Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n
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A28169
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Tender counsel and advice to the flock of God everywhere by a lover of truth and righteousness, William Bingley.
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Bingley, William, 1651-1715.
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1697
(1697)
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Wing B2923; ESTC R18478
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19,834
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66
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Fleshly Wisdom of this World is Ambitious does what it does to be seen of Men will Fawn and Flatter to gain the Applause of of others but will Slight Contemn Undervalue and Trample upon those that are Sincere and it seeks its own but not the things of Christ Jesus nor the good of his Flock is not tender but is unnatural and cruel will Sacrifice the good of Souls and the peace of the Church to gain its own ends this is that Spirit which the Apostle Warned against (a) 1 Cor. 13. and is not to be suffered in God's Camp and therefore Watch against it and its Abettors where-ever it appears and look upon it as a deadly Enemy to God and True Religion and dangerous to the Peace of the Church which ought to be prefer'd above and beyond any private Interest whatsoever So that it is not Specious Pretences Fair Speeches Old Experiences nor Knowledge where that is lost that gave the Experience and did make known the Mysteries of God and did make tender whil'st in Subjection to it that will or can truly Promote the Glory of God or the Peace of his Church For the Holy Apostle was truly Sensible of this when he said Though I speak with the Tongue of Men and Angels and have not Charity I am become as Sounding Brass or a Tinkling Cymbal and though I have the Gift of Prophecy (b) 1 Cor. 13. and understand all Mysteries and all Knowledge and though I have all Faith so that I could remove Mountains and have not Charity I am nothing And though I bestow all my Goods to feed the Poor and though I give my Body to be Burned and have not Charity it profiteth me nothing for Charity suffereth long and is kind Charity envieth not vaunteth not it self is not puffed up doth not behave it self unseemly seeketh not her own is not easiy provoked thinketh no evil rejoyceth not in Iniquity but rejoyceth in the Truth beareth all things believeth all things hopeth all things endureth all things Charity never faileth Now that these Blessed Fruits and Effects of the Love of God shed abroad in our Hearts we may be found in that they may be as Ornaments upon us and we may Shine forth in them as Lights upon an Hill and as Candles in Candlesticks that others may see our good Works and may Glorifie our Father which is in Heaven And Zion may become the Glory of many Nations and Jerusalem the Praise of the whole Earth and the Borders of God's Sanctuary enlarged and the Truth Prosper and many gathered to it And as we keep in the Wisdom and Counsel of God Peace and Unity will be Promoted Fervent Charity Brotherly Kindness and Bearing one with another in a Spirit of Love will increase and thereby the Sincere Incouraged the Feeble Strengthened the Heady and High-minded Rebuked the Backslider brought back the Careless and Negligent awakened and stirred up to Faithfulness and Diligence that nothing but Love and Truth may have any place amongst us then shall God have his Honour and we the Comfort of the Power and Presence of the Living God amongst us And Friends you hnow the Lord hath raised us up by his Mighty Power and Quickened us who were dead in Trespasses and Sins to be a People to him to answer the End for which we were Created and also the End for which he hath Redeemed us from that Bondage in which we were held by the Power of Darkness and that is to Serve and Worship him Now you know God is a Spirit and our Lord saith to the Woman of Samaria (c) John 4. 23. The hour cometh and now is when the true Worshippers shall Worship the Father in Spirit and Truth for the Father seeketh such to Worship him Now as the true Worship stands in Spirit they that are performers of it must be in the Spirit that is they must be Spiritually-minded their Hearts and Souls must be turned to this Spirit waiting to feel the Work of it both to fit them by taking away and Purging them from every thing that makes them unfit for so great an Exercise as that is to wash from all Corruptions and to draw the Mind out of that which would defile it for whil'st the Heart is defiled it is not fit for this Worship As God is Holy so is his Worship and it must be peform'd by a Heart and Mind that is made so or else we shall have such a return as Israel had of Old by the Prophet (d) Isa 1. 12 13 15. When ye come to appear before me who hath required this at your Hands to tread my Courts Bring no more vain Oblations c. And when ye spread forth your hands I will hide mine Eyes from you yea when you make many Prayers I will not hear your hands are full of Blood So that it is in vain for People to approach before the Lord with an Earthly Corrupt Heart and Mind Man has nothing to do to tread his Courts till a Reformation in some measure be wrought and that they know Repentance and an earnest Willingness and Desire to have their Hearts Washed in the (e) Zach. 13. 1. Fountain which God hath opened which is the Life and Virtue of his Beloved Son For when the Prophet had in the Chapter before advised Verse 16 17 18. Wash ye make ye clean put away the evil of your doings from before mine Eyes cease to do evil and learn to do well c. then he saith Come now and let us reason together c. So that it is evident People must come rightly prepared or else they have no right to tread his Courts nor to offer any thing as a Sacrifice to him And therefore let every Mind especially when met together in our Solemn Meetings for it is not barely coming there and hearing what may be spoken there but every one must be turned in to the Gift of God's Spirit in your own Hearts and feel your Minds exercised in it and you truly subject to the Leadings and Dictates of it that you may be a Spiritual-minded People and it is in this Frame God is Worshipped for when the Mind is truly subject to the Spirit of Life it quickens and raises such a Soul into a deep Sense of the Dealings of the Lord and his Goodness and Mercies which have been very many and the many Deliverances and Preservations God hath wrought for us and in this sense the Soul truly Bows before him and Admires his Goodness and Adores him for it and here the Worship of God is perform'd acceptably and such feel returns of Peace into their Souls and thereby are opened and enlarged to Praise the Lord and Speak well of his Name and these grow as (f) Mal. 4. 2. Calves in the Stall and as (g) Isa 44. 2. Willows by the Water-Courses these are like a Tree (h) Psal 1. 3. Planted by the Rivers of Water they bring forth their
