Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	keep_v	know_v	liar_n	2,027	5	11.5863	5	false

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A13547	The parable of the sovver and of the seed Declaring in foure seuerall grounds, among other things: 1. How farre an hypocrite may goe in the way towards heauen, and wherein the sound Christian goeth beyond him. And 2. In the last and best ground, largely discourseth of a good heart, describing it by very many signes of it, digested into a familiar method: which of it selfe is an entire treatise. And also, 3. From the constant fruit of the good ground, iustifieth the doctrine of the perseuerance of saints: oppugneth the fifth article of the late Arminians; and shortly and plainly answereth their most colourable arguments and euasions. By Thomas Taylor, late fellow of Christs Colledge in Cambridge, and preacher of the Word of God, at Reding in Bark-shire.	Taylor, Thomas, 1576-1632.	1621 (1621)	STC 23840; ESTC S118185	284,009	494

and righteousnesse and sanctification and redemption He may know him by hearing and reading as the Samaritans did Christ by the womans relation but not by his comfortable presence in his heart Hypocrites may know him as he is in himselfe the Sonne of God the Sauiour of the world and as hee is an head to others but not to themselues an head or Sauiour See thy knowledge be not knowing onely and contemplatiue but a knowledge passing knowledge and proceeding to feeling as that of the Samaritans when themselues had seene and heard Christ. 2. Examine thy knowledge in the end of it both in respect of thy selfe and God and thy brethren 1. An hypocrite may attaine a great measure of knowledge to informe his iudgement not to reforme his minde to swim in his braine not to season his heart See thy knowledge bee a renewing of Gods image in knowledge 2. An hypocrite may know much of God and Christ but little for God and Christ and aime not at Gods glory or the honour of Christ but to puffe vp himselfe and swell against others so as though it bee a true knowledge of the true God in respect of the obiect yet it is false and vnsound in respect of the vse and end onely knowing to bee knowne to know 3. Hypocrites may know much in themselues but a little for others as many content themselues to bee counted great learned men but no man the better for all their profoundnesse it is so farre to the bottome that it cannot be come by Sound illumination edifies and is communicatiue The light of grace is like the light of the Sunne conspicuous and comfortable to all eyes as Elihu speakes of himselfe Wine in vessels will haue vent so sound knowledge will vent to the family friends neighbours and strangers 3. Examine thy knowledge in the companions of it 1. Humility God teacheth onely the humble and swelling knowledge is carnall knowledge None knowes God aright but he that first knowes himselfe and he that knowes himselfe aright cannot but bee humble 2. Loue of the brethren 1. Ioh. 4.7 Hee that loueth not knoweth not God that is powerfully and effectually for from loue of God flowes loue to his Image 3. Constant hearing 1. Ioh. 4.6 Hee that knoweth God heareth vs. And the Spouse saith It is the voice of my Beloued Cant. 2.8 Sheepe will heare the voice of the shepheard 4. Practice 1. Ioh. 2.3 4. Hereby we are sure that we know him if we keepe his Commandements He that saith I know him and keepeth not his Commandements is a liar and the truth is not in him An hypocrite may know idly and vnfruitfully but neuer produceth his knowledge into sound practice which is vniuersall Tit. 1.16 They professe they know God but in their deeds deny him Whereas all sound knowledge is practicall If ye know these things saith our Sauiour blessed are ye if ye doe them And to such as know abundantly so as they be able to preach powerfully but ioyne not practice to their knowledge though they professe they know Christ yet shall hee professe hee neuer knew them Math. 7.23 Depart from me ye workers of iniquity Therefore I say vnto thee as Dauid said to his son Salomon 1. Chron. 