Selected quad for the lemma: sin_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
sin_n	baptism_n	preach_v	remission_n	3,201	5	10.1727	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A85549	A true reformation and perfect restitution, argued by Silvanus and Hymeneus; where in the true Church of Christ is briefly discovered here in this life in her estate of regeneration, as also her persecution in the life to come, as it hath been foretold by all the holy prophets and Apostles, which have been since the world began. / By J.G. a friend to the truth and Church of God.	Graunt, John, of Bucklersbury.	1643 (1643)	Wing G1595; Thomason E55_10; ESTC R212817	46,091	47

the making parts and true nature of every particular living stone and member of which and which only the whole frame or fabrick consisteth Now to the making of any part thereof and so of every part 3 things are considerable and required that is to say the spirit water and bloud whereof the first is the worker the two last the work or matter or makeing parts of every living stone of the Church it self Of these three termes the first is literall by which we are to understand the finger of God the spirit which proceeds from the Father and the Sonne the other two are Metaphoricall by which other things are meant namely repentance and remission of sins as it is written Except a man be borne againe from above of water and the holy Ghost he cannot see the Kingdom of God Hym. I pray Sir expresse your self unto me concerning the two Metaphoricall termes Silv. That I shall willingly do and give you their definition in their due place For the first which is repentance the Lord in the working thereof unhardens the heart that naturally by sin is obdurate hard flat and quite contrary and disobedient to God and his will which graciously God of his meete and alone goodnesse by a kind of heavenly power softens and makes it plyable and inclinable to God and his will And the word of God compares this humble broken bruised contrite heart to plowed ground to soft and tender flesh and to water and such like setting forth by all these comparisons the true nature and condition thereof That as flesh differs from a stone barren fallow weedy ground from that which is broken up and plough'd and as the plyablenesse and softnesse of water differs from the hardnesse of a Dyamond so a broader and greater difference is there between this penitent heart and that it was before for that which was pleasant delightfull is now become nothing but grief sorrow of heart that which before was chiefly fought after is now most abhorred As formerly its joy and gladnesse was in such sinfull ways as carried him from God now he uncessantly seeketh prayeth desireth and longeth after every way and meanes whereby he may be brought to God to be refreshed with his favour which by his sins and transgressions he hath lost and never did any hunted and chased ha●t pant more after the water brooks than this soul doth thirst and desire the favour and grace of God in Christ No undone man no wounded man no diseased man no deadly sick man no man in bondage and thraldome so miserable and wretched in a naturall sence as this penitent man in his own apprehension in a spirituall and godly sence Therefore it is said of Iohn the Baptist the great and powerfull preacher and worker of repentance that he should prepare the way of the Lord that is make a people ready for the Lord to heale and cure and in working the preparation he bruised the reed he caused the flax to smoak he turned the hearts of the Fathers to the children the disobedient to the wisdom of the just he humbled and brought low the high and lofty the rough ridged and untoward he made gentle and smooth the crooked and perverse hearted he bent bow'd and made straight he made the rich poor the well sick the whole broken in a word all these terms do but set out and declare his great and heavenly work of repentance which he wrought in the hearts of men According as it was prophecyed of him that he should go in the power and spirit of Elias and as the Angell said to Zacharias his Father And many of the children of Israel shall he turne to the Lord his God Yea the whole life of this holy Prophet and every houre therof preached repentance for he chose the desart place in the wildernesse to dwell in before the stately City Ierusalem And hunger and thirst before dainty fare wine or strong drink and sack-cloth rather then soft rayment his Garment was hair-cloth and his Girdle a leather skin Neither boyld nor rost was his food but what he found unbought or uncared for his meate was locust and wild hony His life and Doctrine being thus one and the same and both so wonderfully powerfull and effectuall that all Ierusalem Iudea and the Region about Iordan went out to see and heare him the like Prophet being never heard nor seen before And he preached unto them repentance for the remission of sins for so powerfull was his ministery in working repentance in their hearts that the holy Ghost saith of them they were baptised of him in Iordan confessing their sins An apt and plaine figure or resemblance is the baptisme of water of that of repentance for repentance it is the preparation of the way of the Lord the signe or badge of it is the baptisme with water and so Saint Marke doth plainly preach Iohn did baptize in the wildernesse there 's the signification and preached the baptisme of repentance for the remission of sins there 's the substance which heavenly gift repentance he calls the beginning of the Gospell of Iesus Christ by which he proves cleerly that the beginning of our new birth or regeneration is the beginning of the new covenant of life and salvation herein agreeing with all the Prophets who speaking of the new covenant still begin with the unhardning the heart taking away the stony heart and giving an heart of flesh Hym. You have been large in the description of repentance and I desire to heare your definition of it as you promised Silv. The supernaturall grace and first part of unregeneration may be thus defined that it is the work gift of God by which the heart is turned from all the pleasures and delights in sin into great grief and unspeakeable sorrow for them with humble confession and acknowledgment of all its sins expressive an unsatisfied desire of pardon and forgivenesse and to be received into the love and favour of God through Iesus Christ Hym. You cald to me to prove the description I made of the Church I pray therefore proove this to me Silv. It is well desired this definition of repentance and every part of it is fully set forth in the prodigall Sonne who once was so full of affection to sinfull pleasures that he rejoyced in it but God working repentance in him now is become forlorne and miserable in his own apprehension and seeing his rash rebellion and unadvised sinfulnesse against God his most bountifull and loving Father Creator and preserver in utter dislike of himself and all his doings sorrowfully resolves And in the second place returnes to his Father by which is set forth the displeasure and dislike he now takes against all his sins which have been the cause of all his misery and Gods dishonour being conscious thereof dislikes forsakes leaves them and goes from them plainly and clearly declaring his returning unto God in his heart Manifested in the third place

