Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	formal_a	justification_n	righteousness_n	6,175	5	8.2431	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A08129	Certaine sermons, preached by the reuerend and iudicious diuine master Thomas Nevvhovse late preacher of Gods word in the citie of Norwich. And now set foorth for the vse and benefit of Gods people, by Robert Gallard, Master of Arts and minister in the same citie	Newhouse, Thomas, d. 1611.; Gallard, Robert.	1614 (1614)	STC 18493; ESTC S102789	66,753	182

and first search the sense proper meaning of them and after descend to the doctrines and vses which they shall affoord He that is borne of God that is Sense He that is renewed and sanctified by the grace and spirit of God being in his minde enlightened with the knowledge of the truth and in his heart will affections and the whole man framed and formed vnto the obedience thereof the which that it may be more cleere and manifest it shall not bee amisse briefly to consider the causes of our regeneration and new birth The principall efficient is the holy Ghost insinuating himselfe into the hearts of the elect and effectually applying the forme and vertue of the death resurrection of Christ thereby abolishing the corruption of nature and creating an inherent qualitie of righteousnesse and holinesse in the whole man Rom. 8.9.10 The instrumentall cause is the word of God that is the immortall seede of regeneration as the Apostle termeth it 1. Pet. 1.21 The materiall cause is the efficacie or effect of that righteousnesse which is inherent in the humane nature of Christ from which as from a roote and fountaine is propagated and deriued all that holinesse which is to bee found in the faithfull 1. Cor. 1.30 Christ is made vnto vs from God righteousnesse holinesse not onely by imputation vnto iustification but by infusion vnto sanctification The formall cause is the renouation of the decaled image of God in the whole man Ephe. 4.23.24 The finall cause is the worship of God in the duties of the first and second table Ephes 2.10 by all which we may see in part what regeneration is Now come we to the second argument of the description which is the effect denied hee sinneth not the meaning is not that the regenerate man is this life is whole pure and free from sinne for that is cleane contrary to the tenour of the whole Bible and to common and manifest experience in the Church of God and were heresie for a man once to conceiue Eccl. 7.22 Prou. 20.9 1. Ioh. 1.8 and the most holy men of God that euer haue liued in the Church haue not onely been subiect vnto sinne but when the occasions of temptation haue been greater haue fallen dangerously and grieuously as wee haue examples in Noah Lot Aaron Dauid Peter The proper meaning therefore and sense of these words is this he sinneth not that is he doth not laboriously painfully and diligently employ and busie himselfe in the practise of sinne hee sinneth not with studie with deliberation with constant purpose with full consent of will with delight with endeuour with continuance to conclude hee makes not a trade and occupation of sinning for so much is comprehended in the phrase he sinneth not or hee doth not practise sinne For the further cleering of this point to commit sinne containeth in it these three things first to giue full and free consent vnto sinne Secondly to giue vp the members of the bodie to the practise of sinne Thirdly to keepe a course and continuance in sinne Thus the man regenerate sinneth not first he doth not fully consent vnto sinne as it may appeare in Paul Rom. 7.16 where hee saith that if hee did the euill hee would not hee cōsented to the law that it was good if then hee did at all consent vnto the law he did not wholly consent vnto sinne but more plainly vers 22. For I delight in the law of God c. Secondly hee doth not giue vp his members to the practise of sinne he is so farre from that that he bridles and suppresses the corruption of nature in the heart before it breake foorth into action Gal 5.24 They that are Christs that is by faith vnited vnto him they haue receiued the spirit of Christ whereby they crucifie them with the affections and lusts 1. Iob. 5.18 Hee that is borne of God keepeth himselfe that is preserueth himselfe from sinne so much as possibly he can And this the Apostle insinuateth Rom. 6.19 As you haue giuen vp your members c. signifying that as by the force and strength of naturall corruption they did before regeneration prostitute the members of their bodies vnto vncleannes and sinne so now by the