28.9 Know the God of thy father and serue him Bee not a follower of Christ except thou be a friend Ioh. 15.14 Ye are my friends if ye doe what I command you And consider these two things 1. Knowers and not doers shall be beaten with the more stripes Luk. 12.47 2. Onely doers shall enter into heauen Math. 7.21 4. Examine thy knowledge in the growth and continuance of it First see it grow Grow in grace and knowledge 2. Pet. 3.18 But this growing is not in the vnderstanding onely but in feeling And here an hypocrite failes Secondly see thy knowledge continue An hypocrite may know much but it is as a lightning a flash that soone vanisheth His knowledge may light him a little way but lasts not to set him thorow to the Bride-chamber For hypocrites being children of darknesse as their light for the present is mingled with much confusion and darknesse so it ends in darknesse If thy knowledge bee sound it is like the light of the Sunne that shines more and more till perfect day Looke that thy knowledge be thus qualified for the matter apprehending not the story but the vertue of Christ not in generall but with speciall application not as Christ is in himselfe but as hee is to thee And for the end that it be as well for God as of God that it renew the minde as well as the vnderstanding that it be for others as well as thy selfe And for the companions that it bee attended with humility loue hearing and practice And lastly that it grow and continue Now it is beyond all knowledge of hypocrites and now thou mayest comfort thy selfe in thy illumination III. Heare we from the Text that a man who shall neuer come to heauen may receiue the Word with ioy taste of the heauenly gift haue some apprehension of the excellency of Christ some sight of Gods fauour some sence of grace in his heart some worthy gifts of the holy Ghost and an hope of enioying euerlasting glory all which makes vp his ioy Now let vs not deceiue our selues or trust in vaine hopes perswasions as if we were good Christians because wee haue either been stricken sometimes in hearing with sorrow and amazednesse for our sinnes as Felix trembled and Ahab was troubled at the word of Eliah or because we haue had sometimes in our selues great ioy in hearing Thou maiest weepe at a Sermon or reioyce at a Sermon yet be bad and barren ground though we denie not these to be good motions But let vs examine both our ioy and the ground of it which is our taste and apprehension of Christ and see if we can finde that in them which is not nor euer was in the ioy and taste of the hypocrite 1. Examine thy ioy in the ground of it namely a taste and apprehension of Christ. An hypocrites apprehension is but a vaine presumption which makes him reioyce when he hath no iust cause He mistakes himselfe and ouerweenes his estate Hee thinks his faith vnfained his regeneration sound his repentance true when all is otherwise And as a begger dreames he is rich and full of gold when all is a delusion Besides his apprehension is for measure a taste not a feeding as a Cooke not as a guest And what hee doth apprehend hee bestowes not in the bottome of his heart where some stone or other lies and allowes it not rooting 2. Examine thy ioy in the matter of it 1. It must be heauenly things as 1. The fauour of God Psal. 4.6 2. Our name written in the Booke of life Luk. 10.20 3. A sweet taste of the Word 1. Pet. 2.3 4. Firme hope of a blessed resurrection Psalm

hee immediatly prepared to goe into Macedonia being assured the Lord had called vs vnto them 2. Examine thy desires in the matter of them which is twofold 1. In respect of God the chiefe Good 2. In respect of the Word the meanes to it For the first An hypocrite may desire happinesse as Balaam for selfe-loue but properly desires not the loue of God for it selfe See therefore that thy desire be rather of reconciliation then saluation rather to glorifie God then be glorified of him esteeming the light of his countenance better then life it selfe This is a pure and holy desire after grace and fauour aboue all things For the second 1. Thou must desire not the Word so much as God in his Word seeke after the liuing God in his Ordinances loue him in the Word who there shewes he loued thee first Many professe loue to the Word who loue not God 2. Desire the Word of the Kingdome for the Kingdomes sake For an hypocrite may desire the Word of the Kingdome for feare of hell 3. Desire the whole Word An hypocrite may desire some part of it the promises affect and rauish him but the conditions are distastfull Gods indulgences and recompenses please him wonderfully but restraints and impositions are burdensome and tedious Therefore see thou desire the conditions as well as the promises and loue the worke of the Word as well as the wages yea if there were no wages So cannot he 3. Examine thy desires in the end of them thus 1. An hypocrite may desire the Word for science sake not for conscience to puffe himselfe vp not to humble himselfe for discourse not for direction If thou desirest the Word to learne selfe-deniall