Selected quad for the lemma: death_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
death_n	life_n	live_v	soul_n	20,060	5	5.3995	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A66341	The advancement of Christs interests the governing end of a Christians life a second sermon preached before the Right Honourable Sir John Shorter, Knight, Lord Mayor of the city of London at Grocers-Hall, January the 9th, 1687/8 / by Daniel Williams.	Williams, Daniel, 1643?-1716.	1688 (1688)	Wing W2644; ESTC R13642	27,450	42

of Jesus was the Design of this plain Discourse and is the Prayer of Your Lordships most humble Servant Daniel Williams A SERMON Preached before the RIGHT HONOURABLE Sir JOHN SHORTER Kt. c. PHILIPPIANS Chap. I. ver 21. For to me to live is Christ. THE Apostle was in a happy Strait from his Fitness to live and Readiness to dye He knew not well how to fix his Choice because both Life and Death had a desireable Tendency There was Service to Christ by his Life and great Happiness to himself by Death Affection to Christ swayed his Inclinations both ways he loved Christ and therefore must desire death that he might fully enjoy him he loved Christ and so might incline to a longer life that he might more advance his Interest Rational Self-love would move to the Former yet Regard to Jesus and his Members overswayes him to the Latter He is content to expect the Crown rather than quit his Work And tho Heaven was the better State in it self and happier for him he prefers his stay on Earth as better for the Church which could not bear his Absence A wonderful Instance of a Publick Spirit how enlarged is this Soul that was assured of Glory in Heaven and of very sore Tryals on Earth and would yet tug longer at the Oar for Publick Good rather than be at Rest The great Purposes he resolved to live to are manifest from his Contentment with the Delays of Glory Had sensual Enjoyments and trivial Employs been the Advantage proposed by a longer Life how impatiently must he have endured a Moments Absence from Heaven He that knew Death could not lay his Soul asleep but that it immediately passed into a State of the highest Activity and Receptiveness yea and would be admitted to a near Converse with Christ and other glorious Objects which must fully employ these active Powers of the Soul and fill it with Good to the utmost of its Capacity to receive Could he I say desire an Abode on Earth to relish carnal or animal Delights which with him is a being dead while one liveth By no means But my Text represents to us the Design and Tendency of the Apostle Paul's Life To me to live is Christ. I know there are many things to be inferred from the Words besides what I think is their principal Scope As 1. Christ is a Believers Happiness while he liveth q. d. Life were worse than Death were not Christ known and enjoyed by me in this Life 2. A Christian's Life is a meer dependance on and a manifest discovery of the Power and Grace of Christ. Emanations of his Power supports it and his Grace is displayed in our Lives when useful to any valuable purposes or employed in any momentous Actions But I pass by these to the Chief Design of the Text which may be expressed under two Heads 1. An entire dedication of Paul's Life to Christ exclusively of any Carnal Designs of his own As if he should have said I devote my Life to the Glory of Christ I propose the Advancement of his Interests my Design is to be Instrumental in his Work and the propagation of his Concernments There is no base selfish Turn of my own intended nor shall my life waste in idle Uselesness I will be active and that for him to the last Moment and the utmost of my Abilities This my Judgment dictates as my Duty to this I am devoted and on this only I am intent II. A perswasion that Christ had been and still would be advanced by his Life and Labours This he expresseth in v. 20. As my expectation and hope that Christ shall be magnified in my Body whether by Life or by Death q. d. I have by his Grace promoted his Interest I fear not but the same Aids and Blessing will still concur to the like serviceableness and so the Issue of my living will be his Gain This is the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in v. 22. It 's no secular Interest of my own is like to be advanced The building of my House or erecting Trophies to my Name I expect not Nay I am sure Poverty Contempt and Hardships in those respects will attend me but Christ in his Gospel-Interests will be contributed to and he will over-rule my Sufferings and Labours to his own Advancement The Text may also include an Hint at the Reason of this Confidence as to this decribed Success it being introduced under such a respect For to me to live is Christ. Sincere devotedness to Christ is ordinarily successful and upright Designs duly managed prove not Abortive When the best Endowments of a man indisposed to the service of Christ produce not equal Fruits to the lower Gifts of a Soul engaged for his concerns The first of these will be the Subject of my Discourse viz. The Dedication of the Life to Christ. This was no Duty peculiar to the Apostolical Office and tho it 's predicated of St. Paul in his own Person yet he affords us an Example which binds our Imitation Yea it is the fundamental Duty resulting from our Baptismal Vow included in all our Christian Profession and supposed in all acceptable Service So that the Obligation is universal it 's the Duty of all here even of such who least regard it yea live in greatest repugnancy to it By living to Christ must be meant living to the promoting and defence of the Interests of Christ in this World. This his designed Endeavour had a respect to and to this he devoteth his Life That is all the opportunities for acting which Life includes all the Abilities which Life imports and all the good things he possessed which are comprehended in the word Life as being less valuable than life is Even all these he designed to lay out for the Interests of the Blessed Jesus He valued living for no meaner uses and determined to live to no lower purpose When the advancement of Christ's Interests governeth our Time and Abilities then to live is Christ. For herein is our living to him within our reach by this it is expressed and the evidencing thereof in this instance is what he hath appointed and still expecteth from all his Members and Servants I need say no more to introduce the Doctrine I purpose to insist on which is this Doct. It is the duty of all Christians to dedicate and employ their lives to the advancement of the Interests of Christ in the World. It 's not sufficient to be religious in Contemplation or mental Acts our Lord expecteth and real Piety enclineth to a vigorous activity in our holy Profession He will be served by his Members as they expect to be saved by him They must imitate him in his Communicative Goodness and express their resentments of his Grace to them by these powerful acknowledgments They must not grudg his Service tho he redeem them freely they shall sacrifice all to him and while he is managing our Interest in Heaven as Intercessor he

