Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	grace_n	pray_v	prayer_n	8,057	5	6.5536	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A51487	Aug. 7: 1670. A most useful sermon preached in London, By a most worthy and faithfhl [sic] minsiter and servant of Jesus Christs, most learnedly pressed from Amos 8. 11. ... From which text of scripture, he learnedly shews the dreadful and deplorable condition of that kingdom which a famine of the word of the Lord seizes upon; and further shews, that they are the greatest felons who would rob us of the word of God, and that there is more justice in hell then is here upon earth, for in hell they do not punnish the innocent		1671 (1671)	Wing M2931BA; ESTC R213887	17,302	48

proclaiming Warre against Sinne and therefore the Gospel is hated and contemned and surely this contempt of Christ and his Gospel it is a sad forerunner of the removal of the Gospel Marke what I say a despised Gospel will soone be a departing Gospel will any man stay long in a place where he is not welcome If God sees that he and his Gospel are not welcome he will soon take his leave and be gone from them Hos 2.12 Woe Woe to them when I depart from them Well that is the first sad simptom of the Gospel departing Secondly Another sign of the gospel going it is the general barrennesse of people under the preaching of the gospel indeed it is to be hoped that some are fruitful but the barren branches are more than the fruitful Lea did comfort her self for her fruitfulness that now her husband would love her Gen. 29.34 She was fruitful therefore her Husband would love her May not we on the contrary fear God will not love us because we are unfruitful it is a sad sign when in the Weekly bill we see more every Weeke die than are born Oh is it not so in a spiritual sence we hear of many people that die Apostates but how few are born to God We hear of many barren Fig-trees that Christ cursed but where are the fruitful Vines if once that gospel and people which was as the garden of God shall become barren it is a sign the Lord will bestow no more cost but will pull up the hedge and lay his Vineyard waste that is the second Symptom Thirdly Another sad sign of the gospel going from us which the Lord prevent it is the animossities and bitter divisions of Gods own people the Devil danceth at discords it is a sad sight not onely to see Christs Coat rent but to see his Bodie rent his mistical Bodie I have often seen it is usual the Woolf to worrie the Lamb but it is unnatural to see one Lamb worrying another Christians they should be ready to dye one for another and they can hardly live one by another Those that write concerning the Bee observes when the Bees strive and mutanie together it is a signe that the master Bee is about to leave the Hive and when Gods people strive by discords contentions Oh it is a sign God is goi●… from the Nation he is about to leave ●…ive If that servants cannot agree they will fall out why the Master will take away the light from them I wish it be not soe here My beloved do not we all hope for one heaven Oh why should there not be one heart among us how unsationable are contentions among Gods people now when the Popish adversary is so near to us he is at the door It is a very bad time for Marriners to divide and fall out when the Enemie is boreing a hole a● the bottom of the ship is it not so now surely it is a sad signe of the gospel going from us the Lord will not let his gospel dwell in such a house as is all on fire Fourthly Another sad signe of the Gospel going from us and a Spiritual Famine i● is this When the People of God lose their first love and decline in their affections towards Jesus Christ Rev. 2.4 I have somewhat against thee because thou hast left thy first love when Christians have a Chilnesse and a Deadnesse grow upon them they have not the love to the word of God as they had they have not that brokenness of heart for sin they have not that zeal for truth they have not that simpathize for the misery of Sion they are now in a declining state they have left their first love and this is a fatal signe of Gods departing from the Nation Lost thy first love it will not be amiss to enquire whence this losse of our first love ariseeth this Spiritual Consumption as I may so call it whence does this loss of our love arise I conceive it ariseth from these four Causes First Perhaps there is some sin secretly indulged some sinne that your heart sets brooding upon now sinne is pernicious to grace it is like the blow at the Root of the Tree that causeth the Tree to wither as if a man takes but a small quantity of poison why this will hurt his virals it will waste his spirit look upon David he had been taking of poison he was tampering with sin and he found a decay in his holiness he was like one in an Apoplexsie he had not that lively acting of Grace as formerly he had he lost his first love Secondly The losse of our first love it may arise from the neglecting of the Ordinances the means of Grace you know abstinasie from food will quickly make the body Consumptive it will soon bring a Consumption so when People either through Pride or through Melancholly leave off Praying leave off Sacraments they have abstinasie from their Spiritual food no wonder if they find a declining in their affections Gods Ordinances they are the fuel for our Graces if you take away the fuel no wonder you begin to abate and you loose your first love Thirdly The losse of our first love ariseth and I pray observe it it riseth from a formal use of holy things though perhaps we do keep up duty yet God knows we do not keep up fervency in duty Rom. 12.11 Fervent in spirit serving the Lord. Oh when once Christians grow into dull formality pray as if they prayed not their hearts is not in the duty they do not put sire to the insence they grow Drowsie in Prayer you know the wise Virgins they slumbered Matth. 25. Thus by degrees you lose your first love though you be not quite dead in sin yet you are dead in duty Fourthly The loss of your first love ariseth from a spiritual sloath Christians do not exercise themselves to godliness and then there follows a decay in godliness why you know your experience tells you there is nothing in the world sooner brings a mans body into a Consumption than want of exercise because the ill humours are not purg'd away and natural heat exercised want of exercise kills My brethren he that will not use grace he will be sure to loose grace Christians they do not exercise their faith they do not busie themselves about heaven they do not trade their Tallent for Gods glory as they should they live in houses together but they do no good together they do not exercise their grace and hence they fall into decay of grace before they are aware and loose their first love and what follows this loss of your first love sadly prefages the loss of the gospel of Christ for this very sin in the second of the Revelations and the 4 th v. for sin they had their golden Candiestick removed from them in the second of the Revelations and the first verse Therefore you see brethren what need there is to labour to

