true crosse of Chrift; yet the bulk is nothing to the vertue ascribed to it: The very wood (which is a fhame to speak ) is by them Sainted and deifyed, who knowes not that ftale hymne, and unreafonable rime of Ara crucis, lampas lucis, fola falus hominum.

Nobis pronum fac patronum quem tulišti dominum,

Wherein the very tree is made a mediator to him,whom it bore,as very a Saviour as he that dy'd upon it. And who knowes not that by thefe Bigots, an active vertue is attributed not only to the very wood of the cross,but to the Airie and tranfient form and reprefentation of it ; A vertue of fanctifying the creature,of expelling Divells, of healing difcafes; conceits croffely fuperftitious, which the Church of England ever abhorred, never either practifed, or countenanced ; whose cross was only commemorative, and commonitive, never pretended to be any way efficacious; and therefore as far different from the Romish crofs, as the fatall tree of Chrift from that of Fudas; Away then with this grofs and finfull foppery of our Romanifts; which proves them not the friends but the flatterers of the Crofs; flatterers up to the very pitch of Idolatry; and can there be a worse enemy then a flatterer? Fie on this fawning, and crouching hoftility to the croffe of Chrift; fuch friendship to the altar is a defiance to the facrifice.

For thefe Philippian Pfeudapoftles; Two wayes were they enemies to the Cross of Chrift; in their doctrines, in their practise. In Doctrine; whiles they joyned circumcifion, and other legalities with the cross of Chrift; fo by a pretended partnership detracting from the vertue and power of Chrifts death: Thus they were enemies to Chrifts death as this; In practife, following a loose and voluptuous courfe, pampering themfelves, and fhifting off perfecu tion for the Gofpell; Thus they were enemies to the cross of Chrift, as theirs : Truth hath ever one face: There are ftill two forts of enemies to the crols; The erroneous, the licentious; The erroneous in judgment, that will be inter-commoning with Chrift in the vertue and efficacy of his paffion; The licentious in life; that despise and annihilate it. In the firft, how palpable enemies are they to the cross of Chrift, that hold Chrifts fatisfaction upon the cross imperfect without ours: Thus the Romish Doctors profefs to do; Their Cardinall paffes a flat non expiat upon it, boldly: Temporalem pœnam totam nifi propria fatisfactione cooperante non expiat. lib. 4. de

panit.c. 14. 4. Neque vero. Our penall works (faith Suarez) are properly a payment for the punishment of our fin; And which of the Tridentine faction fayes otherwife? What foul Hypocrifie is this, to creep and crouch to the very image of the crofs, and in the mean time to frustrate the vertue of it; Away with thefe hollow and hoftile complements; how happy were it for them if the croffe of Chrift might have leffe of the r knees, and more of their hearts; without which all their adorations are but mockery; certainly, the partnership of legall obfervations was never more enemy to Chrifts cross, then that of humane fatisfactions; For us ; God forbid that we should rejoyce in any thing, but in the cross of Chrift, with St. Paul: Our profeffion roundly is; The crofs is our full redemption; let them that show more fay fo much: elfe for all their ducking, and cringeing, they fhall never quit themselves of this juft charge, that they are the enemies of the croffe of Christ.

The licentious, fecondly, are enemies to the crofs of Chrift; and thofe of two forts; whether carnall revolters, or loofe-livers; The firft, in fhifting off perfecution, by conforming themselves to the prefent world; they will do any thing rather then fuffer; caring more for a whole skin, then a found foul; Meere flaves of the feafon, whofe poefic is that of Optatus; Omnia pro tempore, nihil pro veritate; All for the time, nothing for the Truth. Either ditty will ferve, Hefanna, or Crucifige. Such was that infamous Ecelotius; fuch was Spira, fuch thofe in the primitive times, that with Marcellinus would caft grains of incenfe into the Idols fire, to fhun the fire of a Tyrants fury; fuch as will bow their knees to a broaden. God, for fear of an inquifitors flie; and kifs the toe of a living Idol, rather then hazard a suspicion; the world is full of such shufAers: Do ye ask how we know? I do not send you to the Spanish trade, or Italian travails, or Spa-waters, The tentative Edi& of Conftantius defcryed many falfe hearts; And the late relaxation of penall laws for religion difcovered many a turn-coat; God keep our great men upright, if they fhould fwerve it is to be feared, the truth would find but a few friends: Bleffed be God the times profefle to patronize true religion; If the winde fhould turn, how many with that noted time-ferver would be ready to fay, Cantemus domino, Scc. let us fing unto the Lord a new fong.

There

There is no Church lightly without his wethercock: For us, my beloved, we know not what we are referved for; let us fit down, and count what it may coft us; and as those who would carry fome great weight upon a wager, will be every day heaving at it to inure themselves to the burden, before they come to their utmost tryall, fo let us do to the crofs of Chrift: let us be every day lifting at it in our thoughts, that when the time comes we may comfortably go away with it; It was a good purpose of Peter, though I fhould dye with thee I will not deny thee; but it was a better grounded refolution of St. Paul, I am ready not to be bound only, but also to dye for the name of the Lord Jesus, Act. 2 1. 13. Let us in an humble confidence of Gods mercy in upholding us fix upon the fame holy determination; not counting our life dear unto us, fo as we may finish our course with joy. Thus we fhall not be more friends to the croffe of Chrift, then the croffe will be to us, for if we fuffer with him, we shall alfo reign with him.

