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	know_v	lord_n	5,736	5	3.6750	3	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
B01382	Communion vvith God. in two sermons preach'd at Paul's: the first, Sept. 3, 1654, the second, March 25, 1655. / By Samuel Annesley L.L.D. minister of the gospel at John Evangel London.	Annesley, Samuel, 1620?-1696.	1655 (1655)	Wing A3227; ESTC R223508	33,565	54

question Zach. 7.5 When you fasted and mourned even those seventy years that is longer than most men live did you at all fast unto me even unto me Once more 4. The most noble accomplishments eminent services unparaleld sufferings are nothing if love to God be not in us the primum mobile the very impulsive cause 1. Cor. 13.1.2.3 Aaron's bells Ministers preaching will be like tinkling cimbals childrens rattles if we do it not in love Martyrdome it self may go for a kind of self murder if flaming love do not kindle the fire And that love to God is principally meant 't is cleare because it is that love which is more excellent then faith So that now you see All the time that is spent in earning our bread in the enjoyment of our comforts in the worship of God in the highest services and sufferings it is all lost if the enjoyment of God in all these be not principally aymed at 3. Religion is a very sublime businesse As 't is generally abusively managed 't is nauseous Oh how many have been hardened against it by those that professe it but accordingly to its undeniable Principles 't is not only amiable but Majestick Judge of the piece by a patterne constantly and reverently to use every Ordinance and yet to look thorough them as having no worth at all but as they tend to God Psal 84.1.2 How amiable are thy tabernacles O Lord of hostes my soul longeth yea even fainteth for the Courts of the Lord. Passionate expressions but doth he rest here no no. My heart and my flesh cryeth out for the living God Again To be contented with every thing yet satisfied with nothing Phil. 4.11 I have learned in whatsoever state I am therewith to be content but vers 19. no lesse than riches of Glory will supply all his wants Again humbly to take deniall of degrees of grace and yet restlesly to strive to be above them 2. Cor. 12.10 I take pleasure in infirmities for when I am weak then am I strong Christs strength is most seen in my weaknesse aye but Phil. 3.11 I would if it were possible be as holy now as I shall be at the resurrection of the dead In a word to live in heaven upon earth Phil. 3.20 our conversation is in Heaven These are some of the Principles of the oracles of God Is not Religion a more heroick businesse than most men think it Exortation Be exhorted therefore to account no paines too much to take no time too long to write no thing too much to suffer so you may manage Religion according to the worth of it and enjoy God in all ways communicable Let your eyes be ever towards the Lord. 1. Be not envious at the prosperity of the wicked never so much as tamper with any of their wayes of getting that which they call happinesse Suppose saith Cyprian thou was placed on the top of some Mountain whence thou mightest safely behold fluctuantis mundi turbines the unquiet world that cannot rest among the wicked 't is a crime to be innocent Pleasures are surfetting Honour 's blandientium virus occultum the poysonous breath of flatterers And riches O nominum quanta diversitas how are they mis-called we cal them goods and they are almost constantly made use of to evill Suppose you saw with a heart to consider such a prospect would this tempt you to fall in love with it But now look back again for alas while you are gazing on the world you have your back upon God you may hear a voice behind you Prov. 23.17.18 let not thine heart envy sinners but be thou in the fear of the Lord all the day long For surely there is an end and thine expectation shall not be cut off More need pitty then envy those that have their portion in this life they must pay deare for every moments beggarly happiness The uncleane person for every motion of burning lust shall lye millions of years in everlasting burning The intemperate for every sip of generous wine shall have no other drinke then rivers of brimstone In a word these whom God now beseecheth by us whom we pray in Christs stead to be reconciled to God but in vaine they shall never be troubled with these intreaties more but as they love a distance from God they shall be set at an eternall distance And as they laugh now at ministeriall reproofs God will laugh then at their destruction And those that complement with God in an empty profession God will professe he knows them not and deny them Salvation Consider this you that forget God now draw nigh to God and he will draw nigh to you but you must first cleanse your hands yee sinners purify your hearts ye double minded Be afflicted and mourn weepe let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to heavinesse Humble your selves in the sight of the Lord and he shall lift you up Jam. 4.8 9 10. 