Selected quad for the lemma: soul_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
soul_n	lord_n	wait_v	watch_v	3,962	5	11.2347	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A25248	Redeeming the time a sermon preached at Preston in Lancashire, January 4th, 1657 at the funeral of the honourable lady, the Lady Margaret Houghton / by Isaac Ambrose.	Ambrose, Isaac, 1604-1664.; Houghton, Margaret, Lady, d. 1657.	1674 (1674)	Wing A2969; ESTC R29590	26,695	20

and if so how is it possible for me to redeem the time I answer 1. By way of Concession I believe there is a day of grace indeed and if that Sun set it will never never rise again If thou hadst known even thou at least in this thy day the things belonging to thy peace but now are they hid from thine eyes Luk. 19 4● q. d. Now is the gate of mercy shut there is no means of grace or Salvation for ever hereafter to be hoped for As there is no Market or Fair-day that lasteth alwayes if the Country will not come in the Trades-man will at last put up his wares So the Lord's standing may be open and his shop set wide for such and such a time but if Souls will not come in and buy without mony and without price he will at last put up his wares all his jewels of grace and then be gone 2. Though it be true that there is a day of grace and that this day may set yet in respect of us the Ministers of Christ we cannot determine it and therefore so long as you live we call still oh repent oh redeem your time I may add in respect of your selves it is not in you to know the times and seasons which God hath put in his own power Act. 1.7 And the commandement of Faith standing in force on you so long as you live and thereforce you are still to look to your Duty of redeeming the time 3. It may be this day this night this Sermon this very hour may be thy day of grace Hearken is not Christ's Spirit now a knocking is not Christ himself now offering mercy to thy Soul O ye sons of men that have mis-improved your time will ye now at least in this your day he wise to Salvation why now I call to your hearts now I command you to open your everlasting doors that I the King of Glory may come in oh let this be the time of love Come give me your hearts and now redeem the time Away away with all objections scruples cavils that may hinder this Duty and now even now hearken to this voice of Christ or of the Spirit of Christ that your Souls may live 3. Must time be redeemed Then for some Rules or Directions how we must redeem it Rule 1. Vse 3. A void we every thing that would hinder us from taking the opportunity What those things are you have heard before as ignorance sloth and love of fleshly liberty Many other particulars might be enumerated but chiefly and especially foregoe we these Rule 2. Repent we of all former mis-improvings of our time There is no other way of recompensing former unfruitfulness but by repentance and after diligence This is the scond table after shipwrack in this way we may redeem or buy back again the time that is past The very word resipiscentia signifies to be wise again after all our former follies Oh that ever any should be so unworthy as to decry this godly-Gospel-golden Rule Rule 3. Live we every day as if every day were the last day we had to live This Rule or direction is so comprehensive that I must needs break it into particulars Suppose then I were to begin this day and that I look't on this day as the last day of my life how should I redeem my time or spend this day I answer 1. My first and morning-thoughts should be on God or on something in order to his service Psal 130.6 My Soul waiteth for the Lord more than they that watch for the Morning Isa 23.2 O Lord be gracious to me I have waited for thee be thou my arm every Morning Psal 59.16 I will sing of thy power I will sing aloud of thy mercy in thy Morning It is good to give thanks unto the Lord. Psal 92.1 2. and to sing praises unto thy name O most high to shew forth thy loving kindness in the Morning Psal 139.17 How pretious are thy thoughs unto me O God when I awake I am still with thee Now these Morning-thoughts may be spent either in a way of Meditation Isa 26. or of Prayer and my Duties lie in both 2. I should meditate I shall not determine whether Morning or Evening may be more suitable for set deliberate and solemn meditation onely this I affirm that either a solemn or an occasional meditation is a Morning-duty In some sort meditation and prayer should ever go together Psal 5.1 2.3 and David thus couples them Give ear to my words O Lord consider my meditation hearken to the voice of my cry My voice shalt thou hear in the Morning O Lord in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee Now these Morning-meditations if occasional or ejaculatory may be on such Objects as these 1. Upon my first waking I may think on that Morning of my Resurrection when the Lord will awake me from the dust it is but a while till the trump shall sound Awake Isa 29.19 and sing ye that dwell in the dust for thy dew is as the dew of herbs and then shall the earth cast out her dead 2. Upon sight of the Morning-sun I may think on that Sun of Righteousness that enlightens Heaven The Sun that shines on me was only created for this nether World and yet how glorious is it Oh then what light is there in that City above that hath no need of Sun Re. 21.23 or Moon or Star for the glory of God doth lighten it and the Lamb is the light thereof 3. Upon the putting on of my apparel I may think on that garment of Righteousness where with my soul either is or should be cloathed Alas what is this outward Robe but a Rag or at best an excrement of dead worms of which I have little reason to be proud But my Souls Robe is as a garment cut out of the Sun Rev. 12.1 and put upon me And there appeared a great wonder in Heaven a woman cloathed with the Sun Oh that I may be cloathed with that Sun of Righteousness or with that Rightousness of the Son of God that I may appear before God as I am in him pure and spotless I shall not instance in any other objects of my Mornings meditation onely if I find my spirit most active and fit for meditation at such a time I should then go on and spare more time for set deliberate and solemn meditations 2. I should pray and to this Duty I may joyn the reading of the Word That this is a mornings Duty the Scripture is express Psal 5.3 In the Morning will I direct my prayer unto thee and will look up Psal 88.13 And in the morning shall my prayer prevent thee And evening and morning and at noon will I pray and crie aloud Psal 55.17 and he shall hear my voice It is true that Prayer and reading of the Word are two distinct exercises

