Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	believe_v	faith_n	speak_v	6,346	5	5.2623	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A42096	The resigned & resolved Christian, and faithful & undaunted royalist in tvvo plaine farevvell-sermons, & a loyal farevvell-visitation-speech, both deliver'd amidst the lamentable confusions occasioned by the late forreign invasion & home-defection of His Majesties subjects in England / by Denis Granville, D.D., deane & archdeacon of Durham, (now in exile) chaplaine in ordinary to His Majestie ; whereunto are added certaine letters to his relations & freinds [sic] in England shewing the reasons and manner of his withdrawing out of the kingdom ...	Grenville, Denis, 1637-1703.	1689 (1689)	Wing G1940; ESTC R41659	109,381	177

vvich hee feared Heb. 5. 7. Our Blessed Lords Practice is the best warrant for ours hee himselfe being the Architype of all righteousnesse whose life ought to bee the Canon Rule of his Disciples These two Ioined in CHRIST JESUS our Grand Exemplar who is the VVay the Truth and the Life serve as tvvo stars to direct his followers unto him Feare stirres us up to seek all possible meanes for the prevention of Evills Faith keeps us from dispaire Feare is linked with the beginning of vvisdom without which your best actions are but as th●se Apples of Sodome which being toucht vanish into smoake or as Trees without fruit or shells without kernell As an ignorant Carelesse Marriner without his Compas wee should be driven upon all the shoales and rocks of temptation were not this feare placed in our Hearts as a watchman to forewarne our drowsy soules of approaching danger And as Gideon on Zeba and Salmunna Iudg. 3. 11. Sathan would surprise us unawares and rob us of our very Hearts Consciences while wee sleep in security But where the Heart is well fraught with feare there is no roome for Sathan and his traine It quickly espies prevents his most cunning Plotts putting to flight those armies of temptations with which hee useth to beseige mans wounded Conscience The holy Psalmist doth well informe us of the Povver and Force of Feare when hee tells us that it fights with Angells strength Ps 34. 7. The Angell of the Lord saith David standeth round about them that feare him delivereth them So that wee may here without crime presume to crosse our Saviours speech in another Case of servile feare understand mee of an holy feare O men of little faith vvhy are yee not afraid VVhensoever the Grace of God shall begin to increase in thee Feare VVhen it shall depart from thee Feare And vvhen it shall returne to thee Feare Saith S. Bernard When thou first feelest Gods holy Spirit to move within thee feare thine ovvn unvvor thinesse that thou receive it not in vain A Gift not used at all or not well imployed is a dishonour to the Donour When thou feelest any decay or suspension of the Operation of Grace within thee feare Gods displeasure who for some Cause or other suffers thee thus to fall But most of all must thou feare when Gods Grace is revived vvithin thee for the relapse is worse than the former disease Therefore thy Feare must increase with thy danger least being made cleane thou shouldst sin againe and a vvorse thing happen unto thee In adversity let us humbly acknowledge with Iob the punishment of God is fearefull In prosperity with David there is mercy vvith God that hee may be feared In all estates let his Essentiall presence beget an awfull Feare and Reverence in all our Actions since there is nothing more fearefull in the Saints and Servants of God than not to feare Jer. 32. 40. However scruple not hence yee sincere tho imperfect Christians ●ver subject sometimes to despondency the certainty of your Salvation An holy feare doth not make us more scrupulous but more certain saith S. Bernard in his 15 Sermon upon the Psalmes For this Feare as Hope is the fruit of an holy Faith and S. Paul joynes it with Faith. Rom. 11. 20. as an Antidote to a high Mind thou standest by faith be not high-minded but feare and indecd is the ground of our assurance of Salvation which wee cannot have but by faith I say by faith not as if that were not certaine but to exclude that certainty of Evidence sense which requires an absolute assent both in respect of the truth of the thing of our knowledge because it is so because wee can demonstrate it to be so As when wee say 4. is more than 2. the whole is greater than part perfect knowledge of sense Experience absolutely conclude it most certain The certainty of our Salvation is a faithfull cleaving to the sure promises of CHRIST JESUS Tho this in respect of it selfe be more absolute than that of sense as faith is more certain than any science yet mans mind not throughly purged from the foggy Mists of Original pollution cannot clearly determine CHRIST indeed hath broken downe the Partition VVall between God his people yet hath hee set the Register of his Elect beyond the ken of any mortall eye Neither can wee assure our selves any otherwise of our Salvation than by trusting in him by applying particularly what hee that cannot lye hath spoken in Generall VVhosoever believeth in mee shall be saved And this is in no man so perfect but that the best may still pray adjuva me Domine Lord helpe my unbeleife Hee that doth not thus feare hath no faith and then no certainty As the Spirit of God vvitnesseth vvee are the sons of God so Feare testifieth wee have the Spirit No man more surely relyes on his Saviour than hee that most feares to Offend him so is it no paradox at the same time to tremble and rejoyce in the Lord. The frailty of our nature the subtilty of the Divell conspire for our Ruine here is good Cause to fear But JESUS CHRIST is our Castle Defence here is greater Cause to rejoyce A man on the top of an high tower looking downe considering the danger of a fall trembles to thinke thereon but looking back on his feet seeing himselfe environned on every side with battlements rejoyceth that hee is so secure of the danger So the most steddy beleiver tho hee know that under the protection of the Allmighty hee cannot miscarry yet hee sometimes trembles to reflect on the deplorable Estate of Falling away Allbeit his principle bee true the Word of God cannot faile in any tittle VVhosoever beleiveth shall bee saved yet is hee Iealous of misapplying it to himselfe Tho hee thinketh hee standeth hee must take heed least hee fall For it is the Condition of Grace Faith as of Nature still to desire encrease perfection which necessatily requires earnest prayer and this implies a sollicitous Feare So then wee may say of a Christian as scipio sometimes spake of Rome it was more secure when it stood in awe of Cartbage The Church was never freer from Herisies than in the time of Persecution and the End of Persecution was the beginning of Herisy Wee are most certain when wee are most tempted When Sathan desires to vvinnovv S. Peter as vvheat then Christs prayer assures him of Salvation Christs Intercessions are more prevalent than any temptation and unlesse wee render them ineffectuall by impenitency they are never in vain Neverthelesse his Prayer may not hinder ours nor his Allsufficiency exclude our labours Wee must pray to him hee will pray for us Let us fullfill his Commandements hee will fullfill his Promises If wee Love him let us feare to offend him If wee have Confidence of our Election in him then let us use all diligence to make