Selected quad for the lemma: death_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
death_n	book_n	life_n	write_v	4,779	5	6.1891	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A53271	Sincerity, or, The upright mans walk to heaven in two parts shewing I. that sincerity is the true way to happiness, II. that the keeping of our selves from our own iniquity is the true way to sincerity / delivered in several sermons in the parish church of St. Michael in Long-Stratton Norfolk by James Oldfield, late minister there.	Oldfield, James.	1687 (1687)	Wing O218; ESTC R28747	141,831	348

found in true Saints David he Prays against death 39. Psalm 13. so Hezekiah weeps and mourns and prays at the news of death 2 Kings 20. 1 2 3. yea our Saviour Christ himself was troubled and very sorrowful at the approach of death 14. Mark 32 33 34 35 36. Now this fear of death could not be sinful because it was in Christ who knew no sin again 't is said of Christ that he took upon him all our infirmities sin only excepted so that the fear of death may be in a Child of God. 1. As 't is a dissolution of nature 2. As 't is a punishment for sin so every Child of God ought to fear it 3. By way of consolation to any true hearted Christian that complains of the fear of death O let this be thy comfort thou fearest death without a cause there is many a true Saint fears death that hath no cause at all to fear it and whence is this but only because he wants his assurance A man that is condemned to dye O he weeps and mourns he quakes and trembles O but he hath no cause because the King hath Signed and Sealed his Pardon but this poor wretch doth not know of it O so 't is here 't is the want of assurance that makes death so uncomfortable to many a good Christian therefore 4. And lastly by way of exhortation O seek after assurance would you live above the fears of death labor for assurance that your names are written in the Book of Life 2. Cor. 5. 8. Why so because of assurance verse 1. we know we are assured O how willingly doth a poor Soul cast of this little tenement of his body that is assured of Heavenly and Eternal Mansions This makes him smile in the face of Death and laugh at the King of Terrors O Friends would you upon your Death Beds when all your Kindred Friends and Neighbours stand weeping about you laugh in the midst of them get this assurance sin brought us weeping into the World assurance will carry us rejoycing out of the World. O Brethren when once you have got this assurance without it you may dye happily but not chearfully you will be looking out for Christ and for Death you will be crying out as Sisera's Mother why is death so long in coming Why tarry the wheels of Christ's Charriots ejus est timere mortem qui ad Christum nolit ire O but he that is certain of his going to Christ how doth he cry after him come Lord Jesu come quickly make hast my beloved and be thou like to the Roe or the young Hart upon the Mountains of Spices And thus we have answered the Scruples of the Godly about this particular not all but some of the chiefest of them Now we come secondly to the 2. Objections of the wicked or their Arguments whereby they seek to blind their own Souls or rather the Devil blinds them thinking that they are free from this sin their own Iniquity when as yet it rules and reigns in them And in the prosecution of this you shall see that the Godly are not more fearful and scrupulous but the wicked are as willful and confident and will not be persuaded of the sadness of their estate and conditions and to this purpose they have many Arguments to plead for themselves or rather against themselves we will examine some of them and answer them 1. Plea. They say they are free from all sin sure they have no Iniquity why so why there is no body can charge them with doing any thing amiss there is no man can say black is their eye sure if they had any sin some body or other would find them out and tax them and charge them with it Answer 1. Remember what I told you in the discovery of the policy and mystery of this our own Iniquity this is one piece of sins policy to lye close and lurk secretly in the heart and to keep it self from the eyes of men and by this policy it keeps possession in many mens hearts Brethren if every man would deal faithfully in discovering what is in his heart the best of us all might hang down our heads what saith the Prophet David a man sure as righteous and as good a Saint as any now living 19. Psalm 12. why saith he I my self cannot tell all the wickedness that is in me much less can others I have many secret sins that never any eye of man yet discovered what dos● thou think now sinner do all men acquit David and yet will not David acquit himself how do you or any of us all think to acquit our selves then What saith the Apostle 1 John 1. 8. if every body in the World should say that I have no sin yet if I my self should say so I should be a lyer for my pains 2. Perhaps others may see sin in thee though they do not tell thee of it A man 's own Iniquity is like a man's eye to tell a man of it 't is to thrust a pin in his eye O there be few or none dare tell thee so whatever they think And Brethren by the way note this that 't is the great sin of us all that we are loath to tell one another of our sins we are afraid of reproving for fear of angring what a sad thing is this we had rather let our Brethren go to Hell than anger them Another reason why we are loath to tell others of their sins is for fear they should tell us of our sins if we tell them of one sin they will check us by another sin Observe that story in the Gospel 8. John 3 4 5. well but what follows 7 9. verses first you see they acknowledg their duty Moses commanded them to stone her yet because they were either guilty of the same sin or worse they go their way and let her alone veniam petimusque damusque vicissim this is let me alone and I 'le let thee alone don't check me for my sin and I 'le not reprove thee for thy sin this is our common practice we ruine one anothers Souls by it O Brethren do not trust to this when others do not tell you of your faults think never the better of your selves for it be of Davids mind 141. Psalm 5. 3. What though all the World should acquit you yet if God condemn you what will you get by it God can spye a sin where man can see no sin A man may conceal his sins as well as his Estate from men Now what good will it do me that all my Neighbours shall take me to be very rich when I know that I am not worth one groat O Brethren this will be poor comfort for you at the day of Judgment if you can plead nothing but this that all your Neighbours or all the Country speak well of you Remember this that God will not call a Jury of your Neighbours to try you by at the day of Judgment And

