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	pray_v	prayer_n	6,987	5	6.6304	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
B11962	Certaine godly and necessarie sermons, preached by M. Thomas Carew of Bilston in the countie of Suffolke ...	Carew, Thomas, Preacher.	1603 (1603)	STC 4616; ESTC S118335	148,213	348

Christian brothers and sisters Psal 16. 3 a naturall man loues them not but rather hates them as Iohn shewes in his first Epistle A regenerate man doth see and feele the remnants of corruption and complaines Rom. 7. 23. of it the naturall man doth not but iustifies himselfe as the Pharisie did Luk. 18. 11. The regenerate man would not doe the euill Rom. 7. 19. that some time he dooth and he would doe the good that he dooth not and that good that he doth he would doe it better the naturall man dooth the euill that hee would hee dooth no good nor hath no minde to it neither dooth hee truely desire to be any better then he is The regenerate man prayes and cries Rom. 8. 20. Abba father by the spirite groanes vnto God for fauour for helpe against temptation for strength against sinne for grace to thinke speake and doe better the naturall man spendes no praiers about these things if he do it is but in few colde and fashionable wordes without affection of heart the regenerate man doth truely and earnestly striue against the corruption of nature that Gal. 5. 1● yet remaines in him more and more ouercome it as Saloman saith In all labour there is profit the naturall man doth not so hauing nothing in him but flesh There is in a regenerate man as it were two men as Rebecca had two natiōs in her wombe so a Christian hath as it were two natures in his wombe the members of the olde man and the new man of the fles● and of the spirite as Paule saith the flesh resistes the spirit and Gal. 5. 17. the spirite resistes the flesh therefore saith Peter abstaine from fleshly lusts that fight against the ●oule the striuing against corruption is the greatest excercise of a Christian outward troubles and enemies are nothing like it when the flesh or corruption preuailes in the childe of God thereof growes sorrow and griefe as Dauid when hee had sinned saith I goe mourning all the day but when the spirit preuailes against the flesh thereof growes ioy and comfort But a naturall man further then the feare of mans law or the shame of the worlde dooth enforce him hath no sorrow for his ●innes except some few examples such as were Esau and Iudas whome God dooth touch with hellish tormentes that in them other great sinners might see as it were a toarch of hell fire burning before their e●es and as a naturall man hath no sorrow for sin further then feare of man or shame doth force him so he hath no ioy in good things further then pride or vainglory doth pricke him so that to vse the common similitude of the scripture as we may know a good tree from a bad tree by the difference of their fruites so we may know a spirituall man from a carnall man by the difference of their mindes and manners A regenerate man that is borne of the spirite though he be not perfectly sanctified in this life yet hee is wholely sanctified for as there is a naturall birth of the whole man so there is a spirituall birth of the whole man that is as all the partes both of his soule and bodie are vitiated and corrupted by the first birth so all the partes of his soule and bodye his iudgement affection his will his conscience his memory his eyes his tongue handes feete c. are sanctified by his second and new birth and there is no part of a regenerate man so corrupt as it was before I speake not of some extraordynarye fault that some good man may fall into by strong temptation which peraduenture hee committed not nor the like before his conuersion but I speake of that ordinarye estate that Gods children are brought vnto by regeneration Therefore we are in the Scripture not onely exhorted generally to put on the new man to be renewed to amend out liues to be holy as God is holy but wee are exhorted to the perticuler vertues and partes of the new man as to knowledge loue pacience temperance humility and diuers other partes of sanctification there is no naturall man but doth something that is good in it selfe though it bee not so to him but a regenerate man is good many wayes within and without in wordes and indeedes Againe hee that is borne againe of the spirit doth grow in grace and the guiftes of the spirite that is not onely to adde one grace to another as Peter saith ●oyne to 2. Pet. 1. 5 your faith vertue to vertue patience to patience temperance to temperance c. But euery grace and spirituall gift dooth grow greater stronger as the disciples saide to Christ Lord increase our faith so we must saye Lorde increase ours and our loue our pacience our zeale c. For as there is growing of the first birth from children to men as growing in the corruption of the first birth as the Apostle saith Euill men and deceiuers waxe worse and worse so there is a growing in the second and new birth from little to much The meanes here of is the word of God as Peter speakes as new borne babes desire the 1. Per. 2. 2 sincere milke of the word that yee may grow thereby and prayer As our Sauiour said ou● heauenly father will giue the holy Ghost that is the giuftes of the holy Ghost to those that aske him Now seeing it is so necessary that a man should bee borne againe without the which he cannot enter into the kingdome of heauen let euery man and woman examine themselues whether he can finde a new creature in him or no which he shall know by the former properties of a regenerate man let him examine whether hee haue a new minde and new manners in generall then let him examine the perticulers first 1 If he loues God with the affection of a childe to his father 2 If he loues the children of God with the affection of a brother or sister 3 If he delightes in the lawe of God because of the excellent wisedome holinesse and righteousnesse that is in vs. 4 If hee sees his owne corruption of nature and condemnes it and himselfe for it 5 If in his affection hee would not doe that which is euill and contrary to the law but would doe that which is good and agreeable to the law 6 If he praies to God with an vnfained hart not only for pardon of sinne but for power against sinne 7 If he doe truely and earnestly striue against sinne and for vertue not only without but within himselfe 8 If he hath remorse and sorrowe for sinne though they be little in comparison and secret that the world knowes not and ioy in goodnesse 9 If he desire and vse the meanes of the word of God that may make him growe in the new birthe and become better If a man finde these things in himselfe he is regenerate and borne againe if not he is not borne of

