Selected quad for the lemma: book_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
book_n	church_n	old_a	testament_n	6,574	5	8.1314	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A09445	Of the calling of the ministerie two treatises, discribing the duties and dignities of that calling. Delivered publickly in the Vniuersitie of Cambridge, by Maister Perkins. Taken then from his mouth, and now dilligently perused and published, by a preacher of the word with a preface prefixed touching the publishing of Maister Perkins his workes, & a catalogue of all such particulars thereof, as are to bee expected.	Perkins, William, 1558-1602.; Crashaw, William, 1572-1626.	1605 (1605)	STC 19733; ESTC S102894	75,919	204

glorious Word of God behinde their backes which they preach to others with ●heir mouthes these men may wonder at this holy Prophets nicenes or else al the world may wonder at their prophanenesse A little pollution of his lippes feared him to come into Gods presence but these dare doe it with eies eares lippes feet hands heart and all polluted their eyes polluted with carelesse looking at all vanities their eares with hearing and their lips with speaking wanton wicked talke their feete with running into wicked company their hands with practizing and their hearts with deuising and consenting to all wickednesse This is the cause why the labours of such men are almost vnprofitable because they dare come into Gods presence in their sinnes In many places of our land there is by Gods blessing much teaching yet there is little reformation in the liues of the most but contrariwise some fall to Atheisme some to Papisme some into foule sinnes not to be named amongst Christians Where is the cause surely not in the Gospel nor in our doctrine nor in the teaching of it but one very principall cause is many Ministers come into Gods presence vnsanctified in their sins not caring how loosely they liue in the face of their people and therfore God in iustice thogh he instanstly smite not them with visible vengeance for their presumption yet hee smites the people with spirituall blindnesse that they regard not their Doctrine but looke at their liues and doe rather follow the prophanenesse of the one then the holinesse of the other Ministers are such in whome God will be sanctified therefore because they doe not so but dishonour him by comming into his presence in their sinnes therefore hee cannot abide them nor giue any blessing to their labours All ministers therfore as they would see any fruite of their Ministerie let them first sanctifie themselues clense their hearts by repentance afore they persume to stand vp to rebuke sinne in others else let them not thinke that their golden words shall doe so much good as their leaden liues shall doe hurt and they may happe to confirme men that already are conuerted but hardly shall any such men conuert any soules from Poperie or prophanesse And it is a vaine conceite for men to imagine there is any force in eloquence or humane learning to ouerthrow that sin in others which ruleth and raigneth in themselues Our Church and all reformed churches may make vse of this doctrine for it is the glory of a Church to haue their doctrine powerfull effectuall for the winning of soules therfore it concerneth them to take order as well that their ministers be godly men as good Schollers their liues inoffensiue as wel as their doctrine sound or els they will find in wofull experience that they pull downe as much with the one hand as they build vp with the other But most neerely this doctrine toucheth ministers themselues who must know their case is most fearefull of all mens if they come into Gods presence in their prophanenesse for as no man is more honourable then a learned and holy Minister so none more contemptible in this world none more miserable for that to come then he that by his loose lewde life doth scandalize his doctrine and let him assure himselfe that for his presumption in rushing into Gods presence in his sinnes he shall in this world be cast out as vnsauory salt and troden downe of men with the foote of contempt and in the world to come he shall aboue all men cry out in most extreame torment of conscience Wo is me that my eyes must see the King and Lord of hostes and so because hee would not in this world come into Gods presence in sanctification and holinesse he shall therefore in feare and horror bee haled into the presence of Gods glorie at the last day there to receiue the iust sentence of their condemnation Lastly all painfull and godly Ministers may receiue comfort not to bee discouraged or driuen from Gods presence because of their corruptions or infirmities for wee see it was the Prophets case but let them still approch in feare and reuerence and be so farre from being driuen from their dutie because they being sinfull men dare not come into Gods presence without much feare as let them contrariwise be assured that the more they tremble at Gods presence here the lesse shall they feare it at the last day and when prophane and vngodly men who in this world feared not to stand in Gods presence in their horrible sinnes shal cry to the Mountaines fall vpon vs and hilles couer vs and hide vs from the presence of God then such Ministers as in this world in feare and trembling and alwayes in repentance did approach into Gods presence shall then looke vp and lift vp their heads shall say to the holy Angels all the powers of heauen helpe vs and hasten vs to come into the glorious presence of our God and Sauiour And thus we see the manifold vse of this doctrine to our Church and Ministerie Secondly Inasmuch as here the Prophet in a conscience of his corruptions feareth and cryeth out at the least apparition of Gods glory The vanitie and false dealing of the Church of Rome is here discouered in whose Legēds stories of their Saints nothing is more common then apparitions from heauen of Saints departed of glorious Angels of the virgin Mary and that so familiarly as sometime she sang with ●hē in their Cell kissed some of them and let them sucke her brests Nay of God himselfe and especially of our Sauiour Christ Iesus who they say appeared I know not how oft to one man namely to Saint Francis and appeared as hee was crucified with his woundes and imprinting those woundes of his in Francis his body which they say he bare all his life and that they bled whensoeuer hee would suffer them which he alwayes did on Good Fryday that he might bee like to Christ. This and many more such may you see in that fabulous blasphemous book of the cōformities of Saint Francis But for the matter are apparitions from heauen so ordinary in the popish Church how then came it to passe that the greatest and holiest men in the olde Testament were so amazed at the very apparition but of an Angell as wee may see in the whole course of the Storie Some ranne away and hidde themselues some couered their faces some fell downe flat on the ground and the Prophets ●ere cryed out Woe is mee I am vndone my eyes haue seene the King and Lord of Hostes. But in the Church of Rome looke the stories that Saint or Monke is no body that hath not had some apparition either of the Virgin Mary or some of the Apostles or an Angel or Christ Iesus appearing talking with them and yet alas Peter Iames Iohn those 3. great pillers they were as good as

