Selected quad for the lemma: heart_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
heart_n	conscience_n	faith_n	unfeigned_a	2,594	5	11.1136	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A49240	The Christians combat: or, His true spiritual warfare wherein is laid down the nature, power, and cunning deceit of Satan, the great enemy of our salvation. With the means whereby every good Christian may withstand his dreadful assaults. By C. L. late preacher of Gods word in the City of London.	Love, Christopher, 1618-1651.	1664 (1664)	Wing L3144; ESTC R216615	19,118	53

assaults and give him no advantage in the fight Otherwise he will use it to our own overthrow for if he durst fight with our Savior Christ with his own weapon the word of God whose knowledge was e●quisite and without measure how much more will he be busied in using it against us who have not attained unto the least part of his skill First then hereby appeareth the carnal wretchedness of many poor souls who as if they had no enemy to oppose them and assault them have not this weapon in their houses at all and if they have yet they bestow more time in profane exercises then in study how to use this sword of the Spirit which is the word of God for their own defence and too many trusting to their own skill as sufficient in it self they seldome come to the Lords School where they may learn to use the weapon of Gods word for their best advantage Secondly hereby appeareth the wicked practices of the enemies of Gods truth who take from Gods people the sword of the Spirit which the Lord hath given unto all for their defence Neither doth the Apostle exhort onely Ministers to take this weapon but all Christians whatsoever who are assaulted with their spiritual enemies The last and chief means whereby we may both defend our selves and offend our enemies is fervent and effectual prayer which the Apostle exhorteth us to Ephes 6.18 And pray alwaies the necessity and profit of which exercise is very great in this spiritual Combat because thereby we do obtain all our strength to fight and victory also over our enemies For first we cannot indure the least assault of Satan by our strength unless we be armed with the power of Gods might and the Lords assistance whereby onely we can overcome is obtained by earnest and effectual prayer Psal 50.15 Call upon me in the day of trouble so will I deliver thée and thou shalt glorifie me And our Saviour prescribeth us the means to frée our selves from temptation or at least from being overcome by it that we crave the Lords assistance saying Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil Matth. 6.13 so he exhorteth his Disciples unto prayer lest they should enter into temptation Luke 22.40.46 Secondly we cannot obtain the spiritual armour before described by any means of our own and therefore are to be begged at his hands by earnest and effectual prayer we having his gracious promise that if we ask we shall receive Matth. 7.7 And our Savior hath assured us that whatsoever we ask the Father in his name he will give it us John 16.23 And to this his promise he addeth his commandment in the verse following Ask and ye shall receive vers 24. Now that our prayers may be effectual there are divers conditions and properties required in them 1. That we pray continually which our Saviour Christ injoyneth Luke 18.1 Not that we must neglect all other duties and do nothing but pray for there is a time to hear the word to do the works of mercy and of our callings but his meaning is that we be alwaies ready to pray upon all good occasi●ns especially in the time of temptation 2. The second thing required is that we pray with all manner of prayer and supplication that is when we want any thing that is good or would be delivered from any thing that is evil we must have recourse to God by prayer that we may obtain the one and avoid the other but more especially when we féel the want or weakness of our spiritual armour we are then to beg the graces of Gods spirit we are to beg them at Gods hand that so we may be able to withstand the encounter The third thing required is that we may in or by the Spirit The words may be taken both waies First therefore we must pray in the Spirit which is required that we pray with understanding 2. We must pray with attentive minds joyning our hearts with our lips 3. We must pray with a pure conscience and faith unfained lifting up pure hands to God without wrath or doubting 1 Tim. 2.8 Thus have I described the Christian armour which every man is to put on before he enter into the Combat with our spiritual enemies if we resist Satan he will flie from us Jam. 4.7 but if we give ground and betake our selves to flight he will pursue us swiftly and deadly wound us for we have no armour on the back to defend us from the violence of his blows neither will the Lord protect such faint-hearted cowards as run away from his standard not daring to trust and relye upon his mighty power and never failing assistance which he hath promised to all that fight his Battel Seeing therefore there is no safety in flight but assured victory to them that faint not but endure the brunt of the battel let us manfully stand upon our guard neither flying nor yielding to our spiritual enemies for where can we be more safe then under the Lords Standard where can we be more honourably imployed then in fighting his Battel how can our state be more dangerous then when we flye and Satan pursueth us how can it be more desperate then when we yield our selves captive to Satan to be bound in the fetters of sin until the sentence of condemnation be pronounced on us in the general Sessions at the day of Christs appearing From the which sad sentence the Lord of his tender mercies grant that every poor soul of us may be delivered Thus having given you an account of our spiritual armour and laid down the reason to incourage you to fight this spiritual warfare I now come to give you some motives to stir you up to this work that we should not set our hearts on this world and worldly things because we are but Pilgrims and strangers here on earth as appeareth by the acknowledgement of the Saints and Servants of God in times of old of whom it is said that they confest they were Pilgrims and Strangers on the earth Heb. 11.13 the which as it is manifest by the Scripture so it is demonstrated by evident reason for that is to be estéemed a mans country where his chief friends and kindred remains where his living and substance doth lie where he is to spend the most part of his life where he hath most contentment and best entertainment but the faithful have all their kindred in heaven saving some few who are pilgrims with them on the earth there is their heavenly Father and Christ Iesus their elder brother there are their chief treasures even an inheritance undefiled that fadeth not away finally there they have best entertainment and most contentment because there all tears shall be wiped from their eyes and there they shall have mansion-houses inheritances crowns of glory and fulnesse of joy for evermore Now from this consideration that we are not in our own country but remain upon the earth as pilgrims

