Selected quad for the lemma: death_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
death_n	power_n	sin_n	sting_n	7,486	5	11.7460	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A09970	The golden scepter held forth to the humble VVith the Churches dignitie by her marriage. And the Churches dutie in her carriage. In three treatises. The former delivered in sundry sermons in Cambridge, for the weekely fasts, 1625. The two latter in Lincolnes Inne. By the late learned and reverend divine, Iohn Preston, Dr. in Divinity, chaplaine in ordinary to His Maiesty, Mr. of Emanuel Colledge in Cambridge, and somtime preacher at Lincolnes Inne.	Preston, John, 1587-1628.; Glover, George, b. ca. 1618, engraver.; Goodwin, Thomas, 1600-1680.; Ball, Thomas, 1589 or 90-1659.	1638 (1638)	STC 20227; ESTC S112474	187,142	312

in Paradise But you will object and say can sinnes that have been committed cease to have beene committed or cease to have been sins Answer t is true that which is once done can never bee undone All the acts remaine as things once done so as it may be said they were committed and were thus hainous when therefore it is said there shall be none the meaning is they shall be of no efficacy they shall never bee able to doe you hurt as our Saviour said to his Disciples Luk. 10. 19 You shall tread upon Serpents and Scorpions and they shall not hurt you so I may say of sin it shal not hurt you because the sting is taken away in and by Christ or as that fire in Nebuchadnezzars furnace it had power enough to burne others but not so much as to singe an haire of the three children because Christ was with them so those sinnes which would sting and shall sting others to death because of their impenitence yet shall doe thee no hurt but fall off like the Viper off from Saint Pauls hands but not hurt thee It is an opinion of some that GOD can see no sinne in his children because they say there are none when a man is once in Christ son to bee seene But that is not the meaning of that saying God sees no iniquity in Iacob they are there but as in a debt-booke crossed and cancell'd though the lines be drawne over yet the summes may be read yet so as they cannot bee enacted or sued for because they are crossed and cancell'd A falling starre loseth its light by little and little and when it comes to the earth it goes quite out so when sinnes begin to fall from their proper element and Sphere that is an unregenerate heart where they had dominion and raigned and moved as in their Orbe the light and influence of it decayes and shall at length both in the guilt and power of it wholly vanish I will also adde to this this caution the Saints must know that for all this their sinnes are retained till they actually repent againe the Lords wrath is kindled against them and they may feele such effects of it as may make their hearts ake Thus the Lord met Moses and would have slayne him in the Inne for neglecting that ordinance of circumcision the sinne was not forgiven till he had humbled himselfe and amended his fault so GOD was angry with the Israelites that fled before their enemies till the accursed thing was taken away So when David sinned in the matter of Vriah it is said in the end of that Chapter 2 Sam. 11. 27. The thing that David had done displeased the Lord and there was the wrath of a father against him though not of an enemie and when was it that GOD was well pleased with him againe but when hee had humbled himselfe and repented Therefore that you may have strong consolation search and examine your hearts and lives see that there bee no way of wickednesse unrepented of in you before you apply all these promises which then you may doe to your comfort Somewhat is now to bee said even to those whom before wee excluded for the end of our preaching is not to shut them for ever out If the LORD will bee mercyfull to our sinnes if wee be humbled there is an open dore for those that are without a ground to exhort them to come in Come and welcome God is exceeding mercifull and ready to forgive and receive you If any thing will draw men in they are the promises of mercy the Hue and Cry makes the Thiefe to flye away the faster The Proclamation of pardon brings the Rebels in and what greater motive can wee use than this that whatever your sinnes are or have beene never so great in themselves and aggravated with never so many circumstances yet if you will come in and humble your selves and turne to God God will bee mercifull to you No matter what thy sinnes have beene all the matter is what thy humility is what thy resolutions to confesse and forsake thy sinnes are thy have not gone beyond that price which hath beene paid for them And God will not only pardon their sins but also leave a blessing behind If you indeed should come thus to any man whom you have offended hee would say what are you not ashamed to come to mee having wronged mee thus to looke mee in the face not to aske forgivenesse onely but to aske such a kindnesse such a favour at my hands also how could you have the face to doe it But the Lord he never gives that answer for he is not as man Ier. 3. 