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	true_a	truth_n	1,564	5	5.8086	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A96104	Jerusalems glory, or, the saints safetie in eying the churches security, wherein is shewed the captives redress: being an invitation to all the different minded men in the world to become one; with the advantage of unity, and the danger of variety from the example of the saints and servants of God, as well in former as these latter times. Offered to the view of the 97 builders imployed in that work, for the building of the true temple, and all others. / By Thomas Watson, a lover of peace.	Watson, Thomas, d. 1686.	1661 (1661)	Wing W1131; Thomason E1856_4; ESTC R210370	59,985	120

give the effigies of true Faith in many respects seemingly for it was built upon Almes and the fulfilling of the Law and Prayers for their success in it but they gave their Almes to be seen of men and therefore they had their reward for as they gave them to be praised of men even so they had the praise of men for their gifts and as for their aim to fulfil the ceremonies and rites of the Law they were very exact in many respects as to pay Tithes of Mint and Anise Mat. 23. But to relieve the oppressed and plead the cause of the needy they had small care of that and they would make a conscience sermingly to God as to pray often to him that under a pretence of Religion in this they would devour Widows houses so as they seemed to be exactly religious in the fight of men they were not religious hardly in any one thing before God For it is not so easie and idle a thing as many think it is to be a Christian or a Christ-like man for if you build your Faith upon any other Rock than Christs Death and Resurrection I say if you do not war against all other fabricks you cannot exercise your Faith with any good warrant I say if you do not pull down and root up all other appearances that are not one with this and hold in concurrance in this as proceeding from the same root center which Christs undergoings have meritoriously crowned us withal you can in no measure exercise a Faith with any good Warrant but we shall yoke our selves with burthensom impediments in our more higher agitations and Divine aspirations for no clear eye can discern things of so bright and clear an appearance so Divine manifestation much less believe them it is not to believe that it is any thing of our own merits that a true Faith must be built upon but all such thoughts and conclusions strike at the original grounds of a true Faith as and is contradictory an enemy to it as may be do but mark what the Apostle Paul sayes of the grounds of a true Faith Rom. 3.24 25 26. Being justified freely by his grace through the Redemption that is in Jesus Christ whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through Faith in his blood to declare his Righteousness for the Remission of sin through the forbearance of God to declare I say at this time his Righteousness that he might be just and the justifier of him that believeth in Jesus Christ will not look upon you as partners in the grounds of your Faith for as he hath conquered all such enemies who did lead us captive at their will by his suffering for us to pacifie the Devine fury of his Father and to be a propitiation for to interceed with his Father for us that he might reconcile all differences that did hinder us from having a peaceable and compleat union and ownness with our God that so he might be our Father as well as his Father and our God as well as his God and that he might rejoice in us as Brethren being united and annexed with him by what had undergone for us that so we might jointly declare the manifold love of God and sing praises to his Name I say this was the intent of Christ in his interceeding to the Father for us onely he would not have us slight his undertakings for us and so deceive our selves and dishonour his mockings and his scoffings and deridings that he did bear for our offences when we should have perished to all eternity had not he stept in between our sin his Fathers wrath and did that for us that we were not able to do for our selves so that he will have us to own him to be the Authour and Finisher of our Faith Heb. 12.2 So as I said before you must War against every appearance of evil and every thing that seeketh to oppose this vvay of grounding your Faith but I shall leave it to your study to examine how many such guests you have given entertainment to as thinking them to be your Friends intending to speak a vvord or tvvo more of it in some of my follovving discourse if God permit time and leave And as you have resisted and must resist all the foregoing invocations of this your invious yet more subtil enemy so you must engage against all his extrinsical and seeming vvayes of ensnaring you in your charity for he vvill not leave striving to conquer thee by craft if it be possible if he see that it is in vain to tempt thee otherwayes he will promise thee great gain and great content yea he will give thee all the inticements and the allurements that the whole world can afford and he will perswade with thee that thou maist keep all these and be charitable too he doth not care how fair a pretence thou makest of being charitable but be sure of this he will strike at the very root of it if it be put in practice with any true intent to Gods glory and that if you are not very exact in your deliberating your selves he will be too hard for you in one respect or other for if you war against him in maintaining your deeds of charity and do not war against his ends in your charity or against your own pride and self-seeking you had as good lay your weapons down and do not pretend to withstand him when you go about to fortifie his strength for he had as live have you profess and practice both so as he can but delude you to set up an Idol to offer it to for it is no better if we offer any praise to any imagined thing that is due to God for an Image or an Idol is no more nor less than to set up any thing in our Devine worship and attribute more honour to it and have more esteem of it than is due to it by Gods appointment this will be a hard saying for many professors to pass by and yet it is no more than you will find to be true in the end the Prophet Jeremiah hath a notable expression to this purpose Jeremiah 44.25 the people would not be beaten down from offering spiced cakes to the Queen of Heaven not that you read any thing that they had any formed substance but an imaginary fancy and as the Apostle said in his time There are Gods many and Lords many bue unto them there was but one God and Father of all things and as he hath it in another place concerning others They worshipped the creature more than the Creator who is God for ever Amen as you may read Rom. 1.25 as he plainly expresseth in the foregoing verses that they changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an Image made like corruptible man and birds four footed beasts and creeping things Even as if the Apostle should have said that they worshipped themselves and bestowed and attributed that glory that was Gods own

