Selected quad for the lemma: christian_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
christian_n	grace_n	grow_v	growth_n	1,564	5	11.7957	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
B12199	The sacred mysterie of the gouernment of the thoughts discouering their nature and differences, and together, resoluing such speciall doubts, which are incident hereunto. Very necessary for the tryall and safe keping of the heart. And also, for the well ordering and comfort of a Christian life.	Cooper, Thomas, fl. 1626.	1619 (1619)	STC 5706; ESTC S109835	100,475	547

others And if they thinke ill they cannot doe otherwise they must be borne withall they doe no body any hurt c. But the godly esteeme euill thoughtes naturall and good thoughtes free If they thinke euill this they are sure of nature yeeldes no better milke but if they thinke well this is a free gift of God It argues a heart set at liberty by the mercy of God 2 The godly esteeme euill thoughts as naturall so damnable are more troubled with them then outward euils as beeing the fountaine and occasions of all sinne They differ in their entertainement as with the wicked they are eyther made no reckoning of because so ordinary As they suite with the beloued sin so they are more welcome and fedde on as the chiefe refreshing of the mind that though it cannot doe ill yet herein it prides it selfe that it can thinke thereof that it can wish oportunitie and ability thereunto as wee see in wicked old folks in beggers they can thinke euill though they dare not doe it It doeth them good to thinke of it though now they are past date c But in the Godly it is otherwise An euill thought ariseth not in the heart but the heart presently riseth against it as against the enemie to it peace yea she makes out against it presently by Prayer and humiliation by changing the copie to a contrary good though and so by an after watchfulnesse against the same especially whereas not onely in the day but in the night also the mind as it alwayes is in action so is exercised as well with euill as it is with good Thoughts wee may now obserue this difference herein betweene the hypocrite and true Nathaniel that whatsoeuer euill thoughts and effects thereof are incident to the night these are if not for the present iudged and disclaymed yet by Gods blessed spirit they are called to remembrance in the morning or vpon some such like occasions in the day and so seasonably reproued by the Spirite that knoweth the heart and labours to purge it from all secret euills and so the conscience maintains peace inwardly with God and so thereby gains more fruit and spirituall rest hereafter but with the hypocrite it is not so this nightly thoughts giue occasions to attempt such wickednes in the day which the night hath seemed to depriue him of Mich. 2.1.2 or else at the best they passe away as dreames without vse and profit Thirdly they differ in their Qualitie as that howsoeuer the Saints before their calling are subiect to all sorts of euill thoughts yet after their calling they are onely or especially subiect to such as concerne their calling such as oppose the same such as concerne their aberrations therein as of hypocrisie distrust World-lines whē as the wicked are vsually subiect to such euill thoughts as concerne their Nature Constitution Education condition of life company c. God is not in all their thoughts Psal 10.4 5. Little or no thinking haue they of the life to come or such happinesse as concerns the same much lesse of their end or preparation thereto vnlesse they bee forced vpon them eyther by the word or some sicknesse or losse or such like But the special difference is in regard of the issue and effects thereof as that euill thoughts in the godly breed humiliation feare watchfulnesse examining of theyr hearts iudgeing of themselues Prayer longing after Heauen c. But in the wicked they breede presumption as if they were free and inuincible and hereby hypocrisie securitiy and prophanenesse and all disordinate Atheisme and impietie all deboshnes in the conuersation c. CHAP. VIII Of blasphemous Thoughts what they are THese are such as concerne the Nature and Properties of God of the Mes●ias his Nature and offices of the holy Ghost and his worke of the Truth of the word c. Whence they come And they either arise from that root of Infidelitie and Atheisme naturally setled in vs. Or else they are cast in by Sathan enuying our knowledge and loue of God and thereby seeking to distract and discourage vs in our profession and proceeding therein Or they proceed from our customary and carnall worship of God whereupon it commeth to passe that hauing made a reall Idoll of God by counterfeit worship no maruail● if wee bee fcourged with such blasphemous Thoughts as if there were no such thing in it selfe and because so farre as lies in vs wee haue made him no better vnto vs by our deceitfull worship The differences of them Wee shall discerne them to arise from naturall corruption by these Markes First in respect of the persons that are troubled with them Which are either Nouices in Christ ignorant for the most part of heauenly Mysteries vnexperienced in the power of sanctification and such vsually are troubled with the tentations of blasphemy to pusle and stagger them in the grounds of their faith and so to hinder them for going forward in grace Or else they are well growne Christians and so hereby being subiect to spirituall Pride and so to rob God of his glory are therefore also humbled with such terrible thoughts to make them the more sober in their vnderstanding to preuent curious searching exspectation of reuelations and such effects as follow thereupon or else through inward testimonies of ioy they are growne secure and so are awakened vsually with such horrible thoughts Or they fall to prie into sublime and sacred mysteries so farre and to are left to such Tentations Or they are decayed and so decline from their first loue and so are rouzed vp and set vpon by such horrible thoughts to put them to their Triall and so recouer them againe Or in their failings they are plunged into suddaine Thoughts of Despayre and these vsually are seconded with such blasphemous Thoughts as to holde them therein by Sathans Policie so indeed by the mercy of God to put them to try their hold in God so to liue by faith without feeling and so in the end to recouer Feeling againe Ann so also we may discerne these Tentations to arise from Natures corruption by such occasions as are incident to Gods children For Eyther it pleaseth God to shine vnto his children with extraordinary comforts and inward ioyes which Sathan seeking to turne as occasions to the Flesh and to set vp thereby temporall happinesse It therefore pleaseth God to leaue vs to be buffeted with such fearefull Thoughts that so wee may trie our holde in God whether we loue him better then these comforts that we may waite vpon him in the want of comfort and bee prouoked truly to faint after eternall comforts And so as it pleaseth God somtimes to giue vnto his Church outward rest because it is Natures corruption to build tabernacles here to measure God by outward prosperity as if hee onely were knowne herein therefore herein follow these Tentations of Atheisme and Blasphemie to drawe vs to an higher conceit of the Deity to measure

