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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
friend_n	appear_v	great_a	time_n	915	5	3.1574	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A46744	The rocke, or, A setled heart in unsetled times a short discourse minding and helping Gods people to make use of their faith for moderating their feares in these sad times of the sorrowes of Sion : being the heads of some sermons preached lately and now published for that purpose / by William Jemmat ...	Jemmat, William, 1596?-1678.	1644 (1644)	Wing J551; ESTC R19664	30,965	98

which is a con●inuall feast a brazen wall great matter of joy in many and great afflictions 2 Cor. 1.12 This is our reioycing even the testimony of our conscience Thirdly it worketh hope which is an anchor of the soule both sure and stedfast entring into that with●n the vaile Heb. 6.19 and saith Though it be ill for the present it will be better hereafter In the world is no comfort but in Heaven there is enough and enough Men are enemies but God a friend and will appeare in time for us and against them all And if our selves should miscarry yet our posterity shall see the fruit of all these stirres our children shall enter into the good land A great stay to the heart when almost overwhelmed with ca●es and fea●es Psal 27.13 I had fainted unlesse I had beleeved to see the goodnesse of the Lord in the land of the l●ving Fourthly faith works patience to endure any thing in the way and for the cause of God therefore we both labour and suffer reproach because we trust in the living God 1. Tim. 4.10 And by patience the Christian hath power over his owne spirit and can possesse his soule Luk. 21.19 which otherwise would be lost as it were by impatience and other distempers When patience hath its perfect worke Jam. 1.4 he shall be altogether invincible and shall hold out unto victory and to the enjoying of all mercies promised Heb. 6.12 old Beleevers through faith and patience inherited the promises Fiftly faith can pray the prayer of faith Jam. 5.15 16. Oratio fidei Omnipoten● 〈◊〉 which availeth much and after a sort is Omnipotent as Luther said And specially by prayer the Beleever can get hear●s-ease in every s●d qualitie the setling of unquiet affections heavy passions of unbelief frightfull apprehensions of evill to come Lord help my mi●ch●fe Ma● 9.24 Ps 109.4 for my love they are my adversaries b●t I 〈◊〉 my self● unto prayer mark the force of that phrase And it is said of Jehosaphat in that great danger that he set himself● to seek the Lord which both qualified his feare and obtained a victory 2 Chron. 20.3 V. In respect of the enemies both in the world and from hell Enem●es d●sabled in the ●a●ne Rom. 8.33 Faith seeth them disabled in the ma●ne Who can a●●●●st or condem●e or separate from the love of God Well they may kill the body but not hurt the soule or rifle the estate but not prejudice the goodnes of his estate toward God Therefore feare them not saith our Saviour Luk 12.4 5. Neither can they do that til the Lord give them leave 2 Sam. 16.11 as he bad Shime● to curse David and satan could not touch Job nor enter into the Swine of the Gada●●●ns till he had commission Enemies are a sharp rod but in the hand of God to lay on or take off as he pleaseth Isa 10.5 Nor yet can they vex us one moment longer then the Lord will As we see in Israels comming out of Egypt Exod 12.41 The selfe same day wherein the 430. yeers were expired The rod of the wicked shall not rest on the lot of the righteous Ps 125.3 In due time the rod must be cast into the fire VI. In respect of the proper ●nd of faith Faith ends of not but ●n salvation which is salvation 1 Pet. 1.9 Faith never leaves the soul but in endlesse unspeakable blessednes There indeed it self endeth having done its office but the effect benefit of it never endeth Now they say all is well that ends well and in present all is well because the end shall be good thence the heart is fixed and the Beleever fainteth not whatever he suffers in this life see 2 Cor. 4.16 17 18. The Ordinance of God VII In respect of Gods grant and ordinance to a Beleever walking humbly with him as here in the Text this stands a● a priviledge of the godly described 〈◊〉 1. to be on● that f●a ●t God and d●l●g●●●●●g earth 〈◊〉 Comm●●d●ments God ●ath past over to him such in hum●nity He sh●● not b● 〈…〉 d●g●● 〈…〉 in the Lord. Having taken his part of sorrow and feare before-hand Hab. 3 16. he shall rest in the day of evill And