Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	father_n	holy_a	jesus_n	13,652	5	5.8822	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A60170	A new naked truth, or, The sandy foundation of the Sacramental test shaken, by a warning-piece discharged from heaven against all sorts of persecutors wherein you may hold Christ crucified mystically and sacramentally, upon the cross of the sacramental penal test, with all the rest of the penal laws and tests attending thereon, and contributing thereunto / by Giles Shute ...	Shute, Giles, b. 1650 or 51.	1688 (1688)	Wing S3709; ESTC R11222	67,483	56

is an old trick of the Devil And thirdly and lastly binding over Persons for Worshipping God is a very ancient thing also A Persecutor is one that must abandon all moral Honesty he must do as he would not be done by he must sacrifiee his Conscience and pawn his Soul in the Hands of the Devil for he must persecute Christ Acts 9.4 5. and fight against God Acts 5.38 39. A Persecuter is one that bids Defiance to Heaven and is in open Hostility and Rebellion against the Almighty and he is striking at the Apple of God's Eye Zech. 2.8 For thus saith the Lord of Hosts after the Glory hath he sent me unto the Nations which spoised you do you hear you persecuting Spoilers of the Nation for he that toucheth you toucheth the Apple of his Eye that is of God's Eye Again A Persecuter is worse than the Devil in some Respects for the Devil cannot force a man to sin he can but tempt and suggest to Sin but the Persecutor does both he tempts them to conform to a Religion or Worship that they are convinc'd in their Consciences is not right because it has none of the Sanction of God's Authority upon it and if they refuse then he does what he can to force them by Indictments and Fines and Excommunications and Plundering and Imprisoning them and the like Now this the Devil cannot do himself personally therefore they are worse then the Devil Again Fourthly A Persecutor or one that hath this Cain-like Spirit in him every time he saith the Lord's Prayer he speaks Blasphemy for he does blaspheme the Name of God the Father the first Person in order in the Blessed and Glorious Trinity for he begins it in Blasphemy for he saith Our Father which art in Heaven And the holy Word of God saith That no man can call God Father but by his Spirit for let him that taketh the Name of the Lord in his Mouth Depart from Iniquity and the Apostle saith Know ye not that the Spirit of Christ is in ye except ye be Reprobate And our Lord Jesus Christ told the old Sect of Scribes and Pharisees that were Persecuters as our New-Gospel-Sect of the same Leven are in John 8.44 Ye are of your Father the Devil and the Lusts of your Father ye will do He was a Murtherer from the beginning and abode not in the Truth Why So all his Children departs from the Truth when they turn Persecuters they do not do as they would be done by they depart from that Truth which the very light of Nature doth teach us as well as the Word of God. Now can it ever be possible that a Child of the Devil can call God Father without being guilty of Blasphemy at the same time for he saith Our Father which art in Heaven when as his Father is the Devil so that by his Lye he does tacitly and consequentially pull God out of his Throne of Mercy and place his Father the Devil in his room upon the Mercy Seat in Heaven and puts up his Petition to the Devil instead of Praying unto God his Maker And is not this a dreadful Case Nay further in the fifth place for I have not done with ye yet When a Persecuter doth say the Lord's-Prayer he doth say Thy Kingdom come thy Will be done in Earth as it is in Heaven And no Persons are so great Opposers of Christ's Gospel-Kingdom coming as the Persecuters are and none does oppose the doing of God's Will in Earth as it is in Heaven like them of a persecuting Spirit for in Heaven there God's Will is done uninterruptedly by Angels and all other Glorified Spirits there they Praise God in perfect Peace Love and Union there is no Persecuter there nor none to disturb nor make them afraid for there they are all of one Heart and of one Mind But so it cannot be done in Earth by the Persecuters who cannot sleep unless they do Mischief and they do hinder others from doing the Will of God in Earth as it is done in Heaven therefore a Persecuter cannot be sincere and in good earnest when he saith Thy Kingdom come thy Will be done in Earth as it is in Heaven Therefore all they of a persecuting Spirit do but dissemble and mock God and tell him a parcel of Lies to his very Face for they do say in Words that God's Will must be done in Earth as it is in Heaven but in Works they do utterly deny it for they Dethrone the Almighty who is King of Kings and Lord of Lords as much as in them lyes And the proud Persecuters do mount God's Throne here on Earth namely the Souls and Consciences of men and say to their Souls Bow down that we may go over They do rob God of his Sovereignty and become spiritual Legislators to make Laws and give Laws