Acts and Monuments Volume 2 Part 2, Book 11 · Account 25 · Letter 10
¶Letters of M. Iohn Hullier Minister.
A Letter of Iohn Hullier to the Christian congregation, exhorting them faithfully to abide in the doctrine of the Lord.
IT standeth now most in hand (O deare Christians) all them yt looke to bee accounted of Christes flocke at that great and terrible day,A letter exhortatory of Iohn Huller to the flocke of the faythfull Christians. Mach. 24 when a separation shalbe made of that sort that shalbe receiued, from the other which shalbe refused, faithfully in this time of great afflictions, to heare our master Christes voice, the only true shepheard of our soules, whych sayeth: Who so euer shall endure to the ende, shall be safe. For euen nowe is that great trouble in hande (as heere in England we may wel see) that our Sauiour Christ spake off so long before, which shoulde followe the true and sincere preachinge of his Gospell. Therefore in thys time wee must needes eyther shewe that wee be hys faithfull Souldiours, and continue in hys battaile vntounto the ende, putting on the armoure of God,Ephe. 6. 1. Thess …5. the buckler of faith, the brest plate of louelove, the helmet of hope and saluation, and the sworde of his holy woorde (whiche wee hauehave heard plentifully) wyth all instaunce of supplication and prayer: or els if we do not woorke and labour with these, we are Apostataes and false souldiours, shrinking moste vnthankefully from our gracious and soueraigne Lorde and Captaine Christe, and leaning to Beliall. For as hee sayeth plainely: Who so euer beareth not my crosse and foloweth me, he can not be my disciple: And, no man can serue two maisters: for either he must hate the one, and louelove the other, Luke. 14. Math. 6.or els he shall leane to the one, and despise the other. The which thing the faithfull Prophete Helias signified when hee came to the people, and sayde:3. Reg. 18. Why halte yee betweene two opinions? If the Lorde be God, followe hym, or if Baal be hee, then folowe him.
Nowe let vsus not thinke, but that the same was recorded in wryting for oure instruction▪ whome the endes of the worlde are come vppon, as the Apostle Saint Paule sayeth: What so euer thyngs are wrytten aforehande, they are wrytten for our learning. Rom. 15.If Christe be that onelyonly good and true shepheard that gaue his life for vsus,Anno 1556. Maye. then lette vsus that beare his marke, and hauehave our consciences sprinkled with his bloude, followe altogether for our saluation, hys heauenly voyce and calling, according to oure profession and first promise. But if we shall not so do, certainly (say what we can) although we beare the name of Christe, yet we be none of hys sheepe in deede. For he sayeth very manifestly:Iohn 10. My sheepe heare my voyce, and followe me: a straunger they will not followe, but will flee from him, for they knowe not the voyce of a straunger.
Therefore lette eueryevery man take good heede in these perillous dayes (whereof we hauehave had so much warning aforehande) that he be not beguiled by the goodly outward shewe and appearance, as Eue was of our olde subtile enemie,The wilines of the subtile Serpent. whose crafte and wylinesse is so manifolde and diuers, and so full of close windings, that if he can not bring hym directly and the plaine straight way to consent to his suggestions, then he will allure him and winde him in by some other false wayes (as it were by a traine) that hee shall not perceiue it, to deceiue him wythall, and to steale from him that goodly victorie of the incorruptible and eternall crowne of glorye,2. Tim. 2. which no man els can hauehave, but he that fighteth lawfully: as at thys present day, if hee can not induce him thorowly as other doe, to fauor his deuelish religion, and of good wil and free heart to helpe to vpholde the same, yet he will enueagle him to resorte to hys wicked and whorish schoolehouse, and at the least wise to be conuersant and keepe company wyth hys congregation there, and to holde his peace and say nothing, what soeuer he thinke, so that he be not a diligent souldiour and a good labourer on Christes side, to further his kingdome: by that subtile meanes flattering him that hee shall bothe saue his life, & also his goods, and liue in quiet. But if we looke well on Christes holy will and Testament, we shal perceiue that he came not to make any suche peace vppon earth, nor yet that he gaue any such peace to his Disciples: I leaue peace wyth you (sayeth he) my peace I geue you, not as the world geueth it, Math. 10. Iohn. 14.15.16. The peace of Christ to them that sustayne the troubles of this worlde. Luke. 14.geue I vntounto you. Let not your hart be troubled, nor fearefull. These thinges hauehave I spoken vntounto you, that in me ye should hauehave peace. In the worlde yee shall hauehave affliction, but be of good cheare, I hauehave ouercome the world. The seruaunt is not greater then his Lord and maister: If they hauehave persecuted me, they shall also persecute you. If any man come to me, and hateth not his owne father and mother, wife, children, sisters, yea, and moreouer his owne life, it is not possible for him to be my disciple. Blessed be yee that nowe weepe, for ye shall laughe: and woe be vntounto you that nowe laugh, for ye shal mourne & weepe. He that wil finde his life, shall loose it.
