38 / 1254
Of the
NATIVITIE.
Sermonz.
Princeps cft,.neojfendas.
And againe; To
NatU<;
is Heborne
~
then
cherifh
Him. (Ifpeake
of H1s
jj~trztttalt
btrth,
wherem, we by heanng and domg H1s
word,
are(as Himfelfe (
1
ith)
~llt,U.49
His
Mothers.
To
DattH;isHegiven
r
then
keepe
Him. To
Oneratus:
is He
burthencd.? (•·
10 .
vottr
Him; lay no moreon,thanneeds you mutt.
This is good morall counfell. Bur, Saint
Bernard
gives us polirike advice; ro looke to
our imerell:,tothinkeof making our bell: benefit by Him.
De nobis nat.J
&
datofaciamtts id,
adquod, natus
eft
&
datus
;
tttamnr noJlro, intltilitAtem nojfram
;
de.fervatore nojfro,faltdem ope–
remur
:With this
borne
and
given childe,
let
~~s
then doe that, for which He was
borne
and
given
us : Seeing He is ours, let us ufe that, that is ours, to our bell: behoofe; and even
worke out our
[alvation,
out ofthis
ottr Saviottr.
His counfell is, to make our ufeofHim:
but, that is not, to doe with H>m what welifr; but, to imploy Him to thofe ends, for which
He wasbell:owed. Thofe are foure:
L.
He
isgivent~s([aith
Saint
Peter)
i"""'H"~'~'a,for
an
example,
to follow. In all; bur (that
•Pet.>.><
which is proper to rhis diy,)ro
doe it, inh11militie.
Itistb~t,whichtheLAngel/
fetup,
foraligneandfample, uponth1sveryday. It1s the venue appropnate ro His
birth.
As
faith,
to His
conception, (Beataqn.uredidtt ;)
So
hr•militie,
to Hts
birth, (
&
Hocerit (lgnum:)
Fierivolrtit in vitd.prim11m, q11odexhibrtit in ortttvit£,
(it is
Cyprian ;)
That, He would have
us, fitll:
to
exprelfe in<>urlife, that He firll: !hewed us, in the very enrrie of ourlife. And to
commend to us this venue the
more,Placuit neo majorapro nobi; •perari,It
bath pleafcd Him
todoegreaterrhings for us, in this ell:ate, than ever He did, in the high degree of His
Maje–
ftie:
as, (we know) the worke of
Redemptron
pa!feth that of
Creatron,
by much.
~
He is
givenusinpretittm,
fora
price. Aprict,
either'?f
ran[ome,
to
bringusourdeloC~
•Pct.t.r 9
caliginofo:
or
aprice,ofpurchafe,
of(that, where, wtthoum, we havenointerell:,)
the King–
dome ofheaven.
For both, He
IS
grven;
off~r
we Htm for both. W c fpeake of
.f!Edmriba–
am;
We can never retribute the like thing. He was given us, ro that end, wee might give
Himbacke. We wanted, we had nothmgvaluablc; that we m1ght have, this
Hegaveus,
(as
a thing ofgreatell:
price,)
to
offer for thar, which needeth a great price, ourlinnes, fo ma–
ny innumber,and fo fouleinquality. We bad nothing worthy Go n; this
HegaveHs,
thatisworrhyHim, whichcannotbcbut
accepted,
offer we it never fo often. Let us then
Mot. 7 . 7
,s
offer Him;
and, in the aetofoffering,askcof
Him what is meet:
for we !hall find Him nole!fe
b!Jt.•4·
6,
bounteous, than
Herod,
to grant what is duely asked upon His
birth-day.
7 '
Heis given us (as Himfelfe faith) as the
living brMd.from Heaven:
which
bread
is His
Ioh}6 .
n
jlej!J, borne
this day, and after
given for the life of the world•
.
For, looke how we doe give
backerhat He
gave tu,
even fo cloth He give back
to
us that wh1ch we
gave Him,
that which
He had ofus. This He gave for us, in
Sacrifice;
and this He giverh us, in rhe
Sacrament;
M3t.>6.
that the
Sacrifice
may, by the
Sacrament,
be truly applied to us. And let me commend this
,
Cor.~~:
to you; He never bade,
Accipite,
(plainly,
take,)
bur in this ondy: and that, becaufethe ef–
-·
, 4 ,
feet of this Dayes
union
1s no wayes more hvely reprefemed, no way more effectually
wrought, than by this ufe.
And lall:ly, He is gi•;en us
in pncmium:
(Not now to be feene, onely in hope;) but
here-·
4
afrer, by His bleifed fruition, to
be
our finall
re~vard;
when,where
lkis,wefba/1 be;
and
what
He is,
we !hall be; In the fame place, and in the fame Hate ofglory,joy,and blilfe,ro endure
for evermore.
At Hisfirll: comming, you fee, what He bad onHis
Jhot~lders.
At Hisfecond, He !hall
Apo. u.
not
comeemptie,Eccevenio,
&c.
Loe
I
come, and
"'1
reward with
m~;
that is, a
Kingdome
on.
•Cor.~'·
Hi; fbottlders.
And it is nolightmatrer; bur, (as Samt
Pat~lcallethu)
d,,•,,c,;1
r&-,
an e.ver.
-
.• 7
.lajlrng wetght ofGlory. Glory,
not(hke ours here)
feather-glory;
But,
true.;
that
hatlu~etght,
and fubfrance in ir: And that not tranlitory, and foonegone; bur
everlaflmg,
to conrmuc to
all eternity never ro have
end.
This is our fiate
inexpeelan<ie.
Saint
Augujline
put all
foure together, fo will I, and conclude:
Seqttamttr 'ex_empltem;offeramru •prctirtm;Jtt·
mamus
l
viaticum; expeflemus +pr.tmium:
let us
.follDw
Him .for our
paterne, offer
Htmfor
ourprrce, receive
Hitp for our
f.c;rall1mt&llfood,
and
w~tt
for Hnn as o.ur endle!fe and cxcee–
dmggreat rew•rd,
&c.
:-
·
A SER...