Selected quad for the lemma: life_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
life_n	bless_a	jesus_n	lord_n	4,865	5	3.3913	3	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A12185	A glance of Heaven, or, A pretious taste of a glorious feast wherein thou mayst taste and see those things which God hath prepared for them that love him / By R. Sibs ...	Sibbes, Richard, 1577-1635.; Seaman, Lazarus, d. 1675.	1638 (1638)	STC 22497; ESTC S5102	68,749	298

hope And where were patience If it were not for a better estate in another world a Christian of all men were most miserable Who would endure any thing for Christ if it were not for a better estate afterwards And so for sobrietie what forceth a moderate use of all things here the consideration of future judgement that made even Felix to tremble The consideration of the estate to come causes that we surfet not with the cares of the world and excesse but doe all that may make way for such a glorious condition What enforceth the keeping of a good conscience in all things St. Paul looked to the resurrection of the just and of the unjust and this made him exercise himselfe to keepe a good conscience And so puritie and holinesse that we take heed of all defilements in the world that we bee not led away with the errour of the wicked but keepe our selves unspotted What forceth this but the consideration of a glorious condition in another world He that hath this hope purgeth himselfe There is a purgative power in hope a cleansing efficacie that a man cannot hope for this excellent condition but it will frame and fit the soule for that condition Can a man hope to appeare before a great person and not fit himselfe in his deportment and attire before hand to please the person before whom hee appeares So whosoever hopes to appeare before Christ and God of necessitie that hope will force him to purge himselfe Let us not stand to search curiously into particulars what the glory of the soule or of the body shall bee the Apostle discovers it in generall we shall bee conformed to Christ our head in soule and body but rather study how to make good use of them for therefore they are revealed before hand in generall And with all to humble our selves and to say with the Psalmist Lord what is Man that thon so farre considerest him Sinfull man that hath lost his first condition and hath betrayed himselfe to thine and his enemy to advance him to that estate that neither eye hath seene nor eare heard c. This consideration will make us base in our owne eyes Shall not wee presently disdaine any proud conceits shall wee talke of merit what can come from a Creature that shall deserve things that eie hath not seen nor eare heard that such proud conceits should enter into the heart of man surely grace never entred into that mans heart that hath such a conceite to entertaine merit Shall a man thinke by a penny to merit a thousand pound by a little performance to merit things that are above the conceit of men and Angels but a word is enough that way And with humiliation take that which alwayes goes with humiliation thankefulnesse even before hand When the Apostle S. Peter thought of the inheritance immortall and undefiled c. he begins Blessed be God the Father of our Lord Iesus Christ c. Hee could not think of these things without thankfulnesse to God For wee should begin the life of heaven upon earth as much as may bee and what is that but a blessing and praising of God Now we cannot more effectually and feelingly praise God than by the cōsideration of what great things are reserved for us for faith sets them before the soule as present as invested into them Now if we were in heaven already we should praise God and do nothing else therfore faith making them sure to the soule as if we had them sets the soule on worke to praise God as in Ephes. 1. and in Pet. 1. Saint Peter and Paul they could never have enough of this Thus wee should doe and cheare and joy our hearts in the consideration of these things in all conflicts desolations wee little thinke of these things and that is our fault wee are like little children that are born to great matters notwithstanding not knowing of them they carry not themselves answerable to their hopes but the more the children grow into yeares the more they grow in spirit and conceits and carriage sitting the estates they hope for So it is with Christians at the first when they are weake they are troubled with this temptation and with that with this losse and with that crosse but when a Christian growes to a full stature in Christ every petty crosse doth not cast him downe hee thinkes what shall I be dejected with this losse that have heaven reserved for mee shall I bee cast downe with this crosse that have things that eye hath not seene nor eare heard c. Prepared for me He will not he makes use of his faith to fetch comfort from these things that are reserved for him that are unexpressible and unconceiveable And let us comfort our selves in all the slightings of the World A man that hath great hopes in his own coūtry if he be slighted abroad he thinkes with himselfe I have other matters reserved elsewhere and I shall have another manner of respect when I come home The world it knowes not God nor Christ nor us shall not we be content to go up and downe as unknowne men here when God the father and Christ our Saviour are unknowne There are better things reserved at home for us therfore let us digest all the slightings and abusage of carnal men And let us not envy them their condition that is but for terme of life use it as well as they will that hath a date that will bee out wee know not how soone Alas all their happinesse it is but a measured happinesse it is within their understandings their eyes can see it and their eares can heare it and when they can neither see nor conceive more in this world then there is an end of all their sensible happinesse Shall we envie when they shall shortly be turned naked out of this world to the place of torment We should present them to us as objects of pitie even the greatest men in the world if wee see by their carriage they be void of grace but not envy any condition in this world But what affection is due and suiting to the estate of a Christian If we would have the true affection it is admiration and wonderment What is wonderment It is the state and disposition of the soule toward things that are new and rare and strange that we can give no reason of that are beyond our reach For wise men wonder not because they see a reason they can compass things But a Christian cannot but wōder because the things prepared are above his reach yea when he is in heaven he shall not be able to conceive the glory of it he shall enter into it it shall bee above him he shall have more joy and peace then he can comprehend the joy that hee hath there it is beyond his ability and capacity beyond his power he shall not be able to compasse all It shall be a matter

