Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	heart_n	spirit_n	word_n	8,255	5	4.2520	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A31403	The Gospel preached to the Romans, in four sermons two on the 5th of November, and two on the 30th of January, 1680 / by John Cave ...	Cave, John, d. 1690.	1681 (1681)	Wing C1583; ESTC R17526	41,434	109

not sufficient for so worthy an Employment yet the worst of us are obliged to do our best and to be ready as much as in us lies to preach the Gospel to reason according to our Ability and Proportion as our great Apostle did of Temperance and Righteousness and Judgment to come and shewing out of a good Conversation our Works with meekness of Wisdom taking heed unto our selves and to our Doctrine that in so doing we may both save our selves 1 Tim. 4.16 2 Tim. 2.15 and them that hear us 2 Tim. 2.24 25 26. Studying to shew our selves approved unto God Work-men that need not to be ashamed rightly dividing the Word of Truth being gentle unto all Men apt to teach patient in Meekness instructing those that oppose themselves if God peradventure will give them Repentance to the acknowledging of the Truth and that they may recover themselves out of the Snare of the Devil who are taken Captive by his Will as our Apostle exhorts Timothy We must not be wanting in declaring to our People the whole Counsel of God being ready to instruct the Ignorant and to reduce the Erroneous by all good Means and to fortity them what we can against the Assaults and Artifices of Seducers who lie in wait to deceive and make a Prey of them and more especially at this Time to fore-warn them of the great Evils and Dangers of Popery That whilst the King and the Parliament take care to secure all the Publick Interests by Instruments of their own we also may by the Word of our proper Ministry endeavour to stop the Progression of such Errors which as we have heard are so very destructive of Christian Religion and hurtful to the Souls of Men persuading withal what we can to Unity and brotherly Agreement among our selves that we may thereby strengthen and double our Guards against so powerful and Subtil an Enemy If the Credit of Religion the Glory of God the Souls of our Brethren be dear unto us what can we do less than by a just and mild Defence of the Truth seek the Reclaiming of such as are gone astray and the Establishment of them who are weak in Judgment but sincere in Affection willing in all things to live honestly and peaceably How much doth it concern us by constant Pain full Catechising and Preaching first to ground and instruct simple People in the Religion of the Gospel the Principles of Christianity and then to inform them of the Devices of Satan the wily Methods of Impostors lest by fair Words and enticing Speeches they beguile the Hearts of the Simple and Vnwary It concerns us to warn Men of the infectious and dangerous Nature of Heresy the Mischief of Schism the vile and pernicious Designs of some plausible Pretenders to Holiness and the Spirit of Truth which every truly Christian Heart cannot but passionately regret who go about to turn Men to another Gospel by converting first the Scripture the Incarnation Life Death Resurrection and Ascension of our Lord Christ into vain and fantastical Allegories as it is too notoriously known the Familists sometimes did and more than a Suspicion that the Quakers do at present These things would be plainly represented to the less knowing Parts of our Congregations and all together would be discreetly and soberly told of the Danger of Popery Socinianism as well as Enthusiastical Pretensions there being a considerable Number of each Faction driving on their distinct Interests among us and have already turned many from the Faith But because this way of publick Teaching and Admonition is more properly my single Duty than any others in this Place and because I hope I have in a good measure discharged it at this Time and being ready also with God's gracious Assistance as mnch as in me lies to pursue it upon all fitting Occasions I shall conclude my Preaching with a twofold Prayer 1. To You my beloved Hearers and then 2. To Almighty God And to both in the Words of our Apostle 1. First to you who hear me this day That you would mark them which cause Divisions or broach Errors Rom. 16.17 contrary to the Doctrine which you have heard and avoid them And I beseech you by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ that there be no Divisions 1 Cor. 1.10 or Schisms amongst you but that you be perfectly joyned together in the same mind and in the same Judgment That instead of repining at little Inconveniences you would be much and frequent in serious Thankfulness to our most merciful Father for the Liberty Purity and Peace of the Gospel praying to God which is all you have to do that those things which are amiss either in Church or State may be better and praising him that they are no worse This I beg of you in the next place 2. I shall pray to Almighty God and I hope that you will all joyn heartily with me Rom. 15.5 that the God of Patience will grant you to be like minded one towards another after the example of Jesus Christ that you may with one mind and with one mouth glorifie God even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ Now the Lord in Mercy look down from Heaven upon his Church and faithful People bring his Truth to light more and more dispel the Mists of Ignorance remove all Occasions of Offence settle Peace and Truth prosper the Means of Grace build us up in Faith and Holiness and unite the Hearts of his People in Love that they may direct their Course by one Rule walk in one Way until we all receive the End of our Faith the Salvation of our Souls through Jesus Christ our Lord to Whom with the Father and the Holy-Ghost be all Honour Glory and Praise now and for evermore Amen FINIS ERRATA PAge 27. line 1. for Dominick reade Damian P. 62. l. 32. reade Amyraut P. 67. l. 20. r. shrewdest l. 9. r. Designers P. 82. l. 6. f. greatest r. gentlest P. 87. l. 5. f. Acts r. Arts. P. 88. l. 16. after who add are P. 89. l. 11. f. thankfull r. thanked l. 13. r. Draco P. 90. l. 22. to violence add of P. 92. l. 22. r. Circumcellions P. 99. l. 13. f. the r. their P. 104. l. 13. add to by him at

