Selected quad for the lemma: nature_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
nature_n	body_n	soul_n	union_n	7,440	5	9.4929	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A93880	The teachings of Christ in the soule. Opened in a sermon before the Right Honble House of Peers, in Covent-garden-Church, upon the solemne day of their monthly fast, March 29. 1648. / By Peter Sterry, M.A. sometimes fellow of Emanuel Colledge in Cambridge: and now preacher of the Gospel in London. Published by order of that House.	Sterry, Peter, 1613-1672.	1648 (1648)	Wing S5486; Thomason E433_30; ESTC R204205	36,001	61

can set themselves up in the highest places of Scripture 4. The Scriptures in the Letter are but a Shadow The Law having a Shadow of good things to come but not the very Image it self Hebr. 10. 1. I have already said that the Law and the Letter are much one thing The Person of Jesus Christ in the Spirit is the Image it self of all good things The Scriptures are the Shadow which this Image casts from it self in the Light of the Spirit All creatures are Shadows of those good things which are in God and Christ The Scriptures are the largest the exactest the nearest the best Shadow and such a one as is rightly seen only in the Eternall light of Christ It vanishes into a confused spot when he withdraws and is clear again when he appears Saint Paul puts Timothy in mind of studying the Scriptures but then lest he should mistake them he gives him this Vniversall Caution 2 Tim. 3. 19. Knowing that every Scripture is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 given by inspiration of God Vnhappy is he that trusts himself to any thing as Scripture any further than it carries a Divine inspiration the breathings of God or his Spirit along with it That is Scripture which is the Word of God and that the Word which is in union with the immortall Word This Word hath the words of everlasting life John 6. 68. I will conclude this particular head of the Scriptures with an Answer to an Objection which the Papists make against us So shall we fall upon the last Master the Spirit Object They say we run in a Circle while we make not the Church the ground of our belief For we pretend to Know all things by the Scriptures But how the Scriptures by the Spirit And how the Spirit by the Scriptures Thus we run round Answ But if a man say he converseth with my body by my soule and with my soule by my body doth he run in a circle or speak vainly No for both are true in a distinct and proper sense The Body is the appropriate and immediate Instrument of the Soule the Soule is the Breath that fills that Instrument and gives it a distinct sound The Spirit quickneth As the Humane nature to the Divinity of Christ so the Scriptures are a kind of Incarnation or as a Body to the Holy Ghost which alone is their proper Soule The Scriptures are the materiall object of our Faith the Spirit the formall both the ultimate the last object in their kind The Truths which I am to believe lie in Scripture as Colours in the wall or in a Picture The Spirit is as the Light I see the coloured wall by the Light for that enlightens it actuates its shape and colours brings them unites them to my eye enlightning and actuating that also I see the Light by the Wall for it reflects and directs it self from that to my eye So the Spirit and the Scriptures as Light and Colours on a Picture are mutually seen in and by one another without any Maze or endlesse Circle Thy Word is a Light to my feet and a Lanthorn to my paths saith David Psal 119. The Eternall Word in the Written Word is the Light in the Lanthorne The Scriptures are my Spectacles though the Spirit of Christ be my Light or my Eye and his Person the Word which I read My God! Let me not want thee in the Humanity while I am a Creature Blessed Spirit let me enjoy thee in the Scriptures while I am in the flesh 5. Master the Spirit This is the Christ the true Master 1 Tim. 3. 13. Great is the mystery of godlinesse God manifested in the Flesh justified in the Spirit The Spirit is God and Christ in their Divine appearance as they are invisible to carnall eyes pure simple perfect in one All Flesh is a Manifestation of God and each Manifestation which is not the Substance it self is but Flesh The Spirit that is the Spirituall appearance of God in Christ tries and justifies or condemns all Appearances of Truth or Falshood This is the onely Judge at whose Bar every Manifestation of God in the flesh receives its Justification even the Spirit The Lord Jesus is that Spirit 2 Cor. 3. 