Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	saviour_n	spirit_n	worship_v	2,314	5	9.2452	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A30585	Gospel-worship, or, The right manner of sanctifying the name of God in general and particularly in these three great ordinances, viz. [brace] 1. hearing of the Word, 2. receiving the Lords Supper, 3. prayer / by Jeremiah Burroughs ; being the second of the seven volumns lately published by Thomas Goodwin ... [et al.]	Burroughs, Jeremiah, 1599-1646.	1653 (1653)	Wing B6085; ESTC R36311	229,301	271

God they by their very strugling to prepare themselves many times do ensnare themselves It may be thou hast thoughts of Atheism or other wickedness the very strugling with those thoughts may ensnare thy heart now the better way were to fall upon prayer and to cry to God to help thee against them for while thou art strugling and striving with those thoughts thou art striving with the corruption of thy heart and with the Devil all alone but now when thou fallest to the duty thou callest in the help of God and of Jesus Christ and that is a great deal better while thou art musing plodding and troubling thy heart that way I say thou art strugling alone but now when thou fallest upon the duty then thou callest in help from God and so thou art more able to the performance of the duty than thou wert before And therefore it is the best way to fall upon a duty though thou canst not find thy heart prepared as thou doest desire the very falling upon it will fit thee for it And thus much for the Answer unto those two Cases of Conscience Now then we are to proceed further in the opening of the Sanctifying of Gods Name in holy duties Thus much for the preparation of the heart But when the heart comes to it in what manner should the duty be performed so as the Name of God may be sanctified in the duty or what is the behavior of the soul in the sanctifying of Gods Name when it is in the very act of the duty To that I answer First in general thus When the soul labors to perform duties so as God may have such glory from the duty a● is fit for a God to have in some measure then do I Sanctifie Gods Name You will say this is a very hard thing to perform a duty so as that we should give God the glory that is fit for a God to have Certainly this is not done by every manner of performance of a duty of Worship yet you shall hear this opened to you and I hope you shall have it made very plain before you First therefore I shall shew you that when we are to perform a duty of Worship we should set our selves to glorifie God as a God that is to do it in that manner that God may have that Glory that is fit for a God to have As now in the duty of Praise Psal 66. 2. Make his Praise glorious that is do it so as you may lift up His Name in it and that God may be glorious in your praise And Rom. 1. 21. there the Apostle speaking of the Heathens he doth rebuke them For what It was for this Because that when they knew God they glorified him not as God neither were thankful now this is spoken especially of the Worship of God for he saith afterwards ver 23. That they changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible men c. So that it 's spoken of the Worship of God that they glorified not God as God That is then to sanctifie Gods Name to glorifie God as God and therefore our Savior in the 4. of John when he spake to the woman of Samaria he tels her that God is a Spirit and must be worshiped in spirit and truth that is we must labor to suit our worship to what ther● is in God that our worship my be proportionable in some measure even to the nature of God himself And therfore God being a Spirit His Worship must be a Divine Worship I have read of some of the Heathens that dip worship the Sun for a God and they would offer to the Sun something sutable therefore because they did so admire at the swiftness of the motion of the Sun they would not offer a Snail to the Sun but a f●ying Horse a Horse with wings now a Horse is one of the swiftest creatures and the strongest creature to continue in motion for a long time together and they added wings to the Horse and they thought that sutable to be a sacrifice for the Sun So when we come to worship God that is to sanctifie His Name we must behave our selves so as to give him the glory that is fit for a God to have As now in those three particulars which I opened to you when I shewed you wherein we draw nigh to God This was one I told you that when we come to worship God we come to tender up some present to God now then we must tender up such a present as is sutable to Gods excellency If a man should come to a poor man to give a present if it were not worthy twelve pence yet it may be taken well but if you were to tender up a present to a Prince a Monarch an Emperor then you must tender a present that is fit for the quality of the preson Therefore in Malachi 1. 8. When the Lord rebukes them for their sacrifices that they were such poor things Go saith God and tender up this to your Governor and see whether he will accept of it or no. So certainly that which may be accepted of by a mean man would be accounted a scorn if you should tender it up to a Prince or an Emperor Now when we come to worship God we must consider that we are to tender up our service to God who is the great King of Kings and Lord of Lords But you will say Is it possible for any creature which comes to tender up its worship to God to tender up that which is fit for a God to have This may rather be a discouragement unto prayer or any other duty of worship than an encouragment To that I answer thus Though we be very poor and mean yet it doth not hinder but we may tender up that to God which God will acknowledg to be sutable to his infinite excellency as First If we tender up to God all that we have Though we be never so poor and mean yet if God hath the strength of our souls God accepts it For we are to know that God doth not stand in need of what we have or of what we do but that we might shew our respect to Him Therefore if we give all that we have God accepts it As a Child if it puts forth all its strength that it hath to do a business which the father bids him whether the business be doue or no the father looks upon it and accepts it as sutable to the childs strength and it shews the respect that the child hath to his father And as it is storied of an Emperor that when a poor man had nothing to offer him but a little water that he had taken up with his hand he having nothing else the Emperor accepts of it So that 's that which God looks for that the Creature should lift him above all If therefore when thou comes to worship God God hath more in thy heart than

