Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	church_n	faith_n	scripture_n	9,703	5	6.2087	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A58047	Solitude improved by divine meditation, or, A treatise proving the duty and demonstrating the necessity, excellency, usefulness, natures, kinds and requisites of divine meditation first intended for a person of honour, and now published for general use by Nathanael Ranew.	Ranew, Nathanael, 1602?-1678.	1670 (1670)	Wing R248; ESTC R30539	209,120	405

Christian is a person of great excellency it is very highly extolled in the Scripture This David though not presently yet attained in time as Psal 119.99 100. I have more understanding then all my teachers I have more wisdom then the ancients 3. To have the richest treasury of heavenly truths the fullest stores of precious experiences Meditation is the greater gatherer of them and the improver of them on all occasions It becometh not a Christian of long standing to be poor and unfurnished of holy experiences The Psalmist we may see drawing forth his experiences and telling them to others Psal 3.4 5. I cryed and he heard Psal 18. almost all the Psalm he puts all the pearls of deliverances experiences that way on one silken thread of this one Psalm together So Asaph Psal 77.6 I call to remembrance my song in the night what joy he formerly felt though now he wanted it Thus oft the Saints in Scripture The Apostle 2 Cor. 1.10 Who hath delivered and doth he had his experiences ready 4. More peculiarly your great exercise which others cannot so well reach is to be much implied in the deepest Mysteries the highest points of Faith and the hardest matters of practice I mean not so much such sorts of difficulties in Divinity those which great skill in the Tongues and Arts will require and that must have long time much study which the necessary occasions of very many cannot admit and are not necessary for every man to understand But such higher matters of godliness as may more Jude 20. edifie you in your holy faith increase your obedience to a more fruitful and exact walking Eph. 5.15 See ye walk circumspectly accurately or exactly the word is thus the higher contemplations of the Nature of God his Attributes and Titles the Works of God Creation and Providence his wise righteous and holy Administrations and Government 1. Government in the whole world and all things in particular in it to the least circumstance the falling of a hair from the head 2. Government and that so rare and admirable towards the rational creatures but most observable astonishing towards his Church and his dear Saints This as some of our Divines say of Gods Government of the world and matters in it is to be one of the great Meditations of Christians that are by the Apostle called Fathers who having obtained formerly much acquaintance with other truths of more necessary use for their then rank and standing now are to busie themselves in these high Mysteries for furthering Faith and Godliness The Mysteries in the two Books of Scripture and Nature are the two Tropicks or Lines between which thy Meditation should move and bound run its course and keep within this compass which is useful and safe In sum let thy Meditation be improved all thou canst for the setting up of the main mark for the fullest aiming at it the hardest pressing toward it with all contendings for an excellency of wisdom eminency of holiness exemplariness of conversation and exact walking together with all industriousness after that peace which passes all understanding joy unspeakable and full of glory the establishings and heightning of them with longings and hastnings after that appearing of the Lord and crying Come Lord Jesus come quickly Conclusion Now this so highly important duty of holy Meditation having been as to the nature kinds necessity and excellency so fully discovered and demonstrated the great sinfulness of neglecting it evinced the dangers following the neglect manifested the practice with such high inducements and powerful Scripture-arguments urged home and the way respecting all sorts of persons in so many Rules and Directions cleared Application general Then all who know these things are utterly inexcusable that know these so greatly necessary things and will not comply with the careful practice of them Ah! therefore let every one most earnestly beg it of God to write this his Law of holy Meditation in his heart to give the right wisdom to understand the way of it the firm purpose and resolution constantly to perform it yea the practice of it with sweetest solace and highest delight Let me say to my soul Necessity is laid upon me It is an Imperial Law of the great King of Heaven if I do it not great guilt will be contracted great wrath of a God will be kindled my soul will deeply be wronged If I have not act not good thoughts my heart will act evil thoughts will fill with evil thoughts will fix and habit it self in them be quite over-run with them I shall have a spirit stained deeply dyed into habitual vanity of mind yea I may be given up to judicial penal vanity of thoughts It may be to terrifying and most affrighting thoughts That I which would not be brought to think of the threatnings of a just God and his terrible Curses That would not meditate of that greatest of evils sin of my heart and life-sins shall have all my sins set in order before me held and kept staring me continually in the face That I who would not meditate of the most blessed God his Christs fulness his Spirits sweetness his Heaven and everlasting Happiness shall now have represented to my thoughts and be made to see Satan Hell and eternal Death continually before me Yea to be under such amazements and terrours to be so haunted and followed that at last it may be insupportable and quite overwhelm me O therefore let me not so sin against my own soul and for ever undo my self by wilful or heedless neglecting this duty which lies so indispensibly upon me and may be so advantageous to me O how many are continually guilty of self-destroying for want of a timely self-bethinking By a slighter thinking for want of serious thinking By a too short thinking for want of the necessary allowance of time and space for thinking By a too seldom thinking and not using due frequency of thinking By acting meer phansie and imagination and not wise consideration Adams first state was good yet mutable but it was not a sin or imperfection to be mutable And though this mutability of his will was a ground of his fall yet it was his incogitancy was the first blamable cause he fell by acting sudden too hasty imagination and not due consideration he considered not all things to be considered Thus ever since the falls of sinners are generally more by incogitancy haste and hurries of fancy and imagination want of consideration though there be sins also of deliberation not precipitations but presumptions When God reduces a sinner he brings him from swaying phansie and carelesness to considerateness Ezek. 18.28 Because he considers and turns he breaks the reeden Scepter of phansie and inconsideration and brings in and sets up the golden Scepter of wise consideration So Acts 2. Men and brethren what shall we do Acts 16.30 Sirs what must I do to be saved But O what pity is it that any soul should perish for want of

