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	lord_n	sin_n	3,005	5	4.4939	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A12180	Christs exaltation purchast by humiliation Wherein you may see mercy and misery meete together. Very vsefull I. For instructing the ignorant. II. For comforting the weake. III. For confirming the strong. By R. Sibbs D.D. and preacher of Grayes-Inne, London. Published by T.G. and P.N.	Sibbes, Richard, 1577-1635.; Goodwin, Thomas, 1600-1680.; Nye, Philip, 1596?-1672.	1639 (1639)	STC 22488; ESTC S117302	42,979	208

our Lord he is Lord of all Therefore it teacheth us our duty every way Our duty One to another To those that are not Christians To Christ himselfe It teacheth us in all standings how to carry our selves To give a taste of this the Apostle presseth it oft that Christ is our Lord and will bee our judge Therefore for others we ought not to be hasty in judging or censuring wee ought to love them because wee have all one Lord this must force love We have all one Lord one baptisme c. We are many in our severals but we are all one under this bond being all under one Lord. Then againe it teacheth us how to carry our selves to men otherwise affected not to be servants to the humours of men Christ rules over us both living and dying therefore bee not the servants of men but according to the scriptures limitation Marry in the Lord obey in the Lord walke in the Lord doe all in the Lord that is so farre as it may stand in the will and pleasure of him that is the Lord of Lords For when the authority of any superiour doth countermand against the will of this Lord it ceaseth to bind when they command any thing in subordination that may stand with the pleasure of the Lord then the authority is divine wee obey Christ in obeying them As Christ said to his owne mother when shee commanded things that shee had no authority to doe hee cals her mother no longer but Woman shee stretching then beyond her compasse Againe to goe on this should teach us in that Christ is the Lord of the living and of the dead to account our selves not our owne it should teach us perfect selfe denyall in matters of religion especially not to be overwhelmed of our owne conceites in the great mysteries that Saint Paul cryes out of Oh the depth you have many that quarrell with those things and would bring them to reason they will goe no further in religion then they can see reason whereas one saith I beleeve because it is impossible and too farre above reason therefore I the rather beleeve it it is oft times good to stand at a stay in God as if wee were at a nonplus to admire at him in the mysteries of Christs governing the Church why hee suffers some part of the Church that perhaps is better then other parts that are quiet and exempt from the crosse to be exercised with afflictions and others not not to scandall at this and to be overbusie in searching out the reason of this Christ is our Lord and he is infinite in wisedome and it is his prerogative to doe such things as hee is not lyable to give a reason of to us so God will have mercy upon whom hee will have mercy In great mysteries remember the soveraignty of this our Lord he is Lord of quicke and dead let this stoppe our judgements and teach us to deny our selves when wee cannot give a reason of them in a holy admiration say with Saint Paul Oh the depth And so for our will he is Lord of quick and dead we say of a wife she hath no will and a servant is not a distinct person as it were in law he is anothers wee are Christs servants his subjects his spouse and when wee beginne to be Christs wee have lost our owne wills we resigne them up to Christ thy will shall bee mine in all things if thou wilt have me doe this I will doe it if thou wilt have me suffer I will suffer if thou wilt honour thy selfe with my goods and with my life thou shalt have them Of thee I had this body this soule this state this reputation I have whatsoever I have from thee it is maintained by thee thou art mine and I am thine therefore I give up all to thee backe againe it is a ground of perfect resignation that Christ is Lord of the quicke and of the dead therefore stand not upon tearmes with Christ when hee calls for any thing in case of suffering and sealing the truth let him have it it is not lost wee have a better foundation in him then we have in our selves when wee give any thing to him life or state or credit or whatsoever wee have a better life a better state and condition in him because all is more eminently in him the primitive fountaine then in the derivation and beames from him when we lose any thing it is but a beame from the Sunne and whatsoever wee lose in particulars we have in the whole in the fountaine againe in Christ therefore faith would helpe all this in case of suffering and tryall what is the cause good or no then I will resigne my selfe and all that I have and am to Christ hee is Lord both of the quicke and of the dead Wee must know beloved that we are redeemed from our selves and therefore make this use of it when wee are tempted to any sinne Christ is my Lord I am redeemed from my base lusts what have I to doe with this anger what have I to doe with this ambition I am no debter to the flesh I am under Christ I am under grace he hath redeemed mee from my vaine conversation I owe it nothing but mortification and deny all therefore in all solicitations of corruption learne this lesson fetch arguments hence Christ hath done great matters for me he lived and dyed and lives for ever that is Lord of me living and dying there is no greater slave then he that is a slave to his owne flesh and to his owne lusts therefore when we are stirred to any thing by our base nature which must dye or else wee shall never live eternally we must kill it more and more daily and death is the summe and accomplishment of mortification when wee are stirred to any thing go to Christ and complaine to him blessed Saviour thou didst dye and rise and revive that thou mightst be Lord of the living and of the dead I beseech thee claim thine owne interest in me bring all into captivity to thine owne Spirit what hath this base affection to doe with me what have I to doe with it I am freed from it I am redeemed from my selfe what have I to doe with my selfe but deny all I am thine altogether therefore take thine owne interest in me possesse me fill me with thy Spirit be all in all in mee let pride and ambition and such things have no footing in me It is good powring out the soule to God to that purpose to complaine to Christ when it is thus with us because it is his office to rule us Now Lord Iesus do thine office thy office is to be King to rule in me other lords would faine rule in mee pride and lust and base covetousnesse would faine rule as the Prophet saith but what hath other lords to doe with me thou art my Lord and hast right to me living and dying It is a point

