Selected quad for the lemma: death_n

Word A Word B Word C Word D Occurrence Frequency Band MI MI Band Prominent
death_n glory_n life_n sin_n 8,915 5 4.4862 4 true
View all documents for the selected quad

Text snippets containing the quad

ID Title Author Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication) STC Words Pages
A56453 More than conquerour a sermon preach't on the martyrdom of King Charles the I, Jan, 30, at Christ-church, Dublin : before his Excellency Arthur Earl of Essex, lord lieutenant general and general governour of the Kingdom of Ireland / by B.P. Parry, Benjamin, 1634-1678. 1673 (1673) Wing P555; ESTC R31070 13,763 42

There are 3 snippets containing the selected quad. | View lemmatised text

delight above toyes and trifles storms or misfortunes but divine love and a victorious faith a firm piety and a constant devotion these are the miracles of the world the joy and glory of mankind without which we had been still in darkness and the shadow of death heirs of sin and slaves to the Devil And therefore it is indeed a higher act of omnipotence and love to restore the soul than the body to redeem from hell than the grave to rouz the sinner than Lazarus from his tomb a greater miracle of goodness and power to be renewed for Heaven than awakened from our dust it cost more to ransome us from our selves and the Devil and renew the divine image than to make us live or form us out of earth and nothing But thus did God unlock his treasury and display the riches of his grace to let us fee That as nothing is too great for his power so nothing should be too dear for his love astonishing the heavens and amazing the earth and making the powers of hell shake at the wonders of our Redemption whilst the Angels sing and the Seraphims renew their flames and brightness at our Conversion and glory as if they themselves were made happier thereby Stand still ye Righteous and behold the salvation of the Lord the wonders and rewards of his Servants Piety through the World The 11 chapter to the Hebrewes is a Catalogue of all the Worthies that lived and dyed in Faith and the beginning of the next is a Trumpet to Rouze us up to the same glory Enoch walked with God the onely solitary Saint of his time that conversed with Heaven by the purities of a transcendent Devotion the first Hermit that went out of the way the common ordinary road of the World to walk with God and because there was no fit company for him on Earth the World not being worthy of him God was pleased to translate him up alive to himself that we might see what are the fruits of a Holy life the rewards of Piety and the raptures of Divine love Noah was a Preacher of Righteousness and when they who regarded not his Doctrine were buried with their Sins and Riots in silence together God provided him a Sanctuary to preserve his name and vertue and perpetuate his Memorial with his Church for ever Abrahams Faith renewed his years and made him fruitful in his posterity as well as his Graces he became the founder of Monarchies and Kingdoms but his noblest title of Honour was his being Father of the faithful that was indeed a blessing which Crowns and Scepters could not give he believed and it was imputed to him for Righteousness and that was Throne and Glory enough He staggered not at the promise and that establisht him for ever he enjoyed his Maker here on earth and conversed so familiarly with heaven before he came there that his very bosome hath been reckoned a place of Paradise ever since Such is the priviledge and happiness of the just who lives by Faith he cannot dye even when he is breathless for his life is hid with Christ in God and being dead unto the world he is alive unto God and speaks eternity in his graces he lives here by faith a life of secret and invisiible joyes for the life of nature is but a sleep and that of sense a Dream but that of grace is truly Vital made up of the choicest Spirits and a never-dying composure This is the life of a true Christian and the greatest glory of heaven upon earth when we become conformable to the Death of Christ Death hath no more dominion over us but we can triumphantly with our Apostle in another place cry out O Death where is thy sting O Grave where is thy Victory A heart replenisht with divine grace is not easily frightned with stripes and imprisonment hardship and want peril or the sword or whatever else may scare a meer animal or Coward but prepares to meet his God in what way soever he shall be pleased to call him 'T is true it is no mean talent no small gift to bear our afflictions with a chearful and pious submission to God's will It is not for every palat to endure the bitterness of this Cup but his that with David hath tasted how good the Lord is and that the end and fruits of his Cross are deliciousness and peace Storms and thunders are the tryals of a Christian he that can endure these and not be shaken or overthrown at Root is sit for Paradise and the regions of peace To follow Christ for the loaves and miracles in time of prosperity and triumph is no news they that crucified him did so but to keep him company in the desart or more formidable Garden and not shrink at the approach of Lanthorn and Souldiers the Traytor and the Trainband a midnight-terrour or an open distress To fall when we are in our Spring and be sacrific'd in the pride and strength of nature to submit to flames and Axes and be tormented at every Tirants pleasure to take up our heaviest cross and thus dye for the name of Christ is a temper as Rare as it is Happy the results of an invincible Piety and Faith the highest strength and glory of a Christian And therefore Secondly It is a mighty proof and argument of the Divinity of the Gospel That the Doctrine of the Cross should find so many worshipers and followers That men should at first be converted onely to afflictions and made Regenerate that they might suffer grow in love with their persecutions and rejoyce in nothing more than imitating the example of their Holy Lord. 