Selected quad for the lemma: duty_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
duty_n	affection_n	heart_n	soul_n	1,196	5	4.7627	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A75270	The virgin saint, or, A brief narrative of the holy life and Christian death of Mary Wilson with some memorable passages, and occasional speeches a little before her death added thereunto ; to which is also adjoyned a sermon, preached at her funeral by Mr. Geo. Nicholson, together with several consolatory letters, written by divers ministers, to her mournful father, Mr. Richard Wilson of Crosfield in Cumberland.	S. A.; Nicholson, George, ca. 1637-1697. Sermon preached at the funeral of Mrs. Mary Wilson.	1673 (1673)	Wing A28A; ESTC R42607	83,061	185

have been earnest with you and with whom I have been earnest for you that the match may be really made up between you which being effected my labour is recompensed my Errand is accomplished my Desire is satisfied my Joy is fulfilled And now that I have this unexpected opportunity of making publick some hints only of some of the choice desires of my Soul to you and to the Lord for you Know ye therefore that they are such as these First That none of you all who are taught and do believe and profess the absolute necessity of Regeneration in order to eternal Salvation rest satisfied in your Spiritual conditions Mat. 18.3 2 Cor. 13.5 Gal. 6.15 Rom. 8.9 10. without some hopeful evidences that you are born again and truly converted that ye are in the Faith new creatures in Christ Jesus And that Christ is in you and abideth in you And that you have the Spirit of Christ Oh! rest not in uncertainties about your Spiritual and Eternal Felicities as you would not about your Temporal but give all diligence to make your Calling and Election sure 2 Pet. 1.10 Secondly Look that you make good the ground you have got through Grace against the World the Flesh and the Devil by a dayly progress in both the parts of Sanctification viz. Mortification and Vivification And beware that you be not again entangled and overcome 2 Pet. 2.20 and so your last end be worse than your beginning Luk. 9.62 Having put your hand to the Plough look not back much less be ye of them that draw back unto perdition But be ye of them that believe Heb. 10.39 to the saving of the Soul And need I bid you beware of Popery Rev. 13.3 Iniquitas sed mistica pietatis fidelitatis nomine palliata 1 Cor. 10.12 which is the most Catholick Apostacy the Mystery of Iniquity yet palliated with the name only of Piety Antiquity Universality c. yea I say Let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall as too many have done It 's operative and strong though but a Delusion and a Lie yea it is the Energy 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 2 Thess 2.9 11. or strong working of Satan through the just judgment of God with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish because they received not the love of the truth that they might be saved Popish Seducers are subtile Artists that have † 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the sleight of me * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 cunning craf●iness and † 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Eph. 4.14 2 Pet. 2.19 the method of Errour or De●usion The Ignorant and Sensual are in greatest jeopardie they promise others liberty whilst themselves are the servants of corruption The prime piece of their Worship is palpable Idolatry the whole complex of their common Devotion is Will. worship Superstition and Formality One would think that no serious Professors of Christianity were in any peril of Popery yet Quakers are an Artificial ●roduct of it though they know it not Love God the Gespel and your Souls better than the World and your Bellies Phil. 3.18 19. and you are out of the danger of it Thirdly Phil. 1.10 See to it that ye be sincere Converts sincere Saints that your Faith Love Repentance Obedience c. be sincere For if you be sincere you shall persevere But Hypocrifie will end in Apostasie What is sound is strong and invincible what is sound is special and not common Grace Though common Grace may make a great show cast a great blaze yet like the Comet it consumes of it self till it be extinguished 1 Joh. 3.9 Mat. 13.31 32. True Grace is the Seed of God and though it be little and weak yet its nature is to grow in stature and strength or though it may decay yet it cannot die For its the life of God a Well of living water springing up unto Eternal Life But let its Counterfeit † i. e. comon grace which resembles it so much in all things make you the of●ner and exacter in the use of the Touchstone Fourthly Let your Communion with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ be frequent and full Omit no opportunities nor means thereof Redeem time from your worldly affairs for converse with your God in the Duties of his more solemn Service Knowing that the Holiness Comfort and Happiness of your lives consists in such communion Use and improve the means for the end Read hear pray confer and meditate much And be loth to leave any duty till you attain some sensible enjoyment of his Grace and Love And till your hearts be warmed your graces excited your Affections engaged and your Souls even make you like the Chariots of Aminadab Cant. 6.12 And prize and treasure up your