A Century of Sermons, Sermon 1
A SERMON UPON THE RESURRECTION.
PSAL. cxviii. 24.
This is the day which the Lord hath made, we will rejoyce and be glad in it.
IF you have ever ſeen a piece of Coin ſtamp'd with one face upon the fore-ſide, and with another upon the reverſe, then ſet that, fancy before you to underſtand the double ſenſe of this Text. Firſt, If you ask according to the Letter, whoſe Image and Superſcription is this? I tell you, and I have told it you once before, it is Davids: And this is the triumphant Hymn of the devout men of Iſrael, exulting that God had given them ſuch a King to go in and out before them: If you ask according to the Spirit to whom this Verſe belongs? moſt certainly it aims at Chriſt, and that two ways, either calculating this Day for the whole Age of the Goſpel, that is the day which God hath made to put gladneſs into his choſen, through the remiſſion of our ſins, becauſe the day-ſpring from on high hath viſited us: Or elſe in a more eminent ſort it is the joyful acclamation of the Church upon the Reſurrection of the Lord Jeſus, that being the moſt honourable, and moſt welcome of days, becauſe the Reſurrection hath ever been eſteemed the moſt glorious of all the works of the Goſpel. I have ſpun out the firſt of theſe concerning David to the laſt thread, now my Web which is upon the Loom is concerning Chriſt; that is, I have given unto Caeſar that which is Caeſars, and it is very expedient, as the more principal duty, to give unto God that which is Gods. Indeed, I cannot ſay that I am come to the heart, and to the vitals of the Text till now; till now that I apply it, not as formerly to the Lords Anointed, but to Chriſt himſelf our Lord anointed. And I have clear way made me for this interpretation, as clear as I can wiſh, for never any that have received the Book of the Pſalms for ſpiritual and divine melody, but do reckon this Pſalm, and eſpecially this part of the Pſalm, to belong to Jeſus the Author and finiſher of our Salvation, The Doctors of the Jews, ſays St. Hierom, did uſe to ſing it in praiſe of the Meſſias. And the Doctors of the Chriſtians muſt be all of one Chorus to chant it merrily to the Son of God, becauſe four places of the New Teſtament, that is witneſs enough, have made a challenge unto it, that this Pſalm is an Allelujah, or Hoſannah to the Son of God. And becauſe the words of my Text are obvious to be recited upon any memorable and plauſible occaſion, ſometimes they have been drawn to congratulate humane affairs, yet with this reſervation, that none under heaven hath a true intereſt in them. I read that in the ſecond Conſtant. Council held under Juſtinian the Emperour, Johannes Presbyter, as he was called, did extol the unanimity and moſt concordious proceedings of it with theſe words, This is the day, &c. I read that one Cyriacus, a juſt and a learned man was made a Biſhop, and the people ſo well pleaſed with his Election cried out, Hic eſt dies Domini. But Gregory the Great told the people, that no Creature ought to be magnified with that ſolemn note which belongs to the Creator:Lib. 6. Ep. 7. But he adds, Cur iſta reprehendo! Qui quantùm gaudia mentem rapiunt ſcio. Why do I chide you for it? It was your gladneſs that did tranſport you. It was your charity that made you ſo exult, and your meaning was not to give the honour to man, but unto God.
And ſo I have laid the corner ſtone of my Text, that Chriſt is the ſubject of this Prophetical and triumphant acclamation. And becauſe there are two opinions how he is the ſubject of it, that variety ſhall divide my Text. Briefly and plainly, either this day, which the Lord is ſaid to have made, is meant of the whole time of the Goſpel, ſo St. Hierom, and St. Auſtin, with a fair Troop of learned Writers beſide, or elſe it is underſtood of that day, wherein Chriſt aroſe from the dead, which is the Epitome of the whole Goſpel. Now theſe two opinions are ſo equally embraced, that I find that the Church in her ſolemn Service hath favoured them both. Firſt, ſome that have taken pains in Liturgical Antiquities tell me, that this Pſalm was of old appointed to be recited by the Prieſt every Sunday in the year, that is an evident argument, that the day which the Lord hath made, belongs equally to all the days which ſhine upon us ſince Chriſt was incarnate, that is, to the whole duration of the Goſpel. Again, it hath long continued, and is uſed to this day in the Church of Rome, that my Text is ſet in the front of the gradual for Eaſter-day, and is repeated in the ſame manner conſtantly for ſix days after that high Feaſt, which demonſtrates that it hath principally been applied to the glorious myſtery of the Reſurrection. Give me leave therefore to bring them both into my Treatiſe, one after another: And upon each to ſpeak of two things, De beneficio divino, de officio humano; the one half of the verſe is Gods benignity, This is the day which the Lord hath made, the other half is mans acceptance and duty, We will rejoyce, &c.
