Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	efficient_a	faith_n	justification_n	3,392	5	9.4028	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A76707	The copy of the covenant of grace With a true discovery of several false pretenders to that eternal inheritance, and of the right heir thereunto. Together with such safe instructions as will inable him to clear his title, and to make it unquestionable. Exactly evidenced by many perspicuous and unconstrained testimonies of scripture. Penned, and published upon mature deliberation, and good advise. / By Robert Bidwel, a servant, and minister of the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.	Bidwell, Robert.	1657 (1657)	Wing B2886; Thomason E2117_1; ESTC R212678	175,027	429

3. 13. And from the penalty thereupon depending For he was wounded for our transgressions he was bruised for our iniquities the chastisement of our peace was upon him and with his stripes we are healed Isa 53. 5. And moreover of guilty sinners we are become justified Saints For we have all sinned and come short of the glory of God Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Jesus Christ whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his bloud to declare his righteousnesse for the remission of sins that are past through the forbearance of God Rom. 3. 23 24 25. In which words we finde the moving or procuring cause of our justification to be the free grace of God the meritorious cause to be Christ the Son the efficient cause to be God the Father the instrumental cause to be Faith in Christ and the final cause to be the glory of God The glory of his righteousnesse for the Remission of sins That he might be just in being the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus verse 26. For as it is just with God to punish the sins of a Reprobate that dieth in his iniquity So it is as just with him to pardon the sins of a believer for which Christ died And as the true believer is delivered from the guilt and punishment of sin by the merit of Christ So is he also preserved from the power of sin by the Spirit of Christ And this he doth By redeeming us from our vain conversation 1 Pet. 1. 18. By purging our consciences from dead works to serve the living God Heb. 9. 14. By crucifying our old man the body of sin Rom. 6. 6. By freeing us from the Law the strength of sin 1 Cor. 15. 56 57. By delivering us through grace from the dominion of sin Rom. 6. 14. By strengthening us with might in the inner man Eph. 3. 16. And by making us partakers of the Divine nature 2 Pet. 1. 4. Who will not then conclude with S. Paul In all these things we are more then conquerers through him that loved us Rom. 8. 37. And thus you see that our Lord Jesus Christ by justifying us through his merit hath freed us from the condemning guilt punishment of sin And by sanctifying us through his Spirit he hath delivered and fortified us from and against the prevailing power and insinuation of sin And 〈◊〉 this means he hath redeemed us from 〈◊〉 and destruction being the just reward and recompence of sin And all this meerly and absolutely upon the account of this eternal Covenant of grace For God so loved the world that he gave his onely begotten Son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life But have everlasting life THis is the blessed Inheritance conferred and confirmed by this Covenant according to this Copy Everlasting life or eternal salvation This is the glorious expectation and inheritance of the Children of God Blessed the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled that fadeth not away reserved in heaven for you who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation saith St. Peter 1 Pet. 1. 3 4 5. If in this life onely we have hope in Christ we are of all men 〈◊〉 ●iserable saith St. Paul 1. Cor. 15. 19. 〈◊〉 are troubled on every side saith he yet not ●●stressed we are perplexed but not in despair persecuted but not forsaken cast down but not destroyed Alwayes bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body 2 Cor. 4. 8 9 10. For which cause we faint not but though our outward man perish yet our inward man is renewed day by day for our light affliction which is but for a moment worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory verse 16. 17 18. Truely it is this Assurance that supports and supplies the militant Members of the Lord Jesus Christ throughout their whole warfare It removeth all difficulties sweetneth all discomforts and relieveth all distresses Verily it elevateth the Soul beyond all expectation I take pleasure in infirmities in reproches in necessities in persecutions in distresses for Christs sake saith St. Paul 2 Cor. 12. 10. Good Paul were these thy pleasant recreations Truely it is not to be denied but that they are very profitable exercises For when I am weak saith he then am I strong When I am weak in the flesh then am I strong in the faith For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are n●t worthy to be compared to the glory which shall be revealed in us Rom. 8. 18. What will not a true believer do or suffer in hope of eternal life which God that cannot lie promised before the world began Tit. 1. 2. But forasmuch as there must be a temporal life before there can be an eternal life Therefore as I have formerly set forth unto you the several sorts or degrees of death So I shall here endeavour ●o shew you the several sorts or degrees of life which I conceive to be likewise four That is to say The natural life The spiritual life The peacefull life and the eternal or everlasting life And secondly I shall apply my self to prove that every one of them as a Member or passage of or to this everlasting life is part or parcel of that eternal inheritance whereunto the Son of God hath intituled us by vertue of this Covenant The first I say is the natural life or the life of Nature That which we say we receive from our Parents And it consisteth in the union of the body and the Soul or of the flesh and spirit according to the vulgar sense But in the Scripture sense that is properly called the natural life wherein a man followeth Nature for his chief or onely guide And of such a one St. Paul sayes That the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God for they are foolishnesse unto him neither can he know them because they are spiritually discerned 1 Cor. 2. 14. Now this natural life in either of these senses may be said to be the issue of the first birth or of the fleshly generation For that which is born of the flesh is flesh saith our Lord Joh. 3. 6. And they that are after the flesh do minde the things of the flesh saith St. Paul Rom. 8. 5. Verily whosoever liveth meerly this natural life or this life of Nature onely it were better for him that he had never lived at all that he had never been born For we are all by nature the children of wrath According to that of St. Paul Eph. 2. 3. Neverthelesse though accidentally by reason of the corruption of Nature this natural life tendeth

