Selected quad for the lemma: honour_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
honour_n	abundant_a	body_n	member_n	1,662	5	10.0159	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A07203	Contentment in Gods gifts or some sermon notes leading to equanimitie and contentation. By Henry Mason parson of S. Andrews Vndershaft London	Mason, Henry, 1573?-1647.	1630 (1630)	STC 17604; ESTC S102845	26,914	126

upon the Creator who hath made him to be such And so and by the same reason I may say If any man contemne a plaine Christian because he is not quick-witted or an honest meaning man because he is not hot-spirited or a countrey bred man because he is not civilized or a Citizen because he is not of a Gentle race or an Artificer because hee is not in place of command or a Day-labourer because he is not free of the Citie c. every such scorner of his poore neighbour reproacheth God himself whose good pleasure it is as wel that some should bee in meane places as that other should have higher and all for the good of the Church and the honour of the Almighty And from hence it is that Iob saith that hee despised not the cause of his man-servant nor of his maid-servant whē they contended with him Iob 31.13 And ver 15. he giveth a reason for it For saith he did not hee that made me in the wombe make him and did not one fashion us in the wombe And in like sort should wee say and doe We may despise no mans place or calling as long as it is of Gods making But if wee have to deale with a servant or the poorest boy about the streets we must acknowledge him not only a creature whom God hath endued with an immortallsoule nor onely respect him as a Christiā whō God hath appointed to be heire of eternal life but also as a mēber of the cōmon-wealth or church who in his place may doe service for the common good And consequently we may deny no man the right that belongeth to such a place and calling And this againe is our dutie but where is our practise answerable therunto Surely Ahab thought Naboth unworthy of so good a vine-yard as might bee fit to make a Kings gardon And therefore hee and his Queene turned Naboth out of his inheritance nay took him away out of the world that they might enioy his possessions And so now a daies there be men that thinke lands and inheritances to be too good for an Hospitall and Lordships and Honors not to be sit for a cōpany of Students what say they should Almesmen doe with such dignities as may better beseeme a Lord or a Gentleman And so they do at least they would turne them out of their inheritances to feed upon the bare Common Againe the Prophets cōplaine of the Iudges of their time that they did not judge no● not the cause of the fatherlesse and the widow And so among 〈◊〉 if a poore neighbour should have a controversie with a rich merchant or a shop-keeper with an Alderman or a common subject with a Lord or a Privie Counsellor yee would easily ghesse which way the ballāce would be swayed It is seldome seen but that the greatnes of the person weigheth down the goodnes of the cause and the poore man is not permitted to enjoy the benefit of the Law the libertie of the Land where he liveth Againe Nathan telleth David in a parabolicall resemblance that a Rich man tooke away the only lambe which a poore man had that therwith he might give entertainement to his friend But in our daies wee finde it in reall performance that Great men doe not seldome take away the poore mans right to defraie their owne charges Nay our age proceedeth yet further in this impietie It may be seene in moe Parishes then one that Great men thinke their poore neighbours unworthy of any seate in the Church and thrust them out of their fathers house that thēselves may bee placed alone in the chiefest roomes a parallell example whereto I have not yet found either in Scriptures or in humane stories and I pray God it may spread no further thē to the distempered people of this corrupt age But howsoever our rule is If God have given us superioritie or eminēcie above others we may enioy it with Gods good will and liking but so as that wee forget not that our poorest neighbours are men are Christians are mēbers of the civil Body and therefore wee cannot without wronging of men and dishonoring of God denie them those priviledges which belong to such places And thus much for the first Note and the two points of doctrine arising from it Secondly Note 2 I note that though Peter and Iohn had their severall gifts and each not a little differing from other yet they quarrelled not one the other nor did one seeke to out-vie and obscure his fellow but like friends with one heart and minde they went out together they ranne both together and both of them came to the sepulchre and looked in and beheld what had happened and having done what they came for they departed like loving friēds to their own home By all which it appeareth that though they had differing gifts yet they had agreeing mindes and did ioyne together in seeking after Christ And hence the Observation is that Good Christians and true disciples of Christ must not breake the unity of the Spirit Obs 3 for any diuersitie of gifts Or more briefely thus Differēce of gifts should not breed in us distraction of minds The proofes that I will bring for further confirmation of this point are of two sorts 〈◊〉 such as conclude the point in the generall extent and 2 such as prove it by severall and particular instances I. Proofe 1 And first for generall proofes wee have a plaine place in the Apostle 1 Cor. 12.24 25. The words are God hath tempered the body together having given more abundant honour to that part which lacked that there should be us schisme in the body But that the members should have the same care one for another In these words we may note three things for our purpose 1 Gods workmanship in framing the naturall body he hath tempered it together saith the Apostle hee meaneth that as God hath made severall parts each of which hath its different office so hee hath fitted and if I may so speake hath sodered thē together in such sort as every one doth serve for the use and benefit of another 2 Gods wisdome in framing this temper that is he hath so tempered it that hee hath given the more abundant honour to that part which lacked .i. whereas some parts were of meaner use or lesse comely feature hee hath withall graced them with some other priviledge that may procure them as much honour For example If any part be noysome and unseemely to looke on he hath set that in such a corner as where it may bee hid and removed from the senses And if any part bee made to serve for a base or meane office he hath made it to bee of so much the more necessary use so that a man may better spare an eye or an hand or an eare thē the smallest sinke-hole by which the filth of the body is purged Thus God shewed great wisdome in tempering the whole body with some proportionable