11. Though if a man put away his wife and shee becomes another mans hee will not receive her againe yet returne to me sayes God It is possible for men to commit such sins that men cannot forgive but God can pardon any You know the pernicious counsell which Achitophel gave to Absolon to goe in to his fathers wives to make an irrecoverable breach betweene his father and him judgeing it such an injury as David would never put up yet returne to mee sayes God God can pardon any I will scatter thy sinnes as a myst and thine iniquity as a cloud Some sinnes are small as mysts some more great and grosser as a cloud Gods mercy is able to scatter both Doe not say oh I had beene a happy man if I had not fallen into this or that sinne I had then beene pardoned T is true that in respect of Gods dishonour it had beene better thou hadst not committed it but yet this I will say that in respect of obtaining pardon thou mayest bee happy notwithstanding if thou humble thy selfe this sinne will not barre thee from happinesse but thou maist be in as good a condition after thou art come home as any other whose sinnes have beene smaller and know that when thou art once come home God looking upon thee in Christ all thy sinnes displease him not so much as thy repentance in and through Christ pleaseth him But how shall a man be perswaded of this Gods readinesse to forgive Consider that place As I live saith the Lord I will not the death of a sinner but rather that hee turne from his wickednesse and live Hee hath taken an oath for it that hee delights more in saving than in destroying and you may believe him Consider also what Christ was wont to doe in the dayes of his flesh and hee is still as mercifull an high Priest as ever None were more welcome to him than Publicans and Harlots that came with repentance to him and he is as ready to receive us now as them then I doubt not but that Christ is willing but what will God the Father do It is certaine that hee is not willing to have his Sonnes bloud spilt in vaine which should bee of none effect if such sinners

ment and so in the Rev. 3. because Laodicea was neither hot nor cold therefore will I spue them out of my mouth God would endure them no longer and therefore you that thinke your estates the best even you have had a hand in this plague you thinke that other mens sinnes the sinnes of wicked men are the cause of it but God he knoweth that they cannot pray and have no life in them as you have and though-their sinnes also be a cause and a maine cause as appeares by the Amorites whose sinnes when full God punished yet I say they are yours also And therefore when there is an evident signe that God hath a controversie with a Kingdome and the Churches and a signe of his wrath is proclamed from heaven then every man must doe something now feare the Lord be zealous repent and doe your first workes begin now to mend your pace to heaven and yet would onely there were a want of zeale among you yea is it not in disgrace is not a zealous man hooted at as an Owle among us this place the excellency of it is exceedingly abated and eclipsed the zeale of it is withered the Lord is departed from us learne to bee more zealous and God will returne and cause you to flourish againe for when God lookes upon a people it is with them as with the earth in spring time and when hee departs from them they are as withered trees in winter and where now is the zeale of former times the Communion of Saints the heating and whetting of one another by mutuall exhortations where is the boldnesse for the Lord Those holy prayers those former times are gone the light of those times remaine but not the heate as also if wee looke backe upon that Generation of Queene Elizabeth how are we changed they were zealous but here is another generation come in their roome that is dead and cold and yet we have their light but ignis qui in illis calidus in nobis lucidus tantum But I beseech you that you would now begin to stirre up your selves especially in these times of fasting when there must bee an extraordinary renewing of a mans covenant with God that you would not now be so cold and so dilute as you have beene and seeing you have that you would have and have desired long publike dayes of humiliation that you would labour to spend them with all care and diligence and quicknesse of spirit and to consider that the maine is to bee done at home with your selves for the end of these dayes is that you may be humbled which you will never bee till you consider your particular sinnes get up early in the morning for then your spirits are quicke and so you will have a long time before you come to the congregation and get you all that while alone and consider your particular sinnes and the holy duties you neglect and renew your repentance and enter into covenant and then when you come hither you shall finde the word to have another manner of working upon you than it hath ordinarily If God be thus ready to punish his own children and that thus sharpely it shewes the sinne of those that are fearelesse and carelesse which provoketh God exceedingly Zach. 4. 