Selected quad for the lemma: heart_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
heart_n	flesh_n	new_a	stony_a	5,704	5	12.0562	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A08832	The benefit that Christians receiue by Iesus Christ crucified translated out of French into English, by A.G.	Paleario, Aonio, 1503-1570.; Golding, Arthur, 1536-1606.	1580 (1580)	STC 19116; ESTC S926	54,090	122

Christ and all that is his as we possesse our own garmēt And therfore to be clothed with Iesus Christ is nothing else but to beleeue for a certaintie that Christ is wholy ours and so is he in very déede if we beléeue so and hold our selues assured that by the same heauenly garment we be recetued into fauour before God For it is moste certaine that he as a most déere father hath geuen vs his sonne meaning that all his righteousnesse and al that euer he is can or hath done should be in our power and iurisdiction in such wise as it shoulde be lawfull for vs to make our boast of them as if we had done purchasen and deserued them by our owne strength And whosoeuer beléeueth this shal find that his belief is good true as we haue shewed heretofore Then must the Christiā haue a stedfast faith beliefe y ● al the goods al the graces al the riches of Iesus Christ are his for sith y ● God hath geuen vs Iesus Christ himself how should it be possible that he hath not geuen vs all things w t him Wow if this be true as true it is in déed y ● Christian may rightly say I am y ● child of God Iesu Christ is my brother I am Lord of heauē and earth of hel of death of the law insomuch as the law cannot accuse me nor lay any curse vppon me bicause the righteousnes of God is become mine And this fayth is it alone y ● maketh a mā to be called a christī which clotheth him with Iesus Christ as we haue saide afore And boldly may this be called a great mystery wherunder are contamed marueilous things things not hearde of cōcerning y ● great God which cānot enter into mās heart except God do first soften it w t his holy grace as he hath promised to do by his holy prophet saying I wil giue you a new heart and I wil put a new mind into you and I wil take away the stony hart out of your bodie I wil giue you a heart of flesh Now then he that beléeueth not after the said maner that Iesus Christ with all the goods that he possesseth is his cannot call himselfe a true Christian nor euer haue a quiet and ioyfull conscience nor a good and feruent courage too doe good but shal easily faint in doyng of good woorkes yea and moreouer hee shall neuer bee able to doe woorkes that are truely good This only beléefe and trust y ● we haue in the merites of Iesus Christ maketh men true christians stout cheereful mery louers of God ready to doe good works Possessors of Gods kingdome and of God himselfe his right dearely beloued children in whō the holy Ghost doeth truely dwell What heart is so cowardly cold vile which cōsidering the inestimable greatnesse of the gift that God hath bestowed vpon him in geuing him his owne so welbeloued sonne with all his perfectnesse is not inflamed with an exéeding earnest desire to become like vnto him in good works specially séeing that the father hath giuen him vnto vs for an example wheron we must continually loke framing our life after such a sort as it may be a true counterpaine of the life of Iesus Christ forasmuch as Christe as saith S. Peter hath suffered for vs leaning vs an ensample to the ende that wée should follow his footesteppes Out of this consideration issueth another kinde of clothing of a mans selfe with Christe which we may terme an example clothing for so much as the christiā must frame his whole life after y ● example of Christe fashioning himselfe like vntoo him in all his déedes words thoughts leuing his former wicked life decking himselfe with the new life that is to wit with the life of Christe By reason whereof S. Paul saith Let vs cast away the workes of darkenesse and put on the armour of light not in feasting nor in drunkennesse nor in chambering wantonnesse nor in striefe but put vpon you the Lorde Iesus Christe and make no preparation for the flesh nor for the lustes thereof Héereupon the true Christian being in loue with Iesus Christ saith in him selfe Sith that Iesus Christe not hauing any néede of mée hath redéemed mee with his owne blood and is become poore to inriche mée I will likewise geue my goodes yea and my very life for the loue and welfare of my