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	reason_n	scripture_n	3,945	5	6.1612	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A45531	A sermon preached at Shadwell-Chappell in Yorkshire. By Thomas Hardcastle minister of the Gospell. Published by some of the hearers for their own vindication and the worlds satisfaction	Hardcastle, Thomas, d. 1678?	1665 (1665)	Wing H699A; ESTC R213430	14,832	30

being risen from the dead of which they had no other assurance but the miracles which the Apostles wrought and their testimony and then Thirdly a third thing will clear all That there is a certain way of conveying the Copy of the Gospel down to us and that it is impossible that it should be corrupted in any of those things which are of concernment to the Christian world for there being Hereticks in all ages that wrest the Scripture on purpose if there had been any corruption in the Copy they would have detected it as being glad of such an advantage against the truth of it Well then let it not seem a diversion that I have spoken this to those two arguments of the truth of the Gospel for since if we come to suffer all must hang upon this point If the Gospel be not true we are undone for ever He that findeth his life shall lose it and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it c. and in other Scriptures thus saith the Gospel and if this be not true we are undone for ever and thus though the most satisfactory conviction to us be the testimony of the spirit of God yet since we are rational creatures and God dealeth with us as such we ought to be furnished and enabled and ready to give a reason of the hope that is in us For Religion is reasonable and though the matter of the Gospel be above reason and not capable of being demonstrated from the things themselves as how can it be proved by reason that there can be a resurrection that there can be Three Persons in One and many other Doctrines of the Gospel yet I say it may be demonstrated that it is a reasonable thing to believe such things though they be above reason and though we cannot have reason for the things themselves yet there is reason vvhy vve should beheve them And I say since that it is not unusual with Satan to assault the best Christians here about the belief of the Gospel and seeing the operation of the spirit and the feeling testimony of the spirit to the truth of the Scriptures may not be always ready therefore it is good to keep the out-works to keep the Guard in the out-works not to lie all the stress within but to be fortified with arguments and reasons for the operations or vvorking of the Will and the affections are more uncertain and more changeable then the acts of the understanding let us therefore always be furnished with arguments of reason to help our feeling to rub up our feeling and to quicken us The spirit is a spirit of understanding a spirit of Wisdom and doth deal with rational men by rational means ordinarily Well therefore you see that we ought to be furnished with Arguments and these are two that we may be furnished with If Satan should assault us that vvay vve may be ready to beat him and Lastly Consider the Miracles which Christ wrought are not only a Confirmation of this Doctrine as they are a Conviction that he comes from God and what he sayes comes from God but likewise in his Miracles there is something Christians may make use of as a Motive and as an Argument to doe these Dutyes which those Miracles were brought to confirme There is something in the Miracle besides the Divine power which may be as a Motive and an argument to Christians in their dutyes as thus Jesus Christ when they came to apprehend him he with a word speaking caused the officers to fall to the ground saying I am he This may encourage us that Jesus Christ will stand with us though not with a Miracle yet by his powerful presence when we come to be apprehended so He that will lose his Life shall save it c. Now we may be comforted that we shall save ours by losing of it for he did so He saved his life by losing it for our sakes so when we come to any Doctrine or Precept get a Miracle to back it and it will be of great use to you when you would be exhorted to the duty of Charity let that Miracle so back it how Christ fed 500. with five Loaves and 2. small fishes so get your charity strengthened by a Miracle c. But I cannot stand upon this these are the two specal things for confirmation of the Doctrine of the Gospel the spirit of Prophesy and the power of Miracles The Eight and last for those that seeme to be at an uncertainty about Heaven Consider whether it be not worth the while to put it out of doubt whether there be such a thing or no For it is not a matter of such small moment whether it be or no. But you that are not sure are you sure there is no such thing if there be a Heaven and a Hell what a case are we in if we do not look after the one and avoid the other Surely it should cause us to work out our Salvation with fear and trembling If there be any such thing no diligence is too much and if there be no such thing any diligence is too much Let us not halt between two Opinions c. Let there be no demurrs in our Spirits but let us be satisfied about it I presse hard saith the Apostle I was once a persecutor and earnest against the Gospel and I use the same violence in preaching the Gospel that I used before in persecuting it I persecute the word signifies I presse and pursue So run that ye may obtain It is a dishonour to the Joys of Heaven to have half and saint attempts about it To conclude Examine your selves and you will find that all that sluggishness in Duty all that fearfulness that you are guilty of proceeds meerly from unbelief you are not satisfied and perswaded of the truth of the Gospel of Christ this is evident compare it with your practice What pains does the Husbandman take for Corn upon the hopes of a Crop The Merchant he will venture and run hazards We ought to run hazards for Heaven of which there is more certainty then can be of any thing This is the First thing that you must do for the getting of Heaven Be satisfied of the truth of it that there is such a thing Secondly When you are satisfied of the truth endeavour to understand the nature of it from Scripture Men take up false Notions concerning Heaven and they look on it as a place free from trouble and so desire it Oh! look upon Heaven as an holy place free from sin and that is the happiness of it There are thousands of men that desire heaven who if they were there it would be a burden to them Heaven must be begun here Thirdly study to know more your Distance by Nature from heaven You are not born heirs unless it be heirs of wrath No man ever got this Inheritance that thought he deserv'd it no man ever got to be in any place in

