Selected quad for the lemma: law_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
law_n	jesus_n	sin_n	spirit_n	12,029	5	5.4627	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A61468	A brief commentary upon the CIII Psalme with the severall axiomes or doctrines therein conteined [sic], and uses thereupon inferred.	Sterne, Richard, 1596?-1683.	1649 (1649)	Wing S5473; ESTC R21977	156,758	358

alienated from good men as whom he might suppose to be offended at his sins whereupon haply he might raise persecution against them 2 Chron. 16.10 and thereby such as had not already entred into a godly course of life might be kept back and such as had might apostatise or fall back from it Or suppose Davids sinnes could have been concealed from the vulgars notice yet it would have been very probable that a king conscious to himself of such sinnes would not have been very severe in punishing others whereby sin upon hope of impunity would have spread far and wide and have overflowed the whole land The internall causes are different according to the diversity of sinnes But the principall and direct cause perse consilio was the will determining the power or faculty to an undue object or an undue manner The previous or antecedent causes which made way for that determination were negligence in using the means to avoid sin viz. watchfulnesse prayer attention to Gods word c. and the entertaining and harbouring wicked thoughts so long till they had driven away the Spirit of grace captivated right reason and obtained the consent of the will Uses Hereby we learne 1 That even the best men are not in this life free from possibility of sinning Instr and therefore that Christianity is not a state of security but of watchfulnesse wherein we ought to work out our salvation with feare and trembling 2 That even the greatest and mightiest of men for who greater then a king or who can challenge any exemption or prerogative above him are yet subject to the law of God For sin is a transgression of the law now no man can transgresse the law but he that is subject to the law The sinnes therefore of great men are sins and seeing He that is higher then the highest observes them Eccles 5.8 they must without repentance render an account to Him of them and that so much the heavier by how much their sinfull example hath been more dangerous to others and their sins in themselves so much the more hainous as they being obliged to God by more benefits have broken more bonds of duty This reproves Repr 1 Libertines c. who think they are come to that height of perfection that they can not by any temptation be drawn into sin yea that the acts which they commit though sins in other men as drunkennesse theft whoredome c. yet in them are no sins neither can defile them seeing to the pure all things are pure But against this opinion so absurd that it is a wonder the devil himself is not ashamed to perswade any man to it there needs no more to be said for the present but that David another manner of man for holinesse and perfection then the best of them had his iniquities and so called and accounted of them 2 Carnall Gospellers who have little or no care of hearing the word or performing other duties of religion who know not what belongs to the girdle of sincerity the helmet of hope c. yea who dare adventure upon any occasions of sin and yet think they have so good command of themselves that they can keep within compasse well enough What 's the matter I wonder Is sin grown lesse dangerous or men more skilfull to avoid it now then heretofore Sin was wont to be very watchfull and crafty to catch men Gal. 6.1 Eph. 4.22 Heb. 3.13 2 It was wont to be so strong that none but Christ Who hath power to subdue all things unto Himself was able to deliver any that once came within the reach of it 3 It was wont to be so cruell that look who were not pluck'd out of its jawes by Christ it would use them most unmercifully All the miseries of this life proceed from sin and yet all doe not satisfy the cruelty of it but at last it brings to death Rom. 5.12 Nor is it yet satisfied for it drawes the soul also to the place of torment and at last the body also united to it and so drowns the whole man in wofull perdition Nor is it yet fully satisfied for being committed against an infinite justice it requires that the sinner should likewise undergoe an infinite punishment But because the creature being finite can not undergoe a punishment infinite in measure therefore it rests though hardly content with a punishment infinite in duration Such was sin wont to be And is it now grown to some better terms of moderation No surely it is as ready to intrap men now as ever which appears by the abounding of it every where and daily ensnaring such as would think much not to be accounted very wise men And 2ly it holds those it once seises upon as fast now as ever for still that stands good that there is no Name under heaven whereby men can be saved but onely the Name of Jesus it is onely He that can save His people from their sinnes Lastly the rigor in binding over to punishment is nothing abated the same law being broken and the same infinite justice offended Well then sin being the same it was wont to be why are not we so watchfull against it as the servants of God have been in former times who were so wary that in some things they would not doe all they might but used to make railes on either side their way to heaven lest unawares they should fall into sinne as never thinking themselves far enough out of the reach of it till they should get to heaven But oh the piercing wit the undaunted courage the firm faith of our age All foregoing generations were but babes to us the world had never any men to shew till we came in play We know so exactly how far we may goe in every thing and can so accurately to the very cleaving of a haire distinguish between the use and abuse of things that we scorn to lose any jote of our privileges Yea many times we make a sport of it to shew how nigh the pits brink we can goe and yet not fall in Nay we mock and sometimes deadly hate such as dare not goe so far as we think they might Those proverbs of not touching pitch or not putting coals into the bosome c. befitted those simple souls in time of yore but are now out of date Simple Job why wouldst thou so restrain thy self as to make a covenant with thine eyes not to look upon a maid Job 31.1 we have such as can dally with them and dance with them and court them whole nights together yet look to the main chance well enough who much delight in lascivious songs wanton plaies and such like frothy execrable filth yet never any infection once comes neare them nay they can pick as good lessons out of these as others doe out of sermons David what a silly weakling wast thou to think thou couldst not keep Gods commandements unlesse thou didst first proclaim Away from

