Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	authority_n	law_n	power_n	2,481	5	4.8394	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A86524	The covenant of grace opened: wherein these particulars are handled; viz. 1. What the covenant of grace is, 2. what the seales of the covenant are, 3. who are the parties and subjects fit to receive these seales. From all which particulars infants baptisme is fully proved and vindicated. Being severall sermons preached at Hartford in New-England. / By that reverend and faithfull minister of the gospel, Mr Thomas Hooker.	Hooker, Thomas, 1586-1647.	1649 (1649)	Wing H2644; Thomason E562_20; ESTC R11285	85,165	88

to himselfe although he had no right nor reason so to doe So that if they be left to them selves they would prophane them 2 There will be a confusion on the holy things of God and therefore it is that God hath given them lawes and hath committed these to a community of men and hath left it to them according to the rule of rationall charity to judge whom they will admit and to those they do admit to become subject to those Lawes and Rules and live accordingly so as it is committed to them for that purpose to whom and when they please Thus it was in the time of the Law and thus it is in the times of the Gospel and so it shall be to the comming of Christ 1. Thus it was in the time of the Law they must be in covenant the people of the Jewes were taken in from the world and hee gave them lawes he hath not dealt so with any Nation Psalm 147.20 The treasury of his Lawes were committed to them And Romanes 3.1 all the spirituall priviledges were committed to the Jewes What is the priviledge of the Jewes Much every way c. And Jer. 13.11 For as the girdle cleaves to the loynes of a man so have I ●ied to me the whole House of Israel c. But they would not hear that they might be people to God and then have that honour This is the reason in Nehem. 9.38 he speak thus Now because of all this we make a sure covenant and write it and our Princes and our Levitse and our Priests seale unto it Hence it is that all the choyce priviledges are the Legacies of the Jewes And Exodus 12.43 No stranger shall cat thereof And therefore they must be in the compasse of a visible Church Circumcision is the proper name and livery of Gods people Ephes 2.11 You were Gentiles and called uncircumcision of them that were called Circumcision c. and that were the Jewes and they were the people of God to whom it was left to judge of them that were fit to be made par●akers of these priviledges 2 It is thus also in the time of the Gospel they must be ingaged in the covenant and the Seales and Officers and Ordinances of the Church are their propriety As for the Officers Christ when he asconded he gave gifts unto men and ordained some to be Apostles and some Prophers c. Hee spake of some part for the whole therefore in an ordinary way it must be a visible Church the invisible do not meet to chuse but the officers are by the choyce of such a people in such a particular Church and God does set them in a particular Church and the Officers are to dispense the things of God to that Church and therefore a Minister without a people is as a husband without a wife And therefore all the s●al●s must be dispensed by the Officers of the Church and by none else as appointed by God so to do And therefore the treasury of the Church must be dispensed by faithfull men chosen by the Church Acts 6.3 Chuse you men of honest report and full of the holy Ghost c. If they must be so that must order the treasure of the Church much more the seales which are the speciall treasures of the Church they must be men that have gifts chosen the Sacraments are the seales of the Covenant one with another we are all one bread 1 Corinth 10.17 For we that are many are but one bread And if there be no Officers but in the Church and they that be Officers are to administer onely to the Church they must needs be a company gathered in a Church How a man must be fitted to come into a Church belongs not to me now 3 This must continue till the comming of Christ Rom. 11.17 And though some of the branches be broken off and thou being a wild Olive tree wert grafted in for them and made partaker of the root and fatnesse of the Olive tree Where h● speakes of unchurching of the Jews and Churching of the Gentiles If the branches be cut off and thou art grafted in and made partakers of the fatnesse of this Olive tree So as the Gentiles are made partakers of the fatnesse of the Olive the Olive tree is the Church and the fatnesse of the Olive tree is the priviledges that appertain thereunto so as alwayes they must be ingrafted into the Church before they can have the priviledges belonging thereunto and this shall be to the end of the world When the Jews are converted they shal come into a Church of God this is the first they shall enter into a Church and then the fatnesse followes to the branches in the Olive Secondly they covenant for their children as well as for themselves Deut. 29.10 You stand this day every one of you before the Lord your God your Children your wives c. which shewes they may receive the covenant When he speaks of the covenant in the breadth of it then he takes in their little ones and therefore parents covenant as well for their litle ones they undertake for all that shall be born of them they are in their parents loynes all of them are under their power and they have authority to impose the law of God upon them So in Genes 17. 10 11. Let every man child be circumcised and this shall be a token between me and you of my covenant every male shall be circumcised This is the cause why Joshua when he was to depart the world said to the people Chuse you whom you will serve but I and my house will serve the Lord. Every believer hath power to bring his children into this covenant it was a speciall prerogative to Abraham Mr Spilsbery saith If this be to every believing Parent as to Abraham then every beleever must be the father of the faithfull as Abraham was But I deny the consequence for it will not follow if we looke at Abraham as a pattern of believers hence the priviledges and covenant are entailed upon Abraham to all the nations of the world visibly to be dispensed to all the nations of the world and they shall know and imitate him and God will save them He is the Father of the faithfull by imitation the covenant is made after Gen. 12. he is called and the root is stated upon him Although there was a covenant with Noah and Shem yet it was stated upon Abraham and not upon them so as the consequence fails But if we look to his personall faith he hath power to his children onely But No Spilsbery in the 14th page 13th 14th lines if it be meant to all his children he conceives he had many children by Keturah Genes 25. c. which he conceives was not within the covenant for they were not partakers of the seales This will follow for Keturah was not worse then Hagar for she was a Concubine as well as Keturah yet Abraham did circumcise

