Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	believe_v	gospel_n	great_a	1,658	5	3.2008	3	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A61692	A short discovery of certain truths of God according as they are revealed through the manifestation of the eternal light of the Son of righteousnesse, which are, a reply against two things in an epistle, and, an answer to certain queries contained in a book, intituled Christian queries, to quaking Christians, subscribed by one J.B. : also queries propounded, to be answered by the authour of the same book, or any other / by John Story.	Story, John, d. 1681.	1664 (1664)	Wing S5753; ESTC R4917	25,813	34

swearing which was fully forbidden in the law of God before but he positively excludes all manner of swearing in the dayes of the Gospel and likewise the Apostle saith James 5. 12. Above all things my brethren swear not neither by Heaven neither by the Earth neither by any other oath but let your yea be yea and your nay nay least you fall into condemnation which two testimonies are sufficient to confirme the truth unto all true Christian men that it is in no wise lawfull for them to swear in any case Many more testimonies might be instanced out of the Ecclesiastical histories of the ancient Christians some of whome holding it in no wise lawfull for Christian men to swear suffered death for the profession of Christ a Acts Monuments Vol. 2. fol. 55. Policarpus who as 't is said was John's Disciple b Euseb lib. 6. cap. 4. pag. 98. Basilides a Christian Martyr and the Waldenses whose names are so famous among the reformed Churches and are said immediately to succeed the Apostles being the most ancient and true Protestants professed it to be no way lawfull for a Christian man to swear and the c Acts Monnuments Vol. 1. fol. 527. Plow-man in his prayer and Chrisostome who was Bishop of Constantinople blameth them greatly that brought forth a book to swear upon charging Clarks that in no wise they constrain any body to swear whether they think a man swear true or false saying d Acts Monuments Vol. 2 70. it is a sin to swear well And these forementioned testimonies with many others which might be instanced out of Ecclesiastical histories were given against swearing and though the Apostle saith Heb. 6. 16. That an oath for confirmation amongst men is to them an end of strife yet this doth in no wise justifie or prove swearing lawfull amongst Christians for he speaks that by way of allusion as being the strongest bond in the old time in which the promise was made whereby men could bind themselves to set forth unto believers the certainty of Gods promise being confirmed by such a strong bond as an oath was among men in the old time when the promise was made to Abraham and his seed after him and as for the Apostles saying an oath among men is to them an end of strife I say that did rather allude or relate to what was at any time done for the ending of strife amongst those Hebrews who had not received the Gospel then that any such thing was done or practised amongst those believers to whom he writ his Epistle For if he had instanced any such practice amongst them he should not have said an oath amongst men but an oath amongst you c. Which he did not 13. Query Whether it be not the great duty and concernment of every Christian to plead for and vindicate all such Gospel truths as he hath formerly received and yet believeth and 1. whether a Christian may not earnestly contend for the truth once delivered Jude 3. 2. whether it be not the duty of all Christians with readinss to render an account of his faith to him that asketh him 1 Pet. 3. 15. And 3. whether it be not your concernment to return some satisfactory answer to the Author of these Queries Answ It is a duty of concernment to every child of God both to plead for and vindicate the truth the knowledge of which he hath received of our Lord Jesus Christ by the utmost force of those spiritual weapons or arguments wherewith he is furnished thereunto by the word and counsel of the Lord against all those that may gain say it in doctrine practice or conversation following the example of the Apostles and messengers of the great King The weapons of whose warfar were not carnal neither was their war against the flesh and bloud of men in error but the weapons wherewith they warred were spiritual and mighty through God to the destroying of that spirit of wickedness which leads into error and also to the recovering many out of error who have been captivated in error And they that are furnished with the spiritual wisdome word and power of the Lord God by which many are turned to righteousness they shall shine as the brightness of heaven and as the starrs for ever and ever Lastly it 's the duty of the children of God who in measure experience redemption and sanctification by Christ Jesus to give a reason according to their ability with meekness and fear of that precious hope and faith through which they have or may overcome in the day of tryal and hour of temptation which cometh upon all the world to try them that dwell upon the Earth and that excellent hope and faith in which the Saints are preserved in this day and hour of tryal and through which they shall be purified and made more white that their innocency may shine forth as the Sun in the Kingdome of their Father and which keeps from fainting to the end is of more worth then gold that perisheth and is not to be valued with all created excellencies or compared with any glory of this fading world therefore I may say of the faith and hope of which Christians ought to give a reason as Job did of wisdome man knows not the price thereof neither is it found in the land of the living Having in the love and fear of the Lord returned an answer to I. B. his Queries and therein given some reason and account of our faith and judgement in the things queried it s desired that I. B. may answer these following Queries in the same love that we may know a reason of his faith and judgement concerning the things queried Query 1. WHether Christ by that one act of his death and suffering hath so done away or blotted out the sins of the children of men that the divine justice of his father is so answerd or satisfied thereby that he looks upon men to be in his Son notwithstanding they are yet sinners and accepts them as perfectly righteous in his sight only in and through what Iesus hath done for them by his death upon the Crosse Query 2. Whether God who is the righteous Judge of all the world doth so impute his righteousnesse as to justifie any man upon the earth thereby in the self same capacity as his righteous law in Christ condemns him Query 3. Whether any man upon earth is absolutely acqvitted and freed from sin by virtue of what Christ hath done and suffered without whiles as yet the witnesse of Gods Spirit in his own heart and conscience condemns him Query 4. Whether there is any such thing as that any mans sins are done away past present and to come whiles as yet he doth not cease to commit sin Query 5. And if the eternal God doth impute the righteousnesse of his Son so as to justifie any while they do not yet cease to commit sin why doth he not so unto all seeing

