130 A SERMON on in Dreams, and therefore he is called the 'Dret!mer of his Brethren; yet it is called the Word of God, Pjai,IO'J.I9• So a hmt m Prayer, when It comes in with evidence, it is the Word of God, asthatwasto']ofeph. Hedidreveal himfelf by 'Dreams, to lhew, fir!l, that he can do that which no other Teacher in the World can; for no Teacher elfe can. teach their .Scholar when they are afieep, but fo the Lord d1d, and fo.he can lbll do. Secondly, He did it, to lhew that in reveahng Ius Melfage, Realon lho~ld be afieep, that that i!JOu!d be fubjed to the Reve!auon of God, he reveal'd h1mfelf likewife by VijiotJs; and in that reg•rd theProphets are called Seers, a~d he revealed himfelf likewife by Vrim and Thttmmtm; only thofe Revelauons were not for matter of Dodrine but of Pradice, when they were to deal in fuch and fuch a bufinefs. He reveal~d him– felf likewife by Types; all the CeremotJiat Law was but Types of things to come. All thefe 1everal ways d1d the Lord reveal himfelf to men in former times, mJ-,v1e9mPf· The Reafons of it are thefe. Rea(o11 '· Becaufehewouldjhewforth, as the Apofileinanothercafe, Eph. 3·10, h~& manifotdwifdom. 1t IS the property and ab1hty ot a wife man to be able to reprefent him le!f. fevtral waies; and God bath alwaies delighted fo to do when he would reveal h1mfelf. He went two waies to work revealing himfelf: Fir!l, In the work of Creation, Rom.1o20. it is faid, that the it1viji6te things of God are fem cltar(y, 6eing underflood 6y the thi11gs that are made, ~c. yet this light was but a dark light; And therefore, Secondly, he revealed himfelf in the Law, wherein the Image of his Holi11ej's, Jttjfice, and Wifdomappeared. And t hefe two are the Angels Catechtfms, (as I may fo call them,) which they and the Old World have !tudied a long time, and in the end, there came out another edition of himfelf, and all that is in him, and that is the Gojpet; and the Text faith that he hath done this, tofbewforth humanifold wifdom. Thus God hath more waies than one to reprefent himfelf to the People. Secondly, Becaufe there are varieties of Apprehenfions; one man will be more taken by one way of revealing, and another by another. Thus the Wtfo men were led to Chri!l by a Star, God working on them according to their Ap– prehenfions: fo the Apofi!es, being Fijber-mtll, when they had caught a great draught of Fiih, Chri!l fpake to them in their own language, and faid, FoOow me,m;d I willmakeyouFijberscif men. Now there are feveral gifts in the Church, which are but fo many feveral waies of God's revealing himfelf; and as in Mini!lers there are feveral Gifts, fo in the Hearers there are feveral Apprehen– fions, fome love a rowziog Mini!lry, others amore rational; as mens Apprehen– fions are, fo do they favour and relilh mens Gifts; arid becaufe men have feveral Apprehenfions, therefore hath he appointed feveral Gifts. Thus God doth in Converting men; he converts one man by Affiidion, another man he converts by his Word, another man by the good Example that he fees in another, r Pet. 3.1. That they may without the Word /;ewon by the chafl Converfation,-~c. So that the Lord hath feveral waies to bring his work about, revealing himfelf ,,,1d""' therefore. So God lets men fall into manifold Temptations, Tempta– tions of feveral forts, God's dealing are exceeding various ; fome men he hum– bles with Affiidions, others he overcomes with Mercies: fomerimes he deals in one way, and fometimes in another, fo that if God hath given Chrift to thee, thou maifi not !land to think at what door th<lu entrefi in, what wind blew thee into the Haven, for God bath many waies to bring thee in. V (e. It lhould teach Minifiers thus much, to mould Truths into feireral forms and iliapes, becaufe they have feveral Apprehenfions to fpeak to. Idem potefl varie dtci,f!! vtredici. God himfelf ufed variety of Similitudes by his Prophets to this end, that he might fj>eak to the Peoples Apprehenfion. Thus we are to do for God did it "'"1eJ""'; Chri!l ufed many Parab{es to the fame purpofe, ex– pr~fling Faith to us under feveral exprefiions, as fomerimes by com111g to Chnf/, by rating of hu Flt/h,and drmknrg of hts Blood; fomenmes by trttj/111go11 htm, and btluvit1g in him; and why? becaufe in Believers rhere are feveral Ap'}:lr~henftons. Recetvittg Chrijf, is the notion that e.xprelferh the work of Fa1 1 th rn one man· in another comi11g to Chrif/ is the nouon rhat exprelfeth IllS Fa1t.1; In another ;ati11g Chrt[i'favourswith his Apprehenfion. Thus Chrifi hath moulded it into fevcral waics, to fuite !everal Beliel'ers. Agam,
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