having come to Gods termes of beleeving repenting obeying zeale and the like he shall now enjoy the sweetnesse of it One that hath served his time faithfully shall have the priviledges of a Townsman or Citizen These are the grounds whereon faith setleth the heart in evill 〈◊〉 All this while we say nothing ●f a Stoicall or C●n call resolution that a Christian should either be voyd of affections Heb. 12.5 o● desp●se the crosse by a dogged stomacke or that he needs worldly wisdome and policy to help himselfe or that he must shift and sh●rk for hims●lfe in an indirect way or goe over to the enemies of God and Religion or on the other side seeke his owne revenge upon them All this is but Sau●● Armour not sit for Dav●d to fight in Therefore we leave them to Ma●●●●vel and his disciples Men of this world Job 36.21 who choose sinne rather then affliction And we goe out against the enemies of God as David against Goliah 1 Sam. 17.45 in the name of the Lord. Grounds of faith suffice the heires of faith who are ever happiest and most at ease when they hold them to their grounds Section III. Improve Faith for setling thy heart in these evill times Make use of Faith at these times of need Every one wisheth the times were setled and if the times were setled he would doe thus and thus to make gaine and live a merry life But Christians the setling of the times is not in your power the setling of your hearts is and ye see how Other may passe away as fruitlesse wishes and lost endeavours but this is feisable and will be to good purpose The Just is an everlasting fo●ndation saith Solomon Prov. 10. that is being fixed by faith otherwise he is weak as another man this is the Samsons look which holds all our strength together this keeps life in the heart and steddinesse whereas without it the soule staggers like a drunken man Now live by faith Hab. 2.4 While the naturall man lives the life of nature do you live the life of grace and of faith Make use of this privilege as Townsmen doe of theirs to enrich themselves and keep out forreigners No man hath a commodity lying by him but he will make use of it when it shall be most for his advantage And so should a Christian of his faith in these times of need Never in all our dayes had we such times and occasions as these and therefore now more then ever we should put our faith to the proofe Godly men have no exemption from troubles dangers or evill tidings but onely an Antidote to fence their poore hearts against the venome of them And they

have their feares as others have and their feares are both naturall and usefull Onely this may curbe them and keep them from being immoderate Faith acted sets the heart as a rock and the face as a flint Isa 50.7 The Lord God will helpe me therefore shall I not be confounded therefore have I set my face like a flint and I know tha● I shall not be ashamed Obiect Oh! but it is very hard to keep the heart in a good frame of depending and waiting on God I find my heart soon unsetled though sometime fixed Ans 1 True Gods owne children find sad vicissitudes of faith and frailty flesh and spirit are ever combating as in other things so in this like those that goe upon the sea sometime carried up to Heaven Psal 107.26 sometime downe againe into the de●ps Let no Christian discourage himselfe because of these alterations Be glad that sometimes ye find an high tide of affections and assurances 77. 10. David remembred the yeer● of old and was comforted Secondly it is indeed difficult and that shewes the excellency of the life of faith 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 All excellent things are attended w●th their difficulties A great estate needs much adoe in the managing None layeth siege to a Cottage neither will Satan trouble those that live the life of nature but where faith is he will quickly shew himselfe an enemy Thirdly Religion in generall and faith in particular hath a power in it Lactant. ●●nditu 4.28 both to maintaine it selfe and oppose the enemy Religion in latin hath its name of bind●ng And in this case it bindeth the beleeving soule to its Mast so to avoyd enchanting Syrens of the World and keep it upright against all stormes of temptation and persecution and faith at weakest cryes out for help Lord increase our faith Lord belp my unbeliefe The life of nature strives to preserve it selfe as long as it can and by the best meanes it can and so doth the life of faith The weakest Beleever can make moane and say all is not well with him and long