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	life_n	sin_n	9,880	5	5.5192	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A04377	Directions for the vvorthy receiuing of the Lords Supper with some few questions to the same purpose. By Robert Iension, Batchelor in Diuinity, and Minister of Gods Word, at New-Castle vpon Tine.	Jenison, Robert, 1584?-1652.	1624 (1624)	STC 14490; ESTC S119429	15,511	55

in grace thus differing from Baptisme which is the Sacrament of our first birth or regeneration as bread therefore is for the sustenance of man and preseruation of naturall life in him so is Christs body and bloud spiritually for the encrease and nourishing of our faith and of Gods graces in vs. For thus in decay of grace we come to get assurance and féeling of it againe Christ is therefore called the bread of life Iohn 6.35.51 herein differing from common bread that it onely preserues life where life is once begun but Christ begins life in vs being set before vs in the preaching of the Gospel called the childrēs bread Mat. 15.26 And he is eaten by faith spiritually Ioh. 6.56 He also continues and preserues life in vs as bread eaten by the same faith sacramentally Consider bread and wine are also for our comfort and to make glad the heart of man Psalm 104.14 15. so also this Sacrament and therefore in our faintings and in our afflictions we are to haue recourse hither this bread being like that meale which Elisha cast into the pot to make the pottage wholesome whereof it was said before death is in the pot 2. Kings 4.40 and 41. When we sée both bread and wine consider that Christ is our perfect Sauiour and Redéemer both bread and water of life vnto vs so that we néed not saluation in whole or in part of any other 4 Consider hence also the necessitie of this Sacrament especially of the thing signified by this bread and wine for as without bread and wine or other moysture we could not possibly liue whereas we may well spare many vnnecessary dainties so without this body and blood of Christ and the merits thereon depending it is impossible for any either to liue the life of grace here or of glory hereafter When we sée the Minister set apart by prayer and consecration these Elements from a common to an holy vse which signifies Gods eternall decrée in sealing Christ to the worke of our redemption and saluation Iohn 6.27 Then further consider and meditate on God the Fathers excéeding great loue Who so loued the world that he gaue his only begotten Sonne Christ to redeeme it Ioh. 3.16 Which loue God setteth forth séeing that first of himselfe vnsought to Secondly he the partie offended should prouide a Sauiour and giue thirdly his onely beloued Sonne for vs Fourthly before we were Fifthly whom he foresaw to be vnable to helpe our selues yea Sixtly to be enemies vnto him Rom. 5.8 Oh wonderfull loue of God! how did Abraham loue God when for his sake he was ready to offer in sacrifice his onely sonne Isaak yet that was his duty God so requiring it How much more doth God loue vs that fréely yea contrary to our deseruings giues to death his onely Sonne Christ one ten thousand times better then Isaack And thinke if God so loued me how ought I to loue him againe how ought I for his sake to part with my dearest and darling sinnes c. When we sée the bread broken and the wine powred out then thinke on the death and passion of Christ and on those intolerable paines which he suffered both in body and also much more in soule not for himselfe but for vs and here also more specially meditate First on Christs speciall Loue to vs who would so willingly become our suretie and pay our debt to God which is death which we were neuer able to haue endured For greater loue then this hath no man when any man bestowes his life on his friends Ioh. 15.13 But Christ is that good shepheard who giueth his life for vs his sheepe Ioh. 10.11 How then must I meditate should this inflame my heart with the loue of this my Sauiour c. And how may I now rest assured that I shall be vndoubtedly saued for if when I was a sinner Christ died for me much more then being now iustified by his blood shal I be saued from wrath throgh him c. Rom. 5.8.9.10 Secondly considering his grieuous suffering and pangs for vs his hands and his féet boared his side pearced with a speare himselfe mocked and now sustaining in soule the wrath of his Father due to our sinnes meditate Didst thou swéet Sauiour suffer such torments for me and shall not I endure an euill word for thée and for the profession of thy Name Diddest thou on the Crosse taste Vineger and Gall for me and shall I liue in pleasure and delicacies faring deliciously euery day and so please my palate with excesse in delicious meates and wines Diddest thou die for me and shall not I die to sinne and thus shew forth in my selfe thy death Yea diddest thou die for me and shall not I be ready to lay downe my life for thy Names sake c. Thirdly consider also the cause of all this his suffering which was not any sinne of his but our sinne 2. Cor. 5.21 and thinke and say Lord when I looke vpon thée whom my sinnes haue pierced how should I lament for thée as one that mourneth for his onely Sonne and bee sorry for thée as one is sorry for his first borne Zach. 12.10 Nay how should I rather mourne for mine owne sinnes and hate