Selected quad for the lemma: conscience_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
conscience_n	draw_v	evil_a	sprinkle_v	1,134	5	10.3564	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A20536	Ten sermons tending chiefely to the fitting of men for the worthy receiuing of the Lords Supper VVherein amongst many other holy instructions: the doctrines of sound repentance and humiliation, and of Gods speciall fauours vnto penitent sinners, and worthy communicants are largely and effectually handled. The six first, by I. Dod. The foure last, by R. Cleauer. Whereunto is annexed, a plaine and learned metaphrase on the epistle to the Collossians, written by a godly and iudicious preacher. There is also set before the sermons, a short dialogue of preparation: containing the chiefe points that concerne the worthy receiuing of the Lords Supper, taken for the most part, out of the sermons following: and collected into a method for the benefit and ease of those that desire direction in this matter.	Dod, John, 1549?-1645.; Cleaver, Robert, 1561 or 2-ca. 1625. aut; Winston, John, fl. 1614-1634.	1610 (1610)	STC 6945; ESTC S114601	221,900	292

feelingly to poure out his heart before the Lord in praier and in thankesgiuing for when the Princes and the people had offered very largely and very willingly Dauid reioyced with great ioy and blessed 1. Chron. 29.9.10.14.18 and praised the Lord before all the congregation saying Blessed bee thou O Lord God of Israel our father for euer and euer c. Who am I and who are my people that wee should offer willingly c. O Lord God keepe this for euer in the purposes and thoughts of the heart of thy people and prepare their hearts vnto thee Thus may wee obserue now the good affections and desires of the people doe stire vp and strengthen the hearts of their Rulers to pray for them whereas on the contrarie nothing doth so kill the hearts and discourage the spirits of Gods seruants from praier as when they see those that are vnder them to bee wilfull and heady froward and rebellious and vtterly voide of any good disposition vnto pietie and religious exercises They scarse dare speake a good word for them vnlesse it bee that God would humble them and conuert them they cannot pray as Hezekiah here doth The good Lord bee mercifull vnto him that prepareth his whole heart to seeke the Lord c. but the good Lord giue them hearts to prepare themselues and take away the stony and vnbeleeuing and carnall hearts out of their bodies Note And indeed many times it is a iust iugement of God vpon such wretched persons that his children should haue no heart to pray for them because as it is said of Elies sonnes God hath a purpose to destroy them or at least grieuously to afflict them And therfore little doe these stubborne and obstinate children and seruants know what iniurie they doe vnto themselues by entering into and continuing in their sinfull courses for they thereby not onely prouoke Gods heauie displeasure against them which is a burden importable but also hinder and it may bee vtterly cut off the praiers of those that would otherwise crie vnto God night and day for the obtaining of his fauour and the procuring of the light of his countenance to shine vpon them Thus much for the first point Now further marke who they bee that hee praieth for not prophane or carelesse persons but for those that prepared their whole heart to seek the Lord c. that is which laboured with a true sincere heart to be partakers of the mercie and goodnes of God which he made offer of in his holie ordinances In that Hezekiah neither doth nor dares pray for a blessing vpon any but vpon such as were true-hearted The Doctrine is that Whosoeuer would haue any mercie from God in the Sacrament Doctr. 2 Sincerity requisite in all communicants must come with a sincere and vpright heart thereunto That howsoeuer hee cannot put away all sinne for who can say his heart is cleane yet hee may and must put away the liking of all sinne and the purpose of sinning So far as any man hath a loue vnto iniquity and an intent of committing iniquitie he is tainted with hypocrisie and doth pollute and defile euery good thing that he medleth withall and so can haue no benefit but much hurt therefrom If then wee would haue God to meete vs in mercy we must meete him in sincerity and if wee would haue him to come vnto vs in goodnesse wee must draw neere vnto him in vprightnesse Agreeable to this point is that exhortation to the Hebrewes Let vs draw neere with a true heart in assurance of faith Heb. 10.22 sprinkled in our hearts from an euill conscience and washed in our bodies with pure water As if hee should haue said except you come fitted and prepared with a heart voide of guile and deceit as good not come at all For God will