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	love_n	love_v	14,009	5	6.7932	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A65716	Three sermons preach'd at Salisbury the first, A.D. 1680, and again before the militia, at their going against the late Duke of Monmouth ... the second preach'd before the Right Reverend Father in God, Seth, Lord Bishop of Sarum, A.D. 1681 ... the third, preach'd A.D. 1683, at the election of the mayor ... / by Daniel Whitby.	Whitby, Daniel, 1638-1726.	1685 (1685)	Wing W1737; ESTC R28389	88,809	79

well as those who do respect us This saith our Saviour John 13.35 Matth. 5.45 is the Badge by which my true Disciples may be known it is this Love to Enemies this doing good to all which will alone declare us to be the Children of the God of Love this is proposed by Christ as a considerable part of our whole Duty Matth. 22.39 1 Cor. 13. ult and pronounced like unto the first and great Commandment St. Paul doth represent this Charity as the most excellent of Christian Graces and therefore doth exhort us above all things to put on Charity Col. 3.14 1 Tim. 1.5 Rom. 13.8 1 John 3.11 he saith it is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the end or the perfection of the whole Gospel Declaration the fulfilling of the Law and the very Bond of Perfection St. John informs us that it is Christ's new Commandment the very Message which he came to deliver to the World and the best Evidence that we are in a state of Grace for hereby may we know that we are passed from Death to Life v. 14. because we love the Brethren All which must be abundantly sufficient to assure us that where this Charity and Mercy is there is the Power of Godliness But without this we can have no true Love to God 1 John 4.20 for he who loveth not his Brother whom he hath seen how can he love God whom he hath not seen and all our specious Pretences and high Attainments 1 Cor. 13.2 Gal. 5.6 without this Charity are nothing worth for in Christ Jesus nothing availeth but that Faith which works by Love A Form of Godliness may be sufficient to produce within us a strong Affection to a Sect or Party this being visible in Jew Dissenter Papist yea in Publicans and Heathens saith our Saviour for do not even Publicans do so Mat. 5.46 But 't is the Power of Godliness alone which will enable us to love our Enemies to be sweet and kind in our Behaviour towards all men to rejoyce in their Prosperity sympathize with them in their Miseries relieve their Wants redress their Evils and contribute as much as in us lies unto their Happiness to be patient towards our offending Brother ready to forgive and easie to be reconciled to him Again the Power of Godliness where it resides will certainly express it self in Acts of Righteousness and Justice 't will make us honest upright and fair-dealing men careful to do no Injury to any and ready still to deal with others as we would be dealt with So that in reference to the fifth Commandment to be a just and upright Person is to give due Respect and Honour to my Superiours both natural civil and spiritual not to permit my Heart to curse or causlesly to judge or censure them or my Tongue to speak Evil of Dignities In reference to the sixth Commandment 't is to preserve the Life of others as much as in me lies and to do nothing that may render it uncomfortable when it is in my Power to avoid so doing to bear no Envy Hatred or Malice to my Neighbour nor to indulge to any thought of doing mischief to him In reference to the seventh 't is to preserve our selves and others from Impurity not to desire any lustful Converse with them or cause the Violation of that Faith which they have pledged to others In reference to the eighth 't is to preserve my Neighbours Goods not to defraud him of any thing which he possesseth either by Words as Lying and false Swearing Collusions or Equivocations or by our Deeds as Stealing Robbing Over-reaching Taking advantage of his Ignorance or any other way not to with-hold from any man his due whether what we with-hold be due by Virtue of our Promise or his Labour his Trust reposed in us or our Trespass committed against him In reference to the ninth Commandment to be a righteous honest man is to be careful to preserve our Brothers Credit and good Name not to defame him either by raising or spreading scandalous Reports against him or willingly receiving them from others Lastly in reference to the tenth Commandment it is to moderate our Desires so that we do not envy others that Good which they enjoy or long to have it in our own Possession this being that Injustice of the Heart which prompts us to proceed to the Injustice of the Hand And albeit this honest Man hath been of late decry'd as a mere moral Man by those who too much wanted Honesty themselves yet is the practice of it represented both