Selected quad for the lemma: power_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
power_n	ghost_n	holy_a	trinity_n	2,914	5	9.7351	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A86269	Nine select sermons preached upon special occasions in the Parish Church of St. Gregories by St. Pauls. By the late reverend John Hewytt D.D. Together with his publick prayers before and after sermon.	Hewit, John, 1614-1658.	1658 (1658)	Wing H1634A; ESTC R230655	107,595	276

racketed from one temptation to another till at last he hazard eternal ruine reeling from one extreme to another untill he fall into perpetual misery Therefore to conclude let me implore every soul that expects and looks for eternal life as who doth not to get cleansed from all your iniquities whether secret or open latent or revealed before you come unto the brink of misery from whence is no return before your feet stumble upon the dark mountains wherein is no security let no iniquity ever have any more dominion over you get all your actions salted with true grace that God may smell a sweet savour in your holy devotions and pious services knowing that your best performances are but gilded appearances and glittering abominations if God should with severity inspect them so that we must all say with holy David in the words of my Text If thou Lord shouldst be extreme c. FINIS SERM. III. LUKE 2.7 And she brought forth her first-born son and wrapped him in swadling-clothes and laid him in a manger because there was no room for them in the Inne Introduction GOd is a most pure Act never was he idle but alwaies in being even when this world was not in being he was in himself love and nigh enough to himself yet when he was so he thought of some eminent act of bounty wherein to produce an Idea of his goodness and accordingly wills thoughts to himself of shewing mercy to mankind for yet he would do good to all therefore all his wayes are good his being and well-being envied as yet by none no not by Satan the first parent of malice and grand enemy both of Gods unspeakable glory and mans eternal felicity not enduring to entertain the least thought of seeing humane nature deified yet God to shew the freedome of his love in rich mercy stamps his own Image upon man for it was his goodness as well as his power that he made us good as well as men but what was at first made good we soon made sin for God made man upright but he hath sought out many inventions so that had not God redeemed us we had been miserable to all eternity much rather had our souls not been then not be happy When man was made holy and had sinned though such iniquity deserved the ruine of what he was before having defaced that image yet God is prone to mercy when provoked goodness would rescue that part of himself from ruine for scarce one had sinned but one was promised to save the Son of God was promised and presented to the Patriarchs being revealed to them by his promises and foretold by his Prophets that God would send his Son he saw a fit vessel wherein he would inclose his son viz. the Blessed Virgin and therefore he sends his Angel to provide a lodging telling her that she was highly honoured of God Luke 7.3 and she shall conceive in her womb and bring forth a Son and shall call his name Iesus that God would give him a name above every name and of his kingdom there shall be no end she examined and believed the Angels Message and and was found with child of the holy Ghost Luke 1. the power of the highest over-shadowing her But loe she is summoned to another travel for there is a decree from Augustus Caesar and behold she takes no small pains to obey for though her appearance might have been excused yet she would not disobey the lawful magistrates command the custome of women is on Mary but alas desolate Virgin she is driven to that pass that having no room in the inne necessity compels her to make a chamber of the stable and to turne the manger the place wherein is laid the food of beasts into a Cradle the now onely receptacle for the bread of life and at once both mother and midwife for she brought forth her first-borne son and wrapt him in swadling-clothes and laid him in a manger because there was no room for them in the Inne In which words consider with me these four general parts 1 A Virgins travail 2 A mothers tenderness 3 A childs poverty 4 The peoples inhospitality 1 A Virgins travail She brought forth her first-borne sonne 2 A mothers tenderness She wrapped him in swadling-clothes 3 A childs poverty laid in a manger 4 The peoples inhospitality There was no roome in the Inne I begin with the first 1. The virgins travail she brought forth her first-born son Wherein consider 1. The person she 2. The birth brought forth 3. The fruit her first-born child 1. For the woman she was a virgin but what a virgin to bear to bring forth a son a wonder and she her self cryes out I know not a man well might the Prophet Ierem. say Behold a Virgin and the Prophet Isai likewise yet she is the same Isa the 7.14 vers but that Christ was conceived of the holy Ghost and born of the Virgin Mary is an article of our faith not of our understanding best known is the manner to him that hath the power virgins are not usually pregnant yet the spirit ingenders flesh we take it not from his nature but power the Holy Ghost produces the man Christ not of himself but by his power Christ begotten of himself as one with the Father sending him on the great errand of mans salvation for all the three Persons in the sacred Trinity have a share in this great work the Father begetting the Son begotten and the Holy Ghost produced him at the fulness of time I call the Holy Ghost Father as his shadow the virgin his mother as his substance or the matter of his person whereby he is called the son of man that by this means he might be joyned to our nature and so become surety for us as for example we christians are born of water of the spirit are not called the sons of water but of the spirit because of the spirit we are made one with Christ and are thereby become the sons of God that Christ was conceived of the Holy Ghost and of Mary is most certain but for our sakes called the son of Mary and not of the Holy Ghost yet hath the son an equality with the spirit and is perfect God as well as man therefore is it that the Holy Ghost concurs with Mary in the conception both agree to make Christ but not one way for t is his the shadow hers the substance hers the carkase his the quintessence how could it be but a holy thing being of the Holy Ghost though she had sin yet Christ took none from her because he would expel it from her for had Christ been born of an Harlot of Mary Magdalen yet she could not have contaminated his integrity but commended his power and mercy he could have sanctified the most sinful person and unhallowed womb Being conceived of the holy Ghost he took our flesh but not our corruption can the sun shine untainted on the

