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
A17246	A comparison betweene the auncient fayth of the Romans, and the new Romish religion. Set foorth by Frauncis Bunny, sometime fellowe of Magdalen College in Oxforde	Bunny, Francis, 1543-1617.	1595 (1595)	STC 4098; ESTC S109540	68,655	92

birth of Tamars children For Zarah being first néere the birth yet Phares his brother came forth before him So these godly motions béeing first thought vpon yet euen in Gods good and obedient children such corrupt and vngodly affections will first shew themselues Of which dangerous battell commeth this troublesome effect troublesome I say to Gods children that their loue eyther of God or man is not without want their faith not without feare their obedience not without blemish their seruice not without negligence to be shorte in any good thing that we will attempt we shall not be without euil to hinder the same Which thinges being well considered of I trust it wil easely appeare that our will though it be good in the regenerate yet is not at any time altogether free to doe as it would in respect of these corrupt lusts of the flesh And that this is the auncient faith of the Romans that was in S. Paules time it is more plaine then that with any good shew of reason it may be denied For the Apostle teacheth the Romans thus much euen by his own example Who féeling within himselfe this spirituall battel betwéene the spirit and the flesh which onely Gods children do féele so by experience being taught that when he had done what he could he was notable to doe that which willingly he would haue done he plainely confesseth The good that I would do I not but the euill which I would not that do I. Now I trust no man will answere that he speaketh not of that he could doe but of that he did I trust no body wil imagine but that the Apostle did what he could to doe good and not to doe euill and yet when he had striuen therein to the vttermost his regenerate and godly will was not of power to performe his godly desires But if any man would iudge so grosly of S. Paule as that he might haue done more then he did to stand against sinne yet would they be sufficiently confuted by that which the same apostle addeth almost immediately whereby he sheweth by what meanes it came to passe that he was so driuen and drawen to doe against his will Euen because There was a Lawe in his members rebelling against the Lawe of his minde and leading him captiue to the Lawe of sinne although concerning the inward man he had delight in the Lawe of God Now if S. Paule had not free will as no doubt in these wordes he plainely teacheth the Romans that hee had not to doe good shall we imagine that we who are much lesse fréed from corruption of sinne then he was haue any such fréedome or power in vs Shall we that are in comparison drye stumpes and fruitlesse plantes deceiue our selues in this vaine conceit that we are better able to bring forth the fruit of good works then he was God forbid No I am verily perswaded that whosoeuer doth but consider what a good work is according to that I haue before said especially in the viii Chapter and on the other side how weake wee are of our selues because our regeneration is not heere perfected and how stirring and striuing our lustes are whereby we are hindred in our good indeuours he wil vtterly detest that deceitfull doctrine of mans free will to doe good and abhorre it as a proud presumption And hee will not onely with Saint Paule humbly confesse his owne weakenes but with S. Peter also heartely giue thankes vnto our gratious God who hath Kept vs by his power not by the power or free wil that we haue vnto saluation So that we see we to acknowledge this weaknes in our selues yea although we be regenerate to doe good and the power whereby we are preserued to saluation that we should not quite fall from it to be from God and in him is the Catholicke doctrine that then when these Apostles taught was receiued at Rome According to the which also the fathers in the Aura●ican counsell did affirme That many good thinges are wrought in man which man worketh not But man doth no good at all but that God giueth power that he may worke it And Theophilact most plainely speaking of the workes that we doe after baptisme wherein the papistes especially brag of their fréewill Our will saith he is dead but his that is Christes liueth and doth gouerne this our life If then our life be gouerned by Christes will where is the power of our owne will which our aduersaries so much extol I said saith Fulgētius that thou wast preuented not onely with that loue wherewith GOD loued thee but with that also which hee freely powred into thee that he might be loued of thee Therefore all euen whatsoeuer holy loue thou hast towardes thy husband thou hast it in deede in thee but not of thy selfe Much might be alledged out of the fathers to this ende whereby it might appeare how they did follow this ancient faith of the Church of Rome but I will take my leaue with Arnobius his wordes You saith he repose in your selues the saluation of your soules and hope to be made Gods by your owne inward indeuour But we promise not to our selues any such thing of our infirmitie seeing our nature to be of no strength and that it is ouercome by the affections thereof whensoeuer it striueth But now would they teach vs to speake with new tongues not the wonderfull workes of God but the straunge strength that is in vs to serue God straunge I say because we haue neither seene it in the godly nor heard it in the pure and auncient Roman Church nor can finde or feele it in our selues vnlesse it be when wee are past feeling that wée feele not our selues But thus they teach vs that being once stirred vp and holpen for these are their owne termes by grace man hath afterwardes such power that hee is freely moued to God to dispose and prepare himselfe to obtaine the grace of iustification Yea that our lustes or desire of sinne are subiected to reason and free will with such subiection as scarsely there can be any greater And thus whereas God because the olde heart of man is naught and hath nothing in it that will further nay that will not hinder vs to walke vprightly in the wayes of godlinesse promiseth to giue vs another heart A newe heart saith God will I giue you and a newe spirite will I put within you they woulde make vs beleeue that this olde hearte of ours will serue with a little chaunge And yet that wee may know that to stirre vp and to helpe our olde heart will not serue the turne God by Ezechiel in the place alledged saith I will take away the stony heart out of your body and I will giue you a heart of flesh By which wordes of giuing a newe hearte taking away that we haue of stone giuing vs one of fleshe God woulde haue vs to learne that

