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A09997 Remaines of that reverend and learned divine, Iohn Preston, Dr. in Divinity, chaplaine in ordinary to his Majesty, master of Emanuel Colledge in Cambridge, and sometimes preacher of Lincolnes-Inne Containing three excellent treatises, namely, Iudas's repentance. The saints spirituall strength. Pauls conversion. Preston, John, 1587-1628. 1634 (1634) STC 20249; ESTC S115107 168,230 405

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profession hee makes of Christ that can winke at sinne and not bee moved at it and the Word nor prayer doth not kindle this holy Fire in him then certainely that man is a dead man there is no sparke of holinesse in him therefore I may say unto every holy man as they were used to say to Haniball that hee had fire in him but hee wanted blowing so I say unto you if you have the Spirit you have heate in you but if this heate doth not appeare at all times or at sometimes it is because it wants blowing for when they have a just occasion to exercise the strength of the inward man for Gods glory they will show that they have zeale in them and be hot and lively to good and not dead in sinne for this is the difference betweene a man that is dead and a man that is in a swone take a man that is in a swone if Aqua-vitae and rubbing of his joynts will not recover him it is a signe that he is dead so if the Word will not worke heate in you it is a signe that you are more then in a swone you are already dead in the inward man it is said of the Adamant it will not be heated with fire so I may say if the Word will not heate you when you are rubbed with it is a signe you are like the Adamant dead unto grace Secondly to this I answer that howsoever some men that are sanctified are not so zealous as are some hypocrites which is true yet I say it is no good argument to say that because counterfeit druggs and wares have the same sent and smell that the good wares have that thererefore they are as good or that the good wares have not the like but it were better to say that they have not the same and that the difference is in this that the affections have a false dye and glosse put upon them and so there is a false and counterfeit zeale and there is a true zeale As there may be yellow peeces counterfeit aswell as yellow peeces true mettall so there may be counterfeit fire as well as true fire this then I say men may bee sanctified and yet be milde and not of so hot and fiery a disposition They may not so burne in the Spirit as others doe but yet it is not good to conclude that it matters not therefore whether you be zealous or no for howsoever it is true in him yet it may be false in thee and know also that this meekenesse is joyned with much holy Zeale though it be not outwardly expressed for as certainely as where true fire is there is heate so where there is the Spirit there is zeale therefore examine whether you have heate in you if you have not you have not the Spirit The second signe whereby you shall know whether you have the sanctifying Spirit or no is this If you finde that you are not onely able to doe more then you could naturally but you have also holinesse joyned with it This signe I make of two parts because a man may do many things that may carry a show above nature and yet want holinesse but if they bee above nature and then have holinesse joyned with them then it is a signe that you have the sanctifying Spirit First I say it will make you to doe more then you could doe by nature it puts another manner of strength in you by which you are able to doe these things which before you were not able to doe as for example it will worke in you a patience above a naturall patience this wee see in Christ himselfe when he was crucified he opened not his mouth he was like a lambe he had more then naturall patience this is true in Paul Peter and the rest of the Saints Againe it works in us love above a naturall love therefore it is said that Christ was full of love hee had compassion on the multitude Againe it works in a man a joy more then naturall joy this wee see in Paul and Silas when they were in prison they sang for Ioy and the Disciples in the Acts rejoyced that they were thought worthy to suffer for Christ. Againe it workes in a man boldnesse above naturall boldnesse and therefore it is said Acts 4. 14. that they preached the Word with great boldnesse that is with a boldnesse above a naturall boldnesse and so Luther he was indued with this Spirit of boldnesse because else he would never be so bold in the defence of the truth if he had not had another Spirit in him Againe it workes in a man wisedome above a naturall wisedome 1. Sam. 18. 