Selected quad for the lemma: earth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
earth_n	heaven_n	word_n	world_n	10,974	5	4.7465	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A29105	The qualifications requisite, towards the receiving a divine revelation a sermon preach'd in the Cathedral Church of St. Paul, January the 2d, 1698/9, being the first, for this year, of the lectures founded by the Honourable Robert Boyle, Esq. / by Samuel Bradford ...	Bradford, Samuel, 1652-1731.	1699 (1699)	Wing B4118; ESTC R19718	14,828	33

judge a proper Argument to begin with For should I be able to produce never so convincing proofs of the Truth of Christianity yet if those who hear me should be utterly indispos'd to consider and receive them all my discourse must be necessarily lost upon such men And therefore 't is remarkable that our Saviour in divers other places as well as this doth ascribe the Infidelity of his Hearers to the Indisposition of their Minds as the true cause of it and that too an Indisposition proceeding from some fault either in their Tempers or Practices as on the contrary he declareth who were in a fair way to become his Disciples namely such as were of a Temper capable of considering and receiving Truth when it should be propos'd to them Thus Joh. 8.47 He that is of God heareth God's words ye therefore hear them not because ye are not of God And again To this end was I born Joh. 18.37 and for this cause came I into world that I might bear witness to the Truth Every one that is of the Truth heareth my Voice Neither is this asserted by our Lord without evident Reason as will appear to any one who considers this matter fairly Christianity lays it's claim to a Divine Original Both our Lord himself and all who call themselves his Disciples affirm that it is a Revelation from God The Adversaries of this Reliligion say on the contrary that it is the Product of Superstition or Design and consequently that both its Original and Progress are wholy owing to humane Weakness or Policy that is Wickedness for such would a Policy to invent and propagate a false Religion and thereby to impose upon the Understandings and Consciences of men be justly reputed How then must this Controversie be decided Why by such Evidence as a matter of this nature is capable of by such Proofs as are fit to be alleged for the truth of a Divine Revelation and proper to convince the judgment of a reasonable Creature But who shall Judge of this Evidence Why every man must be allow'd to judge for himself and every man to whom such Evidence is propos'd is without question oblig'd at his utmost peril to judge impartially But the Man that is ignorant of Almighty God or estranged from him especially whosoever is an Enemy to God as being of a disposition and temper opposite to that of the Divine Nature must necessarily be unfit to judge of this kind of Evidence If this Religion should prove to be divinely reveal'd as it pretends such a man would probably think it his Interest to be sure it would be his Inclination to make all the Objections and to raise all the Cavils that he could possibly invent to invalidate the Proofs of it At least he would not easily nor clearly discern the force of the Arguments alleged for it Whereas on the other hand Whosoever hath been taught of God whosoever hath heard and learn'd of the Father whosoever hath attain'd to right conceptions of him and is reconcil'd in his Mind to him such a Man is well prepar'd to attend to whatsoever it shall please God farther to make known to him he will easily and clearly discern the force of any good Evidence which shall be produc'd for a Revelation which is truly Divine and will be naturally ready and forward to embrace it But to come to the Words themselves in treating of which it will be proper to consider these three particulars In what way and manner God may be said to teach Men in order to their receiving any new Revelation from him Who they are that may be said to have heard and learn'd of the Father in order to the same end What Qualifications are requisite both to the hearing and learning of the Father and coming to the Son Let us consider in what way and manner God may be said to teach Men in order to their receiving any new Revelation from him It is written in the Prophets They shall be all taught of God The teaching of God which the Prophets and particularly Isaiah in the place before-cited refers to seems as I have already hinted to be that more plain and plentiful Instruction which was to be communicated to Men in the days of the Messiah But our Saviour in applying this Prophecy seems also to take in all that previous Teaching of God whereby he had prepar'd Men for the receiving him when he should come For the same God who by his Providence had reserv'd so large a communication of Divine Knowledge for the times of the Messiah had from one Generation to another been disposing the World for such farther communications as he should think proper for it not having in any age or place left men without witness of himself It may be reasonable therefore upon this occasion to consider the several ways in which men might be said to be taught of God in order to their receiving any farther Revelation from him And I shall name these four Men were taught of God in order to this end by the Works of Creation and Providence By the Suggestions and Dictates of their own Consciences By some extraordinary Persons raised up by Providence and qualified to teach others By the secret Motions and Influences of the Divine Spirit upon the Minds of Men. I shall only take a short view of each of these Men may be said to have been taught of God by the Works of Creation and Providence From that vast number of Beings which have been form'd by God their Variety Excellency Beauty and Order together with the constant care he taketh of all that he hath form'd and the abundant Provision he hath made for every Being suitable to it's Nature there are plain Intimations and Instructions given by the Deity to those Creatures whom he hath made capable of observing and contemplating his Works And this I may take for granted without any farther proof will be allow'd by those for whose use I principally design my following Discourses such I mean as seriously own the Being and the Providence of the Almighty And I need not labor to express my self farther upon this head than in the Words of the Psalmist which a Deist will subscribe to as true though not as spoken by an inspired Author Psal 10.1 The Heavens declare the Glory of God and the Firmament sheweth his handy work Day unto day uttereth speech and night unto night sheweth knowledge And this is a way in which God hath taught all Mankind at once for as it there follows Ver. 3 There is no speech nor language where their voice is not heard Their line is gone out through all the earth and their words to the end of the World And therefore the Apostle justly pronounces them inexcusable who have not by this way of instruction attain'd to the knowledge of God That which may be known of God Rom. 1.19 saith he is manifest among them that is among the Heathens for God

