Selected quad for the lemma: reason_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
reason_n	day_n	sabbath_n	sanctify_v	3,539	5	10.6237	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A37042	The dying man's testament to the Church of Scotland, or, A treatise concerning scandal divided into four parts ... : in each of which there are not a few choice and useful questions, very shortly and satisfyingly discussed and cleared / by ... Mr. James Durham ... who being dead (by this) yet speaketh ; and published by John Carstares ... ; to which is prefixed an excellent preface of famous Mr. Blair ... ; together with a table of the contents of the several chapters of each part.	Durham, James, 1622-1658.; Blair, Robert, 1593-1666.	1659 (1659)	Wing D2810; ESTC R3845	315,038	466

their spiritual estate wronged or hurt that is to do or abstain for conscience-sake not our own but of him that sitteth with us 1 Cor. 10. 24 and 28. for if charity and love be the end of the Law and men ought not only to seek their own things but the things one of another and love their neighbour as themselves then ought they to seek their neighbours edification as their own and to eschew the prejudging of them Hence Scandal is opposit to that charity and love and also to that respect which we ought to carry to our brother Rom. 14. v. 10 and 15. yea it is a scandal and offence as it is opposite to and inconsistent with love to his spiritual well-being and so in a word that which is apt to make him worse in that respect or that which may impede and hinder his spirituall growth and advancement therein is an offence and scandal Rom. 14. 21. And thus a scandal differeth from an injury for this hurteth his person name or estate or some outward thing that again hurteth his spirituall condition either by wronging his livelinesse or activity or comfort c. though the same thing often which is an injury is an offence also but not contrarily CHAP. III. Concerning the severall wayes that Offence may be given IT is hardly possible to shew how many wayes one may offend another there being so many yea so very many wayes whereby men both wrong themselves and others yet by considering the effects that offence given hath or may have upon others although the effect follow not and by considering that upon which active offence worketh and which usually is offended at in another We may draw them to some heads accordingly As 1. men may be drawn to some sinfull action upon such an occasion thus an action materially lawfull and good in it self becometh a scandall when by our deed another is fostered in some sin or encouraged to commit it as supposing himself to be strengthned therein by our practice Or when it may occasion others to go beyond our intent or to do what we do in another manner which may make it sinfull So zeal inconsiderately vented may strengthen folks in passion and thus eating in Idols temples which in it self was nothing was scandalous when done publickly because it strengthned Idolaters to think somewhat of their ●…ols and made others who were weak to continue some respect to them because they supposed such men by such a practice to do so or made some judge them to have respect to Idols and so to be lesse in their esteem or caused others to eat with respect to the Idol when they themselves did it without it Thus doubtfull expressions in points of Truth and uncircumspectnesse in not abstaining from all appearance of evil or what doth appear to be evil to such a person and at such a time c. may be offensive as suppose one in their apparrel diet or otherwayes should by some be conceived to go beyond their station and what is fit at such a time or be an occasion to some others indeed to exceed when without such misconstructing beholders there might be nothing offensive in the deed it self and thus the deed of one person may be offensive supposing him to be esteemed proud covetous unclean c. which would not be so in another So also a thing will be offensive to one and not to another Wherefore in reference to Offence men would have an eye on themselves and what generally they are reputed to be and so would abstain from the least appearance of what is supposed to be predominant in them as also they would have respect to others that are present or may be hearers or beholders considering what are their thoughts of them or of such deeds c. and accordingly would carry although it were to abstain from such a place apparrel diet c. which in reason abstractly from offence might be pleaded for as becoming Thus one walking abroad on the Sabbath may be sanctifying it yet by his example some other may be provoked to vage and gad and cast off all duties of the day and to neglect what is called-for in secret or in the family in that respect it becometh offensive to go abroad although it be lawfull in it self to meditate abroad in the fields as well as in the house 2. When a lawfull act doth breed or occasion misconstruction or rash judging in an other then it becometh offensive to him As 1. when it maketh him think the thing unlawfull which is lawfull that is Rom. 14. 16. to make our good to be evil spoken of Or 2. when it occasioneth our selves by that deed to be condemned as untender and unconscientious in the performing of such an act that is to make one judge his brother rashly Rom. 14. 10. 1 Cor. 10. 30. Or 3. when it occasioneth our profession or the Gospel to be mistaken and mis-judged or godlinesse to be accounted fancie hypocrisie c. Thus by the indiscreet use of liberty the Gospel was evil spoken of by some as if it had given way to loosnesse for so those that were zealous for the Law did esteem of it 3. The effect of a Scandal is to grieve and make heavie others and so any indifferent action which is apt to do that is a scandal as we may see Rom. 14. 15. because it marreth their spiritual comfort weakneth them in love to us fainteth them in the doing of duty at least marreth their chearfulnesse in it c. and so is against charity and becometh a breach of the sixth Command Rom. 14. 15. This is the notion that most ordinarily we use to take up offence under viz. when it may grieve some to hear that we have done such a thing when it may lessen their esteem of us and so much incapacitate us to be profitable to them or alienate them from us c. 4. We may try Scandal by our hazarding to disquiet the peace of our brother's conscience that is when by our lawfull deed we engage or virtually perswade him to follow our example supposing him to doubt of the lawfulnesse of that practice or to condemn the same Thus 1 Cor. 8. 10. one is emboldene●… to eat of things offered to Idols with respect to them because he beholdeth another that is more strong than he to do the same And so by his eating he giveth ground to his conscience afterward to chal●…enge him for which cause he that gave the example ●…s said to wound his weak conscience The like also is Rom. 14. 22 23. in the case of doubting for supposing one to doubt whether such a thing be lawfull or not meerly by our example to go before him is to put him in that strait either to condemn our deed or doubtingly to follow for the meer example of no man can warrant any other to follow or satisfie a conscience in the lawfulnesse of such and such a deed This also

