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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
life_n	book_n	dead_a	open_v	5,415	5	9.9361	5	false

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A27062	Two treatises tending to awaken secure sinners viz., 1. The terror of the day of judgment, from 2 Cor. 5. 10, 2. The danger of slighting Christ and his Gospel, from Matth. 22. 5 / by Richard Baxter.	Baxter, Richard, 1615-1691.; Baxter, Richard, 1615-1691. Terror of the day of judgment.; Baxter, Richard, 1615-1691. Danger of slighting Christ and his gospel.	1696 (1696)	Wing B1443; ESTC R16419	109,733	266

time of Repentance for a Sermon of Mercy which once they slept under or made no account of How is the Case altered now with them Who would think that these are the same Men that made light of all this on Earth that so stoutly scorned the Reproofs of the Word that would be worldly and fleshly and drunk and proud let Preachers say what they would and perhaps hated those that did give them warning Now they are of another Mind but all too late O were there any Place for Resistance now would they draw back and lay hold of any thing before they would be dragged away into those Flames But there is no resisting Satan's Temptations might have been resisted but his Executions cannot God's Judgments might have been prevented by Faith and Prayer Repentance and a holy Life but they cannot be resisted when they are not prevented Glad would the miserable Sinner be if he might but turn to nothing and cease to be or that he might be any thing rather than a reasonable Creature but these Wishes are all in vain There is one Time and one Way of a Sinner's Deliverance if he fail in that one he perishth for ever all the World cannot help him after that 2 Cor. 6. 2. I have heard thee in a time accepted and in the Day of Salvation have I succoured thee Behold now is the accepted Time behold now is the Day of Salvation Now he saith Rev. 3. 20. Behold I stand at the Door and knock if any Man hear my Voice and open the door I will come in to him and will sup with him and he with me But for the time to come hereafter hear what he saith Prov. 1. 24 25 26. Because I have called and ye refused I have stretched out my hand and no Man regarded but ye have set at nought all my Counsels and would none of my Reproof I also will laugh at your Calamity I will mock when your fear cometh when your fear cometh as a Desolation and your D●struction comueth as a Whirlwind when Distress and Anguish cometh upon you then shall they call upon me but I will not answer they shall seek me early but they shall not find me for that they hated Knowledg and did not choose the Fear of the Lord they would none of my Counsels they despised all my Reproofs therefore shall they eat of the Fruit of their own way and be filled with their own Devices for the turning away of the Simple shall slay them and the Prosperity of Fools shall destroy them but whoso hearkneth to me shall dwell safth and shall be quiet from fear of Evil. I have recited all these Words that you may see and consider whether I have spoke any other thing than God himself had plainly told you of Having said this much of the Certainty of the Execution I should next have spoke somewhat of the Manner and the Instruments and have shewed how God will be for ever the principal Cause and Satan and their own Consciences the Instruments in part and in what manner Conscience will do its part and how impossible it will be to quiet or resist it But having spoke so much of all this already elsewhere as is said before I will forbear here to repeat it leaving the Reader that desireth it there to peruse it The Vses Vse 1. Beloved Hearers it was not to fill your Fancies with News that God sent me hither this Day nor to tell you of Matters that nothing concern you nor by some terrible Words to bring you to an Hour's Amazement and no more But it is to tell you of things that your Eyes shall see and to foretel you of your Danger while it may be prevented that your precious Souls may be saved at the last and you may stand before God with Comfort at that Day But because this will not be every Man's Case no nor the Case of most I must in the Name of Christ desire you to make this day an Enquiry into your own Souls and as in the Presence of God let your Hearts make answer to these few Questions which I shall propound and de●te with you Qu. 1. Do you soundly believe this Doctrine which I have ●ached to you What say you Sirs Do you verily be●ve it as a most certain Truth that you and I and 〈◊〉 the World must stand at God's Bar and be judged to everlasting Joy or Torment I hope you do all in some 〈◊〉 believe this but blame me not if I be jealous whether you soundly believe it while we see in the World so little of the Effect of such a Belief I confess I am forced to think that there is more Infidelity than ●ith among us when I see more Ungodliness than