Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n
Text snippets containing the quad
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Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication) |
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A03617
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The vnbeleevers preparing for Christ. By T.H.
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Hooker, Thomas, 1586-1647.
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1638
(1638)
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STC 13740; ESTC S104192
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190,402
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342
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Christ he would direct me if this my wretched damned soule would give entertainement to Christ he would receive me Oh! what wonderfull love mercy and goodnesse is herein discovered there can no better way be devised how God may expresse more love and shew greater mercy toward us it is the Psalmists phrase open thy mouth wide and I will fill thee lie doth not say goe and provide for your selves and feede yourselves no no the provision is made ready and we need only open our mouthes wide and God will fill them marke here the wonderfull riches of Gods bounty what greater care of provision can be expressed or expected than this that a man should onely open his mouth and that wide and it should be filled it is not spoken of the mouth naturally but of the soule spiritually doe but thou open thy soule and empty thy heart of all other things whatsoever doe but get a heart willing to welcome and give entertainement to the Lord Iesus Christ and he will fill thee full of grace here and glory for ever hereafter this is the bounty of the Lord it is the Lords mercy and goodnesse and it should it ought to be mervailous in our eyes as the Psalmist speaketh in another case we ought to admire the goodnesse of the Lord in that he is pleased to offer us Christ and Salvation upon so reasonable conditions and this is the first use Secondly the second use is a word of terrour it shewes in the second place the just and heavie condemnation of all such as perish they are damned and goe to hell and everlasting destruction because they will be damned for if you would have had Christ and grace you might have received Christ and Grace and Salvation by him Every man that will let him take of the water of life freely let him receive mercy and grace and Salvation and therefore if you have not grace it is because you will not have it and therefore if you perish thanke your selves for you would not bee saved there is never a soule this day in hell buâ— received the fruites of his owne labour the reward of their owne workes and the desire of their owne hearts nay they have their owne will if thou wilt not be recovered and receive mercy offered why then thou must be damned and perish forever he that will not receive the Lord Iesus and entertaine grace so that he may goe to heaven t is pitty but he should be damned into the lowermost pit of everlasting ruine and destruction when men come to this passe once that they are not willing to be the treasury of God but are weary to heare the Word of God preached unto them one houre and notwithstanding God hath revealed himselfe in his Word and that with some glimpse yet wicked men would not be under the power of it because they would have their profits and pleasures and enjoy their lusts and coruptions they will not forsake their lusts and abandon their abominations and receive Christ and mercy when the case stands thus with men it is just with God to plunge them into everlasting misery in the 8 of Prov. 36. there saith the text He that sinneth against me wrongeth his owne soule Prov. 8.36 all they that hate me love death they that hate me saith the text that is they that hate wisedome love death by wisedome there is meant the Lord Iesus revealing the wisedome of the Father in the Word now he that hateth this Word of God he that will not be informed by this Word he that will not be directed by it he that will not be humbled by it his soule taketh up armes against Gods ordinances why he loves death both naturally and eternally when the wrath of God ceaseth upon him he hath that which he loveth you loved this you loved death you have it you loved damnation you doe enjoy it and it is merveilous just with God thus to deale with you you cannot blame God for this but your selves wicked men are desirous to be rid of God and freed from the Counsell of God that may chalke them out the way to Salvation and they desire nothing the knowledge of Gods lawes many wicked carnall man doth not desire the good and Salvation of his owne soule he doth not desire the preaching of the Word for the reformation of his life and the humbling of his soule and directing of him in the wayes of Gods Commandements they say to God now depart from us we care not for thy lawes we will not walke after thy Commandements if he at the last day say unto you Depart from me ye workers of iniquity I know you not then you shall have your desire when the heavens shall melt away with fire and the Sunne and the Moone shall be darkned when all flesh shall appeare before the judgement seate of God at that day men and Angels shall heare the dreadfull doome which shall passe upon you by the Lord you contemned my word and ordinances and therefore away from me ye cursed into everlasting destruction prepared for the devill and his Angels you desired not to be informed you would not be humbled you refused to be directed by my word when it was preached unto you but you desired to fulfill your lusts and enjoy your profits and your pleasures you did not desire to be saved and therefore now you shall have your desire you shall be damned and therefore depart from me I know you not You would have your pride when you were upon the earth when you are in hell you may be as proud as you will you would have your malice when you are in hell you may have your desire you may have your fill of maliciousnesse in hell you may have elbow roome enough to satiate your selves in your lusts and sinfull abominations when the soule of a man doth secretly desire that the Word may not worke upon him then it is just with God to grant that desire of his soule it were just with God that the Word should never worke more that the Spirit should never strive more that mercy and Salvation should never be offered any more that man shall then have what he desired and he may blame himselfe for whatsoever judgement falls upon him in the 2 of Thess 2.12 there saith the text 2 Thess 2.12 that they all might be damned which beleeved not the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousnesse marke that hee speakes before of those that would not entertaine the truth and the love of it but when God made knowne his will and the way of Salvation they did not love that nicenesse they cared not for that exactnesse and holinesse why what doe you love then saith God upon what is your love placed upon what is the desire of your soule fixed oh saith the text They tooke pleasure in unrighteousnesse in contemning opposing hindring and despising the good Word of God and therefore they shall be damned when a
