Linguistic DNA - Concept Modelling Demonstrator

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
conscience_n	evil_a	sin_n	sprinkle_v	1,192	5	10.9545	5	false

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A49258	A treatise of effectual calling and election In XVI. sermons, on 2 Peter 1.10. Wherein a Christian may discern, whether yet he be effectually called and elected. And what course he ought to take that he may attain the assurance thereof. Preached by that faithfull servant of Christ, Mr. Christopher Love, late minister of Laurence Jury, London.	Love, Christopher, 1618-1651.; Calamy, Edmund, 1600-1666.	1655 (1655)	Wing L3179; ESTC R217684	182,116	237

help on Jesus Christ upon one that is mighty and exalt arguments of faith and this will much strengthen your comforts Luke 8.42 There came a â—uler to Jesus Christ and besought him for his daughter that lay a dying And while he was telling Christ this there came another messenger after him Thy daughter is dead â—rouble the man no farther What saith Christ hearing this Fear not onely bâ—lieve As if he should say sense and reason would have told him it were a needlesse thing to beg of Christ for his daughter when she was dead but saith Christ Doe not stoop to sense and reason Fear not onely beleeve and the work shall be done So I say to you Consult not with flesh and blood but exalt arguments of faith against present feelings and this is the way to get assurance of your comforts Secondly Keep conscience clear that no sin be harboured there and you are in the way to get your comforts full God saith David will speak peace to his people but they must not returne unto folly As if he should say though God doth speak peace and assure you of your pardon and salvation yet if you return to sin God can tell how to break your peace and turn his smiles into frowns and angry looks Take heed of sin and keep your conscience clear and that 's the way to have peace setled in thine heart Job 11.14 15. If iniquity be in thy hand put it far away and let not wickednesse dwell in thy Tabernacle What follows and then shalt thou lift up thy face before God without spot thou shalt be stedfast and shalt not fear A strange expression That if you will keep sin far away then you shall be stedfast before God and not fear that is you shall not be exposed to those fears and doubts and anxieties which other men are exposed to Heb. 10.22 Let us draw neer to God with an upright heart in full assurance of faith Now what shall a man doe to come to God in full assurance Mark the next words Draw nigh to God in full assurance of faith having your hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience Here is the way if you are sprinkled from an evil conscience you may be bold to come to God in full assurance Whereas alas if thy conscience tell thee thou art a Whoremaster and thou art a deceiver and a liar and loose liver thou canst not come with full assurance thou mayest come in presumption indeed but not with the assurance of faith and therfore keep a conscience clear from harbouring guilt upon it and that 's the way to have the heart full of joy Thirdly Be diligent in keeping company with the most godly experienced Christians where you live this is a very special way to encrease your comforts Ye read an excellent passage 2 Cor. 1.4 We are câ—mforted of God saith the Apostle that we might comfort others with the comfort wherewith we are comforted of God Godly Christians they will comfort you with the same comforts wherewith they themselves are comforted If we are comforted it is for your consolation Godly men if they have any inward comfort from God they will impart their experiences to you and tell you as David did Psal 66.16 What God hath done for their soul There is no way better then this to keep in communion with godly and knowing Christians Mr. Bradford that famous Martyr who was in prison about his profession of Christ the story saith he lay a long time under trouble of minde and horrour of conscience that he could not finde a real and clear evidence of his effectual calling there came many men to him and could not settle him Yet a poor Weaver an ancient and experienced Christian that did usually accompany Mr. Bradford in prison by his frequent communion with this poor man he got more inward comfort then ever he got all his life before Beloved this I speak to you to make you the morâ— to study the the worth of godly society and the more you are conversant with Christians that live in the enjoyment of the light of Gods countenancâ— and in the assurance of his favour all the day long the more you are in the ready way to encrease your comforts and assurance Fourthly Submit thy selfe to the approbation of others and be willing to have them passe a verdict upon thee When thou art asleep or in a swoun then thou canst not tell thy self what thou dost but others must tell thee So it may fall out with the godly they may be in such a spiritual swoun that they are not fit judges of their own condition in