Selected quad for the lemma: christian_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
christian_n	body_n	church_n	mystical_a	1,148	5	10.4023	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A91908	An exposition on the whole booke of Solomons song, commonly called the canticles. Wherein the text is explained and usefull observations raised thereupon. / By John Robotham, preacher of the gospel.	Robotham, John, fl. 1654.	1651 (1651)	Wing R1730; Thomason E639_1; ESTC R206657	461,322	801

Christus ecclesia unum intilligantur esse per fidem naturall body as the Apostle sheweth Ephes 5. 30. so that thereby the faithfull become members of his body mysticall As a Father saith as a man and a woman are one by nature so Christ and his Church must be understood to be one through faith Now Christ is said to dwell in the heart by faith Ephes 3. 17. Now the Spouse doth as well retaine Christ as take hold of him I would not let him goe or leave him Herein the Church declares her resolution to retain her beloved as Jacob when he wrestled with the Angell Genes 32. 26. I will not let thee goe except thou blesse me The Spouse having now obtained her beloved was loath to part with him againe upon any termes whatsoever Hence Observe That the soule that hath once got Christ will surely keepe Christ The Spouse was not onely diligent in seeking her beloved but shee had also a prudentiall care to keep Christ when found I would not let him goe saith the Church shee came by him hardly therefore shee will not part with him lightly shee obtained him with much hazzard and danger much losse and suffering and therefore shee will not part with him for the greatest advantage in the world Shee knows nothing in this great and wide universe though never so lovely or desirable can be equivalent to such a Jewell shee knows that with him is the well-spring of life and all blessing and therefore shee cannot be induced or perswaded upon any termes to part with him Many of Christs followers forsooke him and went no more with him but will yee also forsake me saith he to his Apostles Peter answers for himselfe and the rest Lord whither shall we goe thou hast the words of eternall life John 6. 68. As if he should have said Lord if we leave thee we leave our life and our comfort we forsake our owne mercy it was motive enough to stay by him and to keep close to him to consider that eternall life and consequently the very quintessence of all happinesse was with him The Merchant that found a treasure of great price went and hid it and joyfully sould all that he had to purchase it and therefore he will not part with it for any good The Merchant man is an Embleme or figure of a Beleiver who when he hath found Christ will not forgoe him by any means no but will say of him Whom have I in Heaven but thee And on Earth there is none that I desire in comparison of thee Christ is the strength of his heart and his portion for ever Psal 73. 25 26. It is the voyce of the Church The Lord is my portion saith the soule not onely her tongue without but even her soule and her Spirit within speaks it with unconceiveable joy and delight shee was in deep affliction when shee spake it Lam. 3. 24. yet the apprehension of such a portion as the Lord was solace and refreshing enough to her And David is in thesame mood too The Lord is my portion and mine inheritance saith he The lines are fallen to me in pleasant places yea I have a goodly heritage Psal 16. 5 6. He alludes to the manner of dividing the Land of Canaan to the Children of Israel which was done by line Now unspeakable happy are all those that have such an heritage can we thinke they will part with it No verily they will not so dote on any thing in the world as to leave heaven for earth infinite and eternall joyes for a short blaze or a little flash of myrth they will not part with such an inheritance as Christ is rich fat alwayes fruitfull and never decaying An inheritance where there is no dirt no winter or withering no dying or decaying of fruits but ever green ever flourishing ever bearing infinitly profitable and delightfull to the Possessors of it Naboth would not part with the heritage of his Fathers no more will the Saints part with theirs Thus for the Churches taking hold of and keeping her beloved Now follows her drawing of him into her Mothers mansion Vntill I had brought him into my Mothers house and into the Chamber of her that conceived me These words declare how effectually the Church did lay hold upon Christ that so shee retained him to dwell with her for ever The expression which the Church useth here My Mothers house c. signifies a chief City or solemne place of assembly But now it may be demanded What Mother hath the Church And who is shee that conceived her Is there any Spouse of Christ but one I answer there is but one mysticall body of Christ and one Spouse but always that part of the Church on Earth is called the Daughter of the Church of former times and Christians doe beget Christians and the new Church came forth of the old Church Or the whole Church is the Mother of each part as in the usuall phrase of Hebrew speech Now of old the Temple and Sanctuary might be the Chamber of her that conceived that is the place where they of the former Church did meet So now Jerusalem that is above is called the Mother of us all Gal. 3. which was figured by Sarah the free woman and signifieth the Covenant of grace Gal. 4. 24. Now the house and Chamber wherein we are conceived by the Gospel of the Covenant of grace is outwardly the Church but inwardly the heart where faith dwelleth Rom. 10. 10. Now into this house the Church saith shee will lead her beloved we may take it eyther 1. For her leading of him into the Church and displaying of Christs goodnesse manifested to her soul to others Or 2. For her leading Christ down into her own soul enlarging her owne affections by dilating upon the copious theme of his divine love delighting in a close and neer communion with him From the first of these Interpretations Observe That he Saints having received consolation from Christ doe labour to make others partakers of the same comfort Here the Spouse having found her beloved manifesting his love and favour to her saith I will bring him into my Mothers house towit into the Church and assembly of Saints to spread all his goodnesse discovered unto me Shee bringeth her beloved home that so he may not onely dwell with her but also be a solace to her Mothers Children shee doth labour to communicate the comfort of Gods Spirit unto others that so they may rejoyce with her Thus Philip who finding Nathanael did with much joy manifest the finding of Christ John 1. 45. Thus was the Woman of Samaria who having found the Messiah could not but cast her Pitchar aside and goe into the City to reveale that comfort to others John 4. 28 29. Nor can there be any soule that finds the sweet discoveries of Christs love but there is likewise a strong desire to acquaint others with their souls comfort It is an easier thing to carry

