Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	good_a	grace_n	lord_n	7,245	5	3.6848	3	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A19297	The worldlings aduenture discouering the fearefull estate of all earthwormes, and men of this world, in hazarding their pretious soules for the enioying of worldly happines / deliuered in two sermons before the worthy visitors of the right worshipfull Company of the Grocers, at the visitation of their free grammar schoole at Oundell in North-Hamptonshire, by Thomas Cooper, Batchelour in Diuinity, imployed in that businesse.	Cooper, Thomas, fl. 1626.	1619 (1619)	STC 5710; ESTC S3391	41,588	88

The Worldlings Aduenture DISCOVERING The fearefull estate of all Earth-wormes and men of this World In hazarding their pretious soules for the enioying of worldly happines Deliuered in two Sermons Before the Worthy Visitors of the Right Worshipfull Company of the GROCERS At the Visitation of their Free Grammar Schoole at OVNDELL in North-Hamptonshire By Thomas Cooper Batchelour in Diuinity Imployed in that Businesse LONDON Printed by N. O. for Richard Redmer and are to be sold at his Shop at the West end of S. Paules Church 1619. To the right Worshipfull the Wardens and Assistants and the rest of the Brethren of the Honourable Corporation of Grocers worthy Patrons of Religion and Learning and my very good Benefactors Grace mercie and peace from God the Father through our Lord Iesus Christ be multiplyed RIght Worshipfull and deerely beloued in our best beloued Christ Iesus Vouchsafe I pray you the reuiew of these Meditations which as they were conceiued especially for your sakes so they are of all other most necessarie for the well ordering and comfort of those Callings wherein God hath placed you For seeing man consists of a reasonable soule and body both which must be so prouided for in their order and measure as may tend to the well being of either in this life and to the eternal happines of both in the life to come What so necessarie as that one thing which indeed is onely necessarie euen by the iudgement of him that must saue or condemne the same namely the welfare safetie of the precions soule And yet seeing that God hath placed vs on the earth and that wisely in seuerall Callings and conditions that so by our holy managing thereof we may lay vp a good foundation against the life to come How necessarie is that knowledge which may enforme vs rightly herein most vsefull and so acceptable that skill must needes bee whereby we shall be so enabled to commerce with worldly things as not thereby to hazard our eternall happinesse Yea so much the more is the direction necessary because as it is a Mysterie concealed from Nature which knows not the things of God neither indeede can know them because they are spiritually discerned when as its chiefest wisedome is enemy against God and it owne happinesse as appeareth by the ordinary ship-wrake of the most through the ignorance thereof So it is the speciall gift of God to reueale the same vnto vs as without which it is not possible to secure our future estate in passing through such manifolde and slipperie occasions of our present Callings And surely if wee consider that Axiome of Sacred truth that we cannot serue God Mammon and compare therewith that damnable conclusion of the world as subscribing to the trueth of God out of the conscience of it owne vtter inabilitie and sottish dotage on it owne shadowes that conscionable Seruice of God is an hinderance to worldly thrift impossible to get riches and keepe a good conscience as implying a contradiction in those things which by right vse are subordinate to each other Is it not then more then necessarie to know such a way whereby wee may so thriue in the world as that withall wee may thriue to heauen that we may find out and practise an holy subiection to the worde of God and so discerne that to be possible with God which is impossible to men Oh how true is it which our blessed Sauiour speakes in this case that it is impossible for a rich man to enter into heauen meaning such a rich man as wanting this heauenly wisdome to vse the world aright sets his confidence in riches and rests on such slipperie foundations forsaking the God of his strength and rock of his saluation And it is also most true for our eternall comfort that though these things are snares to the wicked to entāgle and drowne them in euerlasting perdition yet we may take such a curse in the gayning and vse of these dangerous Wares that if we first seeke the Kingdome of heauen and the righteousnesse thereof these shall be cast vpon vs without any great care or labour if we make purchase of the great gaine which