Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n
Text snippets containing the quad
|
ID |
Title |
Author |
Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication) |
STC |
Words |
Pages |
|
A00587
|
Ancilla pietatis: or, The hand-maid to priuate deuotion presenting a manuell to furnish her with necessary principles of faith. Forcible motiues to a holy life. Vsefull formes of hymnes and prayers. ... By Daniel Featly, D. in Diuinity.
|
Featley, Daniel, 1582-1645.
|
1626
(1626)
|
STC 10725; ESTC S115083
|
203,491
|
770
|
retaine 7 Grace to practise the sincere doctrine of Gods holy word THE TEXTS HEarken ô Israell vnto the ordinances and statutes which I teach you Deut. 4. 1. Heare my Law ô my people incline your eares to the words of my mouth Psal. 78. 1. This is my welbeloued Sonne in whom I am well pleased heare him Mat. 3. 17. Hee that heareth of mee these words c. Mat. 7. 24. Hee that hath an eare to heare let him heare Mat. 11. 15. Let him that hath an eare heare what the Spirit saith to the Churches Reu. 2. 7. Take heed what ye heare Mar. 4. 24. Beware of false Prophets that come vnto you in sheeps-clothing Mat. 7. 15. They searched the Scriptures whether those things were so Acts 17. 11. Proue all things hold that which is good 1 Tâ—es 5. 21. Try the Spirits whether they be of God or not 1. Ioh. 4. 1. They haue not reiected thee but they haue reiected me 1 Sam. 8. 7. Hee that heareth you heareth me and he that heareth me heareth him that sent me Luk. 10. 16. Blessed is hee that heareth the Word of God and keepeth it Luk. 11. 28. Ye receiued the Word not as the Word of men but as it is indeed the Word of God 1 These 2. 3. The Word of God is liuely and mighty in operation c. Heb. 4. 12. If any man speake let him speake as the Word of God 1 Pet. 4. 11. I am not ashamed of the Gospell of Christ for it is the power of God vnto saluation to euery beleeuer Rom. 1. 16. Man liueth not by bread only but by euery Word that proceedeth from the mouth of God Luke 4. 4. Hee that heareth my words and belieueth in mee hath life eternall and shall not come into condemnation but is passed from death to life Ioh. 9. 24. To whom shall we goe Thou hast the words of eternall life Ioh. 6. 68. He that refuseth me and receiueth not my words hath one that iudgeth him The word which I haue spoken it shall iudge him at the last day Ioh. 12. 48. If I had not come and spoken vnto them they had not had sin Ioh. 15. 22. Wee are the sweete smelling sauour of Christ in them that are saued and them that perish 2 Cor. 2. 15. To the one wee are the sauour of death vnto death and to the other the sauour of life vnto life verse 16. Continue in Praâ—er and watch in the same with thanksgiuing Colos 4. 2. Praying for vs that God may open to vs the dore of vtterance to speake the mysteries of Christ. verse 3. That I may vtter it as it becommeth me to speake verse 4. A certaine woman named Lydia heard vs whose heart the Lord opened that she attended to the things that Paul spake Acts 16. 14. Giue me vnderstanding and I will keepe thy Law Psal. 119. 34. And this I pray that ye may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all iudgement Phil. 1. 9. That yee may discerne those things that differ verse 10. The Lord giue thee a right iudgement in all things 2 Tim. 2. 7. God that commanded the light to shine out of darknesse is he that hath shined in our hearts to giue the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Iesus Christ. 2. Cor. 4. 6. The Apostles said Lord increase our Faith Luke 17. 5. For this cause I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Iesus Christ c. Ephes. 3. 14. That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith verse 17. And his Mother kept all these sayings in her heart Luk. 2. 51. I haue hid thy promises in my heart that I might not sin against thee Psal. 119. 11. Whosoeuer heareth of mee these words and doeth the same I will liken him to a wise man that built his house vpon a rock Mat. 7. 24. If ye know these things blessed are ye if ye do them Ioh. 13. 17. Be ye dooers of the Word not hearers only deceiuing your own soules Iam. 1. 22. The Preparatory Hymne wherein the deuout soule expresseth her a High esteeme of the Word b Continuall meditating on it c Exceeding delight in it Feruent desire to be d Instructed in it e Ruled by it a My soule breaketh for the longing it hath vnto thy iudgements at all times Psal 119. 