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
A85434	Encouragements to faith Drawn from severall engagements both of Gods Christs heart to receive pardon sinners. By Tho: Goodwin, B.D.	Goodwin, Thomas, 1600-1680.	1645 (1645)	Wing G1242; Thomason E307_18; ESTC R200346	23,699	38

Encouragements TO FAITH Drawn from severall Engagements Both of GODS CHRISTS HEART To Receive Pardon SINNERS By THO: GOODWIN B. D. LONDON Printed for R. DAWLMAN 1645. JOHN 6. 37 38. All that the Father giveth me shall come to me and him that commeth to me I will in no wise cast out For I came down from heaven not to do mine own will but the will of him that sent me A Preface THere are two Persons whom Faith hath to deal withall in seeking of Forgivenesse and laying hold of Salvation God the Father and God the Son the holy Ghost being that Person that sets the heart a work to seek out for salvation and reveales the love of them both And therefore it is that Grace and Peace which are the object of Faiths inquest are still wisht from God the Father and God the Son so generally in all Epistles excepting that of the Revelation given immediately by word of mouth from Christ himselfe And accordingly when Faith comes to treat with these two about the great businesse of Salvation the first and maine thing that it is inquisitive after is What their heart and mind is and how they stand enclined towards the receiving and pardoning of sinners it listens most to heare something of that and when a mans heart through faith is fully throughly perswaded of it then he is fully won Hence because the Scriptures were written for our comfort and so fitted to and for the workings of faith therefore they were so written as especially to bring down and lay before us the Heart of God and of Christ and so the maine thing they hold forth is the full intent and purpose both of God and of Christ to pardon and receive sinners This is a faithfull saying sayes Paul with open mouth that Christ came into the world to save sinners and this Christ himself every where indigitates and to hold forth this is the scope of these words uttered by Christ himself And such speeches do containe the very heart marrow and pith of the Gospel And though the heart of a sinner will never be fully satisfied till a perswasion be wrought that God and Christ are purposed and willing to save a mans own self in particular which perswasion is that which we call Assurance yet when once there is a through perswasion setled upon the heart but of so much indefinitely and in generall that God and Christ are willing and fully resolved to save some sinners so that the heart does truly beleeve that God is in earnest this draws on the heart to come to Christ and is enough to work faith of adherence such as upon which Christ will never cast us out as the Text hath it The great businesse then for the working faith in men is to perswade them of Gods good will and gracious inclination unto sinners to beget in them good opinions of God and Christ this way Men naturally having hard and suspitious thoughts of both as that speech of Christ Iohn 3. 17. implies God sent not His Son into the world to condemne the world but that the world through him might be saved Christ would never have hinted such a jealousie nor suggested such thoughts to mens minds had they not been in them before and this to prevent and take off such jealousies Men are apt to think that God had a designe upon them as upon enemies and laid but an Ambushment for their further condemnation in his treaty of peace tendred to them by his Son An example of which we have in Luther who fell into such suspitions as these for he misunderstanding some words he met with in the Epistle to the Romans as they were rendred by the vulgar translation then in use namely these that God sent his Son to declare his righteousnesse as they are by us translated he thought the meaning of them to have been this to declare and set forth his judgement on the world so he interpreted adjustitiam suam c. The truth is the jealousies of mens thoughts herein were those that have put God to his Oath As I live I will not the death of a sinner c. so also Heb. 6. 17. Men do not so usually question the power of God he is able enough to save them they think he is able to engraft them in as the Apostle speakes to the Jewes Rom. 11. 23. but all their doubts are about his Will Gods will was the Fountaine and spring of our salvation in the contriving of which he wrought all things according to the counsel of his own will as the Apostle to the Ephesians speaketh and in another place it is said He will have mercy on whom he will c. and therefore the great queries in our hearts are concerning the will of God towards us The words of the Text opened NOw these words of my Text do hold forth the full willingnesse of both these two persons both of God and of Christ 1. Of Christ he here professeth himself willing to entertain all that will come to him He that will come to me I will in no wise cast out Which words are not to be understood as if spoken only of casting out them that are already come unto him as if they were only a promise against being cast off after being received and so intended against feares of falling away but they are chiefly intended as an invitement to all that are not yet come that they would come to him and so to expresse how ready and willing he is to entertain all commers as one who sets his doores open keeps open house and beats back none that would come in Him that commeth to me I will in no wise cast out And though it may seem to be but a slender and sparing expression of his readines to entertain such to say only I will not cast them out yet though he speaks with the least yet he will do with the most he being abundant in goodnesse and truth and one that is better then his word in the performance As when he sayes he will not despise a broken heart is that all the esteem he will manifest to such a heart Oh no it is the most welcome thing and endeared frame of spirit that can be in any creature His meaning is to shew what he elsewhere sayes of a meek spirit which is all one with a broken heart that with God it is of great price for so in Isaiah he expresseth himself I that inhabit eternity with whom will I dwell with a spirit that is broken and contrite He useth also this expression of not casting them out in relation and for a more direct answer unto the feare which he knew usually possesseth the hearts of poor sinners when they are about to come to him they fear he may reject them they know not their entertainment their welcome To meet with this Scruple he sayes I will not cast such out choosing rather thus to remove the doubt that is in their

