Selected quad for the lemma: christian_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
christian_n	christian_a	church_n	unity_n	1,522	5	9.2638	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A65559	A sermon against neutrality whether as to the main substantials of religion or matters of injoyned order / preached at the visitation of the Reverend Doctour Cary, Arch-deacon of Exon, at St. Marie's Exon, on Friday in Easter Week, 1663 by E.W.	Wettenhall, Edward, 1636-1713.	1663 (1663)	Wing W1516; ESTC R27060	24,015	54

comprehend all the most refined precepts of Philosophick morality the best rules of prudence the mysteries of States and Governments could I distinguish as thin as an Angel and speak as sweetly as the imaginary Suada in a word and with reverence to the Almighties wisdom had I if possible the Omniscience of God himself that knowledge alone being excepted by which he knows himself so that it might be supposed that though I knew all things else I knew not him I see not how such an Omnisciency it self could truly denominate me wise For if Wisdom be what it was ever defined the knowledge of the best and most sublime matters and there be none better than the first and chiefest good none higher than the most High then whatsoever knowledge sticks at any thing below him falls so much short of Wisdom and may no more truly be call'd so than an Heap of Rubbish may a Treasure Wherefore my Brethren whatever the particular issue of things may here below ever prove let us never repent our selves of our espoused study nor at any time slacken our diligence herein The LORD being God let us follow him the Science in which we labour delivering to us the knowledge of him let it have our utmost pains our best hours our chiefest thoughts Meditate upon these things give thy self wholly to them 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Be 1 Tim. 4. 15. dwelling in them if thou intendest 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 proficiency you know whose counsel it is When Eccentrical studies for the main take up a Divine it is a thousand to one but he proves corrupt in Doctrine remiss in practice one or both but it will assuredly follow that he shall grow negligent and dull in his Office and hear ill amongst the people You will pardon the confidence of the Assertion for its Truth What we have said of matters of Christian II. faith we will say also of the Precepts of Christian life If the Law or Rules of Living which the Scripture delivers are the Law of this God then ought they and that above all other Precepts to be observed This holds still due analogy to the ground of the Prophet's argument that whosoever is God is to be followed It is most divinely observed by Plato that of the Ph●●done gods counsel or will nothing can be known without an Oracle and I will not fear to gratifie the Enemies of Scripture so far as to grant what I am sure the Christian Church will not refuse that if there be any Oracle in the world which can be proved to contain a Revelation of the divine will by so good Arguments as the Scripture may it shall be esteemed by us of equal nay of greater authority But the best Morals ever extant in the world besides what we read in Scripture bear their Authours in their faces with whose frailties every page of them is intersperst and whatsoever of virtue they teach we shall sinde the same to be either some of the lower rudiments of Christianity or at least to be had more purely from these sacred Fountains It is indeed reported of Julian that he preferred Pindar's Odes before David's Psalms and Phocylides before Solomon's Proverbs yet as he could not pretend that either of those his admired Authours were inspired by God so whosoever shall consider them together which is not the Work of a Sermon shall finde a greater disparity than of that in the Adage 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Of all the pretences in this case that which hath most taken in the World since our Saviour's Turcarum gens pugnacissima facile suscepit suscepit religionem moribus suis congru ntem Hug. Grot. de ver Christ Rel. l. 6. coming is the Alcoran which the Turks and their Dominions easily received as delivering a Religion suitable to the Genius and manners of the People But besides that Histories which give us its rise easily discover its imposture it most manifestly betrays it self in owning our Jesus the Saviour of the World and yet not onely denying his Death contrarily to the Relations of Heathen Writers themselves but obtruding a Rhapsody of Precepts for his which even Nature her self with that half dye she yet hath can discern to be vicious and the whole World knows to contradict the Body of that Doctrine which was divulged and received in the World as his long before Mahomet breathed About the Year 1200. came forth at Paris a Nichol. Eymeric director Inquisit p●rt 2. quest 9. sect 4. Idem Ma● Paris ad An. Dom. 1256. Book under the name of the Eternal Gospel or the Gospel of the Holy Ghost which pretended to be Melius perfectius dignius than the Gospel of Christ and did pronounce that upon its coming and promulgation Evacuaretur Evangelium Christi written by one Johannes de Parma an Italian Monk and then of the Order of the Mendicant Friers whose Order this Gospel endeavouring above all other to establish was by them for about 56. years space endeavoured to be introduced but it excelled the Gospel of Christ onely for such absurd Blasphemies as these that granting both the Son and Holy Ghost to be God yet it did assert Quòd Spiritus Sanctus accepit aliquid ab Ecclesià sicut Christus in quantum homo accepit aliquid à Spiritu Sancto Quòd Christus Apostoli non fuerunt perfecti in vitâ contemplantium Quòd vita activa jam fructuosa non est sed vita contemplativa Quòd nullus simpliciter est idoneus ad instruendum homines de spiritualibus aeternis nisi qui nudis pedibus incedunt with much more such and worse stuff Now these being the accursed and vain Doctrines of the Pretenders to another Gospel or Rule of Christian li●e what do they but in effect confirm the Gospel of our Lord in the possession of its long and justly obtained authority It being then of God let us closely follow it and think our selves no otherwise Christians than as we walk as well as speak and believe according to this Rule And then further If we receive that the Lord III. being God is to be followed we must also receive that the Vnity of the Church of this God being this God's Ordinance is to be observed at least not to be forsaken When the Scripture terms the Church Christ's Body the House of the Living God the Mother of us all it is most clear to me that whosoever forsakes the Church cannot conclude himself to be a Member of Christ's Body or Childe of God's Family And for men to content themselves with the conceit of holding union with the Invisible Church when they must needs acknowledge they desert the unity of the Visible is for them to resolve to be of no other Church but the Church of Heaven for that 's the Invisible Church though they themselves are yet in an earthly state But on the contrary That that part of the Church which is on earth is