Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n
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A09114
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The good mans grace. Or His stay in all distresse. By Ric. Bernard
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Bernard, Richard, 1568-1641.
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1621
(1621)
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STC 1942; ESTC S115314
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12,107
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60
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THE GOOD MANS GRACE OR HIS STAY IN ALL DISTRESSE BY RIC. BERNARD LONDON Printed by Felix Kingston 1621. TO THE RIGHT WORSHIPFVLL HIS VERY GOOD Lady the Lady SVSANNA BILLINGSLEY and to the Vertuous and Christianly affected Gentlewoman Mistris REBECCA STROWDE all sauing graces with dayly increase and practice thereof vnto the end Madame I Cannot but make account that I am bound to returne thankes where I finde fauour and acceptance acknowledgement is the least part of my duty He that will not confesse a debt neuer meanes to pay it some such there be And others againe will ingenuously confesse but not pay not for that they will not but because they cannot And inability giueth an acquittance though the debt be neuer so great and the greatnesse of a debt is to be iudged not alwayes in the value of the thing but after the free disposition of the one and the little deseruing of any such fauour of the other Thus is it with me I haue found your Ladyship my louing friend and this Vertuous Gentlewoman very Christianly respectiue towards mee to whom as also to her second selfe I acknowledge my selfe deeply ingaged It is not a hard matter to finde friends though in these dayes few enow but to finde a faithfull friend one that will know a man in aduersity is not so easie Complementall are obuious euery where but substantiall friends be rare a face of fauour is in those and that onely in prosperity but the force of loue is onely seene in these when a friend needeth them they fayle not they faynt not True loue as Saint Iohn speakes driueth away feare I am bold to present you both with this little Manual It is thus little of purpose that it may be often read ouer to helpe onely for matter of meditation to further you in prayer I beseech you to accept it in lieu of payment and it shall bind mee to pray for the blessing of our God still vpon you to whose gracious guidance and protection I commit you and humbly take leaue Your Ladyships and yours my very good friend euer to be commanded RIC. BERNARD Batcombe Feb. 27. THE PREFACE IT is a saying of the Psalmist The foole hath said in his hart there is no God this is an Atheisticall foole and amongst other markes hee is knowne by this that this wicked foole calleth not vpon God He doth not pray for he cannot pray is not a gift of nature but a worke of Grace Wee know not how to pray as we ought but as the Spirit helpeth our infirmities to pray with groanes that cannot be expressed Iohn taught his Disciples to pray this Christs Disciples obserued and also saw their owne want and therefore desired the Lord to teach them to pray Wherevpon hee gaue them and in them to vs a perfect paterne and forme of prayer After this all our prayers are to be directed It is then necessary that this short prayer be well vnderstood for which cause I haue made this short exposition and drawne out briefly manyfold obseruations the better to acquaint such as know it not with the meaning thereof It will administer sufficient matter for meditation at all times and vpon any occasion to enlarge our thoughts in prayer the practice wherof is the speciall grace of a Christian It is the fruit of Faith so as hee that beleeueth prayeth and so excellent a duty is this as Saint Paul sayth Pray continually as if mans life consisted in it And Christ sayth Watch and Pray It is a meanes of our preseruation from euill and a conseruation of vs in an estate which is good Wōderfull is the effect of prayer Moses by it makes way thorow the Red sea ouercame the Amalekites and obtained pardō for the people By this Iosua had the Sun standing still the space of a day waiting vpon him in the pursute of his enemies by this Hezekiah reuersed the sentence of death and had his life prolonged by this Peter escaped the hands of Herod Ionah gate out of the Whales belly By this Eliah shut heauen three yeeres and againe brought raine from heauen By this Elisha raised one from the dead got sight to Gehezi to see vision of Angels