PIEICHED UPON IVHITSUND,-II:
While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on ail them, which heard the word. [Part of the second lesson of that day. ] Tn),T 'hich served for an argument amongst the Jews, te diminish, and undervalue Christ, Have any of the rulers believed in him ? had no force amongst the Gentiles, tbr amongst them, the first persons that are recorded te have applied themselves te the profession of the Christian religion, were rulers, persons of place, and quality: Sanè jorojoter hov dignitates positw sunt, ut major loietas ostendatur, says St. Chrysostom, This is the true reason why men are ennobled, why men are raised, why men are enriched, that they might glorify God the more, by that enfinency; ta 2,ets x. John vil. 48. ç 2 this is truly to be a good student, Scr«tari Sc.rittura, To search the Scriptures, in which is eternal lire: this is truly to be called to the bar, to be crucified with Christ Jesus: and to be ca]]ed to the bench, to bave part in his resurrection, and reign in glory with him: and to be a judge, to judge thyself, that thou beest hot judged to condemnation, by Christ Jesus: offices and titles, and dignities, make thee, in the eye, and tongue ol' the world, a better man; be truly a better man, between God and thee, for them, and they are well placed. Those pyramids and obelisks, which were raised up on high in the air, but supported nothing, were vain testimonies of the ïri'olousness, and impertinency of those men that raised them; but xvhen we sec pillars stand, we presume that something is to be placed upon them. They, who by their rank and place, are pillars of the state, and pillars of the church, il" Christ and his glory be hOt raised higher by them, than by other men, put God's building most out ol" ïrame, and most discompose God»s pmToses, of any others. And therefore St. Chrysostom hath noted usefully, That the £rst of the Gentiles, which was converted to Christianity,,vas that eunuch, which was treasurer to the queen ol" Ethiopia; and the second was this centurion, in whose house St. Peter preached this fruitful sermon, at which, lVMle Peter yet s1a'e tl, ese 'ords, tte Holy Gost fell on all ttem t],at tearà tte u'orà. Our parts will be two; first some circumstances that preceded this act, this miraculous descent and infusion of the Holy Ghost, and then the act, the descent itself. In the first, we shall consider first, tlle time, it was u'ten Peter u'as s]eainy, when God's ordinance was then in executing, preaching; and second]y, what ruade way to this descent of the Holy Ghost, that is, what Peter was speaking, and preaching, Tese words, truc and necessary doctrine; and here also we shall touch a little, the place, and the auditory, Cornelius, and his family. When from hence we shall descend to the second part, the descent of the Holy Ghost, we shall look first, (so as it may become us) upon the person, (the third person in the holy, blessed, and glorious Trinity) and then upon his ation, as it is expressed here, Ceciàit, He fell; as ol" Christ it is said, Deliciw ejus cum flliis homium, ttis deliyht is Acts viiL 27.
fo b« with th« sons of men, and, (to speak humanly, a perverse delight, for it ",vas to be with the worst men, with publicans anti sinners) so, (to speak humanly) the Holy (Jhost had an extraordinary, a perverse ambition, to go downwards, to enlarge himself, in his working, by falling; Ite fell: and then, he fell so, as a shower of rain falls, that does not lie in those round drops in which it falls, but diffuses, and spreads and enlarges itself, Itefell «pon ail; but then, it was because all heard, they came not to see a new action, preaching, nor a new preacher, Peter, nor to see one another at a sermon, Hefell ztpon all that heard; where also, I think, it wiil hot be impertinent, to make this note, That Peter is said fo have spoken Oose words, but they, on whom the Holy (;host fell, are said to have heard The u'ord; it is hOt many words, long sermons, nor good words, vitty and eloquent serinons that induce the Holy Ghost, for ail these are words of men; and howsoever the whole sermon is the ordinance of God, the whole sermon is hot the word of Goal: but xvhen all the good gifts of mon are modestly eznployed, and humbly received, as :ehicula Spirit«s, as St. Augustine calls them, the chariots of the Holy Ghost, as means afforded by God, to convey the word of lire into us, in those words we hear the word, and there the xvord and the Spirit go together, as in our case in the text, Wile _Peter yet sTake those words, the Holy Ghost fell «pon all them that heard the word. When we eome then to eonsider in the first place, the time of this miracle, we may easily see that verified in St. Peter's proceeding, which St. Ambrose says, Nescit tarda molimina Spiritus,çancti.qratia, The Holy Ghost cannot go at a slow pace; it is the devil in the serpent that creeps, but the Holy Ghost in the dove files: and then, in the proceeding with the centurion, we may see that verified which Leo says, Ubi Det mayister, 9uàm citJ discitur! "Vhere God teaches, how fast a godly man learns! Christ did almost ail his miracles in an instant, without dilatory circumstances; Christ says to the man sick of the palsy, Tae «p Oy b«d and u'alk , and irhmediately he did so: to the deaf man he says, Ephphatha, Be tMne ears o]ened', and instantly they were opened: he says to the woman with the issue of blood, » bIaa'k il. 1 I. bIark vii. 34.
