Selected quad for the lemma: mercy_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
mercy_n	according_a	lord_n	love_a	2,028	5	9.4424	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A19490	A conduit of comfort Preached at Sainct Iames before the Commissioners of the Vnion of the Realmes. By W. Couper, Minister of Gods word.	Cowper, William, 1568-1619.	1606 (1606)	STC 5916; ESTC S114683	33,427	48

not ordayned to mercie Now that this Calling flowing from Election may be yet made sure to our consciences for our greater comfort let vs marke the maner of the Lordes proceeding into it and so gather vp some tokens wherby we may discerne it As in the first Creation the Lord began at the light so in the second Creation he begins at the illumination of the minde For we can neither know the Lord to feare and loue him neither yet our selues and our sinnes ●right till the Lord who commaunded light to shine out of darknesse shine also into our hearts to giue vs the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Iesus Christ and this light of God discouers to vs so many workes of darknesse wherewith in ignoraunce we defiled our consciences that we begin to be ashamed of our selues in the sight of God ye● our very flesh trembleth for feare of his Iudgements and we cry out with Iob Now my eye hath seene the Lord therefore I abhorre my selfe And thus the Lord proceedes from the minde to the heart working into it such a contrition and godly sorrow as causeth repentance vnto saluation whereby the heart that was senselesse before being dead in sinne and trespasses begins now to stirre and moue as the heart of Iosiah melted at the reading of the Law and the hearts of those penitent Iewes which were pricked at the sharpe Sermon of Peter then feeling our selues vnder death through sinne we begin to bethinke vs of the way of life and to aske with the Iaylor What shall we do that we may be saued These motions meltings and prickinges of the heart wrought in the elect by the hearing of Gods word are the very pluckes of the hand of God translating thee out of Nature into Grace yet must we not rest heere for Felix may tremble while Paul is preaching and many for a while may receaue this word with ioy and yet afterward fall away in the time of temptation We must therefore consider if there be in the heart a respondence and answering vnto the Lord So oft as he calleth doe we present our selues before him ready to follow him saying with Abraham Heere I am Lord and with Samuel after he knew the Lords voyce Speake on Lord thy seruant heareth th●● This answering and following of the Lord are vndoubted tokens of effectuall Calling So oft as the Lord calleth the Christian answereth When thou saydst Seeke yee my 〈◊〉 my heart answered O Lord I will seeke thy 〈◊〉 If the Lord commaund the Christian answereth O Lord quicken mee according to thy louing kindnesse that I may apply my heart to keepe thy Statutes alwayes to the end I● the Lord promise Mercie the Christian answers Stabl●sh O Lord thy promise to thy seru●nt and let it be to mee accordi●g to thy word for I beleeu● in thee but Lord helpe my vnbeleife And thus in the heart of one effectually called there is a continuall respondance to the voyce of God awayting on the Lord a walking with him and a following of him where euer he goe If the Lord haue called thee sure it is thou wilt follow him and no power of the Diuell of the World or the Flesh shall hold thee backe from him When Eliah touched Elisha with his Cloake he left his Oxen and came after him When Iesus called on Andrew and Peter they left their Nets their Ship and their Father and followed him When he called on Matthew he left all his gainefull trade of the receit of Custome and followed him When he called on Mary Magdelen she forsooke her sinfull life and followed him Heere is the finest touchstone to try an inward calling If the Lord hath called thee thou wilt follow him but if yet thou be wandring after vanity walking on in the course of thy sinne turning thy backe and not thy face vnto the Lord deceaue not thy selfe partaker of this heauenly Calling wherein s●andes the onely comfort of a Christian hast thou neuer been That loue God And last of all to returne to the wordes againe the whole effectes of our Inward Calling the Apostle compriseth vnder one to wit The loue of God and that most properly for Lou● compriseth al the rest v●der it Loue is the cognoscence of Christs Disciples sayes our Sauiour It is the Band