Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	good_a	just_a	law_n	2,761	5	4.7834	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A34542	The remains of the reverend and learned Mr. John Corbet, late of Chichester printed from his own manuscripts.; Selections. 1684	Corbet, John, 1620-1680.	1684 (1684)	Wing C6262; ESTC R2134	198,975	272

Christianity Surely God requires of us no more than he hath given and that is to make use of the faculties wherewith he hath indued us How can we apprehend any doctrine or the sense of any written word but by our faculty of understanding And how can we make judgment thereof I mean a judgment of discretion but by making use of our own reason This is not to subject matters of Religion to a private Spirit but to refer them to the Divine Authority of Scripture to be apprehended in the right and due use of reason which is a publick and evident thing and lies open to the trial and judgment of all men § 21. What Certainty is necessary to the being of saving Faith THUS upon the grounds before laid we may have a natural infallible Certainty of the verity of the Christian Religion and the divine authority of the Scripture and of the sense of Scripture It remains to be considered Whether the having of this Certainty both of the Christian Religion and of the Scripture be necessary to the being of saving Faith Here let it be noted That a person may have some doubting of a matter whereof he sees no just cause of doubting And howsoever men may possibly argue against this assertion yet experience makes it good And there is sufficient reason for it in the infirmity of our minds contracted by the fall whereby oft-times we are confident of the things which we see we have just cause to doubt of or disbelieve and whereby we doubt of the things that we see we have just cause most firmly to believe I take this to be evident in that saying I believe Lord help my unbelief And against this it cannot be said here is an effect without a sufficient cause for tho there be no sufficient ground or reason of the doubt yet for it being a defect there is a sufficient cause namely the infirmity of the mind He that said to our Saviour I believe Lord help mine unbelief had saying faith And his faith that he professed and his unbelief that he complained of appears by the context not to relate to his interest in Christ but to Christ himself as able to help him And so from this instance it is evident that the not having of an infallible certainty of the object denies not the being of saving faith at least where a man is so far clear as to see no just cause of doubt tho he do somewhat doubt A man that sees not a sufficient evidence to be infallibly assured touching the firmness of the grounds for the receiving of the Christian Doctrine and yet sees no sufficient evidence for the rejecting of that doctrine may from the consideration of the importance of the things therein treated of and the probability of the truth of those things be induced intirely and heartily to imbrace that doctrine with purpose to live accordingly and to perform that purpose That this may be is evident for humane prudence doth strongly oblige a man in that case to make such a choice for himself and if he doth not make such choice he doth not act with the understanding of a man But if it be said that the corruption of humane nature would be too hard for humane prudence in the case I answer That God can give that assistance of his Grace whereby a mans will shall be inabled to make its choice according to prudence against its naturally corrupt inclination And God can give this assistance very congruously or agreeably to his holy Wisdom Whosoever in the case aforesaid doth make such a choice and live accordingly hath saving faith For his so doing doth imply an unfeigned love to and preferring of God and Christ and Holiness above all that is in the world and so must needs suppose faith unfeigned and God proceeding according to his Grace in Christ will not impute unto condemnation such a ones culpable defect of Certainty in the matters of Faith which doth not hinder his sincere trust in God through Christ and his intire and hearty love to him § 22. Of our Certainty of being in the State of Grace IT may lastly be inquired What Certainty one may have of his being in the state of grace As for the Certainty of Salvation that is a different inquiry and depends on another question touching the Certainty of perseverance in a justified state which is not here to be medled with and we inquire not whether one may be certain of his being in the state of Grace by special revelation but in an ordinary way That any one ordinarily should have certain knowledg of his being in the state of Grace supposeth his certain knowledg of these two things 1. That God hath declared in his word that they which have such and such qualifications are in the state of Grace 2. That he himself is so qualified For it is the conclusion of these two premises the one whereof is the object of divine faith and the other of a clear and right self-knowledg The Certainty of the former viz. That God hath declared persons so qualified to be in the state of Grace none deny that acknowledg the Certainty of Christs Gospel The Certainty of the latter is the matter of debate whether it be possible and whether it ought to be had It is not inquired Whether the Certainty of the latter viz. Whether the person himself be so qualified be a Certainty of divine faith For the object of such Certainty is only what God hath revealed that this or that man hath faith and repentance but this is only a point of self-knowledg Here interpose we something of the doctrine of Protestants and Papists about the Certainty of this matter The Protestants in asserting that the Certainty of being in the state of Grace is a Certainty of divine faith do mean no more but that one of the propositions viz. Whosoever unfeignedly believes is justified rests solely on the Word of God and the other viz. I unfeignedly believe is known by internal sence and experience But whether the conclusion Therefore I am justified or in the state of Grace be rightly called a conclusion of divine faith I leave to others to judg not caring to strive about words when the thing it self is agreed upon And doubtless no sober Protestant will assert that the Certainty which we have of this conclusion is a Certainty of the same reason with that which we have of an article of faith either so firmness or necessity The Papists in denying the Certainty of Justification to be a Certainty of Divine Faith do not deny all Certainty thereof but mean that it is not of the same reason with the Certainty which we have of an Article of Faith Because tho one of the premises on which it is founded be an Article of Faith yet the other is known but by internal sence and the testimony of conscience As to the later of the premises which is known but by internal sence and

