Selected quad for the lemma: soul_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
soul_n	act_n	faith_n	grace_n	4,482	5	5.9933	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A25200	A sermon preached at sea, before the Honourable Sir Robert Robinson, Knight, principal commander of His Majestie's squadron of ships, now riding at Spitt-Head, November the 24th, 1678 before the administration of the Holy Sacrament, and oaths of allegiance and supremacy to the several commanders and officers of that squadron, in obedience to the King's command / by George Alsop ...	Alsop, George, b. 1638.	1679 (1679)	Wing A2903; ESTC R5430	14,734	38

vos I know you not go ye Cursed into Everlasting fire prepared for the Devil and his Angels And now Beloved that we use and wear this Garment aright there are these two Offices to be performed First We must put off Secondly We must put on First Before we can put on we must put off we must put off all the filthy rags of our for●●r corruption our sinful nature our beast-like affections c. Men when they put on new Apparel pull off the old and throw them by so if you would be cloathed with the Righteousness of Christ you must cast off the filthy clouts of your Menstruous Conversation The Swearer must put off his swearing the Drunkard must put off his drunkenness the Unclean person must put off his filthiness the Covetous man his uncharitableness the Envious man his hatred the Traytor his Treason the Idolater his Superstition for let me tell you that you may as well perswade me that Heaven and Hell are reconciled together as that Christ and Sin dwell together in one man therefore if thou intend'st to be cloathed with Christ as with a Garment thou must put off as the Apostle saith in the Eph. 5.3 All uncleanness inordinate affections evil Concupiscence Wrath Malice Blasphemy filthy Communication lying one to another Secondly As you must put off so you must put on and the means to put on Christ is faith believing apprehending and appropriating Christ and his Merits to our selves we must believe all the promises of God in Christ Jesus made unto man and particularly apply the same unto our own selves which is only done by the Act of true Faith Faith is as it were the hand of the Soul which doth reach Christ unto us and put him on Would'st thou have Christ dwell in thy heart would'st thou put him on as a Garment believe Christ with thy mind and heart and thou hast him And now Beloved that I may leave nothing wanting of my part to put you in the right way for Eternal happiness you must know that it is not every Faith or bare Believing of Christ will put on Christ as a Garment No then the Devils may put him on for they believe all the Historical part of the Bible from the First of Genesis to the last of the Revelations Hypocrites believe in God and in Christ and yet for all that they are thrown to the hottest place of Hell Now that Faith that is saving Faith that like a Hand reacheth Christ and puts him on is an Operative and working Faith First Faith that 's saving as the Apostle saith Purifieth the Conscience so then if thy Faith be true it cleanseth thy Soul from sin it cleanseth thy Soul from Covetousness it cleanseth thy Soul from Lust it cleanseth thy Soul from Pride it cleanseth thy Soul from Revenge it cleanseth thy Soul from Drunkenness it cleanseth thy Soul from Hypocrisy it cleanseth thy Soul from Rebellion it cleanseth thy Soul from Treason it cleanseth thy Soul from Idolatry it cleanseth thy Soul from Faction it cleanseth thy Soul from all manner of Wickedness The Devils Believe but they cannot be cleansed from their black Abominations Hypocrites believe and profess and make a fair shew of outward Holiness but their hearts are not cleansed from Oppression Lust Murder Treason and Rebellions Our Saviour of old Compares them to Tombs now you know that Tombs are oft usually the most beautiful Ornaments of the Church but let a man digg within them and he shall find nothing but putrifaction stink and dead mens bones Never say then that thou Believest savingly or that thou hast more Faith than Devils Hypocrites while Sin and Wickedness governs thy Soul Secondly True Saving Faith works by Love So it produceth Works Shew me thy Faith by thy Works saith St. James Where there is true Faith in the Soul like the Centurion it saith to one Go and he goeth and to another Come and he comeeth it Commands all our Actions our Hand to Distribute to the Poor our Feet to Walk in the Commandments of God our Hearts to be Upright towards our God and towards our Neighbours our Tongue to Declare the Loving Kindness of the Lord. Faith in the Soul of Man is like Sap in a Tree that lies hid but Holy Works are like Fruit that shews it self where there is true Faith in a Man there will be Holy Works there will be Hope there will be Charity there will be Repentance there will be Godly Zeal The Apostle St. Paul tells us that the Just live by Faith That is they live the Life of Holyness they live the Life of Religion they live the Life of Sobriety they live the Life of Chastity they live the Life of Humility they live the Life of Godly Love They do not live the life of Prophaneness they do not live the life of Drunkenness they do not live the life of Lust they do not live the life of Pride they do not live the life of Revenge and Malice these are the Works of the Devil Labour therefore for a true Saving Faith A Faith that cleanseth thy Soul from Sin and worketh by Love If a man should come and tell a Person that 's Rich that all the Writings in his Chest that Assur'd him of his Possessions were Forged Counterfeit would it not make him start and go to his Chest take them out and have them read and considered on by the best and learned Council and shall not we look after our Faith to see whether that be Sound and Real which is an Evidence of our Eternal Inheritances Without the Garment of Christ's Righteousness to cover our Souls we shall never go to Heaven and there is no putting this Garment on without a true sanctified Faith Faith is the Hand of the Soul that puts on Christ I can't stand no longer upon this Point the time hath over-shot me I will conclude all with the Blessing that Jacob gave his Sons when they went into Egypt to carry Benjamin God Almighty Grant you favour in the eyes of the Great Man So the Lord Grant us all Favour in the Eyes of the Great God before whom we must appear this day at his Holy Table And that we may have Favour let us bring the Beloved Benjamin with us which is the Righteousness of Christ by Faith that this Blessed Feast we are Invited to may not be a savour of Death unto any but a savour of Life unto all that shall pertake of it c. Which God of his Infinite Mercy grant To whom be ascribed all Honour Power and Glory Adoration and Subjection from this time forth and for ever more And let all the People say Amen Let us Pray FINIS