20. The Law of thy mouth is better to me then thousands of gold and siluer verse 72. The Law of the Lord is perfect conuerting the soule the testimony of the Lord is sure making wise the simple Psal. 19. 7. The Statutes of the Lord are right and reioyce the heart the commandement of the Lord is pure enlightning the eyes ver 8 The feare of the Lord is cleane enduring for euer the Iudgements of the Lord are true and righteous altogether verse 9. More to bee desired are they then gold yea then much fine gold sweeter also then hony and the hony combe verse 10. Moreouer by them is thy seruant taught and in keeping of them is great reward verse 11. b I will meditate in thy precepts and haue respect to thy waies Psal 119. 15. O how I loue thy Law it is my meditation all the day ver 97. Thy words haue I hid in mine heart that I might not sin against thee verse 11. c I will delight my selfe in thy statutes I will not forget thy word verse 16. Thy testimonies are my delight my counsellers verse 24. Thy testimonies haue I claimed as mine heritage for euer for they are the very ioy of mine heart verse 111. d Open thou mine eyes that I may behold the wondrous things of thy Law verse 18. Make me to vnderstand the way of thy precepts so shall I talke of thy wondrous workes verse 27. e Order my steps in thy Word and let not any iniquity haue dominion ouer me verse 133. Make thy face to shine vpon thy seruant and teach mee thy statutes verse 135. The Preparatory Prayer GRatious God who hast appointed the opening of the Scriptures by preaching to bee the ordinary meanes of saluation to all thy chosen blesse this thine ordinance to me and prepare me for it Grant that thy Word being mixed with faith in me may bee vnto me a sauour of life vnto life and not a sauour of death vnto death Direct and assist thy Minister that hee may rightly diuide it Open vnto him the dore of vtterance that what he hath conceiued in thy feare vpon thy holy Oracles hee may deliuer to thy glory Fill him with the holy Ghost that his lips may bee full of grace and that he may speake instruction to mine ignorance correction to my errors comfort to mine afflictions and peace to my conscience Guide the sword of the spirit in his hand that it may meete with and smite my speciall corruptions and bosome sins knowne or vnknowne and giue me patience to
discipline mentioned by Saint Paul are most necessarie exercises of religion yet cannot be so safely done nor so decently nor so effectually in publike as in priuate These parts are not to be acted on the stage but within the hangings He that actes these on the stage will haue the person of an hypocrite put vpon him for it Where was our Sauiour in his agonie but alone in Gethsemaine Where was hee transfigured in his prayer but on the holy Mount alone Moses his face shined after he came from his secret parlie with God and our soules shall shine with all spirituall graces if we haue often priuate conference with him by prayer but alwayes with due reuerence and preparation before PARAG. 2. Of Preparation Preparation to religious exercises is twofold 1 Extraordinarie as watching fasting and the like of which see the admonition for Ash-wednesday 2 Ordinary which consisteth in 1 Clensing our conscience from the guilt and staine of foule sinnes especially grosse actuall sins newly committed 2 Sequestring our thoughts from worldly cares businesses 3 Considering before hand what the RELIGIOVS worke is wee are about and how we ought to performe it and carrie our selues in it Moses put off his shooes and Dauid washed his hands before he drew neare to God The Iewes and Turkes at this day wash themselues before they enter their Temples and the ancient Pagans vsed many ablutions and lustrations before they durst come in sight of their faigned gods The vncleane Spirit in the Gospell had a cleane lodging and shall we entertaine the most pure and holy Spirit of God in an vncleane roome in our soules What Courtier presumeth to come into the Kings presence in stinking and nastie cloathes or with his hands and face all besmeared with dirt or spotted with inke How dare we then appeare before God with a foule and nastie conscience with a heart full of malice eyes full of adulterie hands full of the treasures of wickednesse mouthes full of deadly poyson of Aspes When wee haue defiled our eyes with vnchast lookes shall we presently cast them vp to heauen and confidently looke God in the face who is a God of most pure eyes and cannot endure the