by his penitent confession with ardency of affection in these words I will say unto my Father I have sinned against heaven and before thee and am no more worthy to be called thy Sonne Every word declaring the true and reall sensiblenesse of his own guiltynesse confessing with detestation in the strength of his request like the penitent Publicain smiting his wofull breast with his guilty hand in a ruefull manner as a man lost and undone in the fourth and last place see his unsatisfied desire of pardon and forgivenesse of mercy peace and reconciliation Make me as one of thy hired servants which words for the matter and manner found of nothing but violence and admit of no answer no satisfaction in the world but of grace and favour to be admitted and received though into the least the lowest office of all even into the office of a servant Thus all the Prophets and Apostles as doth their Lord also describe repentance and the penitent by the poor the broken hearted the lost the sinners the unrighteous because these only are so truly in their own eyes and in the gift or work of God called repentance or the preparation of God happy man is he that heareth and obeyeth for God hath sworn he shall not perish Hym I must now confesse you have both described and defined repentance but yet me thinks you ascribe too much to it to say whosoever repents shall not perish Silv. I tell you the truth as it is written Ezechiel 18. 28. because he that considereth and returneth away from all his transgressions he shall surely live he shall not dye And so saith our Lord Except you repent you shall all likewise perish Hym. I pray let me heare you declare the other Metaphoricall terme which setteth forth the second part of regeneration as you said Silv. The second part of our new birth before called remission of sins hath divers termes and expressions in Scripture sometimes it is said to be the Baptisme of fire the Baptisme of the holy Ghost the blood of Christ shed abroad in our hearts sometimes called the blessing the life the voice or promise of God the ministery of the Lord of Iohn the Baptist whose shooe latchet the servant said he was not worthy to untie this Lord of the prepared way in working this ●econd and more speciall work of the holy Ghost preached that is giveth remission of sins to the penitent sanctifieth those which John had prepared bound up that which he had broken healed that which he had bruised perfecting the smoak into a light flame fulfilling what was written of him being anointed for that purpose namely to preach glad tydings unto the poor to bind up the broken hearted to proclaime liberty to the Captives and to inlarge such as were bounden to proclaime the acceptable yeare of the Lord and to comfort all that mourne to appoint unto them that mourne in Syon to give unto them beauty for ashes oyle of joy for sorrowing the garment of praise for the spirit of heavynesse that they may be called Trees of righteousnesse the planting of the Lord that he might be glorified and this was the work of the Lord of the whole world who as he was greater than this servant his foregoer so his ministration exceeded and good reason for it was of a more higher and more excellent nature Even as healing exceeds breaking liberty captivity the spirit of Gladnesse that of heavinesse a rich and plenteous estate that which is low and miserable in the working and effecting hereof the holy Ghost applies the blood of Christ to that fore broken and bruised spirit which is the only healing plaister unto salvation and blessed life for this is the word so much spoken of in the Scripture which cures and heales the wounded spirit that neither herb nor plaister can possibly do the word speaking peace by Iesus Christ which began after the baptisme which Iohn preached thereby ingraving or writing in that Table of flesh the everlasting love and favour of God never againe to be razed or blotted out so purging purifying and sanctifying the prepared heart by the sprinckling of the bloud of Christ the heavenly fire of l●ve so refining it that it exceeds the purest triedst gold beyond all comparison And this effect of the holy Ghost the Scripture also calleth the spirit of his Sonne the spirit of adoption by which we call Abba Father And this is that new covenant which God made with Adam and Abraham and all his spirituall seed that life that Moses had and taught to others that everlasting Law and statute of grace and favor for ever as it is written whom he loveth once he loveth to the end that is everlastingly for his sure mercies and love are written even written in the prepared heart that God will be their God and they his people for ever more still testifying that this was he that was once dead but now liveth was lost but now is found from which work and testimony of the holy Ghost in the heart ariseth such an assurance to the man so sanctified that he is so sure his sins are forgien him and that Gods favour and love is given to him as he is su●e his Lord who wholly bought and freely gave his mercy to him was once dead than raised and now liveth for ever never to die againe this is the love of God shed abroad in his heart the Garment dipt in the bloud of the lambe the answere of a good conscience to his good and gracious God that as was his Father Abraham so is be fully perswaded and in truth of Faith with Saint Paul can say I am perswaded that neither death nor life principalities nor powers things present nor things to come nor height nor depth ●or any other creature whatsoever shall be able to separate me from the love of God which is in Christ Iesus my Lord And this is the birth and Baptisme of fire the blessing and accomplishment of the birth the life and generation of Gods children as that holy King singeth saying Blessed is the man whose sins are covered and whose God is the Lord Iehovah Hym. Surely this must be the description of true justifying Faith yet I pray make a definition of it Silv. This is the peculiar Faith the Faith of Abraham that which justifieth a sinner and by which the justified liveth as the Prophet speaketh and may be thus defined that it is a gift of Gods spirit whereby a concrite tender broken heart is given assuredly to believe that all his sins are forgiven him and that he is reconciled to God in everlasting love and favour through the precious bloud of Iesus Christ that hath bought and purchased it for him Which Faith is cleerly declared and fully proved in every part in the prodigalls acceptance when he was received from death to life the compassion of his Father was the only ground of the penitents forgivenesse and he assured him of his love and