for some reliefe which struglings shall be relieved Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after righteousnesse Mat. 5.6 for they shall be filled Fourthly therefore strive still to act thy faith chide unbeliefe away as Psal 42.11 Why art thou cast downe O my soule why art thou disquieted within me What reason for this infidelity Fight the good fight of faith 1 Tim. 6.12 Contend for the Faith Jude 3. As for the doctrine of faith and habit of faith so for the act and exercise of it In vain is that habit of power which is not reduced into act No need to bid a Sea-man cast forth his anchor in a storme so me thinks there should be no need to call upon a Christian to set his faith on worke in these dangerous dayes Quest What should we doe to exercise our faith in soule weather Meanes to bring faith into act and make our use of it when need requireth Answ 1. Seeke the Lord by prayer Jam. 1.17 from whom commeth every good and perfect g●ft and to live the life of faith is one of those gifts As he is the Author so the F●n●sher of faith Heb. 12.2 As he gives the habit so the act and operation of it The Lord gives his Church both the former and la●ter raine Faith is a Creature and the strength whereby we stand is uncreated even God himselfe Thou art the strength of my heart said David and my portion for ever Ps 37.26 Faith that must support us must it selfe be supported of the Lord as Christ prayed for Peter Luke 22.32 I have prayed that thy faith faile not Doth any of you therefore want wisdome or strength Jam. 1.5 6. Let him ask of God who giveth liberally He is the onely stay for a poore Beleever in streights and difficulties Fall to casting anchor in Heaven or else ye are gone 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 doth neither justifie nor uphold us in great trials God must help us to beleeve or we shall soone come to nothing Faith with its Correlative is all in all to us 2. Keep still in eye those many grounds on which faith standeth and establisheth the heart that is the Relations of God to us his Attributes Promises Providence mercies received mercies reserved c. A tall man in the bottome of a celler will see but little and a strong Beleever if his grounds be out of fight will be weak as another man To the Law and to the Testimony Isa 8.20 in matters to be done to the Gospell and to the Promises in matters to be beleeved and receive comfort A Trades-man to furnish his Shop will repaire to the Ware-house And a Christian to be furnished with comfort must repaire to the Promises and the like supplies It may be observed that the same Christian as he hath used his grounds or not used them hath been strangely altered as if he were not the same man One while a Gyant another while a Dwarfe Oh saith David I shall one day fall by the hand of Saul Another time he will not feare Psal 3 6. though ten thousand had compassed him round about One while Job curseth his birth-day and is very impatient another while he will trust in God Job 13.15 though he kill him It is aliquid Dei some divine thing that must uphold the best heart that is If his means be neglected or laid aside there quickly comes a fearfull alteration When the Moone receives not light from the Sunne it is presently eclipsed 3 Shut the eye of flesh at such times and beware of carnall reason Carnall reason is a great enemy to faith therefore these are opposed one to another To walk by faith and walk by sight 2 Cor. 5.7 We walk by faith and not by sight He that will goe by likelihoods and unlikelihoods shall never be setled in beleeving The servant of Elisha feared because he looked onely at them that came against him and saw not who were with him The Noble-man dyed for it If God should make windowes in Heaven 2 Kin. 7.2 could there be such plenty Zacharias was stricken dumb for asking whereby shall I know this Luk. 1.20 being old and his Wife well stricken in yeers Abraham on the other side Rom. 4.19 considered not the deadnesse of his owne body or of Sarahs wombe but looked at him who had promised that he was able and faithfull to performe The naked Word of God is sufficient for performing all his promises Never ask when or how or any such matters Hath not the Lord spoken it And if it be mervailous in your eyes should it be mervailous in mine eyes sa●th the Lord of ●osts Zech. 8.6 Oh say we our enemies are many and strong our friends few and weak treasure exhausted no likelihood of carrying our cause Joh. 11.39 Lord by this time it stinketh for t●●s