hath shewed it unto them 20. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen being understood by the things that are made even his eternal Power and Godhead so that they are without excuse those namely who do not by this instruction from the visible World discern the invisible things of God God hath taught men also by the Suggestions and Dictates of their own Minds Nor will this be denied by any who seriously own a God and a Providence viz. that there is in man a power of Understanding and Reasoning which he hath receiv'd from God in the very frame of his Nature whereby he is inabled to discern the Being and in some measure to know the Will of his Maker as also a Conscience whereby he reflects upon his own behaviour and is either pleas'd or displeas'd with himself and fill'd with Hopes or Fears according as he acts agreeably or disagreeably to the judgment of his own Mind Whether there are innate Ideas in the Souls of Men or whether only we are capacitated in the use of our Faculties to form such conceptions as these and so framed that we naturally do it is not material as to the subject I am now upon It is enough if this be any way the result of our Frame and Constitution for then it must be one of the ways in which God who is the Author of our Beings hath given us Instruction And this again cannot be exprest better than in the words of St. Rom. 2.14 Paul When the Gentiles sayes he which have not the Law do by nature the things contain'd in the Law these having not the Law are a Law unto themselves Ver. 15. which shew the work or matter of the Law written in their hearts their Conscience also bearing Witness and their thoughts between themselves accusing or else excusing one another God may be said farther to have taught men by some extraordinary Persons rais'd up by Providence and qualified to instruct others Such we Christians believe the Patriarchs together with Moses and the Prophets to have been namely Persons raised up on purpose and some of them sent with a special Commission from God to teach men But because in these Discourses we are to take no more for granted than those we have to do with will allow I shall assert no more under this head than what will be acknowledg'd by every serious Deist viz. that there have been in all ages Persons of more enlarg'd and improv'd Understandings and more refin'd Morals than the Vulgar who have both by their discourses and writings and practices instructed other men with respect to Divine and Spiritual Matters Such particularly we know there were not inconsiderable for their Number and of very great Reputation both among the Greeks and Romans some of which have by their Writings transmitted to us their conceptions concerning God and Providence and the difference between Moral Good and Evil as also the spirituality and immortality of the humane Soul and at least the high probability of a future state of retribution of all which they have discourst admirably well And of this rank we may at least reckon the Patriarchs mention'd in the Old Testament who practis'd and taught the Worship of the One true God the Maker of Heaven and Earth and gave an Example of Virtuous Lives and Conversations as also Moses the great Law giver among the Jews who particularly inculcated this prime Doctrine of Religion that there is but one God the Creator and Governor of all and gave abundance of Excellent Moral Precepts besides the Ceremonial to that People as likewise the Prophets which appear'd in that Nation and made it their business to preach up the Doctrines of Piety and Virtue Whoever owns a Providence and allows the difference between Moral Good and Evil must and will grant that such men as these wherever they were to be found were the Instruments of Providence for instructing and improving their fellow-creatures and consequently that this was another way of God's teaching men God may also be said to have taught men by the secret Motions and Influences of his Holy Spirit upon their Minds This I am well satisfied the Holy Scriptures do assert throughout and 't is in part at least this kind of teaching which those passages in the Books of the Prophets referr'd to by our Saviour in the Text seem to mean neither is it any more than what I think those whom we have to do with in this Controversie will allow There is indeed nothing more reasonable to be believ'd of God even without a Revelation than that he who form'd our Spirits which are finite and intirely dependent upon their Maker should be at all times ready to influence them in a way proper to their make conversing himself intimately with them enlightning those understandings which he hath given us by rays darted from himself the Fountain of Light secretly admonishing and assisting our Souls according as they apply themselves to him and become capable of receiving Influences from him This is well exprest by Elihu in Job who being suppos'd not to have been of the race of Israel may be reckon'd to have spoken in the person of a Deist Job 32.8 There is says he a spirit in man and the Inspiration of the Almighty giveth them understanding But we need not search nicely for a Proof that this has been the sense of those who have been only under the dispensation of meer Nature and nor enlighten'd by Revelation 'T is well known to all that are acquainted with the Writings of the Philosophers that this is frequently acknowledg'd by them Cic. de nat Deor. l. 2. Nemo vir magnus sine aliquo afflatû divino unquam fuit is a famous saying of Cicero's There was never yet any great Man but who had something of divine Inspiration in which he deliver'd not his own sense only but that of Mankind Socrates is likewise famous for his pretending to a constant at least very frequent direction and influence from the Deity who I think if any other among the Pagan Philosophers may be fairly allow'd such a pretence And it is no Objection against this way of God's teaching that we cannot tell in what manner he influenceth our Spirits any more than it is against his having made us that we are wholly ignorant how we were formed by him This may suffice to be spoken to the first particular I propos'd I proceed to the next viz. to consider Who they are that may be said to have heard and learn'd of the Father in order to their receiving any new Revelation from him Every man therefore that hath heard and learn'd c. To this I answer in the General Those men have heard and learn'd of the Eather in order to this end who have attended to the Instructions given them by God in any of the four ways above-mentioned and have improv'd them to the benefit of their Spirits