promise themselves all good things because they come of godly parents or ancestors though they do not walk in their steps See Matth. 3.9 Joh. 8.33 39. To which also our Saviour alludes in the parable Luk. 16. where he brings in the rich man thrice calling Abraham father whereby is signifyed how vaine it is for a man to derive his pedegree from Abraham and not to imitate his faith and works 1 Doctrine The mercy or loving-kindnesse of the LORD is from everlasting and to everlasting upon them that feare Him 1 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 mercy or loving-kindnesse Expl. Here it signifies both aversion of evil and bestowing of good especially spirituall and eternall 2 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 from everlasting and to everlasting This phrase may note either complete eternity Psal 90.2 or else the whole duration of the world from the beginning to the end Thus is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 taken Isa 46.9 where they are commanded to remember the works of God as those toward their own nation of old so also the creation of the world declared by Moses and the rest shewing Him to be God 64.4 And 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Dan. 7.18 where the meaning is that after the times of the gentiles are fulfilled the Israelites shall have the dominion unto the end of the world If the phrase be taken this latter way the sense will be that God is mercifull to all that feare Him whensoever they have lived or shall live from the beginning of the world unto the end And this sense indeed is true and necessarily included but it seemes not to conteine all the truth For Gods mercy to them that feare Him is most of all shewed after the end of this world when their soules and bodies shall be glorifyed in heaven and whatsoever mercy He shewes to them both in this world and after for ever He had decreed and ordeined it all for them before the foundations of the world were layd The former acception therefore of the phrase seemes to be more full as comprehending the latter and something more And so the sense is That God is from all eternity and unto all eternity mercifull or kind unto all that feare Him in what age of the world soever they live The substance of this Doctrine viz. That Gods mercy is toward them that feare Him we had before vers 11. and therefore I shall here be the more brief But there Gods mercy was illustrated by the quantity in comparison with the height of the heaven above the earth here by the duration from everlasting and unto everlasting That Gods mercy is for ever 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or from everlasting and to everlasting the Scriptures every where testify It is the burden of Psal 136. repeated in every verse 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for His mercy is for ever And it was the ordinary set forme of praising God in the Old Testament as appeares both by the beginning and end of divers Psalmes 106.107.118 and more plainly 1 Chron. 16.34 41. 2 Chron. 5.13 7.3 20.21 Ezra 3.11 Jer. 33.11 More distinctly and particularly God from all eternity foreseeing the fall of Adam decreed to give His Sonne for a Mediatour for His sake to bestow saving mercy upon those that feare Him to afford meanes of fearing Him In all which there was great mercy from everlasting And that God did from all eternity decree all these it is manifest because He hath effected them in time For otherwise He should not work all things after the counsell of His own will Ephes 1.11 or His will should be mutable willing that in time which He willed not from eternity whereas yet in Him there is no variablenesse nor shadow of turning Jam. 1. In this life by the meanes of salvation made hereunto effectuall by the assistance of the Holy Ghost He puts His feare into mens hearts bestowes Christ upon them frees them from the guilt and dominion of sinne from the curse of the law and so farre as is expedient from temporall miseries adopts them for His children enriches them with the gifts of the Spirit renewing them daily more and more according to His image assisting them in doing and fuffring and sealing them to the day of redemption bestowes upon them the good things necessary and convenient for this life After this life He bestowes happinesse upon the soule and after the resurrection upon soule and body jointly for ever And so His mercy is unto everlasting The Reason 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as vers 11. Doctr. 2. Uses The Instructions which hence we may gather Instr are 1 From the Object Seeing David speaking now the third time of Gods mercy or loving kindnesse mentions the feare of God as a condition necessarily required in the object see 1 How prone men are to presume of Gods mercy without having this qualification For the Spirit of wisdome which doth nothing in vaine would not so often inculcate the same thing if there were not need of it And indeed experience too plainly proves it For whereas the feare of God shewes it self in the keeping His commandements in the eschewing of evil and doing of good and that with perseverance lest God should be dishonoured and we punished how many may we see every where who neglecting Gods commandements either because they do not think them to be indeed Commandements signifying what God would have us to doe but Promises shewing what Himself will doe if it be done at all or because they think they were indeed sometime Commandements but now are abrogated by Christ and so do not bind us or because they love and preferre their own lusts before Gods commandements yet nothing doubt but that Gods mercy belongs to them 2 How certaine it is that onely they that feare God shall obteine His mercy For although we ought to beleeve the Holy Ghost once affirming a thing yet sometimes that we may the more firmely beleeve Him He useth to reiterate it Gal. 5.21 Philip. 3.18 and often elswhere Let them therefore who feare God beleeve this for their comfort and let them who feare Him not beleeve it that they may be converted and feare Him 2 From the duration 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 1 See how Gods mercy is decreed from everlasting or from all eternity namely to men as considered under the qualification of fearing God that is Gods will decreed mercy to those whom His understanding foresaw would by His preventing and following grace truely feare Him Hence then we may learne how to know whether Gods mercy be from all eternity decreed to us Experience teacheth that of the Apostle to be true 1 Cor. 2.11 What man that is No man knowes the things of a man save the spirit of man which is in him Wherefore that must needs be much more true which followes The things of God knowes none but the Spirit of God Most certaine therefore it is that no man can by any meanes know