The Pulpit of the Reformation;
No. 1, October 30, 1834.
Containing
The Last Judgment,
By John Welch.
The Day Of Judgment,
By Bishop Latimer.
No. 2, December 1, 1834.
Containing
The Parable Of The Householders,
And The
Parable Of The Tares,
By Bishop Latimer.
No. 3, January 1, 1835, and No. 4, February 1, 1835.
Containing
A Sermon Preached Before Queen Mary
By John Knox
To Which Is Subjoined An Extract From Knox’s Admonition To The People Of
England.
Aberdeen:
Published By
George King, 28, St. Nicholas Street,
And
Robert King, Broad Street, Peterhead
CONTENTS
The Last Judgment.
By The Rev. John Welch, A. D. 1570-1622.
The Day Of Judgment.
Extracted From A Sermon By Hugh Latimer, Bishop Of Worcester, And Martyr,
1555.
The Parable Of The Householder.
A Sermon, By Bishop Latimer.
The Parable Of The Tares,
By Bishop Latimer, Preached On The 7th Of February, 1553.
A Sermon On Isaiah XXVI.
By John Knox.
“It Is I, Be Not Afraid.”
Extracted From Knox’s Admonition To England.
Footnotes
THE LAST JUDGMENT.
BY THE REV. JOHN WELCH, A. D. 1570-1622.
REV. xx. 11.—_And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on
it, from whose face the earth and heaven fled away._
The security of all flesh is wonderous great, for there is a fearful sleep
fallen both upon the good and the evil. The foolish virgins are sound
asleep, and the wise are asleep also. And suppose the Lord be at the door,
and the hour of judgment at hand, and the seventh angel ready to blow the
last trumpet, when time shall be no more; yet it is scarcely one of a
thousand, yea, one of ten thousand, is to be found that is prepared, and
busying themselves to meet the Lord, who is making speed to come in the
clouds: and how soon that fire shall break forth, which shall kindle the
heavens above your head, and the earth under your feet, and shall set all
on fire; how soon the trumpet shall blow, and the shout shall cry, “Rise,
Dead, and come to judgment,” is only known to God, and to no mortal man.
Will ye not then be wakened till this trumpet waken you? And will none of
you take pains to look over the leaves of your conscience, and read what
sins are written there, since ye came into the world, before that day of
doom come upon you? O that ye knew that eternity, and that terror of the
day of the Lord, when the heavens above you, and the earth beneath you,
shall not be able to stand before the face of him that sits on the throne!
Therefore I hope the Lord has made choice to me of this text, at this
time, to give you warning before the judgment come. Ye know the watchman
that the Lord takes from among the people, that he sets over the city or
house to credit to them, “If ye see the sword and pestilence coming, and
warn them not, the blood of them that perish under the judgment for lack
of warning, will be required at his hand,” that is, the watchman’s;
therefore it is time for me to be making warning to you, and, in the
measure of strength that God will give me, I am to make warning not of a
temporal judgment, but of an everlasting judgment that is coming on, (God
waken you and warn you in time!) that when ye shall see the Judge sit on
his throne, your hearts may not tremble at his awful countenance, having
gotten your souls washed in his blood. But, to come to the purpose, there
are many visions in this book, and there are many things done here, that
the Son shews to his servant John. He shews him first the present state of
the Church at that time in the world, under the name of seven stars, and
he tells, “they are suffering, and had patience; and they laboured for his
name’s sake, and fainted not; but yet he had somewhat against them,
because they had forsaken their first love.” Some were in tribulation and
poverty, but yet rich in God; some kept the name of Jesus, and denied not
the faith, suppose they should had given their blood for it, as the
faithful martyr Antipas did; but yet he had a few things against them,
because they maintained the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which thing he
hated. Some had love, service, faith, and patience, and their work was
more at the last than at the first; but yet they suffered the false
prophetess Jezebel to be among them, to whom he threatens he will cast her
into a bed of affliction, and them that commit fornication with her,
except they repent them of their works. There were some whose works were
not found perfect before God; therefore he exhorts them to remember how
they had heard, and received; he bids them hold fast and repent,
otherwise, he tells, that he will come shortly against them. Some had a
little strength, and kept his word, and denied not his name; therefore he
promises to deliver them in the hour of temptation that shall come upon
all the world to try the whole earth. Some were neither cold nor hot; and
therefore, because they were lukewarm, he tells them that it would come to
pass, that he would spew them out of his mouth; they thought they were
rich and increased in goods, and had need of nothing, but they know not
that they were wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked; and then he
counsels them to buy of him gold tried in the fire, that they might be
rich, and white raiment, that they might be clothed, and eye-salve that
they might see. So what is your case this day? Have ye not forsaken your
first love? But as for tribulation, it is not yet come; for our days have
been days of peace, of light, liberty, and glory; but as for tribulation
it is not yet come; but as the Lord lives, the days of tribulation are not
far off. As for false doctrine, God be praised, it is not among us yet,
or, at least, if it be, it dare not be avowed yet; but I fear, that, who
lives to see it, they shall see heresy and corruption in doctrine and
religion creep in piece and piece, in this Church; and if our works be
found perfect before God, or not, the Lord knows the contrary, and your
own consciences bear witness to it; and if your life be answerable to your
name, I leave it to your consciences to judge, if we have not a name that
we are living, and yet are dead; and whether this be not the doleful state
of the generation that is neither cold nor hot. It is clear, the zeal of
the glory of God, being so worn out of the hearts of all, plainly declares
the same. But I leave this. After he had shewed him the present state of
the Church, at that time, then he tells him what shall be the state of the
Church unto the end of the world.
