Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	ghost_n	holy_a	jesus_n	15,155	5	6.0417	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A93740	The great, useful and blessed duty of a contentment, willingness and desire to die set forth upon true and assured grounds, in several discourses on these following scriptures. By Richard Stafford, A servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ. Recommended as more proper and beneficial to be given at funerals than gloves or rings.	Stafford, Richard, 1663-1703.	1700 (1700)	Wing S5119A; ESTC R223444	53,707	69

done the Work and Will and Business of his Creatour according as it was expected from him and consequently the Creature can then return with more Comfortable Expectation unto him And now come I to thee We cannot better and more willingly surrender back our Spirits to the God who gave them then when they have faithfully performed that very same thing for which God sent these Spirits into these Bodies for to do And now O thou invisible Creator the invisible part of us which was by thee Created comes to thee From what hath been afore written it appears that there are three things especially which upon good and true grounds can make any one contented willing and desirous to Dye First When one hath seen the Salvation of God Secondly When the Lord God of truth hath Redeemed us Thirdly When one hath Glorified God on Earth and finisbed the Work which he gave us to do It was Revealed unto Simeon by the Holy Ghost that he should not see Death until he had seen the Lord's Christ And he came by the Spirit into the Temple and when his Parents brought in the Child Jesus to do for him after the Custom of the Law then took he him in his Arms and Blessed God and said mine Eyes have seen thy Salvation So that Simeon his seeing the Salvation of God was seeing Jesus Christ in the Flesh But since the fullness of time is over and past we cannot now see him in the Flesh here on Earth yet we may see him in his Grace and Revelation But chiefly to see Christ the Salvation of God the Power of God and the Wisdom of God is with the Eyes of our Understanding being enlightened and turned inwards to see Christ within us Little Children of whom I travail in Birth till Christ be formed in ye And so to have Christ formed in us this is to see the Salvation of God Now this is a work of time and succession as it is of forming the Infant in the Womb. To have or see Christ formed within us is the Business and Work of our whole Life here on Earth which the Preaching and Ministry of the word doth help unto And when once Christ is throughly formed within us and we see the Salvation of God then we may be well contented willing and Desirous to dye for this Reason For as when the Chick sees the Kite or Hawk which would devour it if she can run under the Hens wings then she is safe For as the Hen was at first Instrumental to give it Life and Being so it will still preserve it Even so by seeing the Lord 's Christ who is the Prince of Life and the Salvation of God the faithful Soul who is in Covenant with him runs and makes unto Christ who promises and performs it also He shall cover thee with his Feathers and under his Wings shalt thou trust Psal 91. 3. and gathereth his Children together even as a Hen gathereth her Chickens under her wings Here let Death and the Devil come and destroy that Soul if they can Christ is greater in power and might Forsamuch then as the Children were partakers of Flesh and Blood he also himself took part of the same that he through Death might Destroy him that had the Power of Death that is the Devil And destroy them who through fear of Death were all their life time Subject to Bondage If we are first saved from Sin and Guilt then w● are also saved from the wrath to come And then w● may be contented and willing to dye for therefore People are afraid to dye Because they are afraid to fall under the wrath of God Now if they are sure and safe from that then Death is without any sting at all which is Sin And then also we shall be safe saved and preserved from all the Evils Plagues and Punishment● of the World to come So that after all the Miseries and Irksomness of this present Life for as there is a satiety of all things so at length there is a satiety even of Life it self after all the toyl and wearisomness and labour thereof God our Creator will comfort us for this same toil and the times of Refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord Blessed be his Name for it He doth here in this valley of Tears and place of Weeping afford us some good and Comfortable things yet seeing that he hath appointed our time on Earth as the days of an Hireling we may willingly and contentedly give up our Breath and commit our Spirits into his hand saying with old Simeon Lord now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace according to thy word for mine Eyes have seen thy Salvation Because we shall have yet better and more