Selected quad for the lemma: heart_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
heart_n	believe_v	faith_n	paul_n	2,181	5	6.7324	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A05093	A treatise of the excellencie of a christian man, and how he may be knowen. Written in French by Master Peter de la Place, one of the Kings counsel, and chiefe president of his court of aides in Paris. Whereunto is adioyned a briefe description of the life and death of the said authour, to the end that euerie one may knowe what he was. Translated into English by L. Tomson; Traité de l'excellence de l'homme chrestien et manière de cognoistre. English	La Place, Pierre de, 1520-1572.; Tomson, Laurence, 1539-1608.; Farnace, Pierre de. aut	1576 (1576)	STC 15231; ESTC S106746	64,194	137

the world for as much as the world which hath receiued nothing but the spirit of the world hath no vnderstanding of those things which sauor of the spirit of god For saith S. Paul euē as no man knoweth the things that are in mā but only the spirit of man euen so no mā knoweth the things of God but the spirit of God. So then a man can not iudge no not of him self whether he be a Christian or no vnlesse it be by the light of this spirit of God that is giuen him as S. Iohn witnesseth speaking in the persone of euerie Christian saying after this sort Hereby we know that God dwelleth in vs euen by the holy Ghost whom he hath giuen vs And this he sayeth vpon certaine knowledge not by gessing according to that that S. Paul sayeth That the same spirit beareth recorde with our spirit that we are the children of God and that it is not by the spirit of the worlde but by the spirit of God that we knowe those thinges which are giuen vs of God to wit our adoption hope of euerlasting life and more that we are able to say and to say truely that they are none of Christes which haue not this inward witnes of the spirit and againe that they beare about them a witnes condēnation against themselues which doubt whether they possesse Christ and be of his bodie or no hauing no assurance by certaintie of faith to be out of doubt and vpon sure ground both for this present and for the time to come and suche faith as Iesus Christ assureth vs that al that are his shall haue saying in this wise to his Apostles the spirit of trueth which the world can not receiue because it seeth him not ne knoweth him but you knowe him for he dwelleth in you and shal be in you And in deede seeing that continuance is a necessarie thing for saluation what faith were it if it had not with it assurance and certaintie to continue Nowe the trueth is so that whosoeuer hath the gift of faith to beleeue hath also the gift of perseuerance to continue considering that faith is not a persuasion for a daye and a thing that sodenly vanisheth away but a stedfast and well rooted persuasion in the heart to continue all the life long as saint Paule boasteth boldely in many places of his election and persuadeth other to doe the lyke vpon a glorie whiche is not grounded vpon any thing that is in man but in the goodnes of God saying That hee knoweth whome he beleeueth and that he is one of them whome Christ came to saue that hee wayteth for the Croune of glorie and is sure that nothing can separate him from the loue of God in Iesus Christe as one that was chosen before the foundation of the worlde was layed Whiche thing fleshly mē can not do because they know not what the spirit of God meaneth being not regenerate and for that cause hauing so base an heart so vite and abiect through sinne that they can not persuade them selues that God loued thē so well as to saue thē by the death of his only derely beloued sōne that he was so liberall as to giue them paradise vnlesse they deserue it by their workes and merites where as the regenerate haue within them such a feeling of the loue of God in Christ that they see them selues out of doubt most assuredly saued in him and can not persuade them selues that Christ to whom the father hath giuen all power to iudge can pronoūce sentence against those his brethren and mēbers for whom he died vpon the Crosse This christian mā hath a certaine knowledge by the effects which the same spirit of God bringeth forth in him that he hath this gift of faith for as sone as hee causeth him through his vertue and mightie working to feele a peace and vnspeakeable rest in his cōscience that appeaseth contenteth and satisfieth it he mainteineth him in a spiritual ioy increaseth the studie of good workes in him inflameth him in the loue of God maketh him delight in his word in the same word to behold the face of God gracious louing and fauourable with suche an assurance of his grace that he reioyceth and triumpheth with a bolde and cherefull countenance in the hope of euerlasting glorie in so muche that he is not afrayed to present him selfe before his God and call vpon hym as his father with perfect assurance to obteine at his handes what soeuer is necessarie for him whiche were impossible for him to do if he were not moued enforced thereunto through some heauēly and diuine working which surmoūteth all the force and strength that is or can be in man For from whence might this assurance of the good wil of God procede and that the man is colde and altogyther senselesse of him selfe voyd of al motion or bent to pray to him could be moued to repayre vnto him with such a cōfidence and yet godly notwithstanding hauing grieuously offended him were it not through his diuine and heauenly working whiche the Christian man may easely perceyue moreouer by this that it engendreth in him a loue of Iustice and on the other side a hatred of sinne by an alteration of affections pleasures and displeasures for other then before to wit suche as are in al them whose eyes the Prince of this worlde hath blinded And yet notwithstanding trueth it is that he feeleth a continuall combat of the spirit and the flesh in him self whiche hindereth him from perfecting his workes but yet so it is that though sin dwell in him yet it doeth not reigne in him And such are the effectes whereby the Christian man commeth to the experience and feeling of his fayth so consequently of his electiō For a Christian man striueth not to enter into the Sanctuarie of Gods wisedome to informe him selfe of Gods predestination secret counsell as some rashe headed more bold then godly wyse will nedes intrude and thrust in them selues most arrogantly in to the secretes of God finding nothing in the ende but a mase which they are neuer able to get out of for neyther is it meere that the height of the wisedome of God shoulde be subiect to the sense of man to seeke it out euen to his euerlastingnes But the Christian being once come to the way of fayth holding him selfe stedfastly there is led from step to step euen to the King of heauens chāber as S. Augustin speaketh there to beholde the treasure of his Election and yet for all that doeth not become thereby negligent and dissolute but cleane contrarie doth after that more diligently applie him selfe to God to be his instrument of righteousnes continuing most reuerently to make his election more steady and sure by good workes which God hath prepared for his Elect to walke in But we must vnderstande that this light whiche is in the children of God

