Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	apostle_n	holy_a	scripture_n	6,970	5	5.7262	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A01703	A fruitful sermon preached at Occham in the county of Rutland, the second of Nouember, 1583 by Thomas Gybson.	Gybson, Thomas, fl. 1583.	1584 (1584)	STC 11840.5; ESTC S2130	26,976	78

❧ A FRVITful Sermon preached at Occham in the County of Rutland the Second of Nouember 1583. By Thomas Gybson PROVERB 29.8 ¶ VVhere there is no Vision the people decay GOD IS MY DEFENDER GOD IS MY DEFENDER AT LONDON Printed by Robert Walde-graue dwelling without Temple-Barre 1584. ¶ TO THE RIGHT HONOVRABLE Lorde FRAVNCES Earle of BEDFORD and one of her Maiesties most honourable priuy Counsell Knight of the Noble order of the Garter VVith the Right Honourarable Syr VVALTER MILDEMAY Knight Chancelour of the Queenes Maiesties Court of Exchequer and one of her Highnes most honourable priuy Counsell Grace Mercy and peace be multiplied from God our Heauenly Father from our Lord Sauiour Iesus Christe THE blessed holy Euangelist Saint Luke Right Honorable penning and publishing the Heauenlye story and blessed Gospell of Iesus Christ doth also dedicate the same to one Theophilus a Noble and famous man of singular credit and authority The reason and cause that mooued him thereto is because in those times the purenesse of the Gospell was hindred and persecuted whereby many erroures began to be spreade and allowed and therefore in great Wisdom it pleased the holy Ghost not onely to write a faithfull sure and perfect story but also to offer and present the custodie and defence of the same to one of Religion and Povver The verye same cause partly hath mooued me at this time to bee so bolde as to offer and Dedicate this poore and simple testimony of my trauaile to your Honoures For although I doe confesse vvee liue vnder a Gracious Prince whome the Lorde long continue to his glory to the shame and confusion of his enemies and to the dayly profit of his Church although I say we liue in so peaceable happy and gracious a time vnder the flowrishing state of the Gospell yet truely the dearest Children of God and the sincerity of Religion is subiect to bitter Persecution These wordes at the first may seeme verye greeuous hard and haynous and yet they are most certaine and true The holy Apostle S. Paul writing to the Galatians 4.29 speaketh on this maner As he that was borne after the Flesh persecuted him that was borne after the Spirite euen so is it nowe hee speaketh of Ismael and Isaac and yet we do not reade in the scripture of any persecution betweene them neither did Ismael persecute his Brother Isaac with hande or sworde but that which is worse proudly arrogantly he raised him selfe against him mocking him and as it were treading vnder feete the promise of God And this dealing by the apostle is cálled a persecution in deede there is not any persecution more greeuous to the Children of God then this Nowe who doth not dayly see that the best Christians and the purenes of Religion are greatly persecuted by Papists Atheists and Hipocrites as Isaac was by his Brother Ismael And of all matters of religion I thinke there is scarse any in these dayes more generally hated of such kind of men then that which is most altogether almost only hand led in this simple Sermō For these such like men many of them can bee content with a common ordinarye profession to heare Mattins and Euensong and sometimes a Sermon by such men as they like of but that there should be any continuall course of the pure preaching of the worde of God they can in no case allowe or like of This I say is hated reiected and persecuted so farre as may be of the greater sorte and therefore not without cause haue I attēpted to dedicate this my labor to your honors as special Patrons defendors of the Lords cause tried Friends and Fauorers of God his trueth But yet this attempt may seem very raish and needles For who am I that I should take vppon mee to set foorth and to publish any thing The vnworthiest I confesse of many hundreths and the vnablest of manye thousands and yet seeing many things more simple lesse needefull and profitable are not only suffered but alowed to come abroad I am not altogether discouraged neither hath any mā iust cause to accuse mee in this my simple enterprise I know these be daies of knowledge learning there bee greate store of famous and learned diuines in our land whom I beseech the Lorde to blesse that they may assist their weake brethren in the defence of this and such good causes and yet the two mites of the pore widow cast into the treasury amongest the great giftes of the wealthy are not to be refused I know your Honours be daily hearers of famous and learned men both in your houses and abroad you are acquainted with the sermons of profound deepe diuines and such as are mighty in the scriptures notwithstanding hauing in my self sufficient trial experience of your honors most curteous humble fauorable dealing towards me and also of some liking of my simple my poore trauelles in preaching heretofore I am not ashamed or afrayd after such triall and proofe to offer this so small and simple a thing vnto your Honours The great necessity of the matter I deale withall the care of Gods glory the zeal of his house the benefit that his church may haue by it hath especially mooued me that it should be published come abroad Let not therefore hypocrites bee too rash in iudging the Lorde the searcher of the hearts and reynes knoweth my purpose and affection in preaching and publishing this matter The cause that hath moued me to present it to your Honors rather then to other is the lōg proof and acquayntance of your honourable courtesies and friendlye good will towards me which for my part I am neuer able to requite for the which I thinke my selfe as long as breath is in me moste bound and indebted to your Honours And here I offer this poore fruite of my trauaile as some Testimony of good will and thankfulnes And whereas wee are wont commonly to offer and present to our dearest Friendes some giftes as tokens of good will or else of special duety Amongst many great and precious presentes vvhich are no doubt giuen and presented to your honours I also offer this simple mite and yet I hope more pleasant and acceptable to the receiuers then thousands of gold or siluer or any earthly thing whatsoeuer And in deede can there be any matter more sweete and pleasaunt to the cheefe Patrons and Defenders of the Godly Preachers and the word of God then to heare of the necessity profite and excellency of preaching which things are set foorth plainly largely in this little Sermon For howsoeuer many mē hate and abhorre this matter and can in no case disgest it yet your honours zeale courage liking goodwill and countenaunce to this and other good causes is cōmonly known and spreade abroad A further reason why I publishe this Sermon is because there is some matter in it for the which I haue beene in the