God●ess among us And I can hardly believe that Man ●at will say or swear that he believeth these things ●d yet liveth as carelesly and carnally as an Infidel I ●ow that no Man can love to be damned yea I ●ow that every Man that hath a reasonable Soul hath ●turally some love to himself and a fear of a Danger ●hich he verily apprehendeth he therefore that liveth ●thout all fear I must think liveth without all appre●nsion of his Danger Custom hath taught Men to hold these things as the Opinion of the Country but if Men soundly believed them surely we should see strange● Effects of such a Faith than in the most we do see Doth the sleepy Soul that liveth in Security a● followeth this World as eagerly as if he had no greater Matters to mind that never once trembled at the Thoughts of this great Day nor once asked his own Soul in good Sadness My Soul How dost thou think then to escape I say doth this Man believe that he is going to this Judgment Well Sirs whether you believe it or not you will find it true and believe it you must before you can be safe For if you do not believe it you will never make ready Let me therefore perswade you in the Fear of God to consider that it is a Matter of undoubted Truth 1. Consider that it is the express Word of the God of Truth revealed in Scripture as plainly as you can desire So that you cannot be unbelieving without denying God's Word or giving him the Lie Mat. 13. 38 39 40 41 42 43 49 50. Mat. 25. throughout Rom. 2. 5 6 7 9 10 16. and 1. 32. John 5. 28 29. The Hour is coming in which all that are in the Graves shall hear his Voice and shall come forth they that have done good unto the Resurrection of Life and they that have done evil unto the Resurrection of Damnation Heb. 9. 27. It is appointed to all Men once to die and after this the Judgment Rom. 14. 9 12. So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God Rev. 20. 12. And I saw the dead small and great stand before God and the Books were opened and another Book was opened which

to him that died for them and rose again Rom. 14. 9. 2 Cor. 5. 14 15. Mat. 28. 18 19 20. 1 Pet. 1. 17 18. You will then understand that you were not your own but were bought with a Price and therefore should have glorified him that bought you with your Bodies and Spirits because they were his 1 Cor. 6. 19 20. This one Aggravation of your Sin will make you doubly and remedilesly miserable that you trod under foot the Son of God and counted the Blood of the Covenant wherewith you were sanctified an unholy thing Heb. 10. 26 27 28 29. and crucified to your selves the Son of God afresh and put him to open Shame Heb. 6. 5 6. 3. Moreover all the personal Mercies which they received will be so many Evidences for the Condemnation of the Ungodly The very Earth that bore them and yielded them its Fruits while they themselves are unfruitful to God The Air which they breathed in the Food which nourish'd them the Clothes which cover'd them the Houses which they dwelt in the Beasts that laboured for them and all the Creatures that died for their Use All these may rise up against them to their Condemnation And the Judg may thus expostulate with them Did all these Mercies deserve no more Thanks Should you not have served him that so liberally maintained you God thought not all these too good for you and did you think your Hearts and Services too good for him He served yours with the weary Labours of your fellow-Creatures and should you have grudged to bear his easy Yoak They were your Slaves and Drudges and you refused to be his free Servants and his Sons They suffered Death to feed your Bodies and you would not suffer the short Forbearance of a little forbidden fleshly Pleasure for the sake of him that made you and redeemed you O how many thousand Mercies of God will then be reviewed by those that neglected them to the Horror of their Souls when they shall be upbraided by the Judg with their base Requital All the Deliverances from Sickness and from Danger all the Honours and Privileges and other Commodities which so much contented them will then be God's Evidences to shame them and confound them On this Supposition doth the Apostle reprove such Rom. 2. 4 5 6. Despisest thou the Riches of his Goodness and Forbearance and Long-suffering not knowing that the Goodness of God leadeth thee to Repentance But after thy hardness and impenitent Heart treasurest up unto thy self Wrath against the Day of Wrath and Revelation of the righteous Judgment of God who will render to every Man according to his Deeds 4. Moreover all the Means which God used for the Recovery of Sinners in the Day of their Visitation will rise up against impenitent Souls in Judgment to their Condemnation You can hear Sermons carelesly and sleepily now but O that you would consider how the Review of them will then awake you You now make light of the Warnings of God and Man and of all the wholesom Advice that is given you but God will not