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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
kingdom_n	cast_v	divide_v	satan_n	2,466	5	9.6262	5	false

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A62629	Sermons preach'd upon several occasions By John Tillotson, D.D. Dean of Canterbury, preacher to the Honourable Society of Lincolns-Inn, and one of His Majesties chaplains in ordinary. The second volume.	Tillotson, John, 1630-1694.	1678 (1678)	Wing T1260BA; ESTC R222222	128,450	338

them the unreasonableness of this calumny and that upon these two considerations 1 st That it was very unlikely that the Devil should lend him this power to use it against himself Every kingdom divided against it self is brought to desolation and every city or house divided against it self shall not stand And if Satan cast out Satan he is divided against himself how shall then his kingdom stand 2 dly Our Saviour tells them they might with as much reason attribute all miracles to the Devil There were those among themselves who cast out Devils in the name of the God of Abraham Isaac and Jacob as Origen and Tertullian and Justin Martyr tell us Of these our Saviour speaks and asks the Pharisees by what power they cast them out But they aknowledged that these did it by the power of God and there was no cause but their malice why they should not have acknowledged that he did it likewise by the same power ver 27 If I by Beelzebub cast out Devils by whom do your children cast them out therefore they shall be your judges That is this may be sufficient to convince you malice of to me But if I cast out Devils by the Spirit of God then the kingdom of God is come unto you That is the Messias is come Because he wrought these and other miracles to prove that he was the Messias And then it follows Wherefore I say unto you all manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men So that the Pharisees are the persons charged with this sin or blasphemy against the Holy Ghost And their blasphemy was plainly this that when he cast out Devils by the Spirit of God they said he did it by the power of the Devil they maliciously ascribed these works of the Holy Ghost to the Devil And that this is the ground why our Saviour chargeth them with this sin against the Holy Ghost is yet more plain from St. Mark Mark 3.28 29 30 Verily I say unto you all sins shall be forgiven unto the sons of men and blasphemies wherewith soever they shall blaspheme but he that blasphemeth against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness but is in danger of eternal damnation because they said he hath an unclean Spirit That is because the Pharisees charged him to be a Magician and to have a familiar Spirit by whose assistance he did those works when in truth he did them by the Spirit of God therefore our Saviour declares them guilty of this sin of blaspheming the Holy Ghost which should never be forgiven So that the nature of this sin did consist in a most malicious opposition to the utmost evidence that could be given to the truth of any Religion Our blessed Saviour to shew that he was sent by God and came from him wrought miracles such as did plainly evidence a divine power and presence accompanying of him For in St. Luke he is said to do them by the finger of God Luke 11.20 By the finger of God that is to do such things as were an undeniable evidence of the divine power and presence And this is the utmost testimony that God ever gave to any person that was sent by him And the Pharisees were eye-witnesses of those miracles which our Saviour wrought so that they could not deny them Yet such was their opposition to him and his doctrine that though they saw these things done by him and could not deny the reality of them yet rather than they would own him to be the Messias and his Doctrine to come from God they most maliciously and unreasonably ascribed them to the power of the Devil And this was the blasphemy which they were guilty of against the Holy Ghost And herein lay the greatness of their sin in resisting the evidence of those miracles which were so plainly wrought by the Holy Ghost and which though themselves saw yet they maliciously imputed them to the Devil rather than they would be convinced by them And this is so very plain that hardly any man that considers our Saviours discourse upon this occasion can otherwise determine the nature of this sin especially if he do but attend to those remarkable words which I cited before Mark 3.29 but he that blasphemeth against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness but is in danger of eternal damnation because they said he hath an unclean spirit I come now to the III. Third thing I propounded namely in what sense this sin is here said to be peculiarly unpardonable For this our Saviour positively affirms to be in this different from all other sins that it is capable of no pardon I say unto you all manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men And to shew what he means by the not forgiving of it he tells us that eternal punishment shall follow it in the other World Whosoever speaketh a word against the son of man it shall be forgiven him but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost it shall never be forgiven him neither in this world nor in the world to come Which St. Mark expresseth more plainly that it shall bring those who are guilty of it to eternal damnation Mark 3.29 He that blasphemeth against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness but is liable to eternal damnation So that when our Saviour says it shall never be forgiven neither in this world nor in the world to come he does not intend to insinuate that some sins which are not forgiven in this world may be forgiven in the other but in these words he either alludes to the opinion of the Jews concerning the effect of the highest excommunication the sentence whereof they held not to be reversible neither in this world nor the other or else the reason of this expression may probably be to meet with a common and false opinion amongst the Jews which was that some sins which are not pardoned to men in this life may by sacrifices be expiated in the other and therefore he says it shall never be forgiven neither in this world nor the other And St. Mark more plainly that those who are guilty of it shall never have forgiveness but be liable to eternal damnation So that our Saviour's meaning seems plainly to be this that this sin is altogether incapable of forgiveness I know some have endeavoured to mollifie this matter but I think without sufficient reason Grotius understands the words comparatively that any sort of sin shall sooner be forgiven than this against the Holy Ghost and that our Saviour only intended to express the greatness and heinousness of this sin above others in which respect the pardon of it would be more difficult than of any other sin but yet that the case of such a person is not absolutely desperate But if our Saviour had intended to say that this sin was absolutely

