Selected quad for the lemma: heart_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
heart_n	faith_n	good_a	unfeigned_a	2,823	5	11.0408	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A44571	The vnrighteovs Mammon exchanged for the true riches or A sermon, preached at the funeral of William Adams Esq; in the parish church of St. Lawrence Iury on Tuesday. Septemb. 3. 1661. By Thomas Horton. D.D.	Horton, Thomas, d. 1673.	1661 (1661)	Wing H2883; ESTC R213856	28,717	49

lodged me and I sayes another was sick and in prison and this man came unto me and so of the rest And what shall be the issue and consequent of all this Testimony at last why even that which is there signified to us Matth. 25.34 Come ye blessed of my Father inherit the Kingdome prepared for you from the foundation of the world IV. This holds good in a way of Gratulatory entertainment those friends whom you have made by your almes shall receive you into heaven so farr forth as any of them as it may happen being there before you shall rejoice to see you come thither as indeed they shall Look as there is joy in Heaven amongst the Angels for any one sinner that is converted so is there joy also in Heaven amongst amongst the Saints for any one convert that is glorified there is a mutual Heavenly welcome which they doe bid as I may say one to another into those everlasting Habitations and this is that which you who have formerly bin bountiful to them shall then partake of from them The consideration of this point thus opened and in larged may be thus far useful to us namely from hence to teach us to set an high price and estimation upon the poor servants of Christ and to think highly honorably of them We doe usually so farr reckon of any persons as they are able to doe the most for us now see here by this rule how to account of such persons as those who are enabled thus to help us to Heaven which is the greatest good of all we should honour them and think highly of them in the midst of many outward disparagements they are men of great interest with God and so they should be of great esteem with us and we should never think we can doe enough for them nor never repent of any good that ever we did them as being sure it shall not be lost but abundantly recompensed to us take heed of despising one of these little ones who have such great things in their reach Yea and take heed of disingageing them also and of doing any thing to them whereby to loose or abate of their affection which may be of more use unto us perhaps then we are aware of not only as to the keeping off of temporal evils calamityes and the procuring of many temporal blessings but also as to the diverting of God's eternal wrath and indignation and admittance into the everlasting Habitations And that 's the second thing here intimated xiz The practise of the poor releived Christans which they will be ready to comply with in reference to those persons that relieve them The third and last is the Issue or effect in regard of the thing it self and that is that these liberal persons who doe lay out of their essates to good uses they shall indeed at the last have admittance and entrance into those everlasting habitations They shall receive you that is no more but you shall be received by taking the words not relatively so much as absolutely nor personally but impersonally rather And this is very sutable and agreable to other places of Scripture where the like Form and manner of expression hath the like sense and meaning with it as Luk. 6 38. Good measure shall they give into your bosome that is good measure shall be given Luk. 12.20 This night shall they take away thy Soul that is thy Soul shall be taken away And Revel 12.6 Speaking of the woman fled into the wildernesse where she hath a place prepared of God that they should feed her that is that she might be fed as will appear if we shall compare it with the 14 verse of that chapter And so now answerable here in the text that they may recieve you that is I say that you may be recieved And so now it does not so much point out the Persons as rather the state and condition it self not the Persons conferring but rather the state and condition it self which is conferred This is the summ of all that those who faithfully expend of their ●states to the relief of the poor servants of Christ when they dye they shall have Heaven it self bestowed upon them This is the doctrine of this present text and of the whole scripture likewise beside which yet that it may be duly and rightly understood by us must be taken with this explication I. That this is not meant of any meritorius virtue in the act of Beneficence it self so that whosoever shall give an Almes more or less to any one poor man or more he shall thereby ipso facto and as it were ex opere operato promeriti a place in Heaven for that he shall not nor cannot doe There is no proportion or commensuration betwixt our bounty and the bounty of God in eternal life II. It is not so meant neither as if this liberality were enough of it self for any man that should go to Heaven with out other graces besides for so neither it is not It is not liberality considered solitarily or abstractly but in its full concomitancy in the association of other good works going along with it It is not when ye faile of your duty but when ye faile of your Life III. It is not meant neither Independently upon the general principle of saving Grace wrought in the Heart we are said to be created in Christ Iesus unto good works that we should walk in them Eph. 2.10 And it holds good of these works of Beneficence among the rest which are no further properly good neither have Salvation attending upon them then as they flow and proceed in us from such a root and spring as this not from a common principle only of morality but from a special principle of regeneration and the new Creature The end of the commandement is charity out of a pure heart and a good conscience and of Faith unfeigned 1. Tim. 1.5 So then the plain and direct meaning is briefly this That as God will reward all other good services besides with Eternal life in a subject duly fitted and qualified thereunto so amongst the rest in a special manner will he take notice of the kindnesse which is done to any of his poor servants and will at last reward that also with eternal happinesse and salvation This is matter of great encouragement to any to be faithful in such performances as these alwaies to abound in this work of the Lord for asmuch as they hear and may know that their labour shall not be in vain in the Lord. That which makes men commonly so strait-handed and close-fisted towards the poor is because they have this conceit with themselves that they shall otherwise be loosers by the bargains But here now for their comfort it is the contrary if it be gain to be partakers of Heaven they shall not loose that are bountiful towards the poor And therefore let this argument have its full force and efficacy upon us Those

