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	world_n	13,510	5	4.9137	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A88993	A sermon preached to the Honorable House of Commons, at their late solemne fast, Wednesday, Feb. 26. 1644. / By John Maynard, minister of the Word of God at Mayfield in Sussex, and a member of the Assembly of Divines.	Maynard, John, 1600-1665.	1645 (1645)	Wing M1452; Thomason E277_2; ESTC R200000	34,511	39

charge in a quick and pressing stile 1. Take fast hold of instruction 2. Let her not go 3. Keep her and fasteneth all with this knot for she is thy life If thou lose her it is more than thy life is worth it were better to part with thy dearest heart-blood if thou get and keep the Truth it will keep thee alive in the very jawes of death if thou lose it thou art dead whilest thou livest and in the road-way to everlasting death What need we any farther witnesse yet if ye please to hear an argument or two take these briefly Reason 1 1. Whilest we are travailing here in this world toward our long home our way lieth through a wildernesse wherein are many by-pathes multitude of passengers wandring out of the right way abundance of snares and dangers and above all we are wofully benighted with the naturall darknesse and blindnesse of our mindes now Truth is that Pillar of fire which should guide us in the way wherein we must walk and direct us to the promised rest And though this Truth be never so cleerly held forth unto us in the ministry of the gospel yet unlesse we buy it and get possession of it so as to make it our own and to have it dwelling in us we are not able to follow it It is not enough to have the light of the Sun except withall there be a light in the eye to meet with that light without and take it in so that lumen externum that externall light of Truth which shineth forth in the word will never lead us to that rest which remaineth for the people of God except there be also lumen internum an inward light of Truth and principle of saving knowledge set up in the heart The Apostle having notably magnified his office as in other respects so in regard of that lustre and brightnesse of Divine Truth which shined in his Ministry 2 Cor. 3. proceedeth in the next chapter and saith that he had not handled the word of God deceitfully but by manifestation of the truth c. It must be objected What is the cause then that your Gospel is hidden to many thousands his answer is ready If our Gospel be hid it is hid to them that are lost in whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which beleeve not lest the light of the glorious Gospel of Christ who is the image of God should shine unto them They want inward light Satan the prince of darknes hath filled them with darknesse within they will not buy the Truth and so the Gospel of Christ though it shineth out never so gloriously in it selfe yet it shineth not at all to them as the Sun when it giveth the greatest light shineth not to the blind 2. If we do not buy Truth the Truth will witnesse against us and condemne us A necessity lyeth upon us either wee must make the Truth our owne or else we shall be sure to have it our Enemy Consider that weighty speech of Christ He that rejecteth me and receiveth not my words hath one that judgeth him the word that I have spoken the same shall judge him in the last day Who is he that rejecteth Christ he that doth not receive his words he that doth not buy Truth but shutteth his eyes or heart against that light of Truth which shineth from the face of this Sun of Righteousnesse These men perhaps may think in their hearts We will have nothing to do with this which they call Truth for which there is so much contention nor with the way wherein it leadeth those that receive it we will neither embrace nor oppose it Nay but saith Christ this will not serve thy turne either thou must receive it or be judged by it if thou doest not buy this Truth and embrace it with thine whole heart it will condemn thee at the last day If men could apprehend with what Majesty and authority that Truth of God which now they cast behinde their backs will appear against them in the day of Christ how would their Souls tremble to despise it How would they yeeld themselves convinced that the purchase of Truth is of absolute necessity whatsoever it may cost them The proudest spirits which now may think to out-face the Truth of God shall then not be able to hold up their faces before it So much for the proofe and opening of this point Let us see the Use of it and that may be 1. For Reproofe 2. For Exhortation Use 1 1. For Reproofe 1. of those who are so farre from buying truth that they labour to stop the trade Such were those Expounders of the Law to whom the Lord Christ saith ye have taken away the key of knowledge ye entred not in your selves and them that were entring in ye hindred they kept the store-house of truth locked up and carried away the key How many have we had of late in this land led by such a spirit who when