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A14653 The doctrine of the Sabbath Wherein the first institution of the vveekly Sabbath, with the time thereof, the nature of the law binding man to keep it, the true ground, and necessity of the first institution, and of the observation of it, on the severall day in the Old Testament, and also of the moving of it to the first day under the Gospel, are laid open and proved out of the Holy Scriptures. Also besides the speciall dueties necessarily required for the due sanctification thereof, those two profitable points are proved by demonstrations out of Gods Word. First, that the Lord Christ God and man, is the Lord of the Sabbath, on whom the Sabbath was first founded...2. That the faithfull under the Gospell are as necessarily bound to keep the weekly Sabbath of the Lords day... Deliverd in divers sermons by George Walker B. of Divinity and pastor of St. Iohn Evangelists Church in London. Walker, George, 1581?-1651. 1638 (1638) STC 24957; ESTC S103296 151,861 168

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mear and drinke offerings of fine flower mingled with oyle and such like and incense and gummes and spices they where but tipes and shaddowes of Christ his substanciall sacrifice and in that respect holy by Consecration And though divers of them were indifferent and tollerable while the bodily Temple was yet standing Yet when God hath cast them out by the destruction of the materiall temple the chaunge of the weekly Sabbath they are growne unlawfull to be practised and the reviuing of the practise of them is called abomination Dan. 12. And apostacy from Christ Gala. 4 5. turning againe to weak and beggarly elements and rudiments and becoming slaues to them Gal. 4.9 Wherfor we are now onely to observe in our sanctification of our holie weekly Sabbath such holie duties and exercises as are holie at al● times and in all ages both before and under the law and now also under the Gospell which in their owne nature are either trulie holie or t●nde to beg it increase and cherish holie graces in men And because God hath by the Gospell shined into our hearts to giue us the light of the knowledge of his glorie the face of Iesus Christ 2 Cor. 4.6 And hath shed his spirit on us aboundantly through him Tit. 3.6 And soe made us more spirituall because also our Saviour himselfe hath taught vs in the Gospell that God is a spirit they are true worshippers who worship him in spirit Iohn 4.23.24 Therefore the chiefest duties by which the Sabbath is sanctifi●d are the most speciall duties of Gods worshippe and the more spirituall the more pleasing to God more beseeming Christ●ans Soe that the first rule which is here to be giuen and to be observed is this That all Gods people doe chiefely labour to stirre up and quicken the grace of God in their hearts and holy heavenly and supernaturall aff●ctions in their soules that with pure mind● and spirits they may performe all duties and actions of Gods worship and seruice both publick and priuate It is true that all times and on all daies we ought to keepe our whole spirit and soule as well as our body pure and blameles to serue God as well with inward affection of heart and purity of spirit as ou●ward visible sencible actions and gestures of body But because the Lords day is the most blessed daie of the w●eke sanct●fied set apart for the holy worshippe and immediate service of God and for publick and priuate service devotion and Religious duties onelie therefore we all ought to haue as great care to furnish our soules with spiritual beauties of holinesse more abundan●ly in greater measure as we haue to make cleane and neate our houses and to decke and adorne our bodies with our best and cleanest holy daie apparell on the Lords day For though outward bodily actions gestures are required as r●quisit and necessary in the publick worship of God and without them it is as impossible to do that publick duty and service to God which belongs to mutuall edification of Christians in this life to the solemne lauding and praising of him in publick assemblies as it is to performe visible senceable actions of this life by the soule only without the body Yet bodily service worship of God as coming duly diligently to the house of God to publick assemblies hearing the word withall attentions and speaking it with great vehemency Praying worshipping and giving thankes in the best forme of wordes which can be devised and with most humble and reverent gestures of devotion as bowing down the body to the ground knocking of the breasts sighing groaning lifting up the hands and eyes to heaven and the like they all without spirituall affection and devotion of the heart are no better then a dead karcast without a soule yea they are filthy hyp●crisie and mockerie of God and lothsome abomination in his sight as the Lord by the Prophet testifieth Isa. 1 c 10 to the 16 verse 29 13 And therefore let our first and chiefest care bee about the fitting and preparing of our hearts and filling and replenishing our soules with spiriruall affections and quickening and stirring up inward and spirituall grace within us for these are the life and soule of all religious duties of all holy worship of God without them we can̄ot in the least measure sanctifie Gods holy day nor performe any least duty of sanctificatiō acceptable to God Now the speciall means which serve for the quickning of spirituall grace kindling of spirituall devotion in our hearts are diuers The First is that which J haue