Selected quad for the lemma: lord_n
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A67756
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The hearts-index, or, Self-knowledg [sic] together with I. the wonderful change that the word and spirit do work upon the heart when a sinner is converted II. the excellency of grace above nature III. the safety and calm of such as have sued out their pardon in Christ / by R. Younge ...
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Younge, Richard.
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1667
(1667)
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Wing Y160; ESTC R16696
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27,579
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32
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a Minister especially if a godly and zealous one that spake home to my conscience and told me of my sins much more if he would not admit me to the Lords Table without trial and examination yea then like Ahab to Eliah I became his enemy and hated him ever after would impeach his credit and detain from him his dues And are not all these strong evidences that I loved and served God and my Redeemer as I ought But to make it more manifest what a rare Christian I was I thought my self a Believer yea I could boast of a strong Faith when yet I fell short of the very Devils in believing for they believe the threats and judgments contained in the Word and tremble thereat James 2.19 Whereas I thought them but Scare-crows to fright the simple withal yea I held Hell it self but a fancy not worth the fearing Because I was not notoriously wicked but had a form of godliness was civil c I was able to delude my own soul and put off all reproofs and threatnings by comparing my self with those that I presumed were worse than my self as Drunkards Adulterers Blasphemers Oppressors shedders of blood and the like counting none wicked but such Yea looking upon these I admired my own holiness and thought my moral honesty would be sufficient to save me Nor did I know wherein I had offended And whereas the Law is spiritual and binds the heart from affecting no less than the hand from acting I was so blind and ignorant that I thought the Commandment was not broken if the outward gross sin be forborn Whence these were my thoughts I never brake the first Commandment of having many gods for I was no Papist nor Idolater nor the second for I worshipped God aright Nor the third for I had been no common swearer only a few petty oaths Nor the fourth for I had every Sabbath gone duly to Church Nor the fifth for I ever honoured my parents have been a loyal subject Nor the sixth seventh eighth ninth or tenth for I never committed murder or adultery never stole ought never bare false witness nor could I call to mind that I had at any time coveted my neighbours wife servant estate c. And nothing more common with me than to brag of a good heart and meaning of the strength of my faith and hope of my just and upright dealing c. And because I abstained from notorious sins I thought my self an excellent Christian if God was not beholding to me for not wounding his Name with Oaths for not drinking playing out his sabbaths for not railing on his ministers for not oppressing persecuting his poor members c. Sect. 13. And yet had it been so as I imagined Admit I had never offended in the least all my life either in thought word or deed yet this were but one half of what I owe to God this were but to observe the negative part of his law still the affirmative part thereof I had been so far from performing that I had not so much as thought of it And to be just in the sight of God and graciously accepted of him these two things are required the satisfactory part to escape hell and the meritorious part to get heaven And the true method of grace is Cease to do evil learn to do well Isa. 1.16 17. The Fig tree was cursed not for bearing evil fruit but because it bare no good The evil servant was not bound hand and foot and cast into prison for wasting his masters goods but for not gaining with them And those reprobates at the last day shall be bid depart into everlasting fire not for wronging or robbing of any but for not giving for not comforting Christs poor members Mat. 25. So that my case was most desperate For though with that Pharisee Luk. 18.11 I was apt to thank God and brag that I was just and paid every man his due yet I never thought of being holy and of paying God his dues as his due of believing or repenting of new obedience his due of praying hearing conferring meditating on his word and works sanctifying his sabbaths and instructing my children servants teaching them to fear the Lord. His due of love fear thankfulness zeal for his glory charity and mercy to Christs poor Members and the like I should have serv'd God in spirit according to Christs Gospel as all that are wise hearted indeavour go live believe hear and invocate and hope and fear and love and worship God in such manner as his word prescribes I should have been effectually called and become a new creature by regeneration being begotten and born anew by the immortal seed of the word I should have found an apparent change wrought in my judgment affections and actions to what they were formerly The Old man should have changed with the New-man Worldly wisdom with Heavenly wisdom carnal love with spiritual love servile fear for Christian and Filial fear idle thoughts for holy thoughts vain words for holy and wholsom words fleshly works for works of righteousness even hating what I formerly loved and loving what I formerly hated But alas I have heard the Gospel day after day and year after year which is the strong arm of the Lord and the mighty power of God to salvation That is quick and powerful and sharper than any two Edged sword and yet stood it out and resisted instead of submitting to Christs call even refusing the free offer of Grace and Salvation I have heard the Word faithfully and powerfully preached for forty years yet remained in my natural condition unregenerate without which new birth there is no being saved as our Saviour affirms John 3.5 I had not trodden one step in the way to conversion for the first part of conversion is to love them that love God 1 John 3.10 11 14. I should daily have grown in grace and in the knowledg of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ but I was so far from growing in grace that I had not one spark of grace or holiness without which no man shall see the Lord Heb. 12.14 I was all for observing the second Table without respect to the first or all for outward conformity not at all for spiritual and inward holiness of the heart Sect. 14. Either what I did was not morally good for the matter or not well done for the manner nor to any right ends as out of duty and thankfulness to God and my Redeemer and out of love to my fellow members Without which the most glorious performances and the rarest vertues are but shining sins or beautiful abominations Gods glory was not my principal end nor to be saved my greatest care I was a good civil moral honest hypocrite or infidel but none of these graces grew in the garden of my heart I did not shine out as a light by a holy conversation to glorifie God and win others Now onely to refrain evil except
