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	religion_n	true_a	4,659	5	4.8297	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A12350	A fruitfull sermon vpon part of the 5. chapter of the first epistle of Saint Paule to the Thessalonians. By Henry Smith, which sermon being taken by characterie, is now published for the benefite of the faithfull	Smith, Henry, 1550?-1591.	1591 (1591)	STC 22665; ESTC S113466	14,732	47

kindle it The thirde Admonition teacheth howe to make fruite of the second Try the doctrines of them which prophecie thou shalt not beleeue errour for trueth but holde the best The fourth Admonition is the summe of all and it commeth last because it is longest in learning that is Abstaine from all apparance of euill This is the summe of al for he which can abstaine not onely from euill but from the apparance of euill is so perfect a man as can bee found in this sinfull life Place all these together and it is as if Paule should say Quench not the Spirite by despising of Prophecying neither despise Prophecying because all doe not Prophecie alike but rather when you heare some preach one way and some an other when you see some follow him and others followe him doe you trye the doctrines by the Scripturs as the men of Beroea did and choose that which is best and soundest and truest hauing alwaies such an eye to the Trueth that you abstaine from all apparance of errour so iealous the Holy Ghost would haue vs of our faith that wee set no Article vpon our Religion but that which is an vndoubted truth as Moyses did nothing in the Tabernacle but that which was shewed in the patterne set downe before him The occasion of these Lessons seemes to come of this that there were some among the Thessalonians as there bee among vs which did forsake all Religion because the Preachers did not agree or because the liues of Professors gaue some offence therefore Paule sheweth that there is no cause why they shoulde mislike the Word for the Preacher or why they shoulde despise Religion for the Professour because the Word the Religion is not theirs for they can no more bee polluted by them than God Then he concludeth that feeing it is necessarie that there shall be alwaies errours and heresies to trye vs we should also trye them and thereby bee prouoked so much the more from errour or heresie that we abstaine euen from the appearance thereof least wee fall into the sinne this is the scope of these wordes Despise not Prophecying This Admonition is as it were the keeper of the former for by prophecying the spirite is kindled and without prophecying the spirite is quenched and therefore after Quench not the spirite Paule sayth Despise not Prophecying shewing that as our sin dooth quench the spirite so Prophecying doth kindle it This you may see in the Disciples that went to Emaus of whome it is sayde when Christ preached vnto them out of the Lawe and Prophets their Spirite was so kindled with his prophecying that theier heartes waxed hot within them This you may see againe in Saules Messengers which were sent for Dauid when they came among the Prophets and hearde them prophecie their Spirite was so kindled that they coulde not choose but prophecie also in so much that when Saule came after himselfe and hearing the Prophets as they did the Spirite came vpon him likewise and hee prophecied too where-vpon it was said Is Saul also among the Prophets This is no maruell that the Spirite of man shoulde bee so kindled and reuiued and refreshed with the word for the word is called the foode of the soule take away the worde from the soule and it hath no foode to eate as if you should take foode from the bodie the bodie woulde pine And therefore Salomon saith without visions the people perrish that is without out Prophecying the people famish Therfore he which loueth his soule had not neede to despise Prophecying for if hee despise Prophecying then verily he famisheth his owne Soule and is guiltie of her death The Apostle might haue said Loue Prophecying or honour Prophecying But why dooth he forbid to despise Prophecying Why did Christ say The poore receiue the Gospell but to shewe that the rich did contemne it Why dooth Paule say I am not ashamed of the Gospell but to shewe that manie are ashamed of it Euen so he saith despise not Prophecying shewing that the greatest honour we giue to Prophets is not to despise them and the greatest loue which we carrie to the Worde is not to loath it If wee doe not despise the Preachers then we thinke that we honor them enough and if we doe not loath the Worde then we thinke that we loue it enough therefore the Apostle saith Despise not Prophecying for honour Prophecying Prophecying heere dooth signifie Preaching as it dooth in Rom 1 14. Will you knowe why Preaching is called Prophecying To adde more honour and renowne to the Preachers of the Word to make you receiue them like Prophets and then Christ saith you shall haue a Prophets rewarde that is not such a reward as you giue but such a rewarde as God giueth Lastly if you marke Paule sayth not Despise not Prophets but Prophecying signifying that from the contempt of the Prophets at last wee come to despise Prophecying too lyke the Iewes when they were offended with the Prophet charged him to prophecie no more Therfore as Christ warned his Disciples to heare the Scribes and Pharisies although they did not as they taught so Paule warneth the Thessalonians that if any Prophets among them do not as they teach and therefore seeme worthie to bee despised like the Scribes and Pharises yet that they take heede that they doe not despise Prophecying for the Prophets Because the Preachers are despised before the worde bee despised therefore we will speake first of their contempt Christ asked his Disciples what they thought of him So I woulde aske you what you thinke of Preachers Is he a contemptible person which bringeth the Embassage of God which hath the name of an Angell and all his wordes are Messengers of life is he a contemptible person Prophets are of such account with GOD that it is sayde God will doe nothing before hee reueale it vnto his Prophets so Prophets are as it were GODS Counsellers Againe Kinges Priestes and Prophets were figures of Christ all these three were annointed with Oyle to shewe that they had greater graces than the rest but specially the Prophets are called men of God to shewe that all which are of God will make much of Prophets for Gods sake therefore women are forbidden to take vppon them to prophecie least that noble calling shoulde become vile and despised by such vnskilfull handlers of it Therefore when the Prophet Elisha would send for Naaman the leaper to come vnto him these were his words Naaman shall knowe that there is a Prophet in Israell as though all the glorie of Israell were chiefely in this that they had Prophets and other had none Therfore when this Prophet was dead Ioash the King came vnto his corse and wept ouer his face and cryed O my Father my Father the Charet of Israell and horsemen of the same shewing that the Chariots and horses and Souldiours doe

