Selected quad for the lemma: lord_n
Text snippets containing the quad
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A41881
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Great Britain's warning-piece: or, Christ's tears over Jerusalem
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1689
(1689)
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Wing G1670A; ESTC R215550
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6,901
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24
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Repentance day by day but being forewarned by a greater than Jonah let us at least be wise as the Ninnevites to turn whilst we have space from our Sins that we may find mercy for God resisteth the proud and exalteth the lowly and meek and indeed humiliation and a godly sorrow for sin turns the very edge of his Anger for when the Children of Israel had committed that great Sin of forsaking their living strength and made to themselves a golden Calf in Horeb like to the Gods of Egypt they mourned and no Man put on his Ornament for the Lord had said unto Moses say unto the Children of Israel ye are a stiff-necked People I will come up unto thee in a moment and consume thee therefore now put off thy Ornaments from thee that I may know what to do unto thee Exod 33.4.5 And this alone cou'd move compassion in the heavenly mind when so sensibly provoked by so great an affront so quickly offered the Divine Majesty who had wrought such Wonders for their sake in Egypt and brought them out of a Bondage they long had groaned and laboured under with so strong a hand as made the World amazed for which Moses upraids them with the worst of Ingratitude in the 32 of Exod. ver 18. Of the Rock says he that begat thee thou art unmindfull and hast forgotten God that formed thee and in verse 13. But Jessurun waxed fat and kicked thou art grown thick thou art covered with fatness and then he forsook God which made him and lightly esteemed the Rock of his Salvation This indeed was the case of the Jews for when they had long peace and plenty they too frequently forgot God and followed the foolish Imaginations of their own Hearts and this is too sadly the case of many professing Christianity who seldom look up to Heaven in their prosperous day but busie themselves in the affairs of the lower World till the Evil day overtake them at unawares and then perhaps the words of the Prophet Hosea may be verified in them viz. they saith the Lord howl and roar upon their Beds and do not call upon me in their heart Hos 7.14 or if they did only in the time when distress and anguish comes upon them how justly might they expect to hear the words of the Prophet sounding in their ears viz. What have I to do with thee O Joram get thee to the Prophets of thy Father and Mother 2. Kings 3. to pleasure and aduantages that in your prosperous days you pursued and require them if they are able to help you for true it is as the Prophet expresses When Gods Judgments are abroad the Nations will learn Righteousness yet far better and more acceptable it is to take the Counsel of the Wise Man viz. Provide thee of a Medicine before the fear come and examine thy self before Judgment and so shalt thou find propitiation or Acceptance in the sight of God. Eccles 8.18 taking care that your Hearts be not made heavy with eating and drinking and the cares of this Life and that day come suddenly upon you the day of trouble and of tryal a day of tribulation and anguish least you faint in the way and find your Confidence but vain Labour then whilst it is day least the night come on wherein no Man can work labour to work out your Salvation with fear and trembling and to run with chearfulness the Race that is set before you be sober and vigilant and ever be pressing forwards towards the mark of your high Calling least another step in and take your Crown Remember at all times what Christ hath done and suffered for you and how in return for such transcendent goodness he expects all your Service and will not value the price of his precious Blood at so low a rate as to have you divide its merits with the intrest of the World for he that will be his Disciple must deny himself and take up his Cross and follow him he must crucifie himself to worldly Lusts and Affections and wholly devote himself to his Service who is the best Master and altogether able to reward those that truly serve him not with corruptible things a Silver and Gold but with Eternal Life and endless Joys and although Boâ—â—â— and Afflictions should await you in every City be not thou ashamed of the Testimony of our Lord but consider and comfort your self with the promise he makes to those that shall suffer affliction for his sake viz. Blessed are they that are persecuted for my names sake for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven Mat. 5.10 And in this case as St. Augustine truly saith Though we labour in a boisterous Sea yet thou Lord art our Pilot and steerest our course between Scylla and Caribdis so that both dangers escaped we shall at length arrive at our Port secure And St. Hierome affirms That miserable is his felicity who was never thought worthy to wrestle with misery by which contention honour is obtained for we cannot be true Souldiers under his Banner who suffered so much for us when we lay in darkness and the shadow of death naked and helpless in our selves that he might raise us to a state of happiness and become the victorious Captain of our Salvation and make us Co-heirs with himself of the Kingdom for he viz. God hath delivered us from the power of Dâ—rkness and translated into the Kingdom of his Son c. Col. 1.13 and again I appoint you a Kingdom as my Father hath appointed me Luke 22.29 is a Kingdom then and one more valuable than all the Kingdoms upon Earth or ten thousand Worlds not worth our utmost regard when for a small corner of the Earth or for a little possession Men use such diligence and industry and rather than forgoe it will leave no ways untried spare no pains nor cost but sollicite all their friends to aid them in the aquirement take painfull Journeys and pass over restless nights and yet for Heaven how little regard most have where they may if they truly endeavour for it be sure to have an endless Kingdom furnished to their hands with Glories unspeakable wherein is the holy and heavenly Jerusalem which shineth with Glory the glorious Church Triumphant made up of Saints Martyrs and Confessors united in eternal and unseparable Union under their Head Christ Jesus God blessed for evermore who wipes all tears away from their Eyes and they banish thence the voice of Mourning with Songs and Hallelujahs of Praises and Thanks O that Men wou'd be wise and consider this and not like Jerusalem shut the Ears of their understanding not to know the things that belong to their peace till a blindness of Ignorance and Error hide them from them for Sin even in others to all good men is grievous and grieves them at the heart it was that which destroy'd the happiness of our first Parents in Paradise and defaced the Image of Heaven stamp'd lively on them 'T was
