Selected quad for the lemma: church_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
church_n	answer_n	doctrine_n	rome_n	2,731	5	6.4118	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A67744	A Christian library, or, A pleasant and plentiful paradise of practical divinity in 37 treatises of sundry and select subjects ... / by R. Younge ...	Younge, Richard.	1660 (1660)	Wing Y145; ESTC R34770	701,461	713

finde many acts of deception in the Saints I finde infirmity in those acts but that any one of them hath scoft at and hated another for goodness I finde not or that have used to dispute against it Gregory Nazianzen I pray minde it seriously told his friends that Iulian would prove a notorious wicked man he took such delight in disputing against that which was good Much less that any after regeneration have in this case been cruel If we would know saith Chrysostome a Wolf from a Sheep since their cloathing is alike look to their fangs and their mouth if they be bloody for who ever saw the lips of a Sheep besmeared with blood which being so No matter though the gate be strait and the way narrow if the end to which it leadeth be everlasting life 5 Use. 5 Fiftly if in conclusion the most malicious and damnable practices of our worst and greatest enemies prove no other in effect to us then did the malice of Iosephs brethren Mistress and Lord to him the first in selling of him the second in falsly accusing him the third in imprisoning him all which made for his inestimable good and benefit then the malice of Haman to Mordecai and the Iews whose bloody decree obtein'd against them procured them exceeding much joy and peace then Balaa●s malice to the children of Israel whose desire of cursing them caused the Lord so much the more to bless them Numbers 23. Then the Devils spite to Iob who pleasured him more by his sore afflicting him then any thing else could possibly have done whether we regard his name children substance or soul then Iudas his treason against the Lord of life whose detestable fact served not only to accomplish his will but the means also of all their salvations that either before or after should believe in him this should move wonder to astonishment and cause us to cry out with the Apostle O the deepness of the riches both of the wisdome and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgements and his wayes past finding out Rom. 11.33 O the wonderful and sovereign goodness of our God! that turns all our Poisons into Cordials that can change our terrours into pleasures and makes the greatest evils beneficial unto us for they are evil in their own nature and strong temptations to sin Iames 1.2 also fruits of sin and part of the curse and work those former good effects not properly by themselves but by accident as they are so disposed by the infinite wisdom goodness and power of God who is able to bring light out of darkness and good out of evil yea this should tutour us to love our enemies We love the medicine nor for its own sake but for the health it brings us and to suffer chearfully whatsoever is laid upon us for how can Gods Church in general or any member in particular but fare wel since the very malice of their enemies benefits them How can we but say Let the World frown and all things in it run cross to the grain of our mindes Yet With thee ô Lord is mercy and plenteous redemption thou makest us better by their making us worse Objection But perhaps thou hast not proved the truth of this by thy own knowledge and particular experience Answer If thou hast not thou shalt in due time the end shall prove it stay but till the conclusion and thou shalt see that there is no cross no enemy no evils can happen unto thee that shall not be turned to good by him that dwelleth in thee Will you take Saint Pauls word for it or rather Gods own word who is Truth it self and cannot lie His words are We know that all things work together for the best unto them that love God even to them that are called of his purpose Rom. 8.28 And in Verse 35 36. after he hath declared that Gods chosen people shall suffer tribulation and anguish and persecution and famine and nakedness peril sword c. be killed all the day long and counted as sheep for the slaughter he concludeth with Nevertheless in all these things we are more then conquerours through him that loved us and so goeth on even to a challenge of our worst enemies Death Angels Principalities and Powers things present and to come height depth and what other creature besides should stand in opposition What voluminous waves be here for number and power and terrour yet they shall not separate the Ark from Christ nor a soul from the Ark nor a body from the soul nor an hair from the body to do us hurt What saith David Mark the upright man and behold the just for the end of that man is peace Psal. 37.37 Mark him in his setting out he hath many oppositions mark him in the journey he is full of tribulations but mark him in the conclusion and the end of that man is peace In Christ all things are ours 1 Cor. 3.22 How is that Why we have all things because we have the Haver of all things And if we love Christ all things work together for our good yea for the best Rom. 8.28 And ●f all things quoth Luther then even sin it self And indeed how many have we known the better for their sin That Mary Magdalen had never loved so much if she had not so much sinned had not the incestuous person sinned so notoriously he had never been so happy God took the advantage of his humiliation for his conversion Had not one foot slipt into the mouth of Hell he had never been in this forwardness to Heaven Sin first wrought sorrow saith Saint Augustine and now godly sorrow kills sin the daughter destroyes the mother neither do our own sins onely advantage us but other mens sins work for our good also Objection But may some say Can any good come out of such a Nazarite Answer Yes The advantage we have by Christ is more then the loss we had by Adam If Arrius had not held a Trinity of Substances with a Trinity of Persons and Sabellius an Unity of Persons with an Unity of Essences the Mysteries of the Trinity had not been so clearly explaned by those great Lights of the Church If Rome had not so violently obtruded her M●rits the doctrine of Iustification onely by faith in Christ might have been less digested into mens hearts We may say here as Saint Augustine doth of Carthage and Rome if some enemies had not contested against the Church it might have gone worse with the Church Lastly suppose our enemies should kil us they shall not hurt but pleasure us yea even death it self shall work our good That Red-sea shall put us over to the Land of Promise and we shall say to the praise of God we are delivered we are the better for our enemies the better for our sins the better for death yea better for the Devil and to think otherwise even for the present were not onely to derogate from the wisdom power and goodness

