Selected quad for the lemma: heaven_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
heaven_n	believe_v	earth_n	maker_n	1,941	5	9.7635	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A65555	A practical and plain discourse of the form of godliness, visible in the present age and of the power of godliness: how and when it obtains; how denied or oppressed; and how to be instated or recovered. With some advices to all that pretend to the power of godliness. By Edward Lord Bishop of Cork and Rosse.	Wettenhall, Edward, 1636-1713.	1683 (1683)	Wing W1512; ESTC R222295	59,356	200

notions of the Doctrine of Christian Faith and manners by such means as these mentioned must be their first endeavour who would set up the Power of Godliness in their Souls Secondly Proportionably to what has been above laid down Their next care must be to root in themselves a deep and cordial perswasion of the truth of the Christian Faith especially in such main points first as those before under this head instanced in and so of the most indispensable obligation of its Precepts This as it is the most difficult so most necessary part of the whole work and therefore requires our greatest Labour Thought and Assiduity And for the effecting hereof as in the other following points so in this there will be some Directions Peculiar others Common to this with the rest ensuing The Common ones will come most fitly in the close of the Directory part As to what is more peculiar then here 1. We must endeavour to treasure up in our Memory or if we are able for help of our memory in writing the weightiest and most pressing arguments we meet with in our course of Attending the Ministry of the Word or which we can find out by reading or other enquiry touching the Existence or real Being of God of the Vnseen World and of the Life to come of which points if the heart be once truly perswaded all other grand Necessaries will easily follow To come as closely home as may be Let me consider with my self Have I at any time heard any thing urged to prove God is a most real Being Religion a most serious matter the World to come of the greatest importance any thing possible can be of c. Have I I say at any time heard any thing urged to prove these or the like points which has made any impression on my mind If I have let me recollect that and seriously reflect upon it and in the end treasure it up in my memory as a most pretious Jewel If I have not let me enquire by all means I can and not rest till I have found some such Evidences as may fix the belief of these principles in my Soul I shall upon enquiry find some proofs hereof there are Within me which I ever carry about with me and cannot be rid of Others Without me Within The Dictates and sense of my own Mind and Conscience whensoever I am serious and intently thinking on these things importunately inculcates to me they are truths I find I cannot but fear a God or unseen Power and be apprehensive of a Future Estate I cannot judge that I came into this World to be afer Death equal to an Hog or to the Beast that perisheth Whether I will or no my mind does upbraid me with some actions of mine and call them vile to my face others it commends and is pleased with reflexions upon A difference it does put betwixt Good and Evil These and other attestations to Religion I may meet with from my own brest From without This glorious Fabrick of Heaven and Earth which must as surely have a Maker as the House I dwell in had a Builder The course of Nature and Providence which I cannot force my self to believe goes all by chance For I see much meaner things none of which go so with diverse other points but moderately attended to and considered will lead me to acknowledge the Eternal Power and Godhead I must not here digress upon this copious subject Only one thing I may not omit A particular recollection and observation of Gods Providences to our selves in person through the whole course of our lives how we have been endangered and how rescued and preserved how all along sustained how sometimes our sin hath found us out at other times how our Prayers have been answered and our Obedience been owned and rewarded the particular reflexion I say on these and other like points is a cogent and very moving Proof ad hominem at least to imprint in us the belief of the Being of a God and that he does govern and will judg the World Whoso is wise and will observe these things even they shall understand the loving kindness of the Lord. Psal cxi 43. I may confidently avow that as there is no man who lives in the fear of God but is much in the observation and mindful recollection of Gods dealings with him so it can hardly come to pass that any man can study his own outward condition course or fortunes as we speak from his Cradle to his mature age but he shall find thereby strongly raised in his Soul a sense and perswasion of the Being Power Goodness Wisdom Justice and Holiness of God I might not therefore forbear to touch upon this point 2. Such proofs being thus treasured up let them be frequently meditated upon at least as often as may be called to mind and especially such of them which have at any time more considerably affected us On such let our Thoughts more durably dwell let us improve the impression and do what we can by frequent and intent thought to settle it indeleble or ordinarily recurrent ever running in our mind 3. For the better establishing in our Souls an hearty belief of the principles of Godliness it will be very ncessary that we forthwith abandon and in our practice eschew whatsoever we know or so much as reasonably suspect to be sinful For the allowing our selves in any such things makes it seem our inteterest that Religion should be false and then as if in our own defense we shall be inclined to believe so or which is much the same wish it were Lastly Where such perswading the heart of the principles of Godliness is designed No Doubt at any time arising in the heart must be endured any longer than till the first opportunity we can find of satisfaction And if we cannot by Thought Reading Prayer or ordinary Converse satisfie our selves let us speedily repair to such Spiritual Guides as may succour us The neglect of hereof in other cases as well as this within our Church is a very great fault and much prejudices the Power of Godliness amongst us Other more common Directions useful indeed in this point yet no less so in those others following will be suggested in their place And thus far briefly as to that most important concern towards Godliness of the establishing the Belief of its Principles in the heart It was said above in the third place That both such Knowledge and such Persuasion as described might be frequently of little Power to Godliness or an holy Practice unless the Mind in the particulars of life be kept attentive to both Correspondently then herewith all means which in Christian prudence we can find out must be used to keep alive in the Mind a sense of these Principles or which is the same in other words to keep Conscience in the particular conduct of our actions attent to them And I can think of nothing more proper hereto than the

