Selected quad for the lemma: act_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
act_n	believe_v	faith_n	justification_n	5,240	5	9.4416	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A77504	The mystical brasen serpent: with the magnetical vertue thereof. or, Christ exalted upon the cross, with the blessed end and fruit of that his exaltation, in drawing the elect world to himself, to believe on Him, and to be saved by Him. In two treatises, from John 3. 14, 15. 12. 32. Whereunto is added A treatise of the saints joint-membership each with other. As they were delivered to the Church of God at Great Yarmouth, by John Brinsley, minister of the gospel, and preacher to that incorporation. Imprimatur, Edm. Calamy. July 30. 1652.	Brinsley, John, 1600-1665.	1653 (1653)	Wing B4719; Thomason E1249_1; ESTC R208891	155,986	284

to heal and save Briefly of each it being not my purpose now to insist largely upon the Doctrine of Faith which I reserve to another occasion Quest Quest What saving faith is 1. What is this Faith by which wee obtaine salvation by which wee draw this healing saving vertue from Christ Ans Answ Illustrated from the Types To this I cannot answer more aptly and clearly then by having recourse to the Type which most excellently shadowes out unto us the nature of that Faith whereby we are justified and saved which is done by looking up unto Christ so looking up unto him as the Israelites did to the Brasen Serpent Q. Now how did they look up to the Brasen Serpent A. Therein we may take notice of two things 1. Their Action 2. Their Affection There beholding it and the Affection wherewith they beheld it 1. They beheld it looked upon it saw it made and saw it lifted up withall taking notice for what end and purpose it was made and lift up 2. As they thus saw it so they looked unto it viz. in an Affectionate way with a twofold affection 1 Of Desire 2. Of Hope or Trust desiring to be cured hoping and trusting to be cured by it Thus did they look upon the Brasen Serpent not onely seeing it Numb 21.9 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 aspicicbat 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 intucri quod majus est quàm 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 videre unde 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Expectatio but looking upon it with desire and expectation of receiving benefit by it as the word in the Originall there properly signifieth And thus doth the true Believer look up unto Jesus Christ Beholding him and believing on him You have them both together in that one verse John 6.40 This is the will of him that sent me that every one which seeth the Son and beleeveth on him may have everlasting life 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 1. Beholding Christ 1. Faith beholding Christ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 viz. with the eye of his soule rightly apprehending and seriously considering him For that the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Non de nihilo est quod 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 hic potius dixit quàm 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Vide 1 John 1.1 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 H. Grotius ad loc Cicero Tuscul 5. Nec enim quis qui● videt 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Beza G● Annot. Dr. Taylour's Brasen Serpent properly signifieth as Beza and Grotius note upon it Non quavis modo sed cum attentione videre not a bare and simple Intuition a casting a glance upon a thing but a serious and advised observing and viewing of it Studiosè perspicere as Tully renders it studiously to view and consider a thing This is properly 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 And thus doth the true believer behold Jesus Christ considering him as made the Son of man taking the nature of man upon him then in that nature lift up Lift up two wayes Ratione ligni ratione regni as some distinguish First In his Passion upon the Crosse there suffering Then in his Session upon the Throne of his glory there triumphing Both these the Beleever taketh notice of looking upon Christ in his twofold state of Humiliation Exaltation And here is the first act of this faith it looketh upon Christ as held forth in the word apprehending and beleeving what is there revealed concerning him touching his Incarnation Birth Life Death Resurrection Ascension Intercession withall taking notice to what end all this was done viz. for the redeeming and saving of lost mankind And here is the Vision of Faith 2. The second thing is the Affection of it 2. Faith an affectionate looking up unto Christ The beleever thus beholding Christ he also looketh up unto him Looking upon him even as the lame man which lay in Solomons Porch looked upon the Apostles Peter and John Act. 3. Look on us say they ver 4. And so hee did not onely casting his eye upon them as he did upon other passengers but he looked upon them wistly affectionately with desire and hope He gave heed unto them expecting to receive somthing from them ver 5. Thus doth the beleever look upon Christ not only beholding him by a bare and simple intuition taking notice of what he was what he hath done what he hath suffered and to what end c. all which the very divels themselves know and believe but he looketh up unto him in an affectionate way So saith the Prophet of the converted Israelites Isai 17.7 At that day shall a man look to his Maker and his eyes shall have respect to the holy One of Israel And the Prophet Zachary speaking of the Spirit of Grace which God promised to poure out upon his people saith that then They should looke upon him whom they have pierced Zach. 12.10 viz. in an affectionate way And thus doth the true beleever look upon Christ viz. with a double Affection of Desire and Hope 1. Desire 1. With Desire Earnestly desiring to partake of the merits and benefits of Christ desiring to to be healed saved by him Which desire ariseth from the sense and apprehension of his own misery from the sense of sin and the apprehension of Gods Wrath due unto it Even as an Israelite feeling himselfe stung and apprehending the eminent danger he was in out of that apprehension he looketh up to the Brasen Serpent with desire of cure Thus the soul of a beleeving sinner feeling it selfe mortally stung by sin apprehending it selfe in a lost state and condition it looketh up unto Jesus Christ earnestly desiring pardon of sin and eternall salvation by and through him 2. Confidence 2 And as it desireth it from him so it hopeth for it by him resting upon him for it for the obtaining of what it desireth and standeth in need of thus doth the Beleever look up unto Jesus Christ even as the Psalmist saith Psal 123.2 the Eyes of servants look unto the hands of their Masters and as the eyes of a maiden to the hand of her Mistris viz. as for direction so for Protection and Provision expecting to receive benefit by them Even so doth the true beleever look up unto Christ waiting resting depending and relying upon him for what he standeth in need of viz. the pardon of sins and eternall salvation And herein lieth the principall act of that faith whereby we are justified and saved viz. in this soul-recumbencie this resting and relying upon Christ for Justification and Salvation Beleeving on Christ importing So much the phrase here in the Text imports 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Not Qui credit in ipso as the Vulgar Latine renders it but in Eum Hee that beleeveth on him Wherein we have two things pointed out unto us 1. The proper Object 2. The proper Act of faith as it justifieth and saveth 1 The proper Object of faith as it justifieth and saveth is Christ True it is

