Selected quad for the lemma: work_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
work_n	evil_a	good_a	righteous_a	5,888	5	9.2258	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A26832	Vulgar errors in divinity removed	Battell, Ralph, 1649-1713.	1683 (1683)	Wing B1150; ESTC R10796	49,392	154

they infer That as a dead man doth nothing to the raising of himself no more do we that are spiritually dead As God put forth an Almighty power at the Creation of the world so an irresistable power at our Conversion which is called the new Creation Now the truth is in the middle we need Gods grace as well to assist the Will in goodness as at first to excite to goodness and it is very reasonable to think that as the Devil is dayly and hourly suggesting evil motions to us so God or his good Angel is dayly and hourly inspiring and assisting us to what is good according to that of the Apostle Phil. 1.6 Being confident of this very thing that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it that is will assist you to perform it unto the day of Jesus Christ So that it is plain against Pelagius that God doth not only assist to will but also to do what is good of his good pleasure Neither is it less plain against the other that grace is not so efficaciously inspired into the Soul that is not in the power of the Will to refuse it for this would quite destroy the nature of the Will for as he said well He that cannot chuse but chuse doth chuse because he cannot chuse which is a palpable and thick contradiction Secondly it appears from our Saviours words How oft would I and ye would not that grace is not so irresistibly put to the Will that it is not in the power of the Will to refuse it seeing he blames them for so often forsaking their own mercy So that they not only had a power to resist his grace but brought that power into act in judging themselves unworthy of everlasting life The truth I told you was in the middle way and it hath been the antient opinion of the Church of God for above a thousand years ago that the Will is not destroyed by grace but only repaired A dislocated joynt when it is well set again doth not lose the nature of a joynt but rather is restored to its former use and comliness so the grace of God healing the Will doth not take away the nature of the Will but only makes it able to obey Gods Will. So that when Grace cooperates with the Will man is left in the hand of his own Counsel to turn or not to turn to the Lord God sets life and death before him and bids him reach out his hand to whether he will This is apparent from Isa 5.4 What could have been done more to my Vineyard that I have not done in it wherefore when I looked that it should bring forth grapes brought it forth wild Grapes under the Parable of a Vineyard the whole House of Israel is shadowed out unto whom God was not wanting in the least measure of gracious dispensations to make them good yet they remained unreformed and were wanting to themselves I shall briefly shew you the meaning of those Scriptures which these men mistaking the one attributes too much the other too little to the Will in Conversion and so proceed Where it is said Now they have no cloak for their sin because Christ came and spake to them by coming and speaking is not only meant barely enlightning them but as appears by the Context he by Miracles so convinced them that resisting those Convictions our Saviour says They hated both him and his Father Joh. 15.24 And as for the other Text urged by Pelagius If ye were blind c. it doth not from thence follow that the Will enlightned needs no other assistance but only thus sins against knowledge are not so easily forgiven as sins of ignorance but deserve more stripes And as for those Texts which are urged on the other hand where it is said We are dead in trespasses and sins and Created in Christ Jesus unto good works c. These speeches are meerly Metaphorical and figurative which they so squeeze till they bring bloud and not milk out of the breasts of the Scripture They are Similitudes only and they would have them run on four feet as if all things that agree to a dead man did agree to a man in the state of nature whereas the one is capable of preventing grace the other is not the one may be raised by means the other can be raised only by miracles Neither sin nor grace take away the natural power of the Will but only thus it is Sin hurts and weakens it especially ill habits grace heals and strengthens it and brings it near to its primitive goodness An old heart and a new heart differ only as an Instrument in tune and the same Instrument out of tune there are the same strings still but not the same ordering of them So the same Understanding Will and Affections a man had before only now placed on God and delighting in goodness which before delighted in sin which they not minding make a man meerly as a Tool in the hand of a Workman or a Pen in the hand of a Writer meerly passive to any good action A man before any Grace be offered hath a Free Will to natural acts and a remote one to supernatural that is a power to embrace Grace and work in the strength of it in case it be offered The man which lay at the Pool of Bethesda had not lost his Limbs only the use of them When Christ strengthened those palsie members he arose took up his Bed and went unto his house Thus the weak Will is strengthened by the grace of Christ but being strengthened is able to do what is good God doth persuade the Will by extrinsical helps as well as intrinsical inspirations Those providential acts of Abigail meeting David or of Sauls sleeping in the Trench when David took away his Spear from his Bolster were of grace not only to David but also to Saul and turned his heart from pursuing David Efficacious Grace to use their own term is nothing but perswasion which doth not determine the Will but only is so congruously and seasonably put that it is not rejected of the Will Extraordinary gifts are wrought immediately by Gods holy Spirit without mans cooperation Sauls Prophesying was without his assent to it if every act of grace were thus given what difference would there be between his manner of giving ordinary and extraordinary gifts The Spirit of God is said to help our infirmities in our Prayers in stirring up ardency of devotion in us the original word for Help is a double compound and is Metaphorically put for it hath relation to one that helps to bear part of anothers burthen for him taking it off in part from his shoulders and putting it on his own or else helping him to lift it up Now he that is holpen in bearing or lifting a burthen doth something sure himself towards the bearing or lifting of it And so did St. Paul cooperate with the grace of God for he saith I

