Selected quad for the lemma: earth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
earth_n	glory_n	grace_n	heaven_n	5,746	5	5.4244	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A12168	A breathing after God. Or a Christians desire of Gods presence. By the late reverent and worthy divine Richard Sibs, Doctor in Divinity, master of Katherine Hall in Cambridge, and sometime preacher of Graies-Inne	Sibbes, Richard, 1577-1635.	1639 (1639)	STC 22477; ESTC S102403	23,657	124

have those loving baites from him he prayes but he doth not desire There are many that pray they say in their prayers Lead us not in temptation and yet they run into Temptation they feed their eyes and eares and senses with vaine things you know what they are well enough their lives are nothing but a satisfying of their lusts and yet they pray Lead us not in temptation And there are many persons that desire that that they dare not pray for they desire to be so bad But a Christian what hee desires he prayes for I desire in earnest to be in the house of the Lord I desire it of the Lord I put up my request to him and what I pray to him for I earnestly desire indeed Learne this in a word hence that When wee have holy desires stirred up by God turne them to prayers A prayer is more then a desire it is a desire put up to God let us turne our desires into prayers that is the way to have them speed One thing have I desired of the Lord. The reason why wee should in all our desires make our desires knowne to God is to keepe our acquaintance continually with God Wee have continuall use of desires of grace and desires of mortification of corruptions and of freedome from this and that evill that is upon us as many desires as we have let them be so many prayers turne our desires into prayers to God and so maintaine our acquaintance with God And we shall never come from God without a blessing and comfort hee never sends any out of his presence empty that come with a gracious heart that know what they desire And it brings peace with it when wee make our desires knowne to God by our prayer It brings peace that passeth understanding Ephes. 4. Put case God doth not heare our request that he doth not grant what we aske The peace of God which passeth understanding shall keepe your hearts and minds So that when we put up our requests to God with thankefulnes for that wee have received the soule will finde peace Therefore I say let us turne all our desires into prayers to maintain perpetuall communion and acquaintance with God oh it is a gainefull and comfortable acquaintance It is an argument and signe of a good conscience for a man to goe oft to God with his desires it is a signe that he is not in a wicked course for then he dares not appeale to the presence of God Sore eyes cannot endure the light and a galled conscience cannot endure Gods presence Therefore it is good to come oft into the presence of God it shewes that the heart doth not regard iniquity If I regard iniquity in my heart God will not heare my prayers It is an argument of a good conscience to come oft into the presence of God but I will not enter into the common place of prayer Wee see next his earnestnesse I have desired it of the Lord and I will seeke after it I will follow God still Here is his importunity in prayer his fervency his uncessancy and perseverance as the Apostle exhorts hee persevered in prayer I will seeke after it In prayer and in the use of all good meanes I will doe what I can So you see one qualification of prayer it must be with perseverance and importunity God loves importunate suitors though wee cannot endure to be troubled with such persons yet God loves importunate suitors As wee see in Luke 18. in the Parable of the Widow God there vouch safes to compare himselfe to an unrighteous Judge that cared neither for God nor man yet the importunity of the Widow mooved him to regard her So the poore Church of God shee is like a Widow with her hayre hanging about her This is Sion whom none regardeth yet this Widow the poore Church of God and every particular member of it they are importunate with the Judge of heaven and earth with God and will not he more regard the importunity of his children whom he loves and delights in that Call upon him day and night will not he regard their petitions when an unrighteous Judge shall care for the importunity of a poore Widow Thus you see the excellent fruit of importunity in our blessed Saviour himselfe and here in David I will seeke after it I will have no nay Therefore wee are exhorted in the Scriptures not to keep silence to give God no rest you that are the Lords remembrancers keepe not silence give him no rest as Iacob with the Angell wrastle with him leave him not till wee have a blessing As the woman of Canaan let us follow him still and take no nay Oh this is a blessed violence beloved when wee can set upon God and will have no nay but renew suite upon suite and desire on desire and never leave till our petitions be answered