in the Old and the New Testament Jer. 22.16 as a thing highly acceptable to God and a sure Evidence of real Piety Thus to do Justice is indeed to know God this is the whole of that which he requires Micah 6.8 Ephes 5.9 even to do Justice and love Mercy and to walk humbly with our God this is one of the weighty matters of the Law saith Christ it is a Fruit of the good Spirit 't is that in which Christ's Kingdom doth consist Rom. 14.18 Psal 15.1 2. and which will render us approved of God this will procure our Admission into God's holy Hill into which he that walketh uprightly and worketh Righteousness shall surely enter whilst the dissembling lying dishonest and false hearted Saint and Godly Knave 1 Thess 4.6 will be most certainly excluded from these happy Mansions for God is the Avenger of all such The Violations of the Rules of Justice is a thing very hateful to him These saith he Zech. 8.16 17. Prov. 6.16 19. are the things that you shall do Speak every Man the truth to his Neighbour execute the Judgment of Truth and Peace in your Gates and let none of you imagine Evil in your Hearts against his Neighbour and love no false Oath R. Josua apud D. Pocock Not. Miscell p. 353. for all these are things that I hate saith the Lord. One of the Jewish Rabbies reckons the religious Villain and the holy Cheat among those Persons which bring Destruction on the World And truly he is one who carrieth a contradiction in his very Name to real Piety he is a Scandal and Reproach to that Religion he professeth he tempts Men to believe that either his Religion doth allow such things or to suspect that all Religion is but Policy or a design to serve some worldly end what Favour then can he expect from him whose Name and Doctrine he doth so horribly blaspheme As therefore my Beloved you desire to avoid the dishonour of God the scandal of that excellent Religion you profess as you would not reproach the practice of true Piety nor cast an Odium upon that Party which you most affect or give occasion to that proverbial Saying You will not swear but you will lye and cheat as you desire to be indeed and be esteem'd by God what you profess your selves to be true godly men or to avoid his Hatred here and

committed to some Persons who thereupon should act as his Vicegerents here on Earth and should be owned as his Ordinance This therefore being true of all Supreme Authority that 't is Potestas Dei vicaria a Ray of divine Majesty that 't is entrusted with that Power only which is from above and representeth none but God whosoever lifteth up his Hands against it must be a Fighter against God for if a cruel and blood-thirsty Nero is as St. Paul asserts the Ordinance of God whosoever doth resist him must resist God's Ordinance and if there is no Power whether of Nero or Domitian but from God there can be no Resistance but from Satan If even that Power which condemned the Saviour of the World commenced from Heaven all Insurrections against such Powers must certainly derive from Hell In a word If Government be the Constitution of God to make forcible Opposition against it Faulkn ib. p. 427. must either be in design to have God's Authority subject to them who so act or at least that themselves may not be subject unto it both which things are unreasonable and include a resisting the Ordinance of God Argument 3 3. No Christian Subjects must resist the Higher Powers because they cannot do it without taking of the Sword avenging of themselves and claiming of the Power of Life and Death and passing Judgment on their Fellow-Subjects all which Prerogatives belong immediately to God and by his Ordinance alone or Grant to any Humane Powers Rom. 12.19 Matt. 5.39 For God expresly saith Vengeance is mine I will repay it and hath commanded us 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 not to resist when we do suffer Evil. The Injury we do against our Fellow-Subjects is done to one of God's own Subjects it is a Violation of his Law and so it properly belongs to him to punish it God also being Judge of all the Earth 2 Chron. 19.6 all Acts of Judgment are declared to be not for Man but for the Lord because they are performed by an Authority derived from him Act. 17.25 28. Moreover it is by God we live and move and have our Beings he giveth to us Life and Breath and all things No man can therefore wield the Sword of Justice or use that Sword to take away his Brothers Life but by Authority from the God of our Lives by whom the Higher Powers are commissioned and who are therefore said by his Authority to bear the Sword and be his Ministers in executing Vengeance on the Evil-doer And therefore when St. Peter did attempt to wield the Sword even in Christ's Cause our Lord rebukes him Matt. 26.52 saying Put up thy Sword into its place for all that take the Sword shall perish by it This