the truth had many buyers beheld it with an evill eye like the Pharisees complaining of the multitudes that followed Christ the world is gon after him It was a vexation to their false hearts to see the streame of trade bend towards the Coasts of truth and especially when any upon whose habitations was a famine of the word travailed abroad to buy themselves a little food But how are we bound to blesse God who hath stirred up your spirits like so many Josephs already to open many to indeavour to open all the store-houses of truth in the Land that none may complaine of want who have hearts to buy No wonder if the enemies of truth oppose you in this worke It crosseth their maine designe He that doth evill hateth the light and cometh not to the light lest his deedes should be reproved Can the Blackmore change his skinne or the Leopard his spots Doe we expect a reconcilement betweene light and darkenesse Let all tremble to give them the right hand of fellowship in stopping the course of the word of truth and hindring the worke of reformation 2. Of those that are ashamed of the truth what hope is there that such will buy it He that will buy it must looke upon it as his crowne The Church was presented to John in a vision cloathed with the Sun and the Moone under her foote and upon her head a Crowne of twelve Stars The Churches cloathing and her Crown is Light and Truth Can any true-borne Childe of the Church account that his shame which is his Mothers glorie Let such weigh those words of him who is not ashamed to call himselfe the Truth Whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinfull generation of him also shall the Sonne of man be ashamed when he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy Angells 3. Of those who will not take so much paines as to resort to

called heresie as in Pauls time though the truth be scorned reproached evill spoken of though the wise men of the world thinke no better of those that buy truth than of such as pay dear for a trifle and say of them in their hearts A fool and his money are soon parted though thou must bee counted a fool and a mad man as Festus termed Paul yet buy it howsoever 5. Be content to buy Truth with expence of time though that be very precious esteem that time well bestowed which is laid out for Truth Doe not say Wherefore is this waste Though time cannot be bought with gold yet it is well spent for the purchase of Truth Apelles beholding a curious picture Drawne by Protogenes admired the wormanship but understanding that it had been seven yeers in hand he said the grace of the work was not answerable to the time and paines bestowed upon it But if those whom the Lord in his providence hath called together shall be able by the good hand of their God upon them to draw to the life that glorious body of Truth in all its lineaments for matter of doctrine worship government discipline I doubt not but in conclusion it would be found time well imployed though it should cost more moneths then some expected And as in this more publike enquiry after truth so in particular searchings after it bee carefull to redeem time from other occasions that thou mayest spare it for buying of truth It is part of the blessed mans description His delight is in the Law of the Lord and in that Law he doth meditate day and night 6. Peace is one of the great blessings of God upon a people and yet if need be we must part with this also to purchase truth If peace may be hadwith truth it is exceedingly to be desired as in toher respects so for truths sake to which if well improved it may be very serviceable and usefull towards the opening of a free trade for truth which is many wayes obstructed and interrupted by war But when truth cannot be secured but by the sword and all wayes are tried which are consistent with the purity safety and honour of truth and recourse is had to warre as the last remedie in such a case peace it selfe must be broken that truth may be preserved and purchased Object Some may say there is no sufficient cause at this day in relation to truth Answ and the businesse of Religion to ground a necessary warre upon I answer 1. I doe not take upon me to assert that this warre was primarily and originally a warre of Religion But secondly if that were granted I desire that case betweene the Tribes of Israel may be considered The two Tribes and an halfe beyond Jordan built an Altar by the River tidings came to the rest of Israel who apprehended this as an Act tending to the falsifying and corrupting of the Truth of God and the Ordinances of his Worship This was conceived a just ground for a Warre For the whole Congregation of the Children of Israel gathered themselves together at Shilo to goe up to warre against them But yet desiring a peaceable accommodation if it might be had without prejudice to truth they resolve to treate with them and send Phineas a man of great eminencie and ten Princes with him These deale throughly in the businesse and presse it home upon them