Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	child_n	father_n	see_v	1,602	5	3.6371	3	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A57577	Fall not out by the way, or, A perswasion to a friendly correspondence between the conformists & non-conformists in a funeral discourse on Gen. 45. 24. occasioned by the desire of Mr. Anthony Dunwell, in his last will / by Timothy Rogers ...	Rogers, Timothy, 1658-1728.	1692 (1692)	Wing R1850; ESTC R11323	41,002	128

in the Body And so again Men of Metaphysical and Notional Brains have conformed Religion and their Notions of it to Metaphysicks and indeed have made that which is and ought to be the common Principle for the actuating of all Men yea even of the meanest Capacities to be a meer Collection of Subtilties far more abstruse than the most intricate and sublimated Learning whatsoever See the L. Ch. Just Hale 's Disc of Rel. p. 26. Besides Parents and Examples and Education and Company and Books have their several Influences upon the Thoughts of Men and it is unreasonable to expect an entire Vnion of Thinking among those whose early Years have been seasoned with Principles and Opinions very different from one another and we ought to make great Allowances to one another upon this Account 7. Another Cause of Brethen's falling out by thy way is when they impose things upon their Brethren that are but in their own Nature Indifferent as if they were absolutely necessary or will not hold Communion with others unless they will agree to all the Terms which they have proposed as it would be an unreasonable thing for a Man not to allow me to Travel with him in the same Road unless I will wear a Garment of the same Colour with his own and stop or go on just as he would have me stay or go and yet for the sake of Peace I may comply with him in several things which I take to be Innocent and Lawful though I can by no means praise him for his enjoyning them It is no doubt as one says a very desirable thing to lessen the differences of Christians Dr. Wake 's Sermons p. 282. and enlarge their Communion as far as ever we can and it has never gone well with the Church of Christ since Men have been so narrow spirited as to mix the Controversies of Faith with their publick Forms of Worship and have made their Liturgies instead of being Offices of Devotion to God become Tests and Censures of the Opinions of their Brethren It is a miserable thing when Men agree in Fundamentals and in all those common Truths that are absolutely necessary to be known in order to Salvation that they cannot bear with one another in less considerable things and without doubt the best things are the plainest and the least disputable and unless we can prove our selves to be Infallible we cannot claim of others a total Submission to what we say or impose upon them and unless by the Light of Reason and of Scripture we can gently convince them that they are in the wrong way and that we are in the right And if we be in the right and have setled things very well yet if the peace of the Church be like to be injured by their scrupling of several things as sinful in the lawfulness of which we are very well satisfied yet it will be no' Reproach to us to make such alterations and abatements in the conditions of our Communion as may shew that we most charitably desire to have them to worship God with us and in our Assemblies for nothing Human can be so compleat as not to need by some unforeseen Circumstances some Variation No harm will ensue so long as the things most Fundamental are agreed on both sides and as one observes Charity to a weak Brother in things indifferent in their own nature is then to be exercised when my Brother is offended therewith or never And if it be said it is his Duty to submit to the Church and not the Church to him I do think that Answer will not serve in this Case for surely though a Child owes a Duty to a Father yet his neglect thereof especially if it be upon a Conscientious Account will not excuse the neglect of a Father's duty to his Child The Apostle professed he would abstain from things lawful rather than offend his weak Brother See the L. Ch. Just Hale 's Disc of Relig. p. 32. 8. Another cause of falling out by the way is from a littleness and narrowness of Soul when Persons will have no good opinion of any but such as are of their own Way and Party when they will cry up their own Men with excessive Praises and run down all others with the same Breath Such are like the Jews of whom we have read that living in some remote Place surrounded with Seas because they have no Correspondence with others think that they are all the World and that the Race of Men is confined to so small a number It is a most uncomly thing for any Party of Christians to say that none can be saved but in their way as if they did not know that several Roads may all lead to the very same Place and several Apprehensions about less necessary things not hinder their passage to the same Glory Let us take heed lest we diminish the Kingdom of our Lord and make his Empire less extensive than it is He hath his People scattered up and down the World and it would be a foolish and uncharitable thing to say we alone are the true Church and there is none so besides our selves Let us take heed of such a littleness of Soul and of such an ignorance of the State and Progress of Christianity let us not judge nor condemn nor think hardly of another Man because he is not of our way but stop our Censures till we know the Reasons upon which he differs from us We need not Fall out by the Way because we cannot all think and speak alike it would be a rude and uncivil thing for an Englishman suppose to fall out with a Frenchman upon a Journey because his Air his Address his Judgment his Prounciation and the Tone of his Language differs from his own A Publick and Generous Spirit will love the Name the Interest of Christ and his Glory wherever it is advanced though by Persons of another Persuasion or in Places vastly distant from his own Country Let us carefully distinguish between things that are really Momentous and those that are but Trifles Let us not lay too great a stress on the little Things that are peculiar to this or that Party for a great many are as one says like a Company of Boys that blow Bubbles out of a Walnut-shell every one runs after his Bubble and calls it Religion and every one measures the Religion or Ireligion of another by their agreeing and differing with them in these and the like Matters and at best whilst we scramble about the pieces of the Shell the Kernel is either lost or gotten by some that do not prize any of their Contests And we ought to consider as a great Man observes That Belief is no more in a Man's Power than his Stature Sir William Temple's Obs on the Netherlands p. 168. or his Feature and he that tells me I must change my Opinion for his because 't is the truer and the better without other Arguments that