Satisfactory things when we depart hence To be patient to Live and willing to Dye is the temper and disposition of Soul which I desire and would endeavour at And this my willingness to dye should not proceed out of a Melancholy temper Like Jonah in an Angry Mood who would have the Lord to take his Life from him For it was better for him to Dye than to Live only forsooth because he was displeased at the time that the Lord did not destroy Nineveh according to the word which he had Preached But this was only a pettish humour of his And so others at this day upon a sudden Affliction and Vexation are forthwith weary of the world and call to Death to come and ease them of the present Burthen Trouble Grief or Uneasiness But give me the mind that is willing to dye upon the same Reason as the Apostle was Having a desire to depart and to be with Christ which is far better Phil. 1. 23. Then the best condition here on Earth when also it can truly be said To me to dye is gain For by Death I shall gain or get more Good more Satisfaction more Comfort more Happiness and Blessedness then ever I had on this Earth Then only Death is gain when to live is Christ when we lay out our selves and live only for Christ that is in his service and to get Christ formed within us then truly Death is gain But if on the other hand People live to themselves or for themselves as in the service of Mam mon and for Pleasure and they are wanton on the Earth the consequence thereof is they have nourished their heart as in the day of Slaughter or against the day of Slaughte● to such to dye is not Gain but Loss for thereby they los● their Pleasure they lose their Mammon and they receive n●… good instead thereof but only Punishment and wrath Blessed are the Dead which dye in the Lord. But 't is only those who live unto the Lord that is in his service and Obedience that Dye in the Lord. If we mean to gain by ou● Death that is to get and obtain more good thereby tha● we had here we must do somewhat for it whilst we are in Life

THE Great Useful and Blessed DUTY OF A Contentment Willingness and Desire TO DIE Set forth upon true and assured Grounds in several Discourses on these following Scriptures Lord now lettest thou thy Servant depart in Peace according to thy word For mine Eyes have seen thy Salvation Luke 2. 29 30. Into thine hand I commit my Spirit Thou hast Redeemed me O Lord God of truth Psal 31. 5. I have glorified thee on the Earth I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do John 17. 4. By RICHARD STAFFORD A Servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ Recommended as more proper and Beneficial to be given at Funerals than Gloves or Rings LONDON Printed and are to be sold by the Book-sellers of London and Westminster 1700. Lord now lettest thou thy Servant depart in Peace according to thy Word For mine Eyes have seen thy Salvation Luke 2. 29 30. FRom these Words I shall treat through God's Assistance and according to the Knowledge given me O continue thy loving kindness to them that know thee and thy Righteousness to the upright in heart of our contentment and willingness to Die or depart from off this Earth Why Is there any need to perswade or exhort People to a Willingness and Desire to surrender back their Spirits unto the God who gave them This seems to be but what is Natural and Reasonable Yet still there is a reluctancy and backwardness in our Spirits to do this because the Spirit is conscious of having offended God and is afraid to meet with him Angry or as a God that ●aketh Vengeance And therefore until this same God is perfectly Reconciled unto and at Peace with her and he is sensible and assured thereof the Soul must needs be affraid and backward to come and appear before him A diversity is to be observed when it is written Into thine hand I commit my Spirit Thou hast redeemed me O Lord God of Truth The Psalmist doth not here say Thou hast Created me O Lord God of Truth Though indeed this is true yet that is not altogether so satisfying 〈◊〉 Reason for him to willingly commit his Spirit into God's Hand as the consideration of his having Redeemed him is Because that by Nature we are the Children of Wrath as well as others and we are shapen in Iniquity and in Sin doth our Mother conceive us So that until this same Sin and Iniquity which is the Object of God's Hatred Displeasure and Punishment be done away and we are Redeemed from it for by his Redeeming us we are in a state of Reconcilation again as this is God's Act also as well as of Creating us we are not meet and consequently there cannot be a Willingness upon good and true Grounds to give up our Spirits unto God or to say with old Simeon in the Text Lord now lettest thou thy Servant depart in Peace Even this old Simeon though he had already lived long on this Earth yet he would not have been so contented and desirous to have departed out of it unless he was to depart in Peace Not to depart generally as most People do in doubt fear and trouble but to depart in Peace If we could have our choice and it were so in our power as to be Immortal here and never to Die as for my part I should desire and pray unto God either to depart in Peace or not to depart at all Fo●… as it is said of the Son of Perdition It would have been good for him if he had never been Born so it may be here affirmed of those who do not depart in Peace It would be good for them not to depart or not to dye at all Not but that some may go off disturbedly and yet go off safely The Soul may be sometimes in a state of Peace and yet not be sensible thereof Who feareth th● Lord and obeyeth the voice of his Servant and yet walketh in darkness and have no light Isa 50. 