our selves with the assurance of Gods favour and love in Jesus Christ. Being justified by faith we have peace with God and rejoyce in God as it is Rom. 5. wee rejoyce in God as ours Therfore those that goe to outward contentments that run out to them as if there were not enough in God and divine things to content their soules but they must be beholding to the divell a●d to the flesh for contentments this is not to rest in God Hee is over-covetous whom God cannot content If we be in covenant with him hee is able to fill our soule and all the corners of it hee is able to satisfie all the delights and desires of it hee is a gracious father in Christ. Whither should wee goe from him for contentment why should wee goe out of religion to content our selves in ●vain recreations pleasures of sinne for a season when wee have abundance in God And where there is contentment there will be trusting in him and relying upon him A man will not rely upon riches or friends or any thing for where we place our contentment we place our trust So farre as we love God so farre wee repose affiance and trust in him he will be our rock castle strength Wouldest thou know whether thou restest in him or no In the time of danger whither doth thy soule run to thy purse if thou bee a rich man or to thy friends if thou bee a worldly minded man Every man hath his Castle to flye to But the Name of the Lord is a strong Tower hee that is a childe of God flieth thither for refuge and there hee covereth himselfe and is safe He enters into those chambers of divine providence and goodnesse and there he rests in all troubles Therefore aske thy affections whither thou wouldest runne if there should come a confusion of all things when men are apt to say Oh! what will become of us and they think of this and that A good Christian hath God to rest in he hath God reconciled in Christ and in his love he plants himselfe in life and death He makes God his habitation and his Castle as it is Psalm 18. I love the Lord dearly my Rock and my Fortresse And Moses in Psalm 90. for his Psalme it is Thou hast been our habitation from everlasting to everlasting Wee dwell in thee though in the world we are tossed up and downe and live and die yet wee alway dwell with thee So a Christian hath his contentment and his habitation in God he is his house he dwells in his rocke his resting place his centre in which he rests Come unto mee and yee shall finde rest to your soules When a man is beat out of all contentments he may know by this whether he love God or no As David when hee was beat out of all and they were ready to stone him but hee trusted in the Lord his God So in losses and crosses hast thou contentment in God thou wilt fetch what thou losest out of the love of God and what thou art crossed in thou wilt fetch out of Gods love thou wilt say this and that is taken from mee but God is mine I can fetch more good by faith from him than I can lose in the world A soule that is acquainted with God when hee loseth any thing in the world he can fetch it out of the ●cuntain and spring He is taught to love God he is skilfull this way to pitch his hope and affiance in God where he hath enough for all crosses Let us labour to bring our souls more and more to this and then wee shal know what it is to love God by this placing of our contentment in him Take all from me sayth holy A●stin so thou leave mee thy selfe So a Christian can say take all from mee so I have God Indeed where shall a man have comfort in many passages of his life if he finde it not in religion What will become of a man in this uncertaine world if hee have not somewhat where hee may place his content Oh! he will finde before hee die that hee is a wretched man hee knowes not where to finde rest and contentment before he die hee will bee beat out of all his holds here either by sicknesse or one thing or other The fourth and last is where the true affection of love to God is it stirs up the soule to give all contentment to God to doe all things that may please him This is the nature of love it stirs up to please the partie loved Isaacks sons saw that their father loved Venison therfore they provided venison for him Those that know what God loves will provide what they can that that God may delight in He loves a humble and a believing heart Thou hast wounded me with one of thine eyes The eye of faith when the soule can trust in the word humbly go out of it self his delight is in a broken yeelding heart that hardnes not it selfe against his instructions but yeelds A broken heart that lies low heares all that God saith Oh it is a sacrifice that God is much delighted in a humble spirit is such a spirit as God dwels in He that dwels in the highest heavens dwels in a humble spirit Doth God delight in a meeke broken humble spirit Oh then it will be the desire of a Christian to have such a spirit as God may delight in A meeke soule is much esteemed the hidden man of the heart is much prized search in Gods word what hee delights in and let us labour to bring our selves to such a condition as God may delight in us and we in him then it is a signe wee love him when wee labour to procure all things that may give him content You know that love where it is it stirres up the affections of the partie to remove all things that are distastfull to the partie it loves Therefore it is a neat affection for it will make those neat that otherwise are not so because it will not offend much more this divine heavenly affection when it is set on a right object upon God it is a neat cleanly affection it will purge the soule it will worke upon the soule a desire to bee cleane as much as can bee because God is a pure holy God and it will have no fellowship with the workes of darknesse Therfore as much as humane frailtie will permit the soule that loves God it will studie puritie to keep it selfe unspotted of the world It will not willingly cherish any sinne that may offend the Spirit Those therefore that are carelesse of their wayes and carriage and affections that make nothing of polluting and defiling their affectictions and their wayes there is not the love of God in their hearts It stirres up shame to be offensive in the eyes of such a one especially if they be great there is both love and