The works of the reverend and faithful servant of Jesus Christ M. Richard Greenham,…The workes of the reuerend and faithfull seruant af Iesus Christ M. Richard Greenham,…

Secondly consider, whether there be in thee any alteration or change. For the wise men¹ which were expert in nature, could say, that in every generation there is a corruption. And we see, that the seed sown is much changed before it grow up and bear fruit: Then needful it is that in regeneration, there be a corruption of sin, so that as seed in the ground, so sin in our mortal bodies may decay, that the new man may be raised up, the spirit of God taking possession of our souls. Therefore the Evangelist John doth make this, the first work of the spirit, that it shall rebuke the world of sin: and this is so needful, that without it, there is not the spirit of God, neither yet can Christ come and enter into that man. Here of it was that Christ compared the Jews to children in the market place, who would not dance, though they were piped unto: and the reason was, because they had not first learned with John to mourn: for they that by the preaching of John, learned to lament their sins, and for their sins were pensive in their own souls, they received Christ, they danced and did rejoice to hear the joyful tidings of the Gospel. Therefore Christ saith, That whores and harlots entered into the kingdom of heaven, seeing they lamented their² sins) before the proud Pharisees, which were touched with no remorse for their sins. And for the same cause it is, that Christ calleth unto him, them only that labour and a•e heavy lad••: teaching, that if they find not sin to be a heavy load and burden to them, they have not the spirit of God, neither are they fit to receive Christ. Then to be rebuked of sin, is the first work of the spirit; which the spirit worketh in us by these degrees. First,³ it raiseth up in us a great and general astonishment, by reason of all those great and enormous sins that we have committed, and this doth strike us down, it doth terrify us, and hold us amazed wonderfully: then it dealeth with us more particularly; it bringeth us unto a special grief for special sins, it doth bereave us of our chief desires, and bringeth⁴ us out of conceit and liking with the best things that are in us: for then it doth display before us the vanity and darkness of our understanding, how unfit and unmeet we are to understand and conceive those things, that do above all others especially concern us: