Linguistic DNA - Concept Modelling Demonstrator

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
book_n	world_n	write_v	wrought_v	183	4	7.8610	4	false

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A49258	A treatise of effectual calling and election In XVI. sermons, on 2 Peter 1.10. Wherein a Christian may discern, whether yet he be effectually called and elected. And what course he ought to take that he may attain the assurance thereof. Preached by that faithfull servant of Christ, Mr. Christopher Love, late minister of Laurence Jury, London.	Love, Christopher, 1618-1651.; Calamy, Edmund, 1600-1666.	1655 (1655)	Wing L3179; ESTC R217684	182,116	237

to be poor in faith and to be such a beggar as not to be endowed with one dram of grace and then you are beggars indeed As we say he is a poore man that God hates He that hath not Christ and hath not the treasures of heaven in him he is exposed to worse poverty a thousand times then he can be for imbracing the cal of Jesus Christ Rev. 3.17 Yea and he is exposed to worse persecution also that for fear of persecution neglects Jesus Christ Psal 83.5 The Lord will persecute them saith David with fury and wrath speaking of wicked men All persecution from man reaches but to the body but this from God reaches to the soul 7. And then lastly This should not hinder you from following Jesus Christ considering that though you should be poor and should be persecuted yet heaven wil make you amends for all Heb. 11.35 Heaven wil make amends for povertie when you are endowed with all the riches of Christ and Heaven wil make amends for persecution when there the weary shal be at rest and there the troubled shal be at ease And thus much be spoken of the third suggestion of the Devil that if you entertain the cal of Jesus Christ you shal be exposed to much povertie and persecution here in the world SERMON VI. 2. Pet. 1.10 Wherefore the rather Brethren give all diligence to make your Calling and Election sure THE Doctrine I am yet upon is this That Christians ought to put forth a great deal of diligence to make this sure to their souls that they are effectually called by Jesus Christ In the prosecution of which I have resolved one case of conscience and am yet upon the second case namely what suggestions the Devil doth use to keep men off from imbracing the cal of Jesus Christ I have laid down and answered three already 4. Now there is one suggestion more When the Devil sees either of these wil take place then he comes in with a fourth to disswade men from imbracing the call of Christ and that is this Why saith the Devil if you wil entertain the call of Christ you wil abridge your selves of all the joy and comfort of your lives you wil never have merry daies while you live upon earth You see men that pretend to be converted and doe hear Sermons what lumpish and melancholy men they are not so jocund and jolly as others are that walk not so precisely if you follow Christ and his Gospel this wil casheer all your merry daies and this wil put you into a sad temper all your jovial daies are gone Therefore to take off this aspersion that the waies of Christ are sad and melancholy waies which hath been an aspersion that from age to age and generation to generation hath been as a Gin the Devil hath used to keep men from Christianity And I remember it is one of the greatest Engines Antichrist useth to support and uphold his Kingdom The Papists to deter men from Christianity and the Protestant Religion they would hold their Disciples in hand with this that the spirit of a Calvinist is a sad and lumpish spirit and therefore they would disswade all Nations from turning to their Religion and this the Priests were to tel in all the Churches of Rome how sad and melancholy they were that turned to the Calvinists religion and this did mightily stay the people from imbracing the truth And this aspeâ—sion hath passed from hand to hand and is many times prevalent upon the spirits of men that are of the true Religion that they must not be too forward in the practice of Religion fearing lest this should work melancholy and sad thoughts in them Now to take off this I shal onely urge four or five heads briefly First Whereas you say they are melancholy sad that are called by Christ to a profession of his waies I would answer thus That they of all people in the world have most cause of mirth gladness and they are the most truly joyful people in the world That they have most cause of rejoycing is apparent When the Disciples came triumphing that they could cast out Devils heal the diseased and work Miracles O but saith Christ Rejoyce not in this but rejoyce that your names are written in the book of life Luke 10.20 As much as if Christ should say All the endowments and extraordinary gifts of the spirit they are no such grounds of joy if you had them all but here is your joy and cause of rejoycing that your names are written in the book of Life that you are in Christ and your souls shal be saved And so Paul tels us Phil. 4.4 Rejoyce in the Lord alwayes again I say rejoyce The Apostle would not speak it to them with a single command but doubtless his expression to shew that they that are people that have their sins pardoned that have their souls reconciled that have a title to glory whose names are written