Selected quad for the lemma: christian_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
christian_n	church_n	true_a	visible_a	6,279	5	9.0945	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A13996	A discourse of death, bodily, ghostly, and eternall nor vnfit for souldiers warring, seamen sayling, strangers trauelling, women bearing, nor any other liuing that thinkes of dying. By Thomas Tuke.	Tuke, Thomas, d. 1657.	1613 (1613)	STC 24307; ESTC S100586	74,466	126

death This was a iust punishment of a glutton in regard of God though vniust in respect of her that did it This then I say If a man out of the state of grace be murthered or die by an iniust sentence of the Magistrate yet he is not therfore deliuered from the sentence of God but must suffer as he hath deserued that his vntimely death being also long of his sinne And though a wicked man or one not within the state of grace may die not deseruing it of man as Archelaus King of Macedonia who was murthered of one Cratenas whom he loued deerely or as that forenamed father was of Adrameleke and Sarasar his sonnes yet is this their death iustly sent from God whom they knew not worshipt not serued not as they should haue done Yea their death may be iustly punished in their murtherers as Cratenas was himselfe also after murthered and yet death deserued at the hands of God For though God and the murtherer agree in the act yet not in their grounds and ends God therefore pursues the murtherer because he violates his law so souly he not bidding him but forbidding him to murther and putting no malice into his heart to make him murther giuing him no commission but onely a certaine permission which God being Lord of all and bound to no man may iustly doe The fourth Position The number of such as shall suffer eternall death is greater then of them that shall be saued MAny are called but few in comparison of them are chosen now none shall be saued but the chosen There are haue beene many that neuer had a verball calling An infinitie of people there is at this day in the world as of Turkes Iewes Indians Tartars and other sauage nations in number beyond Christians of all that rabble there can be no hope of life so long as they liue out of the Church and by no extraordinarie fauour know Christ who himselfe doth teach that the way of life is strait and found of few but that the way to death is broad and full of trauellers And finally euen among Christians only those shall be saued which embrace the true faith and are obedient vnto Christ in those particular true visible Churches in which they were bred and baptized and to the obedience of which God doth call and tie them Now how few these are to heretikes schismatikes and other factious firebrands and euill liuers as drunkards fornicators earthwormes idle and vnprofitable wretches the multitude of sinnes and sinners which swarme like the flies of Egypt in Citie and countrey doth demonstrate The fifth Position Whosoeuer doth simply and sincerely will and desire to be deliuered from eternall death shall not die but liue eternally I Make it plaine thus he that willes the end simply and sincerly doth seeke out means vnto it doth vse those means for if he know the means whereby he may obtaine his desire yet neglects to vse thē and cares not for them he shewes his desire is but confused vncertaine vnsincere If therfore a man with an honest and true heart do will wish desire to liue and to escape death he wil seeke out meanes to accomplish his desire when he knowes them he will be carefull to vse them It is an old and true saying Wishers and Woulders were neuer good Householders the meaning whereof is to taxe the foolishnesse of such as wish and would but will take no paines will vse no meanes An idle peeson would be rich but he will not labour a trewant would be a scholler but he will not studie The truth is that he that indeed would inioy a thing wil vse means to compasse it If then I would not die but liue I must not runne on in sinne I must not distrust God I must not disobey the Church of Christ and kindle coales of contention I must not contemne the word and Sacraments but I must beleeue in Christ repent of my sinne begge their pardon reuerence my Minister loue my Brethren and take heede I giue no offence Now he that doth carefully vse the meanes of life and auosdes the waies of death shall vndoubtedly liue and not die But hee that saith I would liue I would not die and yet goes the broade way and regards not the narrow path this man surely is wrong his will is not simple and sincere but confused and mishapen and except he reforme his course he shall perish notwithstanding his wishing and woulding Tell mee if a man shall say he would be in health and yet will vse no meanes of health no good diet no labour nor the like but delights onely in eating drinking glouzing sleeping idlenesse tell me does this man indeed will health and a good temper of bodie He doth not doubtlesse he may wish health but he will take no paines for it which argues verie foolishnesse Euerie man would be saued who would die Balaam would not no man would yet in the meane time who vseth the means Who leaueth his sinnes Who fighteth with his lusts Who honoureth his Minister as the man of God Who thirsteth after Christ Who is louing and obedient vnto the Church Is not sinne committed countenanced Is not the Sabbath commonly and notoriously profaned Doe not othes drunkennesse pride idlenesse and hard-heartednesse abound And are not many to seeke as it were in the Alphabet of religion They know not which is the true Church which are the people of God which is his house What miserable times doe we liue in How vaine is the world Men would faine liue they would not die they say and yet they care not for the waies of life whereas if men did truely and effectually will to liue and to auoid death they would not runne the broad way but would shew themselues wise men that is as well seeke out and vse the meanes as affect the end The sixt Position Though a man feele not the fruits and working of the Spirit in him yet hee must not despaire of life and thinke hee is ordained to death and must needs be damned A Man may bee called before death though now he be in sinne ouer head and eares and altogether voide of mercy Gods arme is neuer too short to saue his eare is neuer too dull to heare neither doth any man know what the purpose of God is Paul was as bad as one God did call him so was the Thiefe that was called on the Crosse Againe a man may be in the state of grace and yet sometimes feele no comfort no working of the Spirit euen as a man in a swoone or sleepe doth liue though hee knowes not so much and a child we see liues before it knowes it liues I say finally what though thou feelst no grace what though thou beest nothing so good as thou shouldst bee Wilt thou therefore despaire Is there no way with thee thinkest thou