upon the Hearts of all those that are partakers of them and that he would send forth many such Persons out of your renowned and flourishing Societie as may be inrich'd with the like Estates and the like Hearts which is the earnest and unfeigned Desire of Your SERVANT for the True Riches And Your FRIEND for the Everlasting Habitations Thomas Horton Luke XVI 9. And I say unto you Make unto your selves friends of the Mammon of unrighteousness that when ye faile they may receive you into everlasting Habitations THat which hath bin wont sometimes to be said of a good wit it is more especially and properly true of a good heart that it is able to make use of any thing and to improve it to its own advantage not only in the examples of virtue by conforming to that whch is absolutely and substantially good in them but likewise in the examples of Iniquity by picking out that which is occasionally and circumstantially good in them also An instance whereof we have here in this Scripture which we have now before us in the Parable of the unjust Steward mentioned in the beginning of this chapter whose providence and forecast for Himself against the time of his expected ejection out of his Stewardship though by sinful and unlawful meanes is improved by our blessed Saviour as a pattern to all rich Persons to provide for their soules against the time of their expected dissolution and departure out of this world but in a way far more warrantable though in some respects sutable thereunto that is by making to themselves friends of the Mammon of unrighteousness that so when they fail they may receive them into everlasting habitations In the words themselves there are three general Parts considerable first the quickning Preface or authoritative Introduction I say unto you Secondly The sober advice or serious counsel following upon it Make unto your selves friends of the Mammon of unrighteousness Thirdly The persuasive Argument or Ground for the practise of it That when ye fail they may receive you into everlasting habitations We begin with the former viz. The quickning Preface or Introduction I say unto you This is a form of speech which our Saviour Christ does often use in his discourses especially in such businesses as are of more weighty and serious consideration or where the minds of his hearers are not altogether so quick and attentive Here he does usually excite and stir them up from the thoughts and apprehensions of the Person whom they have to deal withal that so they may take heed least they refuse him that speaketh who should most effectually prevaile with them And there 's a twofold intimation in it to make it so much the more efficacious First of Skil and understanding I that Know what I say Secondly of Love and affection I that speak it out of my good will unto you Where there is a concurrence of these two an Intelligent speaker and an Affectionate there 's very great cause for listning and attending to him and so it is here I. There 's his skill and understanding He is not one that speaks at randome he knows not what but with a great deal of wisdome and discretion so great as that none the like Never any man spake as he spake And that as to knowledge and judgement He knows all kind of Natures and Persons and Actions and Events His Name is Counsellour And so he is fittest to advise his people for his wisdome II. For his Love and affection ther 's much considerable in that also there are many who can speak admirablely and give very good Counsel in regard of that which comes from them but it may be they have some sinister End or unworthy design in it but for Christ what he speakes it is in sincerity and out of good will to the persons to whom he speaks But this I doe not insist upon as hastening to that which is mainly and principally intended that 's the First General viz. The quickning Preface or Introduction I say unto you The second is the sober Advice or Council which follows upon it in these words Make to your selves friends of the Mammon of unrighteousnesse wherein again we have two branches more First the thing advised to and that is the making of friends Secondly The meanes advised to for the effecting and accomplishing of this thing and that is to do it by the Mammon of unrightuousness For the First the thing it self advised to it is here exprest to be the making of friends This will be the more observeable if we shall consider the quality of the Persons to whom these words are directed and that is as appears by the scope of them to rich men such persons as have an abundance of these worldly goods by them these are they who are heere call'd upon to the making of friends to themselves But stay what need have these of friends those that have wealth and riches and a fulness of these outward possessions they can shift well enough of themselves and be their own friends though they had none else to regard them or look after them yea indeed sometimes they think so and are lifted up with such thoughts as these are well but for all that sayes our Saviour do you make your friends you which are rich and wealthy persons such as these have need of friends as well as any man else yea and they have need to make friends too there 's that also in the text make to your selves friends As for poor men indeed we are apt to think with our selves that such as they have need to make friends because they have so many Enemies All the Brethren of the poor hate him how much more doe his friends go farr off from him● he pursueth them with words yet they are wanting to him Pro. 19.7 And again Pro. 14.20 The poor is hated even of his own neighbour but the rich hath many friends Or many are the Lovers of the rich as it is in the Hebrew text Rich men as one would think they have friends enow made to their hands from the Nature of their condition well but yet still for all this have these I say need to make friends and Christ himself sayes it also yea they have need to make friends of the poorest and meanest people that are as having great use of them God hath in his infinite wisdome and providence so ordered and disposed it that no sorts of men should be absolute or independent one upon another but that they should be mutually helpful beneficial The rich do as much need the poor as the poor the rich and they cannot say unto them wee have no need of you no more then the members of the body one to another 1 Cor. 12.21 Dives pauper duo sibi sunt Contraria sed iterum duo sibi sunt necessaria sayes St. Austin the rich and the poor they are two contraries to one another but yet they are two