Selected quad for the lemma: saint_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
saint_n	catholic_a	church_n	creed_n	1,395	5	10.7130	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A12995	A curse become a blessing: or, A sermon preached in the parish church of S. John the Baptist, in the Ile of Thannet, in the country of Kent, at the funerall of that vertuous and worthy gentleman Mr. Paul Cleybrooke Esquire. By William Stone preacher of Gods word: on Tuesday, September 17. 1622	Stone, William, preacher of Gods word.	1623 (1623)	STC 23288; ESTC S106188	46,107	88

dead to the Law that I might liue vnto God The meaning is they are freed from the dominion of the Law and that by meanes of the Law it selfe which accuseth terrifieth and condemneth them and thereby occasioneth or vrgeth them to flie vnto Christ which is the cause of this death And they are dead to the Law that is to say they are free from the dominion of the Law in foure respects First in respect of that most rigorous and seuere exacting of most perfect obedience to be performed in this life for the obtaining of life eternall Act. 15.10 Rom. 6.14 15. and 7.6 Secondly in respect of the curse and damnatory sentence of the Law for the breach therof because Christ being become a surety for vs hath fulfilled that exact righteousnes of the Law for vs and performed that obedience for vs and for vs hath vndergone borne yea and ouercome the curse and punishment Thirdly in respect of the power of the Law Rom. 7.8 whereby as an occasion it prouoketh stirreth vp the corruption of the hart in the vnregenerat Fourthly in respect of the obseruation of the iudgements and ceremonies of the Law that is Act. 15. 1 Cor. 9.1 19. 2 Cor. 3.17 Heb. 9.10 Iohn 1.17 of the Iudiciall and Ceremoniall Law to wit so farre as they properly pertained only to the policy of Moses and the rutorship of the ancient people and Church of God such as be the lawes concerning sacrifices and the whole outward worship prescribed by Moses But such lawes amongst them as belong to the Law of Nature and haue alwaies bound all Nations of the world there is no death to them nor no freeing therefrom 3. A death vnto sin and the world Thirdly there is a spirituall death which the Saints feele in themselues by which they die to sinne and to the world that is to say by which they more and more bid sinne farewell 1 Cor. 15.31 Gal. 6.14 and seuer themselues from the men of this world as much as possibly they can by faith and repentance This is a blessed death springing from the death of Christ by a vertue and power deriued therefrom for the beating downe and killing of the strength of sinne in vs that be his members For that same diuine power which supported his manhood so that he sunke not when hee stood charged with our sinnes and died for vs and we in him euen that same diuine power worketh in all his members for the mortifying of sinne through his death From whence it commeth that euery true beleeuer dieth more and more to sinne continually And this now cannot but be a most precious death in the sight of God being an effect of the death of his Sonne of whom hee saith This is my beloued Sonne in whom I am well pleased and in whom he was as the Apostle beares witnesse reconciling the world vnto himselfe Matth. 3.17 2 Cor. 5.19 not imputing their trespasses vnto them But neuerthelesse it is not that death which Dauid here meanes We must therefore consider that other kinde of death which according to the Scripture the Saints be subiect vnto Bodily death attributed to the Saints and that is the death of the bodie of which I said that it is a priuation of the life of the bodie by meanes of the locall separating of the soule from the body fora time This death of the bodie as I conceiue is the death which Dauid doth especially meane in this place The death of his Saints FIrst this very mentioning of the death of the Saints doth imply this much which I note for the instruction of some ignorant and vnlearned people that liue among vs whom I desire well to marke it and to learne from this Sermon that Doctr. 1 Doct. Some be Saints in this life And namely all Gods people euen all that be saued Gods people be all Saints before they die be Saints before their death This very speech the death of his Saints implieth thus much And it is according to our Creed in the ninth article whereof we confesse that we beleeue the Communion of the Saints which is not only to be vnderstood of the Saints in heauen but also of the Saints vpon earch And thus the Epistles of Paul for diuers of them are directed to the Saints As the Epistle to the Ephesians To the Saints which are at Ephesus Ephes 1.1 Philip. 