to yeeld conscionable obedience in all things and to take the constant direction of it as Israel by the pillars in all their iournies thou art beyond any hypocrite 2. Hypocrites may desire the Word to bee like the children of God in happinesse but not in sincere obedience to meet them at the end and be saued but not to ioyne with them in the meanes or if they doe ioyne in the meanes it is by starts and fits for most part and vnconstantly See thy desire be to keepe the way as well as the end of it though it be all strawed with crosses and be as desirous of the means as of the end Especially desire the Word as a constant light direction comfort and strength For such are the grones and desires of the Spirit An hypocrite likes Heauen well but not the way to Heauen 4. Examine thy desires in the companions and qualities of them One is sence of want They proceed from a bruised heart as in the Conuerts Acts 2.37 and the Iaylor chap. 16.30 True desires are the breathings of a broken heart Another vndiuided companion of them is the Word they alwaies set a man forward to the Word of the Apostles to be instructed by them as in the former examples whereas an hypocrite will comfort himselfe and rest satisfied without the Word in blinde vngrounded hopes A third is vehemencie and feruencie they must not bee light or slight desires but a vehement thirst as Samsons almost ready to die as the Hart chased pants for water an hunger that would breake stone walls and contemne fire and water euen the vtmost perils more eager then any worldling can desire siluer and gold Hypocrites haue desires but faint not so earnest within as they seeme to be A fourth is the good affections that attend it as an earnest desire to repent to reforme both the heart and life to abstaine from lusts to keepe a good conscience before God and man in all things A fifth is constancy as a thirsty man desires drink till his thirst be quenched as Hannahs for a child till she had one so is the Christians till Christ bee formed in him and then to be still knit neerer vnto him An hypocrite may desire by starts and moods as Pilate desires to know what is truth Ioh. 18. but stayed not to know it He desires the good things of the Kingdome but they are held at such a rate as deads his desires as the young man They are cooled and quenched before he attaines the thing he seemed so earnestly to desire Doe thou see that thy desire bee not satisfied before thou get the thing desired euen Christ and his merits The more true taste thou gettest the more earnestly thou wilt desire him no rate will be too deare all things will be drosse and dung in comparison of him The sixth or last is growth in desires and endeuours Spirituall life stayes not in beginnings but riseth to a great measure of liuelinesse as a graine of mustard-seed 2. Pet. 3.18 Grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord Iesus Christ. 2. Cor. 13.11 Be perfect desire perfection But an hypocrite faints in his desires the labour of vsing meanes is soone if not quite giuen ouer yet lessened and abated Get these desires of the Word thus qualified for the ground matter end and companions of them and then know to thy comfort that no Reprobate euer came so farre no bad ground attaines such desires II. Doe we heare that hypocrites who shall neuer be saued attaine a great measure of illumination and the knowledge of the mystery of Christ whereby they discerne and approue of the truth in Iesus Christ refuse and reprooue errours both in iudgement and practice and hauing escaped such as were wrapped in errours yet are entangled againe and ouercome whose latter end is worse than the beginning Then be carefull to try thy knowledge and illumination whether it be got beyond the illumination of hypocrites or no In foure particulars 1. In the matter of it thus 1. An hypocrite may know the story of Christs death and resurrection and the merits of them but neuer did any hypocrite know the vertue and power of his death and resurrection as the Apostle Paul desired Philip. 3.10 Obiect Why did he not know it and preach it before that time Answ. Yes he knew well the death and resurrection of Christ as also the vertue and power of them but he would feele in himselfe that power more and more standing in the death of sin and the life of righteousnesse This experimentall knowledge farre passeth the theorie and is the knowledge but of a few 2. An hypocrite may know in generall that Christ is a Redeemer and discourse excellently of the manner meanes and end and this swimmes in the braine But there is a particular knowledge with application to say with Iob I know my Redeemer liueth and Paul who gaue himselfe for me To this neuer Reprobate came If hee could speake it he knew not what he spoke he knowes and speakes onely in grosse Therefore see thy knowledge be distinct 3. An hypocrite may know Christ as God hath described him in the Scripture but not as he is made of God vnto vs wisedome

