Selected quad for the lemma: grace_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
grace_n	hate_v	heart_n	uppermost_a	28	3	16.8553	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A50480	En oligo christianos, the almost Christian discovered, or, The false-professor tried and cast being the substance of seven sermons, first preached at Sepulchres, London, 1661, and now at the inportunity of friends made publick / by Matthew Meade.	Mead, Matthew, 1630?-1699.	1662 (1662)	Wing M1546; ESTC R9895	121,691	343

Christian It is a less evil to do sin and not love it then to love sin and not do it for to do sin may argue onely weakness of Grace but to love sin argues strength of lust What I hate that do I Rom. 7.15 Sin is bad in any part of man but sin in the affection is worse then sin in the conversation for sin in the conversation may be onely from infirmity but sin in the affection is the fruit of choyce and unregeneracy 6. All sin may be chained and yet the heart not changed and so the nature of the sinner is the same as ever A dog chained up is a dog still as much as if he was let loose to devour There may be a cessation of arms between enemies and yet the quarrel may remain on foot still there may be a making Truce where there is no making Peace A Sinner may lay the weapons of sin out of his hand and yet the enmity against God still remain in his heart There may be a truce he may not sin against him but there can be no peace till he be united unto him Restraining Grace holds in the Sinner but it is Renewing Grace that changes the Nature Now many are held in by Grace from being open Sinners that are not renewed by Grace and made true Beleevers Now then if a man may forsake open sins and retain secret sins if he may forsake sin but not as sin if he may let one sin go to hold another the faster if a man may let all sin go and yet be a sinner still if sin may be left and yet be loved Finally if all sin may be chained and yet the heart not changed then a man may forsake sin and yet be but almost a Christian Fifthly A man may hate sin and yet be but almost a Christian Absalom hated Amnons uncleanness 2 Sam. 13 22 28. with his Sister Thamar yea his hatred was so great as that he slew him for it and yet Absalom was but a wicked man Object But the Scripture makes it a sign of a gracious heart to hate sin yea though a man do through infirmity fall into sin yet if he hates it this is a proof of grace Paul proves the sincerity of his heart and the truth of his grace by this hatred of sin though he committed it Rom. 7.15 what I hate that do I. Nay what is grace but conformitas cum archetypo a conformity of the soul to God to love as God loves to hate as God hates now God hates sin it is one part of his holiness to hate all sin Sol. And if I hate sin then am I conformed to God and if I am conformed to God then am I altogether a Christian It is true that there is a hatred of sin which is a sign of grace and which flows from a principle of grace and is grace as for instance To hate sin as it is an offence to God a wrong to his Majesty to hate sin as it is a breach of the command and so a wicked controuling Gods will which is the onely rule of goodness to hate sin as being a dis-ingenuous transgression of that law of love established in the blood and death of Christ and so in a degree a crucifying of Christ afresh To hate sin as being a greiving and quenching the Spirit of God as all sin in its nature is Thus to hate sin is grace and thus every true Christian hates sin But though every man that hath grace hates sin yet every man that hates sin hath not grace For A man may hate sin from other principles not as it is a wrong to God or a wounding Christ or a greiving the Spirit for then he would hate all sin for there is no sin but hath this in the nature of it But 1. A man may hate sin for the shame that attends it more then for the evil that is in it Some sinners there are who declare their sin as Sodom and hide it not Isa 3.9 they are set down in the seat of the scornful they glory in their shame Psal 1.1 Phil. 3.19 But now others there are who are ashamed of sin and therefore hate it not for the sins sake but the shames sake This made Absalom hate Amnons uncleanness because it brought shame upon him and his Sister 2. A man may hate sin more in others then in himself so doth the Drunkard he hates drunkenness in another and yet practises it himself The Lyar hates false-hood in another but likes it in himself Now he that hates sin from a principle of grace hates sin most in himself he hates sin in others but he loaths most the sins of his own heart 3. A man may hate one sin as being contrary to another There is a great contrariety between sin and sin between lust and lust It is rhe excellency of the life of grace that it is a uniforme life there is no one grace contrary to another the graces of Gods Spirit are different but not differing faith and love and holiness are all one they consist together at the same time in the same subject nay they can't be parted there can be no faith without love no love without holiness and so on the other hand no holiness without love no love without faith Tit. 3.3 So that this makes the life of grace an easie and excellent life but now the life of sin is a distracting contradictious life wherein a man is a servant to contrary lusts the lust of pride and prodigality is contrary to the lust of covetousness c. Now when one lust gets to be the Master lust in the soul then that works a hatred of its contrary where covetousness gets the heart there the heart hates pride and where pride gets uppermost in the heart there the heart hates covetousness Thus a man may hate sin not from a principle of grace but from the contrariety of lust He don't hate any sin as it is sin but he hates it as being contrary to his beloved sin Now then if a man may hate sin for the shame that attends it if he may hate sin more in others then in himself and if he may hate one sin as being contrary to another then he may hate sin and yet be but almost a Christian Sixtly A man may make great vows and promises he may have strong purposes and resolutions against sin and yet be but almost a Christian Exod. 8.8 1 Sam 26 21. Thus did Saul he promises and resolves against his sin Return my Son David saith he for I will no more do thee harm What promises and resolves did Pharoah make against that sin of detaining Gods people Saith he I will let the people go that they may do Sacrifice to the Lord and again I will let ye go and ye shall stay no longer Exod. 9.28 And yet Saul and Pharaoh both perished in their sins the greatest purposes and promises