1.1 Col. 1.2 And the Epistle to the Philippians To all the Saints in Christ Iesus which are at Philippi And likewise the Epistle to the Colossians To the Saints and faithfull brethren in Christ which are at Colosse In all which places are vnderstood by the Saints Gods faithfull seruants then aliue vpon the earth And as it was then so is it now Psal 30.4 and 31.23 and 34.9 and 37.28 and 50.5 and 52.9 and 79.2 and 85 8. and 89.7 and 97.10 and 13 29 16. and 145.10 and 148.14 and 149.1 5 9. Psal 16.3 Act. 9.13 As many faithfull seruants as God hath amongst mankind throughout the world so many Saints there be liuing at this day vpon the earth And in this sense the word Saints is taken aboue a dozen times in the booke of the Psal In one place whereof expresse mention is made of the Saints on earth In the sixteenth Psalme at the third verse be these words But to the Saints that are in the earth And in the Acts of the Apostles Ananias saith Lord I haue heard by many of this man how much euill he hath done to thy Saints at Ierusalem And Paul himselfe in the presence of Agrippa declaring his life from his child-hood hath these very words Act. 26.10 And many of the Saints did I shut vp in prison Which cannot possibly be taken otherwise then of some that then were aliue vpon the earth And thus Aaron while hee liued and was enuied of some is called the Saint of the Lord They enuied Moses also in the Campe Psal 106.16 and Aaron the Saint of the Lord. So that it is certaine and as cleare as the sun-shine that there bee Saints in this world If it were not so there were no holy Catholike Church for vs to beleeue according to our Creed nor any one man nor woman liuing at this day vpon the face of the earth that were the true childe of God Question Who then bee the Saints now aliue vpon the earth Answer Answer Lambert in his Paradoxes cap. 2. Parad. 31 36. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Mac. hom 17. Why Gods children on earth be called Saints Lambert shall tell thee They bee Saints saith he that be translated from profane or worldly things to godly and spirituall things and made holy and consecrated vnto God And againe All true faithfull people be Saints Otherwise thus Euerie man and woman that is effectually called and regenerated by the Holy Ghost to liue iustly and holily euerie such is a Saint And such bee called

sanctified Heb. 10.29 Yet were they sanctified True But how were they sanctified By the bloud of the Couenant saith the Apostle that is not by the effectuall and gracious working of the Spirit creating in them as in the elect conuerted soules that new quality of holinesse whereby they can in some measure truly hate their owne sinnes with a firme purpose to leaue them and can loue Gods law with a resolution to performe it in some good measure not so but sacramentally only And so many a reprobate may bee sanctified that is to say he may be baptised Nay more he may be outwardly reformed and haue some inward good things as ioy in hearing of the word and he may be sanctified in the charitable opinion of others yea and in his owne conceit and perswasion and yet all the while want that peculiar worke of the spirit of God of which I spake euen now and so be destitute of the substance and truth of the grace of sanctification For this he can neuer haue make what shew he will It is the portion of Gods elect it is part of his childrens bread he will not take it and cast it vnto dogs It is a holy thing not fit for dogs and a pearle of more worth than to be cast before swine Vse 4 Fourthly considering that the Saints be the Lords after a peculiar manner It is a singular comfort to be truly sanctified what a comfort is it to bee truly sanctified He that is such a one may build vpon it that God will protect him and that he shall be saued For as Solomon saith Pro. 2.8 He preserueth the way of his Saints And Iude saith Iude 1. to them that are sanctified by God the Father and preserued in Iesus Christ to wit to life eternall and called Deut. 33.3 And Moses saith All his Saints are in thy hand Which is more for their safety than if they had all the castles and bulwarks of the world to defend and saue them For we know what Christ saith No man is able to plucke them out of my Fathers hand Iohn 10.29 So that it is a maruellous comfort to be truly sanctified Such may