the Law of God cannot be a cause of the work of the spirit but sin and self cannot be subject and therefore they cannot be the cause of the working of the spirit nay the nature of man cannot be nay they cannot suffer the work upon them they are not able to bear it Rom. 8.7 It is not subject to the law of God neither indeed can be 3. That which is wholy beyond the power of corrupt nature that corrupt nature cannot bee the cause of but to put off sin and self is wholy beyond the power of corrupt nature for nothing can work beyond the power of its own principle and of our selves we are not able to think a good thought So it must be given us so we have gained this that therefore we are all meer patients in the work of conversion both men and children 4. Here lies the life of the answer in these severall works where the hearts are sufferers the soules of Infants are as much fit as the soules of any man and not so much unfit as the soules of many men to receive grace and they have as great a capability as men have and in some measure a greater capabilitic then some men have here is two things to be considered 1. That they are as fit as any but not so unfit as many and therefore all are meet sufferers in the work of the spirit to have sin and self subdued the soules of children are as fit and have as great a capability in the world 1. You must remember heretofore we have made it good that all the sonnes of Adam are tainted with Originall sin equally no man have lesse of Adams sin nor lesse of Originall sin one then another but all men and children are equall here and men of years have contracted many actuall sins nay whatever they doe before they are converted is sin all their thoughts words and deeds so as they grow more proud and more witty to commit sin and to doe wickedly because of actuall transgression some grow more sturdy in their sinfull courses which is drawn and contracted by actuall sin and infants are free from those now those that have acted them are more fit to commit them nay many are habituated in commiting of sin so as they have gotten a habit of drunkennes and a habit of uncleanes c. so as it is plain children are as fit as any and not so unfit as many are for if children have as little opposition as any and lesse then some then it must needes be true For where lesse opposition against a thing is there is lesse trouble to receive it for they are contrary for where lesse opposition is there is a greater disposition to receive it but that children doe as little oppose grace as any man of years all opposition comes from the sinne of Adam and Originall sin came from that and here wee see all are equall in men of years and children and this is the first kinde of opposition 2d Sort of opposition arise from sinfull habits and this comes by actuall sin and by this we come to bee more self-confident and all these infants are free of a man that hath lived many years in sin is come to be habituated in sin as a man that dotes upon the world gets a habit of covetousnes and a man gets a habit of frowardnes these infants are freed from Acts 7.28 Wilt thou kill me c and Acts 18.6 And when they resisted and blasphemed c. Children are dead in sin but some men are twice dead as Jude speaks at the 12th verse Twice dead and plucked up by the roots and as Christ sayd of the Pharisees they made men twofold more the childe of Hell take the most men living and there is Sin and Selfe to be subdued and in regard of Adam sin and originall sin they are all alike But by actuall sin men are full of carnall confidence and therfore the Spirit must have much to do here because men do harden their own hearts and so make themselves twenty times more the child of hell so they are twice dead and pulled up by the root so that they are lesse fit then some naturall men in the world and many men in the world that are but men of the world are more fit then they so that children are more capable then any man The place in Jude is spoken against false Prophets they were twice dead they were dead by originall sin actuall sin there is a sort that hath received a seeming light and get a little of the Word and that he is provoked that a man thinks he is a living man There is another sort that persecute the Word now these are dead again so they are twice dead he is provoked by the work of the Law and now he is more proud and is as athing pulled up by the roots so as nothing can recover him no possibility to come neere him so as it is so farre from being harder for the Spirit to work upon infants that there is an easinesse in this kind The 3d Proposition Beleeving Parents when they enter into a visible covenant to walk in Gods wayes they enter not for themselves alone but for all that come of them and God does ingage himselfe by their meanes to worke grace in their hearts as he sees fit hee counts them to have federall holinesse God accepts of both and he will doe good to them as he sees fit In this Proposition there are foure things to be considered 1 Believing Parents enter into a visible covenant for themselves and their posterity 2 God expects it at the hands of them both 3 God ingages himselfe to use them as instruments to doe good to them as he sees fit God wil give grace to his children he will use them to his own mind God will use them as instruments but he will doe them good as he sees fit not that parents can give grace or worke grace in their children and therefore speak not so for that is as if when God works upon the heart by the preaching of the word you should say the Minister gives grace 4 God accounts children as having federall holinesse 1 When believing Parents enter into a visible covenant they doe enter into it for themselves and children But they must enter into a visible covenant the reason of it is because communication of them that doe so enter into covenant doe in reason belong to them that be in a community of other according to rationall charity because God gives the priviledges of his holy things to a community of men and they must judge according to a rule of charity and passe sentence as things appeare according to that rule For if it be left to every privat man to judge that every man may judge himself fit and be his owne Judge to partake of the ordinances then these two evils will follow 1 An abusing and prophaning Gods holy things for he would carve all