Worke begunne shall bee vndoubtedly perfected and that if they can wisely discerne the pulse of the heart in their greatest failings and faintings therupon and shall bee able to make vse of such helpe as it affordeth vnto them for recouery they may by Gods mercie finde a gratious issue out of their greatest tentations eyther in that by Faith they can looke backe into former experience and so may conclude from the faithfulnes of God that he that hath begun the work will perfit it in them Phil. 1.6 or in that by Faith they can looke forwards within the vaile whervnto the forerūner IESVS CHRIST their head is entred in before them and so thereby may certainely conclude that he will draw them vp all after him that their head beeing now at rest and in perfect glorie they the members also shall be more then conquerours in and with him and when Christ which is their life shall appeare they shall also appeare with him in glory whose liues are now hid with Christ in God Thus the discouery of this great Mysterie of the Thoughts shal be much auaileable to assure the weak Christian of the truth of his calling and also to satisfie and recouer him in and out of any such rubs or faylings as are incident therevnto his further growth And so also shall it serue to discouer and conuince the secret Atheisme of the times and such grosse prophanenes as issueth from the same For wheras the Root of al Atheisme especially that which is secret and concealed from the eye of man Is this The foole saith in his hart there is no God Thogh the Lord be in their lips yet he is not in their reines In their thoughts they denie him though they confesse him with their lips God is not in all his thoughts Psal 10.4 Therfore if once it shal bee made good that our Thoghts are to be ordered brought into subiectiō this will proue a gracious means to conuince and confound this secret Atheisme And seeing when once we giue the bridle to our loose wicked thoughts as if the Lord had no power ouer them wee are hereby iustly giuen vp by the Lord to all open prophanenes who wil haue al or none who vsually confounds such hypocrisie with desperate prophanes so that if we deny him in the heart to giue him spirituall worship he will deny vs before men in leauing vs to all grosse euils for the confusiō of our Atheism what better remedy can wee minister hereunto then first to purge the fountaine that the streames may be wholsome That by the rectifying of the heart and subduing the imaginations thereof the whole man may bee brought into subiection to the obedience of Christ And thus shal this holy gouernement of the thoughts prooue a blessed meanes to purge out the secret Atheisme of the heart and so to procure a blamelesse and vpright conuersation before men But of these things more fully in the conclusion of the Treatise Meane while as this may serue to discouer the scope of this Treatise so for the Method there of take these few directions that so wee may the better profit thereby Concerning the method Take first this direction that seeing spirituall experience especially of mine owne and other estates hath beene the chiefe spring that hath yeelded these meditation so it must be the touchstone to make triall thereof As this subiect is a mysterie to the carnall man so it is he only that can plough with my Heifer that shall make true benefite thereby And therfore labor to be found in Christ and thou shalt be able to vnfold this ridle thou shalt find the comfort of these wholsome obseruations And therefore seeing in these experimentall collections that may bee consonant to faith which is contrary and aboue the reach of reason and so many times crosseth the streame of Art therefore let this bee thy second direction for profite herein that thou stumble not at such fayling in Art which I professe my selfe herein not strictly to haue stood vpon as in the Descriptions Diuisions c. but rather that thou make vse of such heauenly Experience as is couered vnder a ruder forme and so blesse God for any true light reuealed in these euill times to further thee in sanctification and the rather in that the infirmities of man shall make more to his glory Lastly that thou mayst not fayle to make vse hereof Compare what here thou seest in a glasse with thine owne perticular estate see how face answers face and so the heart of man it selfe and so by experience of thine owne particular thou shalt be able to discern the truth of such obseruations as are here layd down and make application thereof to thy selfe for thy better reformation Aboue all vse earnest prayer to thy God to open the eyes of thine vnderstanding that thou maist discern this great Mysterie of the gouernmēt of thy thoughts That thy heart may be opened and subdued to the approbation and practise thereof Praysing God for any light thou receiuest hereby praying for grace and libertie for the supply of further light to build thee forward to perfection CHAP. II. Of thoughts in generall 1. What they are 2. how they they differ from consent to sin and such occasions thereof 3. what are the subiects and 4. causes of them 5 how we are to order them 6. with the vse thereof THat wee may lay downe some certaine direction for the well gouerning of our thoughts We are first to consider what these Thoughts are Namely they are the first motions of the the minde vnto good or euill either arising from the inward disposition of the heart or else suggested outwardly by Satan or else occasioned by outward obiects that present themselues vnto the senses and so to the common sense thereby stirring and affecting the heart to the liking or dislike of what is conceiued and so producing good or euill actions in the conuersation First I say they are the First motions as thereby to distinguish them from the Affections which are accompanied with the concurrence of the will which though they seeme to break out suddenly yet they haue these motions proceeding and occasioning the same And secondly to discerne them from such sodain and violent actions of reuenge lust c which howsoeuer they may seeme to bee first conceiued in the birth yet in truth they wanted not both the first suggestion and second approbation to occasion the same howsoeuer in time they may seeme to be all one nay like the lightning which oftentimes seemes to breake out before the thunder so they may seeme to preuent the motiō vnto euil And so 3. to determine the true ground order of the accomplishment of euil consumatiō thereof as arising frō the corruption of the heart originallie without which all suggestion of satan or occasions frō obiects could not auayle to commit sin which onely of it self is sufficient to raise vp cherish the