Dominica In Albis Or Low Sunday The Gospel John 20 v.19 Thursday Meditation: A Plaine Path-way To Heaven Thomas Hill 1634

GOSPEL John 20:19-31 
At that time, when it was late the same day, the first of the week, and the doors were shut, where the disciples were gathered together, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst and said to them: "Peace be to you." And when he had said this, he shewed them his hands and his side. The disciples therefore were glad, when they saw the Lord. He said therefore to them again: "Peace be to you. As the Father hath sent me, I also send you." When he had said this, he breathed on them; and he said to them: "Receive ye the Holy Ghost. Whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven them: and whose sins you shall retain, they are retained." Now Thomas, one of the twelve, who is called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said to him: "We have seen the Lord." But he said to them: "Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails and put my finger into the place of the nails and put my hand into his side, I will not believe." And after eight days, again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them. Jesus cometh, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst and said: "Peace be to you." Then he said to Thomas: "Put in thy finger hither and see my hands. And bring hither the hand and put it into my side. And be not faithless, but believing." Thomas answered and said to him: "My Lord and my God." Jesus saith to him: "Because thou hast seen me, Thomas, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen and have believed." Many other signs also did Jesus in the sight of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written, that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God: and that believing, you may have life in his name.

THURSDAY

God suffered king Saul, and his army upon a time so to compass David and his little army round about that it seemed he could not possibly escape unless he could have flown away like a bird between a pair of wings, in so much that Saul’s men by way of scoffing and insulation over him, said of him: Now David take thy wings and fly away into the mountains, like a sparrow, and when David was even at the point of being taken, God sent a messenger to Saul, that the Philistines had made an incursion into his country, and had spread themselves all over it, like a swarm of bees, Saul was fain to let David escape beyond all expectations, whereupon David in thanksgiving to God sung a psalm, and alluding unto the words, that Saul’s people said unto him, by way of insulation, Take thy wings and fly away into the mountains like a sparrow, said thus: I trust in our Lord why doe say to my soul (when you had so compassed me in round abut, that is seemed impossible for me to escape) fly unto the mountains, if thou canst, like a spare: that is to say, in vain did they say so unto me, for even then when they though themselves surest of me, God delivered me out of their hands.

Abraham, having no more children but one son and in that one, a promise from God that all generations should be blessed, God commanded him to kill that one called Isaac, and to burn him in sacrifice to God.

Abraham proceeded so far, as not only to carry him to the mountain where he was to be sacrificed, and to carry wood with him, and the wood to be laid ready where he was to be slain, and his son to be laid upon it bound hand & foot, but also to draw his sword over him, and to lift it up ready to strike hum, and even then, in the very instant of the stroke, God sent his angel, who came behind him while he lifted his sword over his shoulder, and held it fast, and told him he must spare his son, & offer a ram. instead of him, which then by God’s appointment appeared there present in his sight; which he did, and so his son was delivered when there seemed to be no hop left.

In like manner this day being the first day after the Sabaoth, when it was night, and the doors shut in, when the three days were almost quite expired, wherein Christ foretold his disciples he would rise again, at the very last cast came Jesus and stood in the midst of them, and said Peace be unto you.

This Christ did that by these examples we should be constant in our sufferings, and confident in God, that he will help us at last though he defer it never so long, and commonly he doth defer it till the last, to his best friends.

So he did to Abraham and David as aforesaid, the one he called his faithful servant, the other a man according to his own heart, and he doth it for their greater glory.

Of the merit ST. Paul saith to the Hebrews; Do not lose your confidence in Gods help, for it hath a great remuneration of the glory of God.

St. Paul saith, that Abraham did believe in God’s promise when he was commanded to sacrifice his son Isaac into hope against hope, which words he spake not only in the commendation of Abraham, but to the glory of God whose promise Abraham held to be inviolable with this confidence.

The holy women went to the Sepulcher, knowing it to be covered with a great stone impossible for them to remove, hoping in the assistance of God, and found it removed by an Angel.


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