Selected quad for the lemma: grace_n
Text snippets containing the quad
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A34207
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A guide to the true religion, or, A discourse directing to make a wise choice of that religion men venture their salvation upon seasonable for these times wherein there are such diversities of opinions and wayes of religion : to inform the ignorant, to resolve the wavering, and to confirm the weak / by I.C., M.A. of T.C.C.
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I. C., M.A. of T.C.C.
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1669
(1669)
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Wing C57; ESTC R5667
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45,610
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112
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Entertain it not in the notion only but let it be so digested that you feel your sin and misery at your heart and dare not to continue a day longer without reconciling and pardoning mercy and renewing and sanctifying grace lest you perish that you despair of any creatures help and feel your selves eternally undone if the God of Heaven help not 3 Concerning Jesus Christ our Redeemer That the Lord Jesus Christ the only begotten Son of God coessential and coeternal with his Father upon the appointment and designation of his Father voluntarily undertook the office of a Saviour and Redeemer to Mankinde being made Man took on him our sins and the curse of the Law and giving himself up a Sacrifice and an offering to God for us purchased by his death all things conducing to grace and glory and having by his own power arisen from the dead and ascended into heaven he is become an alsufficient Saviour and will effectually confer pardon grace and Salvation on all those who shal truly believe in him And that there is no other name under Heaven to be saved by but by the name of Jesus Christ This is a great and necessary Doctrine of Salvation so clearly held forth in Scripture that it 's beyond controversie 1 Tim. 3.16 Let this Catholick verity be received not in the Nation only but dwel in your hearts that you may see the infinite worth and excellency of Jesus Christ prize him as the only Savior close with him on all those glorious accounts and end she was sent upon by the Father and yield up your selves to be saved by him in his own way and upon his own Terms 4 Concerning the application of Redemption That our Redeemer the Lord Josus Christ having all power in Heaven Earth given to him hath made a new Law or Covenant of grace caused it to be proclaimed to the world wherein he promises pardon and Salvation to all that shal sincerely accept and own him for their Saviour and Lord Redeemer and tâ—uly repenting of their sins shall rest on his death and merits alone for life love him above all things and sincerely obey his Gospel Laws and Commundments shal persevere in these duties to the end And after he shal have sent his holy Spirit to work Faith and conversion in his Elect He will certainly come again from Heaven in the glory of his Father with his mighty Angels and by his mighty power shal raise the dead and convene all both Quick dead before his Judgment Seat and then such as did truly repent them of their sins and sincerely believed in his Name and obeyed his Gospel he will adjudge to Eternal glory and happinesse with himself and his Father and the holy Angels but unbelievers and impenitent persons to eternal torments in Hell with the Devil and his Angels This is an unquestionable Article of the Christian Faith expresly delivered in the holy Scriptures and imbraced by the Catholick Church Let this truth be received not notionally but heartily Let it influence your hearts and lives so as you sincerely obey the Gospel and live in the dayly expectation of the coming of the Lord and give deligence to be found of him in peace without spot and blamelesse I shal add no other Doctrinal verities besides these fundamental Articles They are the very substance of the Christian Creed imbraced by the Church in all ages and places 2. For those Practical Duties in which all true Christians are agreed for as there are in points of Faith fundamental Articles so there are in the point of practice fundamental Duties Now these are either 1 Those Moral duties of the Law or Ten Commandements promulgated on Mount Sinai and written by the finger of God in two Tables of stone which Christians are obliged to observe as well as the Jews though the Ceremonial Law which was altogether typical and shadowed good things to come be abolished Yea wee are bound to keep it in a more strict and spiritual manner then the Jews did interpret it formerly as appears by Christs Sermon Mat 5. This contains all duties of piety toward God immediatly required in the first Table viz. to take and accept the God of Heaven that made us and gave us Life and breath and beeing for our God alone to know and acknowledge him to fear love and trust in him and seek his glory to give him that external worship he requires in his Word publick private and secret as invocation of his Holy Name by prayers and praises hearing and reading meditating and conferring on his Word receiving his Sacraments sanctifying his Sabbaths Doing all this in an Holy reverent manner so as Gods name may be sanctifyed by us in his ordinances as also in our ordinary communications and conversations It likewise contains all Duties of righteousness and charity towards Man required in the second Table viz. The preserving as well as not injuring of the honour and authority of the life and chastity of our neighbour in thought word and deed as also his estate good name c. And loving him even as we love our selves doing good unto all c. These are general Duties all Christians are agreed in Make Conscience to practise these 2 Those Evangelical Duties or Commandements of the Gospel For besides these Moral Duties of the Law which the Gospel doth inforce also by renewed and more indearing arguments there are peculiar duties required by the Gospel as True repentance for every sin and transgression of Gods righteous and holy commands for the Law gives no place to Repentance but threatens death for every offence Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ for pardon through his blood and Salvation through his merits Fervent love to God and the Redeemer who loved us and gave himself for us who hath washed us in his blood made us Kings and Priests to God and his Father Sincere indeavours to promote his glory upon the new obligation of Redemption and living to him as his peculiar People being not our own but his bought with a price Love to all the Saints and Members of Christ and communion with them as we have opportunity on account of that near union in Christ which should make us bear with smaller differences that do not violat the bond of union whilst they hold of Christ the head and are of the same body c. These are confessed duties all Christians are agreed in Practise them Conscionably The Apostle gives us the sum of all these together Tit. 2.11 12. The grace of God that bringeth Salvation hath appeared to all men teaching us to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts and to live soberly righteously and godly in this present world This then is the Counsel I would give to such as are resolved to be Christians but are stumbled at the variety of opinions and perswasions amongst the professors of Christianity that they know not what to believe or what to practis That they would believe