Can the hypocrite pray alway Would you know a comfortable note to distinguish an hypocrite from a true Christian take it hence Will the hypocrite pray alway Sometimes he will pray but if God answere him not presently he gives over but Gods children pray alwayes if the ground be good if they see the excellency of the thing and the necessity and withall joyne at the amiablenesse of it that it may be gotten When they see the excellency and the necessity and usefulnesse of the thing and the attainablenesse of it and that it is attainable in the use of meanes they need no more they will never give over That is the reason of that in the petitions Thy Kingdome come thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven But can wee doe the will of God on earth as it is done in heaven and doth Gods glorious Kingdome of heaven come while wee are here in earth No it doth not but the soule that is guided with the spirit of prayer it rests not in this or that degree but prayes till it be in heaven Thy Kingdome come I have grace now but I desire glory Thy will be done I desire to doe it as thy Saints in heaven though I cannot doe it but I desire and I will not give God rest but pray till all my prayers be answered in heaven and then I shall doe the will of God as it is done in heaven indeed Thus we ought eagerly and constantly to persevere in our desires till they be fully satisfied or else wee are but hypocrites Let us make conscience I beseech you of this duty more then wee have done and never give God over for grace for strength against our corruptions for his Church for the prosperity of the meanes of salvation for those things that we have ground for let us never give him over till we see hee hath answered our desires And when he hath answered our desires let us goe on still to desire more for this life is a life of desires the life of accomplishment is

glorious things in the new Testament the Holy of holies c. And hee desired to dwell in the Tabernacle to be neare the Arke the House of God why because God manifested his presence there more then in other places The Arke hath Gods name in diverse places of Scripture because God gave his answers in the Arke in the Propitiatory or Mercie-seate they came there to know his meaning what hee would have he gave his answers there He is said to dwell betweene the Cherubins there were two Cherubins upon the Mercy-seate and God is said to dwell betweene the Cherubins that is there he was present to give answers to the high Priest when hee came to aske David knew this well enough that God had vouchsafed a more speciall presence in the Tabernacle then in all the places of the world and therefore saith he I desire to dwell in the house of the Lord all the dayes of my life House we take for the persons that are in it and persons that are ordered or else it is a confusion and not a house it is a company of those that are voluntary they come not by chance into our house those that are members of our Society but there is an order there is a governour in a house and some that are under government and there is a voluntary conjunction and combination So the Church is a voluntary company of people that is orderly some to teach and some to be instructed and thereupon it is called a house And it is called the House of God because he is present there as a man delights to be present in his house It is the place where God will be met withall As a man will be found in his house and there hee will have suitors come to him where hee reveales his secrets A man rests hee lyes and lodgeth in his house where is a man so familiar as in his house And what other place hath he such care to protect and provide for as his house And he layes up his treasures and his jewels in his house so God layes up all the treasures of grace and comfort in the visible Church In the Church hee is to be spoken with as a man is in his house there hee gives us sweet meetings there are mutuall spirituall kisses Let him kisse me with the kisses of his mouth Cant. 1. A mans house is his Castle as we say that hee will protect and provide for God will be sure to protect and provide for his Church Therefore hee calls the Church of God that is the Tabernacle that was the Church at that time the house of God If wee apply it to our times that that answers the Tabernacle now is particular visible Churches under particular Pastors where the meanes of salvation are set up particular visible Churches now are Gods Tabernacle The Church of the Jewes was a Nationall Church there was but one Church but one place and one Tabernacle but now God hath erected particular Tabernacles every particular Church Congregation under one Pastor their meeting is the Church of God a severall Church independant Our Nationall Church that is the Church of England because it is under a government Civill which is not dependant upon any other forraine Prince it is a particular Church from other nations In that God calls the Church his House it shewes the