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	house_n	pillar_n	3,545	5	10.4316	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A02260	The happines of enjoying, and making a true and speedie use of Christ Setting forth, first, the fulnesse of Christ. Secondly, the danger of neglecting Christ, and the opportunity of grace. Thirdly, the Lord Jesus the soules last refuge. Whereunto is added, St. Pauls legacie, or farewell to the men of Corinth. By Alexander Grosse B.D. Minister of the Gospel, and pastour of Bridford.	Grosse, Alexander, 1596?-1654.	1640 (1640)	STC 12395; ESTC S103450	151,344	397

which Christ hath assumed abides unchangeably united to the person of the Sonne so o Ioh. 15.7 abide with Christ in attendance on his ordinances in faith in his promises in love to his truth and in obedience to his precepts As the assumed nature is ascended from the earth to heaven so raise thy thoughts and affections p Col. 3.2 from the things below to the things above ascend continually by meditation by faith by love and longing to the things which are spirituall As the assumed nature hath no subsistence but in the person of the Sonne so have thou no dependance upon any thing but on Christ alone let him q Psal 73.15 bee all in all And as the assumed nature is filled with the fulnesse of the Godhead so labour more and more to bee filled with the fulnesse of all grace and holinesse so shalt thou maintaine that honour to which Christ hath exalted thy nature CHAP. XII Shewing that mans choycest excellencie consisteth in union with God THis sheweth us wherein the choycest excellencie of man consisteth even in being united unto God in having God dwelling in his heart Wherein stands the excellencie of Christ as Man but in having the Godhead dwelling in his flesh in being assumed into the unity of the second person And wherein stands the excellencie the glory and the happinesse of man but in being reconciled and brought nigh to God in being entred into a sweet and gracious communion with God Is it not the excellencie of the branches to bee united to the Vine of the members to bee united to the head of the wife to have communion with the husband and of the children to have communion with the parent And what is the excellencie the joy and comfort of the soule but sweet and gracious communion with God in Christ Jerusalem though the joy of the whole earth pleased not Absolom unlesse hee might r 2 Sam. 14.32 see the face of his father David The paradise of the world is but a wilderness to to the childe of God unlesse hee see the face enjoy the comfortable presence of God his Father Whom doth the Psalmist pronounce blessed Him that hath communion with Princes in their Courts with Nobles in their honours with valiant men in their victories with rich men in their wealth voluptuous men in their pleasures or him that hath communion with his God in his ordinances in his spirituall comforts Å¿ Psal 65.4 Blessed saith he is the man whom thou chusest and causest to approch unto thee whom thou chusest embracing him with thy love adopting him for thy sonne and making him a member of thy Church and causest him to approch unto thee as a Scholler to thy Schoole as a friend to thy house as a childe to thy table as a bride into the bosome of thy love to know thy will to beleeve thy truth to receive thy grace and to feele thy love and to bee satisfied with the goodnesse of thy house even of thy holy Temple What is the fruit and end of all the labours of Gods Ministers but to worke and draw home the soules of men to God to the fruition enjoyment of God to union and communion with God All the labour of Eleazar was to bring home Rebecca unto Isaac to espouse her to Isaac and all the labour of Gods Ministers his servants is to bring men home to Christ to espouse them to Christ as Paul saith I t 2 Cor. 11.2 have espoused you to one husband This is the summe of all to gather men home to God and Christ as Chicken to the Henne as Sheep unto the Shepheard as Children to the Parent that they may bee u 2 Cor. 5.19 reconciled unto God made one with God and have the blessed enjoyment of God as their highest excellency chiefest good And what are the longings of the soules of holy men who have discerned Gods beauties who have tasted Gods loving kindnesse but the fruition of God in his ordinances and in his graces w Ps 42.2 My soul saith David thirsteth for God O when shall I come appeare before God! And againe My soule x Ps 119.20 breaketh for the longings which it hath unto thy judgements at all times Very vehement and laborious are the desires of Gods servants