Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n
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A96622
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Cor concussum & contritum: or, A present for Jehova; shewing the [brace] nature, excellency, acts, [brace] of a broken heart; [brace] and also the marks to know, and means to procure a broken and contrite heart. / by George Willington ...
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Willington, George.
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1670
(1670)
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Wing W2801; ESTC R186605
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15,028
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33
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his body in Uriah's Bed and imbrewed his hand in Uriah's blood From the first Verse to the 18 he prayes for himself From the 18. verse to the end of the Psalme he prayed for the Church In praying for himself he desired to be washed and cleansed and purged Vers 2. Wash me throughly from my Wickedness and cleanse me from my sin Vers 7. Purge me with Hysope and I shall be clean Wash me and I shall be whiter than Snow q. d. Saith Junius Wash me more purge me more cleanse me more in the Merits of ‖ 1 Joh. 1.7 Heb. 9.14 Christ's blood from the guilt and from the filth of all my Transgressions Then will I teach Transgressors thy wayes and Sinners shall be Converted unto thee vers 13.9 q.d. O God if thou wilt shew mercy to my poor Soul I that have had my * vers 12. Bones broken shall be an Instrument ‖ 2 Cor. 1.4 to bind up others and will tell thy People that fear thy Name (a) Mal. 3.16 What (b) Psal 66.16 great things thou hast done for my poor Soul Further it will be an occasion of God's glory when he should come to the Lord and offer the Sacrifices of Praise not Tipical but Real not Legal but Evangelical Sacrifices Cor concussum Contritum A Broken and Contrite Heart The Sacrifices of God are a Broken Spirit a Broken and Contrite Heart O God thou wilt not dispise The Text contains two general Propositions 1. Affirmative The Sacrifices of God are a broken Spirit 2. Negative A broken and contrite Heart O God thou wilt not despise In the double Proposition you have 1. The Subject Cor concussum contritum A broken and contrite Heart 2. The Predicate Sacrificia Dei The Sacrifices of God In further handling of these words I shall propose and follow this my wonted Method To speak to you 1. By way of Explication 2. By way of Confirmation 3. By way of Application 1. By way of Explication Heart and Spirit by the former is not meant that fleshly part which is in our breasts which we commonly call so though sometimes the word is so taken in Scripture 2 Kings 2.24 but by both is here meant that which the Scripture sometimes terms (c) Col. 3.16 the Inner-man sometimes the Hidden man (d) 1 Pet. 3 4. of the Heart and that which we ordinarily call the Soul with all it's Powers and Faculties By Spirits here is meant the Seat of sorrow the Spirit * Ephes 4.23 of the mind Doct. If any man will offer acceptable Sacrifice to God let him prepare the Spirit of his mind God himself is a Spirit and they that Worship him must worship him in Spirit and in Truth John 4.24 Psal 51. v. 6. He loves Truth in the inward affections Corpora fecit propter Spiritus Ideoque etiam spiritualia non corporea querit B. Cooper Super. loc saith a Learned Prelate He meant the bodies for the Spirits and therefore seeks he not bodily but Spiritual Worship Some there are Qui sua dant non Seipsos who offer to him not themselves Seipsos but that which is theirs but it is a blind folly to think thou canst please him when thou wilt not give the service of thy Heart and Spirit unto him Prov. 23. vers 26. Mi sili da mihi Cor tuum But lest we should think that every Spirit is acceptable What a broken Heart is he adds this Epethet Broken and Contrite A broken heart is such a heart that is humbled through a sight and sense of sin and wounded and prick't with the fear of God's anger grieving for offending so good and so gracious a God 1. Bathing his eyes in Tears and melting his Soul into sorrow that ever he has offended so good a God that made him displeased so sweet a Saviour that redeemed him griev'd so Holy a Spirit as hath striven with him transgressed so Righteous a Law as was given to him broken so gracious a Covenant as was made with him begging Mercy and Pardon at the Throne