Therfore the God of that true peace and comfort, preserue and keepe vsus, that we neuer obey such a false flattering, which at length will pay vsus home once for all, bringing for temporal… peace and quietnesse, euerlasting trouble, vexation, and disquietnesse: for these vaine and transitory goodes, extreme losse and vtter damage of the eternal treasure and inheritance: for this mortall life, depriuation of the most ioyfull life immortall: finally, the entrance into endlesse death most miserable, vnmeasurable pain and torment both of body and soule.
Now conferring these 2. scholemasters together, lette vsus consider the thing wel, and determine with our selues whych way we oughte to take,The strayte way of Christ better then the broad way of this world. & not to take the common broade way which seemeth heere moste pleasant, and that the most parte of people take. Surely I iudge it to be better to goe to Schoole wyth our maister Christe, and to be vnderunder his Ferula and rodde (although it seeme sharpe and grieuous for a time) that at the lengthe we may be inheritors wyth him of euerlasting ioy, rather then to keepe cō pany wyth the deuils schollers, the adulterous generation, in his schoole that is all ful of pleasure for a while, and at the ende to be paide with the wages of continuall burning in the moste horrible lake whiche burneth euermore with fire and brimstone without any end. What shal then these vaine goodes and temporall pleasures auaile? Who shall then helpe when we crie incessantly, woe, woe, alasse and weale away, for vnmeasurable paine, griefe, and sorrowe? O let vsus therefore take heede betime, and rather be content to take paynes in this worlde for a time, that wee maye please God. Our Sauiour Christe the true teacher sayeth:…ohn. 15. EueryEvery braunche that bringeth not foorth fruite in mee, my Father will take away.
It is also not wrytten in vaine: The children of the vngodly are abhominable children, Eccle. 41. Vngodly comp…ny t… be auoyded.and so are they that kepe company wyth the vngodly. What doeth he els, I pray you, that resorteth to the ministration and seruice that is moste repugnant and contrary to Christes holy Testament, there keeping still silence, and nothing reproouing the same, but in the face of the world by hys very deede it selfe, declareth hymselfe to be of a false, fearefull, dissembling, fained, and vnfaithfull heart, and to hauehave layde awaye from hym the armour of light, discouraging as muche as lieth in hym, all the residue of Christes hoste, and geuing a manifest offence to the weake, and also confirming, encouraging and reioysing the hearts of the aduersaries in all theyr euil doing? By which example he doeth shewe him selfe, neyther to louelove God, whome he seeth to be dishonoured and blasphemed of an Antichristian minister, nor yet his neighbour, before whome he should rebuke the euill, as it is expresly commaunded in Gods holy lawe, where it is sayd: Thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbour, that thou be ar not sinne for hys sake. Leuit. 18. Gods stipend commeth not, but to such as play his souldiours.Wherefore let such a one neuer fantasie to deceiue him selfe, that his name is registred in the booke of life, to hauehave the stipend of Christes souldiour, except he do the duety and performe the parte of a faithfull and ryghte true souldioure, as other hauehave done before. For such fearfulnesse commeth not from God, as testifieth S. Paule, saying: God hath not geuen vsus the spirit of feare, but of power and louelove. Be not ashamed, sayth he, to testifie our Lorde, 2. Tim. 1.but suffer aduersitye also with the Gospell, through the power of God, which saued vsus, and calling vsus with an holy calling.