experiences of this kind Neh. 8.10 Retain a lively sense of Divine impressions upon your spirits And let the joy of the Lord be your strength Zech. 10.12 to walk up and down in his Name And lament your loss when you came off from your Duties without success Take heed of Formality in them Fifthly And you that are heads of Families Take heed to your Families over which the Holy Ghost even in your private Capacities hath also made you Overseers That you should watch for their Souls as they that must give account that ye may do it with joy and not with grief Deal particularly and closely with them about the estates of their Souls Labour to convince them of their exceeding sinfulness and misery by Nature And that they are under the Law and so under the wrath and curse of God while they continue therein That they are utterly blind lame deaf Isa 35.5 6 dumb and dead spiritually and under the power of Satan immediatly That their natural Light is spiritual Darkness their sweet is bitter their good is evil Their Moral Civil and Religious works are all Sins in Gods sight Prom. 8.8 for being in the flesh they cannot please God in any thing but displease him altogether though they please themselves and others never so much That they are liable to all Judgments Temporal and to Death and Damnation Eternal every moment Yet all this notwithstanding They are to be persuaded That the Lord Jesus Christ the eternal Son of God is become an All-sufficient Saviour of all men even the worst of Sinners That he hath purchased Salvation for them offers Salvation to them and is willing to enter into a Covenant of Salvation with them if they will but accept him and be ruled by him according to the terms of the Gospel That he hath redeemed them and will justifie them freely Pardon them fully Sanctifie them throughly Adopt them graciously Keep them powerfully and save them gloriously That he hath confirmed his Covenant of Salvation with his Oath and with the Seals of his Blood Spirit and Sacraments That he hath ever been mindful of it

Love and League with Christ and for ever to be united to Christ and for ever be one with Christ And I thought the reading of these and other Motives did more and more engage my heart to Christ And then I considered That though I had made Conscience before of committing the least Sin that I knew to be a Sin yet I had not given up my self to the Lord in that serious manner that I ought to have done for I was too vain as I now see both in my Thoughts Words and Actions and went on securely and did not at all question my Estate and Condition nor did I see any thing of the evil of mine own heart till the Lord was pleased to discover it to me And when I did endeavour to set my self to any Duty or to have my Meditations upon any thing that was good then I found the starting up of Sin in my Heart and a woful Aversness and Backwardness in my heart to any thing that was good And though I was sensible of something that was my Duty to do which as I thought I would have willingly done yet when I came to it it seemed burdensome to me Afterwards I read Mr. Shepheards Sincere Convert by which the Lord was pleased to let me see from whence all that backwardness in my heart did spring the cause of which was that Original Sin that I brought into the world with me And then it was the grief of my heart that I could not be humbled for that Sin as I ought to be And it did the more grieve me in that I had known it before by Questions that my Father had asked me about it and yet it did but swim in my brain I did not think that it was mine own Case in particular nor did I apply it to mine own Heart wherefore I did mourn because I could not mourn enough for and under such an oppressing evil as this was to me Whereupon the Lord gave me in these supporting Scriptures Isai 53.7 Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts and let him return unto the Lord and he will have mercy upon him and to our God for he will abundantly pardon Mat. 11.28 Come unto me all ye that are weary and heavy laden and I will give you Rest Then I thought these were very sweet Scriptures but I had something to object against my self that they did not belong unto me because I felt not the weight and burden of Sin in that degree and measure as I ought Though I was sensible of Sin lying upon me yet I thought Sin as Sin was not so real a burthen to me as it ought to have been And therefore I concluded that I had no Right to such Promises but put them often away from me till it pleased the Lord to set home that other Scripture upon my heart Mat. 12.20 A bruised reed shall he not break and smoaking slax shall he not quench till he send forth judgment unto Victory And providentially reciting Mr. Love's Different Degrees of Grace I found that same place opened sweetly which told me to my encouragement That though there was much smoak of Infirmity yet if there was but the least breathings of Grace the Lord would not quench it but breath upon it and increase it And that he would not despise the Day of small things And by these things I was much encouraged and refreshed After that hearing Mr. Nicholson upon Math. 7.21 Not every one that saith unto me Lord Lord shall enter into the Kingdom of Heaven From which was observed That it is not a bare naked and ●mpty Profession of Religion though never so ●ealously maintained that is