Selected quad for the lemma: religion_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
religion_n	church_n	doctrine_n	reform_a	3,582	5	9.8202	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A74716	The last visitation: conflicts and death of Mr. Thomas Peacock batchellor of divinity, and fellow of Brasen-nose-Colledge in Oxford. Published by E B from the copie of that famous divine, Mr. Robert Bolton, late minister of Broughton in Northhampton-shire.	Bolton, Robert, 1572-1631.; Bagshaw, Edward, 1629-1671.	1660 (1660)	Wing B3514A; Thomason E2103_1; ESTC R210121	21,659	90

THE LAST VISITATION CONFLICTS and DEATH OF Mr. THOMAS PEACOCK Batchellar of Divinity and Fellow of Brasen-nose-Colledge In OXFORD Published by E. B from the Copie of that famous Divine Mr. Robert Bolton late Minister of Broughton in North-hampton-shire LONDON Printed for William Miller at the guilded Acron near the little North-doore in St Pauls Church-yard 1660. THE PREFACE TO the READER Christian Reader I Had not performed a trust had not I published this ensuing Narrative and I had not paid a debt which I doe and shall ever owe to the Publike had not I made it common Mr Bolton a man of precious memory and famous in his generation desired me upon his death-bed ●o publish such of his papers as I ●hought fit for the Presse which I have already done This copy be●ng found amongst them though penned by another hand I durst not withhold being to my knowledge intended by him for the presse in memory of his familiar friend and spirituall father Mr Thomas Peacock who was a very Godly Minister of Christ and of rare example for humility and holines o● life for a Religious care in educating his scholars and for exceeding charity to the bodies and souls o● poor distressed Christians An● yet this godly man that for piet● had in him the root of an Oak whe● God cast him upon his bed of sicknes and suffered Satan to winno 〈◊〉 him he was no more in his hand then a leaf tossed too and fro wit 〈◊〉 the winde Gods dealings wit 〈◊〉 him in these his last conflicts ar● of singular use in these present times in which the ends of the world an● the dreggs of schisme and sinne an● come upon us at once First for caution to the true servants of God to take heed of small sinnes for from the lesser sinnes and infirmities of Mr Peacock the Devil did thence take a rise to cast him into the most bitter spirituall desertion that we shall lightly read ●f under which he had sunk had not God wonderfully put to his hand by making the issue of his afflictions more glorious and comfortable ●hen the combate was grievous and ●errible It was a memorable say●ng of Francis Spira which he spake to his mournfull children and friends beholding that sad specta●le of his small despaire earnestly wishing them to take heed of committing the smallest sinnes against ●onscience By this means saith he I fell into greater sinnes till I ●ame to deny the Gospel of Christ ●nd after that to renounce it in ●riting and deliberately to subscribe to it with my hand though saith he I hea●d a voice in my conscience telling me Spira doe not subscribe it after which I thought I heard the voice of Christ whom I denyed before men to pronounce the sentence of death upon my soul and to exclude me from salvation And thus he dyed Secondly for confutation of sundry sor●s in Religion in these unhappy dayes of Civill warre as naturally producing them as mud and filth doe toads and vermin Some there are that quite abrogate the Law which Christ came to fulfill and so make the gate of Heaven wider then ever our Saviour made it by admitting lawlesse persons into it Holy Bradford was of another minde who was wont to say that the gate of Heaven was so strait that he which halted could not enter into it and the way 〈◊〉 narrow that he which reeled ●●uld not walk in it Others there ●re who though they doe not whol● destroy the law yet they cast it 〈◊〉 to a dead sleep thinking it un●●wfull in the children of God to be ●●rry or to mourn for sinne con●●ary to the Doctoine of the primi●●ve Fathers teaching this lesson ●emper doleat paenitens de ●olore gaudeat Let the penitent ●erson alwaies mourn and rejoyce 〈◊〉 that mourning agreeing with ●●e rule of our Saviour Blessed are ●hey that mourn for they shall ●e comforted Nay I lately heard it not with●●t horrour that some men in out●ard appearance of great sanctity ●e hold an opinion that it is a ●ult in godly men to pray for par●n of sin all sinnes being pardon●● in Christ before they pray contrary to the prayer of our Saviour Forgive us our trespasses Neither Mr Peacock nor any of thos● godly Divines that came to comfo●● him knew this kinde of Doctrine neither we nor the Churches of Go● till within these few late unhapp● dayes What will become of our reformed Religion streaming down to 〈◊〉 in the blood of so many Martyr●● if God by a miracle of mercy shou●● not shorten these our miserab●● dayes For whiles some are takin● from us the Ten Commandement● others the Lords Prayer there 〈◊〉 scarce any thing left us of Christ●●anity but our Creed and how lo●● we shall enjoy this the Lord in He●ven knowes For so long as t●● civill sword of warre devoures 〈◊〉 much Protestants blood from wit●out and a worse civill warre sinne and separation destroyes many Protestant souls from within ●e may justly feare that we shall ei●her want sound Orthodox Prote●●ants to maintain it or we shall ●●ant a Creed for them to main●ain I shall for conclusion desire that Reader into whose hands this ensu●●g discourse shall fall to observe ●hree things concerning M ● Pea●ock a man whom I well knew ●nd blesse God that ever I knew ●im 1. That the forest and sharpest ●fflictions doe very often befall the ●earest and choisest servants of God I mean not outward and temporall ●fflictions common to good and ●ad but inward and spirituall af●●ictions and the heaviest of these ●pirituall desertions whereby God ●ithdrawes his glorious counte●ance from his children and Sa●an in liew thereof shews them his ugly visage thereby convincing a● secure world That it is no easy matter to goe to Heaven and tha● the safest and surest way to it is to sayl by the gates of Hell If th● righteous can scarcely be save● saith the Apostle where shal● the wicked and sinner appear 2. That the deepest humiliation of Gods children doe usually determine in the highest consolations And hereby the wicked who like ravening wolves hunt after such opportunities doe misse of their prey and returne ashamed when they consider what end God hath made An● thus it fell out with Mr Peacoc● here 3. Lastly Though a spiritua●● desertion be the highest afflictio● that befalls Gods childe yet it discovers in him the greatest sincerit● of an upright heart For at such time he is so farre from hiding h●● sinnes that he cares not what ●ame he puts upon himself so God ●ay have glory For in a spi●●tuall desertion though the soul of Christian be extreamly distressed ●●rough the terrour of sinne yet at ●he same time hath it a true touch 〈◊〉 grace though not of the comforts ●f it like iron touched with the ●oad-stone it stands directly North●ard though with much tremb●ng So doth the soul of a Christi●n stand directly Heaven-ward in ●his hellish agony and the absence ●f God and of