Selected quad for the lemma: work_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
work_n	covenant_n	grace_n	justification_n	7,486	5	9.7652	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A34679	An exposition upon the thirteenth chapter of the Revelation by that reverend and eminent servant of the Lord, Mr. John Cotton ... ; taken from his mouth in short-writing, and some part of it corrected by himself soon after the preaching thereof ; and all of it since viewed over by a friend to him ... wherein some mistakes were amended, but nothing of the sense altered.	Cotton, John, 1584-1652.; Allen, Thomas.	1656 (1656)	Wing C6432; ESTC R6199	216,496	285

of measuring b● the rule of the word of God count them as given to the Gentiles And the holy City shall they tread under foot forty and two moneths the same time that here the Beast is to rule Now Gentiles are accounted without Christ and without God in the world Ephes 2. 12. He meanes Pagan Gentiles nor Christian Gentiles for such are we And in Rev. 11. 8. The dead bodies of the witnesses they shall lye in the street of the great City and he doth account it spiritually Sodome and Aegypt Sodome for lewednesse and beastly lusts and Aegypt for barbarous and base idolatry and oppression of Gods people This is the esteem the holy Ghost hath of him And in Rev. 17. 5. Hee calls her a great whore and the mother of harlots And the Text is playn and holds forth this doctrine playnely and the Holy Ghost would have all the Churches of Christ to know it That none do worship this Roman Catholicke Church that is are reconciled to it and give up themselves to the fidelity of it that goe beyond the state of a Reprobate And all the Churches of God cannot do thus and therefore cannot live and dye Roman Catholicks Let me name you some popular reasons I will not make any subtile discourse of it though it would require strong Judgement and sinewes of Reason but take popular Reasons and yet such as will bear some waite The first is from their want of Christ Jesus in whom all our life and salvation is laid up He that hath not the Sonne hath not life it is a plaine and peremptory principle of the Gospell 1 John 5. 12. No Christ no salvation There is no other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved Acts 4. 12. Now this Roman Catholick Church and they that worship the same they have not Christ How proove you that For Christ is not had nor received but by faith in the Gospell in a free promise of Grace unto the soule As many as received him to them gave he power to become the sonnes of God even to them that bel●ive on his name John 1 12. Christ dwels in our hearts by Faith Ephes 3. 17. The faith therefore by which we receive Christ whether have they that faith or no let themselves be Judge They do professe that the Catholick Faith is no more but a perswasion of the truth of all the doctrines of the Gospell and of the whole word of God but for a particular application of Christ unto the soule they do not acknowledge it as that which is the means of receiving of Christ So that the Faith which they do in this case hold forth is in very truth no other but that which James saith of the faith of D●vils they have received as much James 2 19. Thou beleivest that there is one God thou doest wed the Devils also beleive and tremble A Roman Catholick beleives the whole doctrine of the world He does well the Devils know as much and beleive as much as they do yet no man will say that the Devils faith receives Christ Now where there is no Christ there is no salvation Where there is no Faith there is no Christ And where there is no Faith but that which the Devils may reach unto there is no true Faith at all It would be endlesse to run into all the objections that they make but let any that know Faith aright judge whether the Faith of theirs is such a Faith whereby a man can receive the Lord Jesus Secondly Without Grace there is no salvation For saith the Apostle By Grace are ye saved through Faith and that not of your selves it is the gift of God Not of workes least any man should boast Eph. 2. 8 9. If therefore the Roman Catholickes say that they are saved by workes and they say so if we take workes in the worst tenour of workes that is by the meri● of works The Apostle saith Not of works least any man should boast and say that he hath wrought his own salvation And the Apostle tels you If it be of works it is not of Grace Rom. 11. 6. For works cannot be joyned with grace in the merit of salvation they are onely the way of salvation And in that sence it is said Worke out your salvation with fear and trembling For it is God that worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure Phil. 2. 12 13. But if a man look for salvation out of the merit of works he hath it not from grace Papists reply they have it from works and grace also for they have it not from works of nature but from works of grace and they are not opposite but subordinate But what saith the Apostle He saith workes and grace are not subordinate but opposite one to another and if it be of grace it is not of workes and if of workes then not of grace And the Apostle tels you Gal. 5. 