Sword the Sword skips over many they may be hid from the edge of the Sword as we read of Obadiah he hid a Thousand Prophets in a Cave and so escaped the edge of the Sword now a Famine reaches all 3. Famine makes a man cruel to himself and it is like a Wolfe in his breast it makes a man feed upon himself he eats the flesh of his own arms it makes a Person unnatural Lam. 4.10 Thus the famine of the Body is worse than the Sword and now Beloved a Famine of the Word is worse than a Famine of Bread in these two respects 1. A Famine of Bread is onely a pineing and starving of the body Oh but the other is starving of the soul by how much more pretious the soul is then the body so much the sadder the famine of the soul must needs be the soul is the most spiritual and reserved part of man it 's like spirits of wine the soul is a divine spark that flees upwards towards God Now if the soul be more noble than the body then the famine of the soul must needs be more deadly and pernitious than that of the Body c. 2. The Famine of the body is but temporal but for a time and it will quickly have an end sorrow and sighing shall flee away Ezek. 35. Oh but the Famine of the soul is eternal The worm will be ever gnawing the man the man will be ever dying but never dead he will never tast of one drop of the water of life it is an eternal famine he shall not have one drop of water to cool his tongue and thus you see the Famine of the word is far more grievous than the Famine of bread Now the sadness of the souls famine will further appear in these three or four particulars And I beseech you observe 1. To have the Famine of the Word of God it is a dreadful Judgement because now the very means of Salvation is taken away The very Bridge is plucked up that should lead us over to Heaven Prov. 29.18 Where there is no Vision the people perish The Hebrew word for perish hath two significations either it signifies to be made naked they strip off their Ornaments and glory or else the word perish signifies to reject God rejects such a people when he takes awy the Vision from them Where there is no Vision the people perish But now here is a Question may be asked Quest You will say unto me but may we not be saved without the Word Preached Ans I will not dispute what God can do in an extraordinary way when people are debarr'd from Ordinances by sickness or the like or captivity the Lord hath promised to be a little Sanctuary unto them Ezek. 11.16 As the people of Israel in the Wilderness when they could not have the ordinary means of tilling plowing and sowing in this case God gave them bread from Heaven John 6.31 Let me assure you ordinarily God doth not distil the Golden Oyle of Salvation but through the pipes of Ordinances and therefore you shall observe in Scripture that Ministers of the Gospel are called Ministers of the Spirit 2 Cor. 3.8 because the spirit of God ordinarily makes use of the Word to work grace and therefore 't is called the Ministry of the spirit why this makes the Famine of the Word so dismal because now the very means of salvation is taken away from a people they lie in their blood 2. I beseech you observe A Famine of the Word it is very sad wherever it comes because now the Lord turns away his face from a people or a nation Ordinances are the face of God they are his smiles face in the Gospel it 's called the face of Christ 2 Cor 4.6 Now beloved when a spiritual Famine comes God turns away his face from us The Child had rather have his Fathers frowns upon him than that he should turn away his face to be so incensed against him that he will not look upon his Child and this is sad to have God turn away his face from a people better have a frowning face from God than noe face The Lord may have love under a wrinckled brow as the sun may be under a Clowd but for God to turn away his face from us is a signe he intends to disinherit us as David prayed Lord hide not thy face from me in Anger Psal 120.2 It is sad when God hides his face for a time but worse when he quite turns away his face that he will not look upon a people Oh this makes a soul-famine very sad and dreadful 3. The Famine of the Word must needs be very sad and dismal because if the Word be gone God has now done speaking to us he hath no more to say Pray observe It is called in the Text a famine of hearing of hearing of the Word we shall hear no more from God God hath something to say to a people as long as his Ordinances are amongst them he speaks to them by his Ministers they are his mouth they deliver his Council Now as it is a sad judgement for God to have done smiting a people Ezek. 1.5 why should you be smitten any more and so for God to leave speaking to a people this is a rebellious people it is to no purpose to use any more words I will speak no more to them it is better for God to speak as if he were angry than not to speak at all the prisoner cryes to his Judge for mercy mercy and the Judge will not speak a word noe way but he must dye if God hath done speaking to us in Word we shall hear him speaking in another Language in his Wrath In Psal 2.5 then shall he speak to them in his Wrath and fiery Language If a man will not speak to another it is a sign either that he slights him or he doth not think him worth speaking to or it is sign he intends some evil against him It was sad with Saul when the Lord had done speaking to him 1 Sam. 28.6 the Lord answered him neither by rain nor his Prophets God had done speaking to him a sign some evil was intended to him the next be heard speak it was the Devil and the news which he brought was sad to morrow thou shalt be with me 1 Sam. 28.19 beloved if God hath once done speaking to a people why then he hath done hea●ing to when he shuts his mouth he alwayes stops his ears though you pray unto him he will not hear they cryed to me and I would not hear when the Lord will not speak no more to a people when he shuts his mouth he presently stops his ears Now is not a spiritual famine sad God hath now done speaking to a people 4. The people and the dispensers of the Gospel they are promised by the Lord as great blessings to a place why then to be deprived of such blessings and have a famine of