Selected quad for the lemma: soul_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
soul_n	become_v	life_n	spirit_n	4,234	5	5.0760	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A20734	A funerall sermon preached at Watton in Hertfordshire, at the buriall of the ancient and worthy knight, Sir Philip Boteler, Decemb. 9. 1606	Downame, George, d. 1634.	1607 (1607)	STC 7116; ESTC S110134	29,412	80

is withered away in time of heate yet that which falleth into an vpright heart as it were good ground is neither choked nor withered but bringeth foorth fruite with patience The way then to die in Christ is to liue in him by a true and vnfained faith which purifieth the heart and worketh by loue walking vprightly as it becommeth the members of Christ in the sincere profession of his faith so shall we in the end of our life attaine to the end of our faith which is the saluation of our soules Many there are which could be content to die in Christ who care not to liue in him Many with Balaam desire to die the death of the righteous but leade the life of the wicked But be not deceiued it is an old saying 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of an euill life cōmonly there is an euill end Presume not that thou shalt die in Christ vnlesse first thou liue in him In all the Scripture there is but one example of a man who after a wicked life was conuerted at the houre of his death One there is that men should not then despaire and but one that they should not before hand presume And forasmuch as nothing is either more certaine than death or more vncertaine than the time thereof it behoueth vs carefully to prouide whiles wee haue time to be in Christ that death whensoeuer it commeth may finde vs in him Let our life be a preparation for death and let this be the chiefest care of our life that wee may be found in Christ at the time of our death This life as our Sauiour saith is the day wherein we are to worke afterward is the night when no man can worke or turne vnto God but as the tree falleth so it lieth and as the day of death doth leaue vs the day of iudgement shall finde vs. This therefore must teach vs not to deferre from day to day our repentance towards God and faith in Iesus Christ but presently whiles it is called to day to turne vnto the Lord that wee may bee in Christ to day before to morow because wee haue none assurance that wee shall liue vntill the morow And so much may suffice to haue spoken of the first and chiefe point namely who they are which heere bee pronounced blessed to wit they which die in the Lord. Now are we in the second place briefely to consider what this blessednes is and wherein it doth consist This is shewed in the words following that they rest from their labours and their workes follow with them So that their happines is two-fold first priuatiue in that they rest from their labors and molestations for there is a sabba●sme or rest reserued to the people of God Hebr. 4. 9. whereof the Sabbath was a type For then the Lord shall wipe away all teares from their eyes and they shall be no more subiect to sinne or the punishment therof as sicknes weaknes mortalitie labour wearines troubles wrongs death Death is the hauen and the end of al misery vnto them But their happines is not meerely priuatiue like that of beasts which after death haue no more sense of paine where by the way we are to note that the state of the beast when it dieth is better then of the wick●d who die in their sinnes but it is also positiue For their workes that is the reward of their faith and obedience 〈◊〉 God shall cro●ne with euerlasting happines shall 〈◊〉 ●th ●hem This doth teach vs that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 good 〈◊〉 cannot merit ●ny thing 〈◊〉 t●e 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 God as Christ himselfe hath t●ld 〈◊〉 Luke 17. and ●ch 〈◊〉 eternall 〈◊〉 and therefore 〈◊〉 are not said to go before our acceptation to eternall 〈◊〉 as 〈◊〉 cause but follow as fruits yet the Lo● of his free grace according to his promise doth plentifully reward them The consideration wherof as it must encourage vs all to be fruitfull in good works knowing that our labour shall not been vaine in the Lord so especially those whō the Lord hath enriched with his blessings whether temporall or spirituall that they be rich in good workes laying vp for themselues a good foundation against the time to come that they may obtaine eternall life Againe whereas it is said that the workes of the faithfull do accompanie them after death this sheweth that although death strippe vs of all temporall things yet it doth not bereaue vs of our workes but bringeth vs the reward of them And that when all our friends and followers and all other worldly either delights or commodities doe fa●e and forsake vs y● our workes doe follow with vs to our ●all comfort Which should make vs to esteeme the keeping of faith and a good conscience aboue all the things of this world Now what this reward is which God hath prepared for these that die in Christ though neither the eye hath seene nor the eare heard nor the heart of man conceiued yet thus much we may gather out of the Scriptures that it shall consist in eternall and most perfect glory and gladnes The glory standing partly in the excellency of those heauenly gifts wherewith they shall be adorned being in respect thereof like vnto the Angels and renewed perfectly according to the glorious image of God yea made conformable to Christ our head in such a proportion of glory as his seueral members bee capable of and partly in the fruition of heauenly blessings as the possession of heauen and all heauenly good things the fellowship of the blessed Saints and Angels and that which is all in all the enioying of God himselfe who is the chiefest good In whose presence there is fulnesse of ioy and at whose right hand there be pleasures for euermore And that is the second thing their eternall ioy and gladnes arising from that glory For as they shall be most happie so shall they reioyce in it with vn speakable and endlesse comfort and in the sense thereof shall euermore bee stirred vp with wonderfull alacrity to glorifie God In expectation of this happie hope we are to liue soberly iustly and holily in this present world For if wee set this ioy before as the marke towards which we contend we will not suffer our selues to be withdrawne from our obedience to God neither by any worldly desires which in comparison hereof are to bee esteemed as meere vanities nor by any terrors of the world which in respect of the ioy that is set before vs wee are to contemne The third thing remaineth that is the time when this blessednes doth belong to them 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 saith he thenceforth that is from the time of their death and so forward for presently they rest from their labours and their workes follow he doth not say 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 after them but 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 with them This therefore is a