spoken of befor in the duties which concerne Rest to weet a totall sequestring of our selues from all worldly businesse puting away all earthly thoughts cares delights that our whole heart and soule all our affections being purged from all such drosse may haue roome for holinesse only and for spirituall devotion and motions of the spirit For no man can serve two Masters at once God and the world Cast out earthlie carnall thoughts and spiritual and heavenlie affections will easilie enter and beare sway And because this sequestring of our selves from cares of the world must go befor true sanctification in order time therfor undoubtedlie the beginning of the Lords Sab daie is there where the old Iewish Sab ended that is in the evening of the Saturdaie And certainlie when men taking their Rest from labour the whole night befor the Lords daie for sequestring themselves from worldlie businesse fitting of their soules with spirituall devotion and stirring vp of grace in their hearts then do they most profittablie begin their Sabbath for by the meanes the time of preparation and quitting of the minde from worldlie troublesome thoughts shall go before the time of practise and publick assemblies Wherein they are to appeare before God and to performe the maine duties of Sanctification and of his holy worship And her● J cannot passe by without some reproofe that evill carnall custome most worthy to be condemned which is to common among our Cittizens who defer their reckoni●g with their worke-men untill the evening and night which beginns the Lords day Let me here admonish you all to forsake this practise if you loue the Lord and will honour his holy Sab. The second meanes is to meditate on those things which may stirre up our dull spirits and quicken grace in our hearts as first upon the greatnesse holinesse and gl●rie ●f the Lord and more specially to present our selves when the light of the day commeth both to speak to him in praier and praises to heare him speake to us in his word read and preached This must needs moue and stirre up spirituall devotion and affection as we see by experience in worldly things how carefull we are to trimme and fit our selves when we are to go before an earthly King or some great Nobles Secondly to consider what holinesse and purity especially of
As for example Gods commandement and law given to Israell was that they should loue him the Lord their God and serue him with such worship as is agreable to his word This law bindes them and all Gods people in all generations unchaungable Jt bound all such as lived in the old Testament to serve God with sacrifices and burnt offerings and to worship him with their first fruits and sweet odoures and perfumes of incense and that in the place which he did chuse out of all the tribes of Israell And it bindes vs still who liue under the new Testament to loue God and to serue him But with a spirituall woshippe and seruice such as is most agreable to the word of the Gospell as Saint Paul shewes Rom. 12. ● and our sacrifices are not of bruite beasts but our owne bodies deuoted to the obedience of Christ and sacrifices of thankes and praise which are the calfes of our lipps Heb. 13.15 for now men are not by the lavv bound to worship God In Ierusalem nor in the mountaine of Samaria but in every place to lift up pu●e hands and hearts to God and to worshippe him in spirit and in truth Iohn 4.21 And to this worshipp the same law doth as strictlie binde us as it did the fathers to their bod●ly sacrafices in Ierusalem though the seruice in divers particulars is chaunged yet the law is perpetual and st●nds firme and immutable and bindes all Gods people in al their generations Soe likewise from the first promise of Christ a redeemer to mankinde Adam and all his posterity are bound to beleeve in Christ and to seeke expect and hope for salvation and life only in him the promised seede of the woman that is in him made man and mans mediatour And the law of beleeuing in Christ is perpetuall firme and vnch●ungable And yet the dutie which he requires is changeable and is chaunged now under the Gospel from that which is under the law in circumstance for the faithfull in the old Testament were bound to except and wait for Christ and to beleeve in him to come but we under the Gospel confesse Christ and beleeue in that Christ Iesus which is come in the flesh ●nd whosoever confesseth not Christ which is come but beleevs Christ to come he is lead by the spirit of Antichrist 1 Joh. 4.3 And euen thus the case stands with the law of the Sabbath which God gaue in the beginning when he sanctified the seuenth day for by that law he bound Adam and all his posterity to obserue and keepe an holy weekly Sabbath and that one the particular day of the week which is the day most blessed with the greatest blessing aboue all other daies of the weeke and wherein the created worke of the world comes to greatest perfection and that is brought into actuall being where God especiallie resteth and wherewith he is chiefly satisfied delighted This is the summe and substance of the law which equallie bindes all Gods people perpetually to the worlds end This law bound the fathers to keepe holy the seventh day and last day of the weeke in the old Testament because that was the day most blessed with the greatest blessing as yet reuealed in the world that is the promise of Christ his actuall undertaking beginning to be mans mediatour by which promise of the redeemer bringing in of supernaturall grace which is spirituall immutable