Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	bear_v	truth_n	witness_n	3,073	5	8.6773	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A77355	The works of William Bridge, sometime fellow of Emanuel Colledge in Cambridge; now preacher of the Word of God at Yarmouth. The first volume. Viz. I. The great Gospel-mysterie of the saints comfort and holinesse, opened and applyed from Christs priestly office. II. Satans power to tempt; and Christs love to, and care of his people under temptation. III. Thankfulnesse required in every condition.	Bridge, William, 1600?-1670.; Yates, John, d. ca. 1660.; Greenhill, William, 1591-1671.; Adderley, William.	1649 (1649)	Wing B4445; Thomason E471_1; ESTC R6919	182,218	262

a prison he rattles chaines in the ears of a poor beleever and so labours to scare him away from his conscience and from his faith and from the Truth and Cause of God and the good waies of Christ How shold we ward off this blow Quest First Answ 1 Before the temptaton comes labour to possesse your heart much with the Mercy and priviledge of suffering for the Cause Truth Name and Way of Christ To you it is given not only to beleeve but to suffer 't is a great Gift A suffering opportunity and a suffering heart is a great Gift from God Is it not a great mercy to be conformable to Jesus Christ our head For this Cause saies Christ came I into the world that I might bear witness unto the truth Is it not a great mercy to be confessed at the last day before all the world Angels and men He that confesses me before men saies Christ Him will I confess before my father c. Is it not a great mercy to live and reigne with Christ a thousand years ye know that Scripture I shall not speak of the meaning of it now but cerainly there is a great deal of glory promised there living and reigning with Christ a thousand years and the promise is made unto those that do acknowledge and own the Cause and Truth of God and Jesus Christ Possesse your heart much with the priviledge and mercy of bearing witness to the Truth the Cause and the good way of Christ before your temptation comes Secondly Answ 2 If you would bear off the blow of this temptation Be sure that you look upon both sides of your suffering or bearing witness to the Truth Cause or way of Christ the Dark side and the Light side let them not be sundered When the Lord cals for any of his people to suffer at any time for him he does give them more strength than before and he does give them more Comfort and Consolation than they had before Now Satan comes and holds forth the suffering he makes mention of the suffering but he hides the Strength and the Consolation Either Satan holds forth the suffering alone or else if he do mention any strength or comfort that a gracious soul shall have in the suffering 't is but the same strength that he hath now he don't speak of the strength he shall have then and the great Consolation that he shall have then when the suffering comes and so these being parted the Suffering and the Consolation being parted now our faith fails When ever therefore this temptation does come upon you answer thus Satan here thou bringest the suffering before me and causest that to come before me but thou doest not tell me of the strength I shall have and of the consolation I shal receive Satan I shall not have the strength I have now nor the consolation I have now but I shall have more strength then when the suffering comes and I shall have more consolation when as the affliction comes than I had before Keep these together don't look only upon the one side of your suffering and witness-bearing but look upon both sides together and thus you shall be able to stand and ride out the storm of this temptation But you will say Quest We have heard of the several blowes that Satan gives unto our faith unto the faith of Reliance unto the faith of Assurance and unto the faith of Acknowledgment how he labours to weaken all these our faiths and how we should bear off al these blows But there may be yet some temptation possibly that does not fall within the compass of these temptations these directions are pointed against these particular temptations but I have other temptations that don't fall within the compass of these whereby Satan labours to weaken my faith and to make my faith to fail What general Rules and Directions may be given by which a man should so walk as that Satan may not make his faith to fail in the time of his temptation First Answ 1 Before your temptation comes while you are upon even ground Study and look much into the Scripture and into every corner and nook thereof as I may so speak laying and treasuring up Promises and Words sutable to every condition Let the Word of the Lord dwell in you richly that so when a temptation comes ye may have a word sutable at hand and this will help ye to bear off the strength of the temptation when it comes Secondly Answ 2 Either a particular Word and Promise does come unt ye or it does not in the time of your temptation If it do come unto ye Take heed that ye dont ' measure your selves or your condition by the warmth and life and inlargment of your heart which ye have at the coming in of the word And if a particular word or Scripture and promise do not come unto you in the time of your temptation don't measure your selves and your condition by the straightness and deadnesse of your heart which you have at that time when a particular word does not come Thirdly If temptaion come Answ 3 Look much unto the infirmities of Jesus Christ not the sinful infirmities for so he had none but he had many other infirmities And ye know what the Spouse in the time of Desertion saies in the book of the Canticles His left hand is under my head and with his right hand he does imbrace me The right hand is a hand of power and the left hand is a hand of weaknesse and in the time of Desertion and Temptation it 's a great relief to a poor soul to consider the infirmities of Jesus Christ his left hand is under our head then As when a man is inlarged in heart 't is good to consider of Christs Example that so he may be humbled under his inlargement So when a man is in Desertion or Temptation it 's good for to think of Christs Infirmities that so he may not be overwhelmed or cast down too much Fourthly If temptation do come be sure of this Answ 4 That ye don't conclude it is no temptation Satan tempts and then he tempts a man to think it is no temptation So long as a poor soul thinks it is but a temptation his heart is borne up with comfort and he saies It is but a temptation and it will be over shortly and the Lord Jesus Christ will pity me for 't is but a temptation and so his heart is borne up with comfort waiting upon God But if the Devil can get a man so far as to make him think it is no temptation but worse than a temptation then his heart fails and his faith failes Therefore I beseech ye If a temptation come don't conclude it is no temptation but say Oh! it may be 't is a temptation and therefore I will wait on God Fifthly If temptation come Answ 5 Remember thine own soul of the waies of God with thee Gods waies ye know