Selected quad for the lemma: work_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
work_n	eternal_a	good_a	reward_n	7,006	5	8.9757	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A01725	Foure sermons vpon seuerall partes of scripture, preached by George Gyffard, preacher of the worde, at Maudlin in Essex	Gifford, George, d. 1620.	1598 (1598)	STC 11859; ESTC S117695	68,936	149

reward of eternall glorie in the heauens but also cast themselues into a double calamitie the one in depriuing themselues of eternall glorie the other in destroying their worldly estate for if their riches doe stand and continue with them for their owne life which sundrie times falleth out otherwise because God doth accurse riches so gotten yet do their children scatter and consume them at least within a few generations as dayly experience sheweth in a number and so you may see their double miserie Well may some man say doth not this make for the Popish doctrine of merite and iustification by mens owne workes when a● men deedes to the poore doe lay vp in store a good foundation against the time to come t●●t they may attaine eternall life when boūtifull giuing doth make bagges full of treasure which shall neuer wax olde and when compassion to the needie doth make friendes that shall receiue vs into euerlasting habitations are not men then iustified by these their works or doe not their good deedes deserue or merite eternall glorie These good workes are the testimonies of a true liuely and iustifying faith being plenteously and rightly done they shew that the doer is a liuely member of Christ Iesus who is our righteousnesse 1. Cor. 1. being led by his spirite And touching merites of workes there bee no deedes so excellent as that they can deserue so great glorie so great reward is of the meere mercie and frō the free grace of God who hath promised such reward vnto good workes This foundation against the time to come these bagges that neuer waxe olde and the friendes that wee must make by almes deedes are all such workes of mercie as doe testifie a true and liuely faith being the vnseperable fruites thereof which God will plentifully reward with glorie and immortalitie The doers of these being not forgetful hearers but doers of the worke shall as the holy Ghost saith be blessed in their deede 〈…〉 It may be here demanded seeing works do not iustifie before God but are the fruites of those which are iustified Christ being our righteousnes when we haue the full pardon of 〈◊〉 sinnes in his bloud and are clothed with 〈◊〉 obedience imputed vnto vs whether men shall haue the greater glory according to the greatnes and multitude of their good workes I answere that according to the measure of Faith which a man hath so are his works the greater his faith and his works be the greater shall be his rewarde in glorie If this were not so how should S. Paule say They which sow sparingly shall reape sparingly and they which sow plenteously shall reape plenteously 2. Cor. 9. Yea howe should he say in this place that he woulde haue those that bee rich in this worlde charged to do good and to be rich in good works If there be not a more plenteous reward to the greater and more plenteous good workes how should any more thē others be said to be rich in them It is strange wonderful that rich mē can not be brought to see this and to vse their riches to their best aduantage but doe indeede let slip their happines They can willingly bestowe great cost in building faire houses it doth not grieue them to bestow very much also in gorgeous apparell and they recken not what they lay out in delicate fare both vpon themselues and vpon others that bee wealthie but to bestow a little more then ordinarie vppon those that be poore and in miserie is very gree●ou● because they doe account that to be lost or cast away whereas in verie deede there is nothing which can be laide out to anie great profite but that which is spent vpon the poore for houses apparel and meates doe perish with their vse they be transitory and vaine but the reward promised by the Lord is a treasure that shal neuer come vnto an end Those former do appertaine but vnto the satisfying of carnall lustes but mercie shewed to the needy heapeth vp glorie in the Heauens There is a verie great difference betweene these two but men are led by sense and not by sounde wisedome and that causeth them to make so bad a choice They feele the sweetnes of riches for the present time they are sure of those goodly pleasures which they enioy by them But to be rich in good workes and so to lay vp a good foundatiō against the time to come that they may attaine eternall life this is not perceiued by sense this they can not skil of and therefore they doe little trouble themselues about it At the day of iudgement this time to come shall be present and then this inuisible foundation shall be seene when Christ shall say to those on his right hand Come ye blessed of my father inherite the kingdome prepared for you from the foundation of the world For I was a hungred and ye gaue me meate I thirsted and you gaue me drinke I was a stranger and ye lodged●●● I was naked and ye clothed me I was sicke and ye● visited me I was in prison and ye came vnto me Then shal the righteous answere him saying Lord whē saw we thee an hungred fed thee or a thirst gaue thee drinke And whē saw we thee a stranger and lodged thee or naked and clothed thee Or when sawe we thee sicke or in prison and came vnto thee And the king shall answere and say vnto them Verely I say vnto you in as much as ye haue done it vnto one of the least of these my brethren ye haue done it to me Math. 25. ver 34.35.36.37.38.39.40 And goe ye cursed into euerlasting fire prepared for the deuil and his angels For I was an hungred and ye gaue me no meate I thirsted and ye gaue me no drinke c. In as much as ye did i● not to the least of these ye did it not to me a wonderfull thing to see the blindnes in which men are Who doth not accompt it the most happie thing that can befall a man to giue to Christe when he is hungrie or thirstie or naked or sicke or in prison Againe who is he that will not confesse it to be a most vile wretchednes when a man doth set more by his riches then by relieuing Christe Now marke well are not all that beleeue the very members of Christes mysticall bodie Thou beholdest the poore that are sicke or lame thou seest poore fatherlesse childrē that pine and are readie to famish these for ought which thou knowest may be the true members of Iesus Christ If then thou doest neglect and despise them thou doest neglect and despise Christ Is not this a most cursed thing that any man should loue worldly trash euen for the filling of fleshly lustes more then he loueth God or Christ For if a man had any sparke of lo●e in him vnto God he must needes loue Christe in his members he must needes loue his brother Whereupon Saint Iohn manifestly saith