is saith Musculus Locus notandus omnibus subditis a place to be well noted by all Subjects for 1. This was a Cause wherein Religion and Civil Justice were both much concern'd for the malicious Jews were now pursuing their Design to put the blessed Jesus to an ignominious Death to crucifie the true Messiah and to extirpate his holy Doctrine from the Earth and Justice never was more highly violated than in the Methods which they used to destroy the Lord of Life And yet when upon this occasion his Disciples said Luke 22.49 Master shall we smite with the Sword he peremptorily forbids it and checks St. Peter's hasty use thereof and this he doth partly because John 18.36 as he declared his Kingdom was not of this World and so his Servants should not fight for its Defence against Authority partly because they could not do it in opposition to Authority without the taking of the Sword Contra Faust●m Manich. lib. 22. c. 70. for he saith Austin truly takes the Sword who when no lawful Power doth command or authorise him so to do useth Force of Arms to shed the Blood of others Secondly Observe that they who came to apprehend our Saviour were only some Inferior Officers commissionated by the Supreme Authority and yet they must not be resisted saith our Lord. Thirdly If we consider the Intention of the Person smiting we shall find that he had no design or purpose to rebel against or to turn Casar out of his Dominions but only to preserve his Master it therefore may be fairly pleaded in behalf of Peter that be kept the Laws inculpatae tutelae of Self-defence that what he did was of a sudden without deliberation and that he did not kill out-right but only wounded the High Priests Servant and yet our Saviour not only doth dislike the Action but thinks it necessary to work a Miracle for reparation of the Injury done by it If therefore to unsheath the Sword in Christ's own Cause against the meanest Officer commissionated by the Higher Powers be to usurp it what must it be to take it in our own If to avenge our selves upon our Equals be to usurp on God's Prerogative what must it be to offer to avenge our selves on our Superiors If lastly it be murther to shed our Brother's blood without commission from God or his Vicegerent then all who fight against Authority must become guilty of that sin and it will much concern them to consider what St. John hath said viz. 1 John 3.15 that no Murtherer hath Eternal Life abiding in him And suitable unto these Principles of our Religion is the Constitution of our present Government which doth acknowledge that the whole Power of the Sword or the Militia is in the King and 13 Car. 2.1 that 't is Treason to levy War against him within the Realm or without that justice regularly must be executed and Vengeance recompensed by Judges who receive commission from him to do it For our Sovereign Lord the King which is the current style both of our Statutes and of their Commissions That the Crown of England hath been so free at all times that it hath been in no earthly Subjection 16 R. 2. but immediately subject to God in all things touching the Regality of the same Crown and to no other That the Realm of England is an Empire governed by one Supreme Head and King 24 H. 8.12 to whom a Body Politick of Spiritualty and Temporalty be bounden and ought to bear next to God a natural and humble obedience That both or either Houses of Parliament cannot 13 Car. 2.6.14.2 3. nor lawfully may raise or levy any War offensive or defensive against his Majesty his Heirs and lawful Successors and lastly that it is unlawful upon any pretence whatsoever to take up Arms against him or against those who are commissionated by him Argument 4 Fourthly The Christian ought not to resist Superiors because He by so doing will cast a great reproach upon the Name and Doctrine of our Lord and give occasion to renew that Calumny of Jews and Heathens that our Lord was no Friend to Caesar that his Disciples were the men who by their Doctrine turned the

in them or conferred upon them by the People but by the Power of that God who is the Fountain of all Government Which will be further evident if we consider First That the Magistrate is here expresly stiled the Avenger of Wrath and by St Peter is declared to be the man who doth commission others for the avenging of the Evil Doer now seeing God expresly challengeth the right of executing recompence and vengeance to himself Deut. 32.35 Rom. 12.19 saying to me belongeth recompence and vengeance vengeance is mine I will repay it no man can be invested with that Power but by Commission Deputation and Warrant from the God of Vengeance and so the Higher Powers can only exercise it by virtue of a right derived from him Again seeing all private Persons are forbidden to avenge themselves seeing they are commanded to recompense to no