Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n
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A81634
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Gospel-mysterie or, the great union that is betwixt Christ and the saints. From Cant. 2. 16. With a true way to discern a godly man from a carnal or ungodly man: and the way how the saints return after back-sliding. Also, the worth of a good conscience. By Robert Dornford.
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Dornford, Robert.
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1652
(1652)
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Wing D1935; Thomason E1315_3; ESTC R209206
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36,827
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79
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Gospel-Mysterie OR The great Vnion that is betwixt CHRIST and the SAINTS From Cant. 2. 16. WITH A true Way to discern a Godly man from a Carnal or Vngodly man AND The way how the Saints return after Back-sliding Also The Worth of a good Conscience By Robert Dornford Revel 3. 20. Behold I stand at the door and knock if any man will open I will come in and sup with him LONDON Printed by R. W. for Francis Tyton and are to be sold at the three Daggers in Fleet street neer the Inner-Temple-Gate 1652. Christian Reader I Have made bold to present thee with a few lines in which it is like thou mayest find much weakness I shall humbly intreat thee to bear with that and to lay aside all prejudice that may arise in thy heart and do desire thee to read it over on this consideration That God makes use of weak Instruments for many good ends And this I will assure thee that I do not tell thee of that which I partake not of but of that which I have both heard and learned seen and felt and do offer it to thee not as my own fancy but thou seest it no more then the Word of God witnesseth and therefore whether I please man or no it matters not much I know many Pretenders to be Saints yet deny the Power of Godliness The Lord turn all the hearts of his People away from them In a few words my desire is that thou and I may not have a name to live yet be dead that we may not own the titles of Saints and yet live as carnal as others which many do at this day But it is no more then we may expect in regard the Lord CHRIST and the Apostles have foretold of Wandring Stars and Clouds without water carried about with wind I tell thee whosoever thou art either Spiritual or Temporal here is something for thee to do And therefore weigh that which thou readest in the ballance of Truth and the Lord make both thee and me not only hearers of his will but doers also Which is the earnest desire of Thy Christian Friend R. D. A great Neerness Betwixt CHRIST and the SAINTS THe words of Scripture on which I shall discourse is in the 2. Chap. of Canticles My Beloved is mine and I am his In this and also in the whole Treatise we have the Expostulations of Love betwixt Christ and the Saints I shall not stand upon the variety of it but shall keep to the words in which we have chiefly these four parts 1. We have the Spouses assurance of Christ My Beloved is mine 2. We have her great esteem of Christ He is her Beloved or He is greatly beloved of her 3. We have her assent to Christ I am his 4. We have the Union betwixt them I shall endeavour to open these Heads in order according as they lie And from the first thing I take notice of the Observation will be this That every Saint of God hath a full assurance of the love of Christ My Beloved is mine There is no being a Saint untill thou canst say Christ is my Christ untill Christ be thine and in thee thou art but a Reprobate 2 Cor. 13. 5. But the Spouse here hath a full assurance that Christ her beloved is hers the Spirit of God doth witness this unto her as it appears by that Scripture in Rom. 8. 15 16 17. where the Apostle saith that the Spirit of God doth witness with our spirits that we are the children of God This in it self were enough to prove the truth of what hath been said but take a place or two more for confirmation 1 Joh. 3. 1 2. The Saints they have a full assurance that they are the sons of God saith John And if thou art a son of God then thou canst not fail of the love of Christ See Rom. 8. 9. If any man hath the Spirit of God then Christ is his if he hath not Christ is none of his It is this assurance of the love of Christ that makes the Saints so confident it was that which made them lay down all lives and all for him I know that my Redeemer liveth saith Job c 19. v. 25 26. From the second thing I take notice of the Observation will be this Obs 2. That Christ is deerly beloved and highly prized by every believing Soul I am now upon the cleerest truth and the easiest proved that is and therefore shall not stand long on it Only by the way take notice That it is one thing to love Christ after this manner and another thing to tell of loving him Many speak high words and fine smooth speeches but they love not Christ so as to part with all for him But Christ is so deerly beloved to the Saints that are Saints indeed that all things are as nothing when it comes to competition with Christ To you that believe saith the Apostle Peter Christ is precious 1 Pet. 2. 7. There is nothing so dear to a poor Saint as his dear Christ who shed his blood for him The Apostle Paul how doth he declare his dear affection to Christ Phil 3. 7 8 9. I saith he account all lost for Christ nay more then lost I account all dung that I may win Christ and be found in him You may take notice a little how the Spouse by which is meant the Saints doth express her love to Christ Cant. 1. 7. O thou whom my soul loveth and so almost all the Canticles is filled with the like expressions by which you may easily see that it is a dear love the Saints have to Christ Christ is so highly prized you see by Paul that all things are by him accounted dung nothing is so lovely in all the world as the Lord Christ Thirdly from the Spouses assent to Christ we may draw this Observation Obs 3. That all the Saints do give themselves freely to Jesus Christ Or That all the Saints are given to Christ Thev are given to him by a twofold gift First God gives them to him Joh. 6. 37. All that the Father giveth me saith Christ shall come to me and Joh 10. 29. My Father which gave them me is greater then all and therefore no man is able to pluck them out of my hands Secondly the Saints give up themselves to Christ I am his saith the Spouse to do what please him with me and now I am to follow him whithersoever he goeth as it is in Mat. 16. 24. He that hath given himself to Christ as the Spouse as all the Saints do he is to bear his Crosse although in a field of blood The Saints they give themselves to Christ to be at his dispose to obey what he commands as appears plainly in Joh 10 27. My sheep hear my voice saith Christ I know them and they follow me But I shall not stand here in regard I know that all that are Gods must witness to this That the Saints do give
