Selected quad for the lemma: love_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
love_n	abide_v	commandment_n	keep_v	7,539	5	7.0952	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A93799	A holy life here, the only way to eternal life hereafter. Or, A discourse grounded on these words, The weapons of our warfare, &c. 2. Cor. 10. 4. Wherein among other things set down in a following index this truth is especially asserted; namely, that a holy life, or the habitual observing of the laws of Christ, is indispensably necessary to salvation. Whereunto is added an Appendix, laying open the common neglect of the said laws among Christians, and vindicating such necessity of observing them from those general exceptions that are wont to be made against it. By R.S. B.D.	Stanwix, Richard, 1608-1656.	1652 (1652)	Wing S5252; Thomason E1276_1; ESTC R210586	123,869	304

personall obedience to the lawes of Christ a thing unnecessary in this kind especially when as in this case through the cunning of the false angel of light it is pretended by such a sense and inference from it the honour of Christ may be thought to be better provided for he having hereby that glory at least implicity ascribed to him of saving us so perfectly by his own merits and righteousnesse as not to stand upon any thing to be performed by us But as I suppose all will grant there are some things so clearly affirmed in Scripture that if an angel from heaven should teach us the contrary wee were not to assent thereunto nor to suffer our selves to be drawn off the belief of the said things such as in this present matter are these positions without holinesse no man shall see God Heb. 12. Joh. 3. Math. 7. except a man be regenerate he cannot enter into the kingdome of heaven hee that hears Christs words and doth them not is like unto a foolish man c. so I answerably conceive if there be any opinion which either expressely or by it's naturall force and consequence shall contradict such things so affirmed or the plain meaning of the said positions making heaven truly possible to be come at without holinesse or being regenerate or doing of Christs words it is without scruple to bee rejected what ever numbers of adherents or prescription of time or seeming colour of some other parts of Scripture it may have for commending and upholding the credit of it It is most certain and so generally also acknowledged that the gospel the oracle of truth admits no reall contradictions betwixt any of the parts of it and it is I conceive or ought to be not much lesse certain that the true sense of the foresaid positions together with those other formes of speech to the same effect wherewith the Scripture plentifully abounds is no other but this which the words plainly and in their literall sense hold forth namely that our personall and actuall observing of the words or commands of Christ is precisely requisite to constitute us heirs of salvation or which comes all to one that without holinesse and our being regenerate persons which implyes a reall and universall change of of our courses and affections the kingdom of heaven is not to be attained Now who sees not that if there be any other expressions of the said Scripture as some few I acknowledge there are that may in themselves seem capable of a contrary sense that is so as to afford and allow men hopes of salvation upon easier tearmes than doing of Christs words or having such an effectuall change wrought in themselves who may not see hence I say that there is a necessity of understanding the said expressions in another sense than that which shall evidently contradict the plain meaning of the foresaid plain and plentifull assertions should not the fewer places as in this matter they certainly are be rather brought to a conformity with the more than the more be bended to the fewer especially when as in this case it will be found the sense of the more considered singly and with reference to one another is plain and rationall and easy to be apprehended but being reduced to that which is the seeming or supposed sense of the fewer becomes irrationall or intricate should not the plain and frequent expressions of Scripture on this subject rather make us considently hold that our own personall performance of those things commanded us by Christ is indispensably necessary for attaining of salvation than some dark and figurative formes of speech incline us to hold the contrary and make us promise our selves heaven without such performance upon I know not what groundlesse reliance on Christs merits surely in reason it should be so and so it would be I doubt not in this case but for the forementiond cause namely that men being willing to come to heaven with as much ease as may be are easily tempted to believe the easiest way thither to be the best and therefore through the devills cunning are soon perswaded to take more notice and more stifly insist on one text seemingly making that way than on twenty other implying the contrary As for that which is pretended that this way of pressing obedience to Christs lawes or requiring our own personall performances as necessary to salvation is that which tends to dishonour Christ and makes for the exalting of our selves and setting up that which some call self-righteousnesse This I say is a very groundlesse pretence and if thorowly looked into will appear to be but a plausible artifice of the great impostour not of strength sufficient to deceive any but those that are in effect willing to be deluded by it for doth not our Saviour himself plainly enough tell us that this indeed onely is the way whereby wee can truly honour him and that all verball professions and magnifyings of him with high titles separated from the former performances are but empty formalities which he regards not as where he saith not they that say unto me Math. 7.21 Lord Lord that is as if he had said not those that give him specious and honourable titles by telling him or it may be telling it to others that they will account him their perfect Saviour that his merits and righteousnesse they will wholly look and rely upon and not have any respect to what is in or done by themselves shall enter into the kingdome of heaven but they that doe the will of my father that is in heaven and so likewise where he tells his disciples and in them us Joh. 15.8 that herein is his Father glorified if we bring forth much fruit Ver. 9. and that by keeping his commandements we can only abide in his love the keeping of those being that wherein St. 1 John 5.3 John makes the love of God from whence only our honouring of him can proceed truly to consist By thus doing we give Christ that honour which belongs to him as our Lord and King in regarding and submitting our selves to his laws we give him also hereby that honour which belongs to him as our purchaser and redeemer in limiting our selves to his service he having for this purpose by the expence of his blood bought us or done that which is sufficient for so buying us out of our former servitude to sin and lastly we give him hereby that honour which is due to him as the Apostle of our profession Heb. 3.1 or as that great prophet and ambassadour immediatly sent from God to reveal and promise us that eternall life 1 John 1.2 which was before with the Father that is hid in his decree by shewing our selves hereupon so undoubtedly to believe this as to prefer the expectation of it before all our present interests and worldly concernments which thing by our keeping of his words we must needs and can only so show Neither is there any danger hereby of

