Selected quad for the lemma: knowledge_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
knowledge_n	ghost_n	sin_n	sin_v	2,468	5	10.3762	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A15527	Saints by calling: or Called to be saints A godly treatise of our holy calling to Christ, by the gospell. With the seuerall gifts proper vnto the called: and their counterfeits in the hypocrites which are not partakers of this effectuall calling. Written by Thomas Wilson, minister of Gods word, at S. Georges Church in Canterbury.	Wilson, Thomas, 1563-1622.	1620 (1620)	STC 25796; ESTC S103067	273,228	442

Christ can cleanse and make vs white as snow in Salmon How can any one great sinne hinder God from sauing any beleeuer when all his sinnes could not keepe him from reconciling him being an enemy to him Yea such as haue slaine the Lords Prophets and offered their Children and haue long both themselues liued in and by their authority maintained Idoll seruice as Manasses and Salomon yet haue found fauour vpon their beleeuing Yea he that by his sinne plunged the whole World with him into sinne and death yet was accepted and pardoned because he beleeued the promise And for lying in sinne you haue not abode in them longer then Dauid or Salomon or if ye haue yet as no sinnes so no space of time doth limit God God may forgiue what hee will and when he will to whom hee will The theese that had lyen in his sinnes euen till his last breath in a manner yet finding grace to beleeue found also the grace of pardon and was taken vp into Paradise there to be with Christ for euer That infinite mercy that can ouercome the multitude and vglinesse of our sinnes can also preuaile against our continuance in sinnes Aquila I haue so gone against the light of my knowledge in the course of my life as I am often in doubt lest I haue sinned that vnpardonable sinne yea I haue had feareful thoughts against that gracious diuine maiesty whereby I haue beene moued to feare lest hee had giuen me ouervtterly Apollos In all soule temptations lightly this of sinning against the holy Ghost is one as an ague goeth with all bodily diseases which commeth through ignorance of this sinne or the strong subtilty of Satan bewitching our mindes with feare of this sinne which is not any one nor many actions against knowledge but it is a sinne committed in speech being contumelious and reprochfull against Christ his person offices benefits doctrine and workes or against all of these yet not euery such speech is this sinne vnlesse it proceede of despight and malice of heart against the truth of Christ once knowne by the enlightening of the Spirit Also this sin is accompanied with an vniuersall and totall Apostacy from truth and generall pollution in maners quite contrary to the worke of the sanctifying Spirit wrought in them whereupon it is called the blasphemy of the Spirit Hee that dreads this sinne neuer did it Secondly he that truly greeues for any sinne neuer did this sinne Thirdly he that can pray for forgiuenesse of sinne if it be but with vnfained desire to be in Gods fauour he is free from this sinne Fourthly he that can speake honorably of Christ and can abide nay like the honourable mention of him and his truth by others neuer did this sinne Fifthly hee that hath any good affection to the Ministers or other members of Christ hath no part in this finne Lastly not he that feares lest hee be giuen ouer but knowes certainly that he is indeed giuen ouer to it is within the compasse of this sinne he that feares lest hee be in it is not in it for whosoeuer is in it knowes he is so this is most certain for he is damned of his owne conscience Aquila But when I am brought to see that all my sinnes are such as may be forgiuen me then I am troubled with this that I haue no faith My heart is dull and dead full of vnbeleefe and so all that can be saide is nothing to my comfort I feele no more then a stone or blocke except it be great feare sometimes and trembling of heart with excessiue dolour and heauinesse wherewith I am euen ouerwhelmed Apollos Faith is not feeling but apprehension feeling followes as a fruit of faith which is in assent not in sence What feeling had Christ when he cried out My God my God why hast thou forsaken me and my soule is heauy to death Mat. 26. and 27. 46. In your heauinesse and sorrow you are conformed to your head and other his members to Hezekiah mourning as a Doue and chattering as a Crane Esay 38. 14 To Dauid complaining of the disquietnesse of his heart Psal. 42. and confessing that his teares was the water that washed his Couch Psal. 6. 