death into the World turn out sin and you shall not need to fear death A man that is in debt and hath a writ out against him he is fain to hide and keep close but assoon as the writ is out of date then dare he boldly go abroad and look the Serjeant in the face when we are assured that our sin is cancelled out of God's Book then death's writ signifies nothing to us we can smile in the very face of this grim Serjeant O learn to live without sin that you may dye without sorrow O how happy are all they whom death it self the worst of evils cannot make miserable And thus you see some of the parts of their happiness who can say as in the Text I have kept c. here is comfort enough for any man and Brethren if you do but remember them so as to consider them again you will find that it is a far greater happiness than the greatest Kings and Princes in the World have in all their plenty and prosperity here is happiness in life all things work for our good all our Prayers answered at death unsting it at judgment no sin charged after to all Eternity espoused to Christ and be with the Lord. But least any should take this comfort to themselves to whom it doth not belong I will lay down some Marks and Characters of such Persons as those are who keep themselves from their own Iniquities 1. That man that keeps himself from his own Iniquity he is one that hath felt the smart and burden of sin No wise man after he hath made a good meal of such meat as he loves best will presently take a vomit to cast it up unless it make him sick and load his stomach so is it in respect of our beloved sins till they vex us we will not turn them out of doors Like the Egyptians who would be perswaded by no means to let Israel go till they saw the Plagues that they suffered for it 11. Mat. 28. Come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy laden implying that none but such will come Now let me ask you this Question what is the Reason that some of you have parted from some sins are these sins a trouble and burden to your Souls or else do you not rather deal with sin as David with Absalom who banisht him the Court but yet loved him for all that if so then know that you and sin are not rightly parted you must cast sin out of your hearts as the Israelites cast their leaven out of their houses they were to curse it thence 2. That man that hath kept himself from his own Iniquity he is one that hath duly considered the great danger of sin we all of us hate poyson because we know it will cost us our lives O that we knew but sin as well we should hate it as much When Jacob knew that Esau sought his life he presently fled away from him so did we but know that sin will assuredly ruin our Souls though we love it never so well we should part with it Like some fish who love the bait well and therefore do swallow down the hook but when they perceive the danger of the hook in their bodies vomit up their beloved baits again O sirs have you seriously considered Death Judgment and Hell have you ever set the wrath of God before your eyes if you have I think you will never love sin more 3. That man that hath kept himself from his own sin will endeavour to keep others from their sins also 2 Cor. 5. 11. all such Persons will be telling others the danger of sin and perswading others what they can from sin Paul was no sooner a Convert but he presently turned a Preacher Nemo acrior inter persecutores nemo prior inter peccatores Aug. do you do so are any of you sensible of the danger of sin you will be telling it to others 'T is in this case as in other cases have any of you kept a Servant in your houses that is a Thief hath purloyned your goods and embezel'd away any of your commodities if you find him out you will not only turn him away but also forewarn all others from receiving him telling them the danger of having such a fellow in their houses so is it here if any man hath found out the danger of his own sin and turned it out of his heart he will forewarn all others of their sins and perswade them what he can to do likewise 4. That man that hath turned his own sin out of his heart will be much in aggravating of it what he can he will speak the worst of it that he can nay not only of that sin but of every other sin also If a Father be highly provoked by his Son that he hath formerly been very tender of so that he turns him out of doors he will be always speaking against him wherever he goes and will not endure that any should speak in his behalf Paul before his conversion took great delight in his sin viz. in Persecuting the Disciples of Christ but when once he was turned from it he was always aggravating it to the height and speaking the worst of it and himself for it that he could as you may read in the first of Tim. 1. 13 15. v. and in the 1 Cor. 15. 9. when men can connive or wink at their sins or speak fairly of them 't is a sign that they have not yet renounced them Suppose a man 's own Iniquity be Covetousness O he will seek to daub it over and say why I am good Husband I do but look after the main chance when perhaps this man is as gripple a Worldling as any that lives suppose his sin be swearing he will plead for it thus there is no such hurt in it 't is a trick that I have got and I cannot leave it there be others that swear as well as I or the like 't is a sign when men seek to extenuate their sins or to plead for plead for their sins that they and their sins are still cater-cozens they are not yet parted O but every true convert will loath his sin and loath himself for it 42. Job 6. here was a true sign of Jobs Repentance in that he abhorred himself and by the way here we may learn a distinguishing mark and character between a true convert and an unconverted Person a wicked unconverted Person always looks upon others as greater sinners than himself and thinks other mens sins worse behalf than his own A true convert thinks worst of himself and his own sins so Paul I am the chiefest of sinners 5. That man that hath renounced his own sin will live ever after in a quite opposite and contrary course to that sin 1 Gal. 23. Paul you see after his conversion was as much for Christ as before he was against Christ 1 Cor. 15. 10. As before his conversion he was more furious