shunne those things which are painefull Neither doe they indure to dye for honesty sake but that they might escape and auoide some euill or greeuous thing Secondly it may bee asked whether a man may not lawfully hazard his life yea and expose himselfe to certaine death for the Churches sake or for the good of his Countrey Yea no doubt he may and must if necessitie so require Hereby saith Saint Iohn we perceiued loue that Christ laide downe his life for vs therefore wee ought also to lay downe our lines for our Brethren And Saint Paul saith I passe not at all neither is my life deare vnto my selfe so that I may fulfill my course with ioy and the ministration which I haue receiued of the Lord Iesus to testifie the Gospell of the grace of God And when Agabus by the inspiration of the Spirit had told Paul that the Iewes should bind him and deliuer him to the Gentiles wherevpon some that heard it with teares besought him that hee would not goe to Ierusalem Then Paul answered What doe yee weeping and breaking mine heart For I am ready not to be bound onely but also to die at Ierusalem for the Name of the Lord Iesus And vnto the Philipians he profesteth his willingnesse to dye for their confirmation Yea saith he and though I be offered vp vpon the sacrifice and seruice of your Faith I am glad and reioice with you all And this kinde of death is very honourable For sanguis Martyrum est semen Ecclesiae the bloud of the Martyrs is the seede of the Church Persecutiembus creuit Ecclesia Martyriis coronata est The Church saith Saint Ierome increased by persecutions and was crowned by Martyrdomes Tanta est virtus Martyrij vt per illam credere etiam ille cogatur quite doluit occidere So great saith Saint Cyprian is the force of martyrdome that thereby euen he is forced to beleeue with thee that was ready to haue killed thee The Phoenix as Epiphanius others doe report when she is come to her full age gathereth in some high mount a pile of Myrrhe Frankencense and other Spices which being kindled by the heate of the Sunne she suffereth her selfe to be burnt vp and of her ashes there first breedeth a litle worme which at last becomes a Phoenix so the Martyrs of Christ hauing gathered a pile of vertues and good works when they see the glory of God and the good of the Church requires it expose themselues to the scorching heat of persecution and sacrifice themselues by patience in the flames therof that by their death the posteritie of the Church might be preserued another generation of faithful Christians springing as it were out of their ashes Philo saith that the Coriander seed being cut into little peeces euerie parcell thereof bringeth out as much as the whole seede would haue done so it may be said that euery inch of the Martyrs euerie drop of their bloud is exceeding fruitfull Ligabantur saith Saint Austen They were bound beaten butchered burned multiplicabantur and yet they multiplied insomuch as at last Christianitie did preuaile Emperours Kings and Queenes submitting their soules to the Scepter of Christ Iesus and being become noursing-fathers and noursing mothers of the Church which is the Spouse of Christ as Esay prophecied In like manner honourable and honest is their death that die for the safegard of their King and Countrie How readie is the hand to set it selfe before the head caring for no danger that I may so speake so that the head may bee preserued whole The King is the Head of a Kingdome what good Subiect or Seruant will not willingly glue his life to saue the life of his Soueraigne Dulce decorum est pro patriâ mori it is a sweete and honest death saith Horace which a man indures for his country Patria est communis omnium nostrum Parens Our country saith Tully is the common Mother of vs al. Chari sunt liberi c. We loue saith he our children kindred acquaintance but our Countrie alone hath all the loues of all men omnes omnium charitates patria vna complexa est for which what good man would refuse to die to doe it good For the Commonwealth is a name of an vniuersall Citie on which wee ought to bestow our selues wholly and as it were to consecrate our selues A wiseman should refuse no danger for the safetie of his Countrie for thus saith Tullie he reasons with himselfe Non mihi soli sed etiam atque adeò multo potius natus sum patriae I am not borne for my selfe alone but also and much more too for my Countrie Vita quae fato debetur saluti patriae potissimum soluatur Let the life which is due to destinie bee payed especially for the safegard of the Countrie O fortunata mors quae naturae debita pro patria potissimum est reddita O blessed death saith hee which being due as a debt to nature is payed especially for the Countries good And vndoubtedly they that willingly and deuoutly lay downe their liues for God and their Countrie being called thereunto are of all others most louing and most couragious neither doe they die but liue in happie and eternall memorie with God who no doubt rewardes their momentanie crosse with an immortall crowne of glorie in the heauens Thirdly it may be demanded whether the death of Christ and of the holy Martyrs may be called voluntarie seeing they died at the commaund and by the execution of others I answere their death was voluntarily but not with wicked wilfullnesse sustained of them For Christ could haue saued himselfe then when hee suffered himselfe to be apprehended condemned and executed for hee had power to lay downe his life and take it vp and might to doe what he listed no man could take his life from him against his wil for being verie God he could not be compelled And for the Martyrs of Christ they died in deed by the malice of others and not through the malicious wilfulnesse of their owne spirits yet did they willingly die choosing rather to die then to denie their Lord and to betraie a good cause A man will cast away his wares rather then bee drowned himselfe so the Martyrs would willingly embrace the fire rather then dishonour God by cowardize and loose their soules by Apostacie And that it may fully appeare that their death was with their willes though not simply as if they were in loue with death or were wearie of their liues aske the cause of their profession What made who forced them to embrace the faith No man but they willingly through the worke of Gods Spirit receiued it Againe though they did embrace it yet if they would haue forsaken and for sworne it they might haue saued their liues and perhaps haue come to preserment