Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	church_n	law_n	reason_n	1,462	5	5.0162	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A85791	The heads of some sermons preached at Finnick, the 17 of August. 1662 By Mr William Guthry upon Matth. 14: 24, 25, 26.	Guthrie, William, 1620-1665.	1680 (1680)	Wing G2275B; ESTC R228467	46,400	69

his authority rebuking their slavish fear although they themselves have ground to be quieted yet they can not untill he say be not afraid it is I I command your Devil to sit within your self will that do it No there are some of them that are peremptor they will have a special confirmation and Peter steps out before the rest if it be thou bid mo come to thee on the water otherwise I will never believe Wel Peter must ye have a confirmation Ye shall have it but ye shall not crack much of it ere all be don it may be ye be at a greater doubt before the end of the day Then that which compleatly allayeth all their fear is Christ's in-coming to them and nothing else doth it For Use then Let all the People of the Lord know there is such an infirmity attending them when difficultys are renewed upon you and slavish fear labours to take possession of you who are fled to Christ guard against it and know the evils thereof encourage your selves against it When your fear grows in a cloud and dark day to prevent it Consider 1. what interest God hath in his People they are set as a seal upon his heart and written upon the palms of his hands he hath said he that toucheth you toucheth the apple of mine eye Would we be afraid if we believed that any that troubleth the People of God do as ill as if they took God on the looking face Indeed and in truth if we believed that we would think them won gear 2. Believe this also that whatever the Lord doth or suffers men to do shall work together for the good of his People it is a common truth in every bodys mouth yea but I may say the least believed truth in all the Bible Ye will not question the truth of the promise but yet ye stand at the application I offer you that instance and put your selves to it if ye can solidly acquiesce with it in your heart that all the distresses and afflictions his People are under in Brittain and Ireland shall work together for their good then if it be so as I do not doubt of it why then do ye not believe it and are quiet 3. Believe this also that there is nothing that befalls his People but what is by his Providence ye say it 's true but there are many things that we meet with that God doth not allow I say there is nothing ye meet with but that which is either by his active or permissive Providence There is no evil don in the city but what the Lord knoweth That the Ministers in Brittain and Ireland are put from their houses Kirks and Lands and banished out of the countrey is all his Providence and shall work together for their good and if it be then ye are to be silent 4. Know this and believe that there is nothing to be feared but God and an evil conscience As a man in Ireland said to a Bishop when he threatned to imprison him he answered I know no such prison as an evil conscience and so if ye resolve to fear nothing but the God of Heaven and an evil conscience ye need not fear men for the fear of these will quiet all your other fears A SERMON PREACHED at FINNICK The _… of August 1662. BY M R WILLIAM GUTHRY upon Matth. 16 25. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it but whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it I Have told you that the natural life of man may come in competition with the Cause and interests of Christ and that some men will get a free choice in this case to save or lose their life though every one will not get it to their option I have likewise told you that the natural life of Man when put to a mans option to save or to lose as he pleaseth with denials or not denial of the Cause was a mighty temptation All that a man hath will he give for his life But however it might be a mighty tentation and however many things may occurr in the way to obstruct the man's right choice in the case yet be it known unto you all that whosoever seeketh to save his life with prejudice to the cause of Christ and a good Conscience thereby loseth his life I was beginning to tell you what wayes a man would study to save his life with prejudice to Christ and his cause and he doth so either by omitting that which is his duty before God for fear of his life or for fear of inconveniences that might follow upon his doing of his duty or he doth it by committing that which is positively sinfull before God for fear of his life First of all the man prefers his natural life to Christ and his cause and a good Conscience by omitting his duty and that is 1. when he forbears to testifie for God in his place and station I mean by witnessing with the mouth for him this reaches both minister and People when they will not speak for Christ's cause when it 's reproach'd for fear of hazard this is to seek to save their life by omitting of duty 2. Folk may be said to seek to save their life with prejudice to the cause of Christ by omission of duty in this case when God layes an opportunity of his service and work before them for the good of his Church but by reason of their faint-heartedness they fear and will not set about it and so will not rescue Christ and his cause by opposing what God calls them to oppose 3. By omitting other duties competent for them in their place and station or by reason of the wicked Laws made against such duties by the Supream Magistrat with certification of such and such hazards to occurr upon them by doing of those duties as ye ever already heard Having spoken to these things we come now to speak of the next great Head of cases and wayes with prejudice to Christ and his cause and interests and our own Conscience positively by doing that which is sinfull against God and this is don several and many wayes There are several and many cases in which Folk may be said to prefer their natural life to Christ's cause and their own Conscience by commmitting positively that which is sinfull against GOD. And First Folk prefers their natural life to Christ his interests and Cause when men do disclaim the interests and cause of Christ and all that party side and faction because of Christ Jesus and the Truth I hope it 's clear and without controversy to you all if Folk do this for fear of their life or any peril or hazard that they may come under with prejudice to his interest and cause that they are seeking to save their lives with prejudice to his interests and cause and so fall-in under the hazard of the Text of losing their life This was Peter's fault for as holy a man as he was

