Selected quad for the lemma: love_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
love_n	beauty_n	fair_a	love_v	2,781	5	5.8271	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
B02482	Christ alone exalted in the perfection and encouragements of the saints, notwithstanding sins and trials. Volume III. / Being laid open in severall sermons by the late spirituall and faithfull preacher of the Gospel, Tobias Crispe, D.D.	Crisp, Tobias, 1600-1643.; Cokayn, George, 1619-1691.; Pinnell, Henry.	1648 (1648)	Wing C6959; ESTC R233167	185,508	400

Even in those times now and then a Prophet would out with some admirable expression of the Gospel But this was but as the breaking forth of light in a darke night Sometimes again the Gospel was presented in a Propheticall habit and so it was held out as it were at a remote distance that even an elevated and supernaturall eye had as much as it could do to see it in the proportion of the Gospel And this was the dispensation of the Gospel in the Prophets Sometimes also the Gospel was presented under a parabolicall habit and thus it pleased our Saviour to exhibit it in his time delighting much to see it in this dresse in so much that all the Gospel he spake almost was clothed in that habit and so the kingdome of heaven was likened unto Leaven hid in three measures of meal and unto Mustard-seed and unto Treasure hid in a field and so he goeth on setting of it forth under all sorts of comparisons to illustrate it Finally the Gospel is presented sometimes without either vail or mask over it in its owne proper beauty shining forth from the face of it nothing at all hindering the prospect of it in its own proportion and thus was the Gospel presented unto the Disciples when they said unto Christ Now thou speakest unto us plainly and not by Parables Unto us that live now at this present the Gospel of Christ is represented in all these variety of dresses together to administer the more delight It is accounted one of the greatest pieces of honour in a State for a Prince to have changes of rayment every day Now the Lord will put so much state upon his Gospel that it shal not always go in one dresse or habit Now the Text that I have read unto you holds out the Gospel in Christs owne way which was so much affected by him I mean in a parabolicall habit The most glorious excellencies of the Gospel as it doth pertain to the Church of God are composed in this Text Thou art all fair my Love there is no spot in thee This text as the whole song throughout is nothing else but an elevated strain of discourse between Christ and his Church or a song tuned to the highest note that ever song was sung which discourse is an interchangeable speech between Christ and his Church the Church acting her part first in the second verse of the first Chapter Let him kisse me with the kisses of his mouth being amiable sweet discourse indeed then she falls upon the high commendation of this love of hers exalting the praise of her husband Christ above the skie which kindled such a strong affection in her that she seemed to be far from him that she was not neere enough unto him she called unto him therefore that hee would draw her neerer unto him Draw me and wee will run after thee saith the Church And that she may come the neerer she begs of him to tell her where she may finde him in a neerer communion with him than yet she had Hereupon her part being ended Christ he begins to tune his note to an higher strain in answering the Church than the Church began to him If thou knowest not O thou fairest among women saith Christ here after his commendation of her he directs her where she may meet with him by the footsteps of the flocks by the tents of the shepherds there she shall have him And then he falls again upon the exalting and commending of her excellent perfections by many and severall comparisons the Church by and by in the 16. verse retorts the commendation that Christ gives unto her upon Christ againe My Beloved is fair Behold my Beloved is all fair and pleasant Thus you see here is a making forth of the praises of each others excellency and of the high esteem each hath of other each to other in their mutuall discourse Christ saith of the Church Thou art the fairest among women the Church she replies againe Behold thou art fair and thus they go on in admirable expressions of the praises of each other I would be too large to run over all the particulars of the sweet intercourse between Christ and his Church Now in the Text Christ retorts that commendation back againe unto the Church that the Church before had given unto him Thus she having begun to fall into the high commendation of her love he afterwards follows O thou fairest among women she retorts it upon him Thou art fair my Love thou art all fair Well Christ will not have it rest there he will have the last word as I may say he retorts it back againe to her saying in the words of the Text Thou art all fair my Love there is no spot in thee So that here is an out-vying as it were between Christ and his Church which should mount highest in the praise of each other extolling the excellency of each other unto the skies the burthen of the song being this still Thou art fair thou art all fair my Love In the words themselves you may observe in generall the high commendation that Christ gives of his Church and unto the Church her self in which commendation you may note First the most gracious amiable title that Christ gives unto her he calls her Love the sweetest title a Husband can give a Wife but there is an addition of one Article that doth mightily advance the indearednesse of Christ in respect of the specialty thereof namely MY LOVE thou art all fair MY LOVE Secondly note here in the words the matter of the praise and commendation that Christ gives to his Church it is expressed in that which is accounted most desireable fairnesse thou art fair but in this matter of praise there is a double addition that doth exceed the praise the Church gives unto Christ before The Church is not only fair but all fair Thou art all fair my Love Secondly for the further illustration of this beauty there is a second addition Thou art all fair thou hast no spot in thee Finally in the words you may note the time of which Christ speaks Every man receives this Principle that in glory in Heaven there shall be perfection of beauty in which the Church shall stand But if Christ had spoken of the state of glory he would have declared himself in the future Tense Thou shalt be all fair my Love But it is observeable Christ speakes here in the present Tense of the present time of the Church as he hath communion with her here in this world Thou art all fair There is a great deale of difference between the Tenses It is one thing to say of a man Thou shalt be rich and another thing to say Thou art rich It is true the Church shall be all fair in glory and it is as true the Church is all fair now Thou art all fair my Love there is no spot in thee That these words are the language of Christ unto his