will buy house and land and make it his owne for ever he first chooseth that house and land and then hee resolves to keepe it for ever and never part with it againe and if hee part from it or sell it againe then he is sayd to refuse it as well as to choose it and the stomach that chooseth meate when it hath such liking to any dyer that it openeth it selfe and receiveth it and closeth with it then we are sayd to will and choose Christ when we see the worth of Christ and take him before all and fasten upon him to make him our owne for ever when wee take such delight in him that we will not be freed from him but desire that he may be for our soules and our soules for him forever this is to will the Lord Iesus So then to gather up all when the soule priseth Christ as the chiefest of all when it chooseth him above all when the soule answerablely giveth up it selfe to Christ that Christ may take possession of it and never sever from it then a man doth will Christ Iesus heartily So that by this time we see the nature of the point and the English of the Doctrine is thus much the soule that seeth the worth of Christ and chooseth him above all things and closeth with him that soule willeth Christ Iesus But now heere a question may arise you may aske mee whether a man can will Christ and grace thus naturally out of the power of nature I answere no it is beyond the power of man to will Christ and grace naturally it is the free gift of God as it is the Lord which must give grace so it is the Lord that must give the will to receive grace what availeth all the water in the Sea if we have no vessell to receive it what avayleth it to have meate if wee have no stomach to digest it what avayleth it to have the fountaine of grace set open unto us if we have no vessels no hearts to receive it if we have no stomach to digest it all is worth nothing therfore the doctrine of the Scripture is compared to raine the raine which falleth upon a rock remaineth not but presently slides off so it is here the fountaine of grace is set open to every one that heareth the Word this day but if you have no vessels to receive no wills to embrace it no heart to entertaine it all this mercy of God grace of God love of God will fall downe at your feete you may carry away some words in your mouthes but unlesse you have a will to receive grace it will never dwell in your hearts it is impossible that the soule should receive grace and Salvation by the Lord Iesus unlesse it hath a will to entertaine him for common sence telleth us that those actions that have relation one to another cannot bee done one without the other no man can buy unlesse another will sell no man can take or receive any thing unlesse another will give it and bestow it upon him Christ cannot be bestowed upon us and given unto us unlesse wee have a will to receive him there is no giving of a thing unlesse there bee a taking and receiving of it Christ will not be a guest with us unlesse he bee entertained by us If a man should come unto an Inne and aske for lodging if the Host of the Inne tell him that the Inne is full and there is no roome for him and thereupon hee goes his way this man cannot be sayd to be a guest unto that Inne but that hee onely offered himselfe to bee a guest so it is here there is no soule that ever can or shall receive Christ as a guest to himselfe unlesse he be content to make roome for Christ and bee a receiver of him Christ will never come with salvation or comfort unto thy heart unlesse thou hast a will to entertaine him if our willing of Christ bee that which makes roome for Christ then it must go before the entertaining of Christ but the willing of Christ is that which makes roome for Christ and therefore it must goe before the entertaining of him So then the case is cleare and the point evident that a man must will to receive Christ before hee shall have Christ and grace and salvation by him The use of the point is threefold the first is for reproofe must a man have a will to receive Christ and grace before hee can receive Christ and grace then this condemneth that carnall conceit of a company of poore deluded persons in the world that thinke they may receive grace upon other conditions than the word hath revealed upon other conditions than Christ ever made agreement with them this conceit it is mervailous common it is a generall fault in all carnall professors they thinke to goe to heaven nay they make no doubt of it they thinke they have grace and why because they say so and professe so and therefore it must needs be so because a man can say hee beleeves and would have grace and wils to receive Christ therefore out of all question it must needes be so grace must needes be given them they cannot be without grace because they say they have it and if a man presse upon them and say the truth is the world knowes it that you live in base courses a common swearer you are a covetous wretch a base usurer that loves your money more than God true say they all flesh is grasse and in many things we sinne the Lord give us of his grace and for give us our sinnes and I hope he will doe so and this will make up the breach presently nothing but repent and say Lord have mercy upon us and then all will be well it is true if you can but truely repent all will be well indeede your sinnes shall bee forgiven you but now you talke of cost you must do more than say so you must do so likewise but thus a thousand poore soules goe to hell hood-winckt after this fashion they have invented a shorter cut to heaven they have invented a new way a backe doore to heaven and happinesse more than the word ever discovered But let any soule make this conceit good in Scripture and then I will beleeve them but if it be so that they cannot make it good by the word of God then know that if you continue in it your soules will be damned Is it thus in the word hee that saith hee hath grace hath grace if a man professe grace he cannot bee without grace no no it is not thus in Scripture the text saith He that wils grace that is hee that hath a heart to receive grace he shall have grace not hee that saith and professeth that he hath grace but hee that wils it you must not bring your tongues to talke of grace and your heads to thinke of grace but you must bring your hearts to will grace