Selected quad for the lemma: nature_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
nature_n	divine_a	humane_a	person_n	30,362	5	6.1832	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A86493	Of the nature of faith. A sermon, / by Barten Holyday, Doctor of Divinity.	Holyday, Barton, 1593-1661.	1654 (1654)	Wing H2532; Thomason E809_17; ESTC R207573	12,893	37

making the understanding firmly assent to things that do not appear It is an Habit for vvhereas man after his fall had onely a possibilitie to Belief Faith does not onely reduce that possibility into an ability but also into a facility Though Christ lay a yoke upon us Faith makes it easie though Christ lay a burden on us Faith makes it light Draw me we will run after thee says the Spouse Cant. 1. 4. Nor does this Faith teach onely to runne but also it shews us which way to runne it does not onely give us vvill but also knowledge it being an habit of the understanding And this is manifest from the act of Faith which is to believe To believe being an act of the understanding which does notwithstanding include an act of the will the understanding in this act being determined by the command of the will The act of believing being a cogitation with an assent whereby eternal life is begun in us This is the end and yet the beginning of Faith according to that of the Apostle Faith is the substance of things hoped for the certainty of happinesse by Faith being counted for possession And it gives this possession whiles it makes the understanding firmly assent it makes it assent it is the victory of the holy Ghost upon the understanding which is happily led captive into liberty and by the power of Grace is delivered from the bondage of Nature And being delivered it does firmly assent There is a neutral act of the understanding inclining to neither part and that is doubting There is an act of the understanding inclining onely to one part but it is onely through some light reason and that is conjecture There is an act of the understanding inclining likewise onely to one part but it is with fear and that is Opinion But this act of Faith is not onely to one part but also with a firm assent In which firmnesse of assent it agrees with knowledge from which notwithstanding it also disagrees knowledge being of things that are manifest to the understanding but Faith being of things that do not appear And thus is the act of Faith distinct from all the other acts of the understanding Will you see the Power that produces Faith Behold Grace For since the object of Faith is above nature the act of Faith must likewise be above nature and therefore must proceed from such a cause as is able to raise the soul to such an assent Now whereas faith comes by knowledge and knowledge seems to depend rather upon the industry of nature then upon infusion True it is Faith does depend upon nature in respect of its outward cause as external persuasion but the principal and proper cause of Faith is grace working inwardly in the soul Will yee see the excellency of Faith You see it is a supernatural gift It is above corrupt nature which alas is so corrupt that of it self it is not onely not able to believe but does ungraciously resist belief But was it also above Pure nature had not our Parents in the state of Innocency Faith Faith they had in God but had they Faith in Christ Could Christ be the object of man's Faith before man's fall If we consider the person of our Saviour consisting of God and Man it were improper to say he was then the object of Faith but if we consider the sufficiency which was radicated in the Divine Nature and by which power the Divine Nature did assume the Humane Nature we may say that man could then believe in Christ because then he was able to believe in God in what manner soever it should please God to exhibit his sufficiency whether under the nature of Creation Redemption or Sanctification Faith being more properly grounded in the sufficiency of these acts then in the specification of them Gold Chrystal and a Starre are the object of the fight not in respect of solidity and transparency but in respect of visibility in which they all agree But a foreknowledge of Redemption which implies mans fall seems not congruous with the state of Innocence such knowledge being not a degree of perfection before man's fall but a relief of his imperfection after it Yet Aquinas acutely if not warrantably thinks that Adam then foreknew the mystery of the Incarnation though not as a means of Redemption yet of mans perfection in the future vision of God Will you see the manner of the Production of Faith It is wrought in the soul by a double work of grace by an illumination of the understanding and by an excitation of the will Grace inlightens the understanding whereby first it looks forward on the Law and then it reflects upon its own guilt and so begets Fear Next it beholds eternal life and a promise of that life in Christ Grace likewise inflames the will first to desire remission of sinnes and then an application of Christs promises to ones self for the effecting of such remission These then are the things which grace makes us look after this is the Order of the things which grace makes us look after the Law the Gospel Pardon and the Application of Pardon Behold likewise the Passions which grace makes us feel Behold the Order of the Passions which grace makes us feel Fear Hope Desire Joy This is the Method of the holy Ghost in the conversion of the Soul And as some of these degrees goe before faith so you may see also the degrees of faith You shall sometimes see a faith so weak that it appears to be rather Desire then Faith But yet it is a desire not only of salvation for Balaam also could desire to die the death of the Righteous but it is also a desire of Righteousness The fool the wise man both desire the end but only the wise man desires also the means Now this desire of grace is never without grace and has the promise of blessednesse Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after righteousnesse Mat. 5.6 And though this desire of Faith be not Faith Desire being a Passion and Faith an Habit yet this desire of Faith is never without Faith it is an infallible effect of Faith The desire of grace is a sanctified affection and where one affection is sanctified all are sanctified and where all are sanctified the whole man is sanctified He likewise that is sanctified is justified and he that is justified believes He then that unfeignedly desires Faith has Faith Which desire proceeds not from a want of Faith but from a want of the knowledge of Faith divers having Faith but not the skill to know it Sometimes you shall finde the weakness of Faith in respect of knowledge the knowledge of the Gospel Thus was the Apostles Faith in the knowledge of our Saviours Death and Resurrection For when our Saviour told them of his going down to Jerusalem and his sufferings there Peter rebukes him and sayes Master have pity on thy self this shall not be unto thee