Selected quad for the lemma: book_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
book_n	life_n	name_n	write_v	18,504	5	6.4426	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A93771	Vindiciæ redemptionis. In the fanning and sifting of Samuel Oates his exposition upon Mat. 13. 44. With a faithfull search after our Lords meaning in his two parables of the treasure and the pearl. Endeavoured in several sermons upon Mat. 13. 44, 45. Where in the former part, universal redemption is discovered to be a particular errour. (Something here is inserted in answer to Paulus Testardus, touching that tenet.) And in the later part, Christ the peculiar treasure and pearl of Gods elect is laid as the sole foundation; and the Christians faith and joy in him, and self-deniall for him, is raised as a sweet and sure superstructure. / By John Stalham, Pastour of the Church at Terling in Essex.	Stalham, John, d. 1681.	1647 (1647)	Wing S5187; Thomason E384_10; ESTC R201450	156,279	216

founded in him but in the seed of the woman the Lord Jesus nor is Adams enmity with Satan and reconciliation with God there mentioned but only the womans and her seed partly exprest partly implied 3. All died as they sinned in Adam before this promise but the promise is not made of or to all mankinde who died vertually in him only of and to the woman is it spoken and her seed the principall whereof should be the redeemer and the rest of her seed the redeemed ones of the Lord between whom and the old Serpent Satan and his seed there should be irreconcilable enmity 4. If you would know who and who only and what number they are for whom if you speak of the certain individuals the Lamb was a ransome from the beginning you must wait till the Lambs book of life be opened of which we read Revel 13. 8. and 17. 8. where plainly you may learn That 1. He was not slain for any first or last but for such whose names are in his book 2. Comparing those Texts with Rev. 13. 3. there are a world of people whose names are not written in his book therefore not slain in the Arminian sense for all the world nor must this last place in Timothy nor any of the former be so understood We have now done with the Scriptures alleadged and abused by him and vindicated by us which I desire you to hold fast in the true sense not in a perverted interpretation these were his out-works which we have taken and possesse we them for the Truth Come we at length to batter down the enemies Forts and strong-holds of his carnall-reasonings and confident arguments Two Reasons and two Arguments were brought to prove his Doctrine That Christ gave himself for the whole world Now such as have studied Logick or artificiall reasoning know no difference between Reasons and Arguments for it they be Reasons and do not argue they are irrationall Reasons and if they be Arguments without reason they are unreasonable Arguments But to follow him in his own method and to deal with him at his own weapon If we have taken the Scriptures out of his mouth we shall not doubt but to take his weapon● of Reason and Argument out of his hand or leave him a bare Sceleton of reason without flesh or substance much lesse having any soul or life of faith or divine truth in his assertions And first of the two Reasons Reason 1. Reasons disproved The whole harmony of the Scriptures such as he had proved his point withall are they not enough and do they not sound all one way Answ 1. Call to minde every of those Scriptures but remember their sense as well as their sound He is a foolish man who thinkes as the bell tinks Nor yet do the Scriptures give an uncertain sound but in opening and examining of them with the context and scope and with other Scriptures you hear with one consent they speak not absolutely of Christs dying for all but of and for such an all and such a world as is the all and the whole world of believers elect Gods people his true Israel some of all sorts of people out of all Nations some 2. Search and consult with other Scriptures which neither he nor I have yet mention'd and you will be more fully convinc't that we have the truth with us and that this Doctrine of Christs dying for the whole bulk of men is another Gospel from that which Christ and his Apostles or we from them have ever preached I shall instance but in three places the first in Joh. 15. 10. Greater love hath no man then this that a man lay down his life for his friends and presently to shew whom he laid down his life for he addeth v. 11. Ye are my friends c. It is most true what the Apostle saith Rom. 5. 10. When we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Sonne But 1. What We meaneth he there Not all men but such as are justified by faith and have peace with God by faith v. 1. 2. Though the elect of God are enemies as considered in themselves and in their naturall estate yet being loved of God from eternity with the love of good pleasure they have a price laid down for them by Christs death to bring them under the love of friendship and when they do actually believe they are actually reconciled and of enemies are made friends so that Christ laid down his life for such as were in Gods choice and love his friends and by Christs death and the fruits of it brought into a state of actuall friendship A second follows John 10. 15. And I lay down my life for the sheep whom in the verse precedent he had called his sheep See here I beseech you ye that love the truth and love not to be seduced though that is a weak property of sheep to wander yet if you be Christs sheep hear the voice of the good shepherd and not of strangers for whom doth Christ himself say that he died he best knows and is only able to resolve this doubt why if you will believe him who is truth it self I lay down my life for my sheep he doth not say for goats at all but for the sheep behold and hearken after the harmony 'tween this and the fore-alleadged Scriptures certainly where Christ or his Apostles speak in larger tearms of all and world and whole world must not these tearms be limited to Christs sheep It was a subtill counsel your new Lecturer gave you that other Scriptures which he cited in the second place as but favouring his opinion should be expounded by the positive Scriptures but be you as wise as he was subtle and learn to reduce all his positive Scriptures which yet had Synecdoches in them of the whole for a part or of the generall for the speciall to and by this main Position of our Lord a fundamentall truth Let this be first laid down I lay down my life for my sheep and whosoever shall after so plain a foundation laid by Christ himself in his Word and by his Spirit in your hearts teach universall Redemption or Christs dying for the bulk of mankinde tell him he doth nothing else but build hay and stubble upon the foundation nay he doth yet more wickedly even lay another foundation with Christ or besides his purpose A third and last is in these words Ioh. 17. 19. For their sakes I sanctifie my self Christs sanctifying himself is his preparation for death setting himself apart to die for whom for their sakes his eleven Apostles not Iudas v. 12. and for those which should and shall believe on him through the Apostles doctrine this is not for the sake of all men that he so much as prepares to die much lesse that he died for them for whom he fitted not himself to die in their behalf So as you see to make up the harmony and consent