men can run ouer these or any of them dayly and not humble themselues for them yea and reforme them they are withering apace I feare such a man will soone come to nothing 6. Hatred of Gods children and the way of iust men whether open or secret How can they keepe their greenenesse who cannot abide the greenenesse and graces of others but can be wittie in priuy girds and scornes of such as endeuour to preserue themselues from withering That these are withering see Psalm 129.6 They that hate Sion shall be as grasse on the house toppe which withereth before it come forth And whatsoeuer many conceiue of themselues this is certaine If thou auoyd society with Gods people and bee ashamed of them or fellowship with them in the Gospell if more perillous times come thou wilt easily wither and stand as Iudas with them that apprehend Christ. Vse Seeing so many great Professors wither away so dangerously let him that stands take heede lest hee fall 1. Cor. 10.12 See we men of so great illumination affection reformation as in this stony ground wither quite away How necessary then is that exhortation of the Apostle Heb. 12.15 Take heede that no man fall away from the grace of God and Chap. 3.12 Take heede of the euill heart of vnbeliefe to depart from the liuing God A necessarie exhortation for all the hypocrite because he is in danger of finall withering and shall perish in it and the lesse hee feares it his danger is not the lesse As also the sound Christian who though he cannot fall quite away because the Lord puts vnder his hand yet by fearing to fall he auoydes falling and being falne recouers himselfe againe Let euery godly man looke hee stand on firme ground for Reprobates may seeme to stand and be greene for a while Neither let any content himselfe that he heareth good Sermons or that hee reioyceth therein for the present For as we read Ioh. 5.35 Iohns hearers esteemed him a burning shining light and reioyced in his light but it was but for a season And this Text of ours tels vs that many heard our Lord himselfe and that with ioy yet withered away and Ioh. 6.66 many that had heard Christ and followed him for a time as if they had beene sound Disciples as the Text calleth them went away from him and walked no more with him Obiect There is no feare so long as we be Protestants and not Papists so long as wee professe the truth and denie the grosse points of Popery which cut men from Christ. Answer There is a two-fold withering one in iudgement the other in practice That in iudgement is two-fold either totall or partiall Totall when a man departs from the whole doctrine as they that turne from the truth of Christ and sup vp the whole filth of Antichrist Partiall when a man holds most truthes but departs from the sincerity of it And this ouerturnes many Protestants who will neither be Papists nor yet sincere Protestants but so farre iudge Religion woorth holding as they can gaine by it Withering in practice is either in profession or in action Thou mayest hold the profession of Religion and yet by persisting in wicked manners manifest thou acknowledgest not Christ thy Lord and that thy selfe art not of the truth Doe wee thinke Demas cast off the whole profession of Religion when hee forsooke the truth and exchanged it for the world Or did the Galatians turne Gentiles and quite forsake the profession of Christ when they turned to another Gospell Or did the Pharises or such as sinne the sinne against the holy Ghost wholly renounce the profession of Religion Oh then neuer stand vpon profession but vse the meanes to preserue thee from withering in iudgement or practice in whole or in part Quest. What be the meanes to keepe vs from withering Answ. 1. Get sound iudgement to discerne the truth from errour And this is obtained in the publique Ministerie If wee would not quench the Spirit we must not despise prophecie If we would not fall we must be grounded on the foundation of the Prophets and Apostles by priuate reading meditating and conferring of the Scriptures which notably begets and confirmes soundnesse of iudgement And by prayer which obtaines the Spirit who is called the Spirit of iudgement The Lampe failes