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Of
R
E p E N TAN
c
E,
SermonS.
the
Churches peace. .
And the
Cano!Js pmitentia!l
which weremade in
th~
tim<s under
perfurwon, the very bej!ttmes ofthe church,
lay forth plainly, what is
to
be follow d
and obferved in this kinde.
.
•
e
And(fure)ltake it tobean·ertourro be added to thcformet, to thinke,thefrttitsof
repentance
and the
worth oi:'
them to bee a matter,
any common man
canskill ofwell
enough; needs never aske Saint
John,
or
S~int
Paul,.
what he lhould d? ; knowes what
helhould doe,as well as Samr
Paul,
or Samt
John
ctther: And that 1t
IS
not (rather)
a
p1lltter, wherein we need the counfell and direction offuch, as
areprofcJ!ed
that way.
Truly, it is
n~ither
the le
ail:
northe ,lafi pan ofoudearning, to be able ro give
mt{wrr,
and
dmflton
m
rh1s pomr. But, therefore la1d afide; and neglected by
m
,becau[enor
fought after by
y11t1.
Therefore not
ftudied,
bur by very
few, q11ia nemo nos interrogat
becaufe it is growneour ofrequefi quire.
.
.
·
.
'
Wee have learned
(I
knownor where)
a
new, alhorrercdmfe, which
tlcflnnd
bloud better likes of; to pa!fe the whole tourfc ofour life, and, in the whole courfe
of ourlife;norto be able to fer downe, where, or when,orwhar we did,when we
did
that; which we call
repenting:
what
fmits
there came ofit; what rhofe
jr11its
miohr
be
worth.
And, but even a lirde before our
death
(and,
as
littleas may
be)not,till~he
world have given us over, rhen (loe) to come to our
qt<idfaciemm?
to aske,
whatwe
f/Judd doe,
when we areable to doe
nothing.
And then mull: one come,and(asweca/l
it)
JJealte comfortably
to us, that is, minifl:er to us a
little Divinity Ladamtm,
rather
j!ttpefat!ive
forrhe prefenr,than doing any found good: and fo,takc our leavesrogoe
mecre with
it>~>
ventura.
Thisway,this failiion of
repenting,Saint John
knew it
nor:
it is far frm]J
hisfruiiUt
dignos:
Saint
Paul
knew it not: it is farre from his
opera digna:
And I can fay littlero
El>y.
4
o.J.
ir, but I pray Go
o
it deceive
us
not.
·It is nor good Hying conclufions abourour
P·"·
(oules.
Here is the
plaine
ivay,
this is the firaight path laid our before us, by him that
wasfent toprepare thewayes ofthe
L
oR.
o,
and
to make
hiS
p•ths ftraigbt:
andgoewe
which way we will,we lhall heare the voyce behinde us,cryirlg to us ;
ll"ceft
via,ttm.
btdate inta.
Set your
tree; bring forth
your
fmits;
fee to them : altogether
umvorthy
'thexwould not be; Somewhat
wol"th;
raifed to fome degree of
worthineffi•
.£god
potllitfecit,
did C
a
R.
1
s
T
accept
ioMary Magdalenscafe;
and
rp16dha1JIIit
::;~: ::.~·
4
•
dedit,in
the poore
Widowes
cafe,with her(but)Mo
mit<s,
Wedoing our endevoursto
raifethem, to what degreewe can, He for His parr, will not be behinde; but
releevc
Efay:jo .•s.
and helpeusout.
Forlexpeflat
Do
M I Nu
s,utmifereatllr noflri;
GoD (even}
waits
that He may h:tve.mercy on us. Aad theTefore,laying away His rigour,will notgoe
exactly to,worke,but be ready to releeve,and repute that
worthy,
that is not all ootfo.
Revel.;.>.
So, in the Church of
Sardi,
we finde,
He
faith,
Non inveJ<io opera tttaplena,
their
W1!rk1S
4 ,
were notfoundro
have tliefu/l
poi{e,
yet notwithfianding He faith,
dignitnim
frmt,the
• ",, .•
Partiesfo~ndworthyforall
thar.
.
.
~e
,o.
· I·
j
.
Allthe
worth
is
notintrin[ec1!l,
to_rhe thing it
fel~e
: When allis faidrhat can be
./ ;<.
f:ud, that whichmakes
allfu!l,
the ch1cfepm ofthe1r
worth
lycrh m
dtgm ha6eb11nt11r.
· It Is therefore G
if
1t
I
s
'r·scounfdl,orate,ut digni habeamini ;Pray, they maybe fo•nd
infogood a
degree
to;vards-!t, ;is Go o
may
CO/fnt
them,
and fo
accouming make them:
f!l.!sanquam {at digni
ji
qttos dignatttr(f.1ith
the
Cbriftian Poet.)
In one Chapter,wehave
tthe~p
both (in the II
Thelf.
1.)
cMntedwotthy
at the
5. verfe, m•deworthj
at
the'
1.
v(r]e.
Both come to one.
'T
wiJ
words
rhere are in the
Greeke,.;~,&,."'.and ~~iu'":
Two,in
Latine,dignit,t.r,and dignatio ;
Al1d,as
tbcre)sdignatio ex dignitate;
So is there
dignit.a
ex
dign~tione.
And,that is it<
Worthy
is the
fr~it
,He (• efteemeth :
But,upon the
poi~r,
rather
dignatione
Ejt«,
than
dignitate.fua,
·rather by
H_i&
digning or dignifying the"';
tl1~n,hy
theintrinfeca/1, by thetr owne dzgmty,
they_have
10
tbemfelves.
. Yer,lct us neverthmke, be fo bafe asroconcetve, lie Will hold for fuch,any at all,
let them be what they wlll, it skills not how
wortblejfe,how
farrefrom all
degrees
1,()–
wardir. No: Burfuch,as wl\erin, Hefeerh
Ca,meconfcience made,[omec4ret.<kenJome
zealot« deftre,(omeearnefl endeavour
appcare.Some
profft!rs(at
leajl)roward thofefrvm
• Cor:
7·1'-
degrees,iJ'I
i
Corinth.
7· wluch roay
fer~eto
a!fureour [elves and to fl1ew theworld,
we