Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	death_n	die_v	life_n	5,110	5	5.0778	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A91899	Safe conduct, or The saints guidance to glory. Opened in a sermon preached at Dunstans in the East London. November the second, MDCLIV. At the funerall of the vertuous and religious gentlewoman, Mris. Thomasin Barnardiston, late wife of Mr. Samuel Barnardiston, merchant. / By Ralph Robinson, pastor of Mary Wolnoth, Lumbardstreet, London.	Robinson, Ralph, 1614-1655.	1655 (1655)	Wing R1711; Thomason E823_7; ESTC R203376	61,656	101

Heaven do him service with all the gladnesse of their hearts and cheerfull service is the best service Lift up therefore the hands which hang down and revive the Spirits that are overwhelmed Powre out no more tears for your deceased friends who are removed from a sea of trouble to a haven of rest where they are gloryfied with God and where they do actually glorify God the Father Sonne and Holy Ghost in the highest perfection Comfort your selves and comfort one another with these words Having finished the Scripture Text I shall say something to the providentiall Text. The sad providence which hath occasioned this mournfull meeting preacheth many spirituall lessons to us all First God hath by death carried a young gentlewoman out of the world Strength and Beauty Youth and flourishing daies cannot priviledge any from the Grave This providence repeats in our ears that serious Counsell of the wiseman Remember thy Creator i● the daies of thy Youth Eccle. 12. 1. If wee look into the Tombs wee shall find many cloysted up there whose bones were moystned with marrow and whose breasts were full of Milk The beauty of Rachel will not keep her from the dust The strength of Sampson will not preserve him from death The budding Flower falls to the earth as well as that which is withered The green Ear of Corn is nipt off as well as that which is ripe for the Sickle You that have your veins full of bloud must come to Golgotha as well as those whose Natural moysture decrepid Old Age hath dried up Secondly God hath removed a Gentlewoman of good rank and quality as to outward things It is not natural Parentage or Wealth that can put Death out of Commission Riches avail not in the day of death VVealthy Abraham is gone to the place of rottenness as well as Lazarus the Begger If a man would give a Coffin full of Gold to ransome himself from the Grave it would not be accepted There is neither Redemption nor Exchange of Prisoners in this VVar The rich mans Wealth is his strong City Prov. 10. 15. Death will storm this City and carry a way the Owner notwithstanding all his riches Neither the Guards of Princes nor the Revenues of their Crowns can keep off Death for one moment Death can enter the Kings Court as easily as the Beggars Cottage When God sends Death to attatch a Mortal Creature it esteems not Riches no not Gold nor all the forces of strength Thirdly God hath taken away a religious Gentlewoman Holiness and Piety do not deliver any from the Grave The first of Mortals that dyed was a righteous man The bloud of the righteous Abel Righteousness preserves from eternal Death not from the Temporal Grace in the Saints never dyes but the Saints dye notwithstanding all their graces Beleevers must be wrapt in the Winding-sheet as well as unbeleevers The godly must lye under the Hears-cloth as well as the wicked Abraham is dead and the Prophets are dead There is cause of mourning over dead Saints no cause of wondring Saints never live till they dye then they live for ever These are general Meditations More particularly In reference to this Gentlewoman I shall speak somewhat concerning her Life and something concerning her Death and that not so much for her sake as the benefit of others Concerning her Life these things are remarkable God vouchsafed her the blessing of godly and The Worshipful Joseph Brand Esq and Mrs. Thomasin Brand his religious Consort religious education Her worthy Parents were studious not only to provide wealth for her but their greatest care was that Christ might be formed in her And this did much redound to their comfort for she was as both of them have often expressed a dutiful and obedient Childe The care of Parents for the religious Education of their Children doth ordinarily return to a good account in this life When Parents teach Children to obey him that is the Father of Spirits God usually bows their hearts to be dutiful to their earthly Parents Shee was a respective and loving Wife to her Husband which made her deservedly accounted by him The desire of his eyes Shee was a helpe meet for him a suitable Yoke-fellow who walked with him hand in hand in the ways of God The contentment he had in the enjoyment of such a Companion doth much increase the sorrow of his heart for the loss of her Shee was of an humble and meek spirit The enjoyment of the things of this Life did not swell her heart Those that were acquainted with her can truly give this testimony of her That shee did not inordinately minde high things but could condescend to them of low estate A full Purse and an humble Heart do not always meet together Shee was no follower of the vain fashions of the VVorld Her Apparrel was decent and modest not gairish The Apostle gives this advice to VVomen To adorn themselves in modest apparrel with shamefastness and sobriety as becometh women professing godliness 1 Tim. 2. 