2. Seriously set your selves to finde out experimentally what it is to enjoy God to have communion with God Long for it you shall never lose your longing Pant after it God understands the Rhetorick of your breathing as well as of your cry If saith Augustine I desire nothing else but thee I beseech thee Father let me finde thee if I doe desire any thing superfluous doe thou thy selfe cleanse me and make me fit to see thee Christians rouze up your spirits what is it that makes you so low spirited as to have the least contentment in the greatest enjoyment on this side God Doe you not know the worth of Communion with God whose fault 's that Hos 6.3 You shall know if you follow on to know the Lord you have a promise that your knowledge shall encrease from the morning of Regeneration to the noone day of glory What yet hinders Is it variety of fears Worldly fears your hearts are tost to and fro with worldly businesse doubting fears you have more to object than ever you have hopes to be answered Trembling fears alas you dare not think of such an enjoyment To all these God the Father bids you cast your cares upon him the earth is the Lords and the fulnesse of it and he knows what things you have need of Christ bids you bring your doubts unto him have you any doubt that Christ cannot answer and if he can surely he hath done and suffered enough to perswade us of his willingnesse there is in him Voluntas Omnipotens as Bernard expresseth it his will is Almighty And let those that are of a trembling heart goe to the Comforter 't is his Office to pray in you as 't is Christs Office to pray for you He is the God of all Grace what grace then can you want Deare Christians I would be an importunate wooer and take no deniall no excuse no delay Commune with your owne hearts and deale ingeniously is there any lust worth keeping to the losing of God and you cannot keep both

themselves as they are hamper'd and clogg'd in us the soul may even long to be rid of them I meane to be perfected that what they have but in part may be done away 2. What ever excellency there is in any thing it is originally eminently in God Rom. 11.36 of him and through him and to him are all things of him as the first Author through him as the Preserver to him as the last scope Every thing hath its degrees of perfection according to what of God is communicated 1 Cor. 3.23 All things are yours yee are Christs and Christ is Gods that is the world is yours for your use ye are Christs as his peculiar and Christ personally as Mediatour for the glory of God essentially that all may be swallowed up of Deity 3. There is nothing can enlarge and satisfie the souls capacities but God alone Poore low-spirited creatures may have some kind of satisfaction in the world as Esau I have enough my brother but then the capacities of the soul are not enlarged Others may have their capacities enlarged but then the eye is not satisfied with seeing nor the eare with hearing and these are but the most capacious senses but in God enlargedness and satisfaction meet Psal 81.10 Open thy mouth wide and I will fill it that is let thy just desires be never so large thou shalt have them 4. The designe of Gods worke and the order of his working renders a restlessenesse in all things on this side himselfe 't was never Gods intention that any enjoyment should be any more than an encouragement that any grace should be any more than a means to bring us to himselfe when his people grow fond of any thing he withdraws it Ther 's a worme at the root of our comfortable gourds Ther 's a Canker in our best graces We read of Lots purity Moses his meekenesse Jobs patience Peters forwardnesse Paul's raptures but if these will glory it must be in the Lord for we read also of Lots incest Moses his passion Jobs fretfulnesse Peters deniall and Paul's thorn in the flesh Those that have great graces have also great corruptions and corruptions in those things wherein consists their excellency I should now come to the application but that I am obstructed by the doubts and objections of tender Christians Yet I shall passe by all but one and that I must speak to for the honour of my Master Some may object Will not what was hinted of immediate enjoyment of God in heaven be derogatory to our ever adored Mediatour and we dare not entertaine any diminishing thought of him I answer first It is not that the Father personally but that the Diety essentially may be All in All. Why Christ should continue his inferiority when his worke is done cannot be imagined He shall be honoured for his mediation but with an addition Might I say any person in the Trinity receives more honour than other Christ should have most Rev. 5.13 Every Creature which is in Heaven heard I saying blessing honour glory and power be unto him that sitteth upon the throne and unto the Lamb for ever and ever Particularly unto the Lamb for ever and ever 2. This will exceedingly advance Christ in the thoughts of