without oyle And they that forsake the Assemblies shal finde their light of iudgement and vnderstanding to grow dimmer daily till they be wholly put out 2. Sound perswasion of the truth thou professest that thou mayest not please thy selfe that thou hearest the truth from the mouth of the Preacher or hast it in thy Bible at home no nor content thy selfe that thou hast it in thy mouth or discourse but that thou hast the experience of it in thine heart How doth experimentall knowledge fixe it selfe in the soule Let a man once taste the sweetnesse of Christ and his merits he can neuer be a Papist in the point of merit but he will detest his own works as drosse dung in comparison Let a man once come to the experience of Gods fauour and loue through his Christ it will be stronger then death no water can quench it hee shall not hang in a doubtfull suspence of his saluation or feare finall falling away hee shall be farre from wauering and much more from withering in these points Let a man once get experience of the sweetnesse of godly life of Gods blessing accompanying it of inward peace and tranquillity of minde of safety vnder the wing of God and the many priuiledges which goe with the carefull watch ouer the heart and life This man shall not easily fall from his fruitfulnesse nor be drawne to such sinnes as blast and ouerturne others by the rootes and that suddainly Whereas hee that holdes his Religion because the Prince holdes it will runne with the time and swimme with the streame the times and winds are not more mutable than he let the times change but a little his Religion is withered and gone Or if men hold holy Doctrines onely swimming in the braine and attaine vnderstanding rather to furnish their discourse than to guide their course and want the experience of God the sence of faith the breath and motions of heauenly life in the seate of life that is their hearts and soules they shall easily bid truth farewell if with conuenience they cannot hold it in their iudgement or hold it forth in their practice 3. Sound affection and loue to the truth vpholds from withering in it when the wise Christian esteemes the Pearle worth selling all to buy it Loue any thing better than Grace thou art gone Demas loues the world better and easily forsakes the Truth How many lights in the beginning of their profession haue been extinct by the world comming vpon them The profits pleasures and aduancements of it haue made them idle dissolute almost profane If thou wouldest auoide that fearefull Apostasie threatened

corrections of sinnes But proper and peculiar troubles befalling only the members of the Church either in truth or in appearance and that not for any other cause then the Word as here our Sauiour expresseth or for righteousnesse sake or for the Name of Christ and well-doing So as when either for profession of the Word of God suppose no more or for confession and defence of it and such courses agree to it or for the practice of it in conuersation and keeping conscionably to the rules of it a man is reproached wronged indures losse pouerty restraint c. this is properly persecution Now this persecution is as inseparable from the Word and Professors of it as beames from the Sunne or heat from the fire Math. 16.24 If any will be my Disciple let him denie himselfe and take vp his Crosse and follow mee 2. Tim. 3.12 All that will liue godly in Christ Iesus must suffer persecution where the word all admits no exception no exemption And why 1. Christ hath fore-told it Math. 10.22 Ye shall be hated of all men for my Names sake and Ioh. 16.33 In the world ye shall haue affliction So also did his Apostles 1. Thess. 3.4 For verily when we were with you we told you before that we should suffer affliction euen as it came to passe and ye know it 2. Christ and his crosse are inseparable in respect of Gods glory For now he is glorified first in his power and care supporting strengthening comforting his children and in greatest trials giuing the greatest victories Secondly in his wisedome which bringeth good out of euill and light out of darknes Out of the eater he brings meat As a skilfull Phisician tempers poyson to a remedie Out of the euill wils of men he brings forth his owne righteous will and much good to his afflicted seruants awakens security hammers pride exerciseth patience c. Thirdly God is glorified in the graces of his seruants which are kept on worke and waking who if they were euill still would as still bodies fill with bad humors grow as full of lusts as vnsteared grounds of weedes or standing waters of mud They must be stirred out of the dead Sea of prosperity in which commonly no grace liueth to keepe life and motion in their faith feare prayer loue c. A man that is fainting the best way to fetch him is by pulling and wringing his parts So doth the Lord with his children lest their graces should faint Fourthly hee is glorified in his truth for persecution drawes out confession and publishing of his truth as Pauls bonds were famous in all the iudgement Hall and the persecution raised at Ierusalem against the Disciples dispersed them and the truth by them Act. 8.1 2. 