Selected quad for the lemma: conscience_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
conscience_n	law_n	sin_n	transgression_n	2,525	5	10.8527	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A26886	Certain disputations of right to sacraments, and the true nature of visible Christianity defending them against several sorts of opponents, especially against the second assault of that pious, reverend and dear brother Mr. Thomas Blake / by Richard Baxter ...	Baxter, Richard, 1615-1691.	1658 (1658)	Wing B1212; ESTC R39868	418,313	558

require a Dogmatical faith to Baptism Pag. 122. That therefore which he calls the great Question between him and me is no Question at all It were madness to affirm that which with these limits be thus denyes And I have no mind to accuse Mr. Blake of madness Seeing therefore he must either be of my mind or be mad I will make no doubt to think that he is of my mind in that and that his insinuating and oft affirming that I deny the thing there in question simply or without those limits proceedeth from that great injustice which temerity oft causeth in passionate men Pag. 389 1. In this case where the soul answers not to Sacramental Engagements Sacraments are but as outward shadows and bare empty signs and set out by the Spirit of God in Scripture with all their rites and Ceremonies as other Ordinances of like nature in the most low despicable and undervaluing words that is possible Baptism in the letter is no better with the Apostle than putting away the filth of the flesh the clensing of the hands the feet or face from dirt or filth is the same with it The Pharises washing of hands yea their washing of Cups Platters as low as it is laid by our Saviour was as efficacious and as acceptable Circumcision also when it led not to but from Christ is called by the Apostle by the name of Concision Phil. 3.2 Any gash made in the flesh or rent in the garment as well pleaseth Pag. 390. Sacraments in this case are only aggravations of sin and heightning of judgements In case of Vncircumcision in time of the Law and Non-baptism in these times sins were no more than transgressions of the Law but now they are breaches of Covenant Then they would have been meerly rebellion against Soveraignty but now they are Apostacy and Treachery 4. When Conscience answers not to Sacramental Engagements in participation of Sacraments men subscribe to the equity of their own condemnation and give assent to the sentence of death pronounced against them Read also his sect 6. throughout shewing how many sorts of men do forfeit their Covenant and the mercies of it And he concludes of them all Pag. 404. These are the men which Table subscribe the equity of their own condemnation and justifie the sentence of death pronounced against themselves These and many the like passages of Mr. Blake's do seem to me to militate against his own opinions some of the former Directly and the later Consequentially Yet do I not charge him with Self-contradiction for its like he understandeth himself better than I do But even from these last me thinks I have sufficient reason to demand 1. Whether it be not a mans duty to forbear Baptism or the Lords supper while he gets a fitter capacity rather than by the claim of them to subscribe his own condemnation or whether the necessary order of his duty be not first to believe and repent and then to claim these ordinances 2. Whether it be worth the while to write or preach to perswade men to offer such a service to God as doth but condemn themselves and is no more acceptable to God than the Pharises washing cups or than the cutting of their flesh or the rent in the garment 3. Seeing that saving faith is of another moral species than all other faith and cannot be had without a supernatural work of the spirit even a new creation Qu. Whether it be not cruelty in me to comply with that mans desires that would have Baptism or the Lords Supper without making a profession of saving faith or giving any sign of it himself and would engage himself to believe savingly the next minute though he do not now when I know before hand that he is most likely within one minute to break that engagement and so within a minute even before he stir out of the room to become a perjured or treacherous man that hath plunged himself into deeper misery and subscribed to the justness of his condemnation Were it not more wisdom and mercy to stay as was aforesaid one hour longer or a day and try whether he will believe savingly before hand rather than engage him to do it the next hour who doth not so much as pretend to any Ability to perform his own promise nor can shew any promise from God that he will give him that Ability either Absolute or Conditional And thus I sh●uld have distmist Mr. Blake and his dispute but that having toucht on this last testimony it mindeth me to clear my self from some imputations of self-contradiction which Mr. Blake chargeth upon me And I shall briefly try whether ever I pleaded his cause or have put my weapons into his hand to defend it with Mr. Blakes Charge of self-contradiction examined and found groundless and abusive The first pretended Self-contradiction which I observe by intimation at least charged on me by Mr. Blake is pag. 114. My words first cited defend a Conditional Covenant made to the non-Elect and I say that this may be said to be sealed to some of them that is those that hypocritically professing true fath claim and receive the Sacrament Well! And what have I said against this Why this If men be taught once that it is a faith short of justifying and saving faith which admitteth men to baptism as having true right in foro Dei it will make foul work in the Church But where the contradictions Or what was it I wonder that occasioned the jealousie of it He that cannot or is resolved he will not see any difference 1. between a Reprobates claiming that which he hath no proper right to claim and a mans claiming that which he hath right to claim 2. and between sealing to a meer conditional promise where the condition is not performed and sealing to a conditional promise where the condition is performed or professed so to be as that there is an actual or absolute obligation on the Promiser 3. and between that sealing which is the end of the Sacrament and that sealing which is notoriously deficient through the incapacity of the subject contrary to the appointed end and use of that Ordinance 4. And between the profession of a saving faith and the profession of another kind of faith I say he that can or will see no difference between these no nor any two of these let him account me and call me a self-contradicter and spare not And I shall answer him when I have nothing else to do Another Confutation that I am supposed to give my self is cited by him p. 148. thus No Minister can groundedly administer the Sacraments to any man but himself because he can be certain of no mans justification being not certain of the sincerity of their faith And if he should adventure upon probabilities or charitable conjectures then should he be guilty of profaning the Ordinance and every time he mistaketh he should set the Seal of God to a lye I confess there is