this case submiâ— to the judgment of others they may see grace in thee when thou thy self canst not see it so Mr. Throgmorton was comforted by the testimony of a company of godly Ministers Fifthly live in the dayly improvement of grace and that 's the way to get assurance And this meanes the Holy Ghost layes down in the Chapter out of which my Text is taken Adde grace to grace And I remember that Beza upon this Text doth write that in the Greek Translations these words are put in Give diligence by good works to make your calling sure whether it be so or no I cannot affirm but this I am sure of and the context will clearly prove it that the way to make your calling sure is to adde grace to grace For after the Apostle had spoken of adding grace to grace he comes in with this Give diligence to make your calling sure Implying that the more you live in the actings of grace the more you shall live in the enjoyment of comforts Isa 32.17 The works of righteousness shall be peace Not the habit but the work if you act righteousnesse and live in the workings and thrivings in grace this shall be peace and the effect of it quietnesse and assurance for ever So John 16.24 The more you pray the more you encrease your joy So that the more you live in the improvement of grace the more likely way you are in to get assurance Sixthly If you would get assurance spend more time in strengthening your evidences for heaven then in questioning of them It is the great fault of many Christians they will spend much time in questioning and not in strengthening their comforts They will reason themselves into unbeliefe and say Lord why should I beleeve why should I take hold of a promise that am so unholy and so unmortified a creature And so by this they reason themselves to such a passe that they dare not lay hold upon Christ whereas it should be your work to reason your selves into Christ as much as you can Labour to strengthen your comforts and reason thus Why should I not beleeve in Christ Thus David did Psal 42. Why art thou troubled O my soule and why art thou cast down within me Is not the mercy of God more then sin in the creature Is not there free grace where

say it doth not extend to children who die in their infancy but onely to men come to years of discretion if they live and die without having these six effects they may conclude they cannot be elected Secondly that the want of these six particulars for a time is no Argument of a mans non-election for before conversion which is Gods first dealing with a sinner an elect man may be as vile and as bad as any wicked man alive As the Apostle Paul tells us Titus 3.3 In times past we were also disobedient and served divers lusts and lived in pleasure and excess c. So 1 Tim. 1.12 So that the want of this for a time is no argument of a mans non-election for then it would follow a man unconverted is no elect man which would crosse the whole tenour of Scripture But a man living and dying without these doth not belong to the election of grace Thirdly I do not presse the having of these effects actually if you have them habitually My meaning is this A man may be elected and yet may not act any thing answerable to effectual calling nor act with any delight and love to the word nor act any thing in a way of sanctification yet if you have these habitually in the habit of them these may be testimonies or evidences of election Fourthly I do not presse the having of these effects sensibly to be an evidence of election if so be you have them really There are many men have these really when they have them not in their own apprehension Fifthly I do not presse the having of these effects gradually so you have them sincerely My meaning is this that a man may be elected yea and he may not onely be chosen in Gods eternal decree but the execution of that decree may be passed upon him that he may be effectually called and yet he may not have all these six effects in a great measure in the highest degree yet he may have them sincerely and so be a pledge to his own heart of his eternal election And thus having finished this third Quere I come now to enter upon another depending upon the former which indeed is a very dreadful subject and a point to be trembled at while it is handling and that is this what probable guesse may be given of a man that he is not within the compasse of Gods election This is a very high point and must be handled with a great deal of seariousnesse and sadnesse it being a point concerning the salvation or damnation of all the men upon earth And therefore I would intreat you to look about you Gods decrees they are in Heaven and it is onely a reall work of grace upon your hearts on earth that can give you evidence that those decrees are for good to you As good wrought is an evidence of Gods purpose to save you so the contrary work may be an evidence of Gods purpose never to save you but of leaving you without the compasse of his eternal election There can be nothing laid down absolutely and certainly yet