Selected quad for the lemma: soul_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
soul_n	worthy_a	year_n	young_a	29	3	5.3575	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A96951	The only sovereign salve for the wounded spirit: approved by the author in himself Delivered by him in several sermons after his recovery: and now, published for the glory of his most gracious restorer, and for the comfort and settlement of any afflicted soul, that doth, or may labour under that weighty burden. By Richard Wortley, minister of Christ in his church, in Edworth in Bedfordshire.	Wortley, Richard, d. 1680.	1661 (1661)	Wing W3642A; ESTC R231974	144,585	300

The Only SOVEREIGN SALVE FOR THE Wounded Spirit Approved by the Author in himself Delivered by him in several Sermons after his Recovery And now Published for the Glory of his most Gracious Restorer and for the Comfort and Settlement of any Afflicted Soul that doth or may labour under that weighty Burden By Richard Wortley Minister of Christ in his Church in Edworth in Bedfordshire This is a Faithful saying and worthy of all Acceptation that Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners of whom I am chief 1 Tim. 1. 15. LONDON Printed for J. Rothwel at the Fountain in Goldsmths Row in Cheapside 1661. To the Reader Courteous Reader ST Paul who had the Spirit of God 1 Cor. 7 40. having by and from that Spirit assured us 2 Tim. 3. 16 17. that all Scripture is given by Inspiration of God that it is profitable for Doctrine Reproof Correction Instruction that the man of God may be perfect through●● furnished unto all good works 〈…〉 16. That ●● Gospel is the power of God unto Salvatio●● 〈…〉 ●e that believeth ●pon the Spirit 's such assurance by him I do rely with ●●sidence And as in my soul I do believe the Scrip●●●es to be the very Word of God so as I boldly may 〈◊〉 ought taking he●d unto that sure Word of Pro●●ie 2 Pet. 1. 19. I do teach the Truths which there I ●● as Parts of that inspired powerful perfecting and ●very good work throughly-furnishing Word not ●ting to seek further or to wait for the revelation of ●● Truths not there set down lest I be found in the ●●mber of the blasphemous adders thereunto and so be●●e liable to that fearful punishment threatned against ●●h Rev. 22. 18. Moses and the Prophets are to be heard Lu. 16. 29 The Scriptures are to be searched John 5. 39. However sin● as the natural man cannot a●● 〈…〉 ●●ings wanting a spiritual eye to discern 〈…〉 ●evealed unto them 1 Cor. 2. 14. ●● the ●●generate though diligent hearers and searchers cannot clearly discern them unless revealed unto them Luke 24. 45. The Lord is pleased in such a measure as he sees fitting to give unto them the Spirit of wisdo● and revelation in the knowledge of him and to enlighten the eyes of their understandings Eph. 1. 17 18. and by the spirit of Truth to guid them into all needful Truths as he hath promised John 16. 13. This ordinary way of the Sp●rit of Truth 's enlightening to the glory of the same Spirit I speak it I have experimentally found in my soul from the time that with a total resignation I have given my self up to b●led by it Which further to encou●●● 〈…〉 a confident and chearful going on in the service of my Lord Christ in his Ministry hath late●● 〈◊〉 an extraordinary and not so usual a 〈…〉 most unworthy dust and ashes of so low 〈◊〉 ●●●●cention of my great God! been pleased not only to assure me That I have escaped the Corruption that is in the world through Lust 2 Pet. 1. 4. A blessed and most sweet assurance but likewise Clearly to manifest unto me The dangerous estate of the Natural man while such The manner of the great work of his Conversion To instruct me in the right understanding of many Scripture-truths relating thereunto To shew unto me and to all that are effectually called the path of life and by way of guiding of my steps to Heaven-ward secr●tly to say unto my soul this is the way walk in i● Isa 30. 