people But that we spake too in shewing how we draw nigh to God in holy duties and it may well come in here again as an Argument why we should sanctifie Gods Name 4. A Fourth Reason is this Because there is no way for us to be fitted for the receiving of mercy from God through those duties of Worship but by our sanctifying of Gods Name when thou comest at any time to worship God what wouldest thou have there it some communion that thou wouldest enjoy with God now there is no way to make thee a fit subject of mercy or capable of the enjoying of Communion with God but by such a behavior of soul as this is that hath been spoken of To sanctifie the Name of God thou wouldest be loth to lose those duties of worship that thou doest perform therefore it is required of thee to sanctifie his Name lest thou doest lose all for 't is this that makes thee the only capable subject of what good is to be had there 5. We must sanctifie Gods Name in holy Duties because otherwise we should certainly never hold out in Duties but vanish and come to nothing now God would be worshiped so by his creatures as to be constantly worshiped he would have those that do worship him to worship him alwaies to worship him for ever and he would have this Worship that we perform to him but to be the begining of that eternal Worship that he shall have from us in Heaven And so the Saints do Worship God now the Worship which they perform it is but as the beginning of that Worship that hereafter in Heaven they shall tender up to God though there may be some difference in it as there our prayers will be turned into praises and it will not be in such outward Ordinances as now we worship God in there will be no Preaching nor Sacraments yet notwithstanding the Soul worship that is now will be in effect the same as it shall be in Heaven God would have us so to worship him as to continue to worship him Now I say ●nless his Name b● sanctified in our worshiping of him we will certainly fall off and the truth is This is the very ground of all Apostacie in Hypocrites Some that have been very forward in the worshiping of God when they were young ones and afterwards they have fallen off they were wont constantly in their families and in secret in their chambers to be worshiping of God and they accounted it the very joy of their lives for the present to be worshiping of God but it is not so with them now as it was yea they are fallen off it may be from their very profession of Religion and turn'd loose And now to be in vain company to drink or play is better to them than any Service of Worship of God they prize more to be in company with their sports than to hear a Sermon or to be in Communion with the People of God in Prayer Heretofore they would not have changed one short time of private Communion with God for the enioyment of a great deal of pleasures and content in the world but now it is otherwise with them How comes it to pass that these are apostatized thus from God Surely this is the ground of it That they did not sanctifie Gods Name in holy Duties at the most it was but a work of conscience that put them upon them and they had but some flashes there was no real Sanctification of their hearts whereby they did sanctifie the Name of God in holy duties and upon this it is that they have left off This I dare say That there was never any soul that did know what it was to sanctifie Gods Name in worship that ever was weary of worshiping God It may be some of you may say We have hard that there is much required in sanctifying Gods Name in duties and that is the only way to weary the soul and to make it fall off Oh no as we said the last day there is not any one thing that hath been opened for the sanctifiing of Gods Name in duties that any gracious heart can tell how to miss and the more we do sanctifie His Name the more we shall be in love with worship For it is from hence that those that sanctifie Gods Name in worship will hold out because they will find the sweetness of worship they will meet with God in holy duties and so they come to be encouraged in worship but as for others who do worship God in a formal way their worship will prove to be tedious to them for they perform the duties but do not find God in the duties in that spiritual way as the Saints do If they think they meet with God it is but an imagination rather than any real meeting with him they do not find the influence of God in their souls in holy duties so as those do that sanctifie Gods Name in holy duties here then you see the Reasons why we are to sanctifie Gods Name in holy duties Now then for the Application of all this 1. If all this which you have be required of us for the sanctifying of Gods Name Hence we see how little cause we have to rest upon any duty of worship that we do perform certainly the duties of worship that we perform are no such things as are fit to be rested upon for life and for salvation and yet for the most part there is scarce any thing that people have to rest upon or to tender up to God for acceptation to eternal life but only their prayers and their coming to hear and receiving of the Communion and such duties that they perform this is al they have to tender up for life and for salvation perhaps they may sometimes speak of Christ but the truth is that which their hearts rest upon for acceptation to eternal life is this And is it but this It is a weak prop a rotten reed that thou hast to rest upon Let the duties of Worship be performed never so well Suppose we did sanctifie Gods Name to the uttermost that is possible for any creature to do in this world yet such duties are not to be rested upon Abraham Isaac and Jacob and the Apostles the most holy men that ever did preform duties in the most holy manner yet wo to them if they have nothing to rest upon but their duties Consider therefore of this That what thou must rest upon for acceptation to Eternal life it must be that which must have so much worth in it as must satisfie for all thy sins that formerly thou hast committed yea and for all the sins that ever thou shalt commit Now I appeal unto any ones conscience Is that which thou performest is Prayer or receiving the Sacrament or hearing of the Word such a work as in thy conscience thou canst think it hath so much worth in it as to satisfie God for all the sins that ever thou