You know I have already anſwered to the Interrogation Cujus? Whoſe day this is? Whoſe but Chriſts? And for certain it cannot be his day as he is God from everlaſting. His goings out are from all eternity, Micah v. iii. Again, this is dies factus, a day that is made, and ſuch an adjunct cannot ſute with him that was never made, but is the everlaſting one before the world began. It is that day therefore which was made with him when he was made fleſh. It is a curteſie among men for a Creditor to give a day to him that is behind hand to pay his debts. Have patience with me, ſays the ſervant that was arreſted, to the cruel Exactor, and I will pay thee all. But the Lord knew that it would not help us one whit to have the favour of the longeſt day that could be ſet to make payment for what we owe unto him; nay, the longer we live, the longer is the Tally of our ſins; the reckoning will be the more enflamed by giving us time to diſcharge it. Therefore God made a day for his Son, and appointed him a ſeaſon to offer up a price in our ſtead, and through his ſatisfaction the hand-writing is diſcharged which was againſt us. Yea, but S. Luke remembers us that there are many days belonging to the Son, Luk. xvii. 22. The days will come when ye ſhall deſire to ſee one of the days of the Son of man. What day of all thoſe is this? Why not one but all thoſe days ſince the world received him, and received him with the glad tidings of Salvation; all Evangelical days at large, every day that we hear his voice, and harden not our hearts, is this day. It may very well be oppoſed to that diſmal day wherein our firſt Parents tranſgreſſed and fell, that was a day which the Devil made, and he took his paſtime in it, becauſe the League of friendſhip was broken between God and man; but the Lord made a new day to repair us again by the mediation of Jeſus Chriſt. Non eſt dies miſeriae quam ipſi nobis fecimus, ſed dies redemptionis quam fecit Dominus; I think it is St. Auſtins, this is not the day of miſery which we brought upon our ſelves, but it is the good day of pacification and redemption which God created.
It is not to be thought that the whole current of the Goſpel is called a day, but that the nature of it will endure that name in ſome fit and excellent proportion. For,
Firſt, There was no day until a day was ſet that Chriſt ſhould come into the world; darkneſs did cover the earth, and groſs Doctrin the People, as the Prophet ſays, no night that troubles melancholy people with ſtrange and horrible Apparitions could be more diſmal than the time was, before ſome Evangelical Promiſes were preached to the drooping conſcience. Take a ſinner or malefactor that knows not how God hath ſealed his pardon, and what is this earth better than a priſon or a Dungeon unto him? where he lies fettered with the bands of a long night, and is exiled from the eternal providence, as it is Wiſd. xvii. 2. O what a Sun-ſhine there is in the ſalvation of Chriſts name which bringeth the Priſoners out of Captivity, it is a day which is an introduction to an eternal day, where there is light for evermore. So ſays Arnobius, Dies cui non ſuccedit nox, quam horae non dividunt, quem umbra non impedit. It is a day which is not divided by the ſhort ſpace of moments and hours; no Eclipſes can obſcure it, no night can ſucceed it. Day began with Chriſt, and it ſhall continue with him for ever.
Secondly, The Goſpel is a moſt brightſom day compared to that Age wherein the Jews walked under the Ordinances of Moſes, For what was that Law but an Evening with many ſhadows? All things in their Religion were Types and Figures unrevealed, which cauſed an ignorant Prieſthood, and a People of a groſs capacity. Wherefore St. Auſtin obſerves, that our Saviour was brought forth into the world at midnight, but the glory of the Lord which ſhone round about the Angel that brought the tidings made the night as clear as the day: But the Law was delivered on Mount Sinah at Noontide, but with ſo many miſts and dark pillars of ſmoke, that it made the day as obſcure as the night. Do but put your ſelf to one Task, to examine by the Contents of the Law how you will come to the knowledg of the Reſurrection of Chriſt, you will not ſay but it was very meet for an Iſraelite under the Law to know it; but alaſs, they did grope in the dark, and it is hard to ſay whether ever they did find it, for what Type or ſhadow did come home to demonſtrate it? You muſt not reply that it did appear in Jonas, who came forth alive, after he had been three days and three nights in the belly of the Whale, for this was no Leſſon for them that lived in eight or nine Ages from Moſes unto the days of Jonas. Neither muſt you urge that the firſt Temple was pluckt down to the ground, and another reared up in the place, which Temple did ſo prefigure Chriſts body, that in that reſpect Haggai ſays, The glory of the ſecond houſe was greater than the firſt, Hag. ii. 10. This could never inform the peoples judgment all the while that the Tabernacle was under Tents. Truly all that I can lead you to in this caſe is to the Ark, which was but an Epitome of the Temple. Nay, nor to the Ark it ſelf, but to the three holy Reliques which were laid up in the Ark, in them with a little curious obſervation, you may find a rude draught of the Reſurrection of our Saviour. The two Tables of the Law which God gave firſt to Moſes were broken, but they were new hewn, and written over again, there was the reparation of the work of God, which ſeemed to have been utterly loſt. The Pot of Mannah was in the Ark, and this reſembled Chriſt; the Pot was like his Humane Nature, of the earth earthy. The Manna, like his Godhead was above nature, and came from heaven, why this Manna would not keep above two days at the moſt, after that it would putrifie, but that which was put into the Pot did out-laſt the two days of putrefaction, and for ought we know was never corrupted. Finally, Aarons Rod was a dead dry ſtick, but it ſhot forth like a living Tree, and brought forth Almonds. Now if the Reſurrection of Chriſt, the very Pillar of faith, was to be collected out of ſuch dark obſcure ſhadows, what a gloomy night was the time of the Law? And what an illuſtrious day is the Goſpel, which ſpeaks this myſtery ſo plainly to the capacity even of Children and Ideots, Chriſt being raiſed from the dead dieth no more, death hath no more dominion over him.