sufficient to save any ●an In his Discourse upon this point he came ● shew how easie a thing it was to mistake about a ●od Profession and a bad one First From the nearness of their resemblance ●●ch to other The lamps of the five foolish Virgins were like to the lamps of the five wise Virgins Secondly By comparing our selves at present ●●th what we had been before a man may be ●●other Creature and yet not a new Creature Thirdly We may mistake by comparing our ●●ves with others that are worse in appearance ●●an our selves Fourthly By some superficial Touches and ●●ward Flashes of Conscience a man may pro●●● from Conviction as well as from Conversion By the hearing of this I was again discouraged ●●d brought again to fear that all this time I ●●d but been under some superficial Touches upon ●● Affections and I thought my Profession was ●● good or at least I might be mistaken about 〈◊〉 because it was an easie thing to mistake it But ●●erwards he came to distinguish betwixt a good ●●fession and a bad and shewed First That a true Profession of Religion it ●aies respects Christ as the Fountain and ●●der of it Secondly It leads to Christ as the mark and end of it Thirdly It ariseth from such a principle ●● Grace within as puts down the Creature in it own eyes but lifts up Christ and his Grace Fourthly It is alwaies attended with an high valuation of Christ Fifthly It maketh much of Christ in the wor● of times Christ's Cross is as really dear as h●● Crown But on the other hand A false Profession of Christ springs from self directs ●● self exalts self and doth but make a stalking horse of Christ at best These things through the Blessing of God ten●● much to my Satisfaction and Comfort for by th●● marks I thought I could truly say That 〈◊〉 sired to go to Christ as my Fountain and Feed●● and could do no further than I had Christ to be 〈◊〉 fountain feeder And I thought I could truly s● that I desired the end of my life might be the Gl●● of Christ But after this through my Corruption Weaknesses these things did slide out of my mi●● Then Fears began to arise again That all ●● not right with me finding especially the avers●● of my heart to the performance of every Duty 〈◊〉 the wonted evils that were in my heart remain●● And many Fears possessed my Soul that all 〈◊〉 depart from me again and it proved so T●● Scripture being often upon my Spirit If thou 〈◊〉 g●ard Iniquity in thine heart the Lord will not ●●ear thy Prayer Whereupon I concluded that ●here was nothing but Iniquity in my heart and so 〈◊〉 would give over Praying And I did give it ●ver for many Days except at some single times ●nd then I found not the Presence of God as ●eretofore and so found it to be but liveless Duty ●●at I performed And thus continuing for some ●●me in the neglect of Duty and my Heart growing vain and light yet not considering from ●hence I was fallen all this while But after a while I began to consider that I ●●d suffered woful decays in my Affections and ●● thought I would endeavour to get my heart into ●● better frame against another

word may be rendered a profane Fool for despising his Birth-right which showed his undervaluing of Heaven and preferring the earth before it Heb. 12.16 with Gen. 25.34 Use 3. Thirdly Is it the grand Concernment of all that would be saved to make ready for Christ's coming Then let it serve for Exhortation to press you all seriously and earnestly to make your selves ready Entertain the Lord Christ's advice in the Text Be ye therefore ready also I shall enforce the Duty upon you with two or three Considerations because I must hasten Considerations First Consider that your sasety lyeth in making ready for Christ I would think That there is not a person among you this day but would give something to know that his Soul is safe and shall be secured against all future hazards of miscarrying eternally Why my Friends I can tell you how you may have them secure enough Do but you get and make sure of that ●undamental-Readiness you were told of and abour still after Actual Preparation and your Souls will be safe and past the peril of miscarrying eternally Though you may dash sometimes against some Rocks before you get over ●●e troublesome Sea of this world yet shall not ●he Vessel of your Soul be split upon any of these ●ocks but shall come safely in into the Harbour 〈◊〉 Heaven Secondly Consider that Christ may come upon 〈◊〉 at unawares The time of his coming may ●ove a surprizal to you O then get ready my ●riends There is none of you that knoweth ●ow soon you may have a call to go from hence ●hich of your Funerals may be the next neither 〈◊〉 nor I know But this I know That few 〈◊〉 us thought that we should have seen this ●ournful day on such a sudden Was it not a ●●prizal to the most Though not to the party ●●eceased for she had strong impressions of ●●eath when others had no fear of it at all ●atch therefore for ye neither know the day nor 〈◊〉 hour wherein the Son of man cometh Mat. ● 13 Thirdly Consider what comfort it will be to 〈◊〉 in a Dying hour to know that you are ready though Death is and will be the King of Ter●●urs to others yet it will be a welcome Mes●ger to you Then shall ye be able to reckon up for one of your Priviledges yea your last Priviledg in this world according to that of the Apostle 1 Cor. 3.22 Death is yours Fourthly Consider how readily ye shall be entertained