Eato aana à pla tu« , and she w hot only we]l immediately nçon tt, but she was well belote, when she had but touched the hem of his rment. Upon him who had lain in his infirmity thirty-eight years, at the çoel, Christ makes a little stoç; but it w no longer than to try h dissition with that queion, is an eri'? Christ w sure vhat his answer would be; and n as he gives that answer, immediately he recovered. Where Christ soems to bave stayed longest, which w uu the blind man , yet at his fit touch, that an sw men walk, though hot distinctly, but at the second uch he saw perfectly. As Chri roeoeds in his miroeles, so doth the Holy host in his poweNul itructions. It is true, S'cientiw un profictu , There is a growth in knowledge, and we oveoeome ignorances by degrees, and by succession of more and more liht: Christ himself grew in knowledge, as we as in statue: but this is in the way of exerimental knowledge, by study, by convertion by other quisitions. But when the Holy host takes a man into h schl, he deals not with him, as a pinter, which makes an eye, and an ear, and a lip, and ps his pencil a hundred times over eve muscle, and every hair, and in many sittings makes up one man, but he deals as a printer, that in one strain delivers a whole story. We see that in this example of St. Peter, St. Peter had conceived a doubt, whether it were lawf for him to reach the Gospel to any of the entiles, becae they vere hot within the oevenant: this was the anuferl, this very scle was the volce and uestion of God in him: to corne doubt, and to a debatement in any relious duty, is the voice of God in out conscience: wod you know the truth Doubt, and then you will inquire: and Facile aolutiwm acdpit ad, quoe l)riua dubitait, says St. Chsm. As no nian relve of anything wisel, firmly, sdely, of whieh ho never doubted, never debated, o neither doth od wlthdraw a relution fi'om any man, that doubts with an hmble ppose to settle his o faith, and hOt with a an#ing poso fo ske another man's. God rectifies Peter's doubt immeately, and he rectifies it fully; he preoenm him a book, Mark v. . Jo v. 5. Mark . v C'sostom.
