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
B04185	Sermons on several subjects; shewing Gods love to mankind. Salvation is by grace. Wilderness-provision. God a strong hold in trouble. Light is to be improved. / By J. Lougher minister of the gospel.	Lougher, John, d. 1686	1685 (1685)	Wing L3093C; ESTC R180071	105,071	248

than nothin● consider him in his restoration and so 〈◊〉 amounts to nothing I am not behind 〈◊〉 chiefest Apostles says St. Paul though I 〈◊〉 nothing Now for God to publish h●●● Love at the rate he has done to such 〈◊〉 these may it not amaze and call out th● utmost wonderment both of Men an● Angels What may or can do it if n● this It was the expression of that h●● man Job 7.17 18. Lord What is man that thou shoulde●● visit him every morning and try him eve● moment He admired God should spen● a Rod upon Man in order to his goo●● How much more then may this raise 〈◊〉 wonderment that he should set his love thus upon him May we not say Is this after the manner of men O Lord God As David in another case said Let our hearts be enlarged in a holy admiration of this Love of God and of this God who is love it self Vse 2. How much doth it concern us to see whether we have our part in the peculiar love of God all men share in his common goodness few have interest in his special and distinguishing love Now the stress of this discerning the love of God lies upon the Holy Ghost He only can give the full assurance and sense of this love to a particular Soul Hence we read of the Love of God shed abroad in the heart by the Holy Ghost Rom. 5.5 This holy Spirit is acquainted with the heart and mind of God and does infallibly know those upon whom his love is set and he only can display the banner of love so as to work up the heart of any to a secret perswasion of an interest in it Let us therefore above all things wait and pray for the witnessings of the Spirit Yet for our help in this matter let me say that this love is discernable sometimes especially when the Soul is free from Clouds of passion fears and darkness even by the effects of it upon the heart and life The least sincere love to him is an evidence he hath looked in upon our Sou● and loved us 1 Joh. 4.19 We love him saith the Apostle because he loved us first Our love to him is a beam of his love to us reflected back upon himself Now our love 〈◊〉 discerned by our appretiations of God and by our affections to all that is relat● unto God by our love to his Son to hi● house to his commands to his Servants and unto all that bear his Image In a word if every dispensation of God draw● us more after God it is as comfortable ●symptom of Gods love to us as I can fin● in all the Scripture Hos 11.4 I drew them saies the God of Israel with cords of love And again he saith Jer. 31.3 I have loved thee with a● everlasting love therefore with loving kindness have I drawn thee If God gives in of himself in any duty the Soul is thankful if he witholds and answers not the Sou● is more humble before him and mournfu● after him 1 Sam. 28. Not as Saul who when God answered him not presently went away to the Witch of Endor 2 Kings 6.33 nor like him who said Why should I wait for the Lord any longer But as one resolved to lye at his foot hoping and quietly waiting for the Salvation of the Lord. If God gives outward comforts and the Soul is not proud under them but is more vile in its own eyes less than the least of all mercies and if he denies these things that the Fig-tree blossom not c. yet it can rejoyce in the Lord alone If he gives any sensible manifestation of himself the the Soul rejoyceth with trembling if he hides his face yet it follows him when it cannot see him it will serve him if it cannot enjoy him yet it will obey him Thus to be drawen nearer to God by every carriage of his to us as the Woman of Canaan was Matth. 15. is a good sign he has loved us with an everlasting love Vse 3. This Doctrine is a Spring of strong consolation especially to you who share in the peculiar love of God If he loves no matter who hates The Princes love will more than countervail the Courtiers envy 'T is said that when Josephs Brethren saw that Israel loved Joseph more than all his children they hated him Gen. 37.3 4 and could not speak peaceably to him Thus it is often with Gods Children The World will hate them even because God loves them Yea it may be for this they may lose the love of their natural Relations but set this fountain against the want of the streams and Gods love wil● do you more good than the hatred of men and Divels can do you hurt Further if God loves nothing can be wanting that is good for us for love is bountiful He loves his people from the Pit he loves grace into them and will love them into heaven at last If he loves he does all things in love every bitter pil● is rolled up in this Sugar if he loves he makes all things work for good Whe● Balaam attempted to curse Israel ' ti● said Deut. 23.4 5. The Lord thy God would not hearke● to him but turned the curse into a Blessing because the Lord thy God loved thee out of the eater comes meat and out of the strong sweetness How comfortable is the condition of all those who are the objects of special divine love What hath been spoken about this love should allay all objections about it Say not I can see no reason why God should love me and so cannot be comforted For the reason of his love is in and from himself It is a piece of his Soveraignty to love freel● Say not I have walked unworthy of this love I have sinned against and after choice manifestations of this love For though this is ground of great humiliation yet not of discouragement unworthiness did not hinder him from placing his love upon you at first nor can it hinder the continuance of it now for he knew and foresaw what thou wouldest be and do Isa 18.8 I know that thou wouldest deal treacherously saies the Lord to Israel by Esay Yet he hath set his love upon thee and therefore though he may inflict fatherly chastisements upon thee yet he will not take away his fatherly affections from thee For his love is an everlasting love Neither let any say God hides his face from me how can I think he loves me For did he not desert Christ and yet loved him very dearly at that time David frowned upon Absalom and banished him from his presence a great while yet 't is said 2 Sam. 14.1 Joab perceived that the heart of David was towards Absolom God may alter the shew of his countenance but his heart is not changed his love is still towards thee Vse 4. Let it be of Exhortation in a few particulars 1. This calls upon

