Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n
Text snippets containing the quad
|
ID |
Title |
Author |
Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication) |
STC |
Words |
Pages |
|
A14001
|
Nevv essayes: meditations, and vowes including in them the chiefe duties of a Christian, both for faith, and manners. By Thomas Tuke, minister of Gods Word, at S. Giles in the Fields.; New essayes: meditations, and vowes.
|
Tuke, Thomas, d. 1657.
|
1614
(1614)
|
STC 24312; ESTC S105349
|
74,323
|
307
|
LORD Thy loue vnto vs redeemeth vs from our bondage saueth vs from hell treadeth downe our enemies protects and directs vs in the world and safely brings vs into the Land of Promise the Land of the Liuing where wee shall see Thy Face and enioy the ioyes of blisse for euermore O LORD Thy loue is life Thy fauour is felicity LORD let the light of Thy countenance shine vpon mee and grant mee Thy loue which Thou bearest vnto those whom Thou louest euer and leauest neuer Of Mans loue to God LOVE of GOD doth knit fast the heart vnto Him makes it delight in Him and to bee contented with Him What cause hath man to loue Him it is not hard to conceiue seeing Hee is altogether good in Himselfe and the cause of all good in and to him Are wee liue wee vnderstand wee Wee must ascribe it vnto GOD. Are wee men or are wee good men Haue wee Grace or expect we Glory The praise belongs to Him The measure of our loue should bee vnmeasureable and the end endlesse The heart wherewith wee loue Him should not bee halfe nor hollow but such as Hee made in vs whole and vndiuided simple and not double How equall is it that man should loue His GOD seeing it is the substance of His Law and seeing he is so much obliged to Him for the tokens of His loue to Him How needfull is it seeing otherwise hee cannot loue his neighbour in Him no nor performe any Act or Office of Religion pleasingly in His sight And how comfortable seeing it is the worke of GODS SPIRIT in him and an vndoubted effect and token of GODS loue to Him and of his faith in GOD And yet it is a wonder to see how rare this duety is amongst vs. How sildome doe wee thinke of GOD or of His seruice What capitall and foule enormities are euery where heaped vp against Him How vsuall is it with men to turne His Grace into wantonnesse How doe the pleasures and cares of the world depriue Him of our hearts How common is the contempt of His holy Ordinances How great is the profanation of His holy Day How customably is His fearefull and glorious Name vainely vsed And how wantonly doe men deale with His sacred Word What little zeale and courage is there in vs for His Glory Alas wee talke of loue but demonstrate little The heart of the louer is rather where it loues then where it liues a man cannot but obey his Lord whom hee deerely loueth and will make much of any thing that belongs to that hee loues But our hearts are buried in the earth wee are euer rooting in the ground wee haue cast off the yoke of GODS Commandements wee are frozen in our dregges and make account of any thing rather then that which concernes His Honour which doth discouer our hypocrisie and witnesseth against vs that wee are louers of pleasures profite preferments of any thing rather then of Him Yet is there nothing able to doe vs so much good as Hee Nothing so worthy of our loue as Hee Nothing to which wee are so much indebted as to Him Nothing wherein wee can finde so much comfort in the loue thereof as in the loue of Him Nothing so well able to rauish our hearts with the delight thereof as Hee is And no man so regardfull of our loue as Hee is and yet standeth not in neede of vs at all nor of our loue Wee desire His loue to vs why then should we not remonstrate ours to Him Wee would haue our children and seruants loue vs it is reason therefore that wee should bestow our loue on Him being our Louing LORD and gracious FATHER in IESVS CHRIST Of the Loue of Christ CHRIST is our LORD and SAVIOVR therefore wee ought to loue Him as men in loue redeemed by Him and receiued into His seruice Hee loues Him as his LORD that willingly submits his soule vnto His Scepter and offers himselfe to bee ruled by His Lawes Hee loues Him as his SAVIOVR that relies vpon His Merites seekes to Him for His Grace and resteth in those meanes of life and godlinesse which Hee hath ordained in His Church CHRIST is the Husband of His people and therefore to bee beloued of them as of His Wife And those loue Him as their Husband that wed not their hearts to any other that keepe their soules chaste for Him that delight to bee vnder His shadow and which in their