And _first_, in the vision of a sealed book, containing these acts
concerning the Church, which none could open but the Lion of the tribe of
Judah, for it was sealed with seven seals. Now, what was contained in
these seven seals? This will take a larger time to declare than now is
meet to ware upon it.
Mark always of these things spoken, there are three consolations to the
Church of God; howsoever it be that she be in tribulation, or poverty, and
affliction; and albeit it come to pass, that the devil cast some of them
in prison, that they may be tried, and some have tribulation ten days,
which is but a short time; and howsoever it be that our adversary goes
about continually like “a roaring lion, seeking whom to devour;” but yet,
“he that rides on the white horse,” with the badge at his belt, and the
arrows at his side, he shall get the victory at the end of the world; and
to them that are faithful to the death, he shall give them a crown of
life.
Mark _next_, suppose the sword, the famine, the pestilence, these temporal
judgments, be common to the godly as well as to the wicked, yet there is
consolation to the “souls of them that are slain for the testimony of
Jesus, they are lying under the altar, and they cry with a loud voice,
Lord, how long, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood
upon them that dwell on the earth?” Then it was said unto them, “that they
should rest for a little season, until their fellow-servants and brethren,
that should be killed, as they were, should be fulfilled.”
Mark, _thirdly_, the sixth seal is opened, “and there was a great
earthquake, and the sun was as black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon
was like blood, and the stars of heaven fell to the earth, and heaven
departed away as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain
and island were moved out of their places; and then the kings of the
earth, and the great men, and rich men, and the captains, and the mighty
men, and every bond man, and every free man, hid themselves in dens and
rocks of the mountains; and said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us,
and hide us from the presence of him that sits on the throne, and from the
face of the Lamb: for the great day of his wrath is come, and who shall be
able to stand?” Then shall the Church of God be avenged on her enemies;
then she shall have power over the nations, and shall rule them with a rod
of iron, and as the vessels of a potter they shall be broken; then shall
the saints of God be brought out of great tribulation, and have their long
robes washed and made white in the blood of the Lamb; they shall be in the
presence of the throne of God, and serve him both day and night in his
temple; and he that sits on the throne shall live among them, and he that
is in the midst of the throne shall govern them, and shall lead them to
the lively fountains of waters, and God shall wipe away all tears from
their eyes. Now, I go forward. After this, he tells him, before this day
the Gospel shall be wonderfully restrained; “And the bottomless pit shall
be opened, and the smoke of that pit shall arise as the smoke of a great
furnace; and the sun and the air shall be made dark with that smoke: and
out of that smoke shall come locusts upon the earth, and they shall have
power as the scorpions of the earth have, and the pain of them shall be as
the pain of a scorpion, when he have stung a man. And in these days men
shall seek death, and shall not find it, and shall desire to die, and
death shall fly from them.” Then he tells two woes that shall come upon
the earth, the one of the Antichrist, the other of the Turk, “who shall
run through the world and slay the third part of men, and shall lead their
great army of twenty times ten thousand horsemen of war, and there should
be two witnesses raised up, and power should be given them to prophesy so
many days clothed in sackcloth; and if any man should hurt them, fire
should proceed out of their mouth and devour their enemies; and when they
have fulfilled their testimonies, they should be slain by the beast that
came out of the bottomless pit, but they should rise again; and the spirit
of life coming up from God, should enter into them, and they should stand
upon their feet, and great fear fell upon them that seized them, and then
shall they ascend up to heaven in a cloud in the sight of their enemies.”
And at last, “The seventh angel shall blow his trumpet, and the dead shall
rise, and every man shall receive according to his works.” This he does
till he comes to the twelfth chapter, then he tells him, “The fights of
the dragon with the woman, and her seed that kept the commands of her God,
and kept the testimony of Jesus Christ.” Then he tells him, “the two
empires of the two beasts, Antichrist and the Turk, and the manner of
every one of them.” Then he tells, “The noble company of the Lamb that
stands in mount Zion, even the hundred and forty and four thousand, having
their Father’s name written on their fore-heads; and how he heard a voice
from heaven, like the sound of many waters, and as the sound of a great
thunder; and he heard the noise of harpers harping with their harps; they
sung, as it were, a new song before the throne, and no man could learn
that song but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were brought
from the earth.” He tells what they were, saying, “These are they which
were not defiled with women, for they are virgins; these follow the Lamb
wherever he goes, and these were redeemed from among men, being the first
fruits to God, and to the Lamb: and in their mouth was found no guile; for
they are without spot before the throne of God.” Then he tells, “That
another angel flew in the midst of heaven, with the everlasting Gospel to
preach unto them which dwell on the earth;” and that is the same Gospel
which I preach unto you, even this, “Fear God, and give glory to him, for
the hour of judgment is come; and worship him that made the heavens and
the earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.” Then he tells, “that
another angel cried, It is fallen, it is fallen, Babylon that great city,
she made all the nations to drink of the wine of her fornication. Ay,
Rome, thou shalt be taken and burnt in a furnice of fire, and a mill-stone
shall be bound about thy neck, and thou shalt be cast into the midst of
the sea, and shalt be drowned; there thou shalt fall, and thy fall shall
make heaven and earth, and all the angels and saints to rejoice at thy
fall. Ay, God shall put it into the hearts of the kings to do it; we know
not what kings they are; and then the bride shall prepare her for the
bridegroom’s coming in the clouds.”
