Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	hear_v	speak_v	word_n	7,138	5	4.4441	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A39249	The Christian hearer's first lesson a sermon preached at St. Mary's Church in Nottingham on Thursday, Octob. the 4th, 1694 : the first day of a lecture preached there weekly by the ministers of that town and country : publish'd to satisfie the desire of some of the auditors / by Clem Elis ...	Ellis, Clement, 1630-1700.	1694 (1694)	Wing E551; ESTC R20476	18,619	32

a sincere and unaffected Christian Piety now languishing even to death among us that we solely aim at But alas what are we that we should attempt such things as these We are nothing we can do nothing of our selves towards so weighty a Work all our Sufficiency must be of God The sense of this directed me to the choice of this Subject as most proper to humble us and instruct you To humble us I say in consideration of our utter insufficiency for the important work which lyeth upon us and to instruct you how notwithstanding all our weakness you may be sure to reap some profit by the weakest of us all And truly I the rather hope for God's Blessing upon our Endeavours when I consider with what unanimity and cheerfulness of Mind my Reverend Brethren have consented to this Service It will now much confirm this Hope if you shall be pleased Worshipful and Beloved not only to countenance us with your presence and attention but to assist us with your devout Prayers 1. And therefore next to the humbling of our selves in the presence of God as nothing without him unable to serve either Him or you without his Special Assistance and because of our manifold Sins most unworthy of that also the first Use which I very heartily desire you to make of what hath been said is to help us with your daily fervent Prayers at the Throne of Grace for the pardoning of our Sins and the sanctifying of our Souls and the supplying of all our Defects That in simplicity and godly sincerity not with fleshly wisdom but by the Grace of God we may have our conversation in the World and more abundantly to youwards at this time not handling the Word of God deceitfully but by manifestation of the Truth commending our selves to every man's Conscience in the fight of God That God would open unto us a door of utterance that we may open our Mouth boldly that the Word of God may have its free course and be glorified with you Therefore Men profit so little by the Ministry because they so seldom or so coldly address themselves in Prayer to God for his Blessing upon it Whilst we bestow so much more time in Hearing than we do in Praying as being the far easier Task of the two it may be feared we expect more from Men than we do from GOD and tho' we may carry the Sermon home we leave God's Blessing behind us Therefore 2. Because we are nothing and all the Encrease is of God let us take heed how we depend so much on the Ministry of Men who are nothing as to attend too little in their Ministry upon God who doth all Whilst you are pleased to afford us your Ear be sure that you give God your Heart Neither regard ye what we say any farther than we speak as the Oracles of God Imitate the Thessalonians in this who when they received the Word of God which they heard of St. Paul and others received it not as the Word of Men but as it is in truth the Word of God which effectually worketh in them that believe 1 Thess. ii 13. Come with a desire and resolution to hear God himself speak to you by what Mouth soever he shall speak and be sure of it the Word will be mighty and prevail It is a very lamentable thing to see in what Extreams we are apt to lose both God and our selves First Because neither Paul nor Apollos are any thing without God or in comparison of God therefore some very rashly conclude that they are nothing at all to them and that the Ministry of such Men is of no use in the Church but all are to be taught of God only And 't is true that our chief Teacher is God himself but if we will be taught of him we must submit our selves to be taught by him as it pleaseth him to teach us and not as we have a mind to be taught What though the very best Instrument be able to do nothing by its self out of the Workman's hand Yet even an indifferent one may do much when managed by the hand of a skilful Workman I shall only desire one thing to be granted me by him that resolves to be taught of God alone without the Ministry of Men ordain'd to teach and I think it a very reasonable request that before he thus put it to the venture whether he shall be taught or no he be first very sure that God will as well as that he can so teach him or that he hath not ordained the Ministry of Men in his Church or that he will meerly to humour him change his ordinary method and cancel his own ordinance It is certainly God alone that gives the Encrease in the Field as well as in the Church and yet Men are not so unreasonable or confident as to expect and relye upon a good Harvest from God without the Labour of the Husbandman Why then should they expect the Fruit of the Spirit without the Labour of the Ministry till God give them some better assurance of it than yet he hath done We must not indeed stint God's Power as though he could not work without this or that Instrument and yet neither must we slight his Institution and neglect his ordinary method He that would pluck God's Instruments how mean soever they seem out of his hand and not give him the Glory of magnifying his Strength in the Weakness of Men tho' he do not thereby disable God from working yet doth he enough to provoke him not to work Others there be who in another Extream seem to make God himself almost nothing and the Minister all Such are they who place the greatest part of their Religion in hearing many Sermons and when they have heard enough are apt to perswade themselves that they have served God well enough They are wont to be very attentive with a great deal of Affection and it may be a great deal too much Admiration to the Preacher and to talk much of him and of his excellent Sermon and yet all the while are as regardless of God and address as little to him for his Blessing as tho' they had heard nothing at all of him nor had any thing to do with him It is very well if God be not too often thus put off with a vain shew of Worship and if the Preacher have not all but only what in the coveted reputation of Hearers and Professors we catch at for our selves of the Honour which is due unto Him The delight which many of us take seems to be too much in the meer planting or sowing and if that be done according to our own opinion artificially we are mightily pleased and if not more offended and we count all the time lost as in sad truth it is which we have spent in hearing The Harvest and Encrease is the thing that of all others we least think of as tho' we heard only for hearing 's

