Selected quad for the lemma: world_n
Text snippets containing the quad
|
ID |
Title |
Author |
Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication) |
STC |
Words |
Pages |
|
A30130
|
Come & welcome to Jesus Christ, or, A plain and profitable discourse upon the sixth of John, 37 vers shewing the cause, truth and manner of the coming of a sinner to Jesus Christ, with his happy reception and blessed entertainment / written by J. Bunyan.
|
Bunyan, John, 1628-1688.
|
1678
(1678)
|
Wing B5495; ESTC R30257
|
120,042
|
303
|
Psal. 19. 3. Psal. 27. 4 5 6. Job 9. 4. Joh. 17. 2. Mat. 8. 29. Luk 8. 28. Jam. 2. 19. Eighthly Coming-Sinner The Jesus to whom thou art coming is Lowly in Heart He despiseth not any 'T is not thy outward Meanness nor thy inward Weakness 't is not because thou art Poor or Base or Deformed or a Fool that he will despise thee He hath chosen the Foolish the Base and despised Things of this World to confound the Wise and Mighty He will bow his Ear to thy Stammering Prayers he will pick out the Meaning of thy inexpressible Groans he will respect thy weakest Offering if there be in it but thy Heart Mat. 11. 29. Luk. 14. 21. Prov. 9. 4 5 6. Isa. 38. 14 15. Song 5. 16. Joh. 4. 27. Mark 12 33 34. Jam. 5. 11. Now Is not this a Blessed Christ Coming-Sinner Art thou not like to fair well when thou hast Embraced him Coming-Sinner But Secondly Thou hast yet another Advantage by Jesus Christ that art coming to him For he is not only Full but Free He is not sparing of what he has he is open hearted and open-handed Let me in a few Particulars shew thee this First This is evident because he calls thee He calls upon thee to come unto him the which he would not do was he not Free to give Yea he bids thee when come Ask Seek Knock And for thy Encouragement adds to every Command a Promise Seek and ye shall find Ask and ye shall have Knock and it shall be opened unto you If the Rich Man should say thus to the Poor would not he be reckoned a Free-hearted Man I say Should he say to the Poor Come to my Door Ask at my Door Knock at my Door and you shall Find and Have Would he not be counted Liberal Why thus doth Jesus Christ Mind it Coming-Sinner Isa. 55. 3. Psal. 50. 15. Mat. 7. 7 8 9. Secondly He doth not only bid thee Come but tells thee He will heartily do thee Good Yea he will do it with Rejoycing I will rejoyce over them to do them Good with my whole Heart and with my whole Soul Jer. 32. 41. Thirdly It appeareth that he is Free because he giveth without Twitting He gives to all men Liberally and upbraideth not Jam. 1. 5. There are some that will not deny to do the Poor a Pleasure but they will mix their Mercies with so many Twitts that the Persons on whom they bestow their Charity shall find but little Sweetness in it But Christ doth not do so Coming-Sinner He casteth all thine Iniquities behind his Back Thy Sins and Iniquities he will remember no more Isa. 38. 17. Heb 8. 12. Fourthly That Christ is Free is manifest by the Complaints that he makes against them that will not come to him for Mercy I say he complains saying O Jerusalem Jerusalem How often would I have gathered thy Children together as a Hen gathereth her Chickens under her Wings and ye would not Matth. 23. 37. I say he speaks it by way of Complaint He saith also in another place But thou hast not called upon me O Jacob but thou hast been weary of me O Israel Isa. 43. 22. Coming-Sinner See here the Willingness of Christ to Save See here how Free he is to communicate Life and all good Things to such as thou art He complains if thou comes not he is displeased if thou callest not upon him Hark Coming-Sinner once again When Jerusalem would not come to him for Safe-guard He behold the City and wept over it saying If thou hadst known even thou at least in this thy day the Things that belong to thy Peace but now they are hid from thine Eyes Luk. 19. 41. Fifthly Lastly He is open and Free Hearted to do thee Good as is seen by the Joy and Rejoycing that he manifesteth at the coming home of poor Prodigals He receives the lost Sheep with Rejoycing the lost Groat with Rejoycing Yea when the Prodigal came home what Joy and Mirth what Musick and Dancing was in his Father's House Luk. 15. Thirdly Coming-Sinner I will add another Encouragement for thy Help First God hath prepared a Mercy-Seat a Throne of Grace to Sit on that thou may'st come thither to him and that he may from thence Hear thee and Receive thee I will Commune with thee saith he from above the Mercy-Seat Exod. 25. 