Selected quad for the lemma: faith_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
faith_n	church_n	scripture_n	tradition_n	15,184	5	9.5685	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A45744	A treatise of moral and intellectual virtues wherein their nature is fully explained and their usefulness proved, as being the best rules of life ... : with a preface shewing the vanity and deceitfulness of vice / by John Hartcliffe ...	Hartcliffe, John, 1651-1712.	1691 (1691)	Wing H971; ESTC R475	208,685	468

foundation in Reason and Nature these do depend wholly upon instruction and memory and cannot be preserved without them but we see among the Rude and Ignorant upon whom hardly any care or instruction is used men have as lively a sense of the difference between virtue and vice in many particulars as the more learned part of the World which is a plain Argument that these things are not conveyed to us by Tradition Nor can they be applyed to humane Policy for many of these things were never enacted by humane Laws and yet they obtain among Mankind as Gratitude Charity and such like Seneca says that Gratitude was never enjoyned by any Law but that of the Macedonians which plainly shews that these things owe their Original to some other Cause and that they are to be attributed to Nature the Author of which is God and the general Consent of Mankind is an argument of their Truth and Reality HOWEVER it is Objected that several Persons and some whole Nations have differed about some of these things so that this Consent is not so general besides the Consent of the World in Superstition and Idolatry may seem to weaken this Argument from the universal Agreement of Mankind about Good and Evil. WE Answer that it is not denied but that Men may so vitiate their Natures Nature may be so vitiated as to lose the Sense of Virtue and Vice as to lose the sense of Virtue and Vice yet it may remain true that Mankind have a natural Sense and Knowledg of them as some by Lust and Intemperance may so spoil their Palates that they may not taste the difference of Meats and Drinks yet this last is never the less natural to Mankind for there is a great deal of difference between Natural and Moral Agents natural Agents always continue the same but voluntary Agents may vary in some things that are Natural especially where Men have Debauch'd their Natures and have offered great violence to themselves more than this the exceptions are not so general as to infringe the universal Consent of Mankind the difference is but in few things and therefore they are taken notice of and being collected together in History they may seem a great many but that they are particularly noted is a sign they are but few what if one Philosopher mentioned that Snow was Black and Ten more had been of his Mind this would have been no objection against the Sense or Reason of Mankind for all Men agree that Self-preservation is a natural Instinct notwithstanding some particular Persons have offered violence to their own Lives As to Superstition or Idolatry there hath been no such agreement of Mankind in that as to prove it to have a Foundation in Nature for it is confessed that it was not always practised in the World but that it had a Beginning and indeed it grew up by degrees and sprang out of the Corruptions of Mankind and therefore Time was when there was no such thing so that it does not owe its Rise to Nature but to the defection of Mankind For while Idolatry prevailed in the World it was condemned by several Men as a stupid and sottish Thing tho they had not the courage to declare against the Practice of it so that whilst it was used by the generality of the World it was censured as a great Folly by those that were best able to judg Lastly WE know what is Virtue and Vice Good and Evil more distinctly Outward Revelation discovers to us what is Virtue and what is Vice by outward Revelation in former Ages of the World God was pleased to reveal his Will several Ways and more especially to the Nation of the Jews the rest of the World being left solely to the dictates of natural Light But in the latter Ages of the World it pleased God to make a publick and more full Declaration of his Mind by his Son and this Revelation is for Substance the same with the Law of Nature our Saviour comprehended it under these two Heads the Love of God and of our Neighbour the Apostle reduceth it to Sobriety Righteousness and Piety for the Grace of God that bringeth Salvation teacheth us to deny all ungodliness and Worldly Lust and to live Soberly Righteously and Godly in this present World so that if we believe the Apostle the Gospel teacheth us the very same things that Nature dictateth to Mankind for these are the very Virtues which natural Light prompt Men unto only we allow a more perfect discovery of them by the Gospel and to convince Men of the Good and Evil that are affixed to Virtue and Vice there are great and eternal Rewards promised to one and endless Punishments threatned to the other so that now Mankind have no cloak for their Sin their Duty being so clearly laid open to them and the Rewards and Punishments of another Life so plainly revealed all the defects of the natural Law and the Corruptions of it through the degeneracy of Mankind being fully supplyed by the Revelation of the Gospel So that we may now much better say than the Prophet could in his days Mich. 6.8 He hath shewed thee O Man what is good and what doth the Lord require of thee but to do justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with thy God BUT as to external Revelation it is Objected that the Scripture is very obscure and gives us not sufficient direction in Matters of Faith WE Answer that this Objection hath no Colour of Truth in it for if the Church of Rome to whom are beholden for this Objection against the Word of God and who are ready upon all occasions to quarrel with it Yet they do not deny but the Scriptures are plain as to Precepts of Life and Practice but as to matters of Faith they pretend its defection in as if God had not intended to reveal but conceal his Mind in these things Indeed they have some reason to pretend this considering how hard it is to find several of their Doctrines in the Scripture but as to the moral Precepts of a good Life they all grant that they are clearly delivered in the holy Scripture so that this Objection about the obscurity thereof doth not lie against what I have been speaking THEREFORE seeing Moral Virtues may be plainly understood by Natural Instinct Natural Reason the consent of Mankind and outward Revelation we must in the next place see how easie and pleasant they are to be practised First THEY are easie because we are assisted in the practice of them by the Holy Spirit of God against all difficulties whatsoever Secondly THEY are both easie and pleasant because they are profitable for all things improve our Understandings and bring peace to our Minds FOR our Christian Race is a Warfare and we have many Conquests to make over the corruptions of our Natures the influences of Sense and the disorders of Passion Whence the difficulties of a virtuous Life do

