Selected quad for the lemma: knowledge_n
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A02028
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The application of scripture. Or The maner how to vse the word to most edifying. By Thomas Granger preacher of the word at Botterwike in Holland, neere Boston, in Lincolnshire
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Granger, Thomas, b. 1578.
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1616
(1616)
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STC 12175; ESTC S114983
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17,143
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32
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bad and which bringeth Gods iudgements vpon our heads euen as the vnbeleefe and rebellion of the heathen against God and his people brought those heauie plagues of God vpon them which they 2 King 3. 13. 14. imputed to the Christians In 2 King 3. 13. 14. Iehoram and Iehosaphat and the king of Edom entred warres against the King of Moab for denying tribute to Iehoram King of Israel and when they had no water in their iourney by the space of seauen daies they come to enquire of the Lord by Elisha the Prophet who returned this answere to the idolatrous King of Israel What haue I to doe with thee get thee to the Prophets of thy Father and of thy Mother as if he should say thy heart is prophane and idolatrous and thou not louing to serue the Lord doest come to serue thine owne turne of the Lord and of me therefore as the Lord of hosts liueth in whose sight I stand if it were Luk. 3. 19. not that I regard the presence of Iehosaphat I would not haue looked towards thee nor seene thee Likewise in Luke 3. 19. Iohn the Baptist reprooued Herod for his incest and all his other euils And the constancie and boldnesse Act. 3. Act 7. 51. 52. Ier. 20. 3. 4. 5. of Peter in the particular reproofe of the Iewes Act. 3. of Steuen Act. 7. 51 52. of Ieremie Ier. 20. 3. 4. 5. yea of all the Prophets Apostles and faithfull Pastours since the beginning may and ought to encourage vs to the faithfull discharge of our duties herein For the further clearing of this point foure things are to be considered First the necessitie of particular application Secondly the person that is to make application in particular Thirdly to whom it is to be made Fourthly how it is to be receiued and taken Application in particular is necessary for diuers causes 1. For the sound conuersion of a sinner For men doe commonly receiue the word formally and historically being generally deliuered and taught euermore applying the same confusedly and vncertainely to all or one to another but none to himselfe for his owne particular instruction and reformation In this case the word is made like a certaine medicine which Dorneus some Physitions write of that it will cure all diseases but when a man comes to take the same he shall not finde himselfe cured of any disease by it but he is sure to be in great hazard of his life And such effect hath this generall drinking in or hearing of the word But on the contrary the particular plaister clapt on the particular soare doth worke the cure if it be possible to be done Now if in our naturall knowledge and with our bodily eyes we can see this let vs also in our spirituall knowledge consider that the diseased and wounded soule is in like manner cured The reading of the Scriptures with generall instructions admonitions reprehensions exhortations and consolations I grant are most necessary being the ground-worke and matter of the cure but what sound conuersion is wrought thereby in any man without discreete application let euery man that hath profited any thing in the schoole of Christ be iudge Put the case that some one of you had some hurt or wound or had some mortall disease reigning in you would you not gladly haue the helpe of the skilfullest Chirurgion or Physitian if you could would you not redeeme your liues with the expence of your goods What if when your Physitian came vnto you he should begin to reade some part of Galen Hypocrates or other Physicke bookes and to make a long discourse of the foure Elements with their properties and qualities of the foure humours of the body and diseases incident to man with their remedies and cures and so hauing taken your money shall take his leaue of you saying that hee hopes you shall be as strong and lustie ere it be long as euer you were what would you thinke or say of such a Physitian how well would you thinke your money bestowed If in case of your bodily health and welfare you would haue an honest plaine-dealing carefull and wise Physitian that had not onely a generall knowledge of bodies diseases and remedies but that could moreouer apply and bend all his skill to the particular and liuely discerning of your body of your disease and of the particular cure of the same yea and if you will discouer and shew vnto him the state of your body to your vtmost knowledge for his further helpe and direction how much more ought you to doe the same for your soules health but most men are like to children and foolish patients that had rather die then drinke a bitter potion or haue their soares launced and dressed Secondly particular application is necessary to bring vs to the knowledge of our selues for naturally we are so blinded with self-selfe-loue that howsoeuer we can discerne and iudge other men and sift them very neare and too neare yet when we come to looke into our selues to take view and to make examination of our owne knowledges consciences hearts affections we finde all well little or nothing amisse wee haue enough to say for excuse and defence of our selues if any obiection be made I speake not this to open the mouthes of prophane persons which being partly pharisaicall partly heathenish count none hypocrites but honest professours I meane such as feare God and doe loue his word receiuing the same with all willingnesse and ioyfulnesse and are louing and obedient to their Prince and to all that are in authority temporall and ecclesiasticall vnder him because they see some infirmities imperfections in them being quick-sighted enough to espie their least infirmities but lightly passe ouer all the vertues gifts and graces of Gods spirit in them like the bumble-Bee or Beetle that flieth ouer all the pleasant flowers and lighteth on the horse-dung where shee maketh her aboad but I speake of the blindnes of mans corrupt nature which raineth in the vnregenerate An euident and plaine example hereof there is in Mathew 23. 30. If we had beene in the daies of Mat. 23. 30. our fathers we would not haue beene partners with them in the blood of the Prophets These hypocriticall Pharises condemne their fathers for murthering the Prophets but they being blinded with their lusts and selfe-loue cannot discerne that they are worse then their fathers in that they goe about to murther the Sonne of God Hereupon it commeth to passe that the most prophane being of ciuill carriage and conformable to outward worship are the greatest iustifiers of themselues branding the best and most sanctified men with notes of hypocrisie aggrauating their infirmities mistaking their deedes misconstruing their sayings whereof the holy man Dauid complaineth they daily mistake my sayings whereby Iesus Christ was accused and condemned whereby Elias was accused by Ahab to be the troubler of Israel whereby Amos was accused by Amaziah to be a traitour