length in high attainments than other men can win at or are capable of thus some are outwardly despisers of all pride and of giving respect to men and that as the Apostle saith Col. 2. 18. by a sort of voluntary humility and intruding upon things which they have not seen casting in the mean time at common and plain truths A 4. mean is the pleasing of ears and itching humours with great swelling words new notions and large discourses of non-sense delivered with great confidence when as the Apostle saith 1 Tim. 1. 7. They know not what they say nor whereof they affirm yet often such discourses are sublime mysteries to the ignorant and such as loath the simple truth 5. They make use of a pretext of good will and advantage to these that they speak unto as it is Rom. 16. 18. by good words and fair speaches they deceive the simple and by pretending to wish their souls well and to pity their blindnesse and hazard they are in they creep into their houses and affections 2 Tim. 3. 6. and lead simple persons captive By this pretext the serpent beguiled Eve at the first promising some advantage by hearkening to him and this way is followed by corrupt teachers still as it is 2 Cor. 11. 3. 6. Sometimes there is much more pretended strictnesse especially in outward things thus some of old added the observation of Moses Law to the Gospel as if that were a more perfect and strict way and upon this ground have so many traditions been brought in into the Church 7. There is a pretending to more Christian liberty and freedom from the bondage of Ordinances of whatever sort so as men must not be tyed to hear preachings keep Sabbaths Pray Praise and such like which are say they but formes and burthens to Saints and unbecoming that freedom and spiritualnesse that grown Believers should have Thus such deceivers and these that are deceived with them are said to promise liberty to whomsoever they propose their delusions while in the mean time all of them are made servants to corruption 8. There is great pretending to know Christs mind and confident alleaging of the writings of His Apostles and that in a seeming convincing way Thus 2. Thess. 2. 2. there are mentioned Spirit Word and Letter as proceeding from Paul whenas he himself is disclaiming such interpretations as they did put on him 9. They use to alleage the authority of men and to oppose such to these who oppose their errours thus the Pharisees alleaged Moses and the Nicolaitans Nicolas and it is like the false apostles that came from Ierusalem did oppose other Apostles authority to Pauls as if they had preached nothing but what they preached in Ierusalem and very often the infirmities of some great men are stumbled upon and made arguments against truth 10. Many are stirred up to vent queries and captitious questions as often the Pharisees did by sending their emissaries to Christ that some advantage may be gotten that way and these that are for truth entangled 11. Sometimes he maketh use of humane reason and cryeth down every thing that seemeth not consonant to it upon which ground the resurrection was denied by the Sadduces and some of the Corinthians 1 Cor. 15. and the most fundamentall truths of the Gospel are by the Socinians and others unto this day Sometimes again all use of reason learning or prudence is disclaimed in which respect such men are called unreasonable 2 Thes. 3. and bruit beasts 2 Pet. 2. and Iude 10. 12. They endeavour by all means to carry the favour of the civil Magistrates and to have Ministers especially such as are zealous against them made hatefull and suspected unto them and the gaining of this hath a double advantage with it to their cause as it strengtheneth it and weakeneth the truth this we see the false Prophets did of old 1 King 22. Ier. 26. Amos 7. 10. and so endeavoured the Scribes and Pharisees to engage the Romans against Christ and against His Apostles So also did the Arrians and other Hereticks and so hath Antichrists emissaries ever endeavoured to stir up civil Magistrates against faithfull Ministers as most hatefull persons This they carry on by such like means 1. They pretend to give the Magistrates more submission and charge faithfull Ministers with sleighting of their authority for they know this to be a thing well pleasing to Magistrates Thus the faithfuln●…sse of honest Ministers is accounted disobedience and hatred and the lying flattery of such is given out for re●…pect and obedience so was it in the case of Mica●…ah 2. They cry out upon faithfull Ministers as factious and turners of the world upside-down sowers of sedition as Acts 24. 5. troublers of the peace who do keep the people in a continuall stir and crosse their designs and mar the absolutenesse of M●…gistracy So Elijah is counted an enemy to Ahab and a troubler of Israel 3. They vent many groundlesse calumnies against them as if they were guilty of many grosse evils Thus Athanasius and many others were charged by the Arians as murderers and adulterers and some pretended proofs made thereof Yea it was alleaged to Constantine that Athanasius had medled with civil matters which was derogatory to his authority by inhibiting all Corns to be exported from Egypt 4. They bring the Magistrates in tops with them by appellations from Church-judicatories to them and seeming to plead an absolutenesse to Magistrates in things Ecclesiastick Thus Hereticks in all times have sheltered themselves under this pretext till Magistrates declared against them and then they cast them off also as of late in the practices of the Socinians and Arminians hath been made out 5. They represent them to Magistrates as unsufferable in respect of their plain threatnings and that such are not to be endured so to affront Authority and to weaken these that professe so much to respect the same thus Amos is represented chap 7. 10. by Am●…ziah Priest of Bethel and often Ieremiah is so by the false Prophets in his time 6. They propose faithfull Ministers as unwarrantably arrogating a kind of infallibility to themselves and thereby derogating from all others so is that word 1 King 22. What way went the Spirit of the Lord from me to you and by a certain audacious confidence seek as it were to put out faithfull Ministers as despicable men not worthy to be cre●…ited as in the case cited and Ier. 28. and elsewhere and often by such means their insinuations and flatteries do exceedingly prevail for promoving their designs Augustine chargeth the Donatists with this that in their application to Iulian they used this phrase quoniam apud ●…e solum justitia habet locum and this was saith he when they knew he was an apostat Epist. 48. The last thing in this is the manner how this design is carried on by such corrupt teachers which is not alway the same in all and may in part be collected from what