then make light of your Contempt O what cutting Questions will they be to the Hearts of the Ungodly when all the means that were used for their Good are brought to their Remembrance on one side and the Temprations that drew them to Sin on the other Side and the Lord shall plead his Cause with their Consciences and say Was I so hard a Master or was my Work so unreasonable or was my Wages so contemptible that no Perswasions could draw you into my Service Was Satan so good a Master or was his Work so honest and profitable or was his Wages so desirable that you would be so easily perswaded to do as he would have you Was there more perswading Reason in his Allurements and Deceits than in all my holy Words and all the powerful Sermons that you heard or all the faithful Admonitions you received or all the good Examples of the Righteous or in all the Works of God which you beheld Was not a Reason fetch'd from the Love of God from the Evil of Sin the Blood of Christ the Judgment to come the Glory promised the Torments threatned as forcible with you and as good in your Eyes to draw you to Holiness as a Reason from a little fleshly Delight or worldly Gain to draw you to be unholy In the Name of God Sinners I intreat you to bethink your selves in time how you will sufficiently answer such Questions as these You should have seen God in every Creature that you beheld and have read your Duty in all his Works what can you look upon above you or below you or round about you which might not have shewed you so much of the Wisdom and Goodness and Greatness of your Maker as should have convinced you that it was your Duty to be devoted to his Will and yet you have his written Word that speaks plainer than all these and will you despise them all will you not see so great a Light will you not hear so loud and constant Calls shall God and his Ministers speak in vain And can you think that you shall not hear of this again and pay for it one Day you have the Bible and other good Books by you why do you not read them You have Ministers at hand why do you not go to them and earnestly ask them Sirs What must I do to be saved and intreat them to teach you the Way to Life You have some Neighbours that fear God why do you not go to them and take their good Advice and imitate them in the Fear of God and in a holy Diligence for your Souls Now is the time for you to bestir your selves Life and Death are before you You have Gales of Grace to further your Voyage There are more for you than against you God will help you his Spirit will help you his Ministers will help you every good Christian will help you the Angels themselves will help you if you will resolvedly set your selves to the Work and yet will you not stir Patience is waiting on you Mercies are enticing you Scourges are driving you Judgment stayeth for you The Lights of God stand burning by you to direct you And yet will you not stir but lie in ●●arkness And do you think you shall not hear of this Do you think this will not one Day cost you dear IX The ninth part of our Work is to shew you ●hat are those frivolous Excuses by which the Vnrighteous may then indeavour their Defence Having already shewed you what the Defence must be that must be sufficient to our Justification If any first demand Whether the Evidence of their Sin will not so overwhelm the Sinner that he will be speechless and past excuse I answer Before God hath done with him he will be so but it seems at first his clark Understanding and partial corrupted Conscience will set him upon a vain Defence

is the Book of Life and the Dead were judged out of those things which were written in the Books according to their Works Mat. 12. 36 37. But I say unto you that every idle Word that Men shall speak they shall give account thereof at the Day of Judgment For by thy Words thou shalt be justified and by thy Words thou shalt be condemned Many more most express Texts of Scripture do put the Truth of this Judgment out of all question to all that believe the Scripture and will understand it There is no place left for a Controversy in the Point It is made as sure to us as the Word of the living God can make it And he that will question that what will he believe What say you Sirs Dare you doubt of this which the God of Heaven hath so positively affirmed I hope you dare not 2. Consider it is a Master-part of your Faith if you are Christians and a fundamental Article of your Creed that Christ shall come again to judg the quick ●nd the dead So that you must believe it or renounce your Christianity and then you renounce Christ and all the Hopes of Mercy that you have in him It 's impossible that you should soundly believe in Christ and not believe his Judgment and Life everlasting because as he came to bring Life and Immortality to Light in the Gospel 2 Tim. 1. 10. so it was the End of his Incarnation Death and Resurrection to bring you thither and it 's part of his Honour and Office which he purchased with his Blood to be the Lord and Judg of all the World Rom. 14. 