Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	great_a	lord_n	way_n	3,966	5	4.6102	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
B03937	Mr. Keith's sermon, preach'd on May the 12th, 1700. At Dr. Bedford's church, being Saint George Butolphs-Lane, by Billings-Gate. On Luke the 1st and verse 6th.	Keith, George, 1639?-1716.	1700 (1700)	Wing K210; ESTC R179321	14,369	16

Gospel Faith by which you may judge what the True Church is and where it is to be 〈◊〉 Now a Gospel Faith is an Ancient Primitive Faith for Truth you know was from the beginning yea divers of the Doctrines with which our Saviour enlightened those that came to 〈◊〉 were from the Moral Law before his Personal Appearance for as he well said Abraham saw his Day that it his great Truths and Ways For our Blessed Lord was the Author and Finisher of our Faith in him it begun and was consumated in his Personal Teachings and Instructions of his immediate Disciples and Apostles who by the unerring guide viz. The Spirit left to us what they had received from him True natural Truths are more and more discovered by Time for many go too and fro so that Science is increased But the Divine Truths are most perfect in their Fountain and Original they indeed may and do contract Impurities in their Streams and remote Derivations So that the way to discover the Corruptions is to stand upon the old Ways and see how it was in the Original or Beginning whether that Righteousness which is taught is to Man as well as to God For a good Conscience must and should be always void of Offence towards both and whether their walking is and has been in all the Commandments and Ordinances of the Lord or no if it has but been only in some and not in all verily it cannot nay must not be accounted blameless So by this first and true Character of a true Church and Faith two very dangerous Extreams are condemned as first that of the now Roman Church whose Doctrines and Usages which are truly denyed by that Church to which I am now joyned these following are in comparison Novelties and Innovations viz. their Image Worship Innovations of Saints Half Communion Prayer in an unknown Tongue● 〈…〉 Infalliability and Vniversality with 〈…〉 c. which whatsoever they pretend to I can assure you many of the Learned Divines of the Church to which I adhere have proved that all the before mentioned were generally unknown in the First and purest Times and so must be contrary to a Gospel Faith and True Church The Second on the other Extream is that Faith of the most of the New Sects is to be Condemned because of its Novelty and Innovation For where was Presbytery Independency Anabaptism and Quakerism of Old True I must confess that th●●e were some such like Heresies swiming in the Brains of some Ignorant but Conceited Men and Women then yet never as we Read were they in any general Practise any where For the Eldest we Read of were not above Three Hundred Years ago and some have sprung up even in this last Century or Age which to my Sorrow and Shame I must confess my self to have been of and to have grown and sprung up even from Mine and others sickle Fancys and vain Imaginations And God knows how soon now even amongst such and so many Confusions other new yet unheard of Sects and Heresies may arise and all to the further dividing of the true Church by Law Established and the scandal of Christian Faith and Religion c. True all These like the Pharisees may profess a great many Truths of the Gospel Faith yet for all that as their's had may have too much Leaven to spoil the whole Lump But as the true Faith was of Old ever from the begining So Secondly it was and is to be both Pure and Peaceable for St. James 3. 17. Assures us that Wisdom or Truth which is from above is first Pure than Peaceable Gentle and easie to be intreated full of Mercy and good Fruits without Partiality and without Hypocrisie teaching and producing Purity Holiness and Righteousness in Life and Heart For the business of it both was and is to conform us unto Christ and to make us Holy as he was and that in all manner of our Conversations as 1 Pet. 2. 15 16. And not only Holy but Peaceable also for Christ was the Prince of Peace and his Gospel the Gospel of Peace and not of Confusion as is manifested 1 Cor. 24. from the 33. to the end For God is not the Author of Confusion but of 〈◊〉 As in all Churches of the Saints let your Women keep Silen●● in the Churches for it is not permitted them to Speak but these are Commanded to be under Obedience as also saith the Law c. By which second Character of a true Church there are likewire these two aforesaid dangerous Extreams Condemned and Confuted The first of which viz. Popery which apparently teaches not only direct Impieties and Immoralities by the consequences of its Doctrines but also endeavours to Destroy both Ecclesiastical and Civil Peace For First by their Idollatries and Invocation of Saints and Angels which by the Prophets and Apostles is termed Spiritual Fornication and Whoredom by Dishonouring God's Majesty and Affronting his Glory These then must undoubtedly be accounted great Impieties and likewise their Doctrines and Practices of Deposing and Murthering Princes by absolving People from their Allegiance and dispencing with their Perjuries and Rebellions all which are verily high Immortalities and clear contrary to the Spirit and design of the Holy Jesus which came to redeem unto himself a Peculiar People zealous of good Works Nay besides these they even strike at the Root and main Design of Christianity by these following Doctrines which renders Repentance and Change of Life unnecessary For as they think so are apt to believe that the Favour of God and Eternal Salvation may be had upon easier Terms namely Crosses Pilgrimages Ave Marias Whipings c. Fastings often with a bare Confession and Absolution They I say do not only think but also really believe that these will do their Business or if these will not but to Pugatory they must go Yet these suppose and verily believe that if they can but procure Money enough to leave for such a number of Masses and Dirgies then they shall be secured of being Prayed out thence So that the greatest design of the Gospel which is real inward Holiness is Destroyed by them for they never so much as think of a Necessity of Cutting off right Hands and plucking out Eyes that is of Subduing and rescinding an inordinate Appetites and Affections which are the great di●●●culties of Religion These they account hard Sayings and cannot endure either to hear of or practise them Nay more●●er as for their Unpeaceable Tempers and Behaviours both in Spiritual and Temporal concerns that's Manifested not only from our own but Forreign Histories And the other dangerous Extream is there are many Sects which Forsooth pretend as I once did to my Shame be it spoken to Purity and Spirituality Saying That God sees no Sin in his Saints or Elect they be●ng without Sin a Precious and Choice People yea affirming That God loves not for the sake of Holiness and Vertue but freely i. e. for no reason but

