Seven godly and learned sermons preachedSeuen godly and learned sermons preached

Therefore, if we have the word of God as a song to delight our ears, if we turn the truth of Gods gospel into riot and wantonness, if we confess God with our lips, & deny him in our deeds, if we say we know Gods law, we know his commandments, and yet live not thereafter; we do not praise God and confess his name, but we shame God, and dishonour his holy name: we cause the people to think evil of Gods word, and slander his gospel. And this is the cause why the common sort of people judge, that not to be the gospel, which is this day preached & taught unto them; because such as profess the gospel, live not after the gospel, because such as say they know Gods way, walk not in ⟨image 27⟩Gods way. And thus through our own folly, through our own evil and corrupt living, we offend our brethren, we offend our selves, and so in them offend Jesus Christ: and their blood shall be required at our hands. Let us remember what God by the Prophet Esay saith,¹ Haec est vera via, ambulate in ea: This is the true way, walk in the same. Chrysostom saith, if ye hear Gods word preached unto you, and ye follow it not, ye learn, saith he, but your own damnation, ye learn nought else but your own destruction: The words that you hear preached unto you, shall accuse and condemn you. God saith, Thou shalt not steal, ²thou shalt not commit adultery, thou shalt bear no false witness, &c. these words, this law of God written unto us, shall accuse, yea, and condemn us, I say; if we to our powers follow not the same, if we walk not and continue in them accordingly. Alas, the very age of the world, the profession that we have taken upon us, is, or should be enough to put us in remembrance of another life, of another ⟨image 27⟩world to come. Let us not take the name of God in vain, let us all praise and extol God, let our mouths, our hands, our hearts, and all other our members praise and confess his name for ever. Laetentur & exultent populs, &c. O let the people rejoice and be glad, that thou judgest the folk righteously, & governest the nations upon the earth. Thy way, O Lord, is known, said David, thy way is known upon the earth, therefore let all people, all nations, yea, all the whole world rejoice and be glad thereat.