neighbor And like as I am clothed with Iesus Christ for y ● loue he hath borne to me so wil I haue my neighbor in Christ to cloath himself with me and with my goodes likewise for ● loue that I beare him for Christes sake He that doth not so is no true Christian for he cannot say that he loueth Iesus Christe if he loue not the members brothers of him if we loue not our neighbour for whose sake Christ hath shed his blood wée cannot truely say that wée loue Iesus Christe who being equal with God was obedient to his father euen to the death of the crosse hath loued and redéemed vs geuing himselfe vnto vs with al that euer he hath After the same maner we being rich hauing abundance of good things at Christes hande must also be obedient vnto God to offer giue our workes al that me haue yea euen our selues to our neighbours and brethren in Iesus Christe seraing them and helping them at theyr néede and being to them as another Christe And like as Iesus Christ was lowly and gentle and far from all debate and strife so must wee set our whole mind vpon lowlinesse and méekenesse eschewing al strife and impacience as well which consist in wordes and reasoning as in déedes And as Iesus Christ hath indured all the persecutiōs spites of the world for y ● glory of God so must we with al patientnes chéerefully beare the persecutiōs and reproches that are done by false Christians to all suche as will liue faithfully in Iesus Christ who gaue his life for his enemies and praied for them vpon the crosse and so must wée also pray alwayes for our enemies willingly spēd our life for their welfare And this is to folow Christs steps according as S. Peter saith For whē wée know Iesus Christ with al his riches to be our own good which thing is to be clothed with Christ too become pure cleane w tout spot ther remaineth nothing more for vs to doe but to glorifie God by following the life of Iesus Christe and to doe to our brethren as Christe hath doone to vs and specially forasmuch as wee bee warranted by his word that whatsoeuer we do to his brethren ours he accepteth it as a benefit doone to himselfe And doubtles séeing that the true Christiās are members of Christ we cannot do either good or euil to the true Christians but wee doe it likewise vntoo Christ

with diuerse temptations And therefore when the holy Scripture threatneth and frayeth the christians they must vnderstande that it speaketh to such as are so licencious that for somuche as they kéepe not the thankfulnesse honesty that belōng to Gods children they must be handled as seruantes and hilde in awe vntill they come to taste and féele how swéete and pleasant the Lord is and untill such time as faith worke his affectes in them and that they haue so much childly loue as may suffice to kéepe and mainteine them in honestie of Christian conuersation and in folowing the example of our Lorde Iesus Christe And when the selfe same scripture exhorteth Christians to the true feare it meaneth not that they should feare the iudgement and wrath of God as though it were presently ready to condēne thē for as I haue saide already by the record which the holy Ghost geueth to theyr spirite they knowe that God hath chosen them and called them of his owne méere mercy and not for their deserts By reason whereof they doubt not at all but y ● by the selfesame goodnesse mercy he will mainteine them in the happy state wherein hee hath placed them And after suche manner scripture exhorteth them not to slauish feare but to childishe that is to wit that like good children they shoulde bee loath too offend against the Christian religion or to commit any thing against the duty and honestie of Gods true children and likewise too gréeue the holy Ghost that dwelleth in them to the ende that knowing the corruptednesse of our nature wée shoulde alwayes be héedefull and diligent and neuer haue any trust in our selues for in our flesh and in our mindes do the appetites and affections continually dwell which as deadly enimies of the soule lay a thousande snares and baytes for vs incessantly labouring too make vs prowde ambicious lecherous and couetous This is the feare wherevnto the whole Scripture exhorteth the Christiaes that haue once tasted howe swèete the Lorde is and which bestowe all their indeuour in following Christes footesteppes who cast not from them this holy feare because they labour to put of the old man And the good Christians must neuer bereaue themselues quite