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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
lord_n	blood_n	body_n	soul_n	10,399	5	5.2639	4	false

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A10024	Sins overthrow: or, A godly and learned treatise of mortification Wherein is excellently handled; first, the generall doctrine of mortification: and then particularly, how to mortifie fornication. Vncleannes. Evill concupiscence. Inordinate affection. and, covetousnes. All being the substance of severall sermons upon Colos. III. V. Mortifie therefore your members, &c. Delivered by that late faithfull preacher, and worthy instrument of Gods glory Iohn Preston, Dr. in Divinity, chaplaine in ordinary to his Majestie, master of Emanuel Colledge in Cambridge, and sometimes preacher of Lincolnes-Inne.	Preston, John, 1587-1628.; Preston, John, 1587-1628. Three godly and learned treatises. Selections. aut	1633 (1633)	STC 20275; ESTC S115103	166,961	286

abstaine in sincerity from sinne hee will abstaine from all sinne The reason why men abstaine from any sinne is either for love of themselves or of God if for love of thy selfe thou doest abstaine from sinne thou wert as good commit all as some If for love of God thou wilt abstaine from all sinnes from little sinnes as well as great sinnes Here may a question be asked why men doe abstaine from murther and Idolatry The answere is because God did forbid it and doth not God forbid also Thou shalt not lust God that doth forbid the one doth forbid the other and for thy further consideration know the holy Spirit of God doth hate every Sinne it doth abandon and hate that heart where these thoughts of lust are nourished Now the heart is the habitation and residence of the holy Ghost wherfore all Sinnes are to be mortified that the holy Ghost may come and dwell there The acts of mortification are chiefely these the Apostle would have us take paines with our hearts men might doe much good unto themselves would they but take paines to consider and ponder their their wayes but when men are carried away with the desire of riches vaine-glory and other inconsiderations no mervaile if it be thus with them If they would but sit alone meditate and reflect their mindes upon what they should doe it would be a great meanes to make them to alter their courses The Apostle when he would have them mortifie these lusts hee would have them consider the meanes how to suppresse them there be strong reasons in the word of God for them Let them search the grounds they have for the committing of those lusts and it will be an effectuall meanes for the mortifying of them If mens judgements were rectified to see their follies they would change their courses and turne the bent of their affections another way I should deliver many things unto you in this kinde concerning mortification to let it be your care that it may worke upon your inward affections that you may make it profitable unto your owne Soules and that you doe let it not passe from you without doing you good The word of God which you heare is not lost it shall certainly doe you hurt if not good it shall harden if it doe not soften It is an ill signe if a tree doe not bud in the spring but to see it without leaves in the Winter is no wonder at all So for any to heare the word of God powerfully preached and not to have good wrought on them by it they have great cause to feare their estates It is this meditating and taking to heart which is the first means I prescribe for mortification We are said secondly to mortifie when we suppresse and keepe downe those lusts if wee keepe them backe from their courses that they doe not bring forth the fruite of Sinne All actions when any Sinne is executed they tend to evill corruptions If wee abstaine from the action of Sinne then it doth kill the very inclination Take any Sinne that a man is naturally enclined unto whether it be the Sinne of uncleanenesse the desire of Riches or whatsoever Custome doth make his lusts to be stronger and so doth adde to the Sinne One light doth shew a thing to be so but more lights doe make it appeare more cleare so there is an addition in Sinne as well as in grace the more they act in Sinne the more they encrease Now when men complaine they know not what to doe they cannot be without their lusts Let them thanke themselves for it in suffering themselves by custome to practise them but by keeping downe the act of Sinne the lusts will evaporate away in time though thy lust be strong and violent at the first yet if thou wilt let it alone from the execution of it it will consume and weare away at the last Therefore keepe downe thy lusts and suppresse them Thirdly to weane these lusts inordinate affections and concupiscences the rectifying of the judgement and applying of right meanes doth mortifie the higher reason Now for to mortifie the lower reason is to turne away the bent of affection on another object If grace be quicke and lively in a man it turnes away the minde from Sinne and the way to weane these lusts is to keepe the minde fixed and bent on better things as temperance chastity and sobriety for all intemperance doth breed lust and then the devill doth take occasion and advantage to worke upon a man but sobrietie and temperance is a great meanes to keepe backe these evill affections Now I proceede to make use of what hath beene formerly delivered concerning these three Sinnes fornication uncleanenesse and evill concupiscence You may remember what hath beene said concerning the greatnesse of the Sinne of uncleanenesse It will follow then if it be so great a Sinne wee should use meanes to be freed from it Those that are guilty of it let them give themselves no rest their eye lids no slumber nor God no rest till they be delivered from the band of this iniquity 1. Sam. 2. 