Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n
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A47525
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An exhortation to a personal and national repentance a sermon / preached at St. James Church, Westminster, Feb. 5, 1688/9 by Tho. Knaggs ...
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Knaggs, Thomas, 1660 or 1-1724.
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1699
(1699)
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Wing K663; ESTC R36232
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11,547
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38
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An Exhortation to a Personal and National Repentance A SERMON Preached at St James Church Westminster Feb. 5. 1688 9. By Tho. Knaggs M. A. and Chaplain to the Right Honourable Ford Earl of Tankerville Printed at the Request of several Persons of Quality LONDON Printed for John Barnes at the Crown in the Pall-mall and Sold by A. Baldwin in Warwick-lane M DC XCIX St. MARK vi 12. And they went out and preach'd that men shu'd repent REpentance is a Doctrine which God preached by the Mouth of all his Prophets Noah to the old World Lot to Sodom Moses to Egypt Prophets in their several Generations to Israel and Judah John the Baptist to prepare the way for Christ with a Sermon of that Subject and Christ himself and all his Apostles preach'd that men should reform and amend their Lives The subject they were enjoyn'd to preach on was not of curious and nice matters but of such only as were profitable for the good of souls They went out and preach'd that men shu'd repent That we at this time especially may be stirred up to so great and necessary a duty I will 1. Shew how joyful and well pleasing it is to God that men should come to Repentance 2ly 'T is acceptable to the Blessed Angels 3ly 'T is grateful to the Penitent himself 4ly Offer to your consideration what great danger and unreasonableness there is in impenitency whether in particular Persons or in a publick Nation 5ly Shew the great advantage profit and benefit which redound to both of these by a timely and early Repentance Lastly Shut up all with an exhortation to that necessary Duty I begin with the first of these how joyful and well pleasing it is to God that Men shu'd come to Repentance And 1. Repentance is highly pleasing to God because it destroys sin which of all things is most hateful to him Sin makes a Separation between God and Man puts a Division between the Creator and his Creature blots out Gods Image defaceth the beauty of the Creation kindles a war between Heaven and Earth grieves the Holy Spirit of God and strengthens the Kingdom of the Prince of Darkness Now when the wicked man turns from his wickedness and doth that which is lawful and right when the sinner ceaseth to do evil and learneth to do well leading the Remainder of his life in all godliness and honesty sin in this penitent is then destroy'd and his Conversion becomes highly pleasing to God For hereby God is glorify'd a Soul saved and the Grand Adversary of Mankind the Devil baffled and confounded 2ly Repentance is well pleasing to God because it turns away his anger and makes way for mercy in which of all other things he most delights This is over all his works This rejoyceth against judgment and in that Proclamation which he told M os He wou'd make all his goodness to pass before him Exod. 34.6 7. we find him thus delivering himself the Lord the Lord God merciful and gracious This is the greatest Jewel in his Crown and therefore when a sinner-comes to Repentance 't is pleasing to God and gives an occasion of Joy to him in that his anger is turned away and mercy is to take place which of all his attributes he most delights in 3ly Repentance is well pleasing to God because it fills Heaven with happy Souls and encreaseth the number of just men made perfect All such as die truly Penitent are blessed and happy their Souls at the leaving of their bodies become as the Angels in Heaven and are fellow partakers of those pleasures which are at Gods right hand for evermore 4ly Repentance is well pleasing to the whole blessed and glorious Trinity God the Father God the Son and God the Holy Ghost do all rejoyce when men break off their sins by Repentance And 1. Repentance is pleasing to God the Father The Prodigal Son being movâ—d with a true and serious Repentance return'd home after a Life spent in luxury and profuseness He arose and came to his Father and said Father I have sinned against Heaven and before thee and am no more worthy to be called thy Son And presently the Father saw him had compassion on him and ran and fell on his Neck and kissed him the badge of love and reconciliation For tho the Sons condition was poor and miserable his Crimes many his Offences of a deep die and his Reception into his Father's favour unlikely yet so prevalent and well pleasing was his Repentance that even that brought him into his Fathers favour again and he that scarce hoped to be admitted as a Servant is once more owned as a dear Son Luke 15.22 23 24. The Father said to his Servants bring forth the best robe and put it on him and put a ring on his hand and shoes on his feet and bring hither the fatted calf and kill it and let us eat and be merry for this my son was dead and is alive again He was lost and is found 2ly Repentance has the same effect in God the Son 'T is a great satisfaction to him to see so good effect of his passion that his blood was not shed in vain that he was born liv'd and dyâ—d to a good purpose and all that he did and suffer'd for such and such Souls turn to a good account The Repentance of every sinner is answering of Christs prayers the satisfaction of his desires and the reward of his sufferings And therefore Repentance is pleasing to God the Son inasmmch as that precious blood which he shed on the Cross was not shed in vain 3ly Repentance is well pleasing to God the Holy Ghost The Holy Ghost in Scripture is sometimes call'd Spirit and all those operations whereby we please God are term'd fruits of the earth Gal. 5.22 Now Repentance embraceth all the good motions and inspirations of that Holy Spirit by which means the instruments of sin are chang'd into his sanctify'd Members and his Holy Temples By repentance a penitent sinner is made the Temple of God in that the Spirit of God dwelleth in him holy unto God an habitation of God thro the Spirit He is joyned to the Lord one Spirit with him a new Creature in Christ and conformed to him He lives in the Spirit and walks in the Spirit Thus the Spirit of God finding itself cherished and kindly used and all its good motions and inspirations gratefully receiv'd 't is matter of joy and pleasure to him Thus Father Son and Holy Ghost are all hugely pleased when men repent and amend their lives Who would not therefore forsake his sins renounce a wicked life and stedfastly propose to become a new man to occasion delight and pleasure in the ever blessed Trinity If there was no other Argument to stir us up to the duty of repentance this one would think should move us to it And therefore let us take care to behave our selves after such a manner that we commit nothing that shall