Yet I will confeſs that we are not yet come to broad day-light till the general Reſurrection of all fleſh is accompliſhed. Very ſweetly ſays one of the Moderns, Tempus gratiae aurora eſt, quae diet vicinior eſt quam nocti. This time of grace is not complete day, but a complete morning, which hath little in it of the night, and much of the day. That is, if you compare us with thoſe of the Synagogue, we are partakers of the day: If you compare us with the life to come, when our glory ſhall be revealed, and Chriſt ſhall be all in all, then we are yet in a dusky condition, and have not hitherto ſhaken off the night. St. Paul hath nickt it with moſt proper words, Rom. xiii. 12. ſays he, The night is far ſpent, the day is at hand. Proceſſit nox, not Praeceſſit, as the Vulgar Latin does miſread it, darkneſs is much abated, not quite diſperſed, for as yet we ſee darkly as in a glaſs, but the dawning of the day is riſen in our Horizon, for God hath given us the explicite knowledg of all Myſteries that conduce to our Salvation. When the Church had firſt reſt from perſecution, it had leiſure to invent a ſplendour of Ceremonies in ſetting forth the Service of God, among others I find that this was practiſed in the fourth Age,Steph. Durantus lib. 1. cap. de Evan. that when the Deacon went up to ſome high place to read the Goſpel, there were certain attendants in the Church, called Acolythi, that carried two Torches lighted before him, Ad demonſtrandum quod de tenebris infidelitatis venimus ad lucem fidei; to ſignifie that we have thrown aſide darkneſs and infidelity, and are come by the help of the Goſpel into marvelous light. So St. Hierom againſt Vigilantius, in the day-time, in the Eaſtern Countries, when the Goſpel is read Candles are lighted, not ad fugandas tenebras, ſed ad ſigum laetitiae demonſtrandum; not that ſuch artificial light adds any thing to the light of the day, but it is a token that light is come to us, and we are glad of the illumination. Give us leave then to ſay without boaſting, that whereſoever the name of Chriſt is profeſſed, and in no place elſe, there is the acceptable time, there is the day of ſalvation. As there was light in Goſhen when all the Land of Egypt was in darkneſs. But eſpecially we ſhall ſhew that we do believe that the day ſpring from on high hath viſited us, if we keep that one rule which St. Paul hath enforced upon it, foreign, Let us walk honeſtly and decently as in the day; foreign, either the energy of the word means, that becauſe many eyes are witneſſes of our dreſſing in the day, we will then habit our ſelves more comely than in the night, when none, or only thoſe of our Family behold us: So the Chriſtian Church is like a City upon an Hill, which cannot be hid, the eyes of all Nations are bent upon it, therefore let us walk ſoberly and juſtly, that we give no ſcandal to the enemies of the Goſpel. Be as careful to apparel your ſouls handſomely with all grace and vertue in the ſight of God, as you are obſervant to dreſs your bodies decently in the day, that nothing deformed may appear in you to the eyes of men. Or it may thus concord with the Apoſtles intention, ſuch as are diſſolute will forbear to riot it in the day, they that are drunken are drunken in the night. A Nation that is more civil in the night than in the day is hardly to be found, unleſs it be true that ſome do tax us for ſuch a Nation; but all diſtempers of roaring and miſchief for the moſt part break out in darkneſs. Well then ſince the Goſpel is a perpetual day, not ſo little as a Lanthorn unto our feet, that is but dim, but a light from heaven above the light of the Sun, Acts xxvi. 13. Let us walk honeſtly as children of the light, knowing we are made a ſpectacle to God, and Angels, and Men.