cast out Devils and did many Wonders and yet Christ professeth he knows them not There must be Inward Holiness and Sincerity as well as outward Shew or else it comes to nothing Here then we see that the Collusion of the Church of Rome is blown away with the sound of this Doctrine for the Men of Rome say That outward works are available to Salvation though there be no Inward Conformity When as we see this Unworthy Guest made as Glorious a shew to the eyes of the World as the rest at the Table and yet was rejected by him that was the Searcher of Souls The Romanists say The very receiving the Bread only for the Priest drinks the Wine doth remit sins confer Grace and gives us a sure Title to the Kingdom of Heaven Contrary to the Doctrine of my Text and that of St. Paul who pronounceth the Unworthy Receiver Guilty of the Body and Blood of Jesus We see then let the Romanists say what they will 't is as much as our Souls are worth to come into the presence of God to eat and drink at his Table Unprepared you know what became of this Unworthy Guest in the Text. Should God make a strict search among us from the highest to the lowest can you think he would find but one Unworthy Guest but one Unworthy Officer among us I can charge none of you with Unworthiness but out of a tender regard to your Eternal good I beseech you as you value the Blood of Christ shed for you and the Salvation of your own Immortal Souls every man of you that is invited to this Blessed Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ strictly to Examin himself before he Eats of this Bread or Drinks of this Cup. And now to prevent the Danger which the want of this Wedding Garment may bring upon us First I will shew you what this Wedding Garment is Secondly The means how you may obtain it Thirdly How we must use it when we have obtain'd it First What this Wedding Garment is There is great difference among the Fathers what this Wedding Garment is One saith it is the New Man Another the observing the Commandements of Christ Another a Pure Conversation Another an Upright Heart Another Regeneration consisting in Faith and Repentance Another Faith Another Charity Another good Works Another Humility But St. Origen saith it is Christ and so undoubtedly it is because whoever will come unto God or partake of any Mystery of Salvation must be Cloathed with Christ as a Garment 1 Cor. 1.30 Who is made unto us the Faithful Wisdom Righteousness Sanctification and Redemption Christ as the Apostle saith covers all his as with a Garment We see plain enough that there are spots in the Moon but there are none in the Sun So in the best of our Graces and Worthiness there are stains and spots such as God would abhor to appear before him did not the Righteousness and Satisfaction of his Dear Son Jesus Christ cover us and appear for us Christ Jesus is the Wedding Garment that makes us acceptable to the Father without Christ what should we do t is his Righteousness that must cover our Unrighteousness 'T is his Humility that must cover our Pride 't is his Obedience that must cover our Disobedience 't is his Faith that must Cover our Diffidence 't is his Love that must Cover our Hatred 't is his Zeal that must Cover our Lukewarmness and then being Covered with Christ as with a Garment there can be no Condemnation unto us because as the Apostle saith we are in Christ Jesus for without the pretious Merits of Christ we are but Unworthy Guests Was ever Man or Woman sav'd by their own Works by their own Merits no not the Virgin Mary her self My Soul doth Magnifie the Lord and my Spirit Rejoyceth in God my Saviour these are Holy Mary's Words The Romanists will not allow of this Holy and Righteous Garment of Christ's Satisfaction to be sufficient but like David concerning Saul's Armour it is either too heavy or too long or too short and so they strut in a Popish Coat of their own Merit and Righteousness We read that Adam and Eve made unto themselves Coverings of Fig leaves to hide their Nakedness but God did dislike these and so made them Coats of Skins and Cloathed them therewith teaching us if we patch our own Satisfaction our own Works our own Dutys our own Merits together and cover our selves with them as with a Garment and rely upon them as having force and Efficacy to save and help us then are we no way fit to appear in the Presence of the Eternal God who accepts of no man but through the Merits Works and Satisfaction of his Son Jesus He that looks to be sav'd by his own merits will undoubtedly fall short of Heaven through his own presumption It is a saying of Job My own cloaths make me abhor'd so our own Works without Christ make us Loathsom in the Eyes of God Let us all then be persuaded to Cast off the menstruous Rags of our former Conversation Vse the old Man which is Corrupt according to the Deceitful Lusts and be renewed in the Spirit of our minds putting on the new man which after God is Created in Righteousness and true Holiness Labouring to be Uncloathed that we may be Cloathed upon that so we may be found in Christ not having our own Righteousness which is of the Law but of that which is through the Faith of Christ the Righteousness of God by Faith Phil. 3. ver 9. This is the Garment we must Labour for this is the Garment that we must strive and Endeavour to get for to cover our Poor Naked and Immortal Souls 2. Having shew'd you what this Garment is I will now shew you how it may be obtained A thing may be made ours by diverse means 1. We may buy it 2. We may earn it or deserve it 3. It may be given us 4. We may have it by way of Exchange And now that we may obtain this holy Garment of Christ's Righteousness t is the Counsel of Christ himself Rev. 3. ver 15. Buy of me gold tryed in the Fire that thou mayest be Rich and white Rayment that thou mayest be Cloathed that the shame of thy Nakedness do not appear But some will Object and say Object What must we buy Christ the Saviour of our Souls with Money as Judas sould him Buy him we must Answ though not as Judas sould him but as the Prophet speaks in Esa 55. ver 1. Without Money and without Price The reason of the Term Buying here mentioned is because there is a near resemblance between the Spiritual and the Material Buying 1. In the Buying of Material things wee see a want and need of them before we buy them 2. There is a Longing or Desire to be possessed of them 3. There is a Resorting to the place where they are to be had 4. There is a laying down of