Incredible is the power of prayer the prayer of faith auaileth much if it be feruent Let therfore here in euery good Christian exercise himselfe and this let him know that it is a great honour to be admitted into Gods presence to put vp his requests vnto so high a Maiesty The due esteeme of prayer will make vs exercise our selues in prayer for as wee prize a thing so we practise so we employ our selues about it Therefore little praying argueth we make little account thereof but the lesse we esteeme and practise it the lesse grace wee haue and the more corruption of heart is in vs. The truth of this is cleared in such as wee see to make no conscience of this duty But this euill be farre from the faithfull in whom the gift of prayer is euer found as a peculiar property of them that shall inherit Glory A BRIEFE EXPOSItion with obseruations vpon the Lords Prayer The Preface Our IN brotherly communion By the Grace of adoption And sealed by holy vnction Father Tender in louing Carefull in prouiding Liberall in bestowing Which art in Heauen The place of thy Maiesty The Throne of thy Glory The fulnesse of Felicity The first Petition Hallowed In heart be thou feared In speech reuerenced In our liues honoured Be thy Name Thy attributes so glorious Thy workes so maruelous Thy heauenly Word so Gracious The second Petition Thy Kingdome Of Power generall Of Grace speciall Of Glory Celestiall Come With power to defend vs. With Grace to conuert vs. With glory to crowne vs. The third Petition Thy Will In thy holy Word reuealed In workes of prouidence shewed In good examples confirmed Be done In our true beleeuing In our Godly liuing In our patient suffering In Earth The Wickeds best heritage The place of our Pilgrimage And here to Heauen our passage As it is in Heauen By holy Angels most faithfully By the blessed Saints most cheerfully By all of them there most constantly The fourth Petition Giue vs this day By thy prouident hand mercifully By the labour of our calling honestly By all good meanes prosperously Our dayly bread Necessary for liues sustentation Conuenient for states preseruation Sufficient for Needies consolation The fift Petition And forgiue vs Of thy mercy freely In Christ deseruedly In our hearts assuredly Our trespasses In nature originally polluted In euils wilfully committed In dueties carelesly omitted As we forgiue them From our hearts most vnseignedly Expressed in words most louingly And shewed by deeds most cheerefully That trespasse against vs In heart maliciously In tongue slanderously By deeds iniuriously The sixth Petition And lead vs not By laying obiects before vs. In the danger so leauing vs. And by withdrawing grace from vs. Into temptation Satans powerfull suggestion Natures
be with vs in our defence against the Diuell the world and the flesh Thy tender mercy in Iesus Christ saue vs and let not our sins be a wall of separation betweene thee and vs. Thy true and holy Word instruct vs and giue vs grace to cast off al vaine inuentions of man superstition wil-worship and idolatry Thy gracious Spirit comfort vs by the sweet promises of the Gospell and free pardon in Christ and not by the idle conceit of our owne merits and workes of satisfaction wee being altogether thy vnprofitable seruants Thy holy Angels pitch their Tents about vs and about all belonging to vs that we may be preserued both in body and soule from all perils and dangers of this present life through our onely Lord and Sauiour Iesus Christ To whom with thee O Father and that blessed Spirit be all Honour Glory Praise Maiesty and Dominion for al thy blessings and mercies towards vs and towards thy whole Church henceforth and for euermore Amen AN ADMONITORY Conclusion 2. Tim. 2. 19. LEt euery one that nameth the Name of Christ depart from iniquity God will not heare such as come in their sinnes Esay 1. Such as despise the Word of reproofe and will not be reformed Pro. 1. 24 25 28. Therefore if we looke that God should heare our prayers let vs vnfainedly repent of sinne and depart from iniquity First from Atheisme which is the denying of a God either secretly or openly We depart from this iniquity when we renounce Atheisme and doe know and acknowledge that there is a God They that come to God must beleeue that he is and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seeke him Heb. 11. 