Sermon Preached Several Times, Dedication 5
TO THE RIGHT HONOVRABLE Sir HORATIO VERE, late Lord Generall of his Majeſties Forces in the Palatinate: And TO THE RIGHT Worthy and religious LADY his Wife: True Joy in Chriſt, and full Joy with Chriſt.
RIGHT HONOVRABLE, andaNobilis genere, nobilior ſanctitate. Auguſt. epiſt. 179. truly Noble, (for that is the beſtbforeign. Greg. Naz. in Gergon. & in Baſil. foreign. Idem in Patr. foreign. Idem in Heron. foreign. Iſidor. Pel. lib. 2. epiſt. 291. Summa apud Deum nobilitas est clarum eſſe virtutibus. Paulin. ad Celant. Chriſtianum eſſe, eſt verè nobilem eſſe. Nec genere ſed virtute cenſetur nobilitas. foreign. Iphicrat. Ariſt. rhet. lib. 2. cap. 23. Quod optimum nobiliſſimum. Velleius hiſt. lib. 2. foreign. Antiſthen. Laert. lib. 6. foreign. Plato ibid. lib. 3. Quis generoſus? ad virtutem benè à natura compoſitus. Non facit nobilem atrium plenum ſumoſis imaginibus: animus facit. Semec. epiſt. 44. Nemo altero nobilior, niſi cui rectius ingenium, & artibus bonis aptius. Idem de ben. lib. 3. cap. 28. foreign. …urip. Dictye. foreign Epicharm. foreign. Demo…r. Stob. cap. 84. —animalia muta Quis generoſa putet niſi fortia? Nobilitas ſumma est atque unica Virtus. Iuven ſat. 8. Nobilitie that Christian Grace giveth:) give mee leave the meaneſt of many that wiſh well to your Lordſhip, and rejoyce in your well-fare, with this ſorie Preſent (though comming ſomewhat late) to welcome your returne home from your late imployment abroad: And therein to joyne Her with you, whomc1 Pet. 3.7. foreign. Greg. Naz. in Gorgon. foreign. Idem in Patr. foreign. Idem in convent. Epiſc. Itaque quod Hieron. olim praefat. in Prov. paucis immutatis, Iungat Epiſtola, quos junxit Conjugium. Imò charta non dividat, quos Chriſti nectil amor. Et ad Chrom. & Euſeb. Non debet charta dividere, quos amor mutuus copulavit, &c. a ſpirituall knot, as well as a civill band, hath made one with you in Chriſt. This the rather, becauſe I aſſure my ſelfe, that you are both of you of the Perſons therein decyphered, and have joint ſhare therefore in the Benefit therein propounded and promiſed. For the Worke it ſelfe; I doubt not, but many things will bee found in it, that to a meere Naturall Man will ſeeme to beedforeign. Cleanthes apud Arrian. diſſert. l 4. c. 1. ſtrange Paradoxes; which yet every good Christian, having duly weighed, will eaſily acknowledge with mee, to bee agreeable to Truth. So it is indeed thateOpera. Dei ſunt in mediis contrariis. Luther. apud Paulum ab Eitzen in Geneſ. foreign. Greg. Naz. in Cypr. GODS Workes (as that bleſſedfVerè foreign. Quod de Bapt. Dominus Ioan. 5.35. Light of GOD Martine Luther, was wont to ſay) are effected uſually by Contraries. And a Christian Mans Life here (asgAeternitas rerum conſtat contrariis. Senec. ep. 107. foreign. Eurip. Plut. de tranquill. foreign. Menand. Stob. c. 93. the Heathen Man ſaid of every Mans) is a meere Mixture of hforeign. Caeſarius apud Greg. Naz. ep. 59.Contrarieties. iPſal. 34.19. & 73.14. Luk. 9.23. & 21.12, 16, 17. Act. 14.22. 1 Cor. 15.19.None incumbred with more Croſſes; butkLuk. 9.24. & 21.18. 2 Cor. 1 3, 4, 5. & 2.14 & 6.10. & 10.4. none accompanied with more Comforts, and thoſe ſuch as may well not countervaile onelyonly, but even throughly weigh downe the other. In ſo much, that I ſee not why a Christian Man, though expoſed to ſuch a multitude of Croſſes, (were it not for his owne, either want of Wiſedome, or weakneſſe) might not well live the comfortableſt life of any Man in the World, whatſoever eſtate or condition of life GOD hath pleaſed to aſſigne and confine him unto. Nor have any therefore cauſe to waive the profeſſion of Christianitie in regard of ſuch Croſſes, as a diſconſolate and uncomfortable eſtate. Of Children wee uſe to ſay, that they arelforeign. Plut. de prolis amore. foreign. Incertus Author. foreign. Democrit. apud Stob. cap. 74. foreign. Evenus apud Plut. de am. prol. Certaine Cares, uncertaine Comforts; and yet wee ſeemGen. 