Selected quad for the lemma: heaven_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
heaven_n	earth_n	holy_a	new_a	6,739	5	6.3993	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A50418	A sermon preached at the consecration of the Right Reverend Father in God, Herbert, Lord Bishop of Hereford by Jasper Mayne ...	Mayne, Jasper, 1604-1672.; Croft, Herbert, 1603-1691.	1662 (1662)	Wing M1478; ESTC R19642	22,579	52

the chief Corner-stone and great Master-builder too all the Powers of Heaven did help to carry on the Work I think I need not tell you that the Gospel like the Law was at first proclaimed by the Ministry of Angels that Jacobs dream and vision was made by them true story a Ladder was set up which reach'd from Earth to Heaven and they ascending and descending with sacred Messages to Men. Nay the Holy Ghost himself who foretold this in the old Testament was most busily imployed to fulfill it in the new every Sermon preach'd was attended with a miracle and the Doctrine signed and ratified with holy prodigies and wonders the Preachers all inspired with gifts proportion'd to their Work and enabled by those gifts to go and teach all Nations Nay so sollicitous and careful was this holy Spirit of God to provide fit Successors to those inspired and gifted Teachers that for many years after the first plantation of the Gospel not a Bishop was installed or admitted to his Chair not a Pastor to his Charge not a Deacon to his Table which was not first designed and named and qualified by him And this I might prove to you by several places of the Scripture but none more clear then this which I have chosen for my Text where St. Paul sayes to one of those new consecrated Bishops Neglect not the Gift that is in thee which was given thee by Prophecy with the laying on of the Hands of the Presbytery IN which words you have these considerable Parts First the Person here consecrated to the sacred Office of a Bishop that was Timothy exprest in this word Thee Next his Qualification for that divine and sacred Office he was a Gifted man a man fitted for that Honour exprest in this word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 The Gift that is in thee Thirdly his Conge D'Eslire or Designation to that Office by the Holy Ghost Author of that Gift 't was given him 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 by the prediction of the Prophets Fourthly the Forme of his Consecration to that Office the holy Ghost designed him but the Church gave him Ordination 't was done by the laying on of the Hands of the Presbytery Lastly St. Pauls fatherly Advice to him for his Deportment in that Office in these words Neglect not the Gift which was thus bestowed upon thee Of these in this order and first of the Person that was Timothy exprest in this word Thee As the distance between God and Man was so great that none but one who was compounded of both Natures was fit to reconcile them or to be a Mediator so in reconciling the Jews to the Gentiles to make them piece and joyn in one united Church none was so fit to procure a good liking and agreement as one in whom both parties had an equal Interest claim Now of all the men designed by God to accomplish that great Work I know none in all kinds so well fitted and proportion'd as this holy man the Bishop in this Text whose very birth disposed him to break down Partition-walls and to be a Reconciler of both parties from the womb For if we enquire into his Original or Birth as 't is set down in the Church-book Acts 16. his Mother was a Jewess but a Jewess made a Christian and his Father was a Greek but well-affected to the Jews as you may read in the first Verse of that Chapter not a Greek Hellenist or Jew bred in Greece called so from the Grecian Language which he spoke nor a Greek in the Grecian sense a man opposed to a Barbarian but a Greek in the general acception of the Scripture which divides the whole World of men into two Members Jews and Greeks For if we may give credit to the Syriack Translator he was Aramaeus that is no Greek but Syrian or as the Latine Interpreter more largely hath described him he was Homo Gentilis that is no Jew but Gentile And as his Birth did thus prepare him to preach the Gospel to all Nations so St. Paul who well knew the advantage of this mixture and how readily a Jew would hearken to a Jew and a Gentile be perswaded by one who was a Gentile to make his Capacity more passable and currant thought fit to circumcise him though he were before a Christian as you may read at the fourth Verse of that Chapter That by imploying one to preach who was a baptised Jew and one who withall was a circumcised Believer all prejudices might be stopt and no objection left to hinder or obstruct the free passage of his Sermons For that this was the reason why he circumcised him namely not to oblige him to observe and keep the Law but to remove obstructions from his preaching of the Gospel is evident from the end and close of that Verse which sayes that St. Paul in a holy prudence did it because They all knew that his Father was a Greek And certainly as St. Paul by this action this politick design gained justly to himself the reputation of that style which he bestows upon himself of being 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 A wise Master-builder in the third Chapter of his first Epistle to the Corinthians at the tenth Verse one who knew how to fit his Tools to his Matter to hew rude Subjects to his Ends and to give them shape and form so as to work upon the tempers of disagreeing Minds so no passage more confirms that rare Description of his Art which he makes in the 9. Chapter of that Epistle at the 20. Verse and forwards where he sayes That he became all things to all men as a Jew to the Jews and as a Gentile to the Gentiles to them under the Law as a man lock'd up in shackles to them without Law as at perfect liberty and freedom And all this to compass his great Catholick Design which was to bring if possible both parties to salvation Next then as his Birth did much contribute to his Function so his Education contributed much more He was bred in a Family upon which Religion seem'd entail'd where Piety ran in a bloud and lineally descended like Vertue of Inheritance from the Parents to the Child St. Paul speaking of his Mother Eunice and his Grandmother Lois in the 1. Chapter of his 2. Epistle to him at the 5. Verse sayes It very much rejoyced him to find the same unfeigned Faith in him which in a holy Pedegree he received and took from them And certainly as ill Example hath the power to convey hereditary Vices to infect by being seen and to corrupt by imitation nay as Vice in the Parent hath such an influence on the Child as to think it disobedience where the Parent is a sinner not to be as wicked and as great a sinner too As the young Virgin in the Poet seeing her unchast lascivious Mother write Letters to her loose Adulterer and Servant thought her self obliged to think Chastity a sin and so