15. I am very sore displeased with the carelesse heathen the heathens had sinnes enow besides to anger the Lord yet this sinne did it above other sinnes and it is not to bee wondred at that it should for it is a rule in Philosophy and most true that of all things that which provoketh a man most is contempt in so much that Aristotle maketh it the onely cause of anger though therein he is deceived yet it is the maine we use to say non respondere pro convitio est it is a signe of contempt not to answer againe as when a man is chidden and stricken non respondere to goe by as if hee tooke no notice of it at Gods hand this is contempt And thus a Father when he is angry with his son or a Master with his servant how hainously doth hee take it And so God who now hath discovered his wrath to the whole Land and to every particular man in it this neglect of him will cause his wrath to wax hot against us but yet for the land in generall wee have cause to hope that his wrath doth not so but that God takes it well at our hands that we are thus publickly assembled but let mee say this though to every particular man though God spare the Kingdome yet if thou neglect him and bee carelesse it will goe the worse with thee however In the 50. Psalme when hee had expressed great threatnings in the former verses hee concludes with this Consider this O all yee that forget God! you that minde him not least hee teare you in peeces and there bee none to deliver you and so in the Prophet Ieremy 5 12 13 14. verses because you say that his words are but winde they shall be as fire and you as drie wood and they shall devoure you This is the great fault of men that they are ready to feare things which they should not feare the creatures poverty and discredit but are backward to feare the Lord. God sayes of the Church Rev. 2. 12. Feare not the things thou shalt suffer what all the world feares that doe not you feare feare not the things you shall suffer those things you ought not to feare but feare those things you should doe and who is afraid of them least hee should provoke God in them And so Christ saith feare not men no not those that have power of life and death if wee should feare any it should be them remember that was the commendation of Moses hee feared not the wrath of Pharaoh when you place your feare thus amisse it becomes a snare to you for it makes your hearts busie upon the creatures when they ought to be set upon the Lord but when your feare is placed upon God it doth exceedingly helpe you nothing more to give you an instance or two you shall finde David exceedingly strucke with the feare of the Lord when Ziglag was burnt no accident ever so amazed him when hee fled before Absolon hee bore it much better yet that feare helped al for it set him a worke to pray so Iehoshaphats feare did also helpe him when he heard of a great Army comming against him it set him on worke to pray and so turned away the Iudgement and therefore things that you so feare when your feare is placed on God seldome come to passe for that sets men on worke to prevent them whereas evill feare brings the thing with it Saul feared the Armies of the Philistines exceedingly that made him seeke to the Witch and this wrought his overthrow which hee feared so Ieroboam feared the losse of his Kingdome and that feare made him set up the Calves which lost him his Kingdome indeed

the particulars first The utmost end is as the Rudder to the ship as the bridle to the horse which turnes all going about particulars only is as if one should set his shoulder to the side of the ship when one touch of the Rudder would doe it Therefore Rehoboam 2 Chron. 10. 14. erred because his heart was not prepared to seeke the Lord and his failing in that particular is ascribed to his want in the generall Iob 17. 9. It is said the righteous shall hold on his way and he that is of pure hands shall waxe stronger and stronger he that hath his heart once changed holds on but till that is done all is in vaine to strive with particulars As put the case a Gardener takes paines to dresse a Thorne it may have as much paines taken with it in manuring and pruning it as any plant in the garden yet it remaines a Thorne still for all the mouldes put to it So though thou prayest and fastest and humblest thy selfe yet if thy nature be not changed all will doe no good Cast up a stone a thousand times it comes downe againe because it remaines a stone but if it were turned into a meteor c. or the like it would not Therefore get a generall change of thy heart and then a change in particular would follow Goe to CHRIST and beseech him to worke this chang in thee let this be more in your practise this wee formally confesse that the LORD only can change us