To be now fearful when most nede is that we should be of strong hearts,Fearefulnes in Christes cause disproued. Math. 10. is vtterly the reiecting of the feare of God, and plaine vnfaithfulnesse and disobedience to the expresse commandement of our sauior Christ, which sayth in his holy gospel: Feare not them that kill the body. &c. For what faithfulnesse doe we expresse towards hym, when he sayeth thus to vsus, and yet we declare in our doynges the very contrarye, being euer fearefull, euen as the vnbeleeuing Israelites, whiche vnfaithfully feared Gods ennemies the heathen Cananites, where as he had oftentimes geuen them commaundement by hys true Prophet Moses, to do the contrary? For the which cause,Num. 13.14. all the whole number of that secte were destroyed in processe of time in the wildernesse,Example by the fearefull Israelites. and enioyed not the pleasant land of promise. Which was a bodily figure shewed before, and now agreeing to the promise of the heauenly inheritāce, which shalbe geuen to none other, but onelyonly to al such as wt louelove vnfained, be wholy bent, wythout any fear of man, to fulfil Gods holy will and pleasure. But all they that pertain to the liuely faith to the winning of the soule, wil faithfully sticke to the commandement, trusting moste firmly and faithfully, that he that gaue the same, wil also geue strēgth plentifully to performe it euen in the weakest vesselles of all, euen as we hauehave heard and seene by many and diuers examples, he onelyonly be praised therefore.
S. Peter sayeth: Feare not though they seeme terrible vntounto you, neither be troubled, 1. Pet. 3. Phil. 1.but sanctifie the Lorde God in your hearts. OnelyOnly (sayeth S. Paule) let your conuersation be as it becommeth the gospell of Christe. Continue in one spirit, and in one soule, labouring as we doe, to maintaine the faith of the gospell, & in nothing fearing your aduersaries which is to them a token of damnation, and to you of saluation, and that of God: for vntounto you it is geuen that not onelyonly yee shoulde beleeue in Christe, but also suffer for his sake. Wherefore let vsus be ryght well assured that we shall yeelde a moste straite reckening and accompte, if we transgresse the sayde moste wholesom preceptes geuen vsus of oure maister Christe and of hys Apostles, and nowe in thys troublesome time wherein the Gospell is persecuted, shewe our selues fearefull souldiours: as it is manifestly declared in the Reuelation of S. Iohn, where it is wrytten: That the fearefull shall hauehave theyr parte wyth the vnbeleeuing and abhominable, Apoc. 21.in the lake that burneth with fire and brimstone, which is the seconde death. Agayne, it is wrytten in the same Booke for our warnyng:Apoc. 3. Because thou art betwixt both, and neither colde nor hote, I wil spew thee out of my mouth.
Now therefore good christians, these true testimonies of Gods liuely woord deepely considered and weighed, let vsus chiefly stand in awe of his most terrible iudgementes, and be not as they that presumptuously tempt hym. Lette him alwayes be our feare and dread. He nowe chasteneth, he nowe nourtereth vsus for oure profite,Esay. 8. Prouer. 3. deliting in vsus euen as a louing Father in his beloued childe, to make vsus perfecte, and to hauehave vsus to be partakers of his holynesse.Heb. 12. 1. Cor ▪ 11. 2. Reg. 7. Hee nowe iudgeth vsus, not vtterly taking away hys euerlasting louelove and mercy from vsus, as he doth from the malignant & wicked, that we should not be condemned with the wicked world: but if we now refuse his moste louyng chastising, and folow the worlde, we must nedes hauehave our portion with the worlde. Wide is the gate, and broade is the way whych leadeth to destruction,Math. 7. and many there be whych goe in thereat. But straite is the gate and narowe is the waye that leadeth vntounto life, and fewe there bee that finde it. O howe muche better is it to goe thys narrowe waye with the people of God, then to enioy the pleasures of sinne for a time?
In consideration whereof, let vsus wythout any more slackinge and further delaies in thys greate warninge by Gods louing visitation, submit our selues betime vnderunder hys mighty hand, that he may exalte vsus when the tyme is come. And thus I wholely commit you to him, and to the woorde of hys grace,… which is able to build further, beseeching you most heartily to pray for me, yt I may be strong through the power of his might, and stande perfect in all things, being alwaies prepared and ready, looking for the mercy of our Lorde vntounto eternall rest, and I will pray for you as I am most bounde. So I trust he will graciously heare vsus for hys promise sake made vntounto all Faithfull in hys dearely beloued sonne Christe oure alone Sauioure, whose grace be wyth your spirite, most deare Christians, for euer. So be it.
By your Christian brother▪ Iohn Hullier, a prisoner of the Lorde.