'T is true we read of some Heathens That brag'd of their Valour and Courage in the midst of their misfortunes that they had acquired a temper of being above storms and could defie lightning and thunder by Lawrels of their own making and though nothing be more noble to Conquer our passions and be armed against the Casualties and Calamities of this World Yet examples in this kind are very rare few or none amongst them have ever done it for even the prowdest Stoicks and they that spoke biggest of themselves and vertue were Cowards to their own Rules and fainted under the flourish of their fine discourses and whatever their seeming bravery might be yet their hopes were vanishing and shallow neither satisfactory to the Soul nor durable in themselves and though some of them are said to have endured death rather than violate or falsifie their word and trust they are to be commended for so doing and it is no error or mistake to say that God might Crown them with more strength than ordinary as well to justifie a good cause as for the encouragement even of moral vertue in this life but yet these instances and whatever else can be produced in this kind are nothing to the List of diviner Heroes in the Church the multitude of victorious Sufferers of every Age and Sex who cannot
his pious soul the depth of his judgment or the humility of his mind the excellence of the Prince or the Divinity of the Saint Every thing conspired to make him great and happy but his graceless and irreligious subjects Never had people a better King never had Prince a more ungrateful people And shall not his Fall awaken us and the voice of his Blood send us for shelter to his which speaks better things than that of Abels Can so great a judgment be silenc't but by as high and loud a repentance a publick united sorrow and an universal remorse Let Turks and Arabians thieves and murderers make no conscience of their Actions Let the mad and frantick Sectary rave and be deaf to the voice of sober reason and Religion but let all that call on the Name of Christ detest and depart from so great iniquity and abhor the prodigious Villany of those monsters that shed the Righteous and the Royal blood and whilst we are ashamed of them and our selves let us prize the memory of his graces pay him Homage in the Grave and give him that tribute of Honour and obedience we denyed him alive Yes Great Prince we will reverence thy Memory and thy Righteousness shall not be forgotten thy Sacrifice shall not want Tears nor thy Martyrdom a Trophy raised by our sighs but much more lasting and eternal we will bury thee afresh who canst never dye nor shall oblivion sit upon thy Tomb whilst every loyal heart shall be thy Monument and every Eye thy mourner every year shall be the Resurrection of thy vertues and our shame thy goodness and our ingratitude thy glorious piety and our infamous disloyalty Thy Relicts shall be sacred and thy name pretious thy suffering Canonized and thy death immortal the perfume of thy graces and the fame of thy remains the voice of thy perfections and never dying piety shall be its own Chronicle and speaker Thou hast conquered thine Enemies and art entred into thy glory Triumph't over death and art sat down in greater Majesty and in a better Kingdom and what have we to do but to imitate his piety and goodness and make the vertues of his life our example For though his Royal Successor was graciously pleased to set out an Act of Pardon and Oblivion yet that alone will not serve the turn or acquit us of our guilt but we must have Gods pardon as well as the Kings if we would be secure if we would divert Gods judgments for the future and appear with confidence and comfort before his Tribunal hereafter But alas how can we expect Gods pardon when instead of Repenting we are ready to repeat our sins and renew those fatal crimes that destroy'd us willing and forward to warm our hands with new fires grow bright once more in Temple flames and consume the Church with fresh combustions If this be not so why then is there the noise and bleating of Jeroboam's calves in every corner wildfire-doctrine and religious nonsense Scripture perverted to edification the Faith pretended against the Decalogue and the Gospel made use of against the Creed When there is so much Atheism and prophaness on one hand and schism and sedition on the other and so great and general a neglect of God in us all can we think our selves safe without sincere repentance and reformation of our sins or that we stand so secure as not to fall again God can reach us with a secret arrow from Heaven or meet us with an open calamity and judgment in our faces he can blast our pride and confidence in a moment consume our strength and beauty in a trice We have had for many years such a Vicissitude of mercies and judgments as no Age or Kingdom can parallel and unless we have a mind to be rooted out for ever from being a people professing his Name let us make such timely suitable returns and acknowledgements as may evidence our sense and care our wisdom and repentance our gratitude and obedience under all his dispensations Let the mutability and misfortunes of this world fix and settle us the more on him that seeing the uncertainty and inconstancy of all earthly things here below we may seriously look up and wisely prepare for that glory which is above the stroke of change or death that so having fought the good fight and finished our course with joy we may have our warfare crown'd with immortality and honour and eternal life among the Saints in light FINIS
