Selected quad for the lemma: ground_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
ground_n	divine_a	faith_n	revelation_n	2,617	5	10.5414	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A41378	A reasonable word to the doctors of reason being some remarks on a nameless author in his pamphlet entituled The divine unity asserted : and some observations upon a short account of the proceedings of R.S., Bishop of a dissenting congregation in London ... : also a reasonable reprimand to Mr. Considerator for his foolish boasting in his letter to H.H. ... / by N. Goldham.	Goldham, Nath. (Nathaniel)	1699 (1699)	Wing G1019; ESTC R27671	57,116	114

all and others he is pleased to take their Reason from them after they have had it witness Nebuchadnezzar and our Bethlem Now then seeing God is one and his Truth is one and the same yesterday to day and for ever What an unreasonable Reason doth the short Accountant give for his Faith in his 3d. page Where he with seeming Triumph tells us that he therefore believes what God reveals because he hath reason so to do And what if this Gentleman had no Reason must God's Word cease to be Truth because he hath no reason to be believe it And what if he had some Reason but not so much as now he pretends to and what if some have a great deal more than he as I have some Reason to believe there are that have Is it reasonable to say God's Word is true or false right or wrong according to the Measure of Reason that God hath given to every Man If this be not unreasonable Nonsence I know not what is Thus is the Word of Truth fulfill'd He that leaneth to his own Vnderstanding is a Fool That there is Reason to believe what God reveals is certain and to believe what God reveals because he reveals it is to make God's Truth and Power the Reason and Foundation of our Faith but to believe what God reveals only because it is agreeable to our reason is both irrational and absurd For thereby we make our foolish Reason the Rule and Standard of God's Truth and not only so but of the very Being of God himself so that if God doth reveal that the Father the Word and the Holy Ghost is one God and that this one God is the Father the Word and the Holy Ghost this Gentleman will not believe it because his Reason doth not comprehend it So that because he cannot find out the Almighty to Perfection therefore he will not believe him to be what he saith he is Thus when the Light shineth in Darkness and the Darkness comprehendeth it not then the Light must cease to be Light because the Darkness cannot comprehend it These are our Doctors of Reason or rather our Unreasonable Doctors who professing themselves wise are become Fools Rom. 1. 22. If you tell me that you cannot believe except you have Reason so to do because then your Faith would be unreasonable and unreasonable Men and faithless Men are joyned together in Scripture 2 Thes 3. 2. I answer the Unreasonableness of Unbelief lies in this That it makes God a Liar who is Truth it self and that Men following the Dictates of their own Reason cannot comprehend nor will their Wills submit to God's Will Hence it is that Carnal Reason is Enmity against God and whereas you tell us page 6. Colume 2. of your Divine Vnity asserted That the Reason you plead for is not Carnal or Corrupt Reason it being right Reason you plead for Yet it is evident enough that you are wrong notwithstanding all your Pretensions to right Reason for you confine Carnal Reason to the inordinate Appetites of the flesh such as drunkenness and the like which the Reason of the Heathens did see plain enough was very unreasonable Now in this you are not right for the World by Wisdom knew not God 1 Cor 1. 21. Now the World never accounted these Immoralities their Wisdom at least the wise Men of the World never did And I have reason to believe Panl had as good a stock of this Reason you plead for before his Conversion as your self Sir or any of the other six Wise Masters of Reason For as touching the Law he tells you he was blameless and doth not the Law forbid Drunkenness Uncleanness and the like and yet at this time a day he was much about as great an Enemy to Christ and the way of Salvation by him as your self Sir For he verily thought he ought to do many things against the Name of Jesus God grant you may be as great a Friend to our Lord Jesus Christ before you dye as Paul was And it is very reasonable indeed Sir that you consider what was the grand Error and Mistake not only of Paul but of the whole Body of the Jews who continued in Unbelief they could not believe that that same Jesus was the Lord of Life For Paul tells you that had they known it they would not have crucified him they could see that he was Man plain enough and a Holy Man too but their Reason would not let them see that he was more than Man except such as God was pleased to reveal his Son unto as in Paul But my Author in his Divine Vnity asserted tells us in page 5. Colume 2. that these Lights which he had before mentioned namely Sense Reason and Revelation must not contradict each other and saith Our Sense is given as a ground to work upon and our Reason as a means to assist and compleat the Knowledge we receive by Sensation and Revelation can't be receiv'd but by Means of these two former 'Till now No nor yet neither do I understand that Sense is a Foundation for Faith nor that Divine Revelation is confin'd to our Reason nay the contrary is Evident and to say or think that it is so is to make God like our selves but such Fools God himself will reprove Psal 50. 21. Nor is our Reason till truly rectified by the Spirit of God a means to receive the revealed Will of God nay it is the main thing that opposeth the great Mystery of God's revealed Will in the Gospel For the Carnal Mind is Enmity against God and cannot be Subject to the Law nor reveal'd Will of God and that not only the Reason of the Drunkard as before mentioned but that which Men call true Reason though it be far enough from being so Nay our Author goes on in the greatness of his Reason or rather in the madness of his Folly and saith We cannot without the greatest Folly suppose a thing can be reveal'd to us contrary to our Sense or Reason and thinks he hath sufficiently prov'd it by saying God cannot tell us White is black or that two and one is not three or that a Debt that is freely forgiven is fully paid Now in this you are not Wise for I will show you that God is greater than Man Job 33. 12. and there is nothing more true and certain than this truth that the God of truth cannot Lye and there is nothing more true and self Evident than that God calls that White which the Wise Men of this World call Black opposing their Reason against the revealed Will of God still setting themselves against God so that what God reveals to be Good proud foolish Man will call Evil. Ay Sir and as great Doctors of Reason as your self or else how come the Wise Men and Scribes to have a hand in our Lords Death and to think they did God good Service when they kill'd his Disciples Doubtless their Reason such as it was and

