Selected quad for the lemma: duty_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
duty_n	christian_a	church_n	religion_n	1,340	5	5.5492	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
B09144	An explanation of the solemn advice, recommended by the Council in Connecticut Colony, to the inhabitants of that jurisdiction, respecting the reformation of those evils, which have been the procuring cause of the late judgments upon New-England. By Mr. James Fitch ...	Fitch, James, 1622-1702.; Mather, Increase, 1639-1723.; Fitch, James, 1622-1702. Brief discourse proving that the first day of the week is the Christian Sabbath.; Connecticut. Council.	1683 (1683)	Wing F1063; ESTC W24614	58,047	146

solemn and steady attendance to these duties Job 15.9 unless it be in some fit of distress and then they cry to God and say Arise and save us Jer. 2.27 2. Or if they do daily attend to these Duties and yet neglect that which is of most personal and special concernment to their own Souls you may be in a secret place with a Friend and have much discourse and that in secret and yet not one word of secret things but that which any one may hear likewise you may be in prayer alone in secret and yet not one word of that which is of most secret concernment to your Soul but that which may be exprest before a Family or a Congregation and thus one principal end of Secret Prayer is lost which respecteth the Confession of secret sins Psal 19.12 and the petitioning for those personal and secret favours which may not so conveniently be exprest before others Psal 38.9 But the specialty intended in the handling of this is to shew how far the neglect of these secret Duties doth argue a declension from Religion 1. Those who neglect secret Duties have lost one main evidence of sincere worshipping of God not only because they live in the neglect of a known command of Christ Matth. 6.6 and not only because they do decline from the usual practice of the godly who are wont to perform these secret duties daily morning and evening and sometimes thrice a day Psal 55.17 Dan. 6.10 but how is it possible these can have an evidence of sincere worshipping of God seeing they attend no worship but what is before men and therefore must be judged to act the part of a Hypocrite so our Saviour Christ reasoneth Mat. 6.5 2. Those who neglect these secret Duties have lost the sense of personal inward Soul-difficulties for whosoever feels in a broken-hearted manner his Soul pinched and press'd with difficulties he must and will have an out-let by secret Prayer Acts 9.11 Behold he Prayeth he embraceth Prayer not only as a duty but as a gracious liberty but amongst his Soul difficulties he ever finds some which cannot be so particularly and expediently reached but by secret Prayer and calleth for a praying apart Zech. 12.14 but those who neglect these secret duties are past feeling of these difficulties and as they feel no such need of secret prayer so Christ passeth by them as those who have no work for Christ to do for them in secret and what will they do in that time when Hezekiah like they must turn their face towards the wall and then if secret prayer be not the means to take the last step right they fall into the everlasting pit Isai 38.2 3. These have lost the presence of Christ in secret and as they have forsaken him in secret so he will forsake them openly There are many are very desirous to hold the presence of Christ openly although they neglect his presence in secret but this cannot be they have no promise and grounded hope of his presence openly who do neglect the means of his presence in secret Mat. 6.5 Apostasie first beginneth in closets and secret places and that which is in secret evil in the sight of God 2 King 17.9 and then behold greater and more open abominations than these And so we proceed to the Second 2. A neglect of Family Duties as Prayer in the Family morning and evening and are of the number of those Families which do not call upon the Name of God Jer. 10.25 or neglect reading the Word of God daily in the Family or occasional repeating of Sermons or of that daily instructing the Family by Catechising or other profitable means as is commanded Deut. 6.7 and this neglect is 1. Either total and are under the same sentence of wrath with the Heathen and are heathenish Families Jer. 10.25 2. Or those who are inconstant in these Duties if prayer in the evening yet none in the morning or if prayer yet have strangely forgot that by Word and Prayer all is sanctified 1 Tim. 4.5 but the specialty I intend in this is not so much to prove these to be duties for who knoweth not this who knoweth any thing of the Word of God and of the practice of godly Families but let us consider how far a neglect of these doth argue Apostacy from Religion 1. These want true sanctified love to their Families the natural love doth incline them to take care and provide for their Families in things of concernment to the outward Man 1 Tim. 5.8 Otherwise they are worse than an Infidel and if they had true sanctified love to their families this would make them as readily to take care for their Families in their Soul concernments and Abraham-like as a head of the Family to instruct yea command an attendance to the great things of God Gen. 18.19 but these want natural affection truly sanctified 2. These want love to God and to their own Souls 1. They want love to God for this would dispose them to a through care to bring up their Family in the nurture and admonition of the Lord Eph. 6.4 2. They want love to their own Souls it s not possible for one to pitty his own Soul but presently he will pitty and take care of the Souls of others especially of those who are nearly related to him if a Master of a Family be under a strong impression and a Bowel melting working of a Spirit of love to his own Soul Ephraim-like to bemoan himself Jer. 31.18 he will then need no other motive to make him pray in his Family Instruct Catechise and use all possible means for the good of his Family 3. These want true love to Church and Common-wealth they cannot but know that such as Families are such at last the Church and Common-wealth must be How can it be that a Master of Family who liveth in neglect of Family Duties should prove a true Friend to the purity and power of Religion in Church or to a true pious Government in the Common wealth he that will not serve God in his own House will not be a true Servant of God in the house of the Lord nor in the Common wealth let us view well Joshuah's speech and practice Josh 24.15 and what David saith Psal 101.2 The third Particular followeth and that is a neglect of private Christian Meetings 1. As those set and solemn Meetings for Conference about the great things of God and to pray together and sometimes adding Fasting and Prayer 2. Or those occasional Meetings of Christians taking opportunities as they have occasions one with another to converse about their Soul concerns And the neglect of these is either 1. Total there are some who have wholly forsaken these Assembling of themselves together or 2. If they hold up some set Meetings yet as to those intimate Discourses by laying together their Observations of the times and other Soul-concerns as those Jewels spoken of in Mal. 3.16 from these they