10. But when one hath true and assured Grounds of Departing in Peace as Simeon here had there one may pray and appeal to God for him to let our Soul depart from the Body What were those true and assured Grounds which Simeon had of departing in Peace They are contained in the following Verse For mine Eyes have seen thy Salvation From hence it appears that the true and assured Ground● for which any one is willing and contented to Dye is Because he hath seen the Salvation of God or for the committing our Spirit into the Hand of God is Because he hath Redeemed us Now to see the Salvation of God or for God to Redeem us do amount to near one and the same thing As it is written The Kingdom of God cometh not with Observation in the Margent there it is with outward shew Neither shall they say Lo here or Lo there for be●old the Kingdom of God is within you So here it may be reasoned and supposed The Salvation of God is not outward nor yet cometh with Observation but the Salvation of God is within us It is wrought and accomplished within us And thou shalt call his Name Je●us for he shall save his People from their Sins Mat. 1. 21. Who is a Prince and a Saviour and the Author of E●ernal Salvation to all that obey him and the Salvation of God As to all this Christ is no otherwise a Saviour ●r doth save us or is the Salvation of God than as he ●oth save us from our Sins and turn us from our ●aiquities For this is laying the Ax to the Root of ●…e Tree and digging to the very Ground-work and ●oundation because that only by reason of Sin we be●…me liable and obnoxious to Death Misery and Punishment So that by certain and necessary Consequence 〈◊〉 we are saved from Sin then also we are saved from ●eath Misery and Punishment Hence again appears that this is the Salvation of God to save us from our Sins ●nd to save us from the Guilt and Corruption of our ●ature from whence these same Sins do proceed forth and so in those many places of Scripture where Salvation belongeth unto our God and is ascribed unto him 〈◊〉 he is called the God of Salvation there it is meant of ●…ving us from our Sins Where he saves from our E●…mies Sin is the greatest Enemy for 't is Sin in such a ●…an or Woman which only makes him or her to be our ●nemy Thou hast led captivity captive Psal 68. 18. that 〈◊〉 God hath led Sin and Corruption which doth in●lve the Children of Men in Captivity Captive by 〈◊〉 having received gifts for Men. And then it follows ●lessed be the Lord who daily loadeth us with Benefits and ●…imating thereby that to be saved from our Sins or to ●…d that Captive which before held us in Captivity is 〈◊〉 greatest Benefit And then it follows Even the God of our Salvation Selah He that is our God is the God of Salvation and unto

according to what the same Apostle elsewhere witnesseth of himself which is also applicable to other People who would have and enjoy the same good things For I am now ready to be offered and the time of my departure is at hand I have fought a good Fight I have finished my course I have kept the Faith henceforth there is laid up for me a●… Crown of Righteousness which the Lord the Righteous judge shall give me at that day and not unto me only but unto a●… them also that love his appearing The Crown of Righteousness will not be had by any one until he hath first fought the good fight and kept the Faith There is no departing in peace according to the word of God or according to the understanding desire of the Reasonable Creature without having first seen the Salvation of God The second true and assured ground of a contentment willingness and desire to dye is when the Lord God of truth hath Redeemed us Sanctifie them through thy truth Thy word is truth And so the same God that doth Sanctifie his People through his truth doth also Redeem them through his truth or by his word of truth When we are once throughly Redeemed and Sanctified by the truth of God then we may commit our Spirits into the hand of God For then these Spirits of ours are Redeemed and Sanctified from whatever Defilement and Corruption they had from the Body and from the things of this Earth Then the Spirit returns to God again the same as it was when he gave it The Temple of God is Holy which Temple ye are And