Selected quad for the lemma: ground_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
ground_n	bring_v	heart_n	seed_n	1,592	5	7.7636	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A13542	A man in Christ, or A new creature To which is added a treatise, containing meditations from the creatures. By Thomas Taylor, Dr. in Diuinity.	Taylor, Thomas, 1576-1632.	1629 (1629)	STC 23833; ESTC S101983	68,841	266

and as chaffe which the storme carrieth away This was Ieremies meditation Chap. 18. 17. 3. When I see or heare great windes doe great harmes to blow downe houses over mens heads unroote oakes and strong trees I must now looke to my foundation and rooting in grace be sure I bee founded on a rocke that when raines fall windes blow and stormes beate against my house it may stand Matth 7. 27. If wee builde our walls with untempered morter it shall fall a great shower shall come and hailestones shall cause it to fall and a stormie winde shall breake it Ezek. ●3 11 12. 4. When I see reedes and rushes tossed and shaken with every winde I must looke to my stablishing in the doctrine and profession of godlinesse that I bee not carried about with every winde of libertine doctrine every puffe of temptation every frivolous humane invention every frowne of superiours every threatning of the times every crosse occasion as a man unstable in the grounds of received truth Iohn Baptist was not as a reede shaken with the winde as many unsetled heads carried into all novelties conceits and opinions that no gid die conceit can bee broached but shall finde favourers and admirers of things in true judgement to be explored but labour for soundnesse within Wee have seene many faire Apples and Peares hanging on a tree lovely in sun-shine which in the next whistling winde quite fall off because they were rotten or unsound at the core Wee are yet in some calme but the storme riseth suddenly wee know not how soone wee shall bee shaken many prognosticks of foule and stormie weather are upon us Let us bee wise and settle our selves in sinceritie of heart and sounde love of the truth which shall hold us on our foundation when others shall bee overturned Thus the Prophet having sufficiently by the eyes of his minde drawne much matter of meditation from the heavens he casteth downe his eyes on the earth in the last verse of this Psalme and with admiration saith O Lord how wonderfull is thy name in all the earth Noting that not onely the heavens but also the earth being rightly considered may offer unto us abundant matter of divine meditation Seeing then the whole hosts of heaven and earth are before thee complaine not thou wantest matter whereon to meditate Come then and see what great works the Lord hath done in the earth and hearken what a loud voice it hath to leade us unto God and our selves See Iob 12. 7. Consider what barres or engines what mighty foundations uphold the massie substance of the whole earth and sea that the infinite weight should not fall through the soft thin and compassing ayre where no man can make a feather hang without some stay This was Iobs meditation which ledde him to the infinite power of GOD who hangeth the earth upon nothing Iob 26. 7. The whole frame of the heavens hath no other collumes than the ayre the ayre leaneth on the earth the earth hangeth on nothing but the mightie and powerfull Word of God From the unmoveable strength and stability of the earth whose foundation cannot be shaken we may fruitfully meditate of the stable and undoubted truth and certainty of the Word of the Lord both in his promises and menaces Isay 48. 13. My hand hath laid the foundation of the earth Therefore heare O Iacob he will doe his will in thee O Babel c. Psalme 125. 1 2. They that trust in the Lord shall bee as Mount Sion and stand for ever As the hils compasse Ierusalem so doth the Lord his people From the earth which is full of the goodnesse of the Lord Psalme 33. 1. Wee behold the riches of God whose footstoole it is 2 The bountifulnesse of God who hath given it to the sons of men Psalme 115. 16. and made it our table prepared and furnished with all dainty foode our house in which wee dwell and a kinde and liberall mother affording us all her riches and store at all times 3. The providence of God who cloatheth the grasse and decketh the earth and will hee not much more them that feare him Mat. 6. 4. The justice of God in the barrennesse of the earth A fruit of our fall and sin and a just curse of the barrennesse of our owne hearts A fruitfull land hee turneth to barrennesse for the sinnes of the inhabitants From the earth wee may raise sundry instructions concerning our selves 1. Matter of humility It being our common Mother whence we come and whether we must returne Dust thou art and to dust thou shalt returne The same in the fading of flowers withering of grasse and the mowing it downe put David in minde of the fading prosperity and unavoydable mortalitie of men Psal. 90. 6 7. Our matter is not iron steele c. but grasse All flesh is grasse This sense of our mortalitie should quicken the care of immortalitie 2. Heavenly-mindednes Seeing the earth is but a pricke or a point in comparison of heaven and so should it be unto us who would lose an infinite for a finite a thing of nothing See we not the earth hiding the wealth of it within the bowels all the rich mettals minerals and costly stones And why conceive not we hence their nature Her selfe would cover these from our eyes that we should not set our hearts on them nor they hinder us from better things 3. Love and labour after Gods Word I see what paines men will take to digge and fetch out metals as silver gold c. why should not I digge deepe for wisedome and esteeme Gods Word as gold tryed by the fire worth much paines and labour Prov. 2. 4. 4. I see the earth receiving seede returne abundant fruit according to the cost and paines of him that manureth it Oh where is the thankefull returne of fruits of grace which I should bring unto God for his cost and manuring of mee Every good heart and good ground must doe so Matth. 13. 8. Every faithfull soule as a fat soyle must bee in some proportion answerable to the meanes lest beeing often watered and remaining fruitlesse we be neere a curse c. Heb. 6. 7. We come now to particulars Looke upon the Plants and Trees 1. And put thy selfe in mind to become a tree of righteousnesse the planting of the Lord. 2. Thou seest the Tree stand firme upon his rootes against windes and tempests see thou be firmely rooted on Christ lest the blast of persecution shake thee 3. Thou seest the Tree well planted not onely greene but fruitfull Art not thou as a tree planted by the rivers of waters in Gods garden and orchard of grace Hath not hee warmed thy heart with his Sunne of grace and watered thy soyle with fruitfull showers Doest thou now not onely become truely regenerate moystened with the Spirit of grace to make thee flourish and looke greene but also bringest pleasant fruits unto the Lord else looke for

