Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	father_n	john_n	worship_v	3,267	5	9.5375	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A30235	The difficulty of and the encouragements to a reformation a sermon preached before the honourable House of Commons at the publick fast, Septem. 27, 1643 / by Mr. Anthony Burges ...	Burgess, Anthony, d. 1664.	1643 (1643)	Wing B5643; ESTC R7338	25,238	35

its causa non separatio facit schismaticum it is the cause not a separation that makes a schismatick This hath alwayes been the slander cast upon Reformation Quot homines tot Evangelia so many men so many Gospels and Luther was often required not to divide the inconsutilis tunica the seamlesse coat of Christ therefore he calls his adversaries inconsutilistae and Tunicastri Lay then this blame not upon Reformation that onely can remove such things but upon those who were the Fathers of these Rents 9. The ninth let to Reformation is the outward troubles and commotions that doe accompany it And certainly these lye in the way of Reformation as Amasaes carkasse that stopt all the passengers but this our Savior foretold I come to send a fire and a sword and to set Father against son and son against Father not that our Saviour meanes this was the Finis operantis that he intended this but that it was Finis operis there would be this event wheresoever his pure and powerfull preaching was set up for he is not the cause of it but the stubborn and rebellious hearts of men make it neither the Physician nor the Physick are the cause of the paines and troubles the sicke man feeles but the ill humours that have been long gathering in him 10. The unthankfulnesse of people that they should no more esteem or prise those instruments which God sends to deliver them by Thus they were unthankfull to Moses and Aaron and the Roman Worthies have drank of this cup Therefore one Heathen when his sonne was desirous of publike service he carrieth him to the boards and planks of old weather-beaten Ships that lay upon the shoare Loe saith he thus the people will doe to thee after they have used thy service And so another Heathen complained who had done much publike service but neglected that he was like the Trees which the beasts run to in time of a storme and when that was over they fell on cropping and browzing of it Now as this unthankfulnesse is a grosse sinne so it ought not to be any discouragement for those who are employed in the publike good Luther was much offended at this and therefore he tells us his temptation Cum hac itavideo non nunquam impatientia frangor serio cogio nisi illa doctrina in mundū jam sparsa esset me quidvis potius facturum quam ut ingrato mundo ostenderem Sed hae cogitationes sunt carnis When I see this ingratitude I am sometimes broken with impatience and seriously resolve unlesse this doctrine had been already disperst I would rather have done any thing then declared it to this unthankfull world but these are the thoughts of the flesh But yet there are many urgent motives and arguments why Reformers should goe on 1. Because God hath severely punished the neglect of any order he hath left with his Church though they have done much yet if they have not done compleatly he hath been angry Hence you read so often Neverthelesse the high places were not taken away May not the judgement upon Nadab and Abihu for offering strange fire may not the breach God made upon Uzzah for ever awaken Reformers that they should not be conniving and indulgent to the breach of the least command of his O ye worthy Patriots think not that you are free and at your owne disposall how much or how little is to be done for God you are accomptable to God for jotaes and tittles 2. There is nothing more odious unto him then corruptions in his Church what detestable names doth che Scripture put upon Idols and the false Prophet is called the taile and our Saviour when he was to purge out the corruptions from his Temple He makes a whip and drives the polluters out a strange way it was but hereby he would shew how odious such were to him even as so many dogs in his presence Consider that speech Iohn 4. My Father seeketh such who worship him in spirit and in truth he seekes such which argueth how precious and delightsome they are unto him that worship him in his owne way therefore our Saviour tells the Pharisees that that which was highly esteemed amongst them as great piety and devotion it was {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} an abomination before God oh then let us not doe any abominable things 3. A third motive is whatsoever carnall Statists think yet doing the will of the Lord in this we are sure ofblessings Remember those two places quoted before for we desire they may alwayes stick upon your hearts how ill it was when there was no law nor no preaching Priest and then how well it was when Iehosaphat set up those that taught the good knowledge of God It is true we may be a long while in the Wildernesse and God for the sinnes ofhis owne people may suffer the enemies to prevaile but we are alwayes to remember the end of the Lord mark the ends of all Reformation and you shall find them to be peace And as we say of the sorrowes and sadnesse of a particular godly man it is not his godlinesse that makes him so but because he hath not godlinesse enough so of a Church or State it is not a Reformation that makes woe and misery but because we are not reformed enough we are not willing for this 4. Consider how much men venture to prepare wayes for antichrist and to make his paths streight Do not men venture their estates and their lives that the man of sinne may become a man of glory and shall not we doe as much for Christ will not the prisons and miseries wherein they suffered witnesse against our dastardlinesse Did not the people bring their eare-rings to make the golden calfe Did not the Corinthians suffer the false Apostles to buffet them and smite them shall there be Martyrs for errour and not for Truth As that good old Pambus wept when he saw a Strumpet cunningly dressing her selfe to please her Lover because he could not take as much pains to please God so do thou when thou hearest of the Papists and such adversaries making themselves poore and venturing their lives that errour may be advanced why dost thou not humble thy self because thou art not so forward or self-denying for the truth Use of Exhortation That now we would prepare the way for Christ God will reforme his Church by other meanes if we doe not promote it take heed lest while we are negligent he come downe himselfe as it were and scourge out all prophanenesse from his Temple and so you lose both your reward and comfort consider that as it is your danger to prepare Christs wayes so it is the greatest honour that God did ever put upon you How many thousands that shall finde the benefit and sweetnesse of drinking the pure streames of Gods Ordinances will then blesse God for you In these matters of God consult not with flesh and blood remember

