Selected quad for the lemma: duty_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
duty_n	action_n	law_n	moral_a	1,065	5	9.0930	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A31961	An Exact collection of farewel sermons preached by the late London-ministers viz. Mr. Calamy, Mr. Watson, Mr. Jacomb, Mr. Case, Mr. Sclater, Mr. Baxter, Mr. Jenkin, Dr. Manton, Mr. Lye, Mr. Collins : to which is added their prayers before and after sermon as also Mr. Calamy's sermon for which he was imprisoned in Newgate : his sermon at Mr. Ashe's funeral and Dr. Horton's and Mr. Nalton's funeral.	Calamy, Edmund, 1600-1666.	1662 (1662)	Wing C241; ESTC R1910	251,365	374

but there may be secular things in an ordinary and civil way done in them and our services are not more acceptable for the place nor the places less holy because of those civil employments There is the first concession that in the time of the Gospel there may be a designment and dedicating of places and it is not onely lawfull but commendable 2. I grant that in times of the Gospel some places are to have Religious services performed in them rather then in other places I mean places of natural conveniency and fitness for the meeting of people together whereby they may be free from disturbance from the violence of Enemies and from tempestuous weather As publick meetings whereby we have the society of Gods people their examples to stir us up to zeal and their joynt help in Prayer and holy performances to go along with us that we may joyn our forces together and with a great force wrestle with God and overcome him which is invincible And therefore my Brethren I desire you to bear me witness this day that I plead for publick Ordinances and for the purity of Gods Ordinances to be administred in publick places rather then other places so that I do here profess that I do avowedly and openly declare my judgement to be for publick meetings in publick places and the purity of God's Ordinances if they may be enjoyed without humane mixture which may hurt and pollute them 3. I grant that in the time of holy service we are not then to use secular employments at that time in those places as eating drinking and talking it being unsuitable to the work in hand and howsoever they may be lawfull at another time yet unlawfull then because against the Apostles command Let all things be done in decency and in order and that which is unsuitable to the commands of God the taking his Name in vain My Brethren I will go further with you we are to abstain from all other Religious services when not in season and therefore when the Minister is in Preaching we must not run into our places and kneel down as some people do and fall a Praying And I cannot but wonder that they that do so much cry up Uniformity and Sanctity of places that yet they should confute their judgement by their practice that they should pray secretly when the whole Congregation is a praying vocally and it may be the Congregation is singing a Psalm or the Minister Preaching and then they go to their Prayers I pray where is the Uniformity Decency and Order they so much stand for Lastly I grant that after the performances of holy duties in places wherein we meet for the worship and service of God it is our duty to abstain not onely from filthy and indecent actions of a natural or moral filthiness unseemly as looked upon by men against God's Law but from all those civil moral lawfull actions at other times that may reflect any dishonour upon the work that hath been done or upon the work that shall be done or that may render the place unmeet for religious services afterwards And this is that that one calls a Negative or a Privative reverence a reverence or not doing something not because the place is more holy but for decency and order considering the religious duties performed in that place So that things subservient to Religion call for a Negative reverence and are not so to be used as that the Religious services which are there performed and transacted should be made disgracefull and dishonourable as the Bread of the Sacrament after the Sacrament is done is not lawfull to be cast unto unreasonable creatures because it reflects dishonour upon the religious service which we were before doing so dirty water is not to be put into the Communion Cup not that the Cup is holy but because it is a reflection of disgrace upon that holy service wherein that Cup is made use of and that Cup is not to be made use of to drunkenness But in all this bear me witness that I say all this is but a civil reverence and so due to any place where there is any honourable Convention as in the Parliament-house or presence-Chamber or the like Having yielded this 2. I must come now to deny what must not be granted and I likewise deny four things 1. It is not now in the times of the Gospel in any mans power to set apart a place for Religious duties so as that it should be unlawful upon a due occasion to use it for civil imployments or that it should be alwaies unlawful to alienate to other uses besides those uses that are Divine the Bread and Wine sanctified by Gods own institution by the Minister after the publick use and administration of them in the Ordinance are not only holy but they may be eaten in a civil use and way as our ordinary and common food The Synagogues among the Jews were as holy as our Churches they were for holy duties as Prayer Preaching and the like and dedicated to Gods Worship and yet you must know there are civil imployments used in those places after the Religious Worship was done and therefore in Matth. 23. 34. saith our Saviour some of them you shall scourge in your Synagogues Hence we use to keep Courts and Consistories in Churches amongst us and some of them none of the best and and we use here among us in this City constantly in our Churches and I doubt not but it is lawful for an Alderman in his Ward to meet about secular business as to choose Common-Council-men or the like But where there hath been a dedication of a place to Gods worship it is only God that can make it so holy as that it should be sinful to employ it to other uses and if the Governours of the Church upon due occasion and reason shall substitute other places more fit then the former for Divine Worship then the former places may return to their former proper uses but it is not so in things consecrated by God If the Font Table or Pulpit wax old they may be laid aside and looked upon as common things and may be used for other imployments and suppose the Surplisse be a lawful garment in Gods worship which yet I am perswaded none of you believe doubtless it is not to be burned when it is old and past wearing and the ashes put into a pot or some such like thing and be buried under the Altar but it may be used as other linnen may And so the common Utensils as the Cup and the like when they are come to be old they may be used to other imployments without fear of sin And therefore it is an excellent speech of one saith he so to Consecrate moveable or immoveable goods as that it should be a sin for the Church to use them in any secular imployments it is an execrable and abominable Superstition God hath not consecrated any thing in the Gospel