Next again, of _seven vials_ he sets down again almost the same things
that he prophesied before; and now here, last of all, he lets him see the
last judgment. Would you know then what is here? See ye yon great throne?
Ye shall see the Judge standing on the throne; ye shall all see both
heaven and earth flee away from his face, ye shall all see the dead, great
and small, and yourselves among the rest, standing before God; and ye
shall all see the books opened, and the dead judged according to their
works, and death and hell cast into the lake of fire, even those that had
their hands in his heart’s blood, and those that pierced his side with a
spear, and those that rivetted him with nails, both hands and feet, they
shall see it also. The elect shall see it, as Job says, “For I know that
my Redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the last day upon the
earth. And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet I shall see
God in my flesh: whom myself shall see, and my eyes shall behold, and not
another, though my reins were consumed in me.” And this was his
consolation; even so those very eyes of yours, and no other, shall see
with terror or with joy, either to your endless comfort, or to your
endless condemnation. Now, what sees he? First, he sees a throne; ye know
a throne is set for a judge to sit on; so he sees a throne whereon the
Judge of the whole earth is to sit on; therefore he shall come to be a
Judge. He came before, at his first coming, not to sit on a throne, nor to
be a Judge, but to be judged before thrones and tribunals of men; for John
says, “That he sent not his Son that he should condemn the world, but that
the world through him might be saved.” Christ himself says, “Man, who made
me a judge, or a divider over you?” And in another place, “The Son of man
came not to judge, but be judged himself.” In his first coming, he comes
from high majesty to baseness and humility; he came from his Father’s
glory to shame and ignominy; he came from a palace to a crib; from the
seat of his majesty to a tree; he came like a Lamb to be slain, and as a
Saviour to save sinners: as the Apostle says, it was a true saying, “That
Christ came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the chief;”
Christ himself says, “I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to
repentance;” and therefore that is the name that the angel gives him, when
he appears to Joseph in a dream, saying, and “thou shalt call his name
Jesus, for he shall save his people from their sins; and they shall call
his name Emmanuel, that is, God with us,” our God made flesh, our God
manifested in the flesh. So I say, in his first testimony, he comes as a
Saviour and Mediator between God and man; but in his last coming, he shall
not come as a Lamb, but as a Judge, convoyed with all his angels and
saints in heaven; he shall come in flaming fire, kindling the heavens
before him, in melting the elements and earth beneath him; he shall come
with a blast of the trumpet, with the archangel, to gather all people from
the four corners of the earth; and he shall come with a peremptory
sentence, from the which there shall be no appellation, and of which there
shall be no revocation, ever again or again calling; and he shall come
with his reward in his hand, to every man according to his works which he
has done in this world, be they evil, be they good. Now, ye see he has a
throne, he has a throne of grace; as the Apostle to the Hebrews says, “Let
us go boldly to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy, and find
grace in time of need.” Now he is sitting on a throne of grace, that we
may receive mercy, and find grace in time of need; and now he holds the
door of mercy open, and lets in every penitent sinner that comes;
therefore I testify unto you, if ye will flee from your sins, if ye will
cast away the works of darkness, if ye will hate and detest all sort of
iniquity, and if thou wilt run to the throne of grace now, I will assure
thee thou shalt find mercy, and grace in the time of need; so now is the
throne of grace and mercy, but afterwards thou shalt see the throne of
glory and justice. Now is the good Shepherd seeking his lost sheep, and
finding them, to drink of the wells of the water of life, and to eat of
the fat things of his own house; but afterwards, such as would not be
gathered of him, he shall bind them hand and foot, and cast them into
outer darkness. Now he pities them that will not come home, as he said to
Jerusalem, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, how oft would I have gathered thee, as
a hen doth her birds under her wings, but thou wouldst not: behold, your
habitation shall be made desolate.” So wo to the souls that repine and
refuse to be fetched within the sweet and loving arms of the Son of God,
even those bloody arms which were stretched out upon a tree. Now, discern,
I pray you, betwixt his first coming and his last coming; for now is the
time of grace, and now is the spirit of grace offered, and now is the
throne of grace set up, and now is the rainbow, which is the sign of the
covenant of life, round about the throne, and now the twelve ports of that
new Jerusalem are standing open, that all may come in; therefore, wo to
the soul that shall sit till this time of grace pass over, and will not
come in in time.
