Selected quad for the lemma: duty_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
duty_n	pray_v	prayer_n	see_v	2,526	5	3.9835	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A85370	The discoverie of a publique spirit: presented in a sermon before the Honourable House of Commons at Margarets Westminster, at their publique fast, March 26. 1645. / By William Goode B.D. pastor of Denton in Norfolk, on of the Assembly of Divines.	Goode, William, b. 1599 or 1600.	1645 (1645)	Wing G1093; Thomason E279_4; ESTC R200027	24,847	37

in the way of our happinesse That which prayer cannot bring to passe no other meanes in the world will ever be able to effect As Sampsons conquering strength lay in his haire so the most prevailing strength of a Christian lyeth in his prayers The greatest blessings and deliverances we have hitherto had have been the births of prayer How many dangerous Plots against us have been discovered and prevented how many victories gotten how many impediments removed and great workes done towards the happy settling of this Church and State to many of which we have contributed little or nothing but our prayers Thirdly Church-worke the perfecting of the work of Reformation is especially the work of prayer when Daniel understood that Gods time was come for the reparation of his Church he sets most earnestly upon this work of prayer Dan. 9. 17. saying Now therefore O Lord heare the prayer supplication of thy servant and cause thy face to shine upon thy Sanctuary that is desolate for the Lords sake God will doe his Churches work and make her glorious but not without his peoples prayers The heathen round about shall know that I build the ruined places and plant that was desolate I the Lord have spoken it and I will doe it I will yet for this be enquired of by the house of Israel to doe it for them When God speaks of the glorious times the Church should enjoy he then promises to heare the prayers of his afflicted Saints Psal. 102. 16 17. When the Lord shall build up Sion he shall appeare in his glory he will regard the prayer of the destitute he will not despise their prayer Fourthly there is no prayer made to God but brings a blessing either that we aske or els that which is better for us If we cannot pray the Kingdome into peace and the Church into a perfect reformation in our dayes yet we shall pray our soules into heaven Now what I have here spoken of prayer must be understood of holy a humble b faithfull c fervent d constant waiting prayer e made in the Name and mediation of Iesus Christ f ●●to God I now come to the duty of the day What I am now teaching and you hearing we are all now professing that all other endevours for the publique good are of little consequence without earnest prayer to God for his blessing upon them We are all this day called to pray for the kingdome and to wing our prayers with faith fasting mourning for our sinnes and reformation of our lives O that God would be pleased of his free grace to helpe us rightly and spiritually to performe this dayes duties and then all other services for the good of Church and Common-wealth would be more successefull We must remember we are to pray for a kingdome the cryes of whose sinnes are exceeding loud and will be too hard for cold and formall but especially for sinfull prayers Oh that we could present God with the sacrifice of prayer from hearts truly broken and in deepe sense and abhorrence of all our former sinnes we can doe no such service for the Kingdome as this would be Surely our prayers would have beene more prevailing if God could have said to none of us as to those Isa. 29. 13. You draw neare unto me with your mouthes but your hearts are farre from me When ye fast ye fast for debate Isa. 38. 4. With your mouth you shew much love but your hearts run after your covetousnesse Ezek. 33. 31. Consider Prayer and Fasting are the Kingdoms plaisters but woe be to us if through formalitie or want of reformation of our lives we turne those plaisters into poison and make the sores of the Kingdome the more to gangrene Beloved I beseech you trifle not with God this day take not his Name in vaine get your hearts broken your spirits afflicted for your owne and Englands sinnes let no burden in the world be so heavy to you as sinne Accept of the punishment of your iniquities and covenant strictly to obey God in all his wayes for the time to come we are sure our sins among others have multiplied the Kingdomes sores how then should we strive with God that our sighs our tears our prayers may be the Kingdomes cures You have long had two beautifull children at the birth Peace and Reformation but there was never yet strength to bring forth because the right midwives have not beene used unfeigned faith and true repentance Thus much in generall I now come honoured Senators to a particular exhortation unto you Godly men have ever beene serviceable to their generations Be you then exhorted worthy Patriots courageously wisely sincerely and throughly to serve your owne generation You have better opportunities then ever any Parliament of England had before you to be effectuall means of the happinesse both of Church and Common-wealth Remember you must give a strict account unto the King of Kings of that price that is put into your hands Labour to doe publique service with publique spirits let no false Bias upon your hearts rob you either of the comfort or successe of your great adventures of your long and unparalleld labours in the publique cause It is the greatest honour and happiest priviledge in the world to be employed for God and the good of others Publique service done with an upright heart for Gods glorie is the best seed that can be sowne and will returne the most plentifull Harvest of temporall and eternall happinesse If this be your wisdome sincerely to improve all your talents for the glory of God and the Publique good Solomon tells you length of dayes are in her right hand and in her left hand riches and honour Pro. 3. 16. God tels the Iews when they had laid but the foundation of the Lords Temple From this very day I will blesse you Thou shalt build me a House saith God to Solomon 2 Sam. 7. 15. And I will establish the Throne of thy Kingdome for ever Riches and Honour both are the reward of Publique service Jehoiadah was honoured because he had done good in Israel 2 Chro. 4. 16. This leaves the sweetest perfume in the world upon our names unto posterity What honour will be like this when it shall be read out of the Records of this Parliament Such a man was a David a Iosiah a Nehemiah a Zerubbabel unto his generation in the time he lived in You see what happinesse it is to be sincerely and succesfully serviceable to the Publique Now that you may be thus serviceable to your generation I desire to present you with some Scripture directions and I have done First undertake publique service with personall Reformation get a sure interest in Christ Iacob was called Israel because as a Prince hee had power with God when hee wrestled with him by prayer * Labour all to be such Israels and then there is no worke will be too hard for you The greatest naturall parts will