man evil for evil they cannot give that Power to another which they have not received from God and which they are not Authorised by him but rather are forbidden to exert and so the Magistrate cannot be rationally supposed to receive this Power from them and this seems written with a Sun beam in those words of our Apostle where of the Magistrate he saith He is the Minister of God the Avenger of wrath to him that doth evil behold He is the Minister of God not of the People and his Vindictive Justice upon evil doers is therefore to be feared 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 because He in the execution of it is the Minister of God If it be said in Answer to this Argument that every man has a Natural Right to defend his own Life by taking away the Life of any man who doth injuriously assault it this therefore he may part with to his Prince and by so doing give him the Power of Life and Death I Answer that it is exceeding evident that no man doth make over such a Right unto his Prince for had he done it by owning himself subject to his Government no Subject could defend his Life from the Assaults of Thieves and Robbers or other bloody Persons without assuming what they had given to their Sovereigns since therefore Subjects do retain this Right as fully under Civil Governments as in a state of nature they cannot be supposed by submission to their Governors to have abandoned or parted with that Right which doth so sundamentally destroy the vain pretence that it is needless to add more in confutation of it Secondly The Supreme Governor saith the Apostle bears the Sword that is he hath the Power of Life and Death Now seeing God hath said to every private man thou shalt not kill and since he hath not given to any man the Power to dispose of his own Life or to commit self-murther or to consent that any one that will shall murther him seeing 't is evident from Reason that no man can confer that Power on another which he hath not received it follows that the People who never had this Power over their own Lives cannot impart it to the Magistrate He therefore must receive it wholly from that God who giveth unto all men Life and Breath Acts 17.25 and therefore hath the Sovereign Right to be the sole disposer of them And sure that God who breatheth into man the Breath of Life must have the sole Dominion over his own Production this Dominion consequently can be communicated to none but those to whom by him it is communicated to the Magistrate it is committed by that Law of God which puts the Sword into his hand to cut off evil doers and if the People or any others will challenge the like Power they must shew the like Charter and if they cannot do so as without doubt they cannot this is sufficient to disprove all their pretences to give this Power to another And sure I am that St. Paul knew of no Sword Bearer besides the Minister of God nor did St. Peter know of any who could wield it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 1 Pet. 2.13 14. for the avenging evil doers but 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 those who were sent by the Commission of the Supreme Power so to do Objection And whereas from St. Peter it is objected against this inference That even the King or Supreme Power is by him stiled an Humane Ordinance 1 Pet. 2.13 or Humane Creature and hence it is concluded that he is the Ordinance of man derives his Power from the People and therefore is accountable to them if he abuse the Power so received from them Answer 1 To this I answer 1. That St Peter cannot be rationally deemed by this expression to deny the Higher Powers to be the Ordinance of God for then he must assert what is the plainest contradiction to St. Paul who as you have already heard expresly says they are God's Ordinance the Ministers of God the Officers of God and whosoever doth resist these Powers resists the Ordinance of God He also must expresly contradict the Doctrine of the Old Testament which hath as fully and more frequently declared not only of the Kings of Israel and Judah but of an Heathen Cyrus and Nabuchodonosor that they did rule by his Commission and Appointment and that their Thrones Kingdoms and Judgments were the Lords 2. He by immediate consequence must contradict his own avowed Doctrine in this very place where he requires all Christians to be subject to this Humane Ordinance for the Lords Sake and out of Conscience towards God for where the Power we submit to is not the Ordinance of God there can be no Subjection due unto it from Conscience towards God where he hath given no Authority to govern there can be no Subjection for the Lords Sake and where he giveth an Authority to govern the Government derived from his Authority must be his Ordinance Answer 2 Whereas it is inferred from this expression That the Higher