Selected quad for the lemma: ground_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
ground_n	believe_v	faith_n	good_a	2,481	5	4.3352	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A09410	An exposition of the Lords praier in the way of catechisme By William Perkins; Perkins upon the Lords praier	Perkins, William, 1558-1602.	1593 (1593)	STC 19701; ESTC S113660	46,459	156

must putte on the person and the verie affection of a poore wretched begger and certainely not being grieued with the rufull condition in which we are in our selues it is not possible for vs to pray effectually Psalm 130. verse 1. Out of the deepes I called vpon thee O Lord that is when I was in my greatest miserie and as it were not far frō the gulfes of hell then I cried to God Isai. 26. 16. Lord in trouble haue they visited thee they powred out a prayer when thy chastening was vpon them 1. Sam. 1. 15 I am a woman saith Anna of an hard spirite that is a troubled soule and haue powred out my soul before the lord Hence it appeareth that the ordinary praiers of most mē greuously displease God seing they ar made for fashion only without any sense and feeling of their miseries commonly men come with the Pharisie in ostentation of their integritie and they take greate paines with their lips but their harts wāder from the Lorde The second thing required in a contrite hart is a longing desire and hungring after Gods graces and benefites whereof we stand in need It is not sufficient for a man to buckle as it were and to go crooked vnder his sinnes and miseries but also hee must haue a desire to be eased of them to be enriched with graces needefull Thus Hezekias the king and the Prophet Isaiah the Sonne of Amos praied against Senacharib and cried vnto heauen 2. Chron. 32. 20. Where wee may see what a maruelous desire they had to obtaine their request So also Rom. 8. 26. The spirite maketh request with grones so greate that they cannot be vttered as they are felte Dauid Psalm 143. 6. saith that hee desireth after the Lorde as the thirstie land Now we know that the groūd partched with heat opens it selfe in rifts and cranies and gapes towards heauen as though it would deuoure the cloudes for want of moisture and thus must the hart bee disposed to Gods grace till it obtaine it The people of Israel being in grieuous affliction How do they pray They powre out their souls like vvater before the face of the Lord. Lam. 2. vers 19. The fift question is in whose name praier must be made Answer It must not be made in the name of any creature but onely in the name and mediatiō of Christ. Ioh. 14. ver 14. If yee ask any thing in my name I will do it A man is not to present his prayers to God in any worthines of his own merites For what is hee to make the best of himself what can he make of himselfe by nature he is no better thē the verie firebrand of hell and of all Gods creatures the most outragious rebell to God and therefore cannot be heard for his own sake As for Saints they can be no mediators seing euen they themselues in heauen are accepted of God not for themselues but only for the blessed merites of Christ. If any man sinne saith S. Iohn 1. Epistle chap. 2. verse 1. Wee haue an Aduocate with the Father Iesus Christ But how proues he this It followes then And hee is the reconciliation for our sinnes His reason stands thus he which must bee an aduocate must firste of all be a reconciliation for vs no Saintes can be a reconciliation for vs therefore no Saints can be Aduocates Therfore in this place is manifest an other faulte of ignoraunt people They cry often Lord help me Lorde haue mercy vpon me But in whose name pray they poore soules like blinde bayardes they rush vpon the Lord they know no mediatour in whose name they should present their praiers vnto him Little do they consider with themselues that God is as well a most terrible Iudge as a mercifull Father The sixt question is whether saith be requisit to prayer or not Answere Praier is to be made with faith whereby a man may haue a certaine assurance to be heard For he that praieth must stedfastly beleeue that God in Christ will grāt his petition This affiance being wanting it maketh praier to bee no praier For how can be pray for any thing effectually who doubteth whether he shall obtaine it or noe Wherefore it is an especiall pointe of prayer to be perswaded that God to whome praier is made not onely can but also will graunt his request Marke 11. 24. Whatsoeuer yee desire vvhen yee praye beleeue that yee shall haue it and it shall bee doone vnto you Here we see two thinges required in praier the first a desire of the good thinges which we want the second is faith wherby we beleue that God will grant the thinges desired The ground of this faith is reconciliation with God the assurance thereof For vnlesse a man be in conscience in some mesure perswaded that al his sinnes are pardoned and that hee stands reconciled to God in Christ hee cannot beleeue any other promises reuealed in the word nor that any of his praiers shall be heard Thus much of the definition of praier now let vs see what vse may be made of this commandement Pray yee thus Seeing our Sauiour commandeth his Disciples and so euen vs also to praie to God it is our dutie not only to present our praiers to God but also to doe it cheerefully and earnestlie Rom. 15. 30. Also brethren I besech you that yee woulde striue with me by praiers to God for me What is the cause why the Lord doeth oft defer his blessings after our praiers No cause but that hee might stirre vs vp to be more feruent more earnestly to crye vnto the Lord. Exod. 32. 10. When Moses praieth to God in the behalfe of the Israelites the lord answers Let me alone as though his praiers did bind the Lord and hinder him frō executing his iudgments Wherefore this is good aduise for all Christian men to continue and to be zealous in praier If thou be an ignorant man for shame learne to praie seeing it is Gods commandement make conscience of it We see that there is no man vnlesse he be desperatly wicked but wil mak some conscience of killing stealing and why is this because it is Gods commandment Thou shalt not kill thou shalt not steale Well then this also is Gods commandement to pray Let this consideration breed in thee a conscience of this dutie and although thy corrupt nature shall drawe thee away from it yet striue to the contrary and know it certainely that the breach of this command maketh thee as well guiltie of damnation before God as any other Furthermore this must be a motiue to prick thee forward to this dutie that as God commandes vs to pray so also he giues the spirite of praier whereby the commaundement is made easie vnto vs. If the Lord had commanded a thing impossible then there had bene some cause of discouragemēt but commanding a thing through the grace of his spirite verie easie and profitable howe much more are we bound