the mutable worke of the creation was perfected in which mediatō of Christ God rested took such delight that he would not go about to uphold the world by way of creation but cōmitted the reparation of the world to Christ the mediatour But now under the go●pel since the ful exhibition of Christ a perfect actual redeemer the perfecting of the work of redemption on the first day of the week in Christ his resurrectiō that first day of the seuenth which is the seventh in the weekly revolution if we count the daies begin̄ing with the daie next following is now the day most blessed wherin the created world is after a better manner in an higher degree perfected God findes that actually performed wherin he resteth wherwith he is fully satisfied And therfore the same perpetuall law of the Sabbath bindes us to keepe this day for our weekly Sabbath that not with such service as was holy under the law that double bodily sacrifices nor with assemblies appointed for preaching reading hearing of the law the promises of a redeemer to come for seeking salvation blessings in Messiah promised yet not come But with spirituall worship faithfull praier invocation in the name of Christ exhibited already exalted with reading preaching hearing of the gospel which declareth Christ Iesus already come in the flesh And thus I hope I haue fully answered the objection made it manifest the christian churches in chaunging the day of their weekly Sabbath their forme manner of worship haue not made void but established the law of the Sabbath which God gaue in the beginning and these chaunges doe in no case proue the law to be ceremoniall onely and mutable neither doth the moralitie and perpetuity of the law require that every circumstance of the Sabbath and every particular Sabbath duty should at all times remain the same perpetual unchangable CHAP. 10. BVT that this truth may yet shine forth more clearlie and may soe m●nifestlie shew it selfe that no scruples may remaine nor any doubts concerning it or any part of it I will proced to the second special thing which is before propounded That is to inquire search out discover the nature and kinde of this law and commandement of God concerning the weeklie Sabbath And how farre and in what manner it bindes Adam and all his posterity And her● I haue alarge field to passe through wherein divers points offer themselues to our view which J cannot passe by nor lead you along withou● due consideration of them First here J meete with divers and severall opinions of the learned concerning the law of the sabbath which come first to be rehearsed and examined Secondly I finde severall kindes of lawes which God hath given to men mentioned in the Scripture and divers sorts of commandements which we must severally discribe and distinctlie consider before we can determine that which principallie is here intended that is what kinde of law and commandement this of the Sabbath is and how farre and in what manner all man kinde are obliged by it bound to obey it The first opinion is that the law of the Sabbath is naturall morall perpetuall writen in the heatt of the first man in his creation And that as he was bound to keepe the seventh day holy to the Lord in the state of innocency Soe also are all his posteritie bound in all all ages even to the last man to keepe the weeklie Sabbath But they who conceiue
writings of the most godly diuines and builders of our Church Gods people are vrged by the law of God even the fourth Commandement to keepe holy the Lords day for the Christian weekly Sabbath and in our divine service after the publicke rehearsing of that commandement in the congregation are injoyned to pray in these words Lo●d haue mercy upon us and incline our hea●tes to keepe thy law And this you see the first generall duty of the Sabbath to weet Resting from worldly affaires clearly proved and that while their is a Sabbath or weekly day of holy assemblies either under the Gospel all men are bound to observe this rest The second generall duty necessa●ily to be performed in the keeping of the Sabbath is sanctification which is by mens devoting of themselves wholy to divine worship such religious actions as God requirs in the times of the Church in which they live such as are publick assemblies for praising God praying to him preaching reading expounding and hearing of his word commemoration of his great works and rehearsing of his promises for common edification Also private praier● and meditations on heavenly things domesticall instructions and the like All these are necessary Sabbath duties to be observed of al men in all ages both under the old new testament First the words wherin Moses here in my text discribes Gods first institutiō of the Sabbath proue this fully For here it is said that God sanctified it that is set it apart for holy exercises in the performance whereof men do sanctifie it For sanctifying is either by infusion of holinesse into the thing sanctified or setting it apart to holy use and exercise but it had no holinesse infused into it as I haue else where proved Therefore it was sa●ctified by consecration that is setting apart to holy use Secondly it is called the holy Sabbath that is such a day of rest as is to be kept Exod. 16.23 before the giving of the fourth commandement as Moses shewes saying To morrow is the rest of our holy sabbath to the Lord that is this is a rest not of idlenesse but from common affairs that men may be exercised in holy duties onely Thirdly in the giving of the law from mount Sina God commands expresly that all his people doe remember to sanctifie and keepe holie the sabbath which cannot be but by exercise of holy duties and performance of holy service and worshippe vnto God Exod. 2● 9 L●stly in all the scriptures of the law which speake of the sabbath in the old Testament it is called the Lords holy sabbath And sanctification of it is required as appeares Exod. 31.15 5.2 Deut. 5.12 And in the Evangellicall Prophets which speake of the sabbath both of old and also in the last daies of the Gospell it is called the Lords Holy day Isa. 58 13 66 23 and it is said that all flesh that is true Christians of all nations Shall from one Sabbath to another come to worship before the Lord Ezech. 