Selected quad for the lemma: body_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
body_n	nature_n	soul_n	unite_v	6,882	5	9.6339	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A39740	A sermon preached before the University of Cambridge in Kings-College Chapel, on the 25th of March, 1689, being the anniversary for commemoration of King Henry VI, the founder by William Fleetwood ...	Fleetwood, William, 1656-1723.	1689 (1689)	Wing F1251; ESTC R15934	16,155	30

Imprimatur Joh. Covel Procanc Joh. Copleston Joh. Spencer Humf. Gower March 27. 1689. A SERMON Preached before the UNIVERSITY of CAMBRIDGE IN Kings-College Chapel On the 25 th of March 1689. Being the Anniversary for Commemoration of KING HENRY VI. The FOUNDER By WILLIAM FLEETWOOD M. A. Fellow of Kings-College CAMBRIDGE Printed by John Hayes Printer to the Vniversity for William Graves Bookseller there 1689. II. Corinth Ch. 9. V. 12. For the Administration of this Service not only supplieth the Want of the Saints but is abundant also by many Thanksgivings unto God. AFTER St. Paul had been exhorting the Corinthians to a Liberal and speedy Contribution to the poor Saints at Jerusalem from abundance of Topicks general and particular such as the Excellence of the Nature of the Work it self the Example of the Macedonians and the Expectation that Church had the Reasonableness of this that as they had abounded in every thing so they should also abound in this Grace from the Forwardness of others from the Example of Christ who for their sakes became Poor that they through his Poverty might be made Rich from the expediency and profitableness of Perfecting a Good Work they had already begun and from their own Forwardness which had made it in a manner superfluous for him to write to them which take up the 8 and 9 th Ch. of this Ep. he enforces it by this at last that this their Charity would cause Thanksgivings to God Verse 11th and in the Text with an Addition for the Administration of c. By the Administration of this Service we must understand the Distribution of Alms the Liberality of Communicating the Exercising Acts of Charity Alms being a part of the Spiritual Service under the Gospel and call'd in Ritual and Pontific terms an Odour of a sweet smell a Sacrifice acceptable well-pleasing to God Philipp 4. 18. and so in Heb. 13. 16. To do good and to communicate forget not for with such Sacrifices God is well pleased and its Commendation here is that it not only supplies the Want of the Saints but it is an Obligation and Incitement to theirs and others Gratitude to God it occasions Prayers and Thanksgivings and the Name of God is thereby glorified As therefore the Text will not justly allow so I think the Occasion of this Assembling will require no more at my Hands than the Treating of these two Heads in the first place and of applying them to our present purpose in the second To supply the Necessities of such as are in want is a Work of such acknowledg'd Excellence in its own Nature carries such Sweetness and Complacence with it in its Practice is so agreeable to all Mankind and of such Pleasing odour before God that 't were a kind of Injury to any here to suppose them so entirely lost to all the Principles of good Nature of improv'd Reason and reveal'd Religion as to think they wanted Conviction or indeed Persuasion in this Case It is to be just to the Text that I insist a little on these Heads First then It is a Work of great Excellence in its own Nature it is perfecting Human Nature and advancing it as far as it can go in nothing do we more resemble and draw near the Godhead than in that largeness of Heart and Generous disposition of Soul from whence the works of Charity proceed and what is exprest in St. Luke by Be ye therefore mercifull as your Father also is mercifull is in St. Matthew Be ye therefore perfect even as your Father which is in Heaven is perfect T is honouring our Maker T is in a manner and by his Permission Mending the Works of God and Bettering the Creation For He in his all wise Disposal of Affairs has ordered Matters so that there should seem to be a great many Defects in Nature a great deal of Partiality in the Distribution of the things of this World and inequality in the Gifts of Fortune and hath submitted all the World to the dominion of what we call Chance and Accidents And this not through any impotence of Power defect of Foresight or goodwill to Man but most especially for the Exercise of the wisdom and the vertue of his Creatures And therefore he that best repairs these Breaches supplies these Defects makes up these Inequalities and best provides against these evil and unhappy Accidents improves the Human Nature most and best deserves of it does the most excellent and beneficial Work acts the most reasonably and most conformably to the Divine Will he best accomplishes the Works of God and the Designs of Providence It is hard to conceive an attempt more Noble or a work more Excellent than what the Heathens call'd the Conquering Fortune and giving to Man a New Fate but we must say than the Rescuing Human Nature from that Contempt and Misery into which our Sins first threw it and under which they keep it still in bondage which is done and never better done than by the Exercise of Charity 'T was Sin that first debas'd our Kind and first subjected it to Pains and Sicknesses Infirmities and Wants and all the Sorrows and Distresses under which we see and feel it labours and to whatever makes us the Objects of one anothers Pity and Compassion And God by his usual methods full of astonishing Love and Kindness hath dealt so graciously both for and with us that we may like Himself work good from evil and by a rare Reverse of Providence hath both enjoyned and enabled us to make these sad effects of Sin occasions of new Righteousness and of Destroying sin it self and in our own and one anothers Miseries hath given us as it were so many Opportunities of exercising greater Graces of practising more Virtues of raising the Soul to a Nobler pirch and aspiring to a better Immortality than otherwise for any thing we know we could or should have had He therefore that is practising Beneficence feeding the Hungry cloathing the Naked visiting the Sick and in Prison relieving the Distressed and doing Good is at the same time Rising as it were from Adams Fall vindicating Human Nature asserting his Original exalting and ennobling of his Soul and in a manner Triumphing already over Sin and Death and Hell. Yet after all this Work of Love is not more excellent in its Nature than to our Comfort it is Secondly both sweet and pleasant in its Practice And in good Truth 't is very Happy for us that it is so considering 't is so frequently so earnestly so inexcusably injoyn'd and made our constant Duty Our Souls are so united to our Bodies so closely tack'd and fastned to their Matter and clogg'd with their Corruption that tho they can make shift to discern the reasonableness and necessity of performing their duty yet they are difficultly mov'd to practice unless some sensible impression of delight accompanying the duty be made appear and they be not only fed with future hopes and expectations Proportionable