Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	word_n	work_n	wrought_v	521	4	7.9652	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A90691	The tempestuous soul calmed by Jesus Christ; being an extract of several sermons, / preached by Anthony Palmer, pastor of the church at Bourton on the Water in Gloucester-shire.	Palmer, Anthony, 1618?-1679.	1653 (1653)	Wing P219; Thomason E1496_3; ESTC R208632	45,978	112

sin as horrible as ever he argued it pleasant and commodious yea his chief darts lie at the faith of a beleever to be reasoning against the grounds of beleeving questioning their election severing the promises out of their sight mudding and darkening their sight of Christ accusing them for unsound and hypocrites tempting them from means which make for strengthening of faith Peter saith Christ Satan hath desired to winnow thee but I have prayed that thy faith fail not implying Satans design lay most against his faith through the malice and subtlety of Satan faith is put hard to it till the Lord rebuke him 5. Faith is wrought forth gradually in the soul by degrees at first sown as a grain of mustard-seed a small seed corruptions and reasonings like overspreading tares ready to choak it therefore being sown as I may so speak in weaknesse at first 't is thus put to it for comfort therefore Paul tels the Thessalonians 1 Thes 3.10,13 that there was something lacking in their faith and the establishment of their faith is much praied for by him 6. The Lord suffers it to be so that his power in the supporting of a weak soul may the more appear Faith is called the operation of the Son of God 1 Thess 2. and that your faith might stand in the power of God when a soul is full of fears and mis-givings and ready to sink under them theu the hand of the Lord is more visible in sustaining then we see by his power alone we stand Had we a strong setled faith presently we should rather be lifted up in our selves or rest upon grace received and so not glorifie the Lord Jesus and live upon him for strength as he requires Therefore the Lord suffers these fightings and reasonings within that we might have continuall recourse to him for support and that we might see that the beginnings life and growth of faith it is all in and from Jesus Christ as the Authour and Finisher of it For these Reasons viz. the wisedom and pride of flesh and bloud the natural power of Unbelief not being wholly subdued sense of unworthinesse the depth of guilt accusations of conscience and the disputings of Satan faith sown in weaknesse at first and all this suffered to ends of glory to the Lord Jesus Christ that his power and grace may be the more magnified therefore true faith is mixt with many reasonings doubtings misgivings disputings fears which do annoy it I will first endeavour to apply this before I prove further that such a faith may engage Christ to succour 1. If true faith be thus mixt with fears and reasonings It meets first with the easie faith that the most of people please themselves in as I thank God I alwaies beleeved God forbid but I should beleeve in Jesus Christ 'T is easie very easie indeed to presume away a precious soul 't is easie to flatter a mans self with an opinion of beleeving and indeed 't is nothing else but a customary opinion of Christ But to beleeve in Christ Jesus and savingly and effectually to apply his bloud by his Spirit enabling this is hard ah hard indeed to a poor convinced soul that hath deep thoughts of heart about the pardon of sins Lord help my unbelief and Lord if thou wilt and the like This easie beleeving is the dead sleep of sin upon the conscience and a generall opinion in the brain that Christ died for sinners even for all sinners to whom he is preached heightned by the strong delusion of the devil whose work it is to perswade souls that have nothing but a dead generall faith that they beleeve well and on the contrary to dispute against the faith of true beleevers that they do not truly believe And this among others may be a discovery of true faith unbelief is still mixing and Satan disputing against it as in the reasons shew'd If so much faith against beleeving pardon of sinne in the Lord Jesus how can it choose but be so but it must be a hard thing to a poor soul to fasten upon Christ in a promise for remission of sins when so much opposition to it Therefore this is an infallible note true beleevers deeply feel and are humbled for unbelief Oh 't is the deep evil of their hearts and that they most tremble at but take a carnall formall dead-hearted Protestant and no such matter with him He could beleeve a thousand years together and if he have any scruples they be as nothing a little praier or the like will quickly hekl it And herein also is another great snare Naturall conscience that is a conscience not savingly enlightned and sanctified may give some checks before in or after the commission of a sin and then unregenerate persons do most usually gather that they have truth of grace because they have some little conflicts within which they fasten upon from Rom. 7. the thing that I would not that do I but that former I is meant of the regenerate nature distinct to and warring against the fleshly part and not a little conflicting of the naturall conscience from common enlightenings of the word So also as to doubting and some small mis-givings these argue not a truth of saith unlesse these are only allayed by the going out of the soul to Jesus Christ and the evidence of the work of saith with power wrought forth in us If thy doubtings be such that do not settle again till thou hast made a true entire close with Jesus Christ in self-renouncing then they are of the spirit subduing sin and unbelief in thee Therefore look narrowly to unbelief as true faith interests the soul in Christ and all his grace and promises so unbelief excludes while unsubdued from all of Christ It sins against totum dei every attribute of God So then they could not enter in because of unbelief An utter impossibility upon it And this may reign through deluded mis-perswasion of true faith though the conversation in the eye of men civil and regular I desire to acknowledge to the praise of the rich grace of God that the opening of the power of unbelief by a holy Preacher of the Gospel was the first time of the Lords speaking to me in powerfull convincement that I was in the state of unbelief though before full of confidence of the safety of my condition Oh therefore Soul whoever thou art be jealous of thy own heart in this particular unbelief is a close spirituall undiscerned evil till the Lord come in and shew thee what the strength of it is by casting in a grain of faith to grapple with it which without the continuall supply of his Spirit will be overwhelmed by it Therefore let me presse thee with a serious triall of thy self this way that this is a dangerous snare easinesse to beleeve pardon of sin and peace with God So that unlesse thou canst make out a work of faith with power by the word and spirit Question all and so