to be our Christian Sabbath we may see in 1 Cor. 16.12 1. That which is there exprest is by way of precept and injunction for so the Apostle saith he had given order concerning the collection of the Saints and therefore not left it as a matter of indifferency or liberty but whosoever did neglect this did transgress the Apostolical precept and order 2. This order for the collection for the Saints was not only sent to the Churches at Corinth but to the Churches at Galatia so that it was an order and injunction common to the Churches 3. The order did not only respect the collection it self but the time and day of it that upon the first day of the week let every one lay by him in store as God hath prospered him so it is express in the 2 d. verse now the Argument follows Arg. The first day of the week was either a common and indifferent day or a holy day the day of the Christian Sabbath but no common and indifferent day for how could the Apostle by his injunction and order make it necessary for the Churches to attend this work of mercy collection for the Saints on the first day of the week if it was but a common day and thus esteem one common day above another contrary to his Doctrine Rom. 14.5 far be it from us to think that the Apostle could so contradict his own Doctrine but it was because the first day of the week was made to be a holy day and such works of mercy are very suitable unto the day 2 Arg. Or thus the Apostle did order collection for the Saints to be on the first day of the week either because it was the Christian Sabbath or for some other reasons but I have so long waited to he●r of some other reasons why the Apostle should lay an injunction upon all Churches to have such an honourable respect to this day without any consideration of it as the Lords Day and Christian Sabbath and all the Objectors and Cavillers against the first day of the week the Lords day have not brought forth the least appearance of any reason to the contrary that I confess I begin to think that the Opponents themselves within themselves have received a Sentence of despair of giving any reason only they have travelled and brought forth one poor Objection that there is not a word spoken of a Sabbath here and who saith there is but the Argument is taken from the Apostles Order and by Apostolical Order advanced the first day of the week above any other day and that the reason of this is either because it is the day of the Christian Sabbath or for some other reason which never yet was brought to light and therefore we conclude as in the former that the Apostle by his Doctrine did settle the first day of the week to be a holy day a Christian Sabbath Now in the next place concerning the practice of the Apostles the practice of the Churches of which much may be said in order to their attendance to holy Duties in the first day of the week because it was a day separated for holy Worship but at present we may consider Acts 20.7 First it was a Church assembly there spoken of for it is said the Disciples came together 2. Secondly the end for the sake of which they came together it was for the sake of religious duties that they might partake of the Lords Supper called breaking of Bread in this place as in Act. 2.42 and did not go alone without other Religious performances viz. Prayer and hearing the Word Preached 3. Thirdly It is spoken of as a custom and usuall practice of the Disciples therefore it is said on the first day of the week when the Disciples came together Paul having waited for and taking this opportunity to Preach to them for he abode seven dayes among them but this was the last day his being ready to depart on the morrow as is exprest in the 7th verse Arg. Hence the Argument is Paul and the Disciples with him either kept the Seventh day Sabbath or the first day of the week a Christian Sabbath or else they kept no Sabbath at all if they had kept the seventh day Sabbath that was the day before this First day of the Week then they had a meeting after a Sabbath manner for Religious Duties then the Evangelist would not have spoken of this Meeting on the First day as the only Church Meeting of the seven dayes of the Apostles abode amongst them therefore it was the first day of the Week in which Paul and the Disciples assembled and kept as a Christian Sabbath Much more hath been said by others and I have somewhat more in readiness to say if the occasion calleth for it and God giveth opportunity But at present having proved that the first day of the Week was by the Lord himself made by his Word and by his Works to be the Lords day and our Gospel and Christian Sabbath and his Apostles were guided by the Holy Ghost to settle it in the room and place of the seventh day both by their Doctrine and by their Practice we proceed to make Reply to John R. his Answers to the Questions And concerning his Preface to his Answers I shall at present omit it until I come to his Conclusion and then consider both his Preface and Conclusion together these and the Superscription being to the same Purpose and the same for substance Quest 1. The first Question Are not just and necessary Consequences from Scripture to be taken for the mind of the Holy Ghost in Scripture or else how shall we Answer the Papists against the error of Transubstantiation John R. his Answer is Ans If the Consequence drawn from Scripture is agreeable to the Scripture and no wayes contrary to the Scripture it must be granted truth because it speaks what the Scripture speaks But as to the Papists John R. saith they had no Scripture that said a piece of Bread was the body of our Lord or that our Lord was turned into a piece of Bread or that Bread was turned into our Lord for our Lord did not say to his Disciples Take eat this Bread is my Body as the Papists did affirm therefore they said that which the Scripture did not say so do you say that which the Scripture doth not say for you call the first day of the Week the Christian Sabbath but the Scripture doth not you call every first day of the Week the Lords Day but the Scripture doth not so Reply The Reply to Iohn R. his Answer follows His Answer consists of two parts 1. First partly of a seeming Concession granting that Consequences drawn from Scripture and agreeable to Scripture are truth c. 2. Secondly he compareth us unto the Papists for saying that which the Scripture doth not say and the Argument he gives is If we say the first day of the Week is the Lords day