Selected quad for the lemma: friend_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
friend_n	countenance_n	iron_n	sharpen_v	849	5	14.5973	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A27637	The principles of Protestant truth and peace in four treatises : viz. the true state of liberty of conscience, in freedom from penal laws and church-censures, the obligations to national true religion, the nature of scandal, paricularly as it relates to indifferent things, a Catholick catechism, shewing the true grounds upon which the Catholick religion is ascertained / by Tho. Beverley ...	Beverley, Thomas.	1683 (1683)	Wing B2188A; ESTC R12543	325,863	502

Wisdom and Goodness yet it is spoken to us in the plainest Language as if God carryed it as Princes do in their magnificence whose Glory is in their great Courts in the multitude of their Attendants and People Spectators Admirers and Tributaries to their luster 2. I argue to the publickness of Religion from the good it does to the souls of men It is from hence the greatest wisdom to win souls and they that turn many to righteousness shall shine as the stars Now the offer of true Religion to them that had it not before the perswasion of it upon those that have not yet obeyed it tends to their Conversion Repentance to their love and fear of God They therefore that have the true sense of these things in their own souls use all means out of love to the Glory of God and to the souls of men to propagate them to others which is best done by all publick acts of Religion This is the original Law from the very beginning it was so Enoch the seventh from Adam prophecyed publickly The Lord cometh with ten thousands of his Saints Noah was a Preacher of Righteousness This was the great zeal of Christians in the first times Further It strengthens confirms and inflames Religion among those that are the joynt Professors Publick Religion is the great glory and security of Religion it self mutually warming and assisting it self in all its several parts and the Professors of it As Iron sharpens Iron so is the countenance of a man to his Friend herein How much more lively is Religion probable to be in a Religious than an Atheistick and Barbarous Country nor does God afford those divine heats to those that withdraw from Assemblies in Religion except in cases of necessity however he may supply in extraordinary exigences without which Wo to him that is alone in Religion if he fall he has not any to help him up and how can one be warm alone If one prevails against him he wants a Second to withstand together with him and the benefit of the threefold cord that is not easily broken Every thing in nature endeavours towards Community or universal Unity as its own strength and security Even the Devils retain so much of first Nature as to knit in a community and false Christianity imitates the true in a pretence to Vniversality though a most destructive one like that of the God of this World who aspires to Universal Monarchy but it is in sin and death But this does not disparage True Religion moving to an Universality of Truth Peace and Life for evermore 3. The blessing and acceptance that Religion receives from the Divine Majesty is much greater for the publickness of it even in this sence Two are better than one for they have a good reward for their labour In thss sence their complicated services are more forcible their threefold Cord is not easily broken Not that God is prevailed upon to any change in himself or his Government by the services of his Creatures though in a multitude but he is pleased to found the occasions and opportunities of his own most bountiful Recompences in the drawing near of their greater numbers For as when God was pleased to communicate himself more freely he did it to a multitude of Creatures so he delights in receiving back the glory of having thus communicated himself from a multitude also and as there is more of himself in more of his Creatures whether of several sorts or of the same so there is more of his blessing in their approaches to him He that does not only weigh the Mountains in scales but comprehends the dust of the earth in a measure takes notice of those prayers and desires of the poor of the people that make the crowd and throng in his worship and service He accepts the pair of Turtle Doves the two Mites when it is the All and is ready to reward it This was the policy of Nineveh's Natural Religion to unite their Force in Humiliation Fasting and Prayer and to take advantage of joyning the mute desires of the Beasts that have a voice in the ears of God Abraham's Servant made the Camels kneel down while he prayed to God Thus in Thanksgivings It was David's art to gather up all the praises even of the lowest of the Creatures that could so meanly give them and inspiring them with his own reason made them as it were to follow his Harp and unite in his own Hallelujahs Thus he served himself of them that making by them a greater present of glory to God he might receive the greater blessing from him The Apostle speaks of the good effect of Christian Charity in causing an abundance of thanksgivings to God David saying The congregation of the people would compass God about adds this prayer therefore for their sakes return thou on high Now all these expressions reporting to us a great force in the publickness of Religious Duties we know it is only from the agreeableness of this publickness with the Divine Will and Nature and his holy Ordination who loves his Saints and knows their approach to him is an approach to their life and happiness And because he loves all his Saints and Creatures the more of them in conjunction draw near to him the more of his tender mercies have the occasion to spread themselves for else all the Nations are to God but as the drop of the Bucket and the dust of the Ballance all their services are not sufficient to him for a sacrifice to burn before him He humbles himself to behold the things that are in Heaven as well as those on Earth He with great delight yet looks to one that is of a broken and contrite spirit and that trembles at his word As one day and a thousand years are both alike to the Infinity of God so are a thousand persons and but one as it is all one to him to save with many or few so it is to be intreated by them in prayer or accept their praise but according to the wisdom and holiness of the Divine Manifestation in his Love and Bounty so he is pleased to see his Servants draw near to him in an union of Love among themselves and every one having a claim to his favour who is all Goodness the united claim is stronger He hears even the Ravens that cry for they are his Creatures if any man therefore could intwist their cry with his own in a general scarcity he makes his own so much the stronger He then that joyns the prayers and desires of many with his own doubles still the strength as is manifest by the Apostles so often and earnestly desiring the help of prayers And this may answer what may seem to be an objection against good men joyning with publick and promiscuous Assemblies wherein are so many ignorant and bad men that by their sins ignorance and folly rather obstruct the effect and acceptance of good men joyning with them so that