but who falls down before G●● and saith Lord it is for my pride 〈◊〉 worldliness my unprofitableness th●● troubles come O pardon and heal 〈◊〉 for thy names sake O then let us be m●●● with God in Prayer in all our own a●● the Churches troubles Only let the●● be fervent prayers The effectual ferv●● prayer of a righteous man availeth much James 5.16 Much more the unanim●●● prayers of his Churches will preva●● especially if mixed with faith and 〈◊〉 joyn Reformation of heart and life to o● supplication If my people pray 〈◊〉 seek my face and turn from their evil w●● then will I hear in heaven and forgive 〈◊〉 iniquity and heal the land 2 Chron. 7.14 But if I regard iniquity in my heart saies David the Lord will not hear my prayer How shall we think our requests can prevail when our practises contradict our prayers We pray against pride divisisions worldlyness unfruitfulness and yet continue in these sins We lament our neglect of duty in our families and closets our breach of Gods holy day our deadness and loss of our first love and ●ife and yet go on in these things our supplications without reformation are but a provocation as the howling of Dogs in Gods ears as he saith of Israel of Old They howled upon their Beds Hos 7.14 ●nd were no more regarded by God than 〈◊〉 Dog that howleth is by men Had there been reforming answerable to our praying we might have had the mercies prayed for before this Let us then pray and turn from our evil waies and God will turn his promises into performances and our prayers into praises our Hosanna's ●nto Hallelujahs And O that we could yet stir up our selves to take hold on God by faith and prayers Preces lacrymae Prayers and Tears are the Churches best weapons in a day of trouble The Spirit of ●rayer failes O that he who hath the residue of the Spirit would once again p●●● out the Spirit of grace supplication up●● his people So in every day of Jac●● trouble when he is brought low and 〈◊〉 say By whom shall Jacob arise We sh●●● find such wrestling with God by pra●● will engage Jacobs God to command 〈◊〉 liverances for Jacob in due time And nothing that arises in our hearts to k●●●● us from this duty or deaden us in it h●●der us Let none say our troubles are extream that we are overwhelmed 〈◊〉 them So it was with the Psalm Psal 142.3 His Spirit was o●●● whelmed in him yet he prayed Tho●●● God lamed Jacob as if he had been Enemy yet he wept and made suppl●●●tion Out of the Belly of Hell cryed I sa●●● Jonah Let none say our sins are so gr●●● and we upon that account so vile and worthy that we dare not pray for G●● heareth not sinners John 19.31 〈◊〉 let such consider David Psal 40.13 My sins are more than the hairs my head Yet he prays Be pleased O 〈◊〉 to deliver me O Lord make hast to help Let there be a real mourning for sin turning from sin and thy sins shall hinder thy prayers That unbelief w●●● hinders thee from praying is worse● all thy other sins as appears John 16. ●9 He shall reprove the World of sin because they believe not on me saies Christ Let none say I would but I am unable I want the Spirit of prayer but know there may be effectual and acceptable prayer when yet thou feelest nothing but a great indisposedness to prayer When the Psalmist complaines he was so troubled that he could not speak yet then he prayed Psal 77.1.3.4 verse I cried unto God with my voice and he gave ear to me When Hezekiah could but chatter like a Crane and mourn like a Dove as he complains Isa 38.14.5 Yet even then the Spirit of prayer wrought effectually in him as is clear by what God speaks I have heard thy prayer I have seen thy Tears Neither let any say it is to no purpose for them to pray for many do well enough that never pray But this is not true For all such have is but temporal good things and they cannot have them as blessings with the love and favour of God but in anger as a curse and to their hurt The prosperity of fools shall destroy them Prov. 1.32 But to them that pray be it much or little they have it is in love and sanctified by the word and prayer Let none say it is in vain for them to pray because God knows perfectly what our wants and troubles a● before we pray and hath determin●● what to do for us and he is of one mi●● and who can turn him prayer it self ca● not alter his purpose And he is of so g●●cious a nature that he is ready to give● what he sees good for us though we pr●● not for it Now though all this be tru●● yet to neglect prayer on these accoun● is most weak and unsound For thou●● God knows our wants yet he hath co●manded us in every thing by prayer a●● supplication that we make known our ●●quests to him Philip. 4.6 And wha● ever birth his decree and counsel Trave● with in a way of mercy to us he ha● appointed prayer to be the midwife 〈◊〉 hand it to us Ezek. 36 37. The●● are many gracious promises of go●● to Gods Church and people I will yet 〈◊〉 enquired of saith God by the house of Isra●● to do it for them Yea it is a manifest toke● of his goodness that he will be soug●● unto for the good he purposeth 〈◊〉 promiseth to bestow upon us For it 〈◊〉 because he loves to hear the work of 〈◊〉 own Spirit in us Let me here thy voice Cant. 2.14 For sweet is thy voice Th● praying voice even as you that are Pa●ents love to here your little ones speak ●hough but lisping much more doth God ●o hear his Children And let none say ●ur prayers have been fruitless time after ●ime for it is no argument God neglects ●hem because they obtain not presently ●or what if he sees it is better for us to be without a mercy than to have it Is it ●ot our interest to subscribe to his wis●om and submit to his will therein What if it be not for his glory we have 〈◊〉 as yet cannot we wait his time Mar●ha and Mary sent to Christ John 11. to ●ome quickly for Lazarus whom he loved was sick Yet Christ deferred coming till he ●ad been dead some daies no hope in an ordinary way for his living again till the Resurrection This was done that God night be glorified in his being raised to ●●fe by a miracle And what if God will ●nswer our prayers in some better way ●han in giving us the thing prayed for ●ught we not to rest satisfied in his wise ●ispose for us Are we fitter to carve for ●ur selves than he is Surely it is best for us ●o acquiesce in his gracious choice of our ●nheritance for us Abraham prayed for ●hmaels