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	youth_n	46	3	7.7329	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A50403	A memento to young and old: or, The young man's remembrancer, and the old man's monitor. By that eminent and judicious divine, Mr. John Maynard, late of Mayfield in Sussex. Published by William Gearing, minister of the Gospel	Maynard, John, 1600-1665.; Gearing, William.	1669 (1669)	Wing M1451; ESTC R216831	88,644	216

life as thou art uncertain yet canst thou not possible be certain of the grace of Repentance which is a rare gift and I am perswaded seldome bestowed in decrepit years where it hath been rejected in the more able age especially by such as all their time have lived under a faithful and convincing Ministry Doth the Apostle say That the Gentiles were given up to a reprobate sence because they did with-hold the truth in unrighteousness going on in those unrighteous courses which the Light of Truth Manifested to them by the works of Creation did discover and Condemn How much more mayst ●hou tremble at this dreadful Judgment who continuest in the pride of thy youth to sin with greediness against that Light of the Word which shineth unto thee farr more brightly than that twilight of Nature The Lord make you wise unto Salvation and suffer you not with blind eyes and obstinate Spirits to run upon your own Destruction forgeting him that made you puting off the remembrance of your latter end pass●●● 〈◊〉 in a dead sleep of present impen●●er 〈…〉 selfe dream of future 〈…〉 very flashes of Hell-fire 〈…〉 which the Lord preserve you 〈…〉 of your Consciences through 〈…〉 and Grace that ye may not sleep 〈…〉 of everlasting Death SERMON II. Eccles. 12. 1. Remember now thy Creatour c. CHAP. 1. HAving spoken of the former point I proceed unto the Second Observ. That young men ought especially to Remember their Creatour in the daies of their youth What it is to remember in the language of the holy Ghost you may gather by that which I spake of the contrary in opening the former point where I shewed you That this remembrance is not only of the brain but of the heart together with the head implying affections as well as memory and such as are powerful Manifesting themselves in answerable Practices So that as to forget God is a with-drawing declining and turning the heart aside from God so to remember God is a cleaving of the heart to him in love whereby all the Powers of the Soul are given up to him waiting upon his Will in an holy attendance upon the directions of his Word readily practising whatsoever he commandeth and carefully shuning whatsoever he forbideth We read Num. 15. 38 39 40. That the Lord would have the people of Israel to have fringes on their Garments that they might remember his Commandments but not barely to keep them in their memories but saith he That ye may remember and do all my Commandements and be holy unto your God An effectual remembrance that should work upon the affections and make them holy that should shape them out an holy course of Life and make them do all that the Lord had Commanded This doth the Scripture in special manner require of young men Psal. 119. 9. Where-withal shall a young man cleanse his way by taking heed thereto according to thy Word CHAP. II. THis Point may be made more plain by Reasons Reason 1. The former Point shall be a Reason of this Young Men are especially apt to forget their Maker and therefore young Men ought to be especially careful to remember him The greater defect there is in any the greater care is required in supplying that defect The stronger inclination there is to any sin the greater watchfulness there ought to be in resisting and subduing that sin The more unapt and sluggish we are towards any duty the more careful should we be to quicken and encourage our selves to that duty The weakest parts of a City have special need of guarding Men that have but weak memories and have much dealings in the World are so much the more careful to use their Pens and commit such things to books and memorials with which if they should trust their memories they would deceive them So especially in heavenly things the more apt young Men are to forget their Creatour the more careful should they be to remember their Maker because their affections are violent because they are apt to be blinded with a fleshly confidence in youth and strength of body because they are apt to doate with a carnal complacency upon the natural vigour of their youthful temper because they are more capable of carnal pleasures than the elder sort because there are so many snares laid for them above others by all which means they are apt to lose the best and happiest use of their memories and to live in a sensual forgetfulness of and neglect of their God and Creatour therefore should they with a double care and watchfulness endeavour to stirr up their hearts to a conscionable and affectionate remembrance of their Maker 2. We may also gather a reason from the second word in my Text. Now Remember now c. which noreth