have to me the force of Conviction may as well tell me I must change my grey Eyes for others like his that are black because these are lovelier or more in esteem 9. The great Cause why Brethren fall out by the way is from the Malice and Policy of the Devil It is delightful to God Angels and Saints to see them live together in Unity but to the Devil it is greatly vexatious for Peace and Love do oppose his Designs and render that Religion which he hates amiable and venerable in the Eyes of all The Devil fires furious and angry People with more Flame and Heat this Engineer blows the Coals and encreases Strife and Contention and he knows that if he can make Persons once very Passionate he thereby unfits them for all due performance of Duty either to God or Man they unhinge themselves and molest others too There are many People whom the Devil finds he cannot ruin by gross carnal Sins as Theft and Whoredom and Swearing and Drunkenness and Sabbath-breaking and the like whom he endeavours to destroy by spiritual Sins such as Envy and Censuring and Bitterness and Wrath and Malice for all these are most agreeable to his own Hellish Nature Eph. 4.26 27. Be ye angry and Sin not let not the Sun go down upon your Wrath neither give place to the Devil To be passionate and long angry is to let the Devil Triumph over you 't is to bind your selves with Chains and let him lead you Captive at his will He once fell from Heaven like Lightning and he has ever since inflamed and disturbed the World and has a peculiar Malice against the Gospel and his great Business is to hinder it from being a Gospel of Peace and Mercy and so to render it in a great measure unsuccessful by the Quarrels of those that pretend to obey its Laws And it is observable That as one says no Quarrels were raised among the Heathens about the several Gods they worshipped for the Devil the irreconcileable Enemy to God's Glory and Man's Happiness was pleased with their deadly Errors and let them adore the Host of Heaven or of the Earth it was alike to him for they all diverted the Minds of Men from the sole Object of Divine Worship the True God The Devil makes his Slaves to Fire Towns and Depopulate Countries and to Destroy Churches and Disorder Families Let us not warm our selves at his Fire nor in the least resemble his Cruel Nature Let us all fight against him with one accord remembring we serve the Prince of Peace and his Banners over us are Love 10. An Ignorant and Misguided Zeal Or as the Apostle calls it Rom. 10.2 A Zeal of God but not according to Knowledge and 't is no wonder if Persons justle against one another when they are Blind or in the Dark When they call that Truth which is not so or when they are as violently concerned for their own Opinions as if they were plainly revealed or when they are solicitous to preserve real Truth but go about it with too much Warmth and Hear or make too great a Noise about it Zeal must be tempered with a great deal of Prudence if it be truly genuine and profitable The next thing is to shew what Methods may be taken by Persons of all Persuasions That they may not fall out by the Way and the principal is 1. To take Care that they believe in Jesus Christ He is the Prince of Peace and all that yeild themselves to be his Subjects he brings by degrees to this amiable Frame a Spirit of Gentleness and Mildness is conveyed to all the Parts of the Body from this peaceable and blessed Head Faith in Christ gives us Union with him and conveys a strength to us whereby we may subdue all our Sins among which a proneness to quarrel and fall out with one another is not the most inconsiderable whoever has this Faith is immediately thereupon a Member of the true Church has a Right to all the Sacraments and Ordinances of the Gospel and if any should refuse such a Believer admission into this or that particular Church they must do it at their own Peril if I had so great an Honour as to have a particular Charge of Souls all good Christians under what Names soever they go of Conformists or Presbyterians or Independents or Anabaptists I would upon their Desire their promising to live peaceably most chearfully receive them into my Communion and though one should be for Receiving the Lord's Supper Kneeling another Standing or another Sitting I would not think it in the least contrary to Decency or Order to administer it to them all in their distinct Postures for if I thought them true Believers how could I dare to refuse them merely because they were not satisfied in this or that Gesture which it may be I should think most Proper and Convenient All good Christians are of the same Church and if our Blessed Lord will receive them all into one Heaven at last Wo to them that shall refuse to receive them here for certainly that which Qualifies a Man for Heaven and Everlasting Salvation qualifies him for Communion with any Church on Earth whatsoever for the Principal Enquiry of the great Day will not be of what Party we were whether Conformists or Nonconformists but whether we really believed in Christ and took him for our Lord and King whether we were of his Body and renewed by his Spirit and subject to his Laws The great Rule for Peaceful Agreement among Christians in their several Societies is that Rom. 15.5 6 7. Receive ye one another as Christ also received us to the glory of God And Christ receives us all most kindly when we believe Our common Faith in him is our highest Honour that well evidenced gives us the truest Right to all Church Communion I would earnestly desire People that are censorious and narrow sould to read the 14th to the Romans often over as a most excellent means to cool their Heats and Animosities 2. That you may not fall out by the way you must not give one another bad Names nor use Provoking Venomous Expressions to one another How many lasting Quarrels and Contentions arise by some awkward and scurvy Titles that Men give to others whom by that means they make their Adversaries All would be calm and quiet but for such an Evil Tongue as James describes ch 3.6 The tongue is a Fire a world of iniquity it deflleth the whole body and setteth on fire the course of nature and is set on fire of Hell The Devil and an Evil Tongue go together Bitter Speeches exasperate and chase those that otherwise would be at Ease and it is a great Weakness when Christians cannot omit Personal Reflections but love to Satyrize on one another as if they were in Jest when by their sharpen'd Animosities the poor injur'd Church receives many Wounds O that all our other Names were laid aside and only the