More than Conquerour A SERMON Preach't on the MARTYRDOM OF King Charles the I. Jan. 30. at CHRIST-CHURCH Dublin Before his Excellency ARTHUR Earl of ESSEX Lord Lieutenant General and General Governour of the Kingdom of IRELAND By B. P. D. D. Published by Command DVBLIN Printed by Benjamin Tooke Printer to the KINGS Most Excellent Majesty And are to be Sold by Joseph Wilde in Castle-street 1673. TO THE Right Honourable and Excellent ELIZABETH COUNTESS of ESSEX c. MADAM WEre not my obedience to your Ladyships Commands much greater than any ambition of being in Print I should not have troubled your Ladyship or the world with so mean an Offering and performance for which I should according to Custom have made some solemn Apology but that your Ladyships Name and Patronage will be its best Vindication a Favour which as it transcends all that my merit or abilities in this kind can pretend to so I cannot but be the more sensible of it for having given me the honour though unexpected of paying my poor little loyal humble Mite to the never dying memory of the Best of KINGS and thereby of publickly acknowledging likewise those Obligations and particularly the happiness of attending his Excellency and your Ladyship since my coming to this place which subscribes me in all gratitude and zeal Your Ladyships most devoted humble Servant and Oratour B. PARRY ROM VIII xxxvii Nay in all these things we are more than Conquerours through Him that loved Vs THese words are the Christians Victory the Believers Conquest his Tryals and his Triumphs his Outward Cross and his Inward Grace his Temptations and his Glory Can there be any thing more bitter than Persecution Famine nakedness and distress or more terrible and amazing than Peril and the Sword Skin for skin and all that a man hath will he give for his life and yet a good man will not stick to part with that too when it shall please God to call for it that he may hasten to his presence and be partaker of his Glory St. Paul had run through a whole stage of miseries every Sermon he Preached was turned into an Inditement against him and afforded his malicious Persecutors fresh argument and matter to torment him with he Travailed through as many misfortunes as Countries and found every place beset with Thieves and Murderers to dispatch him no where safe almost but in Prison fain to be guarded from one death to another from the fury of the Jewes to the Roman Tribunal and make his appeal from the rage of Zealots for Sanctuary to Nero. Shipwrack't by the Waves in one place and the madness of the People in another no where safe from Storms and Dangers but made a Sufferer in every Element Such was the condition of this Great Saint who filled every place with his Name and Memory the wonders of his Faith and Courage under all his Pressures and Afflictions And yet it was no more than what might justly be expected from those mighty graces of the Spirit that strengthned and adorned his Soul that the World might see our Blessed Lord when he ascended up on high and led Captivity Captive took not away his Miracles and Graces but left his Apostles to continue and enlarge the wonders he hath done to Propagate his Truth and Instruct us for Heaven That as many as through them should believe in his name might have power also to become the Sons of God Heirs of the promise and joynt Heirs with Christ and more than Conquerours through him that loved them In which words not to insist on that obvious Doctrine which springs from them That crosses and afflictions are the usual lot and portion of the Righteous and that all who live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution I shall consider these Two particulars 1. The power and excellency of Gods grace goodness and love manifested in the faith patience and perseverance of his servants their invincible courage and resolution in all their highest dangers and temptations and the infallible testimony and assurance he hath thereby given the World of the Divinity of his Truth and Gospel 2. The happy fruits the victorious consequences and effects of this spiritual warfare with the rewards and triumphs that attend it in making us more than Conquerours doubling and advancing our glory heightning and augmenting our felicity and honour in this life and that which is to come I begin with the First the excellency and power of Gods grace goodness and love manifested in the faith patience and perseverance of his servants their invincible courage and resolution in their highest dangers and temptations and the infallible testimony and assurance he hath thereby given the world of the Divinity of his Truth and Gospel How poor and perishing a thing man is once left unto himself without assistance from above the whole Creation which groans and travails to be delivered from the burden of our corruptions sufficiently declares the very sense and consideration of it extorted sighs from the soberest and wisest heathens and they have filled their Books with remonstrances and complaints of the frailty and folly of their natures the jarrs and discord of their own frames being greater than the wars of Elements and more destructive to the Universe the Contemplation of it turned one Philosopher into an universal mourner making his whole life one constant and continued Epitaph weeping out his eyes and time at the misery and infirmities of mankind and though they endeavoured with all the arguments of reason and wit to prescribe a remedy for their misfortunes yet they were too hard for themselves and found That the strictest Philosophy the severest Discipline and the highest Morality could never perfectly reform or refine the man so blind is every man and the very best of men without the aids and illuminatious of a divine light from above Brag not then of thy intellectualls or thy parts thy activity or thy skill thy old maxims or thy new discoveries thy fortunate reaches or thy subtilest inclosure Let thy Ancestours be dwarfs and pigmies to thy vaster improvements and the Anakims but shrubs and mushromes to thy mighty productions Let thy Cedar plantations outdo their quickset and let them be but brambles to thy olive tree and its fertile issues Let the old Theatre and its pomp the lofty Platonick and the wandring Peripatetick bow down to our new Academies and Models and exploded atoms be brought back with new pomp and splendour to adorn the world and make up its beauty What are our Virtuoso-triumphs or their richest accomplishments and improvements without sublimer perfections in grace and virtue but a golden dream or glorious apparition an elaborate shadow or a studied delusion and which is far worse our damnation too Nothing can truly chear the soul or enliven the mind advance our prospect or our progress give life or Sun-shine to our hopes and desires and enrich the heart with a solid ravishing and unchangeable contentment and