Selected quad for the lemma: kingdom_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
kingdom_n	king_n	leave_v	lord_n	2,600	5	3.6008	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A26214	The profit of believing very usefull both for all those that are not yet resolved what religion they ought to embrace, and for them that desire to know whither their religion be true or no / written by S. Augustine.; De utilitate credendi ad Honoratum. English	Augustine, Saint, Bishop of Hippo.; A. P.	1651 (1651)	Wing A4213; ESTC R7850	45,294	156

one body and one spirit one hope of their calling one Lord one Faith one Baptisme and the Scripture testifieth that in the Apostles dayes the multitude of Believers were of one heart and of one soul Acts 4. 32. The Universality of the Church is also twofold in time and in place this later was foretold by the Prophet Moses relating Gods promise made to Abraham of an ample posterity and that all the nations of the earth should be blessed in his seed Gen. 22. 18. Gal. 3. 8. by the Royall Psalmist●declaring that God the Father would give unto his Son the heathen for his inheritance and the uttermost part of the earth for his possession Psal. 2. 8. and that he should have dominion from sea to sea and from the River to the ends of the earth Psal. 72. 8. and by the Prophet Isaiah affirming that all nations shall flow to the mountain of the Lords house Isa. 2. v. 2. For the accomplishment of these Prophecies our Blessed Saviour declared Luke 24. v. 44. that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the law of Moses ●nd in the Prophets and in the Psalm●s concerning him and v. 47. that repentance and remission of sinnes should be preached in his name among all nations beginning at Jerusalem and for the performance hereof he gave a commission unto his Apostles to teach all nations Matth. 28. 19. and to preach the Gospel to every creature Mar. 19. v. 15. That the Church of Christ should be universall for time and continue perpetually unto the worlds end it was plainly foretold by the Prophet Isaiah who speaking of our B. Saviour saith that of the encrease of his government and peace there shall be no end Vpon the throne of David● and upon his kingdome shall he sit to order it and to establish it wit● judgement and with justice from henceforth even for ever and that no doubt may be made of the performance hereof the Prophet add●s the zeal of the Lord of Hosts will perform this And by the Prophet Daniel affirming that in the dayes of those Kings shall the ●o● of heav●n set up a k ngdome which shall not be left to other people but it shall break in pieces and consume all those kingdomes and it shall stand for ever Dan. 2. 44. All which was confirmed by the Angel Gabriel saying The Lord shall give unto Christ the throne of his Father David and he shall reign over the house of Jacob and of his kingdome there shall be no end Luke 1. ver. 32 33. For the perpetuall settlement and establishing of this Church Christ said unto S. Peter Vpon this rock I will build my Church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it Matth. 16. 18. Touching the sanctity of the Church of Christ God by the Prophet Ezekiel saith I will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore and the heathen shall know that I the Lord do sanctifi● Israel when my sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for evermore Ezek 37. v. 26 28. and by the Prophet Malachi Mal. 1. 11. From the rising of the sunne even to the going down of the same my name shall be great among the Gentiles and in every place incense shall be offered ●nto my name and a peace-offering Unto this sanctity our Blessed Saviour exhorts us saying Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorifie your Father which is in heaven Matth. 5. 16. and Mark 7. v. 13 14. Enter ye in at the strait gate for strait is the gate and narrow the way which leadeth unto life and few there be that find it And teaching how to distinguish the good from the bad he saith v. 20. By their fruits ye shall know them As for Apostolicall succession S. Paul saith Ephes. 4. v. 11 12 13. that Christ gave some Apostles and some Prophets and some Evangelists and some Pastours and teachers for the perfecti●g of the Saints for the work of the ministery for the edifying of the body of Christ till we ●ll come into the unity of faith and of the unity of the Son ne of God unto a perfect man unto the measure of the stature of the fulnesse of Christ that is as Doctour Fulk against the Rhem. Test in Ephes. 4. sect. 4. fol. 335. and Mr. Calvin in his Instit. cap. 8. de fide sect. 37 38. pag. 233. 234. do expound for ever As for the second point whether the Church of Christ can erre or no S Augustine saith that neither the violence of heathens nor the subtilty of hereticks can overthrow it which agrees with our Savionrs promise Matth. 16. 18● that the gates of hell shall not prevail against it and to preserve her from all errour and heresie Christ promised to be alwayes with her even to the worlds end Matth. 28. 20. and God made this covenant with her Isa. 59. 21. My spirit that is upon thee and my words which I have put in thy mouth shall not depart out of thy mouth ●or out of the mouth of thy seed nor out of the mouth of thy seeds seed saith the Lord from henceforth and for ever by which words saith Mr. Calvin in Comment hujus loci God promiseth that the Church shall never be deprived of this inestimable benefit to be governed by the Holy Ghost and to be suported by heavenly doctrine and to this effect he sent down the Holy Ghost to teach the Church all truth and to remain with her for ever Joh. 16. 13. Joh. 14. 16. Thus thou seest how S. Augustines instructions for finding out the truth are grounded in Scripture but more expressely in S. Pauls doctrine who tells us Rom. 10. 17. that faith cometh by hearing and hearing is by the word of God if we ask him how men may come to hea●e the word of God● he answers v. 14 15. How shall they hear without a preacher and how shall they preach unlesse they be sent So that faith is bred in men by hearing and believing the word of God made known unto them by preachers lawfully sent which preachers as he saith to the Ephesians Ephes. 4. v. 11 12 13. are alwayes to be found in the Church of Christ and are placed there ver. 14. that from henceforth we be no more children tossed to fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine by the sleighs of men and cunning craftinesse whereby they lie in wait to deceive which is an office that cannot be performed by men that are frail and subject to errour unles the Lord by his divine assistance doth preserve them from erring Doctour Field having considered the facility and solidity of this method doth advise all those to practise it that desire to be satisfied in matters of Religion in these terms Epist. dedic. of the Church Seeing the controversies in our time are grown in number so many and in nature so intricate that few have time and leisure fewer

