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	mind_n	7,027	5	5.7568	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A80577	An antidote against lust: or, A discourse of uncleanness, shewing its various kinds, great evil, the temptations to it, and most effectual cure. By Robert Carr, minister of the Church of England	Carr, Robert, fl. 1686-1696.	1690 (1690)	Wing C629A; ESTC R231166	82,048	192

work you off from Prayer and you cannot pray against them or no otherwise than St. Austin before his Conversion Domine da castitatem da Continentiam sed non modo Lord give me Chastity give me Continence but not now If people are loth that God should hear their prayers but if they pray really and the heart truly desire what they pray for so long it looks well and no longer or if a man means to make a Truce or Cessation of Arms and Hostility for any time during the heat of Summer or the presence and Company of this or that beloved Body he throws away his Weapons he yields and is overcome and if he live in a continual Peace and League with them and do not recover himself and renew his Spiritual Warfare he is utterly lost and undone for ever Fifth Argument We must Mortify our Lusts or if you will lustful Members according to the literal sence of the words because our Bodies are Members of Christ and this Argument the Holy Ghost urgeth 1 Cor. 6. 15. Know ye not that your bodies are the Members of Christ Shall I then take the Members of Christ and make them Members of an Harlot God forbid I must snew in what sence our Bodies are the Members of Christ and then how that argues for Mortification of our Lusts Christ and Christi●ns are one Body one Spiritually as 1 Cor. 6. 17. and Eph. 1. 22 23. Christ is said to be head over all things to his Church which is his Body c. Christ the Head and Fountain of Spiritual Life Sense and Motion and Christians Members of that Body influenced acted and enlivened by one and the self-same Spirit which Christ received without measure or infinitely in perfection that so he might abundantly communicate it to his Members enabling them to mortisie the evil Concupiscence in their hearts and the Lusts of the Flesh that Flesh and Blood or Bodies of Sin which they carry about them Now since there is such a Spiritual Union between Christ and us and we are taken into such a near Relation unto Christ as Members in that Mystical body whereof he is the Head of Influence should not the Members bear a Conformity to their Head If he was pure even to perfection ought not we to resemble him in that Purity by a Mortification of Uncleanness And as it is in the Marriage Office Keep your selves undefiled Members of Christ's body Again Our Bodies are Members of Christ as they are Members of the same Flesh and Blood or bodies of the same kind with that which Christ ●ook upon him in the days of his Flesh as it is expressed Hebr. 5. 7. Chap. 2. 14. For as much then as the Children are partakers of Flesh and Blood he also took part o● the same and so exalted our Nature above the nature of Angels by assuming it and uniting it to his Divine Nature He was God-man or God manifest in the Flesh 1 Tim. 3. 16. And thus he honoured it in the highest Nature and made it adorable in that Hypostatical Union with the Divine Nature Again He honoured it by the Purity of his immaculate Conception through the power of the Holy Ghost and not after the ordinary manner of men in their fallen and corrupt State by a sinful Generation and by the pure manner of his Birth of a Virgin undefiled and free and pure from men The force of this Argument consists herein If Christ so highly exalted our Nature above that of Angels shall we abase it to the Beasts that perish by living to sense and the sinful cravings of the Flesh Shall we make that Flesh vile by our Lusts and so contemtptible which the Son of God made Venerable by his Incarnation and which is glorified in Christ as in Capite and which we expect hereafter to be made like unto Christ's glorious Body Can we expect this corruptible subject to corruption in the worst sence of the words should put on incorruption unless it put off all its corrupt Lusts before it dyes on this side the grave that so it might be sit for that Inheritance which is incorruptible undefiled c. Sixth Argument for Mortification of our Members or Lusts Because our Bodies are Temples of the Holy Ghost which is in you which ye have of God Our Souls and Bodies were Dedicated to God the Father Son and Holy Ghost in our Baptism and thereby Consecrated and become Holy even Temples of the Holy Ghost through his gracious presence and Inhabitation But by Lust these Temples are polluted and profaned and become the Habitation of Devils and the hold of every foul Spirit and a Cage of every unclean and hateful Bird as it is prophesied of spiritual Babylon Rev. 18. 