6. To Iob whose greefe was like heauy sand and pressed downe his heart to the graue Then as wheate may be hid in chaffe so faith is often buried vnder the heape of our corruptions and discomforts Say not therefore ye haue no faith because your heart is dull and dead They of whom Christ saide that their hearts were slow to beleeue heauy and dull and foolish hearts yet did beleeue Luke 24. 25. And howsoeuer you thinke all to be full of vnbeleefe it commeth in you from hence because 〈◊〉 beleeue not now so strongly and comfortably as you were wont to doe and feele those motions of incredulity and distrust which you were not wont to feele And howsoeuer it goeth with you now as with a man in a great sicknesse that hath lost his tast and cannot iudge of meates yet you shall hereafter when health is restored say you were deceiued Finallie if it were some other besides your selfe that saide they had no faith I might be sooner brought to beleeue them And would giue them this counsell that though as yet they beleeue not yet not to despaire or cast off hope for they may beleeue hereafter so they carefully vse the meanes with waiting vpon God who calleth at all houres It is darknes in the night but at due time the Sunne ariseth so after darknesse of vnbeleefe couering the firmament of the heart there wil arise the Sun shine of liuely faith to all Gods Elect in the meane time to feele vnbeleefe with a mislike of it and with a desire of faith in Christ it is a good beginning as we haue heard hereof in the degrees of faith Aquila Sir you haue now well satisfied me in these obiections and in this whole discourse about faith I trust hereafter to heare you speake of the fruits of faith and namely to lay forth distinctly and cleerely our vnion with Christ by meanes of our faith and our communion with his righteousnesse and Spirit for iustification and sanctification which being matters of great importance and our allowance of time being already more then spent wee are to expect some new occasion for the further dealing in these things Apollos Ye say well in the meane time I thanke you for your good company and wish you much good by this conference The sixth Dialogue Of Vnion with Christ. The first maine fruite of Faith Apollos YEa Neighbour Aquila are you here already You got the start of me this time I perceiue your quality I may be your Physicion for I know your pulse If once you begin a matter ye loue to see the end of it you had neede to take in hand good things and with good aduisement seeing you are so constant in prosecuting enterprises

them causing them though they be absent yet after a sort to be extant and present And also it is a demonstration or euidence of things not seene because to the eye of faith as things absent are present so things 〈◊〉 become as if they were visible the vnderstanding enlightened by faith seeing those things which yet cannot be seen because they are 〈◊〉 Now how should this be truly spoken of faith were it not a certaine and firme comprehension of things Which further appeareth in this that assurance is attributed to faith where it is written Draw neere in assurance of faith Heb 10. 22. And of Abraham Rom. 4. 20. It is saide He was assured by faith of the promise made him Where it is to be obserued that doubting is an effect of vnbeliefe is set against assurance the effect of faith Hee doubted not through vnbeliefe but being strong in faith he was assured fully that the promiser was able to doe it Rom. 4. 20. 21. For as vpon the holding or receiuing a thing into the hand groweth an assurance of hauing that thing and therefore we say it is in his hands hee is sure of it or he is not sure of it for it is not yet in his hands so vpon our receiuing and holding Christ by the hand of faith followes an assurance that he is ours and that by him God is become our mercifull Father and hath forgiuen vs our sinnes and will saue vs euerlastingly from whence commeth a boldnesse and confidence that as Children to their Parents so we can confidently come to God through Christ beleeued on By whom we haue boldnesse and entrance with confidence by faith in him Ephe. 3. 