all while 't was necessary he veiled his Deity and when his work shall be done he still continues his humanity to converse freely with his brethren in his Fathers house Oh the intimacie there will then be between Christ and Christians the Apostle tells us we shall ever be with the Lord Christ Oh what communication of glory will there be to each other Rev. 3.4 These shall walk with me for they are worthy Rev. 5.12 Worthy is the Lamb to receive honour and glory and blessing Oh the mutuall rejoycing and delight in each other Prov. 8.31 from eternity Christ rejoyced in the habitable part of his Earth to eternity will his habitable earth rejoyce in him in whom dwells the fulnesse of the God-head bodily In a word the eye can never be off Christ as mediator and God now the eye shall never be off Christ as God and mediator then This objection answered Christs honour vindicated we may the more boldly crave his help for the improving of the Doctrine Vse The first use shall be of information There are three lessons I would have you learn by heart that you may rather from your own hearts than from discourses and books be inwardly perswaded of these truths 1. That Heaven is extreamly subjected to carnall mistakes in the thoughts of most men 't is made a flexible imaginary fancyed I know not what most men conceive it to be a place of sensual happinesse That base Wizard can wish Num. 23.10 Let me die the death of the righteous and let my last end be like his Alas he understands not what he wisheth ther 's nothing in Heaven suitable to his covetous double-heart Those that desire heaven do it most as a reserve upon some peevish discontent wearines Elijah himself is frighted into the wildernesse and then presently 't is enough now O Lord take away my life 1. Kings 19.4 2. If God be thus incomparably desireable then all the time of our life that is not spent either directly or at least by reduction to promote the enjoyment of God 't is lost time the enjoyment of God is worth all our paines that you will grant And that our time is little enough to be employed about it this you cannot deny But what then should we turne Votaries and bring up a new Religious Order when there 's more than a good many already No I therefore added the word Reduction that though all our actions be not strictly Religious yet they must all be reducible to Godlinesse e.g. 1. Food and raiment are things naturally necessary and he that provides them not for his Family is worse than an infidel he that provides them not for himself is that and more for he is worse than a mad-man But stay a little never was text more wrested by wordlings than that of the Apostle pray therefore take another to keep it streight Mat. 6.23 Seeke you first the Kingdome of God and his righteousnesse And his righteousness mark that you must rather seek Conformity to God than food and raiment 2. Relative comforts sweeten our lives But yet brethren this I say the time is short it remaineth that those that have wives be as though they had none and they that rejoyce as though they rejoyced not and they that buy as if they possessed not for the fashion of this world passeth away Why what would you have us to do I would have you without carefulnesse that you may be holy both in body and Spirit that you way please the Lord. 1. Cor. 7.29 c. we must mind God more than relative comforts 3. Higher yet The time you spend in Gods immediate worship even in extraordinary worship 't is lost time if you cannot answer Gods searching

to our happiness and perfection Tryphon's friends laught at it I hope none here are such kind of persons but that you will rather ask what is it to fetch strength from Christ briefly thus The fetching strength from Christ is the finding out of a fit promise and applying it to our purpose by a resting upon Christ for the performance of it in a conscientious minding of the condition on our part e.g. In the present business Eph. 2.18 through Christ we have access by one Spirit unto the Father But how shall I come to Christ Mat. 11.29 by taking his yoak upon you and learning of him but how shall I learn and how shall I be sure of success Prov. 8.34 by continual attendance upon him thou shalt learn and thou shalt be blessed 7. Make use of each Person of the Trinity to each other for the enjoyment of Communion with Deity Every person of the Trinity works both jointly and severally in the bringing of the soul unto God The Father he effectually draws the soul to Christ Iohn 6.44 And he gracioufly accepts of that which is no way suitable to his infinite holiness The Son as Mediator dischargeth all that is requisite for the reconciling of us unto the Father The Holy Ghost doth immediately work the soul to all spiritual good Now then do you learn to make use of every persons peculiar work Can there be a more pleasing a more profitable a more honourable work than to fearch how the Father draws to the Son and promiseth to send the Holy Ghost Yet it is the Son that engageth the