Selected quad for the lemma: love_n
Text snippets containing the quad
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A47286
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Speculum gratitudinis; or, David's thankfulness unto God for all His benefits Expressed in a sermon on the 29th of May, 1664. being Whitsunday, and the day of the happy birth and return of our Gracious King, Charles the Second. By John Kerswel, B.D. and rector of Goddington in Oxford-shire.
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Kerswell, John.
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1665
(1665)
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Wing K353A; ESTC R217555
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10,730
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31
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Ezek. 16.5 6. and no Ey pitied or had compassion on us He passed by and saw us when we were in our Blood and said unto us Live yea when we were in our Blood He said unto us Live Then when we were not able to come unto him he came unto us and that when we were his greatest Enemies and through the singular Wisdom of his Goodness stole into our Affections For seeing how that naturally we were addicted and given to love our selvs and the things which were our own he would needs hereupon become our God also that so we might in a manner be compell'd to love him O the Bowels of Compassion O Love never to be forgotten O Clemency Mercy Goodness incomprehensible Wonderful wonderfull wonderful must this needs seem For whereas Angels Arch-Angels and such an innumerable Multitude of coelestial Powers and Spirits love their God so ardently do him all Homage so willingly and execute his Behests so faithfully He nevertheless as less regarding all this expects to be loved and enterteined of us Men of us terrene abject and ungrateful Wretches Wherefore he bowed the Heavens and came down and was incarnate for our Sake for our Love Thus much hath a most glorious infinite Majesty done gratis for very Nothing Thus much hath a most merciful Father and Lord of all things done for those which were far worse than nothing when he might in his Justice in the Breath of his Displeasure have blasted us and resolved us again into our primordial Elements and very Nothing it self If we for his sake resign up our very Being it self than which naturally nothing is more near and dear unto us alas What do we We offer him the poorest Offerture and nothing but what was his own before and that by far more and greater Right than our own Numisma Caesaris Imago Homo Dei The Coin bears the Stamp and Inscription of Caesar the King but Man the Similitude and Impress of God the King of Kings Redde ergo Mat. 22.21 Render therefore unto Caesar the things that belong unto Caesar and to God the things that are God's for both are their Due Neither hath he created us alone but all other things for our Use and Commodity Look but up to Heaven and that gives thee Light by the Ministry of the Sun by Day of the Moon and Stars by Night that thou walk not in Darkness that sends thee down those sweet Influences whereby divers things spring up and grow that thou perish or dy not through Famine The Air that doth accommodate it self for thee to breath on that cools thee tempers that internal Heat of thine lest it should consume thee The Water servs thee with Rain with soft and seasonable Showrs and with her silver Drops in set and seasonable time doth crown thy Field with goodness The Earth as our common Mother me-thinks speaks thus to each one in particular Behold I sustein thee I like a Mother bear thee in mine Arms all necessaries I provide for thee I maintein thee with the very fruit of mine own Bowels Whether in Life or Death I never forsake thee in thy Life-time I suffer thee to tread and trample on me with thy Feet after Death I afford thee a place of Rest I intomb thee in mine own Bowels Neither hath his Love unto us here been terminated and shut up He hath not only made us and all other things for our use and service but he hath gone on and continued still his Mercy towards us by preserving us too ever since we were born nay before ever we drew in this common Air Ps 139.16 His Eys were upon us in our Mother's Womb when as yet our Substance was imperfect and all our Members in continuance were fashioned when as yet there was none of them And he hath all this while been content to stay for Thanks until by the leisure of Nature our Understandings have been made as capable of his Blessings as our Bodies were and yet all this while we have paid him nothing Nothing I am sure as we should nothing as we ought His Mercies are renewed every Morning saith the Prophet yea Lâ—m. â— 2â— every Moment We move not a Foot which he moveth not we neither open nor shut an Ey without his especial help Neither is here yet a Period of his Love unto us He hath freely given us his holy Word and Sacraments to