So far I have entreated upon the Lords benignity, he hath not only crowned David to be a mighty Potentate in the Land of Canaan, but in the day of his Son Chriſt Jeſus he hath crowned us all Kings, and Prieſts of righteouſneſs, and hath given us a long day to rejoyce in even for ever and ever. Now follows our acceptance and duty, ſince this day hath appeared to the wiſh of our heart, We will rejoyce and be glad in it; as who ſhould ſay, as the faithful Iſraelites did keep one day for Davids Inauguration, ſo in the day of the Goſpel we muſt always rejoyce for the Kingdom of Chriſt. Upon the eſtabliſhment of this Kingdom all the Creatures are adjured to expreſs their gladneſs, Pſal. xcvi. I quote that place, for there is none like it to this purpoſe; thus the Pſalmiſt, ver. 10. Say among the Heathen that the Lord reigneth, let the Heavens rejoyce, and let the Earth be glad; let the Sea roar and the fulneſs thereof, let the field be joyful, and all that is therein, then ſhall all the trees of the Wood rejoyce before the Lord, for he cometh, for he cometh to judge the earth. Tenerae militiae delicatus conflictus, as Gregory ſays, We call our Pilgrimage upon earth a Chriſtian warfare, a wreſtling with Powers and Principalities, an affliction of the fleſh, the ſufferance of the Croſs, &c. And are all thoſe affrighting words converted into this Leſſon, Rejoyce and be glad. He that will ſtick with God for the duty, Jubeas miſerum eſſe libenter; let him eat the bread of ſorrow, let him live in miſery and mourning, when he need not. Can the Children of the Bride-chamber mourn while the Bridegroom is with them? Says our Saviour to the Phariſees, when they grudg'd that his Diſciples did not humble and macerate themſelves with faſting. But the days will come that the Bridegroom ſhall be taken from them, and then they ſhall mourn. Two things I deduce from hence: Out of the latter words it appears, that diſmal times will befal the Church Evangelical, by bloody perſecutions, by the venemous tongues of Hereticks, ſharper than any two-edged Sword. Yet thoſe woful Calamities reſult not out of the Goſpel it ſelf, but are extrinſecal miſchiefs that force themſelves upon it. And though the Bridegroom be gone he hath ſent the Comforter, and in the midſt of ſorrows his enlightnings do enrich the ſoul, foreign, we converſe ſays St. Paul, among ſad events, as if we were ſorrowful, but in good earneſt we are alway rejoycing. But ſecondly, it appears from the exordium of our Saviours Sermon, Can the Children of the Bride-chamber mourn while the Bridegroom is with them? That the Goſpel in its own nature is a Bride-chamber, or ſolemnization of a great Marriage, wherein there is nothing but joyfulneſs and feſtivity. Says the Apoſtle, De habitu virg.Chriſt our Paſſover is ſacrificed for us, that was the conſtitution of the Goſpel: Well, what follows? Therefore let us keep the Feaſt, 1 Cor. v. 8. St. Cyprian reads it, Feſta celebremus, let us keep the Feaſts, let us all days feſtival for Chriſts ſake. St. Paul alludes to the Feaſt of unleavened bread among the Jews which was held ſeven days continually without ceaſing. In like ſort let us celebrate ſuch a feaſt with the unleavened bread of ſincerity, and Numerus ſeptenarius eſt ſymbolum univerſitatis, to keep it for ſeven days is from the myſtical number of eternity to keep it for ever and ever. Clemens ſays, Ʋniverſa vita juſti eſt quidam celebris ac ſanctus dies; Lib. 7. foreign.All the life of a good Chriſtian is holy day. Pope Sylveſter meant it ſo, when he changed the common names of the week days, and called them all Ferias. Feria prima, ſecunda, and ſo forth. Nay, our own Church intends it ſo likewiſe, therefore in our Cathedral Churches ſolemn praiſe are ſung to the Organ all the year long with the voice of melody; and in Parochial Churches every day of the year when Morning Prayer is read after the Confeſſion and Abſolution of our ſins, the Introitus, or Introduction appointed is an Hymn, and thus it begins, Come let us ſing unto the Lord, let us heartily rejoyce in the ſtrength of our ſalvation.
