Selected quad for the lemma: book_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
book_n	act_n	king_n	parliament_n	3,039	5	6.6283	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A30624	A discourse of schism address'd to those dissenters who conform'd before the toleration, and have since withdrawn themselves from the communion of the Church of England / by Robert Burscough ...	Burscough, Robert, 1651-1709.	1699 (1699)	Wing B6136; ESTC R11016	95,729	234

benefit of all the Learning the Wisdom and Gifts of the Church The Hand the Eye the Ear the Foot and every Member of the Body is as ready to help or serve the whole and every other particular Member as its self But if it be cut off it is neither helpful nor helped O what a Mercy is it for every Christian that is unable to help himself to have the help of all the Church of God Their Directiont their Exhortations their Love their Prayers their Liberality and Compassion according to their several Abilities and Opportunities As Infants and 〈…〉 have the help of all the rest of the ●●ises that are in Health II. I am now to enquire what you understand by Edification and whether you rightly judge how it is best promoted Now as far as I can learn from those that pretend to it for the Defence of their Separation you take that to be Edifying that 〈◊〉 in you some sensible Devotion that excites in you some Religious Affections such as Love Joy Fear or the like Other things might be added but I suppose you have these chiefly in view when you prefer the Service in your Meetings before that of our Churches The way of Praying in your Assemblies we are told is more Edifying because you can be warmer or more servent in it than in the use of the prescribed Forms The Preaching amongst you is more Edifying and Powerful than that of the Conforming Clergy because you feel the working of it more upon your Hearts and to argue against this i● to dispute against your own Experience Nevertheless I shall examine whether there are such Advantages in your way as are pretended and whether the things on which you fix so high an estimate deserve the Preference which you have given them 1. To begin with the way of Praying us'd in your Meetings give me leave to tell you That it may be the Effects of it are not of such a Nature as you conceive nor any Argument of its Excellency It cannot well be thought that a Person should commonly make better choice of the matter of Prayer or express it better or in fitter terms when he speaks with little Deliberation or none at all than he himself or wiser and better Men can in a Form of Words when they have long meditated on the Subject and employ'd many and serious Thoughts about it It must be therefore the Novelty of of his Expressions and probably something in the Tone of his Voice which makes his Performance so agreeable and has such an influence upon you But you are not to think that God is at all wrought upon by the Variation of Phrases or the Modulations of them Nor are these things apt to make any deep Impressions on the Nobler Faculties of the Soul but having done their Work in the Fancy or Imagination they seldom rise higher nor can they do it by any thing of Vertue in themselves Extempore Prayers may have more Power than Forms to produce in some Ill Men a kind of Extempore Devotion some Appearances of Religious Love and Fear and Joy But these being rais'd by Surprize when the Surprize is over they are gone And yet there are many that put great Confidence in such vanishing things Many that live comfortably on the reflection on those delightful Dreams esteeming them Realities and clear Evidences of their Sanctification Many have been famous for what they call the Gift of Prayer who have miserably deceiv'd themselves and been only as Sounding Brass when they were esteem'd as Oracles And many that have thought themselves much Edified by hearing the Extempore Prayers of other Men have been under the same Delusion In such cases I doubt not but both Speakers and Hearers feel such Motions within them as bear a resemblance of true Devotion And these they do not impute to Natural Causes as a little Philosophy would teach them but to Inspiration or the Effectual working of Sanctifying Grace And so they grow up into a strong Opinion that they are the Favourites of Heaven when they allow themselves in the practice of Injustice of Cruelty and Oppression and other grievous Sins I deny not that some Persons who have the Gift of Elocution may upon occasion express the Matter of Prayer in suitable Terms Nor do I question but to hear them when they do so may be of benefit to others Yet if they put too high a value upon this and if it brings them into a contempt of all Liturgies what they took to be a peculiar Priviledge becomes a dangerous Snare to them and instead of promoting cannot but hinder their Edification For my own part I think a well composed Liturgy has much the Advantage of your way of Praying and is much fitter in Publick Assemblies It best secures the Honour of Religion in the Solemnities of Worship and affords us the greatest help in the part that we bear in it In the use of it we have no occasion to be in pain or fear about the next Words that may fall from the Minister however he be a Person of mean Abilities nor have we cause to condemn those that before came from him or any need to revolve them in our Minds as being uncertain whether we may say Amen to them Having approv'd of all before we have nothing to do but to keep our Minds intent on the Matter as it comes before us and to exercise our Devotion as it directs us and then we may have a comfortable assurance that we perform a Service that is acceptable to God and agreeable to his Will As for our own Liturgy the Learned Dr. Beveridge hath very well shew'd the Excellency of it and its Usefulness for Edification And could I prevail with you to persue the Sermon attentively wherein he treats of this Subject I should hope it would give you much Satisfaction What I shall say more of our Liturgy is taken from a great Authority and express'd in these Words The Book of Common Prayer was compil'd in the Times of the Reformation by the most Pious and Learned Men of that Age and defended and confirm'd by the Martyrdom of many and was first Established by Act of Parliament in the Time of King Edward VI and never repeal'd or laid aside save only in the short time of Queen Mary's Reign upon the return of Popery and Superstition And in the first Year of Queen Elizabeth it was again reviv'd and Established by Act of Parliament and the Repeal of it then declar'd by the whole Parliament to have been to the great decay of the due Honour of God and Discomfort of the true Professors of the Truth of Christ's Religion And ever since it hath been us'd and observ'd in the best Times of Peace and Plenty that ever this Kingdom enjoy'd and contains in it an excellent Form of Worship and Service of God grounded upon the Holy Scriptures and is a singular Means and Help to Devotion 2. It hath been said That the