44.24 They shall hallow the Sabbath But here some perhaps will object That none can truly sanctifie the Sabbath nor performe a●y holy duty who are wholy carnall unregenerate and haue not the spirit of God dwelling in them sanctifying them such are many even in the bosome of the true Church And therfore sanctification of the Sabbath cannot be a generall duty performed by al men nor requi●ed of all but is a special duty pr●per to the elect Saints who are truly sanctified others were neuer able to sanctifie the sabbath and therefore it is not a duty which God can justly require of all in generall Jt is true indeed that as a bitter fountaine corrupt can send forth no sweet and pure water so no naturall man can performe a true holy duty Holines is a supernaturall guift of the holy Ghost and he it is who enables men to performe all workes which are eternally holy But as ther is a two fold sanctification the one internal which is the wo●k of the holy Ghost in men the other externall which is the consecrating setting apart of things naturall and artificiall to be imployed to an holy vse and to supernaturall end so also there are two sorts of holy exercise Some which are eternally holy as holy prayers and praises and all workes of true piety which onely holy men performe by the power of the holy Ghost working in them and mouing them Others are only externally holy by outward consecration seperation because the are appointed to be done for holy use to be used in the worship of God such are all outward religious duties as sacrificing and such like performed by Hipocrites and carnall professours in the old Testament such as Caine Saul and Elis wicked sonnes were And reading preaching set formes of prayer and gestures of worship performed by Hipocrites both before and under the Gospel These later are in the power of Hipocrites and unregenerate men who by a common guift and generall grace are enabled to performe farre more in this kinde then they do or are willing to do Now though all men cannot performe the first yet so farr as they are able they are bound to performe the later sort of dut●es among which are the externall sanctifications of the Sabbath as frequenting holy and publick ass●mblies singing of Psalmes joyning with the Church in publick prayers and the like which as they are able to do so they are bound to do and if they refuse in such things to conforme themselves they are punis●ed both by God for disobedience to his law and also by the Censures of the Church The third generall duty necessarily required of all in the observation of the Sabbath is That they keep for their holy Sabbath that verie day of the week whether it be the first or seventh which God hath blessed aboue all other daies with the greatest blessing and which he hath sanctified aboue all other daies by more full relation of his own holines to the world and opening of a more wide doore of holines for the san●tifying of all his people Thus I prove First most plainly from the words of my text which describe Gods first institution of the Sabbath First by blessing it aboue other daies with that greatest of blessings even the promise of Christ a perfect Saviour and Redeemer of mankinde Secondly by sanctifying it in revealing his holinesse to man and sanctifying man by his spirit the promise and thereupon appointing it to be kept holy As I haue fully before proved Secondly the Lord God himselfe both in giving the law from mount Sina and often repeating of the fourth Commandement by Moses still vrgeth the obseruation of the weekly Sabbath upon this groūd because he hath on that day Redeemed them out of the house of bo●dage with a mighty hand streached out arme Deut. 5.15 in oth●r places for indeede on the Sabbath he redemed them and
all our owne ordinarie and common workes and labours Fourthlie they who are more spirituall and haue haue liuely hope of Heaven and haue the spirit shed on them more abundantlie they are more bound by Gods law to sequester themselves and withdraw their mindes from worldlie cares and more to minde heavenlie things as at all other times so on the Lords holie daie which is consecrated to heavenly spirituall and religious worship and seruice of God is a pledg to them of eternall rest with Christ in heaven For to whome God hath given more of them shall more bee required Now it is most plainly testified in the Scriptures That Christians vnder the Gospell are more spirituall and haue the spirit more abundantly shed on them through Christ then the Fathers had Act. 2.17 Tit. 3.6 The Ministery of the new Testament is the ministery of the spirit not of the letter 2 Cor. 3.6 And we haue now more evidence more assurance of the blessed hope reserued in heaven for vs. Colos. 1.5 There is Christ our life and Treasure Colos. 