15.2. & 30.1. Iohn 16.21. foreign; Menand apud Stob. c. 73. how deſirous naturally Men and Women are to have Iſſue: and that,n1 Sam. 1.6, 7, 8, 11. foreign. Idem ibid. even thoſe alſo that for outward things mihgt well live comfortably without. How much more have all cauſe to deſire Christian Grace, when the Comforts that attend it, are ſo ſure and certaine, if men bee not their owne enemies; yea when no ſound Comfort (as is here ſhewed) can bee attained without it; Unworthie is hee of Iſſue, thatoforeign. Eurip. Oenoma…. eſteemeth not the Care hee taketh for his Children, eſpeciallypforeign.—Eurip. Meleagr. foreign. —Menand. being toward, dutifull, and inclinable to good things,qforeign. Eurip. Danae.—foreign. Idem Androm. inde reſtituendus apud Stob. cap. 74. abundantly over-countervailed in the Comfort he hath or may have of them. Nor is hee worthie of Chriſt, that accounteth not the Croſſes that Christianitie and the Profeſſion of it may procure, (for of other Croſſes that worldly men are alike ſubject to with ſuch, what need I ſay ought? and yet let theſe goe alſo in the ſame reckoning with thoſe;) all abundantlyrRom. 5.2, 3. & 8.18. overcountervailed with thoſe ſpirituall Comforts, that the aſſurance of Gods favour towards him in Chriſt Jeſus may afford him, if the Eye of his Soule bee throughly opened duly to apprehend it. This mine endevour is to ſhew in this weake Diſcourſe; (the weaker, ſforeign. Languente mens & languet unâ corpore.becauſe amids much weakneſſe during my late reſtraint by ſickneſſe, out of broken Notes, either reſerved by my ſelfe, or taken by others from my mouth, as they are wont to bee, at the time of the deliverie of it, with addition of ſuch things as came then further to minde, and ſeemed not altogether impertinent, it was by peece-meale put together:) and to encite all good Christians (notwithſtanding ſuch occurrents) to ſtrive and ſtraine themſelvestPſal. 13.4, 5. & 42, 5, 11. by their cheerefull carriage in ſuch caſes, to ſeale up the truth of it (which they cannot but acknowledge;) to thoſe that may queſtion it, or make doubt of it. This was I the rather enduced to take ſome paines in, ſuppoſing that other weake ones like my ſelfe, (for of ſuch am I bold to judge, asuforeign. Greg. Naz. in Iulian. 1. foreign. Idem post redit. ſuum. Hoc enim proclivius homo ſuſpicatur in alio quod ſentit in ſeipſo. Aug. in Pſal. 118. conc. 12. the manner is, by my ſelfe;) being ordinarily too too backward herein, might have need of ſome quickening and ſtirring up thereunto. To which purpoſe if it ſhall be availeable unto any the meaneſt, I ſhall have cauſe to bleſſe God for his Bleſſing thereupon. If to your ſelves among others, Perſons for Place and Pietie ſo eminent, (for evenxforeign. Greg. Naz. in Baſil. the worthieſt alſo have their wants; nor doe the best joy ſo much as they either ought or might in this their Bleſſed Estate; andyLiceat uſurpare Pauli illud Rom. 15.14, 15. Martem aere liticen accendit bellantibus Imbellis ipſe: plebſque ignava fortibus Clamore ſtimulos ſubdit dimicantibus. Acer, & ad palmae perſe curſurus honores, Si tamen horteris, fortius ibit equus. Ovid. Pont. 2.11. the very weakeſt may helpe on the worthiest:) much more. Let it howſoever teſtifie my deſerved reſpect to you both, and my thankefull acknowledgement of your Lordſhips kindneſſe ſhewed me in my friend and my ſelfe, at home and abroad. So with unfained thankes to Gods Goodneſſe for your Lordſhips Safe returne to us, reſerved, I hope, in mercy for further Service to God and his Church; and heartie Prayer for the continuance of health and well-fare, ſuch eſpecially asz3 Iohn 2. Saint John wiſheth his beloved Gaius, to you both; I take leave, and reſt ready
To be commanded by you in the Lord, THOMAS GATAKER.