Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	church_n	faith_n	good_a	1,446	5	3.4167	3	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A46992	Comfortable words to afflicted consciences together with a short advice to ministers how to handle them : and also Mansio Christiana, or, The Christians mansion-house, being a sermon preached on the Lords-day, 7th Feb., Anno Dom. 1668 at the funeral of Mrs. Martha Walmisley, the wife of Mr. Charles Walmisley, minister of Chesham magna in the county of Bucks / by William Jole ...	Jole, William, d. ca. 1702.	1671 (1671)	Wing J887; ESTC R8442	40,808	152

as much as can well be in a Man void of Grace and in Paul was discovered as much as need be looked for in the most eminent Saint his former madness is equalled by his present zeal and now all that Ie●ish Learning which he had raked together intending onely thereby to defend the righteousness of the Law and the Traditions of the Elders and to dispute against Christ and his Gospel God imploys it better to make him more able to confound the Iews and to prove that Jesus is the very Christ Acts 9. ver 22. None preach Christ crucifyed so plainly and the Doctrine of Justification by Christs impured Righteousness so powerfully and so thorowly as Paul does none beat so much on this string as he Romans 3 ver 27. Galat. 2. ver 16. and in Galat. 3. ver 10. None cry down the Righteousness of the Law so vehemently nor cry up the imputed Righteousness of Christ so earnestly as Paul does thus as he was behind no man in wickedness before his conversion so was he not infer or to the very chief Apostles after conversion but laboured more abundantly than they all I Cor. chap. 15. ver 10. Now he would preach nothing but Christ crucifyed 1 Cor. chap. 2. ver and would glory in nothing but in the Cross of our Lord Jesus Gal. 6. ver 14. Thus Paul was even a miracle of Mercy and a glorious pattern of Grace The next particular is why Paul was hung out as a pattern of Free grace 1. Because he had been such a notorious persecuter and therefore as the noise of his mad and ignorant zeal had filled the world before so now the news of his conversion would be the more wonderful and he would be the more fit to be a pattern because the Example of so great a Sinner would be more encouragement for other sinners to seek for Mercy Galat. 1. ver 23 24. When the Churches heard that Paul preached the Faith which he once destroyed they glorifyed God in him When sinners remember that Paul was pardoned they may glorify Go●s Mercy by seeking Pardon too 2. Paul was made a Pattern of Free Grace because he was an eminent Iew and by Sect a Pharisee and so might prove a leading Pattern to all the Iews and to that obstinat Sect of the Pharisees to leave off per securi●g the Church of Chr●st and to joyn themselves unto it ●o follow his Example in renouncing the Righteousness of Works and embracing the Righteousness of Faith Paul was well read in all their Jewish Traditions and was as zealous of them as they and therefore they might see more of the power of Grace in his conversion that now made him h●zard his own life to advance that way which before he persecuted unto Death 3. Paul was chose to be a Pattern because in such a Pattern the freeness of Grace would appear more clearly here all the world may see that we are not saved out of any Wo●ks foreseen here was nothing to fit him to receive Grace unless making havock of the Church be a preparatory work Such Works the Romish Saints are full of here was a raging Persecutor tamed and pardoned It is not our Faith apprehending Christ that saves us but our Christ apprehended by Faith Christ is the meriting cause and Faith is the Instrumental Lastly Paul was set as a Pattern of Free Grace to encourage other sinners beholding the Mercy of God unto him to look after Mercy too that as in a Glass or Mirrour all men may see more clearly the freeness of Grace it is a good means to prevent our despair when we see such an instance of pardoning Mercy before our eyes and this leadeth me to the last particular What encouragement may other sinners draw from this great pattern of Paul's obtaining Pardon My meaning is not that others should expect to be miraculously converted as Paul was for you may as well expect to be caught up into the third Heaven But by Paul's being pardoned you may look after a Pardon Paul believed and was obedient to the voice from Heaven and so obtained Mercy This voice from Heaven was the voice of Christ why p●rsecutest thou m● and Acts 9. ver 5. I am Iesus whom thou