snd a commentary, the text, and the exposition: he lets clown' sheet from heaven with ail kind o beasts aud fowls, and tel him, that A'othiny is unclean, nd he tells him by the sme spirit «, That there were three men below to ask for him, who were sent by God to apply that visible parable, and that 6od meaat, in saying Nothiny was unclea, that the Gentiles generay, and in paieular, this eenturion Cornelius, were hot incapable of the Goel, nor unfit for his ministry. And though Peter had been ve hungry, and would fain have eaten, as appears in the tenth verse, yet after he reeeived this instruction, we hear no more mention of his desire fo eat; but, as his Master had id, Cib« meu est, t meat is to do mit Fathe will tlt«t sent ne, so his meat was do him gd that sent for him, and so he marie baste to go with those meengers. The rime then was, when Peter thus prepared hy the Holy Ghost, was to prepare others for the Holy Ghost, and therefore if was, Cure locutus, When he spoke, that is, preaehed to them. For, 8i adsit palaum fidei, cui sapia mel Dei, says St. Augastine, To him who bath a spirituM faste, no honey is so sweet, as the word of God prehed eeoing to his ordinanee. If a man ste little of this honey at his rod's end, as Jonathan did ffi, though he think his eyes enlightened, as Jonathan did, he may be in Jon than's case, I did b¢t reste a little honey u'itA y roE, ce e«ce, mior, and bdold, I die. If the man read the Seriptures a little, superfieially, perhnetorily, his eyes seem straightways enfightened, and he thinks he secs everything that he had preeoneeived, and fore-imagined in himself, as elear as the sun, in the Seriptur: he can find flesh in the saerament, without bread, beeause he finds Ho et rpus eum, TIds fs y body, and he will take no more of that honey, no more of those places of Seripture, 'here Christ says, Eyo itis, and qo porta, that he is a fine, and that he is a yate, as literally as he seems to say, that that is bi» body. So also he tan find wormwood in this honey, beeause he finds in this Seripture,,Stipendium peccati mors et, that The remard OE sin is death, and he will take no more of that honey, hot the Quan- conque, That at what rime soever a sinner repents, he shall have merey. As the essential word of God, the Son of God, is Light Ver. il. ao Ver. 19. 1 Sain. v. 27.
of Light, so the written word of God is light of light too, one place of Scripture takes light of another: and if thou wilt read so, and hear so, as thine own affections transport, and mislead thee; if when a corrupt confidence in thine own strength possesses thee, thou read only those passages, Quare moriemini, dornus Israel? Wh!! will ye die, 0 bouse of Israel and eonelude out of that, that thou hast such a free will of thine own, as th-t thou eanst give lire to thyself, when thou wilt; if when a vieious dejection of spirit, and a hellish melaneholy, and deelination towards desperation possesses thee, thou read only those passages, Impossibile est, That it is impossible, that he that falls, after he bath been énliykténed, skould be renewed a9ain; and if thou hear sermons so, as that thou art glad, when those sins are deelaimed against, whieh thou art free from, but wonldst hear no more, wouldst not bave thine own sin touehed upon, though all reading, and all hearing be honey, yet if thou take so little of this honey, Jonathan's case will be thv case, Eccé, morieris, thou wilt die of that honey; for the Seriptures are made to agree with one another, but hot to agree to thy particular taste and humour. But yet, the counsel is good, on the other side too, IIast thou round honey? eat so nuch thereof as is suicient.for thee, lest thou be fllled tkerewitk, and vomir it s. Content thyself with reading those parts of Scriptures, wllich are clear, and edify, and perplex hot thyself with prophecies hOt yet performed; and content thyself with hearing those serinons, mhich rectify thee In credendi, and In a.oendis, in all those things, which thou art bound to believe, and bound to practise, and run hot after those men, who pretend to know those things, which God bath hot revealed to his church. Too little, or too much of this honey, of this reading, and of tllis hearing, may be unwholesome: God hath chosen ways of mediocrity; he redeemed us hot, by God alone, nor by n»n -lone, but by him, who was both. He instructs us hot, by the Holy Ghost alone, without the ministry of man, nor by the minister alone, without the assistance of the Holy Ghost. An angel appeared to Cornelius, but that angel bid him send.for _Peter: the Holy Ghost visits us, and disposes us, but yet the Holy Ghost sends us to the nfinistry of man: Aon dedinatur s Prov, xxv. 16.