12. it is said of David that the Spirit of the Lord was with him and therefore Saul was afraid of him and so Abimelech feared Abraham because he saw in him a great measure of wisdome and discretion Againe it works in a man strength above naturall strength because with the strength of nature they have another added to it Againe it will make you see above a naturall sight therefore it is said they shall not need to teach one another but they shall bee all taught of God they shall see into the excellencies that are in God Now examine your selves whether you have the Spirit or no I say by this if you have this power to worke above nature For if you haue the Spirit you shall finde your selves able to keepe downe your lusts have power and abilitie to sanctifie the Sabbath power to pray power to heare power to conferre power to meditate power to love power to obey all above nature a power to forsake life and libertie riches and honour pleasure and all things if they come in competition with Christ which no man will doe except hee have the Spirit Secondly as it giues strength and other excellent qualities above nature so it addes unto it holinesse it puts a tincture and a good dye upon all your actions it warmeth the gift of the minde and puts the heart in a frame of grace many men have a kinde of strength but they want holinesse and sanctification with it now a man is said to bee a holy man when the soule is separated and divorc'st from things that are contrary to its salvation and happinesse and joyned and united unto Christ wholly and totally then and not till then is a man a true holy man it is with a holy man in this case as it is with a spouse shee is separated from others and united unto her husband therefore they that have the Spirit have holinesse with it the vessels in the time of the Law they were holy vessels because they were appointed for Gods worship in like manner when the Spirit comes into the heart it sanctifies it and makes him a holy man by making him in all his aymes and ends to pitch upon Gods glory and this can no man doe till Christ bee
or no. Now that a man may know this the better I will make it cleere by this example Take a bottle that is full of water and another that is full of Aqua-vitae looke upon them outwardly and they are all one in colour but if you taste the one is hote and lively but the other is cold and rawe so if you looke unto the outward formall actions of wicked men they have the same colour that the actions of the holy men have but if you taste them examine their lives and search into their hearts you shall finde a great difference the one of them it may be may seeme to have life and heate in them but they want the Spirit for they have neither a loathing of sinne nor power to resist sinne they may put a false colour upon their actions but it will not hold they may restraine some lusts for some ends but such cannot master and subdue them and it may heat a part of his heart but it cannot heat all his heart but where the sanctifying Spirit comes it heats all the soule kindles a holy fire in all the faculties to burne up sinne which is there And this was the difference betweene Iohn Baptists Baptisme and the Baptisme of Christ. Iohn would baptize them with water but Christ in the spirit and with fire therefore examine what heat there is in you against evill and what zeale there is in you to good are you cold in prayer in conference in the Communion of Saints it is a signe that you have not the spirit it may be you heare and reade and pray and conferre but see with what heat you doe them Is it with you in these things as the Apostle would have you to be in earthly 1 Cor. 7. 30. 31. To sorrow as if yee sorrowed not to use the world as if you used it not doe you performe holy duties with that coldnesse as if you cared not whether you did them or did them not doe you heare as if you heard not and doe you receive the Sacrament as if you received it not and doe you pray as if you prayed not and doe you love as if you loved it not then surely you have not the Spirit And on the contrary if you finde spirituall heat and zeale in you a nimblenesse and quicknesse to good it is a signe that you have the Spirit for it is the propertie of the Spirit to heate the soule therefore the Prophet saith That the zeale of thine House hath even eaten mee up Intimating I have such a measure of zeale wrought in mee by thy Spirit that I cannot see thee in the least measure dishonoured but I must burne with zeale Therefore examine what zeale you have for God and godlinesse are you hot for the things of the world and cold for grace and holinesse whatsoever you thinke of your selves yet you have not the sanctifying Spirit There is not a holy man or woman that belongs unto Christ but they have this holy fire in them and yet I would not have you to mistake mee as if every Christian did attaine unto the like heate and zeale as others doe For you must know that some have more some have lesse according unto the measure of the sanctifying Spirit that they have but this you must know that you must be full of heate full in some measure answerable unto the measure of the sanctifying Spirit but if you finde no heate at all in you then you have not a graine of the Spirit not to be hot is to bee luke-warme and luke-warmenesse is that which God hates it is a temper mixt which is both loathsome to nature and odious to God Revel 3. 