in the sight of thy meer naked condition make out for Christ as hath been before directed as if thou wert before a stranger to him 2. If true Faith may consist with so many fears and reasonings why then a word yet more to the convinced poor soul in its perishing condition in it self that hath got a view of Christ and is pressing after him but fears ah sad fears and mis-givings arise Why consider this well If it were not so thou mightst justly question all indeed whether any thing saving in thee Tell me Soul wouldest thou be again in the supposed safety thou wast once in when no such conflicts in thee No thou wilt say not fot a thousand worlds for then I was as a dead worm in sin and unbelief But thou wilt say yet I fear Ah finde it hard to beleeve and fasten upon and apply one promise so thou seest do all Gods children Reade of and ask of any the holiest and graciousest they will tell thee many a serious experience of this what travels the poor soul hath had through doubtings fears sinkings cloudings and yet all calmed sweetly calmed again as hath been shewed and am yet further to declare the staies and the props of a poor soul in this case have been opened But a word more Is it no further with thee then this then questioning of faith with the Lord help my unbelief know 't is impossile to cry after Christ with complaints of Unbelief without some truth of faith Canst thou reach but unto the power of Christ to give him the glory of being able to succour thee but doubtest of his willingnesse what his heart may be unto thee Ah thou sadly doubtest Is it with thee Lord if thou wilt still an If know Faith on the power of Christ as in the examples shewed may be saving Remember also Christs melting answers I will be thou clean Be it unto thee as thou wilt Go in peace And this to such souls who came beleeving in his power to save though trembling what his heart might be towards them I am now further to shew that such a weak pursuing Faith may engage Jesus Christ to succour which hath received some demonstration already but 't is further clear'd from these reasons 1. Faith though never so weak be it faith that is such that resolves the soul to venture all with Christ and pursue after him is a beam from Christ himself shed by his own spirit 'T is the spirit so enabling the soul to choose and follow Christ therefore Christ will own such a faith and 't will engage his whole heart to more 2. 'T is that grace by divine appointment which engageth all the priviledges and blessings of Christ to a soul Not from any worthinesse in it but by Gods own Ordination So that a Soul is not so much to reason thus Can such a poor weak faith engage Christ but he is to look to Gods Ordination and promise that it shall In a word Not to be poring upon the weaknesse of faith but to be eying and considering the free promise and so not to make an estimate of thy faith by present sensible enjoyment and feelings of comfort but by thy going out to Christ in the indefinite free invitement and promise to all humble comers for life and salvation and then say and reason within thy self The Soul that according to Christs own invitement command and promise renounceth all other and comes and follows him for life shall have and finde life in him But so doth this poor trembling soul of mine if I know any thing of my own heart renounce all other and flies to a powerfull free-hearted Jesus mighty to save Therefore I shall finde him yea I have him And this a true Scripturall spiritual reasoning grounded upon Christs own words Isa 55.1 Joh. 5.40 Joh. 6.37 Rev. 22.17 1 Tim. 1.15 But now if thou yet fearest and art jealous whether thy self-renouncing and coming to and closing with Chtist be full and entire The next and every time thou goest to him and pleadest with him and do it often protest against all other helps and now there is no witnesse but God and thy own conscience that thou dost perish in all opinion of thy self or any other all the strength and righteousnesse that thy self and all the world to help thee hath being but as dead water to thee and that thou dost protest against them and so make an entire close with the Lord Jesus alone that he may be thine and thou maist be his in Gospel terms and that thou art willing to take up his yoke and follow him Know also that such jealousies of thy self are a good argument of something sound within thee 3. Further If through thine unacquaintance with the Scriptures thou runst upon a mistake and conceivest that true faith consists in a full perswasion and assurance of salvation Thou must understand that it is not so for assurance is the height and excellency of faith such a degree that many gracious souls are long ere they attain to it yea have only some short glimpses of in this life And though some arrive to a greater measure of joy and assurance in the holy Ghost yet not enjoy'd by any in a constant renour while a bitter root of unbelief remains in us I do not here intend to give forth the consequent evidences and fruits of faith only a word or two as to the management of a weak faith while thou art thus in thy doubtings or if faith lie as it were dead and doth not act lively upon Christ Though in such a case thou art to be stirring up every grace yet do not stand poring upon such a heavy frame of heart nor do thou think to lift up the hand of faith by thy own power but go and lie before Christ go forth from thy own heart to him to requicken the habit of faith that thou maist draw new life from him and this follow him for And then though faith be even as a withered hand as sometimes it is Christ will speak to thy soul as to the man with a withered hand in the Gospel Mat. 12.10 Stretch forth thy hand and thou shalt do so and embrace Christ in thy arms and thine affections run forth lively upon him It may be objected Is it safe then to let doubtings and fears lie and be carelesse of them seeing thus mixing they do evidence truth of faith No but labour to get them supprest and subdued by the power and spirit of Christ Though it be not absolutely thy duty to have assurance yet 't is thy duty to labour and give all diligence to gain it 2 Pet. 1.10 But especially beware of such things which do deaden and stagger faith and some of those I will point out to thee as to the case of a young convert 1. After conviction enlightening and in some measure a self-emptying and renouncing as hath been shewed and so a sight of free-grace and Christ