Selected quad for the lemma: land_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
land_n	egypt_n	hand_n	stretch_v	1,308	5	10.4202	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A36343	A door opening into Christian religion, or, A brief account by way of question and answer of some of the principal heads of the great mystery of Christian religion wherein is shewed by the way that the great doctrines here asserted are no wayes repugnant, but sweetly consonant unto the light of nature and principles of sound reason / by a cordiall well-wisher to that unity and peace which are no conspiratours against the truth.	Cordiall well-wisher to that unity and peace which are no conspiratours against the truth.; Cordiall well-wisher to that unity and peace which are no conspiratours against the truth. Of the sacraments.	1662 (1662)	Wing D1909; ESTC R26732	293,130	633

on him may have everlasting life his intent is not to make the seeing of the Son of a like necessity nor indeed of any necessity at all with believing on him for the obtaining of everlasting life although the tenor and form of the words seem so to carry it For after his resurrection he speaketh thus unto Thomas Thomas because thou best seen we thou hast believed BLESSED are they that have NOT SEEN and yet have BELIEVED John 20.29 But that remission of sins strictly taken is by God settled upon Repentance and not at all upon Baptisme besides what was lately argued in proof hereof might be evinced from sundry other passages of Scripture These words are twice uttered by Christ within the compass of three verses Except ye repent ye shall all likewise perish Luke 13.3.5 The sentence is of the like truth whether we understand it of perishing by a temporal judgement or of perishing eternally nor is this latter to be excluded from the words although it be supposed that the former was more directly intended But the saying clearly supposeth that Repentance without Baptisme is available to save men from perishing and therefore to obtain remission of sins also without which perishing will be the portion of every man So Acts 3.19 Repent ye therefore and be converted that your sins may be blotted out c. See also c. 8.22 The validity of Repentance without the additional help of Baptisme for the obtaining remission of sins from God might be effectually argued and concluded yet further from all these places and haply from more Luke 24.47 Acts 5.31.11.18 Rev. 2.5.16.22 And if the case were otherwise so that forgiveness of sins could not be had without being Baptized he that should sin after Baptisme must be baptized the second time and so toties quoties or else remain for ever uncapable of the pardon of his sin To pretend that Baptisme received many years before may operate towards the forgiveness of sins committed many years after is to speak at an unheard of peradventure and to think to quench mens thirst with an empty cup. If it be said that Baptisme at the time when it is received interesseth a person in the great blessing of the forgiveness of his sins but if he shall sin afterwards leaveth him to make the best he can of Repentance I would know whether the meaning of such a saying be that it interesseth him at the time and in the blessing mentioned whether he be penitent or repentant or no. If it be said he must be penitent otherwise he shall put a bar in the way of his Repentance and hinder the working and effect of his Baptisme I answer that in case he be penitent what reason can any man give why he should not be thought to obtain the forgiveness of his sins rather by his Repentance then by his Baptisme That an impenitent person obtaineth remission of sins by being baptized in his impenitency is I presume no mans sense or assertion Therefore 2. When Ananias said unto Paul Arise and be baptized and wash away thy sins c. He doth not suppose him now to have been in a state of condemnation or under the wrath of God for sin or which is the same that his sins were yet unpardoned this is clear from the three verses next preceding Therefore when he exhorteth him speedily to be baptized and wash away his sins his meaning only is that by being baptized he should typically or sacramentally wash away or wash off the guilt of his sins and so receive a pledge of confirmation from the hand of God himself that he had forgiven them or washed them away It is frequent in Scripture to speak of things as done simply and absolutely when they are done sacramentally or in figure Thus Moses is said to have divided the red Sea when he lift up his rod and stretched out his hand over it Exod. 14.16.26.27 Thus Aaron when he stretched forth his hand with his rod over the streams over the rivers and over the ponds in Egypt is said to have caused frgos to come up on the land Exod. 8.5 6. So when the Ark passed before the children of Israel into Jordan the Lord of all the earth is said to have passed likewise Josh 3.11 see c. 8.26 And when Christ gave unto his Disciples the Sacramental Bread he said in effect that he gave them his Body these words clearly implying as much Take eat this is my body which is given for you Mat. 26.26 Luke 22.19 compared Thus the Apostle speaking of the Israelites in the wilderness saith they did all drink the same spiritual drink when they drank the material water that came out of the Rock 1. Cor. 10.4 If it be replied and said But if Paul by being baptized that is by submitting unto Baptisme washed away his sins typically and sacramentally only and not really why did Ananias incourage him hereunto by suggesting unto him the washing away of his sins hereby and not rather by some other argument or motive I answer it is a matter of worthy concernment unto him whose sins are really pardoned and washed away already to have them typically and sacramentally pardoned and washed away also Christ had forgiven the sins of the woman in story Luke 7.37 38 c. and this was indeed the greatest and highest vouchsafement of grace that he was capable of conferring on her yet he judged it not beneath him or his infinite love and bounty to the woman to make her a certificate that her sins were forgiven her And he said unto her Thy sins are forgiven v. 48. He did the like unto the man sick of the Palsie Mat. 9.2 In like manner Baptisme is as it were a certificate written by the hand of God himself reached forth and offered unto all persons truly penitent or believing that their sins are forgiven them and they who submit unto Baptisme do receive it from him although many who do receive it cannot distinctly read the contents of it notwithstanding the writing be fair and legible Yet after all this it is not to be denied but that there is a sense and this differing too from that formerly mentioned wherein Baptisme together with Repentance and Faith may be said at least ordinarily to make up a compleat title to remission of sins But neither is this the sense so much contended for by those who being ignorant of the Counsel of God in Baptisme have sought it above that which is written where there is seldom any thing but fancy and imagination to be found In the sense we now minde First Baptisme being the first solemn act and as it were the head of a Christian profession is by the figure Synechdoche to be taken for this profession it self absolutely or indefinitely considered as whether it be of a shorter or longer continuance whether finished and completed by fewer or more acts otherwise c. even as Israel and sometimes Jacob frequently signifie the whole and