4. If ye be justified by the workes of the Law you are fallen from grace you have no part nor portion of the grace of Christ And therefore they are fallen from grace and if from Grace then from salvation These are principles of Religion and he that hath any understanding to hear what the holy Ghost saith in this case may easily perceive the truth of what we speak In very truth you will finde that all which they hold is but in a tenor of the Covenant of works Their election they hold is from works and faith foreseen Some of them indeed are affraid of it as the Dominicans but the most prevailing are those that think Gods electing love is but out of faith and works foreseen They look as the grace of effectuall calling to be founded upon the good inclination of a mans will and co-operation of it with the grace of Gods calling They professe that Simon Peter had no more grace given him then Simon Magus to become a christian And what cut the scantling between the one and the other Peter had received so much grace that if he would he might be saved and so they say Simon Magus did receive the same but God did not bow change his will or reason but left them both so far suffered as they might beleive if they would How comes it then that Simon Peter did beleive and was saved and Simon Magus did not beleive with a lively faith and was damned They will confesse it really the body of them that it did spring from Peters will he did out of the freenesse of his will choose it This is vocation from the working of a mans will whereas the Covenant of Grace doth confesse that it is not of our will but of the Lords that takes away our strong heart and gives us a soft heart before any preparation Justification they look for none but by works nor perseverance in a state of grace but by their works and everlasting salvation from the merit

of their works And this is the very doctrine of a Covenant of works And this is all the doctrine of the Arminians onely they do acknowledge justification by faith and differ in point of Faith and the merit of works A third Reason may be this The worship of creatures is a going a whoring from God and so of destruction unto such as go a whoring from the Lord in that way All worship of creatures with divine worship is called going a whoring from God Hos 4. 12. They have gone a whoring from under their God so in Psal 73. 27. Thou hast destroyed all them that go a whoring from thee And the Church of Rome is known to go a whoring after the worship of Saints and Angels and I●ages and thi● great Beast mentioned in the Text and the Pope the head of it They place their salvation in beleiving as the Catholick Church beleives They place their salvation in reconcilement to the Catholick Church and are more solicitous of it then of reconcilement unto God by Christ Col. 2. 18 19. You read of some there that do not hold the head but lay hold upon Angels and that is Idolatry now that is spoken of the Church of Rome For a fourth reason of the point Without unfeigned repentance and lively faith there is no hope of salvation Luke 13 5. Except ye repent ye shall all likewise perish And without faith it is impossible to please God Heb. 11. 6. Now the repentance which the Roman Catholick Church holds forth what is it but such as Judas did performe They require contrition Judas he was deeply wounded and broken Mat. 27. 3. And they require confession He came unto them before whom he had done evill and said I have sinned in betraying innocent blood And they require satisfaction He came and brought the mony and threw it into the Temple and would by no means meddle with it Here is the repentance of the Church of Rome and all for ought I know that they require I finde no rule of repentance in this Catholick Catechise but I finde it in Judas which will end in despaire which is the common end of an hypocritical repentance as Stephen Gardner came unto it and so they will do or else dye in Nabals stoninesse And for their faith The faith of the Elect is described to be a confidence and evidence Heb. 11. 1. So expound Heb. 3. 14. If we hold fast the confidence the word is all one with subsistance it is such a confidence as doth give a being and subsistance unto the thing beleived it doth as truly make them to be as if they were actually extent But what say they to this They look at is as presumption and an abomination yea it will cost a man his life to hold forth such a Faith And for evidence they do professe it to be incompatible to a christian and their Faith is some conjecture but no certainty Now gather up these things If the Roman Catholicks have no better Faith no better repentance then their Religion holds forth if they receive Christ no otherwise and worship God no better and have no more interest in God then their Religion leads them to let all the world look to it for there is none of all the elect of