in the book of Life these of all men in the world have most cause of joy and gladness And they have not onely most cause but they doe most truly rejoyce and have more real joy in their hearts in one day then the wicked can have all their lives 1 Pet. 1.8 They rejoyce with joy unspeakable and full of glory What joy you have in the world the tongue is able to speak of it but the tongue is not able to speak of that inward joy that godly men have in their hearts upon the apprehension of the interest they have in Jesus Christ Psal 4.6 Lord lift thou up the light of thy countenance And Thou shalt put more gladness in mine heart c. Prov. 14.13 A good conscience is a continual feast Men are never more merry then when they are at a feast godly men they carry clear consciences about them and that makes them as joyous and pleasant as if they were alwayes at a great and sumptuous feast Indeed this is true they do not rejoyce with such exorbitancies of joy as wicked men do Wicked men rejoyce in sin that they cannot do wicked men rejoyce in their lusts in their drunkenesse and their adulteries and wayes of sin that godly men dare not do Such a rejoycing as this is the foundation of sorrow This rejoycing like the Prodigal in a riotous course of living is the foundation of sorrow and will meet with you when you are to die Secondly Grant this should be true yet consider that this sorrow that godly people have it is such a sorrow that they shal have no cause to repent thereof but it is a foundation of future joy to them 2 Cor. 7.9 10. I rejoyce saith the Apostle in that I have made you sorrowful What rejoyce to see them a sad people Yes for the sorrow I made you sorrowful with was a sorrow never to be repented of you wil never repent of that sorrow and therefore Paul would do it because it was a

also are out of Gods ordinary way of calling for God ordinarily takes this way to call a soul by the preaching of his word Luke 15.22 When the Prodigal was effectually called home to his father his father did not presently comfort him himselfe but he sends his servants and said Go take the best robe and put it upon my Sonne This son is a sinner the father is God Almighty the servants are the ministers now God doth not his work by himselfe but he leaves it to his Ministers and they shal put on the ring and the garment they shal be the instruments by the Ministry of the word to work grace in the heart Hence 't is that 1 Cor. 1.12 some are blamed that should say I am of Paul and I of Apollo and I of Christ Why are men blamed for saying they are for Christ Is that blame-worthy to cry up Christ No the fault is not simply in advancing Christ but the fault was this so to cry up Christ as to cry down duties and cry down the use of Ministers and the use of Ordinances and therein they were too blame because Christ would not immediatly by revelations and raptures cal any but leaves the conversion and cal of a sinner to the ordinary way of preaching the word and therefore a sad word it is to all out of Gods way of calling that either have not the word or if they have it never care to enjoy it 7. That if men continue long under the enjoyment of the word and are not effectually called by it they are likely never to be called I would commend to you that place to prove this in Luke 13.6 7. where Christ tels you of a fig-tree he sâ—ayed three years looking for fruit and he found none the husband-man prayed to spare it one year longer and if it did not beare fruit then he should cut it down and cast it into the fire Now this Fig-tree were the professing Jewes who lay some competent time under the Ministrie of Christ and of his Apostles and this Fig-tree if it were spared but one year and brought not forth fruit then it should be cut down and Christ did so it seems he curst it and said never fruit grow more upon this tree Now you would ask what the meaning of all this is Why Beloved a fig tree if it beareth not fruit within four years after it is planted it is likely never to bring forth fruit And here the Parable comes home thus far that if after some competencie of time in which in all likelihood men may have some sparks wrought in them by the ministrie of the word if after all this they are not converted the curse of the fig-tree is like to fal upon that mans heart never let the word doe that man good more and never let grace grow in that mans heart more let never fruit grow more upon that tree this the Parable holds forth that if you live under the enjoyment of the word long and are not converted it is an argument you shal not be called And this is a heartcutting consideration to all ancient men that have out-lived many Ministers and have seen their Ministers laid in the grave their Ministers have spent their strength and wasted their lungs in preaching to them and yet they are as profane as ever and as loose as ever and as regardless of God and grace as ever truely you are in a very sad case if it be thus with you you are likely never to be called by Jesus Christ 8. That God in the dispensations of his grace doth not ordinarilie let effectual calling run to the richer sort of men in the world but rather to the poorest sorts and ranks of men that are I remember that Austin in one of his books hath this saying Unlearned men they snatch away heaven