whereby they haue this knowledge in thē selues that they are Christians reacheth to no further assurance then of them selues for they are not able to knowe assuredly of an other man that that they knowe to be in them selues by reason of that hypocrisie that is naturally in the heart of mā wholly disguysed and seased with a thousand kinde of maskings wherewith he deceyueth not onely other men but him selfe also and moreouer because this priuiledge of sounding mens hearts knowing men within belongeth properly to God alone who hath reserued to him selfe the knowledge of his as he keepeth them close vnder his seale as S. Paul sayeth yea at such time as when they do not as yet eyther knowe him or them selues Surely the sight of man is too weake to enter so farre as to iudge assuredly whether the seede of the word of God be rooted deepe ynough in any mans heart to remayne there And to the end he should not rashly take so much vppon him God hath taken a good order for it warning vs dayly by experience howe farre his secret iudgements passe our capacitie for oftentimes we see those men brought into the right way whiche seemes to vs to be vtterly cast away and lost children As on the other side we see a nomber fal which seemed to vs to stand very fast being true as S. Augustin sayeth That according to the secret and hidden counsell of God there are many sheepe without the Church many wolues within And in deede there is in a nomber such a likelyhood and resemblance of a Christian vnder a cloake of hypocrisie that they seeme to haue the selfe same beginning and grounde of fayth which the Christian hath which causeth vs that we can not iudge of them aright as we should For moreouer beside that they haue the self same name that the other haue and be likewise in the selfe same companie make profession of one selfe same doctrine receyue the same Sacraments they are sometimes touched with some taste of the worde of God and do reuerence it yea and that so far forth that they thinke it great impietie to contemne it and despise it and haue moreouer such a taste of heauēly gifts as the Apostle him selfe witnesseth in the Epistle to the Hebrewes that thei seeme both to them selues and to other that see them to be no lesse accōpted of then the rest of the faithfull And yet it falleth out so in the end that they shewe them selues to be nothing lesse then Christians thus deceyuing them selues within them selues because they can not throughly examine them selues in their heartes nor make good profe of them selues whether Christ dwel in them or no so full of vanitie is the heart of man. For thus it is that the seede of the worde of God hath not life in them to continue and dwell there without corruption though it seeme to haue taken roote in them yet it is not liuely so that the taste which they get of the goodnes of God is but for a whyle and yet that too very confused and very irresolute and in like sort in that that God lighteneth their vnderstandings and maketh them knowe his grace it is without ingrauing that true efficacie in them which is imprinted in the Christians heart which they neuer knew because they receyue not the vertue of the Spirit of GOD in deede ne haue the true clearenes of fayth but onely to serue them for greater condemnation and make them voyde of all excuse And in that that God entreth into their heartes it is to no other ende but that his bountie and trueth may be knowen to them by the Spirit of vnderstāding without further cōmunicating with them the Spirit of adoption And this is the matter why through want of ablenes to comprehende his vnchangeable will they can not constantly embrace his trueth to haue more then a light and sly knowledge of it nor haue an earnest desire to loue God heartily as his children do Hereof it followeth that a man can no more know certaynely whether an other man be a true Christian or no then he can in a ground sowed with diuers seedes knowe one seede from another which shall bring forth fruit which shal not yea though it haue already put forth yea and that more is though it be al eared Wherefore euen as Solon sayed to Cresus King of Lydia that no man is to be counted happie before his deathes day because of many miseries and calamities which may befall him euen so I say that no one mā can know an other man thorowly to be a Christian whiche is the greatest felicitie that is before the ende of his race And for this ende and purpose Iesus the sonne of Sirach warneth vs to iudge of no man before his death because sayeth he that is the time wherein a man sheweth what he hath bin all his lyfe long For some shew euident tokens that they were neuer other before God but Christians though whyle they liued they neuer made any shewe of it other some that thei were neuer Christians thogh they made shewe of that profession a great nomber of yeeres for witnes wherof let vs take Iudas on the one side and the thief that was hanged with Christ on the other This is a poynt which we must alwayes haue recourse vnto that such as God hath chosen to be true Christians shal be true Christians what malice vnbeliefe soeuer they be presently giuen vnto and they also on the other side of whome he hath foreseene that they shall be wicked and infidels shal be such be they neuer so good and of a true profession at this instant for he is a Christian alwayes which hath bin foreknowen and appoynted before from the beginning to be a Christian So then it appeareth that there is great difference betwene that iudgement whiche a Christian man may make of him selfe and that iudgement which he can make of an other man because the certeintie of faith remayneth shut vp within and stretcheth not so far as to be knowen in other seeing that the Spirit of GOD beareth all the elect witnesse of their calling But as for an other man wee knowe not howe to iudge of him saue onely by the outwarde man whiche is often tymes very deceyueable And yet notwithstanding by the iudgement of charitie we may accompt him for a Christian in whom we finde so farre as the eye of man is able to reach the seede of the word not to be fruitlesse that is to say that the preaching of the Gospel is not only in worde but in vertue of the holy Ghost considering that where we see the signes of Gods election as we take them there we haue occasiō to hope well and not defraude our neighbour of a charitable friendly and louing iudgement For moreouer and beside that the good nature which ought to be in a Christiā leadeth vs to hope well of all men S.