Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	believe_v	faith_n	lord_n	1,391	5	3.9699	3	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A01898	A childe of light vvalking in darknesse: or A treatise shewing the causes, by which God leaves his children to distresse of conscience. The cases, wherein [God leaves his children to distresse of conscience.] The ends, for which [God leaves his children to distresse of conscience.] Together vvith directions how to come forth of such a condition: vvith other observations upon Esay 50. 10, and 11. verses. By Tho: Goodwin B.D.	Goodwin, Thomas, 1600-1680.	1636 (1636)	STC 12037; ESTC S103254	155,960	295

himselfe our righteousnesse make himselfe under the law Gal. 4. 4. and to make up a full righteousnesse fulfill every part of it Rom. 8. 3 4. Is it thy continuance in sinne and the number and iteration of them that amazeth thee All fulnesse dwells in him who is our righteousnesse Col. 1. 19. and hath dwelt in him longer then sinne in thee and the righteousnesse of our Messiah is everlasting righteousnesse Dan. 9. 24. The merit of which an eternity of sinning could not expend or make void And is all this righteousnesse laid up for himselfe onely or for any other so as thou mightest never come to have interest in it No the top of our comfort is that Our righteousnesse is one letter of his Name and that our names are put into his For us it is and Ours it is ordained to be as much ours to save us trusting upon it as his owne to glorifie him Ours not for himselfe he had no need of it being God blessed for ever Ours not the Angells neither the good for they are justified by their owne nor the bad they are put out of Gods will for ever But ours who are the sonnes of men and among them theirs especially who are broken lost whose soules draw neere to the grave and their lives to the destroyers that come pray unto God and stay themselves upon it unto them God cannot deny it for it is theirs For he will render to man His righteousnesse Job 33. 22 26. So as his Sonnes Name also is al-sufficient to answer all objections for faith to rest upon So as they that know his name will trust in him Psal 9. 10. A second reason why his name is sufficient Reason 2 though you have and see nothing in you nor any promise made to any grace in you to rest upon is because even all those promises made to cōditions in us which we ordinarily looke unto are Yea and Amen onely in this his Name and his Sonnes Name That is the originall of them all the root the seed of them all his Name is the materia prima the first matter of all those secondary promises ex quo fiunt in quod resolvuntur his Name gives being to them all if it were not for the mercy grace truth kindnesse in him and the righteousnesse which is in his Sonne all the promises which are made what were they worth As the worth of bonds depends upon the sufficiency of the man who makes them so all these promises upon his Name Therefore now when you relye upon his Name having as yet no promise made to any thing in you to relye upon you then relye upon that which is the foundation of all those promises you then have recourse to the originall which is more authenticall then extract copies you relye on that which all those other are resolved into and therefore is sufficient though all the rest faile you in your apprehension Thirdly Reason 3 his meere Name is support enough for faith and may bee so because it is for his Names sake and his Sons Names sake hee doth all he doth and for nothing in us but meerely for what is in himselfe so Esay 48. 9 10. For my Names sake c. So also Ezek. 36. 22 32. For my Names sake and not your sake and Esay 43. 25. I am he that blotteth out thy transgression for my owne sake and will not remember thy sinnes For it he blotteth out transgression and pardoneth And if it be for his Names sake he doth all he doth and fulfilleth all promises made to us and to what is in us Then when thou seest nothing in thy selfe to which any promise is made nothing which may appeare to be any argument or motive that he will pardon thee then trust thou in that his Name that because he is God and hath mercy in him that therefore he will doe it For that thing which is the onely or maine motive to God himselfe to doe any thing for us must needs be when apprehended and beleeved the strongest and surest ground for our faith also to perswade the heart that he will doe it As it is in knowledge the knowledge of the causes of things causeth the surest knowledge So in faith the knowledge of the maine motive to God the cause of all causeth the greatest certainty of perswasion This then may direct poore soules in distresse what to venture all upon upon what ground to hazard soules labours endeavours faith repentance obedience and all upon his Name when they see nothing in themselves to which any promise belongs as David sayes Psal 73. 26. My heart may faile and my flesh may faile but God will never faile So I may say your comforts in prayers in hearing your joyes your earnest-penies you have laid up may be all spent in a dearth your owne graces and all promises made to them your owne hearts may faile and being creatures they use to faile againe and againe but Gods Name and his Sonnes Name rested on will never faile you Leane on these not by halves in distresse 1 Pet. 1. 13. but trust perfectly as the Apostle sayes on that mercy you heare is in God upon that grace revealed That is throw and cast your whole soules your whole weight upon it he onely hath perfect peace Isa 26. 3. whose minde is staid on thee Psal 61. 2. have not halfe thy soule upon that rock which is higher then thee but creep up and get all upon it and when all faile renew thy faith on his Name Thereon rest there die To this purpose may that of Solomon serve Prov. 18. 10. His Name sayes he is a strong Tower and the righteous flye to it and are safe Now what end is there and use of a Tower in a City but that when all outworkes are taken the walls scaled all fortifications forsaken houses left then a Tower holds out last and is a refuge to flye to So also when the devill and Gods wrath beleaguers thee round and encompasseth thy soul and the comfort of every grace in thee is taken from thee and thou art driven from and art forced to forsake all other thy holds and grounds of comfort then flye to the Name of the Lord as thy City of refuge as Heb. 6. 18. it is compared Say there is mercy in thee Lord and that is thy Name and there is righteousnesse in thy Son and that is his Name and I am directed to trust in thy Name in time of need and here rest and catch hold as on the hornes of the Altar and if thou dyest dye there Direction 8. THe eighth direction is To waite in the use of all meanes to Waite upon God thus trusting in his Name in the constant use of all ordinances and meanes of comfort Waiting is indeed but an act of faith further stretched out As an Allegory is but a continued Metaphor so waiting is but a continuing to beleeve on God and