25. Remember what Elie said to his sonnes If one man sinne against another the Iudge shall judge him but if a man sinne against the Lord who shall entreate for him When God doth take in hand to afflict the Creature then it is intollerable man shall finde it to be a●terrible thing to fall into the hands of the living GOD. Take an arrowe or a bullet and let it be shot into the body of man it may wound deepely and yet be cured againe but let the head of that arrowe be poysoned or the bullet envenomed then the wound proves deadly and incurable There may be in the body of man many great gashes and deepe wounds and yet be cured but if affliction lyes on the Creature from the wrath of God he is not able to beare it it doth cause him to tremble and his conscience to be terrified within him as wee see by men that are in despaire Now the reason of it is God when he sinites the Creature in his wrath he doth wound the Spirit and as it were doth breake it in sunder as God doth breake the Spirit so he doth sustaine the Spirit but when he doth withdraw himselfe from the creature then the strong holds of the Spirit are gone This is to shew you what a terrible thing it is to fall into the hands of the living God This as it doth belong to all so specially to those that have received the Sacrament this day or before that they make conscience of this Sinne if they doe not they receive it unworthily and he that is guilty of this is guilty of the body and blood of Christ Hee discernes not the Lords body neither doth hee prize it as hee should nor esteeme of the excellencie of it as hee ought Hee discernes not with what reverence hee should come

to the Lords Table therefore saith the Apostle Hee is guilty of the body and blood of Christ that is hee is guilty of the same Sinne that those were that did crucifie and mocke Christ Iesus The Sacrament of the Lords Supper is a speciall meanes and chiefe ordinance of God for the attainement of his blessings if it be rightly received and so it is the greatest judgement that can befall a man if it bee not rightly received for Christ is chiefely represented therein The blood of Christ is the most precious thing in the world when men shall account this holy blood of the new Testament to be but an unholy thing and to trample it vnderfoote God will not beare with this Now when a man doth come to the Sacraments in a negligent manner in not preparing himselfe worthily to come hee is guiltie of the blood of Christ For ye are not onely to be carefull to prepare your selves before the receiving of the Sacrament but also of your walking afterwards Therefore consider you that have received the Sacrament or intend to do it that you doe clense your selves from this pollution of heart and spirit and that you doe put on the wedding garment that is required of all worthy receivers Let your hearts be changed and your affections and actions be free from all kind of evill and your hearts be turned to God else you cannot bee worthy receivers and so much shall suffice for this use that seeing this sinne is so great every man should endevour to free himselfe from it Secondly seeing the Apostle doth not onely exhort us to abstaine from it but also mortifie kill and subdue it If there were nothing but a meere abstinence from ill then it is not properly a mortification for then the impurest adulterer should sometimes bee chast after his impure manner of committing it and therefore the cessation of it is no true mortifying of it and that you may know mortification aright I will give you three signes First you shall know it by this if there went a generall reformation both in heart and life before when the heart is generally set aright is changed and renewed to good and from thence doeth arise a dying to these lusts then it is a good signe but if otherwise there bee no particulars changed in thee then it is but a cessation not a mortification but when the whole frame of the heart is altered yea even from the very roote when the old man in the body of sinne is wounded even to the heart that is when a man hath hath beene soundly humbled for his sinne and afterwards hath his heart affected to Christ and is come to love God and hath his mind changed then he may truely reckon it mortification Secondly you may know true mortification by this by having a right judgement of sinne and a true loathing and detestation of it It is hard for a man while hee hath any sinne in him to judge rightly of it for then a man is given to an injudicious minde while hee doeth continue in it As when a man is in prison if hee have continued there long though the sent bee bad yet hee cannot discerne it but let this man be brought to fresh ayre and bee carryed to that prison againe then hee will smell the noysomenesse of it So when a man is in sinne hee cannot truely judge of it but when he is escaped from it then he can rightly and truly detest and judge of it when a mans soule is righteous there is a