we must not onely be stirred vp and holpen as they say but euen made newe before wee can doe that which pleaseth God And as for those that are so caryed away with the plausible and pleasaunt sounde of free will I woulde request euen for Christ his sake that they woulde take a viewe of their owne waies and enter into their owne secrete thoughtes wordes and deedes and if at home they finde all well if they can as they wish and woulde if they be not sencelesse and secure in sinne keepe Gods commandements then let them stil beleeue that doctrine and followe such blinde guides But if they finde that the greatest shew of godlinesse that they can make can be but the performance of some externall worke whether it be in prayer or praysing of God or doing of any duety towardes our neighbours wherein euen the most wicked will perchaunce sometime shewe themselues more deuout then they let them not then be deceiued by any of these seducing wordes Cannot I abstaine from euill cannot I doe that which is good cannot I be occupied in good workes For although thou canst doe that worke which may in another be a good worke yet because the worke is not good that is not commaunded by God done by a godly man and directed to Gods glory and the doing of our own duety that worke I say which may in an other be praise worthy in thee may be sinne Thus therefore I say that it is no more in thy power to worke a good worke then to make new thy owne heart but both must be of God of whome we haue all our sufficiencie CHAP. XI BVt now concerning the Sacramentes there is not much as I can gather eyther in that Epistle written by S. Paule to the Romans excepting that onely that is in the fourth Chapter that Abraham receiued the signe of circumcision the seale of righteousnes of faith eyther in S. Peter his first Epistle but that in the third chapter when he saith Whereto the baptisme that now is answering that figure not the putting away the filth of the flesh but the confident demaunding which a good conscience maketh to GOD saueth vs also by the resurrection of Iesus Christ In the former of which two places the Apostle doth plainely testify that Abraham being iustified before by faith did afterwardes receiue the signe of circumcision to seale vp in and vnto him this righteousnes by faith Which saith because it hath respect vnto the promises we see therefore that this was the vse and office of circumcision vnto Abraham to confirme vnto him the promises of God And that other place out of S. Peter doth partly confirme vnto vs the selfesame vse of baptisme For when Noah and his company sawe that the same water that drowned others and swallowed them vp into the depth did saue them in carying the Arke wherein they were aboue the waters this must néeds assure them not onely of Gods power but of his goodnes also and readines to performe his promise in sauing them from perishing by water And in like sorte the water in baptisme assureth that little flocke that is truely belonging to Christ his holy catholicke Church figured by the Arke of the forgiuenes of their sins And as not the water that caried the Arke was the efficient cause of their sauing which Master Belarmine absurdly imagineth for the water was as apt to haue drowned them as the other no neyther yet the Arke it selfe although it might more properly be so estéemed because in it they were caried aboue the water but God saued them by the Arke vpon the water So is it in baptisme as S. Peter teacheth vs in that he saith that it saueth by the resurrection of Iesus Christ I say not by it selfe but by the resurrection of Iesus Christ From whom onely it hath the vertue and efficacy by whome onely it turneth to our good And as al perished in the same water which by carying vp the Arke saued them that were therein all I say that by faith beléeuing the promises were got into the Arke euen so the water in baptisme though it outwardly put away from all that are washed therein the filth of the flesh yet is it not in deed profitable to any but to such as haue that righteousnes and holines of Christ Iesus sealed vp thereby vnto their owne consciences Whereby it appeareth most plainly that the sacraments doe not giue grace or worke righteousnes in vs or of themselues because they are receiued of vs do make vs holy But as the Apostle S. Paul saith of circumcision Circumcision verily profiteth nothing except you keepe the Law so may we truely say of our Sacramentes that not the receiuing of our Sacramentes but the holy obedience springing from our faith that is sealed vp vnto the godly in the Sacramentes is the thing that is acceptable to God commended before men and comfortable to our owne consciences For as in that place alledged hee reckoneth them onely truely circumcised that keepe and fulfill the Lawe and haue that true circumcision of the heart and that the godlesse howe so euer they haue receiued in their fleshe the outwarde marke or signe yet are in deed vncircumcised euen so howe solemnly so euer the faithlesse and fruitelesse flocke haue receiued the Sacramentes of our sanctification and redemption which is in Christ yet if they bring not forth such fruites of the spirite as doe testifie and shew that inwarde washing away of the filth of sinne they haue Baptismum fluminis the washing of the water non flaminis not of the holy Ghost they haue the signe of Gods grace but not the substance thereof the visible token but not the inuisible grace But the Sacramentes are vnto such as seales set to a blanke wherein because dothing is contayned therefore by these seales there is nothing assured Nowe out of this which hitherto I haue saide we see that the Sacramentes haue these two vses to assure vs of the performance of the promise of grace and to preach to vs repentaunce for our sinnes past and holines in the rest of our life that is to come But our now Romish Catholickes who are neuer content that eyther themselues or other should eate within the teacher of the word of God doe wander farre out of these listes teaching that our Sacramentes haue in them that grace which they signifie and doe giue the same grace to all men at all times if men be not a let vnto themselues euen Ex opere operate that is in respect of the worke it selfe because the Sacraments are receiued of them Wherby they doe such iniurie vnto Christ as we that professe the name of christian men and women should be ashamed of For that sauing from sinne which God by the ministery of the Angel proclaimed should be by his sonne whom for that cause he called Iesus our Sauiour because he shoulde saue his people from