A09971:130
Grace to the humble· As preparations to receive the Sacrament. Preached
Grace to the humble· As preparations to receive the Sacrament. Preached by the late famous preacher John Preston, Doctor of Divinity, and chaplain in ordinary to his Mtie. Master of Immanuel College, and sometimes preacher in Lincolns-Inn.Grace to the humble· As preparations to receive the Sacrament. Preached by the late famous preacher Iohn Preston, Doctor of Divinity, and chaplen in ordinary to his Mtie. Master of Immanuel Colledge, and sometimes preacher in Lincolnes-Inne.
London: printed by Tho. Cotes for Michael Sparke Junior, 1639London: printed by Tho. Cotes for Michael Sparke Iunior, 1639
Sermon 5: GRACE TO THE HUMBLE. The fifth SERMON.Sermon 5: GRACE TO THE HVMBLE. The fifth SERMO•.
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
But you will say have we flesh in us which is backward and untoward, and therefore we cannot follow Christ so willingly. But as we say a Bear follows to the stake obtorto collo, against his will, and this is found in the Saints as it is said of Peter, when thou art old another shall stretch forth thine hand,1 and another shall gird thee, and lead thee whether thou wouldest not. Christ tells him there of his death, and that he should lead him whether he would ⟨p. 155⟩not, now Peter was a Martyr, and we cannot think but that he dyed and suffered Martyrdom willingly:2 but yet he should be led whether he would not, that is, whether his flesh would not: it is true the flesh cannot thus willingly follow Christ: therefore you must if you would follow Christ aright, find something in you, that you should follow Christ, with propensivenesse and willingly: to express this I have added these other words, with all your heart, we find expressed in the old Testament by three phrases, love the Lord with all your mind, with all your heart, and with all ⟨p. 134⟩§1your might, first, with all your mind, that is, your §2understanding; secondly, with all your heart, that is, §3your affections; thirdly with all your might, that is, with your executive power. We are to follow him with all our mind, and I rather use these three, because the word (follow) is applied to all these, some are said to be followers of such whose opinions they follow. As those that follow Aristotle and Ramus: So some are said to follow Paul, some Apollos, but we must follow Christ: thus we must follow his opinions his tenets, keep close to his word, that is, we should consider what Christ ⟨p. 131⟩said, what the Scripture saith, for otherwise it is no faith, for is fides fundatur in ore Dei; we must not take things on trust, we must not receive such a truth, because such a writer set it down; but we must see what warrant it hath in the word of God, otherwise we are not rooted in the faith, we are to have an estimation of orthodoxall fathers, but we are to fix our eyes on Christ. As for example the doctrine of justification, this you may learn out of writings, but you must see what footing it hath in the Scriptures, or else when our strong adversaries set upon us we