It is most plain that there were a great many Jews and Heathens among them to whom this Epistle was to be communicated and that many of them who could by the Light of Nature easily discover a God and a Providence yet were fallen into Idolatry and such vicious Practices that they much wanted the preaching of the Gospel a clearer Manifestation of the Justice and Goodness of God to recover them It is not my Design at present to make a Comparison of the Gospel of our Saviour with the Ethnical or Judaical Institutions and to shew the great Advantages it hath of them both in respect of its Rules its Aids Motives and Terms of Acceptance its Power and Efficacy to save Nor shall I enquire further into the State of Rome at that time nor what mixtures of their former Sentiments and Practices they retained who came from the Synagogue or from the Temples of Jupiter and Apollo into the Discipline of Christ and the Services of his Church But I shall regard only the Condition of our Modern Romans and must apply that Doctrine to you for your Defence and Security in the Truth which for their Conviction and Recovery I am ready as much as in me is to preach to them that are at Rome also In my Discourse upon these Words I shall confine my self to three general Heads shewing first of all I. That the Romans now stand in as much need if not more of the Ministry of the Gospel as they did in our Apostle's Days II. That the most Christian and effectual may of promoting the Gospel is Preaching and Perswasion III. That those who are commissionated to that Office ought to be ready and resolute in the discharge of it Of these in their Order beginning with the first viz. I. That the Romans now stand in as much need if not more of the Ministry of the Gospel as they did in our Apostle's Days The most dark and depraved state of Gentilisme did not more want the Sun of Righteousness the purifying Light of the Gospel the preaching of Repentance from dead Works and Holiness of Life than this pretended Catholick Church now doth For not only the Romana but the Germana Fides the noted Honesty and Fidelity of those Heathens is in a manner quite lost among those Christians and their present Treachery and Perfidiousness are as much spoken of and experienced throughout the World as their Primitive Faith then was Perhaps there were as many if not more Saints in Nero's Houshold as are in his Holiness's own Family and the places nearest his Influence and Inspection Which gave the famous Van-Harmin occasion to declare In Vitâ Arminii That if he had not before been sufficiently averse to Popery the sight of Rome and its lewd Practices would have given him an invincible dislike I shall not here take notice of what hath been said by their own Authors of the Epicurean and Atheistical Lives of so many Popes scarce to be parallell'd in any heathenish History nor of the Stews and tolerated Debauches of Rome her self Neither should I have touched at all upon this Argument wherein we our selves have too great a Concern if it were not most apparent that their vicious Manners are the proper Fruit of their corrupt Doctrines Those I mean of Equivocation Mental Reservation dispensing with Oaths Durand lib. 4. dist 31. breaking Faith with Hereticks c. And those other of Indulgences Vendible Pardons easy Absolutions and Death-Bed Repentance particularly their making Fornication less sinful in some than chast Wedlock and not a deadly Sin in any according to the Natural Law The manifold Disorders of our Lives the great Luxuriancy of Vice and the decay of Piety Justice and Sobriety among those of our own Communion require a pathetick and powerful Ministry of all the Holy Precepts Counsels Reproofs Directions of our blessed Saviour and his Apostles and it is needful still to preach Gospel-Reformation to the most reformed part of Christendom where all the Principles of Vertue are already sufficiently taught and established But where it is a part of Mens Religion to be vicious where it is their Duty to Sin and their wicked Practices derive from such Principles such impious Doctrines as make a kind of Anti-Gospel to that of our Saviour their Spiritual Estate is very necessitous and deplorable they want Doctrine as well as Exhortation the planting of Paul no less than the waterings of Apollo Which minds me to proceed to the principal thing I intend to insist upon viz. to shew That the Church of Rome stands in much need of the preaching of our Saviour's pure Gospel in regard of the Heathenism if I may not say Anti-Christianism of several Religious Tenents Opinions Ceremonies retained and observed among them There is no Branch of implanted Superstition in any Son of Adam which may not sufficiently feed it self with some part or other of the Romish Liturgy or with some Customs by that Church allowed concerning the Invocation of Saints Adoration of Reliques Worship of Images or the like as the learned Dr. Jackson observes And what was spoken more generally by him I shall endeavour to demonstrate particularly But before I come to speak of their Opinions and Customs give me leave to observe That the very Characters and Marks of their Church the Titles and Prerogatives of their Popes are such if not the very same that the Heathens signalized themselves and their High-Priest by I begin with Bellarmin's first note of the Church and that is 1. Catholicism or Universality which since the Gospel hath been preached throughout the World and both Jew and Gentile are made one in Christ are baptized into one Body is no improper Mark of the Church but very falsly applied by the Papists to themselves and with an Arrogance no where to be equalled but among the proud Pagans who boasted of nothing more than the Latitude of their Superstition and that they only were true Catholicks that all Faith and Religion was theirs that the Jews were ignorant of the Gods of their Fathers observed the Institutions of a private Spirit a Lawgiver of a singular and separating Humour and therefore were no better than downright Hereticks and Schismaticks a Sect distinct from and contrary unto the Religion of the whole World besides which is no more in effect than what Tacitus one of their wisest and most sober Writers affirms quo sibi in posterum gentem firmaret novos ritus contrariosque cateris mortalibus indidit Moses saith he that he might have a People of his own instructed that Nation in Rites and Customs quite contrary to those which were generally received They prophane those things which we esteem Holy Profana illie omnia quae apud nos sacra and they tolerate what we prohibit Hitherto you see who thought themselves the Catholicks if not the Roman-Catholicks in those days for to note this by the way it will be very hard to make Sence of the composition by