is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seene Faith is the evidence saith the Text of things not seen The Apostle here doth not give any efficacy to faith to procure or bring forth a new thing but he gives to faith only an evidencing power and that not to evidence any new thing but to be an evidence of things not seen that is of things that were before in being but were hid but by faith come to be apparent and cease to be hid and are manifest and open when the evidence of faith doth bring them forth to light Either you must say it is not in being till faith is come and so faith doth more then evidence even beget and give being to the very thing or you must confesse the thing indeed was but faith makes it evident that before was hid and obscure Now though faith be honoured with the greatest businesse of all the gifts of the Spirit of God yet that Christ may not be robbed of that which is peculiar unto him and properly his own that is to give compleat being to our justification that it should be given unto faith it self I say give me leave to propose to you some particulars wherein it is as cleer as the day-light that it is impossible for any person under Heaven to believe till such time as this person be first united unto Christ and become one with him and that faith it self being but a fruit that flows from our union with him is not the uniter that knits Christ and a person together I shall not need to insist upon that place I have often made mention of in the 16. of Ezekiel But beloved when you take this point into consideration I beseech you remember that passage in the 8. and 9. verses The time when God fastened his love upon the Church was the time of the blood of the Church When I saw thee polluted in thy ●lood I said unto thee Live In vers 7. it is three mes repeated When thou wast in thy blood I said unto thee Live and in vers 8. Thy time was be time of love that is the time of thy blood that he spake of before this time was the time of love And I spread my skirt over thee saith the Text and I sware unto thee and entered into covenant with thee and thou becamest mine then washed I thee with water yea I throughly washed thee from thy blood Here is first loving and spreading the sk●●t over the Church before the Church is washed Here is not first washing and then loving and spreading the skirt over them but here is first a spreading of the skirt in blood and after that comes washing and throughly washing from blood If any man do think that this washing is to be understood of sanctification let them but consider whether or no there be a through-washing from bloud a perfect washing from bloud such a washing from bloud as that the person so washed is presently all fair or as the Prophet speaks expresly in that Chapter compleat in beauty that is perfect and that through his comeliness put upon this person But to go on consider I beseech you beloved that expression in Isa 43.22 23. the Lord there is pleased first to deciare himself concerning his people in what a condition they were their condition was this Thou hast not called upon me but thou hast been weary of me yea thou hast wearied me with thy sins and thou hast made mee to serve with thy transgeessions saith the Lord. And mark what follows I even I am hee that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine owne sake and will not remember thy sins Here the people whose sins God blotted out are not considered as believing people but are considered as a people that wearied God with their sins and people that made him serve with their transgressions they are considered as a people that had not so much as an heart to call upon God but were quite weary of God for so he doth expresse himself concerning this people and even while he doth consider them thus even then he for his owne sake blotteth out their transgressions And in the 53. of Isaiah whereof I spake so largely heretofore if you marke well in the 6. verse you shall see plainly there is nothing but sin considered in the person whose iniquitles the Lord laid upon Christ All wee like sheep have gone astray we have turned every one of us to our own way and hee hath laid on him the iniquity of us all Here is not a consideration of people as believing people as though there must be a believing before there can be a discharge from sin but there is a consideration of people before they are believing people even while they are a people going astray and turning every one to their owne way But the most notable expression of all to this purpose is in the 15. of John I desire you that you would seriously consider the strength of Christs plea in that place about the 4. 5. ver you see Christ comparing himself in the beginning of the Chapter saith I am the Vine and my Father is the Husbandman every branch in me that beareth fruit my Father purgeth it that it may bring forth more fruit every branch in me that beareth not fruit is cast forth as a branch and withereth But the main thing that I defire to be observed is this Abide in me as the branch abideth in the Vine for as the branch that abideth not in the Vine cannot bring forth fruit no more can yee except yee abide in me Out of which passage of Scripture I shall desire you to observe briefly these particulars wherein I hope it will be cleer and plain unto you that it is impossible a person should believe till Christ hath united himself to this person I know beloved there is none or at least I cannot meet with any yet that will deny but that faith or believing is a fruit of the branch that groweth upon the Vine that is one of the fruits of the Spirit that are wrought by the Spirit of Christ in those that are Christs For in the 5th Chapter of the Epistle to the Galatians towards the end of the Chapter you shall finde the Apostle reckon up the fruits of the Spirit and he takes up faith for one of those fruits amongst the rest If therefore believing be a fruit that persons beare by vertue of union to the Vine Christ then it must needs follow men must first be in Christ then believe For if persons do believe before they are vnited and their union by by a faith that they do act then surely the branch must beare this fruit before it be in the Vine before there be union And if faith be the uniter it is present before the union be made and so the branch doth bear fruit before it doth abide in the Vine contrary to Christs words For it is maintained