he that findeth foode in the sower will minister likewise bread for foode and multiplie your seede and increase the fruites of your beneuolence that on all parts ye may be made ●●b vnto all liberalitie which causeth through vs ●●●nksgiuing vnto God What can be more for●●ble then this promise of Gods blessing if rich men could cast off vnbeliefe and giue credit v●to it to moue vnto liberality that they shall not only thereby become rich in good works but also that God will so blesse and encrease their worldly substance that they shall alwaies haue abundance both for their owne vse ●●●d also to giue vnto the poore What hardn●● of heart is in men that can not beleeue God 〈◊〉 this thing but say still If I giue very fast I may come to pouerty my selfe Whatsoeu●● then God promiseth this is still the conclusion the●● men will trust more to their riches then to●● promise their riches they will holde as fa●● as they can there is the sure God as they thinke Is there no helpe is there no re●e●●● for this so deadly and so dangerous disease Surely if it be possible to be remedied as hee haue shewed before it shall be in some the remedy is set downe by the holy Apostle in the last verse of this Text where he saith In●●g●● for themselues a good foundation against the 〈◊〉 come that they may attaine eternall life Th● i● a we noted the second part of the Texte which declareth the incomparable benefite and fruit which the riche men shall reape if they shall shew themselues obedient to this charge it is a benefite to haue that blessing of God in this life which is promised vnto the liberall but this is farre greater beeing the blessing of all blessings which the Apostle here noteth then 〈◊〉 we here obserue that riches if men coulde vse them are instruments of great happines for thereby they haue habilitie to be rich in good works which is to be rich vnto God euen the chiefe riches of all The holy Scripture setteth this forth vnder diuers phrases of speech as first S. Paul here saith They shall lay vp for themselues a good foundation against the time to come A good foundation is the ground-worke of a sure and permanent building No man by the multitude of his worldly goods can make so sure worke here but it will decay and come to vtter ruine how soeuer men are builded and doe imagine that they can builde their nest so high and so sure as that it shal continue But for the time to come or against that time the rich in this world may if they haue grace and true wisedome together with their riches make the foundation of a most happy building which shal neuer decay Christ Iesus vseth an other comparison to set forth this same matter Luke 12. ver 33. saying Sell your goods and giue almes make you bags that shall neuer waxe old a treasure in heauē which shall neuer faile whither the thiefe cannot approch and where the moth doth not corrupt And Luke 10. ver 9. he saith Make you friends of the vnrighteous Mammon that when ye shall haue neede they may receiue you into euerlasting habitations This is indeed all one with that which S. Paule here saith Laying vp in store for themselues a good foūdation against the time to come Indeede that saying of Christ is notable to be obserued marke therefore how he bringeth it in He vseth a parable saying There was a rich man that had a Stewarde who was accused vnto him that he had wasted his goods and hee willed him to giue his accoūts for he could no longer be steward The steward being now in a straight and knew not how to liue when he should forgo● his office at length vseth this craftie dealing the goeth to all those which did owe anye great summes to his Master and did strike off and forgiue them a great part that so befriending them they might when hee was out of his office shewe friendship to him and receyue him into their houses Our Sauiour hereupon saith that the children of this world are wiser in the●r generation then the childrē of light And then he willeth vs to imitate this vniust steward not in that vniust course which he tooke but seing we are all but stewardes and must out of our stewardship he willeth vs to bee so wise as to make vs friends of the vnrighteous Mammon that when we shall need or fayle that is when we shall goe out of our stewardship they may receiue vs into euerlasting habitations But what meaneth that howe shall wee make vs friendes of the vnrighteous Mammon which shall receiue vs into euerlasting habitations Or who bee those friends It is a parabolicall speech Yee see how the steward with his masters goods by an vniust way made him frends so our Lord doth aduise vs which are but stewards vnder God ouer the riches which wee doe possesse to make vs friends after a lawfull and cōmendable way with our Lords goods that is by distributing and giuing almes to those that be in necessitie This is a thing pleasing to God vnder whome we doe hold our stewardship and the friendes which we then make are the good workes themselues which shall follow and accompanie vs at our death when we goe out of our stewardship and be rewarded with eternall glorie for so God hath promised that they which bring forth good works euen the testimonies and fruites of a true and liuely faith shall bee rewarded with eternall glorie which is it that hee saith that they may receiue you into euerlasting habitations and as S. Paule saith here Laying vp in store a good foundation against the time to come that they may attaine eternall life To make bagges then which shall neuer wax olde to make friendes of the vnrighteous Mammon which may receiue vs into euerlasting habitations and to lay vp in store a good foundation against the time to come that we may attaine eternall life are all to one effect a wonderfull happie thing to rich men if they can lay hold of it But alas if we behold the present estate shall we thinke that men doe belieue this The wealth that many doe flow it is verie great and multitudes are pined with extreame miserie and few there be which doe liberally distribute yea contrariwise we finde verie many that care not so they may enrich themselues what become of th● poore This thing is euident by the selling of their corne other commodities which they thinke they neuer haue enough for although the price be vnreasonable What an extreame blindnesse and folly is this yea what a wofull miserie that the men of this world which haue plentie of riches doe not onely depriue themselues of a double blessing the one vpon their goods and posteritie in this life according as God hath promised if they shall distribute to the poore and be riche in good workes the other in the