Sermon a. Ofthe NATlVl TIE, and cobwebs; N 0 mendams, butin medio animalittm (as the Fathers read the third of Abakttk:) For,,{rheln.wwere full,the.ftablnvas not empty, wemay belure. A Abll;.J.>. Si nethis, (nayrhree,mon~,) able to amaze any. . . , g And it iJ tme(fairhSalomon, and make.s a wonder of Jt) wdl Goo accept aplate ·, tarth to receive Him ? When he had bmlt Htm a Cl:ately fumptuous Temple, and, Reg.8.•7· 1 neant it bythlt.) And'isthat a wonder, if injitch a Temple'? What i_s it then, if in ~corner of aflable,inacratchthere ~ Will He accept of thattrow ~It Hewill; Hot erit signrmt indeed. 0 L oR o, 0 L oR. o (fatth Kmg Davzd (h1s Father) rapt witllldmiration) howwonderfrdl! WhaUwhy,mmordflt Ettma6 Angelu,Thou matfjl Pfal.8 ,j; Him lower than the Angels (for, to CH a I ST; doth theApoflleapphe that verfeHebr. H<b •. 6 • !I.) Lower tha?Jthe Angels? Nay lower yet (faithEfay in his Llll.) Novifimu-s>vi- Efay 5H; rorsm theloweft of mm : Nay,lower yet (faith theA?Jgellhere,) lower than theloweft of men. For,aflabte~ acratch, is a place for beafts,~ot for men. So low•.Well may this befaid aSigne, m thts fenfe, t9 wonder at : If 1t be welllooked mto, ltlS able to firike any man into an extafie. . Bur, if we !bnd but gazing,and wondringat this Signe, the Angel!will blameu:; Al\u.• ~ -at the 'l'{gtivitie, As they did the Apojlles, for the like,at Hts Afcmfion. What jearne · · · we by 1r. · For, loquitur Signi;; Signes have their fpeech : And,this is nodumbJigne. What • roM. faith it then to us~ CH R r s T (though as yet He cannot fpeake,asa nt'w bornebabe, l'oyoo. yet) by it, He Jfettks, and out of His crib (as aPulpit) this day, preaches to us; and ,His theme is Difcitea me; lettrne ofme,for 1ai!J h11m~le : Humble, in mybirth, ye all Mat<b,u.•$; fee. This,is the Pr,.cipeofthe Pr£{epe (as I may calltt;) the !elfon of C Ha I s T s fratch. ASigne it is ;but,not a.Signeatlarge, indefinitely: Nt>thing,but hoc erit Signum. l'>ut,Signum,Vobi< (for you:) hmtred, to fome, not, toa!1. For not rofome orhers; Bm, toyOt<,andfuch as you are,aSigne it is: aSigne it is,how to.findHim. ASigne,for whom He was borne, that thus was home : To whomHe,towhomHis birthbelongs; Sure, humiliJ ?Ja[citt~r, ht~milibm. So He was borne; and,for them that arefo,He wdS borne. Such Hewas formd; and, of fuch He will be found,and ofnone but fuch; Bur then (asS. Augafline faith well) SignumVobi4jiSignt~mi?J vobi<: Ajigne for yo,., if aSigneinyor<. For,inthis fenCe alfo,itisaSigne toJigne us with; a.Signature,romake amark on us. Theirs~ in the IX. ofEzeki~l) that were faved,they were Exek. 9 . 4 ; marked wrth the Jigne of Tart tn thezrforeheads: That, 1stlus veryJigne, the marke of _ Ht~militie,as being the lafl: and lowefllerterof the who!e-(1.lphttbet. And, thiJ .figne .fhall follow them that beleeve; and by rhis marke will Hee knowMark. 1 6.•1·: them. By thefigne,we findHim; by the fame will Hefindus: Invenieti<and inveniemini, by one and the fame figne both. For, nrmquam erit alittdServatoris Signum, alir.dServati; 'l{sver,Heethatfaves, oneSigne;they, thatfaved, another. At leatl, not a quirecomrarie, but the famefigne, both. By the fame, 'that CHRisT found, by the fame a Chriflian: Or, to fpeake more neereJylto the day, by the !ame that CH 11. I s T s Birth, by the fame, the Chrifiians new birth. For, as faith . rstheverrue~pprop:iate to His Conception (byfaith He ~asconceived, Beata1"£ credzdzt:) So ts Humrlttze, as proper to Hts W..attvitze: tn great Humilitie, this Day, Lok.x.4f.£8. was Heborne,andbrought intorheworld. Then,ifrheSigne of CH R I s T s Birth be theproper Signeof a Chriliians new birth, wherein C Ha I s T is fafhio.,edinm Ga1. 4 ., 9 . ""'"'; Hoc erit Signum, that they, who to faith have not joynedHumilitie, are not ,Pec.q,6; yet c?me fo far, as robebabes in CH R I ' s T; not yet (as Saint Bajil fpeJkes) come Mlttb.tS.J, ~~:hetr ""'Pl"'." ••Tupi«, their Jivadling cloMs,in theftate offalvatio?J. And whattime ~reow ye) wtll thefe be come to the meafi~reof thefit!! ageitJ CH R '_s T, :hatyet Ephef.+·'l; hold~o further forward ~ Many a I''}•'"""' are there among us, 1f tlus Stgne Butdthen, if it beeSignum vobir, to fomc . It is for fome others, Signumcontra vus: an that is theproud. For, the Word ofGodhath two edges: and, if it go one way thus for Htomlitiejit cuts asdeepe thecomrary,againfi J'ri~e.l\nd wirhall,under L,3 one
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=