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	profess_v	visible_a	1,998	5	9.1242	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A18126	A sermon of the nature and end of repentance shadowed in the ministerie of Iohn the Baptist. Preached the Sunday afore Lent. 1613.	Case, William, 1584 or 5-1634.	1616 (1616)	STC 4767; ESTC S107898	20,795	36

notwithstanding doe they include a subordination of meanes without which wee cannot actually be brought to enioy what God doth secretly intend So that to build onely vpon notionall conceits and outward formalities of Gods seruice as though they were of themselues eyther acceptable to God or any whit behoouefull to our good vnlesse wee keepe our selues in the wayes wherein hee hath appointed vs to walke is but a selfe-deceiuing vanitie And therefore the outward forme and administration of this Sacrament of Baptisme is ineffectuall and vnauaileable without repentance true and serious For the bare forme of Baptisme in it selfe is but a meere Ceremonie and though after a sort necessary yet not absolutely necessary to mans saluation although the graces represented by it be indispensable For wee may be saued without Baptismall water but not without Baptismall Grace neyther doth euery one receiue the grace of God that receiues the Sacrament of his grace For howsoeuer God vse the Sacrament as an instrument to giue and assure vs of these graces so that none doe ordinarily partake of the grace of remission of sinnes without the Sacrament of Baptisme duely administred yet is not remission of sinnes so tyed vnto it that whosoeuer hath the one is necessarily made partaker of the other but that thousands receiue the outward signe which neuer shall taste of the fauour of God Furthermore that wee may better conceiue the errour of these men and may more perfectly apprehend the truth of this poynt wee are to know that there is a visible Church that is a communitie of men seperated from others and sanctified through the profession of that truth which God hath taught the world by his Sonne And there is an invisible Church that body mysticall whereof Christ is only the head that building vndiscernable by mortall eyes wherein CHRIST is the chiese Corner-stone In the visible Church there are outward meanes in the invisible Church there are inward graces required as meanes to assure vs of the fauour of God Now though hee can neuer be a member of the invisible Church which is not first a member of the visible yet euery one that is a member of the visible is not a member of the invisible for Rom. 9.6 all are not Israell that are of Israell That which makes vs members of the visible Church are the outward visible meanes of grace and our submission thereunto the preaching of the Word the receiuing of the Sacraments and the like That which makes vs members of the invisible Church are the inward graces of the Spirit Repentance Faith Hope and Loue. Professing the truth in the one in the other obeying the truth is of necessitie required Now according vnto these our iudgement of our selues and others ought to be after a different manner of others Charitie must direct vs of our selues Faith must assure vs. If wee see others submit themselues to the outward ordinarie meanes of life the rule of Charitie that hopeth all things is that wee hope well of all men and therefore that those that we see are outwardly baptised wee iudge as inwardly regenerated because our iudgement of others can extend no further then the outward appearance But if wee haue no other assurance of our owne safetie but by outward meanes our hopes are but vncertaine For that which wee hope of others wee must feele in our selues wee must feele that inward grace within vs which makes the outward meanes effectuall vnto vs and therefore if wee feele not Repentance in our selues our Baptisme is ineffectuall and vnauaileable Againe in the second place although men of dissolute and scandalous carriage may by enidence of reason be brought to confesse that their outward Bpatisme is vnauaileable without inward and true Repentance yet doth the Diuell through their owne corruption so farre preuaile with them as to perswade them and make them thinke that they repent when as indeede they doe nothing lesse For whereas Repentance doth especially consist in a dying to sinne Rom. 6.2 how shall they that are dead to sinne saith the Apostle yet liue therein If therefore we say that by dying to sinne we haue fellowship with Christ 1 Ioh. 1.6 and yet walke in darkenesse we lie and doe not truely saith Saint Iohn And yet for all this such is the misterie of imquitie that by the subtiltie of Satan and the falsenesse of mens owne hearts they still thinke they doe repent when indeede they repent not For there may be some generall dispositions vnto Repentance euen in Hypocrites as a willing submission vnto the outward means of life a desire of Saluation a kinde of hate of griefe and sorrow for some sinnes some kinde of obedience also vnto many of Gods commandements which may giue them some cause to thinke that the spirit of God workes in them the grace of repentance when as in truth it is nothing so because there is euersome great defect therein which makes it imporfect and so vnacceptable either it is not sincere or not entire or built vpon some indirect and oblique respect or other As first for example in the Pharises that came to Iohns Baptisme there was questionlesse some doubt made them in some sort think well of themselues but yet it was not sincere Math. 3.7 as it appeares by Iohns reproofe So also it is said of Horod that he heard Iohn gladly which quieted his couscience in some degree vet it was but for a time it continued not Againe in Balaaem there was both a feare of euill and a desire of good he was very loath vnwilling and fearefull to curse the children of Israel and he also desired from his heart he might die as the righteous but yet these affections in him were not true they proceeded from a seruile base deiected minde onely formidene poenae for feare of the danger hee should incurre if he did otherwise So likewise in Saul there was some kinde of obedience to Gods commandements yet was not his obedience entire for being commanded to destroy all and spare nothing of Amelecke which for the most part he did yet he reserued Agag and some few of the best things pretending to offer them in sacrifice vnto the Lord at his returne contrary to his commission so that though a wicked impenitent man may obay God in much ye there is alwaies something he loues better then Gods Commandement and that also must be cloaked ouer with religions pretence And lastly Ananias and Saphira vpon whose affections the doctrine of Repentance tooke such impression that it made them sell their possessions and all they had lay downe the price at the Apostles feete onely they kept backe some small part thereof to helpe them if occasion should serue which one would haue thought would not haue beene censured with such a heauie iudgement as it was for it s euer the propertie of an Hypocrite to guie some but not all when as God requires all or none at all Now such is