and with the fancies of men bur with that food that comes downe from Heaven with solid and everlasting food or Secondly we may understand these to be the true Shepheards of Jesus Christ which of old fed the flock of God as many Scriptures restifie Psal 77. 21. Thou leddest thy people like a flock by the hand of Moses and of Aaron .. That is Moses and Aaron did guide direct feed instruct and teach thy people as a Shepheard doth his flock And the Apostle exhorts the Hebrews To remember them that had the rule over them or as it is in the Originall As are the guides unto you such as the Lord had 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Heb. 13. 7. filled by his Spirit with understanding were as guides and Shepheards to weaker Christians Now if we understand the words according to this Interpretation then we must read them thus Feed thy Kids with or near the Shepheards Tents that is bring thy young and weak Christians to those that are the Shepheards of Jesus Christ whom the Lord hath indued with spirituall wisdome and understanding to feed guide and direct them We may take the words in either of these senses for they both hold forth one and the same thing towit that the Lambs of Christ the members of his Church should not be fed with husks and Hogs-meat of the inventions of mans braine and with the superstistitious ceremonies of false Churches but with the pure and wholsome food of Christ's word and doctrine and with Ordinances and Laws of the King of Sion they should be fed guided preserved and governed by Christ alone The words being thus explained let us gather some Observations from them Goe forth c. First in that Christ directeth his Church to goe forth from her blacknesse ignorance and superstition Hence Observe That Christians are not to sit downe under but to arise and depart from sin ignorance and superstition First they are to goe out of former evills of blacknesse and ignorance unto purity and saving knowledge Thus did Paul at his Conversion turne from persecuting the Church of Christ and fell to preach Christ And thus the Apostle exhorts the whole Church To lift up the hands which hang downe and the feeble knees and make strait paths for their feet lest that which is lame be turned out of the way but let it rather be healed Heb. 12. 12 13. That is they ought not to yield and give over because of the sharpnesse of affliction but lift up their hands as men ready to fight and their feet as men ready to run and make straight paths for their feet Lest that which is lame be turned out of the way That is least by yeilding to the temptation they that are weake seek by-paths for avoiding the danger thereof whereas they should by strengthening their hands quit themselves and walke in a straight and even path And we are exhorted to abhorre that which is evill and cleave to that which is good Rom. 12. 9. We must depart from sin and blacknesse and cleave to that which is good and comely Secondly Christians must goe forth from one degree of grace to another they must not rest in their first beginnings of grace of wisdome and of knowledge but proceed by making an addition thereunto And so Israel went from strength to strength Psal 84. That is increasing their strength daily more and more like to this saith the Apostle we are changed into the image of God from glory to glory 2 Cor. 3. 18. That is from grace to grace from one degree of perfection unto another untill the image of God be perfectly restored in us by the Spirit of the Lord. And Gods justice is revealed from faith to faith Rom. 1. 17. to the increasing of faith more and more Thus Solomon tells us that the path of the just shineth more and more unto a perfect day Prov. 4. 18. His light shall increase untill it come to perfection Hence it is that the Apostle prays that the faith of the Thessalonians might be perfect 1 Thess 3. 10. The word in the Originall here Translated perfect signifies to make even 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 The word signifies to make even or to set that which is out of joint or dillocuted so make it sound perfect because an even number is a perfect number and so consequently signifies perfection also the Apostle desires they may be more and more confirmed in their faith untill they come to perfection Thirdly Christians are not onely to goe forth from that which is evill unto that which is good and from the smaller degrees of good to greater perfections of it but also from all kind of superstition and idolatry unto pure worship and sanctity Christians must not content themselves to sit downe in Babylon or in Aegypt but they must depart out from thence as the Children of Israel did and to worship the Lord in Canaan Antichrist is called mysticall Babylon Revel 18. 2. from whence the Lord calls his people vers 4. And he is called Aegypt and Sodome Revel 11. 8. he is called Sodome for uncleannesse and wickednesse as we may see in Gen. 19. 5. and Aegypt for oppressing the people of the Lord and for idolatry And John addeth Where saith he our Lord was crucified either he means he was Crucified under Rome's Dominion by the authority of that Empire or else Christ was Crucified and put to death in Aegypt in respect of his Saints in whom he suffered very much Now the Lord calleth his people out of Aegypt and out of Sodome and Babylon That is from their spirituall idolatry and superstition and from their sin and wickednesse Thus the Lord called his people out of Babylon in Isa 52. 11. Depart yee depart yee saith the Prophet goe yee out from thence touch no uncleane thing goe yee out of the midst of her be yee cleane that beare the vessels of the Lord. This was an admonition from the Lord warning those that were faithfull not to pollute themselves with Babylonian superstitions And we have the like call from the Apostle Wherefore come out from among them and be yee seperate saith the Lord and touch no unclean thing and I will receive you 2 Cor. 6. 17. This is meant of comming out from spirituall idolatry as is apparent by vers 14. Be not unequally yoaked saith the Apostle with unbelievers That is be not yoked or enthralled with Heathenish idolatry be not pertakers with infidells in superstition The Greeke Scholiast render it thus Draw not downe the beame or incline not in any part to the superstitions of the heathen For the metaphor is taken from Beasts that draw both in one yoke and the one lesse then the other draweth downe the burthen upon the other which is unequall Thus it is for the faithfull to joine with unbelievers in matter of divine worship and service it is an unequall thing and therefore the Lord would have us take no such yoke