Selected quad for the lemma: prayer_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
prayer_n	evening_n	lesson_n	psalm_n	3,017	5	10.0280	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A60508	A Sabbath of rest to be kept by the saints here, or, A treatise of the Sabbath, and such holy and religious duties as are required for the sanctification of it, the great Sabbath of rest that remaineth to be kept by God's saints hereafter delivered in divers sermons upon Heb. 4. 9. / by Nicholas Smith ...	Smith, Nicholas, d. 1680.	1675 (1675)	Wing S4139; ESTC R12921	26,607	40

others God will most especially reward The Word of God it should be publickly read on the Lords-day this is a holy and religious Exercise that is proper for the day and so necessary for the Sanctification of the Sabbath that it cannot be omitted It was usual to read something out of Holy Writ to the People every Sabbath day as you may see by that which is alleadged by St. Paul Act. 13. 27. Where he setteth it forth that the Rulers of the Jews condemned our Saviour because they knew not the voyces of the Prophets which were read every Sabbath day By this place of Scripture it is plain that it was in use to read something out of the Law and the Prophets every Sabbath-day This Custom it hath been solemnly kept and religiously observed by the Christan Churches and reading of the Scriptures as it is a Religious Exercise proper for the Day and necessary for the sanctification of the Sabbath so it is of great use and tendeth much to Edification Our Church hath wisely appointed and religiously constituted that some of the Psalms of David should be read every Sabbath-day There be likewise Lessons appointed to be read every Lords-day two at Morning and two at Evening Prayer one out of the Old another out of the New Testament Epistles and Gospels are appointed to be read on every Sabbath thoroughout the year Where there is no Preacher or when the Minister is not prepared to Preach there be godly Homilies and fruitfull Exhortations appointed to be read unto the People If then you desire to sanctifie the Sabbath by performing in it holy and rel●gious Exercises you shall do well to attend to the Word of God publickly read hereby you shall gain Knowledge in the Scriptures and be fitted and prepared to receive the engra●ted VVord of God which is able to save your souls Yea the Reading of Homilies is a kind of Preaching and if it be carefully and conscionably used no doubt but it may be as effectual peradventure more effectua for the Conversion of Souls than most Sermons that are preached in these times Think then of this holy and religious Exercise how proper it ●s for the day how necessary for the sanctification of the Sabbath and let no Lords day pass without coming up to the Temple to hear the Word of God publickly read unto you The Word of God publickly preached expounded unto the people by those that are set apart for that Office and Function It is the usual the ordinary Means of Salvation and when it is despised and contemned God will not work without it It is then a Religious Exercise of great use and of all other dayes the Sabbath is most proper for it Yet this I must say for I conceive it is the truth though the Sabbath be most proper for this Exercise yet this Exercise is neither so proper nor so necessary for the Sabbath that it should be impossible that the Sabbath should be sanctified without it This I shall easily evince out of the Scriptures in Acts 13. 15. we read how that after the reading of the Law and the Prophets the Rulers of the Synagogue sent unto Paul and Barn●bas saying Men and Brethren if you have any Word of Exhortation to say unto the People say on If it had been a custome of the Church to have Preaching in every Synagogue on every Sabbath day no doubt but the Reader that read there had been prepared to preach Neither would the Rulers of the Synagogue have desired the Apostles if they had any word of Exhortation to preach but rather would have said You are Ministers and Men of God alwayes prepared to Preach and therefore there is no doubt to be made but you have a Sermon and an Exhortation in readiness Though then it may be collected from hence that these Rulers were willing to accept of a Sermon when they did meet with such Ministers as were prepared to preach yet for certain their questioning with the Apostles whether they were prepared did shew that they did not hold Preaching so necessary that the Sabbath could not be sanctified without it Where the Word of God may be had by one or more able Ministers that the Word of God may he preached twice every Sabbath thrice every Sabbath if the Custom of the place be to have so many Sermons this I will not deny But that there must be Preaching every Sabbath day in every Congregation this I think it cannot be proved Some Ministers have made the world believe that the Sabbath in no place can be sanctified without preaching of Sermons and have wrought people to such an esteem of Sermons that all other of God's Ordinances are disesteemed so that no other holy and religious Exercises can find any place in the places where they are admitted but onely Sermons Yea they have turned Oratoria into Auditoria Houses of Prayer into Houses of Preaching and in all places where they have come have brought all holy and religious Exercises on the Lords day out of use but onely a Psalm and a Sermon God did never yet send such plenty of Labourers into his Harvest that there should be such store of able and painful Preachers that Sermons should be Preached every Sabbath day in every Congregation For my part I will pray unto the Lord of the Harvest that he would send Labourers into his Harvest could heartily wish that all the Ministers belonging to every Congregation in the Kingdom were indeed Prophets that they could Preach every Sabbath day or would Preach painfully and Conscionably though they Preached seldomer But this I say it is impossible that the Kingdom at this time should be thus Happy And some Ministers by buzzing in the ears of People that Preaching of the Word in every Congregation on every Sabbath-day is necessarily required by the Word of God have made the whole Kingdom miserable yea they have brought the Ordinance of God into contempt by their idle babling and lazy pratling who Talk much and often but Preach seldom But I beseech you beloved let not the abuse of God's Ordinance by some cause you to neglect the Lawful Use of it For Preaching it is the Power of God unto Salvation a Sabbath-days Exercise which of all others is of greatest Use for the Conversion of Souls for the bringing Men from Darkness to Light from Blindness and Ignorance to the Knowledge of God and of his Son Jesus Christ Be perswaded then hear the Word of God every Sabbath-day when it is publickly Preached and never miss the Sermons love those Ministers that Preach Painfully and Conscionably and despise not those who Preach often and plead earnestly for Preaching though you know and are assured that some of them are but lazy Preachers lest haply you be found despisers and contemners of the Ordinance of God There are other Holy and Religious Exercises which are required on the Sabbath-day Catechising the Youth and the Instructing them in the Principles of