Ambrose - Houston-Packer Collection BX5200 .A49 1674

Chap. 1. sea. 7 . 1Lcokmg unto ·jcftt~. Book IV. 437 difpd~darknefs, fo Chri£1: che Sun ;r righreou~neL fhined forrh unto t.he world by the 1iollr of his refurrecrion; and hence we reade ot the Apo!l:les obfervarwn of .th~< very da)· above all others ; The ftrfi day of the wee~, the Difciplcs bci11g come tozerhtr cobrea/z. bre::d~ Pan! p;-eachcd unto thern : --:- tmd corcernmg the co/lefitonfor the SamtJ_. as I hAve /\Cl. 10 • i• n-iven' order 10 che Churches of G.<!att.1, even fodo ye: t~pon rhc ftrftday of ch.,veelz.: let every ~ne of )'O" lay by him ;, fto e, a! God had pro{pcrcd him. (.bantable comnbunons, and C 6 Church affcmblies were in ufe and pracrife on the firft day of the week, ( i.) on 1 or.t ·'• 1 ' tlJe Lord's day . An argument fuflicient to me againfl.. all rhe oppofers of this ' facred rrurh, that the !idl: day of the week IS our Chnluan Sabbath ; why then Chriil: arofe and at fundry rimes appeared before his afcenfion, and after his afcenfion : Chrirl lent down the holy Ghoil: on that very day; and afrer the fending of rhe holy Ghoft the Apoll~es rhen preached, rhe Churches then affe?'bled, Charites were rhen gathered, rhe Lords Supper wa> .rhen celebrated ; Cbrr!l s .firll: apparition wa3 on that d~y, and after that day fimOJed, not any other apparmon uefore this rime, And pfter eight d•)'S· 2 . For rhe pilce, it is faid ro be within ; probably it was the fame . houfe wherein rhe former apparition was ; the houfe wherein Chri£1: celebrated rhe Paf– feover, and in!lituted the Lord's Supper ; wherein was the large upper room made ready for Chri[f ; In rbi~ upper room immediately after Chill's ~fcenfion, was that famous aff,mbly of all rhe Apoftles ; as we have heard. And in this upper room was Mark. 14 ;.;: rhar 0 ,ber famous affembly of all the twelve when tloe holy Ghoft rame down upon rhem in dol'en tongues of fire or the fea£1: ofPentecofl"; and if we may believe tradition, in this upper room the feven Deacons ( whereo[Stephen was one ) were elected and or- AEt. '· ,; dained. And in this upper room the Apoftles ar.d Elders of the Church at Jeru(alem held rhar councel, rhe pattern of ail councels, for the decifion ofrhat queflion, n·herber the Gentiles chat believed were•to be circur;,cifcd? in this upper room the ApofHesand POl. 6. Difciples frequently affembled for prayer and fnpplications ; yea they continued there with one '"cord in prayer and fiepplicatio1, and hence Cyrd who was Bi!ho~ of the place, calls it,;"""''-" ''·""''!"' -iir ,;,,,.,,.Qv. the neper Church of rhe Acoftles, but of this upper room, and of rhe doors of it being !hut, we have fpoken before. A<l·•f· 3. For the ~erfons, they were his ren Di!d,J,s, to whom he had apfearedf0rmerly, only now Thoma< was with rhem; and fo the number is compleat, which before wao ACl. •· 14. not . his Difcirles were within, and Thom,.nvith them : and why T homa; with rhelll? was 'nor 1ho71M one of them ? was not Tho'!1a< a Difciple of Chri~ as well as th~ c 7 f." rcH ?. I grant ;. bur T?o7la< is added, becauie Tho rn M was nor prefenr a~ the laft a;> '' "'"--~~: panrton, and thtsaparmon was moreefpeoally for Ti!Oma< ltts f;ke; 0 the admrrable love of Chrift towards poor !inners !obferve, in Chrifl' are bowels of mercy 1 o hi< jlra)•in7Jhecp; the Difci, les in danger bad fled away. from Chri!t, bm he will not fly away from them; no, no, he feeks them, he llands m the mtdll: of them, and be comes again with an olive branch of peace, faying, peace be unto yo11. Of all rhefe we have touched before ; bur here is fomething new ; a new meny breaking "ut on fairblefs Thoma; • Chrifl: proves it by lively examples, and frrong arguments, that he will not queuh rh; Jr<oaking jla."<, nor break the brui(ed reed; that he came tofeck_aild to (avethat 1xhichw.u loft: 1f 3 4'' ~· rhar he was fenr to bind up the broken hearred, and ro heal the fick, ro reduce rhe abject, Luk.o9. 10 • and ro bring to the fold the llraying Cheep; for the fake ofoneThM:a< C.hrifl: appears again, that ro him os we\1 as the reft he might communicate his goodnefs, bequeath his peace, and confirm him in this neceffary point of faith, rlm be was rifen again. 0 rhe goodnefs of Chrifr ! likg .u • Father pityetb his childrcn,(o the Lord pitycth them that.fear him ; he rhar left pf,!. 10 3·13· the pmety and ~ll\e m the wi!dernef• ro go after that fhe-ep that was Ioil:, declares his defire to fave finners; of all that thcu ha{f given me I bave not loft one, noc one of his f11ee ~ ; be may fuffer them a while to il:ray, as this one Difciple, who continued incredu. lousfor one wb?le week, but a Lord~, day comes, and then Chrift acpears in the midll: John.•7· "· of the candlell:rcks, the Lord u not Jlac"-. concerning his prM•ife, ( Mfome men coulltJlac.~ nefs ) but he " long-Jujfering to tu·w•rd, uot willing chat any ~1011ld perijh, but that all Jhould co~c to repentance. Humbled finners that de(paire in ·rhemfelves may here find encouragement, it is their ufual cry, 0 my fns, rhe(e fns t Pet. l·9i ,,re ha_ynous, thefe fns wtll damu me. Oh but con!ider, bath nor the Lord pardoned as great fins ? if thou art wicked, conlider the Publican· if thou arc unclean remember Magdalen, if rhou arr a rheif, a man- Oayer,' mufe on that tluef that, was crucified with Jefus Chri[\; if thou arr ~ bhfphemer, Yyz · cal:l

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