a special excellency of this time above others As if he had said Now is the chief time wherein thou mayst do God best Service So then young men ought especially to remember their Creatour because Now in their young daies is the chiefest and choyceest time wherein they may glorifie their God and do him acceptable Service Remember now while sin is but budding whiles corruptions are but twiggs while lust is but conceiving while passion and anger is but a green wound not festered and turned into a setled and cankered malice and revengeful disposition Now whiles thy senses are quick thy spirits lively thy temper healthy thy body strong while thy blood is warm and every part is fit for that imployment for which it was ordained Now shew they self mindful of thy Creatour careful of his service respectful of his Glory Now thou canst do something for him Now is the time wherein thou art able and therefore Now especially thou must remember him 3. This word Now may seem to imply somewhat more viz. That this which is here required must be done now or never True it is some few may be converted in their elder years who in their youth were forgetful of their Maker but ye must observe that here the Lord requireth of every one that he should give up the strength the morning the freshest and principal part of his life unto him and his service Now this can never be done but in youth and he that spendeth his youth in sin and impenitency can never perform this work he can never give up his strength and the best of his time to God The Lord saith Remember ye keep holy the Sabbath day this should be presently done without delay but yet some who have been careless prophaners of the Lords day have afterwards been conscionable observers of it But when the Lord saith Remember your Creatour in youth this cannot be done but in youth He that spendeth his youth in impenitency and ungodliness can never afterwards give up his youth and the strength thereof unto God Under the Law the Lord required the best of the Flock for Sacrifice Now he that should sell or kill all the best and leave none but

doth the Psalmist return an answer sutable to these mens conceits when the question is moved Wherewithall shall a young man cleanse his way but quite contrary By taking heed thereto according to thy word Where ye see both the Rule by which and the manner how they are to frame their Courses requireth a special strictness The very Word of God that pure and holy Rule of Righteousness and not the customs of the time nor the ordinary practice nor lusts of youth must guide them and this Rule they must heed with much attention and watchfulness having one eye upon their ways another upon the word taking heed thereto according to the word ever marking the steps they tread and observing how it suiteth with the precious truth of God This is the wisdom of the Antient of daies and whatsoever is contrary to it gray hairs cannot exempt from folly CHAP. IV. SECT I. II. THis should perswade the younger sort not to make those daies evil which God hath made good Oh do not abuse your choycest daies to the basest employments Think the spring of your age too good for Satan too pretious for Lust for Drunkenness for Vanity too good to be so spent that in old age ye shall not be able to remember it without shame without a sting Ye know what the Lord spake long since to Israel If ye walk contrary unto me I also will walk contrary unto you How can ye walk more contrary unto God than to make those the worst daies which he hath made the best To have abused any of God's good Creatures under the Law had been sin to have profaned the first fruits a double sin to give any of our time to the service of sin is unworthy of a Christian but to abase the prime of Youth and the crown of our years the choicest of our daies to this slavery what is it but to set our selves to cross the Lord in the wisdom of his wayes and to make these daies evil because he hath made them good Regard not those who scoff in their carnal folly at the uniting of these two together Youth and Holiness as at an unequal match as if a young man and an old woman were joyned together in marriage Assure thy self that nothng can so well become the best daies as the best affections and the best conversation that nothing is more seemly for a vessel of honour than to be seasoned with true grace and sanctification even while it is now in the daies of Youth 1 Joh. 2. 