Selected quad for the lemma: knowledge_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
knowledge_n	light_a	light_n	shine_v	1,650	5	9.4062	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A53726	The reason of faith, or, An answer unto that enquiry, wherefore we believe the scripture to be the word of God with the causes and nature of that faith wherewith we do so : wherein the grounds whereon the Holy Scripture is believed to be the word of God with faith divine and supernatural, are declared and vindicated / by John Owen ...	Owen, John, 1616-1683.	1677 (1677)	Wing O801; ESTC R38888	113,423	211

shall be all taught of God John 6. 45. That there is a divine and heavenly Excellency in the Scripture cannot be denied by any who on any Grounds or Motives whatever do own its divine Original For all the Works of God do set forth his Praise and it is impossible that any thing should proceed immediately from Him but that there will be express Characters of divine Excellencies upon it and as to the Communication of these Characters of Himself he hath magnified his Word above all his Name But these we cannot discern be they in themselves never so illustrious without the effectual Communication of the Light mentioned unto our Minds that is without divine supernatural Illumination Herein he who commanded Light to shine out of Darkness shineth into our Hearts the Knowledg of the Glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ 2 Cor. 4. 6. He irradiates the Mind with a spiritual Light whereby it is enabled to discern the Glory of spiritual Things This they cannot do in whom the God of this World hath blinded the eyes of them that believe not lest the Light of the glorious Gospel of Christ who is the Image of God should shine into them v. 6. Those who are under the Power of their natural Darkness and Blindness especially where there are in them also superadded Prejudices begotten and increased by the craft of Satan as there are in the whole World of Unbelievers cannot see nor discern that divine Excellency in the Scripture without an Apprehension whereof no man can believe it a right to be the Word of God Such Persons may assent unto the Truth of the Scripture and its divine Original upon external Arguments and rational Motives but believe it with Faith Divine and Supernatural on those Arguments and Motives only they cannot There are two things which hinder or disenable men from believing with Faith divine and supernatural when any Divine Revelation is objectively proposed unto them First The natural Blindness and Darkness of their Minds which are come upon all by the Fall and the Depravation of our Nature that ensued thereon Secondly The Prejudices that through the Crafts of Satan the God of this World their minds are possessed with by Traditions Educations and Converse in the World This last Obstruction or Hinderance may be so far removed by external Arguments and Motives of Credibility as that men may upon them attain unto a moral Perswasion concerning the Divine Original of the Scripture But these Arguments cannot remove or take away the native Blindness of the mind which is removed by their Renovation and Divine Illumination alone Wherefore none I think will positively affirm that we can believe the Scripture to be the Word of God in the way and manner which God requireth without a supernatural Work of the Holy Spirit upon our minds in the Illumination of them So David prays that God would open his eyes that he might behold wonderous things out of the Law Psal. 119. 10. That he would make him understand the way of his Precepts v. 27. That he would give him understanding and he should keep the Law v. 34. So the Lord Christ also opened the understandings of his Disciples that they might understand the Scriptures Luk. 24. 45. As he had affirmed before that it was given unto some to know the Mysteries of the Kingdom of God and not unto others Mat. 11. 25. chap. 13. 11. And neither are these things spoken in vain nor is the Grace intended in them needless The Communication of this Light unto us the Scripture calleth Revealing and Revelation Mat. 11. 25. Thou hast hid these things from the Wise and Prudent and hast revealed them unto Babes that is giving them to understand the Mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven when they were preached unto them And no man knoweth the Father but he to whom the Son revealeth him v. 27. So the Apostle prayeth for the Ephesians that God would give them the Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation in the Knowledg of Christ that the eyes of their understandings being enlightned they might know c. chap. 1. v. 17 18 19. It is true these Ephesians were already Believers or considered by the Apostle as such but if he judged it necessary to pray for them that they might have the Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation to enlighten the eyes of their Vnderstanding with respect unto further Degrees of Faith and Knowledge or as he speaks in another place that they might come unto the full Assurance of Vnderstanding to the acknowledgment of the Mystery of God Col. 2. 2. Then it is much more necessary to make them Believers who before were not so but utter strangers unto the Faith But as a Pretence hereof hath been abused as we shall see afterwards so the pleading of it is liable to be mistaken For some are ready to apprehend that this Retreat unto a Spirit of Revelation is but a pretence to discard all rational Arguments and to introduce Enthusiasm into their room Now although the Charge be grievous yet because it is groundless we must not forego what the Scripture plainly affirms and instructs us in thereby to avoid it Scripture Testimonies may be expounded according to the Analogy of Faith but denied or despised seem they never so contrary unto our Apprehension of things they must not be Some I confess seem to disregard both the objective Work of the Holy Spirit in this matter whereof we shall treat afterwards and his subjective Work also in our minds that all things may be reduced unto Sense and Reason But we must grant that a Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation to open the eyes of our Understanding is needful to enable us to believe the Scripture to be the Word of God in a due manner or forgo the Gospel And our Duty it is to pray continually for that Spirit if we intend to be established in the Faith thereof But yet we plead not for external immediate Revelations such as were granted unto the Prophets Apostles and other Penmen of the Scripture The Revelation we intend differs from them both in its especial Subject and formal Reason or Nature that is in the whole kind For 1. The subject matter of divine Prophetical Revelation by a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or immediate divine Inspiration are things not made known before Things they were hid in God or the Counsels of his Will and revealed unto the Apostles and Prophets by the Spirit Ephes. 2. 5 9 10. Whether they were Doctrines or Things they were at least as unto their present Circumstances made known from the Counsels of God by their Revelation But the Matter and Subject of the Revelation we treat of is nothing but what is already revealed It is an internal Revelation of that which is outwardly and antecedent unto it beyond the Bounds thereof it is not to be extended And if any pretend unto immediate Revelations of things not before revealed we have no concernment in

