Selected quad for the lemma: heaven_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
heaven_n	forgive_v	pray_v	trespass_n	2,324	5	11.8389	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A85088	Two treatises The first, concerning reproaching & censure: the second, an answer to Mr Serjeant's Sure-footing. To which are annexed three sermons preached upon several occasions, and very useful for these times. By the late learned and reverend William Falkner, D.D.	Falkner, William, d. 1682.; Sherlock, William, 1641?-1707.; Sturt, John, 1658-1730, engraver.	1684 (1684)	Wing F335B; ESTC R230997	434,176	626

and its freedom from sin And the ancient Ecclesiastical Writers give large and high commendations thereof Polycarp saith (n) Ep. ad Philip. p. 16. that he who hath charity is free from all sin which hath some affinity with those words of the Apostle Rom. 13.8 he that loveth another hath fulfilled the Law And Origen speaks of the Christian man as being pure from sin (o) Cont. Cels l. 3. p. 148 149. and having left off to sin which is of like nature with not continuing any longer therein Rom. 6.2 as having departed from a vicious wicked and impure life And the Christian life is a perfect life as it greatly outdoth the practice of evil men and is in it self excellent and contains a resemblance of God Mat. 5 44-48 and as it is guided by the fear of God and directed to the eschewing evil and doing what is just and good Job 1.1 Psal 37.37 11. And every true Christian doth and must perform all the necessary conditions in the Gospel-Covenant for acceptance with God and obtaining Salvation or otherwise he can never be saved And the practice of Faith and true holiness the subduing lusts and evil affections and being renewed after God is included in these conditions But the terms and conditions of the Gospel-Covenant are not the same thing but must be differently considered from the rules of duty which the Gospel injoins For a constant practice of every duty towards God and man and a careful performance of every moral precept without any transgression thereof is injoined more highly under the Gospel than ever it was before But the conditions of the Gospel-Covenant are upon more mild and gentle terms of grace than were contained under the foregoing Dispensations for they admit and approve true uprightness and sincerity of obedience though there may some failings and imperfections attend it and they allow of repentance and promise mercy and pardon to those offenders who are truly penitent So that the rules of duty considered in their large extent do so far shew what we are obliged to perform that whensoever we fail in the least part thereof we thereupon need the benefit of the pardoning mercy of God and the atonement and expiation of our Saviour to which when we discern our failing in the exercise of self-reflexion we are to apply our selves according to the directions of the Gospel with a pious and penitent behaviour But the great and necessary conditions of the Gospel and the Covenant of grace contain those things which are of such indispensable necessity to be performed and observed by us that the mercy of God will never accept of those who neglect them nor will it pardon the omission thereof Such conditions under the Gospel Revelation are the embracing the Christian Faith the diligent exercise of a holy life and under the sense of our failings an humble address to God through Christ for his mercy pardon and supplies of further grace with penitential exercises 12. And in the best of men who exercise themselves diligently in piety and the discharge of a good conscience there may be many things wherein they fail and come short of the exact performance of what they ought to do And therefore our Saviour taught his Disciples ordinarily to pray forgive us our Trespasses and appointed that petition to be part of that prayer which he directed and commanded them to use Upon which words of the Lords Prayer (p) Cyp. de Orat. Dom. S. Cyprian observes how every one is hereby taught and instructed that he offends every day when he is commanded daily to pray for the pardon of his sins And he observes also how constant a need every person hath of seeking for and obtaining pardon for his failings in that upon this account our Lord urgeth the necessity of our constant care of forgiving others because otherwise our heavenly Father will not forgive us and therefore he gives this as a rule to be always practised whensoever we pray Mark 11.25 When ye stand praying forgive if ye have ought against any that your Father also which is in Heaven may forgive you your trespasses And from the consideration of the Lords Prayer (q) Aug. Ep. 89. S. Austin well observes that if the Christian state here were so far perfect as to be free from all offences our Saviour would never have taught such a Prayer to his Church to be constantly used by his Disciples when they pray and even by the Apostles themselves And in the Institution of the Lords Supper our Saviour tendred the Sacrifice of his Body and Blood to be received by Christians in the continued administration of that Ordinance for the remission of sins All which doth manifest that Christian life and Gospel-obedience which is accepted upon the conditions of the Covenant of grace is not an absolute sinless obedience though it doth include a real purity of heart and integrity of conversation And the pious Christian is sometimes called perfect with respect to that excellency to which he hath attained Phil. 3.15 16. and yet at the said time in a different sense is not acknowledged to be perfect Phil. 3.12 by reason of the defects which are still remaining Hence the Holy Scriptures oft speak to this purpose that in many things we offend all and that there is no man that lives and sins not and that if we say we have no sin we deceive our selves and the truth is not in us 13. And we further assert and acknowledge that in the Christian state there is also a perfection by way of comparison in them who have arrived to greater degrees and a more eminent height and growth in Christian graces and vertues than others and this excellent state is very desirable and ought to be diligently endeavoured by every pious man But no such persons either will or can truly say that henceforth they have no need of any interest in the mercy of God for the forgiving their failings or in the benefits of Christ's Merits and Sacrifice for obtaining thereby pardon and remission But (r) Ep. ad Eph. p. 18. Philad p. 41. Ed. Vos Ignatius when ready to lay down his life by Martyrdom acknowledged his imperfection And (Å¿) Paed. l. 1. c. 2. Clemens Alexandrinus describes the Christian that his failings must be as little as is possible and he must strive against all disorders of affections and disown all customs of sin and it is an excellent thing to be free from all fault but this is the state of God The imperfections of such men as Asa and Job and others who are called perfect are noted in the Scripture And that same Epistle in which S. John speaks so much of him that is born of God that he sins not as having rejected a vicious and evil life and being set free from the service thereof he also declares against him who saith he hath no sin 1 Joh. 1.8 directs confession of sin v. 9. and speaking concerning