Powers deriving from the people must be accountable to them if they abuse the Power so received this Inference makes the Apostle like an unskilful Builder pull down that very Fabrick which he intended to erect for his designis clearly this To teach all Christians by Subjection to the Higher Powers even when they suffered from them wrongfully and for the Sake of Righteousness to approve themselves the Servants of God and by well doing to put to silence the Ignorance of Foolish Men and wipe off the aspersions of Rebellious Principles or practices which they had cast upon them and for which they were wont to speak against them as Evil Doers Now can it be supposed that whilst he was in Prosecution of this good design he should tell these Christians that though he called the King 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the Supreme Power yet they were above him though he required their Subjection to him yet he thought fit at the same time to let them know he was their Creature and if he did not rule as they would have him must

Nation into Shambles than that of being passively obedient And Lastly this Assertion is destructive of it self and never can contribute to the end for which it doth pretend to be designed viz. The preservation of the established Religion against the pleasure of the Soveraign for by What Laws are We authorized to resist for Religions Sake the Laws of God expresly forbid it By the Laws of the Land but these Laws deprive all Subjects of any power to resist the King by taking Arms against him Since both by Common 25 Ed. 3. c. 2. and by Statute Law it is plain Treason to levy War against our Lord the King in the Realm or be adherent to the Kings Enemies Since our Law plainly saith that neither Houses of Parliament jointly or severally 13 Car. 2. c. 6. and much less any other Subjects can lawfully raise or levy any War Offensive or Defensive against his Majesty his Heirs and Lawful Successors and That it is not lawful upon any pretence whatsoever to take up Arms against the King our hands are therefore tyed up by our own as well as by Gods Law for where 't is Treason to resist there remains nothing to be done P. 92. but to be passively obedient If therefore as this Author grants when it is made death by the Law of the Land to be a good Christian we must lay down our lives for Christ's Sake and the Gospel requires passive obedience when the Laws are against a man must it not require the same obedience when it is made death by the Law of the Land to take up Arms against our Lawful Sovereign When then this Author so pertly puts the Question P. 81. By what Law must we dye for being of that Religion which God approves and would have all the world embrace and hold fast to the end 'T is evident that the first Christians might with equal reason have put this question to St. Paul and Peter By what Law must we suffer for our obedience to the Laws of God doth he ask By what Law must we suffer for professing that Religion which is by Law established let him but grant this reasonable Postulatum that the Laws of God are as sacred and inviolable as the Laws of men and lay an equalty upon the hands of Princes and then the question will again return upon him and unto both these questions the answer is most plainly this That we must do it by virtue of that Law of God which doth enjoin us for Conscience towards God to endure Grief suffering wrongfully and when we do well and suffer for it 1 Pet. 2.19 20. to take it patiently and by that Law of God and of the Land which doth forbid resistance of the Higher Powers by taking up the Sword for when I cannot lawfully resist that power which will punish I of necessity must suffer or transgress When he adds That no such power is lodged in the Prerogative as to destroy men contrary to Law it is as true that no such power is lodged in the Supremacy as to destroy men contrary to Gods Law or even to make a Law which contradicteth the Divine Law and therefore no such Power is given them from God as to destroy the Christian for the Profession of Christianity or for obeying Gods revealed will or for not sacrificing unto Heathen Idols And yet God did enjoin all Christians when they did suffer upon these accounts to suffer patiently and not resist It is not therefore any Authority which God hath given to the Prince to punish men for doing well that binds the Christian thus to suffer but the plain Law of God and of the Land both which forbid them that resistance which alone can hinder it No Master hath Authority from God to deal perversly with his Servant no Parent to deal unnaturally and unjustly with his Child but yet I hope this will not authorize them to resist and to rebel against Master or Parent when they thus suffer by them and what can then remain but that they quietly do suffer wrongfully FINIS