Selected quad for the lemma: death_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
death_n	body_n	sin_n	suffer_v	5,268	5	6.2457	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A44693	A sermon on the much lamented death of that reverend and worthy Servant of Christ Mr. Richard Adams, M.A. sometime fellow of Brazen-Nose Colledge in Oxford, afterwards, minister of St. Mildred Breadstreet, London, more lately, pastor of a congregation in SOuthwark, who deceased Febr. 7th, 1697/8 preached, February the 20th, 1698 / by John Howe.	Howe, John, 1630-1705.	1698 (1698)	Wing H3039; ESTC R15457	15,888	56

in this World would be much more a valuable Good unto the Christian Church and unto this or that Church in particular that had injoyed and might further injoy his most fruitful Labours His difficuly and straight was not either what was best for him or what was best for them but which of these two he should upon the whole prefer whether he should prefer his own Private Interest or prefer the common Interest of Christ in the World And upon weighing and pondering the Matter with himself he does prefer the latter so as without any kind of Hesitation to express a great complacency in it that he should be continued yet longer some time longer for common good in this World And it was a most noble piece of Self-denial that was exercised herein if you consider what the Apostles Priviledges had been He had been caught up into the Third Heaven he had there seen unutterable Things nor could he doubt his Interest in the Felicity and Glory of the Heavenly State On the other hand consider his Life here on Earth was no voluptuous Life it was not a Life of Ease and Pleasure See the Account that he gives of it in 1 Cor. 4. and in 2 Cor. 6. and in Chap. 11. of the same Epistle And to find amongst how many Deaths he converst as it were every Day of his Life how familiar Labours and Fastings and Watchings were to him yea Stripes and Imprisonments and that he was now at this Time a Prisoner as we see in some foregoing Verses of this very Chapter viz. ver 13 14 16. even in the very Lions Paw in the continual Expectation of being devoured and not long after to be offered up as he elsewhere speaks Yet he seems to take great Complacency in the Thoughts of having some Addition made to his Time in this World on the common Christian Account and that his own Blessedness and Glory should be for this Reason a little while deferred he was Patient of this he could indure it out of his Love to Christ and the Souls of Men. But as to himself for what he esteemed and desired accordingly as his best and most valuable Good he was in no Hesitation or Doubt concerning that but Pronounces without any more ado That he did desire to be dissolved or Depart the Words may be read either way and to be with Christ which is far better only he distinguishes what was his own most valuable good and what was the most valuable good of the Christian Church And though he give this latter the Preference as in it self the more considerable Thing Yet as to himself and his own concerns to Depart and be with Christ he reckons far better And accordingly he did desire it as such as better for him as having nothing to detain him or nothing which on his own Private Account he could so much Mind or Covet as that Now in this Comparison 't is this one side of it which the Words that I have read to you do call us to consider and confine us to at this Time As to that other Part it lies within the Compass of the Context but not of the Text and so we shall not Treat of that at present But consider what is the genuine Temper and Disposition of a Christian and more principally of a Minister of Christ in reference to what he is to eye and look upon as his own best and most valuable Good and that is to Depart and to be with Christ. This indeed the Apostle speaks of himself a great and eminent Minister of the Gospel of Christ. But though this Temper and Disposition of Spirit was agreeable it was not appropriate to such a one It is indeed very agreeable it is very suitable to the Spirit of a faithful Minister of Christ in reference to himself and any Interest and Concern of his to desire to depart and to be with Christ But it is not so agreeable to such a one as to be appropriate to him or to exclude the generality of serious and living Christians because it is upon one account principally common to Ministers and to other Christians that this Judgment is to be made and this Desire is to have Place in Reference to that Judgment And therefore that is what I will for the little Time that remains chiefly insist upon That it ought to be and in very great measure is the Temper and Character of gracious Persons or sincere Christians but principally of the faithful Ministers of Christ with Reference to any Interest or Concern of theirs to desire to leave this World and to be with Christ. And in speaking to this I shall briefly 1. Explain what requires to be explained in it and then 2. Shew you upon what grounds this Temper and Disposition of Mind is agreeable in the General to sincere Christians 3. Upon what more peculiar grounds it is more especially suitable to the faithful Ministers of Christ. And so make use of the whole 1. As to what requires Explication Here we must show you what the Object of this Desire is in the first Place and then secondly Show you what this Desire with the Judgment unto which it is conformable imports and carries in it Then we shall proceed to consider the grounds both with Reference to Christians in General and the faithful Ministers of Christ in Special of their having this as an habitual Temper of Spirit belonging to them 1. We are to consider the Object which this Disposition of Spirit here described has Reference to And that is Two-fold Privative and Positive There is 1. The Privative Object that this Disposition has Reference to and that is departing from hence Their desire is to be gone not to stay always here i. e. as to any Concern of their own Indeed upon other Accounts abstracted from their own and more important there may be Considerations that may induce their willingness to stay But as to their own Concerns the Privative Object of their Desire is to be dissolved or to be gone 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 they would fain be dissolved take that reading and this is such a ones sense I would fain have my Bonds and Shackles taken off I would be loose not be always confined to a Body of Sin and Death and to a vain and wicked World For these are the things to which we are united Or take the other reading that are to be left in this departure To depart What are we to depart from Why the Gravamina the most grievous things are a body of Sin and Death and a vain and sinful World When God sees good I would depart says such a one from these irksome grievous Things that while they detain me Torment me every hour And then 2. There is the Positive Object that this Disposition has reference to and that is to be with Christ. This is a mighty thought if we had time to stay upon it It is generally to be considered here with