God at present does for us or however we may for the future flatter our selves nothing but publick Ruin or an overflowing Scourge can be the end of these things I will profess that I cannot think any reasonable person will judge either my Charge or Proof to have been too severe § 7. But I will withal desire that it may be remembred what has now been not seldom suggested that the Design of these Papers is not fruitlesly to accuse and brand the Age much less to gratifie a censorious or ill-natur'd humour in inveighing at any thing unpleasing to me therein but only to stir us all up to judge our selves that we may not one day be judged and condemned of the Lord to awaken such amongst us who have a name that they live but behold they are dead at least to contribute or cast in these poor Mites which were in my hand towards the Healing that Drowsie Evil our Nations labour under in the matter of Religion And whereas in compliance with such design there are but two things that I can think of remaining yet untouch'd namely first to represent how little satisfactory a Form of Godliness should be to any one and secondly to give some Advice for Advancing the Power of Godliness the next Chapter shall treat touching both for the further compleating the whole CHAP. V. Endervours for Redress Sect. 1. The Nature of a Form of Godliness considered is a sufficient Dissuasive from resting in it Sect. 2. Particular Considerations urged to dissuade it Sect. 3. Directions for Asserting Godliness into its Power in private persons Sect. 4. Somewhat may be done as to the Publick Sect. 5. The Conclusion of the whole § 1. FOr the Dissuading men from resting in or satisfying themselves with a Form of Godliness in matter of Religion if men would but be brought to think little more need to be said than has been Some things sufficiently expose themselves meerly to have viewed what a Form of Godliness is a man would conceive to be a sufficient Dissuasive from resting in it I would desire therefore the Reader to recollect or to peruse again and seriously consider what was discoursed in the beginning touching this Subject that a Form of Godliness is made up only of some empty Pretence and bold Claims of some superficial vainglorious and fallacious Practices Let him then think with himself whether he can force himself to love or like a person of such a Character as there represented Is it amiable to be a pretending Smatterer in Religious Knowledge To profess I believe those things to be my Felicity which I know I never concern my self for To pride my self in false Gists To strain at Gnats and swallow Camels To talk of and make a stir about the true Church when really I am of none and perhaps live like an Heathen if not worse And so of the rest Certainly a man that can but get leave of himself to think will soon loath this Character and himself if deserving it But the better to ensure success we will descend to some more particular and if possible more effectual considerations § 2. And first let it be considered a Form of Godliness alters not a man one jot as to his estate God-wards It neither avails him to the justification of his person that is the Pardon of his Sins nor to the Sanctification or changing of his Heart Behold the days come saith the Lord that I will punish all them which are circumcised with the uncircumcised and the reason is added for all the circumcised House of Israel is uncircumcised in the Heart Jer. ix 25 26. And these days undoubtedly are all along the Gospel state under which Circumcision availeth nothing nor uncircumcision but the new Creature Gal. vi 15. or Faith working by Love chap. v. vers 6. which is plainly the Power of Godliness A Form of Godliness then removes not the Guilt of Sin Neither doth it put or work in the man any real Sanctity or spiritual Excellency A man may be in a manner as vitious as the Devil the World and his own Lusts can make him and yet for all that have a Form of Godliness They were so in the place whence we had the Term 2 Tim. iii. 2 c. Lovers of themselves covetous proud Blasphemers Traitors c. yet having a Form of Godliness Now me thinks this is a dreadful and wounding consideration when a man shall descend into himself and see I have been thus and thus long a Professor of the Christian Religion but I am as far from the Pardon of any one Sin through Christ as I was the first day I knew or heard the Name of Christ I am also still a graceless wretch I know my self thus and thus wicked and devoid of all Christian Virtue which yet I have a long time hypocritically and impudently pretended to Can any man who has one grain of the Belief of a God or even of common Ingenuity in him content himself in such an estate Secondly As a Form of Godliness alters not a mans estate here so neither will it operate to any future Reward to him Let a man take never so much pains in the most excellent Practices which can accomplish a meer Form of Godliness and after all he may sit down and say with himself Verily I have my Reward I have all the Heaven I am to look for These were we know our Lords words Matt. vi touching those famous people we have heard so much above of They gave Alms they prayed they fasted all materially great good Works and they took care the World should know all these their Virtues and that they might appear unto men What now was their Reward They did appear men took notice of their Acts and the ignorant generality perhaps believed the Actors to be pretious good men These persons therefore had their end and here was their Heaven Now is this an Heaven any man would be content with would be thus put off as to a future happiness surely we would not Thirdly Whereas it is pretended and indeed is a great Truth that there are some cases wherein nothing can stand us in stead or administer any comfort to us but Religion I say a Form of Godliness in these cases will be so far from affording any comfort that contrariwise the reflecting on it will prove the greatest torment imaginable and even the Beginning of Hell-pains These cases we may conceive chiefly two 1. Any dreadful complication of outward calamities as when Estate Health nay even Friends and those of our very own flesh and blood may fail us as it was with poor Job stript of all Now what had he in that case to comfort him Lord Job x. 7. Thou knowest that I am not wicked And chap. xxiii 10 11. He hath tried me and I shall come forth as gold My foot hath held his steps his way have I not declined Again Chap. xxvii 6. My righteousness I hold fast and