Christian moderation In two books. By Jos: Exon.

§. II. Luke-warmenesse to be avoyded in Religion.

FArre be it from us to allow luke-warme∣nesse in the matters of God; a disposi∣tion, which the Almighty professeth so much to hate, that he could rather be content the Angell of the Church of Laodi∣cea should be quite cold, then in such a mambling of profes∣sion; And indeed, what tem∣per

is so offensive to the sto∣mach as this meane? fit onely for a medicinall potion (whose end is ejection) not for nou∣rishment; Those, whose devo∣tion is onely fashionable, shall in vayne hope to be accepted; It is a true word of Saint Austen, There is no love where there is no zeale; and what cares God for heartlesse followers, that are led only by example and forme? such there are, that yawne not out of any inward cause, but because they see others gape before them; As they say in the Abassine Chur∣ches, if one man neese, all the rest do, and must follow. Men like unto mosse, which takes still the property of the barke,

it growes upon; if upon the Oke, it cooles and bindes, if up∣on the Pine and Firre, it digests and softens; or like unto the Herborists Dodder, which is no simple in it selfe, but takes both his name, and temper from the herbe out of which it arises; if out of Time, it is Epithimium: if out of the Nettle, it is Epiur∣tîca; That great Lawgiver of old would have a punishment for neuters; and well are they worthy, when the division is maine and essentiall; such men are meerely for themselves, which have the truth of God in respect of persons; not caring so much what is professed as by whom; Suidas tels us of Muso∣nius, so well reputed of; that no

further question was made of any man, if it appeared he was Musonius his friend; too many affect no other worth in them∣selves, then a dependance upon others, holding it enough that they are the clients of this fa∣mous Doctor, of that great Saint: such men like as we have heard of some Apothecaryes, which onely by taking the va∣por of some drugge in the stam∣ping of it, have beene wrought upon, hold it sufficient for them to have received in, the very ayre, and empty titles of disci∣ples, without respect to the grounds, and substance of the Doctrine.

The rule which the blessed Apostle gave for our settlement

in some cases is wont by a com∣mon misconstruction to be so expressed, as if it gave way to a loose indifferency; The vulgar reads it, Let every one abound in his owne sense, as leaving each man to his owne liberty, in those things of middle na∣ture; whereas his words, in their originall, run contrary; Let every one be fully perswaded in his owne minde; requiring a plerophory of assurance, and not allowing an unsettled hesi∣tation in what we doe; and if thus, in matters of the least im∣portance, how much more in the great affaires of Re∣ligion? Here it holds well (which is the charge of the Apostle) It is good to be zea∣lously

affected in a good thing alwayes▪ Nothing is more easie to observe, then that, as ••t uses to be with stuffes, that in their first making, they are strongly wrought, afterwards, in pro∣cesse of time they grow to be slight, both in matter and work, so it falls out in religious professions; In the first break∣ing out of a reformation, there appeares much heate and for∣wardnes, which in time abates, and cooleth, so as the profes∣sor growes to the temper of our Baldwin, Archbishop of Can∣terbury, whom Pope Vrban of old, greets in the style of a fer∣vent Monkea, warme Abbot, a luke warme Bishop, a Key-cold Arch-bishop, or like unto those

kites, of whom our writers say, that in their first yeares they dare prey upon greater Foules, afterwards they sieze upon les∣ser birds, and the third yeere fall upon flyes. Whence it is that Melancthon could fore-guesse, that the time should come wherein men should bee tainted with this errour, that either re∣ligion is a matter of nothing, or that the differences in religions are meerely verball; Farre bee it from us thus to degenerate from our holy Ancestors, whose zeale made them true Holo∣causts to God, and sent up their soules in the smoake of that their acceptable sacrifice, into heaven, that, those truths which they held worthy bleeding for,

wee should sleight as not worth pleading for. Wee cannot easi∣ly forgive that wrong which our late SPALATENSIS did to our freshbleeding martyrs, whom even before by revolt, hee bla∣med of lavishnesse, as if they might well have spared that ex∣pence of blood; although wee may well suppose hee redeemed his errour by dying, for the same truthes, for which they fryed alive, as hee dead, Wee know what Saint BASILL answered to that great man, who would have perswaded him to let fall his holy quar∣rell: Those saith hee, that are trayned up in the Scriptures, will rather dye then abate a syl∣lable of Divine Truth. It is

said of VALENTINIAN, that when the rude SCYTHI∣ANS made ••n incursion into the territories of the Romane Empire, hee, so ore-strayned his Lungs, in calling upon his troupes, that hee presently dy∣ed; so vehement must wee bee, when any maine thing is in Question, neither voyce nor life must bee spared, in the cause of the Almighty. The glosse that is put upon the act of Innocent, the 4. in the Councell of LYONS, who graced the Dignity of Cardinall-Shippe with a redde Hatte, is that it was done with an intention (as MARTINVS POLONVS construes it) to signify they should bee ready to shed their

blood for Christ, and his Gos∣pell, might well fitte every Christian, perhaps somewhat better, then those delicate mates of Princes; whom should wee imitate, but him, whose name wee beare, who fulfil∣led that of the Psalmist his type, The zeale of thine house hath even eaten me up?

Notes

• Non amat qu•• no•• Ze∣lat Aug. contr. Adi∣mant. c. 13.
• S. Por. prolegom. to the ••frian hi••t. Gerard. her. p. 1558.
• Suid. ver∣bo Musoni∣us.
• Rom. 14.5 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉.
• Gal. 4.18.
• Girald. Cambrens. Itinerar.
• Thaum••turg. nat. c. 2••.
• Melanct. postil. de baptist. Christi, Metuendum est etiam in postrema mundi aetate magis hunc errorem grassaturum esse, quòd aut nihil sint religiones, aut differant tantum vo∣cabulis &c.
• Spalat. part. 3••.
• Qui divinis innutriti sunt eloquiis &c.
• Suid. v. 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉.
• Bin. in vita Innocentii.
• Psal. 69.9. Io. 2.17.