he saith certainly God speakes in this man This is the euidence and demonstration of Gods spirit It is thought good commendation before the world when men say of a Preacher surely this man hath showne himselfe a proper scholler of good learning great reading strong memory and good deliuery and so it is and such commendation if iust is not to be contemned but that that cōmends a man to the Lord his God to his owne cōscience is when he preacheth so plainly to the capacitie and so powerfully to the conscience of a wicked man as that hee thinkes doubtlesse God is within him Art thou therefore an Angell of God then magnifie the spirit of God and not thy selfe in thy preaching of his word The next vse is for the hearers and they are heere taught that if their Ministers be Angels sent them from God then are they to heare them gladly willingly reuerently and obediently gladly and willingly because they are Ambassad●rs reuerently and obediently because they are sent from the high God the King of Kings and doe deliuer his embassage God saith the people must seeke the law● at his mo●th and good reason for if the lawe be the reuealed will of God and the Minister the Angell of God then where should they seeke the will of God but a● the mouth of his Angell The reason therefore followeth well in that place ● they should seek● the lawe at his mouth for he i● the messenger of the Lord of hosts and this ●●st all christians doe not onely if their doctrine be pleasing vnto them but though it crosse their corruptions and bee quite contrary ●o their dispositions yea though it bee neuer so vnsauorie and h●rde vnto nature yet in as much 〈…〉 message from thy God and King and ●he ●eather the Angell or messenger of that God therefore both he and it must be receaued with al reuerence with the very obedience of the hart and soule And this is the cause why a con●●nient reuerence 〈◊〉 honour is to bee giuen of all good christians euen to the persons of Gods Ministers especially when they adorne their high calling with a holy life euen because they are Angels of God Saint Paule teacheth that womē ought to be modestly attired in the congregation because of the Angels it is not only because the holy Angels are present and alwayes beholders of our seruice of God but euen because the Ministers which are Angels and messengers sent from God are there deliuering their message and Embassage rece●●ed from God And th●s wee haue the first title giuen to the Minister he is an Angell Secondly he is an 〈◊〉 that is one that 〈◊〉 to deliuer 〈◊〉 the reconciliation made betwixt God and ma●● I say not the author of that reconciliation for that is the godhead● 〈…〉 of the 〈…〉 for 〈…〉 second person Christ ●esus 〈◊〉 the 〈…〉 for that is the holy Ghost nor 〈…〉 of it for 〈◊〉 the glad ●idings of the gospell 〈◊〉 I say he is the ●●●●●preter of it that i● first one that 〈◊〉 and explane the couenant of grace and rightly lay downe the meanes how this reconciliation is wrought Secondly one that can rightly and iustly apply those meanes for the working of it out Thirdly one that hath authoritie to publish and declare it when it is wrought and by these three actions hee is Gods interpreter to the people then he is also the peoples interpreter to God by being able to speake to God for them to lay open their wants nakednesses to confesse their sinnes to craue pardon and forgiuenes to giue thankes in their names for mercies recea●ed and in a word to offer vp all their spirituall sacrifices vnto God for them and so euery true minister is a double interpreter Gods to the people and the peoples to God In which respects he is properly called Gods mouth to the people by preaching to them from God and the peoples mouth to God by praying for them to God and this title sheweth how great and glorious a calling this Ministerie is if it be rightly conceiued Now then for the vse of it First if euery true Minister must bee Gods Interpreter to the people and the peoples to God then hence we learne that euery one who either is or intends to be a minister must haue that tongue of the learned whereof is spoken in Esay where the Prophet saith first in the name of Christ as heare the great Prophet and teacher of his Church and secondarily in the name of himselfe and all true Prophets while the world endureth The Lord God hath giuen me a tongue of the learned that I should knowe to speake a word in season to him that is wearie where note the weary soule or troubled conscience must haue ● word in season spoken to him for his comfort and that cannot bee spoken without the tongue of the learned and lastly that tongue of the learned must bee giuen of God Now to haue this tongue of the learned which Esay speakes of what is it but to bee this Interpreter which the holy Ghost heere saith a minister must bee But to be able to speake with this tongue is first to be furnished with 〈◊〉 and learning Secondly with diuine knowledge as farre as it may by outward meanes bee taught from man to man but besides these hee that will speake this tongue aright must 〈◊〉 inwardly learned and taught by the spirit of God the two first he must learne from men but the third from God a true Minister must be inwardly taught by the spirituall scholler and the holy Ghost Saint Iohn in Reuelation must take the booke that is the Scripture and eate it and when he hath eaten it then saith the Angell hee must goe preach to nations tongues people and to Kings which was done not that Saint Iohn had not eaten that booke in the comming downe of the holy Ghost the very end of whose comming was to teach them spiritually but that in him Christ might teach his Church for euer that no minister is fit to preach to nations and to Kings vntill they ●a●e eaten the booke of God that is till after and besides all the learning that man can teach them they be also ●●ught by the spirit of God himselfe and this teaching is it that makes a man a tr●● interpreter and without this he cannot be for 〈◊〉 can a man be Gods interpreter to his people vnlesse he kn●we the minde of God himselfe and how can he knowe the minde of God but by the teaching of the spirit of God Indeede we bee mans interpreter by humane teaching and may interpret the Scriptures truely and soundly as a humane booke or storie for the increase of knowledge but the diuine and spirituall Interpretation which shall perce the hart and astonish the soule of man must bee taught by the inward teaching of the holy Ghost Let no man thinke I heere giue the