for pardon and Salvation but in a pretended sinless perfection they deny any necessiy of the Special grace of the Spirit to Conversion and Sanctification saying I charge not every particular quaker with all these Errours for many understand not what they hold But mention what I finde asserted in their printed Pamphlets the Light within them is sufficient hereunto and scoff at them that pray for more bidding them heed that only and it will lead them from sin to God Sabbath and Sacraments and all instituted Worship they cast off the great Doctrines of the Resurrection Last Judgement Heaven and Hell they turn into Allegories c. These and other things considered it appears that they plainly overthrow the foundations of Christianity therefore Christians can have no Communion with that way Thus where differences are in Points destructive to the Foundations of Religion and against the Essentials of Faith worship and obedience There can be no closure and agreement but a total withdrawing is necessary so far as civil Relations and Offices will permit We come next to consider these other Perswasions and Parties among us that agreeing in all the necessary points of Salvation yet differ in things that be less necessary though some be of greater and some of less moment then others These differences be either in Points of Doctrine or â—n matters of Worship and Discipline In Poiâ—ts oâ— Doctrine we have Arminians Antinomians c. In matters of Worship and Discipline we have Anabaptists I mean such as be sound in the main Doctrines of faith but err only in the point of Baptism Independents Presbyterians c. Now about these differing wayes Take these brief Directions sutable to those generall Rules before lay'd down 1. Account them all as Christians if they be serious in the matters of Religion and their lives answerable let not any evil representations of their opinions or waves or odious and invidious consequences drawn from their Principles but disowned by them so far alienate your hearts from them as not to account them Christians Brethren seeing they retain the Fundamentals of Christianity and hold the head Christ though they build on the precious Foundation Wood Hay Stubble Who is in all things free from Errour What Church or person upon Earth 2. Have the greatest respect and the most intimate friendship for those in whose Principles is greatest purity that come nighest the rule and who most follow after peace holinesse and lay out themselves more to promote the greatest truths of the Gospel and the power of Godlinesse then their private perswasions But as for them who with the Wilde fire of their Zeal will set the Church on a flame and are more for making Proselytes for their own way then for seeking the welfare of the Church and the edification and Salvation of souls avoid them 3. If God cast your lot into these places or Countreys where those Professions or Wayes are set up you cannot enjoy that way of serving God that you approve as most pure it s an unqueâ—â—inable duty to hold Communion there in France Holland with the Presbyterians in Germany with the Lutherans in other Countreys with those other perswasioÌ„s before named provided the condition of thy communion be not to give thy allowance to any thing that is evil but in that particular thou mayest be forborn Communion with such Churches where many corruptions and abuses are if the foundations of faith and essentials of worship be preserved ought to be maintained with a due care to keep our selves only from the sins of such a Church else the Apostle would have enjoyned separation from the Church of Corinth for the corruptions found there and the Novatians Donatists and others in the antient Church were unjustly taxed for withdrawing from her Communion for laxness of Discipline or other corruptions which they apprehended to be therein This duty our Church of England hath taught by her own practice who hath ever owned the reformed churches beyond Sea for Sister-Churches given them the right hand of Fellowship though differing from her in some matters of an inferiour nature CHAP. VIII Wherein the great controversies of Communion with or Separation from the Church of England is discussed A view of what is therein praise-worthy and what is disallowable in the judgment of those that scruple Communion Directions suted thereunto WE have spoken of those different wayes and perswasions found amongst private persons without and against the owning and approbation of Authority and given advice in reference to them We are next to consider of that proâ—ession publickly set up by Authority and â—hat hath the civil Sanction of the Laws of â—his Land No sober person can gainsay But this deserves a most serious and impartial consideration partly in respect of that Duty we owe to those in Authority to whom God hath committed the care of Religion and the settling of it in their Dominions in such a way as they think most agreeable to the Rule of the Word and hath injoyned us obedience to them in the Lord partly in respect of our own welfare who may else suffer the penalty of the Laws and had need to see to it if we obey that we do it with a good Conscience and if we suffer that we suffer for the Truth and not as evil doers And partly in respect of the peace and welfare of the Church that we do not groundlesly make a Rent therein and thereby as much as in us lyeth to procure the ruine thereof for all Division tends to Destruction It would therefore seriously be inquired Whether it be a duty for Christians to hold Communion with the Church of England according to its present state and administrations or Whether Separation from it is warrantable and necessary and how far For the Resolving of which Question we shal take an Account of those things that are commendable in the said Church in the judgment of those that scruple Communion with her and also of what things they disallow and dislike in her And then cast up Whether it will warrant separation or how far according to the same Rules of Concord we have proceeded upon with those of the other Professions before named And first it will not be denyed by all Dissenters that have understanding and sobriety in them But that here is to be found 1. A clear profession of all those Fundamental points of Faith which are accounted amongst Christians necessary unto Salvation yea such a poor Confession of other points of a Secondary and more inferiour Nature as that there 's scarce any other Church in the World that God hath blessed with a greater purity in point of Doctrine then the Church of England 2. Here also is the Christian Sabbath imbraced with much greater honour then in many other Reformed Churches Homily of time and place of Prayer Part 2. the publick Ordinances of preaching Prayer Sacraments administred and all the Substantials of