Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n
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A58331
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A vvay unto true Christian unitie the worship of God in spirit and in truth : together vvith many spirituall benefits therein received now in this life and everlastingly ...
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Reeve, Edmund, d. 1660.
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1648
(1648)
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Wing R670; ESTC R2196
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46,374
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55
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so farre forth as it is in Scripture expressed what the eternall God is according to His infinite Essence or being place and I knew it not But that this first point may yet become more cleare unto devout soules namely for whom preparation is now to be made according to the doctrine of this heavenly crying voice there is also to be signified in some wise what the Scripture saith That the eternall God is And so the minde of man seeking the Lord may be introducted to see though as through a glasse the e Isa 33.17 King in his beauty and to behold the Land that is very farre off as Jsaiah speaketh The Lord Jesus Christ having said to the woman of Samaria f Joh. 4.23 24 See 2. Cor. 3.17 18. and the marginall reading there 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 God is Spirit The houre commeth and now is when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in Spirit and in truth for the Father seeketh such to worship him declareth That God is a Spirit and that they which worship him must worship him in Spirit and in truth Where he teacheth us that God is Spirit S. John saith This then is the message which we have heard of him and declare unto you that God is g 1. Joh. 1.5 God is Light Light and in him is no darknesse at all He also saith Beloved let us love one another for love is of God and every one that loveth is borne of God and knoweth God He that loveth not knoweth not God for God is h 1. John 4.7 8 16. God is Love love God is love and hee that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God and God in him So that here is plainely expressed what God is namely that he is Light and Love Now that this most blessed Spirit of light and love may have his gracious presence in us to his i Prov. 8.31 delight and our unexpressable k Deut. 10.13 good His said crying voice is unto us that we in our wildernesse and desart do prepare a way and make straight a path for Him Now the second point is to be considered to wit The second point In what place to prepare the way of the Lord. in what place the preparation is to be made The Text saith In the wildernesse in the desart And what a spirituall wildernesse or desart is it may appear out of the Apostles words unto the Ephesians describing what they were before they became l See Rom. 1.5 and 16.26 Acts. 6.7 obedient unto the Faith He saith unto them m Eph. 2.12 that at that time yee were without Christ being aliens from the common-wealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise having no hope and without God in the world But he describeth a worse wildernesse in that his exhortation where he saith n Eph. 4.17 18 19. This I say therefore and testifie in the Lord that yee henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk in the vanitie of their mind having the understanding darkened being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them because of the blindnesse of their heart who being past feeling have given themselves over unto lasciviousnesse to worke all uncleannesse with greedinesse Now it is to be considered how man and woman are become such wildernesses and desarts whereas in the beginning they were created glorious o See Cantic 8.13 and 5.1 and 6.2 and 4.12 gardens for the Lord. Solomon saith p Eccles 7.29 Loe this only have I found that God made man upright but they have sought out many inventions It is said in Genesis When the woman saw q Gen. 3.6 that the tree of knowledge of good and evill was good for food and that it was pleasant unto the eyes and a tree to be desired to make one wise she took thereof and did eate and gave also to her husband with her and he did eate Then became they to be r Gen. 3.7 Rom. 3.23 naked in soul and came short of the glorie of God They from being afore Gods gardens and paradises now became to be wildernesses and desarts And that every one of mankind growing up in this world and fast abiding in the fall not truly endeavouring to enter into the change of minde and life prescribed and required by the Gospel for to proceed duly in the same is a ſ Jsa 32.15 16. Jer. 4.26 Gen. 6.5 Rom. 3.12 13 14 15 16 17 18. wildernesse and a desart it needeth no confirmation with many Texts being acknowledged and confessed even by all The Hebrew word for wildernesse is observed to signifie a place remote from speech or talk And in a setled spirituall Wildernesse there is scarfe any gracious speech heard Yea Christ saith t Mat. 12.34.35 How can ye being evill speak good things For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh The Wildernesse within man which ought to be prepared is the heart My sonne saith God u Prov. 23.26 give me thine heart It is said concerning Rehoboam That he did evill because hee prepared not his * 2. Chron. 12.14 heart to seek the Lord. But whereas the Holy Ghost doth here use two words wildernesse and desart and the Hebrew word for desart hath in it the signification of x. In Ps 68.4 in the plurall number heaven may it not intimate the superiour facultie in man the understanding or the minde And then by wildernesse may also be meant the inferiour facultie in man the will or the affections Jeremiah speaking concerning many in his time saith My people is foolish they have not known me they are sottish children and they have no understanding they are wise to do evill but to do good they have no knowledge I beheld the earth and loe it was without forme and void and the y Ier. 4.22 23. heavens and they had no light In which place also the word heaven appeareth to signifie mans mind or understanding The z Heb. 4.12 Luke 1.46 47. Isa 26.9 Scripture hath in sundry places the expression of soule and spirit to be in man But saith the Apostle to the Thessalonians a 1. Thess 5.23 The very God of peace sanctifie you wholly and I pray God your whole spirit and soule body bee preserved blameles unto the comming of our Lord Jesus Christ Preparation is to be made thereunto in the whole man and as inwardly so outwardly also And to the Corinthians he saith b 1. Cor. 6.19.20 The Vulgar Latine Text there hath Glorificate portate Deum in corpore vestro what know ye not that your body is the Temple of the holy Ghost which is in you which ye have of God and ye are not your own For ye are bought with a price therefore glorifie God in your body and in your spirit which are Gods Now the next point is to be considered The third point The manner of preparing
