Selected quad for the lemma: earth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
earth_n	catholic_n	church_n	visible_a	2,907	5	9.9387	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A34575	The great necessity of preparation for death and judgment a sermon preached in the parochial chappel of Macclesfield, in the county palatine of Chester, at the funeral of Mr. John Corker, als Cor Cor, of Hurdesfield, on the eleventh day of November, 1693, and since revised and enlarg'd at the request of the relations of the deceased / by Samuel Corker, als Cor Cor ...	Corker, Samuel, 1645 or 6-1713.	1695 (1695)	Wing C6307; ESTC R9062	80,354	95

This is one main end of our being sent into the World to do good to all Men in general because they are partakers of the same common nature with us allied to us by cognation of Blood sprout from the same common stock are like us in the contexture and frame of our Bodies and inspired with immortal Souls which are endowed with reason and understanding as well as ours they lively represent us in all the natural Characters and Features of Body and Soul and are discriminated from us only in some small circumstantial matters they are lyable to the same Fortunes and distinguishing Titles of Honour and Dignity purchased with the same precious Blood comprehended in the same Covenant of Life and Peace partakers of the same common Salvation and Heirs of the same Promises and Heavenly Inheritance In particular we are to do good to the House-hold of Faith i. e. to the Catholick Church of Christ extended from one end of the Earth to the other which he hath redeemed with his Blood beseeching Almighty God to inspire her with a Spirit of Truth Unity and Concord to preserve her from all false Doctrines Heresie and Schism More especially yet shall we pray after the Examples of those Holy Men Jeremiah and Daniel for Sion the City of our Solemnities for the Church of which we are Members that peace may be within her walls Ps 122.6 and prosperity within her palaces That God by whose name we are called would not leave us but be a wall of fire round about us an impregnable and invincible defence in this time of our necessity by his Power and Providence and the Glory in the midst of us by his gracious Presence and Holy Ordinances in their power and purity in the glorious appearance of Holiness Peace and Blessedness That he would strengthen the Bars of Sions Gates and bless all her Children within her That he would maintain his truth and preserve the beauty of our Religious Government and abate our heats and animosities that we may not by our peevish differencies and unnecessary divisions open a gap for the common Enemy to invade us but may agree in this great and good work to defend and promote the honour and interest of our Reformed Religion against those that are deeply engaged to destroy it and pray earnestly that all who profess it may live in Unity and Godly Love one with another and wherein we differ to do it with more moderation peace and charity this is to do good to the publick And in this time of difficulty we that are conjoined together in the same sacred and secular interest ought to unite in mutual intercessions to lift holy hands in prayer and to cry mightily unto God Is 62.6 7. who would have his People not to hold their peace for Jerusalem 's sake nor give him rest till he hath made her a praise in the earth this the Apostle adviseth and directeth us to do Gal. 6.10 as we have opportunity let us do good unto all men especially unto them who are of the houshold of faith We are to be as serviceable as we can to the Church and to the State to every particular man that is a proper object of beneficence but especially to the poor Members of Christ whom we are to prefer above others for the good we do unto them our Lord will accept as done unto himself Mark 9.41 Whosoever shall give to drink to one of these little ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a Disciple he shall in no wise lose his reward Tho' they are little in the esteem of the World and mean in their own Eyes Gen. 32.10 as Abraham and Jacob were dust and ashes less than the least of Gods mercies yet they are very dear to Christ more precious than fine Gold Job 23.10 His Jewels Mal. 3.17 made up of the precious graces of the Spirit all glorious within being beautified with divine vertues Faith Ps 16.3 Love Meekness Humility c. The excellent ones the delight and joy of his heart whom he values as his chiefest treasure and chargeth his Angels to minister unto and take care of and therefore they should be the objects of our tenderest regard for he will reward us Heb. 6.10 He is not unrighteous to forget our work and labour of love which we have shewed towards his name in that we ministred to the Saints and do minister To this end and purpose God hath intrusted us with several advantages and gifts of Nature and Fortune with more or less of Riches Power Wisdom Strength Authority Reputation and Esteem with great Men Interest in the World Skill in Arts and Sciences c. that we may employ them all for the use and benefit of others And we live in effect to no purpose if we do not exercise our Talents this way and become very serviceable ad beneficial to mankind God hath laid the practice of doing good so near the heart of Piety he hath enforced it with so many affectionate and persuasive Arguments and gracious Promises and terrible Threatnings that we may safely conclude from thence that a principal part of our preparation for Heaven lies in doing good to the Souls and Bodies of Men instructing their Ignorance removing their Prejudices satisfying their Doubts relieving their Fears supplying their Wants and Necessities feeding the Hungry cloathing the Naked being hospitable to Strangers and fruitful in all good works This was our blessed Saviours constant Employment his meat and his drink and his dayly business He went about doing good Acts 10.38 He laid hold on all opportunities and diligently sought out distressed Objects to exercise his large charity upon He hath made it an essential part of his Religion and hath given us many Precepts Mat. 6.20 Luk. 12.33 Chap. 6.30 quickening us to the doing of much good Lay up for your selves treasures in Heaven give Alms provide your selves Bags which wax not old a treasure in the Heavens that fadeth not Give to every man that asketh of thee Ch. 16.9 Make to your selves frieeds of the Mammon of unrighteousness And by his Apostles he hath commanded us to distribute to the necessity of the Saints Cor. 9.6 7 8. to do it cheerfully and bountifully because God more regardeth the affection of the Giver then the quantity of the Gift and in the next Life he will proportionate his rewards according to the good Works which we do in this Life therefore the Apostle earnestly presseth us Col. 3.12 Eph. 4.32 To abound in every good Work to shew mercy with cheerfulness to put on Bowels of mercy to be kind and tender hearted one towards another 1 Tim. 6 7. to be rich in good Works rich in Faith in Knowledge in Works of Liberality Mercy and Charity these are Solomon's durable Riches which will follow us when we die into the Eternal World wealth will not do this 2 Tim. 6 7. it

