Selected quad for the lemma: mercy_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
mercy_n	eye_n	lord_n	wait_v	2,901	5	9.3473	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A33925	The body of divinity, or, A confession of faith being the substance of Christianity, containing the most material things relating to matters both of faith and practice : published for the benefit and profit of all, especially those who love the Lord Jesus ... / by Thomas Collier.	Collier, Thomas, fl. 1691.	1674 (1674)	Wing C5268; ESTC R23929	303,320	630

than the Oath of Two Lyers but the Truth of God in Divine Credence is the sure Ground of Faith And when a Soul comes to this pitch of Faith to Believe that he that hath spoken is God that cannot Lye that Faithful is he that hath promised who will do it Then he is quiet it puts the Matter out of doubt and for this he hath given us Two Immutable things in which it is impossible for God to Lye Heb. 6. 18. In which is included the Mercy of God for it is his Mercy to promise and his Truth and Faithfulness to perform Hence the Scripture saith Mercy and Truth are met together Psal 8● 10. And the coming of our Lord into the World was to perform the Mercy promised to our Fathers and to remember his Holy Covenant Luke 1. 7● So that there is a Concurrency of Mercy and Truth in God as the Ground of our Faith 2. The All-sufficiency of God to perform his Word his Mercy and his Truth is the ground of Faith If an honest Man promise you that which he is able to perform you give great Credency thereunto though there can be no Infallible Credence in this Matter For Men be they never so Faithful yet have not the power of Performmance in themselves therefore may fail but God hath all power of Perforance in himself and this was the ground of Abraham's Faith Rom. 4. 21. Being fully perswaded that what he had promised he was able to perform And when God commanded him to offer his Son for which he had so strong Faith he fixes both on the Truth and Power of God and on that account yields ready Obedience Accounting that God was able to raise him up even from the Dead Heb. 11. 19. There is likewise an All-sufficiency in the Lord Jesus for the accomplishing of the Word and Work of Salvation for The Obiect of Faith all true Believers Heb. 7. 25. And the same that is the Ground is likewise the Object of Faith that is to what and to whom we are to look in Believing that is to God and Christ Who performeth all things for us We are to look to him and Believe in him to have God and Christ in their Mercy Truth Faithfulness and Power always in our Eye Isa 45. 22. Look unto me and be ye saved all the ends of the Earth that is Gentiles as well as Jews Mich. 7. 7. Therefore will I look to the Lord and wait for the God of my Salvation c. Isa 17. 7. John 3. 14 15. 4. What is the Excellency of Faith Faith 4. Of the excellency of Faith is an excellent and choyce Virtue it 's called in Scripture for it's Excellency precious Faith 2 Pet. 1. 1. To them that have obtained like precious Faith with us It 's called Precious for it's excellent and precious Uses and Effects Which are as followeth 1. It justifieth God in his whole Name 1. It justifieth God especially in his Mercy Truth Faithfulness Power Wisdom Purity and Justice wherein Faith is mostly exercised He that believeth not God abaseth and abuseth him in his whole Name hath made him a Lyer but he that Believeth justifieth God in his Truth John 3 33. He that receiveth i. e. Believeth his Testimony hath set to his Seal that God is true No wonder that Unbelief must be punished with Damnation s●eing it gives God the Lye not only in not Believing that Jesus is the Christ Men may believe the general Doctrine of the Gospel touching Salvation by Jesus Christ by Education and Tradition and not believe the Truth thereof in matter of Holiness and Obedience to conform thereunto and that do as truly give God the Lye as not to Believe the Doctrine of Salvation for if Men may be Saved in ways of Unholiness and Disobedience the word of the Lord is not True which saith the contrary 1 Cor. 6 9 10. Ephes 5. 3 4 5 6. Heb. 12. 14. Rev. 21. 27. Therefore let God be True and every Man in this matter a Lyer 2. It 's that as the Condition will justifie 2. I● justifieth the Sinner the Believers before God Rom. 5 1. Therefore being justified by Faith we have Peace with God But of this more at large in the Doctrine of Justification 3. It 's of a Soul-strengthening Excellency 3. It 's of a Soul strength●ning Excellency it helps to hold out and to overcomeing the Spiritual Warfare 1 Cor. 16. 13. Watch ye stand fast in the Faith quit ye like Men he strong Our strength in the warfare is by standing fast in the Faith the Saints have many Enemies to Encounter withall both within them and without them and it is their stability in the Faith of the Gospel that is their strength Eph 6. 16. In the Spiritual warfare with those high Enemies the Saints are to Encounter withal Exprest vers 12. The chief Defence of the Saints in Faith Above all take the Shield of Faith wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the Fiery Darts of the wicked One It 's that by which we must get the Victory over the World if ever we get it 1 John 5. 4. And this is the Victory that overcometh the World even your Faith What we are to understand is intended by the World see Chap. 2. 16. For all that is in the World as the lust of the Flesh the lust of the Eyes and the Pride of Life is not of the Father but of the World The World the Flesh and the Devil are the three great Enemies of the Saints and by Faith it is that they overcome them all How so Why Faith believes the Truth of and Interest in better things than either any or all of these can propound and that makes the Gracious Soul to slight All and to account it but Dung and Dross and to part with All for the Excellency of Christ It believes down the World and Sin and Satan believes in Grace and Strength from the Lord Hence the Scripture saith that we are kept by the Power of God through Faith 1 Pet. 1. 5. God strengthens keeps and preserves his People in a way of Believing not without or out of the way of Faith In a word our Lord expresseth the Power of Faith All things are possible to him that Believeth Mark 9. 23. Faith believes all things possible for God to do that he hath said he will do and all things possible for Man to do and suffer that God calls him to it strengthens the Soul both in doing and suffering 4. Excellency of Faith is it purifieth the 4. Faith purifieth the heart Heart Acts 15. 9. It 's of a purifying Nature in it's Exercise and Imployment it exerciseth it self about the Holiness of God in his own Nature the purity of his Word and Will the greatness of his Love in the Death of the Lord for Sinners with the Holy ends thereof c. And this works the Soul into the Hatred of Sin and

