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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
fire_n	burn_v	hot_a	zone_n	34	3	12.4938	5	false

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A76988	The arraignment of errour: or, A discourse serving as a curb to restrain the wantonnesse of mens spirits in the entertainment of opinions; and as a compasse, whereby we may sail in the search and finding of truth; distributed into six main questions. Quest. 1. How it may stand with Gods, with Satans, with a mans own ends, that there should be erroneous opinions? Quest. 2. What are the grounds of abounding errours? Quest. 3. Why so many are carried away with errour? Quest. 4. Who those are that are in danger? Quest. 5. What are the examens, or the trials of opinions, and characters of truth? Quest. 6. What waies God hath left in his Word for the suppressing of errour, and reducing of erroneous persons? Under which generall questions, many other necessary and profitable queries are comprized, discussed, and resolved. And in conclusion of all; some motives, and means, conducing to an happy accommodation of our present differences, are subjoyned. / By Samuel Bolton minister of the Word of God at Saviours-Southwark.	Bolton, Samuel, 1606-1654.	1646 (1646)	Wing B3517; Thomason E318_1; ESTC R200547	325,527	388

first mercifull end which God hath to his people in permitting errours in the Church to sift his people 2. A second mercifull end which God hath to his own people in the permitting errours viz. to exercise and quicken our graces As God suffers corruptions in our persons to exercise and quicken us he could as easily destroy them as subdue them unbe● them as conquer them so he suffers errours in his Churches on purpose to exercise and quicken his own people We had need of quickning rather then God would suffer his people to be dead he suffers the Canaanites to be as thornes in their sides and rather then dead he suffers errours in the Church and if there be any life in you this will quicken this will raise it God hath on purpose permitted in all ages some errour or other on foote to exercise the graces of that generation the Fathers were famous in their times for contending against the errours of their dayes Augustine was famous in his Contests against Pelagius Athanasius in his against Arius Cyrill in his against Nestorius Gregory Nazianzen in his against Macedonius Leo in his against Eutyches Hierom in his against Jovinianus Ruffinus c. Every age hath had its poison and its antidote There was never any generation but as there were some suffering truths in it some truth that perverse generations would not close withall so there were some infecting and poisoning errours in former times the abounding errours were the errours on the left hand and God grant that the spreading errours now be not errours on the right hand The Devill hath been so long beaten at the other that now like a wily serpent he will goe and change weapons he hath long been a prince of darknesse who hath ruled in the children of disobedience and now he would become an Angel of light if possible to seduce the children of the light You have something of that insinuated in the text Deceivers shall come in Christs name and say of your opinions loc here is Christ and this is high deceit It may be God will exercise this generation with more of this kind then others because they have learn'd Christ better they have more knowledge he hath done more for this generation then any other and therefore God may exercise us more then others And this is another end God hath in permitting errours to quicken and to exercise the graces of his people And there are foure graces or gratious dispositions that God chiefely aimes at to exercise in his people by this suffering errours abroad 1. He would exercise their knowledge or rather their conscientious study and search to know the mind of God more fully God would put them on to reade more studie more converse more to search the Scriptures more to examine what is truth and that diligently Many that are too much of Gallios temper now of whom you reade when he heard of those things which Paul preached it is said he cared not for those things This is a prophane temper of spirit and is naught A man may as well reject truth as errour if a man doe not try and examine for ought he knowes he hath rejected a truth instead of errour if he doe not sit down to examine what is truth and search whether it be an errour or a truth how should he be able to close with the one or reject the other There are many that reject the opinions of these dayes for errours because they will not be troubled to search and examine them whether they be truths or no. We are commanded to try all things 2 Thess 5.21 and how should we be grounded and established in the truth or know truth from errour if we doe not search into the mind of God and learne what is his mind and will 1 Joh. 4 1. Beleeve not every spirit but try the spirits whether they be of God anno Many a truth is rejected in these dayes because many an errour is entertained You doe by opinions as you doe by Pamphlets because there be many lies abroad therefore you will not beleeve truth Certainly this is that which God preacheth to you in these times by the multitude of opinions to search what is truth to take more paines to examine and search out the mind of God It is not enough with Pilate to say what is truth and then sit still as many