the first Chaprer of the Epistle to the Hebrews I say for this great Heir this mirror of Beauty the brightnesle of the glory of the Father to stoop to match himself to a creature surely I say it were a great condescending But since he was so pleased to condescend so low as to match himself to a creature he might well have chosen the highest linage of the creatures the highest and most noble stock of creatures he might have matched himself with Angels but this makes his condesent more admitable he descended lower he took not upon him saith the Apostle the nature of Angels but the seed of Abraham And beloved were it to creatures and the lowest of creatures simply the condescent had not been so great there may be some beauty in a countrey maid though homely attired as well as there may be in a great personage in richest apparrell being of great stock and portion Had there been beauty though there had been no linage nor noble blood this were something but as this blood became ignoble and traiterous blood in respect of the first fathers rebellions and treason so this traiterous blood could not contain it self within its bounds but as the Prophet Isaiah speaks from the crown of the head to the sole of the feet there is nothing else but wounds bruises-swellings and soars and loathsomnesse in blood even such a blood as that person is cast out to the loathing of its person that no ey can pitty That Christ should take such a nasty beggar such a beggar as stinks above ground as we may well say in regard of its filthinesse that hath no sound part but being full of botches and soares and putrifactions running over all parts from head to foot I say that Christ should take such a creature and no place should serve this creature but his bosome his bed and no communion no fellowship serve but the neerest communion and fellowship that possible may or can be imagined even a communion and fellowship that extends it self to a kind of onenesse and highest degree of unity Oh the astonishing greatnesse of the love of Christ They are said to be one flesh as Christ and his Church are set forth by the Holy Ghost in the union between man and wife so that beloved the Church as she is the Spouse of Christ so she is made one flesh with Christ You have some monstrous births in the world sometimes that have had some deformed parts growing unto them as you may see at this time in some place about this town a young man with another youth as I may say united in him at his belly whereby he is evceedingy 〈◊〉 and very 〈…〉 of it and 〈…〉 by the anysomnesse of it when by that lise of him that bears it becomes worse then death to him Beloved such were some of us nay such were all of us by nature I when Curist first took us we were such monsters we were thus silthy loathsome nasty ugly things And though we were thus by nature yet Christ hath admitted us not onely into his house and now and then into his presence but to sit continually before him yea to be his Spouse He makes us flesh of his flesh and bone of his bone what a condescending is this It is true beloved Christ he covenants and accordingly he hath done this namely cleansed this person after he had coupled himself to this person But I say to take persons before this change to take them in such a loathsome abhorred filthy condition and make them one with himself is so strange a condescending that all the world is not able to purallel it shall I say no not come neer this act of Christ A king may peradventute sancy some worthiness some beauty something or other that may be pleasing to him in a beggat and marry the beggar for that he fancieth to be of worth and delight in het but beloved hoy could Christ cast his love on such persons Whom he knew were 〈…〉 when Christ 〈…〉 them then they 〈…〉 in the face of Christ being full of enmity 〈◊〉 and rebellion even bitter enmitie against 〈◊〉 flinging from him as the greatest enemy in the world Beloved by nature every person till Christ himself tame that person hath a spight against Christ and sights against him and is so full of malignity against him as to cast dirt even in the face of Christ and yet for all this inequality and disproportion between Christ and the Spouse Christ makes this person this loathsome wretched person this rebell and traitor his Spouse Now beloved if the Lord will but open your spirits to look into this inequality and disproportion and see not only the distance but even the extream contrariety between Christ considered as he is in himself and you in your selves how can you but break forth into admiration and amazement even to astonishment It was a notable expression of Iohn in the 1. Epist Chap. 3. as I take it vers 1. Behold saith he what manner of love this is that the Father hath snewed unto us that we should be called the sons of God Now we are the sons of God and yet doth it not yet appear what we shall be He begins with this note of admiration Behold and he follows it with an interrogation as not being able to answer it himself What manner of love is this why wherein expressed That we should be called the sons of God This is a great love and yet ye know that son-ship is a relation below a Spouse How then should we break forth if it were possible into a higher admiration then ever Iohn did and say Behold what a manner of love is this that we poor miserable creatures should be called the Spouse of Christ Now we are the Spouse of Christ yet doth it not yet appear what we shall be It remains we should consider secondly the priviledges of this relation and therein see the great loving kindnesse and unsearchable goodnesse of our God that is pleased to match his own Son unto us and by such a match to make us partakers of such excelient and glorious priviledges and immunities I will but name them First as we are the Spouse of Christ so we are the children of God he that marrieth the kings daughter becometh the kings son by that match but that is not all Secondly by this match we become heirs if sons then heirs heirs of glory co-heirs and joynt-heirs with Christ a great priviledge if you consider of all the wealth and siches you have by Christ Thirdly this Spouseship intitles the Spouse of Christ to all that ever Christ hath it intitles her to all the honours of Christ it intitles her to all the communicable titles of Christ Fourthly this Spouseship secures the Church the Spouse of Christ from all arrest from actions and all suits let the debt be never so great the creditors cannot come neer her for one farthing I say the consideration