21. Of which great Mercies with so●e other vouchsafed to him not worthy to be beloved not worthy to be minded this following Narration will more fully inform thee The Narration IN my younger years being bred up in the University and having taken a Degree there I was admitted into one of the Inns of Court Where having spent about two years Means now failing for my support and continuance in that course I was received into the Family of an Honourable Personage mine Employments being in the way of a Scholar as to write Letters to read Divinity to pen Sermons to pray with the Family in the Chaplains absence c. It pleased God so to dispose the heart of the Honourable Governour toward me that great secular preferments were endeavoured for me But none of them succeeding I was at length by Mandate from his then Majesty procured by the means of that Noble Personage replanted into my old Nursery a Fellow of a Colledge there I yearly payd mine acknowledgment by attendance where I had received so much Favour the good will and endeavour of worldly preferments for me still continuing One at last was freely offered unto me of such a nature as I most desired with visible almost certainties of great wealth and temporal advancement had it been accepted but Providence had otherwise disposed of me For when upon the offer my answer of acceptance was expected I was surprized with a sudden amazement and standing silent like a Statue had not one word to speak by way of acknowledgment of mine own unworthiness or of the greatness of the intended Favour much less to express my ready acceptance thereof and due thankfulness for it and so for some time continuing was dismissed for the present and within shorttime after became a stranger to those Relations Having after this as I esteemed it unhappy rejection spent some years in the Colledge vainly and idly enough God knows it was the Lords pleasure to transplant me into his Church abroad And having by a remarkable manuduction brought me unto the Living which I now hold he was pleased at my first en●rance by a great though not total distemper in the right use of my Reason to break and fit me in some measure for his Service there and to prepare the way for that great Work which he had to do many years after I could here tell thee how in that distemper God did set me before my self a●ter a strange manner presenting to my view my hainous sins to that time and shewing me how many deaths I had deserved by them But I have acknowledged and humbled my self for them unto him who hath graciously assured me of his Pardon Upon my recovery I had some good moti●ns and faint stirrings in my soul toward God and Goodness which so long I had forgotten and indeed flighted My first Subject which I handled was the broken heart Psal 51. 17. The way which I should have taken but neglecting it the work was not throughly wrought Though I proceeded so far as to a just restitution as near as I could call to mind where I had wronged any and I remember the f●ax beg●n to smoak in some weak dislike often sti●ring in my heart against those sins in which formerly I h●d liv●d and wherewith it was over-run and I began by degrees to break off from them I had now continued at my Living five or six years or more when I do not remember that the day before or

God himself So St. Paul aggravates his sins calling himself the chief of sinners That he that had been so bred and knew so much that he should be such a cruel Persecuter and Blasphemer O I have sinned against knowledge Mercies Patience Chastisements Vows Promises Means Motions Checks after this manner doth the soul aggravate its sinful Follies in its Confession 5. In true Confession there will be shame A Saint will blush in secret to think that his soul which Christ hath married to himself in righteousness should be so polluted and defiled What fruit had you then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed Rom. 6. 21. Sin is alwaies attended with shame either with a reproachful shame from others or a penitent shame in secret or a confounding shame in the end Some indeed are so hardned that as Jeremy speaks Jer. 3. 3. They have Whores Forheads and refuse to be ashamed But the truly penitent soul in its Confession acknowledgeth with Daniel Dan. 9. 7. That righteousness belongeth unto God but unto us Confusion of Face because we have sinned against him 6. Lastly In true Confession there will be an acknowledgment of our unworthiness Jacobs Language is I am not worthy of the least of all thy Mercies Gen. 32. 10. The Prodigals I am not worthy to be called thy Son Luke 15. 21. St. Pauls I am not meet to be called an Apostle 1 Cor. 15. 9. The soul casts it self low at the Foot-stool of God with humble thoughts of it self The confessing Penitent calling himself dust and ashes with Abraham a worm with David a dog with the Syro-Phenician thinking that he never keeps distance enough or is low enough in his Acknowledgments Act 2. The second Act of true Repentance is sorrow for sin This with the next of hatred of sin is included in the word rending which the Prophet Joel useth alluding therein to the practise of the Jews who did use to rend their Garments upon the sight or hearing of any sad or loathsom thing as Jacob did for the loss of his Son Joseph Gen. 37. 