doe aske questions rather for discourse sake then out of desire to be satisfied but you must search the mind of God inquire diligently 2. God would now exercise your zeale of love if you have any love in you shew it to the Lord love is a zealous affection We say the fire burnes the hotter for the cold weather the colder the weather the hotter and more scorching is the fire it is per Antiperistasin so the more errours abroad the hotter will your love and zeale burne to the truth and in the truth As the bellowes blow the fire and intend it so doth this opposition intend our affections the more or love to God to truth to others 3. God doth it to exercise a dependentiall faith upon God that he would not suffer us to be carried away with errour If you have any faith you will now exercise it faith to beleeve promises he hath said we shall be taught of God he hath said he will leade us into the way of all truth c. here is faith exercised to close with promises to sue out promises and to depend on God for the performance of them Oh now the soule gets to a promise finds sweet there and some stay it the midst of his unsetlednesse now he esteemes a promise above a world 4. A fourth grace God would exercise is the grace of prayer Now will the soule goe and improve all his interest in Heaven that God would leade him into the way of all truth that he would not leave them to be carried away in any way of errour Now doth the soule ply the throne of grace indeed tells God of his pliablenesse to entertaine any truth of God truth with penury truth with prison truth with any affliction now he goes and tells him how willing he is to let in any light of God his eyes shall be broad open to receive what God shall reveale now he goes and beggs for the Fathers teaching the Spirits leading into the way of all truth professing the universall willingnesse of his spirit to close with naked truth upon any termes Such dispositions are now drawne forth which perhaps had no occasion to appeare all thy life before and there is comfort in exercise of them the soule is comforted in their actings although he cannot yet find what is the will and mind of God And this is the second mercifull end God hath to his people in the permitting and suffering errours as to sift them so to exercise them 3. A third mercifull end which God hath to his people in suffering errours and that is to

is charity in hell it was not out of love to their soules but love to himselfe because he had corrupted them with his life and practise before and had left a bad example behind him which they followed and therefore he desired that they might if not be saved for that I think a damned soule cannot desire yet that they might not for his cause and example be brought into that place of torment because this would be the increase of his torment too as he was guilty by his example and practise of the murthering and undoing of their soules It should be a caveat to you how you live and walke least the example of the husband the father the master be the undoing of the wife the child the servant and the increase of your torment too Your examples will prevaile more to their undoing then all our rules for their saving It is a fearefull thing by our examples to draw others to destruction when your children and servants shall see you walke in a way of sin they themselves are drawne aside and undone by your examples There are many have so much in them that though they will sweare and drinke themselves yet they will not allow it in their children their servants but if thou wouldst not have them walke in the same way of sin leave not such a sinfull example behind thee But this by the way It suits with Satans ends that men should broach erronious opinions for the increase of their torments Which it doth not only directly and in it selfe but indirectly and by consequent contracting the guilt of soule murther from those who are undone with their precepts and poisonous doctrines And thus Satan deales with all his servants they who doe him most service shall have most torment those who have been his statists designed all for him or his engineeres to act all for him this is the reward he gives them greater torment soarer damnation the deepest cellars and darkest vaults of hell are reserved for such persons But mistake me not I speake not this of all kind of errours in judgement what man is he that erreth not All errours are sinfull but all errours are not damning all errours are hurtfull but all errours are not destructive and undoing errours I told you there were some errours which were building errours and some which were fundamentall errours as the Apostle speakes 1 Cor. 3.10 11 12 c. In the one the work shall be burnt in the other the workeman one shall be saved but so saved as by fire the other shall be destroyed in fire work and workman person and errours shall perish together 1 Cor. 3.13 14 15. And thus I have done with two of the first generals propounded and shew'd you how it may stand with Gods ends and how with Satans ends to suffer errours abroad We come now to the third how it may stand with mans ends It may then stand with mans ends also that there should be multitude of dangerous and erronious opinions The men with whose ends it may stand may be distinguished into three kinds 1. The contrivers 2. The actors 3. The abettors I shall only speake to two of them 3. It may stand with mans ends 1. Those that are the Contrivers of this designe to