13 14. I write unto you young men because ye have overcome the wicked one Again I have written unto you young men because ye are strong and the word of God abideth in you and ye have overcome the wicked one Here is the excellency of young men not that they have so much strength o● body or daring Spirits to challenge or lay others on the ground as that they have strength of grace and power of the Spirit to wrestle with Satan in all his temptation● and tread them under their feet when the● have the word of God abiding in them an● powerfully enabling them to wrestle wit● Principalities and Powers and so to wrestl● as to overcome These are young men to whom the beloved Apostle of Christ vouchsafeth to write in a peculiar manner a● indeed such are young men whose Youth● man ought to despise SECT II. TAke heed then of making these go●● daies of Youth to be evil daies whi●● God hath made good daies Quest. But some will say perhaps ho● are they made evil daies Sol. I. I answer in general The daies of Youth good in themselves are made evil when they are spent in unregeneration spent in a state of impenitency without sound conversion to God without holy communion with him Every young man who is not brought home to God by unfeigned repentance in his Youth maketh the daies of his Youth to be evil daies Rom. 6. 20 21. When ye were the servants of Sin ye were free from righteousness what fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed for the end of those things is death Whiles a man is an unregenerate person he is a servant of Sin and all that while he maketh his daies evil daies his life an evil life for he is not able to shew any fruit that he hath reaped of all his works and wayes no true benefit no sound comfort ariseth out of all his courses So it is with old men that live in the service of sin without true regeneration In like manner it is in young men that are unregenerate let them do what they will or can let them fill themselves with all manner of earthly pleasures let them please themselves every way and do what they can to enjoy these dayes of Youth walking in the wayes of their own Heart and in the sight of their Eyes please their Senses of all sorts c. Nay let them spend their daies of Youth better than so even in Wars in Study and Learning in getting some useful commendable Trade yet so long as they are unregenerate and do not seriously remember turn to their Creator now in these daies of their Youth they have no true fruit worth the having of all their endeavours of all their daies of Youth Now doth not a man make his daies evil daies when he spendeth them so that no true good cometh of them when they bring forth more evil than good so much evil as that the good that might come of them is not good unto them for the end of these things is death When a man is still hastening to his destruction running o● towards his death as every one unconverte● is what fruit can there come of any thing he goeth about All ye that are young who put off repentance and are not regenerate nor labour to be so ye make the daies of your Youth which ye so rejoyce in evil daies cursed daies ye walk under the wrath and curse of God and are not freed from the sentence of condemnation Whiles ye are merry and jocund whiles your Hearts cheer you ye do but sport your selves in the midst of your own misery and dangers Canst thou enjoy one good day whiles thou hast no assurance for an hour to be free from the fire that never goeth out whiles thou standest accursed and hast the sentence of condemnation written upon thy conscience and not washed off by the blood of Christ spinkled by faith oh these are evil bitter daies if thou couldest discern them rightly wherein Heaven frowneth upon thee God is angry with thee and all thy sins remain unpardoned Therefore repent and make thy peace with God that so the daies of thy Youth may be good daies daies wherein thou maist be assured that God is appeased with thee daies wherein thou maist walk in the bright Sun-shine and light of his countenance daies wherein thou maist have thy fruit in holiness for the present and be

assured that the end will be everlasting life then shall the daies of thy Youth be good and blessed daies un o thee SECT III. II. More especially these good daies of Youth are made evil daies when they are spent in any or divers of those sins to which on the one side You his commonly accustomed and which on the o●her side in a right consideration of things are most unseemly and unfit for Youth I. One sin is whoredom if any thing can make the daies of Youth of good to become evil daies this will do it when the body which is as a Temple of the Holy Ghost and should be consecrated and dedicated to him from the first building or framing of it as it were shall be made a cage of unclean lusts how great is this prophanation If the Temple at Jerusalem when it was new built should have been made a Stews as one of the Popes is said to have made his Palace and then have been left to be employed as a Temple for God when it grew old and ruinous would not the earth have opened her mouth to swallow up those who should have thus prophaned it O young men how dangerous is it then whilst your bodies are young and should be esteemed and used as new-built Temples wholly dedicated unto God his glory and service to defile them with those sins intending when they are old decayed and ruinous buildings and not till then to use them as Temples of the Holy Ghost St. Paul saith If any man defile the Temple of God him shall God destroy 1 Cor. 3. 