contrariety betweene him and uncleannesse a righteous soule doeth detest sin both in himselfe and others as Lots soule was vexed with the abhomination of the Sodomites Consider how you are affected with the sinne of others Rom. 1. verse 32. They were not onely worthy of death who did commit sinne themselves but also they that had pleasure in others when a man can truely detest sinne in others as Lot did and doeth truely loath it in himselfe then it is a true signe of true mortification The last thing to know mortification by is an actuall abstinence from every sinne it is one thing to dislike a sinne and another thing to bee wearie of it and to hate the sinnefullnesse of it If mortification bee true he will hate all kind of uncleannesse with an inveterate hatred bee it of what degree it will Sheepe doe hate all kind of Wolves if a man doe truly mortifie c. his hatred to sinne will bee generall not onely in abstinence from grosse sinnes as murther adultery and fornication but also from all other sinnes For when a man forsakes sinne out of hatred his rancor is of iudgement more then of passion and so likewise his hatred will be constant Men may bee angry with their sinnes sometimes and fall out with them at other times and yet be friends againe but if they doe truely hate sinne their abstinence from sinne will be constant when a man becomes a new creature there will arise a contrarietie to sinne in his nature so that if a man doe hate sin he is truely said to mortifie Here may a question be asked Whether after true mortification a man may fall into the same sinne againe or no For answere hereunto I say a man may fall againe into the act of sin and uncleannesse after mortification for the gates of Gods mercy stand open to men after their greatest relapses But yet he doth never fall into the love of sinne and of purpose for to sinne Though he doe fall into the act hee doth not returne to allow of it and to wallow in the mire for it is impossible to do so after grace yet we cannot shut up the gates of Gods mercie to those that have often relapsed so that a mans conscience is witnesse unto him that he is not remisse in the meanes hee should use though hee fall into the act of sinne unawares yet he doth it not with set purpose Now you may judge whether you be mortified yea or no. The meanes to mortification are these The first meanes to mortifie is to labour for the assurance of pardon of thy sinnes Sinne is never mortified but by the sanctifying Spirit there may bee a restrained spirit in us to keepe us from the act of fin but it can never bee mortified but by the sanctifying spirit of God pardon for sin is had by the assurance of faith in Christ and the way to get this for givenes is to be truely humbled for our sinnes acknowledging our own misery and our owne wants and to lay hold upon the mercies of Christ Iesus and to bee lifted up by the promises of the Gospel Consider whatsoever your sinnes be whether against the light of nature or against knowledge Let a mans relapses be never so great and agravated with never so many circumstances Neverthelesse if a man will come in our commission is to propound unto them without all condition

and cast it from thee for it is profitable that one of thy members should perish and not that thy whole bodie should be cast into hell fire Therefore I say it were better for thee to leave thy delight than to have thy soule damned in hell for ever by leaving thy sinne thou dost not leave thy delight for then thou hast a new heart new desires and affections to delight in better things so that the forsaking of sinne is but a change of delight and those sinnes which have the greater delight in them shall have the greater torment as doth appeare out of Revel 18. 7. concerning Babylon The more pleasure she had the more should her torments and sorrowes be Thus have I dispatched in briefe this sinne of uncleannesse insisting and inlarging onely some two or three of the Deceits whereby the devill doth beguile the sonnes of men and lead them captive to the commission of this slavish and abominable sinne for motives and helpes against it I referre you to those I produced in the handling of Fornication FINIS HOVV TO MORTIFIE EVILL CONCVPISCENCE COLOS. 3. 5. Mortifie therefore your members which are upon the earth fornication uncleanenesse inordinate affection evill concupiscence c. NOw I should proceede to some application of this point but because there is a third particular which hath much affinity with the two former namely fornication and uncleanenesse I will first speake of that which is here in my Text evill concupiscence By concupiscence men doe understand a degree of this lust of uncleanenesse and it is an evill inclination in the power of the Soule The Doctrine is this evill concupiscence is one of the Sinnes which are likewise to be mortified Wee had neede give a reason for it because men will hardly be perswaded to thinke it a Sinne thus it was with the Heathen they thought there was no Sinne in it The first reason is If Concupiscence doe cleave unto a man that is evill inclinations which the soule by sinne is bent unto then actuall sinne wil follow which is the fruit of this concupiscence It is as a sparke of fire which being let alone will grow greater and greater and like a leven though little at the first yet doth it leven the whole lumpe so that it doth produce the works