Selected quad for the lemma: lord_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
lord_n	work_n	world_n	youth_n	32	3	7.9387	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A40495	A Friendly letter to all young men shewing the benefit of a religious and friendly reproof, conversation and admonition, and not only to live good lives themselves but to incourage others to do the same : with a letter to masters of families : to which is added a specimen of the rules and orders of the religious societies, as now practiced in the cities of London and Westminster.		1699 (1699)	Wing F2223A; ESTC R26731	24,637	62

are of such a Temper or no that this Letter recommends and if you are persevere in it to the end remembring that gracious Promise He that endureth to the End shall be saved if you are not make no delay but strive to find out some of those Men that live good Lives and they will be a Help and Benefit to you But above all acquaint your self with a sober Minister and consult him with the great concernments of your Soul Remember alway that this is a Work that must not be delayed for we know not what a Day may bring forth Therefore take St. Paul ' s Advice with which I shall conclude Rom. 13. 12 13 14. Let us therefore cast off the Works of Darkness and let us put on the Armor of Light Let us walk Honestly as in the Day not in Rioting and Drunkenness not in Chambering and Wantonness not in Strife and Envying But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ and make no Provision for the Flesh to fulfill the Lusts thereof Heb. 13. 20 21. Now the God of Peace that brought again from the Dead our Lord Jesus that Great Shepherd of the Sheep through the Blood of the Everlasting Covenant Make you perfect in every good Work to do his Will working in you that which is well-pleasing in his Sight through Jesus Christ to whom be Glory for ever and ever Amen A Friendly Letter TO ALL YOUNG MEN c. DEarly Beloved Brethren and Fellow-Members of the Church of England it is to you that I now Write as a Friend and a Brother for such we should all be one to another and our Saviour makes it the great visible Badge of Christianity By this saith he shall all Men know that ye are my Disciples if ye have Love one for another Now this Divine Grace of Love and Charity being the Foundation of all Religion let it shew its self that it is in our Hearts by a true and sincere Desire of doing Good to one another and to all Men to their precious and Immortal Souls and let us look upon it as our Duty the Endeavouring to save them and the only means whereby to effect that Work is to promote Godliness in the World and Holiness of Life for without Holiness no Man shall see the Lord. Now to the Promoting of Godliness in the World nothing is more effectual than the frequent Conversation of Christians with each other This is a Truth that may be manifested from divers Arguments This is that therefore which in this Letter I would chiefly recommend to you to wit Christian Conversation and Society Man is a Creature made for Society it is by That that he eases his Mind by Communicating his Thoughts it is by That that he receives Comfort by the Counsel of others and gets Wisdom by their Admonition and Advice nay it is by That as an Instrument by which the Holy Spirit does work that he gets Grace For all Conversation is of an assimilating Nature that is it makes Men become like to those they converse withall and consequently the same effect may be reasonably hop'd for from Christian Conversation And this may be further manifested from the Practice of Satan whose Business it is therefore in the first place to divert Men from Christian Conversation and this he effects First By bringing Reproach on such Assemblies as Phanatical and tending to Schism thereby affrighting weak Christians who have not strength to indure Shame for the Name of Christ or that have not Judgment to determine rightly of Enthusiasm and Schism And Secondly by Furnishing of Men with Diversity of other Conversation and for this End he has set up Prophane and Atheistical Clubs in Taverns and Ale-Houses and other Merry Meetings which tend much to the Promoting of his Kingdom because beside other Evils they keep Men from serious and pious Discourse for see what is the Discourse of every Tavern-Club of every Coffee-House-Table of every Merry Meeting What Discourse do you there meet with that is season'd with Grace and to the use of Edifying which the Apostle tells us all our Discourse ought to be It were to be wish'd that it were no worse than Idle and yet for every Idle Word that Men shall speak our Saviour assures us they shall give an Account at the Day of Judgment And if there should be some good Christians among them in such Places yet How are they daunted How little Courage have they to promote any spiritual or savory Discourse How ashamed to reprove any Prophaneness or filthy Talk till by degrees from using to hear such things without Reproving them they grow cold in their Zeal for Religion and at length become insensible so very true it is what the Apostle says that Evil Communication corrupts even good Manners It is like an infectious Disease it gets into our Nature and we know not how and spreads its self into all our Words and Actions This is a true Reason why Christians are so cold in their Devotions so tardy in their Journey Heaven-ward even because they converse too much with the Men of the World which the Holy Ghost assures us is Enmity to God because they are so far taken with one Man's Wit another's good Humour a third's Raillery as to wink at his Prophaneness his lewd Jests his impudent Slander and so by growing cool in their Zeal for Virtue Piety and the Glory of God they at length sink insensibly into an unthinking State whereas if we followed the Apostle's Advice with a Brother that were a Fornicator or a Worldling no not to eat we should then be sure of keeping alive that Fervor and Holy Zeal in our Hearts which alone denominate us Christians Now since it is most manifest That nothing does more promote the Kingdom of Satan than these publick Clubs Why should not good Christians countermine them by making Sober Societies among themselves For in Company with Religious Persons one is tempted to utter those good things which weak Christians are ashamed to speak before the Wicked and we should have great Incouragement to speak what might be to the use of Edifying and ministring Grace to the Hearers and should our selves soon find the Benefit of keeping such Company I am saith Holy David the Companion of all those that fear Thee and keep thy Righteous Judgments Can a Man touch Pitch saith the Prophet and not be defiled therewith Can a Man carry Fire in his Bosom and his Cloaths not be burnt So neither can a Man walk in the Path of the Vngodly but if he hast not out of it he will soon come to stand in the ways of Sinners and at last to sit down in the Seat of the Scornful to mock at all Religion and then his Case is desperate I cannot sufficiently caution you against so dangerous a Temptation as that of Ill Company and especially because there are so many Snares to draw Men into Company in general of which the chiefest and as is commonly