the Defendants make a free and candid declaration of their intentions shewing that this Altar was not erected for Burnt offering nor for Sacrifice but onely for a Monument of their interest in the God of Israel whereupon both the Ambassadours and at their returne the people were fully satisfyed Now suppose this Altar had beene built for sacrifice as was suspected and compare with this the many hundred Altars I beleeve lately erected in this Land to the darkning at least of those great Truths of the Gospel that Christ is the only Altar which sanctifyeth all the offerings of the faithfull that His Sacrifice of himself once offered by Himself is the onely Propitiation adde hereunto the Idolatrous bowings and cringings the Crucifixes and Images set up in many places the indeavours to corrupt the Truth and Doctrine of Christ in divers points of great importance the plots laid to stop the course of the Gospell propagating of the truth the obstinate resistance against such a Reformation as the Truth of God cleerely revealed in His Word requireth c. And see whether there were not many causes for a Warre against the Enemies of the truth in England for one which Israel had though that had beene such as was surmised Oh that the Lord would deliver our King from those that are Adversaries of his Truth and make him an Instrument to execute His wrath upon the great whore that so the Truth of God might have a free passage through the severall Regions of the World I have read of some Mariners who being tossed on the sea in a Tempest were so superstitiously slavish as to vow or promise at least upon their safe arrivall on the shore to build a Temple the mortar whereof should be tempered with Malmsey I desire it may be considered whether those be not more lavishly prophane who being terrifyed with the stormes of warre could be content to make the sacred Truth of God more precious then all the golden veynes in the bowells of the Earth to serve in stead of mortar for the cementing or rather daubing up an unsound peace with men Object But it may be said the losse of peace implyeth by consequence the losse of life the expence of bloud and precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his Saints Answ I answer it is true and doubtlesse The Lord will make inquisition for their bloud And yet in the last place even this precious bloud of God his people is not too precious to be adventured or spent in the necessary defence of Gods Truth Did not Christ himselfe shed his most precious bloud worth more than all the best bloud under Heaven to seal the Truth of the Gospell the truth of all the promises of the new Covenant none of all which had been true if Christ had not shed his bloud to verifie them For all the Promises of God in him are yea and in him Amen The Law is true in it selfe but the Truth of the Gospell and Word of Promise dependeth wholly upon Christ The Law hath an intrinsecall and native truth Cursed is he that continueth not in all things written in the Booke of the Law to doe them But the Truth of the Promise is borrowed the promise of the pardon of sinne of justifying the ungodly of being mercifull to unrighteousnesse passing by iniquity blotting out transgressions c. seemeth to crosse the Truth of God His Justice and Holinesse if ye consider it without reference to Christ It is true then onely in Christ the Truth of this Testament

dependeth wholly upon the death of the Testatour To this end saith he was I borne and for this cause came I into the world that I should beare witnesse to the Truth How many thousands of God his Saints have drunk of the same Cup in severall Ages It is appointed to all men once to dye and that is a blessed improvement of death when a man dyeth not onely in the Lord but for the Lord and His Truth He that loseth his life shall find it He shall find mortality swallowed up of life His life is hid with Christ in God far above the reach of any weapons of warre and when Christ who is his life shall appear then shall he also appeare with him in Glory And now give me leave Much honoured Worthyes to bespeake your selves in the Name of the God of Truth whom I looke upon as precious Instruments of the Lord for the advancing and promoting of His Truth Truth of doctrine of worship of discipline truth and power of Godlinesse Ye are farre engaged in this Cause of truth already and it concerneth you to goe on both in Conscience and in point of Honour but chiefely for the Honour of your God who hath so highly dignifyed and so many wayes encouraged you by notable testimonies of His Presence Let it appeare that ye are so possessed with the truth so overpowered by the truth that ye may justly apply that of the Apostle to your selves We can do nothing against the truth but for the truth and then Christ will not fayle to make good that title which he hath assumed to himself The Amen the faithfull and true witnesse The People of God have reposed a great trust in you and they expect truth from you And blessed be