the manner of proving and the matter or proofe it selfe we will gather two Doctrines seasonable for these times Doct. 1. That Gods Word is the onely rule and principle in matters of Religion and Reformation It holds à majori ad minus if the Prophets that were acted infallibly would yet confirme their matter delivered by Scripture how much rather others 2. From the matter or argument and in that the duty pressed Doct. 2. That it is a speciall duty upon all to remove all impediments and to make way for Christ when he is comming to us We will begin with the first Doct. The Word of God is the onely rule and principle in matters of Religion or Reformation It hath the properties of a Rule which are these 1. It is known and easie Psal. 19. 78. It is compared to a light and a Lanthorn to our feet Nor will that evasion of the Papists serve their turnes that it is lumen or light in it selfe but not quoad nos as if the Scripture were a light under the bushell God should then doe that which our Saviour saith no man doth for that the Scripture is light effective as well as formaliter appeares by the addition giving understanding to the simple Besides to be a light in it selfe but not quoad nos is a kind of contradiction seeing the light it hath is for us It is true indeed there is a two-fold obscurity one of matter which sometimes is so excellent and perfect that our understandings cannot reach it and so in this sense it is said the naturall man perceiveth not the things of God {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} a naturall man one that doth excolere animam such as Aristotle and Tully but this blame is to be cast upon our understanding not the Scripture for as we say Sol est maxime visibilis Deus est maxime intelligibilis the Sunne is most visible and God most easie to be known because the one hath the greatest motive of seeing which is light and the other of being understood which is verity so are these truths most full of light if our understandings were opened The second obscurity is of the phrase and that the Scripture useth not in things essentiall to salvation and commonly what is obscurely set down in one place is cleare in another and shall not the Spirit of God which giveth a cleare understanding and expressions unto men be cleare See the Papists folly they hold it possible to fulfill the Law but not to understand it for when we urge that place Deut. 30. 12. The Word is not hidden from thee and it is very nigh thee Oh say they this is to be understood of the fulfilling of the Law not the knowing it wee conclude then the holy Scriptures are the holy Ladders whereby we climbe up into heaven and know Gods meaning 2. It is infallible and certain The infallibility of it is witnessed by those places where Gods Word is compared to Gold seven times refined and where it is said Heaven and earth shall sooner passe away then one jot or tittle a And so thy testimonies are sure By all this it appeareth that the Word of God is a fixed Canon it cannot be wrested and wyer-drawn so as to approve one thing to day and the contrary to morrow It is hellish blasphemy to compare it to a nose of Wax and to say that it is to be interpreted secundum currentem statum Ecclesiae as the condition of the Church altereth so must the Scripture alter thereby they confirme that of Tertullian Deus non erit Deus nisi homini placuerit God shall not be God unlesse man please If you say that the Apostle Peter speakes of some who did wrest the Scripture and put it upon the wrack This is to be granted concerning the words not the sence and matter of the Holy Ghost intended by those words That is invariable and cannot be a Reed shaken with every wind of interpretation and because Heretiques would flye to the words denying the sence therefore hath the Church of God been constrained to use new words to distinguish them by Irenaeus doth well compare Heretiques to the Beast Hyaena that imitates the Shepheards voyce and so by that meanes seduceth the Sheep into destruction Now this infallibility of the Word is so great that when some as Saul and Uzzah have gone against it as if their speciall considerations might give them a protection which were indeed faire and plausible yet they were severely punished by God 3. It is universall in regard of time place and persons so that he is the true and good Catholike that keeps to this Catholike rule The Word was ever a rule to declare unto the Church any thing besides that we have received nunquam licet nunquam licuit nunquā licebit Vinc. Lyr. Hence in the Old Testament Esay 8. 20. To the Law and to the Testimony if they speake not according to this it is because there is no light in them Hence also the good Kings Hezekiah and Iosiah were guided by this pillar of fire when they set upon Reformation It was a rule in the New Testament therefore our Saviour often Luk. 10. 26. Psal. 11. 17. How readest thou and how is it written Paul when he would reform the abuses crept in the Church of Corinth about the Sacrament goeth to the first institution and as it was delivered from Christ And if wee consult with the Fathers we shall finde that this Scripture was the brook out of which they gathered those stones which they slung in the forehead of those Goliahs that oppressed the truth There was never any errour but it went up and down like Cain from one place to another fearing lest every place of Scripture that met it would kill it Then it is universall for all places as the Sun in the firmament is light for the whole world not for this Kingdome only or that but it is for Nations so is Gods Word a rule to England to Scotland to Rome to all where it is promulged Lastly it is universall to all persons for as the Psalmist saith of the Sunne there is nothing hid from the heat thereof so no person or persons are exempted from the Obligation of the Word there is none too great to have his faith and life controlled by it Hence it is able to make the man of God wise to salvation 1 Tim. 3. 17. And not onely a Minister but an whole Councell yea this is a rule that binds Kings and Parliaments We must all stoop to his Word 4. It is Indivisible When we say a rule is indivisible the meaning is that nothing may be added to it or detracted from it and this the Scripture in the close of all Rev. 22. challengeth to it self how great a breach of this truth hath been made when the Apocryphall Book and many other traditions and Ceremonies have been equallized to Scripture and made as necessary as