there may be many probable guesses given of the men that are not within the compasse of Gods election Of which I shal name but six or seven sorts And I wish to God that none of you that are before the Lord this day have your names written in this black book lest you have just cause to fear your names are no written in the book of life First That man that falls back from a course of profession to a course of profanenesse without timely returning the Scripture gives a shrewd guesse of such a man that he is not within the compasse of Gods purpose to save I do not say every backsliding and every decaying affection but a total and final relapse when a man falls and riseth not again wâ—eâ— a mans runs from God and â—eturns not again the Scripture gives a guesse at him that he is not within the compasse of Gods election Heb. 10.38 39. If any man draw back my soul shall have no pleasure in him Interpreters observe that in these words there is a figure wherein there is lesse expressed then is intended My soul shall have no pleasure in him It is as much as if God should have said My soule shall hate or I will exceedingly hate him But we are not of them that draw back to perdition but of them that believe to the saving of their souls which words clearly import that men that draw back without returning they draw back to perdition to damnation but we are not of them saith the Apostle And here then beloved doth this word fall upon any man before God this day Hast thou left a course of strictnesse and fallen into a course of prophanesse and loosnesse Hast thou fallen from thy God and never thinkest of a returning I shall not censure thee now but if thou livest and diest in this estate it is an undoubted argument thou art not within the compasse of Gods decree to save Secondly Men that do make the mercies and goodness of God as arguments to embolden them the more in sin such men are not likely to be the persons whom God hath elected to life and glory In the Epistle of Jude v. 4. It is spoken there of men that turned the grace of God into wantonness And what saith the Apostle of them they are men ordained of old to damnation The Scripture there makes it the badge of a man ordained of old to damnation when he shall persist in this sinful temper to turn Gods grace into laciviousnesse that is to take arguments from the grace and mercy and goodnesse of God to walk in waies of sin And therefore look to it and with your hearts bewaile it all you that are apt to abuse doctrins of grace and because God is good you will be evil because God is merciful therefore you will be sinful if you die in this temper the Scripture declares that you are the men ordained of old to condemnation Thirdly a man that doth walk in a course of sin wilfully with malice and knowingly against conscience and obstinately without reluctancy and persist in this and live and die thus that man is not within the compasse of Gods election There is a phrase Psal 59.5 Be not merciful O Lord unto wicked transgressors It is in some translations be not merciful to them that sin of wicked malice or of malicious wickedness Now there is this rule which Divines give that those prayers which were made by David they are rather Prophesies of what should be then meere prayers that this might be As David prayed against the Jewes Psal 69 2â— that their table might be a snare to them and that they should alway bow down under their prayes which was a prophecie and they did so And so he burden here that God would not be merciful to men that sâ—n of wicked malice which is as much as a prophecie that God will not be

or embrace the call of Jesus Christ unto grace and glory And in answer to this I shal lay down onely four suggestions of the Devil wherewith he entangles a man that he should not yeild to the cal of Jesus Christ And as I lay them down I shal labour to take them a way As 1. The first temptation the Devil wil suggest is to you that are young men and to you he wil suggest that you are yet too young to embrace the call of Jesus Christ 't wil be time enough hereafter and you may do it soon enough hereafter you are two young now to be abridg'd of your pleasure and to mortifie your lusts and to betake your selves unto so serious a course as Christ cals you to and by this temptation the Devil prevails with young men more especially And I remember Austine saith that this temptation of the Devil made him keep off for seven years together from embracing the cal of Jesus Christ the Devil would stil tel him in his heart thou art too young to leave thy Drunkennesse and too young to leave thy Harlots til at last he cryed out How long shal I say it is too soon Why may I not repent to day This temptation I say it hath fastened upon many before you that they were too young to come in to Jesus Christ and to this end the Devil wil suggest to you that old and false Proverb A young Saint and an old Devil Whereas indeed if you are young Devils you wil be old Beelzebubs And therefore this being a suggestion prevailing