the captives Thirdly The Holy Ghost he also herewith bearing witnesse that God hath exalted Christ to be a Prince and Saviour to give repentance and forgivenesse of sinnes Acts 5. 31 32. And so Heb. 2. 45. And these are these three witnesses in heaven 1 John 5. 7. whose record as it followes is this that there is life to be had in his Son Jesus Christ v. 11. Secondly God hath published this newes both by all creatures reasonable and to all creatures reasonable First the Angels they came and preached it singing Peace on earth good will towards men Luke 2. 13 14. Secondly By men and to that end he hath given gifts to men powerfull and full of glory Ephes. 4. 8. c. And a commission with those gifts a most large and gratious one And he hath committed to us the ministery of reconciliation to wit that God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself 2 Cor. 5. 20. Yea and thirdly he hath maintained this ministry in all ages even to our times all times have rung of the newes hereof and the world is still full of his Embassadors to treat with men about this peace and they are to proclaime that he is fully willing and upon that ground to beseech men to be reconciled and so long as Leiger Embassadors reside uncalled home or not sent for away so long the treaty of peace holds Fourthly He hath proclaimed this by these this Embassadors in all places he bad them go and preach it to all the world to every creature Mark 16. 15. And his Disciples did accordingly Now he would not have had it spoken so openly and generally if he were not most serious in it Fiftly Adde to this that he hath declared it by all wayes and meanes that do argue faithfulnesse and seriousnesse First Not by bare word of mouth but we have it under his hand he hath left his mind in writing This book which is dropt from heaven the title of it is The word of reconciliation 2 Cor. 5. 19. the main argument of it being reconciliation In this book we find proclamation sent forth after proclamation book after book line after line all written to this end that we sinners might have hope and strong consolation as the Apostle witnesseth Secondly He hath added to this writing those seales of the Sacraments and further an oath to both and that made advisedly with the greatest earnestnesse and deliberation that might be Heb. 6. 17. God willing the text sayes more abundantly to manifest this his intent the immutability of his counsell he confirmed that promise with an oath that by two immutable things his word and oath we might have strong consolation Thirdly If this be not sufficient he hath pawned heaven and earth the Covenant of day and night in Mortgage to forgive iniquity and pardon sinners Thus Jer. 31. 34 35 36. This is my Covenant sayes God there that I will forgive their iniquities and remember their sinnes no more so ver. 34. and then it follows ver. 35. Thus saith the Lord who giveth the sun for a light by day and the ordinances of the moon and stars for a light by night If those ordinances depart from before me then the seed of Israel c. The like you have Chap. 33. 25 26. Day and night we see stand still and therefore this Covenant holds good still but we have a greater pawn then this the death of his Son And lastly Let his actions and courses which he hath taken from the beginning of the world speak for all the rest as satan hath been a murtherer from the beginning so God hath been a Saviour from the beginning and Christ is the Lamb slain from the beginning of the world God began with the first of mankind even with Adam and Eve the ringleaders the heads of this rebellion who drew all the rest of the world into that enmity these were yet reconciled Kings usually hang up the heads and chiefe in treasons for examples of their justice though they pardon others yet these did God save and pardon as examples of his mercy to all that should come of them and it is observeable that the first thing he did after the world was fallen was this act of mercy both in preaching this Gospel and in pardoning them he began to do that soon which he meant to be alwayes a doing to the end of the world it argues he delights in it yea and according to Christ last promise on earth that he would be with us to the end of the world God is to this day reconciling the world of men to himself Some that walk in your streets by you live among you And he will have thousands when you are gone and what are these but as flags and patternes of mercy hung forth by God to toll and bring others in as Ephes. 2. 7. Vse WHat should the consideration of these things work in our hearts but what the scope of the text it self puts men upon even that they would come in unto Christ and beleeve on him and give up their souls unto him He that beleeves shall in no wise be cast out As Christ therefore is willing so should we be a willing people That which keepes men off is that they know not Christs minde and heart think it not to be an indifferent thing to him whether you beleeve or no as if he came into the world to do this duty of dying for sinners singly in obedience to his Father so that men might be rendred savable if they will and that however if they will not he yet hath enough to satisfie and quiet himself with even this that he shall be glorified in what he hath done though few or none of the sons of men be saved It is a prejudiciall doctrine this to the salvation of men and derogatory to Christs free love What do we think that Jesus Christ is gone to heaven there to complaine unto Angels of the unkindnesse and hardnes of mens hearts that will not turne to him notwithstanding he hath done so much and to tell what he had done for them and what they would not be perswaded to do for themselves and that so he can sufficiently please himself with such just complaints no surely our effectuall salvation concernes him more then so and his heart is more fully bent upon it then thus to leave it of what he hath bought he will lose nothing The truth is he is more glad of us then we can be of him The Father of the Prodigall was the forwarder of the two to that joyfull meeting Hast thou a minde he that came down from Heaven as himself saith in the text to dye for thee will meet thee more then half way as the prodigals father is said to do by his spirit he will send him from Heaven to thee and at the latter day himself will come again to fetch thee and receive thee to himself If among the Angels in Heaven there be