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	jesus_n	lord_n	17,123	5	3.7490	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A78555	A motive to peace and love. Delivered in a sermon at Pauls the first Lords Day in June, anno Dom. 1648. By Humfry Chambers, D.D. and pastor of Pewsy in the county of Wilts.	Chambers, Humphrey, 1598 or 9-1662.; City of London (England). Lord Mayor.	1649 (1649)	Wing C1916; Thomason E467_12; ESTC R204211	25,089	38

civill union either have or should have mutuall love and care one of another when amongst such persons this wickednesse prevailes of unchristian biting and devouring one another they are then in the right course to be consumed not onely one with another but one by another to be the most effectuall bloody instruments of each others ruine for this I shall briefly give you foure Scripture grounds the first is this Because by mutuall bitter railings Reas 1 and oppositions amongst Christian Brethren thus united there is a deep and common guilt of sinne contracted for whilest cursed railing and bitter opposition mutually prevaileth amongst those who have in profession at least One body one Spirit one hope one Lord one Faith one Baptisme Ephes 4.4 5 6. one God and Father of all to unite and cement together in love and tendernesse they doe not onely disobey but trample under foot that new Commandment which the Lord Jesus Christ hath ratified for ever in his Church A new Commandment give I unto you Jo. 13.34 that yee love one another as I have loved you that you also love one another And againe This is my Commandment Jo. 15.12 that yee love one another as I have loved you There is not any man that is truly taught of God to life but one part of his lesson is love this impaled love of Christs Disciples which our Saviour hath commanded The Apostle saith Thess 1.4.9 Concerning brotherly love you need not that I write unto you for you your selves are taught of God to love one another taught not onely to know but practice it as a duty for so it followeth in the tenth verse And indeed yee doe it towards all the Saints which are in all Macedonia We see then that the Saints are practically taught of God the lesson of mutuall love and we finde the Apostle in the Ephesians laying out one branch of the duty of this love in these words Ephes 4.31 32 Let all bitternesse and wrath and anger and clamour and evill speaking be put away from you with all malice and be kinde one to another tender-hearted forgiving one another even as God for Christs sake hath forgiven you When therefore there is a course directly contradictory unto this rule of the Apostle taken amongst Christian brethren when bitternesse and wrath and anger and clamour and evill speaking and malice prevaileth amongst them and that mutually to the out-facing and treading downe of Christian love they contract that high and common guilt of sinne which cannot but endanger the running of them headlong into a deep and common gulfe of destruction however men may please themselves with their owne deceivings this is certaine if God be not pleased to purge out this spirit of bitternesse and enmity from amongst Christian brethren and to teach them living together to walke according to the rule of love towards each other nothing can be looked for as the fruit of the great guilt of biting and devouring one another but the implunging one of another in utter and common destruction dispensed towards Hypocrites in Gods hand of wrath and towards Beleevers in the hand of fatherly displeasure Consider that these sins of bitter railing and opposition amongst Christian brethren doe in themselves and in their owne nature worke to a common ruine for what doe these sins but make the Servants of God to lay open the nakednesse one of another to destroy the good name one of another to weaken the hands one of another to stop and infeeble their prayers one for another to encourage the hearts open the mouthes and strengthen the hands of enemies to them both to triumph in the common ruine both of one and other promoted by the lovelesse insurrections of one against another and therefore as the eating of a moth must needs destroy the garment and the eating of the rust destroy the metall in which it is bred so the actings or eatings rather of these courses of mutuall revilings and oppositions amongst brethren must needs worke to bring a common and utter destruction upon them In the third place We may consider that bitter railings and oppositions doe draw the sluce and let in a world of wickednesse into the world Mat. 24.12 Our Saviour saith That because iniquity should abound the love of many should wax cold And it is as true on the other side that because the love of many doth wax cold therefore iniquity doth abound It is hard to name the doore at which more wickednesse enters into the world then at that of contention and I beleeve you will be of the same minde when you have weighed the Apostles words namely Jam. 3.16 Where there is contention and strife there is confusion and every evill worke whilst men are wrangling and contending with brethren the Devill is at liberty and hath great opportunity to come in with much evill and to spread the same to the corrupting of the contentious persons Seeing therefore that contention nourisheth transgression amongst brethren it must needs let in destruction upon brethren and expose both one and other unto a common ruine Consider one thing more namely That bitter railings and opposition amongst Christian brethren doe bring forth and nourish strong enmity betweene them almost invincible Prov. 15.1 Grievous words saith the Holy Ghost stirre up anger and anger amongst brethren once stirred is very strong and hardly removed Prov. 18.19 A brother offended is more hardly to be won then a strong City and their contentions are like the barres of a castle If the world had never knowne this before it is more then sufficiently evidenced in our time and before our eyes who see Christian brethren differing upon smallest matters through angry words and provoking carriage hurried on to that height and strength of mutuall enmity which is hardly if possibly to be subdued and removed Now when as strong enmity beareth sway betwixt those that should be joyned together for the mutuall support and comfort one of another especially when they are in a world that loves them so well that if the God of Heaven did not tenderly love them and he that bounds the Sea did not bound the rage of men against them it were impossible for them to be and not to be destroyed when as I say they who should lay out themselves for the strengthening one of another grow to bitter invincible enmity one against another the end of brethren embroyled in such unbrotherly contention is likely to be that which was the end of the mixed multitude of the Moabites and Ammonites and men of Seir 2 Cor. 20.23 when they came up against Jehosaphat It is said that the Children of Moab and Ammon stood up against the men of Seir utterly to destroy them and when they had made an end of the Inhabitants of Seir every one helped to destroy another We may therefore from this and the foregoing considerations with assurance conclude that if bitter