to die for him but as I said all they and only they which die in the Lord as the words 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 doe plainely signifie are here by the voice of God from heauen and by the testimony of the spirit pronounced blessed But let vs consider who may be said to die in the Lord for this is the most materiall point in all this text The like phrase is vsed 1. Thess. 4. 16. The dead in Christ. 1. Cor. 15. 18. They which are a sleepe in Christ. Which places being vnderstood of al the faithfull do cuidently proue that this phrase is not to bee restrained to Martyrs only but generally to be extended to all true Christians They therefore are said to die in Christ who being in Christ do so ●nd this life or who being by a true saith ingrafted into Christ doe in that faith depart this life So that to this happines two things are required first that we be in Christ for else we cannot be said to die in him the second that we abide in him vnto the end for else we do not die in him But you will say how can we be in Christ seeing he is in heauen and we on the earth I answere whosoeuer truly beleeueth in Christ he is in Christ and being in him is blessed Heere therefore I am to shew two things 1. That the faithfull be in Christ 2. That their being in him is the ground of their happinesse For there euery faithfull man and woman is a true member of the body of Christ bone of his bone and flesh of his flesh and consequently they are in him and he in them they being in him by faith and he in them by his spirit And they are not only in him but also one with him according to his prayer Ioh. 17. For as the body is one and yet hath many members and all the members though many are but one body so is Christ. For by one Spirit we were all baptised into one body namely of Christ and by the same were all made to drinke into one spirit viz. of Christ that is by the Spirit of Christ we are in Baptisme engrafted into the body of Christ and in the Lords Supper vnited to his Spirit 1. Cor. 12. 12. 13. As therefore there is an vnion betwixt the head of the natural body and the members thereof which be most remote from it by reason of the vnity of the same soule which being chiefely seated in the head quickneth also the feet so is it in the mysticall body of Christ. For hereby as S. Iohn saith We know that we dwell in Christ and he in vs because he hath giuen vs of his spirit This therfore is my first reason whosoeuer is in the body of Christ hee is in Christ euery one that truly beleeueth in Christ is in the body of Christ as a liuely member thereof therefore euery one that truly beleeueth in Christ is in Christ. The like comparison our Sauiour vseth Ioh. 15. where he saith that he is the vine and the faithfull are as it were branches in him As the branches therefore be in the vine so the faithfull are in Christ. Againe the Sacraments serue to this end to assure the faithfull that they be in Christ. For by the one we are baptised into Christ that is by Baptisme ingrafted into him Gal. 3. 27. in the other we eate his body and drinke his blood which whosoeuer doth he is in Christ and Christ in him Ioh. 6. 56. both whic● are plainely testified by the Apostle i● the place euen now cited For saith h● by the same Spirit we are all baptis● into one body and made all to drinke into one spirit But what need I other proofes seeing the holy Ghost in the Scripture plainely affirmeth that the faithfull be in Christ as 1. Cor. 1. 30. You saith the Apostle to the faithfull are of God in Christ. And it is an vsuall thing in the Scriptures to terme the faithfull such as be in Christ as Ephes. 1. 1. Philip. 1. 1. Colos. 1. 2. to the faithfull which be in Christ to all the Saints in Christ c. In the 8. to the Romans when he would signifie that the faithfull are forced from damnation he saith There is no condemnation to them which he in Christ Iesus When he would signifie that the faithfull are also regenerate he saith Whosoeuer is in Christ he is a new creature And finally as the faithfull are here said to die in Christ so elsewhere they are said to liue in him and he in them 2. Tim. 3. 12. Gal. 2. 20. The vse which we are to make hereof is two-fold the one of instruction the other of comfort For seeing the faithfull are in Christ it behoueth all them who would seeme to bee true Christians to behaue themselues as becommeth those which are in Christ gouerned and guided by his spirit according to his Word For this we are to know that the offences I meane especially such as be notorious offences of such as be or would seeme to be in Christ do redound to the dishonor of Christ our head For as we seeme to haue communion with him which in sinful actions indeed we haue not but are then affected as members of the naturall body benummed with the palsie which though they haue vnion with their head yet haue not communion of sense and motion deriued to them from the head but I say as wee seeme to haue communion with him so we seeme to draw him into the communion and fellowship of our sinne which is horrible to be thought When as therefore we are incited or allured to the practise of sinne let this consideration restraine vs. For seeing wee professe our selues our soules and bodies to bee members of Christ let vs say with the Apostle Shal I take the member of Christ and make it the member of a harlot G● forbid And so for other sinnes shall I defile the member of Christ with idolatrie and make it a member of Antichrist or shall I pollute the member of Christ with drunkennesse with theft with blood with witchcraft c. and make it as much as in me lieth a limbe of the diuell God forbid The comfort which all the faithfull are from hence to reape is that comfort of all comforts namely that they are in Christ and consequently are so to conceiue of themselues as being in Christ. I say againe that all they who embrace the mercies of God in Christ and doe lay hold vpon him by a true and a liuely faith are to bee assured that they are in Christ and consequently that they are in the fauour of God and accepted of him in Christ as righteous and in Christ adopted as the children of GOD and heires of eternall life Many not well considering this point doe greatly weaken the faith either of others or their owne Of others as namely they who halting betweene