unto their Fellow-creatures to Worship God by as they pretend and so do wrest the Government out of God's Hand over the Souls and Consciences of men which is peculiarly belonging to the Great and Dread Sovereign Majesty of Heaven and Earth which is to do their Father the Devil's will on Earth as it is done in Hell And not to do God's Will in Earth as it is in Heaven Again Sixthly A Persecuter as often as he saith the Lord's Prayer does in Effect Pray that God would not forgive him his Sins for he saith Forgive us our Trespasses as we forgive them their Trespasses against us Now a Persecuter cannot say this heartily and sincerely because that instead of praying to God he does imprecate the forest of Judgments upon himself for he saith Forgive us our Trespasses as we forgive them their Trespasses against us and the Persecuter did not nor yet does not forgive the Dissenters though but pretended Trespasses against them when some Persons have fallen into their hands by their Nonconformity in the matter of Worshipping of God when they have desired them to be favourable unto them and have told them if they did proceed to the Rigour of their Law they would ruine them and their Wife and Children they would not hearken unto them unless they would bow down their Soul unto them that they might go over namely to Conform so that they must Trespass against God or else they would not forgive them their pretended Trespasses against them which made the Remedy infinitely worse than the Disease and so they chose rather to lay their Bodies with the Ground and as the Street for them to go over then that they would sin against God by conforming which was passive Obedience of the right kind therefore the Persecuters do Pray that God would not forgive them their Sins for Christ hath said But if ye forgive not men their Trespasset neither will your Father forgive you your Trespasses Mat. 6.15 Now if the Persecuters did run their Hatred and Malice to the very uttermost Extent of the Persecuting Laws and further too and are now contending to keep the

Ordinance or spiritual Government must be and how they must be qualified And thirdly and lastly I have shewed ye the danger that all those are in that rush upon this Ordinance without being dutly qualified and prepared for it both of Believers in a carnal frame of Heart and Hypocrites that are in a carnal dead state of Nature But it may be queried Whether this sacred Ordinance of the Lord's Supper may not be made a Civil Test also to accommodate Civil Government for the Admittance of Members thereunto and for their Confirmation therein and for a License to sell Ale by and other secular things in this nature as well as to be a Test for all them that belong to this spiritual Government Unto this I will answer in the Negative That it is not for not one Soul that ever did or that ever shall Receive this Holy and Blessed Ordinance out of such a base secular prophane end and design to qualifie them to come into the Government or to sell Ale or any such thing but what does highly provoke God in prophaning that sacred Ordinance not discerning the Lord's Body And so they make themselves guilty of the Body and Blood of the Lord which is to Crucifie to themselves the Son of God afresh and put him to an open shame They do eat and drink themselves into the very same Spirit with the unbelieving Jews which they had in them when they did literally and actually and maliciously Crucifie our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ So that according to this Testeering Law there must not one Soul come into the Government but what must first go and Crucifie to himself the Son of God afresh and put him to an open shame God hath commanded People to Crucifie their Lusts before they can be meet or worthy to come into this spiritual Government and partake of the Lord's Supper and all other Church-Priviledges thereunto belonging But these Penal Laws or Test commands Men to go and Crucifie their Lord and Master before ever they can be permitted to partake of the Civil Government or any of the Priviledges thereunto belonging And is not this a dreadful Law think ye and such a mystery of Iniquity as is not to be parallel'd in all its Circumstances Would it not be a dreadful thing think ye if there was a Law made That no Man should come into the Government unless he would eat so much Rats-bane as would fetch off all his hair off of his head and face and fetch off all the nails from off of his fingers and toes and lay him under a declining wasting lingring Distemper so that his Life would be but a burden unto him Why I will be bold to say That infinitely worse is this Law of encouraging Persons to eat and drink Damnation to themselves to qualifie them to come into the Government For as the blessed Ordinance of the Lord's Supper is spiritual Food and also wholesome Physick for the worthy Receivers for in the former it feeds and strengthens the new Man viz. all the Graces of the Spirit that is in him and by the latter all his Sins are subdued and