hearts say with the Spouse in the Canticles Stay mee with flagons and comfort mee with apples set mee as a Seale on Thine heart and as a Signet vpon Thine Arme Thy Loue is better then wine If euer our loue was deserued of any then of CHRIST IESVS Who became man to bring vs into grace with GOD Who was poore to make vs rich Who humbled Himselfe to exalt vs Who came downe from heauen to fetch vs from hell to heauen Who both liued and dyed for vs that wee might escape eternall death and might obtaine Eternall Life And finally because perfection procureth fauour and beauty is the Load-stone vnto loue Wee must needs bestow our loue on Him in whom is nothing but perfection nothing but beauty In Him are all the Treasures of Wisedome and Knowledge hidden In Him is the fulnesse of the God-head Bodily Hee is Fairer then the sonnes of men Grace is diffused in His Lips GOD hath annointed Him with the Oile of Gladnesse aboue His Fellowes Hee is White and Ruddy the chiefest of ten thousand wholly delectable LORD IESVS tie mine heart fast to Thee by loue seuer it from all earthly things euen from it selfe that it may be wedded wholly and solely vnto Thee vnto Thee and vnto none but Thee and that for euer Of Selfe-loue CHRITY beginnes at home It is naturall for a man to loue himselfe Hee that loues not himselfe is vnfit to loue another Or how can hee take care of another that is carelesse of himselfe True selfe-loue is a furtherer of all vertues specially of temperance and such other as concerne our selues For hee that loues himselfe truely wils well and does well vnto himselfe and embraces those vertues gladly by which hee may be mended There is a blind and foolish selfe-loue too too common in the world You shall haue some rauished with the admiration of themselues they are the Mountaines all others are but Mole-hils all their Geese are Swans all their vertues are ten-foote long and all their actions are good because they are theirs all is spoken in Print that is spoke by them they see not their wants but imagine they haue that they haue not So they swimme they care not though all doe sinke so they may haue they care not though all besides doe want they will forgiue and flatter themselues in most grieuous vices excusing themselues extenuating their faults and contemning all the admonitions of others And finally their praises of others is very sparing almost nothing but they can speake bigly of
themselues and thinke nothing well done but what they do themselues This is a pernicious and fearefull sinne the madnesse of the minde the impediment of all vertues the shame of Religion and the cause of all enormites He that loues himselfe aright loues himselfe Holily that is in GOD for GOD and vnder GOD and Iustly that hee may bee righteous and that by self-selfe-loue hee proues not himselfe injust And Discreetely not ouerweening himselfe but with wisedome be hauing himselfe towards all as is requisite for him The good man that loues himselfe as hee should wisheth well vnto himselfe doth good vnto himselfe agreeth with himselfe dwelleth with himselfe with willingnesse reioyceth with himselfe where there is cause of ioy and sorroweth with himselfe when there is matter of sorrow and in briefe doth earnestly couet and labour his owne peace inward outward and eternall On the contrary a wicked and profane Athiest Epicure and Worldling doe not truely loue themselues but rather hate and hurt themselues with intemperance worldly cares and other vices they study not to garnish their soules with spirituall vertues but follow riches pleasures and preferments which to wicked men are neuer good but euer hurtfull Neither do they agree well together within themselues because their appetite and sensuall part doth striue against their reasons and either they euer labour of a stupifyed or with a vexed and vnquiet spirit And hence it is also that sensuall and euill liuers as drunkards whoore-mongers spend-thriftes and such like persons loue not to be alone and like not priuacie and retired thoughts but frequent Ale-houses Tauernes Plaies and seeke out voluptuous and boon companions such as themselues because they loue not themselues delight not in themselues agree not with their consciences but are vexed with the remembrance of their vices and iniquities disquieted with the feare of punishment and pinched with the gripes of an accusing and tumultuous conscience Briefly men truely good do onely truely loue themselues but euill men do not loue themselues at all but either hate or loue amisse Of loue to our Neighbour A GOOD Christian hath two things in him to be