of perfection sayth the Apostle and accomplishment of the Law Loue speakes with the tongue of euery Vertue Pittie biddes thee helpe the Indigent Iustice biddes thee giue euery man his owne Mercy biddes forgiue Patience biddes suffer but the voyce of Christian loue commaundes all these Holy loue is the oldest Daughter of a Iustifying Fayth that is the first affection that Fayth procreateth and sanctifieth and whereby she workes in the sanctification of the rest L●ue is the strongest most impe●ious affection in the whole nature of man all the rest of the affections giues place vnto it which we may see euen in the man naturall and vnregenerate Where Loue is kindled Feare is banished Couetousnesse coucheth Ambition is silent A Coward i●flamed with Loue becomes valia●t and a Couetous man is oft times commaunded by Loue to be prodigall yea the Proud ambitious man who otherwise giues place to no man for obtaining that which he loues cares not to prostrate his honour to the dust If Carnall lou● be so forcible what shall we say of the Spiritual l●ue how much more doth it draw the whole powers of soule and body after the Lord neither is it possible to do otherwayes for euery thing returnes to his owne origin●ll as the waters go downe to the deepe from whence they came and Fire tendes vpward to the owne place and region euen so holy L●●e being a sp●rke of the heauenly Fire kindled in our heartes by the ●oly Ghost doth rauish vs alwayes vp●ard towar●e the Lord ●rom whom it came and 〈◊〉 vs neuer to rest while we en●oy him then we begin to l●ue when we begin to Loue. As no Creature can liue out of the owne 〈◊〉 so the Soule is but 〈◊〉 in sinne 〈…〉 of the loue of God No feare to o●●end him no 〈◊〉 ●o please him no obedience to his Commandements can be giuen by the heart that loues him not 't were longsome to speake of all the properties of Loue we make choyce of a few as chiefe tryalles of our Loue. The fir●● propertie o● L●ue is a bur●ing desire to ob●aine that which is b●loued as a Woman that loueth her Husband vnlargnedly can not be content with any Loue token she receiueth from him in his absence but longeth more and more till she receiue 〈◊〉 So the Soule which is wounded with the Loue of I●sus her immortall Husband hath a continuall desire to be at him I graunt euery ●oken sent from him bringes comfort but no contentment till she enioyes him whereof comes these and such like complaintes As the Hart brayes for the

we are heere If of weakenesse we fall we may rise againe and if we haue not learned well to repent in one day we haue leaue of the Lordes patience to learne it better an other day his name be praysed therefore who hath opened a doore of mercie to sinners and with long suffering waites for our repentance But he who in the day of his transmigration steppes the wrong s●eppe will neuer get leaue to amende it Where the tree falles it shall lie there the wicked dies in their sinnes and so steppes downeward to the deepe Pit and Gulph out of die which there is no redemption Let vs therefore be well aduised before we leape Let vs fasten our feet● in the borders of that Canaan in time which shall be done if we make our whole life a proceeding from Election to Glorification and that through Calling and Iustification which two is inseparably following them the Sanctification Renouation of the whole man The Lord make vs wise in time that we may consider our course and thinke of the end wherevnto it leades vs for there is but one of two as M●ses protested to the Israelites so do I vnto you I haue layde this day life and death before you the Lord giue you grace to make choyce of the best But now to returne to the wordes of this description of the persons to whom this priuiledge appertayneth wee haue these thinges First the Purpose of God Secondly his Calling according to his Purpose Thirdly the euident token according to Gods calling which is the loue of God The Purpose of God concerning thy saluatiō thou mayest know by thy Calling and if againe thou wilt try thy Calling try it by the Loue of God which thou findes in thee And of these three now let vs speake shortly According to his Purpose Heere you see then how the Apostle draweth our Calling from the Purpose of God and so when he will comfort vs with the certaintie of our Saluation hee leades vs out of our selues vp to the Rocke that is higher then wee hee teacheth vs to cast our Anchor within the Vaile and to fasten our Soules vpon that vnchangeable Purpose of God