To the extent possible under law, the Text Creation Partnership has waived all copyright and related or neighboring rights to this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above, according to the terms of the CC0 1.0 Public Domain Dedication (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/). This waiver does not extend to any page images or other supplementary files associated with this work, which may be protected by copyright or other license restrictions. Please go to http://www.textcreationpartnership.org/ for more information.
VERSE 18. — By word, and deed,
19. Through mightie signes and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God.
THe matter of Pauls glory, was to make the Gentiles obe∣dient: concerning which, hee deliuereth three things: First, The meanes thereof: Secondly, His Trauaile: Third∣ly, His Desire to doe Christ seruice therein.
THe meanes of making the Gentiles obedient, is in these words: the other two in the rest, to the end of the one and twentieth verse.
The Meanes are twofold: Outward: Inward.
The Outward, Audible or Visible.
The Audible: The Word, that is, the preaching of it, to which may be referred his Conferences, Disputations, Let∣ters.
The Visible, two: First, His holy life: Secondly, His Miracles.
His holy life, in this word, Deed; as Chrysostome, Are∣tius, Sarcerius and others expound. Not a Generall; ex∣pounded or diuided in the words following, Signes and Wonders; nor his labours, cares, and troubles vndergone in preaching, for his labours are spoken of in the latter part of the nineteenth verse; and his cares and troubles, were rather Sufferings then Deeds.
The holy life of a Preacher is a great attractiue to winne vnto the Gospell the good liking of men; * 1.1 and Saint Paul of∣ten maketh mention of it in his Epistles.
His Miracles: Through mightie signes and wonders.
Signes; not Sacraments, though they be visible signes of inuisible grace: * 1.2 but lesser miracles, as Thomas: which are things which might in time haue beene done by naturall meanes, as healing of some diseases.
Wonders: Greater Miracles, which altogether exceed the power of Nature; as to conuert the substances of things, to raise the dead, &c.
Or, Signes and Wonders, that is, Miracles, called Signes for their vse, Wonders for their forme.
Miracles are True or False.
True Miracles, are things done by the power of God, be∣yond the course and strength of Nature, to manifest the om∣nipotencie of God, and to confirme the truth of the doctrine reuealed in the Word. Such were the wonders wrought by our Sauiour, and by his Apostles, and by Apostolicall men, for the first three hundred yeares of the Church of the New Testament, which about that time ceased; and they were,
eyther in the things themselues, or in the manner of them: as in putting life into a dead carkasse, or in healing a disease (otherwise curable by naturall meanes) by a word, and in an instant.
False miracles are wrought by the power of Satan, for the confirmation of lies, and to deceiue; being eyther truly be∣yond the strength of nature, or onely in shew, as delusions of sense, or which haue hidden causes in nature.
Mighty signes and wonders: or through the might of signes, &c. Being meant eyther of Pauls might to worke them, or of their might in the hearts of such as saw them.
By the power of the Spirit of God. Which blessed the words, deeds, miracles of the Apostles, and effectually wrought by them in the people.
Christ furnished his Apostles with the gifts of vtterance, [Doctr.] holy life, and miracles, to make the world obedient to the Gospell. Mar. 16.20. And they preached euery where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signes following. Amen. 2 Cor 12.12. The signes of an Apostle were wrought among you, in all patience, with signes and wonders, and mighty deedes. Heb. 2.4.
The preaching of the word is the power of God to salua∣tion to all that beleeue. [Ʋse 1] * 1.3 By this Word Paul conuerted the Gen∣tiles: and this word we haue. Let vs be thankfull, and suffer the power of it to conuert vs. This is the Word which was confirmed with mighty signes and wonders: if thou belee∣uest it not, thou shalt be damned.
The word and life of Preachers must edifie. [Ʋse 2] They must haue a trumpet at their mouth, and a light in their hand, * 1.4 * 1.5 as Gid••ons souldiers. The Scribes and Pharisies are taxed because they lay heauy burdens vpon other mens shoulders, but themselues would not moue them with one of their singers.
Alexander would bragge that he was a good Leader and a stout Souldier. * 1.6 Preachers must not only require of others, but doe themselues.
Miracles were a time in vse, [Vse 3] to perswade men of the truth of the Gospell, as Nichodemus argued that Christ was a tea∣cher sent from God, because of his miracles. * 1.7 Aposteli••mira∣culorum
sagena homines expiscantes, * 1.8 ex ignorantiae profundo re∣spirare fecerunt: The Apostles fishing with the net of mira∣cles drew men out of the bottome of the Sea of ignorance, that they might breathe in the comfortable ayre of the Go∣spell, saith Damascen.