15. the Laodiceans were neither hotte nor cold but luke-warme that is they had neither heate to good nor so cold as to forsake the truth Sinne and holinesse stood in aequilibrio together and they had as good a minde unto the one as unto the other now because it was thus with them therefore saith God I will spue them cut and then in the next verse hee exhorts them to be zealous and amend except you labour to bee hot in the Spirit you cannot be saved Titus 2. 14. the Apostle saith That Christ dyed that hee might purchase unto himselfe a people zealous of good workes this zeale must not bee a constrained zeale but a willing zeale and if there were no other motive to move men to bee zealous but this because Christ came to redeeme them for this end that they might be zealous for his glory if there bee any sparke of the fire of the Spirit in him it will burne at Christs dishonour and if Christ came unto this end to make men zealous then surely Christ will not loose his end but they that Christ will save shall be zealous therefore I beseech you labour to be strong in the inward man and labour to get the Spirit that you may be zealous but alas men have drunke too much of this Cup of giddinesse they thinke they need not be so zealous as they are but I say if you be not it is a signe that you have not the Spirit especially it stands men now upon if they have any holy zeale in them to show it I say it is time you should show it when you see such halting betweene two opinions show your zeale by hating and abhorring popery and by labouring to draw men from it especially now when we see men so desirous to goe into Egypt againe which is to be lamented in these dayes for which the Lord hath stretcht out his hand against us but where is our zeale what spirituall heate is there in us where are these men that at such a time would have beene hot and zealous nay where are the generation of these men surely they are all gone for there is no heate and zeale left it is true we abound in knowledge we have the same knowledge that they had but we want their zeale and spirit and we have the same gifts but we want their Spirit but let us now at length shew our selves to be in the spirit to have the Spirit in vs by our zeale against evill But you will say that many holy men that have the Spirit yet are not so hot and zealous against evill but are marvellous milde and patient therefore a man may have the Spirit and yet not bee zealous First to this I answer that holy men may have pits wherein they may be falne They may have drosse aswell as Gold and hence they may bee drawne by a strong passion and lust not justly to weigh sinnes aright whence ariseth remissenesse and neglect both in doing good and resisting evill but this in a regenerate man I call but a passion because it continues not for prayer and the preaching of the pure Word will recover this againe that is will recover his strength and make him zealous against sinnes but if you see a man whatsoever
favour honor riches or any other thing naughtily it will prove but a trouble 1. From the curse of God although the thing in it selfe be good yet God ever mixeth some evill with it which maketh it bitter Stollen bread is sweet but God filleth the mouth with gravell All misery with Gods favour is most sweet as Pauls imprisonments and whippings and Iosephs but on the contrary side all pleasure with Gods displeasure is bitter 2. Because sinne makes the soule sicke and then it 's never well untill it casts up and thus Iudas the thirty peeces burdening his soule must cast them up Many goe on in sinne and are never troubled As in our bodies though there be ill humours yet they make not a man sicke untill they be stirred so doth not sinne untill God stirres it as here hee did in Iudas and then it makes us sicke This should therefore move men to take heed how they turne saile for their owne advantage Suppose by going from God thou gettest what thou wouldest yet God can make that comfort to prove but a burthen unto thee as hee did Iudas his thirty silver peeces Be therefore content to lose all before thou lose God Now followes the event of all Hee went and hanged himselfe Whence learne That Gods wrath and sinne are exceeding terrible and unsupportable when they are once charged on the conscience This made Iudas to hang himselfe Doe but a little consider mans nature how loth to destroy himselfe how afraid to be killed and you shall find it to bee some great matter that must cause him to make an end of himselfe and to cast himselfe into that which he feared namely hell