least spot of impuritie when we haue defiled our hands with bloud or vncleannesse or telling our vse money shall we presently lift them vp in supplication to God when wee haue defiled our tongues with corrupt and rotten communication shall we presently employ them in diuine prayer when we haue defiled our bodies with beastly lusts and wallowed in the mire of swinish pleasures shall wee presently present our selues as a sacrifice vnto God in priuate or publike deuotion God by his holy Prophet teacheth vs another lesson wash you make you cleane put away the euill of your doings from before mine eyes Cease to do euill learne to do well Come now let vs conferre and reason together Secondly he that will consecrate his thoughts and affections by priuate Deuotion vnto God must remoue and sequester them from earthly affaires and worldly negotiations For the cares of this life as they choake the seedes of the word so they stifle deuout meditation in the wombe that conceiueth them It is not more difficult to cast vp one eye to heauen and the other downe on the earth at the same instant then to fixe our cogitations and intentions at once on God and the world Holinesse in the Greeke implyeth a direct contradiction to earthlinesse Hagios is deriued from A the priuatiue particle and Ge signifying earth as if you would say vnearthlinesse God is a Spirit and cannot be otherwise seene of vs then in spirit Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God The soule of man is the glasse most truly representing Gods image If a glasse be furd or soyled with dust or dirt it reflecteth no shape or proportion aright but wipe the dust from the glasse and you shall see clearely So saith Saint Bernard rub thy glasse wipe away all dustie earthlinesse from thy mind and thou shalt see God in thy soule and conceiue cleare and diuine imaginations of him Thirdly he that desireth that God should haue respect to him and to his spirituall offerings must bee more readie to heare the wise man and looke to his foote then to make hast to offer the sacrifice of fooles What is it to offer the sacrifice of fooles but rashly and vnaduisedly not to bring and lay downe but to throw his gifts on Gods Altar without considering what he offereth or 〈◊〉 or to whom He that makes no more of prayers to God then of speaking with one of his companions nor of perusing inspired Scriptures then reading a peice of Aristotle or Liuie nor of participating of the blessed Sacrament then taking a morsell of bread or drinking a cup of wine can expect no blessing for the vse but rather ought to feare a curse for the abuse of these meanes of saluation These ordinances of God sanctifie not such but they rather prophane them Numa Pomphilius forbad any man vnder a great penaltie to salute his gods in the high way or to pray or bow or to do any reuerence to their temples or images as they walked by them in the streets and Wouer yeelds a reason of this law better then the law it selfe Diuine Maiestie sayes hee must not be sleighted holy duties must not bee suddenly slâ—bbered ouer but performed with reuerent regard 〈◊〉 religious cunctation or delay to frame and compose the mind vnto them But men haue forgotten the feare of the Lord euen in his presence and vnder his eye The holy name of God is made so common in mens mouthes and his dreadfull Maiestie so cheape in their estimamation that as they speake of him without reuerence so also they speake to him without aduised premeditation They are farre from Dauids modestie who went step by step and fetched a compasse to come to Gods altar I will wash my hands in innocencie and so I will compasse thine altar but these make but one step to it They suddenly and rudely rush vpon Almightie God neuer thinking that he is a consuming fire Augustus being inuited by a priuate Gentleman to his house entertained but slenderly below the maiestie of so great an Emperour in stead of thanking him gaue him a secret but smart checke for it I knew not said he before that we were such familiars But hath not the King of heauen and Monarke of the whole world more iust cause to censure in the like manner or more seuerely those among vs that seeme most forward to inuite and entertaine him who runne into his presence without shewing any reuerence speake vnto him without bowing their knee heare him in the Ministry of the Word without vncouering their heads participate of the dreadfull Mysteries as the Fathers call them of his