ever In the following verses v. 8.9 he reflects their Argument and shews that a thousand years which by a Synecdoche may be put for the longest revolution of time is with an infinite and eternal God but as one day who tho he protracts his promise hath not changed his purpose but will fulfill it and his forbearing to do it is out of abundance of patience and long-suffering to Sinners as also for the tender love he bears to his Spouse the Church which is a Body made up of collective parts and by degrees in fluxu corpore temporum as Tertul. saith in every Age and Generation there being more or less to be gathered into Christ's Sheepfold which shall obtain Salvation and tho there are strifes and contentions divisions and schisms within the Church's Bosom which break her peace and unity by a voluntary recession of some of her members from her Communion upon the account of stricter Purity Vid. The Bishop of Worcester's unreasonableness of Separation which was the Plea of Parmenian and Petilian in the last Conference at Carthage of Felicissimus and his Brethren for their separation from St. Cyprian and of the Meletians Luciferians and Donatists in general Tho there be heretical Opinions and erroneous Doctrines which externally oppose the sound fundamental Principles of Christian Religion and undermine the Faith of Christ in some one or more essential Branches of it yet these things must be 1 Cor. 11.19 that they which are approved may be made manifest and that others who are now in being or yet unborn may in succession of time be added to the Church and by Faith and Repentance obtain Salvation for this reason that the seed of Christians that the numbers of Believers may be compleated the conflagration of the world is protracted and the great Judge delays his coming but for this he will most certainly perform his word We have the highest testimony that can be given to confirm us in the belief of this Article of our Faith viz. of good men who spake by the Inspiration of the Holy Ghost of blessed and glorious Angels of God and Christ himself who at his Ascension into Heaven gave his disconsolate Apostles an assured promise that he would come again We have the testimony of good men who spake as they were inspired God was pleased in former times to reveal his mind unto his Prophets by sundry degrees and parcels and in divers forms and manners of Revelation To the Prophet Daniel he communicated this great truth in a vision by night to whom this great Assize was represented after the manner of the great Synedrion or Consistory of Israel V. Mr. Mede's Answer to Dr. Meddus Wherein the Pater Judicii had his Assessors as afterwards Constantine the Great had in the Synod of Nice sitting semi-circle wise before him from his right hand to his left Dan. 7.10 13 14. He beheld till the Thrones were pitched down for the Senators to sit upon and the Ancient of Days Pater Consistorii who is the King and Judge of all so called because of his eternal Deity which is without beginning of time or end of days did sit whose Garment was white as Snow and the hair of his Head like pure Wooll his Throne was like the fiery Flames a fiery stream issued and came forth from before him Words denoting his Majesty and Righteousness in Judgment and his Justice in giving Sentence thousand thousands ministred unto him and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him and the Books viz. of Conscience and of God's eternal Decree were opened and behold one like the Son of man came with the Clouds of Heaven c. a very lively description of Christ's Advent for it well agrees with what the Apostles and Evangelists have said of it in the New Testament To this may be added Job's evidence concerning it he was a good man and had his hopes fixed above the felicity of this world his Faith mounted aloft in the serious meditation of a Redeemer and in the premeditation of his coming to Judgment Job 19.25 26. I know that my Redeemer liveth and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the Earth It was an Article of this holy Patriarch's Faith that at the end of the World the day of the general Resurrection and Judgment Jesus Christ should appear in person on Earth and raise up his people and vindicate them from all the injuries and reproaches which are now cast upon them and bring them to glory and that the Judge should be visible he affirms in the following words In my flesh shall I see God In this numerical body which is now full of sores and ulcers in this putrid rotten flesh which is now in a great measure wasted and consumed and shall certainly become a prey to worms and put on rottenness and corruption in this same body which shall be raised from the Grave by the mighty power of God and be re-united to my soul with these same eyes which I now have shall I see my Redeemer whom I shall see for my self and not by a deputy or proxy but in my own person for my own comfort and benefit and to my own infinite happiness and satisfaction Mine eyes shall behold him and not another With these organs of light shall I see the Judge in his own proper person and not in any representative of him This was an early Doctrin in the Church of God and ought for the great antiquity thereof to be believed and reverenced for it is as old as Enoch the seventh Patriarch in a descent of the Churches line from Adam a very good man who was the great Instance of Piety and Vertue in a corrupt Age and for his extraordinary obedience received an unusual reward viz. a bodily change from a mortal and corruptible to an immortal and incorruptible state without any separation of his soul from his body Being translated Heb. 11.5 that he should not see death This righteous person hath given in his suffrage to this Doctrin saying Behold Jude v. 14.15 the Lord cometh with ten thousand of his Saints to execute judgment upon all But forasmuch as guilty Criminals endeavour to banish the thoughts of the Judges coming out of their minds this great Article of the Christian Religion had need of all the strength of evidence that can be given it Therefore we have in the second place 2. The infallible testimony of pure and spotless Angels that are confirmed in holiness and goodness Two of those blessed Spirits who descended from Heaven to attend upon our Saviour's glorious and triumphant Ascension into Heaven told his Disciples who waited on their Lord to the top of Mount Olivet and there saw him taken up and received out of their sight by a Cloud that his going away from them was not a final departure but only for a time and with a full purpose of returning again While they stedfastly looked