licentiousness or countenancing them therein Their corrupt hearts are under the government of lust and the World being their Idol the Devil may thereby gild over any Pill and employ them in most undertakings The God of this World wants not means to hire affright or allure them by and these seldom are unsuccessful unless when God overacts their Inclinations or in his Providence prevents the gainfull offer or when he chaineth some loss shame or such sensible evils with their serving Satan's turn at present But with most Sinners in most of his Concerns the Devil gains concurrence and that by means grateful to the Flesh. Ecclesiastical grandure supporteth uninstituted Officers in the Church vast incomes and exorbitant power tempt to Idolatry to an universal Headship and a world of vile Appendants Ignorance must be countenanced lest these emoluments be exposed to hazard Superstition will be contended for as its pomp is pleasing to a vain mind dead Forms are abetted as lulling Conscience asleep which is needful to the quiet of an unregenerate heart where the Gospel-light is by Christ forced on them Mahumatism and Pagan Idolatry were introduced by methods adapted to mens lusts and are maintained by reasons from worldly Interests This way usually Satan attains his ends by miserable men but sometimes he doth by strong delusions hurry them without apparent motives yea by his service expose them to hardships ungrateful to Nature tho vicious A strange impetus reconcileth them to torments yea and death in the Devil's work God permitting him to impress their Imaginations and act their Souls in an amazing manner Thus many errors are suggested and propagated One way or another all ungodly men willingly serve the Devill 's Interest How are most of Mankind employed in this slavery by Satan yea their Lusts oft carry them to intemperance impiety violence 〈◊〉 when unsolicited Oh dreadful aspect of an Apostate World Prop. III. Men are naturally disposed to resist the Interests of the Lord Jesus especially as far as they are opposite to their own carnal Inclinations or Interests Christ is sure of an Enemy where a carnal mind prevaileth and no endowment short of Grace prevents the opposition The Wise resist his Doctrine as foolishness It 's a stumbling-block to the Jewish Church tho entrusted with Divine Oracles and a long expected Messias is rejected by them because he appears void of pomp and to purposes more spiritual than a carnal mind could relish The best Natures become cruel from a blind zeal and the very devout turn Persecutors of Religion as abominable to their unrenewed minds Satan paints the Servants of Christ as factious turbulent and dangerous and so engageth the Powers of the Earth to the highest vigor in their extirpation The Rules of his House are oft opposed as inconsistent with some Maxims of Policy Ignorance and strong Delusions cause many to sacrifice the real Interests of Christ even from seeming regards to him where Providence hath forced some reverence to his Name tho enmity against his Laws and Nature do still abide It 's true that ungodly men may bear with the external profession of Religion when education hath familiarized it and they find it can consist with the dominion of a carnal heart nay they greatly like a dead form of Christianity because it suits all men to be of some Religion and no other can quiet their Conscience in its awakened foresight of Eternity when enlightned at all by the Gospel but still their Enmity vents its dislike against the Inwards and power of Religion tho the Form thereof is become thus necessary They despise worshipping God in the Spirit as unintelligible because unfelt A lively Ministry is hated as disquieting their feared Consciences They loathe the strictly Pious as a Reproach to themselves A progress in Reformation in the Church is obstructed from inward antipathy to any further Advance to Christ and hazard to secular Interests thereby Or it looks too trivial to be contended for by them to whom all Religion is indifferent further than as rivited by long Custom Yea they oppose it from a proud Conceit that it would reproach their former usage as erroneous and imperfect Indeed sometimes the Prophane grow zealous for some Cause of Christ but never for the Sake of Christ. Applause security to their own Interest or long Custom awaken their Concern God by his Providence supports his own Cause by Evil Men their Estates Honour Emulation Quarrels and the like influence their Endeavours in that which proves a Service to the Truth They are often zealous for a lower Degree of Reformation in opposition to a greater not seeing that that lesser Degree ceaseth to be the Interest of Christ when it becomes an Impediment to or Rival with Reformation in greater Instances But however the Ungodly may be thus over-ruled to comply with any thing which belongs to Christ their prevailing Inclination is to betray all of Christ which they profess when damage to their fleshly Interests attends it Yea in a quiet Season their Religion dwindles into an empty From the Truths of the Gospel are supplanted by encroaching Errors and Christianity so clogg'd and eclipsed in evil mens management that it hardly retains what deserves that Name To this opposition in the nature of Man to the Inrerests of Christ must be ascribed the wonderful Degeneracy of Christian Churches And as far as the remains of Corruption influence the Best Men Christ shall suffer by them in his Concernments His Name shall endure reproach and his Ministers damage his Church is divided Love destroyed the Conversion of Sinners hindred Advances in Godliness obstructed and many such ways our sinful Natures disserve yea oppose the Interests of our Blessed Lord. This should make the Pious watchful as not ignorant they have Lusts which the Devil may improve to the damage of Christ. And it should make the Ungodly suspicious when they contend with many good men that it is not the Interest of Christ they are engaged for which they are so far likelier to mistake and oppose than those more Holy persons are Prop. IV. Obligations and a Call to Service result from and are measured by mens different Places and Capacities for the advancements of Christs Interests All should be devoted to it but all are not equally capable of it nor called to express it in the same Instances None should usurp another's Station under pretence of Service yet all must be diligent to the utmost of their own Talents God hath wisely ordained variety of Callings with a tendency in their Nature to his Use Providence disposeth and fitteth men to these several Offices The faithfulness of the meanest is regarded Servants do serve the Lord Christ when their meaner Employs are cloathed with an obediential Respect to him Two Mites from the Poors stock is a commended Offering and a Book of Remembrance treasureth the concerned Thoughts and edifying Discourses of them that fear the Lord