and received of Christ if you do but get ready for him There shall no stop be made but forthwith ye shall enter into Glory Mat. 25.10 And they that were ready went in with him unto the Marriage So soon as Lazarus was dead his Soul was carried into Abraham's bosome Luk. 16.22 Do but you mind to make you ready the Lord Christ will quickly pass the Sentence for your entrance into his Eternal Kingdome The Fourth Use Fourthly Is it the great Concern of all that would be saved to prepare for the Coming of Christ Then this Use may serve for Consolation to all such as have in some good measure been fitting themselves for the appearance of Christ and are still making it their business to be compleating their Readiness for his Coming It speaketh Comfort to such in two or three Particulars First Take this for your Comfort at present That you shall certainly sit down with Christ in Glory The Marriage-Supper is prepared for you and you shall be Guests at the Bridegrooms Table All the attendance that can be expected you shall have Christ himself will gird himself and come forth and serve you Luk. 12.37 Blessed are those Servants whom the Lord when he cometh shall find watching Verily I say unto you that he shall gird himself and make them to sit down to meat and will come forth and serve them And what an honourable attendance is this for the Master of the house ●o wait on his Servants Secondly It speaks this comfort to them That when ever Christ cometh it shall not be a surprisal to them If you continue your preparation for Christ his Coming and do not fall asleep or grow secure again Christ will not come on you unawares you shall then speak of Christ's Coming eternally to save you as the Church peaketh of the Lord 's coming eternally to save ●er Isa 25.9 And it shall be said in that day Lo his is our God we have waited for him and he ●ill save us This is the Lord we have waited or him we will be glad and rejoice in his Salvation They are only the sleepy and slumbering Virgins that are surprized with his Coming such ●s are making ready for him and expecting him ●hall not be taken at unawares Though they ●now not the time of his Coming yet because ●hey are looking and waiting for his Coming ●hey shall not be surprized when ever he cometh ●urely I come quickly saith Christ Amen ●ith the prepared Soul Even so come Lord Iesus Rev. 22.20 Thirdly There is this further comfort also in it That such prepared Souls shall ordinarily have some comfortable foretasts of glory to come Such shall eat of the Grapes of Eshcol while they are in the way to Heaven before they come into the Land of Canaan it self I do not say that it is alwaies thus with prepared Souls a for some possibly that have diligently endeavoured to prepared themselves for the Coming o● Christ may yet notwithstanding feel nothing bu● bitterness in their spirits in their way to glory a● the case seemeth to have been with precious Heman Psal 88. throughout And the 15 vers● thereof tells us That this was his case from hi● youth up I am afflicted and ready to die from my youth up while I suffer thy terrors I am distracted The Hebrew word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is translated from my youth up signifieth Childhood and cometh from a root that signifieth to shake-out 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as if he had said I am afflicted an ready to die from my very shaking out of the Womb Nay possibly such Souls may some times go away in a Cloud without the lea● taste of that Glory which immediatly after Death they do fully possess and enjoy But ye● ordinarily they do more generally taste 〈◊〉 those pleasures that are at Gods right hand forevermore while they are in their way to Heaven They depart in peace as the Phrase ●● Luke 2.29 that is They die with satisfaction and comfort nay with joy and gladness Revel 19.7 Let us be glad ond rejoice and give honour to him for the Marriage of the Lamb is come and his wife hath made her self ready And the reason is Because they have the Testimony of their Consciences according to that of Paul 2 Cor. 1.12 For our rejoycing is this the testimony of our Conscience that in simplicity and godly sincerity not with fleshly wisdome but by ●he grace of God we have had our conversation ●● the world

snow-ball before a Summers Sun And since Death took possession of somthing of yours it hath been and dayly is creeping neare your self Howbeit with no noise of feet your Husbandman and Lord hath lopped off one branch already the tree it self is to be removed into the higher Garden the Lord fit you for your change and help you to bear these crosses for indeed they are great and many and give you a sanctified use of them and to make you white and ripe for the Lord's Harvest-hook by them I have seen the Lord weaning you from this world and its vanities it was never his mind that it should be your portion and let the Lord be praised that it is so you look the liker one of the Heirs of Glory let the moveables go why not They are not yours but fasthold on the Heritage Even our Lord Christ make your interest sure and give you to grow as a Palm tree upon Mount Zion howbeit shaken with winds and many sore blasts yet the root is fast I pray Him whose you are to supply your wants another way for though we cannot see the Lords design in this his wise Providence who ruleth all