over her and covered her nakednesse and sware unto her and entred into a Covenant with her and made her his own Then he washed her and anointed her he decked her with the richest Ornaments both of Jewels and Rayment he fed her with the chief est nourishment And her beauty was made perfect through his comelinesse that he had put upon her Ezek. 16. 8. to the 15. verse And in consideration of these so great so undeserved favours she crieth out with that good Prophet David O give thanks unto the Lord for he is good for his mercy endureth for ever Psal 107. 1. And so thirdly she falleth upon his mercy which she cannot but mightily commend for that so soon as she became sensible of her own lamentable condition he then appeard to her most mercifull For no sooner did she finde her self to be by nature the child of wrath Eph. 2. 3. And by sin the child of the Devil 1 Joh. 3. 8. But suddenly she perceived that he had redeemed her to God by his bloud Rev. 5. 9. That when she was yet his enemy he had reconciled her to God by his death and most assuredly saved her by his life Rom. 5. 10. And all this without the least satisfaction by or from her self For not by works of righteousnesse that she had done but according to his mercie he saved her Tit. 3. 5. And she is most confident that he will continue her in her now happy estate For he hath said I will never leave thee nor forfake thee Hebr. 13. 5. Neither can she doubt but what he hath said he will most certainly perform For she findeth Fourthly That he is full of Grace and Truth John 1. 14. Yea he is the very Truth it self John 14. 6. And therefore she sings with David Her Lord is good his mercie is everlasting and his truth endureth to all generations Psal 100. 5. Nor Fifthly is she afrighted at his Justice But rather she rejoyceth therein For albeit The wages of sin is death Rom. 6. 23. And every transgression and every disobedience must receive a just recompence of reward As Hebr. 2. 2. Yet the law of the Spirit of life in her Lord Christ Jesus hath freed her from the law of sin and of death Rom. 8. 2. And in such a case it is not the office of Justice to condemn but to acquit protect and justifie And sixthly she can never forget his wisdom who is the wisdom of God 1 Cor. 1. 24. She apprehendeth by faith that it was he which made the earth by his power which established the world by his wisdom and stretched out the heaven by his understanding As Isa 51. 15. He knoweth them that are his 2 Tim. 1. 19. And he knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgement to be punished 2 Pet. 2. 9. And she doubteth not but she may most safely and savingly resign her self to his direction and disposition For in him are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge Colos 2 3. The soul that adds a thousand fold to these shall yet fall short a thousand thousand fold of his essentiall super-excellencies and lose her self at last in admiration Yet by these dear indearing contemplations she acts and strengthens and improves her Love and works it to a prosperous conditon For as the roote by vertue of the Sap causeth the tree to put forth fair green leaves So worketh Faith by Love and fits the soul the chast soul for a flourishing profession ANd now though somewhat bashfull yet she dares discover her affections to her friends the sweet companions of her virgin Love I charge you O daughters of Jerusalem if you finde my beloved that ye tell him that I am sick of love Saith she Cant. 5. 8. And therefore as the virgin lover first delighteth much to meditate upon the rare perfections of her Paramore So in the second place she will be talking of him very often extolling and comending his person parts and properties that so he may the better come to the knowledge and assurance of her intire affection towards him In like manner the love-sick soul that panteth after Christ will not omit the least occasion or opportunity of conference concerning her dear Lord but will evermore be magnifying his goodness loving-kindness and the like and setting forth the promises due thereto Because thy loving-kindness is better then life therefore my lips shall praise thee saith David Psal 63. 3. And to that purpose she consorts her self with his true servants his trustie friends whom she inviteth kindly to a sweet harmoneous concord and conversation O come saith she let us sing unto the Lord let us make a joyfull noise to the rock of ovr salvation Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving and make a joyfull noise unto him with Psalms For the Lord is a great God c. Psal 94 to the 8. And from hence she proceedeth to a more eminent and evident Profession of her true zeal and pure integrity which will appear the more infallibly by loving that which he is known to love and hating that which he abhors and hates Resolved thus She findes he loveth righteousnesse and hateth wickednesse Psal 45. 7. And therefore she directeth her affections of love and hatred towards the same Objects In the first place she loveth righteousness whether it be the righteousness of faith which justifieth the person or the righteousness of the law which justifieth the faith of the person For she knoweth that as the one is the cause of her justification so the other is the evidence of her sanctification And this her Love appeareth very precious upon the account of these four properties First it is Cordiall secondly it is Constant thirdly it is Confident and fourthly it is Comprehensive First I say it is cordiall It is no brain-sick fancy begotten by imagination brought forth by opinion nursed by ignorance and maintained by impudence Neither is it an outward formall profession modalled by self-seeking and magnified by self-conceit These are degenerate monsters bastard brats abominable to her virgin brest She owns no other love but what proceeds from the assurance of a saving faith infused by the Spirit of her Lord into the hidden corners of her heart I sleep saith she but my heart waketh Cant. 5. 2. her loving heart is evermore in labour Neither can any thing prevent or hinder her amourous desires from running out towards the righteousness of her dear Lord Because He is the Lord her righteousnesse Jer. 23. 6. Secondly her love is constant She regardeth not the face of the times nor the course of the tide the praise of a parasite nor the partling of a Parrat Neither will she take the spirit of giddiness for her guide least by any means she should wax wanton against Christ and wed her self to some unworthy creature like the younger widows Tim. 3. 11. Profits Pleasures and preferments