Sin that made God repent that he had mad Man and to grieve him at the very heart to a degree of destroying all but Noah and his Family by bringing a universal Deluge on the Face of the Earth 't was Sin that made him drive out the Canaanites from the Land 't was Sin that made the Prophet Jeremiah cry out O that my head was water and my eyes a Fountain of tears that he might weep day and night for the Sins of his People and it was the Sins of the Jews and their blinded Obstinacy which made our blessed Saviour mourn over Jerusalem in the words of the Text and for which they were soon after rooted out and scattered to the four Winds of Heaven Nor have these Nations been insensible of the Divine displeasure in the many Judgments that have fallen heavy upon it even in our days brought down from Heaven by the cry of those Sins that have pierced the Clouds and enter the Ears of the Almighty and yet that Monster which has caused so much Mischief in the World is still courted embraced and continued under guilded and disguised names of momentary Pleasure and Profit What then remains but that if we continue in Sin and go on in the ways of Iniquity but we may justly expect the wrath of an Angry God to fall heavy on us before whose Anger all the Sons of Men are but a stubble before the devouring flame Take heed then to your selves that your Hearts be not made heavy with eating and drinking and the cares of this Life and that day come upon you unawares but whilst it is to day hear his voice that calls upon you wooes and invites you to repent and turn from the evil of your ways and think it time with the Prodigal Son to return from your wanderings in the paths of wickedness and by an unfeigned Repentance move your Heavenly Father to take compassion on you who is easie to be intreated and hath sworn by himself saying I will not the death of a Sinner but I desire he be converted and live Yield then to the good motions of his holy Spirit and grieve him not by sinning till the day of Grace be over-past by saying it is not yet easie not yet convenient to leave your Sins your darling Lusts but you will doe it hereafter when you know not that your Life may be prolonged another day and then as Death leaves you Judgment will find you for look what a Man soweth that shall he reap he that soweth in the flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption he that soweth of the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap everlasting Life Gal. 6.8 and as the wise Man says Though the way of Sinners is paved with stones at the end thereof is Hell Darkness and Pains Eccl. 12.10 and holy David affirmeth that God rewardeth every Man according to hiâ— Works Psal 61.12 and if the Righteous scarcely be saved where then shall the Sinner and ungodly appear Oh that Men would then be wise and consider their latter end and not with the foolish Virgins want Oyl in their Lamps when the Bridegroom is entering into his Chamber but always be provided least they be everlastingly shut out from Bliss and from beholding the Face of him in whose presence is fulness of Joy and Pleasures for euermore Oh take the wise man's Counsel while it is to day viz. Make no tarrying to turn unto the Lord and put not off from day to day for suddenly shall his wrath break forth and in thy security shalt thou be destroy'd Eccl. 5.7 Let us then take hold of the acceptable day and turn to him before it be too late that he may turn away the fierceness of his Anger and shine upon us with the light of his Countenance and be mercifull to us in turning our hearts from the power of Satan to him the living God that however we are afflicted in this World we may be happy in that which is to come through the Merits of Jesus Christ Amen THE PRAYER O Lord God most Holy Glorious Righteous and Everlasting King who shewest Mercy unto thousands and though thou hast declared thou wilt by no means spare the Guilty yet the broken and contrite Heart thou wilt not despise nor in any wise cast out poor Sinners that flye to thee for Succour and Relief Pardon us and have mercy upon us that with shame and confusion of Face prostrate our Souls and Bodies before thee imploring thy divine assistance to enable and enlighten us that having a true sight and thorough sense of our Sins that we may abhor and detest them making it our endeavour to walk in the Paths of Truth and Uprightness that we may turn away thy anger and escape the heavy Judgments that we have most justly deserved for all the Sins which we have committed against thy divine Majesty O spare this sinfull Nation and People for thy mercies sake that we may ever have cause to adore and magnifie thy Goodness World without end Amen FINIS Books Printed for and Sold by William Thackeray at the Angel in Duck-lane near West-smithfield These three are Three pence a piece CHristian 's Comfort Dives and Lazarus Danger of deferring Repentance These are Two pence a piece Godly Man 's Gain Great Assize Short and Sure way Sinners Sobs Swearers and Drunkards Doom A Serious Call to the Unconverted The Touchstone of a Christian The ready way to get Riches Every man 's Duty and the Godly man's Practice A Posey of Prayers The Young man's Alarum Englands Golden Watch-bell Great Britain's Warning-piece These are very good and usefull Books of Divinity for these licentious Times and may be all had at the aforesaid Place FINIS