and the practise of godlinesse fewe are exercised in them which shewes a carelesse minde but hee that is desirous to keepe a good conscience will enquire how they may doe it If men would doe as the Disciples of Mat. 13. our Sauiour Christ did and as good men did Num. 6. 9. 1. Cor. 7. 1. Acts. 2. obserue their doubts and write them either in their mindes or in their tables and propound them in conuenient place and company they might be wiser then they be and doe their duties better then they doe and auoide many sinnes that they fall into as the prouerbe is the blinde eates many a Flie yea many a Spider Iesus answered Verily I say to thee except Verse 5. a man be borne of water and of the spirite he cannot enter into the kingdome of heauen Because Nichodemus asked how a man could be borne againe that was olde our Sauiour Christ telles him how and because he vnderstood Christs former words carnally he telles him they must be vnderstoode spiritually The Papistes take these wordes to bee spoken of baptisme and say except a man be baptised he cannot be saued putting a necessity in baptisme vnto saluation it is true indeed that baptisme is necessary and that to saluation as all the meanes of saluation which God hath appointed are necessary and cannot be contemned without peril of condemnation but baptisme is not necessary to saluation in their sence as if none could be saued except they be baptised for the thiefe that was crucified with Luk. 23. 1 Christ who was conuerted after baptisme was instituted was saued and yet he was not baptised so if any should die without baptisme when they would cannot haue it it hinders not their saluation if infants die before they be brought to baptisme though negligence herein may be a sinne in the parents yet is it no preiudice to the childe no more then it was to those children that died without circumsition when they might not apply it before the eight day for if the want of baptisme should be shutte from saluation then it were possible to ouerthrow the election of God which Mat. 24. Christ denies But although baptisme bee called the 〈◊〉 and sacrament of regeneration because it doth signifie and outwardly represent to our eyes that clensing and renewing which the holy Gost dooth worke inwardly in our harts yet it is not our Sauiour Christes purpose in this place to speake of baptisme at all but to teach Nichodemus that in his former speach he ment not a carnall but a spirituall birth the reason why he names water is because often in the Scripture the spirit is set foorth by water to Iohn 7 38. shew the working of the spirit in those that are borne againe as water dooth wash away the filthinesse of the bodie and make the same more cleane so the spirit dooth clense and purifie the soule therefore it 1. Cor. 6. 11. is called the spirite of sanctification so that in these wordes it is as our Sauiour Christ should say I doe not meane that a man should be borne againe carnally but that he should be borne againe spiritually as yee are borne first like your earthlye father who is flesh so you must be borne againe like your heauenlye Father who is spirite and bee made pertaker as Peter speakes of his deuine nature not in substance 2. Pet. 1. 4 but in qualities as hee saith B●● Leui. 11. 4. 4. Mat. 5. yee holy as I am holy And as Christ saith Be yee mercifull as your heauenly father is mercifull And in that Christ saith heere A ma● must be borne againe of the spirit it shewe 〈…〉 that regeneration consists not in a ciuill reformation such as the lawes of the countrie the companie that men keepe and the respect of their credit and outward safety may drawe them vnto but hee meanes that Christian reformation which the spirite thorowe the knowledge and faith of the worde of God dooth frame men vnto begetting a knowing in or iudgement a hating in affection and forsaking in conuersation of those things which are euill in them by their first birth that are contrarie to the worde and that tende to condemnation and on the contrarie begetting in them a knowing in iudgement a loue in affection and following in conuersation of those things which be good that they haue by a new birth that are agreeable to the worde and that tende to saluation Except yee be borne againe of the spirite thus saith our Sauiour Christ yee cannot enter into the kingdome of God To the same effect spake ●ohn Baptist to some of the other Pharisies who Luke 3. 8 came to him to be baptised which was an entrance into the Church Bring forth saith he first fruites worthie amendment of life as if hee should say What should you doe in the Church or what should you doe with the badge or name of Christianitie when you are still corrupt and naughtie men So our Sauiour Christ saith to Nichodemus heere What shouldest thou or any such as thou art doe in the new state of the Church where God is a King rules by his word and grace and where men and women are subi●ct to him in minde and manners whent hou art still an olde man in the strength of thy ignorance and naturall corruption for the Church is the doore of the kingdome of God and none are to be le● into the kingdome of God in this world so farre as men can iudge that shall haue no place in the kingdome of God in th● world to come for if the Apostle woul● haue knowne and grosse sinners to be 〈…〉 thrust out of the Church when they be in 1. Cor. 5. then he would haue them to be kept ou● that they come not in and in that Phi 〈…〉 did admit Sin on Magus it was because h 〈…〉 Acts. 8. did dissemble that which was not in him and pretended faith regeneration whe 〈…〉 he had it not but though he deceiued P 〈…〉 lip he could not deceiue Peter who perce 〈…〉 ued that he was an hipocr●●e in the ga 〈…〉 of bitternesse we now receiue children 〈◊〉 baptisme and enter them into the Church because the parents beeing faithfull the 〈…〉 ●eede is holy in the account of the seruan 〈…〉 of God as the Apostle saith but we mu 〈…〉 1. Cor. 7. 14. see some testimonies of grace in themselue 〈…〉 before we receiue them to the other sacr 〈…〉 ment if any one will obiect ●udas he w 〈…〉 then no open offender and also it was th 〈…〉 the Scripture might be fulfilled And those that haue by baptisme been● enticed into the Church must know th 〈…〉 if when they come to yeares of vnderstanding they doe not answer to that they professed in Baptisme to renounce the deuill and his workes and to beleeue and obey Gods word though they haue a place in the Church and be