15.

IV.

Ver. 14.

SERMON let every answer to our persecutors be "with meekness and fear," says S. Peter; "for happy are you," says he, and 1 Pet. iii. therefore "be not afraid of their terror, neither be troubled;" moderate your passions and your fears, and esteem yourselves happy by so suffering, by so doing. It is your Master's revealed will that so it should be; it is his way to draw you nearer to himself, by working you to the image of his sufferings.

7. The Lord is at hand, the Judge is coming. At hand to reward us for all our sufferings, all our patience and moderation, all our modest and civil conversation, all our righteousness and mercy. Not one sparrow, not the least feather of a good work shall fall to the ground, not one half farthing be lost, not a hair of any righteous action perish: he is at hand to take all up that nothing be lost. At hand he is, 2, to deliver us out of the hands of all that hate us: if temporal deliverance be best, to give us that; if not, to deliver us however over into glory. At hand, 3, to take revenge upon his enemies, to repay his adversaries. He came presently after this Epistle to do so to Jerusalem, to destroy the incredulous Jews and apostate heretics, those persecutors of the Christian faith; came with a heavy hand, that they fell to their utter ruin and desolation. Thus he being at hand to reward and punish may well serve as an argument to persuade us to be patient for so short a while, to be moderate both in our fears and desires, in our words and in our actions, to bear a while and say nothing, to endure a while and do nothing; for One there is a-coming, nay, now at hand to deliver us, to plead our cause, to revenge our quarrel: let us commit it to Him. He is the Judge of all the world, and judges right. Let us do nothing but with moderation, and not think much to show it unto all, when we are sure to be rewarded for it, and those that observe it not, are sure to be punished.

8. The Lord is at hand in the blessed sacrament; and that is also now at hand, but a week between us and it. And moderation of all kinds is but a due preparation to it, some special act of it to be done against it. "Righteousness and equity is the habitation of his seat," says David; the Lord sits not nor abides where they are not. The holy sacra

24.

IV.

ment that is his seat, a seat of wonder, is not set but in the SERMON righteous and good soul, has no efficacy but there. Modesty and humility are the steps to it; into the modest and humble soul only will he vouchsafe to come. All reverence and civility is but requisite in our addresses unto it. But moderation, meekness, and patience, and sweetness, and forgiving injuries is so requisite, that there is no coming there, no offering at the altar, till we be first reconciled to our brother. "Go, be first reconciled to thy brother," says our S. Matt. v. Lord himself; so that now if we desire a blessing of the blessed sacrament unto us, if we desire the Lord should there come to us, "let our moderation be known to all men" before we come. Let us study the art of reconcilement; let us not stand upon points of honour or punctilios with our brother, upon quirks and niceties; let us part with somewhat of our right; let us do it civilly, use all men with courtesy and civility, express all modesty and sweetness in our conversation; all softness and moderation, patience and meekness, gentleness and loving-kindness towards all, even the bitterest of our enemies; considering "the Lord is at hand:" the Lord of righteousness expects our righteousness and equity; the Lord in his body, and looks for the reverent and handsome behaviour of our bodies; the Lord of pure eyes, and cannot endure any unseemliness or intemperance either in our inward or outward man; the Lord that died and suffered for us, and upon that score requires we should be content to suffer also anything for him, not to be angry, or troubled, or repine, or murmur at it, or at them that cause it. At the holy sacrament he is so near at hand, that he is at the Table with us; reaches to every one a portion of himself, yet will give it to none but such as come in an universal charity, with all the forementioned moderations.

Give me leave to conclude the text as I began it, and fix the last argument upon the time. The time is now approaching wherein the Lord came down from heaven, that he might be the more at hand. Fit it is we should strive to be the more at hand to him, the readier at his command and service: the time wherein he moderated himself and glory as it were to teach us moderation, appeared

SERMON So to all, that our moderation also might appear to all, of what size, or rank, or sect whatsoever.

IV.

I remember a story of Constantia, Queen of Arragon, who having taken Charles, Prince of Salerno, and resolving to sacrifice him to death, to revenge the death of her nephew Conradinus, basely and unworthily put to death by his father, Charles of Anjou,-sent the message to him on a Friday morning, to prepare himself for death. The young prince (it seems, not guilty of his father's cruelty) returns her this answer: That, besides other courtesies received from her Majesty in prison, she did him a singular favour to appoint the day of his death on a Friday, and that it was good reason he should die culpable on that day whereon Christ died innocent. The answer related so much moved Constantia, that she sends him this reply: "Tell Prince Charles if he take contentment to suffer death on a Friday because Christ died on it, I will likewise find my satisfaction to pardon him also on the same day that Jesus signed my pardon, and the pardon of his executioners, with his blood. God forbid I shed the blood of a man on the day my Master shed his for me! I will not rest upon the bitterness of revenge: I freely pardon him."

Behold a speech of a queen worthy to command the world, worthy a Christian indeed. To apply it, is only to tell you, we may often take excellent occasions of virtue and goodness from times and days, and bid you go and do likewise. The time that is at hand, is a time to be celebrated with all Christian joy and moderation: some particular and special act of charity, equity, modesty, meekness, moderation, to be sought out to be done in it, or to welcome it; the feast of love to be solemnized with an universal charity; the Lord at hand to be honoured with the good works of all our hands. His coming to pardon and save sinners, to be accompanied with a general reconcilement and forgiveness of all enemies and injuries, of a moderation to be exhibited unto all. Let your moderation then keep time as well as measure-be now especially shown, and known, and felt, and magnified by all with whom we have to do; that thus attending all his comings, he may come with comfort, and carry us away with honour; come in grace and hear us,

IV.

come in mercy and pardon us, come in his word and teach SERMON us, come in Spirit and dwell with us, come in his sacrament and feed and nourish us, come in power and deliver us, come in mercy and reward us, come in glory and save us, and take us with him to be nearer to him, more at hand," to sit at his right hand for evermore.

THE FIRST SERMON

ON

CHRISTMAS-DAY.

SERMON

V.

Rom. xv.

12.

ISAIAH xi. 10.

And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek and his rest shall be glorious.

"AND in that day there shall be:" and in this day there was, a root of Jesse that put forth its branch. That day was but the Prophecy; this day is the Gospel of it. Now first, (to speak in the Psalmist's phrase,) "truth flourished out of the earth" now first the truth of it appeared.

Some indeed have applied it to Hezekiah, and perhaps not amiss in a lower sense; but the Apostle, who is the best commentator ever upon the Prophets, applies it unto Christ. (Rom. xv. 10.) There we find the text, and him it suits to more exactly every tittle of it, and of the chapter hitherto, than to Hezekiah or any else.

He was properly the Branch that was then to grow out of old Jesse's root. For Hezekiah was born and grown up already some years before, thirteen at least. He, 2, it is Isa. xi. 2. whom "the Spirit of the Lord does rest upon," upon Hezekiah and all of us; it is the Dove going and returning. Upon Him, 3, only it is, that the Spirit in all its fulness, with all its gifts, wisdom and understanding and counsel and might and the rest, is poured out upon. He, 4, it is alone, that Isa. xi. 4. judges the earth in righteousness, which is said of this root. He, 5, it is that shall "smite the earth with the rod