Word than to entertain Christ in your houses You that are of loving dispositions that if a good Minister shall come to your houses or a good Christian that you see but the Image of Christ in your hearts spring within you and you will do any thing to entertain them Well but what if Jesus Christ should come if you knew that such a man that came within your doors were the Son of God how would you bestir your selves to entertain him But know it is a more acceptable service to Jesus Christ to attend upon his Word than to provide for him in your houses And there is great reason too that we should be diligent in drawing nigh to the Word and give ear unto it because you find that the Lord doth express himself in the Scripture how he gives ear to us when we speak to him God is said to encline His ear sometimes to open His ear sometimes to bow His ear sometimes to cause His ear to hear and divers such expressions there are to that purpose Now if God when we that are poor wretches speak to Him shall bow His ear bend His ear open His ear cause His ear to hear much more should we when we come to attend upon Him 2. Secondly as there must be attending to the Word of God so there must be an opening of the heart to receive what God speaks to you it is true it is the work of God to open the heart but God works upon men as upon rational creatures and He makes you to be active in opening your hearts so that when you have any truth come to be revealed you should open your understandings your conscience and will and affections Oh Lord thy truth which thou art presenting here to my soul at this time let it come in let me receive it as the expression is in Prov. 2. 1. My Son if thou wilt receive my words and then in ver 10. When wisdom entereth into thy heart The words of wisdom the Words of God they must enter into the heart get in it may be they get into thy ear but that 's not enough they must get into thy heart in Job 8. 37. There Christ complains that His Word had no place in them that 's a sad thing when the Word of God shall have no place in the heart If a temptation to sin comes that hath a place in the heart but when the Word comes that hath no place in the heart I say it is a very sad thing that we can find no room for the Word we should get room for the Word Open ye gates Stand open ye everlasting doors that the King of Glory may come in Know that when you come to hear the Word the Lord is knocking at the doors of your hearts have not you felt it sometimes Open O open the doors let all be opened to receive the Word into your hearts That is the second thing for the behavior of the soul in hearing 3. The third thing is The careful applying of the word so in Prov. 2. 2. There must be an applying of the heart to the word and an applying of the word unto the heart All action is by an application of the thing that doth act unto the subject there must be an application of the word to thy soul as now suppose thou comest to hear the Word and thou hearest of some sin that it may be thou knowest thou art guilty of take the Word and lay it to thy heart and say The Lord hath met with my soul this day the Lord hath spoken to me to the end that I might be humbled for this sin and the other sin that my conscience tells me I am guilty of So doth the Lord put thee upon a duty that concerns thee acknowledge this the Lord hath spoken to me this day and put me upon the reformation of my family and the reformation of mine own heart Is there a word presented apply that and let not the trouble of thy heart cause thee to cast off that word that God hath spoken to thee The application of the word to thy heart is of mervelous use and it concerns not only Ministers in general to lay before people the doctrin of the Gospel but to apply it And know that it concerns you as well as Ministers to apply it And not only when they come to that that is called Use but all the way in the opening of the word it concerns you all to apply it to your own souls and to consider how doth it concern me in particular My brethren there is no such way to honor God or get good to your own souls as the application of the word unto your selves As a man that is asleep if there be a noise made it will not awake him so soon but come and call him by his name and say John or Thomas and that will awake him sooner than a greater noise will So when the word makes a noise when it is delivered only in the general men take little notice of it but when the word comes particularly to the souls of men and doth as it were call them by name this awakens them Now God many times doth speak to your hearts but you should apply it you know the word is compared to meat and it must be applied to the body Then do we worship God in a right way when as we take notice of Gods word as concerning us in particular as that notable Scripture that you have in 1 Cor. 14. 25. Where there come a poor man into the Church of God and hears Prophesying hears the word opened and the text saith he is convinced of all he is judged of all and then in vers 25. Thus are the secrets of his heart manifest and so falling down on his face he worships God and reports that God is in you of a truth That is when the word comes and meets with his soul in particular that he finds himself to be aim'd at by the Word then he worships God and saith that God certainly is in them Here 's the reason now that when you come to hear the Word you do not worship God because you apply it not to your selves you are ready to say This was well spoken to such a one and it concerns such a one but how doth it concern thy soul in particular Sometimes the Lord doth even force men and women to apply it whether they will or no for that they think the Minister speaks to them in partiticular and that no body was spoken too in the Congregation but themselves This is a mercy when the Lord doth it unto you but it is a greater mercy when the Lord gives you a heart to apply to your selves and although it may trouble you a little for the present yet be willing to apply it and account it a great mercy from the Lord That the Lord will be pleased to speak in particular to your souls 4. Fourthly We must mix