17. 1 John 5. 6. The Spirit is Truth that is the Highest Truth Reason saith There must be One there can be only One first and last Truth from which all Truths primitively derive themselves into which they all ultimately resolve themselves for certainty and evidence Reason saith This Truth can be no other than the Highest of all the only true God as he is in his own Spirit and Spirituall appearance Thus the Spirit which is above Reason and can reveal it self at pleasure without Reason is witnest to by Reason This Spirit is the most high God This God is our Jesus as he stoops into our Natures as he puts forth himself in our Persons to become the Fountaine the Glasse of truth love life joy within us This is He who calls to our fluttering wandring Spirits and points them to himself and saith Here shall be your Rest build your nests on this Rock His Name is I am that I am I am Certainty I am Truth All other things are so far certain and true as they have a Certainty and Truth in him being comprehended in his Appearance or carrying forth his Appearance in themselves Come then all that hunger and thirst after Truth sit downe at the feet of this Master as Mary did There are many Objections made against these inward Teachings of Christ by the Evidence of the Spirit 1. Object How shall I know this Spirit Answ If you ask me how you shall see other things I answer by the Light But if you ask me how you shall see the Light I have nothing to say but the same thing again by the Light That which makes manifest is Light The Light comprehends the object in it self flowes with it into my eye unites it self to my eye informs it immediately with it self and with all shapes and colours in it self Thus if you ask me how you shall know Divine things I answer by the Spirit But you reply how shall I know the Spirit Still I answer by the Spirit 'T is the rule of School-Divines when you come to objectum quo sistendum est when you come to the first Principle of seeing or knowing you must stop there For that discerns and judges all but is discern'd and judg'd only by it self Saint Paul joynes them two a Spirit of Revelation and the opening the eyes of our understanding Ephes 1. 17 18. 2. Object But how can this be seeing my Soule knows not this Spirit hath no sense of it no suitablenesse to it Answ Saint John satisfies you in this doubt 1 Joh. 5. 20. The Son of God is come and hath given us an understanding that we may know him that is true Looke upward to the Mountaine of the Godhead from whence Salvation comes Jesus Christ

speak two or three and let the rest judge Ver. 30. If any thing be revealed to another that sitteth by let the first hold his peace Ver. 31. For ye may all prophesie one by one that all may learn and all may be comforted A Prophet is the Oracle of God for the delivery of Divine Discoveries to men And in this sense God speaketh of Christ Hebr. 1. 2. God hath spoken in these last times by his Sonne Glorious truths laid up in God concerning Himselfe and the Heavenly estate of things are revealed first to Jesus Christ and by him to us The Lord Jesus is God-man God and Man in Vnion As God he possesseth eternally all Divine Truths in Himself then by vertue of the Vnion he drawes forth these Truths out of the Depth of the Divine nature into the Humane as it were to the top of the water that they may be visible there Divine Truths can live no where but in the Divine nature neither can they appeare to us but in the Humane nature Therefore can there be a Spirituall Discovery no where but in Jesus Christ where he goes along with it and carryes it on in his owne Person Because in Him alone is the Vnion betweene both Natures Object But you may say May we heare no Person in Divine things May no man speak to us the things of God besides Jesus Christ Were there not Prophets before his Being in the flesh Have there not been Prophets and Teachers in the Church since his fleshly comming Ans You shall have an Answer to this Objection from the mouth of an Angel Rev. 19. 10. Saint John would have worshipt the Angel which ministred to him the revelations of Jesus Christ But he forbade it in these words See thou doe it nor I am thy fellow-servant and of thy Brethren that have the Testimony of JESUS worship God For the Testimony of Jesus is the Spirit of Prophesie Prophesie is a Discovery of Divine things by a Divine light This is that which is called a Revelation Ephes 1. 