Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	apostle_n	doctrine_n	know_v	1,727	5	3.8363	3	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A85403	Mercy in her exaltation. Or, A soveraigne antidote against fear of the second death. In a sermon preached at the funeral of Daniel Taylor Esq; in Stephens Colemanstreet London, on the twentieth day of April, an. 1655.	Goodwin, John, 1594?-1665.	1655 (1655)	Wing G1181; Thomason E848_24; ESTC R202308	41,452	68

evil as hath been said as appears by that which followeth His heart is fixed his heart is established trusting in the Lord meaning that his trusting in God is that which fixeth and establisheth his heart so that it is not it cannot be shaken or tossed up and down within him with those storms and tempests and whirlwinds of fear which are the rending and tearing and tormenting of other mens A feather though it be a very weak and light thing and hath nothing in it self to balast it or wherewith to resist the least puff or whiff of wind yet if it be close and fast knit or bound to a great Rock it pertakes of the stability and firmness of this Rock and can no more be shaken or removed then the Rock it self In like manner a man made of flesh and blood a creature very contemptible in his own strength apt to be shaken and shattered in pieces with sad expectations and fears of what it may suffer from time to time yet being close united unto God and cleaving fast to him in trust and dependance becomes interessed in the security and unmoveableness of God himself This happy posture or condition of soul the Apostle calleth a being strong in the Lord and in the power of his might a meaning that good Christians and true beleevers ought to be as secure as dreadless and fearless of evil notwithstanding their own weakness as if they were themselves invested with the glorious omnipotencie or power of the might of God and had the same means for their preservation and safety in their own hands which now are in his He shall not be afraid saith David further displaying the security or fearless posture of his gracious and compassionate man until he see his desire upon his enemies i. e. until he shall see all those whether persons or things from whence he may be conceived to be in danger of suffering evil so broken scattered and confounded that he shall fully know himself to be out of all danger offuffering from them meaning that he should never be afraid For he that is without fear until he see his enemies utterly destroyed certainly will not be afraid afterwards Now the great and most formidable enemies of the Gracious and Compassionate man as he is a man are Death and Hell or the Grave with their sad and dismal retinue both a parte ●●te and a parte post before and after Therefore the man now before us Gracious and full of Compassion shall not be afraid i. shall enjoy himself in a blessed tranquillity and security of mind until he shall see his desire on them i. until he shall see both Death and Hell with all their train cast into the Lake of fire Rev. 20. 14. after which he shall apparantly be out of all danger of being hurt by them Why David insisteth up●n this qualification full of Compassion in characterizing such a person whose heart should be fixed and established by trusting in the Lord and consequently who should not be afraid c. and why a Person of this character should trust in the Lord and so be established rather then any other man shall be shewed unto you when we come to open the Ground and Reason of the Doctrine In the mean time give me your patience to add a brief passage or two out of the first Epistle of John for your further satisfaction in the truth of the Doctrine We know saith this Apostle in this Epistle c. 3. 14. that we have passed from Death to Life because we love the Brethren That he speaks here in a more particular manner of love to the poor Brethren which uttereth it self after the manner of goodness mercy and compassion appears from the sequel of the context and more especially from vers 17. But who so hath this worlds goods and seeth his Brother have need and shutteth up his Bowels of compassion from him how dwelleth the love of God in him Now then the Apostle as ye heard speaking thus We know that we have passed from Death to Life because we love the Brethren his meaning is that all they who love the Brethren in the sense specified i. express themselves in a way of kindness and mercy to such of the Brethren who are poor and stand in need of their help know hereby i. may readily or easily know hereby have a pregnant ground on which to be built up in this blessed confidence or assurance that they have passed from Death to Life that the bitterness of the wrath and vengeance which is to come is already passed as to them and that condemnation shall not be their portion The 17 and 18. verses of the 4th chapter of the same Epistle are confederate in Notion and Import with the now-opened passage and give testimony to the same Truth In the former Herein saith John is our love or love with us {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} made perfect that we may have boldness in the day of judgement because as he is so are we in this world As if he should say this is a signe an argument that our love hath attained some measure or degree of perfection and hath acted its part well when it hath raised us to a boldness or fearlesness of spirit in the day i. against the day of the judgement of the world Or thus the consideration of this great priviledge or fruit of our love when it shall be grown to any strength or perfection is a worthy motive unto us to perfect it or to hasten us to the perfecting of it viz. that by it we shall have boldness or liberty of face {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} in the day of judgement Now they who at present know they shall have boldness in the day of judgement must needs have even at present a large first fruits of that Harvest It follows because as he is so are we in this world This clause seems to contain a reason or ground of the former assertion and to import that our being found in this world by means of our love perfected like unto God or unto Christ who fils the world with the fruits of his love goodness and mercy is a pregnant reason why we should even at present promise unto our selves boldness in the day of judgement in as much as there is not the least colour for any jealousie or fear that God should condemn those in the day of judgment who have been like unto himself in works of love goodness and mercie works wherein himself most delighteth and this in a place where it is a matter of greatest difficulty and disadvantage for men to resemble him in these viz. this present world where there are so few examples leading or incouragements inducing unto such things yea and very many things greatly discouraging from them The Tenor of the latter of the two verses pointed at is There is no fear in love He speaks of love made perfect as appears both from the

