Selected quad for the lemma: ground_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
ground_n	church_n	pillar_n	truth_n	16,480	5	7.1251	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A86433	The growth and spreading of hæresie. Set forth in a sermon preached before the Honorable House of Commons, on the 10th. day of March, being the day of their publike fast and humiliation for the growth of hæresie. / By Thomas Hodges, Minister of Gods Word, at Kensington. Published by order of the House of Commons.	Hodges, Thomas, 1599 or 1600-1672.	1647 (1647)	Wing H2315; Thomason E379_1; ESTC R201396	42,374	73

fall away you shall stand like mount Sion that cannot be moved 3. (r) Rom. 16.18 2 Tim. 3.5 Mark them that cause divisions and avoid them saith St. Paul for they serve not our Lord Jesus Christ but their own bellies Whether they seek to divide you from the Christian verity by pernicious haeresies or from the unity of Christs church and people by peace disturbing schismes and seperations Mark them with a note of infamy as notoriously (s) 1 Tim. 6.3 4. proud basely self-seeking foolishly erring Truths enemies adversaries to Peace destroyers of Souls And do not only mark but also (t) 1 Tim. 6.5 avoid them after two or three admonitions shun and avoid their discourses and disputes which serve to no good purpose but as foiles to their pride rises to their slanders and when they are more publike as baits to deceive and delude poor souls being like Fencers challenges inventions to give the better advantages to Cut-purses to act their prizes And as for their persons avoyd them too O how zealously affected against Seducers were the Primitive (u) 2 Joh. 10 11. Christians John the Evangelist would not endure (w) Iraen l 3. c. 3. in the Bath at Ephesus with the haeretick Cerinthus nor Polycarpus would entertain communion with Marcion but defied him as the first begotten son of Satan So zealous were the Apostles and their disciples saith Irenaeus that they would not communicate with haereticks in word but were answerable to (x) Tit. 3.10 11. St. Pauls admonition Eschew him that is a Haeretick after the first and second admonition knowing that such a one is perverse and sinneth being condemned of his own conscience 4. Forsake not your faithfull Pastors (y) Heb. 3.17 but obey them that have the rule over you and submit your selves for they watch for your souls The fable is well known of the Wolves that offered to make a league with the Sheep conditionally that they would put away their dogs I need not make the application but this I am sure of That the Devil and Seducers who are his instruments make it one of their first and chiefest designes to alienate the hearts of people from their faithfull Guides which if they can once effect on the ruines of their reputation they use to lay the foundation of their own esteem Thus dealt the false Apostles with the Corinthians in the case of Paul (z) 2 Cor. 10.10 His bodily presence say they is weak and contemptible (a) 2 Cor. 11.6 11 12 13. That he was rude in speech did not love and esteem them as themselves profest they did and such like stuffe to foment and increase jealousies in their hearts as do our Seducers now adayes that they may make way for themselves in the peoples estimation 5. Despise not the (b) 1 Cor. 11.16 Churches of Christ especially in the Doctrine which they unanimously hold forth For is not the (c) 1 Tim. 3.15 Church the ground and (c) 1 Tim. 3.15 pillar of truth whereon God hangs forth to view that sound direction to the world which may guide their feet in the way of peace to the reaching of everlasting blisse 6. Forsake not the (d) Heb. 10.25 assembling of your selves together be not a stranger to the publike Congregations as the custome of some is who think Christ is not to be found except in a wildernesse or in a chamber (e) Mat. 24 26. but go not after them says he 7. Endeavour after a greater measure of mortification of corrupt passions and affections which (a) Si vis lumine claro cernere verum gaudia pelle pelle timorem spentque sugato nec dolor adsit nubila mens est vinctaque fraenis haec ubi regnāt Boet. l. 1. de consol philos metro 7. so cloud the mind that Truth cannot in its lustre appear unto it and makes the heart like those that are (b) Ecclus. c 27. Lunaticks full of changes from (c) 2 Tim. 3.13 bad to worser but never right never setled but full of motion (d) Camerar Hor. Succis par 1. c. 36. like a horse stung with wasps