so God expects that that Spirit which he Created Holy for so it was before it is defiled with the Body of Death should be kept and preserved Holy but chiefly it should be Sanctified that is made Holy just as it comes to be surrendred and given back unto God Every Like loves its Like and an Holy God loves an Holy Soul The Scripture expressly affirmeth it Without Holiness no Man shall see the Lord which implyes the contrary that with Holiness or when the Soul is endued or clothed with Holiness it shall then certainly see the Lord to its endless Comfort and Rejoycing The great and principal Business we have to do here on this Earth and as we are going off from it which we do continually as soon as we are Born is to dye to Sin I dye Daily saith the Apostle and to get Holiness ingrafted into the Soul As we are day after day approaching nearer and nearer unto the Grave here let us examin and prove our selves whether we are yet more Dead unto Sin and have Holiness yet more ingrafted into our Souls Whether as our desires grow more languid and unaffected as to Creature Comforts and to creature enjoyments by having had them over and over so often already So the same desires are more from Sin and Vanity and the more thirst after God And after the Enjoyment of him in his Kingdom so as to cry out from the real sense bent and inclination of our Souls As the Hart panteth after the Water Brooks so panteth my Soul after thee O God! When we can say in truth and seelingly within our self there is none upon Earth I desire besides thee And when in old Age we cannot tast what we Eat or what we Drink When the Keepers of the House shall tremble and those that look out of the Windows are Darkened when the Grashopper shall be a burthen and desire shall fail My Flesh and my Heart faileth if then God is the strength of our Heart and our Portion for ever For so the right Consequence is and Endeavours should be used accordingly That as our outward Man decays day by day so we should be more renewed in the inward Man As the day approaches continually nearer and nearer when we shall outwardly go off from this Earth the more we should be Redeemed from the Earth that is we should be Redeemed from the Evil and Defilement and Corruption of this Earth before we can upon Assured grounds commit our Spirit into the hand of God Besides this of being Redeemed from our vain conversation and from the Corruption of our Nature and of being without Guile and Fault before the Throne of God The chief and especial Redemption is that which was wrought and accomplished by Jesus Christ who in his Love and Pity hath Redeemed them and he bare them and he carried them all the days of old Isa 63. 9. Even Jesus which delivered us from the wrath to come Who bought us with a price and purchased us with his own Blood As God the Father Redeemed and brought up the Israelites out of the Land of Aegypt Whereby he was in a more especial manner their God for the Redeemer hath a right in the Redeemed Even so God by his Son Jesus Christ hath Redeemed Mankind from Spiritual Aegypt from the Slavery and Bondage of Sin and Satan and Death Christ hath Redeemed us from the curse of the Law being made a curse for us And it was this Redemption wrought and accomplished by Jesus Christ who was of the seed and linage of David whom the Scripture therefore calls the Son of David which David speaks of by the Spirit and had respect unto when he said Into thine hand I commit my Spirit Thou hast Redeemed me O Lord God of truth To pursue the very same Reasoning here as is in Acts 2 25 30. 32. For David speaketh concerning him Thou hast Redeemed me O Lord God of truth For being a Prophet and knowing that God had sworn with an Oath to him In fulfilling of which he is here fitly called the Lord God of truth That of the fruit of his loins according to the Flesh he would raise up Christ to sit on his Throne and to Redeem Mankind by him He seeing this before spake of the Redemption of Christ Thou hast Redeemed me O Lord God of truth It being the usual stile of Prophecies to speak of that as already past which is to come Whereby is shewn forth the immutable truth of the Eternal God for what he hath decreed in his Eternal counsel and purpose it is as certain as if it was already past and fulfilled As Abraham saw his day and was glad so here David saw his day and was glad And truly well they might for saith the Apostle in the Persons of the Regenerate for we were by Nature Children of wrath as well as others So that Abraham and David were Children of wrath also And then both of them might well be glad to foresee by Faith this Jesus Christ who was to Redeem them from the wrath to come The word Redemption is a relative term and doth presuppose captivity thraldom or the being sold from all which Redemption doth lose and set free again And so this Jesus Christ travelled in the greatness of his strength and was mighty to save he led Captivity Captive that is he led even Sin