God can live and dye so But why is this a point of so serious and deep consideration and attention that is taken First from the weight of the point as most concerning our salvation Secondly it is a point that generally men are deaf to hear and sl●w to understand and beleive And therefore he doth cry out and make a solemn proclamation If any man have an eare to hear let him hear Why are they so unable and unwilling to understand They look at it as a monstrous blasphemy to speake thus of the Roman visible Catholick Church Then the Reason why men are so slow of heart to beleive it and none beleive but them which are taught of God is taken First from the spirituallnesse of the things themselves They are spirituall matters and cannot be discerned but by spiritual understanding 1 Cor. 2. 14. A naturall man doth not discern the spiritual mysteries of iniquity nor the spirituall mysteries of discerning Grace nor can they because they are spiritually discerned The second Reason why none but faithful intelligent christians do understand it 〈◊〉 taken From Gods gift of Grace unto them to understand it To you it is given to know the mysteries of the Kingdome of Heaven Mat. 13. 11. But being not given unto the world the world doth not understand it For the use of the point First it may serve to refute the damnable principle of the Roman Catholick Religion which is this That for every Nation and Kingdome to be reconciled to the Church of Rome i. is of necessity to salvation Whoever he be that hath ears to heare let him hear saith the holy Ghost that to be reconciled to the Catholick Church and subject to that Church and the head thereof it is of necessity the way to damnation if a soul so live and so dye For this purpose the Text is as plain as possible Rev. 20. 15. Whoever is not found written in the book of life is cast into the lake of fire This Roman Catholick Church hath not his name written in that book of life and therefore of necessity they must be cast into the lake of fire Let all Noble men and Gentlemen hear this that they may not listen unto the whisperings and croakings of the Locusts of the bottomlesse pit Much God hath borne with men in their ignorance but if ever men have belonged unto God they have known the way of a better faith and repentance then ever Popish Religion have taught them and the holy Ghost hath helped them in their private prayers and reading or in conference with others to understand the same Obj. 1. You will say unto me but this is a very uncharitable censure Answ Whether doe you thinke it more charity to forewarn men of a desperate danger or to be indulgent to men and to tell them they may be saved in both Religions when the word of God is playn against it What charity count you that to gull men in a charitable but a foolish conceit of their own good estate It is cruell charity and most uncharitable when the Holy Ghost doth profess● Their names are not written in the Lambs booke of life whosoever worship the Beast Obj. 2. But you will say Are not all the Catholicks in the world perswaded of it that the devotion to the Catholique Roman Church is a way of salvation Catholiques are confident of it and you Protestants dare not deny it And then I pray you whether is it not safer to be devoted to that Church wherein all confesse there is a possibility of salvation then unto that Church in which one say there is salvation the other not Answ We answer So farre

favour and large gifts he bestowed upon them Charles the Great had his Empire from the Bishop of Rome and translated it from Constantinople to France and Germany and therefore he had reason to stand to the Authority that set him up And the ten Kings of Christendom that rose upon the demolition of the Grecian Empire which was then called the Empire of Rome their absolute authority did much depend upon the Bishop of Rome if the Grecian Empire had not yeelded they had been liable in conscience to restore these ten Kingdoms In point of State-policy they had cause to be much observant to the Pope But that is not all for they could never have done it had not the Subjects yeelded And what moved them Truly they were all taken with the Religion of the man of sinne That flood of Heresies and Abhominations which the Catholick Church did hold forth as in a cup of poyson to the world these earthly sort of Christians swallowed it all up They were carnall and yet superstitious and devout Carnall for want of saving grace and regeneration And devout for then generally Christians lay under the terrour of the Law as in Rev. 9. 