17. Therefore if any one hath not kept his Garments clean in this regard let him without delay wash and be clean wash away his guilt by the blood of Christ wash away these lusts and sinfull inclinations by the Spirit of Christ by unfeigned repentance and amendment of Heart and Life and for the time to come according to Davids counsel Psal. 119. 9. Let them make clean their wayes from this foul sin by taking heed unto them according to such parts of the word as these Flee youthful lusts but follow after righteousness faith charity peace with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart 2 Tim. 2. 22. And that Whore-mongers and Adulterers God will judge Heb. 13. 4. And that of St. Paul 1 Thess. 4. 3 4 5. This is the will of God even your sanctification that ye should abstain from fornication that every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honour not in the lust of concupiscence even as the Gentiles which knew not God 2. Drunkenness which as it is enough to make any part of a man's life evil so it is a great blemish to a young man and maketh the daies of his Youth evil and wretched daies The wise man sheweth that the ruines of Old Age do make the Keepers of the House tremble and the strong ones to bow themselves the Hands and Leggs to shake But how shamefull is it for young men of firm and strong bodies to bring a drunken Palsey upon themselves whereby they are staggering in the streets their Leggs even failing them or a brutish Lethargy whereby they are not able to arise from the place where they sit or lie ye that are Parents look to it that your Children come not into such infectious company as many entice them Take heed ye that are young of besotting your Brains and Understandings which now are naturally fresh and quick if ever wi●h this swinish sin Consider that weighty Charge of our Saviour Luke 21. 34. Take heed lest at any time your Hearts be over-charged with Surfeiting and Drunkenness 3. Pride is another sin that is enough to make the daies of Youth to be evil daies That which made good Angels wicked Devils is enough to make the best daies of a man's life evil and miserable What is more seemly for the younger sort than true modesty and humility which God accepteth blesseth and crowneth with graces here and glory hereafter What worse than Pride and a disdainful Carriage want of farther experience should make them in many things to suspend their Judgements unless it be in such as are cleer and evident Contempt and scornfull behaviour towards the Antien● Self-conceit as if Wisdom should die with them Self-will and stubbornness an unmoveable Stiffness in their own groundless opinions and unwarrantable purposes with other fruits of Pride they do even deface the good daies of Youth and make them evil 4. Idleness is another sin which marreth these good daies which bringeth not only a rust upon them but letteth loose the lusts of Youth and maketh it exceeding sinful If any should flee this sin as all should then especially the younger sort ought to observe it above others It is not a misery of miseries that those golden daies should be worn out in sluggishness that those abilities of body and mind which are at their best should want employment and want they cannot work they must they are made of such a temper that they cannot be without motion If the Heavens cannot stand still nor the Air fix it self in one place and abide without stirring no more can the minds of young men nor the thoughts of their hearts abide without inward workings of spirit O young man thou canst not keep thine eye-lids from stirring thy Lungs from moving thy Heart and Pulse from beating and canst thou keep thy Soul and the affections of thy Heart from stirring which are more active than any part of thy body No they will have their course and if in any idle sluggish carelessness thou lettest them go as a Ship without a Rudder or Pilot the event is like to be wofull and thou art running upon the Rocks Satan filling the Sails of thy affections with contrary winds and hellish suggestions which drive thee from the Haven of Peace to the gulph of everlasting destruction What a world of snares hath the Devil ready for thee whiles he finds thee idle How many enticing objects and dangerous temptations When shouldest thou provide against the winter of thy life but now in the spring of thy daies Old Age is almost unteachable and if thou learnest not in thy Youth but spendest it in lazy ignorance it will be very hard if not impossible to learn in thine old age when thou art more ready to forget than to learn It is a most miserable spectacle to see an ignorant old man or woman which hath lost the best time of Youth in idleness and not treasured up the principles of heavenly truths Oh how uncapable are they of the things of God! how likely to perish for want of knowledge how uncapable of Knowledge it self Rest and ease is fitter for Old Age than for Youth Labour Diligence Watchfulness I●dustry are things which become those good daies In a word when any sin aboundeth and any lust prevaileth it is enough to make the dayes of Youth evil daies Therefore ye