Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	corruption_n	flesh_n	reap_v	5,289	5	10.9811	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A19091	A vvedding sermon preached at Bentley in Darby-shire vpon Michaelmasse day last past anno Domini. 1607. Wherein is set forth the bond and preseruation. ... By R. Abbot ...	Abbot, Robert, 1560-1618.	1608 (1608)	STC 55; ESTC S100549	22,610	74

to glorifie God to further the Church of God and common wealth to further righteousnes and truth to helpe the oppressed and afflicted to comfort the comfortles to releeue the widow and fatherles and to these ends to doe all other good workes which either the common duety of Christianity or our own priuate calling requireth of vs. Titus the Emperour of Rome when he had ouerpassed a day wherein he had done no speciall good deede no good turne to any man was wont to say Diemperdidi I haue lost a day Alas what a thing is it when a Christian man shall so spend a whole life as that in the end thereof hee may say Vitam perdidi I haue lost a life I haue liued so as that I haue neither done any faithfull seruice to God nor left any memoriall or example of any good that I haue done amongst men Seneca saith well that q Seneca de tranquil animi there is nothing more shamefull then an old man who hath no other argument to proue that he hath liued long but onely that he is old no good fruits no good effects by which it may be remembred that his life from time to time hath bene beneficiall to other men Euen so it is a long life is but a great reproch when by weldoing it hath left no testimonie of it selfe To which purpose it is worth the noting which Gregory obserueth that of good men it is sayd in Scripture that such a one or such a one died old and r Greg. Moral l. 35. cap. 15. full of dayes but neuer of an euill man as whereby wee should vnderstand that he is full of dayes who hath made good vse of his dayes and bestowed them in good deeds but otherwise we do but lose our dayes and by losing our dayes loose our selues also He that hath warned vs that we shall ſ Mat. 12. 36. giue account of our idle words doth thereby aduertise vs that we shall giue account of our idle houres and much more of our dayes and moneths and yeares which so many of vs bestow wholly in a manner in pleasure and vanity in riotousnesse and vnthriftinesse in sinne and wickednesse and therefore when they come to their end lye tumbling in their sicknesse t Esay 51. 20. like a wild bull in a net as the Prophet speaketh full of the wrath of the Lord without any hope without any comfort because their life hath bene such as hath yeelded them no hope or comfort towards God Blessed is he who when the summons of death commeth set thy house in order for thou shalt die can say to God as Ezechias did u Esay 38. 3. O Lord I haue walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart 6 But this walking importeth not only mouing and stirring but mouing and going forward wherby we gain the way more more and come neerer and neerer to the end Euen so are we still to be gaining and growing and going forward in the wayes of God in all vertue and goodnes not to stand still at one stay and as it were to runne in one ring but as wee labour to thriue in the goods of this world so much more to encrease in those things whereby we may be x Luk. 12. rich in God y Psal 84. 7. To goe from strength to strength z Ro. 1. 17. from faith to faith a 2. Cor. 3. 18. from glory to glory b 2. Pet. 3. 18. to grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Sauior Iesus Christ Thus doth Solomon instruct vs that c Pro. 4. 18. the way of the righteous shineth as the light which shineth more and more vnto the perfect day Which he that careth not to doe is as the man that spendeth of the stocke and groweth thereby to decay for d Gregor in Pastoral par 3. admonit 35. the soule of man in this world is like vnto a ship or boate as Gregory saith going against the stream which cānot rest in one place but by the sway of the water is caried downeward vnlesse it be still labouring to go vpward Therfore Bernard saith e Bernard in purific ser 3 Not to go forward in the way of life is to go backward f Idem epist 2 53. not to care to increase is to decrease g Idem epist 91. look where thou beginnest not to regard to grow better there thou quite giuest ouer to be good at all h August de verb. Apost ser 15. If thou say I haue enough saith Austin thou art gone thou art vtterly vndone 7 Lastly this growth requireth perseuerance continuance till we come to the end whereto our walking is directed The end is all in all to giue ouer before we come to the end though it be but in the last attempt is the losse of all our labour and reward Therefore i 1. Cor. 9. 24. so run saith Saint Paul that ye may obtaine which is k Heb. 3. 14 when we keepe sure vnto the end that beginning wherwith we are vpholdē that is hold fast to the end the true doctrine and faith of Christ wherewith we first began and is a sure foundation for vs to build vpon for l Mat. 24. 13. hee that continueth to the end saith our Sauiour Christ he shall be saued Many begin in the spirit and seeme for the time to be nothing but spirit and yet afterward end in the flesh and m Gal. 6. 8. of the flesh reape corruption Many n Luk. 9. 2. lay their hand to the plough and afterwards looke back and thereby are vnfit for the kingdome of God Therefore let vs hearken to Saint Iohn o 2. Iohn vers 8. Take heed to your selues that wee lose not the things that we haue done but that we may receiue a great reward We lose the things that we haue done when we growe weary of doing them p Gal. 6. 9. weary of well doing and leaue to go forward in that course wherein we haue well begun And thus much of the life of man set forth vnto vs by a walke 8 It followeth now that we speake of the conueniencie of this walke which standeth in walking together in company and fellowship which as the Prophets words leade vs to consider beginneth first at two as we find accordingly the first societie to haue bene betwixt two God and Man and the second betwixt two Man and Woman From whence spring all other societies which God hath ordeined for the behoofe of the life of man God made man of the dust of the earth that from the earth he might haue company to dwell with him in heauen but yet so as that first he would walke with man and would haue man to walke together with God here vpon earth Which duty of walking with God and of care to haue God to walke with vs though on our part it began but in one yet is