22. As who should say Sinner When thou comest to me thou shalt find me upon the Mercy Seat where also I am alwayes found of the Undone Coming Sinner Thither I bring my Pardons there I Hear and Receive their Petitions and Accept them to my Favour Secondly God hath also prepared a Golden Altar for thee to offer thy Prayers and Tears upon A Golden Altar It is called a Golden Altar to shew what Worth it is of in God's Account For this Golden Altar is Jesus Christ This Altar sanctifies thy Gift and makes thy Sacrifices acceptable This Altar then makes thy Groans Golden Groans thy Tears Golden Tears and thy Prayers Golden Prayers in the Eye of that God thou comest to Coming Sinner Rev. 8. Mat. 23. 19. Heb. 10. 10 15. 1 Pet. 2. 5. Thirdly God hath Strowed all the way from the Gate of Hell where thou wast to the Gate of Heaven whither thou art going with Flowers out of his own Garden Behold How the Promises Invitations Calls and Encouragements like Lillies lye round about thee Take heed that thou doest not tread them under foot Sinner With Promises did I say Yea he hath mixed all those with his Own Name his Sons Name also with the Name of Mercy Goodness Compassion Love Pity Grace Forgiveness Pardon and what not that may encourage the coming Sinner Fourthly He hath also for thy En-couragement laid up the Names and set forth the Sins of those that have been Saved In his Book they are fairly written that thou through Patience and Comfort of the Scriptures mightst have Hope 1. In this book is Recorded Noah's Name and Sin and how God had Mercy upon him 2. In this Record is fairly written the Name of Lot and the Nature of his Sin and how the Lord had Mercy upon him 3. In this Record thou hast also fairly written the Names of Moses Aaron Gidion Sampson David Solomon Peter Paul with the Nature of their Sins and how God had Mercy upon them And all to Encourage thee Coming-Sinner Fourthly I will add yet another Encouragement for the Man that is coming to Jesus Christ. Art thou coming Art thou coming indeed Why 1. Then this thy Coming Is by Vertue of God's Call Thou art Called Calling goes before Coming Coming is not of Works but of him that Calleth He went up into a Mountain and called to him whom he would and They came to him Mark 3. 13. Secondly Art thou coming This is also by Vertue of Illumination God has made thee see and therefore thou art coming So long as thou wast Darkness thou lovedst Darkness and couldst not
Hos. 11. 10 11. When God Roars as oft-times the Coming Soul hears him Roar what Man that is coming can do otherwise than Tremble Amos 3. 8. But Trembling he comes He sprang in and came Trembling and fell down before Paul and Silas Act. 16. Should you ask him that we mentioned but now How long is it since you began to fear you should miss of this Damosel you Love so The Answer would be Ever since I began to Love her But did you not fear it before No nor should I fear it now but that I vehemently Love her Come Sinner let us apply it How long is it since thou begannest to Fear that Jesus Christ will not Receive thee Thy Answer is Ever since I began to desire that he would save my Soul I began to Fear when I began to Come And the more my Heart burns in Desires after him the more I feel my Heart fear I shall not be Saved by him See now Did not I tell thee That thy Fears were but the Consequence of strong Desires Well fear not Coming-Sinner Thousands of Coming-Souls are in thy Condition and yet they will also get safe into Christ's Bosom Say sayes Christ to them that are of a fearful Heart Be strong fear not Your God will come and Save you Isa. 35. 4. Chap. 63 1. Thirdly Thy Fear that Christ will not Receive thee May arise from a Sense of thine own Unworthyness Thou seest what a poor sorry wretched worthless Creature thou art And seeing this thou fearest Christ will not Receive thee Alas say'st thou I am the Vilest of all Men a Town-Sinner a Ring-leading Sinner I am not only a Sinner my self but have made others two-fold worse the Children of Hell also Besides Now I am under some Awakenings and Stirrings of Mind after Salvation even now I find my heart Rebellious Carnal Hard Treacherous Desperate prone to Unbelief to Despair It forgetteth the Word it wandreth it runneth to the Ends of the Earth There is not I am perswaded one in all the World that hath such a desperate wicked Heart as mine is My Soul is careless to do Good but none more earnest to do that which is Evil Can such an one as I am Live in Glory Can an Holy a Just and Righteous God once think with Honour to his Name of Saving such a Vile Creature as I am I fear it Will he shew Wonders to such a dead Dog as I am I doubt it I am cast out to the loathing of my Person yea I loath my self I stink in mine own Nostrils How can I then be accepted by an Holy and Sin-abhorring God Psal. 38. 