Comparatives 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 more better with a mighty Surplusage besides in the word conjoyn'd 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 I desire to be dissolved and to be with Christ which is better better by much or incomparably better better above and beyond all comparison One Comparative would not serve the turn but he adds another and then superadds a vast surplusage over above This is the Judgment of the case according to which this desire is directed and measured And now for the reasons of this temper and posture of Soul in reference to this State of the Case There are divers very obvious 1. That this is most agreeable to the Law of our Creation to desire and covet the most perfect State whereof we are capable It is an Unnatural Thing not to do so not to covet the Perfection of that State that we can finally attain to Nature in all Creatures tends to Perfection it is a monstrous disorder in Nature for any Creature if it be capable of choice to chuse a State beneath the highest Perfection whereof it is capable And 2. It is most suitable to the design of our Redemption whether we consider the Privative Object unto which our Redemption refers or the positive The Privative Object this World that we are to forsake and leave with this Flesh that con-naturalizes us to this World Christ gave himself for us to deliver us from this present Evil World Gal. 1.4 As for his Redeemed Ones those for whom he gave himself he is willing they should be here a while but he gave himself for them that they might not be here always That he might fetch them out of this horrid Abyss of Darkness Impurity and Death And if you look to the Positive Object our Lord died to bring us to God 1 Pet. 2.18 He suffered once the Just for the Vnjust for this purpose He will never desist till he have brought us quite home to God And it became him by whom are all Things and for whom are all Things in bringing many Sons to Glory to make the Captain of their Salvation perfect by Sufferings Heb. 2.10 He suffered and those Sufferings he underwent were the Price of our Redemption and for this To bring the many Sons to Glory that were to be brought And it becomes Him that made all Things by himself and for himself to bring about his Great and Glorious Design this way to make the Captain of our Salvation perfect that is perfectly Master of his Design And Rev. ● 9 We are told That the Lamb that was slain was slain on purpose that he might Redeem us to God by His Blood that he might be capable of saying at last I have shed my Blood and it has not been in vain here I have brought back thy wandering Strays to thee that were separate that had gone off He has Redeemed them to God by his Blood they were gone off from God and he in this way fetches them back to God never reckoning his Work finished till he can say Here am I and the Children thou hast given me 3. This most fully Answers the Gospel Call under which we continually are as to both the parts of the Object the Privative and Positive By the Gospel we are called out of the World this is carried in the very Notion of the Church it consists of a People called out of the World And that call is not finished till we are quite out but we must be out in the inclination of our minds to be gone from this World that we may be with the Lord. And as to the Positive part of the Gospel-Call the final term of it is the Eternal Glory The God of all Grace has called us to his own Eternal Glory by Jesus Christ 1 Pet. 5.10 4. This is most suitable unto the Aim and Tendency of the New Creature which is indeed the effect of the Gospel-Call wheresoever it comes to be effectual calling the New Creature is the Product This is the Genius of the New Creature to aspire upwards They that have received the first Fruits of the Spirit groan within themselves Groan as under a Pressure or Burden to be loosened from this World from this Earth and from these Bodies and to partake in the Glory of the Sons of God manifested in the proper season of their Manifestation Rom. 8.19 compared with the 23. And as they that in the Work of the New Creation are what they are New Creatures as being Born from Heaven so they are Born for it Except a Man be Born 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 from above he cannot enter into nor see the Kingdom of God John 3.3 5. He is Born for this Heavenly State when he is Regenerate when he is made a New Creature that he may be capable of entering into this Kingdom And 1 Pet. 1.3 Blessed be God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who has begotten us again to a lively hope to an Inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that fadeth not away reserved in Heaven for us There are Principles inlaid in the Work of the New Creature which dispose the soul God-ward and Heaven-ward Hereby they are made meet to be Partakers of the Inheritance of the Saints in light as in that Colos. 1.12 And to suppose that there should be a New Creature without such a Disposition as this is to suppose the New Creature to be the most Unnatural Creature under Heaven It must have Dispositions in it suitable to its Nature and to that State that it is designed ultimately for as every other Creature is suited to the Place and State it is to hold in the Creation of God But then as to what is more peculiar to Ministers they have more reason than others for this temper and disposition of Spirit both as they know more generally of the Difficulties of the World and should be supposed to know more of the State of the other World than the generality of other Men do Their Toil and Labour and Travel while they are here in this World is like to be more read at leisure 1 Cor. 4.9 10 11 12 13. with 2 Cor. 6.4 5. They have many more uncomfortable Things to exercise them especially the small Success of their Labours that they often do but Sow the Wind and sometimes Reap the Whirl-wind and may be glad to depart on this account And it is to be supposed too that they should know more of the other World For they are more obliged to be daily conversant there Their constant Business has a steady direct tendency thitherward And therefore as this cannot but be the temper of serious Christians it is to be much more so of the Faithful Ministers of Christ. And therefore to draw to a Conclusion and shut up all with some Use We may 1. Infer from it The greatness of that capacity which belongs to an intelligent immortal Spirit that it is capable of such a State as being glorified with the Lord Jesus