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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	bear_v	great_a	time_n	1,448	5	3.1883	3	false

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A77498	The drinking of the bitter cup: or, The hardest lesson in Christ's school, learned and taught by himself, passive obedience. Wherein, besides divers doctrinall truths of great importance, many practicall directions are held forth, for the teaching of Christians how to submit to their heavenly father in suffering his will, both in life and death, patiently, obediently, willingly. / As it was lately presented to the church of God at Great Yarmouth, by John Brinsley, minister of the Gospel there.	Brinsley, John, 1600-1665.	1660 (1660)	Wing B4713; Thomason E1838_1; ESTC R210133	201,893	311

Taking notice of this errour in comparing our selves with others do it in a clean contrary way In spirituals look at those who are above us better then our selves that will breed in us a holy emulation In temporals looke at those who are beneath us in worse condition then our selves of which fort still we shall find some or other this will breed in us a holy contentation Thus stay we our hearts against all those repining murmuring thoughts which might arise in them at the drinking of this Cup. Which is the second Caveat that I propounded Take heed of Murmuring And so in the third place of Fainting Caveat 3 Take heed of fainting A needfull Caveat it being a thing which the best of Gods Saints as I have shewn you are subject to in the drinking of this Cup to faint This we finde Eliphaz charging upon his friend Job cap. 4. v. 5. Now it is come upon thee and thou faintest And there was a truth in the Charge The evil which he greatly feared was come upon him as himself telleth us in the Chapter foregoing v. 25. great trouble and affliction was befallen him and he was not able to bear it Notwithstanding he had been a Comforter of others in their afflictions as the Verses here foregoing have it Cap. 4. v. 3 4. Behold thou hast instructed many and thou hast strengthned the weak hands Thy words have upholden him that was falling and thou hast strengthned the feeble knees yet now that it came to his own turn now that the Cup was put to his mouth he fainted at the drinking of it Now it is come unto thee and thou faintest it toucheth thee and thou art troubled And truly so fareth it sometimes with the best of Saints though strong men in Christ such as have been able to comfort others in their afflictions yet when they come to act the same part themselves God leaving them to the experience of their own weaknesse they droop they cannot bear up head and heart as they should do they are inordinately affected even fainting under their burdens But this Gods people are not to give way to but strive against My Son saith Solomon in the Text forecited Prov. 3.11 despise not thou the chastisement of the Lord neither be weary of his Correction Nor faint when thou art rebuked of him so the Apostle citeth that Text Heb. 12.5 Despising sleighting of chastisements and fainting under them are two Extremes like Scylla and Charibdis a Rock and a Gulf the one opposite to the other Now where Satan cannot dash men against the one he will endeavour to drive them into the other Where he cannot bring them to sleight Gods chastisements he will endeavour to make them sink under them Let Christians beware equally of both Not despising Corrections Chastisements let them not be weary of them faint under them Which two words we finde the Apostle putting together vers 3. of that Chapter Heb. 12. Consider him that indured such contradictions of sinners against himself lest ye be wearied and faint in your mindes Thus do men being wearyed in their bodies they faint in their spirits Let it not be so with Christians under their Afflictions Though they be heavy and long yet let not them be so weary of them as to faint under them 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Though they be broken in the outward man in their Bodies in their Estates c. yet let the Inward man be kept whole Ne frangantur animo let them not be broken in their mindes so as to faint under their burdens This is the Apostles advise concerning well-doing Gal. 6.9 Let us not be weary of well-doing for we shall reap if we faint not And make we use of it as to well-suffering Be not weary under Gods Corrections so as to faint when we are rebuked of him To faint under any Tryals To faint under tryals a thing unbeseeming a Christian yea to be inordinately affected with them it is a thing unbeseeming a Christian being dishonourable and unsuteable to his Profession What is it A losse in Estate that thus affecteth him Why he professeth to have laid up his best treasure in heaven where he hath a better and an induring substance as the Apostle calleth heavenly glory Heb. 10.34 Is it the losse of some near or dear Relation Friend Childe Parent Husband Wife a thing which often sitteth as near the heart as any other tryall whatever Why his Profession is to believe the Doctrine of the Resurrection And therefore how is it that he or she should sorrow as others which have no hope as the Apostle saith of Christians immoderate mourning for the dead 1 Thess 4.13 And so is it in other cases Whatever the affliction be yet to have the heart not only drencht which it may be but drowned in sorrow so as thereby to be rendered and made unfit for the duties both of generall and particular calling as often it is it is a thing unsuteable to a Christians profession and no small disparagement to Gods Religion Much it is that Nature being well tutoured is able to do in this way Histories tell us of Heathens such as knew not God never heard of the name of Christ what an excellent temper some of them had brought their Affections and Passions unto so as not to be inordinately transported distempered by any accidents that could betide them And we see it in daily experience how meer civil men such as know not what the work of Grace means have nothing but Reason to steer their course by yet what an evennesse of spirit what moderation and temper do they oft times shew in bea●ing the burdens the afflictions which befall them And shall Nature be able to bear up the spirit in such cases and shall not Grace much more do it Shall Reason moderate Affections and Passions and shall not Religion do it Great cause have Christians many times to check and shame themselves upon this account Alas with what shaking hands what trembling hearts do they often take those Cups which their heavenly Father holdeth forth to them Their hearts even faint at the thought and apprehension of them before they come at them So was it not with our heavenly Pattern here Here was a bitter Cup coming towards him which he had tasted of already and was now to drink it off And see with what a steady hand what a strong and confident resolution doth he receive it The Cup which my Father hath given me shall I not drink it Herein let it be the endeavour of all those who professe themselves to be his Disciples to imitate him to receive and drink their Cups without fainting Q. Q. I you may say this is a thing indeed which Christians are to endeavour How the soul may be kept from fainting under Afflictions but how shall they attain unto it Sometimes many times it so falleth out that their burden far exceedeth their strength So it fared with the