Divine and Supernatural as it is required of us in a way of Duty 2. How or by what means we may come to understand aright the Mind of God in the Scripture or the Revelations that are made unto us of his Mind and Will therein For by Illumination in general as it denotes an Effect wrought in the minds of Men I understand that Supernatural Knowledg that any Man hath or may have of the Mind and Will of God as revealed unto him by Supernatural Means for the Law of his Faith Life and Obedience And this so far as it is comprised in the first of these Inquiries is that whose Declaration we at present design reserving the latter unto a distinct Discourse by it self also Unto the former some things may be premised First Supernatural Revelation is the only Objective cause and means of Supernatural Illumination These things are commensurate There is a natural knowledg of Supernatural things and that both Theoretical and Practical Rom. 1. 19. Chap. 2. 14 15. And there may be a Supernatural knowledg of Natural things 1 Kings 4. 31 32 33 34. Exod. 31. 3 4 5 6. But unto this supernatural Illumination it is required both that its Object be things only supernaturally revealed or as supernaturally revealed 1 Cor. 2. 9 10. and that it be wrought in us by a supernatural Efficiency or the immediate Efficacy of the Spirit of God Ephes. 1. 17 18 19. 2 Cor. 4. 6. This David prays for Psal. 119. 18. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Reveal or Vncover mine eyes bring light and spiritual understanding into my mind that I may behold 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 with open face or as in the Syriack 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 with a revealed or uncovered face the vail being taken away 2 Cor. 3. 18. Wondrous things out of thy Law The Light he prayed for within did meerly respect the Doctrine of the Law without This the Apostle fully declares Heb. 1. 1 2. The various Supernatural Revelations that God hath made of himself his Mind and Will from first to last are the sole and adequate Object of Supernatural Illumination Secondly This Divine external Revelation was originally by various ways which we have elsewhere declared given unto sundry persons immediately partly for their own Instruction and Guidance in the Knowledg of God and his Will and partly by their Ministry to be communicated unto the Church So was it granted unto Enoch the seventh from Adam who thereon prophesied to the warning and instruction of others Jude 14 15. And to Noah who became thereby a Preacher of Righteousness 2 Pet. 2. 5. And to Abraham who thereon commanded his Children and Houshold to keep the way of the Lord Gen. 18. 19. And other instances of the like kind may be given Gen. 4. 26. Chap. 5. 28. And this course did God continue a long time even from the first promise to the giving of the Law before any Revelations were committed to writing for the space of 2460 years For so long a season did God enlighten the minds of Men by Supernatural external immediate occasional Revelations Sundry things may be observed of this divine dispensation As 1. That it did sufficiently evidence its self to be from God unto the minds of those unto whom it was granted and theirs also unto whom these Revelations were by them communicated For during this season Satan used his utmost endeavours to possess the minds of men with his delusions under the pretence of divine Supernatural Inspirations For hereunto belongs the Original of all his Oracles and Enthusisasmes among the Nations of the World There was therefore a divine Power and Efficacy attending all Divine Revelations ascertaining and infallably assuring the minds of men of their being from God For if it had not been so men had never been able to secure themselves that they were not imposed on by the crafty deceits of Satan especially in such Revelations as seemed to contain things contrary to their Reason as in the command given to Abraham for the sacrificing his Son Gen. 22. 2. Wherefore these immediate Revelations had not been a sufficient means to secure the Faith and Obedience of the Church if they had not carried along with them their own evidence that they were from God Of what nature that Evidence was we shall afterwards enquire For the present I shall only say that it was an Evidence unto Faith and not to Sense as is that also which we have now by the Scripture It is not like that which the Sun gives of it self by its Light which there needs no exercise of Reason to assure us of for Sense is irresistibly affected with it But it is like the Evidence which the Heavens and the Earth give of their being made and created of God and thereby of his Being and Power This they do undeniably and infallibly Psal. 19. 1 2. Rom. 1. 19 20 21. Yet is it required hereunto that men do use and exercise the best of their rational Abilities in the consideration and contemplation of them Where this is neglected notwithstanding their open and visible Evidence unto the contrary men degenerate into Atheism God so gave out these Revelations of himself as to require the exercise of the Faith Conscience Obedience and Reason of them unto whom they were made and therein they gave full Assurance of their proceeding from him So he tells us that his Word differeth from all other pretended Revelations as the Wheat doth from the Chaff Jer. 23. 28. But yet it is our duty to try and sift the Wheat from the Chaff or we may not evidently discern the one from the other 2. The things so revealed were sufficient to guide and direct all persons in the Knowledg of their duty to God in all that was required of them in a way of Faith or Obedience God from the beginning gave out the knowledg of his Will 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 by sundry parts and degrees yet so that every Age and Season had Light enough to guide them in the whole Obedience required of them and unto their Edification therein They had knowledg enough to enable them to offer Sacrifices in Faith as did Abel to walk with God as did Enoch and to teach their Families the fear of the Lord as did Abraham The World perished not for want of sufficient Revelation of the mind of God at any time Indeed when we go to consider those divine Instructions which are upon Record that God granted unto them we are scarce able to discern how they were sufficiently enlightned in all that was necessary for them to believe and do But they were unto them as a Light shining in a dark place Set up but a Candle in a dark room and it will sufficiently enlighten it for men to attend their necessary occasions therein But when the Sun is risen and shineth in at all the Windows the light of the Candle grows so dim and useless that it seems strange that any could