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	know_v	see_v	4,378	5	3.2373	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A29102	The imperfect promulgation of the Gospel consider'd a sermon preach'd in the Church of St. Mary le Bow, January 7, 1699/1700 : being an appendix to the lectures of the last year appointed by the Honourable Robert Boyle, Esq. / by Samuel Bradford.	Bradford, Samuel, 1652-1731.	1700 (1700)	Wing B4115; ESTC R25291	15,205	36

to fit in darkness because when they had an Oportunity of having the Gospel promulg'd amongst them they obstinately rejected it or it may be because they have so universally and grosly sinn'd against the Light of Nature despis'd the Dictates of Conscience and degenerated into such vile and devilish Dispositions that if the Gospel were preach'd amongst them it would only serve to aggravate their Condemnation This is very agreeable to the Directions which our Lord gave his Apostles Matth. 1● 11.14 when he sent them abroad to preach Into whatsoever City or Town ye shall enter enquire Who in it is worthy And again Whosoever shall not receive you nor hear your Words when ye depart out of that House or City shake off the Dust of your Feet namely Mark 6.11 as a Testimony against them that they had the offer of the Gospel but were so wicked as to reject it T is consonant also to our Saviour's Declaration that Whosoever hath to him shall be given Matth. 13.12 and he shall have abundance And from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath which is the Reason he assigns Verse 1● 11. Why he spake to the multitude in Parables Whilst he reveal'd to his Disciples the Mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven adding Therefore speak I to them in Parables Verse 13. because they seeing see not and hearing they hear not neither do they understand c. 'T is certain that this may be assign'd as a Reason why the Light of the Gospel is departed from or at least very much obscured in diverse Places where it once shone very bright namely that it was not duly improv'd by those whom it enlightned We know how our Lord threaten'd the Church of Ephesus Rev. 2.4 5. for leaving her first Love Remember therefore saith he from whence thou art fallen and repent and do the first Works or else I will come unto thee quickly and will remove thy Candlestick out of his Place except thou repent which Threatning has been long since remarkably fulfill'd in the prevailing of Mahometanism in those Parts and if GOD hath not dealt as severely with others who may have deserv'd it as much his Goodness should not make them presume but lead them to Repentance Fifthly I have yet farther this weighty Consideration to offer in this Case viz. That the Efficacy of our Saviour's Undertaking for Men doth certainly extend much farther than the actual Knowledge of him doth This must be suppos'd as to Infants at least such as are enter'd into the Christian Covenant by Baptism that they are capable of Salvation by Jesus Christ without actually knowing and believing in him This must again be allow'd as to all the good Patriarchs and other pious Men amongst the Jews who although they did believe and hope in God for the fulfilling of the great Promise of a Messiah to come yet did not see that Promise fulfill'd nor could actually know and believe in him as we do Such in truth was the Goodness of God to Mankind as to testifie his Compassion towards them immediately after the Fall by the Promise then made of the Woman's Seed that is of the Messiah which Promise as it was renew'd upon all occasions so as an Effect of his Interposition were confer'd all the Benefits which Mankind receiv'd from God after the sin of our first Parents It was upon his account that they were respited from present Death and that their Posterity have been blest with all those Favours Temporal and Spiritual which they have enjoy'd from that time to this insomuch that the Efficacy of our Lord's Undertaking is to bear date from the first Promise of it nay from the Purpose and Intention of God before his actual Promise But more particularly yet Sixthly The Holy Scriptures do every where represent our Saviour as having made Expiation for the sins of all Mankind without Exception as well those who were born before his appearing as since and those who live in the remotest and darkest Corners of the Earth as those to whom the Gospel is publish'd He is the Propitiation for our sins saith St. John 1 John 2 2. and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole World There is saith St. Paul 1 Tim. 2.5 6. one Mediator between God and Men who gave himself a Ransom for all to be testified in due time And the same Apostle in a set Discourse expresly makes the Benefit of Christ's Death in the design of it to extend as far as the sin of Adam had done Rom. 5.13 c. The Author to the Hebrews affirms that our Saviour took our Nature upon him Heb. 2.9 that he by the Grace of God might taste death for every Man And the same inspir'd Writer is very express in declaring that the Sacrifice of the Death of Christ did in its Merit and Virtue reach buckward to the begining of the World as well as forward to the end of it Not says he that he should offer himself often Heb. 9.25 26. as the High Priest entereth into the Holy Place every Year with the Blood of others for then must he often have suffered since the Foundation of the World but now once in the end of the World hath he appear'd to put away sin by the Sacrifice of himself whereby is plainly intimated that this one Sacrifice had its Effect from the foundation of the World If it be ask'd wherein the effect of this Appears so extensive I answer by my next Proposition viz. Seventhly That by means hereof God was so far reconcil'd to Men as to give Place for Repentance and to accept of it wheresover it was sincere In the first Covenant made with Adam there was no Allowance made of Repentance after Transgression but upon the Interposition of our Redeemer and in Virtue of that Expiation which he was to make when he should come into the World sinners were allowed and encouraged to repent and turn to God in hopes of obtaining his Favor The very respiting our first Parents from the execution of the Sentence denounced was an intimation that Repentance would be acceptable to God the Promise made soon after the Fall was a Confirmation of the same thing God's commanding and encouraging Sacrifices still farther encouraged Repentance The Question which God put to Cain If thou dost well shalt thou not be accepted Gen. 4.7 plainly signified his pleasure in this Case The Goodness of God continually exercis'd towards all Mankind in so many Instances Rom. 2.4 naturally tended to lead them to Repentance All along throughout the Old Testament both in Moses and the Prophets Repentance is inculcated and encouraged That peremptory Declaration and Oath of God tho' made to the House of Israel Ezek. 33.11 yet is in very general Terms and such as seem to concern all Mankind As I live saith the Lord God I have no pleasure in the Death of the

