Selected quad for the lemma: work_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
work_n	bear_v	good_a	tree_n	8,220	5	10.2554	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A65490	Englands face in Israels glasse, or, The sinnes, mercies, judgements of both nations delivered in eight sermons upon Psalme 106, 19, 20 &c. : also, Gospel-sacrifice, in two sermons on Hebr. 13 / by Thomas Westfield.	Westfield, Thomas, 1573-1644.; T. S.	1646 (1646)	Wing W1416; ESTC R24612	107,991	268

unprofitable the fig-tree or the apple-tree or others when they are unprofitable and beare no fruit you may make a pin of them to hang a vessell on but the vine what is it good for surely it is good for nothing but the fire from one end to the other of it you cannot make a pin to hang a vessell on So either there must be grapes there must be fruit or woe and eternall perdition To distribute and to doe good forget not for with such sacrifices God is well pleased Heb. 13.16 To doe good and to communicate forget not for with such sacrifices God is well pleased HEre is an Exhortation and the Reason to enforce it The Exhortation is To doe good and to communicate And then doe wee doe good when we doe communicate that good that God hath given us to the good of others Wee have done with the Exhortation Wee come to the Reason that the Apostle useth to enforce the Exhortation withall For with such sacrifices God is well pleased Hee saith not With such workes God is well pleased but with such sacrifices There are spirituall sacrifices Prayer is one and Thanksgiving another and Repentance another and Beneficence another But the thing that is offered to God in all these spirituall sacrifices is the heart A devout heart in Prayer a broken heart in Repentance a gratefull heart in Thanksgiving and a tender compassionate heart in Beneficence And it is the tendernesse and compassionatenesse and the charitablenesse of the heart that makes it a sacrifice to God and well-pleasing to him and accepted of him Againe hee doth not say This is such a sacrifice as God requires though hee doe require it too but This is such a sacrifice as God is well pleased with It is motive enough to perswade a good child to doe this or that if it be a thing that will please his father It is motive enough to perswade a faithfull honest-hearted servant to doe a thing to tell him This will please your Master It is enough to perswade any good subiect to doe this or that to assure him the thing will please his Soveraigne It is motive enough to a Christian heart to perswade him to doe good and communicate to assure him that this is a thing that God is well pleased with But yet it is not every work done not every thing that is in it of the substance of a good work that is pleasing to God there is more required then so to make a sacrifice acceptable to God There is something required in the doer and There is somewhat required in the thing done There is somewhat required in the doer First hee must be in Christ that will offer a sacrifice acceptable to God Take these Rules First If the person of a man please not God his works can never please him God accepted Abel and his sacrifice Abel first and then his sacrifice God never accepts a mans offering till first hee accept of his person Now God accepts of no mans person but in Christ this is hee in whom I am well pleased The Apostle calls Christ the Sonne of Gods love and there are none that ever God loves but hee loves them in his Sonne the Sonne of his love Col. 1.13 That is one ground Another is Though a work be good as it comes from the Spirit of God the Author of all goodnesse yet it cannot come thorow our fingers but wee soyle it All our righteousnesses are as menstruous cloaths If God should bee extreme to marke what is done amisse in our best works who were able to obide it Even as the offering of the children of Israel it was called a holy offering yet as holy as it was there was some iniquity in that holy offering but that was laid on Aaron and when hee bare the iniquity of all the other the men and their workes were accepted So it is here the workes of a Christian man may be good workes good in substance because they are works that God requires at his hands Then they may be good in the fountaine when they spring from the Author of all goodnesse And good in the end because they are done to the glory of God and the good of our brethren But yet as there was some iniquity did cleave to the holy offering of the children of Israel as holy as it was so there is some iniquity cleaves to our good worke how good soever it be when that iniquity that cleaves to our workes is laid upon Christ who in his owne body on the tree bare the iniquity of us all then our persons and workes are graciously accepted and all the iniquity that cleaves to our workes mercifully pardoned This is the first thing What is required in the doer to make his beneficence acceptable to God But here is not all there is something required in the thing done and that I shall shew you in the remainder of the time by Gods grace And I shall lay it down in foure Rules The first is about the end And you must not wonder that I begin at the end for howsoever the end is the thing last attained yet it is the thing first intended it is the first thing in a mans intention And besides God regards not so much quid as propter quid not so much what wee doe as for what we doe A man may doe good works for ill ends and then hee must not look that God should accept them It is the end that commends the action Now there are three ill ends of doing good works One end that some propound to themselves in doing good works is to make satisfaction to divine iustice for the sins they have committed The Apostle would have us doe good works for necessary uses but God never appointed this use of good works Our good works may be tokens of our secret predestination they may be fore-tokens of our future happinesse but to think that by doing good wee can make recompense and satisfaction to divine iustice and appease the infinite wrath of God for sinne before the which the very Angels themselves are not able to stand it is a senslesse and gracelesse fancie tending much to the dishonour of Christ and that all-sufficient satisfaction that hee hath made for the sinnes of the world when hee offered up his flesh a sacrifice of a sweet smelling savour to God That is one ill end Secondly some propound another end that is to merit eternall blisse by it And our English men Rhemists Romish English men by birth and Rhemists by education and Romish by profession oft times stand to it to prove that good works are truly and properly meritorious ex condigno even of very condignity In so much say they in their Comment upon Heb. 6. Good works are so farre meritorious that God were uniust if hee should not give heaven to our good works hee were uniust if hee should not yeild heaven to our good works This is the onely place wherein they