after him and his testimonies desires which doe even consume and weare out the strength and vigour of their soules desires of perseverance longing at all times in prosperitie and adversitie The soule of a good man is restlesse untill it hath the enjoyment of God and Jesus Christ nothing else can content and answere it Herein stands the excellencie the glory and comfort of it untill it attaine this it is unquiet Union and communion with God makes the soule flourish Benefits of union and communion with God as the branches by union with the vine They y Ps 92.12 that are planted in the house of the Lord that draw nigh to God conscionably frequent his word and are ingrafted into Christ they shall flourish in the courts of our God as a watered garden or a tree planted by the waters side this fils the soule with spirituall life with heavenly sense and motion as the members which are united to the head z 1 Ioh. 5.12 Hee that hath the sonne hath life power strength a blessed fulnesse of holy and heavenly life hee spiritually moves and eates and walkes and workes and rejoyceth like a living man this makes him strong as the a Mat. 7. house that was united to the rocke no windes nor waves of trouble can beate him downe this makes him strong as Christ is strong to beare afflictions and to runne like a strong man the race of Gods commandements this sustaines him in all worldly desertions this is in stead of light when he is in darknesse in stead of b Psa 4.6 wealth when he is poore c. Union and communion with God answers all things O be assured then that the top and flower of the soules happinesse consists in union with God and Christ Jesus And as the fulnesse of the Godhead dwelleth in the humane nature of Christ bodily substantially so labour to feele God in Christ dwelling in thy soule spiritually feele him dwelling there by illumination as the sun dwelleth in the aire by ministration as the vine to the branches by powerfull and gracious gubernation as a centurion in the army a master in the house and a king in his courts by spirituall and holy inclination bowing bending and framing the heart to doe the will of God As the pilot at the sterne workes the ship towards the haven as the spirit of the living creatures in Ezekiels vision being in the wheeles Wheresoever the Spirit moved c Ezek. 1.20 they moved so feele the Spirit of Christ in thy soule so possessing sanctifying and framing it that there be a disposition and readinesse within thee to move as God in his word

pray we sing we conferre we worke we thinke unto eternity how exact and serious should we be in our short walking the end whereof is eternall Vigilanti curâ saith Gregory per cuncta opera intentio nobis pensanda est ut nihil temporale in his quae agit appetat sed totam se in soliditate aeternitatis figat The intention is thorough all our works to bee weighed with vigilant care that in the things which it doth it may desire nothing temporall but wholly fasten it selfe on that which is eternall hee that walkes not circumspectly deprives himselfe of an eternity of felicity and casts himselfe into an eternity of misery better live strictly for a time then live miserably for ever nay bee assured that even for the present there is more comfort in one dayes strict walking with God then in a thousand dayes loose conversing with men Did men know the peace joy sweetnesse boldnesse honour and triumph of holy walking they would instantly and for ever abandon all dissolute living heaven is the paradice of all joyes he that in his holy walking commeth nearest unto heaven is doubtlesse of all men the most joyfull O say not then as a man of noble blood and acute wit but profane life sometime did when being demanded what he thought of the austere life of the godly and licentious life of the wicked answered Cum istis mallem vivere cum illis mori mallem I had rather live with the latter I had rather dye with the former But as you desire to dye the death of the righteous so bee very solicitous and studious very vigilant and industrious to live the life of the righteous Never promise your selves a blessed death without a holy life Lastly Be stedfast in adhering to the truth be not like children carried to and fro with every vaine perswasion nor like ships without anchor tossed up and downe with the winde of every empty doctrine But be constant in following the truth as the Wisemen did the starre untill you come home to Christ and as the Israelites did the fiery pillar untill you come to the heavenly Canaan Buy the truth saith Solomon and sell it not you can never over-buy it whatsoever you give