Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n
Text snippets containing the quad
|
ID |
Title |
Author |
Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication) |
STC |
Words |
Pages |
|
A19281
|
A brand taken out of the fire. Or The Romish spider, with his webbe of treason. VVouen and broken together with the seuerall vses that the world and Church shall make thereof. By T. Cooper, preacher of Gods word.
|
Cooper, Thomas, fl. 1626.
|
1606
(1606)
|
STC 5693.5; ESTC S108666
|
97,414
|
114
|
of him And surely had we only hope in this life wee were not onely liuing of all men most miserable but dying also our hope must needes perish with vs But here is the hope of the Saints that not onely their sufferings shall giue further life to the Church in this world but shall prepare them to a blessed life in the world to come So that now though hee kill vs yet wee will trust in God not onely in that though wee die yet wee shall liue in the posteritie of the Church whiles shee is militant but our light afflictions which are but for a moment they doe cause vnto vs a farre more excellent weight of Glory that wee may triumph for euer with the Saints in heauen Meruailous is our gracious God vnto his children for the confirming of them in the hope of the life to come and that by two especiall meanes both by the inward testimonie of his Spirit approuing so our innocencie that by the power thereof it breaking forth as the light and shining at the no one day though wee die yet by it wee might liue with the saints in grace and further also by the gouernment of the same Spirit soreuiuing his Church and renuing the same in her greatest decayes as that she hath and shall continue her militarie life till the heauēs bee no more and euen then liuing and remayning shall bee caught vp in the cloudes to meete the Lord in the ayre and so for euer to bee with the Lord. So did the Lord prouide for his seruaint Iob that when hee was wearie of his life yet hee was not wearie of his innocencie and hee yeeldes an excellent reason of it in the 8. verse For what hope hath the hypocrite when he hath heaped vp riches if God take away his soule Implying thereby that if hee were an hipocrite and had no sound testimonie of his sincerity then indeed if GOD should kill him he could not trust in him then he had no hope if his soule should be taken away But seeing he knew that the liuing Lord had taken away his iudgement because the Almighty had put his soule in bitternesse and the ground of this his sauing knowledge was the testimonie of his innocencie proceeding from the vndoubted worke and euidence of the Spirit Therefore doeth hee cleaue to the testimonie of his good conscience as whe◠by hee was assured not onely to come out of these troubles but further also was bould to professe that Hee knew that his redeemer liued and that hee should see GOD in the flesh Behould the meanes whereby wee liue though wee die and whereby wee are assured that wee shall liue for euer euen the testimonie of our innocencie and vprightnesse of heart And yet behold a further testimonie for the confirmacion of the same Doest thou see the Spirit of GOD ruling in the Church and gouerning so comfortably the troubles of the same that though she die dayly yet shee liues continually Not onely in that though the outward man perish yet the inward man is renued dayly but especially heerein is the continuate life of the Church wonderfull that the bloud of the Martirs becomes the seede of the Church Doest thou heare the wicked say Come let vs vtterly roote them out Do the Godly complaine they haue destroyed all there is no hope and yet doeth the Lord say still concerning the desolations of his Church The roote of the righteous shal not bee remoued Yet therein will I leaue a tenth which shall continewe and shall bee eaten vp as an Elme or an Oake which haue a substance in them when they cast their leaues so the holy seede shal be the substance thereof Though I vtterly destroy all the nations where I haue scattered thee yet I will not vtterly destroy thee but I will correct thee by iudgement and not vtterly cut thee off Are these the promises of thy GOD concerning his spouse that shee shall continue vnto the worlds ende hath the performance of them beene answerable from time to time therevnto that so by the experience of her former preseruation thou maist collect that the Lord will deliuer her to the end and by her wonderfull continuance in this life thou maist further gather her abode for euer in eternall happinesse What canst thou desire more for the confirmation of thine hope then according to thy inward and outward troubles to haue this double Testimony of the spirit both in the protection of the Church without and the inward witnesse vnto thy spirit renued and sanctified to lead thee along with cheerefulnesse in the vndoubted expectation of the reward to come that so thou maiest run with ioy the race that is set before thee and hauing finished thy course obtaine the Crowne of euerlasting happinesse And what can better recompence al thy priuate losses then that thou art weake that the Church of GOD may bee strong that thou art abased that the church may be exalted Yea though it should so fall out that the Church were to bee fetcht againe with thy dearest blood If now thou shalt not set light by any troubles that in this respect may befall thee If nowe thy life shall not be vile vnto the That thou maist fulfill thy course with ioy If this shall not be thy testimonie that thou hast euen beene ready not onely to distribute the Gospell of God vnto thy people for the after groeth of the Church but euen thine owne soule surely neuer looke to approue thy selfe a good sheepheard vnto thy people Neither looke to giue vp thy account with ioy and to shine as a starre in the Firmament for euer Behold how the hope of the Saints concerning the life to come and consider the meanes that giues them life in death euen the testimonie of their innocencie which shall endure for euer and the seede of the Church continuing vnto the end And tell me if there were euer malice like vnto that which would at one blow haue cut off all this hope not onely to depriue the Saints of their righteousnesse whereby they might haue liued in the hearts of the faithfull but so farre as lay in them euen to cut off vtterly the seed of the Church that so there might not be hereafter any succession thereof The Liues of the Saints would not serue their malice but they will haue a deuise to robbe them of their innocencie by laying that on their poore sheepe which the Wolues would haue done It was not the life of the Prince and state which could satisfie their rage No they had vowed vtterly to roote out the name of religion and therefore their proiect was to destroy all Seed that might giue hope to posteritie thereof not onely the royall seede for the after nurserie of the Church but further also the immortall seede of the word yea moreouer to abolish vtterly the seed of the righteous that all hope of posteritie in