9 10. This Gentlewoman did dress her self in this Scripture-glass Spotted faces and naked breasts are Arguments of light spirits and unmortified hearts God was pleased by his Grace to preserve this Gentlewoman in a wanton Age from these vanities Shee did labour to keep fast the faith that was once delivered to the Saints Though shee was but young having not fully compleated the twentieth year of her age yet was shee not one of those 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as the Apostle speaks silly Women that are drawn away by the cunning craftiness of those that creep into Houses and lead many captive Shee was a lover of all the Ordinances of God and a frequenter of that instituted Ministry which God hath given testimony unto by the conversion of many souls God kept her by his Grace that shee did not tread upon the threshold of those infectious places where Errours and Blasphemies are usually broached Concerning her death I have not much to speak A good Life cannot but end in a blessed Death Her Sickness was not very long but it was very sharp Many tormenting pains were in her head which could not be removed till the last medicine of Death took them away In her Sickness shee was very frequent in Prayer for her self and did importunately desire help from the prayers of others I was daily praying with her by her own desire for divers days together and sometimes twice a day which gave me more opportunity to be acquainted with her estate Shee was for some time fearful of Death as not having that full Assurance shee longed for but at last God gave her the victory over those fears About two or three days before the Soul took its leave of the Body God was graciously pleased to give her in plenty of comfort Her sorrowful Husband and Parents coming into the Chamber shee brake forth into these expressions or to this effect Now hath God abundantly manifested his love to my Soul in Jesus Christ you are not able to conceive the joy I feel nor am I able to express it I am now sure that Jesus Christ is mine I know that my sins are forgiven me for his sake I am now both willing and desirous to dye that I may be with Christ This consolation cannot but be judged to be from the blessed Spirit of God because it was the fruit of Prayer and because it was given in after deep humblings and Spiritual Conflicts as also because it was followed with many self-abhorrings which are the genuine effects of Gospel-comfort VVhen shee mentioned these comforts shee did usually adde some such expression as this I am a very unworthy Creature but I hope I am not deceived One very considerable passage I cannot but acquaint you with Some days before her death her gracious Mother seeing the means used for her recovery to be in-effectual retired her self into her closet to pray for her Amongst other Petitions she was very importunate that God would give her pardon and peace Soon after returning into the room where shee lay shee found those very words in her mouth Pardon and Peace God hath sealed up to my Soul pardon and peace through Jesus Christ This was a very signal testimony that God had answered her request Thus she continued sometimes bewayling her sins with much sorrow sometimes sending up holy ejaculations to God as she was able That God would never fail her nor forsake her sometimes expressing her confidence of the love of God in such words as these I have the whole Armour of God upon me God hath given me the shield of faith the breast-plate of Righteousness the helmet of Salvation I have now overcome the fiery darts of Satan I do not in the least fear him or death Amongst other Petitions shee had frequently this in her mouth Guide mee Lord by thy counsel until thou bring me to glory That which now remains is To intreat all of us that are here present to resolve and endeavour to be guided both in matters of faith and obedience by the powerful counsel of Gods blessed VVord and Spirit that when our eyes are closed up by death we may be received in eternal glory FINIS

glory and their interest in it that their thoughts might continually dwell upon it It will be profitable to the Saints to muse much on the happiness of the other VVorld I will instance briefly in Four particulars First It will make them undervalue the transitory glory of this VVorld How comes it to pass that 1 This will abate our thirst after worldly glory earthly glory is so much affected but because heavenly glory is so little regarded It is the Apostles Counsell to Christians to set their affections on things above not on things on the earth Col. 3. 2. One houres musing on the glory that is above would cause the Soul to be as a weaned child to the glory that is below when a man hath seen the glory of a Princes Court hee contemns all that ever he saw in a Countrey Cottage Wee read of a woman crowned with Rev. 12. 1. the Sun and the Moon under her feet Hee that hath the coelestiall glory before his eyes will quickly cast the best of earthly glory behind his back Secondly It will inable them to bear with patience 2 This will make sufferings light Rom 8. 