The Imperfect Promulgation of the Gospel consider'd A SERMON Preach'd in the Church of St. Mary le Bow January 7. 1699 1700. Being an Appendix to the Lectures of the last Year appointed by the Honourable ROBERT BOYLE Esq By SAMVEL BRADFORD Rector of the said Church and Chaplain in Ordinary to His Majesty LONDON Printed for Tho. Parkhurst at the Bible and Three Crowns in Cheapside near Mercers-Chapel 1700. Mr. BRADFORD's SERMON Preach'd at St. Mary le Bow January 7. 1700. JOHN 3.16 17. God so loved the World that he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting Life For God sent not his Son into the World to condemn the World but that the World through him might be saved THese are the Words of our Blessed Saviour who as he best understood the Extent of that Love which moved the Almighty Father to send him into the World so he hath here express'd it in the fullest and most comprehensive Terms The Love of God not to any particular Nation but to the World in general was the Motive upon which he gave his Son The Design of our Lord's coming was to save not any particular Race of Men but the whole Race of Mankind the World in general without Exception There is indeed a Condition required of those who would partake of this Salvation viz. that all to whom the Gospel of Christ is publish'd should believe in him no other Limitation is set but this very reasonable one That whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting Life This is indeed a Truth so plainly asserted in diverse other Texts 't is moreover so agreeable to the Design and the Tenor of the Gospel throughout 't is finally so suitable to the Apprehensions which we naturally have of the infinite Goodness of God that I shall not insist upon the Proof of it the Purpose of this Discourse being rather to obviate an Objection which will easily arise in the Minds even of serious Men such as are not dispos'd to cavil but are us'd to contemplate both the Works and the Word of God with Sobriety and Reverence for whose Satisfaction I thought it worth the while to take this Matter into particular Consideration The Objection is this If the love of God expressed in giving his only begotten Son be so Great and so Universal as it is here represented whence comes it to pass that so small a part of Mankind seem to have receiv'd Benefit from the Christian Revelation The Case of all Men seems to have been equally deplorable and compassionable If then the Love of God testified by our Redeemer were extended to all Men if the coming of the Son of God into the World were designed and fitted for the Benefit of all is it not very strange that four thousand Years should be run out before he came and that since his appearing so small a Part of the World in comparison should be blest with the Knowledge of what he hath done for them or of what he offereth to them Now for the easing our Minds under this Difficulty I shall proceed gradually laying down several Propositions which will mutually support each other and which being impartially consider'd and lay'd together may suffice to silence this Objection if not fully satisfie those that make it And First If we were able to give no tolerable Account of this Matter yet we ought not to be surprized or stumbled at it because of the infinite distance between God and us They are very reasonable Questions which Job's Friend put to him when he in the bitterness of his Soul complain'd of his grievous Afflictions and was at a loss with Respect to the Justice of God's Dealings with him Job 11 7.8 9. Canst thou by searching find out God Canst thou find out the Almighty unto Perfection It is as high as Heaven What canst thou do deeper than Hell what canst thou know The Measure thereof is longer than the Earth and broader than the Sea Great is our Lord saith the Psalmist Psalm 147.5 and not only of great Power but his Understanding also is infinite And shall we finite Creatures think then to comprehend his Ways Shall we reckon our selves competent Judges of his Actions St. Paul thought otherwise when contemplating a Difficulty of Providence of the same kind with that before us he cries out Rom. 11.33 34. O the Depth of the Riches both of the Wisdom and Knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his Judgments and his Ways past finding out For who hath known the Mind of the Lord or who hath been his Counsellor It must be own'd that we are not able to account for the Methods of Divine Providence in many other Instances and whosoever is not abandon'd of all Modesty must readily acknowledge that it is reasonable that it should be so For we have not the entire Scheme of Providence in our Heads at once we cannot see from the beginning to the end of God's Ways we know not what are the Designs and what will be the Issues of his Counsels and therefore ought to suspend our Judgments till the Conclusion and winding up of Things Which will appear to be more especially fit in this Case if we consider Secondly That we our selves may discern several Particulars in which we are manifestly ignorant which yet ought to be known by us if we would pretend fully to account for the Difficulty before us I might give many Instances but will content my self with two plain Ones He that would give a full Account of this Matter must be acquainted with two Particulars which no mortal Man can certainly know without an especial Revelation from God namely Whether those to whom the Gospel is not published during this Life shall ever hear of it in any future State And again What Measures God will at the last Day take with those to whom the Gospel was not publish'd No Man certainly knows whether those who never heard of the Gospel in this Life may not in some future State have it publish'd to them It has been supposed by some that those Pagans who shall have approv'd themselves Honest and Sincere in this their State of Tryal may when their Souls shall be separated from their Bodies have the Gospel reveal'd to them in their separate State in order to their becoming capable of the Rewards of Christians at the last Day A late Learned and Ingenious Writer has essayed to make it probable Mr. Sta●●e of Salvation by Christ alone from a Prophetical Paragraph in the Apocalypse that those who shall have liv'd and dy'd without hearing of the Gospel in this present State shall after our Saviour's return before the final Period of this World be rais'd again and have the Gospel preach'd to them and thereby be put into a new State of Tryal in order to their Salvation or Damnation as they shall then acquit themselves Now though I will neither affirm nor