Sg'lt. XXXI.J IREACHED 01'¢ WHITSUNDAY. 25 docere ]oer ondnem, q«i diynatu est ee omo, ys St. Austine; He that came to us, as man, is content that we go to men, for o instruction. Preaching is the ordina means; that which St. Peter wrought upon them, was, Cure lutus, when he had, and because he had preached unto them. And it was also Dura lut est, lVilst e yet sag'e tose worda; %n pemittit,Siritua abaolvi aermonem, says St. Chrysostom; The Holy Ghost did hOt leave them to future med/tations, to futuro eonferenees, he did hOt stay till they told one another after the sermon, that it w a learned selon, a eonoeientious sermon, a useful sermon, but whilst the poeaeher yet spoke, the Holy Ght spoke to their paieular consciences. And a gardener takes every bough of a young tree, or of a vine, and legs them, and places them against a wall, where they may bave most advantage, and so produee, most, and best fruit: the Holy Ghost leads and places the words, and sentenees of the preaeher, one upon an usurer, another upon an adulterer, another upon an ambitious person, another un an active or paive briber, when the preaeher knows of no usurer, no ad- terer, no ambitious peroen, no briber active or passive, in the congretion. Nay, it is hot only w]ilst e was ya seaDçq, but, as St. Peter himself repos the saine story, in the next ehapter, As I beyan fo apea, te Holy Gost ll uon tem TM. Perehanee in the beginning of a sermon, the reprehension of the preaeher faHs hOt upon me, it is not eome to mo; but, when the dmies of the preaeher are expressed by the apostle, to be these three ', To reprove, or couviuce by argument, to settle truths, to ovehrow errors; and to exort, to reetify out manners; and to rebut'e, to denounee God's judgments upon the refraetory; whatsoever he ys the two first ways, by convinciny, and by exoetiny, all that belon to MI, from the beginning; and for that whieh he shall say, the third way, by way of reb,«g-iny, as I know at midnight, that the sun will break oto upon me toemormxv, though I know hot how it works upon those places, where it shines then, so, though I know hot how the rebukes of tho preaeher work upon their consciences, whose sins he rebes at tho beginning, yet I must make aeeount that ho will meet with ta Ver. 15. t 2 Tim. iv. 2.
my sin too; and if he de net meet ith my present sin, that sin which is my second wife, that sin which I hve mrried new, (net fter diorce frein my çonner sin, se, as tht I ha'e put awy tht sin, but after rime death of tht sin, which sickness or povey hafl matie me unae te continue in) yet if he bend himsel,çon that sin, which bath been my sin, or nmy be my sin, I must be sensible that the Hoy Ghost hath oered himself te me, whilst he yet scaks, ud ever since he bean te speak; and, Cure locttus, Because reaching is the ordinry means, and, locutus, Bec,use the Holy Ghost intends all for my edification, must emrce and entertain the Hoy Ghost, who exhiits himself te me, fi'om the begimfing, and net say, This concerns net me; or whtsoever the preoeher cn say of God's mercy in Christ Jesus te any man, ll that belons te me, for no man bath recei-ed more of th3t, than I nmy de; and whatsoever the preacher can say of sin, ail the w3y, al that beons te me, for no man hath ever done any sin, which I should net bave done, if God had left me te myself, and te mine own perverseness towards sin, and te mine own insatiab}eness in sin. It was then, when he preached, and whilst he preached, and as on as he preached, but when, and whilst, and as soon s he preched thus, ths as is exprced here, lVMlst he spake cords: in which, we shall only touch, but net ch nsist upon, his manner first, and then his marrer and for his manncr, wc consider only here, his prepration, and no other circumstance. Thouh St. Peter say te them, when he came, I as throre, for rhat intent you hare sent for me , yet God had intimated te him before, that it xvas te preach the Gospel te the Gentiles; and therefore seine time of meditation he had; though in such a pern as St. Peter, se filled with ail gifts necessary for his function, and te sud persons as Cornelius was, who needed but catechizing in the rudinaents of the Gospel, much preparation needed net. The case was ohen of the same , after, in the primitive church; fle persons were very able, and the people very ignorant; and theretbre it is easy te observe far greater frequeney of paching amongst the aneient fathers, than oinafily, men that love ease, will apprehend. We see evidently Ver. 29.
