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	teach_v	ungodliness_n	4,302	5	11.7286	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A30448	A sermon preach'd before the King, at St. James-Chapel on the 10th of February 1694/5, being the first Sunday in Lent / by Gilbert, Lord Bishop of Sarum.	Burnet, Gilbert, 1643-1715.	1695 (1695)	Wing B5904; ESTC R8267	15,648	35

A SERMON PREACH'D Before the KING AT St. JAMES-CHAPEL On the 10 th of February 1694 5 BEING The First SUNDAY in LENT By the Right Reverend Father in GOD GILBERT Lord Bishop of SARUM LONDON Printed for Ri. Chiswell at th● Rose and Crown in St. Pauls Church-yard MDCXCV PRINTED By His Majesty's Special Command 2 COR. vi 1. We then as Workers together with him beseech you also that ye receive not the Grace of God in vain THESE Words as they are part of the Epistle for the day so they do contain the chief Subject of our Labours and of your Duty we as fellow Labourers nor with him is not in the Greek are to unite all our endeavours to beseech you not to neglect this great Salvation nor to receive in vain that Grace and Favour which is offered you in the Gospel that is not to hear it without the Impressions that it ought to make and the effects that it ought to have upon you In the end of the former Chapter St. Paul seems to raise our Character very high He calls us Ambassadours for Christ. An Ambassadour is the second Character of dignity in the World because it represents the first We come in the Name and stead of our Great Master We pray men in Christs stead and as tho God did beseech them by us But that we might not swell too much upon so sublime a designation we are taken down again in the words of my Text we are Workmen and Builders and ought to be esteemed for our Works sake as we labour faithfully and diligently We are called to labour and not to authority to perswade and not to command The chief Subject that we are to be imployed in is to perswade men to be reconciled to God and not to receive his Grace in vain One might think that this was an easie task in which we could not doubt of our success What Criminal under the arrests of Justice who has the time of his Execution in view would need great perswasions to accept not only of a pardon but of favour This would go so naturally that it would seem a superfluous labour to use strong arguments to prevail upon him Were we but sensible of the load of sin and guilt that is upon us what humble supplicants would we be for Grace in stead of needing motives to perswade us to accept of it The best method for us both to maintain the dignity of our Character as Ambassadours and to succeed in our Labours as joynt Workmen is to live sutably to the station we are raised to to represent as near as we can the vertues of him who sends us and to direct the perswasions that we offer to others so effectually to our selves that the world may from thence believe that we know our Arguments to be strong because we our selves are convinced by them If they observe not this they will have little regard to all that we say They will rather think that it is for the sake of our Character or rather as they will turn it for the sake of our appointments that we study to set out this matter with good colours and a seeming strength of reason to others but if we our selves do not yield to it they will conclude that we who have oppo●●●●iti●● to meditate well on those matt●●● have ●ound out the weak sides of the Arguments since we do not yi●ld to 〈◊〉 what noise soever we may make 〈◊〉 them for the subduing and terrifying of others The strokes of Art and the charms of Rhetorick do please rather than perswade The heart has a language peculiar to it self which is well perceived by the hearts of others how plain and neglect●d soever it may be as to the airs or graces of discourse It will soften and melt more than laboured or artificial Composures Mankind will judge of our hearts by our actions rather then by our words That we may effectually beseech others we must carefully watch over our selves that according to the words which follow we may give no offence in any thing that we may neither give just grounds nor even colourable pretences to others to stumble by any thing that we may lay in their way that so our ministry may not be blamed The enemies of Religion will not think it enough to triumph over us when we furnish them with such advantages they will carry it further and lay the blame not where it ought to be laid upon our persons they will charge our Function with it for they hate that more than our persons we ought therefore to approve our selves in all things in the conduct of our lives and in the discharge of our function in much patience even tho we should fall under great afflictions By honour and dishonour by evil report and good report neither much cast down for the one nor at all listed up for the other and upon the whole matter we ought to behave our selves so that tho impious and wicked men may study to make us pass for Impostors and deceivers yet we may be found to be true to be men of Integrity and probity St. Paul says we beseech you also that is not only the Heathens but the Saints or Christians of Corinth not to receive this Grace in vain They not only believed the Gospel but were when this Epistle was written to them under deep Impressions of Sorrow for those Disorders and Scandals for which he had treated them so severely in his first Epistle to them yet no good temper of theirs could supersede the necessity of this exhortation therefore he saies we beseech you also This is the end of our Ministry and the chief subject of our labours therefore it is ever to be repeated and to be alwayes insisted on even to the greatest proficients and in their best minutes By the Grace of God in the general signification of the word is to be understood the love and favour of God but more particularly that goodness and mercy of God which is revealed to us in the Gospel which in opposition to the Law of Moses is called Grace we are not under the Law but under Grace and the Grace of God which bringeth salvation hath appeared unto all men teaching us that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts we should live soberly righteously and godlily in this present world To receive this Grace in vain is not to have that sense of it nor to make those acknowledgments for it or returns to it that become us and which it deserves So then the Subject of this Discourse shall be 1 st To shew you what it is to receive the Gospel in vain and who they are that are guilty of this 2 dly What are those arguments that we have to offer to the world to perswade them to receive it not in vain but sutably to the truth and importance of it I come therefore now to consider what it is to receive this Grace in vain and