for it you can never sufficiently sell it if you have all the world in exchange for it It is said of Caesar Major fuit cura Caesari libellorum quàm purpurae He had greater care of his books then of his royall robes for swimming through the waters to escape his enemies he carried his books in his hand above the waters but lost his robe What are Caesars bookes to Gods booke and his learning to Gods truth more then a glow-worme to the sunne Bee you therefore more carefull of the Gospel then of any earthly possession though you bee driven into the deepe waters of affliction and there lose all your worldly fulnesse yet hold fast the Gospel of Christ Jesus you shall finde infinitely more worth and comfort in the Gospel then in all the treasure of the world It is reported of Alexander the Great that hee had alwayes Homers Iliads under his pillow and preferred them above Darius his most precious and costly chest what are Homers Iliads to Christs Gospel or Darius chest to the invaluable treasure which is in Christ Have therefore the booke of God ever with you when you lye downe when you rise up when you walke abroad have it in your understandings to know it in your imaginations to thinke and meditate upon it in your memories to remember it in your hearts to love it to rejoice and delight your selves in it to solace refresh and comfort your soules with it in your tongues to speake of it to edifie and strengthen one another by it give it preheminence above the chiefest wordly substance The losse of all cannot make man miserable as long as hee sincerely and fully adheres unto and enjoyes the Gospel Make this therefore your constant and perpetuall light to guide you your heavenly Manna to feed you your celestiall treasure to enrich you your spirituall well-spring to refresh and fill you your firme and sure anchor to sustaine and stay you your holy and gracious Schoole to edifie you in the knowledge faith and love of Chrst to ravish your soules with the apprehension of CHRISTS beauties to fill you more and more with CHRISTS fulnesse and prepare you a sweet and entire communion of everlasting continuance with the Lord JESUS which hee most unfainedly desireth who ever remaineth Most intirely devoted to your spirituall service ALEXANDER GROSSE A TABLE OF THE Chiefe things contained in this Treatise on COL 2.9 10. For in him dwelleth the fulnesse of the Godhead bodily and ye are complete in him who is head of all principality and power CHAP. I. The transcendency of Christs fulnesse above all created fulnesse Fol. 1 CHAP. II. Christs fulnesse a ground of dehortation from humane inventions Fol. 3 Doct. 1. Such is Christs fulnesse that men ought not to joyne to him other doctrines and observations to further their eternall happiness Fol. 9 Foure grounds hereof Fol. 12 CHAP. III. The folly of not cleaving to and quieting and contenting our selves with Christ but going aside to humane inventions Fol. 18 Five grounds hereof Fol. 19 The vanity of humane doctrines displayed in 12. particulars Fol. 25 An admonition to wait on Christ and receive all our direction from him Fol. 27 CHAP. IIII. Doct. 2. All divine and heavenly fulnesse is to be found in Christ Jesus Fol. 30 Three grounds hereof Fol. 34 CHAP. V. The folly of neglecting Christ and seeking fulnesse elsewhere Fol. 41 Foure seekers of fulnesse deceived Fol. 43 1 Some leave Christ and seeke fulnesse in the creature ib. Mans folly in seeking fulnesse in the creature opened in 6 particulars Fol. 46 2 Some seeke fulnesse in themselves Fol. 50 Ignorance and unsensiblenesse of mans want of Christ the ground of this Fol. 52 3 Some seeke fulnesse in the naked use of the ordinances not labouring to see taste and receive Christ in them ibid. 4 Some seeke fuln●sse in humane observations their folly discovered Fol. 54 CHAP. VI. The folly of man in standing aloofe off from Christ and not comming fully home to Christ in whom is all fulnesse manifested Fol. 56 Foure grounds hereof Fol. 59 The folly of man in not comming unto Christ illustrated Fol. 68 CHAP. VII The valuing and esteeming of Christ above all is pressed Fol. 73 Christ to be valued above all 6. wayes Fol. 75 Foure things in Christ to be highly prized Fol. 81 CHAP. VIII Perswasion to come to Christ and get interest in Christ. Fol. 86 Three things perswading thereunto Fol. 90 The manner of comming to Christ laid down Fol. 98 Helps disposing and fitting man to come to Christ Fol. 101 CHAP. IX The making use of Christ is taught Fol. 104 CHAP. X. Full and constant acquiescence in Christ is perswaded Fol. 110 Consolations flowing from the fulnesse of