Linguistic DNA - Concept Modelling Demonstrator

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	true_a	truth_n	word_n	7,456	5	4.2077	3	false

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A03585	A learned and comfortable sermon of the certaintie and perpetuitie of faith in the elect especially of the prophet Habakkuks faith. By Richard Hooker, sometimes fellow of Corpus Christi College in Oxford.	Hooker, Richard, 1553 or 4-1600.; Jackson, Henry, 1586-1662.; Spenser, John, 1559-1614.	1612 (1612)	STC 13707; ESTC S121047	10,094	20

A LEARNED AND COMFORTABLE SERMON OF THE certaintie and perpetuitie of faith in the Elect especially of the Prophet Habakkuks faith BY RICHARD HOOKER SOMEtimes fellow of Corpus Christi College in Oxford AT OXFORD Printed by Ioseph Barnes and are to be sold by John Barnes dwelling neere Holborne Conduit 1612. ABAC 1.4 Whether the Prophet Abacuck by admitting this cogitation into his minde The Law doth faile did thereby shew himselfe an vnbeleever WEE haue seene in the opening of this clause which concerneth the weakenesse of the Prophets faith first what things they are wherevnto the faith of sounde beleevers doth assent secondly wherefore al men assent not thervnto and thirdly why they that doe doe it many times with small assurance Now because nothing can be so truly spoken but through misvnderstaÌ„ding it may be depraved therefore to prevent if it bee possible all misconstruction in this cause where a small errour cannot rise but with great danger it is perhaps needful ere we come to the fourth point that something bee added to that which hath beene alreadie spoken concerning the third That meere naturall men doe neither knowe nor acknowledge the things of God wee doe not marvell because they are spiritually to bee discerned but they in whose harts the light of grace doth shine they that are taught of God why are they so weake in faith Why is their assenting to the law so scrupulous so much mingled with feare and wavering It seemeth strange that ever they should imagine the lawe ro faile It cannot seeme strange if wee waigh the reason If the things which we beleeue be considered in themselues it maie truely bee saide that faith is more certaine then any Science That which we know either by sense or by infallible demonstration is not so certaine as the principles articles and conclusions of Christian faith Concerning which we must note that there is a certainty of evidence and a certainety of adherence Certaintie of evidence we call that when the minde doth assent vnto this or that not because it is true in it selfe but because the truth is clere because it is manifest to vs. Of thinges in themselues most certaine except they be also most evident our perswasion is not so assured as it is of thinges more evident although in themselues they be lesse certaine It is as sure if not surer that there bee spirits as that there be men but we be more assured of these then of them because these are more evident The truth of some things is so evident that no man which heareth them can doubt of them as when wee heare that a part of any thing is lesse then the whole the minde is constrained to say this is true If it were so in matters of faith theÌ„ as all men haue equall certainety of this so no beleever should be more scrupulous and doubtful then an other But we finde the contrarie The Angels spirits of the righteous in heaven haue certainety most evident of things spirituall but this they haue by the light of glorie That which we see by the light of grace though it be indeed more certaine yet is it not to vs so evidently certaine as that which sense or the light of nature will not suffer a man to doubt of Proofes are vaine frivolous except they bee more certaine then is the thing proved and doe we not see how the spirit everie where in the scripture proveth matters of faith laboureth to confirme vs in the thing which wee beleeue by things whereof we haue sensible knowledge I conclude therefore that wee haue lesse certainety of evidence concerning things beleeved then concerning sensible or naturally perceived Of these who doth doubt at any time Of them at sometime who doubteth not I wil not here alleage the sundry coÌ„fessions of the perfectest that haue lived vpon earth concerning their great imperfections this way which if I did I should dwell too long vpon a matter sufficiently knowne by everie faithfull man that doth know himselfe The other which wee call the certainty of adherence is when the hart doth cleaue and sticke vnto that which it doth beleeue This certaintie is greater in vs then the other The reason is this The faith of a Christian doth apprehend the words of the Law the promises of God not only as true but also as good and therefore even then when the evidence which he hath of the truth is so small that it grieveth him to feele his weakenesse in assenting thereto yet is there in him such a sure adherence vnto that which he doth but faintly and fearefullie beleeue that his spirit having once truely tasted the heavenly sweetnesse thereof all the worlde is not able quite and cleane to remoue him from it but he striveth with himselfe to hope against all reason of beleeving being setled with Iob vpon this vnmoueable resolution Though God kill me I will not giue over trusting in him For why This lesson remaineth for ever imprinted in him It is good for me to cleaue vnto God Psal. 73. Now the mindes of all men being so darkned as they are with the foggie dampe of originall corruption it cannot be that any mans heart living should be either so enlightned in the knowledge or so established in the loue of that wherein his salvation standeth as to be perfect neither doubting nor shrinking at all If anie such were what doth let why that man should not be iustified by his owne inherent righteousnes For righteousnesse inherent being perfect will iustifie And perfect faith is a part of perfect righteousnesse inherent yea a principall part the root and the mother of all the rest so that if the fruit of every tree be such as the root is faith being perfect as it is if it bee not at all mingled with distrust and feare what is there to exclude other Christian virtues from the like perfections And then what neede we the righteousnes of Christ His garment is superfluous we may be honourably cloathed with our owne Robes if it bee thus But let them beware who challenge to themselues a strength which they haue not least they loose the comfortable support of that weakenes which indeed they haue Some shew although no soundnes of ground there is which may bee alleaged for defence of this supposed perfection in certainety touching matters of our faith as first that Abraham did beleeue and doubted not secondly that the spirit which God hath given vs to no other end but only to assure vs that we are the sonnes of God to embolden vs to call vpon him as our father to open our eies and to make the truth of things beleeved evident vnto our minds is much mightier in operation then the common light of nature whereby we discerne sensible things wherefore we must needs be more sure of that we beleeue then of that we see we must needes be more certaine of the mercies of God in Christ Jesus then we are of the light