light in it to discover it selfe to him it may be in the heart in esse operari when not in cognosci it may have a being and a working there when not in thy apprehension The reason is The reason because as the influence of Gods favour may be really in the heart when the sense sight and light of it is withdrawne as was said before so the power of grace may in like maner bee in the heart when the light and comfort thereof is wanting And although it is true that every man having the power of reflecting upon his owne actions can discerne what thoughts are in him and what affections and can tell for the matter of them what he thinkes on and that he is grieved c. But yet so as he may still question whether those thoughts be acts of true and unfeigned faith and whether those affections of sorow for sin c. be sanctified affections holy and genuine and spirituall affections And the reason of the difference is because though the naturall spirit which is in a man knowes the things of a man as the Apostle hath it 1 Cor. 2. 11. that is his owne thoughts c. understanding them physically as they are acts of a man yet what is the true goodnesse of them morally Ierem. 17. in discerning This the spirit of a man is deceitfull and cannot know it without the supernaturall light of the Spirit of God who as he is the giver and actor of that grace in us so is given of God that we might know the things which are given us of God 1 Cor. 2. 8. 12. Light is sowen for the righteous and joy for the upright sayes the Psalmist Grace and the exercise of it is the seed which they continually scatter but light and joy is the crop that is to be reaped This seed often lies hid long though it will come up in the end Thus light or joy may be severed from grace and the comfort of it from the power of it Secondly §. 2. let us further consider the other phrase and what is intimated thereby to bee his condition What his condition is as exprest by walking in darknesse when as it is said he walkes in darknesse First to walke in darknesse implies to be in doubt whither to goe so Iohn 12. 35. Hee that walkes in darknesse knowes not whither he goes And thus the soule of one that feares God To be in doubt what will become of him may bee filled with doubts whether God will ever be mercifull to him yea or no and not know what God meanes to doe with him whether he shall goe to heaven or hell Psal 77. 7 8 9. Will the Lord be mercifull which speeches are spoken doubtingly for ver 10. hee sayes this was his infirmity to call this into question So Heman Psal 88. 5 6 11 12. Hee thought himselfe as one that was in hell Free among the dead that is as one admitted into the company of them there ver 5. free of that company as you use to say and of the number of those whom God no more remembred in such darknesse was he ver 6. And to raise him out of that condition was a thing hee doubted whether God would ever doe ver 10 11 12. Wilt thou shew wonders to the dead shall thy wonders be declared in the grave that is did God ever shew mercy to one that was in the same state that they in hell are in which is my state now yea so as to be out of hope So Lamen 3. 18. My hope is perished from the Lord. Secondly those in darknesse are apt to stumble at every thing Stumbling at all comfor●s So Esay 59. 10. One effect of darknesse mentioned there is to stumble at noone day So take a soule that is left in darknesse and it will stumble at all it heares out of the word either in conference or at Sermons all it reades all promises it meetes with it is more discouraged by them Oh thinke they that there should be such glorious promises and not belong to us Such an one misapplies and misinterprets all Gods dealings and the Scriptures against himselfe and refuseth comfort as Psal 77. 2. Yea and as at the third verse when he remembers God he is troubled Thirdly darknesse is exceeding terrible and full of horrour Filled with terrors When children are in the darke they thinke they see fearefull sights it is therefore called the Horror of darknesse Gen. 15. 12. So his soule here may be filled with feares and terrours from Gods wrath and of Gods being an enemie to him Heman was almost distracted Psal 88. 15. and out of his wits with terrours So the Church thought Lament 3. Yea and concluded it for certaine that God was her enemy Surely he is turned against me ver 3. CHAP. III. The efficient causes of this distresse First the Spirit whether he hath any hand therein and how farre HAving thus explicated and proved this that this doth and may befall one who truely feares the Lord for the more full clearing of it I will further shew First the efficient causes Secondly the cases wherein Thirdly the ends for which God leaves his children in such distresses First The efficient causes of this distresse 3. for the efficient causes of this so wofull desperate darke condition of Gods childe they are three which have a hand in it First Gods Spirit Secondly a mans owne guilty and fearefull heart Thirdly Satan First §. 1. for Gods Spirit Although he hath a hand in some part of this disquietnesse 1. The Spirit yet we must take heed how we put upon him any of those doubts and desperate feares and conclusions whereby the childe of God calls his state into question For the Spirit is not the direct efficient or positive cause of them And to this end we may consider that knowne place not the cause of doubtfull and despairing thoughts Rom. 8. 16. Yee have not received the spirit of bondage to feare againe but the spirit of adoption the right understanding of which will also prevent an objection For some have alleadged this place as if the childe of God after he had once the Spirit sealing adoption to him could never after fall into apprehension of bondage that is into fears of eternall damnation any more or of being bound ●ver for hell and that this can befall him but once and that at his first conversion But if we marke the words well The Apostle affirmeth not that feares of bondage can never befall Gods childe againe but his scope is to shew that the Spirit which wee have received having been once become the Spirit of adoption that spirit is never after againe the spirit of bondage to us nor the cause of such feares indeed at first conversion and before he did witnesse adoption he then revealed our estates to us to be an estate of bondage which he then doth in love