Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	faith_n	grace_n	spirit_n	4,029	5	5.0239	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A96226	The humble advice of the Assembly of Divines, now by authority of Parliament sitting at Westminster, concerning a confession of faith, presented by them lately to both houses of Parliament. A certain number of copies are ordered to be printed only for the use of the members of both houses and of the Assembly of Divines, to the end that they may advise thereupon.; Westminster Confession of Faith.	Westminster Assembly (1643-1652)	1646 (1646)	Wing W1427; Thomason E368_3; ESTC R201270	24,629	58

many weaknesses and imperfections VII Works done by unregenerate men although for the matter of them they may be things which God commands and of good use both to themselves and others yet because they proceed not from an heart purified by faith nor are done in a right manner according to the Word nor to a right end the glory of God they are therefore sinfull and cannot please God or make a man meet to receive grace from God And yet their neglect of them is more sinfull and displeasing unto God CHAP. XVII Of the Perseverance of the Saints THey whom God hath accepted in his Beloved effectually called and sanctified by his Spirit can neither totally nor finally fall away from the state of Grace but shall certainly persevere therein to the end and be eternally saved II. This Perseverance of the Saints depends not upon their own free-will but upon the immutability of the Decree of Election flowing from the free and unchangeable love of God the Father upon the efficacy of the merit and intercession of Jesus Christ the abiding of the Spirit and of the seed of God within them and the nature of the Covenant of Grace from all which ariseth also the certainty and infallibility thereof III. Neverthelesse they may through the temptations of Satan and of the World the prevalency of corruption remaining in them and the neglect of the means of their preservation fall into grievous sins and for a time continue therein whereby they incurre Gods displeasure and grieve his holy Spirit come to be deprived of some measure of their graces and comforts have their hearts hardned and their consciences wounded hurt and scandalize others and bring temporall judgements upon themselves CHAP. XVIII Of the assurance of Grace and Salvation ALthough hypocrites and other unregenerate men may vainly deceive themselves with false hopes and carnall presumptions of being in the favour of God and estate of salvation which hope of theirs shall perish yet such as truly beleeve in the Lord Jesus and love him in sincerity endeavouring to walk in all good conscience before him may in this life be certainly assured that they are in the state of grace and may rejoyce in the hope of the glory of God which hope shall never make them ashamed II. This certainty is not a bare conjecturall and probable perswasion grounded upon a fallible hope but an infallible assurance of faith founded upon the divine truth of the promises of salvation the inward evidence of those graces unto which these promises are made the testimony of the Spirit of Adoption witnessing with our spirits that we are the children of God which Spirit is the earnest of our inheritance whereby we are sealed to the day of redemption III. This infallible assurance doth not so belong to the essence of faith but that a true beleever may wait long and conflict with many difficulties before he be partaker of it yet being inabled by the Spirit to know the things which are freely given him of God he may without extraordinary revelation in the right use of ordinary meanes attain thereunto And therefore it is the duty of every one to give all diligence to make his calling and election sure that thereby his heart may be inlarged in peace and joy in the holy Ghost in love and thankfullnesse to God and in strength and chearfullnesse in the duties of obedience the proper fruits of this assurance so farre is it from inclining men to loosenesse IV. True beleevers may have the assurance of their salvation divers wayes shaken diminished and intermitted as by negligence in preserving of it by falling into some speciall sin which woundeth the conscience and grieveth the spirit by some sudden or vehement temptation by Gods withdrawing the light of his countenance and suffering even such as fear him to walk in darknesse and to have no light yet are they never utterly destitute of that seed of God and life of faith that love of Christ and the brethren that sincerity of heart and conscience of duty out of which by the operation of the Spirit this Assurance may in due time be revived and by the which in the mean time they are