Linguistic DNA - Concept Modelling Demonstrator

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	accept_v	acceptance_n	according_a	21	3	4.7651	4	false

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A93757	Six several sermons preached on Isaiah, 38. I. Wherein that great duty of setting our body and soul in order, for we shall die, is at large opened and explained Wherein also many divine truths are made known relating to the same matter; and now published, because of the exceeding importance and concernment of this subject unto all people whatsoever.	Stafford, Richard, 1663-1703.	1696 (1696)	Wing S5135; ESTC R230779	115,810	178

outside Acts of Worship and Religion if the inward parts thereof are not joyned with them Let them put away their Whoredom and the Carcases of their Kings far from me and I will dwell in the midst of them for ever Ezek. 43. 9. Lip-labour in Prayer is properly Whoredom for it takes away the Heart from God who is the right beloved and places it upon another wrong beloved And so meer and only outside Worship may be truly called the Carcases of Worship that is without any Soul Life or Spirit therein Now as we here learn and read all this must be put away for God to dwell in us and accept of our Worship Our Matters must be Good and Right exactly according to the great Rule of Righteousness in Scripture if ever they will find the least Acceptance or Approbation from God For He is an Holy God He is a God of Knowledge and by him Actions are weighed And so our Worship is to be in Spirit and in Truth for the Father seeketh such to Worship him But all the Worship besides in the World whether Worship in Tongue or in Body which is all as nothing and profits as nothing without the Heart and Spirit going along with it or any Worship in which there is a mixture of Errour Idolatry or Superstition is an Abomination unto the Lord and obtains no good from him but rather brings Wrath and Punishment on the deluded Worshipper One false Expression in a Prayer Sermon or Service spoils the whole Burnt-offering or Sacrifice as to him that offers it up I mean as to the Preacher or Minister but the Hearers may separate the Precious from the Vile and not assent unto but dissent from it if any falshood should drop out of his Mouth The same holds alike and equally true as to good Works As to which the Lord seeth not as Man seeth for Man looketh on the outward Appearance but the Lord looketh on the Heart Suppose we instance in the Duty or good Work of Almsgiving whereof many good things are spoken and as to which many precious Promises are made in Scripture Now here it often so happens that an High-way-Man or one who hath abundance of Goods unjustly gotten or a Prodigal Spenthrift do now and then by chance or by way of vain Humour inconsiderately give a Crown or a Pound to a Poor Body when perhaps a real Servant of God or a good Christian doth not give moâ—e than a Penny because of his impoverishment and low Estate The greatest summ doth the most good to the poor Object because it is a means to furnish him with more necessaries whereas the last is the better Work and more acceptable in the sight of God who seeth the Heart and with what Mind it is As the latter is done only out of a sence of Duty and in Obedience to his Commandments but the former sort is done at random or by chance Or perhaps because even in the most Ungodly and Wicked seeing that they must unavoidably die and meeâ— with God and every one doth more or less fear some Wrath and Punishment from him for their former Sins and evil Deeds So they have some inward wishes and wouldings also to be at Peace with God but they suffer it no more to grow furâ—her unto Salvation then an addle Egg is to a live Chicken And so such may give Alms and that plentifully too like him in Micah thousands of Rams and ten thousand Rivers of Oyl for the Sin of his Soul as hoping thereby to make Atâ—onement for it or Commâ—tation or hereby to make some Recompence and Restitution for Goods unjustly gotten What manifold and vain Imaginations do lurk and lye hid in the Heart of Man And yet all this is besides the Mark for it is not right in the sight of God How fain would they be at Peace with him and yet they are not at Peace with him because they do not go the right way nor do things throughly and wholly but only by halves and in Part. Nor do they receive Instructions from the Word of God where they might see how they ought to walk to please him I have seen it quoted out of the Turkish History that the Great Emperour once took some goods wrongfully from the Merchants and being troubled in Conscience for the same upon his Deaâ—h bed He sends for the Mufti who is their Higâ—-Priest and tell him the Case and consults with him about building Alms-Houses for the Poor with the same Money The Mufti rather advises and it was done so accordingly to restore and give it back again to the right owner or to their Children and Kindred Now here it may be thought had not the poor Reason to curse the Mufti for had not they more need thereof than the Merchants who are commonly Rich and could better bear the loss No for all that in this the Mufti shewed himself a good Man For whether the Alcoran dâ—th so direct or not I know not but I am sure that herein He did speak and dictate according to the Law of God in the Bible If a Soul Sin and commit a trespass against the Lord and lie unto his Neighbour in that which was delivered unto him to keep or in fellowship or in a thing taken away by Violence this was the Turkish Emperours Case as to the Merchaâ—t or deceiveth his Neighbour then it shall be because He hath sinned and is guilty that He shall restore that which He violently took away or the thing which He hath deceitfully gotten Lev. 6. 23. Or if the Party be dead then to his Kinsmen or if there is no Kinsman then let the trespass be recompenced to the Lord even to the Priest Numb 5. 8 9 and so on If neither the Parties themselves â—or thâ—ir Children nor Kindred were alive for to whom Restitution was to be made then Alms was to be done in the very last place of all From whence it appears that as Mâ—rcy is before Sacrifice â—o Justice and Restitution is more pleasing and acceptable in the sight of the Lord then Almsgiving for assuredly He who hath commanded Thou shalt not bring the hire of a Whore or the price of a Dog into the House of the Lord thy God for any Vow For even both these are an abomination unto the Lord thy God Deut. 23. 18. even He will not accept of Alms out of Goods or an Estate unjustly gotten or holden For I the Lord love Judgement I hate Robbery for Burnt-offering Isa 61. 8. And so God hates Robbery for Almsgiving Will you speak wickedly for God and talk deceitfully for him Job 13. 7. And so will you lie or rob or steal or oppress or grasp too much because it is in the Power of your Hand and practice and devise iniquity Micah 2. 1. and pretend it is all for God which is Abomination and Hypocrisie And so it holds in like Cases for where is the same Reason and approves it self so to the

