Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	able_a	accuse_v	accuser_n	23	3	10.5503	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A73546	A discourse of the sinne against the Holy Ghost Grounded upon Matt. Chap. 12. vers. 22.-23. Tending to the comfort of such persons as, being afflicted in conscience for their sins, are, by the delusions of Satan, brought to the brinke of despaire, through feare that they have fallen into that unpardonable sinne. Written some space of time since, by that godly and judicious divine M. William Bradshaw, sometime fellow of Sydny Colledge in Cambridge; and publish'd by his sonne Iohn Bradshaw.	Bradshaw, William, 1571-1618.; Bradshaw, John, 17th cent.	1640 (1640)	STC 3515.5; Wing B4156; ESTC S91179	48,035	158

to wage warre against those that adhere still unto him which is yet far more fearefull than the former 4 For a traiterous wretch having so gon out from his Sovereign to goe on obstinately in his rebellious courses without any thought of repenting or returning againe to him neglecting all such courses whereby pardon might be procured and favour regained and that when opportunity of atchieving it were oft offered unto him were a very damnable and desperate course But in this kinde the case is yet farre worse than so For those that commit this Sinne not onely refuse to use any means of recovery but even contumeliously reject Gods mercy tendred unto them in the Gospell tread the pardon it selfe as it were under their sect trample upon Christ the person that purchased it for them despight the Spirit of God that revea●ed and that should seale it up to them and malitiously impugne and oppose those that either have accepted or make shew to accept of it And what can there be imagined more hideous or more hellish than this is The fifth part Of the Conviction of this Sin HItherto of the Conception and the Birth of the Name and the Nature of this Sin Now the fifth point followeth which is the Conviction of it wherein our Saviour laboureth to ●hew that the Blasphemy they utte●ed in this open and shameful manner was against Conscience and of malice and despight and that therein they did openly rebell against God and set themselves against the ●ingdome of God They laid to our Saviour Christs charge that as if he were an Arch-Magitian or Conjurer or a Practi●ioner of the black Art he wrought ●●ose great and marvellous works which hee did by the power and help of Beelzebub the prince of devils Our Saviour on the other side 1 By reasons disproves their blasphemous assertion 2 By other reasons proves the contrary truth to wit that what he did he did not by the power of Satan but by the power of Gods Spirit Where before wee descend to particulars let us make some generall use of this practise of our Saviour Hee pronounceth not the sentence of condemnation for this Sin before hee have by evident reason convinced them to be guilty of it It is against the Law of Love and Charity to judge and condemne● person of any crime without j●● reason and good cause And th● greater the crime is the greater mo●● our presumptions be before we must condemne Before therefo●● wee lay to the charge of any th● high and horrible Sinne it behov● us to be able by sound and sufficie●● reason to convince them first of i● Accusers have ever been esteemed odious except there have bin some just cause much more false Accusers and the greater the crimes are the more odious they are that accuse any falsly of them It must therefore needs be most odious to accuse one falsly of such a crime without evident Conviction as is of so high and hainous quality as this is And as this is a great Sin against others so is it no lesse Sinne against our selves especially in laying to our owne charge this Sinne above all other For howsoever in other sinnes I may doe another more hurt than my selfe yet if I could lay this Sinne to the charge though of the greatest innocent in the World I should not doe him so much hurt as in laying it upon false surmises and grounds upon my selfe For anothers Soule is never the worse for my false judgement But in this case especially if wee feed and nourish such conceits many direfull and dreadfull Effects will follow in our owne Soules For 1 Hee that accuseth and condemneth himselfe of this Sinne he thrusts God out of his roome and sits himselfe therein when without warrant from the Word and direction from those that have better insight in the same hee takes authority to arraigne judge and condemne himselfe when hee is not his owne but Gods to iudge and condemne Men must assent to Gods judgement and sentence revealed in his Word and measure their judgements and condemnations by it not judge or condemne of themselves As a man except hee have commission from God may not judge or condemne another to a bodily death so much lesse may hee judge or condemne himsele to eternall death We have power to deserve Hell but we have no power to condemne our selves to Hell 2 Hee that yeeldeth to this Temptation what doth hee in effect but give himselfe to the Devill acknowledging himselfe of right to belong to him and not to God and to bee actually a subject of his Kingdome For hee that shall passe such a condemnation as this against himselfe knoweth that there are but two spirituall Kingdomes hee knoweth that the Kingdome of God doth not belong to such a Sinner and that therefore he must needs belong to the other Now were it not a great presumption to give away a Soule which Christ hath reckoned at so high a price that he hath purchased it with his own pretious bloud without a commission from God 3 He doth what he can immediately to plunge his Soule into Hell-fire For how can he chuse ●ut bee possessed with hellish ago●ies and torments when hee shall ●●dge himselfe past all hope of mer●● And if it bee a sinne for a ●an be he never so vile a wretch ●● cast his body into the fire or ●●ter or to set but his Neigh●ours or his owne house on fire ●●w much more then to fling his Soule into such spirituall torments 4 Hee striketh dead or casts into a swound all the graces of God in him takes away their spirit their life their motion For this course it quencheth the light of Faith cooleth the heate of Love killeth the heart of Hope and maketh a man wholly unapt to doe God any good service For how can hee that despaires of mercy pray unto God What good will it doe a man with teares to confesse his sinnes to God when he knows and assures himselfe hee shall be damned for them What heart can hee have to thinke on God when he shall judge that all those blessings that God hath bestowed upon him shall but work to his further condemnation 5 Though it be most certaine that they that are afraid that they have committed this Sinne neither ever have nor ever shall commit this Sinne so long as they continue so affected yet to admit of such conceits is the next way in the world to bring a man to the next doore in committing it For as nothing is more powerfull to beget love and obedience than a perswasion of our Salvation so on the contrary nothing is more effectuall to beget in us a spite and ●alice to Christ and the Gospell than a perswasion of our dam●ation Now before that the Evangelist ●●teth downe the Arguments of Christs Conviction he premiseth ●●is that Christ knowing their Thoughts said unto them And by saith he so when in all like●●hood hee heard their words