Selected quad for the lemma: grace_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
grace_n	deny_v	live_v	ungodliness_n	2,449	5	11.2335	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A10393	The necessitie of righteousnes. Or A profitable and fruitfull sermon vpon the fift chapter of the Gospell of S. Mathew. vers. 20. Preached and penned by that famous, learned, iudicious, orthodoxall, holy, wise, and skilfull preacher and servant of God, now deceased, and with his God triumphing in Heaven, Iohn Randall, Batchelour of Divinitie, pastour of St Andrewes Hubbart in little East-cheape London, sometimes fellow of Lincolne Colledge in Oxford. And now published, to the glory of God, the edification of his Church, and the honourable memoriall of the author, by William Holbrooke, preacher of the Word of God in the church aforesaid	Randall, John, 1570-1622.; Holbrooke, William.	1622 (1622)	STC 20675; ESTC S115634	15,134	32

righteousnesse Text. and thirdly the measure of that righteousnesse so qualified it must not be scant but abound and exceede your righteousnesse must exceede Or els Text. that we may draw it into a narrower Division The thing required is righteousnesse which our Saviour describes by way of comparison with the righteousnesse of the Scribes and Pharisees In whose righteousnesse he seemes to taxe a double defect and requires in the righteousnesse of his Disciples the supplying of both those defects First their righteousnesse it was but counterfeit it was not good enough and therefore the righteousnesse of Christs Disciples must be a better righteousnesse and secondly their righteousnesse was very scarse and sparing and therefore the righteousnesse of Christs Disciples must be more there must be greater store of righteousnesse in them then was in the Scribes and Pharisees so that it must exceed both in goodnes in greatnes First of the matter of this Dutie which is righteousnesse whereby we are to vnderstand the whole obedience which a man doth owe vnto God both in respect of his faith and in respect of his life both for doctrine and also for manners For indeed so much is enforced exactly by the Antithesis or Opposition here specified whereas exception is made both against the Scribes and the Pharisees too For as it shall afterwards God willing more plainly appeare the Scribes they were skilfull in the knowledge of the Law and the Pharisees they were precise and formall in the practise of the Law the Scribes were the men of greatest learning and the Pharisees the men of exactest living that these times did affoord Therefore exception being taken against them both it is very plaine that our Saviour would haue his Disciples both to know the Law better then the Scribes and to practise the Law better then the Pharisees Your righteousnesse sayth he must exceed the righteousnesse of the Scribes and Pharisees both God as he hath appointed and prepared a Kingdome in heaven so because that is the holy of holies there is no way for any prophane or vncleane thing to enter into it and therefore the Lord requires that every one that would enter therin should be righteous and holy according to that Psal 118.20 This is the gate of the Lord the righteous shall enter into it It is the wedding garment which every one of vs must be covered withall if we would be fit ghosts for that wedding feast which the Lord hath prepared in Heaven The Scripture makes mention of a twofold righteousnesse Righteousnesse inherent and righteousnesse imputed First there is a righteousnesse that is within vs our obedience to the will of God or at least our endevour to performe it as neere as we can and secondly there is a righteousnes that is without vs which being inherent in Christ is apprehended of vs by a true and a liuely faith and so is imputed vnto vs accounted ours as really as if it were within vs. For true righteousnesse is nothing els but the fulfilling of the Law as contrariwise Sinne is nothing els but the transgression of the Law and if we do performe the Law of God our selues here is inherent righteousnesse here is our sanctitie and holinesse of life Nay if we do not performe it to the full for this never any mortall man could reach vnto but the Son of God alone yet if we endevour and striue to it the best we can God that accepts of the will as of the deed as the Apostle speakes doth in great mercie esteeme it for righteousnesse But because this our righteousnes is defectiue too light to be waighed in the ballance of Gods justice therefore wee must goe out of our selues to seeke for a better righteousnes such as may stand before God without controlment and be admitted without any exception and this is to be found in Christ alone who onely hath fulfilled the Law in every point which if we faithfully lay hold vpon perswading our selues assuredly that whatsoever Christ hath done he hath done it for vs then we make it become our righteousnesse The inherent righteousnes is the matter of our sanctification the imputed righteousnes is the matter of our iustification Now our Saviour requires here of his Disciples that they should be furnished with both these sorts of righteousnes Howbeit he aymeth principally at our inherent righteousnesse that is our holinesse of life wherein we must exceed the Scribes and Pharisees So then you see that this is an exhortatiō to good works For howsoever our Saviour came downe from Heaven to Preach the Gospell and the free remission of our sins through faith in his bloud yet he would not haue men to think that faith were enough to saue them without good workes but as many as looke to be partakers of his merites they must be careful to avoid sin and zealous of good works and with all their power endevour themselues to fulfill the Law of God It is a controversie betwixt vs the Church of Rome concerning the necessitie of good workes they charge vs that we teach the doctrine of faith alone trample the doctrine of good workes vnder our feet and that we proclaime a Gospel of liberty and security But this is a manifest slander against vs for we doe teach the doctrine of good workes and exhort men to be careful in seeking to please God by holines of life as earnestly as they doe True indeed that wee deny good workes to be necessary in the worke of our justification for it is faith alone that doth iustifie vs in the sight of God but wee hold them to be absolutely necessary to our salvation so that our adversaries doe very deceitfully change the state of the questiō that is betwixt vs bearing the world in hand that we deny all good works therby to discredit reproch our religion No beloved we for our parts doe very constantly hold against all the Libertines in the world that there never was any man nor ever can any man ordinarily be saued without good works We do indeed magnifie the doctrine of faith but doe we thereby disanull the doctrine of good workes God forbid saith the Apostle Nay rather we establish the law of workes by establishing the law of faith For when we preach vnto men the singular loue of Iesus Christ wherewith he hath loued them even aboue his owne life his own precious bloud which is the matter of our faith presently we make vse hereof as being a very forcible motiue to perswade men that they should endevour themselues by all meanes possible to requite this loue of Christ with loving him againe which is the matter of our good works But to leaue our adversaries and to come to the present matter it selfe which we haue in hand Our Saviour here exhorting his Disciples to righteousnesse shewes vs plainely what an odious thing it is in his sight for a man to be a professed Christian and Scholler of his when he hath no care to glorifie the name of God to grace his owne profession by liuing righteously in this present world nay he shews further that all that ever he hath done for vs he hath done it to this end that we might still be conversant in the exercises of righteousnesse A thing which the Apostle hath set downe in more plaine and expresse termes Tit. 2.11 where he saith the grace of God which bringeth saluation to all men hath appeared to what end that we should liue in security that we should turne it in wantonnes No but to this end that we should deny all vngodlines and worldly lusts and that we should liue soberly righteously and godly in this present world And as this duty is laid vpon all those that professe the name of Iesus Christ so it concernes vs of the Ministery more then any other let vs not content our selues with a vaine shaddow of Faith and let not vs thinke that it is our knowledge that can saue vs for vnlesse we haue righteousnes 〈…〉