persecutest The Gospel now is Christs voice from Heaven he that believeth this voice and is obedie●● to it shall as surely obtain Pardon as ever Paul did and he that will not obey Christs voice in the Gospel shall n●ver be pardoned It is remarkable that Christ did not tell Paul by the voice from Heaven what he should do but sent him to be taught by Ananias who was a Minister of the Gospel Acts 9. ver 6. So now he doth not miraculously tell sinners what they must do to be saved but sends them to his Word and Ministers to be instructed and therefore pray compare those two places together Hebr. 4 ver 7. To day if you will hear his voice what is that voice of Christ Luk. 10. ver 16 He that heareth you heareth me Christ spake this to his Seventy Disciples when he sent them out to preach the Gospel Christ gives his Ministers the same power to preach as he did them though he hath not given them power to work Miracles he still says He that heareth you heareth me for it is Christs word and not Ministers to re●urn to the queston how other sinners may draw encouragement from Pauls obtaining Mercy W●y this this a pattern for other sinners ad imitandum Paul● fidem to believe and so they shall obtain mercy When you see a very deformed person well married you are apt to say nay then none need ever hereafter despair of a husband other sinners may say so from this pattern of Free Grace seeing that Paul the chief of sinners is married to Jesus Christ seeing so great a si●ner is pardoned no sinner hereafter need despair of pardon thus one Begger encourage●h another by ●elling them or shewing them what a good Alms they have 〈◊〉 I sped well at such a door and 〈◊〉 enco●rageth others to go 〈◊〉 too Though indeed begging is now grown such a common Trade that you may be soon wearied out with Beggers such is mans emptiness that he cannot be always giving but such is Gods fulness that he delights to be dealing of his dole of Mercy the oftner you come to the door of Mercy the better you shall speed and therefore this is an encouraging Pattern And consider beloved how great is Gods goodness in giving us such Patterns to invite us to the throne of Grace To see Matthew and Zaccheus two Publicans pardoned may encourage all Publicans to look after Pardon too to see Mary Magdalen out of whom went seven Devils and the Woman taken in the very act of Adultery both pardoned may encourage all sinners to seek pardon to hear Paul say I was a Blasphemer and a Persecutor and injurious but I obtained Mercy may greatly encourage all sinners to follow God by

our Tears it is but legal Repentance Alass But I have committed foul facts since my first conversion Answer So did both David and Peter and how did they recover themselves but by Faith in Jesus Christ and Repentance from dead works Therefore confess your sins to God and think of that comfortable portion of Scripture 1. Epistle Iohn 2. chap. ver 1. If any man sin we have an Advocate with the Father Iesus Christ the Righteous It is not said If any man sin not but if any man sin Thus poor sinners go loaded to Heaven with abundance of experience of the riches of Gods Grace and freeness of his Mercy in pardoning their heinous transgressions There are commonly Three hindrances in the way of afflicted Consciences 1. Looking only upon Sin 2. A proud kind of seeming Humility 3. A searching for the fruits of Repentance before we are sure of Faith 1. Many look only upon their Sins and not to their Saviour Alass sayes the afflicted Conscience my Sins are crying Sins Crimson Sins Scarlet Sins Scandalous Sins foul frequent committed against much Light much Love against much Means much Mercy If a wounded Man should only look upon the bleeding wound would it not make him faint for fear that he should bleed to death But when he seeth the skilful Chirurgeon about to dress it and considers his skill to cure it this upholds his sinking Spirits even so poor Sinners must needs faint and despair of Pardon while they look no further than their Sins which despairing thoughts would soon vanish if then we could look up to our Saviour are not all sins easie to be pardoned by Infinite mercy It was an excellent answer that one returned the Devil when he told him of the heinousnefs of his sins thy sins should be pardoned too if thou couldst believe Christ can more easily pardon seventy offences to us then we can seven to one another He delighteth to forgive much so to engage us to love him much When some ●old the Ruler that his Daughter was dead and bid him not trouble the Master Mark 5. ver 35 