Selected quad for the lemma: church_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
church_n	day_n	lord_n	week_n	9,333	5	9.8928	5	true

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A97258	The poores advocate in 8 parts. Shewing, what an incomparable favour it is to the rich: that there are poor to accept of their charity, had they the wit to know it. Wherein is also made plain, that bounty and frugality is the best and surest way to plenty: with many other rational, and strong inducements to make men liberal; were it but for their own ends. Being enough (with the blessing of God) to change even a Nabal into a Zaccheus. By R. Yonnge [sic], florilegus. Who most earnestly begs of all rich men especially, and that for the poors sake, for Christs and the Gospels sake, but most of all for their own (even if their bodies, names, estates, precious souls and posterities) sake; to lay to heart, what is herein propounded to them out of Gods word, touching the poor: and then certainly, they will neither spend so excessively, nor heap up wealth so unmeasurably as they do; when millions of their poor brethren (for whom God would become man and die to redeem) are in such want, that I want words to express it.	Younge, Richard.	1654 (1654)	Wing Y173; Thomason E1452_3; ESTC R209561	58,165	58

Prophet Elisha who would not suffer the Aramites to be smit with the sword but contrariwise caused them to be relieved in their necessity whereby he so won their love that they came no more to invade the land of Israel Yea give to such to chuse for so shalt thou shew more charity and have a greater reward for we are commanded to feed a hungry enemy and have a blessing promised for it in special and this is to imitate God who loved us when we were his enemies CHAP. XVI HOwbeit if we will walk by rule though we do good unto all yet must we not unto all alike for to the distressed Saints and members of Christ such as shew forth holiness Orthodox and sound Christians we must double our liberality as Elkana gave Hannah a double portion For if we are even for natures sake to succour a sinner then much rather are we to relieve a Saint because besides his humane nature he hath also a certain divine nature in him He is not only a creature but a new creature not only a son of Adam but a childe of God and a fellow-member with us of Christs mystical body Therefore we ought herein to imitate God who though he be good to all Psal 145.9 14 to 17. yet not to all alike 1 Tim. 4. who is the Saviour of all men specially of those that believe Verse 10. Again what more seemly then where God gives his Spirit and best gifts there to multiply our chief collations whence those several expressions of the Apostle distributing to the necessities of the Saints Rom. 12.13 Do good unto all but especially to the houshold of faith Gal. 6.10 And of our Saviour Christ In that you have done it to any one of these ye have done it to me Matth. 25.40 Therefore as Joseph gave better entertainment to Benjamin then to the ●est of his guests because he was his brother not by the fathers side only as they were but also by the mothers so we should make more of those which are children with us not only of the same God by creation but also of the same Church by belief and profession And as there is another manner of use of things holy and of things common of the Lords day and of the other dayes of the week so a difference is to be made between true Protestants and other common Christians Again as liberality must be shewed generally to all specially to the faithful so more specially to those that suffer for their profession of the Gospel and true Religion Whence Asa and Hezekiah Kings of Judah received willingly those strangers that came to them out of Israel when their Kings would have constrained them to commit Idolatry But most chiefly and above all to Ministers and Divinity Readers persecuted or banished for teaching and defending the faith of Christ As who deserved more to be fed by Ob●diah then those hundred persecuted Prophets of the ●●rd 1 Kings 18.13 How could the widow of Sarepta have better bestowed her slender provision then in sust●ining poor hungry and half starved Elias And why it is for Gods sake that they are killed all the day long and counted as sheep for the s●aughter Rom 8.36 But withall heed would be taken that insteed of true Prophets and Orthodox Ministers we entertain not seducing Hereticks and false teachers who like the Scribes and Pharisees do plant errour and superstition and supplant true Religion Concerning whom we have this negative precept of Saint John If there come any unto you that b●ing not this doctrine receive him not into your house neither bid him God speed 2 John 10. Nor can we be too circumspect in this case for they are mo●e pernitious to the soul then traitors are to the State They be like Horsleeches which suck blood greedily not to ease or cleanse the patient but to satisfie their own bloody thirst under a colour of feeding and curing mens souls they impoise and kill them in stead of converting they pervert their hearers dealing with them as an ill Physician wi● his Patient that purges away the good humours leaving the bad behind or as V●rmine do by Po●●try that suck out the best blood from them and leave only the refuse their notions being worse then so many infections bits for as those cause all the wholesome food a man hath eaten to be vomited up again so it self is cast up withall whereas their false doctrines drive out the truth as one nail drives out another and stirks fast in the room Falshood after truth is like Aloes strewed upon honey a little whereof taketh away all the former sweetness Yea such a seducer shall be able in one week to undo and make void whatsoever a faithful Minister hath built up and established in the hearts of his hearers with great pains in many years whereas what they plant is like to last for they so ranckle and fester the affections of their hearers that they leave no probability of their being reduced A seducers teaching is like Circes potions too strong for all antidotes and the condition of their Proselytes like the Kings Evil that none but God himself can cure And one main reason is they are no sooner falne in with these false teachers but the Toad of prejudice against their true Pastor is ingendred in their brains Yea now they have such base thoughts of all Orthodox Ministers that they turn the deaf eare to whatever they shall speak It is a chief principle in the art of seducing to winde themselves into favour by working the more worthy into disgrace and having so done the next is ●o interdict them hearing in all publick Assemblies and reading Books that are not made by them A cunning tric● to keep ignorant souls from starting which they have learnt from the Pope who will not allow the Laity to read the Bible or hear the word preach● And the Turk who denies to his subjects both all kindes of learning and dispute about religion And this is the cause why scarce one of a thousand that once falls into the clutches of a false teacher ever returns again But of this by the way only In the next place there is r●spect to be had to what a man hath been as it a godly man be fallen into decay that hath been in great prosperity in case he keeps his wonted integrity to him we should be the more bount ful and respective which is but to do as we would be done by for we are both more sensible of our present misery by remembering our former happiness and also more tender and delicate so less able to bear it The memory of former happiness makes the present misery more deplorable which like dead beer is never more distastful then after a banquet of sweet-meats For Bajazet to change his Seraglio for a Cage For Va●erian to become a footstool to his proud foe 〈◊〉 calainities able to sink a soul deep in sorrow I might further shew

