APRIL 17.

SIN THE TRANSGRESSION OF GOD'S LAW.

"Sin is the transgression of the law."-1 JOHN iii. 4.

Saith Paul, “Our salvation is come nearer now, than when we believed," taking occasion of the time, to move us to rise from our sleep; as who say, "Christ is come now, he hath fulfilled all things, of which things the prophets have spoken; now therefore arise from your sins.' The same sleep of which St. Paul speaketh here, is the sleep of sin, a spiritual sleep. But I pray you what is sin? I think there be many which can commit sin, and do wickedly; but I think there be but few of those which know what sin is. Therefore I will tell you what is sin: all that that is done against the laws of God, contrary to his will and pleasure, that is sin and wickedness. Now there be two manner of laws. There be general laws, pertaining to every man and woman, and there be special laws. The general laws are comprehended in the ten commandments, which ten commandments are comprehended in the law of love, "Thou shalt love God with all thy heart, &c., and thy neighbour as thyself." These be general laws. Now then there be special laws, which teach us how every man and woman shall live in their calling, whereunto God hath called them. Now whosoever transgresseth these laws, either the general or the special laws, he sinneth: and that which is done contrary to these laws, is sin. When ye will know now whether ye have sinned or not, see and consider these laws, and then go into thy heart and consider thy living, how thou hast spent all thy days: If thou dost so, no doubt thou shalt find innumerable sins done against these laws. For the law of God is a glass, wherein a man may see his spots and filthiness therefore when we see them, let us abhor them and leave them; let us be sorry for that which is passed, and let us take a good purpose to leave all sins from henceforward. And this is it that St. Paul saith, "Let us arise from the sleep of sin and wickedness, for our salvation is come nearer: Our Saviour, he is clearly opened unto us."

LATIMER, BP. AND M., 1555.

APRIL 18.

SIN IS UNBELIEF.

"An evil heart of unbelief."-HEB. iii. 12.

Sin in the scripture is not called that outward work only committed by the body, but all the whole business, and whatsoever accompanieth, moveth, or stirreth unto the outward deed; and that whence the works spring, as unbelief, proneness, and readiness unto the deed in the ground of the heart, with all the powers, affections, and appetites, wherewith we can but sin; so that we say, that a man then sinneth, when he is carried away headlong into sin, altogether, as much as he is, of that poisonous inclination and corrupt nature, wherein he was conceived and born. For there is none outward sin committed, except a man be carried away altogether, with life, soul, heart, body, lust and mind thereunto. The scripture looketh singularly unto the heart, and unto the root and original fountain of all sin, which is unbelief in the bottom of the heart. For as faith only justifieth and bringeth the Spirit and lust unto the outward good works; even so unbelief only damneth and keepeth out the Spirit, provoketh the flesh, and stirreth up lust unto the evil outward works, as it happened to Adam and Eve in Paradise (Gen. iii.). For this cause Christ calleth sin, unbelief, and that notably in John xvi. "The Spirit," saith he, "shall rebuke the world of sin, because they believe not in me.” And (John viii.), "I am the light of the world." And therefore (John xii.) he biddeth them, "While ye have light, believe in the light, that ye may be the children of light, for he that walketh in darkness knoweth not where he goeth." Now as Christ is the light, so is the ignorance of Christ that darkness whereof he speaketh, in which he that walketh knoweth not whither he goeth; that is, he knoweth not how to work a good work in the sight of God, or what a good work is. And therefore Christ saith, “As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world; but there cometh night when no man can work," which night is but ignorance of Christ.

TYNDALE, M., 1536.

APRIL 19.

SIN, THE SLEEP OF THE SOUL.

Knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep."-ROM. xiii. 11.

