Selected quad for the lemma: father_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
father_n	abraham_n	according_a	nation_n	1,151	4	7.1950	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A19694	A treatise of faith wherein is declared how a man may liue by faith and finde releefe in all his necessities : applied especially vnto the use of the weakest Christians / by Ezekel Culvervvell.	Culverwell, Ezekiel, 1553 or 4-1631.	1623 (1623)	STC 6113.5; ESTC S4074	171,849	534

God will surely helpe him this wil make him so to rest contented and comforted as if hee had all present helpe that could be deuised So for spirituall if any should fall into sinne so as he had no hope of pardon and amendment yet then to beleeue so as to rest vpon Gods promise for both and so to be comforted this is to liue by faith The practise of both is plaine in scripture and in the liues of Gods faithfull seruants Notable is that of Abraham whereof Genesis which the Apostle citing Rom. 4. 18. affirmeth that he aboue hope beleeued in hope that hee might become the father of many nations according to that which was spoken so shal thy seed be Wherin it is euident that Abraham seeing no possibility in naturalreasō that he being so old his wife not only barren from her youth but now past childe-bearing should haue a sonne yet he as it is said Not weak in faith considered not his owne body now dead when he was about an hundred yeares old neither yet the deadnesse of Sarahs wombe staggered not at the promise of God through vnbeliefe but was strong in faith and gaue glory to God and beeing fully perswaded that what he had promised hee was also able to performe The selfe same is to bee seene in that honorable company of th●se worthy seruants of God in all ages from the beginning of the world to that day mentioned Heb. 11. Who all are brought in as a cloude of witnesses testifiing this truth that The iust shall liue by faith In all which may appeare that in whatsoeuer estate or straight they were brought into yet they so liued by faith that nothing could dismaye them much lesse ouerthrow them By ●hose example wee might learne if that we would make the right vse hereof that what condition soeuer should befall vs that we might so rest on Gods word and promise for all helpe needefull that in greatest conflicts wee should bee more then conquerours Rom. 8. 37. as the Apostle speaketh What a blessed estate this were it is not hard to shew whereof wee may see more when wee haue better learned how to attaine hereunto thus to liue by faith which was the second thing in this point propounded How to attaine to liue by faith For the attaining whereof these two things are carefully to be performed First to call to minde Gods promises Secondly to apply them For the former in all time of need that is whensoeuer God shall bring vs into any straight that we see not any way of escaping or meanes for our reliefe in such sort that wee begin to sinke into many feares and vexations of minde then to inquire if there be any good word of the Lord spoken for our comfort that so calling it to minde wee might raise thereout such hope of helpe in due time as may quiet and content vs till wee doe enioy in effect that which before we did expect This doe I take to be the ground of all our faith whereby we liue be maintained and vpheld in all our trials As was before more fully laid out when I shewed the way how any doe at the first attaine to sauing faith which is no other here intended for the daily increase of faith that we may liue thereby but the continuance of the same meanes namely to call to minde and to lay before vs Gods gracious promises made to comfort his people in all their necessities that thereby we might bee comforted and quieted in all the tempests of our vnruly thoughts and distempered affections patiently to waite on God for his helpe which shall not bee wanting in that time sort measure which he seeth most meete This being then the ground of our faith whereby we liue namely Gods promises which are as so many Legacies bequeathed vs by our heauenly Father and by his Sonne Iesus Christ in his last wil and Testamen● what can be more behoouefull for vs then to search this wil Testamēt for al such legacies as may cōcerne vs seeing they be many some way or other to get into our mindes and memories at the least the most principall of these that we may haue them in a readines for our vse in all occasions to minister so good comfort as if wee had the best helpe present wee could deuise and desire What will be the gaine of this practise I had rather we found by proofe then heare by report and so I hope we shall doe when wee shall bee more particularly directed to put this instruction in practise But yet before hand for encouragement thus much will I say and no more then shall be found true That he who shall but endeauour in any truth to practise this which here is taught shall finde his whole profession wh●t euer his condition shall bee of prosperity or aduersitie more easie and more comfortable And therefore to vtter my thoughts more plainely if may be I aduise all that be weake of memory and not so exercised in the scriptures as some are that they can readily vpon euery occasion call to minde such promises of of God How to gather promises as bee then most fit for their vse that such I say if they can write would collect and gather out of the holy Scriptures such special promises as they shal conceiue may most concerne them and be fittest to strengthē their faith as need shall require For such as bee not able fitly thus to releeue themselues my next labour shall bee to gather some speciall promises such as I conceiue bee of most vse in our ordinary affaires and course of life and referre them to their places that they may more readily be runne vnto vpon all occasions and likewise I will shew how these may bee applyed to our seuerall necessities for the strengthening of our faith that so we may liue thereby and finde sufficient contentment in God when all other helpes faile All which wee shall hereafter more see in their place But now to proceede with that I haue in hand to shew how this vnualuable benefit of liuing by faith may be attained 1. The first thing required hereunto I haue shewed Psalm 85. 8 is to vse the Prophets words I will heare what God the Lord wil speak for hee will speake peace vnto his people and 〈◊〉 his Saints c. That is to call to minde what comfortable promises God hath made to his children in such case or condition as we be in that thereon wee may build our faith and liue thereby To which end this in the next place is to be performed that we may attaine to this grace to liue by our faith namely How to apply these promises to our selues That we wisely apply these promises both to our persons that wee be the true 〈◊〉 of them 〈◊〉 Secondly to our present condition That it is such as God hath specially made his promise vnto if the promise be speciall For

