Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n
Text snippets containing the quad
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A95529
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Christmas in & out or, our Lord & Saviour Christs birth-day.
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Taylor, John, 1580-1653.
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1652
(1652)
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Wing T440; Thomason E1244_2; ESTC R209189
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10,013
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16
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who he was that did send and what it was that he sent He sent first to us that should in all humility have been Petitioners to him we were enemies to God to us he had sent often by his Messengers but this Day he sent his Son who was and is himselfe Therefore let our deserved misery and Gods undeserved mercy love and compassion be thankfully remembred this day and every day in all places times ages and generations This Day Mercy and Truth are met together and Righteousnesse and peace have kissed each other Truth shall flourish out of the Earth and Righteousnesse hath looked downe from heaven Psal 85. Here was a gracious and happy meeting here the Lord Chiefe Justice of Heaven and Earth brings justice truth and righteousnesse to judge and mercy and compassion to save here mercy shewed her selfe a good Mistris to misery This Day he came in clouts that will come in Clouds And without controversie great is the Mystery of godliness which is God is manifested in the Flesh justified in the Spirit seen of Angells preached to the Gentiles believed on in the world and received up in Glory 1 Tim. 3. This was a great Mâ—stery indeed this was the summe and substance of all Tropes Types Figures Shadowes Sacrifices Ceremonies and the one and onely absolute fulfilling and accomplishment of all Prophesies And in the first Chapter to the Hebrewes verse 1 2 3. the Apostle saith And at sundry times and in divers places God spake in the old time to our Fathers by the Prophets in these last dayes he hath spoken to us by his Son Thus my Master who had no beginning did begin this day to come and dwell amongst sinfull men the Son of God the King of Glory came this Day and this Day was the first Day of Christianity to all Christians and as many as have true faith in Christ This was he to whom God the Father said Psal 2. Thou art my Son this Day have I begotten thee And this was he that in the same Psalme was prophesied to say Lord I wil preach thy Law and declare thy Will The Evangelist S. Luke saith Chap. 2. Ver. 12 13. And this shall be a sign unto you you shall finde the Babe swadled and laid in a Cratch some read â—t in a Manger Here is to be noted the great humility of my Master that though he were Lord and maker of all the first joyfull tydings of his birth was not brought to Princes and Potentates or to Scribes Pharisees Lawyers or Doctors but he was gratiously pleased to be first declared to poore and humble Shepheards and not to be borne in any magnificent or stately Palace or in the best room in the Inne No the Inkeeper had his Chambers filled with Guests more welcome and gainfull then Christ There was no room for him in the Inne therefore the Redeeme of mankind had entertainment in a Stable amongst Beasts swadled and laid in a Cratch Neither would he be borne in any great or glorious City Jerusalem had not the honour to be graced with the Birth and first presence of the Son of God in great Cities there hath ever been more misery than mercy and more persecution than pity therefore great Jerusalem was the place of his bitter death and passion and little Bethlehem was honoured with his birth as it was prophecied many years before by the Prophet Micah Chap. 5. in these words And thou Bethlehem Ephrathah are little to be among the thousands of Judah yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that shall be the Ruler in Israel whose goings forth have been from the beginning and from everlasting And Heb. 2. 16. For he in no wise took the Angells but the seed of Abraham he took He took our nature in the seed of Abraham upon him the nature of Angells he took not He came this day to help us who had most need of a Saviour he gave to us not onely a dignity which he gave not to Angells but also he gave himselfe for us and sure we cannot take a safer or wiser course than thankfully with all humility to give our selves to him that gave himself for us My Master gave power to his Church to celebrate and to ordain and command the annuall celebration of his blessed Nativity I have twelve dayes to attend me and twelve moneths I do absent my selfe before I come again the kinde or course entertainment the courteous or churlish usage to me doth not or cannot increase or diminish my Masters glory or adde to me or take from me one minute of time if men could be as faithfull and charitable as Abraham as humble as David as milde and meek as Moses as zealous 〈◊〉 Elias as patient as Job as solicitous as Martha and as devout as the blessed Virgin Mary those gracious gifts have been are and will be a happinesse unspeakable to such as are by supernall grace endowed with them but the profit of them is onely theirs that have them for he that is rich in mercy cannot be inriched by the piety-vertue or merits of men so that every Christian may truly say Lord the great love thou beat'st to me is thine But all the profit of it's only mine So likewise if poore old Christmas day be made welcome I am not the richer or fatter if I be ill entertain'd I will neither be poorer or leaner Let them make me a feasting or fasting day all my joy or grief is not of long continuance I am but a short day and not far from the shortest day aâ—â— therefore their loves are but short to my Master that will not rejoyce and be glad at the comming of his anniversary Birth day The old yeare was before Christ when misbelieving Iewes and Gentiles lived in the darknesse of ignorant Idolatry under the Law or without the Law but the New yeare came when the Father of Lights sent my Master the Light of the world who by the glorious light of his Gospell expelled and dispersed the black clouds and mists of Egyptian blindnesse and devillish-Idolatry Therefore with the old year let is shake off our old faults the deeds of darkness and with the new yeare let us be renewed in our minds and follow the true light and amend our maners let our hearts be fill'd with praises thanksgivings before our bellies be overfill'd with meat There were lately some over-curious hot zealous Brethren who with a superbian predominance did doe what they could to keep Christmas day out of England they did in divers places Preach Me for dead in Funerall Sermons and labour'd tooth and nail to bury me alive in the grave of oblivion they were of opinions that from the 24. of December at night till the 7. of January following that Plumb-Pottage was meer Popery that a Coller of Brawn was an obhomination that Roast Beef was Antichristian that Mince Pies were Reliques of the Whore of Babylon and a Goose a Turkey or a