But I will go forward. Now, ye see two things in that throne, the one is a
_great_ throne, the other is a _white_ throne. Let kings keep silence of
their thrones, and speak of this throne. O ye kings, will ye look to the
heavens above you, and see that white cloud, and upon the cloud one
standing like the Son of man, having upon his head a golden crown, and in
his hand a sharp sickle, who thrusts his sharp sickle in the earth, and
cuts down the vine of the vineyards of the earth, and casts them into the
great wine-press of the wrath of God; so he calls it a _great_ throne.
Solomon’s throne was great which he made of ivory, and had six steps, and
twelve lions, two on every step, and the queen of the South was astonished
when she saw it; and it is said in the Canticles, “Come forth, O daughters
of Zion, and behold king Solomon with the crown wherewith his mother
crowned him in the day of his marriage, and in the day of the gladness of
his heart.” But will ye come out, ye daughters of Zion, and see here
another throne nor Solomon’s, another crown nor his crown? It is a _great_
throne, so that all the monarchs’ thrones under heaven, what are they in
comparison with this throne? Nothing. Therefore no wonder that the
twenty-four elders take their own crowns, and cast them down before his
throne; and it is no wonder that they fall down before him that sits on
the throne, and worship him that lives for evermore, saying, “Thou art
worthy to receive glory, honour, and power, for thou hast created all
things, and for thy will’s sake they are created.” O that the men of the
world saw this throne! And, O that ye did see the greatness of the majesty
of his throne!
Now he calls it _great_, because of him that sits on it; _great_, because
of them that stand about it; _great_, because of them that shall be judged
there; and last of all, _great_, because of the judgment itself. Now, who
sits on it? O! the Judge of the whole world, God himself, that infinite
Essence that men and angels have borrowed their being from, even he whose
glorious face the seraphims and cherubims cannot behold for the brightness
thereof; and therefore they have wings to cover their faces, because they
cannot bear to see him, much less so then can any mortal man see his face
and live; he that rides on his white horse, and tramples under foot all
his enemies, and treads them in the wine-press of his wrath without the
city; therefore rejoice, all ye whose garments are made white in the blood
of the Lamb, for his throne shall not terrify you, because of the Judge
that sits thereon: for he is thy brother, thy Advocate, and thy Saviour. O
blessed for evermore is the soul of the righteous, and of such as are
reconciled with the great God, before he come to sit on this throne.
Now, I said, it was _great_ in respect of him that sits thereon; _next_,
in respect of them that stand about it. Ye see a judge has his assizers
that sit in judgment with him, and consent to his sentence; so this great
Judge has his assizers, for there is not one of his angels shall be left
in heaven, but all shall stand about this throne, and all the saints on
earth shall be caught up in the air, and they shall all have thrones set
about his throne. O the fairest parliament that ever was in the world! O!
behold the King crowned with many crowns, standing in the midst, and all
the King’s servants with their crowns on their heads, and also the saints
with palms in their hands, sitting on thrones about that throne.
_Thirdly_, Great is this throne, because great is the number of persons
that shall be there. All men and women in the world must be judged here;
there is never a reprobate that ever took life, but he shall be judged
here, and all the elect and saints of God shall be judged here also, (so
fair is this parliament,) six thousand years’ generations shall all stand
there, waiting to receive an eternal and final judgment.
_Last_ of all, _Great_ is this throne, because great shall be the judgment
that shall come forth from this throne. Lords of the Session think their
judgments great; but come out here, and see to whom the new city Jerusalem
in heaven shall be given, and who shall be cast into the lake of fire.
Now, compare all these together, and see if this throne be not great;
great is he that sits on the throne, even the Prince of life, and God of
glory, and the Judge of all the world; great is his synod, even all the
elect angels and saints, from the beginning of the world to the end of the
world; for ye that are in Christ shall be glorified in the clouds, and the
sight of your glory shall aggravate the torment of the reprobates, because
they might have had it, and would not take it; and then you shall rule
them with a rod of iron, and as a potter’s vessel they shall be broken;
and great is the number of them that shall be judged; for let all flesh
prepare them for it, even kings and emperors, those that wore many crowns
on the earth, must appear naked before the throne. Alexander, thou worest
many crowns, conquered many nations, but yet thou must stand up naked as
thou was born, and thou must render a reckoning of thy conquests.
But I leave this. Again, you see this throne is _white_. What means this
whiteness? It is innocency or righteousness, and full of shining
brightness, of an unspeakable joy. Innocent and righteous; how so? Because
the Judge is white, innocent, and righteous; all his assizers that shall
sit round about him, they are white, innocent, white and righteous; all
his citations, summonses and convictions, sentences and executions, are
innocent and righteous; so all is white, the Judge, the unspotted innocent
and undefiled Lamb of God, sitting on his throne of justice, and ordained
deputy of his Father, to judge both the quick and the dead, he in whose
heart was never found guile; therefore Abraham said, “Shall not the Judge
of the world judge righteously?” So this Judge is white, innocent, and he
is bright and glorious. Peter, James, and John, saw him white on the mount
Tabor, when he was transfigured, “and his face shined as the sun, and his
raiment white as the light; and when Peter said, Master, it is good for us
to be here: if thou wilt, let us make three tabernacles, one for thee, and
one for Moses, and one for Elias.” Matth. xvii. 1, 2, 3. Ay, Peter, but
this shall be a whiter appearing, and thou shalt think it better to be
with him here. Ay, Lord, it is true, _white_ wast thou upon mount Tabor,
but whiter shalt thou be in the clouds.