of the Almighty's Grace with as much earnestness and importunity as the Hunger-bitten Beggar doth a Morsel of bread or the Malefactor a Psalm of Mercy This is that poor Spirit St. Mathew speaks (e) Mat. 5.3 of this is that Spirit that trembles at God's word which the Prophet Isaiah speaks (f) Isa 66.2 of this is that Heart-rent the Prophet Jonah speaks (g) Jona 2.12.13 of By the Prophet (h) Isa 42.3 and the Evangelist (i) Mat. 12.20 it 's compared to a bruised Reed it 's also in Scripture called a pricking (k) Acts 2.37 of the heart a melting (l) Nah 2.10 Psal 119.28 of the heart and such like All which import the inward unfeigned hearty sorrow which is in a penitent Soul for offending a good and a gracious God And he puts the word in the Plural Number Sacrificia the Sacrifices to shew that a Heart bruised and broken humbled and pricked Note in the sight and sense of sin is Instar Omnium instead of all all Sacrifice is nothing without it all sum'd up in it Let men offer what Sacrifices they will never so many never so costly never so excellent yet if this be wanting 't is but in vain God esteems not of it One broken Heart is more worth than a thousand Sacrifices of great price A man may offer many Sacrifices Pray much Preach much Hear much receive the Sacrament often and give all his goods to feed the Poor yet if there be not this broken Heart and contrite Spirit all 's in vain and to no (m) Psal 1. vers 11.12 13 14 15 16 17. purpose We cannot please God in any thing we do without a broken and contrite heart The Sacrifices of God * Chap. 66.24 The adding God's Name to any think in Scripture gives it an Emminency a Lustre a Glory above all other things As there 's mention made of the Waters (n) Psal 65.9 of God the Mountain (o) Exod. 3.1 of God the Trees (p) Psal 104 16. of God c. And in the New Testament the Peace (q) Phil. 4.7 of God c. And here in the Text The Sacrifices of God most rare and excellent Sacrifices such as God will not dispise A broken and a contrite Heart O God thou wilt not dispise The Phrase is low yet hath a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in it as 1 Thes 5.20 Dispise not Prephesyings and Heb. 12.5 Dispise not the Chastening of the Lord And so imports the choycest way of acceptation A broken and contrite Heart O God thou wilt not dispise thou dost love and like and art well pleased with a broken Heart This broken and contrite Heart is Sacrifice TO GOD most rare and excellent Sacrifice as the Mountains of God are high Mountains and the Cedars of the Lord are tall Cedars So a broken
Heart and a contrite Spirit being the Sacrifices of God are most rare excellent and choyce Sacrifices From the Words thus considered this is the point of Instruction Doctrine 2 Of all Services and Sacrifices to be presented to God A broken and a contrite Heart is most pleasing and acceptable First God will graciously look upon such a Heart Demonst 1 To this purpose speaks Jehovah by the Evangelical Prophet Isa 66.2 Thus saith the Lord Heaven is my Throne and the Earth my Foot-stool Where is the House that ye build unto me And where is the place of my rest For all those things hath my hand made and all those things have been saith the Lord But to this man will I look even to him that is poor and of a contrite Spirit and that trembleth at my Words See how the Lord lifts up himself unto the highest Heavens Heaven is my Throne and the Earth is my Foot-stool Oh! How shall I come and Appear before so great a God a God of such terrible Majesty and mighty Powers Why Be not afraid poor Soul the Lord will cast a look of Love upon thee not only a look of Pity but also a look of Complacency To him will I looke sayes God even to him that is poor 1. Vile and base in his own eyes and 2d Of a contrite Spirit and that trembles at my Word q. d. I have more regard to this poor Trembler at my Word than I have to the great Temple that was built for my Worship Gen. 4.4 God had respect to Abel and to his Offering The Sacrifices of God are a broken Spirit a broken and contrite Heart O God thou wilt not dispise That 's the first reason of God's acceptance of a broken Heart because God will graciously look upon such a heart 2. Demonst 2 The Lord so delights in a broken and contrite Heart that he not only looks on him but also draws nigh unto him To this purpose the Psalmist very sweetly Psal 34.16 17. Psalm 34.17 18. The Righteous cry and the Lord heareth them and delivereth them out of their Troubles The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a contrite Heart and will save such as are of an humble Spirit 'T is a great priviledge that we can draw nigh to God that God does hold out the golden Scepter of his Grace and allow us to come and touch the top of it We might have been in Hell long agoe roaring under an endless Damnation far enough from God had not he spared us Numb 16. vers 9. said Moses there to Korah and his complices Seemeth it a small thing unto you that the God of Israel had separated you from the Congregation of Israel to take you near to himself to do the Service of the Tabernacle Seemeth this a small thing unto you Oh! 