Selected quad for the lemma: lord_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
lord_n	word_n	world_n	worst_a	105	3	8.1157	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A34389	Conversion exemplified in the instance of a gracious gentlewoman now in glory / written from her own mouth and appointment, by her dearest friend ...		1669 (1669)	Wing C5981; ESTC R21188	30,026	78

retire my self often to enjoy communion with God In which retirement when some observed me they did commend me others reproached me and said I grew bookish One called me Hypocrite and said A young Saint would be an old Devil Such words troubled me greatly all the while I was in doubt of mine own condition as to my being in Christ And the party that spake them was an eminent instrument in the hand of the Devil to distress and discompose me But after I received from the Lord some tastes and evidences of his Love those revilings and hard speeches comforted me for I esteemed it my Glory to suffer shame for his Names sake By this time finding the place where I lived in reference to Religion without means of light and as the fruit of it exceedingly sinful and prophane men and women generally wallowing in brutish Iusts I grew extream weary of living in it ' and thereupon sought God in Prayer earnestly to find a way of removing me where I might have better example better teaching better helps and advantages of perfe●cting what he had graciously begun in me having had my soul often vexed by hearing and seeing as Lot's was In this after a short time God answered me inclining the hearts of my Parents to send me to London and placed me for a while with some Friends in and near that City This change of place and newness of acquaintance produced new temptations For though the Seed of God abiding in me kept in me some tenderness of spirit yet many worldly diversions from my former and more constant fellowship with God brought me into a very drowsie temper I lived with Professors of Religion but found not the power of Christian Principles acting in them especially some of them though from others I had help and encouragement But some were so choaked with worldly cares and drowned in carnal groundless jealousies as they became burthensome and uncomfortable to themselves and those that conversed with them especially if they had dependance on them as I had Nevertheless he that bringeth Good out of Evil and whose Covenant is That all things shall work together for good to them that love Him made use of that unacceptable quality to awaken me and cause me to reflect upon my declinings God is a jealous God and will suffer no corrival or competitor in the hearts of his Children Thereupon to chasten me for suffering my soul to wander after and cl●●ve to worldly delights and exp●ctations he left a Person of Q●●lity with whom I ●ived und●r the dominion of an infirmity very natural to her and very sinful the G●d of M●rcy convince her of it and reform her g●ou●dl●s Jeasousie An app●●hension possest h●r o● reason of it tha● I had an u●wor●hy d●sign upon her and as untrue as it was it put her and she me by reason of it into a very great discomposure This p●ss●ge I should altogether om●t if I could make the story of God's dealing with me in this case perfect without it nor are such things to he slighted For H● without whose providence a Sparow falleth not to the ground and by whom the haires of our head are numbered must be eyed and acknowledged in all his wayes The Children of Jacob must learn of their Father to see the Face of God in a very Esau Now being much burthen d●und●r the Oppression of the foresaid f●ls● imagination I had according to my former course recourse to God who seasonably and very effectually presented to my mind many passages of Scripture by which I was in some me●sure recovered from my backsliding for a b●tter nam● I do not know it by S●me of which were these Rom. 8. 28. For w● know that all things work together for good to them that love God Another was Ps●l 139. 13. S●arch me O God and know my b●ar● try me and know my thoughts and see of there be any wicked way in me and lead me in the Way everlasting This I made use on when the fear of an hypocritical state was upon me occasionned by my late decays Let this suffi●e briesly to point at what they were how they came and what means God applyed to recover me After these things the whole life of one in Christ being a warfare I met with many conflicts and still the most constant one was about my Soul sta●c whether in Christ or not in Christ reconciled to God by his Blood or not reconc●led and thorow the remnant of Corruption I am not altogether delivered from this temptation at this very time I received much establishment at one time from Isa 27. 5. Let him take hold of my strength that he may make peace with me and he shall make peace with me At another time hearing this Scripture read Psal 25. 10. All the Paths of the Lord are Mercy and Truth to such as keep his Covenants and his Testimonies I was assisted to have very comfortable reflections upon it By the Paths of the Lord I understood his providential Disspensations wherein he walks as men do in a path to an intended end which is the accomplishment of his Glory in bringing the Seed of Christ to Glory Now though the Paths are exceeding various Sometimes God lifts his People up sometimes he casts them down sometimes he gives them victory over sin Satan and themselves sometimes he leaves them to be led captive and then enlarges them out of that Bondage for the most part by Afflictions One while he tryes their Grace and gives them the sense and comfort of it another while he chastens Disobedience and gives them the fruit of that in mortification But let the Paths of God be never so many and seem to lye never so cross as Road-wayes over a Champion yet are they all Mercy even to those that taste most Severity and Truth yea though they seem contrary to his Promise to them that keep his Covenant and his Testimonies So that in the way of obedience to his Testimonies and cleaving to his Covenant I was assured all his Paths to me would be Mercy and Truth Isa 3. 12. Go and proclaim these words towards the North and say Return thou back sliding Israel saith the Lord and I will not cause mine Anger to fall upon thee For I am Merciful saith the Lord and I will not keep mine Anger for ever only acknowledge thine iniquity that thou hast transgressed against the Lord thy God Every thing in this Text comforted me First that God exprest his forwardness to receive wandering sinners by sending forth a Proclamation to invite their return Go and proclaim saith he Then that this was directed to the worst sort of sinners Backsliders The Backslider seemes to tell the World that upon his particular experience there is nothing worth enjoying in the Wayes of God and this is the worst reflection upon them than can be None so bad as false friends Traytors in a Court the worst Traitors Backsliding Israel notwithstanding is called upon

