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AN

HOMILY

pentance is

fary.

OF

Repentance, and of true Reconciliation unto God.

TH

HERE is nothing that the Holy Ghoft doth fo much labour in all the Scriptures to beat into men's heads, as repentance, amendment of life, and fpeedy returning unto the Lord God of Hofts. And no marvel why; for we do daily and hourly, by our wickedness and ftubborn difobedience, horribly fall away from God, thereby purchafing unto ourfelves (if he fhould deal with us according to his juftice) eternal damnation. So that no The doc doctrine is fo neceffary in the church of God, as is the trine of re- doctrine of repentance and amendment of life. And ve moft necef- rily the true preachers of the Gofpel of the kingdom of heaven, and of the glad and joyful tidings of falvation, have always in their godly fermons and preachings unto the people, joined thefe two together; I mean repentance and forgivenefs of fins, even as our Saviour Jefus Chrift did appoint himfelf, faying, So it behoved Chrift to fuffer, and to rife again the third day; and that repentance and forgiveness of fins fhould be preached in his name among all nations. And therefore the holy Apoftle doth in the Acts fpeak after this manner: I have witnessed both to the Jews and to the Gentiles, the repentance towards God, and faith towards our Lord Jefus Chrift. Did not John Baptift, Zacharias's fon, begin his miniftry with the doctrine of repentance, faying, Repent, for the kingdom of God is at band? The like doctrine did our Saviour Jefus Chrift preach himfelf, and commanded his Apoftles to preach the fame.

I might here allege very many places out of the Prophets, in the which this moft wholesome doctrine of repentance is very earneftly urged, as moft needful for all degrees and orders of men: but one fhall be fufficient at this prefent time.

Thefe

all muft

These are the words of Joel the Prophet. Therefore Joel ii. aljo now the Lord faith, Return unto me with all your beart, with fafting, aveeping, and mourning. Rend your bearts, and not your clothes, and return unto the Lord your God; for he is gracious and merciful, flow to anger, and of great compaffion, and ready to pardon wickedness. Whereby it is given us to understand, that we have here a perpetual A perpetual rule appointed unto us, which ought to be obferved and rule, which kept at all times, and that there is none other way, follow. whereby the wrath of God may be pacified, and his anger affuaged, that the fiercenefs of his fury, and the plagues of deftruction, which by his righteous judgment he had determined to bring upon us, may depart, be removed, and taken away. Where he faith, But now therefore, faith the Lord, return unto me: it is not without great importance, that the Prophet fpeaketh fo. For he had before fet forth at large unto them the horrible vengeance of God, which no man was able to abide, and therefore he doth move them to repentance, to obtain mercy; as if he fhould fay, I will not have thefe things to be fo taken, as though there were no hope of grace left. For although ve do by your fins deferve to be utterly deftroyed, and God by his righteous judgments hath determined to bring no fmall deftruction upon you, yet know that ye are in a manner on the very edge of the fword: if ye will fpeedily return unto him, he will moft gently and moft mercifully receive you into favour again. Whereby we are admonifhed, that repentance is never too late, fo that it be true and earneft. For fith that God in the Scriptures will be called our Father, doubtlefs he doth follow the nature and property of gentle and merciful fathers, which feek nothing fo much, as the returning again, and amendment of their children, as Chrift doth abundantly teach in the parable of the Prodigal Son. Doth not the Lord himfelf fay by the Luke xv. Prophet, I will not the death of the wicked, but that be Ezek. xviii, turn from bis wicked ways, and live? And in another place, John ii. If we confefs our fin, God is faithful and righteous to forgive us our fins, and to make us clean from all wickednefs. Which moft comfortable promifes are confirmed by many examples of the Scriptures. When the Jews did willingly receive and embrace the wholefome counfel of the Prophet Ifaiah, God by and by did reach his helping hand Ifaiah liii. unto them, and by his angel did in one night flay the moft worthy and valiant foldiers of Sennacherib's camp. Whereunto may King Manaffes be added, who after all z Chron.

manner

Ifaiah i.

1

xxxiii.

Luke vii. xvi.

From

muft turn.

manner of damnable wickedness, returned unto the Lord, and therefore was heard of him, and reftored again into his kingdom. The fame grace and favour did the finful woman Magdalen, Zaccheus, the poor thief, and many other feel. All which things ought to ferve for our comfort against the temptations of our confciences, whereby the Devil goeth about to fhake, or rather to overthrow our faith. For every one of us ought to apply the fame unto himself, and fay, Yet now return unto the Lord: neither let the remembrance of thy former life difcourage thee; yea, the more wicked that it hath been, the more fervent and earneft let thy repentance or returning be, and forthwith thou shalt feel the ears of the Lord wide open unto thy prayers. But let us more narrowly look upon the commandment of the Lord touching this matter. Turn unto me, faith he by the holy Prophet Joel, with all your hearts, with falling, weeping, and mourning. Rend your bearts, and not your garments, &c. In which words he comprehendeth all manner of things that can be spoken of repentance, which is a returning again of the whole man unto God, from whom we be fallen away by fiu. But that the whole difcourfe thereof may the better be borne away, we fhall firft confider in order four principal points; that is, from what we must return, to whom we must return, by whom we may be able to convert, and the manner how to turn to God.