opinion Have they never read that when it was in force according to the Letter a man was stoned for gathering sticks on the Sabbath day But if the Equity only of that Law be in force at this day why are we accounted as Transgressors by them whilst we keep it according to the Moral Equity and the Precepts of the Church The truth is they are superstitious in the one and prophane in the other Can these men see that a Day may be holy because set apart for the service of God and can they not see that a Place likewise may be holy which is consecrated to his Worship Even the light of nature taught the Heathen if once a Thing was dedicated to God if it were a gift to devour that gift was Sacriledge and brought a Curse with it witness their Proverb concerning the Gold of Tholoss if it were a Place to prophane that place was sinful Procul hinc procul este prophani Conclamat vates and that they think so still I call the Morocco Embassadour to witness If it be said those times for Publick Worship are appointed by Gods immediate command as Moral and so are not publick places and in that respect we honour one more than the other I answer it is one thing to say it and another thing solidly to prove it for the set times appointed by God in the fourth Commandment were the seventh days from the Creation which on all hands is confest we keep not Again in what time soever the Church began to omit the last day of the Week and keep only the first that Week there was no seventh day Sabbath which could not lawfully have been done if one day of seven be moral and of perpetual Equity for what is Moral is unchangeable The truth is the fourth Commandment enjoyns us to set convenient times apart for Gods Service and that is a moral duty but our Lords Day is not appointed by that but by the Traditions of the Apostles and the Precepts of the Church Now we have not only the Precepts of the Church to esteem reverently of Gods House but the Precepts of the Apostles to do all things in Gods service decently and in order and when they did not St. Paul chides them thus What have you not houses to eat and drink in If any man hunger let him eat at home The dishonour that is done to God's House reflects upon God himself When Jehu destroyed Baal out of Israel they brake down the house of Baal and made it a draught-house And so it must needs tend to the dishonour of Almighty God when we dishonour the place dedicated to his publick Worship Learned Mr. Mead did believe the instinct of nature taught the very Heathen that the Worship was dignified by the peculiarness of the place and the Magnificence of the Temple appointed for it It is likewise a Vulgar Error that possesseth the minds of many that to hear Preaching is the chief end of coming to God's House whereas joyning together in Prayer is to be preferred before it that which carries the denomination of a house is certainly the chief thing that is to be done in that house Now Gods House is not called the house of Preaching in Scripture but the house of Prayer I confess Preaching is a great Ordinance yet Prayer is a greater how meanly soever it is esteemed by many If there were nothing but Preaching they would come but if nothing but Praying they will not come But blessed Hannah was not of their mind she never refused to come to the Temple when there were Prayers there Surely the Error in this point is very great and one main cause I conceive is this people are lazy in the duties of Christianity and will not strive to enter in at the streight Gate now to hear a Sermon puts them to no great labour Nay happily the novelty of the Matter the variety of the Phrase may deceive that little toil of sitting and listening to it But Prayer is a lifting up of the Soul to God and our Souls are naturally tending downwards so that we may find it a weighty matter to lift them up long together and we are quickly weary of that work A righteous mans Prayer doth not avail much unless it be fervent now fervency cannot be unless our Hearts pant after God as the Hart after the Rivers of waters And to bring our hearts to this will cost us some pain unless we sigh and groan and so Gods Spirit helps us to do unless we mourn and weep so David often unless we wrestle with God as Jacob who wept and made his supplications unto him which things since they are so no marvel though a carnal heart had rather come to Preaching than to Praying 't is a great deal the easier duty take heed the Devil don't perswade you 't is in a manner the only duty lest he keep you with a form of Godliness without the power of it all your days When Joseph brought his two Sons to Jacob to be bless'd he thought his Father had been mistaken in preferring Ephraim before Manasses and he went to remove his Fathers hands saying Not so my Father this is the Elder lay thy right hand upon his head but he answered and said I know it my Son I know it he shall be great but truly his Brother shall be greater While some people think we are mistaken in preferring Praying before Preaching they are mistaken themselves and we may answer them We know not what we affirm we know it Preaching shall be accounted a great Ecclesiastical Ordinance but truly Prayer shall be a greater And as Publick Prayer hath a more especial promise to be heard than Private so likewise Prayers put up in Gods House have a more peculiar promise than if put up elsewhere Exod. 20.24 In all places where I record my name I will come unto thee and will bless thee All Objections to the contrary are but like those made against the waters of Jordan by Naaman Are not Abana and Pharphar Rivers of Damascus better than all the waters of Israel may I not wash in them and be clean No the Promise is made to the waters of Jordan and not to those Now as the waters cleansed not the Leprosie by any Physical operation but by way of blessing so neither do our Prayers prevail for their worthiness but are heard for his Promise sake and his gracious goodness The Jews when they prayed at home were wont still to spread forth their hands towards the Temple 1 Kings 8.38 So Daniel his Windows being open towards Jerusalem he kneeled on his knees three times a day and prayed Dan. 6.10 Neither are people less mistaken concerning their Praises than concerning their Prayers in Gods House whilst they cry out of the Organ the Lute or the Harp as if it were sinfully ceremonious to sing Praises after that manner The Ceremonial Law was given by Moses but this was not given by Moses therefore