whereby I can be saved and there is no other Righteousness but Christs whereby I can be justified Surely shall one say in the Lord have I Righteousness and strength Isa 45.24 3. I must make an actual commutation with the Lord Jesus as to my sins and his Righteousness And to that purpose 1. I must hearken to the voice of Christ calling me to him with my burthen Come to me thou poor soul with thy guilt of sin for that is mine this agreement I made with my Father from all Eternity that I should come and take thy sins and bear them away they were my lot give me thy burden give me all thy sins thou knowest not what to do with them I know how to dispose of them well enough so that God shall be glorified and thy soul delivered 2. Vpon this call I must lay down my sins at the Cross of Christ upon his shoulders This is faiths great and bold adventure upon the grace faithfulness and truth of Christ to stand by the Cross and say Ah! he is bruised for my sins and wounded for my transgressions and the chastisement of my peace is upon him He is thus made sin for me here I give up my sins to him that is able to bear them he requries at my hands that I should be content to throw my sins upon him and to this I consent 3. Having thus by faith given up my sins to Christ I must draw nigh and take from him that Righteousness which he hath wrought out for me To this purpose he tenders himself and his Righteousness to be my Righteousness before God and by my acceping of it I compleat this bartering and exchange of faith and come into communion with Jesus Christ as to my acceptation with God by grace 2 Cor. 5.21 He was made sin for us that we might become the Righteousness of God in him 3. I would consider of my communion with the holy Ghost in comfort John 14.26 We read usually in the Gospel that he is the Comforter John 15.26 Oh the condescension of the Holy Ghost he willingly proceedeth John 16.7 or comes forth from the Father to be our Comforter he knew what we were and what would be our dealings with him he knew we would grieve him provoke him quench his motions defile his dwelling place and yet he would come to be our Comforter Now for my communion with the holy Ghost herein the directions are these 1. I must ask him of the Father in the name of Jesus Christ This is the daily work of Believers they look upon and consider the holy Ghost as promised to be sent and in this promise they know lies all their grace peace mercie and comfort for by him so promised are these things communicated Luke 11.13 O then how should I ask him of the Father who is as ready to bestow him on me as I am to give my children bread If ye being evil know how to give good gifs unto your children how much more shall your Heavenly Father give the holy Spirit to them that ask him 2. If comfort come I must learn to act faith distinctly on the Holy Ghost as the immediate efficient cause of all my comfort It may be the Spirit is given and be tenders or administers consolations but then I do not consider him as the Comforter why surely this grievs him a lively faith will take notice of his kindness upon every work of consolation that I receive I should write this Motto This is from the Holy Ghost he is my Comforter and the God of all my consolation 3. I must return praise and thanks and honour and glory and blessings to him on the account of those comforts I receive from him When I feel my self warmed with joy supported with peace or established in obedience I should then ascribe to him the praise that is his due And this praising of him is no small part of my communion with him Say now is not here a Priviledge worthy of my consideration would not a thought of this Psal 119.54 25. and my acting in this leave a sweet favour in my soul when I am going to my Bed as to my grave Psal 63.5.6 David could say Thy statutes have been my song in the house of my Pilgrimage Psal 149.5 I have remembred thy name O Lord in the night And my soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness Isa 26.9 and my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips Job 35.10 Ay but when must this be He answers When I remember thee upon my Bed Psal 42.8 and meditate on thee in the night-watches And he fastens it as a Duty upon all Saints Psal 77 6 Let the Saints be joyful in glory let them sing aloud upon their beds And the Church resolves upon it With my soul have I desired thee in the night and with my spirit within me will I seek thee early Surely it is God saith Elihu who giveth songs in the night And in the night saith David his song shall be with me And 't was a blessed remedy to his heavy Soul I call to remembrance my song in the night Oh that with such thoughts and considerations of my communion with God and Christ and the spirit of Christ for of some other Priviledge I might every night go to my Bed for then like the Philomele should I sing in the night yea then would my Soul be satisfied as with Marrow and fatness and my Mouth would praise him with joyful lips I might instance in many other duties which would then be seasonable but these are the main and if this day were my last day or if this night I must sleep my last in this world yet I should comfortably hope that in the doing of these duties in a spiritual manner I had in good measure redeemed my time and that when I awake though I never awake till the Resurrection day yet then should I see God face to face and I should be satisfied with his likeness Psal 17.15 I have now done only before we part I would say something of the deceased party as to our edification and so an end You know I have been sparing in this way because of many abuses and especially because all promiscuously look for praises at their death howsoever they spend their life But now God hath removed me from this pastoral charge and I shall not here perform many of these last offices of love probably never more than this and therefore at this time I shall crave your patience and attentions to what may be spoken without any prejudice to truth or harm to you The Duty I am pressing on you is to redeem the time and this I believe of the deceased party that she redeemed her time I shall not speak of her Birth Education Progeny Nobility Stemmata quid faciunt Alas what 's all this to a Funeral-Sermon Nor shall I speak of her youth