in St. Augustine's hundred and forty-fourth sermon De tempore, and in St. Ambrose's forty-fourth sermon De sancto latrone, and in St. Bernard's twelve sermons upon one psalm, that all these blessed and reverend fathers preached more than one day, divers days together, without intermission: and we may sec in St. Basil's second homily upon the six days' work, that he preached in the afternoon; and so, by occasion of his often preaching, it seems by his second homily De baptismo, that he preached sometimes extemporally. But of all this, the reason is as evident as the fact, the preachers were able to say much, the people were capable but of little: and where it was hOt so, the clergy often assisted themselves with one another's labours; as St. Cyril's sermons were studied without book, and preached over again to their several congregations, by almost all the bishops of the eastern church. Sometimes we may sec texts extended to very many serinons, and sometimes texts taken of that extent and largeness, as only a paraphrase upon the text would make the sermon; for we may sec by St. Augustine's tenth sermon De verbis apostoli, that they took sometimes the epistle and gospel of the day, and the psalm before the sermon for their text. But in these our rimes, when the curiosity, (allow it a better name, for truly, God be blessed for it, it deserves a better name) when the capacity of the people requires matter of more labour, as there is hOt the saine necessity, so there is hOt the saine possibility of that assiduous, and that sudden preaching. ço man will think that we bave abler preachers than the primitive church had; no man will doubt, but that we have learneder, and more capable auditories, and congregations than theirs were. The apostles were not negligent, when they mended their nets: a preacher is not negligent, if he prepare for another sermon, after he bath made one; nor a hearer is not negligent, if he meditate upon one sermon, though he hear not another within three hours af'ter. St. Peter's sermon was hot extemporal; neither if' it had (his person, and the quality of the hearers, being compared with out rimes) had that been any precedent, or pattern for our times, to do the like. But yet, beloved, since our rimes are such, as are overtaken wlth another necessity, that our adversaries dare corne, 6'trn loctt«s est, as soon as the preacher hath donc, and meet the people coming out of the church, and deride the preacher, and offer an answer to anything that hath been sid; since they aro corne to corne to church with us, and ])um locutus est, then when the preacher is speaking, to say to him, that sits next him, That is false, that is heretical; since they are corne to join with us st the communion, so that it is hard to finà out the Judas, and if you do finà him, he dates answer, ¥our minister is no priest, and so your bread and wine no sacrament, and therefore I care hOt how much of it I take since they are corne to boast, that with ail our assiduity of preaching, ve cannot keep men fmm them; since it is thus, as we were always bound by Christ's example, To yather you as a hen yathers ber chickens, (to call you often to this assembling of yourselves) so are we now much more bound to bide and cover you, as a hen doth her chickens, and beeause there is a kite hovering in every corner, (a seducer lurking in every company) to defend and arm you, with more and more instructions against their insinuations. And if they deride us, for often preaching, and eall us fools for that, as David said, I-le «could be more :ile, he would dance more, so let us be more fools, in this foolishness of preaehing, and preach more. If they think us mad, since we are mad for out souls, (as the apostle speaks) let us be more mad; let him that bath preached once, do it twice, and him thnt bath preached twice, do it thrice. But yet, hot dais, by eoming to negligent, and extemporal manner of preaching, but we will be content to take so many hours froan out test, that we, with you, may test the safelier in Abraham's bosom, and so many more hours from out meat, that we, with you, may the more surely est and drink with the Lamb, in the kingdom of heaven. Christ hath undertaken, that his word shall not pass away, but he bath hOt undertaken that it shall hOt pass from us: there is a AWexeas mundum served upon the world, the Gospel eannot go, nor be driven out of the world, till the end of the 0vorld but there is not a A'e exeas re.qnum, the Gospel may go out of this, or any kingdom, if they slacken in the doing of those things whieh God hath ordained for the means of keeping it, that is, zealous, and yet disereet; a sober, and yet learned assiduity in preaching. Thus