Selected quad for the lemma: enemy_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
enemy_n	evil_a	good_a	overcome_v	2,148	5	9.0851	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A61606	A sermon preached November V, 1673, at St. Margarets Westminst by Edward Stillingfleet ...	Stillingfleet, Edward, 1635-1699.	1674 (1674)	Wing S5645; ESTC R7707	26,239	53

A SERMON Preached November V. 1673. AT S t. MARGARETS VVestminst By EDWARD STILLINGFLEET D. D. Chaplain in Ordinary to His MAjESTY The Second Edition LONDON Printed by Robert White for Henry Mortlock and are to be sold at the White Hart in Westminster Hall and at the Phoenix in St. Pauls Church-yard 1674. S t. MATTH VII 15 16. Beware of false Prophets which come to you in Sheeps clothing but inwardly they are ravening Wolves Ye shall know them by their Fruits IF we were to judge of the nature of Christianity by the designs and practices of some who would be thought the only true and Catholick Christians we should have no great reason to esteem it our honour to be called by his Name who first brought this Religion into the world For if the Christian Religion did indeed justifie all the fraud and treachery the mischief and cruelty which hath been either acted or designed by men under the glorious pretence of advancing the interest of the Catholick Church we might better choose not to be Christians than to be such men Because whatever Religion overthrows the common principles and duties of humane nature such as those of Civil obedience integrity and humanity are cannot be supposed a Religion proper or intended by God for mankind whose great end in Religion is to improve and rectifie and not to debauch or corrupt the dispositions of men Men need no Religion to instruct them in the arts of deceiving the contrivances of malice or the methods of revenge such fruits as these spring up too easily in our corrupt and degenerate natures which need no great force or improvement to bring them forth But when the warmth of the Sun shall be joyned with the fruitfulness of the soil when men are encouraged to pursue their own natural inclinations by the most powerful motives of Religion what bounds can be set to the growth and increase of these accursed fruits Of all Religions in the world we might have thought the Christian least lyable to be abused to such ill purposes for it was one of Machiavel's quarrels against Christianity that by its precepts of meekness and patience it rendred men unfit for such great undertakings which could not be accomplished without something of cruelty and inhumanity whereas the old Religions by the multitude of Sacrifices did inure men to blood and destruction and so made them fitter for any enterprise And Machiavel was certainly in the right if Religion were intended only to make men Butchers or to instruct them in the Use of Swords and Gun-powder Nay the Religion of Mahomet is in this respect to be very much preferred before the Christian for that makes it not only lawful to destroy those of a different Religion but enrolls them for Martyrs that dye in the Field and makes the blood of enemies as meritorious as we do that of the Cross. But that is reserved as the peculiar honour of the Christian Religion that it commands the subduing all the bruitish and savage inclinations of men to acts of revenge and cruelty that it restores humane nature to it self by its precepts of meekness mercy peaceableness and universal charity that it advances it to a divine nature by the imitation of God himself in shewing kindness to enemies and overcoming evil with good This is the Religion established by our Lord and Saviour in this excellent Sermon on the Mount wherein the scope and design of Christianity is delivered with the greatest plainness and perspicuity which if it be possible for us to judge of his meaning by the clearest expressions was far enough from being the setting up a Monarchy in the Church to which all the Kings of the Christian world are by their Baptism bound to vail their Crowns and lay their Scepters at its feet or in case they do not that then this Spiritual Monarch may excommunicate depose and deprive Princes of their Government and dissolve all the obligations between their Subjects and them and make it lawful for them to depose them We find not the least footstep of any thing tending this way where our Saviour speaks most advantageously concerning the honour of his Disciples which honour he represents by things which set forth their usefulness in common Ye are the Salt of the Earth ye are the light of the World and not by setting up one above all the rest far above all Principalities and Powers to whom Kings and Princes and all People are bound to be subject if they regard their salvation If any such thing as this had been so material a part of the Christian Doctrine as some imagine if it had been so necessary to salvation it is somewhat strange that when our Blessed Saviour gave so many directions in order to salvation he should give not so much as the least intimation concerning this And yet he saith at the end of this Sermon Every one that heareth these sayings of mine and doth them is like unto a wise man that built his house upon a rock not super hanc Petram i e. according to the Roman Gloss upon the Popes Authority but upon such a firm foundation as will never fail him And what is it which our Saviour endeavours to perswade men to in order to so firm a settlement of their minds against all the assaults of persecutions viz. to humility meekness goodness univeral holiness to the love of God and mankind to sincerity in devotion dependence on Providence prayer and doing as we would be done by this is the substance of the Christian Law delivered by the Son of God than which nothing can be imagined more contrary to the Spirit of Faction and disobedience of cruelty and revenge and that covered over with a pretence of zeal for Religion But he who gave these excellent precepts did foresee that there would arise men who should preach and prophesie in his Name and in his Name cast out Devils and do wonderful works that yet for all their fair shews and pretences to the world should be of a temper and disposition directly contrary to the Gospel and therefore it was necessary for all Christians as they valued their own welfare to have an eye to them lest they should be deceived by them which is the meaning of our Saviour in these words Beware of false Prophets which come to you in Sheeps clothing but inwardly they are ravening Wolves by their fruits ye shall know them Wherein we have these two things considerable 1. The Caution given Beware of false Prophets together with the ground of that Caution For they come to you in Sheeps clothing but inwardly are ravening Wolves 2. The Rule laid down whereby we are to judge of them By their fruits ye shall know them 1. The Caution given Beware of false Prophets There were two sorts of deceivers our Saviour gives his Disciples particular caution against viz. false Christs and false Prophets the false Christs were those who pretended that they were the persons