3 1.2 And there our hearts ought to be and not on earthly things We must now be ready if Christ call vs to sell all and to giue to the poore that we may haue treasure in heaven Therefore we are bound by the law especially on the Lords day our weekly holy day to be more sequestered from the world and to rest wholy from all cares and labours about earthly things that we may be wholy deuoted to heavenly things and to divine meditations Lastly though Auncient Fathers and Doctours of the Church did much condemne in their writings the observation of the Sabbath after the manner of the later Iewes to weet in idlenesse and from resting from all worldly affaires that they might spend the day in vaine sports and delights and in wanton leaping and dauncing which in the graue judgment of these learned Fathers Was worse and more prophane then plowing and digging and working in woll Yet notwithstanding they doe generally commend the Lords day as a day of rest to all Gods people from all rurall workes and worldly affaires that they may be at leasure to exercise themselues in holy duties and be wholy devoted to the worshipp of God And hereupon it is that the learned of these later times especially the builders of Gods Church in this land do most frequently in respect of this rest and cessarion from al seculiar affaires call the Lords day the Sabbath of Christians as appeares in the first part of the Homily of the time and place of prayer and do affirme that as the Fathers in the old Testament were bound to rest one the seventh day from all manner of worke Soe also are Christians bound on the Lords day to rest and that by the law of God CHAP. 20 THE second position which I haue propounded before which now Comes to be proved is That Gods law rightly understood doth in respect of this duty of rest from all worldly affaires as strictly bind us under the Gospell on the Lords day as it bound the fathers on the Sabbath of the seventh day in the old Testament Here some will perhaps imagine that I goe about to laye an heavy yoke of Jewish legall bondage upon Christians contrary to Christian liberty by which Christ hath made us free But if they remember and beare in minde what I haue before proued to weet That the fathers from the beginning had no such burden imposed on them as is commonly conceived and that the Scrip●ures are alleaged to proue that they might not kindle a fire nor dresse meate nor goe out of their place on the Sabbath day and that it was death to gather sticks on that day in case of necessity are much mistaken They shall be forced to confesse that I take away the heavy yoke which many lay upon the Fathers in the old Testament ra●hen then lay any yoke upon Christians in the obseruation of the Sabbath Yea that I require and urge no more then that which all the learned of best note in all ages haue ever since the time of the Apostles and by tradition from them commended to the Churches of Christ which also the lawes Canons and Doctrine of the Church of England generally receiued and established doe impose on us the light burden and easie yoke of Christ. It is true that the Scribes and Pharises those great corrupters of the law and blinde Hypocrites as our Saviour cals them did lay an heavy yoke on the people of their time by their false glosses and corrupt traditions as in diuers other points so in the obseruation of the Sabbath They held it unlawfull in case of necessity to pull an eare of corne or any fruite from a tree on the Sabbath day and blamed Christs Disciples for doing so when they were hungry and had no other meanes to keepe themselues from fainting They accused our Saviour Christ for working a glorious miracle and doing a worke of great charity on the Sabbath when by his word he healed some that were sick of great infirmities and sent them away bearing their beds on their backes in open sight of all which tended much to the honour of God and made the people glorifie Christ and his Gospell But our Saviour reproues them for this strictnesse and convinceth them of errour by diuers argument● First by Scripture which saith that God will haue mercy rather then sacrifice that is God is serued more acceptably with workes of mercy which are morall duties then sacrifices which are but a seruice ceremonial he delights more in works of mercy charity then in them as at all times so when they are done to his glory on the Sab day So that if it was a breach and prophanation of the Sab to do any worke of mercie in it then it must needs be much more a prophanation to labour worke about sacrifices in killing beasts dressing washing their flesh making fires to burne them on the Altar which were not so pleasing to God as works of mercy But the Pharisees allowed approued such works of sacrificing durst not condemn thē And th●●for our Saviour concludes that they ought not to condemne his mercifull works of healing the sick on the Sab day shewes that by censuring his doings for prophanation they did much more censure the forenamed actions of their Priests even the dressing burning sacrifices mat 12.5.6.7 Secondly our Saviour proues that by Gods owne law they were allowed to circumcise children on the Sab day whensoever it happened to fall out on the eight daie after the birth of children and to the Child circumcised they applied healing medicin●s and therfore they groslie erred in accusing him for healing on the Sabbath which was a thing pleasing to God and was a lesse labour then Circumcision Iohn 7.22 Thirdlie he convinceth them of grosse hypocrisie and blindnesse in that they imposed heavie burdens upon