vnbeleefe hath full dominion it hath taken plenarie possession of me if I were faithfull it could not bee thus Not marking the motions of the spirit and of faith because they lie buried and overwhelmed with the contrarie when notwithstanding as the blessed Apostle doth acknowledge that the spirit groneth and that God heareth when we doe not so there is no doubt but that our faith may haue and hath her privie operations secret to vs in whom yet knowne to him by whom they are Tell this to a man that hath a mind deceaved by too hard an opinion of himselfe and it doth but augment his griefe he hath his answer ready will you make mee thinke otherwise then I find theÌ„ I feel in my self I haue throughly considered and exquisitely sifted all the corners of my heart and I see what there is never seek to perswade me against my knowledge I doe not I knowe I doe not beleeue Well to favour them a little in their weaknesse let that be granted which they doe imagine bee it that they are faithlesse and without beleife But are they not grieved for their vnbeleife They are Do they not wish it might and also striue that it may be otherwise We know they doe Whence commeth this but from a secret loue and liking which they haue of those things that are believed No man can loue things which in his owne opinion are not And if they thinke those things to be which they shew that they loue when they desire to beleeue them then must it needs be that by desiring to beleeue they proue themselues true beleevers For without faith no man thinketh that things beleeved are Which argumeÌ„t all the subtiltie of infernall powers will never be able to dissolue The faith therefore of true beleevers though it haue many and grievous downfalls yet doth it still continue invincible it conquereth and recovereth it selfe in the end The dangerous conflicts wherevnto it is subiect are not able to prevaile against it The Prophet Abacuck remained faithfull in weaknesse though weake in faith It is true such is our weake and wavering nature that we haue no sooner receaued grace but wee are ready to fall from it we haue no sooner given our assent to the law that it cannot faile but the next conceit which wee are ready to imbrace is that it may and that it doth fail Though wee find in our selues a most willing heart to cleaue vnseparably vnto God even so far as to think vnfainedly with Peter Lord I am ready to goe with thee into prison and to death yet how soone and how easily vpon how small occasions are we changed if wee bee but a while let alone and left vnto our selues The Galathians to day for their sakes which teach them the truth in Christ content if need were to pluck out their own eies and the next day ready to pluck out theirs which taught them The loue of the Angell to the Church of Ephesus how greatly enflamed and how quickly slacked The higher we flow the neerer we are vnto an ebbe if men be respected as meere men according to the wonted course of their alterable inclination without the heaveÌ„ly support of the spirit Againe the desire of our ghostly enimy is so vncredible and his means so forcible to overthrowe our faith that whom the blessed Apostle knewe betroathed and made handfast vnto Christ to them he could not write but with great trembling I am iealous over you with a godly iealousie for I haue prepared you to one husband to present you a pure virgin vnto Christ but I feare least as the Serpent beguiled Eue through his subtiltie so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity which is in Christ. The simplicitie of faith which is in Christ taketh the naked promise of God his bare word and on that it resteth This simplicitie the serpent laboreth continually to pervert corrupting the mind with many imaginations of repugnancie and contrariety betweene the promise of God and those things which sense or experience or some other fore conceaved perswasion hath imprinted The word of the promise of God vnto his people is I will not leaue thee nor forsake thee vpon this the simplicity of faith resteth and it is not afraid of famine But mark how the subtilty of Sathan did corrupt the minds of that rebellious generation whose spirits were not faithfull vnto God They beheld the desolate state of the desert in which they were and by the wisdome of their sense concluded the promise of God to be but folly CaÌ„ God prepare a table in the wildernes The word of the promise to Sara was Thou shalt beare a Sonne Faith is simple and doubteth not of it but Sathan to corrupt this simplicitie of faith entangleth the mind of the woman with an argument drawn from common experience to the contrarie A woman that is olde Sara now to be acquainted againe with forgotteÌ„ passions of youth The word of the promise of God by Moses and the Prophets made the Saviour of the world so apparent vnto Philip that his simplicitie could conceaue no other Messias then Iesus of Nazareth the sonne of Ioseph But to stay Nathaniel least being invited to come and see hee should also beleeue and so be saved the subtilty of Sathan casteth a mist before his eies putteth in his head against this the common conceaved perswasion of all men concerning Nazareth Is it possible that a good thing should come from thence This stratagem he doth vse with so great dexteritie the minds of all men are so strangely ensorceled with it that it bereaveth theÌ„ for the time of all perceavance of that which should releeue them and be their comfort yea it taketh all remembrance from them even of things wherewith they are most familiarly acquainted The people of Israel could not bee ignorant that he which led them through the sea was able to feed them in the desart but this was obliterated and put out by the sense of their present want Feeling the hand of God against them in their food they remembred not his hand in the day that he delivered them from the haÌ„d of the oppressor Sara was not then to learne that with God all things are possible Had Nathaniel never noted how God doth choose the base things of this world to disgrace them that are most honorably esteemed The Prophet Abakuk knewe that the promises of grace protection and favour which God in the law doth make vnto his people do not grant them any such immunitie as can free and exempt them from all chastisements he knewe that as God said I will continue my mercy for ever towards them so he likewise said their transgressions I will punish with a rod he knew that it cannot stand with any reason wee should set the measure of our owne punishments and prescribe vnto God how great or howe long our sufferings shall be he knew that we were blind and altogether ignorant what is best

Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Text snippets containing the quad