2. Conceive we of Mens Lusts flying up and down in their Minds and Imaginations as Birds do in the Air or shut up in their Hearts as Birds are cooped up in a Cage ready to fly out upon opportunity and break loose as the Lusts of Mens hearts are almost upon every Occasion and Temptation You have heard in time of our Domestical Wars of turning Churches into Stables and polluting them but it is to tur● these Temples of the Holy Ghost into worse than Stables if we prostitute them to our vile lusts You read in Eph. 4. 29 30. a Caution Let no Corrupt Communication proceed out of your Mouth and it follows in the next verse And Grieve not the holy Spirit noting to us that the pure and holy Spirit of God is grieved afflicted and as it were made sad by naughtiness of our discourse thoughts or actions and so provoked to withdraw from us and to leave us The most nasty Kennels or Gutters and Sinks that receive the filth and off scouring of things the very Excrements themselves and the worst dunghils are not such an Annoyance and Offence unto us as our vile Lusts and corrupt Affections are to the Holy Spirit of God these are more loathsom and a greater Abomination unto him than the most stinking unsavoury smells are unto us The last Argument shall be taken from the tremendous Judgments that the Lord hath Denounced and Inflicted on Sinners in this sort Heb. 13. 4. Whoremongers and Adulterers God will Judge and that severely too punishing them commonly in this World and in the World to come Gen. 6. 2 3. shows you that it had an hand in drowning the World When the Sons of God that is the holy Seed of Seths Race saw the Daughters of Men wicked Men and the Children like the Parents wicked too according to the sence of the words that they were fair they took them to Wives their Lusts within was smitten with the others Beauty and betrayed them to that graceless Match then it soon follows even in the next verse My Spirit shall not always strive with Man and after it The wickedness of Man was great in the Earth and it repented the Lord that he had made Man And the Lord

reject the Word as those Ps 81. 11 12. But my people would not hearken ●o my Voice i. e. the word of God Where●ore I gave them up to their own hearts Lusts God will make those vile in whose eyes ●is Word is vile or any other Ordinance ●f God Rom. 1. 25. Who changed the truth ●f God into a Lie and Worshipped and served ●he Creature more than the Creatour who is ●lessed for ever For this cause God gave ●em up unto vile Affections unnatural Lusts ●nd so in the 23. ver and all this for dis●onouring God in his Worship If thou ●alt lye like a Logg in the presence of ●od in in such a c●reless irreverent Bru●sh Posture as manifesteth a downright ●ontempt of Gods Worship thou dis●nourest God in this Worship and God ●ay punish and make thee as vile by thy ●usts and Dishonourable We read of polluting the Sabbath Is 56. 2. ● the Ordinances of God when we al●w and indulge our Lusts in the very ●emple of God and Acts of Worship ●r upon the Lords Day follow our Lusts ● do any thing which makes the Lords ●ay vile this may provoke the Lord to ●ave us to pollute our selves But as the Word of God and the Or●nances of God duly performed promote Purity so there are other things as contrary to it to be carefully avoided as fearful Temptations and Provokatives to Lus● such are lewd Ballads Plays Stories an● Lascivious Songs of Love 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as Chrysostom calls them Songs of ● Devils compos●re which vitiate and co●rupt the minds of Youth it being nat●ral for the Heart and Mind to be wroug● upon by those things which are much ● the Mind and the Tongue until they r●semble and are made Conformable un● them as the word to work Purity oth● things frame the Mind into Wanto●ness The last means is Prayer and this I p● in the last place because Prayer must g● Gods Blessing upon all the other mea● Every thing is Sanctifyed by the Word a● Prayer The Word put in as bringing ● to the knowledge of Christ in and throug● whom all things are Blest to us Eph. 1. 3. ev● our Prayers accepted being offered up ● his Name which the Word teacheth us● do but Prayer that especially begs a● obtains Gods Blessing Grace to flee tho● Evils which may Corrupt us and to pr●ctise those things attend those Ordina●ces which may purisie us It is not enoug● to know our Duty our Helps to Vertue● and to this of Chastity in particular and our Temptations and Hinderances but if we would have Grace and Strength enabling us to practise accordingly Prayer must procure it But besides Prayer of it self is a special Help in this Case Pray ●hat ye enter not into Temptation Mat. 26. 41. that ye be not drawn away of your own Lusts ●nd enticed and allured with the pleasure of this Sit● For then are you Tempted as St. James 1. Prayer is an excellent fence and preservative against this Temptation ●nd therefore David Prays Make me a clean Heart O God Ps 51. 