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ID Title Author Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication) STC Words Pages
A51845 A practical exposition of the Lord's-Prayer by ... Thomas Manton. Manton, Thomas, 1620-1677. 1684 (1684) Wing M532; ESTC R30512 305,803 534

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you believed you were sealed by the holy Spirit of Promise Ephes. 1. 13 14. 2. There is a Witness which is given to the Saints that the thing may not be always dark and doubtful The Holy-Ghost is given as a Witness If you would know whether or no you are the Children of God see that of the Apostle Rom. 8. 16. The Spirit it self beareth witness with our Spirit that we are the Children of God As under the Law in the Mouth of two Witnesses every doubtful Thing was to be established Deut. 17. 6. So here the Spirit beareth Witness together with our Spirits that we are the Children of God Our Spirits alone may be lying deceitful we may flatter our selves and think we are the Children of God when we are Children of the Devil All certainly comes from the Holy-Ghost and therefore the great Question which is traversed to and fro in the Heart is Whether we be God's Children What is the Spirit 's Witness 1. He lays down Marks in Scripture which are the Ground and Decision of this Debate for the Scriptures are of the Holy-Ghost's inditing and so may be said to bear witness Rom. 8. 14. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God they are the Sons of God 1 John 3. 10. In this the Children of God are manifest and the Children of the Devil Whosoever doth not Righteousness is not of God neither he that loveth not his Brother Thus the Spirit beareth witness to our Spirits by laying down such Marks as we by our own spiritual Sense and renewed Conscience feel to be right within our selves And this is the main thing called the Witness of the Spirit 2. He worketh such Graces as are peculiar to God's Children and are Evidences of our Interest in the Favour of God and therefore it is called the Sanctification of the Spirit 2 Thess. 2. 13. and the renewing of the Holy-Ghost Tit. 3. 5. Look as Iohn knew Christ to be the Son of God by the Spirit 's descending and abiding upon him Iohn 1. 32. So by the Spirit 's Work and the Spirit 's Inhabitation we know whether we are the Children of God or no whether we dwell in God and God in us because of his Spirit that he hath given us that is because of those Graces wrought in us And this is called the Seal of the Spirit for the Holy-Ghost stamping the Impress of God upon the Soul working in us an answerable Likeness to Christ is said to be the Seal then we have God's Impress upon us 3. The Spirit goes further he helpeth us to feel and discover those Acts in our selves There is a stupid Deadness in the Conscience so that we are not always sensible of our spiritual Acts. Hagar saw not the Fountain near her until God opened her Eyes So we may not see the Work of the Spirit without the Light of the Spirit We cannot own Grace in the midst of so much Weakness and Imperfection there is a misgiving of Conscience therefore the Spirit of Sanctification is also a Spirit of Revelation Eph. 1. 17. The Author of the Grace is the best Revealer and Interpreter of it He works and he gives us a sight of it As a Workman that made a thing can best warrant it to the Buyer he knows the Goodness and Strength of it and how it is framed and made So the Holy-Ghost which works Grace he reveals and discovers this Grace to us 4. The Spirit helps us to compare them with the Rule and accordingly to judg of their Sincerity The Spirit opens our Understandings that we may be able to discern the Intent and Scope of the Scripture that so we may not be mistaken We must plow with God's Heifer if we would understand the Riddle In thy Light we shall see Light We shall be apt to misapply the Rule so as to judg of our own Actions Rom. 9. 1. I lie not the Holy-Ghost bearing me witness when he had spoken of some eminent Thing wrought in him We are apt to lie and feign and misapply Rules Comforts and Privileges But now the Holy-Ghost bearing witness with our Spirits by this means we come to have a Certainty There are so many Circuits Wiles Turnings in the Heart of Man that we are not competent Judges of what is wrought in us therefore it is usually ascribed to the Spirit to be the Searcher of the Heart Psal. 139. 7. Whither shall I go from thy Spirit or whither shall I flee from thy Presence Acts 5. 4. Thou hast not lied unto Men but unto God The Holy-Ghost is rather spoken of than any other Person because it is his personal Operation to abide in the Hearts of Men and to search and try the Reins It is more particularly ascribed to him tho it belongs to all the Persons 5. As the Spirit helps us to compare that which is wrought with the Rule the impression or thing sealed with the Stamp or the thing sealing so he helps us to conclude rightly of our Estate For many times when the Premises are clear the Conclusion may be suspended either out of Self-Love in case of Condemnation or out of legal Fear and Jealousy in case of Self-acquitment Therefore the Conclusion is of the Holy-Ghost 1 John 4. 13. Hereby we know that we dwell in him and he in us because he hath given us of his Spirit There 's a great deal of do to bring us to Heaven with Comfort There needs a Person of the Godhead to satisfy us as well as to satisfy God and help us to determine concerning our Condition 6. He enlivens and heightens our Apprehensions in all these Particulars and so fills us with Comfort and raiseth our Joy upon the feeling of the Sense of the Favour of God for all this is the Fruit of his Operation Therefore it is said Rom. 5. 5. The Love of God is shed abroad in our Hearts by the Holy-Ghost which is given unto us Those unspeakable Glimpses of God's Favour and sweet Manifestations of God's Love in the Conscience which we have these are given by the Holy-Ghost There is not one Act of the Soul but the Holy-Ghost hath a stroke in it for our Comfort in every degree all comes from God So that if you would know what the Witness of the Spirit is consider What are the Marks in Scripture What Graces are wrought in your Hearts How doth the Spirit help you to discern those Graces to compare them to the Rule to make accordingly in these Things a Determination of our Condition And what Joy and Peace have you thereupon wrought in your Hearts by the Holy-Ghost For an immediate Testimony of the Spirit the Scripture knows of no such thing All other is but Delusion besides this 3. There are certain Fruits and Effects which do more sensibly evidence it unto the Soul What are those Fruits of the Spirit of Adoption in our Hearts by which we may further evidence it whether we are the