Befides carnall revolters, loofe livers powre fhame upon the croffe. Chrifts croffe is our redemption, Redemption is from fin, and death; whiles therefore we do wilfully fin, we do (what in us lies) fraftrate the cross, and make a mock of our redemption; every true Christian is with St. Paul crucified together with Chrift 2. Galat. 20. his fins are faftned upon that tree of shame and curfe with his Saviour, the mif-living Chriftian therefore crucifies Chrift again; each of his willing fins is a plain defpight to his Redeemer; The falfe tongue of a profeffour gives in evidence against the Son of God: the hypocrite condemns Chrift, and wathes his hands; the proud man ftrips him, and robes him with purple : the diftruftfull plats thornes for the head of his Saviour; the drunkard gives him vineger and gall to drink, the oppreffor drives nailes into his hands and feet; the blafphemer wounds him to the heart; wo is me, what an heavy cafe are these men in? we cannot but think those that offered this bodily violence to the Son of God were highly impious, Oh, thou fayeft,I would not have been one of them that should have done fuch a fact for all the world: but, O man, know thou,that if thou be a wilfull finner against God in these kindes, thou art worse then they: He that prayed for his first crucifiers, curfeth his fecond; they crucified him in his weaknesse; thefe in his glory: they fetcht him from the garden to his croffe

these

thefe pull him out of heaven; furely, they cannot be more enemies to the croffe of Chrift, then Chrift is to them; who by him shall be punished with everlasting deftruction from the prefence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power, 2 Thejal. 1. 9. as it also followes in my Text, whofe end is deftruction.

very

A wotull condition beyond all thoughts; like unto that Hell wherein it is accomplished, whereof there is no bottom; had the Apoftle faid only, whofe end is death: the doom had been heavy ; but that is the common point whereat all creatures touch,in their laft paffage, either way; and is indeed the cafieft piece of this vengeance; it were well for wilful finners, if they might dye; or if they might but dye: Even earthly diftreffes lend men to fue for death; how much more the infernal; there are those that have fmiled in death,never any but gnashed in torments; that diftinction is remarkable which our Saviour makes betwixt killing and deftroying; Matth. 10, 28. Killing the body, deftroying body and foul; and ; Men may kill; God only can destroy; there are gradations even in the last act of execution; expreffed in the Greek, which our language doth not fo fully diftinguifh; is to kill, nu implyes violence in killing; &, cruelty in that violence, but i, an abfolutenefs and eternity of torment Killing is nothing to deftroying; the body is but meer rubbish to the foul;and therefore (to put thefe together) killingthe body is nothing to deftruction of the foul; Alas, here is every circumftance that may add horrour and mifery to a condition; fuddainneffe of seizure,degree of extremity, impoffibility of releafe; fuddainnefs; They shall soon be cut down as the graffe, faith David, Pf. 37. 2. yea, yet fooner then fo ; as the fire licks up the straw, Efa. 5.24. and more fuddainly yet ;` as the whrilewind paffeth, fo is the wicked no more, Prov. 10. 25. ly, they are brought to defolation in a moment, Pfal. 73. 19.

Short

As for the degree of extremity, it is far beyond all expreffions,all conceptions of the creature ;the wrath of God is as himself infinite; as the glory of his Saints is fuch (as St. Paul that faw it tells us ) that it tranfcends all conceit, and cannot come out of the mouth, cannot enter into the heart,fo the vengeance prepared for his enemies is equally incomprehenfible; the Rack, the Wheel, the Gibbet, the Fire are fearfull things; but thefe fall within our thoughts; wo unto that foul that muft fuffer what it is not capable to conceive. Even C what

what we men can devife, and do apprehend is terrible; thofe very torments that men prepare for men,are fuch as we fhrink at the mention of, tearing, fleying, broaching, broyling, &c. what shall those be which an angry God hath prepared for his enemies?

But though the torment were extream for the time, yet if at last it might have an end, there were fome poffibility of comfort; alas, we fhrug at the thought of burning, though in a quick fire; but to think of mans being a whole hour in the flame,we abhorr to imagine; but to be a whole day in that ftate how herrible doth it feem. Oh then, what shall we fay to thofe everlasting burnings? To be, not dayes, or moneths, or years, but thousands of millions of years, and millions of millions after that, and after that for all eternity, still in the height of these unconceivable tortures, without intermiffion, without relaxation? Oh the groffe Atheisme of carnall men, that do not believe thefe dreadful vengeances! Oh the defperate fecurity of those men who profess to believe them, and yet dare run into those fins which may and will plunge them into this damnation! Is fin fweet? Yea, but is it fo tweet, as Heil fire is grievous? Is it profitable? But can it countervail the lofs of the beatifical vision of God? Oh mad finners, that for a little momentany contentment caft themfelves into everlafting perdition; let the drink be never lo delicate and well-fpiced, yet if we hear there is poyfon in it, we hold off; let Gold be offered us, yet if we hear it is red hot, we draw back our hands, and touch it not; Oh then, why will we be fo defperately foolish,as when a little poor unfatisfying pleafure is offered us,though fauced with a woful damnation for ever and ever, we fhould dare to entertain it at fo dear a rate. Have mercy upon your own fouls, my dear brethren, and when the motions of evill are made to you; check them with the danger of this fearfull damnation; from which the God of all mercies graciously deliver us all ; for the fake of the dear Son of his love Jefus Chrift the righteous; to whom, &c.

CHRISTIAN