Selected quad for the lemma: death_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
death_n	present_a	young_a	youth_n	49	3	7.9402	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A47525	An exhortation to a personal and national repentance a sermon / preached at St. James Church, Westminster, Feb. 5, 1688/9 by Tho. Knaggs ...	Knaggs, Thomas, 1660 or 1-1724.	1699 (1699)	Wing K663; ESTC R36232	11,547	38

be displeasing to him but always be doing that which shall be well pleasing in his sight The best of us may blush to think how often we have done that which has occasioned grief in the Court of Heaven What odious scents arise thither daily from bloody murthers beastly uncleannesses and cruel oppressions which like the blood of Abel cry aloud to Heaven for vengeance Even sins that grieve the Holy Spirit of God and cause a sadness in the blessed Trinity For so sure as Repentance pleaseth God and causeth joy in Heaven so certain it is that sin continued in and not repented of gives occasion of grief and sadness to him 2ly Repentance is well pleasing to the Blessed Angels Luke 15.10 There is joy in the presence of the Angels of God over one sinner that repenteth Those tears which run down the cheeks of a true penitent are the Angels heavenly banquet There shall be more joy in heaven over one sinner that repents than over ninety nine just persons that need no repentance But tho repentance be well pleasing to the Blessed Angels tho they are ministring spirits for our good rejoyce at the conversion of a sinner do many good offices for the godly on earth and be a communion between them yet we are not to think that they interpose their Merits for us and therefore we are to perform Religious Worship to them This is a fond conceit of the Papists the invention of mans brain and wants warrant from the word of God See thou do it not Rev. 22.9 are express words in Holy Scripture 3ly Repentance is matter of joy to the penitent himself O what joy and tranquility of conscience has that man whose eyes are opened and in whose heart by Gods Grace a change is wrought And no wonder that he is so pleased with himself for being sensible that he is withdrawn from sin and brought back again to God that he who once was a servant of sin and running headlong to perdition is now a child of God and making Provision for his immortal soul these thoughts speak comfortable things to him and leaves upon his soul a a sweet taste a pleasant relish St. Austin after his conversion when he had repented and began a new life made this sad complaint I have loved thee too late O God O thou beautiful Being I have 〈…〉 too late He repented he had not served God sooner that his conversion was so long delay'd and that he was so long a beginning to be acquainted with God How sweet and delightful O Lord was it made to me presently to want those pleasures of the world which before I doted upon Thou O Lord didst cast them out of my heart and didst thy self enter in their place which I find now to be more sweet than all pleasures and sweetness it self Lib. 9. Cons ch 1. Thus having shewn how joyful and well pleasing it is to Father Son and Holy Ghost that men shu'd repent how acceptable to the blessed Angels and how grateful to the Penitent himself I come 4thly To offer to your consideration what great Danger and Unreasonableness there is in impenitency whether in particular persons or in a publick Nation And 1. As to particular persons John the Baptist in his first Sermon exhorted his Auditors to bring forth fruits meet for Repentance And except ye repent ye shall likewise perish was the Doctrine Christ preached to his Disciples Now the longer men delay their Repentance the more they are hardened in their corruptions and confirmed in their sins and consequently more indispos'd every day for that great and necessary work The longer men live in sin the more strongly they are inclin'd to continue in it Sin being once rooted in the Soul the labour will be great in plucking it out The young man in his Youth and Strength is apt to say that it is not yet time to busie himself about Reformation and amendment of life and that it will be soon enough to repent of his sins when he comes to be old and then and not before he 'll become penitent and serious But how know'st thou O young man that thou shalt live till old Age Death is a tribute we all owe to Nature and Experience teacheth us that the young man is as suddenly taken away as the grey head The strongest man can call no time his own but the present He cannot prolong his days as he pleaseth All his futurity is in the hands of God and how he will dispose of him whether for life or death he cannot tell And yet alas how securely do such men live How eagerly do they run through all the stages of their youth in a rebellious obstinate course and commit sin as if they were not flesh and blood subject to a dying stroak Certainly nothing hath made more ample Harvest for the Devil than the deserring of Repentance upon such a vain consideration as this For how often have many men lain down in their strength at night and that night has clos'd their Eyes and sent their Souls into another World to answer for what they have done in this But suppose God out of his unconceivable Mercy doth not cut off a sinner in the strength of his years suppose he lets him alone to live as he lists to walk in the ways of his heart and in the sight of his eyes and therefore is resolved to sin on till old age overtakes him yet I have three Arguments to lay down before him which if rightly considered wou'd make him think and bring him to a right understanding of himself First Repentance requires the strength and vigour of our minds and therefore 't is a sad design to lay all the sins of our youth upon feeble old age Our bodies are then decay'd our limbs feeble our understandings shatter'd all the parts distemper'd and our infirmities so many that we are altogether incapable of every thing but dying In the midst of so many Distempers as old age brings along with it 't will be a difficult matter to go through with Repentance For then pains are apt in an high measure to seize upon us which will so disturb our minds and deprive us of the use of Reason that we cannot pray to God with that fervency or spread our fins before him with that hearty sorrow that is requisite to procure an absolute pardon Old Age is an unfit time to have the great work of Repentance to do and therefore my second Argument to shew the Danger and Unreasonableness of putting it off till that time is this Secondly The little hopes they can have that God shu'd be pleas'd with those men who never drew nigh to him by Repentance till they themselves were drawing near to the grave Mankind must needs think the Almighty a tame Being an easie God if they perswade themselves that every sin is as soon expiated as confess'd Let men have a care how they flatter themselves with such vain hopes as