wont to be lavish and profuse in their Sacrifices that they might be excused or wink'd at for the Duties of Virtue and Morality they would offer the richest Oblations a Thousand Rams and Ten Thousand Rivers of Oyl all the First-born of their Flocks and Families the Fruit of the Fields and their Bodies too to purchase a dispensation for their Vices they would not grudge to pacifie God with any Sacrifice rather than offer up their Lusts they would honor Him praise Him flatter Him give Him all his dues and more spare neither for costs nor charges in his Worship and all this only to bribe him that He might indulge them their Self-wills and their Passions and not be angry for their injustice cruelty and unmercifulness they were nice and punctual in their Fasts would spare for no trouble to appear Devout yet were there never any People in the World so vicious as they the Prophets every where upbraiding them with the most notorious Peevishness and Pride Covetousness and Ambition for they were persuaded that such zealous Men as they were might be excused for the sake of their expensive Devotions all those petty duties of Justice and Sobriety towards their Neighbors and themselves On the contrary a good Man Worships God because he loves Him and loves him because he hates Vice he loves the eternal Rules of Equity and right Reason because God loves 'em too Secondly THE Formalist is very busie about the Means and Instruments of Religion but neglects the Ends thereof he is very zealous in religious Performances but utterly careless of all inward Virtue and Goodness hence it is that the Minds of some Men are so little possessed with true and real Virtue because the Name of Religion hath been so much appropriated to its Forms which Men are apt to be taken with when they may be easily reconciled with their Vices and Passions The Pharisees did just so they only made great shews of Piety to cover their Frauds and Rapines Too great a regard to Forms disappoints the effects of real virtue they were curious to wash their Hands but took no care to purifie their Hearts they would Fast and starve their Bodies but at the same time feed and pamper their Lusts they would not Rob but they did oppress their Neighbors whilst they relieved their Brethren they did at the same time hate and despise them Thus the Instruments of Piety were made use of as a means to subvert that which they were ordained to advance And thus it is in the relative and subordinate Duties of the Christian Religion if Men do as constantly commit as they do confess their Sins they frustrate plainly the purpose of their Duty and whilst they are very Officious to run on God's Errand they are very negligent of his Business It is not every Confession of our Sins that He requires but when it proceeds from an effectual Resolution against them and therefore where it ends not in Reformation it ends in Hypocrisie and to acknowledg but not to Mortifie our Lusts is only to tell God we are great sinners and by his leave intend to continue so IT is an easie matter for Men to present Heaven with large and perpetual addresses but unless they be meek merciful humble charitable righteous candid and ingenuous as well as Godly and Devout they can in no wise enter into the kingdom of heaven For the Christian Religion dwells not amongst its outside Rites and Solemnities but its proper Temple is the Heart and Spirit of Man it resides in the inmost recesses of the Soul NOW the Formalist is only for the external Acts not for the internal Habits of Virtue and Goodness his Actions how good soever issue only from fear or custom or outward compliances not from any good Temper or Modification of Mind there appear no spots nor blemishes in his Face his uncleannesses lodge within and retire themselves to the Centre of his Soul thus his behaviour may be free from the common Pride and Vanity of the World whilst his mind is infected with the worst Vices the posture of his Soul is as haughty and supercilious as his demeanour is humble his Thoughts as arrogant In what virtues our Saviour placed his Religion as his looks are lowly But our Saviour ever told his Followers that his Religion was to be placed in a a sober and silent Piety in Candour Mildness and Humility in doing good to all Men that all the mystery of it lay in a good and virtuous Life so that all the nice Notions and Hypotheseses concerning Faith Justification Election and such like Articles are but foolish Traditions of some speculative Heads and those that are most earnest in these Controversies are commonly most negligent of moral Duty whereas true Religion is an active Principle within that serves the Mind with all good and virtuous Qualities it is in a word an inward sense and love of Goodness that is the Fountain of all good Actions A Mind temper'd with this Principle suppresses all manner of untoward Passions is governed by such meekness as absolutely inclines it to pardon injuries to delight in making good triumph over evil and to satisfie it self as much by forgiveness as others are pleased with revenge For where the inward temper of the Mind is truly humble there a Man 's inward esteem of himself will be sober and modest his opinion of others candid and ingenuous Wherefore if Men took as much care to fill their Souls with goodness as well as their fancies with the notions of it they would be as free from Passion Self-will and all other mental Vices as from Drunkenness Sensuality and the other exorbitances of their bodily Appetites Having thus set forth the Character of Formality I now descend to the Second thing to discover by what Way and Method it defeats the practice of moral Virtue that perceiving its disguises we may not be imposed upon Now the Artifices by which men are apt to delude themselves are mainly these First THEY think they may be dispensed with in the Duties of practical Virtue for their extraordinary strictness in some Duties of Godliness they weigh their acts of Devotion against all their miscarriages in Morality if they do but Fast twice a week they presently believe that they may be allowed to be froward and peevish Hence it is that the grossest Vices are sometimes called sins of Infirmity For when they imagine themselves in God's Favour for frequenting the places of Worship for hearing Sermons and Prayers they are ready to conclude their most heinous sins to be rather the weaknesses of their Natures than obliquities of their Wills taking the measures of Virtue and Vice not from the nature of the actions themselves but from the conditions of the Persons that commit them believing that if a Man be once regenerated all his sins are instantly changed into Infirmities Thus the Stoicks of old made this one of their prime Paradoxes that a wise Man