If I deſcend to ſome particulars, wherein our Evangelical gladneſs conſiſts, I know it will be more ſatisfactory to the Auditory. Firſt, It brings with it a ſpiritual delight. Secondly, An external gladneſs which opens it ſelf in ſigns and tokens. The ſpiritual delight which we treaſure up within the ſoul looking ſtedfaſtly upon Jeſus that died for our ſins, and roſe again for our juſtification, is heavenly and unutterable, it is a ſuperlative joy that cries down all other petty delights. It is riſus ex ſerenitate conſcientiae, as the Fathers call it; not Sarahs gigling, but Abrahams laughter, when he believed that Iſaac ſhould be born, and involved in the ſame belief, that Chriſt the Redeemer ſhould be born out of the ſtock of Iſaac. The external utterances of a pious joy are theſe: 1. Days of reſt from bodily labour; for the meaner labour muſt give way, when a better, and a worthier is to be undertaken. And while the mind hath juſt occaſion to make its abode in the houſe of gladneſs, the weed of ordinary toil and travel doth not become us; therefore it is fit that ordinary labour ſhould ſometimes ſurrender it ſelf up to the ſervice of God. 2. To laud the name of the Lord, and to give thanks unto him are the only language of our thankfulneſs. Says David, I went with the multitude unto the houſe of the Lord, in the voice of praiſe and thankſgiving among ſuch as keep holy day, Pſal. xlii. 5.3. God doth not deny it, but he that offereth him praiſe doth honour him; but will you know how that honour is beſt exalted? Make a chearful noiſe to the God of Jacob, ſinging and making melody to the Lord with Pſalms, and Hymns, and ſpiritual Songs. If the Jews might juſtly ſay, how can we ſing the Lords ſong, while we are in a ſtrange Land, while we are in Captivity? Then we muſt acknowledge on the contrary, how can we chooſe but ſing the Lords Song, being delivered out of captivity? Singing of Pſalms is a moſt proper exerciſe of our reaſonable ſervice. Curious Muſick upon coſtly Inſtruments is an admirable alarm for devotion in Cathedral and Collegiate places, where ſuch as are wiſe and skilful do come together to enjoy it. Yet ſtill the people have their Vulgar Pſalms to ſolace their hearts, and they that mock at ſuch innocent harmony have great want of charity that they will not deſcend to the weakneſs of their poor brethren. St. Hierom tells it of his days, that as the people walk'd about the Market, as they ſailed in Ships, as they wrought with their Needle they ſung theſe holy Ditties. Says St. Baſil, this is irkſome to none but to the Devil; let ſcoffers mark that, for the evil Spirit went out of Saul when David played upon the Harp, and David was no profane Minſtril, but an holy Singer. 4. Another effect of Chriſtian joy is to give, becauſe it abounds. A joy that will not diſtribute to the needy is a ſhrunken withered joy, nay, a joy that will carry the curſe of God with it, becauſe it wants fruits: And a joy that will carry the curſe of the poor with it, becauſe they are ſuffered to pine and languiſh in our publick gladneſs. 5. And laſtly, all ſorts of mirth, and innocent recreation, wherein our Subſtance is not exhauſted, nor our time trifled away, are agreeable to our Chriſtian Converſation, the heart cannot always be intentive upon the glory of God, Miro modo ex amore Dei homo aliquando non cogitat de Deo; At our times of reſpite from ſacred Offices, to delight our ſullen nature with harmleſs pleaſure, it rubs off the ruſt of melancholy, and puts alacrity in us to rejoyce always in the Lord. Away with the lowring of the Phariſee, and take heed of auſterity which is groundleſs, and hath no foundation in the Word of God.
And here I ſtint my ſelf to proceed no further upon the firſt part which I laid forth, for you have heard enough that the whole current of the Goſpel is that Day which the gracious mercy of the Lord did make, all things without it are anxious and grievous, all things with it are ſweet and delicious, and therefore it is the very joy of our heart. But as commonly a Diamond is more valuable than the Ring wherein it is ſet, ſo if I will take our Grammarians at their word, annus quaſi annulus, that a Year is a Circumvolution of Time that hath no end, but runs round like a Ring; then I may ſpeak it out of the mouth of all antiquity, that the High Feaſt of Eaſter is the Jewel of the Year, whoſe luſtre hath been moſt beautiful in the eyes of godly men in all Ages. As there is mention in Scripture of an Holy of Holies, and a Song of Songs, ſo Nazianzen calls this foreign the Solemnity of Solemnities; others the Metropolis of ſacred Feaſts, the Queen of Holy-dayes, and like the Virgin Mary among Women, ſo this among the Days of the Year, all Generations ſhall call it bleſſed. foreign ▪ by Epiphanius, the great Aſſembly, the greateſt Concourſe of Chriſtians throughout all the year. Such a Concourſe, that when that day came, the moſt bloudy Perſecutions could not deter them from aſſembling together; they that hid their heads in dark places, and Caves of the earth, would come abroad, and fill up a Congregation, as if they had rather chooſe death, than be wanting to praiſe God for the Reſurrection of Jeſus Chriſt. A goodly fair Church being built at Alexandria, but not yet conſecrated, Athanaſius was blamed that he ſuffered the People to meet together for the performance of Divine Service in a Church that wanted Epiſcopal Conſecration; his anſwer was it was the Feaſt of Eaſter, and all other Churches were too little to receive thoſe multitudes of Chriſtians in the City, and their ardor was ſo great, that in deſpight of my authority they would fill up the moſt capacious Church