34. and the High Priest at the supposed Blasphemy of Christ when he said he was the Son of God Mat. 27. 65. Wouldst thou then have thy wounded soul recovered and thy lost Peace restored rend thine heart in unfaigned sorrow for thy sinful Follies Sorrow in it self is a grief of the mind arising fro● a mans suffering by that which he abhors as hurtful to him In relation to sin it is twofold V●cious Sorrow And Godly Sorrow The first hath only respect to that punishment which sin hath deserved Such was that in Cain in Judas and is in many wicked men who have somtimes a kind of sorrow and remorse but it is not so much for the sin it self or indeed not at all for ●hat but in respect of that punishment whereunto by sin they have made themselves liable Such doubtless is in the Damned in Hell who are grieved for the punishment which they feel but not for the s●n ●hat d●served it The second namely Godly ●orrow is such as is in the Lords people upon their Repentance after their Falls Which may have a subordinate respect unto the punishment unto the wrath of God who is a consuming fire as St. Pauls exhortation thereupon makes it clear Heb. 12. ult And so likewise his perswading of men upon his knowledge of the Terrors of the Lord 2 Cor. 5. 11. But the principal Object which godly sorrow hath a prime and special respect unto is the offence against God as it is a violation of and transgression against his most holy Will O the Saint of the Lord grieves and mourns in his soul that by his Follies he hath offended his good God his loving Father so gentle so merciful so gracious so patient so slow to anger so ready to pardon This goes near him this doth exceedingly afflict him Though it may be the temper of his Body is such that not a Tear fals from his eye yet he would willingly if he could that his heart should weep tears of Bloud for those his sinful Follies whereby he hath provoked such a God such a tender and loving Father This Sorrow is known to be true and unfaigned by those six effects of Godly Sorrow which the Apostle sets down 2 Cor. 7. 11. Which are Marks 1. Carefulness 2. Indignation 3. Fear 4. Zeal 5. Desire 6. Revenge The Apostle there adds a Seventh Effect of the godly Sorrow in the Corinthians which he cals defending or clearing of themselves in the Greek it is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which signifies defence which I conceive was an act p●oper only unto them in reference to the inc●stuous persons sin which they by way of defence cleared themselves of as not being guilty of approving thereof much less of glorying therein as they are charged and so cannot be taken in as a constant Mark of true godly sorrow in whomsoever 1. Then True sorrow for sin makes a man careful to shun all sin for the time to come especially that or those late Follies wherewith he was overtaken He will with all wariness shun the occasions which may draw him again into it He that hath once fallen into a dangerous Pit and is escaped out of it will take heed how he comes near the Brink of it again The sorrowful Soul will not only be shy of known sins which he knows to be such but he will abstain from all appearance of evil 1 Thes 5. ●2 If he hath but the least suspition of it he carefully declines and avoyds it 2. The Second Effect is Indignation which in it self is a grief at the prosperity of those whom we think unworthy of it In reference to sin it is a mixture of grief and anger against a mans own Corruption that it should so prevail over him and enslave him that he should be compassed about with such a body of death from which he knows not which way to be delivered Such a mixture of Passion was doubtless in St. Paul stirring against his cross Flesh or Corruption that warred against the Law of his mind and was still at his Elbow and present with h●m to hinder him in doing good and to put him on to do that which he hated his indignation was ●o stirred against it that he cries out O wretched man that I am who shall deliver me from this body of death What a wretched condition am I in Is there no way for me to be freed from it Rom. 7. 24. 3. True sorrow for sin is fearful of falling again The Saint of God upon his Follies which he now bewayles is made sensi●le of his own weakness he hath fallen and may again and therefore he walks in continual fear He knows his carnal part is as treacherous as ever and the Devil as malicious against him as ever and his Assaults as violent and he knows not how soon the Lord may leave him to himself and then in what case he shall