God they have had their desires in great measure already answered and the Worke is yet in your hands these first-fruits seeme to be pledges of a full Harvest if our sinnes doe not blast our hopes One of the cleerest evidences I conceive which ye can give of the truth of your hearts to the Publick Cause is Selfe-denyall and quitting of Private Interests Of this ye have given reall demonstration in your readines to devest your selves of militarie and civill dignities that ye might reserve your selves for your proper worke Hereupon yee may with greater Authority exact truth from those whom yee shall imploy a true accompt of the publick service and for the future at least a true accompt of the publick treasure though perhaps for the time past it may be difficult if not impossible in regard of those many sudden exigents confusions unexpected occurrences which have happened yea inasmuch as ye have made your selves such eminent precedents of self-denyall how can others in modesty refuse if you require them not to seeke great things for themselves in making over much advantage of the publick miseries especially such whose service is attended with no hazard and very little labour some redresse in these things might encourage the well affected to more cheerefulnesse in assisting the common Cause and stop the mouthes of others More particularly let me beseech you in the first place to examine every man the truth and sincerity of his owne heart in managing the great businesse which yee have in hand To professe a mans selfe engaged in the Cause of truth and yet to be salfe-hearted toward it and to harbour treacherous aimes against it is not onely contrary to the duty of a Christian but a thing far below the spirit and ingenuity of a Gentleman it suiteth better with the basenes of common cheaters then with men of place and worth A man who by his corrupt principles is led out of the way and put into a posture of defiance and open hostility against the truth is lesse odious by many degrees then a false brother I am perswaded there was more of the Devill in one Judas then in all the High Priests Cavaliers and that Christ resented more hellish malignity in that one Traytours kisse than in all their swords and staves Wherefore Let every man prove his owne worke and then shall he have rejoycing in himselfe and not in another For every man shall bear his owne burden It is not enough to joyne with those who are sincere in the Worke of the Lord but every man must prove his own worke with what heart out of what inward principles to what end upon what grounds and motives in what manner he doth it that he may have rejoycing in himselfe and not in those with whom he joyneth in a good cause nor by comparing himselfe with those who either directly oppose or basely desert it For in the great day of account every man shall beare his owne burden men shall not be ranked on the right hand by whole Companies Corporations Regiments Brigades Armies Houses of Parliament but as in that search which was made in Achan his case they shall be singled out man by man and every mans worke shall be tried in particular 2. Be united among your selves in the great cause of Truth according to that of the Apostle Stand fast in one spirit with one minde striving together for the Faith of the Gospel The expressions are strong he speaketh to them as to Champions of the Truth as the originall word importeth and to whom may it bee applyed if not to such ●oble Champions as your selves stand fast keep your ground Servate gradum as Beza maintain your station and that in one spirit in the power and strength of that Holy Spirit of Truth with one minde or one soul wrestling or striving together as if ye were a combination of many bodies associated and concentred together by one soul as one man with joynt forces contending for the Truth of the Gospel and for the cause of Truth so should ye be able to strengthen your spirits with that encouragement following In nothing terrified by your adversaries which is to them an evident token of perdition but to you of salvation and that of God Your uniting would be a terrour to the adversaries a strengthening to your selves an encouragement to those who are friends to the truth and your friends and servants for the Truthes sake If a noble Heathen out of a morall bravery of spirit could privatas inimicitias reipublicae condonare passe by private quarrells for the Common-wealthes sake far be it from any Member of a Christian Parliament not to lay down all private grudges and crosse designes at the feet of this afflicted Church and State far be it from them not to quit them for the truthes sake lest the cause of truth should miscarry through their default If the greatest persons who will approve their hearts to God must throw down their Crownes at the footstoole of Christ how much more their corruptions But especially let every one take heed of raising or fomenting divisions out of a secret desire to hinder the carrying on of the great work