Selected quad for the lemma: life_n
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A37260
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A sermon preached at the funeral of Mr. John Bigg to which is added another sermon upon the same subject : also a narrative of Mr. Bigg's conversion, &c. / by R. Davis ...
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Davis, Richard, 1658-1714.
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1691
(1691)
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Wing D432; ESTC R8513
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40,311
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39
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as well as others are for wallowing in their Lusts For all equally refuse the Lord Jesus and will have none of him for Life and Salvation but tread with like scorn and contempt the offered Son of God under-foot There 's not a Dram of Gospel-Holiness nor one Evangelical good Work but what flows from Faith in the Person and Righteousness of the once-crucified but now ascended Jesus at the Father's Right Hand Object 3. BUT for all my Reformation Duties and Profession I seek to Christ too Ans THAT is perhaps as the common Proverb runs You will set the Cart before the Horse Your Duties and Righteousness shall lead the Van and Christ and his Righteousness shall bring up the Reer You will put him to no other use than to carry the Train of your ragged Robes of Righteousness to patch up your Rags and make up what is wanting in your Duties But the Garment of Christ is seamless and cannot be divided but if it could be that his new Cloth could be pieced to your old the rent in yours would be the worse Mat. 9.16 Perhaps you are sensible of your inability to do therefore ye look to him for assistance to help you to do for Life But what says the Lord The Just shall live by Faith Rom. 1.17 You would have him be King over you to subdue your Iniquities that for your subdued Iniquities you may get to Heaven But you must look to him by Faith to be saved and then mortification of Sin and Holiness shall be given in unto you The High Priest under the Law had his Mitre and Crown on his Head and his Urim and Thummim on his Breast to typifie that the Lord Jesus executes his Kingly and Prophetical Office by his Priestly Office and all whom he instructs and subdues he does it by shedding in the Faith and Hope either more or less of their pardoned estate through his Blood into their Consciences Again Do not you seek Christ because of your Reformation Duties and Tears If so you bring your own Money in your Hands to buy Christ and that 's quite contrary to the Proclamation the Lord makes of Heaven's Market Isa 55.1 Ho every one that thirsteth that is after the Things of the World or their own Righteousness for 't is such thirsting as v. 2. calls spending Money for that which is not Bread and labour for that which satisfieth not These are summoned here to come to the Fair of the Almighty where glorious Commodities are put to sale Waters Wine and Milk But what price must the Buyers bring No price at all They that would speed in Heavens Market must come without Money and without price Heb. 12.13 Esau sought to buy Repentance with Tears but he found no place for it All buying in the meaning of Christ is but accepting and he gives the power to do that too Therefore come to Christ as poor blind miserable naked vile ungodly Wretches and and he will be Riches to the Poor Eyes to the Blind Happiness to the Miserable Cloathing to the Naked and Sanctification to the Vile and Ungodly The voice of the Gospel is for the present time 2 Cor. 6.2 Now is the accepted time behold now is the day of Salvation Heb. 3.15 To day if ye will hear his voice harden not your Hearts The Gospel does not say Go home now and pray and mourn and weep and come to morrow or next week or next month after you have prepared and qualified your self with so much praying mourning weeping repenting and reformation then come to Christ but come now now is the accepted time now is the day and hour of Salvation But further some may be ready to ask me Quest WHAT is believing in Christ or Faith in him Ans IT would be too tedious now to answer the Question as it ought to be I shall only briefly thus define it and then make good my Definition Faith as strictly and properly taken is a powerful Conscience-Perswasion wrought by God concerning Christ and his Things their excellency and suitableness to the Soul and more or less concerning the Souls Interest in them according to the Word of God Faith in the Original is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 