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Sermon
z.
Ofthe
NATIVITIE.
-~5
in Him. And now, foisHis
Fathers
name coo,
Abba, Father:
To fhcwrhe benefit equally Muker
4.
intended by Him, rothem, that call
HimAbba,
that
is,rheleiVes;
to us, that call Him
Fa-
R.omi,
6 ;
ther
rhatis
rheGcnttles.
·
·
'But y.e;,it is
inclll{ive
ofnonc,but rhofe that includethemfdves;
that be!eeve,and
th~re-
;Rotn.J.>'
fore fay
'l{pbis, totts He uborne, to m He ugwcn.
Wluch excludes all rhofe, thanndude
not
thc~felves.
Saint
Ambrofe
f.1itb well:
Facit mu!tomm injidelitdf, ttt non omnib11s nafce-
retur
tpti
omnibrts nat11s eft :
Want of
fatth
makes, that He, that
IS
borne to
all,
IS
not borne
toall;hou<>b. TheT11rkes,
and
I
elVes
can fay,
Prter natru eft:
The
Devil/
can fay,
Filius n.<-
tll5tjl
to;: But neither fay,
~bis;
but,
f!!!jd nobis
&
tibi?
They have not to doe with
Hitn;and forlacke ofit, ofthis, neither
Childe
~or
Sonne, birth
nor
gift
do:h availethem:
we mull: make much of tlus word, and bold lt fat1; for, thereby, our
ten~re
and
rntereft
aroweth. Which interell: groweth by
a
doublenghr, (and rherefo;e
IS
Nobtstwtce
repea-
~ed:)
'Theone,ofHisbirth,
Natu;:
>the other, by
a
dad
of
gift, Datm.
Ofwhich, the
.
one (his
Birth)
referrerh to
Him(elfe:
the other(rhe
gift)ro
His
Father ..
To fhew rhejoynt
~J:~~f;~·
confent and concurrence, in both, For our good.
So chrift lovtd11s, that He
IV.~;
given: So
IohnJ·'"
Godlovedus,that Hegave His Sonne.
By His very
birth,
there groweth to
us
an
intereft
in Him,rhcrehy partaker ofour
nat11re,
ourflejb,
andourblor~d.
That which is
de nobis,
He
tookeofus,
is ours:
jlefo
and
blONd
is our
owne; and, to that is our owne, we have good right.
.
His
humanitie
iscleerelyours; good right to thar. But, no rig_ht to His
Deitie.
Therc-
forehis
Father,
(who hath bet1 right to difpofe of Him,) hnh pafledoverrhat by a
dted of
tloh.p6
gift•
So that, what by
participation of or,y Natrm,
what by
,good conveyance;
both are
GaLH.
ours. Whether a
childe,
He is ours : or whether a
Sonne,
He 1s ours.
We
gave Him the
one; His
Father
gaveustheother. So, both ours: and He ours, fo farre as both thefe can
make Him. Thus, Go
o,
willing
moreabormdantly
to
fl;lew
to the
heires ofpromife the
fla-
Hcb.G.
17 ;
blene!Je
ofHis Counfell, tooke both courfes; rh.1r, by two t1rong rides, which it is
impojfzble
jhould bee defeated,
wee
might have ffrong confolation,
and ride (as it were) at a double
~~
'
I
want time, to tell ofthe benefit which the Prophet
(Ver(e
III.) calleth the
h.:rveft,
or
bootieofHis Nativitie.
This it is in a word: Ifthe
tree
be ours, the fruit
is:
IfHe be ours,
Heb.u:
His
Birth
is ours; His
Life
is ours; His
Death
is ours; His
Satisfa8fion,
His
c.Merit,
all He
!oh"
J.l
~
Did,
all He
Srt(feredis
ours. Further, all that the
Father hath ts His, He is Heireofall;
then, Mc.>ul
all that is ours too.
SaintPartl
bath cat1 up our account:
Havinggiven Him·, there
u
nothing,
'
~:,~
1 •
but He1ViUgive llfiVith Him:
So that,byrhis
Deed,
we have title roall, that His
Father,
or
R.om.~.p
He
is worth.
·'
And now,fhall webring forth nothing for Him that was thus
borne?
No
.f(gid retri-
Om·'D11~
buam,
no giving backe, for Him that
gave
Him us
~
Yes, thankes to the
Father,
for
ti<.
. .
His
great bounty in giving.
Sure, fo
go•d a giving,
[o
per(e[} a gift
there
never came
;~~~
6
;:•
downe.from the Father of lights.
And ro the
Sonm,
for being willing fo to bee
bornt,
,
4
,tf.
and fq to bee
burthened
as Hee was.
For Him to condefcend robe
borne
as
Children
Col.•.u.
are borne, To become a
Chi/de;
great humility: Great,
ttt
verbum, in(a;;s;
m
tonans
1"''·'·'l·
vagtens; rtt
tmmenfr~s,
par-r:ul11s :
that the
Word,
not be able to
JPeake a IVord;
He; rhat
thundercthm
Heaven
cne
m a
Cradle;
Hee, that
[ogreat andfohigh,
fhouldbecomefo
ltttle
as a
Cbtlde,
and fo low as a
.Manger. Nottoabhorrt t!Je Virginswombe,
not
to
ab–
horrethe
Beaffs .Manger,
not rodifdainerobe
fedtvith butter andhoney;
All,grear
humi-
lrty.
All great, and very great: Bur, that is greater, is behinde.
Puer natus,
gJuch;
Prin–
«psoneratres,
much more: That, which He
bareforus,
more; than that He was
borne
for
~~:
For, greater 1s
Mors
crr~cis,
than
T{•tivitM pr.efepts:
Worfe to
drinke vineger andgall,
Phil.z!s•
. anto
eat b11tter.ndhoney;
worfe, to endure an
infamorudeAth,
tllln robe content, with an
mglortous bzrth.
h
b}~us
therefore fing to the Father.Cwirh
Zacharie) Benediflus:
and to the
Sonne
(with Luke •.as
t e
1
~ed
Vzrgm) .Magniji,·at:
and (withal! the
Angels) Gloria in Exceljis,
To the
Prince
4 6 •
Wltl
tsgovernmentonhisjh.ulders
'·'t·.
P
Nothing burthankcs
~Yes;
by ;,ayofd1"e too
1
to render, unto the
childe,
confidence;
tiereft, nerncttiM:
To the
Sonnerevmn~e;
FilirJS eft, neJPernlff
'·
To the
Prince,
obedience;
C
1_
Princeps