Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	word_n	work_v	wrath_n	137	3	7.0928	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A79892	Golden apples. Or Seaonable and serious counsel from the sanctuary to the rulers of the earth, held forth in the resolution of sundry questions, and cases of conscience about divisions, schisms, heresies, and the tolleration of them. Collected out of the writings of the most orthodox, and judicious divines, both Presbyterians, and Independents. / By Sa. Clarke, pastor in Bennet Fink.	Clarke, Samuel, 1599-1682.; Anthony, Burgess, d. 1644.	1659 (1659)	Wing C4518; Thomason E1881_3; ESTC R209888	84,688	239

the envious one the devil who delights to sow tares amongst the wheat Gal. 6.20 c. there are two Principles of all mens actions the Flesh the works whereof are Hatred Strife Emulations c. all tending to break Unity And the Spirit whose works are Love Peace Gentleness c. all uniting If thou wouldst then know who is a godly man judge of the Tree by its fruits Hence 1 Cor. 3.3 If there be Envyings and Divisions amongst you are you not carnal c. So James 3.13 14. Who is a wis●man Let him shew it by a good conversation with meekness And he devides Wisdo● into that which is earthly and devillish the mother of Envyings and Strife and the Wisdom which is from above which is pure peaceable c. therefore if any be given to Division Let not such glory saith the Apostle nor lie against the truth So then though a man pretend to never such singular gifts such extraordinary Teachings of Gods Spirit if he be contentious he is not to glory yea He lies against the truth Such will say It s for the Truth they have made these Divisions But its false the Truths of Christ are to be maintained by the Spirit of Christ For the wrath of man works not the Righteousness of God nor the perverseness of man the Truth of God Quest Quest What doth the word Schism signisie Answ First A Rent Division Breach Answ 1 or cuting off Secondly A Rent in the Church or a Division amongst Christians 1 Cor. 1.10 11 12. That there be no Dissentions amongst you The Original word is Schism Quest What is Schism Answ It s a Dissention Quest or separation in the Church when one Answ or more separate and rend themselves from the outward fellowship of the faithful cutting assunder the Peace Unity of the Church upon dislike of some Rites and Orders therein lawfully received and observed or else upon different opinions about their Teachers For As Heresie is a departing from the Communion of the Church in respect of Doctrine So Schism is a cutting off ones self for external things This St. Paul complains of 1 Cor. 1.10 c. Every one of you saith I am Paul's c. Schism is affirmed also of Division in Doctrine John 7.43 Quest Quest Whence doth Schism proceed Answ First Answ 1 It hath its beginning from Satan that first Schismatick Jude 6. who by his Tentations oft prevails with men to depart from God as he did with Adam in Paradise Secondly From the members of Satan who love to fish in troubled waters though all proceed not from the same cause For some make Rents in the Church through hatred as the Donatists did Some through Ambition and desire of Rule Thus the Papacy increased by great Schisms Others separate out of ignorance as the multitude did John 7.43 52. Others out of a vain admiration of their own worth and holiness as the Anabaptists Separatists c. of old Thirdly The true ground of all Love and Peace of all Concord Agreement can only be upon a motive of Godliness and Honesty Only good men can truly love one another because the motive of it is the Image of God and the cause of it Gods Command and the end of it to do good temporal and spiritual one to another Hence it s called Love in Faith Tit. 3.15 And in the Spirit Col. 1.8 Therefore if Gods people quarrel one with another it shews that their love was not because they were godly but for other ends And as for the wicked the very Heathen could say Amicitia nisi inter bonos esse non potest Friendship can only be upon grounds of goodness and Honesty Therefore if you see men to agree upon evil grounds because others are like themselves or for matter of profit or pleasure here is no sure concord Herod and Pilate cannot agree unless it be against Christ Wicked men never agree long together except it be to oppose Godliness Quest How many sorts of striving Quest or Contentions are there Answ First Good and laudable Answ 1 Thus we are commanded to contend for the faith To be in an Agony for it Ju●e 4. And we must in our places ever zealously quarrel with wicked men for the honor and glory of God This some call quarrelling and making tumults as Jer. 