't is a great priviledg that we can draw nigh unto God It is good for me to draw near to God saith the Psalmist with a Probatum est Psal 73. ult Now then if this be so great a priviledg for you to draw nigh to God Oh! What a transcendent unspeakable priviledg is it for God to draw nigh to you to delight in your Persons to delight in your Prayers to bottle your tears and to Register your groans And this he doth to broken and contrite Hearts the Lord is nigh unto all them that are of a contrite heart Nigh unto them in all that they call upon him for 3. Demonst 3 A broken and contrite Heart is pleasing and acceptable to God for he will come and dwell in that Soul Thus saith the Holy and Lofty One that inhabites Eternity whose Name is Holy I dwell in the High and Holy place with him also that is of a contrite and humble Spirit to revive the Spirit of the humble and to revive the Spirit of the contrite Ones God has two chief places of residence viz. The highest Heaven and the lowest Heart the one he fills with his glorious the other with his gracious Presence He dwells in the High and Holy place the Cherubins worship him though with covering their blushing Faces and Thousand thousands (n) Dan. 7.10 of Angels minister unto him yet he dwells and holds his Residence in a broken and contrite Heart he will not despise yea he delights to dwell there Demonst 4 Lastly A broken and contrite Heart is pleasing and acceptable to God for he heals a broken Heart To this purpose sweetly speaks Jehovah by his Evangelical Prophet Isa 57.15 For thus saith the High and Lofty One that Inhabiteth Eternity whose Name is Holy I dwell in the High and Holy place with ‖ Note this him also that is of a contrite and humble Spirit to revive the Spirit of the humble and to revive the Heart of the contrite Ones Vers 18. I have seen his Wayes and will heal him I will lead him also and restore Comfort unto him and to his * Mat. 5.4 Mourners He heals the broken in Heart and binds up their ‖ Heb. Griefs Isa 53.5 1 Pet. 2 24. Wounds Psal 147.3 Indeed sometimes the Lord hides his Face and with-draws (n) Isa 54. vers 7.8 the Light of his Countenance then David cries (o) Psal 6.3.2 Heal me O Lord for my Bones are vexed My Soul is also sore troubled but thou O Lord how long Then Job cries The terrors of God (p) Job 6 4. set themselves in Battle array against me the Poyson whereof drinks up my Spirits But then the Lord comes in in due season and he heals the broken in Heart and giveth Medicine to heal their Sickness and bindeth up their Wounds O happy those Sighs those Sobs which sin hath made in thy Soul when Christ himself shall come to bind them up Thus you see that of all services and sacrifices presented to God a broken and contrite Heart is most pleasing and acceptable The Reasons are chiefly two Reason 1 First Because it is a Spiritual sacrifice therefore an Acceptable Sacrifice It is not the Sacrifice of a dead Carkass 't is a living Sacrifice a broken Heart and a contrite Spirit The heart is the best of Man and a broken Heart is the best of Hearts I beseech you Brethren by the Mercies of God saith the Apostle That yee present your Bodies A LIVING Sacrifice Holy acceptable unto God which is your reasonable service Rom. 12.1 where the Apostle very pathetically useth an Obsecration an Obtestation a Compellation an Abjurgation and all to press this duty home upon their Conversations The duty is to present their bodies a living Sacrifice living without the Soul it cannot be For the body without the Spirit is dead John 6.69 James 2.26 Bodily exercise profits little if it be only bodily 1 Tim. 4.8 It is the Spirit that quickens the flesh profits nothing To offer this Spiritual Sacrifice the Apostle abjures them by the mercies of God I beseech you Brethren by the mercies of God The Apostle