is meant by served and what by generation First what is meant by served And to see this we will borrow light from the history of Davids life In the second of Sam. 23. David is called the sweet singer of Israel being the Pen-man of that precious Modell of divine truth the Booke of Psalmes 2 Sam. 6. He brought backe the Arke of God unto his Citie he tooke care of the preservation and observation of the Lawes of God thereby to propagate the true Religion 2 Sam. 8. We read that David subdued the common enemies of Israel and put Garrisons in their Cities for the safetie of the Common-wealth and executed judgement and justice to all the people Thus David both as a King and as a Prophet was a glorious instrument in his lifetime of advancing the good of Church and Common-wealth This was Davids service Secondly What is meant by generation By generation is meant the men of his generation and two things are implied by it First the time of his service which was the time of his naturall life there are times of suffering for the bad and times of reigning for the good hereafter but no time of serving but in this life Secondly here is the latitude of Davids service it was not swallowed up in the gulfe of selfe nor confined within the narrow verge of his own family it was not private but publique service extended to all upon whom by vertue of his calling he could have any influence all that were of his owne generation In the words thus explained the point of doctrine clearely observable in them is this Such as are truly godly according to their abilities and callings are serviceable for the publique good of Church and Common-wealth in the times they live in For the full and cleare manifestation of which truth I will observe this order in the handling of it First I will shew that the godly have served Secondly why And thirdly how we ought to serve our owne generations First men of gracious spirits in all Ages have beene serviceable to their generations active for the publique good according to their abilities and places Righteous Noah spent many yeares and bestowed much cost in building an Arke to preserve the Church and such a stock of men and beasts as might recrute the earth which was wholly to be laid waste by an universall Deluge Godly Ioseph having the disposall of Egypts plenty provideth not onely for the famine of Egypt but of Canaan also he storeth up bread for his father Iacob and his family and obtaineth a Gos●e● for the people of God to inhabite in King d Iehosaphat assoone as he was invested with the Crown of Iudah abolished Idolatry sent Levites to teach the people the Law of God throughout all the Cities of Iudah and sent his Princes with them to countenance their worke he built store-houses and fortified the Cities with strong workes and men of warre Good Iosiah brake downe the Altars of Baalim stamped to powder the graven and the molten Images renewed the Covenant before the Lord and kept the Passeover with that exactnesse that the like had not beene kept in Israel from the dayes of Samuel e Saint Paul improved the rich treasury of gifts to the uttermost for the good of others who though he were free from all not ingaged to any yet became all things to all men that he might gaine the more 1 Cor. 9. 19. The like might be shewed of Zerubbabel Nehemiah Daniel and divers others recorded in Scripture But in a case so evident let these suffice Secondly the next thing to be inquired is the reason why godly men are so sollicitous for the publique good The first Reason hereof is because Christ hath charged this duty on every member of that body whereof he is the head 1 Cor. 12. 25. The members should have the same care one of another that the members of the natural body have The eye seeth not the foote walketh not the hand worketh not for it selfe but the whole body so in the body spirituall that member that indevoureth not the benefit of the whole body is no more a member of it then a wooden legge or a brazen hand is of the body naturall Phil. 4. 2. 5. Looke not every man on his owne things but on the things of others When we once give up our names to Christ we are no longer our owne nor that we have ours we are then listed for the publique service and receive our charge Gal. 6. 10. Doe good unto all men as ye have opportunitie Secondly because this is the end why God bestowes such talents upon his people wherewith they may be serviceable to the publique The manifestation of the Spirit is given to profit withall 1 Cor. 12. 7. Honour the Lord with thy riches Pro. 3. 9. The good servant in the Gospel is knowne by this that having received ten talents with the imployment of these he gained other ten Whatsoever we receive from God we take it but by a Letter of administration to imploy it according to the minde of the Donor for publique uses If we have power and the Common-wealth be not secured if we have gifts and the Church of God be not edified if we have riches and the poore be not relieved the naked cloathed the distressed comforted Christ Iesus will never owne us for his Matth. 25. 35. The Heathens by the law of nature had thus much Divinitie as to know they were bound to improve their parts and endowments for the common good and therefore it was a Law in Athens that every one when he came to the age of a man should take an oath whereof this was part that he should do his uttermost endeavour to leave the Common-wealth whereof he was a Member in a more flourishing estate then he found it The Egyptians had a Law that every one should give up his name and trade to the Governours of the Common-wealth that they might be able to take an account of him what benefit he brought to the Common-weal he lived in Omnes autem cives cum ad aetatem adolescentiae pervenissent conceptis verbis iurabant Pugnabo prosacris prosanctitatibus sive solus sive cum multis e●itar ne patriam meam tradam posteris deteriorem sed multo magis florentem Monstri atque prodigii simile sit aliquem in repub. sine publico fructu versari Aegyptiorum lex magnopere approbanda est qua singuli cogebantur nomina et artes suas apud moderatores reipublicae profiteri ut operis deinde sui rationem reddere cogerentur Osorius Lusit deregis institutione lib. 7. Thirdly publike service is most for the glory of God If I be a Father saith God Mal. 1. 6. where is mine honour The more we love God the more we honour him now God is most honoured by publike actions First Because publike actions are most examplary Ten thousand torches will not give so much light as