meer unaccountable Will And if it be so then it 's in vain for any to amend their Lives or to live Soberly Righteously and Godly in order to their acceptance with God tho' they are contrary in all manner of Conversation as may be inferr'd from their Doctrine yet these have been taught and so fondly think that by being God's Chosen or Beloved they shall be saved which abominable and absurd Doctrine has not only the Malignity of the worst of Popery but of Heathenism too for it makes good Works unnecessary c. True they have a Faith indeed but it 's very Airy which is only a receiving trusting and relying upon Christ by and in which they do well being parts of true Faith But even this the Devils have and practise which as St. James 2. 19. 26. tells us is Dead and Insignificant alone to the purpose of Justification and Acceptance with God Nay Further you know that the imputed Righteousness of Christ is a great Truth rightly understood But some Sects abuse it to this false Notion that all the Righteousness which Christ wrought is formerly and properly theirs as if they themselves had done it So they fondly think that by Christ's Holiness they can and are made Holy and Righteous tho' they have none of their own All which is apparently contrary to that in St. John 3. 9. Liltle Children let no Man deceive you He that doth Righteousness is Righteous So these which I have mentioned that have such Solifidian and Antinomian Notions by placing as I did once their Religion in the Fancy as the Papists do theirs in some External Services do both effectually take away the necessity of a real Reformation and true Goodness Nay I might add a great many more such as their 〈…〉 Infirmities by which they are apt to excuse themsel●●● in their Spiritual Sins and their Decrying Moraiity as a dull low Graceless Thing crying up the Immoral practises of Schisme and Disobedience which they indulge and defend themselves in True I must confess that there are many misled abused Persons of peaceable and quiet Spirits among these Sectaries So that we as Christians are to pray and endeavour that such may be regained And in all Humble submission to my Goverours If the Grand Council the next Sessions thinks fit to abate some lesser things in Consideration of such verily it would in my weak Judgment in all Christian Countries be esteemed Charity and Kindness which I am confident no true Christian either would or could dislike But alas I am not insensible that those which are of the right Sectarian Stamp and Temper will as I formerly did never rest or settle any where nor be satisfied with any Concession God Almighty indeed may change their Minds by his Power But I am afraid nothing less can So that all both you and I and others of our Church can and must do is only to pray to God for the Conversion of such For we have found and I have some Reason to think may now find again as it 's feared by woful Experience that nothing less than the whole Wills of some and an entire Subjection to their Fancies have or will content them for if such were granted all as they were formerly we cannot be assured that these would please long only this we know that formerly they did not nay as St. Jude in his Epistle ver 12. saith such a Whimsicall and Discontented People are as Clouds without Water carried about with every Wind For it is certain that let the Wind be where it will to Day none can say from what Point it will blow to Morrow just thus as such a People acted by their private Spirit as God knows I was once which is as observed as little certain as the Wind for as I have found by woful Experience the Opinions it suggests are numerous and all accounted Divine and Sacred viz. Gospel-Truths Gospel-Ways which forsooth must not be parted with No in no wise Yea all Laws and Constitutions of Government must be thwarted and overthrown rather 〈…〉 a●d all must be Sacrificed to the 〈…〉 the Imaginations of such Oh what Blessed Do●●● and Days can we expect thence What Peace and Temper have sprung from such Principles the Histories of Germany England and Scotland make us remember for caution only So I heartily wish that no such People in this Age did or would not remember them so well as to put them in Practise which if they do we have no refuge but to use that daily Petition and say Father not ours but thy Will be done in Earth as it is in Heaven Which brings me to the Third and Last particular Mark or Sign to know a true Church by and that is that all which it commands is both Reasonable and Certain which the Wiseman alludes to Prov. 20. 27. That the Vnderstanding of Man is the Candle of the Lord the Light of Reason is his Light with that the true Light hath enlightned every one that cometh into the World And now one Light should not be contrary to the other there is I must confess a difference in degree but no opposition of Nature so Faith and Reason accord Yea Faith is an act of Reason for it 's the highest Reason to believe in God and the belief of our Reason is an act of Faith viz. Faith in the Truth and goodness of God which gives no Man faculties to delude or deceive him If so be he doth but rightly Exercise and Employ them yea by Faith Reason is further enlightned and by the use of Reason Faith is applyed c. So true Religion and Reason sweetly agree For nothing can be Religious that is unreasonable which made the great Apostle call the Christian Religion a Reasonable Service Yea so certain is the true Faith that those which had it from the Holy Spirit of God Signed it with their Blood these speaking as they were inspired and that they were really so was no fond Imagination or bold Presumption But a Truth assured by these mighty Miracles they were enabled to perform These are God's Seal and a grand Confirmation of a Commiisson from him and to that proof of their Doctrines both Christ and his Apostles continually Appealed Here was and is then the firm reasonable Foundation of the Christian certainty the Truths we are to believe were confirmed by Miracles than which there can be no greater Evidence by which last Character these two before cited dangerous Extreams are Dispised and Condemned As First that of Popery which imposeth on the Minds of Men as Articles of Religion things that are both Extream Unreasonable Absurd and Uncertain viz. These namely the Worshipping of invisible Beings by Images of Wood Stone or some Mettal c. but more especially that Doctrine of Transubstantiation which is full of Contradictions Since the asserting that the same Body may be in a Thousand places at once and that it may be divided into Parts tho' not into wholes