Selected quad for the lemma: death_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
death_n	work_v	world_n	worldly_a	246	3	8.3198	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A26714	Instructions about heart-work what is to be done on Gods part, and ours, for the cure and keeping of the heart, that we may live in the exercise and growth of grace here, and have a comfortable assurance of glory to eternity / by that eminent Gospel-Minister Mr. Richard Allein, author of Vindiciæ pietatis.	R. A. (Richard Alleine), 1611-1681.	1681 (1681)	Wing A994; ESTC R19556	262,157	306

over much in any of the good things below we may rejoice in our outward good things James 1.9 Let the Brother of low degree rejoice in that he is exalted that is let the Poor rejoice when he is made Rich Poverty is an Affliction and Riches are a Mercy and such a Mercy as we may rejoice in But though we may rejoice in every outward Mercy yet we may not rejoice overmuch in them particularly for the limits of this Joy they must be such as these 1. Joy not in any of these good things as if they were your happiness they may be Means to our happiness but must not be made the Matter of our happiness to make our Estates our happiness is to make them our God and the way to make us miserable he is a miserable Rich Man who maketh his Riches his Happiness 2. Joy not so much in them as to rejoyce ever the less in God You have so much need of God in the greatest Plenty and Prosperity as you have when you have nothing and you should so much thirst after the Joy of God in your greatest Worldly Joy as in your Sorrow Take not your Worldly Joy in stead of Joy in God think not to supply your want of Joy in God by the abounding of Worldly Joy You may as well feed your Souls with Meat and Drink you may as well provide for your Souls by your Money or Estates as comfort them by that Joy that ariseth out of these Earthly things Souls must have a God the Comfort of God the Joy of God to refresh them and support them that Soul is a Carnal Soul that can feed upon Carnal Joys you nevertheless need the Joy of God for any Worldly Joy and you must look to it that your Worldly Joys be never to that height as to lessen your esteem of the Joy of the Lord. The Joy of God will quench your thirst after the World and then the Joy of the World exceedeth it's Bounds when it quencheth your thirst after God and the light of his Countenance Thou art Rich thou art full and prosperest in the World thy Bull gendreth and faileth not thy Cow calveth c. thy Oxen are strong to labour thy Sheep bring forth Thousands and ten Thousands in the Streets and now thou hast Hearts Ease and rejoycest in thy Portion but how standest thou now in respect to God Is God ever the less needed Is God ever the less loved Is the Joy of God still thy chief Joy Or dost thou not even forget that thou hast a God or a Soul and leave it to them that have nothing below to rejoyce in God that is above What thinkest thou of thy self Hath this Earth eaten up Heaven Hath the Joy of this Earth swallowed up the Joy of the Lord Sure it hath transgressed its Bounds It may be thou wilt say as the Prophet Hab. 3.17 18. and it is well if thou canst say so Although the Fig-Tree doth not Blossom c Yet will I rejoyce in the Lord and Joy in the God of my Salvation When thou art Poor and in Want and hast nothing left thee in the World to comfort thine Heart in then thou wilt look to the Lord and he shall be thy Joy and thy Comfort but how is it with thee when the Fig-Tree doth Blossom when thou livest in the abundance of all things Dost thou then feel thou hast as much need of a God dost thou then take as much Joy in God canst thou say of all here below These are miserable Comforters if God be not my Comfort these are miserable Pleasures if God be not my Joy This is something and thus it should be 3. Rejoice with Trembling That 's the Psalmist's Counsel Psal 2.11 Serve the Lord with Fear and rejoice with Trembling in allusion to that let me say Seek the World with Fear and rejoice in the World with Trembling let fear be a Bridle to prevent the excess of your Worldly Joy Fear what should we fear Why fear lest you should forget God lest that which is your Joy become your Snare and turn you aside from God lest your Joy in the World should prove Worldly Joy and serve for nothing but to feed and heighten your Worldly Lusts fear lest this Joy of the World should do the same by you as sometimes the Sorrows of the World do which the Apostle says 2 Cor. 7. Worketh Death fear lest it kill your Souls there is nothing that does more corrupt and endanger the Soul than Carnal Mirth Eccle. 