He is _white_ again, in respect of his citations. O that our hearts were
ravished with the consideration of thy righteous and just citing and
summoning of all men, when thou shalt cause the earth, grave, hell, and
the sea, and all places, thrust out of them all their dead; just shalt
thou be in glorifying the souls and bodies of them that glorify thee on
earth; and just shalt thou be in glorifying thyself, by tormenting the
souls and bodies of them that dishonoured thee on earth.
He is _white_ in respect of his accusations, for there shall be nothing
read in thy ditty, but that which shall be found written either in one
leaf of thy conscience or other; there the sins of thy conception, there
the sins of thy youth, there the sins of thy ignorance, there the sins
against the light of thy conscience, and there the sins against the law,
and there the sins against the gospel, and all shall be presented to thy
conscience. O! well is the soul and conscience that dare lift up the head
with rejoicing, and can say, “Thou Lamb of God, thou takest away the sins
of the world,” thou tookest away my sins when thou wast on the tree. And
can any body tell how ye will compear before this throne that were never
cleansed with the blood of Jesus? O! that blackness and darkness, which is
abiding that soul which never yet ran to the blood of the Lamb, to make
itself white in it; so the raising of all, the compearing of all, the
accusation of all, the conviction of all, shall be just, and God shall be
glorified in all.
There is also the absolution of the righteous, and the condemnation of the
wicked; and therefore the throne is called white, because of the innocency
and righteousness of the Judge. Now, brethren, I will go no further at
this time than this that follows or remains to be spoken of, the majesty
and terror of the Judge sitting on his throne, “and him that sat on it.”
Many shall sit on thrones in that day, but one shall sit above all the
rest, for the saints shall be caught up in the air, and shall all sit on
thrones, and give out sentence both of absolution and condemnation, and
they shall say, “Hallelujah, salvation, and glory, and power, be to the
Lord our God, for true and righteous are his judgments.” I could never yet
rightly consider the majesty of this Judge. O heavens! what aileth thee to
flee from the face of this Judge. O earth! what aileth thee to flee, and
why art thou chased away, and never seen again? What ails thee, O heavens,
that never sinned, and, O earth, that never sinned neither, for they had
never understanding to be capable of a law, nor to be subject to keep a
law. What means this? O but I must leave this! for who can but wonder at
this! Yet I will tell you the cause. You and I, and the generations before
that this firmament has seen, and this earth seen or born, since the first
day that God made the earth, and established this heaven and earth, and
since that day that Adam eat of the forbidden tree, since that day heaven
and earth have been eye-witnesses of our sins, and subject to vanity, and
since that day they have been defiled with our iniquities, and since that
time they have been subject to bondage and corruption, and therefore they
groan with us also, and travail with pain together until this present; and
therefore, in that great day, they cannot abide the face of the Judge.
Now, what is the fruit ye should make of this? I thank my God that I
preach unto you so sure a gospel, even the oracles of the eternal God; the
earth and the heavens shall pass away, but this word and oracles shall
never pass away; therefore it is not a doubtsome message that I carry unto
you, for it is surer than the heavens, and surer than the earth; and these
eyes of yours, that have seen both the truth of this spoken here. O that
the Lord would fill my heart, with this verity, that I might eat it and
drink it, and feed upon it continually, and that he would fill me with the
spirit of exhortation, that I might exhort you to meditate on this truth,
both day and night, that the remembrance of that day might never go out of
your hearts. O that you would do it, even for his sake that left you his
heart’s blood to slocken that fire which will burn both the heavens and
the earth: therefore hear, hear! What should you hear? things of the last
importance. Is hell, is heaven, is the terror of that day of any
importance? And this is not the blessing of mount Gerizim, but that
everlasting blessing which the Judge of all the world shall pronounce out
of his mouth, saying, “Ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom
prepared for you before the foundation of the world.” And it is nothing to
the curse of the mount Ebal, but it is that everlasting curse and
malediction which the Son of God shall pronounce, saying, “Depart from me,
ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels.”
(And what shall I say to you?) This day is coming, and the Lord is
preparing himself to come down through the clouds, to sit on a great white
throne, and the archangel is putting the trumpet to his mouth, and he is
near to the blowing of it, and the rest of the angels are but waiting when
they shall give the last shout, “Rise, dead, and come to judgment,” the
Bridegroom is coming, and the heaven and the earth are waiting when the
Lord shall come in his glory, in flaming fire, to burn them up.
