I

Matt. v.
Heb. xi.

and the troubles of this world? For furely, as faith St. 1 Pet. ii. Peter, Christ therefore fuffered, to leave us an example to follow bis fleps. And if we fuffer with him, we shall be 1 Tim. ii. fure alfo to reign with him in heaven. Not that the fuf- Rom. viii, ferance of this tranfitory life fhould be worthy of that glory to come; but gladly fhould we be contented to fuffer, to be like Chrift in our life, that fo by our works we may glorify our Father which is in heaven. And as it is painful and grievous to bear the cross of Chrift in the griefs and difpleafures of this life; fo it bringeth forth the joyful fruit of hope in all them that be exercifed there- Jam. v. with. Let us not fo much behold the pain, as the reward that fhall follow that labour. Nay, let us rather endeavour ourselves in our fufferance to endure innocently and guiltlefs, as our Saviour Chrift did. For if we 1 Pet. ii. fuffer for our defervings, then hath not patience his perfect work in us: but if undefervedly we fuffer lofs of goods and life, if we fuffer to be evil spoken of for the love of Chrift, this is thankful afore God; for fo did Chrift fuffer. He never did fin, neither was any guile The pafound in his mouth. Yea, when he was reviled with taunts, be reviled not again; when he was wrongfully dealt with, be threatened not again, nor revenged his quarrel, but deli vered bis caufe to him that judgeth rightly.

tience of

Chrift.

Perfect patience careth not what nor how much it fuf- Perfect fereth, nor of whom it fuffereth, whether of friend or patience. foe; but ftudieth to fuffer innocently, and without deferving. Yea, he, in whom perfect charity is, careth fo little to revenge, that be rather fludieth to do good for evil, Matt. v. to blefs and fay well of them that curfe bim, to pray for them that purfue bim, according to the example of our Saviour Chrift, who is the most perfect example and pattern of all meeknefs and fufferance, which hanging upon the crofs, The meekin moft fervent anguifh bleeding in every part of his bleffed nefs of body, being fet in the midst of his enemies and cruci- Chrift, fiers; and he, notwithstanding the intolerable pains which they saw him in, being of them mocked and fcorned defpitefully without all favour and compaffion, had yet towards them fuch compaffion in heart, that he prayed to his Father of heaven for them, and faid, O Father, forgive Luke xv. them, for they quot not what they do. What patience was it alfo which he fhewed, when one of his own apoftles and fervants, which was put in truft of him, came to betray him unto his enemies to the death! He faid nothing worse to him, but, Friend, wherefore art thou come? Thus, Matt. xv.. good people, fhould we call to mind the great examples

of

Matt. v.

of charity which Chrift fhewed in his paffion, if we will fruitfully remember his paffion. Such charity and love should we bear one to another, if we will be the true fervants of Chrift. For if we love but them that love and fay well by us, what great thing is it that we do? faith Chrift. Do not the Paynims and open finners fo? We must be more perfect in our charity than thus, even as our Father in beaven is perfect, which maketh the light of bis fun to rife upon the good and the bad, and fendeth his rain upon the kind and unkind. After this manner fhould we fhew our cha...rity indifferently, as well to one as to another, as well to friend as foe, like obedient children, after the example of our Father in heaven. For if Chrift was obedient to bis Father even to the death, and that the most shameful death, (as the Jews efteemed it) the death of the cross; why should we not be obedient to God in lower points of charity and pa tience? Let us forgive then our neighbours their fmall faults, as God for Chrift's fake bath forgiven us our great.

Ecclus. xxviii. Matt.

Xxviii.

Jam. v.

Eph. v.

It is not meet that we fhould crave forgiveness of our great offences at God's hands, and yet will not forgive the fmall trefpaffes of our neighbours against us. We do call for mercy in vain, if we will not fhew mercy to our neighbours. For if we will not put wrath and difpleafure forth of our hearts to our Chriftian brother, no more will God forgive the difpleafure and wrath that our fins have deferved before him. For under this condition doth God forgive us, if we forgive other. It becometh not Chriftian men to be hard one to another, nor yet to think their neighbour unworthy to be forgiven. For howfoever unworthy he is, yet is Chrift worthy to have thee do thus much for his fake; he hath deferved it of thee, that thou fhouldft forgive thy neighbour. And God is alfo to be obeyed, which commandeth us to forgive, if we will have any part of the pardon which our Saviour Chrift purchased once of God the Father, by fhedding of his precious blood. Nothing becometh Chrift's fervants fo much as mercy and compaffion. Let us then be favourable one to another, and pray we one for another, that we may be healed from all frailties of our life, the lefs to offend one the other; and that we may be of one mind and one fpirit, agreeing together in brotherly love and concord, even like the dear children of God. By thefe means thall we move God to be merciful unto our fins, yea, and we fhall be hereby the more ready to receive our Saviour and Maker in his bleffed facrament, to our everlasting comfort and health of foul. Chrift delighteth

