Selected quad for the lemma: duty_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
duty_n	command_v	servant_n	unprofitable_a	1,244	5	10.6349	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A21060	A vvorthy communicant: or, A treatise, shewing the due order of receiving the sacrament of the Lords Supper. By Ier. Dyke, minister of Epping, in Essex	Dyke, Jeremiah, 1584-1639.	1636 (1636)	STC 7429; ESTC S100166	228,752	658

we not be glad to see Christ to have him look graciously upon us to have communion with him to have him invite himselfe to us to have him be a guest in our hearts Would we not be glad to have it thus with us Surely there is little comfort in the Sacrament when it is not thus with us Word and Sacrament both are but dead and dull services when Christ is not seene in them when we heare not his voice see not his face in them Therefore when we are to come to the Sacrament looke to that and provide for it before-hand that when we are come we may see Christ have him see and owne us But how may that be done Set thine heart first strongly to desire to see Christ and then though thou may have discouragements that there is a multitude and a crowd of duties to be done and that thy stature and strength is very little and therefore no great hope that thou shouldest get the sight of Christ in the Ordinance yet for all that hold on thy desires to see Christ and run before and get up and though it cannot be done without much adoe yet climbe up into the Sycamore Tree and thou shalt see Christ and have communion with him from the top of that Tree I but what is that Sycamore Tree what is this running before what is this climbing up It is out of a desire to see and enjoy Christ in his Ordinance an industrious paines-taking in private duties of preparation examination excitation and renewing of faith and repentance and striving in prayer with God This is running before this is climbing up into the Sycamore Tree And whosoever takes paines before-hand in the fore-named and forehandled duties of preparation he runs before he climbes up into the Sycamore shall speed as happily as Zacheus did shal from the top of that Sycamore so painfully climbed see Christ and enjoy fellowship with him All that come to the Sacrament say they desire to see Christ and injoy him there and yet to how many doth Christ say in effect at the Sacrament as the Lord speakes to Ezekiel Ezek. 12. 18. Son of man eat thy bread with quaking and drink thy water with trembling So Son of man eat thy Sacramentall bread with quaking and drinke the Sacramentall wine with trembling Go get your wayes home with a drooping and an heavie heart But why should they so do because they see not Christ nor Christ looks not at them vouchsafes no fellowship with them in his Ordinance Go thy way eat thy bread with joy and drink thy wine with a merry heart sayes he Eccles 9. 7. for God now accepts thy workes but contrarily may it be said to many Go thy way eat thy bread at the Sacrament with sorrow and drink thy wine at the Sacrament with an heavie heart for God accepts not thy work nor thy service herein Christ doth not looke upon thee doth not invite himselfe to thee And what may the reason of it be Men say they desire to see and injoy Christ in the Sacrament but they doe not run before they doe not take paines to climbe up into the Sycamore Tree Their desires are idle lazie slothfull there is no industrious preparation no industrious examination no industrious renewing faith and repentance there is no industrious praying and painfull seeking of God before hand And hence is our mischiefe and miscarriage we run not we climbe not and therefore we see not So long as Zacheus kept on the ground he saw not Christ nor could see him but when he had run before and climbed then he doth more than see him Our desires keepe on the ground we spend no time wee take no paines the week and the day before and therefore we misse the comfortable sight of Christ in the Sacrament But let our desires be once running and climbing desires let them once get up in the Sycamore Tree and they shall finde fruit worth the running and the climbing for Pro. 27. 18. Whoso keepes the Fig tree shall eat the fruit thereof so he that climbs the Fig-tree shall eat the fruit thereof We must not thinke that these Figs will drop into our mouthes they must climbe for them that will have them and climbing is painfull They that will take Zacheus's paines shall reape Zacheus's gaines A little faith a faith of as small a stature as Zacheus if it be industrious and will take paines before-hand will helpe a man to great benefit and comfort from Christ in his Ordinance Though industrious preparation examination prayer c. be teadious and wearisome to sloathfull flesh and that pretends a presse and a crowd of earthly businesses that must be lookt to and a crowd of duties to be done that will keepe a man off from a possibility of seeing Christ yet all the wearisomenesse notwithstanding and presse of secular businesse notwithstanding hold thy selfe closely to this worke there will come that comfort and that sweet in the Sacrament that will pay for all Though it were troublesome to run before though it were a matter of trouble and difficulty to climbe and clamber into the Sycamore Tree yet findes Zacheus that precious fruit therein that richly payd him for all his paines Now besides all this paines in our own personall preparation we must also know that we must have a care to prepare others as wee stand charged with them in their severall relations to us Ministers must not onely prepare themselves but must do their best to prepare their people As Iosiah speakes to them 2 Chron. 35. 6. Sanctifie your selves and prepare your brethren so it may be said to Ministers sanctifie your selves and prepare your people so to Parents sanctifie your selves and prepare your children so to Masters and Governours sanctifie your selves and prepare your servants and your Families See Exod. 12. 26 27. It shall come to passe that when your children shall say What mean you by this service that ye shall say It is the Sacrifice of the Lords Passeover c. And Vers 48. When a stranger shall sojourne with thee and will keepe the Passeover to the Lord let all his males bee circumcised c. Such whom it concerned must looke that he were prepared before he came Thou therfore that hast others under thy charg have a care to prepare them instruct them direct them call upon them to have a care to come in due Order If thou know'st any sin or evill in them admonish them and advise them to repentance for it and to a resolution to a reformation of it before they come to the Sacrament And thus much for preparation to the Sacrament Ob. But when I have done all that I can I must say I am an unprofitable servant When ye have done all those things which are commanded you sayes our Saviour say We are unprofitable servants we have done that which was our duty to do The Lord then be mercifull unto me for if when I have done all

