Selected quad for the lemma: doctrine_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
doctrine_n	apostle_n	church_n	primitive_a	4,139	5	9.1134	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A25854	Mr. John Arndt (that famous German divine) his book of Scripture declaring that every child of God ought and must 1. daily die to the old Adam, but to Christ live daily, 2. and be renewed to the image of God day by day, 3. and in the new-birth live the life of the new creature / translated out of the Latine copie by Radulphus Castrensis Antimachivalensis.; Wahres Christenthum. 1. Buch. English	Arndt, Johann, 1555-1621.; Antimachivalensis, Radulphus Castrensis.	1646 (1646)	Wing A3731; ESTC R16074	180,338	440

who disputed vehemently against the Pharisees and Scribes after the example of John the Evangelist who wrote his Gospel against Ebion and Cerinth and the Apocalypse against the false Church of the Nicolaitans and others after the example of Saint Paul who defended most strongly the doctrine of justification by faith of good works of the resurrection of the dead of Christian liberty and such like against false Apostles after the example of the holy Bishops and Fathers of the Primitive Church which wrote most strongly against the Pagan superstitions and Heretickes and in the Oecumenical Councels gathered by the Christian Emperours did condemne the chiefe Heretickes and Patriarchs Arrians Macedonians Nestorians and Eutychians lastly by the example of the incomparable Heroe Martin Luther by whose excellent and grave writings the Papality and other Hereticks were much weakened it is as cleare as the noon-day Therefore it remaineth as a thing most fit and requisite to preach write and dispute that the purity of the doctrine and the verity of religion might bee manifest according to the Apostle who in the first chapter to Titus will have a Bishop to be powerfull to exhort in doctrine that is sound and to argue with those that contradict it The The abuse of Thenlogicall disputation which although it be a lawful and a laudable way it is so faln out by the abuse of it that amongst all their bitter Disputations and Sermons of controversies and the infinite heaps of writing and counterwriting the memory of Christian life of true repentance devotion and charity is almost abolished with their names no otherwise then if the summe of Christian Religion consisted in disputation and writing books of cōtroversies not in the practice of the Gospel and Christian learning For if we behold the examples of the holy Prophets and Apostles as also of the Sonne of God it is manifest that they did sharply dispute not onely against false Prophets and Apostles but also against the superstitions of the Gentiles but with no lesse fervency did exhort to repentance Christian life and moreover did shew in most grave Sermons that by their impenitency and wicked life the divine Worship and Religion did goe backwards and decay the Church was wasted that Kingdome and people were afflicted with hunger warre and plague all which came to passe as true as they said it Of this kind is that Sermon of Esay Impiery destroyeth the worship of God true religion chap. 5. where he denounceth to the people of the Jewes because the vineyard of the Lord did not bring forth clusters of grapes but wild grapes therefore Almighty God had decreed to lay it wast Whereby it plainly appeareth that impiety is the cause why God useth to take his word from us To the same sense is that which Christ said John 12. Walk in the light whilst you have it lest darknesse overtake you For what other thing is it to walk in the light then to imitate Christ Or what other thing is it to be overtaken with darknesse then to lose the purity of the Gospel Whereby it appeareth without true repentāce none is enlightned that none can without true repentance and a holy life enjoy the light the holy Ghost which is the true enlightner of our hearts flying the ungodly and chusing holy soules onely to make friends and Prophets of God as it is written Wisdom 7. whose beginning sith the fear of God is as it is in Psa 111. who likewise doubteth impiety to be the beginning of folly ignorance and blindnesse Moreover the true knowledge of Christ and pure doctrine and the profession thereof doth not consist in words onely but in deed and holy life according The knowledge of Christ consists not in words to that of Titus chap. 1. They confesse they know God but deny him in their deeds when they are abominable and unbeleevers and reprobates to every good work And Titus 3. They have the shew of godlinesse but deny the virtue thereof Whereby it is given to understand that Christ and his Word is denied by a wicked life as wel as words neither hath he the true knowledge of Christ which never putteth it into action Wherefore he that never feeleth or tasteth the humility lowlinesse It is lame without a holy life patience and the love of Christ inwardly in his heart hee knoweth not Christ and therefore where use and necessity requireth they cannot confesse him For to professe preach the doctrine of Christ onely is truly to divide Christ and to lame him if you do not professe and preach It is not words but life that makes a Christian his life And we have abundance of books of his doctrine of his life almost none every where bookes of controversies concerning doctrine but very little time spent about true repentance and a Christian life For what is doctrine without life but a tree without fruit Or how should he follow the doctrine of Christ who imitateth not his life For the head or chiefe of the doctrine of Christ is charity from a pure heart and a good conscience and an unfained faith But we live in that age wherein there is a great number of those whom if wee heare them disputing so acutely and well of the doctrine of Christian religion you would think them to be men of great worth but if you behold them narrowly and touch them neerly you shall then know them to bee inwardly and in their hearts full of pride envie and covetousnesse that no Basilisk can be more venemous Against whom therefore wee must beware observe what Paul saith 1 Tim. 1. he doth not rashly or suddenly joyn Love and Faith that hee may shew that these two do or would conspire and consent together And although wee cannot arrogate so much to our strength and piety that wee make it the price of our happinesse knowing also with Saint Peter Epist 1. chap. 1. that wee are kept in the virtue of God by faith to salvation yet we professe this that by an Antichristian life the Spirit of God will avoyd us with all The wicked are not enlightned his gifts amongst which faith knowledge understanding and wisdome are not the least Whereby it followeth again without a holy life the purity of doctrine cannot be preserved and the wicked which will not imitate Christ are not enlightned with the true light On the contrary those that walk in the light that is which doe insist and persevere in the footsteps of Christ are drenched and bathed in the true light which is Christ and divinely preserved from all errors Therefore it is true which that ancient Writer Taulerus saith So soon as a man dedicateth himselfe to God and suffereth him and denieth his own will and flesh then truly the Spirit of God doth begin to make beginning of illumination and endowing with true and solid knowledge because indeed this man doth celebrate the true Sabbath of the heart