much and more than the other unless souls will live for ever under one single sealing evidence as I fear too many do so neglect the daily exercise of Faith or expect daily renewed sealings which I suppose are not ordinary in this way whereas those Divine Virtues of the Spirit to which the promise is made shall never totally fail in truly gracious souls though through the prevalency of corruption they may be clowded yet the soul may through all the clowds of darkness see something of the Divine stamp left and remaining on the heart if sometimes to apprehension there should appear nothing but a sense of sin and bitter weeping for it with a heart longing after Christ as was sometimes the case of Peter yet this is something yea very much of the Divine impression and so it appears to be the sure way for solid peace and salvation in the end 3. What it is that ordinarily hinders 3. The hindrances of Assurance Christians from obtaining this assurance though first I fear that many Christians content themselves with an ungrounded assurance and such need to be startled out of their groundless security and 2. Others scarce trouble themselves about the matter but content themselves in the form of the Gospel leaving the matter of assurance of interest to those that will trouble themselves about it but it 's that which does concern every true Christian both for his own comfort and the comfort or conviction of others to be able to give a reason of his hope a grounded and comfortable assurance of interest in Christ and Grace being of that worth for a comfortable walking with God here though not the essence of Christianity I shall endeavour to state some of the lets and hindrances that Christians may escape them and obtain the mercy The first let or hindrance I shall mention Le ts and hindrances of obtaining Assurance ariseth from the confused notions about the way of obtaining thereof which have occasioned many miscarriages some to conclude that they have it when it 's to be feared they do mistake and if so they deceive themselves and others serious seeking souls sent with sorrow to their graves for want of right direction from the Word of Life in this matter 1. It hath been by many supposed that 1. Supposing the Faith of interest to be the Faith of Justification the Faith of assurance of interest hath been the Faith of Justification and hence persons falling sho●t in this conclude that they have no Faith at all but that they are in a state of unbelief I have known some to lie in sorrow complaining they had no Faith and so under fears of perishing because they could not believe their own inter●st being unskilled in the right way of making it up to their comfort I have asked them do you believe in truth that Jesus is the Christ they answer yea then you are born of God Joh. 5. 1. Do you believe the truth of the Doctrine of the Gospel concerning the life and salvation held forth therein by Jesus Christ crucified yea then you have that Faith to which Salvation is promised Mar. 16. 15 16. 1 Joh. 5. 10 11 13. Do you believe with your heart that God hath raised Christ from the dead if you do you cannot but believe that he died fo● our sins according to the Scripture yea then you shall be saved Rom. 10. 9. Are you in good earnest willing to be saved by Christ and to be ruled by him as your Lord and to serve him in all things Answ yea with my whole soul if I may be accepted then you have the Spirit of Christ 1 Cor. 12. 3. Do you love God and Christ above all and his people for his sake yea I love God and Christ I hope above all and desire to love them more and his people because they are his and his image is stampt upon them then you are born of God 1 Joh. 3. 14 19 and 4 7 12. And do you see your self vile are you poor in your own eyes and do you see and believe that if ever you be saved it must be by the free Grace and Mercy of God in Jesus Christ Yea I do find it so to be with me then yours is the Kingdom of Heaven Mat. 5. 3. Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven And what Faith is it that you would have will the Faith of Abraham the Father of us all do it He believed God and it was accounted to h●m for Righteousness Rom. 4. 3. Will the Faith to which Justification and Life is promised do it why that you have and yet conclude that you have no Faith thus many poor souls lie groveling on the ground supposing they have no Faith when in truth they are rich in Faith and heirs of that Kingdom which God hath promised to them that love him Jam. 2. 10. and from such a self-examination may doubting souls come to see that they indeed have Faith even the Faith of Gods Elect and be able to give a reason of their Hope both to themselves and others But for persons to suppose that the Faith of interest is the first and only Faith of Justification and Life is according to the Proverb to set the Cart before the Horse which must needs go heavily a●d bring disconsolation and confusion to the soul 2. Others talk at such a rate about the 2. Supposing it to come in in some unknown way manner attaining of Assurance as if it must drop down from Heaven into the heart in some wonderful unknown way immediately from the Spirit with such over-powrings of consolation as if they were in Heaven alredy such as scarsly any serious Christians have experienced which have amazed serious souls out of their hope and confidence having no experience of such a thing and others it may be cheated with something like this with a foolish confidence of assurance of Heaven ordinarily attended with Pride and Self-conceit and neglect of an humble walk with God which is the way for Christians to walk into Glory whereas solid and sound assurance must come by believing and the Spirits sealing is in that way and the highest attainment of Joy and Peace is by believing what comes in any other way comes we know not whence and may lead us we know not whether 3. Others will have no Faith of assurance 3. Others some immediate application of some Scripture unless it be from some Scripture immediately and powerfully brought to them by the Spirit to the satisfying of their souls and silencing all doubts in the matter and this they account the sealing o● the Spirit To this I say 1. That it is mercy when the Lord does bring Scripture to remembrance to his people suitable to their conditions for their comfort and instruction I doubt not but that God doth instruct support and comfort his people in this way yet 2. This is not the Scripture