Now, brethren, what should ye do then? It is but this one thing that I
will charge you with, hear what I am to say to you, I bear the message of
God, and I preach the Gospel that shall judge you; and I am here sent of
God to tell you what is his will towards you; therefore I charge you all
before God, and his Son Christ Jesus, every man and woman, let this be
your occupation this day, turn over the leaves of your conscience, and see
there what is the ditty that thou hast pinned up against thyself, since
the day that thou wast born, and look on thy sins before the Lord, and
come and spread them before the Judge, and crave pardon of them, now in
the day of grace; for he is ready to forgive thee and thy sins, were they
never so great; for aye the redder that thy soul has been, the virtue of
his blood shall appear the greater in cleansing thee from thy sins;
therefore let none of you scare at the greatness of your sins; for here I
testify unto you, that if any of you be condemned, it shall not be for
your sins, but it shall be for contempt of that blood which shall condemn
you. O God! full of mercy and goodness, and of fatherly care and
providence, and never a greater providence found I in my lifetime, than I
found this last time in my journey, I thank my God for it; and here I
avow, if this blood of mine should go for it, it was acceptable service to
God we did that day; I know there were many that sent up their prayers to
God for the maintenance of his liberty, I am sure the Lord heard you; for
I say to you, the room was never that I came to, but I found the Lord
meeting me there, and confirming me that all was well and acceptable to
him; so that I never found sweeter providence since I was born; I see the
Lord’s hand is not shortened. O Scotland! O that thou wouldst repent, and
mourn for the contempt of this so great a light that has shined in thee;
then thou shouldst see as glorious a day on God’s poor Church within this
land, as ever was seen in any church before from the beginning; then the
Lord should be strong, and glorious, and wonderful in all the hearts of
his own. What is it to him to run sixteen or eighteen score of miles to
London, and then run to the hearts of kings, princes, and nobles of the
land, and humble them, and subject them to the crown and kingdom of Jesus
Christ; but, let them think of it what they will, I know who has approven
of us, for it is the running of the Gospel through the whole land, and it
is that the net of Christ may be spread over all, that if it were possible
we may gather in a world in it, that they might not perish; it is that
which we seek, and when I look to the eternity of wrath that is abiding
the wicked of this world, then I may say, who would not pity a world of
sinners? But I leave this, and I will give God the praise of his own
glory, that he can begin and he can perfect his own work in you: therefore
this is my petition to God, that ye may all be presented blameless before
him in that great day. Therefore I beseech you all, for Christ’s sake,
that every one of you would come in time, by speedy repentance, and that
you would take up Christ in the arms of your souls, and that ye would take
a fill of his flesh and blood, that ye may never hunger and thirst any
more; and, in like manner, he may know you in that great day to be his own
sheep, marked with his own blood. Will ye have any pleasure at his coming,
when ye have eaten and drunken, and taken your pleasure here, and then
shall be flung into hell hereafter? So I would beseech you, in all lenity
and meekness of mind, for Christ’s cause, ye would not delay at least to
mint at repentance; and if ye cannot get your hearts melted as ye would,
yet run to God, and say, “Father have mercy upon me; Father, forgive me,”
and cause me to repent; Father, send down thy Spirit to soften my heart.
Now, if ye would do this, ye should be welcome to him; for I assure you he
delights to shew mercy on poor penitent sinners, that would “repent, and
hunger, and thirst for righteousness.” Now, I say no more now, but I
commend you all to him that is able to give you repentance and remission
of sins in the blood of his Son Jesus Christ: to Father and with the Holy
Ghost, be all honour, Amen.
THE DAY OF JUDGMENT.
EXTRACTED FROM A SERMON BY HUGH LATIMER, BISHOP OF WORCESTER, AND MARTYR,
1555.(1)
LUKE XXI.(2)
As we die so we shall rise again. If we die in the state of damnation, we
shall rise in that same state. Again, if we die in the state of salvation,
we shall rise again in that state, and come to everlasting felicity, both
of soul and body. For if we die now in the state of salvation, then at the
last general day of judgment we shall hear this joyful sentence,
proceeding out of the mouth of our Saviour Christ, when he will say,
“Come, ye blessed of my Father, possess that kingdom which is prepared for
you from the beginning of the world.” (Matt. xxv.) And though we have much
misery here in this world, though it goeth hard with us, though we must
bite on the bridle, yet for all that, we must be content, for we shall be
sure of our deliverance, we shall be sure that our salvation is not far
off. And no doubt they that will wrestle with sin, and strive and fight
with it, shall have the assistance of God; he will help them, he will not
forsake them, he will strengthen them, so that they shall be able to live
uprightly; and though they shall not be able to fulfil the law of God to
the uttermost, yet for all that, God will take their doings in good part,
for Christ his Son’s sake, in whose name all faithful people do their good
works, and so for his sake they are acceptable unto God, and in the end
they shall be delivered out of all miseries and troubles, and come to the
bliss of everlasting joy and felicity.
I pray God, that we may be of the number of those who shall hear this
joyful and most comfortable voice of Christ our Saviour, when he will say,
“Come, ye blessed of my Father, possess the kingdom which is prepared for
you before the foundation of the world was laid.” There are a great number
amongst the Christian people, who in the Lord’s prayer, when they pray,
“Thy kingdom come,” pray that this day may come; but yet, for all that,
they are drowned in the world, they say the words with their lips, but
they cannot tell what is the meaning of it; they speak it only with their
tongue: which saying indeed is to no purpose. But the man or woman that
saith these words, “Thy kingdom come,” with a faithful heart, no doubt he
or she desires in very deed that God will come to judgment, and amend all
things in this world, to pull down satan that old serpent under our feet.
