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a30211 A treatise of the fear of God shewing what it is, and how distinguished from that what is not so : also whence it comes, who has it, what are the effects, and what the priviledges of those that have it in their hearts / by John Bunyan. Bunyan, John, 1628-1688. 1679 (1679) Wing B5603; ESTC R32009 112,120 247

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so securely in the way Eleventhly There flows from this grace of fear Hope in the mercy of God The Lord taketh pleasure in them that fear him in them than hope in his mercy Psal. 147.11 The latter part of the Text is an explanation of the former as if the Psalmist had said They be the men that fear the Lord even they that hope in his mercy for true fear produceth hope in Gods mercy And it is further manifest thus Fear true fear of God inclineth the heart to a serious enquiry after that way of salvation with God himself hath prescribed now the way that God hath appointed by the which the sinner is to obtain the salvation of his soul is his mercy as so and so set forth in the word and godly fear hath special regard to the word To this way therefore the sinner With this godly fear submits his soul rouls himself upon it and so is delivered from that death into which others for want of this fear of God do headlong fall It is as I also hinted before the nature of godly fear to be very much putting the soul upon the enquiry which is and which is not the thing approved of God and accordingly to imbrace it or shun it Now I say this fear having put the soul upon a strict and serious enquiry after the way of Salvation at lest it finds it to be by the mercy of God in Christ therefore this fear putteth the soul upon hoping also in him for eternal life and blessedness by which hope he doth not only secure soul but become a porson of Gods delight The Lord takes pleasure in them that fear him in them that hope in his mercy Besides This godly fear carrieth in it Self-evidence that the state of the sinner is happy because possessed with this happy grace Therefore as John saith We know we are passed from death to life because we love the Brethren 1 John 3.14 So here The Lord takes pleasure in them that fear him in them that hope in his mercy If I fear God and if my fearing of him is a thing in which he taketh such pleasure then may I boldly venture to roll my self eternal life into the Bosom of his mercy which is Christ. Thus fear also produceth hope if therefore poor sinner thou knowest thy self to be one that is possessed with this fear of God suffer thy self to be perswaded therefore to hope in the mercy of God for salvation for the Lord takes pleasure in thee And it delights him to see thee hope in his mercy Twelfthly There floweth from this godly fear of God An honest and conscientious use of all those means which God hath ordained that we should be conversant in for our attaining salvation Faith and hope in Gods mercy is that which secureth our justification and hope and as you have heard they do flow from this fear But now besides faith and hope there is a course of life in those things in which God hath ordained us to have our conversation without which there is no eternal life You have your fruit unto holiness and the end everlasting life and again without holiness no man shall see the Lord Not that faith and hope are deficient if they be right but they are both of them counterfeit when not attended with a reverent use of all the means upon the reverent use of which the soul is put by this grace of fear Wherefore beloved said Paul as you have alwaies obeyed not as in my presence only but now much more in mine absence work out your own salvation with fear and trembling Rom. 6.22 Heb. 12.14 Philip. 2.12 There is a Faith and Hope of mercy that may deceive a man Though the faith of Gods elect and the hope that purifies the heart never will because they are alone and not attended with those companions that accompany salvation Heb. 6.3 4 5 7 8. but now this godly fear carries in its bowels not only a moving of the soul to faith and hope in Gods mercy but an earnest provocation to the holy and reverent use of all the means that God has ordained for a man to have his conversation in in order to his eternal salvation Work out your salvation with fear Not that work is meritorious or such that can purchase eternal life for eternal life is obtained by hope in Gods mercy but this hope if it be right is attended with this godly fear which fear putteth the soul upon a diligent use of all those means that may tend to the strengthening of hope and so to the makeing of us holy in all manner of conversation that we may be meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the Saints in light For hope purifieth the heart if fear of God shall be its companion and so maketh a man a vessel of mercy prepared unto glory Paul bids Timothy to fly pride covetousness doteing about questions and the like and to follow after righteousness godliness faith Love patience to fight the good fight of faith and to lay hold of eternal life 1 Tim. 6. So Peter bids that we Add to our faith vertue and to vertue knowledge and to knowledge temperance and to temperance patience to patience godliness to Godliness brotherly-kindness and to brotherly kindness charity Adding For if these things be in you and abound they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledg of our Lord Jesus Christ Wherefore the rather Brethren give deligence to make your calling and election sure for if you do these things ye shall never fall For so an entrance s●all be ministred unto you abundantly into the everlasting Kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ 2 Pet. 1.5 6 7 8 9 10 11. The sum of all which is that which was mentioned before to wit to work out our own salvation with fear and trembling For none of these things can be conscientiously done but by and with the help of this blessed grace of fear Thirteenthly There flows from this fear this godly fear A great delight in the holy commands of God that is a delight to be conformable unto them Blessed is the man that feareth the Lord that greatly delighteth in his commandments Psal. 112.1 This confirmeth that which was said before to wit that this fear provoketh to a holy and reverent use of the means for that cannot be when there is not an holy yea a great delight in the commandments Wherefore this fear maketh the sinner to abhor that which is sin because that is contrary to the object of his delight A man cannot delight himself at the same time in things directly opposite one to another as sin and the holy commandment is therefore Christ saith of the servant he cannot love God and Mammon he cannot serve God and Mammon If he cleaves to the one he must hate and dispise the other there cannot at the same time be service to both because that themselves are at