11.9 Rejoice O young Man in thy Youth c. but what followeth Know that for all these things God will bring thee to Judgment that is to Condemnation These Joys drag the Soul to the Bar of Justice and thence to Execution in the Fire There is scarce any thing that does Ripen Men faster for Ruin than the Mirth of the World Job 21.10 11. Their Bull gendreth and faileth not there 's the matter of their Joy their Children Dance they take the Timbrel and the Harp and rejoyce at the sound of the Organ there 's the Measure and Expression of their Joy they are so lifted up that they must have the Musick and their Dancing to heighten their Mirth but what 's the end In a Moment they go down to the Grave and thence into the Bottomless Pit O the Madness of this Merry World That can see nothing in God to Joy them in and yet can rejoice in a thing of nought that undo themselves by their own Felicity their Joy and Mirth Joy is the sweetest Flower that grows in that Garden the Heart of Man and this Flower must be the Poyson to kill them and is never sweet to them but when it growes up out of a Dung-hill out of their Fleshly Lusts What Multitudes have surfeited and Died of their Carnal Mirth and yet foolish Souls will never fear it but this must be their only Heaven which leads to Hell what do these Carnal Joys serve for but to corrupt Men first and then to confound Men Worldly sorrow it 's said worketh Death but it may be said of Worldly Sorrow and Mirth as of David and Saul Saul hath slain his Thousands and David his ten Thousands Worldly Sorrow hath slain many but nothing so many as Carnal Mirth whilest that Saints wade through their Temporal Sorrows to everlasting Joy Sinners pass through their Worldly Joy to everlasting Sorrows Isa 50.11 Behold ye that kindle your Fires c. Here 1. Sinners have their Fires that is to comfort and chear and warm their Hearts these their comforting Fires are their Joy and Jollities 2. Sinners Fires are of their own kindling their comforts come not from God but they raise them up to themselves they comfort themselves and chear themselves but are not comforted of God 3. Sinners Fires are all but Sparks a Spark will not warm and will not last the Triumphing of the Wicked is short and the Joy of the Hypocrite is

subject let me in the name of God ask you what is there that hath been yet done upon you what is there that hath been added to your holy love to your holy desires and joys fears and griefs are there any little sparkes added to you do you love God a little more then you did do you desire after him a little more strongly are your fears of sin your fears of temptations to sin your grief and sorrow for sin a little encreased Is there any abatement of your love to the World of your worldly desires and joys Is there any allay of your fretful angry passion Who of you can say I thank God these words have not been spoken to me in vain I thank God I find this World taken down a little lower I do not love it so well nor desire it so much nor I hope shall ever again seek it so earnestly as I have done are you any thing the more in fear of sin or greiv'd for sin are you in hope that your anger shall henceforth not be without a cause nor above or higher then its cause nor ever last as it has used to do Friends consider in the name of God consider What is there nothing done are you as cold in your love to God as hot in your love to the World as much without fear and greif for sin as if none of all this had been spoken The Lord be merciful to us what shall become of such hearing What serves this Preaching for what serves this hearing for Doth God take pleasure or can you take comfort in your coming together to hear and being a little affected with the word whilst 't is preaching or speaking some words after of your approbation and liking what you have heard when yet the Word doth not work nor leave any standing and abiding impressions upon you It s vain to commend a Sermon in words if the fruit it brings forth commend it not The best commendation of your food is by your eating it and maintaining your health and gathering strength by it O Friends that 's the commendation we would have of our preaching and the only commendation that we can take comfort in that our word reacheth its end that there is some sign of our ministry upon your hearts and in your lives that we may say concerning you as the Apostle concerning the Corinthians 2 Cor. 3.2.8 Ye are our Epistle and are declared to be the Epistle of Christ written not with ink but with the spirit of the living God Those are the best Sermon Notes that are written not with ink and paper but by the Spirit of the living God in the fleshly tables of our hearts These are the best Sermon Notes and these are the best commendation of our preaching Now pray friends consider I do not ask you what there is written of these Sermons in your note books but what is there written of them in your hearts Is there any thing more of the love of God of desires after God of fear of sin c. written or begotten within you Had I ability and opportunity of personal converse with you I should be willing to deal with you in private hand to hand and to ask you these questions