This the Gospel is full of that Jesus Christ foretold Judas betraying of him and as he foretold so it came to pass and the Destruction of Jerusalem many things that he foretold in the Gospel came to pass and are coming to pass daily And Secondly For those things that are known to one and not to Another Jesus Christ knew the thoughts of another mans heart He knew his enemies hearts his Disciples hearts and he knew what was doing before it was done But Thirdly For matter of Faith Jesus Christ was a Teacher that came from God the Incarnation of the Son of God the union of the two natures the death of Christ these are discoveries that can be made by none but God and these things Christ discovered Thus you see that Jesus Christ had a Spirit of Prophesie But then Thirdly That this Spirit of Prophesie was given to Christ to be a confirmation of the Doctrine which he should deliver to the World see these places John 13.18 He that eats bread with me hath lift up his heel against me Christ foretells that Judas should betray him This was a very unlikely thing for it was observed that he was the forwardest of any of the Apostles he was so forward that every one of the Apostles did say Mr. is it I rather then Is it he they suspected themselves sooner then he now says Christ I tell you before that when it comes to pass you may believe that I am he Christ foretells things to come that when they come to pass we might believe that he was the Messias and truly the things that come to pass in the Christian World they seem to look with an evil aspect upon the Church and people of God now these things should be so far from discouraging of us or from weakning our belief of the Gospel that they should be a confirmation because they are come to pass we should believe that Christ is he The Second place is John 14.29 saith he And now I have told you before it come to pass that when it is come to pass you might believe I will send the Comforter and I have told you this before that when it comes to pass you might believe Well now Hath Jesus sent you a Comforter he is as good as his word and here is a confirmation of the Truth of the Gospel so that the coming to pass of those things which are foretold in the Gospel is a confirmation of the Gospel Therefore believe it because he is no other but God that hath discovered it Thus you see the Spirit of Prophesie or the foretelling of things that are without the reach of created understandings is an Argument of Divinity and he that comes furnisht with such a Commission we may believe what he sayes Secondly For the power of Miracles concerning which I shall shew First what it is A Miracle is a production of something out of nothing which cannot be done by lesse then God For none but God can create or alter the Course of Nature It is as Mr. Stilling-Fleet saith a bringing of something out of nothing that either in the thing it self which cannot be produc'd by second Causes as raising of the dead or else a bringing something out of Nothing in the manner of doing which may be done by Second causes but yet is done without the help of Second causes as Curing Diseases with a touch of the hem of a Garment or with a word speaking Thus you see what a Miracle is Secondly Observe that God never alters the course of Nature but for some special end The power of Miracles is not ordinary for God never alters the course of Nature but for some special end Thirdly The chief end of the power of Miracles is for the Confirmation of some truth that God would have the world to know Fourthly That God will not give this power of Miracles to any that will abuse it for the confirming of a lye Fifthly That Jesus Christ had truly this power of Miracles this cannot be denyed even his enemies would grant it or else they had opportunity to confute him Sixthly That true Miracles may be known from false ones because Antichrist comes with lying words Seventhly Divines lay down rules to know true Miracles from false ones and I would have you take special notice of three especially First of all true Miracles they always bring evidence along with them that they are of the truth and they leave no dispute but that they are true they leave no doubt upon the Spirit Secondly True Miracles are for the confirmation of a Divine testimony and they do not contradict a divine testimony already confirm'd by a true Miracle for the most of the Doctrines which the Papists hold against us they have confirm'd them by Miracles but it is a sign they are no true Miracles because they tend to confirm a Doctrine contrary to the Doctrine which is already confirmed by unquestionable Miracles Then Thirdly True miracles oppose Satans Kingdom those that tend to the advancement of Satans Kingdom are lying wonders Then Fourthly I might add another that true miracles are commonly mercies as well as miracles Satans wonders tends to amaze but not at all to do any good but Christs miracles were most of them mercies as well as wonders Thus you may see what may be said to the power of miracles as being a chief confirmation of divine testimony Eightly and lastly the power of miracles in Christ was a confirmation of the truth of the Gospel and of his being the Messias We know thou art a Teacher come from God because no man can do the miracles which thou doest except God be with him Thus far we have gone but yet grant it in the Hypothesis that miracles are an evidence of the truth of divine testimony Can we say in the Thesis that such miracles are truly done There is a threefold argument for that which I would have you take notice of First of all the Apostles they were eye-witnesses and could not be deceived nay many that would have been glad of any opportunity to accuse them yet it was never said that any thing was falsly done Nay the Jews that were as cunning in finding out deceits that way would have been glad of any accusation if they had not been truly done they would have found it out Secondly the Apostles they could not be deceivers for they had no temptation to it it was impossible that if Christ had not been risen otherwise then by their stealing of him which was objected when they had found that Christ had not been so good as his word they would rather have curst him then confest him and if they preach Salvation by one that was not otherwise risen but by their stealing of him yet the world would not have had the faith to believe it yet we find that serious and inquisitive men confest to be in their wits did sacrifice their lives upon their belief of Christs