yet not from the bond of Matrimony is but idle talk The state is dissolved where all the obligations consequent to such a state are abrogated Moreover the Papists themselves allow the dissolving of a Marriage with such an Infidel as will not cohabit without using contumely against Christ and seeking to turn the yokefellow from Christ And is not Adultery especially if continued as just a cause of the dissolution seeing this cause is expressed in Gods Law whereas the other is not And whereas they say there is not the same firmness in the marriage of Infidels as of Christians this they speak without proof and against the Law of God which hath made Matrimony as inviolable among Infidels as among Christians This is a Divine Ordinance belonging not to the Church only but to all mankind § 22. As touching the allowableness of another Marriage to the innocent party in case of a declared wilful desertion by the other we find this written 1 Cor. 7.15 If the unbelieving depart let him depart A brother and sister is not under bondage in such cases It is hence gathered by some that in a Marriage between a believer and an unbeliever in case the unbelieving party depart out of hatred to true Religion and if the believing party hath used all possible and reasonable means to reduce the other to a due Conjunction and hath staid a convenient time for that purpose and cannot prevail therein he is loosed from this bond This inference from the Text seems to me highly probable that I cannot disallow it Many Reformed Churches have determined this and applied it further to other cases of obstinate desertion besides this before mentioned that the matter being judged by the Magistrate the Innocent party may Marry another As for the prohibition Vers 11. If she depart let her remain unmarried therein another Marriage is forbidden only to such as voluntarily depart It is to be noted that there may be a just voluntary departing which is not of the same reason with a just divorce § 23. Abishag who was sought for David to cherish him in his extream age 1 King 1.2 was his Concubine that is not his Harlot but his lawful Wife in a secondary degree or inferior rank I mean lawful only by Gods permission or connivence in regard of his plurality of Wives at once according to the custom of the ancient times yet lawful by Divine Approbation in case he had had no other Wife then in being From this example it is at least probable that it is not a sin in it self in extream old age to take a Wife as a cherishing Nurse or a bosom companion For the declared intent of Davids taking Abishag was that she might lie in his bosom and cherish him in his age when he could get no heat And it is said That she cherished him but he knew her not § 24. The Bed undefiled Heb. 13.4 is that which is not defiled with Adultery Fornication or any kind of unchastness or unsoberness To the maintaining of which undefiledness and the avoiding of all uncleanness Christians are greatly obliged by the purity of their Religion Here I design to speak of uncleanness not without but within the bounds of Matrimony and to give caution against all corrupt behaviour between a Man and his own Wife because men are commonly least aware of this evil and because this is the Damnation of multitudes who defile not themselves with strange embraces and while they think they live chastly do securely allow themselves in very great breaches of the laws of chastity To keep the Bed undefiled it is necessary to observe not only the due object of Conjunction or the legitimate person but all due eircumstances of time place measure manner c. For inordinate sensuality or lust is not excused by being acted between persons lawfully married The honesty and honour of Matrimony cannot make that to be lawful and honest which is in it self dishonest and sinful All manner of lust or evil concupiscence and the imperated acts thereof are forbidden by the Law § 25. There be divers ways of abusing the Marriage-bed between a Man and his own Wife whereof some are more foul and gross than others There be nefarious irregulaties that some fall into by unbridled lust There are preternatural ways by which humane nature cannot be propagated and which are justly to be abhorred by all who have not lost the sense of humanity Moreover a man may come to his Wife as to a Harlot with a spirit of Whoredom and seek a brutish pleasure which extinguisheth the fear of God Such excess as doth notably impair the health of the Body or vitiate the mind and make it more carnal is unquestionably to be avoided and will be avoided by those that are careful to keep a sound state of body or mind § 26. It is by all confessed that in two cases the conjugal embraces are without fault first when they are for the sake of Procreation secondly when the due is rendred to the yoke-fellow requiring it The reason of the former is because then the action is referred to the primary end for which Matrimony was ordained The reason of the later is because it is an Act of Justice that being rendred to another which is his right For herein the married parties have a mutual power over each other 2 Cor. 7. Yet be it always minded that even in the said cases it must be regulated by the Rules of Christian Purity Some have said That the use of the Marriage-bed without respect to Procreation of Children is base or unclean And some chief Schoolmen have determined that the use thereof to allay the inordinancy of carnal desire or to avoid Fornication when Procreation is not designed is a sin tho but a Venial sin This requires our animadversion § 27. Among the ends of Marriage this is one and a principal one and which renders it necessary viz. To be a remedy against Fornication or against burning that is the inordinacy of carnal desire 1 Cor. 7.2 Nevertheless to avoid Fornication let every man have his own Wife and every Woman have her own Husband Vers 9. If they cannot contain let them marry for it is better to marry than to burn Now if this end of Marriage be so momentous as to make it necessary in this case Certainly the use of the Marriage-bed for this end cannot be sin That which God hath ordained for the cure of this disease commonly adhering to fallen nature cannot be sin being used to that end tho the disease it self which is the occasion of it be not without sin Moreover that cannot be sin which the Apostle directs men to make use of to avoid Satans temptations to sin But the Apostle directs to the use of the Marriage bed as a preventive remedy against Satans temptations to incontinency 2 Cor. 7.5 Defraud ye not one the other except it be with consent for a time that you may give your selves