vertue of Gods grace after their conuersion they should sanctifie all their parts vnto the practise of righteousnes Thirdly hee keepeth not a course in sinne but either presently or not long after his fall riseth againe and recouereth himselfe by repentance as we haue examples in Dauid and Peter Doctrine 1 The doctrine that we are to learne hence is two-fold first that the child of God in this life is exempted and priuiledged not from sinne but from the reigne rule and dominion of sin wholly from the power and bondage of it in some part sinne doth not at all rule in the childe of God though the remainders of the corruption of nature haue power otherwhiles to bring foorth the fruites of the flesh This appeares plainly Rom. 8.2 The lawe of the spirit of life which is in Christ Iesus hath freed me not from sinne but è iure peccati which thing also may bee further confirmed by these two reasons First where Christ hath taken the hold there Satan is repelled and cast foorth now Christ hath taken the possession of euerie mans heart that is regenerate and borne againe and therefore no place for Satan for it is not possible that Christ by faith and grace and Satan by corruption and sinne should at once lodge and dwel together in one and the same heart if Christ keepe the hold Satan is excluded if the strong man be in possession all things are in peace there is no roome for Christ Secondlie the perpetuall combate betweene the flesh and the spirit whereof the Apostle speakes Galath 5.17 so that wee cannot doe what wee would neither that good by reason of sinne nor that euill by reason of grace which could in no wise be if so be that sinne raigned for in the raigne of sinne there is no resistance Obiection 1 But against this many things are excepted Rom. 6.12 Let not sinne raigne Ergo the Romanes who were iustified and sanctified and all regenerate men are subiect to the raigne of sinne To this I answere 〈◊〉 that the exhortation doth not imply any such thing only it sheweth the perill and danger they might fall into by reason of sin that hereby they might lose many of the graces of God and depriue themselues of all spirituall consolation and if it were possible wholly fall from grace so as sinne might againe beare rule in them So also other exhortations in Scripture as this Hee that standeth let him take heed lest he fall 1. Cor. 10.12 doe not insinuate that a man in the state of grace may fall wholly but in part or they bewray his weakenesse considered in himselfe whereby hee may wholly fall or they are spurres to our dull sides and rods to our slow backs to stirre

receiue them as pledges of loue both his and mine Indeede I acknowledge the particular respects whereby it hath pleased your Worships to ingage me vnto you doe farre exceed all that poore recompence which the slender dedication of these few sheetes of paper can possiblie make neither would I that the same should bee taken as any way equalizing your desert but onely I desire herein to giue you partly a signe of my dutifull and most vnfained affection towards you and partly also a memoriall of the Author your departed friend who is now in blesse not doubting but that your Worships will please to giue a kinde acceptance to this my poore offer not weighing the worth of the thing it selfe but rather as you are wont the minde and good will of him that giueth Now for these two Sermons in them the Author doth chiefly treate of these two things Baptisme and the feare of God the first a signe of our insition into Christ and a blessed seale of the couenant of grace The second is called in Scripture the Reuerence of Iehouah the fountaine or wel-spring of true and heauenlie wisedome As touching Baptisme me thinkes when wee seriously consider with our selues what weighty things were done therein and mutually past twixt God and vs we cannot but see it to be vtterly a fault so easily to cast aside all thoughts about it and to make it such a stranger to our meditations as vsually wee doe For mine owne part I know not whether any one thing be more worthie of a Christians consideration then is his baptisme for by it as by a conduit it pleased God to conuay vnto vs the best of his fauors For example whereas by nature as scripture speakes we were aliants frō God and sonnes of wrath Ephes 2.3.12 when wee were baptized in the name of the Father Sonne and holy Ghost wee were brought into an holy fellowship with the blessed Trinitie and were admitted into the familie of Christ euer after to remaine as adopted sonnes in the house of the most high God A most