10. and keep thy Servant back from presumptuous Sins then shall ● be undefiled and innocent from the great of●ence in the Church Translation of the Psalms However Davids great Offence was his Adultery with Bathshcba that cau●ed the Murther of Vriah her Husband A Praying Christian may plead thus with God It is for thine Honour to kill ●very Corruption It is thy work to San●tifie and Purifie our Hearts Christ gave himself for that end to redeem us from all ●niquity and purify to himself a peculiar peo●le zealous of good works or that we may ●eny our selves and do Violence to our corrupt Nature Crucifying the Flesh with the Affections and Lusts thereof Mortifying our Members Fornication Vncleanness inodinate Affection c. That our Bodies m● be pure and undefiled Members of Christ and not the Members of an Harlot Th● our Bodies may be preserved everm● chast and uncorrupt Temples fit for t● Holy Ghost to dwell in That we may scape the pollutions which are in the Wor● through Lust and adorn that pure and u● defiled Religion which we profess O Make us clean Hearts O God and ren● right Spirits within us that we may reme●ber our own evil ways and our doings that we not good and loath our selves in our own sig● for our Iniquities and our Abominations T● is very fit to bring us to Repentance e● for a Personal use or in behalf of the N●tion And for young persons that th● may have Grace to flēe Youthful Lust And to follow after Righteousness Faith C●rity calling upon the Lord out of a pure Hea● Prayer is a drawing nigh to God A● God draws nigh to us with his Grace a● Spirit when we draw nigh to him he nigh at hand ready to help us but ● stand at a great distance from God looks upon us too as a far off when ● make no Conscience of this duty of Pra●er When we absent our selves from t● Throne of Grace and are not seen wi● God in Secret then God hides his Face from us and upon Gods withdrawing and deserting our Spiritual Enemies are present the Flesh and the Devil and the Al●urements of the World they Tempt At●ack and prosper How others find it I ●annot tell but I am sure I find that the Devil is busie with me whenev●r I neglect Prayer some evil thoughts or other he ●ollows me with but then my Heart is ●ure when I am most constant in Duty ●nd keep closest to God in Prayer which God never appointed in Vain but as a means and a very choice means to fetch ●n Grace and help against the World the Flesh and the Devil But I think it is im●ossible for those Christians to have pure Hearts or good quiet Consciences who ●ive in the neglect of daily Prayer We ●all find our selves strong in the Lord and ●he power of his Might or his Almighty ●ower engaged for us when we give God ●is due in Prayer and then our Lusts will ●e weak But when we neglect prayer ●e are weak our strength is gone our sup●ort and our props drawn from under us ●nd nothing left to bear us up and keep ●s from falling It is Gods usual course ●hen People for a long time leave God in ●ot Praying or Reading c. and doing the good they shall do in Religion not o●ly to with hold his further Grace b● to withdraw the present measure and lea● them first to Temptations that they m● awaken them and if they amend no● then to fall under them doing those Wic●ednesses and Abominations which shall b● bitterness to them in the latter end Wh● Sin or the love to your Lusts work o● Prayer then you may Sin on in a cour● of Sinning until you be hardned in Sin and past Feeling or Remorse for Sin B● if you hold on in Prayer which should ● a mighty Encouragement unto you yo● will weaken Sin even strong Lusts

Ease and Pleasure and the ●ait and allurement to this sin is the pleasure of it James 1. 14. you read Then is a man tempted when he is drawn away of his own lust and enticed The word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifies baited as Men do bait for Fishes with somewhat alluring and pleasing to the tast of the silly Fish so doth Lust ba●● and allure idle voluptuous Persons wit● the pleasure in it This is the reaso● why great Persons are more addicted t● this Vice and Wickedness because the● living idly and loving their Pleasures th● Devil as he finds them much at leisure t● be tempted and to hearken to his sugge●stions so he knows they look upon them selves as born for their Pleasures an● therefore he hath commonly more succe● with his Temptations of this sort on s 〈…〉 as they are whereas those busied abo● their honest Calling cannot so well tu● aside and leave their employ to follow t● Works of the Devil and be so ready ● his beck to fulfil his pleasure they havi● other work to do their minds must be ● a great measure taken up with that a● so have not that opportunity besides tha● they have not that plenty of Money ● spend upon their Lust and are in Go● way and in some measure in his protec● on while they are about their law● works and worldly business but Tem●tations come with doble the force to idle ●ich Epicures If persons will not set themselves to work some way or other about their worldly concerns or the concerns of Religion the Devil will be sure to set them on work about that which is evil God having made it