Selected quad for the lemma: grace_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
grace_n	covenant_n	promise_n	seal_v	2,532	5	9.8875	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A74686	The nonsuch professor in his Meridian splendor, or the singular actions of sanctified Christians. Laid open in seaven sermons at Allhallows church in the wall, London. / By William Secker preacher of the gospel.	Secker, William, d. 1681?	1660 (1660)	Wing S2253; Thomason E1750_1; ESTC R209664	179,725	448

was kept in prison but prayer was made without ceasing for him Act. 12. 5. And prayer fetcht an Angel out of Heaven to fetch Peter out of prison If the oven be quite cold it requires more wood to heat it again there 's more strength exercised in the raising of a Bell then in the ringing of a Bell it 's not the dog that cryes the loudest that catches the haire but he that follows the Chase Beleevers should not only pray one with another but they should pray one for another next to the breach of piety in Religion we should abominate the breach of charity in communion that 's a sad spectacle to see men upholding an abominable oftentation by a more abominable separation It 's weak conceptions that are the Parents of strong delusions that 's true they who cannot know our hearts should not judge them and they who should not judge our hearts cannot know them but when such Vessells gives over sailing we may conclude that divine gails hath given over blowing Christians He that is omniscient to see your wants is omnipotent to grant your suits there 's no mercies so little as to be gotten without prayer there 's no mercies so great as not to be given unto prayer Are you made spirituall Priests and will you not offer up spirituall sacrifices Si fidelis humilis et fervens oratio fuerit caelum sine dubio penetrabit unde certum est quòd vacu● redire non poterit Ber Ser. 4. de Quadrag ult verb. Our affections should fly like an Eagle when our expressions creep like a snaile What 's the reason there are so many empty Casks in Gods Cellar but for want of prayer Pray continually though you be not continually at prayer 1 Thes 5. 17. If the lesson be not alwayes playing yet the instrument must be kept in tune They should never be dying Petitioners that have an everliving Intercessor It matters not how often you carry an empty pitcher to so full a River And this is the confidence that we have in him that if we ask any thing according to his will he hears us 1 Joh. 5. 18. That soul shall have its will of God that desires nothing but what God wills The intercession of Christ is a golden Censor and can we desire him to offer up our drossy prayer for incense It was an expression of Luthers Fiat voluntas mea Domine quia tua let my will be done mine Lord because it is thine because it fixed in the same Center he was bold to call for the fulfilling of it The Covenant of grace without us turns precepts into promises but the spirit of grace within us turns promises into prayers Take with you words and turn unto the Lord say unto him take away all our iniquity and receive us graciously Hosea 14. 2. O how willing is God that we should hit the mark when he teaches us how to direct our arrowes What desires are there in him that we should prevail when he shews us how we should wrestle Spirituall breathings are more potent then carnal roarings none but such desires as want good aimes doe want good issues nothing will get up to Heaven but that which doth come down from Heaven Deny not God faith in prayer and God will not deny a faithfull prayer That is the Third 4. Would you do more than others then beleeve more then others It 's the Lamp of fidelity that 's filled with the oyl of activity This is a grace that is the most needful and this is a grace Vt sol radios suos longè lareque per totum terrarum orbem diffundit sic fides in hominecredente vires sua efficacitèr exerit Sibel in Mat. 16. 16. conc 13. in mi● that is the most fruitful If there be life in the body the pulse will be beating and if there be faith in the soul the man will be working all other graces thrives in the soul as this grace thrives in the soul as the watering of the roots makes the flourishing of the Trees What doth it profit my Brethren if a man say he hath faith and hath no works can faith save him Jam. 2. 14. An idle faith is an evill faith yea a faith that works not is a faith that saves not This is a faithfull saying and this I will that thou affirme constantly that they which have beleeved in God might be carefull to maintaine good works Titus 3. 8. It 's reported of the Christall that there 's such a vertue in it that it will quicken all other stones and put a beauty and lustre upon them I am sure it 's true here there 's such a divine virtue and power in faith that it quickens and casts a lustre upon all our other graces Perceiving of Christ speaks a Christians knowledge but it 's a receiving of Christ that speaks a christians faith To as many as received him to them he gave power to become the Sons of God even to as many as believed on his name Joh. 1. 12. Faith doth not only looke upon Christ as a fountain of living water but layes pipes to convey it to its own Cisterne The Window irradiates the house not by any light of its own but as a medium to let in the beams of the Sun without Christ faith can doe nothing and against Christ faith will do nothing A true and Scripturall affiance is as the spring in the watch that moves all the golden wheels of obedience The father of the child cryed out with tears I beleeve help my unbelief Mark 9. 24. Though his tears dropt down to the earth yet his faith reacht up to Heaven Faith is able to swim upon those deep seas with delight which the line of reason could never fathom He that is highest in his diffidence is lowest in his obedience he could not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief that which hinders Christ from working for Christians that will hinder Christians from working for Christ It is as naturall for a beleeving man to be a working man as it is for the Sun to shine or the fire to burne The people of Israel stood in the outer Court but the High Priest entered within the Vaile Thus other graces Sic fides inter virtutes sure suo pri matum obtinet stand but in the outer court it 's faith that enters within the Vaile The Devill if he can but undermine the foundation he will soone overthrow the building as take away the corner stone and yon indanger all the other stones Bernard hath an excellent saying Increduli timent diabolum quasi leonem at qui in side fortes despiciunt eum quasi vermiculum whilst unbeleevers fear the Devill as a Lion the faithfull contemne him as a worme Christians he that here lives by faith which doth admit of doubting shall hereafter live by sight which doth not admit of clouding There 's no landing at the shoare of felicity without sailing in

