Selected quad for the lemma: ground_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
ground_n	let_v	yoke_n	young_a	15	3	7.3906	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A50489	The good of early obedience, or, The advantage of bearing the yoke of Christ betimes discovered in part, in two anniversary sermons, one whereof was preached on May-day, 1681, and the other on the same day in the year 1682, and afterwards inlarged, and now published for common benefit / by Matthew Mead.	Mead, Matthew, 1630?-1699.	1683 (1683)	Wing M1555; ESTC R19143	252,739	482

temptation Be always employed that when Satan comes he may not find thee at leisure Many have been kept from great temptations by being diligent in their Callings and many by idle diversions have fallen into great temptations and snares Dinah wanders abroad and is deflowred before she comes home Tertullian tells of a Christian Woman who going to see a Play was there possessed by the Devil and when he was asked by some who came to her and set themselves to pray him out how he durst possess one that was a Christian He answered I found her in my own Ground Oh how should this warn young ones to take heed of the Play-houses These are the Devils Ground and what he finds upon his own Ground he will possess as his own He is the Lord of that Mannor and being so the Waifs and Estrays are all his Let young ones therefore take up the Yoke of some lawful Calling betimes But this Civil Yoke is not the Yoke in the Text. Secondly The Yoke as Metaphorically taken is used in a Moral or Religious sense and so there is a threefold Yoke which it is not good to bear and a threefold Yoke which it is good to bear There is a threefold Yoke which is not good to bear The Yoke of Mosaical Ceremonies The Yoke of Antichristian Impositions The Yoke of sin and lust First The Yoke of Mosaical Ceremonies This in its day was a strict Yoke a heavy Yoke a Yoke as the Apostle Peter says which neither we nor our Fathers were able to bear Acts 15.10 But this Yoke the Lord Christ hath freed us from the Ceremonial Law was abolished by him and had no use after his death but by accident as he who builds a Vault lets the Centrels stand till he puts in the Key-stone and then pulls them away So that now the Rule is Stand fast in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free and be not intangled again in the Yoke of bondage Gal. 5.1 Secondly There is the Yoke of Antichrist which is made up of humane inventions and impositions in the Worship of God on which foundation all the Will-worship Superstition and Idolatry which at this day obtain in the World do stand This is a heavier Yoke than the former for that had once the sanction of God and there the authority made the subjection reasonable though burthensom but this never had and therefore more grievous because herein we are made Slaves to the lusts of men whereas in that we were Subjects to the will of God And therefore to be imposed upon by Ceremonies of mens devising when we are actually freed by Christ from the Ceremonies that were once of Gods appointing Bagshaw's Great Question about things indifferent is a very heavy Yoke a Yoke which one says is in the Imposer tyranny and in the Persons imposed upon burden and bondage And therefore a Yoke which without sin in transgressing the Precept of our Lord Christ Mat. 23.8 and his Apostle we may not submit to 1 Cor. 7.23 Because hereby we owne a power in the Imposers over conscience which God never gave to any and so abet them in their sinful usurpations upon the Prerogative of the Lord Jesus Christ Psal 2.6 Isai 9.6 Matth. 28.18 who alone is King and Head of the Church and hath the Government upon his shoulders And also because we make our selves to be what in things appertaining to the worship of God we are commanded not to be viz. the Servants of men Ye are bought with a price be not ye the servants of men 1 Cor. 7.23 This then is another Yoke which we ought not to bear When once humane inventions become Impositions and lay a necessity upon that which God hath left free then may we lawfully reject them as Plants of mans setting and not of Gods owning and which he will therefore in his time assuredly root up Matth. 15.13 Thirdly There is the Yoke of sin and lust For though Sinners are said to be Children of Belial that is without Yoke * So the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifies a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 absque 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 jugum quasi absque jugo scilicet Legis Divinae Clarius Tralatio à bubus jugum subire nolentibus Drusius And accordingly the Septuagint render it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 yet none under such a Yoke as they for as the service of Christ is perfect freedom so to be free from righteousness is the basest thraldom Rom. 6.20 If sin breaks one Yoke off it ever puts another on They have broken the Yoke and burst the Bonds Jer. 5.5 there is one Yoke cast off and then it follows in the next Verse Their transgressions are many their backslidings are encreased there is another Yoke put on As in conversion Christ breaks off the Yoke of sin and Satan and puts his own upon a man so the Sinner breaks off the Yoke of God Psal 2.3 Luke 19.14 27. and subjects himself to Satans Yoke and therefore some say wicked men are called Children of Belial making Belial the name of the Devil Quidam Belial nomen esse Daemonis contendunt ductum à 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 non 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ascendet quia nos ascendere sursum non permittet What concord hath Christ with Belial i. e. with Satan says the Syriac Version And hence Sinners are said to be taken captive by him at his will 2 Tim. 2.26 And he is said to work that is with power and success in the children of disobedience Ephes 2.2 And this is the Reign of Satan in the soul of a Sinner for as the Lord Christ reigns in the hearts of his people by the power of Grace and righteousness so Satan reigns in the hearts of wicked men by the power of sin and lust Now it cannot be good in any sense to bear this Yoke because it every way tends to the hurt and mischief of the soul 1. As it breaks off the Yoke of God which is everyway suited to the good and advantage of man For the commandment is holy just and good Rom. 7.12 holy as it is the expression of the will of the holy God iust in that it commands nothing but what is equal and fit to be obeyed good as it promotes the advantage and happiness of the soul that obeys it 2. As it inslaves the Creature to the basest bondage and most unreasonable vassalage in the World O what a noble Creature was man while he did bear the Image of God lived in his will and enjoyed a constant fellowship with him But alas How is the Gold become dim and the fine Gold changed Lam. 4.1 How hath sin debased his Excellency defaced the Image of God shut him out of favour and out of fellowship So that now he is become a Slave to Satan and all manner of lusts And can it be good to bear this Yoke What! to oppose God to be