thus heavy is sinne when God once chargeth it on the conscience that it maketh a man doe all this Indeed sinne was as heavy before but then it lay at our foot and we felt it not but when God layes it once on our shoulders and on our Consciences then shall wee feele the burthen thereof to be farre beyond all torments that can be imagined See this in Christ when God did but charge our sinnes on him how intollerable werethey Now for your better understanding of this point I will first shew you what this horror of conscience is which I will doe by explaining these five questions following By what meanes is this horror of conscience wrought Two wayes sometimes by Gods owne Spirit sometimes by Satan First it 's done by Gods owne Spirit when by it the mind is enlightned to see that he is in bondage by reason of sinne Hence it is that it is called the Spirit of bondage Rom. 8. Secondly and more frequently by Satan when hee by Gods permission doth vexe and terrifie the soules of men and drive them to despaire and this is called horror and the vexing of the soule Now whether this horror of conscience bee wrought by Gods owne Spirit or by Satan we may know by these foure differences 1. If wee find any falshood mingled with this trouble of conscience then it comes from the Divell for the holy Ghost mingles no falshood but onely enlightens and shewes the truth light makes a thing seeme as it is 2. You may discerne of it by the affection it striketh in us for that that the Devill causeth in us striketh a hatred of God but that that Gods Spirit worketh in us causeth a servile feare 3. You may know it by the extremity of anguish it causeth Gods Spirit worketh by meekenesse and consolation but the Divell worketh by extremity of terror and feare 4. You may know it by the manner of doing for the Divell doth it disorderly suddenly and violently without any equality but the Spirit proceedeth orderly first it enlightneth the mind and then it raiseth objections and so goeth on by a little and a little but the Devill worketh violently Hence is that that Satan is said to buffet Paul for all buffeting betokeneth violence Indeed sometime the Spirit doth unequally but yet there is a great difference betweene Satans working and his What is to bee thought of such a condition I answer That such a condition being simply in it selfe considered is very miserable because it estrangeth and draweth the heart away from God yea and from Christ who is the end of Gods works and so therefore must needs be a most haynous sin but yet as God useth it it is a signe or one of the first steps to faith and a good meanes to subdue and weaken the stubbornnesse of our hearts Quest. How may wee know whether God intends this for a punishment or for a preparation of grace Answ. You may know it by the event for when God doth it for the salvation of the creature then after it there followes grace but if it brings not grace after it if there be onely a plowing and no harvest the pricking with a Needle and no thred then it 's a sparke of hell fire and the very praludium of hell What shall wee then thinke of those that never had this horror and trouble of conscience Their estate for all that may be very good for this vexation is not absolutely needfull although humiliation is wherefore if thou hast it not seeke not after it for God useth many meanes yet thou mayest take hence occasion the more to try thine estate Whether comes this horror from mellancholly or how shall wee disceme it from mellancholly If thou apprehend sinne and the wrath of God then it is horror of conscience for when the faculty is pinched upon the right object to wit sinne then it 's no melancholly but in horror the conscience is pitched upon the right obeject viz. sinne for that is the proper object of the conscience As for melancholly that is not griefe but extendeth griefe as varnish is not colour but doth extend the colour Indeed melancholly may bee joyned with it and draw it forth but it comes not wholly from that but from some other inward principle As the fatnesse of the soyle may bring forth the corne the sooner but yet that is not the cause thereof but the root that it hath Againe I answer that all diseases are healed by their contraries If that this were melancholly then might it be healed by merry company which is the contrary unto it but if it bee the horror of conscience then must it onely be healed by the apprehension of Gods love in Jesus Christ. Whether may it befall the childe of God to be in this case after he is in the estate of grace or not I answer That this extremity of horror which Iudas here tasted of never befals the childe God after he is in the estate of grace and my reason is this Because that as perfect love casteth out all feare so where there is some love left there is no perfect feare Indeed Gods children are never wholly without feare Rom. 8. yet in their greatest