Selected quad for the lemma: law_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
law_n	faith_n	righteousness_n	sin_n	12,797	5	5.0529	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A07951	The Christians comfort In a sermon appointed for the crosse, but preached in S. Pauls Church on Candlemas day, 1623. By Thomas Myriell, rector of S. Steuens in Walbrooke London.	Myriell, Thomas, d. 1629.	1623 (1623)	STC 18321; ESTC S103112	27,424	72

men heare not the voice of God speaking vnto thē but suffocate and choake vp the good motions of the Spirit or else giue eare to the voice of the world hearkening rather to the Marchants of Ianus saying Quaerenda pecunia primùm est Seeke money before vertue rather then to the Ministers of IESVS speaking Quaerite primùm Regnum Dei Math. 6.33 Seeke yee first the Kingdome of God Neuer Citie neuer Church had more exhortation to seeke God then this and yet O how few doe practise it aright Pliny g Plin. lib. 14. in Prooem saith There are some trees which are called Arbores indociles quae in alienas non cōmeant terras indocible trees that will bee taught to growe no where but where they were first bred Doe not thinke me blind if I tell you I see many walking in the Garden of this Citie like trees that are indocible to any thing saue to the course they haue bin bred in trading for money and seeking for gaine For the purchase of heauen by expence of earthly pelfe this Marchandize we cannot teach them though we labour it neuer so much This they thinke is an vnprofitable studie they desire not to be conuersant in it The common search is Quis ostendet no bis bona Psal 4.6 Whither shall we goe for a good bargaine where shall wee finde a good purchase And it were infinite to reckon vp other seekers who greedily pursue euery man his proper delight Onely God among them left out and either not sought for at all or else in the last place when wee are able to seeke nothing else And yet if we should spend all our life in seeking out seuerall delights peraduenture all would proue but infructuosus labor Aug. ad Lar. Epist 82. vnprofitable paine or if we should find them all would be but fallax suauitas deceitfull sweetnesse like S. Iohns booke Reu. 10.9 sweet as honey in the mouth bitter as gall in the belly Onely God is worth the finding onely God will not frustrate our seeking so is his promise So our Text tels vs If ye seeke him he will be found of you And this is the second point The wages We haue heard what is the worke to seeke God now are we come to the wages The finding of him He will be found of you There is nothing so acceptable to a man as not to bee frustrate in his hope expectation Multos expertus sum qui fallere volunt saith Augustine i Aug. conf lib. 10. cap. 23. qui autem falli neminem I haue had triall of many that would deceiue but neuer of any that would be deceiued Nothing so welcome to a seeker as to finde but to finde God is to a Christian more pleasing then when the Mariner findes the shore the Marchantrich wares the labourer his hire the Traueller his iourneyes end For God is the Centre to which all hearts mooue and when they are come to him they rest as being fully satisfied Now there is 2. degrees of finding God One in this life the other in the life to come In this world he is found per fidem by faith in the other world per speciem by sight In this world we finde him by faith for credere inuenisse est Bern. k Bern. in Cant. ser 76. To beleeue is to haue found him but this giues vs not full content therefore we seek him still I am quippe illum inuenit fides sed adbuc illum quaerit spes saith Aug. i Aug. in Psal 104. Faith hath found him here but hope lookes to finde him better hereafter And loue doth both these Charitas et inuenit eum per sidem et eum quaer it habere per speciem Charity hath both found him here by faith and yet further seekes for him by sight And though he dwels in an inaccessible light whither no man can enter 1. Tim. 6.16 yet faith pryeth and presseth in vnto him in his most secret closet of glory yea Quid non inuenit fides saith Bernard m Bern. in Cant. ser 76. What will not faith finde out Attingit inaccessa deprehendit ignota c. It reacheth to things inaccessible it findes out things vnvtterable comprehends things vnmeasurable apprehends things vnapproachable yea it incloseth within the large bosome of it euen Eternity it selfe The benefits which faith gaines by finding God in this life are two 1. Remission of sins 2. Imputation of righteousnesse First remission of sinnes for it translates a man from Moses to the Messias from the Law condemning to the Gospell absoluing Zacharias was stricken dumbe when Christ was to be borne Luk. 1.20 in token that the Law was to besilent whē the Gospell should be preached And as the womans accusers brought her to Christ and afterwards dropt away and left none but them two alone Iohn 8.9 Remansit magna miseria magnamisericordia saith August n Aug. in Psal There remained no body but misery and mercy together So when the Law hath schooled vs with the rod of terror it atlast brings vs to Christ the Prince of Peace there we finde our iniquities forgiuen and our consciences at quiet So also it gaines vs imputation of righteousnes For Christ which dwels in our hearts by faith Eph. 3.17 communicates his gifts and graces where he dwels So that what is his is ours that is righteousnes as once what vvas ours was made his that is sinne And surely saith Bernard o Bern. Epist. 190. This righteousnesse is Tutior donata quàm innata More safe when it is giuen vs then sauing when it is wrought by vs because this may haue glory but not before God No Ea Deum perfecta omnimoda gloriatio est in Deo saith S. Basil p Basil se● de humilit That is perfect sound glorying in the sight of God when a man feeles himselfe destitute of true righteousnesse and expects alone by faith to receiue righteousnesse from God Thus we finde him by faith in this world Secondly hope findes him by sight in the world to come and this is truely to find him because then we shall enioy him he shall bee with vs and in vs yea all in all 1. Cor. 15.28 What is all in all saith S. Aug. q Aug. de verb. Apost serm 16. Quic quid hic quaerebas quic quid hic promagno habebas ipse tibi erit Whatsoeuer here thou hast sought after whatsoeuer heere thou hast admired and pursued that shall God bee there vnto thee What was it meate drinke thou hungredst after Why Erit tibi cibus potus God shall bee meate and drinke vnto thee was it glory and preferment thou gapedst after God shall be that vnto thee too It may bee thou wert couetous and couldst not be satisfied with money Auare quid tibi sufficit si Deus ipse non sufficit O couetous wretch what will bee inough for thee if hauing found