in those wicked lusts which Warre within them against the law of God The multitudes of men lye under a wicked feare of having the yoake of Jesus Christ put upon them and if the truth were spoken out what it is that makes many so much discontented and enraged against Presbyteriall Discipline it is clearely this Because they be afraid that if that should prevaile they should not hold the name and outward priviledges of Christianitie together with their sinfull lusts with so much freedome as formerly they have done It is a matter of just and great lamentation at this day to see how the most struggle with their heads tongues and hands to make good a libertie for their lusts and in that regard rise up in an hostile enmity against all those that are any wayes active or instrumentall for their restraint And this is doubtlesse a head spring of our civill imbroylments at this time Thus we have learned from the Scripture foure severall causes of our present contention viz. The open practise of notorious wickednesse proud ambition self-seeking and sinfull lusts maintained in their regencie I come now to speake something of the course which is to be taken for remedie of our sore maladie of civill contention but I must doe that very breifly that I may reserve some time in the second place to bewaile our irreligious contentions in matter of religion That we may by the mercy of God attaine deliverance from this civill bitternesse and enmity I shall direct you to the meanes which may be of force to remove the forementioned causes of this our present miserie remove the cause you cure the disease and might the causes of our contentions which I have before pointed at be taken away I doubt not but our enmitie would soone be changed into amitie and our bloodie contention into sweet affection That these evill causes of our civill contentions may be removed the servants of God ought to mourne over them in private in their addresses to the Lord according to that of the Prophet Jeremiah If you will not heare my soule shall weepe in secret for your pride Mourne all ye that are Gods hidden ones mourne in secret for the open wickednesse the pride the selfishnesse the sinfull lusts which prevaile in the land Who can tell whether Childrens teares shed in secret may not prevaile with the Father of mercie for the removing of those publique sinnes with which their righteous soules are grieved from day to day The servants of God ought to mourne over these sinnes in speciall confessions when they appeare in dayes of solemne humiliation before the Lord At such times the servants of God should with Ezra take shame to themselves and lye in the dust for these notorious sins this pride this selfishnesse these lusts which worke our ruine Ezras 9.6.7 Ezra 10.22 When Ezra bewailed the sinne of the people God poured out a spirit of reformation upon the people were our publique mournings serious we might finde the Lord in his returnes equally gracious Thirdly the servants of God are earnestly to pray for a removall of these sinnes both in a way of remission and reformation Turne to the Lord saith the Prophet take ye words unto you and turne to the Lord Hos 14 2. and say take away iniquitie and receive us graciously and we will offer to thee the fruit of our lips God taketh away iniquitie only for this his mercy sake yet will for this mercy be sought unto by his servants that he may afford it and therefore Gods people should fix their eyes on the Lord Christ as that mediator by whom their prayers are made effectuall with their God and Father and then bend themselves to pray downe asmuch as may be in themselves and others these crying sinnes which are the causes of our publique miseries The servants of God should endeavour the removall of these sinnes first in themselves and then in others It is a preposterous course to be tampering with the reformation of every one before a man begins with himselfe It concernes the people of God first of all to labour against these corruptions in themselves and then in others according to the Apostles rule Have no fellowship with the unfruitfull workes of darkenesse but rather reprove them First a Christian is to looke that he hath no fellowship with workes of darkenesse himselfe and then as occasion is offered to reprove them in others unto all which duties beleevers are made sufficient not through their owne power Phil. 4.13 but as being able to doe all things through Christ that strengthneth them and were this course taken for the removing of these corruptions which are the occasion of our miserable contentions I cannot but beleeve that wee might with abundance of comfort expect to have the spirit of virulencie cast out of the land at least wise so farre cast out as that it might not worke so desperately as at present to the working of our ruine And now though I know that there are but too too many contentions in the land yet give me leave to presse one contention more upon you a new one New things take Oh that this new motion might finde assent and acceptance according as it deserves I hope a contention might be named which could like Aarons rod swallow up all those other contentions which the infernall Master of Magicians hath throwne in amongst us The contention I speake of and move for is this that every man would contend to goe before each other in the example of a reall reformation in regard of the forementioned and the like hatefull and hurtfull evills which lye at the root of our contentions and of all the miseries which doe prevaile in the land This Christian contention might it once take would take up our unchristian contentions at the roots and bring us after all our tossings to that faire Haven of civill rest where we would bee And now I would gladly speake two words more to carry on yet further an endeavour for the removall of our contentions and for the promoting of an happy civill peace amongst us The first is this Let every one that can pray to the Father in the name of his Sonne pray for this blessing I know many talke of prayer that know not how to goe to God by Christ to lay a prayer at his feet I forbid not such to pray not knowing how farre the voyce of nature groaning under pressures may prevaile with a faithfull and gracious Creator but let every one that can pray in the name of our prevailing Mediator who hath a promise of gracious audience pray for the peace of our ferusalem pray for the peace of the land of our Nativitie and habitation pray for the peace of the Kingdome and pray in faith Despondencie of heart deadeth pray●r Jam. 5.15 faith in Gods power and faithfulnesse animates prayer The prayer of faith shall save saith the Apostle in the way of instrumentall efficacie