stake and stood as a gazing stock for half the day during which time many came and perswaded him to recant the truth and if he regarded not life and countrey goods nor possessions yet he should somewhat respect his wife that he loved so well and his young children but nothing could stirre his setled minde he knew he was not to know nor own a wife in Christs cause nor children smiling or crying all is one when the creature is laid in one scale and Christ in the other which thinke you must weigh down the judgement and sway the affections of a Christian He can with Mr Rogers his self-deniall k M. Fox vol. 3. 131. passe by his wife and eleven children one whereof was sucking on the mothers brest and be more unmoveable then the stake to which he was fastned till consumed to ashes 5. All self-sufficiency and strength for service or sufferings When once God hath enlightned a soul where his strength lieth not in himself but in Christ and as habits are infused so acts of grace must be had from him alone and that strength enough there is in Christ away then with conceits of self-strength for duty or against since When he is weak he is strong as Paul l 2 Cor. 12. 10 11. and a very nothing he is in and of himself I laboured yet not I m 1 Cor. 15. 10 I live yet not I n Gal. 2. 20. but Christ this is his language and this is the account he hath of himself even as it was prophecied of one and another of all the seed of Israel who should shame themselves and glory in the Lord Surely in the Lord is all righteousnesse and strength o Isa 15. 24. and in him I have what I have and am what I am in point of strength as righteousnesse 6. All externall Church-priviledges as Pauls being circumcised the eighth day an Hebrew of the Hebrews p Phil. 3. 7. and in his zeal for the Jewish-Nationall-Church persecuting the Christian he was and might have been more advantaged but what was gain in that as other cases and might have been gain to him he counted losse for Christ. So if descent from religious parents and birth-priviledge as the seed of beleevers hath been rested on when Christ is discovered all confidence in this and any other Church-priviledge is rejected and put away And if a man hath upon such relations thought himself to be some-body he comes now in his ownesteem to be a no-body a nothing 7. All self-ends and aims in profession of Christ and the Gospel in duties and undertakings these are denied and laid aside yea abhorred when they offer to step into Gods place and would put by his glory and the publike good and are ever made underlings to what is for God and the publike A beleever now seeks himself no further nor any other way then God allows it that is as one sweetly expresseth it q M. Reynolds Serm. of self-denial seeking our selves out of our selves in Christ and in the prosecution of his not our own glorious designs Paul was excellent at this 1 Thess 2. 4 5 6. 1 Cor. 9. 22 23. chap. 10. ult And such a self-denying spirit he found and discovered to the Philippians to be in Timothy his naturall true born Sonne in mortification as in the faith For I have no man like-minded who will naturally care for your state r Phil. 2. 20. While every man was seeking himself and his own things to compasse his own ends Timothy is caring for the publike and seeking the things of Iesus Christ and his Masters honour and advancement And the Apostle to the Corinthians ſ 2 Cor. 5. 14 25. professeth there is a principle for it in all true Christians Christs death for us that were as dead as others will teach us to die to self and self-ends that we may live to him which died to us All a beleevers ends when he comes rightly to know Christ are that he may be to the praise of the glory of free grace 8. Life and all c. That is not esteemed or thought dear t Act. 10. 24. even that a Christian is prepared with some free consent to lay down for Christ and Gospel-treasure I am ready said that eminent patern of self-deniall not to be bound only but also to die at Ierusalem for the name of the Lord Iesus How many thousands and millions I may say of the Martyrs of Iesus have not only consented but actually parted with their lives for the treasure of the Kingdom of heaven Christ and eternall life Besides all that suffered in the Apostles times and in the nine first persecutions in the 10th persecution v martyr-Martyr-book vol. 1. p. 10● there were certain thousands burnt together in one Church a hundred in one day seventeen thousand in one moneth three hundred at another time in Alexandria And p. 104. six thousand six hundred sixty six at another time a hundred and twenty at another three hundred sixty at another time when as the tormentours were wearied and the persecutours tired out And Christians with more greedy desire pressed and sought for martyrdome then others did for Bishopricks And what a cloud of such Witnesses have been in the firmament of the Church since Antichrist acted his Tragedies the Histories of the German French Spanish Italian and English Martyrs doe sufficiently evidence that all such merchants have not loved but sold away their lives unto the death Reason generall Reason In generall is that in the Text and Observation for joy thereof the joy of finding the treasure and of the Treasure found and the joy of the Pearl of great price once truly found this brings the man and merchant to consent to the selling of all and this brings his consent into act For joy he parts with his sins one and another one as another in an absolute-hatred of them never to have to doe with them again For joy of the treasure he parts with his parts and gifts so as they shall be new molded and cast and have a new stamp out of the mint and treasury of Christs holinesse For joy of the riches of Christs righteousnesse he lets goe his own and for joy of greater profits sweeter pleasures higher honours and better friends which come in by the Gospel-pearl he fits loose from all worldly advantages and creature-engagements and for joy of inward spirituall priviledges he lets go confidence in outward For joy of Christ the root of all spirituall life strength and activenesse he renounceth his own supposed sufficiencies For joy of the glory of free-grace he hates his own ends and for joy of an eternall life which is begun in the right knowledge of God in Christ he gives up this temporall life Observe it in Paul if upon rejoycing in Iesus Christ he doth not renounce confidence in the flesh a Phil 3. 3. and in the Ephesians when the