First, from whence, or from what things, we must rewhence we turn. Truly, we must return from those things, whereby we have been withdrawn, plucked, and led away from God. And thefe generally are our fins, which, as the holy Prophet Ifaiah doth teftify, do feparate God and us, and hide his face, that he will not hear us. But under the name of fin, not only thofe grofs words and deeds, which by the common judgment of men are counted to be filthy and unlawful, and fo confequently abominable fins; but alfo the filthy lufts and inward concupifcences of the flesh, which, as St. Paul teftifieth, do refift the will and Spirit of God, and therefore ought earneftly to be bridled and kept under. We mult repent of the falfe and erroneous opinions that we have had of God, and the wicked fuperftition that doth breed of the fame, the unlawful worshipping and fervice of God, and other like. All thefe things muft they forfake, that will truly turn unto the Lord, and repent aright. For Ephef. v. fith that for fuch things the wrath of God cometh upon the children of difobedience, no end of punishment

Gal. v.

ought

ought to be looked for, as long as we continue in fuch
things. Therefore they be here condemned, which will
feem to be repentant finners, and yet will not forfake
their idolatry and fuperftition. Secondly, we must see
unto whom we ought to return. Revertimini ufque ad me, Unto
faith the Lord: that is, Return as far as unto me.
must then return unto the Lord; yea, we must return unto bim
alone: for be alone is the truth, and the fountain of all good-
nefs: but we must labour that we do return as far as
unto him, and that we do never ceafe nor reft till we
have apprehended and taken hold upon him.

We whom we ought to re

turn.

God.

But this must be done by faith. For fith that God is a fpirit, he can by no other means be apprehended and taken hold upon. Wherefore, firft, they do greatly err, which do not turn unto God, but unto the creatures, or unto the inventions of men, or unto their own merits. Se- By whom condly, they that do begin to return unto the Lord, and we must redo faint in the midway, before they come to the mark turn unto that is appointed unto them. Thirdly, becaufe we have of our own felves nothing to prefent us to God, and do no lefs flee from him after our fall, than our first parent Adam did, who, when he had finned, did feek to hide himfelf from the fight of God, we have need of a Mediator for to bring and reconcile us unto him, who for our fins is angry with us. The fame is Jefus Chrift, who being true and natural God, equal and of one fubftance with the Father, did at the time appointed take upon him our frail nature, in the bleffed Virgin's womb, and that of her undefiled fubftance, that fo he might be a Mediator between God and us, and pacify his wrath. Of him doth the Father himself fpeak from heaven, faying, This is my well-beloved Son, in whom I am well pleafed. Matth. iii. And he himself in his Gofpel doth cry out and fay, I am John xiv. the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the John i. Father, but by me. For be alone did with the facrifice of bis 1 Pet. i. body and blood make fatisfaction unto the juflice of God for our fins. The Apostles do teftify that he was exalted for to Aas v. give repentance and remifiion of fins unto Ifrael. Both Luke xxiv, which things he himself did command to be preached in John xv. his name. Therefore they are greatly deceived that preach repentance without Christ, and teach the fimple and ignorant that it confifteth only in the works of men. They may indeed speak many things of good works, and of amendment of life and manners: but without Chrift they be all vain and unprofitable. They that think that they have done much of themfelves towards repentance, are fo much

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The man

ner of our

turning.

Matth. xv.

more the farther from God, because they do feck thofe things in their own works and merits, which ought only to be fought in our Saviour Jefus Chrift, and in the merits of his death, and paffion, and bloodfhedding.. Fourthly, this holy Prophet Joel doth lively exprefs the manner of this our returning or repentance, comprehending all the inward and outward things that may be here obferved. First, he will have us to return unto God with our whole heart, whereby he doth remove and put away all hypocrify, left the fame might justly be faid unto us: This people draweth near unto me with their mouth, and worship Ialah xxix. me with their lips; but their heart is far off from me. Secondly, he requireth a fincere and pure love of godlinefs, and of the true worshipping and fervice of God, that is to fay, that, forfaking all manner of things that are repugnant and contrary unto God's will, we do give our hearts unto him, and the whole ftrength of our bodies and fouls, according to that which is written in the Law: Deut. vi. Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, wilb all thy foul, and with all thy ftrength. Here therefore nothing is left unto us, that we may give unto the world, and unto the lufts of the flesh. For fith that the heart is the fountain of all our works, as many as do with their whole heart turn unto the Lord, do live unto him only. Halting on Neither do they yet repent truly, that, halting on both fides, both fides. do other whiles obey God, but by and by do think, that, laying him afide, it is lawful for them to ferve the world and the flesh. And becaufe that we are letted by the na tural corruption of our own flefh, and the wicked affections of the fame, he doth bid us alfo to return with fafting: not thereby understanding a fuperftitious abftinence and choofing of meats, but a true difcipline or taming of the flesh, whereby the nourishments of filthy lufts, and of ftubborn contumacy and pride, may be withdrawn and plucked away from it. Whereunto he doth add weeping and mourning, which do contain an outward profeffion of repentance, which is very needful and neceffary, that fo we may partly fet forth the righteousness of God, when by fuch means we do teftify that we deferved punishments at his hands, and partly ftop the offence that was openly given unto the weak.

Pfalm xxv.

Thus did David fee, who, being not content to have bewept and bewailed his fins privately, would publicly in his Palms declare and fet forth the righteoufnefs of God, in punishing fin, and also stay them that might have abused his example to fin the more boldly. Therefore they are

fartheft

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