Selected quad for the lemma: hand_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
hand_n	command_n	right_a	word_n	4,845	5	5.2166	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A76131	The doctrine of self-posing, or, a Christians duty of putting cases of difficulty to himself Being the summe of some sermons preached at Upton upon Seavern, in the county of Worcester. By B. Baxter, late minister of the gospel there, but now removed.	Baxter, Benjamin, Preacher of the Gospel.	1666 (1666)	Wing B1170A; ESTC R230135	25,508	101

conscience this is hard Tertullian spake of some times when saith he Ingeniosum est esse Christianum it is a witty thing to be a Christian To be reproached made a by-word persecuted and suffer what the Devil can invent or men execute for righteousness sake and yet to be righteous in our Generation and to walk with God as Noah did notwithstanding all this this is hard Fifthly Christian Obedience hath its difficulties There are those things that make obedience to the will and laws and commands of God difficult Abraham was commanded to leave his Country and to go he knew not whither he was commanded to sacrifice his Son these were difficult commands Obedience to the commands of the Gospel have their difficulties For a man to deny himself to forsake wife and children houses and lands for Christs sake for a man to cross his own desires crucifie his own lusts mortifie his own members in a word for a man to cut off his right hand and to pull out his right eye this is hard Sixthly Christian patience hath its difficulties There are those things that sometimes make it hard for a Christian to exercise that grace To be dealt with as Job was stript of all to a shoe-latchet to suffer in our bodies names estates to suffer from men and that wrongfully to have evil requited for good and yet to be patient this is hard To be in Job's case Job 1. and yet to bless God to be in David's case Ps 39. and yet to lay our hands upon our mouths to have the Lord deal with us as he please and yet to say as Eli did It is the Lord let him do what he will this is hard Seventhly Christian dependancy hath its difficulties There are things that make it hard for a Christian to trust and depend on God To see means failing to see the fig-tree blasted the Vine without fruit the fields without corn the folds without flocks the stall without herds and yet to depend on God for being fed this is hard Thus for the difficulties that concern us both as men and Christians Secondly We are to shew what is meant by a Christians putting cases of difficulty to himself In general it consists in a Christians serious consideration of all difficulties to which all are lyable and subject as men or Christians and then proposing them to himself as those things that not only possibly but probably he may encounter with and that what hath been the case of others as men and Christians may be his So it stands in two things First In a serious consideration of those evils and difficulties to which as Men or Christians we are liable The which consideration ariseth from the meditation of these four things 1. The nature of all outward things that they are all changeable and uncertain Solomon saith All is vanity vanity implyes brevity mortality mutability 2. The condition of man that is changeable All the children of men are children of change not only in respect of their disposition in relation to their intentions purposes resolutions but also in respect of their outward condition as it respects health wealth and all outward enjoyments as we see in the case of Job c. 3. The condition and state of times Times may present difficulties to our consideration times of war present to our consideration losse of peace life livelihood liberty c. Times of persecution present to our consideration the like difficulties 4. The difficulties that others have met with both as men Christians do present to our consideration the difficulties that we may encounter with Some have had their flocks cut off from their solds and the herds from their stall c. Some have seen the spoiling of their goods and have suffered for the sake of Christ all those miseries tortures and torments of which read Heb. 11.35 36 37 39. Which one calls a little Book of Martyrs Secondly putting cases of difficulry to our selves stands in this in a Christians making it his case by putting the question to himself concerning those difficulties may they not befall me and what shall I do if they do befal me It is a mans examining himself about his resolutions concerning those difficulties when he hath propounded them to himself The Question is put case it should be my case to see what others have seen and to suffer what others have suffered What if the fig-tree should not blossom c. What if the case of those that have suffered in their liberties estates c. come to be my case Nay what if it come to resisting to blood what in these cases shall I do This is a Christians propounding cases of difficulty to himself Thus for the second thing Thirdly We are to shew what is meant by laying down setled resolutions So we mean those deliberate answers the soul makes to it self upon good grounds in relation to those cases of difficulty propounded Consider In putting cases of difficulty there is a putting the question to ones self as the unjust Steward did to himself Luk. 16.2 My Lord taketh away the Stewardship what shall I do He puts the question and comes to consider of the resolution which you find in the verses following So then setled resolutions are those answers the soul returns to those questions that it puts to it self concerning difficulties Thus in the text the question is what if the Fig-tree should not blossome for such a question is implyed that the Prophet had put to himself and the answer and resolution is this I will rejoyce in the Lord c. It is an answer returned upon good grounds the resolution of Habakkuk was built upon a strong foundation viz. the power love and alsufficiency of God when he said Yet will I rejoyce in the Lord c. So then when upon good grounds a Christian takes up such resolutions as these that come what will come yet I will hope and believe and obey and hold fast my integrity I will be patient and rejoyce in the God of my salvation This is laying down setled resolutions Thus for the third thing Secondly for the vindication of the Doctrine Some may object that of the Apostle Phil. 4.6 In nothing be careful The question is whether this Doctrine of self-posing about troubles and difficulties do not crosse this precept It is answered it doth not By that Scripture all care is not forbidden not a care of diligence or providence but of distrust and diffidence The words are 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which signifies such distracting and doubtfull cares as teare and torture the heart with carking thoughtfulness and fretfull impatiency Now when we tell you of putting cases of difficulty we meane not that Christians should be distrustfully careful but should settle their spirits by casting their care on God as Habakkuk did in the text Yet will I rejoyce in the Lord c. Thirdly For Confirmation By Scripture Reasons First by Scripture so we shall find it hath been