himself happy in each step that he addeth to his journey wherein he discerneth that he getteth ground you need not to urge such a one to be wary for he cannot but discern when he getteth ground and when he hath lost for if all men speak well of him and assure him of peace yet if he in searching find any corner of his heart not swept be sure he will not cry peace to himself but will take the Besom of righteousness and truth and will carefully sweep it out and make all clean within for he cannot sleep in quiet till he hath got his house clean As no earthly man can take his rest when he knoweth that there is a thief within his house that will take all advantage to rob him but will rather rise and lock up his chiefest Jewels that they may not be taken away from him if in case he cannot get him forth of the house but though they are locked never so fast and there be not any thief within his house yet if he hath any treasure that he taketh much delight in he will be watchful lest any one should break into his house unexpected and bereave him of that in which he so much delighteth Even so a discerning Christian that knoweth there is a thief within his house he cannot but dread the worst of things so long as any suspected enemy is within his confines but if he know that there is none but he hath tryed all of them thorowly yet he will stand upon his watch and keep his doors locked about him when he is at home and when he goeth abroad he is wary with whom he doth confer as associates fit for his result so that whether he is with the Lord at his home or whether in the turba of the mind yet he will be watchful that strangers do not intermedle with his joy in any way to deprive him of that enjoyment by which he can convey his soul to its most fixed bliss no man can beat him off of this his watchfulness when he hath once tasted the love of God so as to witness that he is satisfied with it not that I think it is enough to seem satisfied or to talk of being satisfied but I speak of them that are really and indeed satisfied you have a notable Text of Scripture in the 4th of John Christ tells the woman of Samaria that he that drinketh of that water that he shall give them shall never thirst again and in the 6th of John he tells the Jews that their Fathers did eat Manna in the Wilderness and were dead but whosoever shall eat of that Bread which I shall give them shall live for ever I will not say but many may taste of this Bread in some measure in many degrees and yet never hardly stand upon their watch to keep Dogs from eating of it out of their mouths as I may so say and carrying it away out of their sight and bring them some of their old dyet even Garlick and Onions these are such as were taken in the Parable for the stony ground in which the seed wanted root yea the heat of the Sun caused it to wither but that which fell on good ground brought forth plentifully even unto the harvest Therefore I say he that warreth in this life must be sure to watch when the enemy doth seek to assault and batter down his Walls and to defame his Weapons and to poyson them with his intermingled seeming delights whereby he doth lye in wait to infect us even as a Fisher doth lay baite for to catch his intended prey So that you shall have baited hooks such as you will think are very rare and agreeable to suit with your disposition as near as may be and to advance his own ends he will fit you if it be possible for he hath variety of pleasant dainties if you will but be perswaded to deal with him he will deal for small profit rather than loose your acquaintance if it be but a making slight of your word or a self-conceitedness in your worship or to worship for custom or to believe because others say it is true when it may be you have no warrant in your own hearts that it is true but because others say it is so therefore you will believe it for you are sure that such men would not say it if it were not so as I have heard many say when they have had no other reason to believe it but because other men have affirmed it Alas my poor Friends you that have no other ground for your Faith than what another doth give you I say that you that satisfie your selves with what others say and do not enquire whether it be according to Gods Holy Word that is left us for an Example you are far from knowing what you fix your Faith upon and you will be like to the Children of Israel that could follow Moses because they saw that God did work many Miracles by him but when Moses was longer in the Mount than they supposed he would have stayed they are presently at a loss and charge Aaron to make them a God to go before them Exod. 32.1 and as we read they were forty years under his Preaching to them and yet it is recorded of them that they knew not the wayes of God there is many Writers that affirm them to be a peculiar and absolute People by their deserts but I find no such thing recorded in Scriptures therefore I shall speak what is made manifest to me though I know it will seem harsh to many to believe what I have here inserted but I would have them to take notice that it is one thing for a People to be made happy by desert and obedience and it is another to be made happy by Gods infinite mercy and forgiveness as you have Israel made happy by Gods love and compassion to them in the Wildernesse but not by desert there is a great difference between Gods loving a People a Peoples obeying God therefore I would desire every one to seriously consider when they read or hear what is the occasion of the words spoken and the time when it was spoken and the dispensation that the People were under when it was spoken and what degree of faith the People were heirs of by knowledge that it was effectually to be made theirs for if your enemy can but intrap you he will soon be more potent if it be possible for he hath an apple for Eve and so to betray Adam and a discontended pride in Cain to bring him to murther Abel Gen. 12. and a fear in Abraham to make him deny that Sarah was his Wife and a Feast for Noah to make him commit fornication with his two Daughters and a Covetousness in Jacob to deny his Brother a Mess of Pottage unless he would assign him his Birth-right Gen. 25. and afterwards he feared that God was not able to help him to the blessing of Isaac