againſt that principal Solemnity. I ſhould make you ſurfeit with ſtory, if I ſhould tell you what religious care Chriſtian Emperors and General Councils of moſt famous Biſhops had to ſettle this holy Feſtival, that it might be kept more ſolemnly than all the Feaſts of the year. Cui non dictus Hylas? who doth not know that it was worthy to be conſider'd and ratified by 318 Biſhops in the firſt Nicene Council? and they had reaſon to do ſo; for it appears though other Holy-days dropt in one after another in later times, yet the Apoſtles themſelves, and all Ages deduced from them, did celebrate one day yearly for the Reſurrection of our Lord. Euſeb. lib. 3. de vit. Conſt.Therefore ſays Conſtantine the Great in his Oration at the Nicene Council, be it lawful for us Chriſtians, rejecting the Jewiſh manner, to honour that day, which ever ſince the Paſſion of Chriſt hath been obſervantly kept until this time, and let us tranſmit the due conſtitution of it to all Ages to come.Ep. 118. And ſo St. Auſtin commending the pious uſe of this Feaſt, that which is an inviolable Cuſtom in all Orthodox Churches of the world, and hath none to gainſay it, it muſt be confeſt that it was eſtabliſhed by the Apoſtles themſelves, and that's authority enough. And thoſe were moſt concordious and happy times, that it being but a Ceremony of Decency and Order, none did lift up their tongues againſt it. Theſe latter Ages have been more froward and combuſtious; though David pointed it out with ſo clear a Propheſie, This is the day which the Lord hath made; though the Angels appeared in white early this morning in our Saviour's Tomb, that is in the Garments of joy and gladneſs; though St. Paul ſays upon our Chriſtian Paſche, Let us keep the Feaſt with the unleavened bread of ſincerity, though the Apoſtles in all likelihood ordein'd it; though both Eaſtern and Weſtern Churches kept a ſolemn Jubilee upon it, yet ſome have ſnarl'd at it, and would neither give it any particular honour, nor appoint any Service ſuitable for that happy occaſion. The Church of Geneva was at that point once, but I am far from blaming Calvin for it, as ſome have done; for their giddy-headed multitude had baniſht him out of their City, at what time they quite eraſed out all Holy-days, and when he return'd again, he did prevail with them to reeſtabliſh the two great Feaſts of Chriſtmas and Eaſter. And for that which hapned before, he anſwer'd ſe neſcio & invito factum eſſe, it was neither done with his will, nor with his knowledg. It is more than I know if any other Chriſtian Church in the world did keep no Feaſt for the Reſurrection of Chriſt, ſaving that this thankful remembrance of Chriſts victory over Death was forgot in the Church of Scotland, till by the learned and pious induſtry of King James of Bleſſed Memory, about eighteen years paſt they did conſent at an Eccleſiaſtical Synod, to receive five ſolemn Feaſts in honour of our Saviour, and Eaſter for the principal. O how theſe Churches would have been inveighed at in Athanaſius, and Hierom, and Auſtin's days? I dare confidently ſay it, they would have been excommunicated by General Councils, none would have held communion with them, during the time that they had no ſolemn Eaſter, as long as they did not keep the Day which the Lord hath made. Aerius excepted againſt that Holy-day, and preſently he was ſcored up for an Heretick. But our Church, which is moſt decent in all good order, and reaſonable Ceremony, doth not only give honour to the grand Day, but to the two Days following, as the enlarging of our faith and joy: and this is exact according to ancient order: For in Nyſſen's firſt Sermon on the Paſque it is called foreign, a Three days Feſtival, and St. Auſtin ſpeaks of it as a thing known, that there was tertius feſti dies, a third day ſolemnized, that as Chriſt roſe the third day, ſo the memory of it was kept in three days continuation.
Some have ſtood much upon it, that the time when Chriſt roſe out of the Grave is not called a Feaſt, but a Day, as if there had been ſomewhat in it to make it a Day, rather than any other time. Chryſologus gives his reaſon as one that is tranſported with joy beyond the truth, that in the Morning wherein our Champion overcame death, the Sun roſe earlier by certain hours than the natural ſeaſon, Ʋt redderet lucis horas, quas terror Dominicae paſſionis invaſerat, to make reſtitution of thoſe hours of light which were loſt by the Eclipſe of the Sun at our Saviours Paſſion: and ſo it ſhould be called a Day, becauſe it was miraculous, and longer than the natural proportion of a Day. But this is without the Book, and rather Poetical than Theological. But ſecondly, to more purpoſe it juſtly bears the title of a Day; for were it not for the benefit of Chriſt's Reſurrection we had been buried in eternal night, our bodies had gone down into the Sepulchre, as into the Land of darkneſs, to periſh and rot, and never to ſee the light more: Nox eſt perpetuò una dormienda; but through him who hath planted us into the ſimilitude of his Reſurrection, we awake from ſleep, we ſtand up from the dead, and Chriſt ſhall give us light. 