far then we bave been justly carried, in eonsideration of this circumstance in thc manncr of his prcaching, his prcparation; in dcsccnding to thc next, which is the matter o his sermon, we sec much of that in his tcxt. St. Peter took his text herc, ver. 34, ot of Deuteronomy, Of a truth I Ferceire, that God is no respecter ofoersons '«. $Vhere, because the words are hOt precisely the saine in Deuteronomy, as they are in this text, we find just occasion to note, that neither Christ in his preaching, nor the Holy Ghost in penning the Scriptures of the New Testament, were so curious as out rimes, in citing ch.pters and verses, or such distinctions, no nor in citing the very, very words of the places. Heb. iv. . There is a sentence cited thus indefinitely, If is written in a certain place, without more particular note: and, to pass over many, conducing to that purpose, if we consider that one place in the prophet Esay (3Iake the heart of this ioeople fat, make their eyes heavy, and shut them, lest they see with tkeir eyes, and hear with their ears, atut understand with their hearts, and convert, and be healed '7) and eonsider the sanie plaee, as it is cited six several times in the lew Testament, we shall sec, that they stood hot upon such exact quotations, and citing of the very words. But to that purpose, for which St. Peter had taken that text, he follows his text. low, beloved, I do hot go about to include St. Peter's whole sermon into one branch, of one part, of one of mine: only I refresh to your memories, that whieh I presume you bave often read in this story, and this chapter, that though St. Peter sa)', Tkat God is no such accepter of yersons, but that in every nation, he that feareth hlm, and worketh riyhteousness, is acceTted with him ', yet it is upon this ground, Christ Jesus is Lord of ail; and, (as it is, ver. 2.) He bath commandect us toTreach; that is, he bath established a ehureh, and therein, visible means of salvation; and then, this is our general text, the subject of all out serinons, That through his ame, whosoeer believeth in him shall have remssion of sins '. So that this is all that we date avow concerning salvation, that howsoever God may aflbrd salvation to some in ail nations, yet he bath manifested to us no way of conveying salvation to them, but by the manifesta tion of Christ Jesus in his ordinance of preaching.
And such a manifestation of Christ, had God here ordained for this centurion Cornelius. Iut why for him. ] do not ask reasons of Goes mercy to particu]ar men; for if I would do so, when should I find a reason, why he bath showed mercy to me But yet, Audite omnes, qui in militia estis, et reyibus assistitis "°, Ail that serve in wars, or courts, may find something to imitate in this centurion; /le «as a derout man; a soldier, and yet devout; Goal forbid they were so incompatible, as that courage, and devotion might hot consist: A man that feared God; a soldier's profession is fearlessness; and only he that fears God, fears nothing else: /le and all kis bouse; a soldier, yet kept a bouse, and did hOt always wander; he kept his house in good ortier, and with good means: l'le ya'e much altos be an expensive profession for outward splendour, yet he reserved for alms, much alms: Andheyrayed fo Godalways; though arms require nluch rime for the duties thereof, yet he could pray af those times; in his trenches, af the assault, or at the defence of a breach, he could pray: ail this the Holy Ghost testifies of him together, ver. 2. And this was his general disposition; and then, those who came from him to Peter, add this, Tkat e ad a yood report amonyst all the nations of the Jeu's, ver. 22, and this to a strangcr, (for the Jews loved not strangers) and one that served the state, in such a place, as that he could not choose but be hcavy to the Jews, was hard to bave. And then, himself, when Peter cornes to him, adds thus much more, That this first mercy of God in having sent his angel, and that farther mercy, that that angel named a man, and then that man came, was exhbited to him, then, when he was fasting. And then, this man, thus humbled and macerated by fasting, thus suppled and entendered with the fear of God, thus burnt up and calcined with zeal and devotion, thus united to God bv continual irayer, thus tributary to God by giving altos, thus exemplar in himself at home, to lead ail his bouse, and thus diffusive of himself to others abroad, to gain the love of good men, this man prostrates himselfto Peter at his coming, in such an over-reverential manner, as Peter durst hot accept, but took him up, and said, 2[ myselfa» also a man '; sudden devotion cornes quickly near superstition. ° Cln-sostom. Ver. 26.
