Selected quad for the lemma: church_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
church_n	ancient_a	time_n	year_n	3,898	5	4.4489	3	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A14708	Certaine godlie homelies or sermons vpon the prophets Abdias and Ionas conteyning a most fruitefull exposition of the same. Made by the excellent lerned man, Rodolph Gualter of Tigure. And translated into Englishe, by Robert Norton. Minister of the worde in Suffolke.	Gwalther, Rudolf, 1519-1586.; Norton, Robert, minister of the worde in Suffolke.	1573 (1573)	STC 25010; ESTC S103038	125,106	338

prophets meaning is of their conuersion to God whiche as before was sayde sprong of faith not of outward ceremonies therfore this place can nothing helpe theyr cause which would grounde iustification vpon works merites And God repented on the euill that is to wit on the punishement whiche he had determined to bring vpon them But how may repentance be ascribed vnto God sith that as he is eternall so also he knoweth all things is alwayes the selfe same one withoute chaunging Euen after the maner of men is God sayd in the Scriptures to repent for that when as men are chaunged he also altereth the sentence which before he had pronounced Neither may we accoūt this to be inconstancie forasmuch as his promises and threatenings are for the most part conditionall though the condition be not always expressed Howebeit this example being considered oughte to stirre vs vp to repentance God will as wel sée it in vs as he did in the Niniuites neither wil he neglect vs being conuerted vnto him Yea this same God will vndoubtedly healpe oure afflicted estate although al things might séeme far beyond all hope of recouerie Suche lyke examples as this is are euery where to be foūd both in holie and prophane histories Let vs learn to folow these Niniuites and foorthwith we shall finde God mercifully inclined vnto vs through Christ Iesu our Lord To whome belongeth thankesgiuing honoure glorie and dominion for euer Amen The fourth Chapter The ninth Homelie THerfore Ionas vvas sore discontent and angrie vvithin himself And he prayed vnto the Lorde and said O Lorde was not this my saying I pray thee when I vvas yet in my countrey therfore I hasted rather to flee vnto Tharsis For I knevve vvell inough that thou arte a GOD of greate goodnesse mercifull long suffering and of muche kindnesse and repentest vvhen thou shuldest punishe And now O lord take my lyfe from mee I beseeche thee for it is better for me to dye thā to liue Then sayd the Lorde Doest thou vvell in beeing so angry within thy selfe Hovvebeit Ionas gate him out of the citie and satte downe on the Easte side thereof and there made him a boothe and sat vnder it in the shadowe tyll he myghte see vvhat shuld chaunce vnto the citie WEe haue alreadye heard how at the preaching of Ionas the Niniuites were conuerted and so eschued the indignation and plagues of God now béeing redie to haue fallen vpon them We lerned in that example how great the goodnes of God is and that he wil in like sort be merciful vnto al that turne vnto him Now foloweth the last part of this historie whiche conteyneth in it two thinges Fyrste what mynde Ionas was of when he sawe that God spared the Niniuites and in howe gréeuous maner he tooke this goodnesse of god The other is how he was reprehended by God who therwithal giueth open testimonie of his fatherly good affection toward mankynd And this parte also belongeth to the doctrine of repentance which is the whole scope of this booke For it teacheth howe the Saints and holy men somtimes after they are conuerted from their sinnes and haue tasted of the grace of God yet fall againe and neuerthelesse feele God verie gracious vnto them From whence there may also be fetched a most effectual cōsolation against those that denie repentāce and gods grace vnto suche as after their first cōuersion slide again into sinne and by this meanes violently hurle men into desperation whom of dutie they ought rather to lyfte vp and confirme wyth the promises of grace This errour hath ben of anciēt time the author wherof was one Nouatus a prieste of the Churche of Rome about the yeare after Christs incarnation two hundreth and fiftie and was in times past occasion of no litle disquiet in the Church Now a daies it is renewed againe by the Anabaptists who make in a manner the whole drifte of all theyr endeuours to bring confusion into cōgregations and by wonderfull terroures of conscience to drawe away simple men vnawares from the communion and felowship of suche Christian assemblies Wherefore the considering of this chapter may not be negligently passed ouer in any wise The firste thing here described is Ionas offence He vvas sore discontente and angry in him selfe Here are expressed two affections namely griefe and anger which spring of our naturall corruption and cause men to committe heinous offences How farre awrie these affections were in Ionas it may manifestly appere by the occasion whereof they sprong He was discontente for that God spared the Niniuites vnto whome at his owne bidding he had denounced destruction So then Ionas contenciously fighteth against the will of God and by that meanes sinneth very grieuously But so muche the more heynous is this offence for that he is not only discontent with the determinacion of God but so is he discontent that he also sorroweth in his minde yea and that againe in suche sort that he is angry also bycause the matter falleth out otherwise than he before had said it should do And séeing euery iote thereof depended vpon Gods pleasure we must néedes gather that he was angrie euen with God him selfe But what thing can be more shamefull more arrogante and more detestable than that man which is mortal foolish and a sinner should with blind and rash furie storme against God who is eternall who knoweth all thinges and is most iust Surely this horrible trespasse is so great as that there can be broughte or imagined no causes so honest so iust or so necessary as may excuse the same But let vs sée what moued Ionas to be so much displeased at Gods doing First he perceiued that the fame honoure of his name stode now in some hazard and that it wanted not much but that thenceforth he should be accompted a lying prophet and very vaine Besides this he iudgeth it an vnworthy thing that the grace of God should be extended also vnto the Gentiles whiche the Iewes thought peculiarly to belong to thēselues and none other peraduenture also he stode in some doubte of his owne countrey men bicause he had conueyed ouer the worde of God euē to heathē people and was the causer both that they conuerted also that they were partakers of so great grace For it is not vnknowen vnto vs how arrogātly the Iewes looked alofte by reason of their prerogatiue and how cruelly they had al other nacions in despite sith euen in the Apostles times they that beléeued were angrie with Peter bycause he wente in and preached to the Gētiles Paule also had this obiected vnto him as an offence worthy of deathe that he had broughte in mē vncircumcised into the temple Neyther do I doubt but that Ionas cloked this priuate affection of anger wherewithall he was so muche moued with this plausible pretence By the whiche place we are put in mind how greatly the affections of the flesh can preuaile