is Godlines we shall finde it profitable as well for this life both to order our worldly affaires and also to prosper them vnto vs as for the life which is to come And therefore as it is a brand of prophanenesse to renounce our birth-right in heauen for a Messe of pottage or any earthly happinesse whatsoeuer as if these could not well sort together so on the other side it is a marke of vnbeliefe to distrust God for the well being of our bodies seeing we haue trusted him for the happinesse of our soules Here then is wisedome to bring both ends together so to learne worldly thrift as that withall we may thriue to heauen This wisedome is best attained by Experience Experience which is the Mistresse of Fooles is then most comfortably gained when we can be warned by others harmes This is my purpose in the ensuing Treatise Wherein I endeauour to set before the eies of your minds as in a cleare and true Mirrour the fearefull estate of Worldlings aduenturing and working out their owne damnation by their vnsatiable and deceitfull hunting after worldly profit Here you may take notice of an ordinary Bargaine betweene the god of this world earthly minds as willingly exchanging their eternal soules for the enioying of the pleasures and profits of sinne for a season Here you may see that our destruction is of our selues in that our corrupt and greedy desires do entice Satan to chaffer with vs and to preuaile for this Bargaine Here you haue the policies of Satan liuely discouered whereby he drawes vs on to the Bargaine and holdeth vs to the same that so we may preuent his subtill snares and delusions Lastly you haue here the censure of the Bargaine euen by our Lord Iesus Christ himselfe who onely can truely iudge of it and shall most righteously iudge for the same that you may wisely looke before hand into the yssue thereof and so fore-warned not to enter into any such couenant This is the summe of these Meditations which I doe most zealously commend vnto your best considerations as those that by your Callings may make good vse therof Which that you may vnfeignedly doe I further promise what here you haue not That my requests shall be dayly manifest at the Throane of Grace for your Worshipfull Societie Yea whatsoeuer I am or may be shall be deuoted to the good of your Companie that the Lord would mercifully make vp the Breach among you or sanctifie it more graciously to your more sure vniting to his Maiestie that hauing experience of the ficklenesse and contentious spirits of men you may be carefull to builde your foundation vpon the Rocke which may endure all counter-blasts Labouring your peace with God by the attonement of his glorious Sonne blessed for euer That so seeking first

vs he could neuer preuaile to our destruction were we not as Tinder apt to receiue the fire nay had we not an whorish corruption in vs alluring him to attempt vs though he were neuer so instant yet should he be disappointed But behold now the Driuing of the Bargaine what is it that encourageth and enableth Sathan to preuaile for our destruction there is a traytour within the citie to open the gates to him our vnsatiable desires of these things is that which he workes vpon Where these are he easily fetcheth ouer the soule The minde that is alwayes heauing after earthly things is an easie and sure prey to Sathans malice The desire of riches is the roote of all euill exposing to tentation and snare of Sathan And no maruaile Because as this argues 〈◊〉 of vnbeliefe which hath renounced confidence in God and so being iustly forsaken of God is thereby left to the malice of Satan So these endlesse desires exclude and chase all good motions of the Spirit yea all law of common equitie and so the rather expose to Satans allurements yea where such desire hath taken hold it exposeth greedily to any desperate wickednesse for the accomplishment thereof whereby the conscience becomes obdurate and senslesse not onely of euill but also the danger thereof and so is the rather suppressed by the enemie yea which is the worst of all this thirst of earthly things puffeth vp and bewitcheth the minde with a false conceit of happinesse and excellencie As if this were the onely happinesse to engrosse and compasse all that we may liue alone vpon the earth that none may share with vs none may controule vs and so thereby layeth it most desperately open to Satans market as making the delusion effectuall and so smiting the hand for the confirmation of the bargaine If happinesse consist in enioying the world then what need we feare to venture the soule vnlesse we enuie our owne happinesse Thus did Satan fetcht ouer our first Parents abusing first their iudgements with a