set on foot errours it may stand with their ends There are two maine ends the common adversary hath 1. To blast the truth 1. To divide the professors of it 1. Their end is to blast the truth to bring the truth of religion into disrespect among men to render the professors giddy and unstable and their profession unsound and unorthodox Doe not our enemies within our selves take advantage to cry down the truth to blast reformation and to bring religion into disrespect by the multitude of opinions that are abroad It may be they themselves have been the envious men have sowen tares and whe● they have done they tell us it is because the watchmen who were ever asleepe are taken away doe they not take occasion to blast the truth and to say that their oppugners are a sort of giddy and unstable empty and illiterate men who are certaine in nothing but uncertainty and stedfast in nothing but unstedfastnesse Anabaptists Brownists Antinomians And is it not the same argument their elder brethren hold forth doe not the Papists argue our religion to be unsound and indeavour to bring the truth into disrespect by telling men of so many opinions so much difference as there is among those who are the prefessors of it doe they not say our religion is divided into factions Lutherans Calvinists Arminians Socinians some of which differences they themselves have contrived and set on foote to bring religion into disrespect and to render it of lesse credit by reason of the multitude of divisions among us though all agree in this that theirs is false and erronious 2. A second end they have and that is to divide the professors of the truth Si sumus inseperabiles sumus in superabiles If we are unseparable we are unconquerable and therefore it is the Machivillian designe divide vince divide and conquer and hence it suits well with their designe that there should be a multitude of opinions that thereby the professors of the truth might be divided amongst themselves It was frequently observed in the raigne of the Bishops that those that were called non-conformists were farre worse handled then those who were called Brownists one would think this strange that they should deale better with them that said they were no Church then with those who said they were a Church but corrupted that they who cried their government down for Antichristian should fare better then they who only said it wanted reformation what should be the reason of it sure they were greater enemies that strooke against their being then they were who desired only reformation not unbeing But here was the businesse they liked division well enough and they feared one side it was too great but they slighted the other and therefore would rather countenance them in designe then suppresse them because all this served to weaken them that were their terrour And in this also they agree with them of Rome who send forth their Emissaries Jesuits Priests who shall turne Socinians c. and other opinions on purpose to divide the reformed Churches among themselves that so they may drive their mils with our breath and use our hands to doe their work and this designe hath been too successefull in the Netherlands especially in Socinianisme which was broached as is reported by a Jesuit on purpose to divide them So you see it stands with mans ends 1. The Contrivers 2. It stands with mans end the broachers and actors of this St John divides all that is in the world into lusts of the flesh lust of the eye and pride of life 1 Joh. 2.16 And I may ranke all the men in it into these three 1. Some are proud and ambitious

glory his wisedome his power his mercy his justice c. This is the rock into which we with Moses must get if we would see the glory of God God might have advanced his justice his power out of Christ in our condemnation but he hath alone set himselfe to be advanced in his glory to all eternity in his Sonne and that which advanceth God in Christ is certainely a truth of God I come now to the fourth Fourthly That which doth really doe all this that I say which doth really advance all God in Christ is certainely a truth of God I say really there are many opinions which advance our selves not God and perhaps some which seeme to advance some of God not all of God and some which may advance all God in Christ seemingly but yet not really not truly they may seemingly advance Gods glory and yet really be destructive and opposite to the glory of God It is said of the Chymickes that they will so counterfeit gold that no touchstone can discover it though you goe to the touchstone to try it yet you shall not be able to discerne whether it be true gold or no there is no way to try it but by the fire and the fire that will purify that which is good and render it more excellent but that which is counterfeit will evaporate into ayr and smoake it is not able to abide the tryall Christians ī there are many subtle opinions many that have a great deale of Chymistry in them they are good it may be at the touch but yet are naught at the test they may passe the touch here and not be discerned but the test shall discover them the fire shall try them how ever they may passe mans judgement yet at that great burning day they shall be discovered when that which is substantiall shall alone continue and that which hath been counterfeit shall evaporate into air and smoak the Apostle seems to imply this in the 1 Cor. ● 12 13 14 15. If any man build upon this foundation gold silver