Selected quad for the lemma: mercy_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
mercy_n	great_a	lord_n	spare_v	2,993	5	9.3697	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A04859	The straight gate to heauen A sermon preached before the poore distressed prisoners in the Kings Bench common gaole, to their heauenly comfort. By William King preacher of the word of God.; Straight gate to heaven.	King, William, preacher of the word of God.	1617 (1617)	STC 14997.7; ESTC S106997	20,884	50

comfort vnto him Contendenti et vincenti that striueth ouercommeth saying though in the world ye haue no peace but tribulations afflictions yet be of good chéere Ego vici mundum et omnia in hoc mundo I haue ouercome the world all things in this world therefore in me you shall haue peace eternally In the second head our Lord Iesus Christ affirmeth that the gate is very straight noting that none can enter in without vehement crowding and almost breaking their shoulder bones that is none can enter into eternall life without vehement suit earnest prayer and supplication vnto God for the forgiuenes of their sinnes wrought by the spirit of all Christians with an inward and true repentance and God shal derect all thy wayes and appoynt thée how to goe either hither or thither as the Prophet Esaias saith Though the Lord giue thee bread of trouble the water of affliction aduersity thy raine shall be no more scant but thine eyes see the raine yea and thine eare shall heare the talking of him that speaks behind thee This is the way walke therein turne not aside neither to the right hand nor to the left Wherfore hoc opus hic labor endeauour we and let our chiefest care yea our greatest endeauor be for the vertue of his grace the antecedent to glory both which are his free guift The Lord will giue grace and glory and no good thing will he withheld from them that walke vprightly As I haue shewed you of sundry lets both within vs and without vs which doe keepe vs backe from God and hold vs fast in our sinnes so now vnto all that hath beene saide before I will lay forth vnto your view seauen especiall lets and hinderances vnto eternall life which may not vnfitly be termed seauen barres out of Heauen and seauen gates into Hell and thereby you shall perceiue that the gate is very straight that leadeth vnto life and few there be that find it The first which is infidelity is proued out of the fourth Chapter to the Hebrewes where it is thus written Vnto vs was the Gospell preached as vnto them but the word which they heard profited them not because it was not mixed with faith in those that heard it And againe they could not enter in because of vnbeleefe Héere we sée that vnbeliefe did barre out the old people frō entring into the land of promise which was a figure of Gods eternall Kingdome And sure it is that the same vnbeliefe doth barre out thousands of vs. For many will beléeue nothing but their owne fantasies they will not beléeue the word of God especially when it is contrary to their lust likings profits and pleasures Though things be manifestly proued to their faces and the Chapter and verse shewed them yet will they not beléeue or though they say they will belieue yet will they neuer goe about the practise of any thing but reply against God in all their actions And for the most part when God saith one thing they will either say or doe another when God saith yea they will say no and so giue God the lye Some againe will say if all be true that the Preachers say then God helpe vs. Thus you sée how infidelitie doth bar men out of Heauen and cast them into hell The second gate which is the presumption of Gods mercy for if men be sharply reproued for their sinnes and exhorted vnto repentance by and by they take couert saying God is mercifull as though God were made all of mercy and that there were no iustice in him at all and thus the wicked make Gods mercy an occasion which though the Prophet Nahum in the first Chapter of his prophesie doth sharpely reproue The Lord saith he is slow to anger but he is great in power and will not surely cleare the wicked Here we see that God will not surely spare such as goe on in their sinnes presuming of his mercy and saying in their hearts If I may but haue a Lord of mercy vpon me thrée howres before my death I care not But it is iust with God when those three howers come to shut them vp in blindnes and hardnes of heart as a iust plague for their presumption Therfore the Prophet Dauid seeing the greeuousnes of this sinne prayeth to be deliuered from it Keep me O Lord from presuptuous sinnes let them not raigne ouer mee Let all men therefore take héed of presumptious sinnes which is the onely cause that sinne doth so mightily abound in our age and let vs not continue in sin presume of Gods mercy but let vs come vnto God for mercy while the gates of mercy are opened vnto vs For though God be full of mercy yet will hée shew no mercy to them that presume of his mercy but they shal once know to their cost that Iustice goeth frō him as well as mercy And therfore it may wel be called the strait gate to heauen and the wide gate to Hell Let vs come to the third gate which is the example of the multitude for that doth harden imbolden men vnto sin As when many birds do flicker flock together they fall vpon the net without any feare but one or two alone wil be affraid Euen so the example of many sin companions do imbolden men to run through the snares of Sathan without any mistrust This is proued in the 23. of Ex. where the Lord saith flatly Thou shalt not follow a multitude to doe euill This is a thing that hindreth a great number from God for they neuer looke vp vnto God or to his word but stare vpon the common multitude and doings of most men and examples of the world thinking that if they do as the most men doe as their forefathers haue done before them they are cockesure and of an euen ground And herevpon riseth their diuellish Prouerbe Doe as the most men doe and the fewest will speake of you which is a very wicked spéech But they haue forgotten S. Pauls rule Ne configuremini seculo isto c. Fashion not your selues like vnto this world These fellowes that stand vpon the multitude will reason thus we sée none of these great ones of the world none of the noble none of the rich none of the wise and prudent receiue this doctrine but onely a few Shackragges and beggerly rascalls and therefore it is a token that it is nothing worth and that it is doubtfull and not for vs to meddle withall Loe what thoughts may créepe into our hearts and how slily Sathan may trumpe in our way and blindfold vs and lead vs away in the dark by doting and dorring vs with the example of the multitude Let vs therfore take heed of these pitfalls which Satan layeth in the way and not be caried away with these thoughts reasons The wicked beare themselues in hand that they shall win the game and that the goale goeth on