5 6. The locusts came in which were the Fryars and Monkes and they had this power to sting their Consciences even to the death that a man would give all he had for pardon of sinne Now having power to sting mens Consciences but not to heale them to kill but not to make alive they were now fitted to receive the Impression of the Popish Religion and that religion to men so qualified and disposed was fit to heal them overly and to skin the wound of Conscience and there are three things in that Religion that helped to skinne over the Conscience 1. The suitablenesse of it to humane and naturall sences 2. To carnall naturall reason 3. To naturall Conscience For these three concur and that strongly in this Religion to carry all Christendome after it First for naturall sense All that have travayled into Popish Countreys know that their Religion is composed to naturall sence 1. To satisfie the eyes with goodly Images and Pictures and gorgeous Temples and Vestures that young and old are taken with these goodly spectacles 2. For the eares you know in their Cathedralls what curious musique they have both vocall and instrumentall 3. For the smell you have Incense and sweet perfumes to entertaine you 4. For the taste you have double Feasts and solemn Feasts many Feasts full of luxury and ryot 5. For the Touch there is toleration of Stews to give up their names to Stews They will not suffer men to live unlesse they give up their names to be free of such unclean houses And if you commit any lewdnesse then it is easie to come off with some light penanc●s and especially the purse that will doe all These things marvellously please the sense Secondly for naturall Reason it suits marvellously with naturall reason 1. To hold forth an historical implicite faith Historical the Devils may have and implicite for a man to believe as the Church believes and hee believes this Faith hath power to quench all temptations of the Devill 2. To hold forth such a repentance as consists in Contrition Confession and Satisfaction Judas reached all this For contrition his heart was humbled in sence of his sinne For confession I have sinned in betraying innocent blood And for satisfaction He brought again the thirty pieces of silver He would not meddle nor make with them 3. To hold forth such an obedience as a man may be able to perform and keep the whole Law of God which he thinks to be easie And this doth please naturall Sence to work our own salvation 4. To hold forth pardon of sin for money and for bodily exercises 5. Uncertainty of Salvation 6. Such a frame of Church-government as keepeth all in a politick order and unity That all Popish Churches be subordinate to such a Bishop as he is to some Metropolitan and they to some Primate and all to the Bishop of Rome And why From one unity ascends and it is good to keep unity And so to look at a mans selfe as unworthy to come into the presence of God and to call upon Christ and therefore manners would make a man cleave to some he-Saints or she-Saints and they shall present their prayers to Christ and Christ to the Father which is very plausable to naturall reason And for our Fathers which grew zealous of that Religion we should not damn them to hell Reason abhors that Thirdly for naturall Conscience it will counter-work with God and walk in equipage with God all the way that is to say for a man to look to find according to his works natural Conscience hath this in Nature it is ingrafted in nature from the God of Adam from his Ordinance in Nature or the rudements of it restored 1. Election of Faith or works foreseen 2. Redemption of all men alike 3. Conversion by the power of free-will This is in the natures of all men by the very Law and works of Nature 4. Justification by works naturall Conscience dictates that Do this and thou shalt live do it not and thou dost forfeit the favour of God but receive it and thou hast fellowship with God 5. Perseverance by our owne endeavours 6. Glorification by merits of works All these suit with naturall Conscience that Conscience is satisfied if the work be accomplished if not then they make satisfaction If they faile in these works by giving way to this o● that arrogance that the work is not compleat then Conscience hangs in some dispence and demur And if they cannot satisfie all in this world yet they should do what they can by giving to this and that good use and do pennance for their sinne And if all faile they may make satisfaction in Purgatory and not sink downe to the nether most Hell These things be very acceptable to naturall Conscience Thus we see how it comes to passe that to this Beast was given authority and power over all Kindreds Tongues and Nations Obj. You will say to me But doth not this crosse some other Text in Rev. 5. 9. where it is said the Lord hath redeemed his people out of every Kindred and Tongue and Nation If the Pope had this power over every Kindred Tougue and Nation where stands Christs redemption I answer for Christs Redemption it is some out of every Kindred Tongue and Nation whose names are written in the Lambs booke of life but it was but a remnant There is at this time a remnant according to the Election of Grace Rom. 11. 5. But otherwise all Kindreds Tongues and Nations have been swallowed up by the usurpation of this Beast and by their subjection to him So that Christ hath his number out of all these but it is the Beast that carryes away the body of them for that season especially He did rule over them by