be displeasing to him but always be doing that which shall be well pleasing in his sight The best of us may blush to think how often we have done that which has occasioned grief in the Court of Heaven What odious scents arise thither daily from bloody murthers beastly uncleannesses and cruel oppressions which like the blood of Abel cry aloud to Heaven for vengeance Even sins that grieve the Holy Spirit of God and cause a sadness in the blessed Trinity For so sure as Repentance pleaseth God and causeth joy in Heaven so certain it is that sin continued in and not repented of gives occasion of grief and sadness to him 2ly Repentance is well pleasing to the Blessed Angels Luke 15.10 There is joy in the presence of the Angels of God over one sinner that repenteth Those tears which run down the cheeks of a true penitent are the Angels heavenly banquet There shall be more joy in heaven over one sinner that repents than over ninety nine just persons that need no repentance But tho repentance be well pleasing to the Blessed Angels tho they are ministring spirits for our good rejoyce at the conversion of a sinner do many good offices for the godly on earth and be a communion between them yet we are not to think that they interpose their Merits for us and therefore we are to perform Religious Worship to them This is a fond conceit of the Papists the invention of mans brain and wants warrant from the word of God See thou do it not Rev. 22.9 are express words in Holy Scripture 3ly Repentance is matter of joy to the penitent himself O what joy and tranquility of conscience has that man whose eyes are opened and in whose heart by Gods Grace a change is wrought And no wonder that he is so pleased with himself for being sensible that he is withdrawn from sin and brought back again to God that he who once was a servant of sin and running headlong to perdition is now a child of God and making Provision for his immortal soul these thoughts speak comfortable things to him and leaves upon his soul a a sweet taste a pleasant relish St. Austin after his conversion when he had repented and began a new life made this sad complaint I have loved thee too late O God O thou beautiful Being I have 〈…〉 too late He repented he had not served God sooner that his conversion was so long delay'd and that he was so long a beginning to be acquainted with God How sweet and delightful O Lord was it made to me presently to want those pleasures of the world which before I doted upon Thou O Lord didst cast them out of my heart and didst thy self enter in their place which I find now to be more sweet than all pleasures and sweetness it self Lib. 9. Cons ch 1. Thus having shewn how joyful and well pleasing it is to Father Son and Holy Ghost that men shu'd repent how acceptable to the blessed Angels and how grateful to the Penitent himself I come 4thly To offer to your consideration what great Danger and Unreasonableness there is in impenitency whether in particular persons or in a publick Nation And 1. As to particular persons John the Baptist in his first Sermon exhorted his Auditors to bring forth fruits meet for Repentance And except ye repent ye shall likewise perish was the Doctrine Christ preached to his Disciples Now the longer men delay their Repentance the more they are hardened in their corruptions and confirmed in their sins and consequently more indispos'd every day for that great and necessary work The longer men live in sin the more strongly they are inclin'd to continue in it Sin being once rooted in the Soul the labour will be great in plucking it out The young man in his Youth and Strength is apt to say that it is not yet time to busie himself about Reformation and amendment of life and that it will be soon enough to repent of his sins when he comes to be old and then and not before he 'll become penitent and serious But how know'st thou O young man that thou shalt live till old Age Death is a tribute we all owe to Nature and Experience teacheth us that the young man is as suddenly taken away as the grey head The strongest man can call no time his own but the present He cannot prolong his days as he pleaseth All his futurity is in the hands of God and how he will dispose of him whether for life or death he cannot tell And yet alas how securely do such men live How eagerly do they run through all the stages of their youth in a rebellious obstinate course and commit sin as if they were not flesh and blood subject to a dying stroak Certainly nothing hath made more ample Harvest for the Devil than the deserring of Repentance upon such a vain consideration as this For how often have many men lain down in their strength at night and that night has clos'd their Eyes and sent their Souls into another World to answer for what they have done in this But suppose God out of his unconceivable Mercy doth not cut off a sinner in the strength of his years suppose he lets him alone to live as he lists to walk in the ways of his heart and in the sight of his eyes and therefore is resolved to sin on till old age overtakes him yet I have three Arguments to lay down before him which if rightly considered wou'd make him think and bring him to a right understanding of himself First Repentance requires the strength and vigour of our minds and therefore 't is a sad design to lay all the sins of our youth upon feeble old age Our bodies are then decay'd our limbs feeble our understandings shatter'd all the parts distemper'd and our infirmities so many that we are altogether incapable of every thing but dying In the midst of so many Distempers as old age brings along with it 't will be a difficult matter to go through with Repentance For then pains are apt in an high measure to seize upon us which will so disturb our minds and deprive us of the use of Reason that we cannot pray to God with that fervency or spread our fins before him with that hearty sorrow that is requisite to procure an absolute pardon Old Age is an unfit time to have the great work of Repentance to do and therefore my second Argument to shew the Danger and Unreasonableness of putting it off till that time is this Secondly The little hopes they can have that God shu'd be pleas'd with those men who never drew nigh to him by Repentance till they themselves were drawing near to the grave Mankind must needs think the Almighty a tame Being an easie God if they perswade themselves that every sin is as soon expiated as confess'd Let men have a care how they flatter themselves with such vain hopes as