relating to those things Meditation is to be upon gather the varieties of Scripture-passages about that particular subject you mean to meditate on The Scripture in the diversities of passages about particular subjects is like a rich banquet where are set before thee great varieties of rarities There are all manner of subjects All the credenda and facienda all things to be believed and practised in order to salvation There are great varieties of heavenly Truths for knowledge and wisdom and right believing Great varieties of Precepts Rules and Directions for due practice Many Promises and many Threatnings to back the Precepts sundry Patterns and Precedents to assist them and make them and thereby the Precepts more effectual on us Oft in Scripture the same things are expressed in a various manner in a different a new mode and fashion in new trimmings as it were and new dressings to both edifie and also please us Variety in expression carries oft variety of Notion holds forth something more to be learnt and affords something that may gratifie our spirits as to pleasure and delight So the lame thing hath it may be varieties of Arguments and Reasons for conviction and demonstration Inducements to perswade and lead Arguments and Inducements with the highest Art of Reasoning with the best improvement of Rhetorick and Perswasion Thus if thou meanest to meditate upon God or Jesus Christ or the Holy Spirit upon Faith or Love or any Grace upon any duty any sin any affliction Thy way is to see what the Scripture hath and holds forth in the several passages of it as concerning Faith of the Nature of it of the effects and properties of it priviledges coming by it reasons to perswade to believe to live by Faith in all conditions how great variety of expressions have you for all things relating to Faith so of other particular subjects By this variety taking up one expression after another at such times as you can best how may thy Meditation be carried on with great delight and to great advantage This is one excellent way to order and improve thy Meditation take varieties of Scripture-passages about any particular subject thou wilt meditate on 1. For Scripture expression hath a bottom and foundation of sure and infallible truth which comes from God that cannot lye your Meditation goes on sure ground 2. Scripture-expressions are suited for us by the so infinite wisdom of a God who knows how best to declare his own mind and how best to convey and teach it to our capacity and condition None can speak so to me as God in the Scripture doth 3. Yea Scripture-expressions are sanctified by God to enable us to sanctifie him in this and all other duties This therefore is our best way to feed on these rarities this rich banquet of so great varieties when we are to meditate Hereby we may ever have matter abundantly to meditate never be to seek and for the manner perform it with great delight and pleasure which will otherwise be a weariness This certainly was the way of the highest Artists in Meditation David and other holy persons upon Record in Scripture They could not but see the same things to be repeated yet oft in a various way of expression therefore must conclude that the holy Inditer had his wise intendment in so various expressions Therefore their godly wisdom must teach them when they meditated to go in that way the Spirits condescending intent led them So let it be thy Rule for thy help for to make thy Meditation pleasurable and profitable together I will mention some Instances The Grace of Faith is thus variously exprest By trusting in God Prov. 3.5 Trust in the Lord with all thy heart Isa 26.4 Trust in the Lord Jehovah and in other places Psal 37.5 By rowling our way on God By taking hold of Gods strength Isa 27.5 and divers others In reference to Christ by seeing the Son Joh. 6.40 Coming to Christ Matth. 11.28 And believing on and in Christ often Love of God Deut. 30.6 Love thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul Deut. 6.5 Love thy God with all thy heart and soul and a third is added With all thy might Mark 12.10 Christ adds to the three former With all thy mind Certainly these varyings had their intent were that when we meditate of these or other graces we should furnish our Meditation and improve by them Thus things cited in Deuteronomy are variously exprest from those very passages and particulars in the former Books So the Chronicles express differently things in the Kings and the Four Evangelists vary the expressions of the same things both the matters historical and doctrinal and all the Scripture over this is practised Variety of expression calls for observation and holds forth oft some peculiar Notion and Instruction Let this therefore be thy Rule in Meditation 2. Be sure frequently and earnestly to meditate both of thy supreme and chief end and of the proper and proportionate means thereto conducing But do daily something more to purpose in that great Meditation of the supreme end as wisdom teaches and being that in its nature which deserves the highest and first things that also which gives Rules to all thy other actings and endeavours that glorifying exalting God above all Do very much in collecting together spreading before thee well considering acting the most vigorous and intense Meditation of all such things which may reduce thee to higher apprehensions warmer affections firmer resolutions and more earnest and even contendings for glorifying him that is God and there is none beside him for him that only gave thee thy all body soul life and only preserves thy all That gave his only Son to death to save thy souls life His Spirit to draw thee to Christ or thou hadst never come To dwell and work in thee and do all for thee as to applying Christ and all fellowship in Christ and with him and hath so infinitely obliged thee Therefore how sinful how unworthy to not honour and glorifie him how unkindly he takes it and how it grieves him Let Meditation gather up and indusstriously strive to improve all it possibly can Ah! how that holy Apostle was looking and striving this way how near was this glorifying God to his heart how much in his eye and endeavour how oft is he speaking of it How earnestly doth he provoke all he had to do with to it 1 Cor. 10.31 Whatsoever ye do if eat or drink do all to the glory of God acting all to it must imply an always minding of it 3. Lay sound stress likewise in Meditation as to that thy next chief end self-saving to have more serious thoughts and industrious pressings on hard to work it out and make thy calling and election sure To work it out against all difficulties and oppositions look more earnestly up to Heaven and into Heaven And it is good when thou thinkest of Heaven be then so bold with thy self