15.10 Woe is me b cause I am a man of Contention Why so because he reproved them for their sins Secondly Their is a sinfull and ungodly striving and that about a two-fold Object 1. In Civil Worldly things Quarrelling and Wrangling about them 2. In religious matters Thus some desire to be cavelling against the truth and to gain-say the Duties that are commanded or needlesly striving about idle Disputes that make not for godliness Tit. 3.7 A great disease of our times Quest Quest What are the causes of these Contentions Answ First Answ 1 In general The bitter poisonous fountain of corruption within every man Man by nature is a spider a Toad He can spit nothing but venom He is a Bramble that tears every one that comes near him Strife and Contentions are the works of the flesh Gal. 5.20 They come from the lusts in our members Jam. 4.1 Secondly The particular lusts whence they proceed Are 1. Pride Where Pride is there is Contention Prov. 13.10 A proud man cannot but strive as fire cannot but set all on a flame All our Divisions whether publique or private come from Pride Every man would have his Will to be done whereas lowliness of mind keeps all in peace 2. Ambition and vain-glory which comes near to Pride When men are ambitious for earthly Power or High places in the Church This makes many quarrels As did Absolons ambition for the Kingdom This like a great Whale Toon swallows up all the good and welfare of others 3. Malicious froward Dispositions Some are of such turbulent natures that they cannot be quiet but in disturbing others and have not only their tongues but their hearts set on fire by hell Jam. 3.6 These are dangerous persons in a Kingdom For they do to it as the devil did to the possessed body sometimes throw it into the water sometimes into the fire so they are also in Cities and Families If Peace-makers are blessed then strife-makers are cursed 4. Covetous and sinfull love to the things of the world As it s said Those two Pronouns Meum Tuum make all the strife in the world An unjust desire to have more then our own or lusting after other mens or discontent with our own present condition fills the world with strife 5. Impatience when we cannot with godly wisdom and patience pass by wrongs and injuries The Scripture bids us To requite evil with good and if one strike us on one cheek to turn the other Luke 6.29 And to prya for those that persecute us Luke 6.27,28 Quest Quest What are the sinfull effects of striving about worldly things and how ar● they discovered Answ First

against dangers threatened from a common enemie Fourthly they should secure and set bounds about fundamental doctrines for which end they should take care and promote the dutie of Catechising Fifthly they should provide that Ministers may be known to be Orthodox in the great and weighty Controversies between us and the Hereticks of our times that wo●ves may not privily creep in under sheeps cloathing Sixthly they should hinder the printing and spreading of dangerous and infectious books either from Ports or Presses and all other ways of diffusing leaven into the people Dr. Reynolds Peace of Jerusalem A certain friend having sent to Mr. Cotton of Boston in New England sundry Arguments against persecution for cause of conscience Mr. Cotton returned him this answer Quest Quest Your question saith he which you put is whether persecution for cause of conscience be not against the Doctrine of Christ who is King of Kings Answ Answ By persecution for cause of conscience I conceive you mean either for professing some point of doctrine which you believe in conscience to be truth or for practising some work which in conscience you believe to be a religious duty Now in points of Doctrine some are fundamental without a right beliefe whereof a man cannot be saved others are circumstantial and less principal wherein men may differ in judgement without endangering their salvation So in points of practice some concern the weightier duties of the Law so as if it be right fellowship with God is held If corrupt fellowship with him is lost Again in points of doctrine or worship less principal they are either held forth in a meek and peaceable way or in so arrogant and violent a way as tendeth to the disturbance of civill peace Lastly when we are persecuted for conscience sake it s either for conscience rightly informed or for an erronious and blinde conscience These things premised the answer is laid down in these conclusions First it s not lawful to persecute any for conscience-sake rightly informed for then Christ himself is persecuted in them Act. 9.4 Why persecutest thou me Secondly for an erroneous and blind conscience