration of devotion. And truly it is that reverence, which thoſe perſons who are of the ſame ranke that he was in the City, that reverence that they uſe in this place, when they come hither, is that that makes us, who have now the adminiſtration of this Quire, glad, that our Predeceſſors, but a very few yeares before our time, (and not before all our times neither) admitted theſe Honourable and worſhipfull Perſons of this City, to ſit in this Quire, ſo, as they do upon Sundayes: The Church receives an honour in it; But the honour is more in their reverence, then in their preſence; though in that too: And they receive an honour, and an eaſe in it; and therefore they do piouſly towards God, and prudently for themſelves, and gratefully towards us, in giving us, by their reverent comportment here, ſo juſt occaſion of continuing that honour, and that eaſe to them here, which to leſſe reverend, and unreſpective perſons, we ſhould be leſſe willing to doe. To returne to him in his ſickneſſe; He had but one dayes labour, and all the reſt were Sabbaths, one day in his ſickneſſe he converted to buſineſſe; Thus; He called his family, and friends together; Thankfully he acknowledged Gods manifold bleſſings, and his owne ſins as penitently: And then, to thoſe who were to have the diſpoſing of his eſtate, joyntly with his Children, he recommended his ſervants, and the poore, and the Hoſpitals, and the Priſons, which, according to his purpoſe, have beene all taken into conſideration; And after this (which was his Valediction to the world) he ſeemed alwaies loath to returne to any worldly buſineſſe, His laſt Commandement to Wife and Children was Chriſts laſt commandement to his Spouſe the Church, in the Apoſtles, To love one another. He bleſt them, and the Eſtate devolved upon them, unto them: And by Gods grace ſhall prove as true a Prophet to them in that bleſſing, as he was to himſelfe, when in entring his laſt bed, two dayes before his Death, he ſaid, Help me off with my earthly habit, & let me go to my laſt bed. Where, in the ſecond night after, he ſaid, Little know ye what paine I feele this night, yet I know, I ſhall have joy in the morning; And in that morning he dyed. The forme in which he implored his Saviour, was evermore, towards his end, this, Chriſt Ieſus, which dyed on the Croſſe, forgive me my ſins; He have mercy upon me: And his laſt and dying words were the repetition of the name of Jeſus; And when he had not ſtrength to utter that name diſtinctly and perfectly, they might heare it from within him, as from a man a far off; even then, when his hollow and remote naming of Jeſus, was rather a certifying of them, that he was with his Jeſus, then a prayer that he might come to him. And ſo The Lord was here, here with him in his Death; and becauſe the Lord was here, our Brother is not dead; not dead in the eyes and eares of God; for as the blood of Abel ſpeaks yet, ſo doth the zeale of Gods Saints; and their laſt prayers (though we heare them not) God continues ſtill; and they pray in Heaven, as the Martyrs under the Altar, even till the Reſurrection.
He is with him now too;In funere. Here in his Funerals. Buriall, and Chriſtian Buriall, and Solemne Buriall are all evidences, and teſtimonies of Gods preſence. God forbid we ſhould conclude, or argue an abſence of God, from the want of Solemne Buriall, or Chriſtian Buriall, or any Buriall; But neither muſt we deny it, to be an evidence of his favour and preſence, where he is pleaſed to afford theſe. So God makes that the ſeale of all his bleſſings to Abraham, Gen. 15. Gen. 46. Gen. 50. Eſay 11.10. Matt. 26.That he ſhould be buried in a good age; God eſtabliſhed Iacob with that promiſe, That his Son Ioſeph ſhould have care of his Funerals: And Ioſeph does cauſe his ſervants, The Phyſitians, to embalme him, when he was dead. Of Chriſt it was Prophecied; That he ſhould have a glorious Buriall; And therefore Chriſt interprets well that profuſe, and prodigall piety of the Woman that poured out the Oyntment upon him, That ſhe did it to Bury him; And ſo ſhall Ioſeph of Arimathea be ever celebrated, for his care in celebrating Chriſts Funerals. If we were to ſend a Son, or a friend, to take poſſeſſion of any place in Court, or forraine parts, we would ſend him out in the beſt equipage: Let us not grudge to ſet downe our friends, in the Anti-chamber of Heaven, the Grave, in as good manner, as without vaine-gloriouſneſſe, and waſtfulneſſe we may; And, in inclining them, to whom that care belongs, to expreſſe that care as they doe this day, The Lord is with him, even in this Funerall; And becauſe The Lord is here, our brother is not dead; Not dead in the memories and eſtimation of men.
And laſtly,In reſurrectione. that we may have God preſent in all his Manifeſtations, Hee that was, and is, and is to come, was with him, in his life and death, and is with him in this holy Solemnity, and ſhall bee with him againe in the Reſurrection.Gen. 46.4. God ſayes to Iacob, I will goe downe with thee into Egypt, and I will alſo ſurely bring thee up againe. God goes downe with a good man into the Grave, and will ſurely bring him up againe. When? The Angel promiſed to returne to Abraham and Sarah, Gen. 18.10.for the aſſurance of the birth of Iſaac, according to the time of life; that is, in ſuch time, as by nature a woman may have a childe. God will returne to us in the Grave, according to the time of life; that is, in ſuch time, as he, by his gracious Decree, hath fixed for the Reſurrection. And in the meane time, no more then the God-head departed from the dead body of our Saviour, in the grave, doth his power, and his preſence depart from our dead bodies in that darkneſſe; But that which Moſes ſaid to the whole Congregation, I ſay to you all, both to you that heare me,Deut. 4.4. and to him that does not, All ye that did cleave unto the Lord your God, are alive, every one of you, this day; Even hee, whom wee call dead, is alive this day. In the preſence of God, we lay him downe; In the power of God, he ſhall riſe; In the perſon of Chriſt, he is riſen already. And ſo into the ſame hands that have received his ſoule, we commend his body; beſeeching his bleſſed Spirit, that as our charity enclines us to hope confidently of his good eſtate, our faith may aſſure us of the ſame happineſſe, in our owne behalfe; And that for all our ſakes, but eſpecially for his own glory, he will be pleaſed to haſten the conſummation of all, in that kingdome which that Son of God hath purchaſed for us, with the ineſtimable price of his incorruptible blood. Amen.
FINIS.