Christ but an unseigned subjection to him Christ is said in that Day to separate the sheep from the goats Matt. 25.32 33. and to set the sheep at his right hand and the goats at his left The one for a blessing the other for a curse And who are the sheep why he tells you John 10.27 they that hear his voice and follow him and to these he gives eternal life v. 28. And who are the goats but carnal sinners that will have their lusts rather than Christ that cast off his Yoke Luk. 19. v. 14. v. 27. and will not have him rule over them And what is their doom bring them out and slay them before me There will be but two sorts of men in that day saints and sinners obedient and disobedient subjects and rebels the great question then will be whose servants you have been to whom have you lived to the world to lust or to Jesus Christ and according to this so shall your sentence be as you have lived so shall you be judged see Rom. 2.6 7 8. And therefore as ever you would be able to lift up your heads in the Day of Gods tryal it concerns you to try your selves CHAP. XII Several Rules for the knowledge of our state laid down both negatively and affirmatively Quest HOW may a man know whether he be under the Yoke of Christ or not Answ I will answer the question first Negatively 1. Negatively There are some of whom it may be said without the least rashness of judgment or breach of charity that they are far from the Yoke of Christ professed rebels to his Government and Authority They carry the tokens of Death and Damnation in their foreheads the Holy Ghost reckons them up in several places of Scripture one is in 1 Cor. 6.9 10. Be not deceived neither fornicators nor idolaters nor adulterers nor effeminate nor abusers of themselves with mankind nor thieves nor covetous nor drunkards nor revilers nor extortioners shall inherit the kingdom of God Revel 21.8 The fearful and unbelieving and the abominable and murderers and whoremongers and sorcerers and idolaters and all lyars shall have their part in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone which is the second Death These are all sons of Belial they are not under the Yoke of Christ I beseech you consider a little if any of these sins be chargeable upon you your case is desperate you are actually shut out from any claim in Christ You may know as certainly as if God had told you from Heaven that you are in a lost undone condition the Holy Ghost calls all such children of disobedience because of these things the wrath of God cometh upon the children of disobedience Ephes 5.6 2. Such as are scoffers at Godliness and make a mock of Religion This is one of the reigning sins of this Day 2 Pet. 3.3 There shall come in the last days scoffers walking after their own lusts Mark while they scoff at Godliness they live in ungodliness walk after their own lusts they will not leave their lusts and therefore scoff at Religion because that opposes their lusts Now what says the Scripture Judgment is prepared for scorners Prov. 19.29 2 Chron. 36.16 These therefore do openly declare they are not under the Yoke of Christ 3. Such as have a secret enmity against the power of Religion they have a form of godliness but deny the power of it 2 Tim. 3.5 These can be no subjects of Christs Kingdom for the Kingdom of God is not in word but in power 4. Such as have their secret reserve in closing with Christ they will not let Benjamin go some sweet sin some profitable lust they will not part with These are not under the Yoke of Christ for he that comes to Christ and hates not father and mother and wife and children and brethren and sisters yea and his own life also he cannot be my Disciple Luke 14.26 5. Such as live in the sinful neglect of Gods worship that slight hearing the word restrain prayer before God have no regard to their Souls Such are not under the Yoke of Christ for he that is of God heareth Gods word John 8.47 No man that slights the word and worship of God can be under Christs Yoke for it is the word that fastens this Yoke 6. Such as give up themselves to carnal pleasures and delights that are lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God 2 Tim. 3.4 These were never yet under the Yoke of Christ for they that are Christs have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts Gal. 5.24 7. He that trusts to his own righteousness and looks to find acceptance for that was never under the Yoke of Christ for this is a plain rejecting of Christ it puts him out of office a man makes a Saviour of his own duties and so as other men perish by their sins this man perishes by his duties None do reject Christ more than these Rom. 10.3 Going about to establish their own righteousness they have not submitted to the righteousness of God 8. Such as see no need of any strength for duty but their own can do all without any supernatural aids and divine incomes such were never under the Yoke of Christ For that will shew a man his daily need of divine power for every performance 9. He that never felt the burden of sin was never under the Yoke of Christ For none else are call'd to take it up Matt. 11.28 29. 10. Such as maintain an ungrounded confidence of the goodness of their condition without any experience of a change made in them are perswaded their state is safe but cannot shew one good ground for it these are not under the Yoke of Christ O that you that are young would lay these things to heart for now we are upon the search I pray therefore look every one inward is it thus with you for let me tell you whoever is under any one of these Characters hath never yet took up the Yoke of Christ They shall be reckoned among the enemies of Christ that have rejected his Yoke despised his Authority and as such they shall perish except by a timely conversion they be brought to close with and submit to him 2. Affirmatively How may a man know when he is really and indeed under the Yoke of Christ how may he come to a knowledge of the goodness of his state by the truth of his Subjection to the Lord Christ Give me leave to answer the question First More generally Secondly More particularly First More generally There are some things that will greatly contribute to this and without which he will never attain to a well grounded satisfaction in this matter and therefore they are very necessary to be considered and made use of in this inquiry Rule 1. One is a full and deliberate conference with your own hearts He that makes a judgment upon slight inquiries and sudden inconsiderate answers is very like to