from us that are great Scholars and truly as it was in his time so it is now Men that are great Scholars that understand Scripture know Languages they are turned into hel when unlearned and poor men they get heaven God hath chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith In all the dispensations of his grace though he cals some rich men it is true to carrie on the work and countenance his people yet Gods effectual calling doth not so commonly come among rich men as the poor of the world the poor saith Christ receive the Gospel the Learned Scribes and Doctors among the Jewes and the rich Pharisees they did all spurn at Jesus Christ when the poor and ignorant people that knew not the Law they followed him 1 Cor. 1.26 Not many wise not many noble not many mighty are called but God hath chosen the poore things of this world and things that are despised yea and things that are not to bring to nought things that are Here you see plainly this conclusion proved that Gods effectual calling doth not ordinarilie and commonly run among the greater sort of men in the world but it runs among the poorer sort of men they ordinarilie give best entertainment to the Gospel And the reason of this is 1. To magnifie the riches of his grace if Christ should cal rich men onely and chiefly many would think it was onely mens riches and mens honour did move Christ to call them Now Christ to vindicate and magnifie his grace he wil call poor despicable wretches that one would think there should be nothing in the eye of reason or sense why God should cast an eye of favour upon them 2. To magnifie and manifest his power that he wil preserve a companie of poor contemptible people among so many enemies so potent and so wealthy that they shal never be able to overthrow them 3. Because rich men lie under more temptations against effectual calling then poor men do Rich men think should I be called to be a Professor I may lose my riches endanger my estate and eclipse my honour and these are great temptations to rich men to hinder their calling Therefore you read Mark 10.22 of the young man that when Christ called him it is said he went away sorrowful for he had great possessions and would not follow Christ who had not a house wherein to put his head Many men for fear of losing their estates they lie under this sore temptation to hinder them from being called And then also for their honour men may think they shal eclipse their honour should they professe a course of Religion Gal. 22. I preacht publikely among the ordinary sort saith Paul but I preach privately to men of reputation lest I should run in vain As much as if he should say men of qualitie and of repute they would not own Christ publickly they were afraid they should lose their honour and credit therefore Paul was enforc'd to indulge them so far as to preach privately to them hence Nicodemus a great man came to Jesus by night 9. If you are onely externally called

call As you know it is with Carpenters they give more blows to knotâ—y Timber then they will do to smooth and tender wood thus doth God when he meets with a knotty sinner a wretched stout-hearted sinner God must give many blows by humiliation before he will be humbled before he can bring him to be a serviceable piece in Gods building whereas Christians of a milde and softer temper they shall have fewer blows and shall not have the terrors of God stick so fast in their hearts as others shall Hence you read that phrase Hos 6.5 saith the Lord I will hew them by my Prophets c. God doth hew some men hew them with judgments and hew them with terrour Yea but others that are not so loose as they I taught Ephraim to go I led Ephraim by the Arms and I drew him with cords of a man and with the bands of love Hos 11.4 God you see would hack and hew some men with terrour and wrath but others he would draw with love and the cords of a man Now suppose God hath not hacked and hewed thee with judgments if God melt thee with loving kindnesse and if God gain upon thy soul with mercy and with love and grace thou must not blame God thou must not confine God for this is Gods way of working sometimes as well as by wrath God works upon some with wrath â—he will allure others with loving kindnesse so that you have no cause or ground of fear that you are not effectually called because you apprehend some defects in the manner of your call because it is Gods usual way to plunge them in most humiliation and most terrour that have been most wicked liv'd men before their call and so ordinarily with men religiously trained up from their youth Thirdly God when he goes to call a sinner to conversion he looks upon the temper of those that are to be called and God sees some men of a rugged temper that their tempers will not be won but by wrath and by fire and by hell and by judgment And so it 's like Felix was his temper was such that nothing could conveâ—t him but wrath and judgement to come terrible Doctrines Some are of this temper that nothing but wrath and hel-fire can work upon them As children there are some that are of such soft and tender tempers that the shaking of a rod may doe them good there are other children if a man should whip them every day they would never leave their childish tricks It is so with sinners God sees some of a more tender