precious stones wood hay stubble Every mans work shall be made manifest for the day shall declare it because it shall be revealed by fire and the fire shall try every mans work of what sort it is where the Apostle tells us that there shall be a triall though opinions and doctrines may passe the touch yet they shall not passe the test this triall shall be by fire If his work abide he shall receive reward if be burned he shall suffer losse but hee himself shall bee saved yet so as by fire Now then would you know what is truth in those many opinions which are held forth see whether they be Word-revelation see whether they 1. Advance God 2. All God 3. All God in Christ and 4. whether they doe all this really that which doth really advance all God in Christ is certainly a truth of Christ and so much for the second Character We are come to the third Character which is this Charact. 3. That which doth really advance the whole Chara. 3 work of grace in the hearts and lives of Saints that is certainly a truth of God There are three eminent discoveries of truth 1. Truth may be discovered from the seat of it 2. It may be known by the qualities of it 3. It may be discerned by the operations and workings of it By these three eminent Characters I have endeavoured to evidence truth 1. From the seat of truth * Eph. 4.21 It is in Jesus and that was our first Character Divine truth is Word-revelation 2. From the qualities of it and the second Character was one of the most mainest can be laid down viz. Truth doth really and truly advance all God in Christ 3. We are now upon the third which is to discover truth by the operations and workings of it and here I tell you That truth doth really advance the whole work of grace in the hearts and lives of Saints And when I have done this I hope there will be sufficient spoken to evidence truth from errour unto you Now for our fuller and clearer proceeding upon this wee must give you out this Character in four particulars 1. I say Truth doth advance the work of grace 2. It doth advance the whole work of grace 3. It doth advance the whole work of grace in heart and life 4. And it doth all this really We shall speak to these particulars briefly and then summe them up and speak to them all joyntly as they are comprised in the Character 1. First Truth doth advance the work of grace In the former Character I had to doe with truth as it advanced grace in God here I have to doe with it as it doth advance grace in us In the first I had to doe with it as a divine affection and disposition in God here I have to doe with it as a divine quality implanted into us the first hath respect to grace without us this second hath respect to grace within us inherent and imparted grace our holinesse and therefore I call it here the work of grace 2. Truth doth advance the whole work of grace It doth not only advance some but the whole work of grace There may be some opinions which may seem to advance some part of the worke but they carry not on the whole worke of grace in a sweet and even proportion you have many opinions which may seem to be serviceable to the advancement of some graces but not of all they may seem helpfull to some particulars but yet are not serviceable to the whole frame It is the nature of truth to serve the advancement of the whole work of grace Indeed it is true there bee some truths that have a more proper and peculiar influence upon one then upon another and may be serviceable to one more then to another grace but yet there is no truth that is disserviceable to any nay no truth but is helpfull to all Truth advanceth the whole work of grace 3. It advanceth the whole work of grace both in heart and life not but that which doth the one truly doth the other as really but because many will pretend the advancement of the work of grace in the heart when there is no such thing seen in the life therefore I put them both together and say Truth advanceth the whole work of grace both in heart and life Truth doth not onely help your comforts but they help your service not only your graces but your duties it doth not only relieve your faith but your obedience also though indeed some truths that may be more naturally and immediately serviceable to one then to the other Some truths may be said to be cordials others physick and others food some that are more proper for comfort others for purging and others for strength and enablement but though one truth may have a more proper influence into such a work then another yet you may suspect that

9.5 You can have no communication of truth but there is a conveyance of life with it every notion will beget motion every beam of light will be a stream of life and carry you on with power to the obedience of truth revealed the same spirit which is the spirit of truth is the spirit of life and of power and where hee is a spirit communicating light and truth there he a spirit conveying life and power to the soul also To conclude this then you have entertain'd some opinions for truth but are they soul-quickning truths are they helpfull to the life of God and to the life of grace in you Tell me doe they dead you or doe they quicken you more and doe they quicken your graces or stirre up your corruptions Are they serviceable to grace or are they helpfull to sinne It is the nature of truth to quicken our graces but to dead our corruptions and this is the nature of errour to provoke our lusts but to dead our graces A fifth Operation of