Selected quad for the lemma: saint_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
saint_n	angel_n	prayer_n	smoke_n	1,282	5	11.2651	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A61386	An antidote against distractions, or, An indeavour to serve the church, in the daily case of wandrings in the worship of God by Richard Steele M.A. and minister of the Gospel.	Steele, Richard, 1629-1692.	1667 (1667)	Wing S5382; ESTC R8661	121,210	256

I found thee and dead I leave thee So most justly might the Lord answer our distracted duties with distracting terrours and leave us under the judgement of distraction for our sins in distractions And what a piece of ignorance and impudence is it for any man to be proud of his duties Alas the best duties are of divers colours like the Beggar 's Coat and what Beggar will be proud of his patched Coat If there were any flowers or spices in thy duties they were none of thine from thee came all the stench from above came all the perfumes and what poor reason then hast thou to be proud It is sad that when our sins make us humble our duties should make us proud Isa. 64.6 We are all as an unclean thing and all our righteousnesses are as filthy raggs for there is none that stirreth up himself to take hold of thee With what shame and trouble would we go among folks if we had no better cloaths than filthy raggs and yet how high we look that have no better cloaths of our own upon our souls if you wear any better they are borrowed garments and what silly wretch is proud of borrowed garments And this shews likewise what need we have of the Righteousness of Iesus Christ to make our prayers pass into the holy place It was the smoak of the Incense which came with the prayers of the Saints and ascended up before God out of the Angels hand Rev. 8.4 The prayers of the Saints themselves are like smoak in God's eyes to speak with reverence but the smoak of the Incense is a perfume in God's nostrils Iesus Christ can be heard when we cannot Our quaintest Oratory is broken and ineffectual His intercession is constant and Imperatory Go therefore to the Throne of Grace leaning on your Beloved Keep an actual eye to Christ's mediation in your prayers and though you bring in his precious Name in the fagg end of your supplication yet remember you have need of him in every sentence a broken prayer had need of an intire Mediator SECT II. II. IT follows hence That omissions of holy duties are extremely dangerous Into these our fall is most frequent against these our watch is most careless after these our mourning is most easie yet of these the number great and the nature heinous If according to that Ier. 48.10 He be cursed that doth the work of the Lord negligently what is he that doth not God's work one way or other If a distraction in prayer may damn● O what may an Omission of prayer do If the Scholar be whipt that looks off his book what will become of him that plaid the truant Do the consciences of God's children smite them for vain thoughts in a duty how should yours wound you that you have no thoughts of your duty O you that omit secret prayer reading the Scripture meditation and such like will your negligence pass with God He sees how seldom you sigh in secret what strangers you are to prayers and tears should one in some cases refuse marriage for fear of distractions in God's service and can you wholly omit his service without danger Are watchfulness and seriousness such dispensable things that they are happy that have them but one may do well without them I tell you he that chastens his careless children will punish his graceless servants He that makes them smart for their distractions will make you tremble for your omissions Undone duty will undo your souls It 's not enough that you have left off the language of swearing unless you have learnt the language of praying It 's not enough that you have burnt your books of curious Arts unless you love to read in the Book of Books the Scripture To be mortified to contemplative wickedness is well but till you be vivified to contemplative holiness it is not well enough Do you must or die you shall You may come to Hell as certainly by not climbing up as by running down and lose Heaven by Naturality as well as by Hostility When you have read the 25 th chap. of Matthew you shall tell me whether wanting Oyl may not as truly ruin you as drinking poison whether an unprofitable servant will not come to a sad reckoning as well as a prodigal Son Though you take not anothers yet you may be consumed for not giving your own and in fine you will find that sins of omission do deserve damnation O hearken to this all ye that live quietly in the omission of closer or family-prayer of solemn fasting or communion in the blessed Supper of the Lord. Hath God abated you of the price that others must give hath he granted a new way to Heaven for you must others make Religion their business and you baulk it where you please what can your consciences answer to that Iam. 2.10 If a a man keep the whole Law mark the whole Law and yet offend Gr. stumble stumble and stop at one point he is guilty of all O beloved there is a concatenation of Truths and Duties in Religion you may easier go away with all your work than some a negative holiness will but bring you to a negative Heaven and you know behind Heaven-door is Hell O awaken therefore your hearts ye that stick at this point that are far from debauchery and excess any way but will not be gotten to positive duties Will ye with one dash expunge the one half of Scripture Is not Good as amiable as Evil is hateful what cause is there to fear that your avoidance of evil is from no good principle but either fear or shame or interest or at the best a better temper For the love or fear of God would make you cleave to that which is good as well as abhor that which is evil and to do God's will as well as deny your own SECT III. III. SEE hence what grand necesit●y we have of Watchfulness that most continual duty of a Christian this is the garment we must put on next us every day especially in every duty Between duties that we may not want praying hearts in duties that we miss not prayer-blessings Some duties bind alwaies but not to be alwaies done as prayer hearing meditation but you can be safe no where without your watch at all times in all places with all companies yea with no company in all callings there is a snare for the heart every where Wherefore saith the Prophet Hosea 12.6 Wait on thy God continually and the wise man Prov. 23 17. Be thou in the fear of the Lord all the day long especially but not only in your morning and evening sacrifices It is a true and a sad observation that many praying people are most devout and serious in God's service morning and evening but trace them all day long hardly one word of God or Heaven in their mouths as if Religion were hem'd up in times of Worship nay they are often most light and vain