the Duty of all religiously or usefully to employ themselves and their precious time so as either God may be glorified or the World benefited by them Another Means for the Mortification of our Lusts or at least a good Preventive and Preservative from sins of this kind is ●o have a due regard to Restraining Grace ●abour to see your need of it and to live ●n a sense of your weakness and in a con●inual dependance on God for his Grace ●or scarce any other means will take effect ●ntil Persons have learnt this lesson Igno●ance and Unbelief of Restraining-Grace ●r disregard of it hold People under ●he power of this sin and cut off from ●hem the means of their Recovery and ●hat power which should rescue them They that think they have no need of God and his Grace to keep them back ●om this kind of Wickedness as if they ●ould keep from it of themselves it is just ●hat God should leave them to some temptation from the Devil or some alluring and ensnaring Beauty captivating them or in some measure let loose the Corruption of their Natures that so they may find that by Temptation or sad experience in their own falls which they might● and ought to have learnt from the Word that they are weaklings in the spiritual warfare and their strength is not their own that they stand not alone of themselves but that it is God's hand that bears them up and that the frailty of their Natures is such as without him they cannot but fall The Devil is much in Temptations o● this nature those that never discerne● the Devil tempting them never wer● throughly convinced of their need o● Grace to restain him The Devil is called an Vnclean Spirit not falsly but becaus● of his instigations to this sin The evi●dence from History is too apparent to b● denied or satisfactory at least that th● Devil hath taken up the dead Bodies of som● beautiful Women and walked some wa● with them and when lustful Persons hav● met them and courted them and lay● with them in the morning when they a●wak'd they have sound nothing but a dea● Corps by them And the Devil or D●vils they being many indeed but all conspiring as one are reported credibly enough in bodily shapes to have had carnal Knowledge of some Witches it is not new to talk of Incubus and Succubus Spirits There is never a Christian upon Earth but the Devil desires and labours all he can to corrupt him many evil thoughts rise up in your minds through his injections or suggestions though he conceals himself that you can but seldom discern him directly in the Temptation and when the Temptation continues long and you are followed with it and haunted with these Lusts from day to day 2 Sam. 13. 4. Amnons Case that you wax lean are ready to consume or pine away by that means then you may gather the Devil is in it and sets them on and hopes by perseverance and long continuance of the Temptation to prevail against you When also the Temptation is very sudden and unthought of and unexpected and you are carried out to this or any other sin with double the force that at other times then he is in it that filled the Heart of Ananias Acts. 5. 3. and that worketh mightily in the Children of Disobedience Eph. 2. 2. As we have need of God's powerful restraint in respect of Satan so in respect of the tempting Objects and the corrupting Beauties as Gen. 6. 2. When the Sons of God saw the Daughters of men that they were fair they took them Wives of all which they chose The Sons of God that is the holy Seed of Seth's race the Daughters of men of wicked men of Cain's race or such as were common and prostitute to men as some think the Sons of God were taken with their Beauty when they saw that they were fair then they chose them and took them for Wives and were corrupted by them as the 12th v. God saw the Earth and behold it was corrupt for all flesh had corrupted its way upon the earth Tamar was a fair beautiful Woman and therefore Amnon loved her 2 Sam. 13. Our indwelling-sin is as ready to catch at a motion of Satan Lust within to be set on fire as Tinder is to catch at a spark of fire lighting upon it so vile and corrupt is the Nature of Man and exceeding prone to this evil yea carrying us out to work all Vncleanness with greediness Ephes 4. 19. And our Blessed Saviour tells us From within out of the Hearts of men proceed evil thoughts Fornications Adulteries Swarms of evil thoughts are naturally in our Hearts Out of the abundance of the Heart the Mouth speaketh its corrupt things the Eye looketh on a Woman to lust after her and the Ear attends such rotten and filthy Communication and the whole Man acts It is the evil within that brings forth the Fornications and Adulteries even all sorts of naughtiness therefore there is an absolute need of God's Grace to suppress the evil of our Hearts and great need have we to Pray Lead us not into Temptation for no Temptation of this sort whether from without or from within but what is common to Men Saints as well as Sinners their Nature is unclean and full of evil lustings