even in fundamentals it s not lawful to persecute any till after once or twice admonition Tit. 3.10 where the Apostle gives the direction and the reason viz. because in fundamental points of Doctrine and Worship the Word of God is so clear that he cannot but be convinced in conscience of the dangerous error of his way after one or two admonitions wisely and faithfully dispensed and then if he persist it s not out of conscience but against his conscience as ver 11. He is subverted and sinneth being condemned of himself If then such a man be punished he is not persecuted for his conscience but justly punished for sinning against his conscience Thirdly in things of lesser moment whether in doctrine or worship if they be held forth in a spirit of meeknesse and love he is not to be persecuted but tollerated till God shall please to manifest his truth unto him Phil. 3.17 Rom. 14.1 2 3 4. Fourthly but if a man hold forth any error or false way with a boisterous and proud spirit to the disturbance of civil peace he may be justly punished according to the quality of the disturbance made by him Obj. Object But Christ commands to let the tares and wheat grow together till the harvest Mat. 13.30 c. Answ Answ Tares are not Briars and Thornes but partly hypocrites like unto the god●y as tares are like the wheat or partly such corrupt doctrine or practises as are indeed insound but yet such as come nere the truth and so neere as good men may be taken with them and so the persons in whom they grow cannot be rooted out but the good will be rooted up with them and in such a case Christ calls for a tolleration not for a penal prosecution Obj. Object But Christ Mat. 15.14 would have the blinde let alone till they fall into the ditch therefore he would have their punishment deferred till their final destruction Answ Answ Christ speaks not there to publick Officers whether in Church or State but to his private Disciples concerning the Pharisees over whom they had no power But this makes nothing to the matter in hand Obj. Object But Luk. 19.54 Christ blames his Disciples who would have fire to come down from heaven to consume the Samaritans who refused to receive him Answ Answ This directs Ministers of the Gospel how to deal not with obstinate offenders who sinne within the Church against conscience but either with men without as the Samaritans were and many unconverted Christians in Creet whose conversion Titus was to seek or at best with some Jews and Gentiles within the Church who though carnal yet were not convinced of the errour of their way and so indeed it became not the spirit of the Gospel to convert aliens to the faith of Christ by fire and brimstome nor to deal harshly in their Ministry or private conference with all contrary minded men as either had not entred into Church fellowship or if they had did yet hitherto sin of ignorance not against conscience But neither of these do hinder Ministers from proceeding in a Church-way against Church-members when they become scandalous either in life or doctrine much lesse do they speak at all to the civil Magistrates Obj. Object But the Prophets foretold that carnal weapons should cease in the dayes of the Gospell as Isa 2.4 and 11.9 Micha 4.3 4. and Paul saith our weapons are not carnal 2 Cor. 10.4 and Christ bids his disciples not to persecute but to pray for their persecutors because they who are now persecutors may be converted Answ Answ The Prophets predictions do shew First with what kind of weapons God would subdue the Nations not by fire sword but by the power of the word and spirit 2. They shew what a meek and peaceable temper true Converts would be of not Lions Leopards c. not biters one of another but this forbids not to drive ravenous wolves from the sheepfold and to restraine them from devouring Christs sheep and when Paul saith our weapons are not carnal he ●enies not weapons of justice to the Civil Magistrate but onely to Church-Officers and yet he allows them such weapons as are ready to take vengeance on all disobedience 2 Cor. 10.6 which refers to the censures of the Church against scandalous Offenders 3. When Christ commands his Disciples to bless them that cursed and persecuted them he gives not a rule to publick Officers either in Church or State to suffer gross sinners either in life or doctrine to passe unpunished but teaches private Christians to suffer persecution patiently and to pray for their persecutors 4. Christ indeed would have his Disciples far from persecuting for that is a sinful oppression of men but this hinders not but that he would have them execute upon all disobedience the vengeance required in the word 2 Cor. 10.6