and soft temper that love will gain upon them others are of a rugged disposition that nothing but wrath can affright them Now God in the dispensations of his grace he observes their temper and if he seeth love will gain more upon them then wrath will do he will take that course but if God see nothing but wrath and fire and horrour wil doe it then he wil work that way This you read in the Epistle of Jude ver 22 23. On some saith the Holy Ghost have compassion making a difference but others save with fear pulling them out of the fire The meaning is this There are some that you must shew tendernesse and compassion to in calling and working upon them they are of a tendâ—r temper but others there are that you must save with fear that is preach terrible Sermons to them and fright them with hel-fire and judgment to come For God doth observe the different tempers in men and hereupon doth proceed in different wayes of Administration in working upon them Now it may be thou that dost thus complain thou never hadst these terrours in thy soul and yet art effectually called it may be God saw thy temper more to be won by kindnesse and more gained upon in a way of love therefore wrought upon thee this way God is not bound to one way And therefore we may justly count them blame-worthy who preach onely free grace and Gods love and so tie God to one Method and they are too blame on the other side likewise if there be any such that preach only terror and wrath for God observes the temper of mens dispositions some to be knotty and some soft and accordingly proceeds ceeds in his way of working with them This ground therefore for your doubts is insufficient Secondly A second ground that makes men doubt of their effectual calling is upon the apprehension of some seeming defect that may be in the means of their calling As thus Think they I have read in the Word that it doth please God to use preaching as the ordinary means to call and convert sinners to Christ It pleased God by preaching to save them that beleeve I read this also that faith comes by hearing Now many a poor soul hath this that gravels his conscience and troubles his spirit but alas I finde a defect in this means For my part I cannot say I was converted by hearing a Sermon that which did work upon me was some other means One of these three either I was converted saith one by living in a godly family among good Christians seeing their example that first gained upon me Or saith another I was gained upon by reading a Chapter in the Bible or in some good Book and that first wrought upon me Or saith a third it may be if it was the Word it was the Word preached by a wicked man that is now turned either erroneous in judgment or prophane in practice and this occasioneth a great deal of jealousie The word preacht by the mouth of a godly Minister is Gods ordinary way but I was altogether out of this way and therefore this doth make him suspect the truth of his effectual calling Now Beloved I beseech you lend me your thoughts a little for I would fain make this Doctrine as comfortable to every called one as I can I shall speak of all these in order and shew you that put case either of these have been the meanes of thy calling yet thou hast no reason to doubt of thine effectual calling First thou suspectest thy call because the means hath been sayest thou not by hearing a Sermon or the word preacht but by living among good Christians and seeing their example and their living thou camest by this means to love the wayes of God and this was the first meanes that converted thee Beloved I doubt not but I speak to a great many that cannot say a Sermon ever converted them but only that they were gained to Gods wayes to imbrace the truth this way now what shall I say to such men as these why I would say thus much that though the Lord did not use his Word preached the ordinary meanes of converting soules in calling thee yet God is not tied and bound up to his word preacht but he may use other means to convert thy soul Secondly and more particularly that living among good people and seeing of their

example both in life and worship we finde in Scripture to be a very efficatious meanes oftentimes to convince sometimes to convert and if you can finde out this in Scripture you may have abundance of comfort It hath been a means oftentimes to convince 1 Pet. 3.16 They shall be ashamed to speak evil of you while they behold your conversation in Christ When they shall see that you live-in Christ and walk according to Christ they shall be ashaemed ashamed of what they have done and what they have spoken it shall convince them So 1 Pet. 2.15 And the Apostle when he speaks of the orderly and regular managing the worship of God 1 Cor. 14.23.25 If there comes an unbeliever among you and he sees your order saith he he shall fall down in the midst of you he shall be convinced and shall say Of a truth God is among you Seeing this saith the Apostle godly men holy in their lives and holy in their worship though he be an unbeleiver he shall fall down and say Of a truth God is among you that is by way of conviction Nay further sometimes God doth blesse the gracious lives and blamelesse example of Christians to be a means to convert some when the Gospel cannot do it and you would think this very comfortable could