Seven godly and learned sermons preachedSeuen godly and learned sermons preached

For God saith, In an acceptable time have I heard thee, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee. These words are written in the prophecy of Isaiah, and pronounced they were by him of the appearance of Christ our Saviour, and his coming into this world. And these words thus spoken by the Prophet, S. Paul here fitly applied to the ⟨image 91⟩preaching of Christs gospel. For like as our Saviour came into the world at such time as Christ was borne; so when the Gospel is truly preached, and Gods holy word sincerely taught us, then is Christ opened unto us, then is the acceptable time, and our salvation, is wrought thereby. Therefore S. Hierom that holy father and old Doctor of the Church, saith; Quotiescunque audimus Evangelium Christi, toties caro & sanguis Christi funduntur in aures nostras. As often as we hear the Gospel of Christ preached unto us, so oft the flesh and blood of Christ is poured into our ears, saith S. Hierom. And these words of his do plainly and most evidently show us, how we should understand the eating of Christs body, & drinking of his most holy blood in the Sacrament; these words, I say, may sufficiently teach us what is meant by the eating & drinking of Christs body & blood. This is it that S. Paul here speaketh of, that they receive not the grace of God in vain. And whensoever the gospel of God is truly & sincerely preached, and it received ⟨image 92⟩accordingly, then is the acceptable time, then is the time of grace and salvation. O what a comfortable saying is this; whensoever we hear the Gospel taught us, whensoever we hear Gods holy word preached unto us, then is the gate of salvation set open unto us, and then is the time of grace. And on the contrary part, when Gods word is taken from us, and the light of his Gospel hidden from our eyes, then is the gate of salvation shut upon us, and then is the time of perdition. But alas, the time of grace, the acceptable time, the time of mercy and salvation hath oftentimes but little continuance among us, oftentimes it hath small time of abiding with us. For before Christ appeared, and was borne into this world, for the space of four hundred years, the whole world, the Jews only excepted, was in ignorance and altogether blindness. And when Christ was borne, when he once appeared, then was the acceptable time, then was the time of grace, then was the time of salvation.

For God saith, In an acceptable time haue I heard thee, and in the day of saluation haue I succoured thee. These words are written in the prophesie of Esay, and pronounced they were by him of the apparance of Christ our Sauiour, and his comming into this world. And these words thus spoken by the Prophet, S. Paule here fitly applyed to the