that runs capers and curvets to little purpose Corrupt passions and affections prevailing the soul is like to an (e) Prov. 25.28 unfenced city open to rapine and ruine by every enemy They are in a word such a complying party with whatever is evil that if Seducers can but find a way to parley with them and proffer them what is proportionable to their nature if they have but the art to sute their bait to those (f) 2 Pet. 2.18 19. Jude 16 17 c lusts or passions that have domination and rule within be it (g) 3 Joh. 9. ambition (h) Tit. 1.11 covetousnes feare or whatever it be That soul is easily made a prey of by these Haereticks Therefore if ever you would be safe be not content without the death of these 8. Grow in grace (i) 2 Pet. 1.5 6 7 8 11. Adde vertue to vertue as St. Peter presses that an abundant entrance may be administred to you into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ If you would not be led away with the error of the wicked saith the same Apostle (k) 2 Pet. 3.17 18. grow in grace for 't is that is only able to (l) Heb. 13.9 establish the heart against temptations and seducements (m) 1 Cor. 14 20. A silly child is easily cozened with copper instead of gold but as (n) Heb. 5.14 knowledge and discerning increases in him he is free from that delusion A (o) Eph. 4.14 weak body reels to and fro and every blast of wind is ready to throw him down but as strength grows he becomes more able daily to endure its strongest blasts so is it with the soule according to the measure of grace it is endowed with 't is able to resist and stand out against seducements Above all endeavour to increase Humility which is the (p) Jam. 4.6 womb of vertue (q) 1 Pet. 5 5. a sweet adornment and an excellent fence against this monster Haeresie which had some cherisht the Church had not been pestered with this evil nor had this plague of Error found such footing in this our Israel If any spark of this hellish fire at any time light on your souls dally not with it but be sure to call in help betimes to quench it there 's many a house hath been consumed to ashes by the inhabitants (r) Et neglecta solent incendia sumere viris Horat. 1. ep 19. Facilius est excludere perniciosa quàm regere non admittere quàm admissa moderari Sea l. 1. de ira c. 7. inadvertencie not heeding the first kindling of this mischief in their souls and others by an overweening opinion of their own ability to extinguish it at pleasure and perhaps some few out of an over-tendernesse of their

(i) Psal 115.6 like Davids Idol have eyes and not take notice of these eares and not heare the sad cryes of a distracted afflicted people against them hands and should not smite and cut off such wicked workers (k) Psal 101.8 from the city of our God Parents and Masters had need to weep for their heedlesnesse and perfunctorinesse that they have no more watcht over their tender spring nor made it their busines to (l) Ephes 6.4 9. ground them in the Principles of religion for want of which they have easily been (m) Eph. 5.14 seduced cheated by these hereticall Impostors who lie in wait to deceive And have they not abundantly obtained their purpose Did ever the former ages produce more hideous Monsters than wee have risen up amongst us in this poor Iland Are there not many Arrians who hold that damnable error against the eternall Deity of Jesus Christ Some Valentinians who oppose the reality of his taking flesh of the Virgin Mary Marcionites who deny the verity of his sufferings Gnosticks who pretend to new lights and revelations but are too much like them in the wildnesse of their Opinions and profanenesse of their Lives And very many of whom wee may say as (n) Multiferme monstrum Epiphan Epiphanius of Ebion that hee was a Monster of many shapes holding all errors together The Samaritans abomination the Jewes name the Nazareans opinion the Cerinthians forme the Corpocratians improbity and the Christians profession and is not here cause to weep (m) Luk. 19.41 Christ wept over Jerusalem out of a contemplation of those sad confusions and ruines that were at hand and have not we just cause to mourn for our selves and for our children when we may justly in a very true sense take up the (n) Psal 80.13 14. Psalmists sad complaint Thou hast broken down their hedges so that they that passe by devoure it the Bore out of the wood doth waste it and the wild beast of the field doth devoure it Is not here cause to weep Vse 3 See 't is no small mercy to