speciall respect that hee hath to his Church God though he be present every where yet he is present in another manner in his Church As for instance the soule is present in all the parts of the body but the soule as farre as it understands is onely in the braine as farre as it is the fountaine of life it is in the heart it hath offices and functions in all the parts but in the speciall function the rationall function of it as it discourseth and reasoneth it is in the braine so for our apprehension sake God is every where but as hee sanctifies and poures out his blessings and opens and manifests his secrets so he is in his Church especially God is every where but hee is in another way in heaven then in other places hee is there gloriously so in earth hee is every where but he is in another manner in the Church the heaven upon earth then in other places hee is there as in his house to protect them provide for them as his family and there hee abides by his Ordinances and takes solace and delight God delights himselfe in his Church and Children that attend upon his Ordinances where Two or three are met together I will bee in the middest of them When Gods people meet together in the Church God is present among them So you see in what respect the Tabernacle then and particular Churches now which answer it are called the House of God Let us learne this for our duty as well as consider our comfort in that the Church is the House of God let us carry our selves as wee should decently in the house of God Those that are to looke to the house of God they should purge out all uncleane corners that God may delight to dwell in his House still that we give him no cause to depart out of his House That I may Dwell in the house of the Lord c. The act here is that I may dwell in the house of the Lord. Hee did not desire to be in it for a day or a little time to salute it and so to leave it but to dwell in the House of the Lord and to dwell there for ever You see here that Christians have a constant love to the best things a constant desire to dwell in the house of God You may thinke it a strange desire of this holy man to dwell in the House of God but thinke then of the continuednesse of his desire it was even to heaven it selfe he desired to dwell in the House of God for ever For what end I desire to dwell in the House of God that I may dwell in the love of God and in the care of God to me in Christ for ever I doe not desire to dwell in the House of God as it is a meeting and there an end but I desire to dwell in the House of God that I may dwell in the love and care of God and not onely dwell in his care and love to me and his care and esteeme of me but that I may dwell in my love to him that I may abide in his love and faith in him that I may abide in Christ. It is not onely for a man to abide in the House of God and goe no further then so but to abide in the love of God and in our love and care and faith and dependance upon him to make God our house to live and walke and abide in to dwell in God as Saint Iohn saith not onely in the House of God but God himselfe And the upshot of all his Hag. 2. 7. Contents of the former part of the Psalme 1 Davids comfort 1 In Gods goodnes to himselfe 2 Cor. 1. 4. 2 In the destruction of his enemies who are described 1 By their malice 2 By their ruine 2 Davids courage 3 His care Division of the Text. Quest. Answ. Difference of things in the world Quest. Answ. The scope of a good heart in the use of Gods Ordinances The scope of a good heart in the use of Gods Ordinances The Prophet saith One thing have I desired 2 In respect of God 2 In respect of the soule 3 In respect of grace Vse To shew the vanlty of wordly men Thoughts and desires the first issues of the heart Motion stirred up by desire Holy desires arise 1 From Christ. 2 Esteeme 3 Deliberate judging Observ. The spirit stirres up holy desires in Gods children Quest. Answ. Desires are true 1 By the object 2 Fervency 3 Constancie 4 From Gods Love 5 Tend to Gods honour To examine our desires Simile Vsing all meanes and remooving all hinderances Quest. Answ. How to know good desires are strong Isay 26. 8. Object of Davids desire God August Observ. To turne desires into prayers To keepe acquaintance with God Ephes. 4. Note of a good conscience Davids importunity Observ. Perseverance and importunity requisite in prayer Luke 18. Quest. Answ. Answ. God doth notanswer our desires presently 1 God loves to heare our prayers 2 To keepe us humble 3 To exercise our graces 4 To praise Gods blessings 5 To use them better A spirit of prayer better then particular lessigs Object Psal. 23. 5. 6. Answ. Assurance of that we pray for no hinderance to prayer Dan. 9. Ioh. 17. Ezech. 36. Specification of Davids desire To dwell in the House of God House what House of God Cant. 1. Gods respect to his Church Simile To carrie our selves decently in Gods House Love of Gods children to good things constant David desired to dwell 1 In Gods love to him 2 In his love to God