been shewen in cases of great necessity and keep the pond in a convenient fulnesse letting the overplus continually run over to good uses for otherwise there will be an intermission in the stream of our bounty till the emptinesse be replenished and too much at one time will cause necessarily too little at another Wherefore that we may constantly hold out in well doing unto the end there is required that an equality and proportion be observed in discreet fitting of our works of mercy and beneficence unto our estate and ability that they may match but not exceed it The wise Husbandman doth not cast all his seed into the ground but reserveth so much at least as will be sufficient to maintain his family and so we must sowe not all we have but all which we can spare that through out indiscretion we want not food before the time of Harvest Now herein is respect had to our ability when keeping as the Wiseman counselleth us our cisterns and wels full that our selves may drink of them and letting the overplus run abroad to others in the streets Prov. 5.16 17. And this the son of Syrach adviseth According to thine ability stretch out thine hand and give Eccles 14.13 and give unto the most High according as he hath enriched thee as thou hast gotten give with a cheerful eye Chap. 35.10 An example of which Christian discretion we have in the faithful Acts 11.29 Then the Disciples every man according to his ability determined to send relief unto the brethren And this the Apostle meaneth where he requireth such an equality as that some should not be too much eased and others too much burthened but that they should indifferently out of their abundance supply the wants of others 2 Cor. 8.13 14. It is Gods expresse command Deut. 16. None shall appear before the Lord empty every man shall give according to the gift of his hand and according to the blessing of the Lord thy God which he hath given thee Verse 16 17. Let every man saith Saint Peter as he hath received the gift minister the same one to another as good disposers of the manifold grace of God 1 Pet. 4.10 It is said Acts 11. That the Disciples every man according to his ability sent succour unto the brethren which dwelt in Judea by the hands of Barnabas and Saul Verse 29 30. The Disciples in the Primitive Church every first day of the week put aside by himself and laid up as God had prospered him 1 Cor. 16.2 Let every one then give If he be not able to bring a Lamb let him bring two turtle-Doves or two young Pigeons what he can well spare Levit. 5.11 Or if he cannot do so let him at least contribute his prayers To whom God hath given much he requireth they should give much where he hath given little be will accept of a little According to his proportion of grace he expects our proportion of goodness and he doth the will of God who does the best he can to do it They are written in the book of Life saith Bernard that do what they can to do it though they cannot do what they should CHAP. XXV ONly we must take heed that we do not straiten our selves in our own conceits and make our selves believe our ability is lesse then it is for this is the way to make God lessen our ability of what it is It is usual for men to say I have little enough for my self and mine and therefore it is not required that I should give to others To which I answer He that is all for himself counts all have he never so much little enough Or secondly perhaps thou spendest so much upon thy lusts that thou art not able to supply the wants of others which is the case of thousands for the lusts of the flesh the lust of the eyes and the pride of life are chargeable they devoure all and make poor they are able to spend thousands a year as one said I have twelve thousand a yeer yet I want money as much as other men One sinner destroyes much good Eccles 9.18 Rom. 16.18 They have sought out many inventions Eccles 7.29 and those consume their estates of which afterwards But Thirdly dost thou think that if some others that make conscience of this duty had the estate thou hast that they could not and would not do more good with it then thou dost Again fourthly He that hath but two coats may think he hath little enough for himself Yet Christs bids him part with one to those that have none and the like to him that hath meat Luke 3.11 And the rule which the Apostle sets down is that a man give according to that he hath be it more or lesse little or much 2 Cor. 8.12 If then thou hast not two coats nor wherewithall to have them it will serve thee for a good excuse otherwise not But Fifthly How comes it that thou thinkest so much but little enough for thy self is not this self love only For if thy great abundance be little enough for thee canst thou think so short a pittance as thy brother hath much enough for him Thou hast variety of food divers pounds or hundreds he hath scarce any thing and must you alledge I have little enough The measure we mete to supply the wants of others is not the same that we measure to our selves they are divers and divers measures are abomination to the Lord Proverbs 20.10 Yet this is the sin of the whole Land As it was the sin of Sodom Ezekiel 16.49 so it is the sin of England and let us look to it for if we commit the same sins we may well expect to meet with the same pun●shment fire and brimstone Or which is worse hardnesse of heart and everlasting punishment Matth. 24.50 51. I fear this Nation lieth under a curse for this very sin though they see or consider it not The poor able to work are suffered to beg the impotent aged sick are not sufficiently provided for but almost starved with the allowance of their six pence a week apiece perhaps two pence many have nothing at all If we had either charity or mercy we would think if so much be but sufficient for us ô how far is it too little from sufficing them But men are generally most devillishly partiall for otherwise why could not this Nation as well as Holland set their poor on work and provide necessaries for those poor not able to work that there might be no begging here nor just complaint by reason of want it is so in the Low-Countreys not a man of their own Nation begs there I hear the Town of Maidstone and the City of Dorchester and a few other places set the poor to work and provide for them without begging O that London and other places would do the like That there be no complaining in our streets Psal 144.14 If men fearing God and hating covetousness were