and fashion you into the same image of Christian worth and desireableness with him The best way to make your selves as little losers as may be by his death is to live by the pattern of his life and to preserve the memory of all that was exemplary in him not so much for story or discourse as for a spur to a conscientious imitation Your day is coming as his is lately past yet a little while and you will all overtake him in the dust If in the mean time your hearts through the Grace of God will serve you so to live as that you may be counted worthy to stand at the same hand of Jesus Christ with him in the great day you and he shall never part company more The God of all Grace shall mightily incline your hearts to desire part and fellowship with him in this blessedness or else deny which I confidently hope he will not the fervent Prayer of From my Study in Swan Alley Colemanstreet May 15. 1655. Your Friend in Christ cordial and faithful to serve you JOHN GOODVVIN To the Reader GOod Reader I was bound with a threefold cord of ingagement to publish the Sermon in thy hand First the memory of my dear friend deceased at whose Funerals it was preached pleaded the law of friendship and by the Award hereof demanded either this or somewhat more monumentous if any such thing had been within my reach at my hand Secondly the solicitations of some of his relations and friends in the name of many more for the publication of it were too considerable to be neglected especially by me yea or by a person of greater breadth in the world then I. Lastly the misunderstanding as I hear of some things by some persons present at the delivery requires a more steady representation of what was spoken to make their crooked things streight The vulgar vote and report of the outward estate of my worthy friend now in an incapacity himself to rectifie mens apprehensions in any thing relating to him hath been somewhat injurious unto the preciousnesse of his memory and this even amongst those who know ground enough wherefore to honour him and onely suppose a ground wherefore they should honour him lesse The common estimate and discourse of his estate surmounting a third part and not a little more the reality and truth of it can seth the proportion of his bequests to appear lesse and so lesse honourable and lovely in the eyes of some the the truth of all things known and considered reason representeth them A twelfth or there abouts sequestred by will out of an estate where there is a wife and several children to be considered is no proportion of disparagement either to the wisdom or piety or bounty of any man especially where a life full of works of mercy hath gone before When those that are rich in this world are charged by God to be rich in good works a the charge questionlesse respecteth rather the time of the lives then of the deaths of such men And when as God himself hath contented himself with prescriptions in general as that rich men do good be ready to distribute willing to communicate be rich in good works c. b for men to undertake to prescribe particulars is a kind of pretending to be wise above that which is written However I wish rather then expect that they who complain that Grantham steeple stands awry would set up a streighter by it and fear that when themselves shall come to the triall they will justifie the truth of the Greek Proverb {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} i. e. that it is easier to carp then to copy or imitate But whilest others censure certain I am the poor lament and mourn over the loss of their good Benefactor and are like to have cause of greater lamentation for the future unlesse God shall vouch safe to stir up unto them some other one or more like unto him anointed with the like spirit of mercy in his stead Concerning the Sermon-mistakes of some for I do not hear of more then a very few that found what or how to mistake it seems they were jealous that some things delivered trench'd very neare if not too neare upon the Popish Doctrine of justification by works But certain I am that I speak nothing from first to last of works in reference to justification nor did either the subject I had in hand nor the method of my discourse lead me to treat little or much of justification especially not of that justification which consists in remission of sins I am not more clear nor better resolved in my judgement touching the truth of any one Article o● Doctrine of Christian Religion then that all the good works in the world were they or could they be perform'd by any one man that hath sinned in the least would not be able to procure the pardon or forgiveness of his sins Pardon of sin cannot be obtained by doing of good but by suffering evil and this by a person who is sinlesse according to the typical representation under the Law of which the Apostle speaks Heb. 9. 22. And almost all things are by the Law purged with blood {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} and without shedding of blood there is no remission That justification which consists in the divine approbation of men as well done good and faithful Servant Mat. 25. 21. 23. and so Then shall every man have praise of God 1 Cor. 4 5. of which kind of justification that is to be understood not the hearers of the Law are just before God but the doers of the Law shall be JUSTIFIED Rom. 2. 13. So again Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand come ye blessed of my Father inherit c. Mat. 25. 34. c. this kind of justification I say without which no man shall be saved more then without the other is to bee obtained by good works yet not properly nor so much by the merit of these works as by vertue of the Law of God's most gracious and bountifull acceptation And yet to say or think on the other hand that there is nothing at all in these works or nothing more then in others which are contrary to them to commend any man unto God for his approbation or acceptance is to reflect disparagement upon his wisdom and right●●●●●● esse in the establishment of that Law by which they come to be approved and accepted upon such terms Some words possibly might fall from me in my Sermon relating to this justification I mean to the notion matter or substance of it for as for the term or word it self I purposely declined it to prevent mistakes in those that might be weak not having then either time or occasion to open or handle the difference between the two justifications But I have had experience before now of that strein of weaknesse in many professors which makes them unable to