of his draught are much defac't yet there are such reliques and remainders left behind that as in fullyed Maps we may guesse at former lines Spiritual acts they require spiritual eyes and the brighter we see them the better we do them We cannot come to God with fiducial or justifying faith before we have attained a historical or dogmatical faith What the Papists say of Images we may justly say of the creatures that they are Lay-mens books in which there 's no Errata's The Heavens declares the glory of God and the Firmament sheweth his handy work Psal 19. 1. They who could not unclapse the book of Scripture have laid before them the volume of nature The invisible things of God from the creation of the world are clearly seen being understood by the things that are made Rom. 1. 20. From the second causes we may easily arrive at the first as you may pursue a River as it runs to the Fountains head from which it flows If we should see a Ship upon the Sea sailing directly to the Harbor we might conclude a Pilot in her to steer her course They have but a narrow inspection into the works of nature that cannot in them discover the God of nature which is Commentum Dei mirabile as Lactantius calls it That 's the first 2. If you would do more then others you must love more then others The love of Christ constrains us 2 Cor. 5. 14. There 's no sin so sweet but the love of Christ restrains them from it there 's no service so great but the love of Christ constrains them to it If once this affection takes fire the room becomes too hot for any sin to stay in The heart is a chamber for Christ but not a harbour for lust The Mandrakes give a smell and at our Gates are all manner of pleasant fruits new and old which I have laid up for thee O my beloved Cant. 7. 13. Love never shakes the Boughs but for Christ to eat the fruits Many pay the performance of duties as oppressed Subjects doe heavy taxes with sad complaints But the Spouse of Christ Amor onus non sentit labores non reputat plus affectat quâ valet Kempis looks upon what she is as not great enough for his remembrance and what she does as not good enough for his acceptance had she any thing a thousand times better then her self or were her self a thousand times better it should be bestowed upon him What is that little that he desires to that much that he deserves When Achilles was demanded what enterprizes he found the most easie he answered Those which he undertook for his friends Seaven years service seemed nothing to Jacob because of the love he did bear to Rachel Omnia facilia habenti charitatem saith Austin Love as it acts the most excellently so it acts the most easily If you love me keep my commandements John 14. 15. The Christal streams of divine actions they bubble from the pure spring of divine affection I have heard of a wife that grudged obedience to her husband because she thought him unworthy to receive it to whom it was answered Though he that married her was unworthy of her observance yet he that made her was worthy of her obedience and whatsoever she had to say against her husband she had nothing to say against the command of God In Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth any thing nor uncircumsion but faith which worketh by love Gal. 5. 6. The Christians love advances by equal paces with the Christians faith as the heat of the day with the shining of the Sun Faith like Mary sits at the feet of Christ to hear his Sermons and love like Martha compasses him about with services Faith is the great receiver and love is the great disburser We take in all by beleeving and we lay out all by loving Faith it first works love and then it works by love as the workman sets an edge upon his tooles and then carves and cuts with them The Scripture hath exceeding high expressions of this affection Nihil dulcius est amore nihil fortius nihil jucundius nec melius in Caelo et in terrâ quia natus est ex D●o c. Id lib. 3 cap. 5. de Imit Christi Christ he brings the ten Commandements into two Commandements Matth. 22. 37 38. Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul and with all thy mind this is the first and great Commandement and the second is like unto it thou shalt love thy neighbour as thy self Christ he brings ten words into two words but Paul he folds them all up in one word For all the law is fulfilled in one word Gal. 5. 14. What 's that surely it is too big for any mouth to utter Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thy self He that is not wanting in this duty is wanting in no duty Love it s called an old Commandement and a new Commandement 1 John 2. 7 8. It 's as old as the Law of Moses and yet as new as the Gospel of Jesus Christ Faith is the grace that at first seals the conveyance and love is the grace that at last possesses the inheritance Faith that unites Christ and sanctified souls together on earth but love that unites God and glorified souls together in Heaven As the spleen groweth the body decayeth and as hatred increaseth so holinesse abateth Die aliquid ut duo simus was the Motto of a Heathen and therefore doth not belong to a Christian It 's best that dissention should never be born among brethren and next that it should dye presently after it's birth When any leak springs in the ship of Christian society we should use our indeavours to stop it speedily The nearer the union is the more dangerous is the breach Bodies that are glewed together may if severed be set together as beautifully as ever but members rent and torne cannot be healed without a scar The love in a hypocrites bosome is just like the fire in the Israelites bush which was not burning all the while it was blazing His estate and relations hath the top and strength of his affections they admit the world not only into the Suburbs of their sences but into the City of their souls But the love of a Saviour in the soul of a beleever is as Oyl put into a Vial with water in which though both be never so much shaken together the oyl will be uppermost Or if you please as one rising Sun which drowns the light of numberless Starres Should God give his substance to him and yet keep himself from him Absalom's expression would be his What doth all avail me so long as I see not the Kings face Take a Christian and his Heaven upon earth is in Gods dwelling with him yea and his Heaven in Heaven is in his dwelling with God He is like a stone of which some report that if it