But there are a great number of us who are not ready. Some have lived in
this world fifty years, some sixty, but yet for all that they are not
prepared for his coming; they ever think he will not come yet. But I tell
you, that though his general coming be not yet, yet for all that he will
come one day, and take us out of this world: and, no doubt, as he finds
us, so we shall have; if he find us ready, and in the state of salvation,
no doubt we shall be saved for ever, world without end. But, if he find us
in the state of damnation, we shall be damned, world without end, there is
no remedy after we are once past this world; no penance will help then,
nor anything that man is able to do for us.
“And then shall they see the Son of man come in a cloud with power and
great glory.” St. Paul to the Thessalonians setteth out the coming of
Christ and our resurrection; but he speaks in the same place only of the
rising of the good and faithful that shall be saved. But the Holy
Scripture in other places witnesses, that the wicked shall rise too, and
shall receive their sentence from Christ, and so go to hell, where they
shall be punished world without end. Now, St. Paul’s words are these,
“This say we unto you in the word of the Lord: that we which shall live
and shall remain to the coming of the Lord, shall not come before them
which sleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout,
and the voice of the archangel and the trump of God, and the dead in
Christ shall arise first: then we which shall live, even we which shall
remain, shall be caught up with them also in the clouds to meet the Lord
in the air; and so shall we ever be with the Lord; wherefore comfort one
another with these words.” 1 Thess. iv.
By these words of St. Paul it appears, that they which died in the
beginning of the world shall be by Christ as soon saved, as they who shall
be alive here at the time of his coming. I would have you to note well the
manner of speaking which St. Paul uses; he speaks as if the last day
should have come in his time. Now, when St. Paul thought that this day
should have come in his time, how much more shall we think that it shall
be in our time? For no doubt it will come, and it is not long thereunto;
as it appears by all the scriptures which make mention of this day; it
will come, but it shall come suddenly, unawares, as a thief in the night.
For a thief when he intends a robbery, to rob a man’s house, to break up
his chests, and take away his goods, gives him not warning, he lets not
the good man of the house know at what time he intends to come, but rather
he intends to spy such a time, that no man shall be aware of him. So, no
doubt, this last day will come one day suddenly upon our heads, before we
are aware of it; like as the fire fell down from heaven upon the people of
Sodom when unlooked for; they thought that all things were well, therefore
they took their pleasures, till the time when fire fell down from heaven
and burned them up all, with all their substance and goods.
“And he showed them a similitude, Behold the fig-tree and all the trees,
when they shoot forth their buds, ye see and know of your ownselves that
summer is then near at hand.” So when you see the tokens which shall go
before this fearful day, it is time to make ready. But here a man might
ask a question, saying, I pray you wherein standeth this preparation? How
shall I make ready? About this there has been great strife, for there have
been an infinite number, and there are some yet at this time, who think
that this readiness standeth in masses, in setting up candles, in going of
pilgrimage; and in such things, they thought to be made ready for that
day, and so to be made worthy to stand before the Son of man, that is,
before our Saviour Christ. But I tell you, this was not the right way to
make ready. Christ our Saviour showeth us how we shall make ourselves
ready, saying, “Take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be
overcome with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this world, and so
this day come upon you unawares; for as a snare shall it come upon all
them that dwell upon the face of the whole world.”
“Watch and pray:” as if he had said, Be ye ever in readiness, lest you be
taken unawares. But those sluggards who spend their time vainly in eating
and drinking, and sleeping, please not God, for he commands us to watch,
to be mindful, to take heed to ourselves, lest the devil, or the world, or
our own flesh, get the victory over us. We are allowed to take our natural
sleep, for it is as necessary for us as meat and drink, and we please God
as well in that, as we please him when we take our food. But we must take
heed, that we do it according as he has appointed us; for like as he has
not ordained meat and drink that we should play the glutton with it, so
likewise sleep is not ordained that we should give ourselves to
sluggishness, or over-much sleeping; for no doubt when we do so, we shall
displease God most highly. For Christ saith not in vain, “Watch and pray.”
He would have us to be watchers, to have at all times in remembrance his
coming, and to give ourselves to prayer, that we may be able to stand
before him at this great and fearful day. Meaning, that we should not
trust in ourselves but call unto God, saying, “Lord God Almighty, thou
hast promised to come and judge the quick and the dead; we beseech thee
give us thy grace and Holy Ghost, that we may live according unto thy holy
commandments, that when thou comest, thou have not cause to bestow thy
fearful anger, but rather thy lovingkindness and mercy upon us.”
So likewise when we go to bed, we should desire God that we sleep not the
sleep of sin and wickedness, but rather that we may leave them, and follow
his will and pleasure; that we be not led with the desires of this wicked
world. Such an earnest mind we should have towards him, so watchful we
should be. For I tell you it is not a trifling matter, it is not a money
matter: for our eternal salvation and our damnation hang upon it. Our
nature is to do all that is possible for us to get silver and gold; how
much more then should we endeavour to make ourselves ready towards this
day, when it shall not be a money matter, but a soul matter, for at that
day it will appear most manifestly who they are that shall enjoy
everlasting life, and who shall be thrust into hell. Now as long as we are
in this world, we have all one baptism, we go all to the Lord’s Supper, we
all bear the name of Christians, but then it will appear who are the right
Christians; and again, who are the hypocrites or dissemblers.