sanctifie nourish and preserve our Souls unto Life everlasting Ps 147.20 He hath not dealt so with many other Nations neither have the Heathen knowledg of his Laws yea as though that were yet too little he hath given us his onely begotten Son and with him all things even that Gift of Gifts his blessed Spirit of Grace and holy Unction on this day of Pentecost In our Creation Christ gave us Ourselvs In our Redemption he gave us Himself thereby restoring us to ourselvs Therefore thus given at the first and restored again when we had lost our selvs we ow our selvs for our selvs and ow our selvs twice But now What shall we repay unto the Lord for Himself Though we could repay Our Selvs ten thousand times What are we in comparison of Christ the Son of God So then though we had as many Lives to spend as Drops of Blood to shed we could never recompense his Love There is yet behind another Redemption not to be balk'd or pass'd over in silence and that 's from Domestick Vsurpation and Tyranny by the miraculous Restauration of his Sacred Majesty CHARLS the Second the best of Kings the Father of his Country the Extinguisher of Tyranny the Restorer of Liberty and the Founder of Tranquility at whose joyful and victorious Approach Rebellion and Vsurpation with their horrid Attendant Confusion are chased away and Concord and Loyalty recalled in their room If the Lord had not been on our side may England now say If the Lord himself had not been on our side may his late afflicted Church say and had he not turn'd our Captivity as the Rivers in the South we had till this time gone on our way weeping and sowing in Tears despairing ever of a joyful Harvest and of bringing our Sheavs with us But blessed be God who hath not wholly given us over as a Prey unto our Enemies but hath plucked us at the last as a Firebrand out of the Fire Blessed be God who hath directed the heart of a most sagacious and faithful Counsellor much like to another Hushai or Nehemiah to contrive the happy means and pave the way for our Deliverance Blessed be God who hath stirred up the Spirit of a prudent and magnanimous Chieftain like a second Moses or Cyrus to effect it and bring it to pass by rescuing us out of those miserable Calamities and Distractions which we so long groaned under and by restoring us to our antient Freedom with all the just Rights and Immunities thereof Tell me O ye Redeemed of the Lord ye that yet stand amazed at the strangeness of your Deliverance Tell me Men and Brethren and all that hear me this day How can we sufficiently aestimate or worthily prise so rich a Blessing What Return shall we make unto the Lord for This and all other his Mercies the Number whereof is numberless and their Measure beyond all measure Assuredly render something we must for this is the Nature and Property of Him who is Optimus Maximus our best and greatest Benefactor who openeth his hand and filleth every thing living with his Goodness and giveth us all things richly to enjoy 1 Tim. 6.17 That as in conferring Benefits he is most liberal and free so is he likewise a most just and severe Exacter of his ordinary Tribute of Thanks Not because he any ways stands in need of any thing from us for if thou be righteous Job 35.7 what givest thou Him or what receiveth he at thine hand but because it is his most just and lawful Due he demands it requiring the Reciprocation and Return of our Duties for our own Good and Benefit and not for any Advantage of his Then let our Mouth as holy David exciteth us be filled with thy Praise all the Day long O Lord. What is that saith devout St. Austin All the Day long but without intermission In prosperis quia consolaris in adversis quia corrigis antequam essemus quia fecisti cùm essemus quia salutem dedisti c. In prosperity because thou comfortest us in adversity because thou chastisest us before we were because thou created'st us when we were because thou preserved'st us when we had sinn'd because thou forgavest us when we turned unto thee because thou drawed'st us and if we persevere because thou wilt crown us Thus even thus let our Mouth be filled with thy Praise all the Day long O Lord and without intermission and let us with our Prophet here express the manner of our Thanksgiving Let us take the Cup of Salvation and call upon the Name of the Lord Let us pay our Vows unto the Lord now in the presence of all his People And because we can render him Nothing let us render him a Confession That we can render him Nothing For such is the Longanimity and Forbearance of our heavenly Creditor that if we do but acknowledg our Willingness along with our Inability to repay him He will accept our Will for the Debt and our bare Confession for a full Discharge Thus then let us do Let us humble our selvs under his mighty Hand confess our own Defects and Imperfections and so give Him alone all Glory To the King Eternal Immortal Invisible the only Wise God be all Honor and Glory throughout all Ages AMEN