it is as the life of a Serpent whose head is crushed in peeces Secondly life in all living men is not alike but in some stronger in some weaker in some more healthfull in some more conflicted with diseases in some more aged and tall in some weaker and younger and so it is in the life of God But canst thou find it in any measure or degree happy art thou If naturall life be so precious and desireable what is spirituall and eternall Object Oh that I could finde this life in any measure Answ. First where life is in man there is a breathing Hast thou holy affections petitions Secondly where life is there it is maintained by food Dost thou desire the sincere milke the Mannah dost thou thrive and grow by it canst thou digest strong meate Thirdly where life is there is growth to the full vigour Dost thou grow in stature and strength outgrowing the weakenesse and infancy of grace passing the severall ages of Christianity Fourthly where life is there is motion Dost thou move in the manly actions of grace walkest thou diligently in the calling of a Christian abroad and at home Fifthly canst thou beare burthens afflictions from God without murmuring wrong from men without revenge Here is the life of God Thirdly for the third whereas in the first Adam wee are all cast out of Paradise of the third heaven as persons in disgrace with their Soveraigne are banished from the Court as Absalom after his slaying his brother was commanded out of the Kings presence and might not see the Kings face 2 Sam. 14. 24. The new creature restored to favour hath a tenure and certainty of the inheritance of Saints and not onely so but present possession though not full possession both in Christ who tooke possession as a head not for himselfe but for his members both in their name and to their use As also in beginnings of heavenly life and conversation already what comfort can a Saint in heaven want But of every new creature the Apostle saith expresly Hee is raised to heavenly places already ● Pet. 1. 6. The second ground of comfort hence is from Gods gracious acceptation who calleth them new Creatures that are very imperfectly new Wee have cleaving to us a great deale of old rubbish and corruption from the old man but if wee have the least beginnings of new Creation and the least seeds of sound grace but as a graine of mustard-seede he pleaseth to stile us thereby as if no old thing were left in us So in Canticles the fourth Thou art all faire my love and there is no spot in thee and in the context All old things are past Reas. 1. He nameth the end from the beginning and those new that onely tend to newnesse and speaketh of us as wee are in his account not our constitution Secondly for our incouragement our God telleth us wee have crucified the flesh and lusts Gal. 5. 29. when we are not yet halfe way in the worke that we are sanctified and saved when wee are but in the beginning of both both to hold us on in those beginnings For what account will hee make of us when wee are all new creatures that thus esteemeth of us now as also to assure us of perfection as the harvest was in the first fruits The new creature shall be as surely perfect as if he were already Thirdly that wee should admire this grace and imitate it in espying the grace of God in others and esteeme them from that and not from their corruptions Whereas cleane contrary we can fixe both our eyes upon the least frailties to disgrace them and the whole profession for their sakes but passe over many excellent graces Is this to be like God would we have God doe so by us or if he should should we ever carry the name of new creatures The third ground of comfort is in respect of the Lord his gracious preservation and perfecting this worke Now the Lord upholdeth this new creature 1. Partly by conquering oppositions and enmities against it 2. Partly by confirming it against all encounters and impediments To the former Sathan and our owne corruption could cast us off the happinesse of our first creation but not of the second Reas. 1. When God once bēginneth true grace it is followed with grace till all be new Deut. Chap. 31. ver 4 Perfect is the worke of God In the creation he never gave over till he had perfected all the Creatures so will he never give over the worke till there be a perfect new creature Secondly true grace though never so small is Gods earnest of glory and the Lord never tepenteth him of his earnest Thirdly sound grace is as the light that shineth more and more till perfect day Prov. 4. 18. The golden chaine cleareth it Rom. 8. 30. Once justified ever glorified Fourthly to destroy the new Creature requireth a stronger power than that which set it up Therefore all the gates of hell nor any created power can demolish this frame Which made the Apostle triumph as in a victory gotten Rom. 8. 37. Here is the comfort of Perseverance Secondly the Lord upholdeth his owne workemanship by confirming it against all encounters First of worldly basenesse Art thou in a meane condition a poore creature despised and cast off of men yet being a new creature thou art the Son of God an heire of grace thou hast a new name a new stone of absolution a new title to a new heaven and those new mansions which Christ is gone to trim up for thee Secondly of worldly wants Art thou poore and in want of necessaries and hast scarce from hand to mouth to provide foode and rayment yet being a new creature thou wantest not a full treasurie and store-house The same full and liberall hand that feedeth and sustaineth all the baser and inferiour creatures will much more sustaine thee a new Creature The Lord that looketh on thee not as a Creator but as a Father will looke to thee and will supply all wants with a new tree of life in the middest of the Paradise of God and with that new garment of immortality which never waxeth old Thirdly of worldly persecutions Because himselfe hath noted the true reason why the new creature is so hated in the world The reason is because it is new and called out of the old estate of the world For First every new thing is a wonderment for a time therefore men gaze at grace as if it were a Comet or new Starre Whence the Apostle saith of himselfe and the rest that they were as gazing stocks to men and Angels Secondly contrariety betweene the godly and wicked In one all is new a new judgement will affections actions in the other all is old still and a new patch will never agree with an old cloath Hence an old ungracious man will better agree with a