of the Gospel within the kenn of this Brasen serpent under the offers of Grace this shall be their condemnation that they will not come unto Jesus Christ And who but must needs acknowledge this a deserved condemnation Refusing of Christ a just condemnation When God had provided a Brasen serpent and caused it to be lift up in the Camp of Israel for a remedy against those fiery Serpents had there been any amongst them who feeling themselves stung yet out of a contempt or neglect of the ordinance of God had refused to repaire unto it who but would have adjudged him guilty of his own death and have accounted him worthy to perish and die This hath God done for us wee being all of us mortally stung by that Old serpent God himselfe of his infinite wisdome and mercy hath found out and laid out a means of cure for us He hath given his Son for us to be made like unto US to take our nature upon him in that nature to be lift up upon the Crosse to suffer to die for us Not only so but he causeth him also to be lift up in the Ministry of his word there to be held forth to be crucified as it were before our eyes daily nor yet only to bee set before us but to be offered to us with a Command and a Promise The one requiring us to look up unto him the other assuring us of a perfect cure upon our so doing Now what shall we slight and neglect so great salvation Shall we so far abuse this grace and mercy of God as not to make use of this means of salvation What shall now be said for us Our blood be upon our own heads we must perish in our sins and that deservedly And therefore to draw to a conclusion of this point be we all of us perswaded to look out for our selves Come we O come we unto Jesus Christ that we may be made partakers of this healing saving vertue which is to be found in and from him Motives Motives me thinks I should need none to set on such a motion to perswade all of us to come unto Jesus Christ 1. Do but consider our own misery 1. Our misery without Christ without him fitly as I have shewed you represented and shadowed out in the condition of a poor Israelite being stung with some of these Serpents We are by nature in a perishing state and there is no Medicine can cure us but this no name under Heaven by which we can have any probable or possible hopes of salvation but this Let our necessities then drive us unto Christ Without him we perish having no other means of cure but by him Had there been any other Salve or Medicine in the world that could have cured a stung Israelite he should not have needed to have made use of the Brasen serpent Were there any other way or meanes whereby salvation might possibly be attained there might be some plea for our not coming unto Christ But wee are here concluded and shut up unlesse hee save us wee perish Let our necessities drive us 2. Attractivenesse in Christ 2. And secondly there is that in him which may draw us viz His willingnesse to receive us and his Ability to help us Of the former of these our Saviour himself assures us Joh. 6.37 He that cometh unto me I will in no wise cast out 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 The later wee may see in the Type in the Text The Brasen serpent was a present cure to all that came it matters not how mortally stung they were in what part of the body whether with one or more Serpents of what continuance it was here they found a present remedy Even such vertue is there to be found in the Lord Jesus It matters not what our sins be what for number what for nature what for continuance how many how great how inveterate soever only come unto Jesus Christ we shall find it true by experience that he is an Alsufficient Saviour Quest The Question then will bee How shall a poor sinner come unto Jesus Christ so as he may obtaine salvation by him Answ To this the third Conclusion returns Conclus 3. answer Only by beleeving on him So you have it in the Text The Son of Man must be lift up That whosoever beleeveth on him should not perish Doct. Behold here the onely way whereby a poor perishing sinner may come to be made partaker of that saving vertue which is in Jesus Christ viz. By beleeving on him Beleeving on Christ the only means of receiving benefit by him A Truth lively shadowed out in the Text which still upon all occasions I shall have recourse unto What was the way and means whereby an Israelite being stung came to partake of healing vertue from the Brasen Serpent Num. 21.8 9. Why it was by looking up unto it When he looketh up upon it he shall live Even thus is the saving vertue derived from Christ unto sin-stung sinners viz. By looking upon him Looking upon him not with a bodily eye as Papists do upon their Crucifixes or as the Jewes did who beheld him hanging upon the Crosse who had better never have seen what they did but with a Spirituall eye the eye of the Soul the eye of Faith by beleeving on him This is the way and means which every where we are directed to This was John the Baptist's Doctrine he preached Faith as well as Repentance John Baptized with the Baptisme of Repentance saying unto the people that they should beleeve on him which should come after him that is on Jesus Christ Act. 19. Act. 19.4 This did our Saviour himselfe presse Ye believe on God believe also on me John 14. John 14.1 And the same did his Apostles after him When the Jaylour came to Paul and Silas putting the question unto them Acts 16.31 Sirs what shall I do to be saved They presently returne him this briefe answer Beleeve on the Lord Jesus and thou shalt be saved Even as if a poor Israelite being stung had come unto Moses enquiring of him what he should do to be healed Moses could have returned him no answer but this Look up unto the Brasen Serpent and thou shalt be healed Thus when a wounded soule feeling the sting of sin sticking in the conscience cometh unto the Ministers of Christ and desireth direction from them what to do their answer is Go look up unto Christ Beleeve on the Lord Jesus thou shalt be saved Here is the way the onely way and meanes of obtaining benefit by Jesus Christ Heb. 2.4 Faith Justus ex fide The just shall live by faith Explic. For the opening and illustrating of this usefull Truth give me leave briefly to unfold unto you these three particulars 1. What this faith is which healeth and saveth 2. Three particulars unfolded How this faith healeth and saveth 3. Why this should be the onely way and means