The beatitudes: or A discourse upon part of Christs famous Sermon on the Mount.: Wherunto is added Christs various fulnesse. The preciousnesse of the soul. The souls malady and cure. The beauty of grace. The spiritual watch. The heavenly race. The sacred anchor. The trees of righteousnesse. The perfume of love. The good practitioner. By Thomas Watson, minister of the word at Stephens Walbrook in the city of London.

SECT. 5.

Pressing Christians to be Peace-makers.

[Doctr. 2] THAT all good Christians ought to be peace-makers; [Doctr. 2] they should not only be

peaceable themselves, but make others to be at peace; as in the body, when a joynt is out, we set it again; so it should be in the body Politick: When a garment is rent, we sowe it together again; when others are rent asunder in their affections, we should with a spirit of meekness sow them together again: Had we this excellent skill, we might glue and unite dissenting spirits. I confess it is oft a thankless office to go about to reconcile differences* 1.1: Acts 7.27. Handle a bryar never so gently, it will go near to scratch; he that goes to interpose between two Fencers, many time receives the blow; but this duty, though it may want success as from men, yet it shall not want a blessing from God: Blessed are the peace-makers. O how happy were England if it had more peace-makers. Abraham was a peace-maker, Gen. 13.8. Moses was a peace-maker, Exod. 2.13. and that ever to be honoured Emperor Constantine, when he called the Bishops together at that first Council of Nice to end Church-controversies, they having instead of that prepared bitter invectives, and ac∣cusations one against another, Constantine took their pa∣pers and rent them, gravely exhorting them to peace and unanimity.

Use 1. Reproof. It sharply reproves them that are so [Use 1] far from being peace-makers, that they are peace-breakers: [Reproof.] If blessed are the peace-makers, then cursed are the peace-breakers: If peace-makers are the children of God, then peace-breakers are the children of the Divel. Hereticks destroy the truth of the Church by Error; and Schisma∣ticks destroy the peace of it by division; the Apostle sets a b••••nd upon such, Rom. 16.17. Mark those which cause divisions and avoid them: Have no more to do with them, than with Witches or Murderers: The Divel was the first peace-breaker, he divided man from God; he like Phae∣ton, set all on fire: There are too many make-bates in

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England, whose sweetest Musick is in discord; who ne∣ver unite but to divide; as it was said of one of the Arian Emperours, he procured unity to prevent peace* 1.2: How many in our dayes may be compared to Sampsons Fox∣tails, which were tyed together only to set the Philistines Corn on fire! Judges 15.4, 5. Sectaries unite to set the Churches peace on fire; these are the persons Gods soul hates. Prov. 6.19. Sowers of discord among Brethren; these are the children of a curse. Deutr. 27.24. Cursed be he that smiteth his neighbour secretly. That is, who back∣bites, and so sets one friend against another; if there be a Divel in mans shape, it is the Incendiary.

[Use 2] Use 2. It exhorts to two things.

* 1.31. Let us take up a bitter lamentation for the divisions of England; the wild Beast hath broken down the hedge [Branch. 1] of our peace; we are like an house falling to ruine, if the Lord doth not mercifully under-prop, and shore us up. None of the sons of England comfort her, but rather rake in her bowels: Will not an ingenuous child grieve to see his mother rent and torn in pieces? It is reported of Cato, that from the time the Civil Wars began in Rome between Cesar and Pompey, he was never seen to laugh, or shave his beard, or cut his hair. That our hearts may be sadly affected with these our Church and State-divisi∣ons, let us consider the mischief of divisions.

1. They are a Prognostick of much evil to a Nati∣on; here that Rule in Philosophy holds true, omne divisi∣bile est corruptibile. When the vail of the Temple did rend in pieces, it was a sad omen and fore-runner of the destruction of the Temple; the rending the vail of the Churches peace, betokens the ruine of it. Josephus ob∣serves that the City of Hierusalem, when it was besieged by Titus Vespasian, had three great factions in it, which destroyed more than the enemy, and was the occasion of

the taking it: How fatal intestine divisions have been to this Land? Cambden and other learned Writers relate, our discerptions and mutinies have been the scaling ladder by which the Romans and the Normans have formerly gotten into the Nation. How is the bond of peace bro∣ken? we have so many Schisms in the body, and are run into so many particular Churches, that God may justly unchurch us, as he did Asia.

2. It may afflict us to see the garment of the Church∣es peace rent, because divisions bring an opprobrium and scandal upon Religion; these make the ways of God e∣vil spoken, as if Religion were the fomenter of strife and sedition. Julian in his invectives against the Christians, said, they lived together as Tygers, rending, and devour∣ing one another; and shall we make good Julians words? 'Tis unseemly to see Christs Doves fighting; to see his lilly become a bramble. Alexander Severus seeing two Christians contending, commanded them that they should not take the name of Christians any longer upon them; for (saith he) you dishonour your Master Christ. Let men either lay down their contentions, or lay off the coat of their profession.

3. Divisions obstruct the progress of piety; the Go∣spel seldom thrives where the apple of strife grows; the building of Gods spiritual Temple is hindered by the confusion of tongues. Division eats as a worm, and destroys the peaceable fruits of righteousness* 1.4. In the Church of Corinth, when they began to divide into Parties, one was for Paul, and another for Apollo, there were but few for Christ; confident I am, Englands divisions have made many turn Atheists.

2. Let us labour to heal differences, and be repairers [Branch. 2] of breaches; Blessed are the peace-makers. 1. Jesus Christ was a great peace-maker, he took a long journey from

heaven to earth to make peace. 2. Peace and unity is a great means for the corroborating and strengthning the Church of God; the Saints are compared to living stones, built up for a spiritual house, 1 Pet. 2.5. You know the stones in an Arch or Fabrick do help to preserve and bear up one another; if the stones be loosned, and drop out, all the Fabrick falls in pieces: When the Christians in the primitive Church were of one heart, Acts 4.32. what a supporting was this? how did they counsel, comfort, build up one another in their holy faith? We see while the members of the body are united, so long they do admini∣ster help and nourishment one to another; but if they be divided and broken off, they are no way useful, but the bo∣dy languisheth; therefore let us endeavour to be peace-makers; the Churches unity tends much to her stability.

3. Peace makes the Church of God on earth in some measure like the Church which is in heaven; the Cheru∣bims (representing the Angels) are set out with their fa∣ces looking one upon another, to shew their peace and unity; there are no jarrings or discords among the heavenly spi∣rits; one Angel is not of an opinion differing from one a∣nother; though they have different orders, they are not of different spirits; they are Seraphims, therefore burn, but not in heat of contention, but love: The Angels serve God, not only with pure hearts, but united hearts; by an harmonious peace we might resemble the Church Trium∣phant.

4. He that sowes peace, shall reap peace. Prov 12.20. To the Counsellors of peace is joy. The peace-maker shall have peace with God* 1.5; peace in his own bosome; and that is the sweetest Musick which is made in a mans own breast; he shall have peace with others; the hearts of all shall be united to him; all shall honour him, he shall be called instaurator ruinae, the repairer of the breach, Isa. 58.12.

To conclude, the peace-maker shall dye in peace, he shall carry a good conscience with him, and leave a good name behind him. So I have done with the first part of the Text, Blessed are the peace-makers. I proceed to the next.

Notes

• * 1.1

  〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉. Gr. Naz.
• * 1.2

  Unitatem pro∣curat ne pax sit.
• * 1.3

  Exhort.
• * 1.4

  Hebr. 12.11.
• * 1.5

  Tranquillus Deus, tranquil∣li•• omnia.