greater success to the weaker means The men of Nineveh repented at the preaching of Jonas yet not the Jews at the preaching of Christ who was greater then Jonas The Apostles did greater signs in Christs Name than Christ himself Joh. 14.12 It was a greater miracle that the shadow of St. Peter as he walked in the street should heal many sick persons Acts 5.15 16. than that the hem of Christs vesture should heale one single woman of her bloudy Issue Mat. 9.21 22. Who then can cavil or indeed wonder at the ensuing story the which I am now to relate Yea who that hath either heart or brain shall well consider this preceding matter and the difference of Hearers and not be forced to acknowledg that which follows to be the case of every one that shall hear it be they what they will I mean before their hearts are renewed with the power of Gods word which is the strong arm of the Lord and the mighty power of God to salvation Rom. 1.16 And the sword of the spirit Eph. 6.17 And like as a fire or an hammer that breaketh even the Rock in pieces Jer 23.29 30. And that irresistable Cannon-shot that is mighty to beat down all the strong holds of sin and Satan 2 Cor. 10.4 Quick and powerful and sharper than any two edged sword and pierceth even to the dividing asunder of the soul and spirit and of the joynts and marrow and to the discerning of the very thoughts and most secret intents of the heart Heb. 4 12. Sect. 9. And look to it for if thou dost not see and acknowledg the very secrets of thy heart to be clearly laid open to thy conscience in the one or other first or last of these ensuing Characters I dare peremptorily conclude That Satan the God of this world hath blinded thy mind that the light of the glorious Gospel of Christ who is the image of God should not shine unto thee 2 Cor. 4.3 4. Eph. 2.2 2 Thes. 2.9.10 11. 1 Tim. 4.2 But this is the misery and a just plague upon our so much ignorance formality and prophaness under our so much means of Grace there be very few men that make not the whole Bible and all the Sermons they hear yea the checks of their own Consciences and the motions of Gods spirit utterly ineffectual for want of wit and grace to apply the same to themselves as they can unto others being better able to discern others meats than their own beams If you question what Satan can do in this case Look upon what he hath done to others as wise and as good as the best of us I le give you instances both of the godly and wicked and likewise Testimonies I pray mind them seriously and turn to the places for they are exceeding considerable In the first place take notice how he blinded and deluded Ahabs four hundred Prophets 1 Kings 22.22 And Judas John 13.2 And all Magistrates when they persecute the people of God Rev. 2.10 And indeed all men in their natural estate whereof not a few think they do God good service in persecuting and killing the Prophets as our Saviour expresly tells us John 16 2. But see other particular instances as that of Ananias and Saphira Acts 5.3 Then for the godly how he hath blinded and beguiled them as our first Parents Adam and Eve Eve by himself and Adam by making her his instrument and that in the state of innocency when they had wit at will Gen. 3. And holy David a man after Gods own heart 1 Chron. 21.1 Then Peter who so dearly loved Christ Mat. 16.22 23. And having this done argue thus with thy self If Satan so blinded and besotted these if he made such use of all these whereof some were the best and wisest of Gods children and servants who hate the very appearance of evil 1 Thes. 5 22. Jude 23. Ephes. 5.27 2 Pet 3.14 James 1.27 Have the eye of faith and the spirits direction and know the mind of Christ above others 1 Cor. 2.12 to 17. John 10.14 How much more can he work the same upon his own children and servants that delight onely in wickedness and are ignorant of Satans wiles as not having the least knowledge or ability to discern spiritual things 1 Cor. 2.14 2 Cor. 4 4. But if you still question the truth of this turn to Joh. 14.30 and 12.31 Gen. 3.15 John 8.44 2 Tim 2.20 Eph. 2.2 3. which are such clear testimonies that none who shut not their eyes against the light can gainsay Mat. 13.15 Which being so in reading this ensuing Dialogue or Index of the heart Make the application to your selves and not to others as David did Nathans parable 2 Sam. 12.1 to 8. And Ahab the Prophets 1 Kings 20.39 to 43. which yet concerned no less then their own lives And so much the rather for that in all probability what this will not effect touching your amendment no ordinary means are like to doe As what can be further expected No glass can more lively represent your faces than this Book does your hearts if you be yet in your natural condition unregenerate Neither can you look that Christ Jesus himself should call to you severally by name as he did to Saul for now we have the Gospel written at large Visions and Miracles cease Or put case Christ himself should do so I question whether you would be any more warned or reclaimed by it than Hazael was when the Prophet told him what abominable wickedness he should shortly commit 2 Kings 8.12 13 c. Yea Abraham tells Dives the contrary Luke 13 31. And so I come to the Conference it self Sect. 10. A loose Libertine meeting with his friend that had lately been a formal Christian he greets him as followeth Sir Me thinks I have observed in you a strange alteration since our last meeting at Middleborough not onely in your behaviour company and converse but even in your countenance What is the matter if I may be so bold Convert Truly Sir you are not at all mistaken nor am I unwilling to acquaint you with the cause if you can afford to hear it Soon after my return into England I was carried by a friend to hear a Sermon where the Minister so represented the very thoughts secrets and deceitfulness of my heart unto my conscience that I could not but say of him as the Woman of Samaria once spake of our Saviour He hath told me all things that ever I did Which made me conclude with that unbeliever 1 Cor. 14. 24 25. That God was in him of a truth nor could he ever have so done if he were not of God as the Young man in the Gospel reasoned with the Pharisees touching Jesus when he had opened his eyes that had been blind from his birth John 9.32 33. Whereupon I could have no peace nor rest until I had further communed with him about my estate for I found my self in a lost condition touching