witâ— many hearts I shal lay down six considerations to take off this temptation that it may not prevail with you First If the Devil tempt you that you are too young to hearken to Christs cal consider That the Devil cannot give you a Lease of your lives if the Devil could give you a Lease of your lives and tell you you should live til old age you might then with more safety harken to his temptation but your lives are not at the Devils disposal God is the Author of your life the issues of life and death are in his hands you may die in youth uncalled you may be damned as wel as dead You may be as these men Job 36.14 that shall die in their youth and their lives shall be among the unclean And therefore though the Devil tempt you that you are too young seeing he cannoâ— assure you of your lives you have no reason to hearken to his temptation Secondly Suppose the Devil could assure you you should live til old age yet take this consideration that in putting off your calling and the work of conversion from your youth this may so provoke God that he may harden your hearts in your old daies that you shal have no heart to think of and embrace the call and invitation of Jesus Christ Jer. 22.21 I spake to thee in thy prosperity but thou wouldst not hear and this hath been thy manner frâ—m thy youth Thou wouldst not obey my voyce God spake but they would not hear and it was from their youth that they did thus therefore God would never speak more God hardened their hearts that they should never receive or embrace the cal of Jesus Christ So Isa 6.9 10. Seeing the Jewes from their youth were obstinate against the word of God Go saith God make their ears heavy and their hearts fat and their eyes blind that they should not be called and converted and I should save them Let this therefore be a second consideration that the putting off your cal til your old age may so provoke God as never to give you hearts to embrace his cal Thirdly Suppose al this that you could have a Lease of your lives and you could be assured that when you come to old age your hearts should not be hardened yet consider this that the more sinful and evil the daies of your youth have been the more disquietnesse of minde and horror of conscience will this breed in you when you are old though you shal be called and converted by Jesus Christ Job 13.24.25 26. Thou â—idest thy face thou holdest me as thy Enemy Thou dost drive me as a leaf to and fro and thou dost pursue me like dry stubbâ—e Now why doth Job complain thus Mark the next words For thâ—u writest bitter things against me and makest me to possesse the iniquities of my youth Job when he was a young man it seemâ— he was a wicked man and had many sins in his youth and this in his old age made him cry out and say that God took him for his Enemy and that God brake him like a leafe driven with the wind O beloved the sins of your youth though you should be Jobs converted yet they wil bring great disquietnesse and great horroâ— when you come to age the lusts of youth and the vanities of youth and the sensual pleasures of your youthful daies they wil lay a foundation of sorrow when you come to gray hairs to be neare your graves so Job 20.11 And therefore put the case you should repent and should be called when you are old you have no cause to put off the cal of Jesus Christ seeing sins of youth wil fill you with horror and disquietnesse of minde Hence it is that David after he was call'd by the power of the word cries out Psal 25. Lord remember not the sins of my youth that gravelled and gall'd his conscience the sins of his youth before his cal It is the speech of an Author that to look on the pleasurable vanities and contents of youth this wil become an heavy burden and bitter vexation to old age Beloved the more evil you run out into in your youthful daies the greater and deeper foundation of disquietnesse and sorrow you lay in your souls in your latter daies though you should be called by Jesus Christ 4. If the Devil suggest that you are too young to embrace the invitation of Christ consider That Jesus Christ wll take it most kindly at your hands if while you are young you wil give entertainment to his cal Jer. 2.2 I remember thee saith the Lord and the kindnesse of thy youth that thou wouldst follow me in the Wildernesse in a land that was not sown Mark how the Lord speaks and how kindly he takes it that they would in their youth follow God the Lord wil remember it and take it acceptable from you if while you are young while the Marrow is in your bones and strength in your joynts you wil embrace the waies of Jesus Christ It is an observation that some have concerning the Beloved Disciple John John 20. He is called the Disciple whom Christ loved and that leaned upon his brest of al the other eleven Disciples Christ did love John above the rest and Divines give this reason of it John was the youngest of al the Disciples he was converted and called by Christ when he was a young

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