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	life_n	true_a	3,991	5	4.8169	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A01727	A godlie, zealous, and profitable sermon vpon the second chapter of Saint Iames. Preached at London, by Master George Gifford, and published at the request of sundry godly and well disposed persons	Gifford, George, d. 1620.	1582 (1582)	STC 11860; ESTC S108636	20,920	56

to shew that although he loued Isaac déerely yet he loued God more so y t if we féele our loue to the Lord our God to be so small that it cannot preuaile with vs to kill and mortifie the lusts of sinne and vaine plesures of the flesh how shall we perswade our selues that we are like Abraham which had denied the loue of himsefe so farre that he did neuer grudge but would willingly haue killed his sonne Rahab after shée had made confessiō what she did beleeue concerning the God of Israel for the same Gods sake for the true religion and for the Church or people of God tooke the messengers and did hide them to the hazard of her life all y t she had affirming to the king when he sent to séeke thē that they were departed Doth not this improue the faith of those which for the religion of God are so farre off from hazarding their liues goods that they dare not be séene when neuer so little daunger doth arise wherein are those like vnto Rahab which will turne with euery winde and a man cannot tell what religion they be of they will be sure to rowe with the tide and neuer to striue against the streame doe such now iustifie themselues lyke Rahab haue they such a faith as she had No déerely beloued they are as yet verye Infidells and loue themselues and the worlde more then they loue GOD and his truth this thing then is most euident y t the true beléefe doth make all those y t haue it ready willing to loose their liues their goods for y e gospel this must not séeme to be a strange doctrine whē as our sauiour telleth vs in sundry places y t he y t doth not forsake al take vp his crosse folow him cannot be his disciple Wel we must therfore be so hot and zealous in the profession of true religion that it cause vs to forget our own state and commoditie we must haue so burning a loue to Gods truth that nothing may be able to quench the same We must not stagger and varie because we shal endure trouble Let vs conclude this point wherein it is proued y t they erre are deceiued which doe not make account of kéeping religion pure of louing it before all other things and so of giuing to God his due honour Remember y t from hence ye are to fetch the first part of y e true description of a godly mā the triall of the iustifieng faith which is but one therfore worketh alike in all which are pertakers of it though not in the like mesure with all mark how far y e holye Ghost doth differ in setting forth a righteous man from y e common māner of worldlings wheras he taketh it to be y e chiefe work which respecteth God himself his truth they passe ouer that count it no matter though a man be an Idolater or superstitious or a swearer which doth not reuerence the name of God so y t he be a friendly man to his friend such lyke how great an enimy he be to y e word of God it skilleth not these are brute beasts w tout vnderstāding very Atheists which wil say plainly they can sée no differēce betwéen the papists the professors of y e gospel both because they are not able to iudge of doctrine also y t they looke but vnto men now let vs come to y e second thing wherin they erre which this text doth confute sharply they suppose as I tolde ye y e men are to haue no farther regard but to this not to hurt passing by all those duties wherin they are to do good vnto their brethren not duly cōsidering how y e law of god doth not only bind vs to abstein frō hurting our neighbor but also doth most straightly tie vs to do al good déeds vnto them so that he is guiltie before God not onely which committeth that which the law forbiddeth but also which leaueth the thing vndone which the law enioyneth Now then because the true faith bringeth vs to haue care to obey God wholy S. Iames requireth that a man should shew his faith not only by leauing y t which is euil but also by the performaunce of y t which is good for thus he saith shew me thy faith by thy déeds that faith which is without works is dead héere by y e way obserue by comparison how far of are those frō grace which swarme ful of vncleane vices their whole race is nothing but a continual sinning wheras this is euidently héere proued y t such mē as carie a great shew of vprightnes in refraining from sundry vices are stil without testimonie of true beléefe because their holy déeds do not appeare for when as y e holy scriptures do testify y t y e hart is purified by faith y t those are borne againe in the new spirituall birth that they are new creatures haue a new heart a right spirit created and renewed in them it must néedes be that they are prepared vnto euery good worke they haue not onely put off the olde man with his corrupt lusts but haue also put on y e new man which is created in righteousnesse and true holinesse as they haue walked in darknesse so now they walke in the light There is one step yet further in this matter I trust that as ye will confesse this that if those do not beléeue well which haue no good workes to shewe although they be in some things vpright and much more the foule and filthy liuers which dishonour God and his truth so ye will also be brought to sée that those miserable men are yet further off which barke against this holye doctrine and cannot abide that a man should say to the wicked and vngodlye thou art in the waye to hell thou shalt dye the death if thou returne not from these euills They may thunder raile against men and saye they vtter damnation but let them looke if they can quench the light which the Holy Ghost hath giuen in this text Let vs retourne to the former matter againe We must not onely abstaine from euill but also doe good there be many likewise deceiued in this doing good restraining it to the baser and lesser part they looke but vnto the bodies of their bretheren and suppose they are to haue no further regard but of them to reléeue and ease the miseries of the flesh let the soule be neuer so blinde neuer so sicke in neuer so great danger of eternall destruction they haue no pitie of that which doth bewray that they sée no further then this lyfe they haue no true loue nor pitie in thē for then woulde they loue the soules of men which are so precious they would pitie the wofull miserie that they be in For how absurd a thing is this y t one should be carefull to ease the calamitie