Sermons at Night and the Sacrament in the Morning and the Prayers every Night in the Week in divers Churches that they might have Opportunity to go without wasting their Masters time and Instructed at their own Charge many poor Children in reading English and in the Grounds of the Christian Religion and where there was but one or two such in a Street they made it their Business to get two more to do the same so much was every one concerned for his Brother's Soul and where they saw a Young Man in their Neighbourhood that had no Sence of Religion but lived in Neglect of it they strove to reclaim him and so did increase the number of True Believers and make the publick Prayers more frequented and this makes Religion revive again and come something toward its Primitive Institution I have been but too short in giving you an Account of those Men considering what other good Works they have done for our Example whom we have great Reason to imitate as you may see in the Reverend Mr. Woodward's Book of the Rise and Progress of the Religious Societies as also in another Book Entituled An Account of the Societies for Reformation of Manners And though you have perhaps seen or heard that some few who have thus begun in the Spirit have ended in the Flesh yet let not this discourage you for he that endures to the End shall be saved but take our Saviour's Advice for He tells us in St. Luke That no Man having set his hand to the Plough and looking back is fit for the Kingdom of God And therefore as you have begun by your Baptismal Vow and by the Christian Profession you have since made endeavour to go on from Vertue to Vertue And you that have found the Comfort of leading a good Life the Joy and Pleasure of a good Conscience the Advantage and Benefit of frequenting the Blessed Sacrament and the publick Service of the Church You that now see the Odiousness of those Vices that others wallow in That see the Beauty of that Vertue which others despise and the Charms of that Grace that others laugh at You that see the Reasonableness of Christ's Precepts which others count an intollerable Yoke In a word You that have some Sence and Hopes of another World while Thousands live as if there were none O let not these Comforts be hid within your Breasts but knowing your selves Converted strengthen your Brethren as is commanded by our Saviour in St. Luke and St. Chrysostom tells us To know the Art of Alms is greater than to be Crown'd with the Diadem of Kings and yet To convert one Soul is greater than to pour out Ten Thousand Talents into the Basket of the Poor therefore according to St. Paul's Advice Warn them that are unruly Comfort the feeble-minded Support the weak be Patient towards all Men see that none render Evil for Evil to any Man but ever follow that which is good both among your selves and to all Men and if you be laugh'd at for your pains consider that Blessed are they who shall be reviled for Christ's sake You may possibly cast your Pearl before Swine but let them know that mock at Religion and Piety what a sad after-Reckoning They shall have when the Judgment shall be set and the Books opened as in the Fifth Chapter of Wisdom Then shall the Righteous Man stand in great Boldness before the Face of such as have afflicted him and made no account of his Labours When they see it they shall be troubled with a terrible Fear and shall be amazed at the strangeness of his Salvation so far beyond all they look'd for Then they repenting and groaning for Anguish shall say within themselves This was he whom we have had sometimes in Derision and a Proverb of Reproach We Fools counted his Life Madness and his End to be without Honour How is he numbred among the Children of God and his Lot is among the Saints Then in sorrow and grief of Heart shall they cry out upon themselves What hath Pride profited us or What good hath Riches with our vaunting brought us All those things are vanished like a Shadow and as a Post that passeth by but the Righteous live for evermore their Reward is also with the most Highest Warn them therefore by these Terrors of the Lord that they stand in awe and sin not but that they Die unto Sin and Live unto Righteousness Intreat them to consecrate the Morning the Youth of their Age to God and that they think it not enough to give Him the sleepiest Hours of the Day while they bestow the liveliest upon the World nor to Sin as long as they can and then turn to God For How many alas have been cut off in this foolish Stupidity and know not by how small a Thread the Sword of Justice hangs over their Heads for though God is Merciful yet it is only to the Penitent but he is also Just and rewards every Man according to his works He hath Magazines of Vengeance Store-Houses of Curses and can ruine a sinful Creature a thousand ways and yet How Merry notwithstanding all this is the Drunkard over his Cups And how boldly does the Swearer send up his dreadful Oaths to Heaven and all this because God is Merciful and Long-suffering But O let them know what a terrible Abuse it is to let God's Mercy provoke them to Wantonness and his Patience to cause Sin to live in their Souls that his Goodness should tempt them to be Foolish and his Compassion prompt them to affront his Glory that his Kindness should prove their Bane and that the Meat he gives them should increase their Corruption that his Corn and Wine should be turn'd into Contempt of his Majesty and that they should make use of the Ease he gives them to Fight against his Laws that the Plenty they enjoy by his Providence should encourage them to make War with Him from whom all their Plenty flows O what monstrous Provocations are these If their Children or Servants should use Them so what Punishments could they think too great for them And must God put up Affronts which they will not O bid them consider how He waits for their Repentance and invites them to it Turn ye turn ye saith the Lord your God Why will ye die and yet they frustrate his Clemency He is Patient and would have them prevent the Blow and yet they are ready to pluck it down on their heads To such the Apostle speaks thus Rom. 2. 1. Therefore thou art unexeusable O Man whosoever thou art that despisest the Riches of his Goodness and Forbearance and Long-suffering not considering that the Goodness of God leads to Repentance Make them sensible therefore of the Benefit of Subduing their Lusts and Passions Beg of them to restrain their inordinate Desires and their sensual Appetites to curb their Anger and to put away all Hatred toward their Fellow-Christians to root out their Covetousness