Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	effect_n	evil_a	good_a	4,841	5	4.5571	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A47174	A serious appeal to all the more sober, impartial & judicious people in New-England to whose hands this may come ... together with a vindication of our Christian faith ... / by George Keith.	Keith, George, 1639?-1716.	1692 (1692)	Wing K205; ESTC R33000	63,270	72

hath not yet appeared unto many but it is as yet Night unto them and to others it is as a little dawning but to others clear Day which answers to that of Paul Now is the accepted Time now is the Day of Salvation to wit to such who had Christ crucified and raised again livingly and effectually preached to them by Christs faithful Messengers but yet even to such who are in the Night state and are in Darkness to whom the clear Day of God hath not appeared some divine Light shineth in their Darkness and that Light though ever so small is of a saving tendency and doth prepare the way of the Lord inwardly as John's outward Ministration prepared the Way of the Lord as he came outwardly and even inwardly the Law and the Prophets go before the clear Manifestation of Christ and his Gospel so that the Law even inwardly as well as outwardly is a Schoolmaster to bring them who are under it to Christ Nor do we say That the Light doth reveal in every man all that we must know in order to Salvation upon its first appearance or in its first Ministration for we distinguish betwixt the various inward Ministrations of the Light and Spirit and teach That the former makes way for the latter as it is well improved and as he that goeth up a Stair or Ladder must begin at the lowest Step or Round and so by degrees and in process of time getteth up higher untill he come to the place where he would be and as the sojourning of the People of Israel in the Wilderness had its several Removes which were Typical of the Souls inward progress from spiritual Aegypt to the spiritual Canaan so the Souls of men have their several inward and spiritual Sojournings from one degree to another until they receive the end of their Faith which is the Salvation of their Souls as it is written in the Psalms They go from strength to strength c. And it is a great Perversion in C. Mather that because I blame them for denying That there is any Light in men generally that is sufficient to enable them to do any Work acceptable to God as if therefore I did hold That every man hath so much Grace Illumination as doth enable him to do any i.e. whatsoever Work acceptable to God For All men Not to be able to do any work acceptable to God And All men To be able to do any or every VVork acceptable to God are not Contradictory as being both Universal and therefore they are both false and as two Universals are not Contradictory and are both false so two Particulars are not Contradictory when the one is Positive and the other Negative and therefore may be both True As it is true That some men are good and That some men are not good so it is true That some good Works may be done by some men and yet it is as true That they cannot at that time do some other good VVorks for it is a good Work to believe in Christ crucified and raised again and to love him as such and yet we do not say that the Light in every man doth either teach or enable every man at first so to do for that cannot be done without some special Revelation or Illumination but yet that more common and general Illumination where it is well and duely improved doth enable men to do some other good things that prepareth the Souls of men to receive that more special Illumination that cometh from the same Author and Fountain and so is Introductory to that more special for the Law is Introductory to the Gospel and yet hath the Gospel hid in it as in a Seed as one Natural Science is introductory to another as the Science of natural Physick is introductory to the Science of Medicine and common Arithmetick is introductory to the more abstruse and recondite parts of Mathematical Learning for the Operation of the Law inwardly doth so convince the Soul of sin and doth so discover to the Soul its weakness and shortness in Obedience notwithstanding of some things that it doth which are good after a sort that it maketh the Soul sick and so to need the Physition which is Christ even crucified and raised again as the Mystery of him is inwardly revealed and applyed to the Soul by the Spirit In his 5 th Assertion he doth also grosly prevaricate and pervert the state of the Question for we do not say That Christ is so in the Wicked or Unconverted as he is in the Saints but after a far other manner for he is in the Saints by Vnion and Communion with them and giveth great and glorious Manifestations of his Glory whereas in others he is not in them by any Union or Communion yet he is so in them as to operate in them and to reveal and discover some things in them that are suitable to their present state in order to their Conversion Nor do we say That Christ is personally in the Saints as some imagine And as to his Question How we shall know Light within from Thought within I Answer If he mean by Thought within a good Thought or Thoughts they are distinguished as the cause and effect for the divine Light within is the cause of every good Thought and Desire as of every good Word and Work but all evil Thoughts proceed not from the Light but from the Darkness and the Light within doth as plainly distinguish betwixt good and bad Thoughts and other Motions as the outward Light of the Sun helpeth us to distinguish betwixt things white and black or straight and crooked but as blind men cannot judge of Colours so who are greatly blinded with Prejudice and Unbelief against the Light within as C.M. is can but very little distinguish or know good from evil except in things notoriously gross nor was it the true Light in Saul that approved him in his Persecution but pricked him in his Conscience and witnessed against him if he had hearkned to it but as a man in his heat of Passion hearkeneth not to true Reason but is Deaf to it though it be in him so men being blinded and hardened with sin doth not give due regard either to true Reason or the true divine Light which are both in them notwithstanding and yet even those men when they become more cool and calm may and do hearken to the dictates of both And for his other Question Whether their Magistrates viz. the Quakers ever had a Light which directed them to punish a filthy VVoman for exposing her self stark Naked before their Eyes in a publick Assembly to prove her Attainment of that Innocency which is without shame I Answ I remember no such thing that ever I heard tollerated by the Quakers Magistrates for we all judge that any such Practice doth really deserve corporal Punishment and I suppose the Passage he mentioneth was that which happened some time ago where the Magistrates of that