be preserved from Haeresie in erring times and to stand on the vantage ground of Truth from thence taking view of the dangerous encounters fierce charges boisterous blasts and billows which indanger the utter destruction and ingulfing of poor souls in everlasting ruine whilest we our selves dwell in the serene aire and safe fort of Truth freed from that giddinesse and destruction which lights on others But let me tell you We must take heed that this view we take be with abnegation and humility Not to us O Lord not to us or with the (o) 1 Cor. 15.10 Non est devotionis dedisse prope totum sed fraudis detinuisse minimum Prosp Apostle Not I but the grace of God that was with me With praise and thanksgiving for this mercy to our selves with prayer and supplication for poore soules that either are in danger to be insnared by them or are already captivated that they may escape out of this snare of the devil With pity and commiseration towards them taking notice that we our selves are but men and may be (p) Quid de me talis ●●●●atio fecisset c. Aug. Gal. 6 1. tempted With help adjuvation (q) Jude 22 23 yet putting a difference some pulling with feare as it were out of the fire Vse 4 Exhortation to People You see there is no dallying with Haeresies for they are Destructions Therefore (r) 1 Joh. 4.1 try before you trust whether the spirits be of God or no. Thus did the religious (s) Act. 17.11 Bereans they searched the Scriptures whether the things St. Paul preached were so or no. Poison is not a thing to be dallied with seeing it destroyes nature and causes death what 's matter though it be tendred in a golden cup Beware I beseech you of that fool-hardinesse which is found in too many in our dayes who venture to complement with pernicious errors and erroneous persons resolving either to keep their minds free from engagement to them or if they go so far as to sip and out of curiosity take a taste of them yet they determine to maintain in themselves a mind free to fall off at pleasure But (t) Sed enim febrem ut malum de causa de potentia sua ut notum est abominamus potius quàm miramur quantum in nobis est praecavemus non habentes abolitionem ejus in nostra potestate Haereses verò mortem aeternam majoris ignis ardorem inferentes malunt quidam mirari quòd possint hoc quàm devitare nè possint c. Tertul. de praescript haeret I beseech you consider they are of too (u) Rev. 17.4 intoxicating a nature filling the soule with a spiritual vertigo destroying by degrees the light of the mind (w) Gal. 3.1 fascinating and bewitching the spirits of those that swallow them Neither is it a thing unusuall but common with God in his dispensation to (x) 2 Thess 2 10 11. deliver up such to strong delusion that believe a lye that receive not the truth in the love thereof Oh then how is it possible they should ever scape (y) Libera voluntas sine gratia tota vitiosa cupiditae est Aug. when grace is with-held whereby they should escape out of these snares of the devil and they left to his depths and wiles under the conduct of an erring mind If therefore thou throwest thy self off from the pinacle of the temple never think thou canst stop where thou pleasest But as Solomon cautions his drunkard against that vice (z) Prov. 23 31. Look not upon the wine when it is red when it giveth his colour in the glasse when it moveth it self aright So say I to thee take heed of being flattered into a liking of untruths either from the glorious colours and pretences of more sanctity New light clearer discoveries of Truth Christian liberty or the like for if Haeresies had not some plausible varnish to set them off they would be contemned and detested by all being in themselves of horrid hue of an ugly visage and hag-like countenance but it is their paint that makes them passable (a) Haereses ornatu non viscuribus pulchrae sunt foris extrinsecus ni●●● nomine justitiae se dea●●ant c Aug. serm 50. in Job Their cloathing is fair but their inward frame is monstrous they outwardly shine with the gilt of truth and righteousnesse but inwardly there is nothing but darknesse and impiety in them being conceived in the womb of (b) 1 Tim. 6.3 4. a dark elated mind cherished by vain imaginations self-estimation and ends produced most frequently to (c) 2 Pet. 2 3. gain reputation and the like advantages but alwayes terminating if persisted in in sad (d) 2 Thess 2.10 11 12. 2 Pet. 2 3.1● ruines and destructions Yet see the madnesse of the people Not a few