cleane of this childly feare which is the singular friende of Christian charitie like as the slauishe feare is such an enemie vnto it as they can by no meanes dwell togeather And by the the foresaide thinges a man may plainely perceiue that the good Christian ought neuer too doubt of the forgiuenesse of his sinnes nor of Gods fauour Neuerthelesse for the better satisfiyng of the Reader I purpose too set downe héere vnder certayne authorities of the holy Doctours which comfirme this foresaid trueth Saint Hyllary in his fifth Canon vpon Matthew sayth it is Gods wyll that we should hope without any doubting of his vnknowne wil. For if the beliefe bée doubtfull there can bée no righteousnesse obteined by beléeuing And thus wée sée that according to S. Hyllary a man obteineth not forgeuenesse of his sinnes at Gods hande except hèe belèeue vndoubtedly to obteine it And good right it is that it shoulde bée so For he that doubteth is like a waue of the sea which is tossed and turmoyled with the winde And therefore let not such a one thinke to obteine any thing at Gods hand But let vs heare Saint Augustine who in his Manuell counselleth vs too driue away the saide foolish imagination which intendeth to dispossesse vs of the foresaide good and sage assurednesse Let such foolish imagination sayth hee murmure as much as it lifteth saying who art thou How 's great is that glory By what desertes hopest thou too obteine it I answere assuredly I knowe in whome I haue beléeued and I know that hée of his great loue hath made mée his sonne I knowe hée is true of his promise and able too perfourme his worde For hée can doe what hée will And when I thinke vpon the Lords death the multitude of my sinnes cannot dismay mée for in his death doe I put all my trust His death is my whole desert it is my refuge it is my saluation my life and resurrection and the mer●y of the Lorde is my desert I am not poore of desert so long as the Lord of mercy sayleth me not And sith the mercies of y ● Lord are many many also are my deseruinges The more y ● hée is of power to saue the more am I sure to bée saued The same S. Augustin talking with GOD in another place sayth that hée had despayred by reason of his great sinnes and infinite negligences if the woorde of GOD had not become flesh And a●one after hée sayth these wordes All my hops all the assurance of my trust is setled in his precious blood which was shed for vs and for our saluation In him my poore heart taketh breath and putting my whole trust in him I long to come vnto thée O Father not hauing mine owne righteousnesse but that righteousnesse of thy sonne Iusus Christe In these two places Saint Augustine sheweth plainely that the Christian must not be afraide but assure him selfe of righteousnesse by grounding himselfe not vpon his owne workes but vpon the precious blood of Iesus Christe which cleanseth vs from all our sinnes and maketh our peace with GOD. Saint Bernarde in his first Sermon vppon the Annunciation saueth moste euidently that it is enough to beléeue that a man can haue forgiuenesse of our sinnes but by Gods mercy nor any one good desire or abilitie too doe so muche as one good worke except GOD geue it him no nor that a man cannot deserue eternall life by his workes but if GOD geue him the gifte so to beléeue But besides all these things sayth Saint Bernard which ought rather too bée counted a certaine entraunce and foundation of our faith it is néedeful that thou beléeue also that thy sinnes are forgeuen thée for the loue of Iesus Christe Sée howe this holy man confesseth that it is not enough too beléeue generally the forgeuenesse of sinnes but hée must also beléeue particularly that his owne sinnes are forgeuen him by Iesus Christe and the reason is ready at hande namely that forasmuche as GOD hath promised thée to accept thée for righteous through the merites of Iesus Christe if thou beléeue not that thou art become righteous through him thou makest GOD a lyer and consequently thou makest thy selfe vnworthie of thy grace and liberality But thou wilt say to me and I beléeue wel the forgeuenesse of sinnes and I knowe that GOD is true but I am afraide that I am not worthie to haue so great a gift I answere that the forgiuenes of thy sinnes shall not be a gift of free grace but a wages if God woulde geue it thée for the worthinesse of thy workes But I reply vpon thée that God accepteth thée for righteous and laieth not thy sinne to thy