to go on and fortifie their good resolutions to be more vigilant and watchful over themselves to strive against sin and to resist it with all their might And according to the success of their endeavours in this conflict the evidence of their good condition will every day clear up and become more manifest The more we grow in grace and the seldomer we fall into sin and the more even and constant our obedience to God is so much the greater and fuller satisfaction we shall have of our good estate towards God For the path of the just is as the shining light which shines more and more unto the perfect day And the work of righteousness shall be peace and the effect of righteousness quietness and assurance for ever I shall only make two or three Inferences from what hath been discoursed upon this Argument and so conclude 1. From hence we learn the great danger of sins of Omission as well as Commission Whosoever doth not righteousness is not of God The mere neglect of any of the great duties of Religion of piety towards God and of kindness and charity to men though we be free from the commission of great sins is enough to cast us out of the favour of God and to shut us for ever out of his kingdom I was hungry and ye gave me no meat thirsty and ye gave me no drink sick and in prison and ye visited me not therefore depart ye cursed 2. It is evident from what hath been said That nothing can be vainer than for men to live in any course of sin and impiety and yet to pretend to be the Children of God and to hope for eternal life The Children of God will do the works of God and whoever hopes to enjoy him hereafter will endeavour to be like him here Every man that hath this hope in Him purifies himself even as He is pure 3. You see what is the great mark and character of a mans good or bad condition whosoever doth righteousness is of God and whosoever doth not righteousness is not of God Here is a plain and sensible evidence by which every man that will deal honestly with h●mself may certainly know his own condition and then according as he finds it to be may take comfort in it or make haste out of it And we need not ascend into heaven nor go down into the deep to search out the secret counsels and decrees of God there needs no anxious enquiry whether we be of the number of Gods elect If we daily mortifie our lusts and grow in goodness and take care to add to our faith and knowledg temperance and patience and charity and all other Christian graces and vertues we certainly take the best course in the world to make our calling and election sure And without this it is impossible that we should have any comfortable and well grounded assurance of our good condition This one mark of doing righteousness is that into which all other signs and characters which are in Scripture given of a good man are finally resolved And this answers all those various phrases which some men would make to be so many several and distinct marks of a child of God As whether we have the true knowledg of God and divine illumination for hereby we know that we know him if we keep his commandments Whether we sincerely love God for this is the love of God that we keep his commandments And whether God loves us for the righteous Lord loveth righteousness and his countenance will behold the upright Whether we be regenerate and born of God for whosoever is born of God sinneth not Whether we have the Spirit of God witnessing with our Spirits that we are the children of God for as many as have the Spirit of God are led by the Spirit and by the Spirit do mortifie the deeds of the flesh Whether we belong to Christ and have an interest in him or not for they that are Christs have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts thereof In a word Whether the promise of heaven and eternal life belong to us for without holiness no man shall see the Lord but if we have our fruit unto holiness the end will be everlasting life So that you see at last the Scripture brings all to this one mark viz. holiness and obedience to the Laws of God or a vicious and wicked life In this the children of God are manifest and the children of the Devil Whosoever doth not righteousness is not of God Let us then deal impartially with our selves and bring our lives and actions to this tryal and never be at rest till the matter be brought to some issue and we have made a deliberate judgment of our condition whether we be the children of God or not And if upon a full and fair examination our consciences give us this testimony that by the grace of God we have denyed ungodliness and worldly lusts and have lived soberly and righteously and godly in this present world we may take joy and comfort in it for if our heart condemn us not then have we confidence towards God But if upon the search and tryal of our ways our case appear clearly to be otherwise or if we have just cause to doubt of it let us not venture to continue one moment longer in so uncertain and dangerous a condition And if we desire to know the way of Peace the Scripture hath set it plainly before us Wash ye make ye clean put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes cease to do evil learn to do well Come now and let us reason together saith the Lord though your sins be as scarlet they shall be white as snow Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts and let him return unto the Lord and he will have mercy upon him and to our God for he will abundantly pardon Though our case be very bad yet it is not desperate This is a faithful saying and worthy of all men to be embraced that Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners And he is still willing to save us if we be but willing to leave our sins and to serve him in holiness and righteousness the remaining part of our lives We may yet be turned from darkness to light and from the power of Satan unto God We who have ventured so long upon the brink of ruin may yet by the infinite mercies of God and by the power of his grace be rescu'd from the base and miserable slavery of the Devil and our lusts into the glorious liberty of the sons of God And thus I have endeavoured with all the plainness I could to represent every man to himself and to let him clearly see what his condition is towards God and how the case of his soul and of his eternal happiness stands And I do verily believe that what I have said in this matter is the truth of God