beloued Grace and Nature As hee is a man we ought to loue him but as hee is a good man wee ought to loue him the more Hee that hates a man loues not his Maker he that hates a Christian loues not his Maister He that hates either Man or Christian is neither Christian nor Man but a diuell incarnate Some boast of their loue to GOD which shew no loue to man for GOD This boasting is vaine and false for he that loues GOD will loue His Image And certes he that loues not the childe cares as little for the father But our neighbour is vngodly gracelesse roytous and voruly Yet must we loue him if not because he is good yet that hee may be good if not the man yet the man-head if not the manners yet the man Gold is good though drosse bee naught Wheate may not be throwne away because of chaffe neither will we hate our bodies because there are deformities or diseases in them Neither will all loue serue the turne but we ought to loue our neighbour in truth not falsely in deed not verbally in the faith not against it in that that is iust and not vnrighteously in iudgement and not vndiscreetely in measure vnder GOD and not aboue Him and constantly not for a start as if some ague-fit were on vs. There is very much loue in the world such as it is but very little Christian Charity For this seekes the good of her neighbour and not his goods This loues to giue and not to pull away This beareth much for beareth much and reioyceth in the truth This loues a man not for his greatnesse but for his Graces not for his birth but for his New-birth not for his honour but for his Holinesse not for his wealth but for his Wisedome and finally for CHRIST and in CHRIST for CHRIST because CHRIST doth loue him and bids vs loue Him and in CHRIST either because he is CHRISTS or that he may become CHRISTS But this is the condemnation of men that the Church and Her Children are come amongst them but men loue the world more then the Church and sinners more then Saints Of louing and of being loued IT is better to loue then to be loued for Action is more excellent then Passion and the praise of vertue consists in action To giue is more gracious then to take Now in louing there is a gift in being loued there is a taking Honesty is better then Commodity Now to loue is a point of Honesty to be beloued is a matter of Commodity GOD delights more in the loue wherewith he doth loue then in the loue wherewith he is loued And mothers naturally reioyce more to loue their children then to be loued of their children and like better to do good to them then to receiue good from them Besides a man may bee loued of a man with Christian loue and yet be but an hypocrite but a man cannot loue with Christian loue but he must needes be a Christian A man may be loued of his neighbour for GOD and yet neither loue GOD nor be loued of GOD but a man cannot loue his neighbour for GOD but hee doth much more loue GOD and is most certainely beloued of GOD. And finally it is no paine but rather pleasure a gaine but no grace to be beloued but to loue a good thing well is grace yea oftentimes a man must sweate and striue with great contention so auerse and tortuous are our hearts by sinne before he can fasten his affections and fixe his loue on spirituall things which are most worthy of his loue and remoue it from those things that are rather to be loathed and forsaken as noysome and pernicious to him True friendship stands in true mutuall loue where loue failes there friendship fals But that a man may proue a friend vnto another it is necessary that he be a friend vnto himselfe For how shall he will well do well agree well or dwell well with another that failes in these things towrds himselfe But this as touching loue is worthy obseruation that those that do good turnes vnto others do more loue them to whom they do them then these that do receiue them do loue those that do them Prouided that they do their good turnes out of sincerity not for by-respects CHRIST loues vs better then we loue him Parents loue their children more then their children loue them Tutors loue their Pupils more then they their Tutors Hee that receiues a benefite is as it were the worke and creature of his Benefactour Now the worke-man loues the worke more then the worke doth loue the workeman The creature is deerer to the Creator then Hee to it and the cause loues the effect more then it the cause The Vsurer is vnworthy the name of Benefactour because he loues his Debtor for gaine seeking rather to benefite himselfe in his Debtor then his Debtor in him And to speake properly as he is an Vsurer he loues him not for loue seekes