work of Man our Necks are too stiff to bend our Wills too sturdy to yield vicious Habits and Customs too deeply rooted to be plucked up fashionable Sins too impudent to be put out of countenance our Lusts too rebellious and imperious to be subdued and tamed by Mens reasonings and perswasions The strong man armed that hath got the possession will be too strong for all men and will keep the possession he hath gotten in spight of all that can be done till the Man who is God too come upon him and disarm him The strong bolds of Satan within us will not be cast down by the little Batteries of Mens Tongues And though we that are Ministers must never hold our Peace but lift up our Voices like Trumpets though we must not cease to cry aloud though we spare not but shout till these earthen Vessels of ours crack and fall in pieces the walls of this cursed Jericho will not be so blown down None but He whose Voice shaketh the Heavens and the Earth can rend the stony Hearts of Sinners Which is the last thing to be now shewn viz. 4. That the efficacy of all is of God only Whoever planteth or watereth God giveth the encrease All are as good as nothing and labour in vain without him 'T is true indeed it hath pleased God to make use of the Ministry of Men in the building of his Church and to make them workers together with and under Himself and their great business it is to beseech us not to receive this Grace of God in vain 2 Cor. vi 1. He hath put his Words into their mouth and his Seed into their hands they are made his Seeds-men and go forth to sow by his command but still the Seed it self and all the prolifick vertue of it the skill and activity of the Sowers the goodness of the Ground the Warmth and the Rain the Growth and Harvest are all of him Who must soften the Highway's-side Who must add depth of Earth to the Stony Ground Who must root up the Thorns and the Bryars Who must fright away the devouring Birds It is God alone the Father of Spirits that can create a right Spirit within us restrain our Thoughts from wandering abroad and the Devil's Temptations from entring in and prevailing It is he only that can empty our Hearts of Cares and the love of Riches and the Pleasures of this Life which choke the good Seed He it is that can make the Heart good and honest and prepare and enable it with due attention and affection to receive and with serious meditation to cherish the Seed sown and with constancy of resolution to bring any Fruit to perfection Though Ministers are sent to invite us to Christ yet hath Christ himself told us Joh. vi 44. saying Mo man can come to me except the Eather draw him It is God as St. Paul saith 2 Cor. ii 14. that maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge in every place He that by the foolishness of preaching saveth them that believe 1 Cor. 1.21 He opened Lydia's heart to attend to the things which were spoken of Paul Acts xvi 14. St. Paul saith He laboured more abundantly than they all yet he adds Not I but the Grace of God that was with me 1 Cor. xv 10. Indeed our Blessed Saviour had sent forth his Apostles to a very unhopeful work sending the Lambs to convert the Wolves a few poor contemptible Men to make Disciples all Nations had he not promised himself to be with them Matth. xxviii And the greatest encouragement that St. Paul had to abide preaching the Gospel in such a Town as Corinth lay in those words of Christ Act. xviii 8. I am with thee and I have much people in this City and therefore fear not He had prepared the Hearts of the People as the Books to be written in and then he made use of St. Paul's Tongue as the Pen of a ready Writer and this Writer was God himself I saith he Heb. viii 10. will put my laws in their mind and write them in their hearts Therefore saith the Apostle to these Corinthians 2 Cor. iii. 3. Ye are manifestly declared to be the Epistle of Christ ministred by us written not with ink but with the spirit of the living God Who shines in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ 2 Cor. iv 6. Indeed to give light to our dark minds and to keep the God of this World from blinding them is the work of him alone who at first brought light out of darkness He alone can make us new Creatures that is Christians who breath'd into our Dust the Breath of Life and made us Men. With what Treasures then soever it hath pleased God to instruct any of us that we may dispense them unto you yet still both you and we must know that we have this treasure in earthen vessels that the excellency of the power may be of God and not of us 2 Cor. iv 7. I have held you I fear too long in the illustration of so plain a Truth I shall therefore conclude this part of my Discourse with those words of St. Augustine upon St. John's Gospel God gave the Encrease not by them but by himself This is a work which is above not only the meanness of Man but the height of Angels nor doth it at all belong to any other but to him who is the Husbandman that is the ever blessed TRINITY The Doctrine thus cleared II. For the help of such as may need it I will point at some of the Uses we should make of it And truly methinks they lye very obvious both to Preachers and Hearers We are this day by the good Providence of God entering upon an Exercise wherein our whole design and business is to minister as God shall enable us to the good of your Souls Far be it from us to beguile you with enticing words with fair speeches to deceive the simple or with feigned words to make merchandise of you Expect not to have your Heads filled with airy Notions or your Curiosity fed with fine Speculations and fear as little to have your Minds perplexed with doubtful Disputations least of all let any Jealousie possess you that you shall be entertain'd with splenetick and virulent Invectives against Men and Parties these things become not us nor will they profit you We seek not yours for our selves but you for God and I doubt not but I may say it in the Name of all my Brethren who are engaged on this Service of your Faith That we preach not our selves but Christ Jesus the Lord and our selves your Servants for Jesus sake That we have no ambition to exercise a dominion over any Man's Faith but earnestly desire may GOD of his Goodness make us so happy to be helpers of your Joy 'T is God's Honour and your Happiness and both these in the reviving of