sufficient that we profess the truth but it must be done in truth and simplicity of heart for how glorious soever our profession of the true religion is before men yet it is abominable in the eyes of God if it be not in truth and from an upright heart Joshua 24.14 Fear the Lord and serve him in uprightness and in truth which if we perform in our serving of God it will be acceptable in his sight though performed in great weakness and mingled with many imperfections let us therfore with our Saviour pray unto God that we may be sanctified with his truth that not onely whatsoever we do may be grounded on Gods truth but that we may do it in truth and uprightness of heart I come now to the second part of our armour which is the breast-plate of righteousness and the excellency thereof by which we are to understand a good conscience true sanctification a godly life which also we are to put on according to the example of our grand Captain Christ Iesus Isa 59.17 He put on righteousness as a breast plate and an helmet of salvation upon his head Then shall not Satans darts pierce us so long as we are armed with a good conscience and a godly and innocent life so long as our hearts and breasts are armed with righteousness though other members fall into sin our wounds shall not be mortal True it is that Saints do receive wounds and foils when as Satan hath drawn them to commit sin but they are not wounded at the heart because they do not sin with full consent of the will for they allow not that which they do neither do that which they would but what they hate and they delight in the law of God in the inner man when the flesh leadeth them captive to the law of sin Rom. 7.15 And hence it is that St. Paul saith he did not transgress the law of God but sin that dwelleth in him Rom. 7.17 And the Apostle St. John affirmeth that they who are born of God sin not 1 John 3.9 And that they who are in Christ sin not and that whosoever sinneth is of the Devil verse 6 and 8. Not that Gods Children are exempted from all sin but because they sin not with the full consent and swinge of the● will and when they do fall their hearts are defended with the breast-plate of righteousness that is with an holy desire and endeavoring to serve God David a man after Gods own heart may be a notable example hereof for even after he was indued with the knowledge of the truth and had this godly endeavour of serving God he not ●ithstanding fell grievously many times and was wounded often with Satans darts but his wounds were not mortal neither did they pierce the heart because he was armed with the breast plate of righteousness Come we now to a third part of our Christian armour which is this that we have our feet shod with the preparation of the Gospel of peace that is we must be entertain'd with the knowledge of the Gospel of peace for it is therefore called the Gospel of peace because it bringeth peace to our souls not onely as it is the embassage of God whereby we being reconciled unto God have peace with him from the assurance whereof we have peace of conscience but also bec●use if we be armed therewith we shall obtain a final victory over our spiritual enemies after which shall follow everlasting peace which shall not so much as ●e disturbed with the attempts of any enemies It is not sufficient that we know and believe th●● Gospel of peace unl●sse we be alwaies prepared to make confession and profession thereof though thereby we incur worloly shame losses afflictions and persecutions and this the Apostle signifieth by telling us that our feet must be shod with the pr●paration of the Gospel of peace that is as those who are well shod are ready to go through rough and unpleasant waies so those that are indued with the knowledge of the Gospel must alwaies be in readiness to make profession thereof in the midst of affliction and persecution for as with the heart man believeth unto righteousness so with the mouth he must confess unto Salvation Rom. 10.10 But now if we lay aside this armour we shall be as unfit to travel in the afflicted way which leadeth to Gods Kingdom as those souldiers who are b●re-foot are fit to march through waies that are full of briars and thorns We come now to the fourth piece of Christian armour which the Apostle exhorteth us to put on which is the shield of faith which part above all other parts is most necessary because how weak soever we be in our self it doth defend and protect us against all temptations of Satan For he that putteth on faith putteth on Iesus Christ also it being a property inseparable of faith to apply unto us Christ Iesus and all his benefits that is his merits and righteousnesse and everlasting life it self Let us therefore take unto us the shield of faith that we may also put on the Lord Iesus Christ as the Apostle exhorteth us Rom. 13.14 For having him we shall want nothing which may either defend our selves or offend our enemies the Lord himself will be our shield and buckler and therefore it will be impossible for our foes to prevail against us Again let us further consider the vertue and necessity of this shield of faith the vertue whereof appeareth by its repelling the fiery darts of Satan the Apostle saith that thereby we may quench his fiery darts alluding to the custome of Souldiers in ancient time who maliciously poysoned their darts whereby the bodies of those that they wounded were so inflamed that they could hardly be cured or eased of their raging and burning pain and such darts are all Satans temptations whereby we are wounded with sin for if they be not repelled and quenched with the shield of faith they will in flame our lusts to sin and one sin will inflame our hearts to anoth●r till there be kindled in us a world of wickedness This we may sée in the example of David who after that he gave himself to idleness and sloth and so was pierced with one of Satans fiery darts it presently inflamed his heart to commit adultery and having given place to that he was provoked to murther Therefore it behoveth us to take unto us the shield of faith whereby we may quench these fiery darts but why doth the Apostle use this unproper spéech séeing the shield of faith doth not quench but repel the darts that beat upon it I answer partly to shew the nature of our enemies temptations namely that they be f●ery mortal raging and pernicious and partly to set forth a double vertue of faith For first thereby we repel and beat back his temptations and so resist him stedfast in the ●aith 1 Pet. 5.9 Secondly if Satans darts have pierced and wounded us faith also doth