5. 2. Be not rash with thy Mouth and let not thine Heart be hasty to utter any thing before God for God is in Heaven and thou upon Earth therefore let thy Words be few Remember you have to do with a great God and do not babble things over impertinently in his Ears It is a Truth evident by the Light of Nature Paucis verbis rem divinam facito Platinus If you be to worship God a needless Prolixity doth not become Addresses to him But because this Text may be abused I shall endeavour to clear it a little further There are two Extremes the slight and careless Spirit and Babling 1. There is the slight and careless Spirit who doth the Work of an Age in a Breath and is all for Starts and sudden Pangs which pass away like a Flash of Lightning in a dark Room whose good Thoughts are gone as soon as they rush into the Heart A poor barren and slight Spirit which is not under the Influence and Power of that Celestial Love which keeps the Soul in converse with God cannot endure to be any while with God Alas we need Stroke upon Stroke to fasten any thing upon the Heart We are like green Wood that will not presently take Fire until it lie long there and be throughly and well warmed so until we have gone far in the Duty we can hardly get any warmth of Heart They which are short in Prayer had need of much habitual preparation of Heart The Babler is another Extreme who thinks the Commendation of a Duty is to be long in it and affects to say much rather than well whereas serious and short Speech makes the best Prayer Prov. 10. 19. In the multitude of Words there wanteth not Sin Either to God or Men 't is true but especially when affected So they do but beat the Air rather than pray to God These then are the two Extremes Shortness out of Barrenness or Slightness or Length out of Affectation ●●d we must carefully avoid these Christ would 〈◊〉 justify that Shortness which comes from Slightness and Barrenness of Heart nor on the other side indulge the Affectation of Length in Prayer Therefore let us a little see I. What is the Sin II. Give you the Force of our Lord's Reasons here urged or how conclusive our Saviour's Arguments are against this Practice What is the Sin That 's necessary to be known for all Repetitions are not vain nor is all Length in Prayer to be accounted Babling First For Repetitions 1. When they express Fervency and Zeal they may be used And so we read Christ prayed over the same Prayer thrice Mat 26. 44. O my Father if it be possible let this Cup pass from me And another Evangelist sheweth that he did this out of special Fervency of Spirit Luk. 22. 44. Being in an Agony he prayed more earnestly And so we read of the Prophet Daniel chap. 9. 17 18 19. O our God hear the Prayer of thy Servant O my God incline thine Ear and hear O Lord hear O Lord forgive O Lord hearken and do defer not for thine own sake O my God All this was out of vehemency he goes over again and again the same Request When we use many Words of the same kind and signification and it be out of vehemency and fervency of Spirit it is not forbidden 2. This Repetition is not to be disproved when there is a special Emphasis and spiritual Elegancy in it as Psal. 136. you have it twenty six times repeated For his Mercy endureth for ever because there was a speci●●●eason in it his purpose there being to she●●● Unweariedness and the unexhausted Riches of God's free Grace that notwithstanding all the former Experiences they had had God is where he was at first We waste by giving our Drop is soon spent but God is not wasted by bestowing but hath the same Mercy to do good to his Creatures as before Tho he had done all those Wonders for them yet his Mercy was as ready to do good to them still All along God saved and blessed his People For his Mercy endureth for ever But as there are Repetitions which have their Use so there are useless Tautologies and vain Repetitions And such they are when they neither come from the Heart nor go to the Heart when they come not from the abundance of the Heart but rather the emptiness of the Heart because we know not how to inlarge our selves to God therefore fall upon idle and useless Repetitions of the same Words and Requests As a Man that hath small Skill in Musick doth only play over the same Note so when Men have not a full spiritual Abundance they waste themselves in Prayer in these idle Repetitions And then they go not to the Heart they do not conduce to warm the Affections A vain clamorous ingeminating the same thing without Faith and without Wisdom meerly to fill up the Tale of Words or to wear out a little time in a religious Exercise that 's it which is here condemned under the notion of vain Repetitions Secondly For the other word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or much speaking Every long Prayer is not forbidden for our Lord Jesus himself centinued all Night in Prayer Luke 6. 12. And in extraordinary Duties of fasting Length seems to be very necessary Esther 4. 16. They fasted and prayed together for three days and nights without eating any Bread And Solomon pray'd long at the Dedication of the Temple But that which is forbidden is when Men speak Words without need and without Affection a needless lengthening out of Prayer and that upon a Conceit that it is more acceptable to God 1. In the General Prayer should be short as all Examples of Scripture teach us and the Lord's Prayer you see how concise and short it is for presently upon this our Lord teacheth his Disciples to pray For Prayer is a spending rather then a feeding Duty Those which affect long speaking many times run into this they make it a feeding Duty for they mingle Exhortations with Prayer which is a great Abuse A Man can bear up under the hearing of the Word for an Hour or two better than half an Hour in Prayer with that necessary Vigor of Spirit which God hath required Therefore the general Rule is Let your Words be concise but full of Affection Look as in vast and great Bodies the Spirits are more diffused and scattered and therefore they are more unactive than those which are of a smaller Compass so in a long Prayer there may be more of Words but less of Life 2. The Affectation of Prolixity is naught usually it comes from some evil Ground either from Pride and Ostentation of Gifts Thus we read the Pharisees were taxed for making long Prayers Mat. 23. 14. that under the colour of them they might devour Widow's Houses that is be credited and trusted with the Management of their Estates Or else it may come from Superstition such