18. the greatest sufferings of this present life I reckon saith the Apostle that all the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us He that hath his thoughts much on the Crown will despise the ignominy and shame of the Cross Moses when hee had through the prospective glass of Faith looked a while on the Heb. 11. 23 24 25 26. recompence of the reward chose affliction with the people of God rather than the preferments of Pharaohs Court Reproach for Christ was preferred to the treasures of Egypt because hee had respect to the recompence of the reward And Christ himself who is farre greater than Moses for the joy that was Heb. 12. 2. set before him endured the Cross and despised the shame Ille moeret si sibi malè sit in seculo cui non potest benè esse post seculum The ill being of this life is not Cyprian greatly sadning to that heart that knows it shall have a well-being in the other life The holy Martyrs did cheerfully kiss the flames because they had their thoughts on that glory which was far brighter than those flames Thirdly It will make them more carefull in all the 3 This will make us serious in duties duties of religion That Christian will bee most abundant and most serious in duties who hath his eye in heaven while hee is doing duties No Saints will have such exact conversations on earth as those that have their conversation most in heaven Such a Christian will reason it out with his Soul after this manner O my Soul dost thou pray for such glory and yet so dead in prayer dost thou hear for such happinesse and hear no better dost thou expect such an inheritance and yet doest so little for God who hath provided this inheritance should thy work be so little when thy reward is so infinitely great It is the Apostles advice to Christians that they 1 Cor. 15. 58. would be stedfast and unmoveable alwaies abounding in the work of the Lord because they know their labour is not in vain in the Lord. One serious thought of heaven would shake off lazinesse and work heart-inlargement in all the services wee do for God Fourthly It will make them more desirous to be 4 This will make them willing to be in heaven in heaven Hee that by holy meditation lives much in heaven will be weary of living long on earth when the Apostle Paul thought of being with Christ he wisheth for a present dissolution I desire to be dissolved to be with Christ The Patriarches Phil. 1. 23. when they did meditate on their heavenly Country thought they had continued long enough in their earthly Countrey He that hath the eye of an Eagle to look into the heavenly glory will mount up as upon the wings of the Eagle to possesse that glory Such a Saint will be glad to see the Cage opened that the Soul may ascend Fourthly and lastly do not immoderately grieve 4 This may allay our grief for the death of godly Relations for the departure of your godly friends whom you have cause to hope are received into this glory The world loseth much by the death of the Saints but Saints by dying suffer no loss at all They possesse that happinesse which both themselves and their godly friends have been long praying they might enjoy Could wee peep into heaven and see those white garments which our dear relations wear wee should wonder at the mourning vestures which wee wear Could wee behold the smiles of the Saints faces in heaven we should admire at the pensivenesse of our own faces on earth If our glorified friends could send to us on earth they would intreat us by all the love wee bear to God and them not to lament their condition but to weep for our selves and for our children Joseph sends his sorrowing Father this message which hee thought was sufficient to comfort him you shall tell my Father of all my glory in Egypt These tydings turned Jacobs sorrow into Gen. 45. 13. 27. rejoycing the Text saith his Spirit revived Alas What is the glory of Egypt to the glory of heaven The glory of Egypt is soon told but the glory of heaven is so great that it can never be told If the full enjoyment of God of Jesus Christ of communion with the blessed Spirit If perfection of grace if the presence of all desireable good if the absence of all evill can make persons happy then are the Saints that are lodged in heaven truely happy Reason and religion do forbid inordinate mourning for deceased beleevers And our sorrow is then immoderate when it puts us on murmuring against that which God hath done or when it indisposeth us for the performances of any service or duty wee owe to God or men If it should be in the hearts of any here present to think that their deceased friends might by a little longer abiding on earth have done more service for God I shall fully answer such thoughts by asserting this That Saints in heaven do more glorify God where they are than they could have done had they continued on earth The best Saint on earth doth God disservice as well as service yea he doth him more disservice than service But the lowest Saint in heaven doth God service without disservice he shall never do the least action nor think one thought that tends to Gods dishonour Saints on earth honour God with wearinesse but Saints in Heaven do unweariedly honour him Saints on earth worship God with many distractions but they that are in Heaven worship before him without distraction and without interruption Saints on earth do too often serve God with heavinesse of heart but those that are in