but the Spirit of God and he to whom he reveals him Why then it must pass through the strict Inquisition of the Doctor of Reasons Queries as First How can these things be Secondly How can this Man give us his Flesh to eat Joh. 6. 52. These are hard sayings who can hear them ver 60. Or Thirdly Thou art not yet fifty Years old and hast thou seen our Father Abraham And if our Lord stand to it and assert his Divine Nature by saying before Abraham was I am they will will be ready to Stone him for a Blasphemer because they knew his Mother and his supposed Father according to the Flesh therefore he cannot speak the Truth it will not pass with Doctor Reason Therefore Gods Truth must be condemned for Folly and Nonsense But woe unto those Men that will call evil good or good evil or truth error or error truth when God riseth up to contend with those Men he will make them know he is not such a one as themselves But our Accountant after all his Pains to build a Babel's Tower undermines it all at once in the winding up of his Reasons For he saith in his Tenth Reason and his last but one That the ascribing the Divine Natures incommunicable Perfections and worship to one and another or a third Person or self necessarily infers a Plurality of Gods and is a breach of the First Commandment hath many evil tendencies and is the Ground of all the Idolatry Antichristianism and Paganism This is a high kick indeed for here our Accountant charges the Angels with Folly and not only so but all the blessed Company in Heaven Nay that is not all but rather then not do his own business effectually he will enter into Judgment with God himself Well however B. R. S. or any under his care may slight him or his Book as thinking neither worth Answering yet I must needs say he is a stout bold Fellow for he dares to charge God himself with contradiction and with being accessary to the Breach of his own first Command For according to our Accountants Reason he suffers the Worship and Worshippers in Heaven to infer a Plurality of Gods and to lay a Foundation for all Idolatry Antichristianism and Paganism For in Revelations 5. we have an Account of the Worship of Heaven and in the 11 12 13. Verses we have an Account of the Angels and the Beasts and Elders giving Blessing Honour Glory and Power to him that sitteth upon the Throne and untothe Lamb for ever and ever ver 14. and the 4 beasts say Amen to all this and the 24 Elders fall down and Worship him that liveth for ever and ever Here is Divine honour and Worship Given to him that sitteth on the Throne and the same in the same breath given unto another to use my Authors own Words Even to the Lamb for ever and ever And yet God doth not charge them with Idolatry nor making to themselves another God No this is the Worship of Heaven and must continue so for ever and ever Sure if our Accountant had any good hope of Worshipping with this blessed Company in Heaven he would endeavour to imitate them while here on Earth A Man had need have a good Stock of Patience as also of Faith and every Grace of the Holy Spirit to live in a continual dependancy on him that gives Wisdom to such simple Ones as he pleaseth and understanding to as many of them as have no knowledge as seemeth good to Soveraign pleasure as also humbly to remember that the Ostrich hideth her Eggs in the Sand and forgetteth that the Wild Beast may crush them because God hath deprived her of Wisdom Or else a Man indu'd but with an Ordinary measure of Reason and not Balast'd with the aforesaid Graces of Gods Holy Spirit could not forbear the resenting this unreasonable assertion so as to give my Accountant a Character much below that of Master of Reason But I may not give ill Language having not so Learned Christ Neither is it fit for a Man of a mean capacity to say to such a Learned Gentleman thou art a blockhead nor shall I say any thing of the Impudency that there is in bringing in an Impeachment and Charge of the highest Treason and Idolatry that Can be against the whole Court of Heaven the Blessed Him that sitteth upon the Throne and the Lamb who is worthy of all blessing Honour Power and Glory not being exempted This is such a peice of Fool hardiness as none but those that dare Run upon the thick bosses of Gods Buckler can be guilty of I hope our Accountant will not discover so much Folly as to attempt to excuse himself of an error in this by Quoting 1 Chron. 29. 20. Where it is said All the Congregation blessed the Lord God of their Fathers and bowing their heads Worshipped the Lord and the King That being but an External or Civil Worship which the People paid to the King or that is due from Inferiours to Superiours And our Accountant himself tells me he could not bear the ascribing the same Glory to Christ in Prayer which is due to the Father whereby he publickly enters his dissent and protest against the Worship and Worshippers and Worshipped also in Heaven For the Truth is what ever Worship Kings and such may receive from their Subjects in this World yet there never was nor shall be any King Lord or Potentate that shall receive Honour Glory Blessing and Praise from all the Worshippers both Angels and Men that are in Heaven for ever and ever but he who is the only Potentate the King of Kings and Lord of Lords Jesus Christ who is the true God and Eternal Life 1 Joh. 5. 20. It is strange that there should not be one Doctor of Reason among all this Blessed Company to imitate Athaliah in crying out Treason Treason Idolatry Idolatry contradiction Nonsence because the right Heir is Crowned and receives the Glory of the Kingdom But upon Second thoughts it will not appear so strange as true for God hath not chosen many wise Men of this world and those few that are chosen from among them must first become Fools that they may be truly Wise For God hath chosen the Foolish things of this World to confound the wise 1 Cor. 20 27 to the end Thus we see the Scriptures made good The wisdom of this World is Foolishness with God For it is Written he taketh the Wise in their own Craftiness 1 Cor. 3. 18. There is yet another thing which our Accountant will needs call his Eleventh Reason or Stone in this Babel Building and his last But whether it may be called his Top Stone or Bottom no matter for that such as it is take it word for word Page 5th that it is saith he Great folly and boldness to affirm any thing Concerning God which is unreasonable or absurd yea which we do not understand to be true Surely what ever mistakes