Spirit this is alway a signe of a man lead by the Spirit that it directs him to Christ the Spirit as it comes from Christ and the father so it directs to Christ to the pleasing of the Father and of Christ in all things Here I might take just occasion to reproove a company of men that live under the Gospell that will bee saved by Christ forsooth but will not have Christ a Lord to rule over them they will be ruled by rules of state or rules of flesh and blood and their owne lusts by the rules of hell sometimes so that they may have their owne aimes their owne ambition satisfied and raisethemselves to their owne pitch a disposition cursed and opposite to that religion which they professe for our life should be a living to Christ and under Christ a living to the Church and state But say they Let us breake their bonds and cast their coards from us what doe they thinke wee will be awed with a company of poore preachers away with them we will have our wills let us breake their bonds in sunder Christ sits in heaven and laughes them all to scorne Psal. 2. they shall know at length hee will be no Saviour where he is no Lord if he may not rule them by his Spirit and holy directions while they live he will not owne them when they dye for you see the text joynes both here he dyed and he is Lord when hee dyed there came water and blood out of his side to shew that hee came not onely to shed his blood to dye and to satisfie divine justice but by water to clense us and to fit us to be subject to his government therefore those that take him as a Priest to dye and will not have him as a Lord they rent his offices I doe but touch these now We see what it is to live to Christ let us see what is it to dye to the Lord To dye to the Lord is to know and acknowledge that Christ hath power over us when wee dye thereupon to submit our selves to him and not to murmure and fret when he comes to call for our life and soule as if we were unwilling to part with them Then againe to dye to Christ is when upon any good occasion he calls for our lives in standing for a good cause for the Church or state to be ready to lay it downe there is not the least tittle of truth but it is better than a mans life a man may not onely dye in case of martyrdome but in case of justice and truth and so he must be willing to doe if he will dye to Christ. Againe wee dye to the Lord when we carry our selves so when death comes as wee may expresse some graces to glorifie God even in our very death when wee studdy to doe all the good we can that wee may dye fruitefully out of this consideration my time is short I will labour to bee sowing to the Spirit as much as I can not to dye like fooles but wisely knowing that there is no further opportunity here is the time of seede hereafter will bee the time of reaping therefore there is no Christian that is master of himselfe at the houre of death if some disease disable him not but he studdies how to shew himselfe as fruitfull as he can at that time as you see our Saviour when he was to dye what long chapters there are three together of his demeanour how hee strengthned his Disciples what an excellent prayer he made to God see Moses how hee carryed himselfe at his death what excellent admonitions hee gives and good Iacob what an excellent Will he made and S. Peter knowing he must put of his earthly tabernacle he labours to put them in minde to glorifie God as Saint Paul saith A Christian ought to end his dayes in faith and obedience in faith that God will take his soule when he commits it to him and he shall reigne for ever in heaven In obedience thereupon because he beleeves he dyes in faith he will dye in obedience I even offer my selfe to thee because I beleeve thou wilt care for mee when I am gone hence for thou art the Lord of life and death and thou art the Lord of mee when I live and when I am dead Well as it implies duty so it implies a gracious effect that wee shall be inabled to this duty he indeed in himselfe is a Lord wee ought to acknowledge him so nay we shall have the Spirit if wee be his to cause us to acknowledge him you have a notable place 2 Cor. 5. 15. to this purpose The love of Christ constraines us because wee thus judge If one dyed for all then we are all dead if hee dyed to redeeme us from death to what end did he dye he dyed for all that they that live might not live to themselves but to him that dyed and rose againe It is nothing but this in the Text we should live to him Now this that wee should live to him it is not an aime of ours onely but an effect that hee workes in us he dyed that we might live to him for he dyed and rose that he might obtaine the Spirit by this Spirit hee inableth us to live and dye to God as you have it Rom. 8. at large proved those that are Christs have the Spirit of Christ and are led with it Beloved it is a part of the new Covenant that whatsoever ourduty is we shall have ability to performe it by the Spirit of Christ for all the gracious promises of the Gospell are not onely promises upon condition and so a covenant but likewise the covenant of grace is a te stament and a will a will is made without conditions a covenant with conditions that as hee hath made a covenant what he would have us to doe so his testament is that wee shall have grace to doe so he will put his Spirit into us and circumcise our hearts or else beloved there would bee no more strength of the covenant of grace then there was of that of nature in Adam why did Adam fall he had not the Spirit to uphold him nor had he the promise of it to keepe him that hee should not fall therefore the covenant of workes was frustrate but now the covenant of grace is this that whatsoever God requires he will give his Spirit to inable us to doe it that the covenant may not bee frustrate if God shold not make good our part as well as his we shold not be saved Therefore now in the covenant of grace wee may boldly goe to God and Christ and alleadge unto him when any duty is pressed upon us and when wee are about to performe any duty and finde want of strength Lord thou knowest I have no strength of my selfe I am a barren wildernesse but thou hast entred into a covenant of grace with me which covenant now is a testament a free will