that is commanded me and when I have done that which is my duty to doe I must say I am an unprofitable servant then how much more must I say it that am far short of doing all that in this particular I am commanded to do and have not done that which is my duty to do I doubt therefore that I may not come to the Sacrament because I cannot finde my selfe thus prepared I were better keepe away than come unlesse I were thus prepared I have done what I possibly can do but alas how short am I of what is required Answ 1. First have recourse here to that which before was said in the last point of the second Chapter Labour and endeavour to be as exactly prepared as possibly thou canst but if thou canst not attaine to that measure and degree of preparation thou desirest yet if thy heart witnesse to thee that what is wanting in thy preparation is not from sloth idlenesse and lothnesse to take paines but it is the highest degree that with all thy paines thou art able to attaine unto I say unto thee in this case as Saul spake to David in that 1 Sam. 17. 37. Goe and the Lord be with thee Go to the Sacrament and feare not but that the Lord will be with thee 2 Secondly if indeed thou hast no faith no repentance at all wrought or renewed in thee I would in any case advise thee to forbeare for why shouldest thou destroy thy selfe as Salomon speakes in that case Eccl. 7. 16. But now deale uprightly as in Gods presence and take heed as well of bearing false witnesse against thy self as against thy neighbour It is a sin to beare false witnesse against thy selfe as well as to foredoe thy selfe and therefore make conscience of it deale sincerely therefore Darest thou confidently and upon unquestionable grounds affirme it that thou hast no faith no repentance I much feare me sayest thou that I have not That is not the point what thou fearest but what thou assuredly knowest A man may have much faith that feares hee hath none yea there may bee greatest faith where there be greatest feares Thou upon serious examination of thine owne condition not upon an ignorant selfe-love darest not for a world resolutely and peremptorily say thou hast no faith no grace no part in Christ then take heed how thou upon thy feares forbeare Gods Ordinance 3 Thirdly if thou have done thine utmost in the sincerity of thy spirit to fit thy selfe for the duty and thine heart charges thee neither with any grosse guilt in thy life nor with any slothfull formality in thy preparation though thou canst not finde thy selfe so fitted as thou wouldest yet go to the Ordinance if it be upon conscience of giving God obedience Christ commands the use of the Sacrament Doe this in remembrance of me Now though thine owne feares discourage and dis-hearten thee and when thou lookest at thy selfe thou fearest to go yet if when thou lookest at Gods commandement and in the conscience of it fearest to stay away here in this conflict of feares let this last feare get the victory and be more afraid to stay from the Sacrament in regard of Gods commandement then to come to the Sacrament in regard of thy discouragement Gods commandement sayes Go thine own discouragements sayes Goe not Give obedience rather to Gods commandement than to thine owne feares Obedience yeelded to God out of pure conscience to his commandement yeelded I say against discouragements and feares may be no whit inferiour unto nor lesse acceptable then a preparation in a more exact and excellent degree then yet thou hast Such obedience is most excellent and most acceptable for that is the most excellent obedience when there is nothing else to toll and draw us on but only Gods commandement When a man finds himselfe in such a frame of spirit as that he questions not but to meet with comfort and a good answer at the Sacrament then possibly not Gods commandement but that comfort may rather seeme to draw him to the duty But now when a man hath some discouragements in regard of the feares of the indisposition of his spirit and yet in regard of Gods commandement dares not absent himself dares not but go it is cleere that such obedience is pure obedience because there is nothing to draw him on but Gods commandement and that hee doth the duty upon this ground Because God will have him do it that he doth it more for Gods sake than his own Excellent is that Exo. 14. 15. The Lord said unto Moses speak unto the children of Israel that they go forward Forwards Why there was great danger before them they go upon a manifest danger the Sea is before them As good go backward to the Aegyptians or as good stand still and let the Aegyptians come and put them to the sword as to goe forward It is but death to stand still but death to go backward and it is no better than death to goe forward What safety can be expected by going into the Sea Well for all this speake to the children of Israel that they go forward Now to go forward because God commands it when nothing but present danger in sight was an argument of pure obedience it was not safety but conscience of obedience to Gods commandement that carried them forwards A man in the truth and sincerity of his spirit hath done his utmost in his preparation and yet his heart misgives him that he shall sin to go to the Sacrament and that he shall run himselfe upon a manifest danger speake unto such a man that he go forward because God commands him to doe him this service and his going forward in obedience being pure obedience it shall returne him at last as great comfort as if he had beene so prepared as his desire was to have beene Object I but my heart is full of feares and doubts I feare and tremble to come to Gods Ordinance in my feares Answ Yet come Feares in comming are no barre to comfort Thou mayest come in feare and yet goe away with much comfort See Mark 5. 33. The Woman fearing and trembling came and fell downe before him And what sayes Christ to her Vers 34. Daughter go in peace She comes to Christ with feare she goes away in peace she came trembling she goes away rejoycing If her feare and trembling had kept her from Christ she had missed of that sweet and comfortable answer Daughter go in peace We know not what comfort we deprive our selves of when we suffer our feares and jealousies to prevaile so farre with us as to keepe us from Christ in his Ordinances Object But my feare is that I shall not meet with Christ nor finde him in his Ordinance and therefore what should I do there Answ A man may then meet with Christ and find him when he least of all hopes to finde him Mary meets with Christ Iohn 20. 15. and supposes