This is a misery, which our time bath been well acquainted with, and had much experience of, and which grows upon us still, that when men have been mellowed with the fear of God, and by heavy corrections, and calamities, brought to a greater tenderness of conscience than belote, in that distemper of nelancholy, and inordinate sadness, they have been easiliest seduced and withdrawn to a superstitious and idolatrous religion. I speak this, because from the highest to the lowest place there are sentinels planted in every corner, to wateh ail advantages, and if a man lose his preferment at court, or lose his cllild at llome, or lose any such thing as affects him ranch, and imprints a deep sadness for the loss thereof, they work upon that sadness, to make him a papist. When men have lived long ri'oto Go(l, they never think fley corne near enough to him, except they go beyond hiln; because they bave never offered to corne to him before, now when they would corne, they imagine God to be so hard of access, that there is no coming to him, but by the intervention, and intercession of saints; and they think that that church, iii which they bave lived iii, cannot be a good church; whereas, if they would accustom themselves in a daily perforrning of Christian duties, to an ordinary presence of (4od, religion would hot be such a stranger, nor devotion sueh an ague unto them. But when Peter had rectified Cornelius, in this misaking, in this over-valuing of any person, and then saw Crnelius' disposition, who had brought materials to erect a church in his house, by calling his kinsmen, and his friends together to hear Peter. Peter spoke those words, Which u'hilst he yet spa'e, the ttoly Gtwst.èll ¥on ail them that heard theword. And so we are fallen into out second part. In this, the first consideratlon falls upon the person that fell: and as the Trinity is the most mysterious piece of out religion, and hardest to be comprehended, so in the Trinity, the I-loly Ghost is the most mysterious person, and hardest to be expressed, bVe are ealled the household of God, and the ïamily of the faithful; and therefore out of a contemplation, and ordinary aequaintanee with the parts of thmilies, we are apter to eoneeive any sueh thing in God himselï, as we sec in a familv. We seem not to go so far out of out way of reason, to believe a
PREACHED ON 'HITSUNDAY. [ERo XXXI. father, and a son, hecause father and son are pieces of familles: nor in helieving Christ and his church, because husband and wife are pieces of familles. We o hot so far in believing God's working upon us, either by ministering from above, or by spiritl ministers herc upon eh, for masters and servants arc pieces of familles. But does there arise any such thing, oç any of theoe couples, çather and son, husband and wiçe, mter and seant, as should corne from them, and they be no whit belote neither Is there anything in natural or civil familles, that should assist out understanding to apprehend this, that in heaven there should be a Holy Spirit, so, as that the Father, and the Son, being ail spirit, and a holy, and ail holiness, there should be another Holy Spirit, which had all their essential holiness in him, and another holine too, catêm, a holiness, that shod make us holy It was a hard work çor the apostles, and their successors, at first, to draw the Ghead into one, into an unity: when the Gentiles had been long customed to make every power and attribute oç God, and to make eve remarkable creature of God a several g, and so to worship God, in a multiplicity of gods, it was a eat work to limit, and detcrmine their surstitious, and superfluous devotion in one God. But when ail these lines were brought into one centre, hot to let that centre rest, but to draw lines out oç that again, and bring more persons in that one centrical Godhead, this was hard for tenon to dige: but yet to have extended that from that unity, to a duality, was hot so much, as to a triplieity. And thereupon, though the Arians would never be brought to eonfess an equality between the Son and the Father, they were much farther from eonfessing it in the Holy Ghost: they ruade, says St. Austine, Filium creaturam ', The Son, they aceounted to be but a ereature; but they ruade the Holy Ghost creaturam creaturoe, not only a ereature, and no god, but hot a creature of God's, but a ereature, a messenger of the Son, xvho was himself (with them)but a ereature. But these mysteries are not to be chewed by reason, but to be swallowed by faith; xve professed three persons in one God, in the simplieity of out infancy, at out baptism, and we have sealed