seek the Lord while he may be found call upon him while he is near Repent and turn your selves from all your transgressions so iniquity shall not he your ruin A SERMON Concerning the SIN Against the HOLY GHOST Matth XII 31 32. Wherefore I say unto you all manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men And whosoever speaketh a word against the son of man it shall be forgiven him But whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost it shall not be forgiven him neither in this world neither in the world to come THE occasion of these words of our blessed Saviour was the blasphemy of the Pharisees against that divine power by which he wrought his miracles and particularly did cast out Devils Which works of his though they were wrought by the Spirit of God yet they obstinately and maliciously imputed them to the power of the Devil Upon which our Saviour takes occasion to declare the danger of this sin which he calls blaspheming of the Holy Ghost and tells them that this was so great a sin above all others that it is in a peculiar manner unpardonable Wherefore I say unto you c. For the explaining of these words and the nature and unpardonableness of this sin we will enquire into these four things First What is the difference between speaking against the Son of Man and speaking against the Holy Ghost Secondly Wherein the Nature of this sin or blasphemy against the Holy Ghost doth consist Thirdly In what sense this sin is here said to be peculiarly unpardonable And Fourthly Upon what account it is so 1. What is the difference between speaking against the son of man and speaking against the Holy Ghost The reason of this enquiry is because the Text plainly puts a great difference between them though it be not obvious to discern where it lies For our Saviour tells us that whosoever speaks a word against the son of man it shall be forgiven him but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost it shall never be forgiven him And yet this blasphemy of the Pharisees against the Holy Ghost was a speaking against the Son of man For to say that he cast out Devils by the power of the Devil though it was a blaspheming of the Holy Ghost by whose power he wrought these miracles yet it was likewise a blaspheming of Christ himself and was in effect to say that he was no true Prophet nor did come from God but was a Magician and Impostor For the removing of this difficulty I shall not need to say as some learned men have done That by the son of man is here to be understood any man and that our Saviour is not particularly designed by it That seems very hard when our Saviour is so frequently in the Gospel called the son of man And especially when St. Luke reciting these words does immediately before give him this very title to put the matter out of all doubt Luke 12.8 9 10 Also I say unto you whosoever shall confess me before men him shall the Son of man also confess before the Angels of God But he that denieth me before men shall be denied before the Angels of God Upon which it follows And whosoever shall speak a word against the son of man it shall be forgiven him So that in all reason the Son of man is the very same person that had this Title given him in the foregoing words viz. our blessed Saviour So that I take it for granted that by speaking against the son of man is here meant speaking against Christ And by speaking against him as it is opposed to speaking against the Holy Ghost is meant all those reproaches and contumelies which they cast upon our Saviours person without reflecting upon that divine power which he testified by his miracles As their reproaching him with the meanness of his birth Is not this the Carpenters son with the place of it as they supposed out of Galilee ariseth no Prophet Their reflecting upon his life saying that he was a wine-bibber and a glutton a friend of publicans and sinners with many other calumnies which they maliciously cast upon him But by speaking against the Holy Ghost is meant their blaspheming and reproaching that divine power whereby he wrought his miracles which though it did at last likewise reflect upon our Saviours person yet it was an immediate reflection upon the Holy Ghost and a blaspheming of him and therefore it is called speaking against the Holy Ghost by way of distinction or opposition to the other calumnies which they used against our Saviour which were proper blasphemies and reproaches of his Person but not of the Holy Ghost also as this was This seems to me to be the true difference here intended by our Saviour between speaking against the Son of man and speaking against the Holy Ghost Let us in the II. Second place enquire wherein the Nature of this sin or blasphemy against the Holy Ghost doth consist And the true Nature of this sin though it be so plainly to be gathered from our Saviours description of it yet I know not how a great many learned men have made a hard shift to mistake it Some have made it to be final Impenitency because that is unpardonable But why that rather than any thing else that is bad should be called a blaspheming of the Holy Ghost it is hard to give a reason Others have placed the nature of it in a wilful and malicious opposition of the truth which though it be a great sin and included in the sin here spoken of or a concomitant of it yet is there great reason to believe that this is not all that is here meant by it Others would have it to consist in a malicious opposition of the Truth when men know and are convinced that it is the Truth which is a great sin indeed if ever any man were guilty of it but it is a great Question whether humane nature be capable of it And to mention no more others think it to consist in a renouncing of the truth for fear of suffering which made Francis Spira to think that he had committed this sin But with all due respect to the judgment of others I cannot think that any of these is the sin our Saviour here describes As I shall endeavour plainly to shew by considering the occasion of our Saviours mentioning of it the persons upon whom our Saviour chargeth this sin and upon what account he chargeth them with it At the 22 ver of this Chapter there was brought to our Saviour one possessed with a Devil blind and dumb and he healed him Upon this the people were amazed and said is not this the son of David that is the Messias The Pharisees hearing this with great bitterness and contempt said This fellow doth not cast out Devils but by Beelzebub the Prince of Devils Upon on this our Saviour represents to