yet I verily believe this is not only good but best of all For wise Solomon saith Better is the end of a thing than the begiuning Yea Christ calls from Heaven and bids Write Blessed are the dead that die in the Lord they rest from their labours and their works follow them And after Paul had seriously debated the Case whether to live or dye was better for him he concludes that of the two To die and to be with Christ was best of all And therefore my dear Brother this should teach us and work in us a careful Preparation for Death and vehement longings after it and chearfulness in entertaining it and moderation in our sorrowing for her that 's dead Mourning only for our own loss and that especially because the Death and removal of the Godly is a sad if not a sure presage of ensuing Evil. When Noah was entered into the Ark then the Flood came Gen. 7.12 When Lot was gone out of Sodome then it must be burnt When the Lord resolved to destroy Jeroboam house he took away the Child in whom there was some good thing found 1 Kin. 14.10 11 13. Thus when the Lord in ended to bring evil upon Jerusalem good Josiah must first be brought to his grave in peace Because his heart was tender and he humbled himelf at the hearing of the Law of God 2 Kin. 22.16 17 18 19 20. Wo is me therefore considering that even amongst us the righteous are taken away that in four or five Months time almost the tenth man on this side Hartside should be removed yet not considering at least not as they ought to do That The righteous are taken away from the evil to come Isa 57. When our Jacob for wrestling our Caleb and Joshuah for following the Lord and our Nathaniel and besides our Mary is removed How should this awaken us and the very thoughts of it make us tremble and our knees to smite one against another It s true they are beyond the Storm But the presence of the Godly in all Ages hath drawn the love and favour of God to the places where they were For they are dear to God As the apple of his eye Zech. 2.8 And he will be a wall of ire round about the place where they are v. 5. Yea many a time doth God spare the wicked for the godly as the husbandman doth the tares for the wheat 's sake Matth. 13. As God would have spared Sodome and Gomorrah if there had been but ten nay five righteous persons Gen. 18.32 Act. 27.24 Besides the Prayers of the Godly in all Ages have been mighty prevalent with God both for the obtaining Mercies and also for the preventing miseries and keeping of judgments from the places where they live● Psal 106.23 He would saith the Psalmist have destroyed them had not Moses his Servant stoe● before him in the breach to turn away his wrath lest he should destroy them Besides they are 〈◊〉 great force for the vanquishing and overcoming of Enemies Moses prevailed more by h●● Prayers than Joshua with all his Soldiers againt the Amalekites Exod. 17.11 One godly man Prayers saith one can do more than a great so● of Sinners 〈◊〉 do with fighting So that as N●hal's servants said of David's men so we may ●y of our dear friends that are removed from us they have been very good to us and we have had no hurt whilst we have been conversant with them They have been a wall unto us both by day and by night What cause have we then to fear that may follow the removal of them And then alas What have we lost that have lost ●uch good Examples as most of them were and 〈◊〉 particular your Daughter she one of a thou●●d Her counsel her wisdome her blameless talking was of great use to restrain some from ●in and to allure and draw others at least to be outward performance of many good Duties ●●d I think I may say that she exceeded most ●●at ever I knew except Mrs. Catherine Rea of ●●●ma in her constant care to please God and ●qual respect to the keeping of all Gods Commandments and in her holy diligence to im●ove all opportunities for her Souls profit as 〈◊〉 Meditating Praying Reading Hearing and Conferring And then her Seriousness in Duties and great delight in both First and Second Table Duties What shall I say Her ●●avity Chastity and Humility and her or●ering her self every way so holily so meekly ●●d blamelesly So that to my knowledg it was a great Conviction to those that were in a great measure strangers to Godliness or any ●trictness and I 'le assure you I often wished that her Conversation had been better known to some and that it might have so been I did fully purpose to have sued for your Consent having gotten hers that we might have had he● a while amongst us That our Professors chiefl● of her Sex whose Carriages and Conversation were not so answerable to the Gospel as they should be might have been convinced of th● evil of them and by her Gospel-conversation might have become more wise solid sober serious grave and more careful to provide so their eternal Welfare But alas it 's now to late the time is past and gone which ma● make us mourn upon our own account But u● on their account this may not only reason 〈◊〉 into a Moderation of Sorrow but also cause 〈◊〉 to rejoice in that they are landed safe in Hea●ven where she also is even with Christ which is best of all she is now set at liberty and fre● dome Who is not comforted to see and know that his Friend is brought out of Prison to 〈◊〉 his Friend set free from all Persecutions Si● Sorrow and Death and to live and rejoice wi●● Christ 2 Tim. 2.11 12. And may