Such miracles were eyther to prepare the mindes of men to receiue the truth, or to confirme it being receiued. So be∣fore the Sermon in the Mount, * 1.9 our Sauiour did many mira∣cles; Ʋt cuius potentiam experiebantur tam benignam, non am∣bigerent salutarem esse doctrinam: That hauing experience of the goodnesse of his doings, they need not doubt of the soundnesse of his doctrine, saith Leo. Also Signes fellowed the preaching of the word, Marke 16.20.
Bellarmine endeuoureth to shew the Church of Rome to bee the true Church, * 1.10 because of the power it alwayes had, and hath (saith hee) to worke miracles: and for want of this power vpbraydeth the Protestants: among fifteene notes of the church, making the glory of miracles to be the eleuenth.
But many * 1.11, and those not the meanest of his side, disclaim their Legends, and are ashamed of their miracle-workers, af∣firming that there is no stable more full of dung, then such stories are of lies.
There is now no necessity of miracles: so affirmeth S. Chry∣sostome a 1.12. And Saint Augustine saith, that hee which now re∣quireth a miracle to beleeue, makes himselfe prodigious b 1.13. Signes are for vnbeleeuers, 1 Cor. 14.22.
What glory Bellarmine getteth to his Church by miracles may be discerned by these Scriptures, Mat. 7.22. and 24.24. 2 Thes. 2.9. Reuel. 13.13.14. Where miracles in these dayes are the note of wicked men, false prophets, and of Antichrist: especially if they be to admiration onely, and not to profit, as to flye in the ayre, to make images walke, speake c 1.14, &c. such as are the miracles of the Romanists for the most part.
It is necessary that a new doctrine be confirmed with mi∣racles, saith Bellarmine: but the doctrine wee teach is as old as the Bible; and therefore wee willingly leaue to them the glory of their monkish wonders.
And yet we are not without miracles. We cannot cast out Diuels by exorcismes, as their Fryers doe, till they make themselues ridiculous to all the world: but wee through preaching the Gospell cast out sinne. Wee cannot raise the bodily dead, as euery petty Saint in the Church of Rome: but wee through the blessing of God raise them which are spiritually dead in trespasses and sinnes. I desire no other miracle to proue the truth of the Religion I professe, but the worke of Faith and Repentance in my heart, manifested in my life.
By the power of the Spirit of God. [Ʋse 4] Miracles preuaile not to perswade without the Spirit of God. So Moses tels the Is∣raelites, Yee haue seene the great tentations, the signes, * 1.15 and those great miracles which God did to Pharaoh, and vnto all his ser∣uants, and vnto all his Land: But the Lord hath not giuen you an heart to perceiue, eyes to see, and eares to heare, vnto this day.
Neyther doth the word; nor the iudgements, and exem∣plary punishments which God inflicteth, in our eyes vpon lewd persons, as drunkards, &c. auaile to bring vs to repen∣tance without the effectuall operation of the holy Ghost. O the vnutterable corruption of our hearts, and our reprobate∣nesse vnto that which is good.
Pray that thou maist profit vnto godlinesse by the word, Sacraments, Iudgements of God, which is a signe thou hast the Spirit dwelling in thee: Pray for that Spirit: For thy heauenly Father will giue the holy Spirit to them which aske him, Luke 11.13.
2. Cor. 1.12. Philip. 3.17.20. 1. Thess. 2.1. &c. 2. Tim. 3.10.
Aquin. in loc.
Rom. 1.16.
Iudg. 7.20.
Math. 23.4
〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉.
Iohn 3 2.
Damasc, orth. fid. l. 1. c. 3. paulo post initium.
Luke 6.17.18.19.20. & seq. Leo Mag. serm. in fest. om. Sanct.
Bellarm. tom. 2. lib. 4. de eccl. c. 14
Canus loc. l. 11. c. 6. Caiet. opusc. tom. 2. tract. 1. c. 5. Eling. loc. com. l. 4. c. 42. Espen. in 2 Tim. 4. Digr. 21.
Chrys. hom. 19. oper. impers.
Aug. de C. Dei l. 22. c. 8.
Chrys. loc. sup. citat.
Deut. 29.2.3.4.