Pharises had conspired against him Judas his own servant had betrayed him Notandum hic est quod non dicit An non bibam poculum quod infundunt mihi Judai inimici hostes sed Quod dedit mihi Pater Admonemur hic ut in ferendâ cruce suspiciamus ad Putrem coelestem Muscul Com. in Text. the High-priests Officers with a band of Souldiers were ready at hand to apprehend him but he looketh beyond all these looketh up unto God his Father looking upon this Cup as prepared and presented by him The Cup which my Father hath given me Thus should Gods children in all their afflictions and distresses look through Instruments Hic docet nos in adversis non respicere in hominem aut Daemonem mala inferentem sed in Deum permittentem Ferus Annot. in Text. beyond secondary causes look through them unto God himself So did holy Job the story is well known when he heard what the Chaldeans and Sabeans had done to him how they had plundered him of his substance driven away his Heards and his Flocks what saith he to it Why The Lord hath given and the Lord hath taken Job 1.21 Non Chaldaei non Sabaei saith one he doth not say the Chaldaeans the Sabaeans have done this but The Lord hath taken As for them they were but Instruments it was God that set them on work to doe what they did And therefore Job looketh beyond them unto him And the like did David when Shimei came like a mad Dog with open mouth foaming and barking against him for which Abishai would have had him have given him commission to take off his head what saith he Let him alone and let him curse for the Lord hath bidden him 2 Sam. 16.10 11. This had God done though not by any order or direction yet by a secret providence so ordering and disposing of Shimeies malice that he might be instrumentall for the further humbling of David And David taking notice hereof he disdains to look at that despicable Varlet but looketh higher unto God by whose permission yea secret commission he did what he did So it is In all mans sufferings God the principal Agent in whatever sufferings whoever be the Instruments God himself is the principal Agent What they do they doe it by Gods ordination and appointment It was one thing which Rabshakeh would have Hezekiahs servants to tell their Master concerning his coming up against Jerusalem Isa 36.10 Am I now come up without the Lord against this place to destroy it The Lord said unto me Goe against this place and destroy it This he spake falsely and yet truely falsely as pretending to a Commission and Warrant from the Lord for what he did yet so as there was a truth in what he said Though he had no word from God yet it was by his secret counsel and appointment that he came up thither So the same Prophet speaking from the Lord elsewhere asserts it Isa 10.5 O Assyrian the rod of mine anger the staffe in their hand is mine indignation So it is in what hand soever it be the Rod the staffe of Affliction and Suffering is Gods If the Assyrian come up against Jerusalem it is God that sendeth him I will send him against an hypocritical Nation and against the people of my wrath will I give him a charge so it there followeth vers 6. True it was he intended nothing lesse then the doing of Gods work the fulfilling of his will as the next verse hath it Howbeit he meaneth not so neither doth his heart think so vers 7. He came of his own head to doe what was in his own heart to satisfie his ambitious and cruel minde in conquering of Kingdomes and making havock of the people where he came That was his design Yet so as herein he had a secret Commission from God who sent him as a scourge against that people Thus is God the Orderer and Disposer of whatever evils befall his people Shall there be evil in a City and so in a Family and the Lord hath not done it Amos 3.6 Evill of affliction and suffering is Gods work issuing out of his mouth That is the Churches acknowledgement in her captivity Lam. 3.37 38. Who is he that saith and it cometh to passe when the Lord commandeth it not Out of the mouth of the most High proceedeth not evill and good As prosperous successes so crosse issues they are all of them by Gods determination and appointment I form the light and create darknesse I make peace and create evill I the Lord doe all these things Isa 45.7 So it was in the sufferings of our blessed Saviour as I have in part showen you already and shall God willing do it yet more fully it was God his heavenly Father that measured them out to him He it was that mixed that tempered that Cup for him his naturall Son and the like he doth for all his adopted children And if so then great reason there is why they as their blessed pattern here doth in all their afflictions and tryals should look up unto him taking notice of his hand in the ordering and disposing of them Without which they can neither have support under them nor yet a sanctified use of them Which let it be applyed by way of Reprehension Applic. Exhortation Vse 1. Vse 1 Reprehension of such as in their afflictions look only downwards By way of Reprehension Were the eyes of our blessed Saviour in his sufferings thus raised upwards what then mean our eyes to be cast altogether downwards as often they are In afflictions and sufferings whither is it that men ordinarily look Some they know not to what to Chance and Fortune things which are not others to Instruments and secondary causes So it is for the most part If men be plundered and spoyled of their goods whither doe they look To the Chaldaeans the Sabaeans the spoylers Robbers Enemies that did it If themselves or theirs be visited with sicknesse what is it that they pore upon The time and place when and where they got it how they came by it and by what means they may be rid of it And so for Slanders their inquiry only is after them that raised them This is the highest pitch that carnall spirits rise unto As for God he is not in all their thoughts as David saith of the wicked man Psal 10.4 And as for Gods own children they are oft times blame-worthy in this kinde for looking too much downward too little upward And thence is it that they are so impatient under their Crosses as too often they are like Horses champing upon the Bil not considering the hand that holdeth the Bridle biting the stone not taking notice of the hand that throweth it Vse 2 So did not our heavenly Pattern Exhort to follow Christs example in looking upwards unto God Vse 2. Whom be we who professe our selves his Scholars exhorted in this to imitate and follow