haue enemies both many and mighty by whom they may looke to be fiercely assaulted but no multitudes nor power can preuaile against them And albeit they seeme often to be ouerthrowne with the wrongs which they suffer as some are stript of their possessions others are imprisoned others are banished others are tormented others are killed yet they are still the Lords And this that they are so dealt with commeth not to passe through the might of their aduersaries but by the will of God neither doth he suffer it to satisfie their foes but to encrease their owne happinesse 2 Cor. 4.17 For our light affliction which is but for a moment worketh for vs a farre more exceeding and eternall waight of glory And besides in all their afflictions he careth for them and doth them good Question Six markes of sanctification But how shall I know that I am truly sanctified Answer First by a perfect that is to say a sincere and true hatred of euery sinne whatsoeuer gaine or pleasure it may seeme to bring with it and by the practise of all holy duties though our credit peace wealth and all that we haue must goe to wracke for it yea our life it selfe be endangered thereby For a man truly sanctified will forgoe life and all rather than obedience to Gods Commandements How can I doe this great wickednesse Gen. 39.9 and sinne against God said Ioseph Secondly by the ground of our hatred of sinne and practise of vertue if it be not our owne credit amongst good men nor any other by-respects but the will and Commandement of God Thirdly by the right end proposed we hating sinne euen in the secretest closet of our soule and purging it from the flesh and spirit and perfecting holinesse in the feare of God that now and alwaies Christ may be magnified and God be glorified in vs. Fourthly by the meanes by which sanctification was wrought That is to say if we haue attained to sanctification by the effectuall working of the Spirit and the doctrine of the word For these bee the meanes by which God doth sanctifie vs. And for this sanctification is called 2 Thess 2.13 Iohn 17.17 the sanctification of the Spirit And our Sauiour saith Sanctifie them through thy truth thy word is truth Fiftly by the extent of it For true sanctification spreads ouer the whole man 1 Thess 5.23 it is wrought in the whole spirit and soule and body Sixtly by the continuance and growth of it For true sanctification after it is once wrought continues for euer and growes more and more by the selfe-same meanes by which it was first wrought vntill it come to perfection The death of his Saints LAstly from these words in that the deare children of God whose dignity is great and farre beyond the highest dignitie that this world affoords in that these are expressed vnder this title of Saints I gather that Doct. 4 Doct. The very title of a Saint is full of honour and dignity The title of a Saint is honourable The Scripture yee see when it makes mention of the best and of such as the world is not worthy of expresseth them here and many times elsewhere by the title of Saints 2 Chron. 6.41 Let thy Saints reioyce in goodnesse said Solomon in his praier Vse 1 The Vse First the hearing of this must teach the Saints to walke in holinesse Walke in holinesse 1 Pet. 1.15 16. According to S. Peters exhortation But as he which hath called you is holy so bee ye holy in all mann●r of conuersation Because it is written Be ye holy Ephes 5.2 3. for I am holy And S. Paul saith thus walke in loue as Christ also hath loued vs and hath giuen himselfe for vs an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling sauour But fornication and all vncleannesse or couetousnesse let it not bee once named among you as becommeth Saints Here is the ground of his exhortation that hauing receiued so great mercy and grace as to bee made Saints wee are to walke as is fitting for the Saints of God And it should bee a shame that any professing themselues Saints should be found vnholy in their conuersation Vse 2 Secondly considering this is it not a strange thing that any liuing in the Church Against them that reproach others with th●●● holinesse and make a mocke at the title of a Saint hearing the Gospell and knowing their Creed should be so strangely blinded and so desperately wicked as to scoffe at the endeuour and practise of sanctitie and reproach others with their holinesse saying You are one of these holy folke nay so gracelesse and ignorant as to turne this very title into matter of reproach saying You are one of the Saints you