can find the name of merit onely because the vulgar Latine hath it and they doe in this place stand to prove the Doctrine of Merit upon that word merit Give mee leave a little to shew you that good works cannot be meritorious I will give you these reasons One principall condition in a meritorious work is this I must be done by a mans selfe How can a man be said to merit any thing by a work that himselfe doth not but another doth it by him or in him Now you know there is no good work that wee doe of our selves God works all our good works in us Hark how the faithfull pray in the Prophet Lord thou hast wrought all our works in us Isai 26.12 Our new translation reads in us our old for us The word in the Originall will beare either the one or the other take it as you will in us or for us God hath wrought the work Lord thou hast wrought all our works in us and for us First of all it is from Gods grace that we are enabled to doe good works what works soever they be it is grace that enableth us to doe them And then when we are enabled it is from grace that wee are willing to doe them both our ability and our willingnesse to doe good are from God Look how the Apostle speaks 2 Cor. 8. saith he there I would have you know the grace that is bestowed on the Church of Macedonia The grace that was bestowed on them what grace was that You may see in the two next Verses nothing else but their willing bounty even above their power to doe good For saith the Apostle Vers 3. to their power I beare them record yea quoth hee above their power There was the grace that was bestowed on them they were willing to doe good So then have wee ability to doe good it is of grace have wee willing hearts to doe good it is of grace Doe we then any good wee must shout as the people Zech. 4.2 and cry Grace grace unto it Double the word Grace Grace Grace in enabling us and grace in making us willing too All is of God So if a man doe a good work hee is more indebted to God for it God is not indebted to him but hee to God in making him able and he is indebted to grace for making him willing hee can merit nothing Then mark a second Reason how good works cannot be meritorious Merit is Opus indebitum it is above a mans desert it is a work that is not due that a man is not bound to doe for a man can merit nothing by doing that that hee is bound to doe already hee should transgresse if hee did not doe it but hee merits nothing by doing that that hee stands bound in many bonds to doe already Doth the Master thank his servant for doing that that is commanded Luke 17.9 Even so saith hee When you have done all you can say We are unprofitable servants If wee will merit any thing at Gods hands wee must doe somewhat that wee are not bound to doe I but how farre short come wee in the things we doe of that that wee are bound to doe we are so farre from doing more that when we have done all wee can wee are unprofitable servants How much more unprofitable saith Ierome when wee come short of that which God hath commanded Thirdly good works cannot be meritorious I prove it thus There must be some proportion between the work that is done and the reward that is given of condignity Now I pray consider but what that reward is that God hath promised not according to the worthinesse of our works you must not think so but of faith of free mercy hee hath promised a reward And what is it Look in 2 Cor. 4.17 see what it is the Apostle calls it there a farre more exceeding eternall weight of glory These light momentany afflictions saith hee procure to us a farre more exceeding eternall weight of glory Mark First it is glory that God hath promised for a reward Secondly it is more then so it is a weight of glory Nay yet more then so it is an eternall weight of glory Nay yet further an exceeding eternall weight of glory So farre our English can carry it but our English cannot carry it so farre as the Greek for there it is an exceeding exceeding The Apostle could not tell what to make of it it was so much He made as much as he could A glory a weight of glory an eternall an exceeding eternall weight of glory an exceeding exceeding weight of glory Now I would ask I pray what proportion can be between a little poore temporall service that wee doe and such an eternall exceeding exceeding eternall weight of glory I will say no more concerning this point of merit Let us never talk of merits they were all lost in the first Adam we lost all merit in him Let grace alone reigne in Christ Let us say with Bernard My merit is the Lords mercy Let me have no merit that will exclude grace and saith hee there is no place for grace to enter in when merit hath taken up all the roome before it comes Therefore that is no right end Thirdly there is a third end that some propound of doing good that is glory from men Vaine men seek vain-glory Thus did the Pharisees they would doe a great deale of good but they would doe it so that they might be seen of men to doe it And indeed it is lawfull for men to be seen to doe good and our Lord would have us so to doe good that wee may be seen of men to doe it to let our light so shine before men that they may see our good works and glorifie our Father which is in heaven If you be afraid of Spectators you shall have no Imitators If there be none to see you there will be none to follow you It is lawfull for a man to be seen to doe good but men must not doe good to be seen for then they shall have their reward of men they shall have none of their Father God There belong two things to every good work There is the Glory of the work There is the Reward of the work The reward God is pleased out of his free mercy to us in Christ to allow us that hee allowes us the reward but not the glory of the work that must be his owne and hee will not give that to another as hee saith If we deprive God of the one we must look that God should keep us from the other If wee keep from him the glory of the work God will keep us from the reward of it These are ill ends of good works We must not do them to satisfie the iustice of God for sin or with opinion of meriting eternall blisse or to be seen of men to doe them What is the end then of good works Briefly in one word The end