6. The second is Gentilisme which is the acknowledging of many false gods and the taking of them for God which are no gods We depart from this iniquity when we protest against Gentilisme and do know acknowledge but onely one God and the same also the true and euerliuing God The third is Turcisme which is the profession of one God euen that God which made Heauen and Earth but not as he hath manifested himselfe in his Word nor acknowledging God in Christ We depart from this iniquity when we detest this Turcisme and when wee know and acknowledge God in Christ reconcyling the world the Trinity in vnity and the vnity in Trinity as he hath made himselfe manifest vnto vs in his holy Word The fourth is Iudaisme which is the seruing of the true God after the ceremoniall law of Moses reiecting Christ the true Messiah already come and vainely expecting another to come We depart from this iniquity when we disclaim saluation by the law and doe know and acknowledge Iesus Christ to be the true Messiah by whom we looke to be saued seruing God in spirit and truth according to the doctrine of the Gospell The fift is Will-worship which is vnder what shew and pretence soeuer a volūtary worshipping of God in and by such meanes as man inuenteth either against or without the warrant of Gods own reuealed will in his written Word We depart from this iniquity when wee forsake our owne wisedome and wills in his worship and doe know and acknowledge how wherein and after what manner God hath commanded himselfe to be worshipped then do strictly obserue the same The sixth is Heresie which is an obstinate maintaining of any error to the ouerthrowing of any fundamentall point of our Christian profession We depart from this iniquity when wee willingly disclaime our errors when they be made knowne to vs and when we know and readily acknowledge the verity and truths of God according to our measure of knowledge giuen vnto vs. The seuenth is Schisme which is an vncharitable disvnion and an vnlawfull separation from the true Church of Christ or any true member of the same forsaking the fellowship of the Saints wilfully in a factiousnesse of spirit making vnlawfull assemblies within and among themselues We depart from this iniquity when wee condemne such an vnchristian diuision and doe know and acknowledge the true congregations of Gods people abyding with them keeping among you the vnity of the spirit in the bond of peace The eighth is Prophanenesse which is to liue vnworthy the holy profession of a Christian after the liberty of the flesh not respecting religion for the pleasures the profits and honours of this present euill world but in comparison of these valewing nothing of religion being the children of Belial children of disobedience and wrath By whom Christianity is stained and God himselfe greatly dishonoured We depart from this iniquity when we deny ourselues flie from the company of such hauing no fellowship with the vnfruitfull workes of darkenesse but reprouing them rather and endeuoring to liue godly righteously and soberly in this present world being zealous of good workes The ninth is Hypocrisie which is the shadow onely of piety and shew of wel-doing before men without any power or conscience of religion before God in the heart seruing the times and making profession of religion for aduantage We depart from this iniquity when we hate this sinne and doe take dayly an examination of our hearts by a well informed iudgement setting our selues before God and making conscience the Iudge of all our doings so as wee dare appeale to the Alseeing God of Heauen concerning our vprightnesse in that which outwardly we make shew of The tenth is Papisme which is mans superstitious inuention a counterfet Christianity vnchristianly Iudaizing and wickedly imitating the heathenish idolaters teaching old heresies and the professors thereof practising by Machiauillian policies all deceit trechery treason and mercilesse cruelties to vphold the same We depart from this iniquity of the bottonlesse pit when wee disclaim that Antichrist of Rome as the Head that Romish Church as now it stands as the whore of Babylon and being come out from her shall zealously vphold and maintaine this truth and faith which wee now stand in vnto the end which God grant Amen Thus we see these ten heads of iniquity to which may be referred all other sinnes which wee must depart from and all the particular branches thereof if we euer draw neere vnto God with hope to be heard of him for he is a God that hateth wickednesse and if in our hearts wee delight in it the Lord as the Psalmist speaketh will not regard vs. And therefore vvhen vve come before our God let it be in vnfained repentance faith and assurance of Gods mercie to be accepted in Christ Iesus in vvhom our God is euer vvell pleased to vvhom be Glory and Prayse for euermore Amen FINIS