of the flesh and therefore it is to be mortified The second reason is although a man doe not fall into actuall sinne presently after there is concupiscence in the heart yet being unmortified it hideth the sinne in a man and so defiles him and makes him proane to an evill disposition and also to be abominable before God Therefore mortifie concupiscence before it come to have vigour and strength in thee A man is said to be an evill man when hee is distracted from Good to Evill now evill concupiscence makes a man to be so There are evill inclinations in a good man and yet it is by way of Antithesis it is not his complexion and constitution to have them Now an evill man hath concupiscence and the same is his complexion and constitution so to be Therefore if evill concupiscence be not mortified it makes a man to be bad and in this regard wee ought to cleanse our selves from the pollution of this sinne The third reason is Evill concupiscence being in a man it doth marre all his good actions To mingle water with wine it makes the wine the worse To mingle drosse with silver it makes the silver the more impure So evill concupiscence being in the Soule of a man it doth staine and blemish his good actions when the string of an Instrument is out of tune then the Musick doth jarre A man that hath strong concupiscence in him he will desire to come to the execution of the works of them and so it will haue an influence to the effect and will staine and blemish any good worke hee goes about so that evill concupiscence making a man to be evill it doth blemish and staine all the good actions that man goes about in that hee doth performe them either with vaine-glory or selfe respect The fourth reason why evill concupiscence should be mortified is because that otherwise the commandements of God will be grievous unto us 1. Iohn 5. 3. For this is the love of God that wee keepe his commaundements and his commaundements are not grieuous The commaundements of God are not onely to be kept of us but so to be kept that they may be delightfull unto us Psalm 103. 1. Blesse the Lord O my soule and all that is within me blesse his holy name when concupiscence doth lye in the soule of a man in its full vigour and strength unmortified it doth draw in him a reluctance from good duties as when a man doth will one thing that is good and an evill inclination doth set upon him then the commaundements of God will be grievous unto him even as a man will be unwilling to carrie a burthen long Now I proceede to shew you three things observable in this word concupiscence First what the nature of it is Secondly the sinfulnesse of it Thirdly the operation or workes of it First for the better understanding what it is know that in the soule of man there is a facility Secondly there is an inclination which doth adhere to the facultie and thirdly there are actuall desires which flow from that inclination by way of Similitude the better to conceive First in the mouth there is a pallate secondly the desired humour and thirdly the tast So in thesoule of man First there is the naturall affection secondly there is an inclination which is the tuneablenesse or untuneablenesse of it and thirdly there is the desire or actuall works of it By concupiscence is meant the evill inclination and the fruits of the evill inclination and by it the habituall concupiscence from whence the actuall desires of evill will follow Rom. 6. 12. Let not sinne raigne in your mortall bodies that yee should obey it in the lust thereof First there is a sinne secondly the lust of that sinne and thirdly the obedience that is consent to the sinne There is a concupiscence that is naturall and another that is morall As there is a concupiscence that is bad so is there another that is good and a third that is neither good nor evill There was in Christ a desire to live though it were Gods will he should die yet obeying hee did not sinne On fast dayes we are commanded so to doe yet the desire to tast corporall food on such a day is not sinne Secondly it doeth proceed from sinne and one sinne doth beget another Iames 1. 15. Concupiscence doth bring foorth sinne Rom. 6. 12. Let not sinne raigne in your mortall bodies that is Let not concupiscence but to understand what the sinfulnesse of it is know that sinne in speciall is the transgression of the morall Law any facultie that is capable

helpe and comfort from any creature or from Riches and not from God alone is vaine and sinfull The second is this That Covetousnesse which is Idolatrie is to be mortified For the first for to seeke any helpe or comfort from any Creature and not from God alone is vaine and sinnefull and it must needes bee so because it is Idolatrie Now in Idolatrie there are three things First vanity and emptinesse 1. Cor. 8. 