mortified and his Soul purged and so kept in spiritual health And thus it becomes both Food and Physick to the true Believers this is a branch of the Tree of Life the Leaves whereof are for the healing of the Nations And so on the other hand it becomes strong Poyson to spiritual Vermine namely Hypocrites It is the worst Poyson that ever can be thought on to them As it is the greatest Mercy on the one hand unto them that Receive it worthily because then they are as sure to go to Heaven as if they were there already whether they do know it or not know it themselves so on the other hand it is the greatest Judgment under Heaven for a Person to Receive it unworthily in a carnal unconverted state because he eateth and drinketh Damnation to himself not discerning the Lord's Body This that is the greatest Mercy to a Child of God is turned into the greatest Judgment to a carnal Hypocrite that dare be so bold as to partake of this blessed Ordinance out of any other end and design than what the Holy God in his Infinite Wisdom has appointed it unto O dear Souls Do you that have been Test-Makers and Test-Takers and Test-Givers in this sinful way and manner tremble to think what will become of your precious Souls unless you do speedily vomit up again this deadly Poyson by unfeigned Repentance and thorow Reformation God hath said by his Servant St. Paul Let a Man examine himself and so let him eat of that Bread and drink of that Cup That is he must try himself whether God by his Holy Spirit hath made him meet and worthy to partake of this holy Ordinance that he may know in himself whether he be one of the Guest that is invited unto this blessed Feast where they are not only to feast with the Lord but upon the Lord by Faith John 6.47 48 50 63. 1 Cor. 10.1 2 3 4. And thereby are made worthy to take this spiritual Test of the Lord 's own appointment in his own way and manner and so to come into the spiritual heavenly Government and be made Members thereof For whosoever eateth and drinketh this Cup of the Lord unworthily eateth and drinketh Damnation to himself not discerning the Lord's Body Here it is said Whosoever that is High or Low Rich or Poor Priest or People Lord or Commoner this is the unalterable Law and Magna Charta of Heaven God is no Respecter of Persons therefore look to it you that are great Ones And Death is no Respecter of Persons also for when he cometh with his Sythe he outs down a Lord as soon as a Beggar Well thus you do hear what the Law of Heaven saith unto all these things and now let us hear what the Laws of Men saith unto it also Why the Laws of the Church of England saith quite another thing for they say tacitly and consequentially Let them be examined whether they have eat and drank their own Damnation and Crucified unto themselves the Son of God afresh and put him to an open shame and so let them come into the Government both of Church and State For whosoever whether he be a Lord or Commoner that shall come into the Government without being thus sinfully qualified does incur to himself and Family the Danger or Condemnation of 500 l. damage not discerning or taking notice that the Law of the Church of E is against him and that they shall pay it every groat on 't when she hath the Whip in her hand again and the Nation under her feet Hence we may observe That if any Persons will come into the Government duly qualified according to the Law in that case made and provided they must enter in at Hells Gate they must pawn or even deposit their very Souls that precious Jewel that is more worth

defend and secure them in all their proper Rights and Priviledges belonging unto them both as Men and Christians that they might not be ruined and undone by cruel oppressing Laws and have no Party in the House to oppose them and to speak a Word for them How unreasonable a thing is it that such a vast body of People as the Dissenters of all sorts do make in England should be Excluded the Government I will appeal to God Angels and Men of the Injustice and In-equality of the thing And thus you do see the Scope and Drift of the Letter and how this great East-Countrey-Gentleman has trick'd upon us Therefore I am apt to think and am jealous that they themselves do not give Liberty for Christian Liberty's-sake that is they do not give it so much for God's sake as for their own For if they give Christian Liberty for God's-sake or for Christian Liberty's-sake then to be sure they would be as willing to have it granted in other Countries as in their own and if so then they would not fill our Ears with din as they do but they give Liberty of Conscience out of civil Policy and not so much religiously or for Religion's-sake for the end and design Crowns the Action for a Man may do a good thing but yet it may be to a bad End and that marrs and spoils all not that civil Policy is to be condemned if it be to a civil End. And the Truth on it is whether this Liberty they give may be properly called Christian Liberty or whether it may not as well be called Licentiousness is a great