from 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to perswade and really signifies a perswading 'T is phrased in Old Testament-language in Noah's Prophecy concerning his Children Gen. 9.17 God shall perswade Japheth and he shall dwell in the Tents of Shem. And to the same purport 't is phrased in the New Testament 't is said to be 2 Cor. 4.6 A light shining into a dark Heart which is a perswasive Knowledge Called Rom. 1.17 the Righteousness of God in the Gospel revealed from Faith to Faith 'T is named Rom. 3.21 a manifestation without the Law of the Righteousness of God v. 25. stiled a declaration of his Righteousness for the remission of Sins and defined to be Heb. 11.1 The evidence of Things not seen which are Christ and his Righteousness which are wholly without us not seen by our bodily Eyes or natural Reason or Understanding The Spirit in working Faith is said to take of Christ and his Things and shew them to the Soul John 11.14 15. God the Father as the Worker of it so is said to reveal his Son in the Soul Gal. 1.16 Which Expressions evidently import a perswasive Knowledge 2dly This Perswasion is an inward Conscience-Perswasion and not only an Head Knowledge or notional Perswasion Gal. 1.15 but when it pleased God c. v. 16. to reveal his Son in me c. 1 John 5.10 He that believeth hath the witness in himself i. e. a Conscience-Testimony 3dly This Conscience-Perswasion is very powerful for it instantly works a great change on the whole Man Heart Lip and Life 'T is a creating Power 2 Cor. 4.6 an exceeding great Power Eph. 1.19 and 't is the Declaration of the King of Heaven to the Conscience and where the Word of the King is there is Power Eccles 8.4 c. And as Divines say in this the Soul is wholly passive like a dark Room that has light let into it from without The object of this Faith is Christ and the Things of Christ as in that fore mentioned place John 16.14 He shall glorifie me for â—he shall receive of mine and shew it unto you v. 15. All things that the Father hath are mine therefore said I that he shall take of mine and shew it unto you The Rule of Faith is the written Word of God 2 Pet. 1.19 20 21. And this I take to be and Concomitants of this inward revelation of Jesus which are also called believing which is the Souls accepting of this manifested Jesus and his Righteousness venturing it self upon him and committing it self to him which Acts are set forth in Scripture by various phrases as Looking unto him Isa 45.22 Coming unto him John 6.37 Casting our selves and burden upon him Isa 55.22 Staying upon him Isa 5.10 Leaning upon him Cant. 8.3 Trusting
that will carry on the Work of Sanctification in the Soul The spiritual Life of a Believer is from Faith and maintained by Faith It is written The Just shall live by Faith Rom. 1.17 Gal. 3.11 Heb. 10.38 Faith is said to purifie the Heart Acts 15.9 to sanctifie viz. the whole Man Acts 26.18 and Faith always respects Christ and his Grace The Blood of Christ i. e. pardoning Grace in the Blood of Christ received into the Conscience by believing is affirmed to purge the Conscience from dead Works to serve the living God Heb. 9.14 The Grace of God that bringeth Salvation and hath appeared to all Men in the Gospel but as revealed unto the Consciences of them that believe teacheth them that denying ungodliness and worldly Lusts they should live soberly righteously and godly in this present World Tit. 2.11 12. And the GOD of all Grace in manifesting his Grace to the Soul that he has called it to eternal Glory by JESUS CHRIST does go on to make perfect establish strengthen and settle the Soul Which Expressions comprehend all the Work of Sanctification in its several parts and degrees till it arrives to the fulness of the stature of a perfect Man in Christ Jesus 'T is apparent from these and several other places of the holy Scriptures that the Grace that is in us proportionably rises and falls to the believing Views we have of the Grace that is in the Heart of Christ towards us and in the Hand of Christ to give us To draw towards a close in this matter This is it I am at that our inherent Righteousness within us is begun and carried on by Faith in the imputed Righteousness of Christ without us These two are every way distinct yet so as the former still flows from the latter The All-wise GOD has so ordered it in the dispensation of his Grace that his free Grace shall be magnified and the Righteousness of his Son highly valued and advanced Were the only use of Christ's Righteousness and indeed that is a great use of it to secure eternal Glory for us we should be tempted to have little