Selected quad for the lemma: heaven_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
heaven_n	lord_n	name_n	prophesy_v	2,061	5	11.1866	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A59757	S. Pauls confession of faith, or, A brief account of his religion in a sermon preach'd at St. Warbroughs Church in Dublin, March 22, 1684/5 / by William Lord Bishop of Kilmore and Ardagh.	Sheridan, William, 1636-1711.	1685 (1685)	Wing S3231; ESTC R32664	19,031	32

ingenuous Confession of his Faith before an Heathen we may learn our own Duty Matt. 10.32 whosoever will confess me before men him will I confess before my Father which is in Heaven Rom. 10.10 and with the heart man believeth unto righteousness and with the mouth confession is made unto Salvation Isaiah prophesied of the times of the Gospel Ch. 44.5 that one should say I am the Lords and another should be called by the name of Jacob and another should subscribe with his hand and name himself by the name of Israel and 't is required Phil. 2.10 that not only every knee should bow but also that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of the Father Psal 137. The want of the means of this public confession made the Jews lament when they sate by the Rivers of Babylon and made Jeremy cry out Lament 1.4 that the ways of Zion did lament because no man cometh to the public Assemblies And the Thief on the Cross for confessing Christ was that day with him in Paradise for the inward frame of the heart is discovered by outward devotion and he that does not confess his Religion when he is put to it either has none at all or does not much care for it God says not I have reserved 7000 that have not believed in Baal but whose knees have not bowed to Baal which shews that he expects a public owning of him as well as a secret believing in him and the Devil himself did not tempt Christ to believe in him but to fall down and worship him and the three Children chose to be burned rather than give adoration to Nebuchadnezzar's golden Image I know Naamans example when I bow my self before the Idol Rimmon is much objected against what I have said 2 King 5. but for answer to this consider first that Naaman was then but a Novice in Religion and had not yet learned to deny himself for God 2. Naaman speaks not of any religious Worship to be performed to Rimmon but of a civil Office to be done to his Prince 3. Because Naaman knew that this action could not but be scandalous to others and polluted with the circumstance of time and place he confessed it was a sin and desires Gods mercy Lastly We do not find that Naaman ever did it but only feeling or fearing his own infirmity he desires the Prophets Prayers either that he might not fall or if he did that God would forgive him to which the Prophet assents and that only in such a form of speech as is an usual valediction as Go in peace or Gods peace be with you There are two main impediments of this public Consession of Christ Shame and Fear They that are ashamed are such as love the Praise of Men more then the Praise of God When Vlysses taught young Neoptolomy the Art of Lying the Youth being of an ingenuous nature ask'd him how it was possible to tell a Lye without blushing he answered him that a man ought never to be ashamed of any thing whereby Profit may be had And if we seriously consider it 't is strange that any Christian should be ashamed of his Profession which brings him so great Gain as an eternal weight of Glory We have a common proverb that he that is ashamed of his Trade shall never thrive by it and 't is altogether as true that he shall never save his Soul by Religion who is ashamed to profess it 'T is confess'd the time was when Nicodemus came by night to Jesus and when Joseph of Arimathea was a secret Disciple but it was when they were punies in Christianity but when Religion was firmly rooted in them they joyned openly in the honourable Interment of our Saviour Rom. 1.16 and thus St. Paul confest he was not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ The second impediment is Fear This caused Moses to stagger at the Commands of God this made Elisha fly from the womanish threats of Jezabel and St. Peter deny his Master Fear is so bad a Counsellor in the Service of God Judg. 7.3 that Gideon when he was ready to joyn battel with the Enemy proclaimed that whosoever was fearful should depart and so timorous Christians are not fit to fight the Lord's Battels therefore 't is said the fearful Rev. 21.8 and the unbelievers and the abominable shall have their portion in the Lake that burns with Fire and Brimstone I never heard nor read of a more resolute Band of Soldiers then those seditious Followers of Cataline Salust Bello Catalini their Souls flitted from their Bodies before they moved from their stations and the place they fought on when alive they covered with their Bodies when dead and the Historian tells you the reason was because they carried their * Diviti●● Decus Gloriam preterea libertatem atque Patrium in dextris vestris port●re Riches their Glory their Life their Liberty their Country and all their hopes in their right hand Change but the Persons and the Story is ours for in our Christian Warfare we bear a Crown of Glory Eternal Life Spiritual Liberty and our Heavenly Country in our right hand and to him only that overcomes shall all this be given for be thou faithful to the end and I will give thee the Crown of Life Rev. 2.10 Yet neither St. Paul's practice nor my Discourse does encourage any to run into unnecessary dangers for he that loves danger shall perish in it To precipitate a mans self into needless peril is senseless folly and to do it out of ostentation is meer vanity But when a Man's Profession obliges him to give Evidence for the Truth to be then neither ashamed of Christ nor of his Gospel nor fearful to suffer for it is necessary true Christian Courage The ancient Law of governing the Roman Army was reduced to two heads nec sequi nec fugere not too ventersomly to make a rash pursuit without need and when there was occasion nor by too timorously running away to betray the Cause to the common Enemy and thus a Christian ought not to seek danger when he is free nor to shun it when it is offered Behold says Christ I send you forth as Lambs in the midst of Wolves be ye therefore wise as Serpents and innocent as Doves There is a time when the Advice of Gellius takes place even in Religion that when the City labours with Sedition 't is not the part of a good Citizen to profess himself a Newter but to join with the party that has right on its side and so help to suppress the other and again there is a time when the Example of Leontius Bishop of Antioch is more imitable that is to give offence to neither party for Wisdom is justified of her Children And thus much of the first thing viz. the Concession in these words but this I confess Before I speak of the Confession