supported from utter despair CHAP. XIX Of the Law of God GOD gave to Adam a Law as a Covenant of Works by which he bound him and all his posterity to personall entire exact and perpetuall obedience promised life upon the fullfilling and threatned death upon the breach of it and indued him with power and ability to keep it II. This Law after his fall continued to be a perfect rule of righteousnesse and as such was delivered by God upon Mount Sinai in ten Commandments and written in two Tables the four first Commandments containing our duty towards God and the other six our duty to man III. Beside this Law commonly called Moral God was pleased to give to the people of Israel as a Church under age Ceremoniall Laws containing severall typical Ordinances partly of worship prefiguring Christ his graces actions sufferings and benefits and partly holding forth divers instructions of moral duties All which Ceremonial Laws are now abrogated under the new Testament IV. To them also as a Body Politique he gave sundry Judicial Laws which expired together with the State of that People not obliging any other now further than the general equity thereof may require V. The Moral Law doth for ever binde all as well justified persons as others to the obedience thereof and that not only in regard of the matter contained in it but also in respect of the authority of God the Creatour who gave it Neither doth Christ in the Gospel any way dissolve but much strengthen this obligation VI. Although true Beleevers be not under the Law as a Covenant of Works to be thereby justified or condemned yet is it of great use to them as well as to others in that as a Rule of life informing them of the will of God and their duty it directs and bindes them to walke accordingly discovering also the sinfull pollutions of their nature hearts and lives so as examining themselves thereby they may come to further conviction of humiliation for and hatred against sin together with a cleerer fight of the need they have of Christ and the perfection of his obedience It is likewise of use to the Regenerate to restrain their corruptions in that it forbids sin and the threatnings of it serve to shew what even their sins deserve and what afflictions in this life they may expect for them although freed from the curse thereof threatned in the Law The Promises of it in like manner shew them Gods approbation of obedience and what blessings they may expect upon the performance thereof although not as due to them by the Law as a Covenant of Works So as a mans doing good and refraining from evil because the Law encourageth to the one and deterreth from the other is no evidence of his being under the Law and

Die Lune 7. Decembr 1646. ORdered by the Commons Assembled in PARLIAMENT that sixe hundred Copies and no more of the Advice of the Assembly of Divines presented to this House Concerning a Confession of Faith be forthwith Printed for the service of both Houses and the Assembly of Divines and that the care of the printing thereof be referred to the Assembly of Divines And the Printer is injoyned at his perill not to print more then sixe hundred Copies of them or to divulge or publish any of them It is further Ordered that no person presume to Reprint Divulge or publish the said ADVICE or any part of it till further order be taken herein by both or either of the Houses of Parliament H. Elsynge Cler. Parl. Dom. Com. The humble ADVICE OF THE ASSEMBLY OF Divines Now by Authority of PARLIAMENT sitting at Westminster Concerning a Confession of Faith Presented by them lately to both Houses of PARLIAMENT A certain number of Copies are Ordered to be Printed only for the use of the Members of both Houses and of the Assembly of Divines to the end that they may advise thereupon LONDON Printed for the Company of STATIONERS TO THE RIGHT HONORABLE THE LORDS and COMMONS Assembled in PARLIAMENT The humble Advice of the Assembly of Divines now by Authority of PARLIAMENT sitting at WESTMINSTER Concerning a Confession of Faith CHAP. I. Of the Holy Scripture ALthough the light of Nature and the works of Creation and Providence do so farre manifest the Goodnesse Wisdome and Power of God as to leave men unexcusable yet are they not sufficient to give that knowledge of God and of his Will which is necessary unto salvation Therefore it pleased the Lord at sundry times and in divers maners to reveale himself and to declare that his Will unto his Church and afterwards for the better preserving and propagating of the Truth and for the more sure establishment and comfort of the Church against the corruption of the flesh and the malice of Satan and of the World to commit the same wholly unto writing which maketh the Holy Scripture to be most necessary