truth where it is entertain'd it hath a Opera 5 heart-inflaming power Truth is a beam of that Sun which doth not only enlighten but heat and warm us Claritas in intellectu parit arderem in affectu Light in the understanding begets heat in the heart the understanding is as the medium between the heart and Christ and serves as the burning-glasse to the heart whereby the heart is set on fire with those notions which are carried from Christ by the understanding to the soul hee that is baptized with the holy Ghost the spirit of truth is baptized with fire Fulget cherub intelligentia luce ardet Seraph charitatis igne Pic. Mirand de dig hom his affections are inflam'd with the love of it He that like the Cherub doth shine with light and truth like the Seraph burns with heat and love Truth hath an heart enamouring power could wee but see it in it's beauty as the Philosopher said of vertue I may of truth we could not chuse but be in love with it and that which doth enamour the heart must needs enflame the heart that which takes the heart must needs set the heart on fire either with desire to enjoy it or with love in the enjoyment of it Indeed it is true many are too hot in an errour and others are too cold in the truth and it is the ones sinne and the others shame the one is the fruit of the partiall reception of truth they take it into the head not into the heart Th●y receive not truth with the love of it as the Apostle saith 2 Thess 2. and the other is the fruit of the blinde entertainment of errour they have light without heat and thou hast heat without light their light is a false light because it is not joyn'd with heat and thy heat is a false heat because it is not joyn'd with light And yet I confesse many are zealous in a way of errour when the best are too cold in the truth it is our shame as their sinne But here is the comfort a little true heat is worth a great deal of false fire a little zeal acted with grace is worth a great deal spirited with corruption Men in ignorance are like those under the frigid zone they are cold and frozen and have no heats or affections in them Wee may love things we have not seen as the Apostle speaks of Christ 1 Pet. 1.8 Whom having not seen Ignoti nulla cupid● Invisa pos summa amare incognita ne quaquam yet you love but wee cannot love things wee have not known and men in errour are like men under the torrid zone who burn with a false heat but men in the truth they are like those who live under the temperate zone whose heat is comfortable and makes them fruitfull or if you will take it in another comparison men in ignorance they are like dead men altogther cold and have no heat in them Men in errour are like men in a fever whose heat is their distemper but men in the truth they are like unto men in health whose heat is their health and enables them to action and resisteth corruption And that is a fifth operation of truth where it is entertain'd it hath a heart-warming a heart-inflaming power We come to the last Oper. 6 Sixthly and lastly Truth hath a heart-raising and spiritualizing property where it comes into the heart with power it doth raise and spiritualize a man indeed the naked knowledge of truth doth no more raise the heart then the sight of the Sunne doth lift a man up to heaven but when truth comes into the heart in it's power it carries the soul thither whence it came All truth as it came from God so it carryes the soule to God it rayseth and spiritualizeth a man it doth spiritualize and rayse his understanding his notions and conceptions of things it doth spiritualize a mans heart a mans affections a mans actions it makes him a spirituall man 1 Cor. 2.15 Men are much according to their notions of things men of low conceptions are men of low spirits men of higher and more spirituall notions are men of finer tempers of more refined spirits so farre as truth is received so farre it doth refine a man if it enter the head a man is part refined but if it be received into the heart the whole man is spiritualized A mans head may be refined and yet he may have a grosse heart as Christ saith Make their hearts grosse that seeing they might not see they did see in the head and that was refined but they did not see in their heart and therefore that was still grosse but if the heart once be spiritualized with truth then the whole man is made spirituall for truth is of a spiritualizing nature And so much shall serve for the operations of truth and this third and last Character viz. Truth doth advance the whole worke of grace in the hearts and lives of Saints Well then you see there are many opinions abroad Vse and it may be some of you have given entertainment to some of them I doe not say that they are all of them erroneous but many are others have much errour mingled with some truth I have given you three touches whereby you may be able to judge of them three Characters whereby you may be inabled to discover truth from errour And doe you try your opinions by them see are they such as are word-revelation doth the word plainly and evidently hold them forth or are they deductions drawne from the word But see is not the place mistaken are the deductions rightly gathered are they consonant to the harmony of Scriptures doe they suite with Gods maine end in Scripture By these you may be able to discover them Again the opinions which are held forth or you have entertained doe they I say advance God doe they advance all God all the Attributes all