taught it unto us by that common knowledge which he hath given unto us as his reasonable Creatures But yet God willing more abundantly to acqnaint us with a lesson of so very great Importance as indeed it is to every one of us And seeing that the same hath a much further meaning and requiring than to order the Disposition of our Lands Houses Money and Goods For it hath a much more Noble even a Spiritual Sence and Signification to set our Souls which dwell in this Earthly House of the Body in order for we shall dye or yet more properly we shall leave these Habitations of Clay Therefore I say that God hath ordered the same for further security and to bring it yet more to our Knowledge and Remembrance to be written in his Statute Book the Bible as also we may find the same Engraven in the Word that is nigh us even in our Heart for we may also perceive a still Voice speaking from thence Set thine House in order for thou shalt dye and not live Isaiah the Prophet the Son of Amos came unto him and said From hence we may also consider How God who at sundry Times and in divers Manners spake in time past unto the Fathers by the Prophets hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son For in those days it was not so much Isaiah but God himself who spake this by Isaiah unto Hezekiah To which agree those words of our Saviour unto his Apostles and Disciples For'tis not yeÌ„ that speak but the Spirit of my Father which speaketh in you Mat. 10. 20 And so God spake by Moses David Job and by all the Prophets But now he speaks by Christ who is the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God in whom all the others do meet and concenter Searching what or what manner of Time the Spirit of Christ whâ—â—h was in them did signify 1 Pet. 1. 11. The Spirit of Christ in them In whom Why In the Prophets mentioned in the foregoing Verse Whose Spirit did actuate them all just like as the Soul doth actuate the Body Although Christ was than in Heaven and they were here on Earth in their several Generations long before God did send his Son in the fulness of Time for to become Flesh The Spirit of God and of Christ are near one and the same and so God and the Word of God are one and the same according to that common Maxim Nothing is in God but what is God himself So that we are not to look upon those words which we find written in the Bible as the words of Moses Samuel Job David and the Prophets or those in the New Testament as the words of the Evangelists and Apostles who yet did write and speak them but we should consider of it higher and further as the word of God and Christ which God and Christ spake by them As when we send a Letter to one at a Hundred Miles distance whom we have known or heard of we do by that same Letter speak to him in effect yea and as much to their knowledge and understanding as if we were in the same Room together and we did talk to them face to face So I have often thought that the Scriptures are as the Letter or Epistle of the Most High God which is sent unto us the Inhabitants of this Earth for hereby God doth speak unto us from Heaven the Habitation of his Holiness which is more than a Thousand or a Million of Miles distance from us all one as if we heard outwardly his Voice which in that sence no Man hath seen God at any time nor heard his Voice or as if the Lord did dwell Visibly amongst us which he doth not Is it so Yes verily Then this is a mighty Argument and terrible Consideration against those who refuse to Read or Hear the Word of God See that ye refuse not him that speaketh for if they escaped not who refused him that spake on Earth much more shall not we escape if we turn away from him that speaketh from Heaven Heb. 12. 25. It was the Angel on Mount Sinah and Moses and the Prophets that spake on the Earth but it is Christ the Son of God that now speaketh from Heaven For though Jesus Christ is long since ascended on High and Sits on the Right Hand of the Father yet he speaketh to us from Heaven even now in his Word and in the Preaching and Ministry thereof For as Moses of old time hath in every City them that Preach him being Read in the Synagogues every Sabbath Day Even so now Christ hath those who continually Preach him as Moses had â— by how much he is not only greater than Moses but even greater than the very Angels of God And who will not hear the Ministers of Christ who preach him or who Preach the Word of God for whosoever Preacheth the Word of God Preacheth Christ in as much as Christ is the Word of God Neither would such be perswaded if Christ should come once again into the World after the same manner as he did which will not be so for his next coming will be unto Judgment which Will be in Glory and in Power and in flaming Fire taking Vengeance on them that know not God and that obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ But in the mean while he hath gave the Word and there are those who Preach it He hath sent forth Labourers into his Harvest with full Power and Commission He that heareth you heareth me and he that despiseth you despiseth him that sent me Luke 10. 16. Even the Great God himself who made the World and all things therein What do ye think will become of those who despise God As they who despise his Word either preached or spoken written or printed do despise God himself Why God hath fortold us what will become of such They that despise me shall be lightly esteemed 1 Sam. 2. 30. This is not all neither for God will answer requite and punish them in very like manner They shall go forth and look upon the Carkasses of the Men that have Transgressed against Me and they shall be an abhorring unto all Flesh Isa 66. 24. Observe here the slighting kind of Phrase Carkasses the Holy Ghost makes use of That such little despicable and vile Beings who even in the midst of Life are but Men and Women in Carkasses Notwithstanding some have Jolly and Red looks Aâ—e inclosed in their own Fat according to the Psalmiâ—â—'s Phrase or are arrayed in fine Cloaths should ever behave themselves contemptuous or disdainful towards a most Excellent Infinite and Glorious Majesty as the Invisible God is If there should come any Letter to me or any order concerning me under the Great Seal of England with the Royal Signet and Arms and I would not Read nor look into it nor hear what it was but take and stamp it under my Feet or Burn

Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Text snippets containing the quad