2. If God be but one, worship him with an entire heart. The story goeth, that the senate, hearing of the miracles in Judea, decreed divine worship to Christ ; but Tiberius the emperor crossed it, when he heard that he would be worshipped alone. God is but one ; our hearts should close with him as an all-sufficient portion : there is enough in one. The
158 SERMONS UPON JOHN XVII. [SeR. IV.
scripture speaks of ' believing with all the heart.' Other comforts and confidences must be disclaimed. Sometimes carnal persons set their hearts upon other comforts ; Christ is not their whole delight : they would have Christ for their consciences, and the world for their hearts; Christ in an extremity, but their affections go out to other things. Sometimes they will have other confidences : they would trust Christ for their eternal salvation, to salve conscience; but the world engrosses their care, as if they were to shift for themselves in temporal things, and be masters of their own fortunes ; as it appeareth when temporal supplies fail ; when visible supplies are absent, then they despair. It is a mere mistake and folly to think it is easier to trust Christ for pardon of sins and eternal life, than for daily bread ; as Christ said, Mark ii. 0, ' Whether is easier to say, Thy sins are forgiven thee ; or to say, Arise, take up thy bed and walk ? ' The truth is, temporal wants are more pressing and urging than spiritual, and men are care- less in the business of their souls.
Doct. ?). The next proposition is, that this God is one in three per- sons. This also is collected from the text. * To know thee,' that is, the Father, with all the co-essential ])ersons. They are undivided in essence, though distinguished in personality. Take a place of scrip- ture : 1 John V. 7, ' There are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost, and these three are one.' Let me a little open the doctrine of the Trinity by some short obser- vations.
This is a mystery proper to the scriptures. Other truths are revealed in nature, but this is a treasure peculiar to the church. There are some passages in heathens that seem to look this way ; as Plato speaketh of vov<;, X6'yo<;, irvevixa, mind, word, and spirit; and Trismegistus, Trpcora, ^609, &c. But these were either some general notions, received by tradition from the Jews, and by them misunderstood, for they dreamed of three distinct separate essences, or else passages foisted into their writings by the fraud and fallacy of some christians, who counted it a piece of their zeal to lie for God. It is not likely that God would give the heathens a more clear revelation of these mysteries than lie did to his own people, the church of the Jews. We find it but spar- ingly revealed in the Old Testament, though I might bring many places where it is sufficiently hinted ; but more distinctly in the New, after the visible and sensible discovery of the three persons at Christ's baptism : Mat. iii, 17, ' The Spirit of God descended like a dove, and lighted upon him, and lo, a voice from heaven, saying. This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.' Voce Fater, Natus corpore, Numen ave. The whole Trinity were present at that solemnity..; Some darkness there is still upon the face of this deep ; we shall have more perfect knowledge of it in the heavens : John xiv. 20, ' At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you.' Trinity in unity and unity in trinity still troubleth the present weak- ness of reason ; but when we shall see God face to face, our knowledge shall be more satisfactory and complete. For the present, we must come to this truth with a sober mind, and adore it with a humble piety, lest we puzzle faith while we would satisfy and inform reason. There are many words which the church hath used in the explication
VeR. 3.] SERMONS UPON JOHN XVII. 159
of this mystery, as unity, trinity, essence, person, consubstantial ; which though they be not all found in the scriptures, yet they are the best that we can use in so deep a matter, and serve to prevent the errors and mistakes of those who would either multiply the essence, or abolish the persons. Some terms must be used, and these are the safest. They be three, and yet one; and the most commodious way to solve it to our understandings is, one in essence and three persons ; for there being three in the divine essence, the Father, the Word, and the Spirit, each having the whole divine essence, and yet the essence undivided, there must be some words to express the mystery. Grod, being one, cannot be divided in nature and being ; and there being three, every one having the whole godhead in himself, distinguished by peculiar relative properties, what term shall we use ? Three ways of existence there are in the nature of God, because of those three real relations — paternity, filiation, and procession. One they are, and distinct they are really. There is and must be a distinction, for the essence and particular way of existence do differ. Whatever is said of the essence is true of every person. God is infinite, eternal, incomprehensible ; so is the Father, Son, and Spirit. But now, whatever is said of the existence, as existence, cannot be said of the essence ; eveiy one that is God is not Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. I say, then, there being a distinction between the nature and particular existences, there must be some terms to express it. The Greek Church in the Nicene Council, some three hundred and sixty years after Christ, worded it thus : The occasion was this, some heretics said, If Christ be God, of the same substance and being with the Father, then, when Christ was incarnate, the Father was incarnate also. No, say the orthodox, though the ovaia, the substance or essence be the same, it is not the same viroaraai.'i, the same subsistence in the godhead ; and then began the public and received distinction of ovaia and vTroa-raaa: ovata signifying the nature or substance ; V7r6ara<n<i, the several manners of existence. And the determination of the church was, that these were the fittest terms to explicate this mystery. Not but that these words were used before in this matter ; as may appear out of divers authors that lived and wrote before that famous Nicene Council, but they were not so accurately distinguished, nor so publicly received. And indeed, though the word ovala, essence, be not in scripture, yet viroaraai'i is. There is ground for ovaia, for when the nature of God is expressed, it is expressed by a word equivalent to essence, ' I Am that I Am,' Exod. iii. 14. So 6 wv, 6 rjv, KoX 6 ep'x^ofiei'O'i, ' He that was, and is, and is to come,' Eev. i. 4. Then for viroaraac^i, Christ is called, Heb. i. 3, ')(apaKT7]p rrj^ vTrocrrdaew^ avrov, ' The express image of his person.' It cannot be rendered essence, but subsistence ; for then Arius would have carried the day, and Christ would be only ofioiova-io^;. And the Father's essence cannot properly be said to be impressed on the Son, since the very same individual essence and substance was wholly in him, as it was wholly in the Father ; and the Sou cannot be said to be like : but now ' the express image of his subsistence ;' or, as we now render it, ' person,' doth provide for the consubstantiality of the Son ; against Arius ; and for the distinction of the subsistences, against Sabellius. Thus for a long time it wns carried in the terms of substance and sub-