evidence something of joy for the success and prosperity of the wicked at lest to profess joy in that case for fear of hazard or inconveniencies once being there they will not stand much to speak proudly and testifie against the People of God in affliction and to blame them thus that it is all justly come upon them they were all so proud that they could not stand indeed when once they be at this to reproach the People of God thus without all debate when they see their gear going for the Covenant and Cause and Work of Reformation if they get opportunity of any thing that is ado they will even find in their heart to take a clat of it Indeed when once they be at that with it they will take a clat of an honest mans gear when it is going for the honest Cause without debate they will not spare to stand in the cross-way to cut-off those of his that doth remain Wo them I nothing doubt if they be cuting-off any thing of the Work of God that remaines but they will discover any that they know hidd that they think will come into the calk for that work If they do all the rest doubtless when they come to their own companions and have taken a rant they will drink to the confusion of the Covenant and all the Phanatiks Now ye see there are many ways of joining interests and issues with the Enemies of God and gang from less to more from one degree unto another till God in his righteous judgment lay-on the last stone as their plague it may be ye are but standing on the other side to day yet and if ye be speaking nothing for the People of God ye are speaking as little against them Wel are ye standing on the other side else in God's righteous judgment ere some few years gang about ye will be drinking to the confusion of the Covenant and all that will adhere to it Fourthly There is a way that men prefer their natural life to the Cause and interests of Christ by doing that which is positively sinfull and that by giving obedience to sinfull Acts and Laws for fear of personal hazard is such a thing as I know to be iniquous and sinfull but there comes out such a Law from the Supream Magistrat that such a thing must be done or then be liable to such and such hazard and for fear of that hazard I give obedience to that iniquous Law and that way seek to save my life with prejudice to Christ and his Cause This was the case of the three children that were put to it at Babylon but they did not obey there came out a wicked Law against them that whenever they heard all the bagg-pipes blow they should without any more fall down and worship the idol that Nebuchadnezzar had set up or then take it upon their peril to be cast into the firy fornace O! but the three children made a fair and honest choise Be it known to you all Gentiles quoth they if the bagg-pipes should blow till they burst again we will not fall down and worship the Idol that Nebuchadnezzar has set-up if our God please he can deliver us but whether he will deliver us or not we will not bow down to your glecks O! but they made a fair choice There are many Folks now in our days I think if the King would command the most iniquous Law that ever was commanded in a church I doubt not but they would give obedience thereunto for fear of inconveniencies that they fear would come upon them for their disobedience they have given a great proof of this already and a greater proof than this can not be given for they have sworn that his Majestys will shall be the rule according to which they shall level all their actions I hope it is clear to you all that these Lowns have taken a sinfull way to save their life with prejudice to Christ and his Cause as ever was taken I am sure their lives must be in hazard The next I proposed to speak to was What pretences have men to say for their own defence for this unhappy way of complyance What shaddow or pretext have they for this Have they nothing to say for themselves for taking of such an uncanny gate as this Yes that they have it is an ill deed but they 'l alwayes get some excuse for it and so they have much to say for their evil deeds too they have many pretences and reasons for their own defence here though I hope ye are all clear that no pretext or reasons formable can be given without a ragg about the foot of them No formable reason can be given why men seek to save their lives with prejudice to Christ and his Cause but such as they are they have enough of them and ye shall judge them for I shall give you an instance of some few of them Now let every man lay his hand to his heart and be judge here The first pretext that we shall name which many have for their compliance is this LAW and AUTHORITY there is Law and Authority for the thing When we say what meant ye to comply and take that unhappy course by the end they chuse this goodly pretence there is Law and Authority for it in this they fortifie themselves in all their abominable courses there is Law and Authority for such things Wilt thou tell me O man if thou hast any spunk of ingenuity remaining in thee whether or not was there not Law and authority at Babylon for the three children to fall down and worship the graven image that Nebuchadnezzar the King set-up Though this Law and Authority came from the King yet it was not a lawfull authority therefore they behoved to say to the King in this we will neither obey Law nor Authority Or wilt thou tell me man of all the Martyrs that ever thou heardst of martyred for the Cause of Christ if ever any of them was martyred without a shaddow of Law and Authority save some that have been killed secretly Any that were brought to any publick hearing there was alwayes some shaddow of Law and authority laid against them Was it not so from the beginning All the cruelty that ever was done to Christ his Church and his Cause since the beginning it was still sent-out with some shaddow of Law and authority it was still so since the beginning I think man if thou wert a man and not a beast thou shouldst resolve not to make thy conscien●● subject to all the iniquous Laws that may come through a Land I mean'd one that has rational understanding above a beast should know that he should not make his Conscience subject to all the iniquous Laws that come through the world I had thoughts that thou that art a man baptized into the name of Father Son and holy Ghost there is some spunk of ingenuity left within thee that thou shouldst know this