bee so far from giuing countenance or comfort vnto such that hee will assuredly plague them for their fraud and falshood that they haue vsed with him This wee may plainely see in that which befel the ill grounds there are three sorts of them mentioned all professors that came to the word of life and yet had no benefit by it and therefore by a necessarie consequent Note they could reape as little fruit by the Sacrament For the word must giue life and strength before the Sacrament can nourish and increase the same What was the reason why they profited not because they came not with a good and honest heart Luke 8.15 as the fourth sort of hearers did who receiued instruction and comfort and the power of godlinesse by the conscionable hearing of the word But what is that good and honest heart which they are commended for it is a heart that doth fullie purpose to doe well though it faile much in that which it performeth that resolueth before hand to auoide the euill that shall bee reproued and to doe the good duties that shall bee commanded and to beleeue and rest vpon the promises that shall be pronounced as farre as God shall giue abilitie c. Now wheresoeuer there is such a ready inclination vnto goodnesse there will be a bringing foorth of fruit though not in all alike yet euery one will doe somewhat and God will acknowledge them for good ground and honest-hearted Christians that yeeld him but thirtie fold as well as those that yeeld him sixtie fold or an hundred fold for a lesse measure of fruitfulnes is an argument of truth as well as a greater measure and therefore shall bee respected and rewarded but as for those that haue naughtie and deceitfull hearts they shall goe away as bad or worse then they came and whatsoeuer faire colours they set vpon their profession for a time yet sooner or latter their hollownesse shall appeare to their shame and punishment Now the reasons that make for the confirmation of this doctrine That if we would finde acceptance with God we must bring sinceritie with vs are these First without this wee can haue neither remission Reasons 1 nor sanctification and therefore are so farre from hauing interest in Gods mercies through Christ his merits Without vprightnesse there is no remouall of sin Psal 32.1.2.3 that wee are liable to his wrath and lie open to the stroks of his reuenging hand None are pardoned and blessed but those in whose spirit there is no guile Secondly except there bee vprightnesse wee can haue no hope of good successe in any seruice of God that wee take in hand Iohn 9 31. Psalm 66.18 there being no promise made vnto vs for as God heareth not sinners in praier so he doth not helpe sinners by the word or Sacrament This is for the terror of those Vse 1 that when they come to the Lords Table Against vnprepared receiuers neuer examine themselues nor looke into the state of their soules at most they come but with a Pharisaicall washing of the outside of the cup and of the platter As if

both him and his banquet in comming with the most foule and loathsome garments of the old man which doe more displease the eyes of the Lord then the most base and beggarly raiment in the world can doe the eies of an earthly King 2 Secondly the manner of Gods proceeding viz. 1 That hee conuinceth the consciences so that they are speechlesse 2 That he condemneth the persons vnto vnuoidable and yet vnsupportable torments Then the King came in Verse 11 From this title which is attributed vnto the Lord this doctrine ariseth that God is the onely absolute King ouer all the whole world Doct. 1 Hee it is that is blessed and Prince God the king of the whole world 1. Tim. 6.15 the King of Kings and Lord of Lords This Nebuchadnezzar acknowledged after that the Lord had made him being the mightiest Monarch in the world to become more wretched then the poorest man in the world liuing as a beast for seuen yeeres together after that I say the Lord had abased him and raised him vp againe hee acknowledged that God was the King of all the earth whereas hee thought before that he himselfe had been shewing what manner of King he is Dan. 4.31.32 namely the most high euerlasting of an vnresistable power so that all the inhabitants of the earth are to bee reputed as nothing in comparison of him And the reason why the Lord doth challenge vnto himselfe this title Reason to bee the only absolute gouernour of all the world is this that all power whatsoeuer is deriued from him and limited by him so that all changes and alteration proceede from his al-ruling hand and therefore good cause is there that he should haue the glory of all This reprooueth them Vse 1 that in words will acknowledge the Lord to bee the onely ruler of heauen and earth but in their deeds deny it for what doe they neuer care to get the