36. Christ bids him fear not only believe and so to that other person Mark 9. ver 23. If thou canst believe all things are possible to him that believeth When Martha said by this time he stinketh for he hath been dead four days Ioh. 11. ver 39 40. Christ checks her Said I not unto thee that if thou wouldst believe thou shouldst set the Glory of God These were all desperate c●ses and therefore the more proper for Christ the Great Physitian Christ ●an cure inveterate Ulcers aswel as green wounds therefore look up to Christ while you look down upon your sins see what power Christ hath to save while you behold what power sin hath to damn that so while you see in your selves great cause of despair you may see in Him far greater cause of hope 2. Hindrance to afflicted Consciences is a proud humility or a kind of seeming mannerlyness It may be like Peter thou thinkst it not good manners to let Christ wash thy Feet Iohn 13. ver 8. Thou shalt never wash my Feet Calvin's note on those words is Pride often lurketh under pretence of humility away with this destructive manners seeing that the great work which God requireth of us is to believe in Christ as our Saviour and to believe tha● He both can and will save us to the uttermost surely we cannot do it too soon 3 Hindrance It may be that thou searchest for the ripe fruits of Repentance before thou art sure that thou hast Faith in the work of our spiritual ingrafting into Christ we are like crab-stocks newly grafted which do not instantly bear fruit the same day or week or the same month that they are grafted If we be truly ingrafted into Christ by Faith Repentance and the fruits of it will appear afterwards but not the same hour that we are ingrafted I mean not so as to be discerned by us look after Faith first before you search after Repentance Faith will help us to repent Paul did not bid the Jailor to repent but believe first Acts 16. ver 30 31. He knew that Faith would work Repentance If the Devil tell you that you should hav● repented sooner Remember that true Repentance can never be too late Christ dyed before you sinned If therefore you believe in Christ now you shall be as surely pardoned as if you had begun your repentance sooner Repent for your deferring repentance so long and remember that the repenting Thief was 〈◊〉 rejected though it were at 〈…〉 h●ur 4. Objection But I am so continually h●un●ed with temptations either to Blasphemy or Self-murther or one black and devilish temptation or other that sleeping or waking I am a terror to my self Ans. So were all true Saints more or less haunted with the like temptations that have lain longer under a Spirit of Bondage This may be a good sign that we have not given Satan a peaceable possession when he thus strives to make a forcible entry by such horrid temptations The Devil lets them alone of whom he thinks he hath made sure work but he assaults those most with the greatest temptations that ar● striving to get out of his clutches 5. Object But alass I have something that tells me I have withstood my day of Grace Answer That something must be either from God or Satan It cannot be from God for He tells none that they shall die in their sins but such as obstinately reject Jesus Christ and refuse to be saved by him Indeed Christ said to the Pharise●s ● go away but ye shall die in your sins Io● 8. ver 21. But if you take notice of it ' ●was spoken to them that blasphemed Christ and said He had a Devi● Iohn 17. ver 20. This may be a comfortable note Christ said to the Penitent Adulterer Iohn 8. ver 11. neither do I condemn thee And yet he said to the self-justifying Pharisees Ye shall die in your sins That sinner that confesseth and bewaileth his guiltiness him Christ absolveth but that Soul that thinks it self Righteous without Christs Righteousness He abhorreth If sin be your burden Christ calls you to Him and therefore this something that tells you you are damned must be from Satan that old lyer You may know the Devil to be a lyer in this as well as in other things for God never made Satan of his Privie Council to know who are to be saved and who are to be damned But pray tell me Suppose the Devil should tell you that you should be saved would you believe him then Why then do you heed him now that he sayes you shall be damned as you would mist●ust your condition more if Satan should tell you tha● you should be saved so now you have cause to mistrust it less because he tels you that you shal be damned If the Devil should possibly know that you should be damned for certain he would