that may be both within vs and without vs we haue as they say the Sun Moone seauen starres against vs we haue all the Diuells in hell against vs with all their hornes heads maruelous strength infinite wiles cunning deuises déepe flights and methodicall temptations Heere raues a sore streame against vs then haue we this present euill world against vs with his innumerable baites snares nets ginnes grins c. to catch vs fetter vs and intangle vs. Here haue we both profits and pleasures riches and honor wealth and preferment ambition couetousnes Here comes a campe royall of spirituall and inuisible enemies Lastly wee haue our flesh that is our corrupted nature against vs we haue our selues against our selues For we our selues are as great enemies to our saluation as either the world or the Diuell For our vnderstanding reason will and affections are altogether against vs. Our natural wisedome is an enemy vnto vs our concupiscences lusts doe minister strength to Sathans temptations they are all in league with Sathan against vs They take part with him in euery thing against vs and our saluation they fight all vnder his standerd and receiue their pay of him This then goeth hard on our side that the Diuell hath an inward party against vs and wee carry alwayes within vs our greatest enemy which is euer ready night and day to betray vs into the hands of Sathan yea to vnboult the doore to let him in to cut our throats Here then wee sée an huge army of dreadfull enemies and a very legion of Diuels lying in ambush against our soules are not we therefore poore wretches in a most pittifull case which are thus bessedged and betrayed on euery side All thinges then duly considered may not wee iustly maruaile that any shall be saued For who séeth not who knoweth not that thousand thousands are carried headlong to destruction without the great mercy of God either with the temptations of the world the flesh or the Diuell But yet further I wil shew you by other apparant and euident reasons that the number of Gods Elect vpon the face of the earth are very few in comparison which may thus be considered First let there bee taken away from amongst vs the Papists Atheists and Heretiques Secondly let there be shouelled out all vitious and notorious euill liuers as swearers drunkards whoremongers carnall worldlings deceiuers cosoners proud men riotors gamesters and the prophane multitude Thirdly let there be refused and sorted out all hippocrites carnall Protestants vaine professors backe-sliders decliners and cold Christians Let all these I say be seperated and then tell me how many sound sincere faithfull and zealous worshippers of God will bee found amongst vs I suppose we should not néede the Art of Arithmeticke to number them for I think there would be very few in euery village towne Citty I doubt they would walke very thinly in the street so as a man might easily tell them as they go Our Lord Iesus asketh a question in the Gospell of S. Luke saying Doe you thinke when the sonne of man commeth that he shall find faith on the earth to the which wee may answer surely very little To make it more clearely manifest that few shall bee saued in the first age of the world all flesh had so corrupted their waies that God could no longer beare them but euen vowed their distruction by ouerflowing of waters when the flood came how few were found faithfull eight persons were only saued by the Arke How few righteous found in Sodome the Citties adioyning but one poore Lot and his family How few beleeuers were found in Iericho but one Rahab How few of the old Israelites entred into the Land of promise but two Caleb and Iosuah the rest could not enter in because of vnbeliefe The true and inuisible Church was small during the gouernment of the Iudges as apeareth plentifully in that booke In Elias time the Church was so small that it did appeare weak In the raign of the Kings of Israell and Iudah the sincere worshippers were very few as appeareth by the complaint of all the Prophets During the captiuity the Church was as the moone vnder a cloud she was driuen into a wildernesse where she did hide herselfe During the persecution of the Gréeke Empire by Gog and Magog and Egypt they were fewest of all In Christs time with what silly company did hee begin withall How were all things corrupted by the Priests Scribes and Pharises preaching there were few beléeuers After the first six hundreth yeares what an ecclipse was in the Church during the height of Antichrists raigne How few true worshippers of God were in the world for the space of almost nine hundreth yeares Since the Gospell was preached and spred abroad how few doe beleeue And as the Prophet Esay saith Domine quis credidit auditui nostro Lord who hath belieued our report Thus then you sée it doth appeare both by Scripture reason and examples of all ages that the number of the elect is very smale and when when all comes to all few shal be saued Therefore let vs striue earnestly to goe in at the straight gate for the small number of those that shal be saued ought to thrust vs forward to enter in thereat Christ saith Contendite intrare per angustam portam quia multi dico vobis studebunt intrare et non poterunt Striue to enter in at the narrow gate for many I say vnto you will séeke to enter in and shall not be able And in an other place hee saith The gate is straight and the way narrow that leadeth vnto life and few there be that finde it If men would consider of this and try with themselues whether they be of that small number or no it would make them looke better about them c. Death threatneth vs who is very terrible to the flesh and the remembrance of it very bitter to a man that is sowced soaked and setled in the pleasures of this world It flattereth no man it regardeth not persons it waigheth not friendship it careth not for rewards it is very grim vgly and cruell and killeth downe right where it hitteth Therefore Christ bids vs striue earnestly To knit vp this point S. Bernard saith there is none of vs all which standeth not in néed of councell propes and helpe The generall misery of mankind is triple c. For both we are easie to be seduced and vnable to doe well and very weake to resist If we would discerne between good and euill we are deceiued if we goe about to doe good wee quickly faint if we endeauour to resist euill wee cannot endure but are easily ouercome The tiranny and rage of Sathan is vnspeakeable and his power mighty the baytes of the world be innumerable and our flesh fraile and weak They are thrée deadly enemies to our saluation against whom we must al ioyntly fight Our