3. The claritude of thoſe glorified Bodies which we ſhall put on in the General Reſurrection will make us carry Day about with us whitherſoever we go. You know how Chriſt did look at his Transfiguration, his face did ſhine as the Sun, and his raiment was white as the light, Mat. xvii. 2. therefore it muſt needs be day with the Saints for ever after they are riſen from the dead, ſince according to the Pattern of their Maſters beauty their faces ſhall ſhine like the Sun in the Firmament. But fourthly, whether theſe curioſities touch the Point I am not ſure, upon this I dare build, that it is called the Day which the Lord made, becauſe no greater work than the Reſurrection of Chriſt was made upon any day ſince the world began: for two things are to be conſidered in it, Quod apparuit in Chriſto, & quod nondum apparuit in nobis, that which was wrought upon Chriſt's Body, and was ſeen in him, and by virtue of his riſing from the dead that which ſhall appear in us hereafter. O infinite Power which quickned Jeſus again, the life and ſoul of all the Members of his Body, and would not let him ſee corruption. I know not how to compare the nobleſt Acts of the Lord, as many have done, I dare not do it; as whether it were more to create a man out of nothing, or to recompoſe a man again, when his Soul was flitted, and the Subſtance of his Body paſſed about into innumerous Tranſmutations, after the revolution of five or ſix thouſand years: This I know, that on our part it had been better for us never to have been, than not to have been reſtored to the Image of God which was defaced in us; and ſimply to be is nothing ſo well, as to be made incorruptible in the outward man, and the inward man to be reſtored unto Righteouſneſs and Holineſs of life, Beſides, after the Creation God did ceaſe from his work, and there is no new thing under the Sun; but after the Reſurrection of Chriſt, God doth continually ſave his people from their Sins: Or if you interpoſe that as the Father did reſt the laſt day of the Week from the Works of the Creation, ſo the Son did reſt on the firſt day of the Week, having abſolutely accompliſhed the Work of our Redemption; then I infer, if the Reſt of the Father, ceaſing from creating material things, did ſanctifie a Day, then this greater Reſt of the Son muſt much more ſanctifie a Feſtival. As the new Heavens and the new Earth ſhall be more glorious than the old, which are ſubject to vanity; ſo the Jewiſh Feaſt on the Sabbath for the Remembrance of the Creation, is nothing ſo honourable as the Chriſtian Feaſt of the Lords Day in Remembrance of the Reſurrection: Therefore at the cloſe of the Benefit, let me admoniſh you of the Duty, We will, &c.
When Iſrael came out of Egypt, and the houſe of Jacob from a ſtrange Land, they came home again to the Land of Canaan, from whence they were deſcended, like men that had lien long among the dead, and were quite forgotten: But with ſo much mirth and joy as is unutterable, their mouth was filled with laughter and their tongue with joy. This was but a Type of the Body brought back out of the Grave, therefore this gladneſs will become us much better in the Subſtance, than in the Figure. Chriſt is returned victoriouſly out of the Sepulcher, and in that victory hath redeemed us all from the captivity of the Grave, then how requiſite is it that our mouth ſhould be filled with laughter, and our tongue with ſinging? for the Lord hath done very great things for us, whereof we are glad. There was never any Society, I am perſwaded, more diſconſolate, more creſt-faln, than the Diſciples were upon the Eve of this happy Reſurrection, their faith failed them, and their courage failed them; they lockt themſelves up, and ſat drowzily like men that had loſt the faireſt expectation that heart could imagin, and had neither life nor ſoul. Heavineſs did endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning. Jeſus came into the midſt of them the doors being ſhut, and ſhewed them his feet and his hands, Then were the Diſciples glad when they ſaw the Lord, Joh. xx. 20. before the Lords Aſcenſion, though their minds were yet ſomewhat carnal, yet they were glad that his ſayings were verified in deſpight of the Jews, that He was riſen again the third day. The old Father confuted his churliſh Son with that principle of good nature, it was meet that we ſhould make merry and be glad, for this thy brother was dead, and is alive again, Luke xv. 32. Again the Diſciples were very frollick, becauſe when they ſaw the Lord revived again, they were perſwaded that He would reſtore the Temporal Kingdom unto Iſrael, a thing which erroneouſly they had long lookt for: but after his Aſcenſion then their joy was high ſwoln, and full to the brim, for it was illuminated by faith, they rejoyced that he was riſen, and gone up in glory to poſſeſs his Kingdom, for when Chriſt our life ſhall appear again, then ſhall we alſo appear in glory.
But becauſe ancient Cuſtoms are things that will ſtick to the remembrance, I will borrow a little time to impart unto you what glad remonſtrances the Old Fathers of the Church were wont to make of it.
Firſt their very outward Garments were of the beſt they had, and full of ſplendor; not out of pride and wantonneſs, but to teſtifie that in every circumſtance they did magnifie that holy Myſtery of Chriſts riſing from the dead, and to witneſs in their outward habit, that the reſurrection of the dead is the cloathing of us with new and immortal apparel. Therefore Nazianzen wiſhing for his own diſſolution cries out, take from me this ponderous Garment, that is, this ſinful corruptible Body, which makes me ſweat and faint, and give me a lighter that will never trouble me.
Secondly, their Churches were trickt up with the beſt bravery that they could get, that the very Walls of Gods Houſe might bear a part in their rejoycing: As for Proceſſions from one Church to another on this day, I find no ſuch Cuſtom in the beſt Ages of Religion: Although in ſome late hundred years it is in uſe at Rome, that their chief Prelates viſit the ſeven principal Churches in grand Proceſſion, becauſe, and alaſs for ſo poor a cauſe, that Chriſt, after He was riſen, bad his Diſciples go before him into Galilee.