making any peace with it Therefore now try and search whether thou hast this Spirit of the living God acting in thee carrying up thy soul to actions of life and power If thou art inspired by the Spirit of God then take it for ever granted that these effects will follow 3. The Spirit of God is an operative Spirit it acts in the soul spiritual things it begets its own likeness in the soul it molds the soul in the new mold of Obedience to the Commands of God The spirit of God works in the soul these operative Acts. First It works Faith 2. It makes the soul live by Faith 3. It drives him to see all in Christ and nothing in himself 1. It works faith in the soul to believe that there is no way to come to God but by Christ and that it is the work of God to draw the soul to him John 6. 29. 2. This Faith will work up the soul to lay hold on him it will cause the soul to reach forth it self to Christ to see him to be the Son of God and to trust and relie on him for life 3. The Spirit of God doth by Faith work a mortifying of sin as it is in Rom 8. 10. If Christ be in you the body is dead because of sin Where these works of the Spirit of God come it operates it carries the soul to a new frame of life He that is in Christ is a new creature saith the Apostle 2 Cor. 5. 17. This work of Faith lifts up the soul to that spiritual Combat between the spirit and the flesh I see saith Paul a law in my members warring against the Law of my minde It is by this work of Faith that all the Saints hold out in this warfare that they still continue a Resolution against sin to kill that and to bring every lust into subjection Secondly It makes the soul live by faith that is it makes him as it were see feel and enjoy all the Riches of God in the Lord Christ you may in part see in the 11. to the Hebrews what it is to live by faith It is to cast thy self with a full confidence upon God and Christ for life and salvation To live by faith is to do these three things 1. To put credit and confidence in God that what is looked for we shall enjoy 2. To look for our happiness only in Christ and not in our selves 3. To rest satisfied as if we already had our desire to live by faith is to credit what God sayes to Rely on him to trust him with confidence that whatsoever he hath promised to us his poor creatures he will make good Heaven and earth shall pass away saith Christ but not one jot or title of my word or promise shall fail It is to cast our selves on God and Christ believing that he will and is fully able to save even to the utmost in every condition 2. Again to live by Faith is to live by something without our selves it is to see all in Christ and nothing in our selves it is to look on our own righteousness as dung and wholly to submit to the righteousness of Christ as you also may see in Phil. 3 8 9 10. 3. To live by Faith is to rest satisfied in every dispensation of God that all is for the best to us and to look on all things as if they were already done according to Gods promise or our own desire so that our content may be in every thing as well as if we had all things All things are yours saith Paul you are Christs and Christ is Gods there is a full enjoyment of all 4. The Spirit of God works also by direction directing of every soul whom it hath wrought the former effects in to do the will of God to walk in the wayes of his Commandments whispering in every soul and saying This is the way walk in it This duty thou must do and that evil thou must leave undone And therefore examine thy self doest thou not finde the Spirit of God telling thee thou must perform Duties of holiness and refrain the evil of sin if not I dare say thou art yet in thy sins 5. The Spirit of God works also by assisting us to do that which it directs us to it never directs us to do a Duty and leaves us No it stay by us and enables us to go thorow it and not only so but even with sighs to God for us which cannot be by us uttered it helps our infirmities Rom. 8. 26. Examine thy soul when didst thou ever go to God by prayer or any Duty else that this Spirit was not ready to assist thee and to thy comfort take notice of this for time to come and thou shalt finde this truth if ever thou hast had this work on thee 6. God closes up all our comfort in this life in this last degree of his working that is by a full witness of his Spirit that we are his sons and daughters And this is a very high enjoyment indeed yet no higher then all the Saints do enjoy and indeed thou art not a Saint till thou hast this Witness in thy soul And this the Apostle Paul affirmeth in Gal. 4. 6 7. Because ye are sons God hath sent the witness of his spirit to testifie it to you and therefore ye are no more servants Again in 1 Joh. 3. 2. Now are we the sons of God And in Joh. 1. 12. He gives all that through faith lay hold on him power to be his sons God doth evidence to all the Saints their interest in Christ and this is to them a sure Record as 1 Joh. 5. 7. 8. This is the new name and the white stone spoken of in Rev. 2. 17. which none knoweth save he that hath it This is that earnest which Paul tells the Ephesians of in chap. 1. 14. And this also you may see in Phil. 1. 13. and 4. 30. After you believed you were sealed with the holy Spirit the which Spirit you see is that which seals all the Saints to the day of Redemption and all this is given to the Saints to assure them that God is their Father and Christ their Husband as the Spouse in the Text doth witness And yet further take notice how God doth this great work he gives the Spirit as the earnest of our Inheritance as a man gives one pound or one shilling in earnest to pay a thousand so the Lord gives his Spirit in earnest of enjoying his presence in Heaven for ever And the soul that hath this Earnest may be sure that as God is God he shall have the whole sum made good to him And that all the Saints may know this is true God will set a seal on their souls to confirm them and therefore thou mayest say on good grounds if thou hast this seal and this earnest that thou canst not miss of Christ Again the Spirit assures us by working in us a fruitfulness