keep his Commandments and keep his Words and Sayings how do's it behove us to come to a strict and thorough search Are we keeping his Commandments his Words and Sayings You know the tendency of all the Words Sayings and Commandments of our Lord was to bring Man to the Knowledge of his Power and the Work of it in them that they might come to be Sanctified by his Word (n) Joh. 17. 17. which is Truth and Born again (o) John 3. 3 8. of the Spirit for without it no Man can enter the Kingdom of God and also to rectifie Man both in Life and Manners that as Man was gone away from his Primitive State of Holiness into the Dark World he by observing his Word of Life and keeping of his Commandments might come up again in that Brightness and Glory from which he was fallen to Love and Fear God who hath given him Life and Being And where this Love is thus seated in the Heart and lived in it will naturally lead to forsake all things that offends him and hurts and hinders the spreading of the Truth and the Glory of his Name For it is not a shew or bare pretence of Loving him that will Intitle us to the Blessed Promise of He and his Fathers Loving them and coming to make their Abode with them For as it is said by the Apostle John If any Man love the World the love of the Father is not in him 1 John 2. 15. And it is said by our Lord He that Loveth (p) Mat. 10. 37. Father Mother Wife or Children c. better than me is not worthy of me Now if we must not Love things that are both good and lawful in themselves and justifiable for us to have enjoy and love in their places better than the Lord but he must have the Mind and Affections above and beyond the Love of them then our Love to these things must be subordinate to the Love we must have to him nor must we let our Minds Love or Affections be at all after unlawful things as the (q) James 4. 4. Friendship and Favour of this World for that is at Enmity with God nor after Covetousness and Pride the Lust Pleasure and Wantonness of this World for they are Evil and expresly forbidden and therefore as the Apostle said (r) Col. 2. 21. Touch not tast not handle not for they Defile and make unfit to draw nigh to God or to have fellowship with him and his Beloved Son who came to Redeem us from such things Now they that know the Truth well know that the Truth calls out of such things to abandon forsake and withstand them in every of their Appearances and to War against every hurtful Lust that Wars against the Soul and does not only call for this Resisting of them but will enable every one that submits to it in themselves to overcome these Snares and Temptations and so not to be Slaves and brought into Bondage by Evil but to be Victors over it And yet notwithstanding God has given this knowledge and invested man with a Divine Power if he will yet give way to these things and gratifie his vain and unbridled Mind and will harbour them in his Heart and live in them though he offends by so doing and becomes an ill Example to others such will unavoidably bring themselves under the Character the Apostle gives of some (s) 2 Tim. 3. 4. Lovers of Pleasures more than Lovers of God and must Reap the Reward of their so doing and therefore will not be found worthy of him who is come out of the Bosom of the Father to Restore poor lost Man to God again nor of that Eternal Life and Peace which he brings all those who receive him in that Love in which the Father sent him And therefore my Dear Friends as we Profess the Blessed Truth let us Love and Live in it and give up in Obedience to it that it may Purge (t) 1 Cor. 5. 7. out that old Leaven of Sin and Corruption and may slay and bring under that Evil Nature and Birth which loves and is ready to lay hold of Temptation when presented in our view by the Adversary of our Souls and so to Purifie and Mould us a new that we may be a new Lump Leavened into the Heavenly Divine Nature and become New Creatures Grafted into Christ Jesus the True and Heavenly Vine and become (v) Rom. 11. 17. Branches in him and receive Divine and Heavenly Sap and Virtue from him who is the Holy and Heavenly Root from whom all True Nourishment comes and being thus Grafted into Christ and Abiding in him we shall grow in him and bring forth Fruits of Righteousness through him to God's Glory and our Everlasting Joy and Peace which that all may do who have been Reached to by the Blessed Truth are the Hearty Prayers and Supplications of my Soul to the Lord. Therefore let all be Careful that none who have in any measure partook of the Life and Virtue which is in him who is the Living Vine lose the Sweetness thereof and consequently its Nature and so suck Nourishment from another Root though the Name and Profession may be retain'd and whil'st Professing to be Branches in Christ the True Vine are found to be in the old Root of Bitterness bringing forth the Fruits of it which are those of the Flesh as the Apostle doth fully and plainly describe them which are Strife Emulation (w) Gal. 5. 19 20 21. Wrath Contention Envying Drunkenness Whoredom c. and they that commit such things cannot Inherit the Kingdom of God but the Fruits of the Spirit which are brought forth by all that abide in Christ the True Vine are Love Joy x Peace Long-Suffering Gentleness Verses 22 23 24. Goodness Faith Meekness Temperance against such there is is no Law for they that are Christ's have Crucified the Flesh with the Affections and the Lusts So there is no room or indulgence to be given to the Fruits of the Flesh but we are to shew forth in all things that we are his Children and are Crucified (y) Gal. 6. 14. to the World and the World to us that as the Apostle saith If we Live in the Spirit it is not our saying We Live in the Spirit if we do not manifest he Fruits thereof let us also (z) Gal. 5. 25 26. walk in the Spirit let us not be desirous of vain Glory Provoking one another Envying one another for these are not the Fruits of a Branch in Christ nor of one that has Crnuified the Flesh but the contrary and is the Product of a Corrupt and Darkened Heart that notwithstanding may Profess the Truth and Talk of great things for a Name and Applause among Men yet is not subject to the Spirit of Truth which would Leaven into the Fruits of its own Nature but this Fleshly Exalted Vain Glorious Mind and Spirit that is Puff'd up in the