those former wayes of Gods revealing his Will unto his people being now ceased II. Under the name of Holy Scripture or the Word of God written are now contained all the Books of the Old and New Testament which are these Of the Old Testament GEnesis Exodus Leviticus Numbers Deuteronomie Joshuah Judges Ruth I. Samuel II. Samuel I. Kings II. Kings I. Chronicles II. Chronicles Ezra Nehemiah Esther Job Psalmes Proverbs Ecclesiastes The Song of Songs Isaiah Jeremiah Lamentations Ezekiel Daniel Hoseah Joel Amos Obadiah Jonah Micah Nahum Habakkuk Zephaniah Haggai Zechariah Malachi Of the New Testament The Gospels according to MAtthew Mark Luke John The Acts of the Apostles Pauls Epistles to the Romans Corinthians I. Corinthians II. Galatians Ephesians Philippians Colossians Thessalonians I. Thessalonians II. To Timothy I. To Timothy II. To Titus To Philemon The Epistle to the Hebrews The Epistle of James The first and second Epistles of Peter The first second and third Epistles of John The Epistle of Jude The Revelation of John All which are given by inspiration of God to be the Rule of Faith and Life III. The Books commonly called Apocrypha not being of Divine inspiration are no part of the Canon of the Scripture and therefore are of no authority in the Church of God nor to be any otherwise approved or made use of than other humane Writings IV. The Authority of the Holy Scripture for which it ought to be beleeved and obeyed dependeth not upon the Testimony of any man or Church but wholly upon God who is Truth it selfe the Author thereof and therefore it is to be received because it is the Word of God V. We may be moved and induced by the Testimony of the Church to an high and reverent esteeme of the holy Scripture And the heavenlinesse of the Matter the efficacy of the Doctrine the majesty of the Style the consent of all the Parts the Scope of the whole which is to give all glory to God the full discovery it makes of the only way of mans salvation the many other incomparable Excellencies and the intire perfection thereof are Arguments whereby it doth abundantly evidence it self to be the Word of God yet notwithstanding our full persuasion and assurance of the infallible truth and Divine authority thereof is from the inward work of the Holy Spirit bearing witnesse by and with the Word in our hearts VI. The whole Councel of God concerning all things necessary for his own Glory mans salvation Faith and Life is either expressely setdown in Scripture or by good and necessary consequence may be deduced from Scripture unto which nothing at any time is to be added whether by new revelations of the Spirit or Traditions of men Neverthelesse we acknowledge the inward illumination of the Spirit of God to be necessary for the saving understanding of such things as are revealed in the Word and that there are some circumstances concerning the Worship of God and Government of the Church common to human actions and Societies which are to be ordered by the Light of Nature and Christian Prudence according to the generall Rules of the Word which are alwayes to be observed VII All things in Scripture are not alike plaine in themselves nor alike cleare unto all yet those things which are necessary to be known beleeved and observed for salvation are so clearly propounded and opened in some place of Scripture or other that not only the Learned but the unlearned in a due use of the ordinary means may attain unto a sufficient understanding of them VIII The Old Testament in Hebrew which was the Native Language of the people of God of old and the New Testament in Greek which at the time of the writing of it was most generally known to the Nations being immediatly inspired by God and by his singular care and providence kept pure in all Ages are therefore Authenticall so as in all Controversies of Religion the Church is finally to Appeale unto them But because these Originall Tongues are not known to all the people of God who have right unto and interest in the Scriptures and are commanded in the feare of God to read and search them therefore they are to be translated into the vulgar Language of every Nation unto which they come that the Word of God dwelling plentifully in all they may worship him in an acceptable manner and through patience and comfort of the Scriptures may have hope IX The infallible Rule of Interpretation of Scripture is the Scripture it selfe and therefore when there is a Question about the true and full sense of any Scripture which is not manifold but one it must be searched and known by other places that speak more clearly X. The Supreme Judge by which all Controversies of Religion are to be determined and all Decrees of Councels Opinions of Ancient Writers Doctrines of