blessed condition Againe Ephes 2.1 whereas by nature wee were all dead and rotten in sinne and altogether deuoid of the life of grace in baptisme wee receiued quicknance from the spirit of life the holie Ghost And whereas our poore soules were beggerlie clad with natures cloath which is God wot nought else but a torne and rotten ragge of old Adam in baptisme we laid aside that old and put on a new and most costly coate euen the rich robe of Christ his righteousnes whereby the whole Church the spouse of Christ doth stand as a glorious obiect in the sight of God for euermore Lastly whereas by nature we were most filthie and loathsome in Gods eye no leper or lazer so lothsome to vs as wee to God for as the childe new borne lieth tumbling in blood so we in sin in baptisme we were washed by the cleane water of the spirit of God and thereby freed from the spots and guilt of sinne 2. King 5. as Naaman was from his leprosie in the riuer Iordan Thus by our baptisme of strangers to God we became euen Gods associats of limbes of the diuell members of Christ of beggers brats poorely clad Kings sonnes richly attired in the righteousnes of God of polluted and vncleane pure and amiable 〈◊〉 thus were we blessed when wee were baptized with water and with the holie Ghost Now further see wee what great things did passe from vs to God in our baptisme surely as God therein became a God vnto vs so wee became a people to him wee renounced the world and proclaimed a defiance to sinne and Satan wee dedicated our selues soules and bodies to the seruice and worship of the most high and as Dauid vowed to keepe Gods commandements so did wee by a solemne vow in the sight of men and Angels binde our selues to beleeue in God and to become as it were Gods apprentises or rather the loyal subiects and faithfull souldiers of our Lord Iesus to fight vnder his colours and maintaine his quarrell against all aduersarie power of our saluation and his glorie And thus wee see that in our baptisme the Lord did great things for vs and we promised great things to God againe how requisite a thing is it therefore nay how necessary that we should now and then admit of thoughts about our baptisme that so wee might haue a sense and feeling of the comfort of those blessings of God which there we receiued and also be quickned vp to the carefull performance of what wee haue so solemnely promised For this very cause I wish that this little treatise concerning this argument might be as a Remembrancer to put vs in minde of these things which are of such weight and so neerely doe concerne vs. As touching that other Sermon in it wee may see very exactly and iudiciously handled that rare and singular vertue so oft spokē of in the Scriptures and called by this name The feare of God a most excellent gift of the spirit as vsefull almost as any other to help forward a Christian life and no lesse gainfull in bringing in Gods blessings As for a Christian life as we know it is chiefly spent in two things that is abstaining from euill and endeuouring that which is good or as Isaiah speakes in ceasing to doe euill Isaiah 1.16.17 and learning to doe well Now both these bee streames flowing from one and the same sountaine viz. Prou. 3.7 the feare of Iehouah Salomon saith The feare of the Lord is to hate euill Prou. 8.13 there is Gods feare the cause of surceasing from euill He further saith Pron 14.2 He that walketh in righteousnesse feareth the Lord where the wise man reasoneth from the effect to the cause shewes that Gods feare is it that causeth a man to walke righteously that is to doe well and indeed there was neuer any man that feared God but endeuoured in the course of his life to please God in well-doing So then as we see man that rides in ordering his horse doth vse a bridle a spurre a bridle to restraine him if hee bee too free a spurre to pricke him on forward if he be dull so in ordering our liues the feare of God is as a bridle to curbe vs from rushing into sin and as a spurre to pricke vs on forward and quicken our slow and lazie natures to that which is good and pleasing to God Yet moreouer as this is a vertue of great vse in directing vs to heauen so I may truly call it as the Apostle doth call godlinesse great gaine for it brings in with it the abundance of Gods blessings in so much as whosoeuer will attempt to trade therewith shall finde her reuenewes to bee very great and that which Salomon saith of Wisedome Prou. 3.14 will be verified of her viz. that her merchādise is better then the merchandise of siluer and the gaine thereof is better then