conceit of happinesse in which indeed was their baine suggesting that if they did eate of the forbidden tree they should be so farre from death as that they should bee as gods knowing good and euill and so by this slight easily brought them to his lure Lastly if we consider what followes thereupon Namely that though Worldlings conceit of happinesse in these earthly things yet they are confounded in their hopes and fall short of their compasse though they desire all yet many times they attaine not any such measure as may satisfie their desires How can this choose but breed despaire and fearefull confusion And is not this now Satans time to make prey of the soule Now curse God and die because we cannot haue our will I cannot be worse saith the desperate soule and therefore the foole rageth and is carelesse nay Satan is not so ready to make prey of the soule as he is to hasten the worke Achitophel now hath no helpe but to hang himselfe I cannot endure this disgrace my credite is gone and therefore I am weary of my life and heere-upon I will be couragious to let it out my selfe Behold the issue of worldly desires they first puffe vp with pride and then sinke in despaire and so expose to Sathans butchery Who so is wise let him vnderstand these things and to whom the Arme of the Lord shall reueale them let him cleare and iustifie the Lord seeing his condemnation is of himselfe If wretched man doth make the wedge of gold his hope and sets light by his soule for the obtaining of this trash renouncing the happines of the life to come for the enioying of this present is he not then the executioner of Gods righteous iudgement vpon him doth he not subscribe to his owne condemnation The waies of God are equall and righteous altogether but our wicked waies and desires do iustlie light vpon our owne pates and our owne wisdome is our confusion Take notice therefore in the feare of God of this euill sicknes reigning in thee naturally be thou wise to discerne the power and growth thereof that so thou maiest preuent the malice of Sathan The regenerate themselues haue not beene without some spice of this disease the Apostles dreame of an earthly Kingdome and Peter would faine haue tabernacles built on earth to enioy some constant happines heere The Saints haue sretted at the prosperity of the wicked because they haue conceited it belonged vnto them and who should rather haue it then they who can best tell how to vse it And yet all this but tentation arising either from ignorance of better things or ouer-prising these present Blessed be God the Saints haue acknowledged their folly heerein and iustified the prouidence of God disposing at his pleasure these earthly things And therefore if any such desire ouertake thee conceiue it to bee a tentation against the power and wisdome and prouidence of God and thy future good and so enter into the Sanctuary of the Lord for resolution herein pray with holy Dauid Incline my heart vnto thy Testimonies and not vnto couetousnes That these desires may not preuaile keepe thy selfe wisely within the bounds of Gods prouidence vsing onely lawfull meanes for the compassing of thy designes so shalt not thou be exposed to Sathans malice Consider the shortnes of thy life and what will serue necessitie and so shalt thou cut thy coate according to thy cloath seeing thou knowest not what the morrow will bring that care is taken And lastly be wise to turne the streame another way set thy affections on things aboue and labour for that gaine which hath sufficiency for it vnseparable companion seeke to bee rich in grace to aboūd in euery good worke so shall thy bloudy issue be stanched thy thirst satisfied of earthly things now thou hast drunke of that fountain thou shalt neuer thirst againe at least thou shalt so thirst as that thou shalt be satisfied Math. 5. 7. To conclude this point Seeing we cannot be without these things and it pleaseth God oftentimes to cast them vpon vs here be thou wise to put thy knife to thy throat to set boūds to thy desires affections to outward things As first if riches encrease set not thy heart vpon them Psal. 62. 10. And that thou mayest not be bewitched by them consider that they are common blessings which the wicked for the most are partakers of in greater measure and therefore in these thou mayest be no otherwise happie then that the vilest may exceed thee heerein Remember their condition that they are slipperie and mutable and therefore no fit matter to place thy eternall happinesse on if they will not auaile thee in the day of wrath Pro. 11. 8. much lesse will they secure thee of constant happinesse They are burthens at the best and 〈◊〉 res if thou close with them and