doctrine This made Iohn say Trie the Spirites and therefore wee reade in the 17. of the Acts howe the men of Beroea woulde not receiue Paules doctrine before they had tried it and how did they trye it It is sayde that they Searched the Scripture that is the way which Paul would teach you to trye other euen as he was tryed himselfe wherby you may see that if you vse to reade the Scriptures you shall bee able to trie all doctrines for the word of GOD is the touchstone of euery thing like the Light which God made to illuminate all his creatures so is the Scripture to decide all questions euery doubt must come to the worde and all controuersies must be ended at this tribunall the Scripture must speake which is right and which is wrong which is truth and which is error and all tongues must keepe silence to heare it So GOD hath appointed that the iudge of our controuersies which he saith in the 12. of Iohn shall iudge vs in the last day Heere a man may aske if it be so that God would haue vs trye all our Religion by the Scripture and not by Fathers nor by Doctors nor by Counsels nor by Angell nor by Pope how then doe the Papists say we must beleeue as the Church beleeueth and neuer looke into the Scripture whether our teachers saye as God saith but take it vpon theyr credite as a blinde man eateth his meate a man tryeth his horse which must beare him and shall he not trye his faith which must saue him Peter saith Let euerie one bee able to giue a reason of his faith Is this a reason to saye I beleeue so because Rome beleeueth so or rather because the Worde of GOD dooth teach me so It will not bee an auailable aunswere for them which dye in heresie superstition or blindnesse to saye the Priestes taught vs so no more than it serued the first woman Eue to saye the Serpent taught her so for GOD saith Bee not deceiued neither by Serpent nor by Prophet nor by Angell Therefore I conclude with the Apostle Paule Despise not Prophecying least the Gospell bee taken away from you and yet trie Prophecying least you receiue errour for trueth and mens dreames for doctrine As wee are to trye doctrines so Paule woulde haue vs to trie our thoughts and speeches and our actions therefore hee sayth Trye all thinges Hee dooth not bid vs take a taste of all sinnes and vanities as Salomon did to trye them for they are tryed alreadie but that we shoulde set the Worde of GOD alway before vs like a rule and beleeue nothing but that alone which it teacheth loue nothing but that which it prescribeth hate nothing but that which it forbiddeth and doe nothing but that which it commaundeth and then wee Trie all thinges by the Worde of GOD. As the Eunuch sayde Howe shoulde I vnderstande without an Interpreter so thou maist say howe shall I trie without the Worde which is the touchstone of good and euill Nowe when wee haue tryed by the Worde of God which is trueth and which is errour which is light and which is darknes what shoulde we doe then Keepe that which is best That is stay at the trueth stay at the light as the wise men that followed the conduction of the bright shining starre from the East stayed when they came to Christ We must keepe and holde fast the trueth euen as a man gripeth a thing strongly with both his hands that is defend it with thy tongue maintaine it with thy purse further it with thy labour in daunger and trouble and losse and displeasure come life come death think alwaies as Christ did seale the trueth of his promise with his blood most precious so thou must seale the trueth of thy professiō with thy deerest blood else is it apparant thou doost not keepe it but let it goe Well therfore dooth Paul put trye before choose for he which in choise of all things first tryeth may after his tryall choose the best But hee which chooseth before he trye takes oftentimes the worst sooner than he dooth the best And in this was exceedingly manifested the notable deceit of sathan by his instrumēts the popish Priests in the dayes of ignorance who because the people should take superstition before Religion would neuer let them haue the touchstone of the Word to trye their doctrines but kept them from the Scripture and lockt it vp from their vnderstanding in an vnknowne tongue which they could not skill of least they shoulde trye their teaching as the men of Beroea tryed the wholsome doctrine of S. Paule and by their sleights making all their Religion a craft as men call their trades for in no deceiuable trade howe full of falshood soeuer could more deceit be harboured than in theirs Therefore as Iosiah reioyced in his time that the booke of GOD was sound againe so we may reioyce in these dayes that the booke of God is found againe for when the people might not read it nor heare it it was all one to them as if they had for so long time vtterly lost it After this precept of the Apostle Trye all things and keepe the best hee addeth Abstaine from all appearance of euill as if hee shoulde say that is like to bee best which is so farre deuided from euill that it hath not so much as the appearance of euill and that is like to bee trueth which is so farre from errour that it hath not the shewe of errour whereby hee sheweth that nothing should bee brought into the Church or added in matters of faith and doctrine to our Religion but that which is agreeable and consonant to the vndoubted trueth and vtterly without suspicion of errour It is not inough to bee perswaded of our faith but wee must be assured of it for our Religion is not built vppon wauering and inconstant doubtes but vppon most assured certaine knowledge Heere we may maruaile why Paul biddeth vs Abstaine from all appearance of euill because it is apparant that sinne and heresie and superstition are hypocrites and common experience approoueth that sinne hath the appearance of vertue heresie hath the appearance of Trueth Superstition hath the appearance of Religion but let our wonder heerein be thus aunswered By this the Apostle dooth note that there is no sinne nor heresie nor superstition but if the visour or vaile bee remooued or rather taken away from it which maketh it seeme vertue or trueth or Religion it will appeare in the right nature to be a sinne and heresie and superstition though at the first sight the maske or visour doe make it seeme none because it couers the euill like a painted Sepulcher vpon rotten bones Heereby we are taught prudently to iudge of all thinges as they are and not as in outward appearance they seeme to bee and as wee drawe aside the curtaine before we beholde the picture so