man by man but to supply that defect of speaking personally and in private to each one of you take what I speak in my publick Ministry as if it were spoken to thee in particular and I were dealing with thee hand to hand Though thou canst not give me thine answer yet fail not to give answer in thine own heart when I ask thee whither thou hast gotten any more love to God any more desires after God any abatement of thy love to the World any more fear of Sin c. Answer thine own Conscience in this particular I must substitute thy Conscience in my room and let Conscience take thine Answer Speak every man of you i● your Consciences how do you find it is there any th●ng done upon you by these words or is there nothing 〈◊〉 what do you think of all your hearing these words if th●re be nothing done if there be as much love to the World as little love to God or fear of Sin if there be the same touchiness the same pettishness the some angry distemper as if you had kept you at home all this while and never heard any of all that has been said Are not you ashamed are not you afraid that these words of the Lord should have no effect upon you Beloved I have preached to you in hope I have hoped for fruit I have hop'd for some change for the better upon you in all these respects O set your hearts unto all these words remember what you can and recover what you have forgotten look up to God look up to God and pray this prayer to him Lord let the things that have been spoken be written Let them be written not with ink and pen but by the Spirit of the living God not in a book or paper but in the fleshly table of mine heart Look up to God for his help and determine in your selves to set your hearts to it to follow after this blessed Order and Government of your hearts Study within your selves how to get up your affections to things above to get loose your hearts from the World and things below be not content to be thus dead in your hearts towards God thus alive towards the World nor be content to wish for more of the divine love to wish you could abate towards this world but in good earnest make it your business and study so to do Might we once bring you to this that while we are labouring with you in the Word and Doctrine you would labour with us in the Lord to work your hearts to an affectionate compliance with our words if you would be stedfast and unmoveable and abounding in this work then there would be hope that neither our labour nor yours should be in vain in the Lord then should we look to see the death of these Worldly loues and lusts and a spring of the divine love and life and joy and glory this earth and flesh under foot and the Spirit of Glory and of God resting upon you Put on therefore in the fear of the Lord set you close to this Heart-governing-work quicken strengthen encourage your hearts herein with these words Yet further the Government of the heart stands 4. In suppressing all manner of evil and exciting and maintaining the good that is in your hearts There are in the heart as there are in a Kingdom two parties the evil party and the good party The evil party are the Rebellious Lusts of our hearts the good party are the Graces of God The Government of the Heart is to be as the Government of a Kingdom for the suppressing the evil and the encouraging and upholding the good The evil Party are the lusts of the Heart Pride Envy Malice Covetousness c.

's my grief that I am a Worldling or proud or froward but God be merciful to me I can't get rid of these evils if your sorrow whatever it be doth not bring forth Fruit unto Repentance it is not wrought up high enough there must be more load layd on there must be more of its Thorns and Spears and Stings thrust into that hard Heart of thine thou must feel more of its Gripes it must fetch out more Groans and Sighs and Tears out of thee thou must be brought to another manner of trouble for sin then yet thou art e're it reach the due degree of Godly sorrow 2. This sorrow must not be so great as to hinder the exercise of any other Grace or Duty 't is seldom there is an errour in the excess we don't use to sorrow over much no no we are apt to err in the defect we do not usually come up to sufficient sorrow our hearts have but a light hurt upon them our wounds ordinarily are not deep enough 't is this which mostly undoes us we find our sin to be too light a burthen 't were well if our hearts were more sick that we could find them bleeding inwardly and bleeding more abundantly as 't was said of false Teachers Jer. 6.14 They heal the hurt of the Daughters of my People slightly It is seldom that we can now a dayes hear of such a thing as a troubl'd Soul and a wounded Spirit We are even Professors of too whole and unbroken hearts The Sacrifice of God is a broken heart Psal 51.17 but how few such Sacrifices are there any where found for the Lord The work of the Ministry God helps us is seldome that