Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	true_a	worship_n	worshipper_n	3,023	5	12.1458	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A53273	A seasonable discourse wherein sincerity & delight in the service of God is earnestly pressed upon professors of religion delivered on a publick fast at Cambridge in New-England, by the reverend and learned Urian Oakes, late pastor of the church there, and president of Harvard Colledge.	Oakes, Urian, 1631-1681.	1682 (1682)	Wing O22; ESTC R31761	29,412	40

than the bare performance of duty which is usually exprest by some Verb or other There are many necessary requisites to and essential ingredients in the true worship of God which if they be wanting the external performance of it is as a thing of nought in Gods valuation though the worship be materially good not idolatrous superstitious uncommanded or unlawful in it self but such as God hath instituted and enjoyned yet it may be formally evil and want such conditions and qualifications as would render it acceptable to God Men may pray hear receive sacraments be much in duties of worship and yet do nothing from a principal of grace in obedience to God with a due respect to His glory and is not all this think you as good as nothing in point of acceptation with the Lord A man may be doing every day and yet do nothing in Religion All his prayers may be nothing else but the lazie wishings and wouldings of sinfull sloath the bablings of formality the cravings inordinate selfish greed cravings of his lusts the discontented murmerings and grumblings of the flesh or howlings in a time of affliction Hosea 7. 14. Yea as the plowing of the wicked is sin Prov. 21. 4. so is his praying also The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord Prov. 15. 8. God lookes with a gracious asp●ct on him that is poor and of a contrite spirit and trembles at His Word But he that without these inward holy dispositions of spirit slayeth an Oxe is as if he sl●w a man c. Isa. 66. 2. 3. Of so little account with God is external worship without the internal as He will hardly allow it the name of invocation and wor ship but gives it very hard names importing that such invocation is indeed a great provocation of God All the use that I would make of it is in these three Words First This may serve to check the pride and petulancy to beat down the confidence and conceit of hypocrites that glory in their performances and reckon God indebted to them for their servivices That think they have done some great matter when they have prayed tosted heard Gods word done these or those duties and bear themselves high upon the frequency of their external devotion and think God doth them great wrong if He doth not consider and reward their diligence and dutifulness No Hypocrite acts beyond the sphere of the Covenant of Works but think to winn it and wear it And is whatever he professeth of a mercenary spirit and quarrels with God if he do not hear his prayers and reward his services so those supercili us proud hypocrites wherefore have we fasted saith they and thou seest not Wherefore have we afflicted our souls and thou takest no knowledge Isa 58 3. Thus they fly out and expostulate with God because their external humiliations and hypocritical performances were not regarded and rewarded according to their mind There is this saucy spirit in all hypocrites Ah! poor proud man thou mayest boast of thy prayers and duties and quarrells with God that He doth not hear and reward but thou hast no reason for take this home with thee thou hast never prayed in thy life never called upon God to this day thou hast done much in a way of duty in thy kind and fond opinion of thy self but as good as nothing in God's account Thou hast more reason to admire the patience and mercy of God for not punishing thee for such sinfull as well as insignificant performances then expostulate with Him and question His justice and faithfulness because He hoth not rewarded them Secondly We see then we have great reason to examine our selves and bring all our services to the test and touchstone of the Word of God and try whither our worship of God is true or false sincere or hypocritical any thing indeed or nothing in God's estimation What if God should say to thee after all the prayers thou hast made Fasts thou hast kept Sermons thou hast heard Sabbath-days Lecture dayes in season and out of season and Sacraments thou hast received Man Woman thou hast never called upon Me nor worshiped Me unto this day no thou hast never yet prayed one Prayer heard one Sermon received one Sacrament sanctified one Sabbath done one duty of religious Worship Truely it is to be feared this is the very case of many Professors amongst us Oh! the cold dead sleepy Prayers infamilies the dull and drowzie work we make on dayes of humiliation the careless fruitless hearing the flight unworthy receiving of Sacraments that is amongst us May we not fear this is the general condition of Professors amongst us in these 〈◊〉 and perrilous times We can travel into a Road of Duty jogg on in a formal heartless manner in a way of religious performances But Oh where is the reverance of the Divine Majesty the faith in His Son and Promises the hope in His mercie the love to Him and the zeal for His glory the unutterable groans and fervency of spirit the attention of mind and intention of will and affections to such like gracious dispositions and qualifications of the worship of God Are not these things growen out of fashion with us I doubt not but there are many through grace among us that call upon God in truth wrestling Israels a generation of seekers praying souls that can weep and make supplication and prevail with God in a princely manner Many that pray and hear and receive Sacraments and worship God in spirit and in truth that are accepted acknowle●dged owned and shal be rewarded as true worshippers I would not be all in complaining it is good to be thankful for what there is of God among us Many there are of the good old generation many of the middle and of the young generation yea more I doubt not then we are aware of that call upon God in sincerity yea there may be many a wise Virgin in a slumbering fit that may say with the spouse Cantic 5. 2. I sleep but my heart waketh That must by no means be secluded and so shut out of the company of true worshippers As there were seven thousand in Elijah's time a time of the greatest Apostacy of Israel that had not bowed a knee to Baal nor defiled themselves with idolatrous worship so no doubt there were many thousands that called upon God and worshiped Him indeed even in those degenerous times when the Lord said Thou hast not called upon me O Iacob But He speakes of the body of that People that were hypocritical formall and irreligious So questionless we have many among us in these dayes of degeneracy and apostacy that worship God aright and seek Him with their whole heart bear up the Pillars of our Land Are the Chariots and Horse-men of our Israel and can do wonders upon their knees But what shal we say or think of the body of this People May not God upbraid us and say Thou hast