is w tout good workes is dead and those are Infidels which like brute beasts care not but for the things of this worlde and make no conscience of committing all kinde of euill workes Doe ye suppose that if the Sonne of man shoulde now come that he shoulde finde anye great store of faith Alas alas how many are the sinfull déedes of the most men which shew that they haue no faith How fewe are the good workes and how weake euen in the small remnaunt of the godlye which doth declare how poore and slender their faith is But we must yet procéede further in this matter and as it were strike it a lyttle déeper As men are wily to deceiue themselues so they will héere yet finde a hole to créepe out at although they be neuer so wicked for thus they will saye It is true Gods word saith that faith is shewed foorth by good workes well I thanke God though I haue many vices in mée and am full of infirmities yet I am not altogether without good workes I am not so gracelesse but at some times I remember God by praier I doe according to my abilitie giue to the poore I am ready to pleasure my friend doe not these things sufficientlye shewe that I haue faith Déerely beloued take héed for héere you may soone be deceiued it is not the meaning of the Apostle when he saith shew me thy faith by thy works that a few scattered scraps of good déeds among great heapes of sinfull workes and as it were a few graines of Corne in a great heape of Chaffe should be a true witnesse of the same For it must be showed both in forsaking renouncing all euill wayes and also in following after all goodnes for it is without al controuersie y t those which séeme to be good works before men are not so before God in the man which is giuen ouer to commit sin can y t which is good come out of the same heart in which vngodlinesse raigneth either make the trée good saith Christ and the fruite good or els make the trée euill and the fruite euill A good trée cannot bring forth euil fruit neither can an euill Trée bring foorth good fruite Can the same Trée bring forth both good fruite and euill fruite Doth a fountaine at the same place saith S. Iames send forth both swéet and bitter water Be not deceiued saith Saint Iohn he that worketh righteousnesse is righteous he that committeth sin is of the Diuell Some man will say doth not the most godly man that liueth commit sin doth not y e good the bad come together frō him The godly are loden w t the corruptions of y e flesh but yet they doe not commit sin y t is to say they are not giuen ouer as vngodly men are to the obedience of sin they are spotted with imperfections but they do not take plesure therein as the wicked do although they féele a lumpishnesse in them vnto good workes yet their whole race is applied vnto good works they would very faine obey their God on both sides that is to say in forsaking all that is euill doing all y t which he commaundeth thē Contrariwise the fleshly Infidell doeth with all his heart giue vp himselfe in the whole race of his life to that which is filthy if he doe any thing which is good it is but in shew being not done sincerely nor comming from a good roote but of selfe loue vaine glorie or such like Hée doth not any thing for the Lords sake but for his own For loue him ye shal finde him ready to do ye good cease that his goodnesse doth dye Praise him he will praise you againe discommend him although he deserue it neuer so much ye shall not come in his books be ye neuer so good Forget not this then I praye ye good bretheren when God hath set down so plain a rule to trie our selues by whether we be faithfull or Infidells If we finde our selues ful of good workes our heart doth beare vs witnes that we do them euen for loue towards God well are we this doth declare our faith But if our euill déedes abound our hart be vncleane it is time to looke about vs we are in a most miserable case I wish of God that we might often thinke vppon this and be carefull to shewe our faith to the world by our good and pure lyfe Be not afrayde to applye this to our selues and also to deale against the vngodlye with it For in this dissolute age wherein iniquitie hath almost gotten the vpper hande it is most necessary that we vse this instrument which GOD hath put into our hands Thou saist thou beléeuest shew thy faith by thy workes Now followeth another reason Thou beléeuest ther is one God thou dost well the Diuells also beléeue and tremble Way this argument well and ye shall plainlye perceiue that it doth nothing at all helpe a man to saye he hath faith when he hath no good déeds if this kinde of faith could saue him then should the Diuells be saued also because they haue the same beléefe but because it is most certaine that the Diuels shall not thereby be saued therefore it is also as manifest that those men who haue no other beléefe but that which they haue cannot be saued Let vs sée then how farre the faith of Diuelles doeth goe Thou beléeuest saith he that there is one God or that God is one and so thou thinkest this a great matter not to beléeue as y e vaine Gentiles which did think there wer diuers Gods and indéede for so farre thou dost well but yet marke what a great matter thou hast attained the Diuells doe beléeue the same and yet haue therby no benefit or reconciliation with God for they tremble when they remember the terrible iudgement seate the euerlasting fire which is prepared for them This faith of the diuils is not to be restrained to some one point but stretcheth vnto the whole doctrine of Faith They doe stedfastly beléeue and knowe that Iesus Christ died for the sinnes of the worlde this is a sure reason that they know the doctrine of God when they séeke to deface and ouerthrow it by contrarie errours When a man therefore is of a sounde iudgement in the Scriptures for matters of Faith and is able to confirme euerye point and to ouerthrowe the contrarie errours though manye will saye hée is a sound● man he taketh himselfe to be as great a Gospeller as any other yet if he haue no workes if his faith be not a liuelye regenerating faith he maye estéeme of himselfe what he will but the Lorde telleth vs that he is no more forwarde then thē Diuelles they are as sounde in the knowledge of truth as hée And if this common and general faith would serue they should be saued as well as he But it may be héere obiected that there is