It is most expedient for the children of God to marke this because the manifold changes we find in our selues do often times interrupt the peace of our mindes that the Lord our God hath in such sort dispensed our Saluation that the ground thereof is layd in his owne immutable Purpose but the markes tokens and pledges he placeth in them after their Calling for whom it was ordayned The tokens are changeable as wee our selues in whom they are are changeable but the ground holdes fast being layde in the vnchangeable God in whom falles no shadow of alteration and this should comfort vs against our dayly vicis●itudes changes defectes and temporall desertions our Fayth may faint our spirituall life may languish our Hope hoouer our Heartes in praying fall downe like the infeebled handes of Moses yet let vs not despaire no change in vs can alter the Lords vnchangeable Purpose hee who hath begun the worke in vs will also perfect it Because I am not changed sayth the Lord therefore is it that yee O sonnes of Iacob are not consumed This Purpose of God is called otherwayes The will of God and The good pleasure of his will and it doth learne vs to giue to the Lord the prayse which is due to him namely the prayse of the whole worke of our Saluation should be ascribed to the good pleasure of his will onely and not to our foreseene Merites that poyson of pride which Satan powred in our first Parents whereby he prouoked them to aspire to be equall with God doth yet appeare in their posteritie the corrupt heart of man euer ayming at this eyther in part or in whole to haue the prayse of Saluation ascribed to him and so would start vp in the roome of God vsurping that glory which belongeth to the Lord and he will not giue to another then the which no sacriledge more fearefull can be committed against the Lord. O man content thee with that which the Lord offers thee and let that alone which the Lord reserueth to him selfe My Peace sayth the Lord I giue vnto you but my Glorie I will not giue to an other It is enough that the saluation of the Lord is thine but as to the glorie of Saluation let it remaine to the Lord he is for this called The Father of Mercie because Mercie bredde in his owne bosome many causes without himselfe found he without himselfe moouing him to execute Iustice but a cause moouing him to shew mercie found he neuer saue onely The good pleasure of his will Therefore sayth the Apostle The Lord hath called vs with a holy calling nor according to our workes but according to his Purpose and Grace Surely except the Lord had reserued Mercie for vs we had been like Sodome and Gomorrah but it hath pleased him in his Mercie of the same lumpe of Clay to make vs vessels of Honour whereof he hath made others vessels of dishonour and who is able sufficiently to thinke of so great a benefite Therefore let the Redeemed of the Lord cry out with a louder voyce then Dauid O Lord what are wee that thou hast been so mindfull of vs Not vnto vs O Lord not vnto vs but vnto thy name giue the glory for thy louing kindnesse and for thy truthes sake for our saluation commeth of God that sits vpon the Throne and of the L●●be to thee therefore be prayse and honour and glorie for euer and euer To them that are called The Purpose of God which is sufficient in it selfe is made knowne and manifest to vs by his Calling for our Calling is a declaration of the Decree of our Election and as it were the secret Voyce of God bringing from the Heauens to our Soules this comfortable message That wee are the Sonnes of God Now we must know that Gods Calling is twofold one outward which is common also to the wicked and of it speakes our Sauiour Many are called but few are chosen The other inwarde and effectuall proper onely to the Godly whom the Lord is purposed to saue And this will learne vs to consider of three sortes of men in the world whereof some not called at all some called but not chosen some chosen and therefore called to be sanctified lustified and glorified Yee that will take a right view of all mankind shall find them as it were standing in three Circles they onely being happy who are within the third In the outmost Circle are all those on whom the Lord hath not vouchsafed so much as an outward calling and heere standes the greatest part of the world In the middlemost Circle which is much narrower are all those which are partakers of Gods outward calling by the Word Sacraments And in the third Circle which is of smallest compasse in regard