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
A26659	The church triumphant, or, A comfortable treatise of the amplitude and largeness of the kingdom of Christ wherein is proved by Scriptures and reason, that the number of the damned is inferiour to that of the elect / by Joseph Alford ...	Alford, Joseph.	1649 (1649)	Wing A921; ESTC R22399	57,799	139

hath not been revealed to them C. I confess I thought thus within my self but I was willing to hear your opinion but when you said a little before speaking of the Church that it was wheresoever men did believe or should believe wherefore made you that addition should believe M. Because at all times and in all ages many are elected to this kingdom which are not yet called not compelled by faith to enter as were Saul Cornelius the Centurion and Sergius Paulus the Proconsul and innumerable others whose vocation and ingress was by the Lord for some time deserred who because they were from all eternity appointed to this kingdom are therefore all Citizens and Members of this heavenly Common-wealth this is manifest by these and others who the goodness of God being revealed are afterwards received into this kingdom C. They say that Cornelius oponed a passage into this kingdom by his prayers and Alms-deeds and this they confirm by those words of the Angel to him Thy prayers and thy Almes are come up for a memorial before God M. The abettors of such fancies are contumelious to God and ignorant of the Scriptures they reproch God for they rob him of his Honour and give the glory to man they are ignorant of the Scriptures not discerning an open truth Their errour ariseth partly from a non-consideration of the words preceding and subsequent which if they had perpended they had never dashed against this Rock What hath St. Luke written in the beginning of this Chapter That Cornelius was a devour man and one that feared God with all his house which gave much Almes to the people and prayed to God alway Afterwards those men that were sent by Cornelius give him this Character that he was a just man feared God and of good report among all the nation of the Jews Who now doth not plainly see that his piety to and his fear of God are first commended then his Almes and good deeds are spoken of he was a Religious and a good man and therefore gave many Almes to the poor and prayed to God alway which were the fruits and effects of his piety Therefore it is said he was of good report among the Jews But from whence came these good effects Not from his good deeds for the tree must be good before the fruit can be good as our Lord saith Matth. 7. For the cause cannot follow the effect any more than a daughter can bring forth her Mother But who made him Religious and just and fearing God Who but he that circumciseth the foreskins of our hearts That taketh away our stony hearts and giveth us hearts of flesh and new Spirits Ezech. 11. He I say made Cornelius both Religious and devout and were not these things declared unto Peter by the Divine oracle of God for when he supposed that all the rest of the Nations were alienated from the benefit of the Gospel the Angel telleth him Those things which God hath purified call not thou unclean Acts 10. Here God witnesseth that he had purged prepared and consecrated Cornelius to himself And although it was spoken because of Cornelius yet the words concern all those that God hath chosen and adorned with the beautiful knowledge of the Gospel And whereas it is said that his prayers and giving of Almes went up to God as a memorial nothing more is intended but that God heareth the prayers of the Godly that their good works are acceptable to him and that he hath them in remembrance as flowing from himself the Fountain of all good gifts And where it is said that he was frequent in prayer it is evident that this proceeded from a Divine inspiration For as Paul saith We know not what we should pray for as we ought but the Spirit it self maketh intercession for us with unutterable groans Rom. 8. Now if he was endued with the Spirit of God as certainly he was and that his Almes-deeds and his prayers were accepted it is as certain that he had saith without which it is impossible to please God as St. Paul doth most plainly teach Rom. 10. And if he had the illustrations of Faith then his heart was purified and cleansed as Peter testifieth of Cornelius and other Gentiles in St. Luke saying That God had enlightened them by his Holy Spirit and purged their minds by Faith C. I perceive that by degrees you have come to the right explication of the truth but there is yet one thing to be enucleated for Peter saith Of a truth I now perceive that God is no respecter of persons but in every nation he that feareth him and worketh righteousness is accepted by him Act. 10. Here he sheweth that by good works a man is reconciled to God M. This speech of the Apostle meaneth nothing else but what diverse other holy sentences do teach that God in his election of and his Love to mankind hath regard onely to their goodness and glorie not to their original their pedigree their country their sex their age their merit or any other personal attributes This truth is exemplified in the person of Cornelius whom God called being an alien and dignified him with a place in his kingdom The signs of Election are an ingenuous and a reverential fear of God like to that of obedient children towards their parents from whence there ariseth in them a confidence and a stedfast perswasion of the love of God to them and from thence again groweth a delight in the Law of God a complacency in the works of righteousness he that is accepted by God he feareth he honoureth loveth and trusteth in God for it behoveth that the person of that man be gracious and acceptable whose duties or offices of Love are accepted for no performances are acceptable from him against whom we entertain a prejudice or aversation of this we have experience in the common civilities of life but with God there is no prejudice for he is the searcher of the heart And John saith Whosoever doth work righteousness is born of God Also Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ he is born of God that is therefore some men live justly some man believeth Jesus to be the Christ because he is justified by God and endued with holiness and righteousness by him for unless he thus be born of God he is unable to perform any thing justly and rightly or to believe that Jesus is the Christ This the Lord himself confirmeth upon Peters confession that he was the Son of the Immortal God Verily saith our Saviour flesh and bloud hath not revealed this unto thee but my Father which is in Heaven Now there is this difference between Divine and humane justice he that is not justified by God may execute humane justice for fear of punishment expectation of glorie or hope of other reward but no man is exercised in heavenly justice who is not first justified purged by Faith and assisted with grace Therefore it is no wonder that whosoever