in their Travels through the World to convert it from Idolatrie and to gain Proselytes to Christ. When the number of Believers was every where increast and the name of Christian which at first began at Antioch was every where disperst as far as Words were Names of persons the next business of the Apostles whose commission like the Sun 's was never to stand still or settle in one place but still to move like him from one Countrey to another was to mould their new Believers into well-form'd and govern'd Churches especially in great Cities such as Ephesus and Corinth and to appoint them Over-seers who should both teach and rule the Flock lest being left like Sheep without a Shepherd to o'relook them they either should be swallowed up by their own Heresies and Schisms or should break out of the Fold and relapse back again to Heathens These Overseers or as the Scripture calls them 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 These Bishops of the Flock they were compelled to chuse out of their new Converts and Disciples who in that infancy of time that famine of great Parts were generally men whose Faith was far greater then their Knowledge men not bred in Schools unskilled in Tongues and Arts especially the Art 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the Art of Ruling well Indeed they were such men as St. Paul describes in that mean and humble Map which he drew of those Times in the first Chapter of his first Epistle to the Corinthians at the 26. and 27. Verses where he sayes Ye see your calling Brethren how that not many wise men after the flesh not many mighty not many noble are called But God hath chosen the foolish things of the World to confound the wise and weak things of the World to confound the mighty and base things and things despised and things that are not hath God chosen to annihilate and bring to nought the things that are To supply this great Defect the holy Ghost was fain to assist the very Apostles in the making of their choices and to furnish men with gifts and parts which might fit them for Elections Nay the persons generally were so ungifted raw unlearned in all kinds so unfit to rule or govern in the Church that he was fain to qualifie them in a way of new creation to make Things which were not bring to nought the things that were to give form to shapelesse matter to change their Ignorance to Knowledge to make unwise men wise and to raise their Wisdom out of nothing to call Light out of Darknesse and then divide it into Stars to make those learned Shepherds who were but lately Sheep able to defend their Flocks from the most fierce and learned Wolves In short to call a Church out of a Chaos and give a beauty to confusion to dispose the several parts into well-tuned Orbes and Spheres to place great Lights in this new Firmament which were to rule the Day and lesser Lights to drive and chace away the Night was a Work which required the Illumination of Gods Spirit to hold a Torch to those who had else stood in the dark And this is that which St. Chrysostom Oecumenius Theodoret Theophylact and many other ancient Writers have very well observed For St. Chrysostom in his Comment upon this very Text sayes that in this childhood this nonage of the Church 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 That nothing was done as Mans Wisdome did direct 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 but by the direction of Gods Spirit whose business 't was not onely 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to foretell things to come 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 but to reveal things present too especially in the choice of fit Rulers in the Church Clemens Romanus speaking of those Rulers sayes That the first Bishops which were made were made by the Apostles 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 having tryed them by the Spirit Oecumenius also speaks as if the other held his pen and sayes almost in the same form of words 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 The first Bishops were made Bishops by the appointment of Gods Spirit Thus St. Paul and Barnabas were of Preachers made Apostles Act. 13. 2. thus Titus was made Metropolitane of Creet Tit. 1. 5. and thus Timothy in this Text was made the first Ephesian Bishop 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 by the Spirit of God designing of him by the Prophets Nay Eusebius in the third Book of his Ecclesiastical History taking Clemens of Alexandria for his Chronologer and Warrant sayes That this way of making Bishops by the Appointment of Gods Spirit was observed in the Church till the death of St. John who after his return from his banishment to Ephesus being intreated by the Church there to provide for succession went through all the Regions near in a holy Visitation 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and ordained such a Clergie as the holy Ghost revealed So that they who have been curious to compute St. Johns return which was in the Reign of Nerva the 98. year of Christ 30. years after St. Pauls martyrdom do reckon That from the day of Pentecost in which the holy Ghost descended on the Apostles in cloven Tongues of fire to the time of St. John's death which was in the 100. year of Christ this way of making Bishops by the designation of Gods Spirit continued in the Church 66. years complete At which time the Church having taken general root and from a grain of Mustard-seed being become a spacious Tree able to diffuse it self without Miracles and Wonders those gifts of Gods Spirit which had brought it to this Growth and had every where furnisht it with Rulers sent from Heaven like the Manna in the Scripture ceast to fall on those who had now the Promised Land given to them in possession But yet though all this be true we are not to suppose that Gods Spirit did so wholly ingrosse this businesse to himself as to obtrude those new Rulers on the Church without their Allowance and Approbation too He onely did direct and name and recommend them 't was left to the Church to admit them to their Cures he but designed the Persons the Church gave them Ordination by the laying on of the Hands of the Presbytery Which describes to us the Forme of this Bishops Consecration and comes in the fourth place to be considered and examined 'T is observed that the Spirit of God who in the Jewish Church spoke by the several sparklings of those precious stones or Jewels which shined in the Brest-plate of Aaron the High-priest where a Diamond and Amethyst gave Oracles and Answers and an Agate might be reckoned into the number of the Prophets removed those precious stones into the twelve Apostles and made them twelve Foundation stones in the new Building of Christs Church as you may read in the 21. Chapter of the Revelation at the 18 19. Verses Certainly whatever in that Church conduced to Piety and Order whatever might be made a patterne for religious Imitation the Christian