Well, I pray God grant us such hearts, that we may look diligently about
us, and make ready against his fearful and joyful coming—fearful to them
that delight in sin and wickedness, and will not leave them; and joyful
unto those who repent, forsake their sins, and believe in him; who, no
doubt, will come in great honour and glory, and will make all his faithful
like unto him, and will say unto them that are chosen to everlasting life,
“Come, ye blessed of my Father, possess that kingdom which is prepared for
you from the beginning of the world.” But, to the wicked who will not live
according unto his will and pleasure, but follow their own appetites, he
will say, “Go, ye cursed, into everlasting fire.” O what a horrible thing
will this be, to depart from him who is the fountain of all goodness and
mercy, without whom is no consolation, comfort, nor rest, but eternal
sorrow and everlasting death! For God’s sake I require you let us consider
this, that we may be amongst those who shall hear, “Come to me;” that we
may be amongst those who shall enjoy eternal life.
THE PARABLE OF THE HOUSEHOLDER.
A SERMON, BY BISHOP LATIMER.
MATTHEW XX.—_The kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that was an
householder, which went out early in the morning to hire labourers
into his vineyard._
This parable is written by the evangelist Matthew in the twentieth
chapter, and is very dark and hard to be understood; yea, there is no
harder piece of scripture written by any evangelist. Therefore it may well
be called hard meat; not meat for mowers nor ignorant people, who are not
exercised in the word of God. And yet there is no other diversity between
this scripture and any other. For though many scriptures have diverse
expositions, (as is well to be allowed of, so long as they keep in the
tenour of the catholic faith,(3)) yet they pertain all to one end and
effect, and they are all alike. Therefore although this parable is harder
to understand than the others at the first hearing or reading, yet when we
well advise and consider the same, we shall find it agreeable unto all the
others.
Now to the principal cause, and to which our Saviour had respect in this
parable, and that is, he teaches us hereby that all Christian people are
equal in all things appertaining to the kingdom of Christ. So that we have
one Christ, one Redeemer, one baptism, and one gospel, one Supper of the
Lord, and one kingdom of heaven. So that the poorest man and most
miserable that is in the world, may call God his Father, and Christ his
Redeemer, as well as the greatest king or emperor in the world. And this
is the scope of this parable, wherein Christ teacheth us this equality.
And if this is considered, the whole parable will be easily and soon
understood.(4)
Here is declared unto us that some laboured the whole day, which are hired
for a penny, that is of our money ten pence: for like as we have a piece
of money which we call a shilling, and is in value twelve pence, so the
Jews had a piece that they called _denarium_, and that was in value ten of
our pence. The first company wrought twelve hours, and the others wrought,
some nine hours, some six hours, some three hours, and some but one hour.
Now when evening was come, and the time of payment drew on, the
householder said to his stewart, Go, and give to every man alike, and
begin at those that came last. And when the others that came early in the
morning perceived that they should have no more than those that had
wrought but one hour, they murmured against the householder, saying,
“Shall they which have laboured but one hour, have as much as we that have
wrought the whole day?” The householder, perceiving their discontented
mind, said to one of them, “Friend, wherefore grudgest thou? Is it not
lawful for me to do with mine own what pleaseth me? Have I not given thee
what I promised thee? Content thyself therefore, and go thy way, for it
hath pleased me to give unto this man which hath wrought but one hour as
much as unto thee.” This is the sum of this parable, which Christ
concludes with this sentence, “The first shall be the last, and the last
first.”
First consider who are these murmurers? The merit-mongers, who esteem
their own works so much, that they think heaven scarcely sufficient to
recompense their good deeds; namely, for putting themselves to pain with
saying of our lady’s psalter, and gadding on pilgrimage, and such like
trifles. These are the murmurers; for they think themselves holier than
all the world, and therefore worthy to receive a greater reward than all
other men. But such men are much deceived and are in a false opinion, and
if they abide and continue therein, it shall bring them to the fire of
hell. For man’s salvation cannot be gotten by any work: because the
Scripture saith, “Life everlasting is the gift of God.” (Rom. vi.) True it
is, that God requires good works of us, and commands us to avoid all
wickedness. But for all that, we may not do our good works that we should
get heaven withal; but rather to show ourselves thankful for what Christ
hath done for us, who with his sufferings hath opened heaven to all
believers, that is, to all those that put their hope and trust, not in
their deeds, but in his death and suffering, and study to live well and
godly; and yet not to make merits of their own works, as though they
should have everlasting life for them; as our monks and friars, and all
our religious persons were wont to do, and therefore may rightly be called
murmurers; for they thought they had so great a store of merits, that they
sold some of them unto other men. And many men spend a great part of their
substance to buy their merits, and to be a brother of their houses, or to
obtain one of their coats or cowls to be buried in.