Question with me Or Whether it may not fall much about equal between both Whether there be not as much Liberty and Indulgence given to Sin and Lust as there is given to a well-ordered Christian Liberty of Conscience For I cannot tell whether they ever told the World that Conscience ought not to be restrained in things that relate to Matters of meer Religion and Worship as his Gracious Majesty hath done Thus you see in part how Persecuters do Depopulate Kingdoms and Nations and Destroy Trade and Commerce and Impoverish the People and are the Dogs that hunts the Burroughs and brings out the Game for others to take as well as themselves and are the greatest Enemies that Princes and their good Subjects have under the Sun. They may mock and scoff at poor Captives that are willing to have their Yokes and Snares broken off and taken away by accepting of Christian Liberty while we are labouring in the Fire to accomplish it when God in his Infinite Wisdom and Goodness by the Hand of his Gracious Majesty does offer it unto us to compleat it by their Exposing of us by their Ridiculous Painted Chariot But they may assure themselves that there is a fiery Chariot hangs over their Heads and will certainly come down upon them without a very speedy unfeigned Repentance and thorow Reformation As safe and secure as they think themselves to be they may sport and play like Leviathan with Painted Chariots and slight and despise the great and wonderful Providences of God but they will have other Apprehensions of things in a little time Look for it Expect it and Prepare for it and that quickly too Again Secondly Persecuters separates the tender Parents from their beloved Children and the affectionate Husband from his dearly beloved Wife It may be the Father or Husband is in a stinking nasty Prison and his House Rifled and Plundered and his poor Wife laid upon a fick Bed if she have one left with Grief and Sorrow occasioned by these Cruelties and the poor Babes crying for the absence of their Imprisoned tender Father and for the Affliction of their grieved Mother and it may be the poor Children are crying for Bread also And what Heart but that of Stone will not relent and be grieved at this O Sirs I would have all you that are of a persecuting Spirit amongst us here and also those East-Countrey-Gentlemen that are stickling against our Christian Liberty there for they are all of a persecuting Spirit with these here even tremble to think what will become of you for though they brag of giving Liberty of Conscience at home yet they are against it abroad which is an infallible Argument with me that they do not give Liberty of Conscience upon a right generous Christian Principle That is thus They do not give it so much for God's sake as for their own as I said before Thirdly and Lastly Persecution is the Father of Rebellion and the Mother of Wars James 4.1 2 3. From whence comes Wars and Fighting among you Come they not henèe even of your Lusts that war in your Members Ye Lust and have not Ye kill and desire to have and cannot obtain Ye Fight and War yet ye have not because ye ask amiss that ye may consume it upon your Lusts And Solomon saith That Oppression maketh the Wise Man mad And no Man can be said to be truly wise but him that is really good and they are generally such as are the Subjects of this kind of Oppression which is the greatest Oppression of all for there is nothing dearer in the World to a good Man than Liberty to serve and worship God according to his Light and Knowledge that God has given him But here is a wise man and therefore a good Man and yet a mad Man And what made him so Why the Text tells us that it is Oppression Well! And what is a mad Man And what does a mad Man do Why First A mad Man is one that is besides himself he hath lost his Reason as to the Exercise of it which ought to be his Rule to walk by that is withdrawn and he does that which he would not do if he was himself And Secondly He grows resolute and desperate And Thirdly and Lastly He betaketh himself to undue Means for his Relief perhaps he flies to an arm of Flesh for to ease himself instead of flying to God and relying upon him and this is the Fruits and Effects of Persecution and therefore all the Wars and Rebellions that have been among us ought to be charged principally to the foot of the Persecutors Account Fourthly and Lastly A Persecutor is one that is an incarnate Devil for this is that Devil that doth cast the Saints and Servants of God into Prison that we read on in Rev. 2.10 Fear none of these things which thou shalt suffer behold the Devil shall cast some of you into Prison Shew me a Person that is a Persecuter and at the same time I will shew you an Incarnate Devil Fourthly This great Truth informs us that all those that are afraid to part with all those Penal Laws and Tests that keep men out of Government upon account of Religion and that for fear of Popery are more afraid of uncertain future suffering then of continuing under certain present sinning against God for they do