recourse to it by Faith for that being once done and our state secured corrupt Nature would be apt to insinuate to us there would be no great need of such frequent viewing that God-like Righteousness without us wherein we stand it being that that is so contrary to Flesh and blood But now our Holiness in every step of it depending upon the Righteousness of Christ being apprehended by the Soul in believing it must or it ought to necessitate us to have constant recourse by continued Acts of believing to this glorious Righteousness all the day long Since it is thus that every dram of true Gospel-Holiness flows into the Soul only this way The Apostle affirms it three times That now the just shall live by Faith which Life 't is evident he means to be a Life spiritual or Life of Holiness here And 't is necessary that the Work of Holiness be carried on continually and constantly and therefore that we believe in Christ and his Righteousness always The reason of all is this The Lord will have the Righteousness which is of Faith the imputed Righteousness of his Son always viewed believed in and admired by us So that hence you may believe the Doctrine of Free-Grace does not tend to Licentiousness as Satan in various Instruments clamours against it but the quite contrary Such undeserved superabounding Grace to pardoned Sinners being the main motive unto Holiness of Heart Lip and Life The Apostle plainly affirms Rom. 6.14 That the Souls being brought under Grace breaks Sin 's Dominion therein i. e. the Soul being brought in believing under the powerful influence of that Grace that Reigns through Righteousness unto eternal Life by Jesus Christ our Lord Rom. 5.21 2. Infer The second and last use is for the encouragement of Sinners yea the chiefest worst and vilest to come to Christ from the glorious Grace that is held forth in the Doctrine The Believers that thus have and can triumph over Death and the Grave were once Sinners as you may be some of them as vile as the vilest of you Come you therefore and tast and see how gracious our Lord the Redeemer is Come you and joyn with us in a perpetual Covenant to serve the Lord. Accept of the peace of the Gospel and make a venture upon an offered Jesus Oh come you the worst of you and live the Life of Faith like the Just and you shall die the Death of the Righteous to triumph over all in Death Whatever your Objections can be this astonishing Free-Grace can answer them all Infinite Wisdom has permitted all along prodigious Mountains of Opposition to rise in the way of Grace on purpose that that Grace of God may declare it self boundless by triumphing over all Thus though it was designed from all Eternity that Free-Grace should have all the Honour in making the Elect happy Yet a Law for Life was set up that through the Breaches thereof Sin might be suffered to enter Sin that odious thing that was such an Affront to the whole Godhead and brought so great an eclipse on his manifestative Glory was suffered I say to enter that electing Grace might be magnified in mounting above it And the Law entered once again on Mount Sinai that so Sin might abound on purpose that Free Grace might super-abound and reign and triumph over all Free-Grace and electing Love does not only like Jordan overflow all its Banks but like the mighty Deluge cover the tops of the highest Mountains of Opposition in the World Therefore what Objections O Sinners can you have against bowing down to the Grace offered in the Gospel O harden not your Hearts but now hear ye his Voice Know assuredly this That objecting against your acceptance of the Grace of Christ be your Objections never so specious is no other but a gain-saying of Christ O do not rebell and gainsay against the wide-opened and stretcht-forth Arms of eternal Mercy and Compassion that now is extended to you Be thou the vilest on the face of the Earth yet as vile as thou has obtained Mercy There are on Record instances of Sovereign Grace greater than any of you can be What think you of Adam I durst almost engage to answer all thine Objections thou vilest Sinner from that single Precedent You say you are the greatest of Sinners you cannot be greater than he who was the Arch-Rebel and Traytor who led his whole Race into an horrid Rebellion against GOD yet he found Mercy Ay but your Sins are great not greater than his who in one Sin was guilty of the highest Ingratitude the most monstrous Unbelief and the most devillish Pride and Discontent c. besides his breaking the whole Moral Law in that one Sin Yet you may say My Sins are many I answer That first Sin of his was a pregnant Monster millions of Legions in it But you