it became me to lodge mine there also what ever my personal qualifications were The station in which I stood had at another time occasioned a long slumber to me wherein I had not my former sense of the working of Grace nor fellowship with Christ The vexation that it gave me kept me from total stupidity but it continued longer than such ●●ts used to do for I found not that genuine frame of mind which I had formerly to God and his wayes Then was I wonderfully broken in upon from Isa 54. 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11. especially that which setled me as upon a Mountain was the tenth verse where it is said For the Mountains shall depart and the Hills be removed but my kindness shall not depart from thee neither shall the Covenant of my Peace be removed saith the Lord that ●ath mercy upon thee This was so remarkable a passage as I went to seek a place to pour out tears of joy issuing from a heart melted with love If ever I experienced true contrition and a heart of stone turned into a heart of flesh it was at this time I was at another time much affected from the consideration of God's familiar dealing with sinning man in those intimate expressions of love and alluring invitations by which he seeks to draw men after him exprest under such taking objects Prov. 8. 17 18. 19 20 21. I love them that love me and those that seek me early shall find me Riches and Honour are with me yea durable Riches and Righteousness My fruit is better than Gold yea than much fine Gold and my revenue than choise Silver I lead in the way of righteousness in the midst of the paths of judgement that I may cause those that love me to inherit substance and I will fill their treasures In a time of darkness and perplexity of heart by reason of it I was insulted over by Satan as if he had obtained now a conquest over me Then did the Spirit of God suggest these words unto me Micah 7. 8. Rejoyce not against me O mine enemy though I fall I shall rise again when I sit in darkness the Lord shall be a light unto me Many other comforts at sundry times from several Scriptures were given in fitted to the temptation that I was at such times under which I have sinfully forgotten the Lord pardon me in much mercy Some I can give the better account of because I wrote them in a Paper-book which I have now by me as 1 John 8. 9. If we confess our sins he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins Here pardon of sin is annexed to confession of sin and it is a very comfortable place when rightly understood made use of for it implies the knowledge of a ransome for sin and Faith in a redeemer for by the tenure of the Law sin is uupardonable Cursed saith it is every one that continueth not in all things written in the book of the Law to do them Hence no sorrow for sin turning from sin crying for pardon of sin can obtain it without the Mediation of him who hath made his soul an offering for sin But the common use that people make if it who confess sin formally and resolve to practise it subs●●t●ally is an abhorrence to God and all that have the Image of God stampt on them We have done those things say they which we ought not to have done and we have left ●nd●ne those things which we ought to have done and mi●ht add we resolve so to do still else what means their returning from the solemnity of their Devotions to Swearing Drunkenness Whoredom and all abominations that lye in the way of their lustful hearts It hath troubled me sorely to hear carnal people make the way to Heaven so broad and easie in their discourse point-blank against what Christ said of it and it is a concluding argument they know it not That God is merciful and Christ dyed ●or sinners are precious truths and of concernment to faln man none greater Yet do multitudes encourage themselves from them to live in sin and thereupon perish for one who obtains Salvation by them I have been often quickned to duty from Heb. 6. 12. Be not sl●thful but followers of th●s who through Faith and Patience inherit the Promises I found Faith and Patience of absolute necessity in all obedience whethet active or passive Nor may I omit the encouragement to obedience laid down vers 17. and 18. of that Chapter wherein God is willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of the Promise the immutability of his Counsels confirmed it by an Oath that by two immutable things in which it is not possible for God to lye they might have strong consolation who are fled for refuge to the hope set before them Where I further noee a distinguishing character of a sound Believer he is said here to fly for refuge to the hope set before him For I do not think that in time of sore distress under the burthen of sin any but such as in whom Christ dwels can fly to him for refuge though they may have other great accomplishments such as to be enlightned to taste the Heavenly Gift to be partakers of the holy Ghost and taste the good Word of God and the Powers of the World to come as is said of some vers 4. 5. The words also Heb. 7. 25. have been of standing support to me He is able to save them to the uttermost that come to God through Him seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them And thus much of the m●●remarkable things which besel me before the beginning of my long sickness About the beginning of April in the year 58. I was taken with a violent cold which was exceeding common at that time since when I cannot say that I have had one healthy day as before but distempers have increased upon me with very troublesome Effects and Symptoms Under this visitation I have had great experience of God's gracious dealing with me in my weakness I had recourse to the words of the Prophet Jer. 9. 23 24. Thus saith the Lord Let not the strong man glory in his strength c. But let him that glorieth glory in this that he understandeth and knoweth me that I am the Lord who exercise Loving-kindness Judgement and Righteousn●ss in the Earth Also the saying of the Apostle Jam. 1. 12. was of great use to me Blessed is the man that endureth temptation for when he is tryed he shall receive the Crown of Life which the Lord hath promised to them that love him While these things past on sinding in my self many signs of approaching mortality I was very conversant in the more serious thoughts of Eternity and I o●t was thinking with my self Oh that I had a crevice in at which to look that I might see the state of souls departed Satan who loses no opportunity took the hint of these thoughts because I