Thirdly, the Word of God was preached laboriouſly, and ſtudied for that occaſion, Ex verbo illud potiſſimum, quod eſt tempori convenientiſſimum, ſays Nazianzen; let that Scripture be handled which belongs to the Seaſon: and beſide the Sermon their Service was ſet forth with all gravity and ſweetneſs of Muſick. Laeti exultanteſque celebremus, ſays St. Ambroſe, &c. let our ſhrill voices proclaim it that we are glad: and Theodoret gives warning, that this Panegyrical Day be kept honeſtly, foreign; not with drunkenneſs and riot, and profuſe laughter, but ſinging Pſalms, and hearing the Word attentively.
Fourthly, this Feaſt was the ſolemn time for receiving Baptiſm, this and the Feaſt of Whitſuntide, and, unleſs in caſe of neceſſity, it was never given of old at other times; all that were preſented at Baptiſm coming in white Garments, profeſſing thereby that they would keep their righteouſneſs pure and immaculate until the ſecond coming of the Lord.
Fifthly, as Baptiſm is the waſhing away of ſins, which could not chooſe but comfort their hearts over all the Church, and make them chearful, ſo the confirmation of that Faith was the receiving of the Holy Communion of Chriſts Body and Bloud, which all did univerſally apply themſelves to, that could examin themſelves, and none did fail, whereupon ſays Leo, this is the peculiar Bleſſing of Eaſter-day, ut in remiſſione peccatorum univerſa gaudeat Eccleſia, that the whole Church had cauſe to rejoyce that remiſſion of ſins was ſealed unto them, that is, either in the Sacrament of Baptiſm, or in the Supper of the Lord.
Sixthly, whereas it was diſputed and toſſed about extremely at what time all Chriſtians ſhould keep their Eaſter, the holy Biſhops that were otherwiſe at odds, conſented in two things, the one that it ſhould begin immediately after the ſorrowful affliction of Lent was laid aſide. The other, that it ſhould be appointed in the ſweetneſs of the Spring, when the year is moſt delightſom and beautiful, Et laetitiam conciliat huic feſto verna amaenitas, ſays one, the amiable verdure of the Spring is joyn'd unto it to make Eaſter more joyful.
Seventhly, ſome did alter the year, and ſet the beginning of it from the Feaſt of the Reſurrection. We come very near it in one computation our ſelves. This I find, that as ſome friends do ſend Preſents one to the other at the beginning of the new year. So Nazianzen ſays,Orat. 42. that at Eaſter all were wont to give either Oblations to God, or Gifts to their Neighbours, or Alms to the Poor: For Feſtival Solemnities are a due mixture of Praiſe and Bounty. The Jews at the Paſſover did offer to God the firſt fruits of their Barly, at the Feaſt of Pentecoſt Loaves made of new Wheat, at the Feaſt of Tabernacles the firſt fruits of other Fruits which they had gathered. All pompous days had ſome mixture of liberality.
Eighthly, in Theodoſius the Emperors time a Law paſſed, to the end that all might keep their Eaſter merrily without interruption, that no Proceſs or Arreſt ſhould go forth in any Court againſt any man from the Sunday before Eaſter to the Sunday after Eaſter, that is, for the ſpace of fifteen days.
Ninthly, as the Political Magiſtrate was ſo reſpectful of this Feſtival, ſo was the Eccleſiaſtical: For the ancient Council of Ancyra order'd,Can. 5. that to the end all might rejoyce and be glad this day, Excommunications, Suſpenſions, and all Cenſures ſhould end at Eaſter; nay the great Council of Nice took care, that in every Province or Dioceſs a Synod of the Clergy ſhould be held every Lent, to ſet all matters ſtrait againſt this time, that there might be no variance, no quarrel, no complaint remaining: As if this were our Jubilee, wherein Servants were manumitted from Bondage, Debts were remitted, and Poſſeſſions reſtored to the owners that had ſold them. Certainly the holy Fathers meant that above all the Feaſts of the year this was our joyful Jubilee.
Tenthly and laſtly, the principal ſtamp of gladneſs ſet upon this day was, that the firſt day of the week, namely Sunday is kept holy every day of the week for Eaſter-days ſake; of which I will make a larger work hereafter. But every Sunday was ſtrictly kept with ſuch ſolemn poſtures of joy, that the laſt Canon of the Nicene Council interdicted all Chriſtians from kneeling on thoſe days, they muſt pray ſtanding, that is chearfully, and kneeling was ſuppoſed to be the geſture of affliction and humiliation.
The end of all theſe Edicts and Ceremonies was to let us know, that the Lord had done great things for us, for which we ought to rejoyce, foreign, even to skip for joy; for true joy will break forth, as John did in the womb of Elizabeth. Death is a comfort againſt all ſorrows, and the Reſurrection is a comfort againſt Death, and Chriſt is our comfort that we ſhall have a joyful reſurrection, and the holy Sacrament is our viſible comfort, that we ſtill live in Chriſt for evermore. AMEN.