12. Where note these things how they hang together 1. Faith 2. Thereupon assurance 3. Therevpon confidence and also boldnesse The faithfull hauing such a high Priest Mediator as is higher then the heauens which can doe all in all with his Father they are more then assured of reconcilement fauour for they boldly come to the throne of Grace with trust and confidence to find helpe in the time of neede Further if we cannot be certaine by the certainty of faith of the promise concerning saluation then how could we be saide by faith to haue peace with God What peace and quietnesse can there be when there lacketh certainty and how could it be truly written that by faith we stand in grace for standing notes stedfast firmenesse Finally the word of promise being more firme then heauen and earth and the mercies truth and power of the promiser being infinite and vnchangeable what should hinder but that the beleeuer may assure himselfe to haue the thing promised And how then are they too blame which teach the doctrine of doubting vnlesse we haue speciall reuelation from Heauen That which they say that in respect of our selues being variable wee may alwayes and worthily doubt and also through the great-nesse of our sinnes it is nothing for our faith resteth not vpon our owne strength but vpon Gods truth might and mercies which doe farre exceed our sinnes The greatnesse whereof in the true beleeuer doth make his truth and mercies so much the more renowned and illustrious Rom. 3. 4 5. Therefore let the faithfull striue against motions of doubting yeeld not but grew more and more assured and the more strong ye are in faith the lesse ye shall doubt which euer commeth of the weakenesse of faith as I haue saide Touching the other thing that faith is not onely a certaine but a particular receiuing of Christ me thinks that should not be doubted of that this is of the nature of faith to appropriate the promise to the beleeuer as my hand taketh a gift bestowed to make it mine owne Apollos Friend Aquila spare this labour here to speake now any further of this matter for you will be put to it againe when ye are to speak of the 〈◊〉 of faith whereof now time and order requireth that yee say something Ye say well I will follow your counsell Vnto a liuely faith there belongs three things which ye may well call parts thereof 1. Knowledge 2. Assent 3. Application There must necessarily be a knowledge of things to be beleeued For how can wee beleeue him of whom we haue not heard Rom. 10. 14. Hence it is that faith is so often called knowledge Iohn 17. 3. This is eternall life to know c. and vnderstanding Col. 2. 2. Full assurance of vnderstanding to know the mysterie of Christ and wisedome Ephe. 1. 8. He hath abounded toward vs in all wisedome and vnderstanding There being no knowledge wisedome or vnderstanding like to this of faith whereby we know the Father and vnderstand the secrets of the Kingdome and are made wise to saluation Vnto this knowledge obserue that there be required these fiue things First some warrant of Scripture to direct our knowledge in things to be beleeued vnto saluation that our faith may rest on God And therefore secondly such places as be warrants grounds of our knowledge must be perceiued for meaning of words and matter therein contained or otherwise it cannot be called knowledge Thirdiy together with a faculty to discerne the truth so perceiued from the contrary errour which is called a spirituall 〈◊〉 1 Cor. 2. 14. Prayed for Philip. 1. 9. because it is by vertue of the holy Ghost enabling a Christian to iudge of doctrines which be of God and which not Fourthly to this must be ioyned an ability to encrease in this knowledge Colos. 1. 10. Encreasing in the knowledge of God Which 〈◊〉 by the right vse of our former knowledge as riches encrease by industry and memory by vse doth encrease and waxe stronger so doth our knowledge of heauenly things Therefore let Gods children put all their knowledge to vse according to the nature of the thing knowne and their owne occasions The last and fift thing is a power to instruct others as namely those vnder their charge as children seruants that which they know themselues This was in beleeuing Abraham Gen. 18. It must be in Abrahams children This which I haue spoken of knowledge shutteth out the implicit blinde faith of the Papists amongst whom one may hold the place of a faithfull man and yet know nothing more then to rehearse the Creede the Lords Prayer and ten Commandements or to beleeue as the Church beleeueth though they know not what that is The other thing required in faith it is assent that the minde agree to the thing knowne to hold it for a truth and be so certainely perswaded thereof as hee will iudge the contrary false whensoeuer hee meeteth with it and be ready to endure anything rather then to denie such truth Such an assent was in Thomas when he saw and felt Christs hands and side and in Peter being perswaded the thing which he taught concerning Christ to be no fables also in Paul who was so