from being any design of our Religion that it more than any tendeth to humble the Creature for man can never be truly humbled until he see himself in the Light of God shining in his heart and that will greatly humble him as it did Job and Isaiah and all the holy men of God were humbled and kept humble by bowing down and subjecting th●●r Minds and Thoughts with all their Desires and Affections to that divine Spirit Light and Life of Christ in them that bringeth men to the true Denyal of Self and to cease from all Self-Actings Willings and Runnings that only proceed from their meer Natural Pa●ts and Abilities whether in Prayer or any other Religious Performance and however such Prayers and Devotions that are performed without the Spirit of God may please mans carnal Mind and give 〈◊〉 false and carnal ease and peace and exalt Self in Man yet they can ne●●●●● profit them who use them nor please God for God who is a Spi●●● will be worshipped in Spirit and in Truth And whereas in his 8th page he accuseth the Quakers for their horribly Prayer-less Lives withal asking how many Prayer-less Houses and Prayer-less Tables are to be found among the best of them I Answ In that he is very uncharitable as that the best of us had neither Prayer in our Houses nor at our Tables which is false for not only the most grown up in the Truth but even the least Babes in the Truth are not without frequent Prayer both in their Houses and at their Tables altho' not so very frequent vocally yet sometimes vocally as God is pleased to give an utterance and at other times only with our Hearts which God accepts for vocal and external words of Prayer are not so essential to Prayer but that true Prayer may be and is most frequently without it yea Samuell Rutherford a great Presbyterian saith in his Epistles Words are but the Accidents of Prayer yet Prayer with Words uttered with the Mouth as God is pleased to enable us we gladly own both in our Assemblies and Families and if any be wanting in their Families in Prayer or any other part of Devotion it is their own fault for which they must answer and ought not to be charged upon the innocent And we believe Gods holy Spirit will be wanting to none duely to move them and that most frequently to Prayer who watch thereunto both with words or without them And if they watch not unto Prayer their Neglect of watching and likewise of Prayer is their sin and chargeable upon them and they will bear their burden for it But that any faithful man owned by us hath said as C.M. alledgeth not from any Quaker but from a partial Adversary That in many Years they have not had a motion to Prayer we do not believe if any feel not their hearts moved to Prayer and that most frequently it is their own fault and sin for indeed every faithful Soul his Life is a Life 〈◊〉 Prayer and he prayeth in his heart as frequently as he breatheth in the air for true inward Prayer rightly understood is the ●●●●inual Motion of the heart towards God The Spirit helping our 〈◊〉 with Groans that cannot be uttered for even Paul said We know not what to pray for as we ought Rom. 8.26 And also he hath solemn Times and that frequently for solemn Prayer and Meditation and Thanksgiving but the most sincere Christians do not always make the greate●● show or outward appearance to pray as the Pharise● did of 〈◊〉 And I might easily retort this Question How many 〈…〉 and Independents have either Prayer les● Houses and 〈…〉 very formal and Hypocritical and are wholly Strangers in the 〈…〉 Life and Mystery of Prayer Though we have Charity 〈◊〉 some of all sorts and as we judge neglect of Prayer a great 〈◊〉 so we judge 〈◊〉 Formality and Hypocrisie to be no less both which Extreams are to be avoided Some Collections of Passages out of Jer. Taylors Book 〈◊〉 The History of the Life and Death of the holy JESUS Part 1. Sect. 9. of Baptism N. 29. JVst as we use to deny the Effect to the Instrumental Cause and attribute it to the Principal in the manner of speaking So we say it is not the good Lute but the skillfull hand that makes the Musick it is not the Body but the Soul that is the Man and yet he is not the Man without both Note And so the Quakers commonly say It is not the Scriptures but the Spirit that revealeth to us divine Mysteries yet by so saying they deny not that the Scripture is an Instrument of the Spirit to reveal the Doctrinal Principles peculiar to the Christian Faith as Christs Birth of a Virgin his Crucifixion c. as much as the Lute is the Instrument of the skillfull hand that makes the Musick Infants Baptism Part 2. N. 8. No man can conclude that this Kingdom of Power that is the Spirit of Sanctification is not come upon Infants because there is no sign nor Expression of it it is within us therefore it hath no signification it is the Seed of God And it is no good Argument to say here is no Seed in the Bowels of the Earth because there is nothing green upon the face of it And N. 19. For as the reasonable Soul and all its Faculties are in Children Will and Vnderstanding Passions and Powers of Attraction and Propulsion yet the Faculties do not operate or come abroad till Time and Art Observation and Experience have drawn them forth into Action so may the Spirit of Grace the Principle of Christian Life be infused till in its own day it is drawn forth for in every Christian there are three parts 〈◊〉 to his integral Constitution Body and Soul and Spirit and all these have their proper Activities and Times but every one in his 〈◊〉 Order first that which is Natural then that which is 〈…〉 what Aristotle said A Man first lives the Life of a Pla●● then of 〈◊〉 and lastly of a Man is true in this sence and the 〈◊〉 spiritual the Principle to the longer it is before it operates because ●●re things concur to spiritual 〈◊〉 than to Natural and these are 〈◊〉 and therefore first the other are perfect and therefore last 〈…〉 who is he that so 〈◊〉 understands the Philosophy of this third Principle of a Christians Life the Spirit as to know how or when it is infused 〈◊〉 how it operates in all its Periods and what it is in its Being and proper 〈◊〉 and whether it be like the Soul or like the Faculty or like a 〈…〉 to what Purposes God in all varieties doth dispense it tha● which is 〈◊〉 is that the Spirit is the Principle of a new Life or a new Birth 〈…〉 the Seed of God and may lie long in the Furrows before it springs up that from the Faculty to the Act the passage is not always suddain and quick And a little after