nor subtill as Bias spake wisely of her or rather not only simple as a Dove to think no evill but also wise as a Serpent to discern all things and see what is evill 2. For our tallying of words as it argues little discretion in him that doth it so it is of as little use except the standers by want information of thy innocency and his guiltinesse which gives the occasion Wherefore in hearing thy own private and personall reproaches the best answer is silence but the wrongs and indignities offer●d to God or contumelies that are cast upon us in the causes of Religion or the Church may safely be repayed If we be meal-mouthed in Christs and the Gospels cause we are n●t patient but zeal-lesse Yea to hold a mans peace when Gods Honour is in question is to mistake the end of our Redemption 1 Cor. 6.20 What saith the Apostle Ioyn with patience godlinesse 2 Pet. 1.6 for else patience without godlinesse while it receives injury of man may do more injury to God Neither is there a better argument of an upright heart than to be more sensible of the indignities offered to God than of our own dangers And certainly no ingenuous disposition can be so tender of his own disgrace as the tru● Christian is at the reproach of his God as we see in Moses who when Aaron and Miriam offered him a private injury it is said his meeknesse was such that he gave them not a word Numb 12. But when the people had fallen to idolatry and he heard them murmur against their Maker he spares neither Aaron nor the people but in a godly fit of zeal takes on at them yea breaks the Tables in pieces Exod. 32. A meek Lamb in his own cause a fierce Lyon in Gods Yea it was alwayes his manner to plead the peoples cause to God with prayers and tears but Gods cause against the people with sword and revenge And thus it fared with David who was a man deaf and dumb and wholly senselesse at Shemei's private reproach when he cursed him cast stones at him called him murtherer and wicked man 2 Sam. 16. But not so at Goliahs publick revilings of God and his Church no not at Michols despising his holy zeal in the publick service of God 2 Sam. 6. In these cases how full of life and spirit and holy impatiencie did he shew himself to be And our Saviour Christ who suffered himself to be spit upon buffeted crowned with Thornes c. without giving an angry word but when he saw the Tempple abused he burned in a zealous anger against them took a scourge and whipt the buyers and sellers out saying Ye have made my Fathers house a den of thieves Matth. 21.12.13 3. Touching our actions whether it be in thine own cause or in the cause of God and Religion thou maist not be a revenger All that private persons can do is either to lift up their hands to Heaven for redresse of sinne or to lift up their tongues against the sinne not their hands against the person Who made thee a judge is a lawfull question if it meet with a person unwarranted True Phineas in the case of Zimry and Cozby lift up his hand and thrust them both through with a spear And when Moses saw the Aegyptian smiting the Hebrew he smote the Aegyptian but they had peculiar warrants signed from Heaven either by instinct or speciall command which we shall expect in vain Well may we flee from danger as Iacob fled from Esau Moses from Pharaoh David from King Saul Elias from Iezabel Paul from the Damascens and Christ himself from the Iews And expect to finde comfort in our flight even a City of refuge as Iacob found favour in Labans house Moses a rich Father-in-Law Elias an Angel to feed him Paul spirituall brethren to comfort him besides the holy Ghost the true Comforter But the weapons of a Christian in adversity ought only to be patience and prayer for as Theodoret saith If Muentius and Maximinian in the heat of zeal shall rayl on wicked Iulian at a Feast justly may their deaths be cast upon their petulancy but not upon their Religion Yea the Councell of Eleberis decreed that if any man did take upon him to break down the Heathens Idols and were slain in the place that he should not be reckoned among the Martyrs Indeed God so loves this heat of zeal in all the carriages of his servants that if it transports us too far he pardoneth the errour of our fervency rather than the indifferency of lukewarmnesse as may be seen in that act of Moses when being wroth with the people about the molten Calf he brake the Tables in pieces Exod. 32. Neverthelesse if we shall either out of superstition or presumption do that we have neither calling nor warrant for out of the Word such our works be our intention what it will are but the blinde whelps of an ignorant zeal and an unadvised zeal when knowledge is not made the Pilot of devotion may be more prejudiciall than a cold remissenesse Swift horses without a skilfull waggoner and full sayls without a good Pilot endanger more Object Every base nature will be ready to offer injuries where they think they will not be repaid he will many times beat a Coward that would not dare to strike him if he thought him valiant as a Cur that goes through a Village if he clap his tayl between the legs and run away every Cur will insult over him but if he bristle up himself and stand to it give but a counter-snarle there 's not a Dog dares meddle with him Answ. Neverthelesse avenge not thy self but give place unto wrath and that for conscience sake Rom. 12.19 If thou receivest wrong in thy person goods or good Name it is the Magistrates office to see thee righted and for this cause ye pay also tribute He is the Minister of God for thy wealth to take vengeance on him that doth evill and for the praise of them that do well neither doth he bear the sword for nought Rom. 13.4 5 6. 1 Pet. 2.14 Now in this case he that hath endamaged me much as you have some that will deprive men of their possessions and then perswade them to be content cannot plead breach of charity in my seeking ●●s Restitution and because patience without discretion wrongs a good cause I will so remit wrongs as I may not encourage others to offer them and so retain them that I may not induce God to retain mine to him Have you not seen a Crow stand upon a Sheeps back pulling off wool from her side even creatures reasonlesse know well whom they may be bold with that Crow durst not do this to a Wolfe or a Mastiffe the known simplicity of this innocent beast gives advantage to this presumption Meeknesse of spirit commonly drawes on injuries and the cruelty of ill natures usually seeks out ●hose not who deserve worst but who will bear