Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	great_a	judgement_n	sin_n	3,123	5	4.8089	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A47333	Of fasting a sermon preached before the Queen at White-hall, on May 23, MDCXCIV, being a day of publick humiliation / by Richard, Lord Bishop of Bath and Wells ; published by Her Majesties special command.	Kidder, Richard, 1633-1703.	1694 (1694)	Wing K408; Wing K416A; ESTC R16672	12,903	30

a life of Faith and are our Hearts in Heaven We Fast so did the Jews Seventy years and so did the Pharisees twice a Week We pray and so did the Jewish Hypocrites also But are we humble and mercifull harmless and holy Are we weaned from the World and devoted to God and to Religion Where shall we find any of this Reformation Who can discern that we are either more pious toward God or mercifull to our Brother more temperate and sober chast and modest 2. We may learn from the great Ends of Fasting what need we have of it We have cause to mourn and afflict our selves if ever any people had whether we reflect upon our past Sins or our present Profaneness and the manifest decay of Piety and Godliness among us We are risen up in our Father's room a generation of Evil-doers Aetas parentum pejor avis tulit nos nequiores Our Profaneness and Wickedness hath been common and daring Religion been derided and mocked at the Holy Scriptures become the subject of Droll and the contempt of them that set up for Wits We have bid defiance to what is Sacred and Holy We had need mourn for the Abominations that have been committed among us 3. Let us then humble our selves before God and put away every Evil thing Reform our Lives and our Tempers and not flatter our selves Nothing less than this will secure the Blessings which we have or prevent the return of those Evils which we have felt and had just cause to fear And the more effectually to perswade you to this let me desire you to consider 1. The crying and hainous Sins of the Nation They cry for Vengeance which we cannot think to prevent unless we Repent and Reform We cannot but lament the wofull decay of Piety and Vertue We have been Contemners of God and of his Holy Worship both publick and private We have made light of the Sacraments and derided the Mysteries of Religion We have profaned the Holy Name of God and broke in upon the Time which was inclosed and set a part for his Holy Worship The Oracles of God have not escaped our profane attempts and we have set our Mouths against the Heavens and have been so far from the Power that we have hardly retained the Form of Godliness We are entertained in our Streets with Horrid Oaths and Execrations with the sight of the Intemperate reeling to and fro And in other places of Conversation nothing is more common than playing with the Sacred Writ exposing the Holy Oracles of God to contempt and Reviling the Ministers of Religion and the burning and shining Lights of the World Mercy and Truth are far from us and we bite and devour each other Our Magistrates have often born the Sword in vain and our Preachers of Righteousness have not always been the Examples of it We have relaxed our stricter Discipline lost our Religious Fervor and quitted that simplicity of Manners and generosity and freedom of our Temper which our English Ancestors were famous for Where shall we find any Numbers of Men who worship God in their Families That take due care to instruct their Children and Servants in the Principles of Religion and Vertue That govern themselves and those under their influence with exact regard thereunto How great a Number are there that live without God in the World who like the Judge in the Parable neither fear God nor regard Men who run counter to all that is Holy and Good whose Mouths are full of Cursing and their Right hands are instruments of Falsehood We shall soon find sufficient cause of a deep Humiliation when we consider the Sins of others and especially our own We have cause enough to fast and to mourn that we may divert the Judgments that our Iniquities call for And God grant our Humiliation and Godly Sorrow may bear some proportion to the hainousness of our Crimes It appears from what hath been said to be our Duty to Fast and Mourn 2. Consider also what it is that lies at stake and depends on the King's Success by Sea and Land If we do this it will appear not onely to be our Duty but our Interest also which generally takes the surest and fastest hold on Mankind It is very fit we shou'd Fast at such a time as this It becomes us to do it when the King exposeth himself to the greatest dangers The words of Uriah are applicable on this occasion The Ark says he and Israel and Judah abide in Tents and my Lord Joab and the servants of my Lord are encamped in the open fields shall I then go into mine house to eat and to drink c 2 Sam. 11.11 We are nearly interested in our Success abroad And what is it that lies at stake 'T is in short the indisturbed Profession and Exercise of our Religion our Property our Lives our Laws and Liberty in a word our All All that is dear to us and all that ought so to be The Contest is now whether we shall be Free-men or Vassals be governed by Laws or Dragoons The struggle is between Truth and Falsehood Religion that is pure and undefiled and Superstition and Idolatry God hath wrought a great Deliverance for us He hath done it without our help and without our fault He hath done it not onely without our desert but notwithstanding our demerits We are saved whether we would or no We were rescued from our Enemies as a brand plucked out of the fire We are remarkable Monuments of the Mercy of God Let 's sin no more lest a worse thing come upon us lest we be returned back to our former dangers If we be we shall find our last End worse than our Beginning And whereas we were once chastised with Whips we must expect then to be stung with Scorpions 3. Our Repentance and Amendment is our onely security This is the way to procure the favour and blessing of Heaven Our Fleets and Armies are poor things if God be not with us Our help is in the Name of the Lord who made Heaven and Earth If our Ways please Him he will soon subdue our Enemies or cause them to be at Peace with us No Weapon form'd against us shall prosper if God be for us And if he be our Enemy we shall not have any cause to rely upon the help of our strongest Allies or the greatest of our Preparations If we do not Repent nothing will do us good our very Success will be but a Snare to us and our Victory will not prevent our Ruin Wou'd to God we were duly sensible of this To Conclude As we wish well to our King and Country as we value our Religion and our Liberty let us return to our Duty and break off our Sins by Repentance Let us reform what is amiss in our selves and restrain those who are under our Charge and Influence As ever we would have God do any thing for us let us do what we can for the glory of his Name Let us use all our power for the advancing his Truth the encouraging his Service and suppressing all that Profaneness and daring Impiety that hath hitherto obstructed the Success of our Forces by Sea and Land This is what all pious Souls long to see and hope for this Good from the Example and united Endeavours of this great Assembly May then all inferior Magistrates use their Power for the suppressing of Vice and may we of the Clergy preach it and live it down May all Masters of Families serve God with their Domesticks All Governors of Youth bring them up in the nurture of the Lord and may every Man of us contribute to the Common safety by turning from his Iniquity Which God of his Mercy grant c. FINIS