yet it is not throughly considered When thy nature is strongly inclined to any evill way so as thou art almost out of hope to overcome yet goe to GOD. That place may encourage us Iames 4 5 6. doe you thinke the Scripture sayes in vaine The spirit that is in us lusteth after envie but he giveth more grace hee had told them vers 1. of lusts fighting in their members they might aske him how they should get the victory true saith the Apostle it is hard to overcome and indeed impossible to nature the spirit that is in us lusteth after envy and will doe so but consider the Scripture offers more grace then nature is able to doe it tells you not in vaine that the grace therein offered is able to heale though the disease be hereditary and is past natures cure yet it is not past the cure of grace Acts 10. 31. It is said of CHRIST Him hath God raised up to be a Prince and a Saviour to give repentance to Israel and forgivenesse of sinnes When lusts are too strong for a man Christ comes as a Prince and overcomes them for he gives repentance and the end of his comming was not onely to give salvation but repentance Though Physitians could not cure Naaman the Prophet could though the Disciples could not cast out Divells yet Christ could And therefore say not it is an hereditary lust and it hung long upon me and I have made many resolutions and yet I cannot overcome it Take a man that is borne blind hee is past all cure by man all Physitians will give him over and say he is borne blind yet remember that Christ did cure those that were borne blinde and lame This course Paul tooke 2 Cor. 1. 2. he had a strange lust which he could not overcome he beseecheth the Lord to remove for this I besought the Lord thrise that it might depart so David also Psal. 51. 10. finding the remainder of his old disease and sinfull dispositions he goes to GOD for a new heart when he could not make cleane his heart he prayes to the Lord Create a cleane heart in me So he in the Gospell I beseech thee helpe my unbeliefe Thinke not that all is done when thou hast taken up a resolution against thy sinne to take up a resolution belongs to thee but to cure it belongs alone to GOD Goe to him therfore for he hath undertaken to circumcise thy heart Ephes. 3. he having prayed v. 16. that they should be strengthened in the inward man c. then vers 20. concludes Now to him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all wee are able to aske or thinke according to the power that worketh in us c. as if he had sayd you may finde many weaknesses in your selves and then doe as I doe for you goe to the Lord to heale them and know that he is able to doe above all thou canst thinke to subdue that lust which thou thoughtest could never have beene overcome But how will he do it According to that mighty power that worketh in us that power is as strong as Christ himselfe for it is the power of his death the power that raised him up from death to glory able to worke out all infirmities and to worke into you all the graces you want Give not over therfore have faith in the promises of Sanctification as well as in those of Iustification Is he not bound by promise to performe these to you that believe as well as the other Where ever God hath a mouth to speake faith hath an eare to heare an hand to lay hold as God sayd to Ioshua I will conquer those Gyants for thee I will pull downe those walls which they say are built up to heaven onely bee thou couragious and doe but trust mee bee not discouraged upon any occasion give not over saying it is a thing will never be done and had not Ioshua trusted the Lord he would quickly have set downe and given over So I say to you concerning your lusts be couragious and so none are but those that put their confidence in the LORD faint not nor be weary doe but believe thou shalt overcome and thou shalt see them all conquered in the end One word of his mouth was enough to still the raging windes and is as able to still thy lusts But here many will be ready to object I have striven long and praied long and taken much paines and I have not gotten the victory this must necessarily be answered for this is the case of many and it is the scope of Sathan to discourage men and therby to give over the combate First consider whether thy striving be right or no for there is a false resistance of sin and the promise is not made to that and then no wonder if they be not performed for example 1 First it may be it is not the sin thou strivest against but the disprofit the discredit in thy name and estate or sicknesse in thy body that followes upon it so as if these were removed thou shouldest be willing enough to keepe the sin This is not a right striving that will be accepted 2 It may be it is but a faint resistance and a faint denyall doth but make the begger the more importunate Balaam gave the messengers a denyall but it was a faint one they perceived his lingring which made them the more importunate It may be thou art content still to parly with