This sleep is so pleasant, that all the world lieth in it, and hardly can shake it off. King David fell into it, and continued in it, sleeping very soundly, never lifting up his head for two years' space, till at the length, Nathan, the prophet, at the commandment of God, awakened him. Zaccheus slept a long time pleasantly in his usury, with heaps of evil-gotten goods under his head, till the Son of God himself called upon him and lifted him up, by whose voice he was effectually and thoroughly awakened : insomuch that his eyes being now opened to see the ugliness of his sin, wherein he had so long time before slumbered, he not only made restitution, but also gave the one half of all his goods to the poor. This man awaked in a happy time. It is most dangerous to slumber long in sin. Custom of sin maketh sin familiar, so that at the length we learn not to fear it at all, but rather to take delight and pleasure in it, to commit it, as the Apostle saith, with a kind of “greediness," to count sin no sin, to swallow it down without any remorse or contradiction. Their case is lamentable which are thus fallen asleep, and for the most part their end miserable. Such was the sleep of that rich man, who, having filled his barns, and provided store for many years, encouraged himself to sensuality: "Soul! take thy rest.” You that love the rest of your souls indeed, keep your souls waking, and do not suffer them to take rest. "Awake thou that sleepest," and takest thy rest, "stand up from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light." It is time to awake; we have slept too long. God would not have us to sleep unto death, but to awake unto life; for he will not the death of a sinner; his desire is rather that we should repent. Now is the time, now Christ calleth thee, now he stretcheth out his arms, now he offereth mercy; come unto him, and thou shalt find true rest for thy wearied soul.

SANDYS, ABP., 1576.

APRIL 20.

SIN, THE SLEEP OF THE SOUL.

"What meanest thou, O sleeper? Arise, call upon thy God." JONAH i. 6.

Sin is a sleep of the soul, having no fear nor feeling of God, so long as a man lies in it. "It is now time," saith St. Paul (Rom. xiii.), "to awake out of sleep," meaning sin. God in his word by such outward bodily things declares unto us the nature of spiritual things, both good and evil. As the dead body lies rotting and stinking in the grave, fearful to look on, and grievous to remember; so when we lie buried in sin, we stink in the sight of God; he cannot abide to look at us, nor will remember us. And as we, when the body lieth on sleep in the bed, which is an image of our grave, can neither see, feel, hear, taste, smell, understand, nor yet move out of the place, until we be awaked, nor can take any pleasure at all in any one creature of God; so when we lie wallowing in sin, we neither see the majesty of God with the eyes of our faith, nor feel his mercies offered unto us in his dear Son and our only Saviour Christ Jesus, nor yet can we taste at all how sweet the Lord is. Our ears are stopped from hearing good counsel; we perceive nothing at all of God's goodness towards us; his word is not savoury unto us, neither yet be we moved or stirred up to do any one good work of charity. It is the gospel that quickens and gives life; but the law kills, fears, and threatens. For as after sleep the body being awaked, it is fresh, lusty, strong, and courageous to do his work; so after the fearful threatenings of the law, when we hear the glad tidings of the gospel, that God will be our God and dwell with us, the mind is comforted, strengthened and moved up to do his duty. And as a man is judged to be waking when he can do the office of a man, as talk, work, write, or such like; so is man awaked out of the sleep of sins, when he lives in charity, fears God, and walks according to his law in his vocation.

PILKINGTON, BP., 1560.

APRIL 21.

SIN IS DARKNESS.

"Men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil."-JOHN iii. 19.

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Sin of itself is darkness, and whosoever walks in sin walks in darkness, and knows not what he doeth and if a man give himself to be ruled by sin, it makes of fools madmen and darkens so the reason that it knows not what to do or say. But as his disease is most perilous, which lies sick and feels not his sickness, nor cannot complain of one part more than another, (for then the disease hath equally troubled the whole body;) so they which lie wallowing in sin, so forgetting God and all goodness, that they feel no remorse of conscience, are desperate, and almost past all recovery; yet God, most mercifully dealing with this people, sends his prophet to warn them, and stir them out of their sleep, that there they should no longer so lightly weigh God's displeasure towards them, but deeply weigh why and wherefore these plagues were thus poured upon them. The schoolmaster corrects not his scholar, nor the father his child, but for some fault, and for their amendment: no more hath God sent these plagues to you so many years, but to remember you of your disobedience towards him, and that ye should turn to him. But if the lewd scholar, or unthrifty son do not regard the correction laid upon him, nor consider not the greatness of his fault, nor the displeasure of his father or schoolmaster, there is no goodness to be hoped for of him: so it is with you, if ye thus lightly or else not at all consider your life past, God's dealing with you, and how evil things have prospered with you all the time ye thus have disobeyed God. "When the life of man pleases God," saith Solomon, "all things prosper and go forwards with him :" but when he offends his God, all creatures turn to his hurt and hinderance.

PILKINGTON, Bp., 1560.