Father by the working of the Holy Ghost and yet it is the Holy Ghost which worketh the heart to close with Christ and thereby we have access unto the Father How sweet is it to unriddle these mysteries of Grace The very untying of these knots and the picking out the kernels of these seeming contradictions must needs be advantageous unto the soul Christians will you bring your case to a Point Is there a necessity of acquainting thy self with God or not Canst thou patch up an happiness to serve thy turn without Communion with God if not what dost thou resolve upon Alas this business is beyond my strength I cannot change mine own heart though there are encouragements and helps I know not which way to go nor how to pleade them Well but is the Spirit of God able to quicken thee and to teach thee and to enable thee he stands especially engaged 't is his immediate work to prevail upon the heart Go to the Spirit and beg of him that he would lead thee to the Father and to Christ that thou mayst have fellowship with the Father and the Son Alas I cannot go unto the Spirit I have so long resisted him so often grieved him with what face can I go I am unworthy of his guidance Well but Jesus Christ stands engaged and never speak of Merit that day thou speakest of Christ Go to Christ and beg that he would send his Spirit into thy heart Jesus Christ is thy Kinsman he knows how to pitty thee and the Spirit of Grace is at his dispose Oh then go to Christ Alas I cannot go to Christ I have no ability to go nor so much as a will to move towards him I cannot go to Christ Well but the Father is engaged to draw thee though thou canst not go a man may be drawn which hath no naturall willingness of his own The father stands engaged to change the will absolute promises are theirs that lay claim to them provided they do not overthrow their own claim Go therefore and tell the Father thy case Oh I cannot I dare not go unto the Father his justice must needs smoak against me his holiness will never bear with me It would argue impudence in me to venture into his presence Oh I dare not go unto the Father Then go back to Christ he hath satisfied the Fathers Justice and wrought our reconciliation God the Father was in Christ the Son reconciling the world unto himself And Christ hath obtained Reconciliation for thee if thou wilt accept the word of Reconciliation Go therefore unto Christ Oh I cannot go unto Christ there 's something required on my part though not as a Price yet as a Qualification I must have some inherent righteousness or else no Communion with God Then go back unto the Spirit it is his business to work thy heart into a conformity unto God God doth not onely require thou shouldst be holy because he is holy bu● the Holy Ghost is ready to make thee holy The winde now blows do thou spread the sailes Oh but I never shall I never can have any holiness to bear any kind of proportion to the holiness of God and therefore it is in vain I have experience more than enough of my heart And I may by this time know what to expect Then go back unto the Father he graciously condescends to accept of a little the breathings of the soul the trembling of the heart God-ward is not rejected by him Christians did your soules but thus walk in the spirituall immensities of Deity how would you be filled with all the fulness of God How would you take the Apostle Iohn's counsel while you are learning to take it 1 Iohn 2.28 Abide in God Abide in God by this direction you may enjoy the End in the Means and have much of heaven while you are upon earth Is it needful after all this to be particular in an Use of Consolation Hath not every true Christian a Natural-spiritual instinct to run unto God what ever ailes him And certainly if there be any consolation in Christ if any comfort in the love of God and in the fellowship of the Holy Ghost If there be as most certainly there is profit in observing Gods Ordinance and walking mournfully before God then this Doctrine will afford unspeakable comfort in all cases when flesh and heart faileth then may the soul that hath interest in God shout unto him with the voice of triumph 1. When the flesh failes when the outward man is in an afflicted condition and who can tell the benefit of afflictions garlick among rose-trees makes the roses the sweeter and those roses which are made by art to grow without prickles lose their sent Affliction with the enjoyment of God is infinitely better than prosperity without it But what is thy affliction is it bodily weakness thy vile body shall ere long be changed Art thou poor and despised riches of glory will make full amends What need I name particulars take one Text which is so plain the meanest may understand it yet so full there 's none able to explain it 2 Cor. 4.16 17 18 For which cause we faint not but though our outward man perish yet the inward man is renewed day by day for our light affliction which is but for a moment worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of