4. An Idol is nothing in the world Here is vanitie Secondly sinnefulnes There is no greater Sin then it is and it is an extreame vaine because we attribute that to it which doth only belong to God to thinke if that I am well and strong in friends have a well bottomed estate that my mountaine is strong on every side I shall not be moued This is sinf●ll and vaine you shall not live a whit the better or happier for it A strange Paradoxe contrarie to the opinion practise of most men When we consult with our treasures doe not we thinke that if we have such wealth and such friends that we should live more comfortablie and happily There is no man but will answere that he thinkes so But yet my brethren we are deceived it is not so it belongs to God only to dispence of his Prerogatives goodor evill A horse is but a vaine thing saith the Psalmist to get a victorie that is though it be a thing as fit as can be in it selfe yet if it be left to it selfe without God it is but vaine and can doe nothing So I may say of riches and other outward things Riches are vaine and honours and friends are vaine to procure happinesse of themselves So Physicke of it selfe is vaine to procure health without God they are nothing worth hee that thinkes otherwise erreth It was the follie of the Rich man that hee thought so and therefore sung a Requiem unto his soule Eate drinke and bee merry O my soule thou hast goods layd up for thee for many yeeres Hee did not thinke himselfe happy because hee had any interest in God and his favour but because hee had aboundance of outward things and therefore you see the end of all his happinesse Thou foole this night shall thy soule be taken from thee and then what is become of all thy happinesse Yet such is our folly that most of us reflect on the meanes and on the creatures and expect happinesse from them But Christ tels us they will not doe the deed This night shall they take away thy soule and then al thy happines is gone The rich man thought before he had beene sure as long as his wealth continued with him that he needed not to expect any calamitie but now he sees that hee built on a sandic foundation David though a Holy man being established in his Kingdome having subdued all his Enemies and furnished himselfe with wealth hee thought that his Mountaine was then made so strong that it could not be moved that to morrow should bee as yesterday and much more aboundant But no sooner did God hide his face from him but hee was troubled To shew that it was not his riches and outward prosperitie that made him happy but God onely So Dan. 5. 28. Belshazzer when as hee thought himselfe happy being inuironed with his wives Princes and servants when as hee praised the gods of silver and the gods of gold abounded with all outward prosperitie and reposed his happinesse in it is accompted but a foole by Daniel because he glorified not God in whose hands his wealth and all his wayes were and therefore he was destroyed These things of themselves will not continue our lives nor yet make us happy of themselves wee take not one step of prosperitie or adversity but Gods hand doth lead us My brethren that heare mee this day that have heretofore thought that if you had such an estate such learning such ornaments and such friends that then you were happy To perswade you that it is not so it would change your hopes and feares your griefe and joy and make you labour to be rich in faith and in good workes It will be very hard to perswade you to this yet we will doe what we can to perswade you and adde certaine reasons which may perswade you to beleeve it to bee so if God shall adde a blessing to them that joyne the operation of his Spirit with them to perswade you First this must needes be so in regard of Gods all-sufficiencie he alone is able to comfort without the Creatures helpe else there were an insufficiencie and narrownesse in him and so then he should not be God if he could not fill our desires every way even as the Sunne should be defective if it needed the helpe of Torches to give light God is blessed not onely in himselfe but makes us all blessed It is the ground of all the commandements Thou shalt love and worship the Lord thy God and him onely shalt thou serue Wee must love him with all our hearts with all our soules Let not the Creature have any jot of them because all comfort is from God Gen 17. 1. I am God all sufficient walke before me and be perfect that is love me altogether set your affection on none but mee ye need not go unto the Creature al is in me If the Creature could do any thing to make us happy and not God then we might step out to it but the Creature can doe nothing to it God only is al sufficient to make you perfect every way though that the Creatures be used by God yet it is only God that makes you happy and gives you comfort and not the Creature Secondly it must needs be so because of the vanity and emptinesse of the Creature it can do nothing but as it is commanded by God he is the Lord of hostes which commandeth all the Creatures as the General doth his armie A man having the Creature to helpe him it is by vertue of Gods commandement it is the vanitie of the Creature that it can do nothing of it selfe except there be an influence from God Look not then unto the creature it selfe but to the influence action application which it hath from Gods secret concurrence with it what it is to have this concurrence influence from the Creature you may see it expressed in this Similitude Take the hand it moves because there is an imperceptible from the will that stirres it so the Creature moving and giving influence and comfort to us it is Gods will it should doe so and so it is applied to this or that action The artificer using a hatchet to make a stoole or the like there is an influence from his Art that guides his hand and it So the Creatures working is by a secret concourse from God doing thus and thus And to know that it is from God you find a mutabilitie in the Creature it workes not