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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
work_n	faith_n	good_a	luther_n	4,507	5	10.5528	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A65488	Eleaven choice sermons as they were delivered by that late reverend divine, Thomas Westfield ...	Westfield, Thomas, 1573-1644.	1655 (1655)	Wing W1414A; ESTC R38251	108,074	268

being in the state of Nature But a man doth good to the soule when he doth communicate such a thing as may be a means of a wel-being here in the state of grace and of his eternall wel-being hereafter in the state of glory Now to doe good both to the soule and body of thy brother forget not for with such sacrifice c. I begin with the soule first that is the principall part Doest thou see thy brother ignorant of some truth that hee should know that is necessary to salvation Thou canst not doe him a greater good then to instruct him Doest thou see him doubtfull what to doe Why then doe him good to direct him Doest thou see them over-taken with some infirmity Why then restore them againe as the Apostle saith Brethren if any of you be over-taken with infirmity you that are spirituall restore such a man The Greek word is put him in ioynt againe hee is out of ioynt set him right put him in ioynt with the spirit of meeknesse and gentlenesse Doest thou see thy brother unruly and rush into sinne as the horse into the battaile Thou mayest doe a great deale of good to admonish and reprove him to pluck him as Iude saith in his Epistle out of the fire that hee perish not Doest thou see thy poore brother feeble and weak-hearted Thou shalt doe a great deale of good then to encourage him Doest thou see him deiected and cast downe and almost swallowed up of despaire Thou canst not doe a greater good then comfort him These things you may doe And if thou see thy brother past all help from men then thou canst not doe a greater good then to pray and beg help for him at Gods hand And in very deed that sweet Communion of Saints that we believe in the Creed I believe the Communion of Saints that Communion of Saints appears in nothing more then the doing of good thus to the soule one man of another to edifie and build up one another in our holy faith to exhort one another to holinesse of life to provoke one another to love and good works to comfort one another in sicknesse to mourne one over another for your corruptions This they may doe when they are together And then pray one for another and that they may do when they are a thousand miles asunder This is the Communion of Saints Thus wee may doe good to the soules of our brethren and to doe this good to the soules of your brethren forget not with this sacrifice God is well pleased To the body we may doe good in the outward estate many wayes I will think of these three especially First wee may doe them good defendendo by defending of our brother by defending his person from violence by defending his goods from ruine by defending his name from reproach and dishonour Pro. 24. 11. Deliver him that is appointed to die if it be in thy power Deliverance it is a thing that holy Iob among other works of his hee speaks of this I delivered the poore when hee cryed and helped him that was fatherlesse I brake the iawes of the wicked in pieces and took the prey out of his teeth If thou canst doe it by thy calling if thy calling will allow thee to doe it thou art bound to doe it to doe that good to right them when they suffer wrong either in their person or goods or good name if it be in thy power to right thy brother doe good that way defend him That is one way Secondly thou mayest doe good accommodando by lending and indeed sometimes a man may doe as much good by lending as by giving And this is a work of mercy that God requires of his people mark that place Deut. 15. 7 8. Thou shalt not harden thy heart nor shut thy hand from thy poore brother But thou shalt open thine hand wide unto him and shalt surely lend him sufficient for his need in that which he wanteth Thou shalt help and help him wide so the word is Thou shalt open wide to thy brethren and shalt surely lend to them The Originall word doubles it in lending thou shalt lend that is thou shalt surely lend and lend sufficiently according to his need So the Old Testament And Christ in the New Testament saith Lend looking for nothing again Luke 6. 35. And it is the commendation given to the righteous man A righteous man is mercifull and lendeth Psal 112. 5. but then mark the words that follow after too hee guides his affaires with discretion That is the second way Thirdly a man may doe good donando by free giving Of what That which is according to the necessity of our brother If he be hungry then we shall doe good to feed him to give him bread if hee be thirsty we must give him drink if hee be naked we must give him clothes if hee be sick if it be in our power wee are to give him remedy if hee be dead then to give him buriall decent buriall and among the works of charity and works of mercy you shall ever find reckoned in Scripture the buriall of the dead When the Traitor Iudas grudged at the box of Spikenard that was bestowed upon our blessed Saviour saith hee Let her alone shee hath done a good work towards my buriall And The Lord shew mercy saith David to the men of Iabesh-Gilead because they shewed mercy to his Master Saul What mercy Many they buried his bones It is a work of mercy Thus you see how many wayes there be of doing good and communicating A man may doe good you see to the Publike many wayes And then to the Private a man may doe good to the soule to the body To the soule by instructing by directing by admonishing by reproving by encouraging by comforting by praying for them A man may doe good to the body by defending them from wrong by lending that which is necessary by giving according to their necessity that aske And thus to doe good to the Publike to Private to the soules and bodies of our brethren when it is in our power forget not it is a sacrifice with which God is pleased Seeing there are so many wayes of doing good thus I will set down two Correllaries and Consectaries two things follow on it The first is this Since there are so many wayes of doing good certainly as long as wee live here in this life wee can never want oportunity of doing good some way or other That is the first We cannot want oportunities of doing good there be so many wayes to doe it either a man shall find some ignorant poore body that hee may instruct as David did Come yee children hearken unto mee I will teach you the feare of the Lord. Or a man may find some person wronged whom hee may help and succour as Iob did Or a man may sit in his tent doore and find some stranger passe by that hee may entertaine as Abraham did