5 6 7. Ezek. 16. Chap. 20. 42 43 44. Saved I would be and Who is there that would not were they in my Condition Indeed I wonder at the Madness and Folly of others when I see them so Merry in their Chains while I see them Leap and Skip so carelesly about the Mouth of Hell Bold Sinner How darest thou tempt God by Laughing at the Breach of his Holy Law But Alas They are not so bad one way but I am worse another I wish my Self were any Body but my Self And yet here again I know not what to wish When I see such as I believe are coming to Jesus Christ O I bless them But am confounded in my self to see how unlike as I think I am to every good Man in the World They can Hear Read Pray Remember Repent be Humble and Do every thing better than so Vile a Wretch as I. I Vile Wretch am good for nothing but to burn in Hell-Fire and when I think of that I am confounded too Thus the Sense of Unworthyness creates and heightens Fears in the Hearts of them that are coming to Jesus Christ But indeed it should not For who needs the Physitian but the Sick Or who did Christ come into the World to Save but the Chief of Sinners Mar. 1. 17. 1 Tim. 1. 15. Wherefore the more thou feest thy Sins the faster fly thou to Jesus Christ. And let the Sense of thy own Unworthyness prevail with thee yet to go faster As it is with the Man that carrieth his broken Arm in a Sling to the Bone-setter still as he thinks of his broken Arm and as he feels the Pain and Anguish he hastens his Pace to the Man And if Satan meets thee and asketh Whether goest thou Tell him Thou art Maimed and art going to the Lord Jesus If he objects thine own Unworthiness Tell him That even as the Sick seeketh the Physitian and as he that hath broken Bones seeks him that can Set them So thou art going to Jesus Christ for Cure and Healing for thy Sin-sick-Soul But it oft times happeneth to the Coming-Soul as it happeneth to him that flies for his Life He despairs of Escaping and therefore delivers up himself into the Hand of the Purfuer But up up Sinner be of good chear Christ came to Save the Unworthy Ones Be not Faithless but Believe Come away Man the Lord Jesus calls thee saying And him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out Fourthly Thy Fear that Christ will not Receive thee may arise from a Sense of the exceeding Mercy of being Saved Sometime Salvation is in the Eyes of him that desires it so great so huge so wonderful a thing that the very Thoughts of the Excellency of it ingenders Unbelief about obtaining it in the Heart of those that unfeignedly desire it Seemeth it to you said David a Light thing to be a King's Son-in-Law 1 Sam. 18. 23. So the Thoughts of the Greatness and Glory of the Thing propounded as Heaven Eternal Life Eternal Glory to be with God and Christ and Angels These are great Things Things too Good saith the Soul that is little in his own Eyes Things too Rich saith the Soul that is truly poor in Spirit for me Besides the Holy Ghost hath a way to greaten Heavenly things to the understanding of the coming sinner yea and at the same time to greaten too the sin and unworthiness of that sinner Now the Soul staggeringly wonders saying What! to be made like Angels like Christ To live in Eternal bliss joy and felicity This is for Angels and for them that can walk like Angels If a Prince a Duke or Earl should send by the Hand of his Servant to some poor sorry beggarly scrub to take her for his Master to wife and the Servant should come and say My Lord and Master such an one hath sent me to thee to take thee to him to wife he is rich beautiful and of excellent qualities he is Loving Meek Humble Well-spoken c. What now would this poor sorry beggarly Creature think what would she say or how would she frame an answer When King David sent to Abigail upon this account and though she was a rich woman yet she said Behold Let thine hand maid be a Servant to wash the feet of the Servants of my Lord. 1 Sam.