it be made good I would commend but one Text of Scripture to you to prove what a blessing it is to live in a good family where either husband or wife or any one in the family is godly 1 Pet. 3.1 Wives be subject unto your husbands what then that your husbands that are not wonne by the Word may be wonne without the Word whilest they behold the conversation of their wives A notable text There were many wicked Husbands that all the Sermons they heard would not convert them yet the Apostle tells them that if the wife did live a godly and holy life their lives sometimes should be more efficatious to convert their Husbands then the Word should be And this Beloved doth clearly take off this first plea of yours that because you were converted by example and by living among good Christians and seeing their walkings this gained upon you this is no cause of discouragement because sometimes I say the Lord doth blesse examples of gracious lives to make them winne and gain upon men that are brought home to Jesus Christ Secondly they go yet further There is another poor soul brought home to Jesus Christ and what saith he I do misdoubt the means of my call for a Sermon never wrought upon me the first thing of all that ever gained upon me it was the reading some Chapters in the Bible or some other holy mans book and that made me first to hate sin and love the waies of God and look after his Word for my salvation And here I doubt not but many Christians have found the Word read the first means of gaining upon their hearts And therefore to take off this likewise I shall speak two or three things in way of Answer As First that God is not tyed to any means but can work with the meanest means to bring home people to Jesus Christ If Peters conversion was by a Cock a Cock crowing and a look of Christs eye why may not Christ use the Scriptures read to be a means of a mans call If from stones God can raise up children unto Abraham why cannot God do it by the Word also to make the Word read a means in his own hands to effect it God that can do all things with nothing without means can bring to passe great things by weak means Secondly and more particularly That though ordinarily preaching and hearing of the Word preached be ordained by God and crowned by him cheifly to be a means instrumental to convert souls yet God sometimes hath blessed the reading of the Word to be a means of converting souls likewise Yet Beloved I would not do as the Prelates did who would fain have brought in reading to justle our preaching Preaching is the more noble work and must be highest in our thoughts yet if God will go out in an unusual way who can control him If God will do it by a Chapter read when not by a Sermon preached who can resist God if he will shew his power by weaker means Who shal gainsay it God sometimes honours the reading of the Word to give encouragement to reading to be a means of some mens call I have read of S. Austine that he was converted not by hearing a Sermon but by opening the Bible and reading that place Rom. 13.13 Let us walk honestly as in the day time not in rioting and drunkeness not in chambering and wantounesse and the reading of this verse wrought upon him I have read of Cyprian that he was converted by reading the Prophesie of Jonas hearing of Gods mercy to save such a wicked people and of Gods mercy to Jonas when he was in so pettisâ— a mood as to be angry with God I have known likewise another famous Minister that going by a Book-binders shop he was converted by reading a Sermon of Repentance that cost but two pence and hath been a famous Minister since for the conversion of many hundreds to Jesus Christ Junius was converted by reading the first of John so the Eunuch was converted by reading Isa 53.7 Beloved God is not bound to any one way in saving man He that wrought upon Austin by a verse reading and upon another by a Sermon he can do so by thee Reading is an ordinance of God and God is not bound up but may use that as a means of thy effectual call likewise Thirdly Yea but saith another doubting soul Peradventure I was never wrought upon neither by seeing godly people among whom I lived and observing their example nor was I wrought upon by reading good books but I was first wrought upon by hearing such a Minister that I now see is run into error or a Minister that is grown loose in his practice hapily in these present times gone to joyn with the enemy against the Kingdom and become a vile liver and the Minister being bad that wrought upon me makes me question whether the work be not an unsound and bad work also and this gravels many a Christian likewise To which I answer briefly First That suppose the Minister were bad that wrought upon thee yet the badnesse of the Minister is no just ground of making us suspect our calling For then we should never be sure of our call A man may be sure of his own conversion though a man may not be sure of the conversion of him by whose means he was called Secondly Again in is clear in Scripture God may use Ministers that are wicked themselves to convert others The Ministers of the seven Churches of Asia doubtlesse some of them were bad men Paul tells you 1 Cor. 9.17 I keep under my body lest when I preach to others I my self may

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