not have it a barren fruitlesse pity but the meaning is this Hee that pities the poore and gives out of pity blessed is he Then again it must be your owne that you give it must not be a burnt-offering of goods gotten by rapine and by ill meanes Then lastly it must be done with cheerfulnesse cheerfulnesse shewed in the countenance in words in speedinesse and readinesse to give If it be thus then it is a sacrifice acceptable to God Nay I will goe further God will reward such a sacrifice as this you shall be sure of a reward at the hand of God Though not for the merit of the work away with merit talk not of that yet you shall have a reward through the free mercy of God in Christ That is lost you say that is bestowed on an unthankfull person but as Luther saith if a man will not doe good unlesse he can find a thankfull man let him look another world to doe it in this is not a world for him if one of ten give thanks it is enough it was so with Christ one Leper comes of ten but yet though men prove unthankfull they will not seeme to requite though men forget yet our good God will not forget Hark what saith the Prophet Mal. 3. 10. Bring yee all the tithes into the store-house that there may be meat in mine house meat for the reliefe of the Levites and so for the poore for there went part that way too that there may be meat in mine house and try me now herewith saith the Lord of Hosts if I will not open you the windowes of heaven and poure you out a blessing from thence Try me Beloved brethren you have tried many men and you have made ventures some perhaps to the furthest parts of the world some have made ventures in this Kingdome and you dare trust this man and that man with your estates and goods and it may be some have cozened you of a great deale this may be lost Man is deceitfull on the weights lighter then vanity it selfe but trust God with somewhat venture somewhat to heaven you venture in giving to the poore you make it a hazard but you never make so safe a return of any commodity in the world as that that you give to your brethren Riches we call the muck of the world I would we did account it so as we call it the muck of the world May I give you a simile from your selves A heap of muck as it lies in the yard it doth no good but carry it abroad into your pasture fields and spread it and you find the benefit of it Thus it is as long as your money and your goods lie heaped with you it doth no good carry it abroad and disperse it as the Scripture saith Hee hath dispersed and given to the poore Psal 112. it is taken from dung spread in the field lay it out upon your poor brethren and look for an increase if you have it not in this life assure your selves you shall have it in the life to come if you have it not in outward blessings you shall be enriched in grace here and in glory hereafter To which the Lord bring you for his sake that hath dearly purchased it for you Iesus Christ the righteous Amen FINIS A SERMON PREACHED at Pauls Novem. 14th Anno Dom. 1641. 2 CORINTH 6. 8. By honour and dishonour by evill report and good report as deceivers and yet true THe words doe refer to the 4th verse wherein the blessed Vessell of election St. Paul beginneth to shew how hee and Timothy and other faithfull Ministers of Jesus Christ did approve themselves to be so by exercise of patience by purenesse by knowledge by long-suffering by kindenesse by the holy Ghost by love unfeigned by the Word of truth by the power of God by the armour of righteousnesse on the right hand and on the left and all this when as it is in the Text they passed thorow honour and dishonour evill report and good report accounted to be deceivers when they were true In the handling of the words wherein are three Antitheta's I propound this course I will first handle the Antitheta's themselves severally In the second place I will shew how it is the lot of the best of Gods children to passe thorow every one of them And in the third place I shall shew that we shall then approve ourselves to be true Ministers of Jesus Christ as Saint Paul doth here when as passing through honour and dishonour evill report and good report held to be deceivers when wee are yet true wee doe notwithstanding keep the faith hold our owne fulfill our Ministery HOnour in Greek 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is nothing else but Honour and Dishonour a good opinion and estimation which a man findeth among such as are wise and virtuous and religious upon the acknowledgement either of some good graces wherewith God hath honoured him or of some good virtuous actions wherewith hee hath honoured God And this honour is made knowne abroad Honor in Scripturis non tantum in salutationibus officiis deferendis quantum in eleemosynis ac munerum oblatione sentitur Hieron in caput 15. Matthaei not onely by salutations and greetings in the Market-place which was a piece of Honour wherewith the Pharisee was well pleased nor onely in Titles to be called Rabbi Rabbi which they also affected but in the performance of God offices and all due observances together with rewards and presents which are therefore called Honoraria as given by way of honour Thus the Queen of Sheba honoured Solomon with a present of an hundred and twenty talents of gold beside precious stones and spices in great abundance 1 King 10. 10. Thus the men of Judah honoured Jehosophat with so many presents that hee had riches and honour in abundance 2 Chro. 17. 5. So the Wise-men that came from the East did their honour to Christ not onely by falling downe and worshipping him but by opening their treasures and presenting their gifts Gold Frankincense and Myrrhe Matt. 2. 11. Our Saint Paul had honour and much honour 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 so saith Saint Luke Acts 28. ver 10. They honoured us with many honours and laded us with such things as were necessary for our journey And to say no more What is that double honour which the Elders are worthy of that rule well 1 Timoth. 5. 17. but Reverence and Maintenance If maintenance be taken away reverence is soon lost who will give honour to the Minister what ever worth be in his person if ability and outward meanes be wanting Solomon telleth us that the wisedome of a poore man is despised and his words are not heard Ecclesiast c. 9. ver 16. This honour in what thing soever it is shewn must be acknowledged a blessing of God bestowed upon his children as a reward of former good services and an encouragement to future Thus was Abraham though a