Word that gave the world a being can carry her again to the grave of destruction leaving her in the same confused Chaos which his merciful goodness at first found her in and the same six dayes which past away in building of her up if it so please him with as much facility may take it down though his excellent Mercy will have no less then six thousand years to bring a period to the same as most learned interpreters expound the words of Saint Peter 2 Pet. 3.8 So that a priori you see there is power enough in God not only to be angry with but infinitely to punish the sinnes of his people 2. A posteriori Who sees Nebuchadnezzar grazing like an Ox and acknowledges not Gods Power to be Infinite and can do with ease what seemeth good in his sight who sees Belshazar in the midst of his carousing cups weighed in the ballance of the Sanctuarie and found too light and acknowledges not his Justice who sees Goshen full of light and Egypt covered with thick darkness and acknowledges not an Infinite Deity Examples are most profitable illustrations of his power in dealing with the sonnes of men and in this case are almost infinite What son of Adam is there that knows not of his fathers fall and the dreadful curse the just consequent thereof In the day thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die Gen. 2.17 and it was surely performed witness Cains inability to bear the loud cry of his brothers blood C ham justly cursed by his Father as the reward of his shameful action Esau sadly and too late seeking a sold Blessing the flames of provoked fire licking up sinful Sodom the earth of her self making a grave for Corah and his wicked Complices the great deeps swallowing up Pharaoh and his Host as the just avenger of his intolerable Persecution But these are but temporal evils but there are eternal miseries for when he is extreme his eyes shall not spare his enemies But you 'l say what means this Can God destroy that which he hath made Can he that delights in man destroy or despise the works of his hands Will he pluck down with one hand what but now he built And can he laugh when their fear comes who hath sworn he delights not in the sinners death Nothing less yet we must not say with Iob I am righteous though he hath condemned me for shall not the Iudge of all the earth do right and glorifie himself in and upon his Creatures For if we go astray he must and will hedge up our way with thornes Though it is true God afflicts not willingly yet he doth and will punish the sonnes of men when they sinne and wilfully go astray and that for these reasons 1. To remove that grand idol which men make and set up in their own hearts that God is all mercy and will not punish or all love and cannot endure to afflict his people deceive not your selves with such vain delusions for the soul that sinneth that soul shall surely die Ezek. 18.4 As sure as there is a God that mercifully saves them that repent so sure will the same God infinitely punish them that continue in sin as it is his Mercy that offers and invites us to accept of Salvation so also will it be the office of his Justice infinitely to punish all those that refuse to come when called by his Word and Spirit Remember the story of the great Supper and Gods severe answer to them that would not come when invited I say unto you that none of those men which were bidden shall tast of my Supper S. Luke 14.24 though God spare us for a time yet he will send forth Iudgment unto victory 2. To remove the Atheism that lodges in mens hearts of no revenging Justice that men live and speak as if there was no God uttering that in words and actions which holy Davids fool entertained in his heart that men being to think there is no God because they see no fearful examples of his Justice set before them in the destruction of his enemies that the wickeds prosperity in evil makes him boast himself and despise his Maker I remember Saint Austin brings in the proud man speaking thus when he was at peace and no disturbance injured him saith he of himself if I had nothing worth despising I should be a God blasphemously imagining God were ignorant of that which men call contempt but faith the Father It was not long ere I saw the same wretch cast down with utter amazement by a small clap of thunder when God did but seem to clothe himself with the garment of vengeance he presently fell down with humble obeisance Therefore God will sometimes be extreme in punishing that he may rescue the glory of his justice out of the hands of the wicked 3 Such is the nature of sinne it justly provokes God to be extreme because 1 It s a transgression of his righteous law and if earthly Monarchs punish their rebels with temporal well may the Lord of Heaven and earth reward his traitors with eternal death if temporal magistrates are so tender of their precepts that they esteem each breach thereof as an injury done to their persons well may the Father of spirits cast away with scorne all those that are found fighters against his commands .. But that 's not all for 2 Every sin is not onely a transgression of Gods law but it s an injury offered to his sacred person there being no act of evil wherein our whole man deliberately concurs but it is as much as in us lyes to dethrone the Majesty of heaven and if it lay in our power also to ungod the sacred Trinity an action which my soul trembles to think of much more to utter and were it not that I might leave the impression thereof so deep as to imbitter sinne unto you I should not have named it But that 's not all for 3 Every sin is so much the greater because it is committed by persons that have received all sorts of kindness and are under all manner of obligations to the contrary therefore well may God be extreme for sin when found in them that are engaged to the contrary 4 Such is the nature of Gods justice that it requires exact and equal proportion of punishment to the sinnes that have been committed now every sinne is of an infinite duration for did the sinner alwayes live he would for ever be guilty of sinne therefore it is but just the punishment should be infinite also for if God reward us with glory if we serve him above our deserts can we condemn him for but rewarding us according to our faults and if he do spare us and not inflict the extremity of his justice it is because his mercy intercedes that glorious attribute wherein is his chief delight but God will sometimes be extreme to punish because the nature of his justice is such as that it will proportion its punishment