of all good works is the glory of God in the good of our brethren And Gods glory is such a thing as we are born to that end to set forth the glory of God As the Grace of God is our Alpha so the Glory of God must be our Omega As the Grace of God is the beginning from whence all things come so the Glory of God must be the end to which all things must be referred Of him and through him are all things to him be glory for ever and ever And we cannot bring greater glory to God and his holy Truth and Religion that we professe then by doing good works When men see our good works and see how pitifull and tender-hearted we be what bowels of compassion we have to our poore afflicted brethren they cannot chuse but glorifie God and acknowledge and say Surely this is the seed that God hath blessed Isai 61.9 So much concerning the first Rule that I give you Would you make your beneficence and good works that you doe toward your poore visited brethren pleasing and acceptable to God doe them to a right end to Gods glory and your brethrens good I come to a second Rule the former was about the End the second is about the Fountaine from whence our good works must flow And what is that Compassion If we will make our good works pleasing and acceptable to God they must flow out of a pitifull heart If you instruct an ignorant man which is a good work it must be out of pity of his ignorance if you feeda hungry man it must be out of pity of his misery The distribution of our goods to the poore is accounted a work of charity and so it is a great work of charit if a man should doe as Zacheus made an offer give halfe his goods to the poore and if I have wronged any man I will restore it foure-fold you would account that a great work of charity but suppose a man should give all his goods to the poore you would say that were a transcendent work of charity and it is true indeed Yet see a man may do even this transcendent work of charity and have no charity For mark the Apostles speech 1 Cor. 13.3 If saith the Apostle I should give all my goods to the poore and have no charity See a man may give all that ever he hath to the poore and yet have no charity because that which hee gives comes not from a charitable compassionate heart Holy Iob doth not only tell of his works of charity but hee tells out of what ground hee did those works of charity out of what fountaine those works of charity flowed and what was that His compassion Did not I weep for them that were in misery was not my soule grieved for the poore Iob 30.25 The works that a man doth if hee will make them a pleasing and acceptable sacrifice to God they must come out of a fellow-feeling of his brethrens necessities It is said of our blessed Saviour in the Scriptures He went about doing good It is true he did his whole life was nothing else but a going about doing good And be pleased to mark what you read again in the Gospel you shall find that some of our Lords works that hee did were works of charity and that he did he did it out of compassion and the Scripture notes it to us that it was out of compassion he did it Let me shew some for example Our blessed Lord cleansed Lepers and it was out of very compassion to them that hee cleansed them the Scripture observes it so Iesus had compassion on them and said I will be thou cleane Mark 1.41 In another place wee find they brought many sick to Christ and our Lord laid his hands on them and healed them all and it was out of compassion that hee healed them Hee had compassion on them and healed their sick Mat. 14.14 In another place you know the miracle that our Lord wrought he fed foure thousand men besides women and children and with a few barley loaves and fishes yet it was out of compassion so hee tells his Disciples I have compassion on the multitude they have been with me three dayes fasting Mat. 15.32 Againe in another place our blessed Saviour touched the eyes of the two blind men and they received their sight and followed him and it was out of very compassion that he touched them himself was touched with compassion before he touched their eyes So Iesus had compassion on them and touched their eyes Mat. 20. ult I will alledge no more places but one You find that our blessed Saviour raised a young man at Naim but was dead and carrying to buriall hee touched the coffin and raised him again to life and it was out of compassion not to the young man for it may be his estate was happy but to his mother the Scripture gives the reason shee was a widow and the name Widow is a name of compassion therefore out of compassion hee saith Weep not and hee touched the coffin and restored her sonne to life Luke 7.13 I could alledge many places more but these shall suffice Mark I pray onely a phrase of Scripture you shall find Isai 58.10 If saith the Prophet there thou shalt draw out thy soule to the hungry he saith not If thou shalt draw out thy purse though that be somewhat or draw thy meat out of thy cupboard or thy garments out of thy presse and give to a poore wretch but If thou shalt draw out thy soule The soule must be drawn out first and if a man can once draw out his soule to a poore wretch it will make him draw out his purse if hee have it he cannot but draw out his purse if hee have drawn out his soule Therefore saith Iohn 1 Ioh. 3.17 If a man saith hee hath this worlds goods and shall shut up the bowels of compassion upon men hee doth not say If hee shut his purse but if hee shut up the bowels of compassion upon them how dwelleth the love of God in him And while I name the bowels of compassion let me tell you that word where it is said that Christ was moved with compassion the Greek is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 wee cannot expresse it in English it is a name from bowels he was moved in his bowels That compassion in Christ and that that hee would have us to shew to our brethren it is from the bowels Therefore Mr. Beza translates the word he knowes not how to expresse it in one word it must be an inward motion I think wee call it the yerning of the bowels the bowels must yerne in us When wee see poore miserable wretches wee must not onely relieve them but this reliefe must be done out of pity and compassion and tendernesse of heart to their misery If we would have our sacrifice of beneficence acceptable and pleasing to God there are two things in beneficence in