of the worde such a conscience and a care to reforme your selues and your housholdes What I saie hath wrought these thinges in you How came you by them What is it that hath so altered your mindes deedes and affections Let your conscience be witnesse to me in this matter I am sure you wil approue that which I haue spoken and acknowledge the profite the power and necessitie of the worde preached All and euery one of these arguments doe proue and confirme as I thinke that euery Minister necessarilye ought to preach and otherwise that he is no Minister approued of God All and euery one of these or most of them doe quite ouerthrow and condemne all dumbe idle and carelesse Ministers whatsoeuer One day they shall knowe what accounte he maketh of the soules of his people for seeyng the worde of the Lord in so many places requireth in a Minister preachyng yea diligent and carefull preaching in what a miserable and damnable state doe these men stand The Apostle saieth woe be to me if I preach not the Gospell Well it maie bee whatsoeuer I haue yet spoken will be graunted It is necessarie that euery Minister preache but what shall all those be condemned which haue not such full measure of knowledge as other haue whiche be not accounted and allowed for publique Prachers God forbid I know these difference in giftes there was so amongst the Apostles but they all suficiently preached Amongst vs and suche others as vse this place and such like places there is differēce euery one of vs haue not the like measure but for my parte I speake as I thinke our measure is small inough yet the Lorde be thanked for that we haue and giue vs grace to vse it to his glorie and the benefite of his Church in my self I professe and graunt very small and weake measure insufficiencie and lacke of gifts and the Lord the searcher of the harts knoweth that the consideration of this hath and doeth make me to feare and trimble often tymes to sigh and lament that so great a charge and so waightie a burthen is layed vpon me so simple and weake a wretch To you that haue any measure of those gifts which the Lord requireth in his Ministers to you I say quenche not the spirite vse the meanes to increase your measure if you be painefull carefull watchfull and faithfull in your ministrie with a holy and pure affection the Lorde will blesse you To him that hath shall be giuen we cannot at the first come to perfection Appollos a learned Docter feruente in the spirite and mightie in the scriptures yet was he ignorant in some things and receiued instructions from Aquila and Priscilla Some haue more then others some haue tenne talentes some fiue and some but one yet alwaies remember and let it neuer slippe out of your minds that the slothfull and vnprofitable seruaunt shalbe cast into vtter darkenes there shall bee weepying and gnashyng of teeth Against suche I speake whiche in deede neuer had any one talente or any giftes of Ministers or hauyng any do either abuse them or at least doe not put them forth to any profitable vse Consider a little the state of our ministrie There bee some amongst vs sacrificeing and mas●ing Priestes full of manifest superstition and hypocrisie and in truth enemies to Christs religion Others there be altogether ignorant vnlearned very idoles they can doe what Euen iust nothyng Others there be which may haue some ground of learnyng but in deede they vtter very little neither is the people better by them Some are idle some carelesse some altogether leude and profaine some ioyne liuing to liuing and take more vpon them then they can discharge although it may be they speake in one place yet are they du●●…e in an other All these and such like are worthte of blame to be openly spoken against because they open offence All these stand dayly in a miserable and damnable state without repentance But my cheif drifte at this tyme in this parte of my text is to proue as you haue hard that euery Minister approued of God must preache that is he must teede the people he must cut the worde of God he must improue rebuke exhort he must not simply or barely reade or heare the people saie some Catachisme but he is to be able in some sufficiēt measure to open and interpret the holy Scripture and applie them and I hope that this is alreadie proued onely I exhort you to accompt the Lord wisest to rest in his holy decrees and allowe his owne order as best Let vs not take vppon vs to appointe him what he should do Seing he hath set downe preaching as the most excellent and ordinary meanes to saluation let not vs say that reading will serue the turne seing that he requireth that his Ministers bee apt to teach let vs not coumpt them his Ministers which neuer taught nor euer had any aptnesse in them If he maie bee counted a lawfull Minister and Teacher that onely readeth the ordinarie Seruice and sometime heareth a fewe children to saie a Catechisme without booke as it is set downe before him then maie the Clarke also of the Towne be coumpted a Minister and teacher then may euery Husbandman Seruing man nay euery boye or childe that can doe asmuch be so counted Let not some saie for defence of ignorant Ministers that if they do that which they can doe it will serue the turne for in the building of an house as there be some Maister builders which bring timber and stone so other there be which bring morter and fillinges and serue to necessarie vse but let vs remember that euery Minister in his charge is or ought to bee a builder yea a Maister builder and if the chief builder bring nothing but fillinges how shal the Lords building in that place goe forwarde The Apostle in that place whiche hath been already twise alledged saieth That the Lorde hath ordained the Minister for the gathering together of his Saincts and for the edification of the bodie of Christ till wee all meete together in the vnitie of faith and knowledge of the Sonne of GOD vnto a perfect man and vnto the measure of the age of the fulnesse of Christ Oh these be no small things these are no trifles this is no vile simple and drudgerie woorke no small measure but very great weightie high and most excellent The holy Ghost in an other place saieth Leauing the doctrine of the beginning of Christ let vs be led forwarde vnto perfection not laying againe the foundation of repentance from dead workes and of faith toward GOD of the doctrine of Baptisme and laying on of handes and of the resurrectiō from the dead and of eternal iudgement Marke I beseech you these words There be many people yea Ministers also that are ignoraunt of the first rudimentes of Christ that of repentaunce of Baptisme of the resurrection of eternall