to

to enter and dwell in that foul where love and charity ruleth, and where peace and concord is feen. For thus writeth St. John; God is charity; be that abideth in charity, 1 John iv. abideth in God, and God in him. And by this, faith he, 1 John ii. we shall know that we be of God, if we love our brethren. Yea, and by this ball we know that we be delivered from death to life, if we love one another. But be which bateth bis brother, faith the fame Apoftle, abideth in death, even in 1 John ii. the danger of everlasting death, and is moreover the child of damnation and of the Devil, curfed of God, and hated (fo long as be fo remaineth) of God and all his heavenly company. For as peace and charity make us the bleffed children of Almighty God, fo doth hatred and envy make us the curfed children of the Devil. God give us all grace Rom. viii, to follow Chrift's examples in peace and in charity, in patience and fufferance, that we now may have him our gueft to enter and dwell within us, fo as we may be in full furety, having fuch a pledge of our falvation. If we have him and his favour, we may be fure we have the favour of God by his means. For he fitteth on the right hand of God his Father, as our proctor and attorney, pleading and fuing for us in all our needs and neceffities. Wherefore, if we want any gift of godly wisdom, we may afk it of God for Chrift's fake, and we fhall have it. Let us confider and examine ourfelves, in what want we be concerning this virtue of charity and patience. If we fee that our hearts be nothing inclined thereunto, in forgiving them that have offended against us, then let us knowledge our want, and wifh to God to have it. But if we want it, and fee in ourselves no defire thereunto, verily we be in a dangerous cafe before God, and have need to make much earnest prayer to God, that we may have fuch an heart changed, to the grafting in of a new. For unless we forgive other, we hall never be forgiven of God. No, not all the prayers and good works of other can pacify God unto us, unless we be at peace, and at one with our neighbour. Nor all our deeds and good works can move God to forgive us our debts to him, except we forgive to other. He fetteth more by mercy than by facrifice. Mercy moved our Saviour Chrift to fuffer for his enemies it becometh us then to follow his example. For it fhall little avail us to have in meditation the fruits and price of his paffion, to magnify them, and to delight or truft in them, except we have in mind his examples in paffion to follow them. If we thus therefore confider Chrift's death, and will ftick thereto with faft faith for

the merit and deferving thereof, and will alfo frame ourfelves in fuch wife to bestow ourselves, and all that we have by charity, to the behoof of our neighbour, as Chrift fpent himself wholly for our profit, then do we truly remember Chrift's death: and being thus followers of Chrift's fteps, we fhall be fure to follow him thither, where he fitteth now with the Father and the Holy Ghost to whom be all honour and glory. Amen.

THE

THE SECOND

HOMILY

CONCERNING

The Death and Paffion of our Saviour Chrift.

HAT we may the better conceive the great mercy

THA
and goodness of our Saviour Chrift, in fuffering

death univerfally for all men, it behoveth us to defcend
into the bottom of our confcience, and deeply to confider
the first and principal cause wherefore he was compelled
fo to do. When our great grandfather Adam had broken Gen. v.
God's commandment, in eating the apple forbidden him
in Paradise, at the motion and fuggeftion of his wife, he
purchased thereby, not only to himself, but also to his
pofterity for ever, the juft wrath and indignation of God,
who, according to his former fentence pronounced at the
giving of the commandment, condemned both him and
all his to everlafting death, both of body and foul. For
it was faid unto him, Thou shalt eat freely of every tree in Gen. ii.
the garden: but as touching the tree of knowledge of good
and ill, thou fbalt in no wife eat of it: for in what bour fo-
ever thou eatest thereof, thou shalt die the death. Now as
the Lord had fpoken, fo it came to pafs. Adam took
upon him to eat thereof, and in fo doing he died the
death, that is to fay, he became mortal, he loft the favour
of God, he was caft out of Paradife, he was no longer a
citizen of heaven, but a firebrand of hell, and a bond-
flave to the Devil. To this doth our Saviour bear wit-
nefs in the Gospel, calling us loft sheep, which have gone Luke xv.
aftray, and wandered from the true Shepherd of our fouls.
To this alfo doth St. Paul bear witnefs, faying, that by the Rom. v.
offence of only Adam, death came upon all men to condemna-
tion. So that now neither he, or any of his, had any
right or intereft at all in the kingdom of heaven, but
were become plain reprobates and caftaways, being per-
petually damned to the everlafting pains of hell-fire. In

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