17. The Spirit of Wisdome and Revelation in the Knowledge of Him that is Jesus Christ And 1 Cor. 14. 30. If any thing be revealed to another let the first hold his peace Nothing can come to us in a Divine light except it come in Christ and his Appearance For this is that which makes the Day in Divine things Ye are Children of the Light and of the Day We are to take nothing for a Divine Light a Prophesie or a Revelation except the Lord Jesus give his Testimony to it by his Appearance in it Worship God saith the Angel I am a servant who beare the Image of the Living God which is the Appearance of Jesus Christ in me I am no more than the Precious Stones were under the Law on which a Light from Heaven shone forth to give answers from God I am onely the Lanthorne that carry the Light in me which sends forth its Beames to you The Prophet saith To the Law and to the Testimony if they speak not according to these they have no Light in them Esay 8. 20. This he speaketh of the Prophets No Light that is no Morning All Prophesies or Spirituall Discoveries before Christ appeared were as Morning light which flowes from the Sun though that be not yet seene it selfe All since Christ are as Beames falling from his Face S. Paul calls all Gospel-discoveries The Glory of God in the Face of Christ 2. Cor. 4. 6. Thus much for the Answer to this Objection and the Reason of the Point The Application Use 1 FOr Humiliation Right Honourable Can you weep with your Saviour one houre You have set this Day and many your Saviour hath set this Yeere and many such Yeeres apart to this end Long did our Lord Jesus pipe to us with the sweet sounds of Peace Plenty Pleasures But we danced not to the Musick of his Love Now he hath long wept to us he comes forth cloth'd with red garments riding on the pale horse of Death in the midst of us If we now mourne not to him it is a Rebellion as the sinne of Witchcraft it is to make merry with Devils and exalt our selves with Lucifer My Lords If a sense of your Saviour's frownes and the sorrowes of your people have wrought your soules to a mourning temper I humbly beg two things of you One that you would mourne seriously the other that you would mourne spiritually 1. Mourne seriously The Lord Jesus is our Master He sets us serious Lessons of Sorrow Let us raise our Spirits to their Watch-tower to a wakefull temper What doe we now see The Lord Jesus making three Kingdomes in a view as three Wine-presses Himselfe treading them where the Grapes are men the Wine the precious blood and the deare lives of many thousands of men Yet his anger is not turned away but his hand is stretched out still Still he seemes to be gathering together under his feet the remaining Clusters to tread them into streams of blood till there be none left till the dry land of Peace or Hope be no more to be seene but a deluge of blood swallow up all But What doe we see The Lord Jesus making three Kingdomes as Bottles filling them first with the winde of Vanity and Pride then with the Wine of their owne Fury and his Wrath so dashing them in pieces one against another till they become as broken Pot-sheards Yet his anger is not turned away but his hand is stretched out still Still he seemes to be hissing fot a troupe of fiercer spirits from the darke and fiery corners of hell below to enter into these Pot-sheards that they may make a more confused and crueller Warre each with other Are these things Dreames and Fancies or are they seriously thus We reade of a Law which God made among the Jewes Levit. 23. 29. that if any one afflicted not himselfe on a solemne day of Humiliation that soule should be cut off from his people O God! let not this curse fall upon my Spirit or upon any Spirit here present this day to be so far cut off from being a living member of Jesus Christ or a naturall member of his native countrey as to mourne but in shew or slightly now when the Lord Jesus riseth upon us in such a Cloud of deepe and reall Sorrowes If any man at this time regardlesse of that storme which he sees in his Saviour's face or of the sufferings of his Brethren shall make himselfe red with Wine and Laughter when Jesus Christ is red with anger and blood is it not O God because thou hast made the heart of that man fat for a sudden Slaughter Let us then mourne seriously 2. Mourne spiritually Imitate Jesus Christ make him your Master this way in your Griefes We reade of him Mar. 14. 33 34. He began to be heavy and sore amazed And he said My soule is exceeding sorrowfull even unto death Alas our Brethren our Country