or faint in it Sin you know is twofold Original and Actual Actual sin is not meant primarily for that is not peccatum agens sin that easily besets us but peccatum transiens the sin that passes from us and Original sin is that which is emphatically called sin Rom. 7. 8. Now this original corruption may be considered as meerly native or as acquired and improved into evil customes and habits for according to mens tempers and constitutions as they are severally disposed so by the corruption of nature they are inclin'd to one sin more then another as the channel is cut so corrupt nature finds a vent and issue in every man there is some predominant sin and in every regenerate person some relicks of that sin from whence is the greatest danger of his soul thus David speaks of his iniquity Psalm 18. 23. Well then this is that sin that doth easily beset us Original sin improved into some tyranny or evil custome which doth encrease and prevail upon us more and more Now this is said easily to beset us for three reasons Partly because it hath a great power and restraint over us and implies the whole man the members of the body the faculties of the soul so great an interest hath it acquired in our affections it doth easily beset us it hath great power and command over us Partly because it sticks so close that we cannot by our own strength lay it aside Ier. 13. 23. Can the Ethtopian change his skin or the Leopard his spots c A man can as ●…oon change his skin as lay aside his customes that are so deeply engraven as the blackness of an Ethiopian or the spots of the Leopard And partly because it mingles it self with all our motions and actions Rom. 7. 21 c. It easily besets us 't is present with us it impels us and solicites us and draws us to sin further and further and make us negligent in what is Gods we cannot do or speak any thing but it will infest us in all our duties of piety charity justice on every side it is interposing vexing thwarting the motions of the Spirit and so abates our strength vigour and agility and retards our course towards heaven and glory therefore lay aside as every weight so every sin c. Quest. Now what is it to lay aside or how can we lay aside since sin sticks so close to us and is engraven in our natures Ans. Certainly something may be done by us for this is every where pressed as our duty Ephes. 4. 4. 22. Put off the old man and 1 Pet. 2. 11. we may put it off more and more though we cannot lay it aside Then we are said to lay aside the sin that so easily besets us when we prevent and break the dominion of it that it shall not raign over us Rom. 6 12. Let not sin reign c. Though it dwells in us lives in us and works in us yet it should not overcome us and bring us into bondage and so it will not be imputed to our condemnation and at length when the soul shall be separated from the body we shall be wholly free from it Quest. I but what must we do that we may so repress it the question returns that we may break the domonion of it Ans. I answer this is the work of the Spirit of God but we must know the Spirit of God doth work the work of mortification two wayes By Regeneration and after Regeneration By Regeneration and so he doth immediately without any co-operation of ours mortifie the deeds of sin gives sin its death-wound That which is left is as a thing mortified it is broken the Scripture often speaks of this first work of Regeneration Rom. 6. 6. Col. 2. 11. First when we are planted into Christ then we put off the body of sin and though it doth not presently dye yet it is weakened that it cannot reign though it be not destroyed 2. After Regeneration the Spirit doth more and more destroy sin the reliques of sin this crucified body of sin till it dieth wholly away this he doth in us but not without us Rom. 8. 13. Through the Spirit mortifie the deeds of the body Not the Spirit without us nor we without the Spirit but ye through the Spirit What is then required of us 1. Seriously purpose not to sin and promise to God to yield him unfeigned obedience Especially should we make this promise in the use of those solemn Rights by which the Covenant between God and us is confirmed Take up a solemn purpose not to grieve the Spirit nor to break his Law Psal. 119. 106. I have sworn and I will perform it that I will keep thy righteous Iudgements This purpose of heart is the root of all good actions therefore in the confidence of Gods help in the sence of thy own weakness Psalm 119. 32. we cannot lay Wagers upon our own strength yet it is our duty to engage our hearts to God To sin against the light of our own Conscience and illumination of the Spirit and the chastening and instruction of our own reins that aggravates our sin but to sin against and besides our fixed purpose of not sinning that lightens sin for then it is a sin of weaknesse and infirmity not of wilfulness and malice and then we can say as Paul Rom. 7. 19. when the heart is fixedly bent towards God The evil which I would not that do I. Two wayes may we be said to sin against purpose either when we are over-born besides our purpose our purpose still remains to please God As when the water breaks over the bank the bank remaining in such a case the fault is not in the bank but in the violence of the flood Or secondly when we break off our purpose or consent to do evil as when we cut through the bank the water may easily make through There is a great deal of difference between sin dwelling in us and sin entertained by us between sin remaining and sin reserved and when you have a firm purpose against all sin there is sin remaining but it is not reserved but it is not kept and allowed 2. Watch over thy self with a holy self-suspition because thou hast sin within thee that doth easily beset thee therefore consider thy wayes Psal. 119. 59. Guard thy sences Iob 31. 1. but above all keep thy heart Prov. 4. 23. Conscience must stand Porter at the door and examine what comes in and what goes out watch over the stratagems of Satan and seducing motions of thy own heart 3. Resist and oppose strongly against the first risings of the flesh and the tickling and pleasing motions of sin that doth easily beset us when it doth intice us away from God or do any thing that is unseemly and contrary unto the duties of our heavenly calling Oh! remember we are not debtors to the flesh Rom. 8. 20. Thou art tyed to the Lord by all obligations and