knowledge of his lawes much lesse to obey them nay they refuse to vnderstand the statutes of the Lord and rise vp in open rebellion against him and yet none more ready then such to cry out of others that they are disloyall subiects such as care not for authoritie and the like Indeed those that are such are much to be commended But in truth they themselues in the meane while are the notablest rebels in that they stand out against the Lord of hosts But they will vaunt and boast that they carry themselues loially towards their Prince and are carefull to obey authoritie suppose for thetime that they doe yeelde outward obedience to the lawes which yet few such doe yet if they doe not submit themselues to Magistrates in and for the Lord all their loialtie is nothing worth for the Apostle Iude speaketh of some that had mens persons in admiration because of aduantage Iude 1● against whom he pronounceth a woe they would fawne vpon such as were in authority haue them in high admiration Oh they were worthy men their commandements much to be respected so that if they would haue them lie or sweare or commit any villany they would be at their becke and why for their own aduantage that they might get some commoditie or clime to some preferment c. that was their drift and further then to serue themselues they regarded neither the persons nor places of those that were in gouernment all their crouching was for aduantage sake nothing for conscience sake Secondly Vse 2 sithence our God is the soueraigne Lord King of heauen and earth therefore when wee are to stand in his presence and to draw neere vnto his table let vs with all reuerence and due preparation and with all feare and care and good conscience present our selues before his Maiestie The holy Ghost himselfe giueth this aduice concerning an earthly Ptince that if any bee to sit at table with a great Ruler Prou. 23.1.2.3 hee should looke vnto his carriage and restraine his appetite and not behaue himselfe rudely and vnmannerly now if this bee a point of wisedome when a man is to feast with one that is farre his superiour to wash his hands to haue respect of his apparell and if hee haue any suit better then another to put that on and in no sort to carry himselfe disorderly and vnbeseeming such a presence if I say a man would and should deale thus before an earthly Prince that if there be any failing can but giue him a rebuk and check or inflict vpon him some outward punishment how much more carefull and circumspect should wee be when we are to sit at the Lords table who looketh not so much to the externall behauiour as to the inward disposition of the soule and if hee finde vs vnprepared and vnworthy cannot onely smite vs in the outward man but cast both body and soule into hell Thirdly Vse 3 this is for singular comfort vnto all Gods people seeing the Lord their God is the onely Monarch of the world that exerciseth his kingdome from generation to generation this should strengthen them against all crosses and losses and troubles and temptations that though men would tosse them vp and downe and trample them vnder their feet and for that end doe euermore plot and practise against them yet it shall goe well with the righteous for the Lord raigneth ouer their most mortall aduersaries and though the times change and mens affections change yet their king is vnchangeable the same for euer in mercy and goodnesse towards all his true hearted Subiects hee hath turned euery thing to the good of his Church heretofore and so will he deale with his faithfull seruant still euen to the end of the world And thus much of the person of God that he is a King Now for his behauiour he doth not onely prouide for his guests but is there present himselfe in the assemblie of Saints to see the guests not but he saw them before but this is spoken for our capacitie to signifie that as God doth see through vs so he will let men know and feele and finde that hee perfectly discerneth what they are and with what hearts they appeare before him Doctr. 2 whence ariseth this point that The Lord taketh notice of euery guest that sitteth at his table Gods cie is vpon all his guests There are many commers but not all of one disposition therefore doth hee take a view of them that their intertainment may be according to their condition and preparation that if they be good they may speede well if bad they may receiue according to their ill deserts This is euidentin Zephania Zephan 1.12 where it is said that the Lord will search Ierusalem with lights not that the Lord needeth candles or torches but to shew that there are many darke corners in mens hearts where sinne lies lurking which if we will not search the Lord will and finde out euery corruption therein as men by burning Lamps come to the sight of