nature and to make him willing to doe Gods will though against his corrupt will this man need not doubt but that he hath the true feare of God which is so certaine a marke of Gods fauour and of euerlasting happinesse And this is the vse Gods children are to make hereof Vse Thus we see how the faithfull may by these two particular fruites of their faith loue and feare bee confirmed in the assurance of their saluation by Christ The same may be shewed in all the rest which the Scripture makes to be so many testimonies of sauing grace and happinesse to those that haue them As Blessed are the poore in spirit Mat. 5. 3. 10. they that mourne the humble meeke such as hunger after righteousnesse mercifull pure in heart peace-makers persecuted for righteousnesse sake All which are in this place gathered together by our Sauiour Christ to crosse the corrupt opinion of the world and to shew that they whom the world account aboue all men most miserable are indeed truly and onely happy The like hee doth in other places Mat. 16 28 19. 29. where hee maketh the denying of our selues Mar. 10. 30. taking vp the Crosse and following him forsaking all for him and for the Gospell to bee sure tokens to bee his who shall haue an hundred-fold in this world Luk. 9. and in the world to come life euerlasting To end this whole matter of assurance of saluation and to passe ouer many other fruites of Faith which doe proue the same as the confession of sinne mortification thereof ouercomming and Perseuerance All which bee oft made certaine proofes of happinesse This is the maine vse which is to bee made of all these Vse as hath oft been said that when as it oft falleth out with Gods children especially such as haue weake faith and tender consciences that they beholding their pronenesse to sinne and deadnesse of spirit to all holy duties doe fall into great feares and doubts of their saluation this may be some staie vnto them that they may see some of these fruites of their faith in them euen when they be at the lowest ebbe of grace by which they may comfort themselues that though they bee very sicke and weake yet they be not starke dead For whose sakes I will adde this obseruation by mine owne experience wherewith I haue quieted the mindes of many much perplexed in this case Markes of faith which is not seene for that they could not see they had any faith that there is a true liuing faith in many who haue no feeling thereof I haue obserued these foure vnfallible proofes 1. Vnquiet for want of faith First where Faith is and not felt the partie in whom it is cannot see that he hath any Faith is grieued for want of Faith and cannot bee quiet for want of it but mourneth as if hee had none which for the most part is the state of those that bee truely afflicted in conscience who faine would beleeue but yet in their owne sense doe not And yet in my experience I neuer knew any such who had any knowledge of the doctrine of Faith but indeed they had some Faith though they saw it not 2. Spare no meanes to get foitfi This will more appeare by the next effect of this insensible faith which is this that they who haue Faith and yet feele it not be very painefull in vse of all good meanes both publike and priuate by themselues and with oothers wherby they might hope to get this pretious gift of Faith which hardly would any doe if hee had not some taste of the sweetnesse of Faith though hee feele it not which so stirres vp his heart to seeke after it and therefore I hold this constant seeking of Faith to be a token of some to be in him alreadie A third and more principall effect of Faith in these 3. Carrie a good heart to God is this that though they see not Gods Fatherly loue to them yet they cannot thinke hardly of God but lay all the fault on themselues why they haue no more grace yea they will commend Gods mercie to others and cannot endure any dishonour to God which great loue of theirs to God doth shew they are loued of him yea that they haue by Faith apprehended it though they see it not and feare they haue it not The fourth proofe of Faith 4. A good conscience where it is not seene may be this that such haue a tender conscience shunning small sinnes which others dare boldly doe and bee carefull to please God in euery thing which many who be not so disquieted be more carelesse of So then if there bee any poore soules who cannot see their faith yet if they can see any of these effects of Faith in themselues let them know for a truth and to their comfort that they haue true Faith shall be saued And thus haue I said what I thinke meet for this first point how we may daily get more assurance that we be now in Gods fauour and shall want no good thing in this life and shall certainly in the end come to life euerlasting Which I againe doe exhort euery one who lookes for any blessing from God either in this life or that to come aboue all to labour for seeing without this assurance that wee be in Gods fauour how can wee looke for any blessing from God earthly or spirituall temporall or eternall whereas being assured hereof we may boldly looke for all other blessings needfull for our present comfort and eternall happinesse Concerning all which seeing the Lord who did well know the frailtie of his owne children All other blessings depend on this how readie they are vpon euery occasion to doubt of his helpe hath so plentifully recorded in the Scriptures both generally what a fatherly care hee hath of their welfare and also more specially what helpe they may look for from him in their particular necessities I doe not doubt but it will bee worth our labour to consider of them both and all little enough to comfort vs in our greatest need And first of the generall which containe vnder them all good things which God hath prepared and promised to all his children Of this sort may that come first which is the ground of all the rest namely that God will bee our God and of our seed after vs as hee said to Abraham the Father of the faithfull Gen. 17. 7. and so belongeth to all beleeuers as the Apostle shewes Rom. 4. 11. 16. which selfe same promise was after repeated to Abrahams posterity in al ages to be a staffe of comfort to them at all times therefore is it oft said That God is the God of Abraham the God of Isaac the God of Iacob Likewise God said to the people of Israel And I will take you to me to bee a people and I will be to you a God And most notable is that