for the good of our own souls that they may be saved for whoever be bettered by our gifts yet we shall miscarry without grace 3. A man may have a high profession of Religion be much in externall duties of godliness and yet be but almost a Christian Mark what our Lord Christ tells them in Mat. 7.21 Not every one that saith unto me Lord Lord shall enter into the Kingdom of Heaven that is not every one that makes a profession of Christ shall therefore be owned for a true Disciple of Christ Rom. 9 6 All are not Israel that are of Israel nor are all Christians that make a profession of Religion What a goodly profession had Judas he followed Christ left all for Christ he Preached the Gospel of Christ he cast out Devils in the name of Christ he eat and dranck at the Table of Christ and yet Judas was but a Hypocrite Most professors are like Lillies fair in shew but foul in sent or like Pepper hot in the mouth but cold in the stomack The finest lace may be upon the coursest cloth It is a great deceit to measure the substance of our Religion by the bulk of our profession and to judge of the strength of our graces by the length of our duties The Scriptures speak of some who having a forme of godliness yet deny the power thereof Deny the power 2 Tim. 3.5 that is they don't live in the practise of those graces which they pretend to in their duties he that pretends to godliness by a specious profession and yet doth not practice godliness by a Holy conversation he hath a forme but denies the power Loquitur hic ut piso vivit ut Gallonius Hugo compares such to the Ostrich qui alas habet sed non volat which hath great wings but yet flies not many have the wings of a fair profession but yet use them not to mount upward in spiritual affections and a Heavenly conversation But to clear the truth of this that a man may make a high profession of Religion and yet be but almost a Christian take a four fold evidence 1. If a man may profess Religion and yet never have his heart changed nor his state better'd then he may be a great professor and yet be but almost a Christian But a man may profess Religion and yet never have his heart changed nor his state renewed He may be a constant hearer of the word and yet be a sinner still he may come often to the Lords Table and yet go away a sinner as he came we must not think that duties ex opere operato can confer grace Many a soul hath been converted by Christ in an Ordinance but never was any soul converted by an Ordinance without Christ 1 Cor. 20 16. And doth Christ convert all that sit under the ordinances surely no for to some the word is a savour of death unto death And if so then it is plain that a man may profess Religion and yet be but almost a Christian 2. A man may profess Religion and live in a forme of godliness in Hypocrisie Isaiah 48. 1. Hear ye this O House of Jacob which are called by the name of Israel and are come forth out of the waters of Judah which sware by the name of the Lord and make mention of the God of Israel but not in truth nor in righteousness what do ye think of these they make mention of the Name of the Lord there is their profession but not in truth nor in righteousness there is their dissimulation and indeed their could be no hypocrisie in a Religious sence were it not for a profession of Religion for he that is wicked and carnal and vile inwardly and appears to be so outwardly he is no Hypocrite but is what he appears and appears what he is Hypocrita cupit videri justus But he that is one thing really and another thing seemingly is carnal and unholy and yet seems to be good and holy he is an hypocrite Tollet instit Sacerd. l. 8. c. 9. Thus the Casuists define hypocrisie to be simulatio sanctitatis a counterfeiting of Holiness and this fits exactly with the Greek word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which is from 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to counterfeit And to this purpose the Hebrews have too words for Hypocrites panim which signisies facies 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 from the root 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and Chanephim which signifies counterfeits from chanaph to dissemble so that he is an hypocrite that dissembles Religion and weareth the face of holiness and yet is without the grace of holiness he appears to be in semblance what he is not in substance he wears a forme of godliness without onely as a cover of a prophane heart within He hath a profession that he may not be thought wicked but it is but a profession and therefore he is wicked He is the religious Hypocrite religious because he pretends to it and yet a Hypocrite because he doth but pretend to it he is like many men in a Consumption that have fresh looks and yet rotten Lungs or like an apple that hath a skin fair but a rotten coar many appear righteous who are onely righteous in appearance And if so then a man may profess Religion and yet be but almost a Christian 3. Custome and fashion may create a man a professor as you have many that wear this or that garb not because it keeps them warmer or hath any excellency in it more then another but meerly for fashion Many must have powdered hair spotted faces feathers in their Caps c. for no other end but because they would be fools in fashion So many profess christianity not because the means of grace warms the heart or that they see any excellency in the ways of God above the world but meerly to follow the fashion I wish I might not say it hath been true of our days because Religion hath been uppermost therefore many have professed it it hath been the gaining trade and then most would be of that trade Religion in credit makes many professors but few proselites but when religion suffers then its confessors are no more then its converts for custome makes the former but conscience the latter He that is a Professor of Religion meerly for custome sake when it prospers will never be a Martyr for Christs sake when Religion suffers He that owns the truth to live upon that will disown it when it comes to live upon him They say that when a house is decaying and falling all the Rats and Mice will forsake it while the house is firme and they may shelter in the rooff they 'l stay but no longer lest in the decay the fall should be upon them and they that lived at top should lye at bottome My brethren may I not say we have many that are the vermine the Rats and Mice of Religion that would live under the roof of it