not abolished or made void through faith in Christ Jesus as it is written Do we through faith make void the Law God forbid Rom. 3. 31. Through faith we establish the Law for it is by virtue of faith in the Gospel that Christians are fully enabled to practice those religious duties which were commanded under the Law viz. to love God with all their heart and with all their mind for our Saviour calls this the first and great Commandement saying the second is like unto it thou shalt love thy neighbour as thy self and on these two commandements hang the whole Law and the Prophets Mat. 22. 37 38 39 40. these religious duties with many other righteous practises of the people of God under the Law are indeed binding to Christians under the Gospel First Christians ought to live and continue in sincere desires after God at all times and to pray unto him not onely at morning evening and at noon day but at all seasons and hours wherein they shall find the immortal birth of life inclining their hearts to seek after him and his spirit to help their infirmities without the help of which Christians cannot pray ask or seek aright as it is written Rom. 8. 26. 27. We know not what we should pray for as we ought but the spirit it self maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered and the motions of this immortal life and spirit of our heavenly Father is not limitted to dayes set times places or houres of dayes but when and what time it inclines and moves Christians are to follow and as they seek through and by its assistance they shall find and as they ask in the life and nature thereof they shall receive theirs hearts desire and obtain the thing which they pray for Secondly It is lawfull for Gods people to set apart a time for religious exercise as did Daniel and the rest of the servants of the Lord who notwithstanding the great afflictions and persecutions which attended them for righteousnesse sake and for their practice in the worship of God yet did they continue not only to professe him openly but to worship him after their accustomed manner as appears by the Scriptures which I. B. hath instanced Dan. 6. 10 13. with several other Scriptures which might be mentioned whose example herein I desire the Lord may instruct all Christians in sincerity to follow and continue in the practice of the doctrines exhortations of the Apostles and Ministers of Christ who exhorted the Saints not to forsake the assembling themselvs together as the manner of some was Heb. 10. 25. but as the day approacheth exhort one another in which practice the true Christians ever did walk and continue notwithstanding the cruel persecution grievous afflictions that were inflicted upon them by ungodly men of this world for so doing viz. their continuing in the profession of Christianity and practice of meeting together to wait upon and worship the Lord in Spirit and truth for which holy practice so great were the sufferings and afflictions by them indured as may be read at large in Ecclesiastical Histories that Fox saith in the book of Martyrs what fires what tortures without respect either to age or sex they were inforced to feel then did the earth without doubt bewail her children and the round world which containeth all things being imbrued with their bloud made a dolefullamentation for them and the day it self provoked to mourn was amazed for them when the very barbarous Nations rejoyce for their sakes which received and harboured them when they were afraid and fled from us keeping them as it were in a most loving and amiable captivity to which I may say Alas alas that ever any that professe the same Christ as these persecuted Christians suffered for should now Acts and Monuments lib. 1. fol. 92. become persecutors and not only of such as in words deny him but even of such as confesse and believe in him to be the only Saviour of the world Surely the true Christian soul that seriously considereth will be greatly afflicted and the heart that sees it cannot but mourn in the beholding of the woful apostacy darknesse and delusions in which many thousand Christians are fallen who professe Christ in words and yet walk so far contrary to the light of Christ and are so far out of his nature which is to shew kindnesse mercy and love to all men not only to them that believe but to them that believe not even with long patience to instruct them that they may believe and repent but the heart that is possessed with the true knowledge of the woful backsliding from the ancient doctrine and truth of the Gospel in which those persecuted Christians walked both in and after the Apostles dayes beholding this dismal night that is come upon multitudes of Christians cannot but even take up a lamentation and cry Alas alas that ever any who professe Christ should be so far void of his bowels and mercies and should have so far lost all tendernesse of conscience that they should even now persecute their brethren who professe and believe in the same God and Christ as they in words professe and believe having no other reason for their so doing but only because they differ from them in some ceremonial and outward practices of Christianity Alas alas that ever the Devil the enemy of mankind should so far delude and deceive men who agree in the outward profession of one God and Christ which is the main and weighty matter in the outward profession of Christian Religion Oh that ever they should be so far darkned and misled to afflict and persecute about the smaller matters or outward practices of Religion whenas it ought to be a duty incumbent upon all who professe the name of Christ to perswade one another in the power of the Gospel and if the true Christian cannot overcome the errour of the mind in the false Christian after this manner he ought notwithstanding to walk in love towards him and leave him to the Lord who is that great Potter that hath power over all men to change from errour to truth and out of death into life when and what time soever he pleaseth Thirdly Christians are to mind in that serious and weighty duty of Prayer the motions and leadings of Gods Spirit through which their infirmities are helped and they not praying in their own name or will but in the name of Christ their prayers become effectual and God answers them in the things they pray for as it is written John 14. 13 14. Fourthly It is a duty incumbent upon all true Christians to use family duties viz. to pray unto him as they are led thereunto by the heavenly birth and Spirit which of him they have received And parents ought to instruct their Children by word and godly example as they may find the Spirit of Christ lead them so to do by the virtue and authority of which their