14. â— Jer. 32.39 2 Cor. 12.18 Unity in observing the duties of the Morall Law contained in the Ten Commandements so is there also Unity in the most holy d Jude 10. Tit. 1.1 faith of Gods elect The Apostle saith There is e Eph. 4.5 one faith And he hath these words f Eph. 4.13 Till we all come into the Unity of faith and of the knowledge of the Sonne of God unto a perfect man unto the measure of the stature of the fulnesse of Christ And as all which truly endeavour to make preparation of the way of the Lord within them according as it is prescribed by the aforesaid heavenly crying voice shall see more and more the g 1 Tim. 3.9 mysterie of the Christian faith and what the true Christian h Joh. 8.12 Mal. 4.2 See wisd 5.6 life and conversation is unto the increase of godly Unity so such as are i Eph. 4.3 studious of all holy Unity shall partake of the greatest measure of heavenly light which God now communicateth unto his servants It is said in the Booke of Chronicles k 2 Chron. 5.13 14. It came to passe as the trumpetters and singers were as one to make one sound to be heard in praising and thanking the Lord and when they lift up their voice with the trumpets and cymbals and instruments of musick and praised the Lord saying For he is good for his mercy endureth for ever that then the house was filled with a cloud even the house of the Lord. So that the Priests could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud for the glory of the Lord had filled the house of God So it is said in the Acts of the Apostles l Acts 2.1 3 4 And when the day of Pentecost was fully come they were all with one accord or with one mind in one place And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire and it sate upon each of them and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost Then did God m Acts 2.16 17 18. powre out of his Spirit upon all flesh namely on all ages and states as on old persons and young persons on sonnes and daughters on servants and hand-maids and in great abundance on his Apostles who had n Acts. 1.4 waited for the promise and had kept in Jerusalem Which saith David is builded as a City that is o Psal 22.3 compact together or as some translate which is at unity in it self For where brethren dwell together in unity p Psal 133.3 Where there is such concord us saith the Geneva note The Ratification of this oracle there saith he the Lord commandeth the blessing even life for evermore There remaineth also that something be said concerning the Ratification of this Oracle which is contained in these words For the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it The which words are added for to assure us That our labour in the work of the Lord shall not now be in q 1 Cor. 15.51 vain our true endeavouring for to performe the aforesaid preparation shall not be unconsidered For God saith the Apostle is not unrighteous to r Heb. 6.10 11 12 13 14 15. Mat. 10.41 42. Ps 19.11 Heb. 11.26 forget your work and labour of love which ye have shewed toward His name c. And we desire that every one of you doe shew the same diligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end That ye be not sloathfull but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises For when God made promise to Abraham because he could sweare by no greater He sware by Himself saying Surely blessing I will blesse thee and multiplying I will multiply thee And after he had patiently endured he obtained the promise Whereas it is said For the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it it giveth us to consider that a mouth hath uttered it which Å¿ Tit. 1.2 cannot lye and that the Almighty holy righteous eternall Spirit hath promised it which is t Eph. 3.20 able to performe it Who hath promised many spirituall blessings to be inherited in the life that u 1. Tim. 4.8 now is according as His Divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godlinesse through the knowledge of him as S. Peter * 2. Pet. 1.3 4. saith that hath called us to glory and vertue whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises that by these ye might be partakers of the Divine Nature having escaped the corruption which is in the world through lust That as the Apostle writeth unto the x Eph. 1.12 13 14. Ephesians We should be unto the praise of his glory who first trusted in Christ in whom ye also trusted after that ye heard the word of truth the Gospel of your Salvation in whom also after that ye believed ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise which is the earnest of our inheritance untill the redemption of the purchased possession unto the praise of his glory And as the Lord Jesus Christ saith y Mar. 10.29 30. There is no man that hath left house or brethren or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands for my sake and the Gospels but he shall receive an hundred fold now in this time houses and brethren and sisters and mothers and children and lands with persecutions and in the world to come eternall life Moreover it is to be observed that these words for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it being so often used in holy Scripture What the mouth of the Lord signifieth do in speciall manner note forth unto us the power and truth of God upon which we may build and ground our selves and be secure or z See of Heb. 11.1 the marginall reading confident that what duties we for our parts are to endeavour are a Ps 19.7 8. Deut. 4.6 7 8. perfect wisdome to be done and that the benefit signified to be received in the doing of them is most sure and certain It is said in Ezechiel * Ezech. 37.13 14. And ye shall know that I am the Lord when I have opened your graves O my people and brought you up out of your graves And shall have put my Spirit in you and ye shall live and I shall place you in your own land then shall ye know that I the Lord have spoken it and performed it saith the Lord. And to conclude this point there is observed to be understood by these words The mouth of the Lord hath spoken Such a more inward manifesting and communicating of the Divine will as whereby matters were made knowne unto Moses as it is written With him will I speak b Num. 12.8 mouth to mouth apparently For so Isaiah framed not out of his own mind this crying voice as Jeremiah saith That the false Prophets doe speak a vision of their own heart