their eyes namely with the dazeling splendour of riches and worldly profits presented in their full but false glory to them when as notwithstanding the danger our Saviour hath forewarned us there is in these things and the charge the Apostle hath laid upon those that have them to be rich in good works not only their thoughts appear to be taken up with a continued successive series of cares about them whereby they are often cast upon unjust or scandalous courses for getting or encreasing them but also their enjoying of them is wholy in a manner ingrossed to themselves to feed their eyes with the pleasure of beholding them or their other Iusts of ambition and sensuality by laying them out so as these incite them and may we not think that there is a third sort of whom it may be said that that which St. John cals the pride of life hath taken up the chief room in their hearts when as so many signs or rather effects thereof are open to the notice of all such as high looks painted faces gorgeous apparell boasting at least obliquely of their own worth or parts or of that which is not truly their own genus proaves the vertue or it may be only the wealth and greatness of their Ancestours things all utterly inconsistent with that humility which our Saviour hath placed as the first round in that ladder whereby we are to climb to heaven and doe not these three sorts to say nothing of those other breaches of this sobriety consisting in vain talking and foolish jeasting so common with most persons as drunkards swearers c. not so distinctly comprized under these heads make up every where with us as well as Papists the far greatest number of Christians even of those which are the knowing and civill part of them By all which it may appear that those lawes of Christ or rules of life prescribed us in the gospel however known and acknowledged for such are not indeed hardly by any that so acknowledge them looked upon and accounted as binding lawes that is so binding as that heaven the glorious prize held forth to us therein cannot possibly be come at but by a constant and impartiall observing of them Men hereby I conceive declare and that more really than they could well otherwise by their words that they think a bare knowledge or profession of these lawes never actuated into such an observance nor indeed ever truly intended to be so is all that is indispensably required of them in reference to that place and so that heaven may be won by those that onely professe to fight for it without really doing so Now one principall aim of the former discourse is to work men off this pleasing but pernicious perswasion to show that which I shall now more largely insist on and confirm namely that these lawes of Christ were given to another end than onely to be known or talked of that the glorious reward of eternall life revealed and proposed to the world by him though it infinitely exceed for the true worth of it the utmost imaginable extent of our obedience so that wee could not be said upon a supposall of our absolute freedom from sin and continued walking in gods commandements all our dayes properly to merit it yet cannot be come at but in that narrow way which he hath limited that wee must come up to Christs own tearmes if wee will indeed purchase this rich pearl and these tearmes are no other but the observing of the foresaid lawes Math. 11.29 or as our Saviour himself speakes the taking of his yoke upon us his easy yoke as he calls it as beeing by him lightned of those numerous and servile ceremonies which made it formerly lie so heavy on the necks of Gods people of which metaphoricall expression St. Act. 15.10 John renders us the sense in plain words by telling us 1 Joh. 5.3 that this is the love of God that wee keep his commandements namely those delivered to us by his son Christ whom he had commanded all to hear and which commandements especially as sweetned with the hopes of the former reward are not grievous as he there affirmes Math. 17.5 yea in the keeping of these it is that the same Apostle makes the knowledge of Christ to consist telling us that he that saith 1 Joh. 2.4 he knoweth him and keepeth not his commandements is a lyar and the trut his not in him The Antinomians There are some I know that have found out shorter and easier wayes as they imagin to the kingdome of heaven who not onely think the former course unnecessary for any to engage themselves in but ordinarily decry the pressing and perswading thereof as that which tends to the setting up as they call it of self-righteousnesse and to detract from Christ that honour which they conceive can onely by a confident reliance on him separated from all such qualifications in our selves truly redound to him Now though wee may well admire how this opinion should ever come to attain so much credit as to gain any proselytes among Christians or how the patrons of it should come to have such boldnesse to vent it with that confidence as they have done when wee consider what a flat and direct opposition it beares to the main current of the gospel and particularly to those 3 chapters in Math. Math. 5.6.7 wherein our Saviours sermon is contained and to the first epistle of John yet I cannot but acknowledge this cause of wondring to be much abated when I consider withall the answerable opposition that there is betwixt those lawes of Christ and the sensuall desires that are naturally in men which being alwayes ready at hand to put men on such wayes as are most pleasing or least distastfull to the flesh it is no marvell if the said desires so far prevail some time on the judgment as to perswade it to passe sentence on their side that is to judge such wayes most safe and warrantable which are most pernicious and damnable in themselves This is to be reckond the true originall cause I conceive of the foresaid opinion and of mens resoluteness in holding it Most are desirous to come to heaven by as short and easy a course as may bee and they very well know that it is longum iter per praecepta a very tedious and difficult voyage thither by the way of Christs commandes that is onely by the constant and continued expressions of the former Godlinesse righteousnesse sobriety to look for as the Apostle requires wee should the blessed hope promised what marvell then is it if this desire and this knowledge joined together in them make them willing to find out and entertain such opinions as promise heaven upon easier terms than such harsh conditions what marvell is it if upon this ground among the many figurative and some of them obscure formes of speech wherewith the scripture abounds some be understood in such a sense as makes our proper and