9. Joh. 5. 22. If therefore you believe not heartily this Judgment deal plainly and openly and say you are Infidels and cast away the hypocritical Vizor of Christianity and le● us know you and take you as you are 3. Consider that it is a Truth that is known by the very Light of Nature that there shall be a Happiness for the Righteous and a Misery for the Wicked after this Life which is evident 1. In that we have undeniable natural Reason for it 1. God is the Righteous Governour of the World and therefore must make a difference among his Subjcts according to the Nature of their Ways which ane see is not done here where the Wicked prosper and we Good are afflicted therefore it must be hereafter 2. We see there is a Necessity that God should make Promises and Threatnings of everlasting Happiness or Misery for the right Governing of the World for we certainly perceive that no lower things will keep Men from destroying all humane Society and living worse than brute Beasts and if there be a Necessity of making such Threats and Promises then there is certainly a Necessity of fulfilling them For God needeth no Lie or Means of deceiving to rule the World 2. And as we see it by Reason so by certain Expe●rience that this is discernable by the Light of Nature for all the World or almost all do believe it Ev● those Nations where the Gospel never came and have nothing but what they have by Nature even the most barbarous Indians acknowledg some Life after this and a Difference of Men according as they are here therefore you must believe thus much or renounc● your common Reason and Humanity as well as your Christianity Let me therefore perswade you al● in the Fear of God to confirm your Souls in the Belief of this as if you had heard Christ or an Angel from Heaven say to you O Man thou art hasting to Judgment Qu. 2. My next Question is Whether you do ever soberly consider of this great Day Sirs do you use when you are alone to think with your selves how certain and how dreadful it will be how fast it is coming on and what you shall do and what Answer you mean to make at that Day Are your Minds taken up with these Considerations Tell me is it so or not Alas Sirs Is this a Matter to be forgotten Is not that Man even worse than mad that is going to God's Judgment and never thinks of it when if they were to be tried for their Lives at the next Assize they would think of it and think again and cast 100 times which way to escape Methinks you should rather forget to go to Bed at Night or to eat your Meat or do your Work than forget so great a Matter as this Truly I have often in my serious Thoughts been ready to wonder that Men can think of almost any thing else when they have so great a thing to think of What forget that which you must remember for ever forget that which should force Remembrance yea and doth force it with some whether they will or not A poor despairing Soul cannot forget it He thinks which way ever he goes he is ready to be judged O therefore Beloved fix these Thoughts as deep in your Hearts as Thoughts can go O be like that holy Man that thought which way ever he went he heard the Trumpet sound and the Voice of the Angel calling to the World Arise ye Dead and come to Judgment You have warning of it from God and Man to cause you to remember it do not then forget it It will be a cold Excuse another Day Lord I forgat this Day or else I ●ight have been ready you dare not sure trust to such Excuses Qu. 3. My next Question to you is How are you ●ffected with the Consideration of this Day Barely to think of it will not serve to think of such a Day as this with a dull and sensless Heart is a Sign of fearful Stupidity Did the Knees of King Belshazzar knock together with trembling when he saw the Hand-writing on the Wall Dan. 5. 6. How then should thy Heart be afffected that seeth the Hand-writing of God as a Summons to his Bar When I began to preach of these things long ago confess the Matters seemed to me so terrible that I was afraid that People would have run out of their Wits with Fear but a little Experience shewed me that many are like a Dog that is bred up in a Forge or Furnace that being used to it can sleep though the Hmmers are beating and the Fire and hot Iron flaming about him when another that had never seen it would be amazed at the sight When Men have heard us 7 Years together yea 20 Years to talk of a Day of Judgment and they see it not nor feel any hurt they think it is but talk and begin to make nothing of it This is their Thanks to God for his Patience Because his Sentence is not executed speedily therefore their Hearts are set in them to do evil Eccles 8. 11. As if God were slack of his Promise as some Men accoun● Slackness 2 Pet. 3. 9. when one Day with him is as 〈◊〉 1000 Years and a 1000 Years as one Day What 〈◊〉 we tell you 20 Years together that you