more acceptable work an healing work to heal the wounded Soul to bind up the broken heart to comfort them that are cast down but the main of our work lyes in making wounds in pricking to the heart in casting down the high and hardned hearts Is not there much of this work lying upon our hands to be hammering and humbling and piercing your hearts through with Godly sorrow How few are there of you who can truly say I thank God this work is done upon me the breaking work the afflicting work the affrighting work is done upon me my heart through Grace is brought low and made soft and made sick of my sins so that I am prepared for the healing and comforting work That sharp two edged Sword of the word hath pierced so deep and made such work such wounds in my heart that now the Oyl is more needed and the Balm to heal my wounds O it is matter of trouble and sadness of heart to find no more such sad Souls and sorrow bitten hearts then we can either see or hear of in the World 'T is seldom therefore I say that there is too much of this sorrow that trouble for sin riseth too high but yet sometimes and in some cases it may be so there may be an excess of sorrow for sin Christians may be pressed down over measure they may be swallowed up of overmuch sorrow as the Apostle intimates and would have prevented 2 Cor. 2.7 Comfort such an one lest perhaps he should be swollowed up of overmuch sorrow Therefore in this case there must be Limits set to our sorrow and it must be held within these Limits It must be so much only as may not hinder the exercise of other Graces and Duties it must neither hinder our Hopes nor hinder our Faith nor our Love no nor our Joy in the Lord It should be with Christians in this case as with the Apostle in another case 2 Cor. 6.10 As sorrowing yet alwaies rejoycing Sorrowing yet believing sorrowing yet hopeing cast down yet comforted It must not hinder our Duties Some Christians have been so overwhelmed with trouble that they have not been able to hear nor pray nor think with any Comfort upon God or the things of God this is an excess of sorrow and must be restrained Sorrow for sin no more then will help you to believe and Hope and Love and praise and serve the Lord. 2. Affliction This is another object of sorrow The Degrees and Limits of this are 1. That we sorrow not so little but that we have a due and a deep sense of the hand of the Lord upon us Otherwise we despise the chastning of the Lord which the Apostle forbids Heb. 12.5 Despise not thou the chastning of the Lord. By afflictions I mean here the sufferings of this Life Crosses and Losses of Estates of Friends Husband Wife Children or near Relations Sufferings in our persons by Sicknesses Pains Languishing and the like these must be grieved for God complaines Jer. 3.5 I have smitten them but they have not grieved 'T was their sin that they did not sorrow 2. That we sorrow not so much as to sink under our sorrows That we be not swallowed up of overmuch sorrow As we may not slight or despise the chastnings of the Lord so we may not faint when we are chastned The Apostle tells us 2 Cor. 7.10 That worldly sorrow the sorrows of worldly-men for their worldly crosses worketh Death It sometimes kills their Bodies some men die of their griefs but it often kills their Hearts sinks them in their Spirits stupifies them and makes them fit for nothing We may not be so depressed with sorrows but that we still keep our Hearts alive and to be of good courage 3. Not as men without hope We must sorrow for all our afflictions but as the Apostle would have Christians sorrow for the dead 1 Thess 4.13 Sorrow not says he as others which have no hope The Righteous hath hope in his Heart and his hope must moderate his sorrow This sad state will not last alwaies there 's hope of an end of his afflictions and that should moderate his sorrow The Righteous hath hope in his Death Prov. 14.32 and hath this double hope 1. That Death will put an end to his sorrows 2. That the end of his Sorrows shall be the beginning of Everlasting Joyes and in this hope he must comfort himself under his sufferings and moderate his sorrows for them 4. Alwaies as men that have worse matters to sorrow for The least sin is a worse evil then the greatest affliction and calls for more of our sorrow Christians must take heed that they do not loose the sense of sin in their excessive sorrowing for affliction When affliction lyes too heavy sin usually lyes too light Jer. 30.15 Why cryest thou for thine affliction because thy sins were increased I have done these things unto thee Why art thou impatient under thy sufferings Whatsoever thou sufferest how hard soever it goes with thee in the World there 's a worse thing then all this that should set thee a crying thy sin thy sin which is the root of all that which thou sufferest 5. Let your sorrow for Affliction never be so great as to hinder your sorrow for sin Sorrow more