them with a deadly hatred whereby I crucifie thée againe so louing a Sauiour my sinnes being the speare that pierced thee and the nailes that lastened thée to the Crosse How weighty are my sinnes and how great the desert thereof which could not be borne by me nor satisfied for by any thing I am able either to doe or suffer but onely by thy precious death and bloud-shed of thée my deare Sauiour and my God blessed for euer Shall I now henceforth account any sinne light or little which deserued such infinite punishment Oh my Sauiour possesse my heart with thy loue teach mee to loue thee perfectly and to hate all sinne which cost thee so deare c. When the Minister representing the person of God the Father comes towards thée to offer and giue to each the signes this Bread and Wine then first meditate and pray and say with the Centurion Lord I am not worthy thou shouldest come vnder my roofe and as Elizabeth said to Mary whence commeth this to me that not the mother of the Lord but the Lord himselfe should come to me Luk. 1.14 And with the blessed Virgin Luk. 1.38 Behold the seruant of the Lord be it vnto thee according to thy word and here secondly assure thy selfe of Gods especiall loue to thée in particular and take these signes as speciall seales and pledges of Gods speciall loue towards thee and here raise vp thy thoughts with this or the like meditation Lord whereas in thy Word thou offerest Christ to all beleeuers though thou namest none now I see thou meanest euen me poore sinner as well as any thou appliest and assurest vnto me thy generall promise as if my name were recorded in thy Word and written in that

Sacrament which thou hast so often receiued will be a witnesse against thée and helpe to seale thy damnation After all is performed each must examine himselfe what comfort what ioy what encrease of grace he hath reaped by this Sacrament If we féele none then must we either accuse our selues for want of sufficient preparation before and then fly to God for pardon c. Or if we haue in some measure endeuoured to examine and prepare our selues then must we not be dismayed but trust in the mercy of our good and gracious God for acceptation of our endeuours Sée 2. Chron. 30.18 19. and depend on him for a blessing séeing God hath not tyed his grace to the very time of receiuing Light may be sowne for the righteous and ioy for the vpright in heart as it is Psal 97.11 and yet the haruest of that comfort not reaped till afterwaad So the sickman féeleth not for the present the strength and nourishment of the meate he hath taken and yet is nourished the Word preached euen by our Sauiour doth not alwayes take effect for the present see Act. 11.16 Ioh. 12.16 And in Baptisme we receiue not the comfortable assurance there made and sealed vnto vs till afterwards If we haue felt any comfort or God more graciously present with vs in this Sacrament Then First let vs be more specially thankfull to him for it not by our words but by our déeds by our liues and holy conuersation according to our purposes and promises here made and renued and therefore First pray with Dauid after he and his people had offered willingly for the building of the Temple Keepe this O Lord for euer in the purpose and in the thoughts of the heart of thy people and prepare their hearts vnto thee 1. Chron. 29.18 And then hauing fed on this heauenly food shew forth the goodnesse and strength of this thy food receiued by yéelding a plentifull fléece in new obedience like the Shéepe which shewes not by her bleating but by her fléece how much how well how heartily she hath eaten Otherwise this were both for the shame of our Master Christ at whose table wee are so often and bountifully fed if still like Pharaohes seuen leane kine wee remaine leane and ill fauoured Genes 41.19 20 21. And also doth argue some spirituall disease in vs which like a consumption hinders our growth and increase or that indéede for all the séeming comfort wee found wee haue not truely receiued Christ and haue him not abiding in vs for hee hath sayd Iohn 15.5 I am the Vine ye are the Branches hee that abideth in mee and I in him the same bringeth forth much fruit If wee haue feltt any comfort then let vs hence bee moued the oftner to frequent this Table As good men oftner frequent those tables where their friends consort Lastly in case of temptation doubting and vnbeléefe flie hither for thy comfort and for the conssimation and strengthning of thy faith remember what thou hast once and often receiued namely signes and seales of the couenant of grace as certaine tokens of Gods loue in Christ and particular assurances thereof therefore 〈◊〉 Satan off to Christ shew him Gods generall promise Iohn 3.16 Sealed vnto thee in particular both in Baptisme and in the Eucharist and let that be thy securitie and comfort FINIS Some few Questions to the same purpose with their Answers grounded on Rom. 4.11 where it is said Abraham receiued the signe of Circumcision a seale of the righteousnesse of Faith c. Question 1. WHat are Sacraments Answ Signes and seales of the righteousnesse of faith Quest 2. What is the righteousnesse of faith Answ It is the righteousnesse of Christ Iesus which he wrought by his obedience actiue and passiue which is promised in the Gospell and laid hold on and receiued by faith