preached by men I can ill believe the full and through conversion of any person without it But securely confident I am that there is no other ordinance or means designed or assigned by God wherein or whereby the saving conversion of any man ought to be or reasonably can be without this hoped or expected It is not probable and the sense of some of the best expositors is the same that the conversion of Paul was perfected by all that which passed between Christ and him on the way to Damascus or until he had heard and learned more of the minde of Christ from Ananias who in the judgement of some Ancient Writers was one of the seventy Disciples whom Christ himself ordained and sent forth to preach the Gospel Luke 10.1 or as Calvin conceiveth was upon this occasion and in the present vision wherein Christ appeared unto him made a Minister of the Gospel by him Secondly there is this reason evincing the Sacraments not to be converting Ordinances namely because persons unconverted and unbelieving are not regularly capable no not of that Sacramenct which is most like to be converting I mean Baptisme This clearly appears from the answer which Philip made to the Eunuch desiring Baptisme of him in these words See here is water what doth hinder me to be Babtized Philip answereth him if thou believest with all thine heart thou mayest Acts 8 37. plainly implying that otherwise viz. in case he did not thus believe he might not or ought not to be Baptized This had been a very uncharitable and unchristian answer in case he had not so believed if to Baptize him had been so much as a probable or likely means to make him a believer For to require that of a man which he hath not but stands in great need of as a condition for the imparting of that unto him which would supply him is extreamly disingenuous and importune especially when we may impart such a thing unto him without any trouble or damage to our selves which had been Philips case in refusing to Baptize the Eunuch because of his unbelief supposing he had been an unbeliever if Baptizing him had been a means to heal his unbelief and to turn him unto God by believing This which hath been argued concerning Baptism from the Text lately cited might be demonstrated from several others if need were Concerning the Sacrament of the Lords Supper that persons un-converted are altogether as if not rather more uncapable of this and consequently that neither can this be looked upon as a converting Ordinance appears from the nature or import of it or the ●ounsel of God in it as the Apostle describes whether the one or the other 1 Cor. 10.16 17. The cup of blessing which we bless is it not the Communion of the Blood of Christ that is was not the drinking of it instituted ordained and appointed by Christ that the Communion which believers have in his Blood that is in the great benefit of Redemption purchased by his Blood should hereby be both professed and declared by them openly and likewise nourished strengthened and confirmed in them inwardly Therefore they that are duly capable of drinking this cup must have communion in the Blood of Christ with believers and consequently must be converted before they drink it otherwise in drinking it they shall act hypocritically and make profession of having that which they have not Now doubtless to act hypocritically is no means of conversion or if it were then the most wicked and Prophane persons who stand in most need of conversion ought rather to be invited incouraged and freely admitted to the drinking of the cup we speak of then to be debarred or kept off from the opportunity or to be cast out from amongst those that orderly drink it by a sentence of Excommunication in case they had fellowship with them in the business before their wickedness break out which yet we know was the Discipline of the Primitive Churches injoyned them by the Apostles themselves This likewise plainly evinceth that the meaning of the words mentioned The cup of blessing which we bless is it not the communion of the Blood of Christ is not as some weakly pretend as if the Apostle did imply that the Cup he speaks of was the means of any mans first obtaining or bringing into the communion of the Blood of Christ Such a sense of the words as this as it is opposed by the discipline planted as hath been said by the Apostles and practised in the Primitive Christian Churches so is it inconsistent with the scope of the context and other expressions herein as might be shewed more at large if it were needful or proper to our present undertaking Thus then it is as clear as the Sun rising in his might both by the light of the Scriptures and of grounds in reason attested by them that Sacramental Ordinances are not converting Quest 21. Whether do Sacramental administrations produce any real effects in or upon the hearts and souls of men that do partake of them or work any real alteration in them Answ If answer be made in Scripture language according to the manner of speaking here the effects of Sacramental actions are or may be not simply real but sometimes very great and excellent For this frequently asscribeth even miraculous effects to such causes or means which are of a Sacramental nature Thus the dividing of the waters of the Red Sea when the Israelites passed through o're dry land is by God himself attributed unto Moses his lifting up his Rod and stretching out his hand over it But lift thou up thy Rod saith he to Moses and stretch out thine hand over the Sea and DIVIDE it c. Exod. 14.16 So likewise the reducing of this Sea unto its former course after it had been thus divided and whilst Pharoah and all his Host was in the midst of the Channel of it is ascribed unto the same cause And the Lord said unto Moses stretch out thy hand over the Sea that the waters may come again upon the Egyptians ver 26.27 In like manner the bringing of water out of a Rock is promised by God unto Moses and Aaron their speaking to it Take the Rod and gather thou the assembly together thou and Aaron thy Brother and speak ye unto the Rock before their eyes and it shall give forth its water and TH0U SHALT BRING FORTH to them water out of the Rock c. Numb 20.8 Thus the dividing of the waters of Jordan through which they passed into the land of Canaan seems in like manner to be ascribed to the Priests bearing the Ark before them Isa 3.15 16. So the falling down flat of the walls of Jericho to the sounding of the Trumpets made of Rams Horns by the Priests before the Ark together with the performance of some other like things prescribed unto them by God in order to the same effect Josh 6.13 14 15 c. There are several other instances of like