Selected quad for the lemma: love_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
love_n	act_n	faith_n	work_n	2,998	5	6.1099	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A67307	A sermon preached in Christ-Church before His Excellency the lord deputy and the honorable House of Peers, October the 8th, 1695 being the day appointed for a solemn thanksgiving for the taking the strong cittadel of Namur, and for the other happy successes of His Majesty's forces, and those of his allies in Flanders this campaign / by Edward, Lord Bishop of Down & Connor.	Walkington, Edward.	1695 (1695)	Wing W458; ESTC R38411	13,472	20

em We have read indeed of a certain perfect happiness which a wise man was to create within himself even in this world without any regard to any thing without him or above him to arrive at which did sufficiently exercise the wits and expose the follies of some of the ancient Philosophers amongst whom some were to feel no pain in a fitt of the Gout or Stone nor to know any difference between Phalaris's Bull and a cool Grotto All which was but a meer notion that never came to any more than a few empty words For some of the great pretenders to it have shew'd themselves but men and weak ones too in some of the ordinary hardships and calamities of humane life Contentment with our condition tho a thing much talk'd of by many and tho many specious Rules are laid down for the attainment of it being scarce ever known on this side Heaven insomuch that nothing can possibly make any condition of life easy or supportable to any man that has not an eye to something that can ease him of the difficulties that attend the acquisition and of the griefs and anxieties that follow the loss of these worldly enjoyments and that must be no other than that great and glorious Being who commands 'em all and disposeth of 'em as seems best to his Godly Wisdom And whosoever fixeth this Principle in his mind and acts in pursuance of it that creat's case and satisfaction to himself from the knowledge contemplation of this Wise and Almighty Being and from an intire trust and dependance upon him who has commanded him to make his addresses to him and has promis'd to answer 'em that 's the wise man that 's he that observes and considers well what God commands by the mouth of the Prophet Jeremiah Let not the wise man glory in his Wisdom neither let the mighty man glory in his might let not the rich man glory in his Riches but let him that glory 's glory in this That he understandeth and knoweth me that I am the Lord which exercise Loving-kindness Judgment and Righteousness in the Earth Neither do we stand less in need of the goodness mercy bounty of God as we are united into Societies and bodies politick under the same common Laws and Government than as we are single persons Peace plenty trade and commerce fidelity justice amity union of interests and affections amongst our selves a hearty zealous concern for the publick-weal success of our negotiations with our Allies and Friends and victory over our Enemies being all the Blessings of Heaven and as needful for the support of a Kingdom or Common-wealth as food raiment health of body and tranquility of mind for the behoof of any single person To whom then are we to apply our selves for all or any of these but to that great and glorious Being who has perfect knowledge and wisdom to understand our wants unspeakeable love and goodness to incline him and Almighty power to enable him to relieve us Perfect Knowledge for his understanding is infinite unspeakable love and goodness for he has told us that his mercy is over all his works that he is the helper of the friendless and tho' our Father and Mother forsake us yet will not he and Almighty Power because we are assur'd that all power belongs to God that the Lord Jehovah is everlasting strength and whatsoever he pleases he do's both in Heaven and Earth and in the Sea and in all deep places And these are the reasons directions and incouragements to this great duty of fearing the Lord or that habit of Devotion or Piety to God which is here suppos'd in those who are call'd upon to bless the Lord. We have discover'd it to be a dictate of the Law of Nature and that it is founded upon the sense of our own wants both spiritual and temporal and the wisdom power and goodness of God to redress ' em I come now to consider the Duty it self of Blessing God Concerning which I shall shew you first wherein it consists And then I shall shew you that they that fear the Lord are the only persons rightly qualify'd for the performance of this duty By Blessing the Lord then We understand in this place our doing him all possible Honour in our thoughts words and actions and zealously endeavouring every one in his station that others may do him honour The ingredients of honour are Love and Fear and its object is goodness and Power united Goodness without Power beget's Love only and Power without Goodness beget's nothing but a slavish Fear but both together beget a certain affectionate Reverence and Esteem which we call honour If this regard be confin'd to the thoughts only it is no other than a high estimation of those Excellencies and Perfections with which he is so eminently endow'd as to deserve our Love and Reverence If it break out into words it becomes either praise or thanks and these denote our design to let others know the esteem we have for the person whom we honour together with the grateful sense we have of his past Favours and our readiness to make the best returns we can for any other that he shall from time to time vouchsafe to confer upon us but when it proceeds from Words to Actions then it shews that we are in earnest then we shew the truth and sincerity both of our hearts and words and that we are resolv'd to omit no occasion of demonstrating to the World the value we have for him whom we honour And this is what is expected even by mortal men to whom we pay this regard and consequently cannot be deny'd to God in a more eminent manner that is in due proportion to his infinite power and goodness And tho that honour that is confin'd to the thoughts being no more than a due estimation of those Excellencies and Perfections that are in God especially his goodness and power does at first appear to be an act of the Judgment only and proceeding from a faculty that is not free do's not seem to deserve the name of a duty can claim no praise nor expect a reward yet such is the connexion of the will and the understanding and such is their dependance one upon another in their operations that they frequently partake of the vertues and defects of each other and not only the understanding guides the will but the will inclines and disposes the understanding to good as well as to evil acts or else why should infidelity be a Sin and Faith a Vertue but that they are so is certain For the Scripture plainly declares 'em to be such and the reason is plain for as a docile and tractable disposition of mind humility the Love of Truth and a hearty endeavour to attain it do beget Faith So Pride and ill Nature a Stupid Sloath Obstinacy Prejudice and a resolution to indulge out lusts and passions are the Parents of Infidelity We are not therefore to look