his loue of the godly and his commiseration and pittie of the hard hearted after the example of our Sauiour Christ Mark 3. 5. he looked angerly on the Mark 3. 5. Pharises that watched him to ensnare him but mourned also for the hardnesse of their hearts Of Ieremie Ier. 9. 1. Oh that my head were full of water and Ier. 9. 1. mine eyes a fountaine of teares that I might weepe day and night for the slaine of the daughter of my people Of Paul Rom 9. 3. He would redeeme the reiection of Rom. 9. 2. the Iewes with his owne damnation Otherwise hee that vseth the word deceitfully seruing his owne turne therewith against his brethren poysoneth the pure word of God with the corruption and contagion of his owne humours and affections and though he particularly apply the word yet he profiteth his hearers nothing at all neither to godlinesse nor mortification of sinne but rather fostereth cherisheth and incenseth the same in his flocke Salomon saith that the heart of man answereth to man as the face doth to the face in the water the naturall and vnsanctified heart of the hearer to the naturall and vnsanctified heart of the speaker the spirituall heart of the hearer to the spirituall heart of the speaker and the spirituall heart of the hearer hath a secret perceiuance in it to discerne betweene the word comming from a sanctified heart and the same comming from a corrupt heart Hence it is that among other reasons the same word taught by diuers men hath not the same effect in the hearer for the Lord is powerfull by his word sent by his owne messengers and the same word brought by them that are not sent becommeth fruitlesse In Act. 19. 14. 15. 16. The seauen sonnes of Scheua tooke vpon them to adiure euill spirits by the name of Iesus whom Paul Preached but the spirit answered Iesus I acknowledge and Paul I know but who are ye Here you see the euill spirit obeyed not those coniurers vsing the name of Iesus against them and why because they were not sent of God as Paul was but being without faith vse his name as it were to magicall inchantments Therefore this holy name vsed by Paul being faithfull and called was of force to binde and cast out diuels but being vsed by them being vnfaithfull and not called is as a dead letter or idle word yea it hath a contrary effect euen so wicked men in whom sinne reigneth and Satan worketh despise the word preached and vtterly hate the particular application thereof by them that are not sent for because they vse the word deceitfully and politikely for their owne aduantage it is not of force to expell Sathan and to conuert the sinner but hath rather a contrary effect namely to harden them more and to destroy the weake An example hereof we haue in the false Apostles of Corinth that preached the same doctrine of the Gospell that Paul did yet had it not the same effect but stirred vp strife enuying wrath contentioÌ„s back bitings swellings discord for though they were bigge in words shewing learning and eloquence yet had they not the power of the spirit in them therfore their doctrine was but a dead letter 1 Cor. 4. 19. 20. When I am come I will 1 Cor. 4. 19. 20. know not the speech of them that are puffed vp but the power for the kingdome of God is not in word but in power Obiection The true and faithfull shepheard that speaketh in plaine euidence of the spirit is contemned and derided of the wicked many times and his particular applications are not onely vnprofitable for their conuersion but they haue power like the mâ—n possessed with the euil spirit against him to wound him and to ouerthrow him Answ To this I briefely answere that howsoeuer prophane and irreligious persons may persecute the messengers of God with derision railing or otherwise for his plaine and round dealing with them yet notwithstanding their spirits and consciences conuince them of folly and obstinacie and telleth them that God spake to them by him and that he doth faithfully discharge his dutie and therefore they cannot but haue a feare and reuerence of his word and of his person though they striue with themselues to doe the contrary yea and outwardly doe the contrary Ioh. 7. 46. As for example in Ioh. 7. 46. The officers of the high Priests and Pharisees came to apprehend our Sauiour Christ but being come into his presence and hearing his words they had no power to take him though they had a desire to take him but returned Ioh 18. 6. this answere Neuer man spake as this man doth Ioh 18. 6. When the band of men with the officers of the high Priests came to take Iesus and he comming forth said vnto them I am he they went backward and fell to the ground for these wicked wretches being conuinced of their owne consciences were not able to abide his presence yet notwithstanding Act. 24. 26. the houre of darkenesse being come they laid hold on him In Act. 24. 26. wicked Felix trembled when he heard Paul disputing of iustice temperance and the iudgement to come yet notwithstanding he left him in bonds And the Pharisees when they were in Christs presece were touched with a sence and perseuerane of his godhead therefore he charged Mat. 12. 13. 32. them with sinne against the holy Ghost Math. 12. 32. To conclude this point then the person that is to make this particular application of the word with profit is the true messenger of God in whose person behauiour words and conuersation of life the spirit of sanctification appeareth which confirmeth the godly comforteth and strengthneth the weake conuerteth the sinner bridleth the obstinate and stoppeth the mouth of the aduersarie The third point is to whom this particular application is to be made Application of the word is to be made to all men liuing from the highest to the lowest The word of God is the rule of life and euery man is to be guided and gouerned in minde will heart affections words works by the same which he canot be without particular application thereof for his owne instruction in knowledge and reformation in manners for the word of God must not be made a vaine and idle storie no more then the Kings lawes are seeing that it is the booke of spirituall life for all men that looke to be saued euen as the Kings lawes are the booke of temporall and ciuill life for his subiects Therefore seeing that the life of the word stands in practise and the practise of the word is our life euen our spirituall and Christian life the application thereof is most necessary for all men whatsoeuer for instruction exhortation admonition reprehension consolation Obiection Who dare be so bold as to reproue great men they haue vnderstanding knowledge and learning therefore they neede not that any man should instruct exhort admonish or reprooue