THE PROFIT OF BELIEVING Very usefull Both for all those that are not yet resolved what Religion they ought to embrace And for them that desire to know whither their Religion be true or no Written by S. Augustine LONDON Printed by ROGER DANIEL In Lovels Court near Pauls Church-yard 1651. The Preface To the well-disposed READER Learned Reader I Know thou art not ignorant that of all the affairs and businesses in this world there is none of that consequence and importance unto thee as the saving of thy soul and that our Blessed Saviour who knew best of all the inestimable value thereof and vouch●●●ed to redeem it at so dear a rate as with his own p●etious bloud plainly declared the importance thereof when he said in the Gospel Mat. 16. 16. What is a man profited if he shall gain the world ●nd loose his own soul Or what shall he give in exchange ther●of Wherefore let me advise thee to seek out and embrace the true Faith and Religion for that without such a Faith according to the Apostle Heb. 11. 6. it is impossible toplease God and without pleasing of him it is impossible to be saved If thou thinkest that thou ha●t found out the truth already and that thou dost embrace it then give me leave to tell thee that the world at this present abounds with an hundred here●ies at least the embracers whereof shall not according to S. Pauls doctrine Gal. 5. 20. inherit the kingdome of God and yet as the same Apostle doth affirm Ephes. 4. 5. there is but one Lord one Faith one Baptisme so that it is an hundred to one but that thy Faith and thy Religion are false and thy salvation is in danger thereby Is there not then great reason that thou shouldest well consider whither the Faith and Religion which thou embracest be true or no when upon this resolution depends thy fr●●tion of unspeakable blisse or intolerable suffering of endlesse pa●ns for all eternity How to find out the true Faith Religion it is a matter of very great difficulty not onely by reason that there are many faiths and religions in the world and of all these there is but one true and all the rest be false but also for that the controversies debated now adayes are so many and so intricate that few have leasure to study them and fewer ability to conceive and understand them yet the zeal of learned Writers hath not been wanting to satisfie men herein But what age since the Apostles dayes hath brought forth any man so able to perform so great a task as was that incomparable Doctor S. Augustine lib. 3. de Eccles. fol. 170. who as Doctour Field asserteth was the greatest and chiefest of the antient Fathers and the most famous of all the Divines which the Church hath had since the Apostles time and as Doctour Covell affirmeth in his answer to Master Burges pag. 3. hath farre excelled all others that have been or are like to be hereafter those onely excepted that were inspired by the Holy Ghost both in Divine and Humane knowledge What man since the Apostles dayes could ever so well discem true doctrine from false truth from errour and true faith from heresie as could that great S. Augustine who did not onely like another David fight against the Goliah of one heresie but like another Joshua fought the battels of the Lord against all the force and power of heresie in his dayes for fourty years together Wherefore if this great Doctour should have left any advises or instructions behinde him unto any of his dear friends that were then hereticks whereby he taught them how to find out the true faith and religion amongst so many heresies● ought not such instructions to be greatly desired and if any such could be found to be highly esteemed and diligently perused Surely thou wilt say that coming from so great a Doctour and being so proper and necessary fot these times without doubt they ought Why then Learned Reader give me leave to pre●ent unto thee a learned Treatise of his which he sent unto his dear and learned friend Honoratus to draw him from the Manichean her●sie to the true Religion I durst not presume to tender it unto thee in this poor English habit were I not confident that thou seekest more after the true Religion and the saving of thy soul then after vain eloquence the entising words of humane wisdome 1 Cor. 2. 4. but I will assure thee under this poore attire thou wilt find a rich and a learned discourse of great S. Augustine not onely very profitable for those that are not yet resolved in point of Religion but also for them that dere to be satisfied whither the faith and Religion which they embrace be true or no If the stile be displeasing and ungratefull unto thee know that very many of the African Fathers have harsh stiles besides consider how hard a matter it is to teach a native African to speak true English In this work first he shews how the old Testament is to be expou●ded and defends the Authority or it against the Manichees that rejected it Secondly he overthrowes that Manichean principle That nothing is to be believed in point of Faith which is not first by reason made manife●t and evident unto the Believer In the third place he adviseth ●ervent and frequent prayer peace and tranquility of mind and a sequestration of affections from terrene things as aids necessary ●or the finding out the truth then declaring that Christ hath raised a very great and a famous Church consisting of all Nations which is to continue very visible and conspicuous even to the worlds end he exhorts Honoratus to addresse himself unto the Pastours and Teachers thereof and to learn of them the true faith and Religion This way of proceeding to find out the truth is far more short and easie then by the examination of all the points of controverted doctrine by their conformity to the holy Scrip●ures for it consists in two points onely first in seeking out which of all the Churches is the Church of Christ and secondly whither this Church can erre or no For the finding out of the Church S. Augustine proposed four marks unto Honoratus Unity Universality Sanctity and Apostolicall Succession the which are set down very plainly in Scripture The Unity of the Church is twofold in body and in faith in regard of the first our Saviour faith his Church is one fold and hath one shepheard Joh. 10. 16. and the Apostle calls it one body 1 Cor. 12. 13. In respect of the second S. Paul earnestly exhorted the Corinthians 1 Cor. 1. 10. to speak the same thing and that there be no division amongst them but that they be perfectly joyned together in the same mind and in the same judg●ment and he beseeched the Ephesians to endeavour to keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace Ephes. 4● 3 4● 5. affirming that there is