by which we become righteous Ioh. 3.16 Rom. 10.9 10 11. Rom. 24.22 23 4. Qu. 3. Is this righteousnesse signified and sealed vnto vs in the Lords Supper Ans It is in as much as Christ and all the benefits of his death as pardon of sinne or vnion with him and communion one with another as also our communicating in all these benefits are thereby signified and sealed to beleeuers and to them onely Quest 4. How is this Sacrament a Signe Ans In as much as it and all the elements and actions vsed in it are ordained of God to signifie and represent vnto the faithfull what God hath done and doth for vs in Christ Quest 5. What is required of each Communicant in this regard Ans It is required that at and neere about the time of communicating he comming prepared by faith and repentance and hauing a right knowledge of the meaning and mysteries of each thing and action doe accordingly make vse thereof by a further holy meditation Quest 6. What meditation is afforded from the bare elements of Bread and Wine Answ These being appointed as signes to signifie the body and bloud of Christ we so conceiuing of them must hence further be put in minde First of the nature of this Sacrament that it is not to beginne grace in vs but for our spirituall nourishment growth in grace as also comfort as Bread and Wine doe not giue life where it is not as not to a dead man or to an image but where it is though in a languishing manner Secondly when we see both Bread and Wine we must consider that Christ is to vs perfect nourishment and a perfect Sauiour both a perfect Prophet Priest and King Thirdly we must hence thinke of the necessity of Christ signified by Bread and Wine being as necessary in regard of our spirituall life as bread and drinke are to our naturall life Qu. 7. What are you to meditate on when you see the Minister by Consecration and by Prayer set apart these Elements from their common vse to an holy vse Ans This signifying that God the Father in his eternall decree did set apart and seale Christ Iesus his Sonne in due time to finish the work of our redemption calls on me to consider his infinite loue to mankind and to mee in particular in not sparing his onely Sonne for my sake and must also teach me to loue him againe Qu. 8. What must you meditate on when you see the Bread broken and the Wine powred out Ans Seeing hereby is signified the painefull and bloudy death of Christ for me this must teach me to consider first the infinite loue of Christ who would thus die for me to redeeme me from death secondly the cause hereof not his but mine owne sinnes which therefore I am not to account light of thirdly what duty I hence owe to him how that I ought to loue him againe and not refuse to suffer any thing for him according to his Will Qu. 9. What meditation is affoorded from the Ministers comming towards vs his offering and giuing those Elements to each of vs in particular A. This signifying that God doth offer and giue in particular to euery one of vs Christ and all the benefits of his death which hee offered to all generally in the Word preached giues vs to consider that God would haue vs euery one to be particularly assured of his loue and good will in Christ Iesus neither out of any conceit of our vnworthinesse excluding our selues from his mercy nor for want of speciall application losing the benefits of Christ and in the consideration of this mercy from the heart to acknowledge with the Centurion saying Lord I am not worthy thou shouldest come vnder my roofe Q. 10. When thou takest and applyest to thy selfe this bread and wine what must this put thee in minde of A. It signifying my faith which is as the hand mouth and stomacke of my soule must put me in mind that as God will haue euery man haue faith for himselfe without which Christ profiteth no man of age so to renue the act of my faith and at this time to stirre vp my selfe to take hold on Christ and to leane and rest my selfe on my Beloued assuring my selfe by this my renued act of faith that Christ and all his benefits are as certainly mine as that the bread is now truely receiued into my hand and is become mine Q. 11. When thou eatest and drinkest Bread and Wine which turne into the substance of our bodies what must here be thought on Ans This signifying not onely and simply our faith Iohn 6.35 by which we daily feed vpon Christ in the Word spiritually Ioh. 6.53 54 55 63. but our Vnion by faith and neerer coniunction with Christ must accordingly put vs in minde and also assure vs of our vnion with him and that as truly as the Bread and Wine we eat and drinke are turned into our substance to repaire strength decayed so assuredly are we changed assimilated and made conformable vnto Christ Rom. 8.29 Phil. 3.10 and incorporated into him and so fed refreshed and inwardly strengthened by his Body and Bloud Qu. 12. But are Sacraments also seales and particularly this of the Lords Supper Ans They are and that both on Gods behalfe to assure the beleeuer that Gods promises and all these benefits of Christ do most certainly belong vnto him and on our part whereby we by taking and receiuing these signes bind our selues a new to keepe our couenant with God and to performe all those promises of ours as of new obedience and mortification which wee by our sureties made to him in Baptisme FINIS