for all this though our 〈…〉 sh do faile vs and our hearts also there may be hope from without to supply our wants if not from man who is deceitfull yet from our God who neuer failes But when the light of Gods countenance shal be taken away from vs when we shall looke on our right hand and there is none to helpe vs when we shall turne to the left and see no issue when wee shall say in our haste that our God hath forsaken vs and when we shall heare our enemies say they haue deuoured vs This danger may seeme past recouery And yet behold the spirit witnesseth that such hath beene the daunger of the Church and Saints of God from time to time yea she hath found an issue vsually in such Straights our soule is escaped saith the Church euen as a bird out of the snare of the Fouler the snare is broken and wee are deliuered Marke I pray you the greatnesse of the danger how vnable is the Bird to auoid the snare of the Fouler how effectuall is the snare to take this silly Foule what hope is there of deliuerance when the bird is caught therein and yet behold our soule is deliuered euen as a Bird out of the snare of the fowler so desperate is our danger and so wonderfull is our recouery what hope is there of a Brand taken out of the fire surely such hath beene the state of the Saints of God Is not this man taken as a brand out of the free fire Nay what hope is there of dead bones scattered in the open fields hauing beene ther so long that they are dryed and withered can these bones liue saith the spirit of God yea saith the Lord behold I wil cause breath to enter into you you shal liue Loe heere the desperate estate of the Church of GOD euen as a Dead Man and quite out of mind nay as rotten and consumed to the very bones by the continuance of the trouble and extremity thereof so that wee may not onely tell all her boanes but indeed there is nothing but dead and drye bones left of her Yet saith the Lord these boanes shall liue yet shall the desolate Church become an exceeding great Armie yea terrible with banners to the confusion of her enemies vnderstand therefore the greatnesse of thy deliuerance by the greatnesse of the daunger and sound the depth of thy daungers these points accordingly call to mind I pray thee the deadly plot that was prepared for thee in the practise of thine enemies which the Lord hath disappointed and by the depth of the danger which was ready to swallowe thee vp labour to measure the greatnesse of thy deliuerance great was thy daunger in that thou wast Appointed as a Sheepe to the slaughter And yet herein was it greater that the Daunger was not knowne By this meanes was not onely all hope taken from thee â—o auoide it Whereby this present State was vtterly desperate but beeing sudden vnto thee in that it was vnknowne hereby taking thee vnprepared by repentance to meete thy GOD. Consider howe this might haue indaungered Thy Estate for the life to come And if the Lord hath preuented that Blowe because thou wast not prepared Oh take heede to Tempt this GOD by security hereafter least the like suddaine vengeance may speedily ouertake thee Certenly if the malice of thine enemy bee as Hell that can neuer be satisfied thinke that the increase of thy sinne will adde more fuell to it And though the Lord may spare for a time because some stand in the gappe Yet when they shal be taken from the iudgements to come and thy sinnes shal be ripened by continuance therein Knowe then for a certenty that thy Danger is now greater in that thorough the hardenesse of thyne heart which cannot repent thou dost heap vp wrath against thy selfe against the day of wrath and thy Maister will come in an howre when thou knowest not and giue thee thy portion with the Hypocrytes there shall bee great weeping and gnashing of teeth It was a notable testimony of the Apostles loue vnto his countrimen that he wished euen to redeeme their reiection with his owne euerlasting perdition if so it might haue stood with the good pleasure of God whereby the seruant of God did imply that the preuenting of a generall danger was to be preferred before a perticular and that the losse of a priuate state ought to redeeme a publike Had it beene so then that either thine owne priuate state had beene aymed at or though the generall life of Church and common wealth was shot at yet if it might haue beene redeemed with thy priuate losse the daunger had beene the lesse and thy comfort the more But behold here the insatiable malice of thine enemie and therein consider yet further the greatnes of the danger It was not the life of a priuate person would quench their vnmeasurable mallice for then yet the body might haue continued though an inferiour member had bin cut off Nay yet inlarge thine vnderstanding and conceiue yet further It was not one principall member that would satiate their ambitious thirst no not the head it selfe and roote of the Kingdome for the weaker wisedome could resolue them so farre that if the roote were cut off yet the branches might florish and so their malice discouered and yet not further their ambition What then was the plot and how grieuous was the danger surely euen to cut off head and tayle roote and branches vtterly with one blow euen to ruinate head and members church and common wealth and in one moment to haue brought full confusion vpon all estates Behold here a further measure of the danger wherein thou wast And blessed be God that wee haue leasure to meditate these things yea euermore blessed be our gratious Father who howsoeuer the whole head and body might bee sicke yet because he is our Phisition to heale vs and doth not delight in our destruction but knowes what is to bee hoped for of his patient thought this Phisicke too desperate and too preposterous as intended to destroy and not to sinne and therefore in his mercie hath kept it from vs and in his Iustice made our enemies to drinke of the cup they had prepared for vs. Well by this thou maiest apprehend in some measure the greatnesse of the danger wherein thou wast yet behold I will shew thee greater perils then these intended against thee There is hope saith holy Iob of a tree if it bee cut downe there will yet sprout and the branches thereof wil not perish though the roote thereof waxe old in the earth and the stockethereof be dead in the grouÌ„d yet by the descent of waters it wil bud bring forth boughes like a plant But as for man he is sick and dieth maÌ„ perisheth and where is hee signifying thereby that there is no hope