Selected quad for the lemma: authority_n
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B10086
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The safety of appearing at the day of judgement, in the righteousness of Christ: opened and applied. By Solomon Stoddard ...
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Stoddard, Solomon, 1643-1729.
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1687
(1687)
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Wing S5709; ESTC W22065
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210,940
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366
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toward thy Holy Temple such examples may be great inducements and helps to you to follow their example these examples are very quickning and full of argument they are very helpful to strengthen your Faith several ways 1. The examples of Saints recorded in Scripture are a warrant to you to believe their saith is recorded to shew you what you should do how you should carry in lâ—ke cases the examples of the faith of the Saints are set down by way of commendation they are presented before you as a pattern that you should walk after the record of those examples does shew that such a spirit and carriage is highly approved by God you question whether or no God will not count it presumption in you to believe under such circumstances but this may take off that God has recorded it in his Word that his people have been wont to trust in him in such cases and you are called upon by God to follow their example Heb. 6.12 be followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promise 2. In these examples you may see what a lovely glorious thing it is to depend upon God and be exercising of faith in difficult cases there is a great deal of the beauty and loveliness of grace seen in the exercise of it it is a taking thing to see those glorious workings of saith that were in Abraham Sarah Joseph Moses and others of the Saints the Apostle says we count them happy that endure Jam. 5.11 so we count them happy that believe the rules of Gods Word carry in them a commendation of themselves but when we see them practised they are very taking we count the exercises of faith that we hear of and read of excellent and they stir us up to imitation 3. These examples of believing do provoke unto an holy emulation as one Scholar is provoked to emulation by the learning of another so is one saint provoked to emulation by the faith of others the examples of other mens faith have a tendency to make you ashamed of your unbelief you may be ashamed to see your selves out-stripped by those that lived in darker times than you do you may be ashamed to think that you are worse then others that you should be more backward to honour the grace and faithfulness of God than others these examples have a tendency to make you pluck up that you may honour God as others have done Direction 6. Labour to get your hearts fully satisfied in the divine authority of the Scriptures if men have scruples and misgivings of heart about that they will be an occasion of discouragement such jealousies will interrupt the exercise of Faith for the word is the foundation of our faith the authority of the Word of God is our warrant to believe let all scruples of that kind be speedily removed as things that strike at the very root of faith see that you be well grounded in the authority of the Word don 't take it up as a tradition as a thing owned by those among whom you live but satisfie your hearts upon good ground that the Scripture is no device of man but the very Word of God and indeed God has given us as much assurance that it is his Word as we can reasonably desire and expect he gives his own testimony to it we receive the orders of authority upon their own testimony thus God witnesses to the truth of his Word he sets his hand to it Zech. 12.1 Rev. 1.1 and the Scripture has such characters in it as evidence it to be the Word of God the Word carries a sufficient evidence in it self there are such circumstances and marks in it as shew that it is not counterfeit if a Prince send an order to us we know it is not counterfeit by the seal the Secretaries hand the stile the matter of it so here all things are without exception the things are such as are suitable to the glory of God they were written by holy men that were Gods Messengers they are delivered to us by his Church they are such things as no man without revelation could write such things as no good man dare write without order from God such things as no bad man would write and they are confirmed by the accomplishment of predictions and by the presence of the Spirit blessing them unto conviction and conversion Direction 7 Lay up experiences both of the truth of Gods Word and Gods love to you first lay up experiences of the truth of Gods Word it is a great fault when persons do no not treasure up remarkable experiences of the truth of these things that God teaches us in his Word some men don't observe and take notice of such things God does in his providence give abundance of experience of the truth of threatnings they do many times come to pass in an eminent manner he fulfills his Word very plainly that men may see that sin is a provoking thing and a dangerous thing so God is giving experience of the truth of promises for a while the promise did not work but afterwards it was remarkably accomplished that Joshua takes notice of Josh 13.14 sometimes he gives eminent experience of his answering prayer 2 Sam. 1.27 sometimes of his making a good end of afflictions Jam. 5.11 and of the love he has to his people under their afflictions so Gen. 45 5. 2 Cor. 4.18 such things do much confirm our Faith that the Word of God is certain true Rom. 5 4. experience works hope Secondly lay up experience of his special love to you God gives his people experience of that in one degree or other lay up experiences of Gods converting you of the manifestations of his favour the discoveries of his glory his drawing forth the visible actings of grace such experiences as these may strengthen your faith they are of great use to scatter and remove many temptations wherewith your faith may be assaulted Direction 8. Get more spiritual acquaintance with God the spiritual knowledg of God is the foundation of all the practise of religion we know him and love him we know him and obey him we know him and submit to him we know him and put our trust in him Psal 9 10 they that know thy name will put their trust in thee in this way men come to believe at first and in this way their hearts come to be more setled in a way of believing if men understood more what God is that would deliver them from their doubtings 2 Tim 1 12 I know whom I have believed the more the soul sees of God the more he is satisfied that it is safe venturing upon his Word when we understand what a glorious faithful God the Lord is we see that we have sure ground to go upon and when we understand the riches of Gods grace that removes that great objection from our unworthiness which made men think that God was not free to save them and made them think he did not mean them in the invitations of the Gospel therefore make it your care to get as much acquaintance with God as you can revive upon your hearts the remembrance of those discoveries that formerly God has given you and be in the use of means to get new discoveries of the glory of God wait upon him to that end in the ways he has appointed and exercise faith upon the Lord Jesus as the great Prophet of his Church who bid us come to him that our eyes may be anointed with eye salve that we may see Rev 3 18 FINIS BOOKS to be Sold by Samuel Phillips at the West end of the Town-House in Boston ALLeins Rebuke to Back-sliders Alleins Remains Alleins Life and death Brooks Apples of Gold. Brooks Mute Christian Brooks Remedies against Satans Devices Brooks Privy Key of Heaven Baxters Family Catechism Baxters Poor Man's Family-Book Bunyans Conversion Bunyans Life of Mr. Badman Fox's Door of Heaven Fox's Time and end of Time. Galeaceous Carricciolous's Life Protestant Tutor Psalters Primers Sion in Distress Strong 's Spelling-Book Vincent on Prayer Vincents Catechism Vincent's Christs certain and sudden Appearing to Judgment Willard's Penitent Prodigal Willard's Childs Portion Willard on Justification With many other sorts of Books