3. This comes to passe by the inueterate hatred of Satan and that irreconciliable malice of the world against the Word Saul was quiet enough before his conuersion and so long as he carries the Letters against the Saints but in stead of those Letters let him once carrie the Name of Christ now the diuell buffets him and raiseth vp tumults in euery place against him and he is sure y t now nothing but affliction and bonds abide him euery where So the wicked of the world euer hated God himselfe and whatsoeuer belongs vnto him and most hateth that which hath the most expresse image of God Christ himselfe because he is the expresse forme of his Fathers image can neuer be held out but he is presently a But or marke of contradiction The Word of Christ resembling the nature of God they hate because it is the sentence of condemnation against their sin The Spirit of God in his motions graces because he conuinceth them and reprooueth them of sin The profession and Professors of the Word because it is a light held out reproouing their darkness and manifesting their deeds to be euill Godly admonitions counsell they hate because they are in loue with their euill Instruction is euill to him that forsakes the way And they that doe euill hate the light and will not come vnto it lest their deedes should be manifest to be euil Ioh. 3.19 Let him be publikely taught or priuately admonished so long as he is resolued to hold his sin he makes no other or better vse of it then to raise vp thence his distempered passions against the truth both in the bringers and Professors Yea sometime while such men thinke they stand for Gods Religion and truth they are most desperate enemies persecutors of it through ignorant zeale and blind superstition would set vp that which pulls down truth as Paul beyond measure wasted the Church out of blind zeale for the traditions of the Elders so doe the most deuout Papists at this day 4. The similitude vsed by our Sauior here and by the holy Ghost elsewhere shews the same comparing affliction and persecution to the scorching of the sun Cant. 1.5 The Sun hath looked vpon me Psal. 121.6 The Sun shall not smite thee by day For 1. The Sun doth not more ordinarily or daily arise then persecution ordinarily awaits the word 2. As the Sun-beames diffuse and disperse themselues into euery place so the beams of this Sun of persecution are darted in euery place where the Sun of righteousnes shineth in his Word 3. As no man can hide himselfe from the heat of the Sun Psal. 19.6 So no godly man can hide himselfe from this heat but one time or other it findes him out 4. The Sun hath not more beames to scorch and dry vp the moisture of the earth then Satan and this wicked world haue to dry vp the moisture of grace where it is not sound sometimes by inward and spirituall temptation somtimes by open tyranny and hostility by forraine enemies sometimes by secret delusions and perswasions of heretiks and deceiuers sometimes by false brethren and domesticke enemies who the more inward they be the more are they dangerous All these raise vp persecutions against the Saints of the most High And lest weapons should be wanting in this warre against the Godly the world is the Diuels armorie which by faire and foule by promises and threats loue and hatred and a thousand wayes else assaults the graces of the Godly so as if it were possible the very Elect should be seduced Vse 1. This confutes plainely the error of Bellarmine and other Papists whose proposition in the markes of the Church is Quicunque florent prosperis successibus ij sunt vera Ecclesia Those that flourish and prosper in the World they are the true Church In the eighth of Daniel ver 13. there is a Prophecie of Antiochus Epiphanes that little horne who cast downe some of the Host of heauen and the Starres of heauen and troad them vnder his feet and extolled himselfe against the Prince of the Host and tooke away the daily sacrifice and cast downe the place of his Sanctuary