Selected quad for the lemma: love_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
love_n	beget_v	love_v	only_a	2,697	5	6.4558	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A88811	A plea for the vse of gospell ordinances: against the practice and opinions of certain men of these times. Unto which is added by way of an illustrious instance; a vindication of the ordinance of baptisme: against Mr. Dels booke, entituled The doctrine of baptismes. Wherein it's proved that the ordinance of baptism is of gospel institution, and by divine appointment, to continue of use in the Church, to the end of the world. / By Hen: Laurence Esq;.	Lawrence, Henry, 1600-1664.	1652 (1652)	Wing L668; Thomason E654_2; ESTC R205905	51,207	92

Christ why may it not be thought that our Lord hath particularly instituted these to keepe fresh to us for our comfort and his honour that great love wherewith he loved us when hee gave himselfe for us to death which the Scripture magnifies and values so much as to give it for the highest instance of the love of God the Father God so loved the World that he gave his onely begotten Sonne 1 John 3. and also of the greatest and highest engagement of our love to him 2 Cor. 5.14 The love of Christ constraineth us Now this which speakes Gods love so much and ingages ours so fully and which in respect of the condition of our state in this life is of so great concernment God would have kept fresh to us by most visible and sensible demonstrations and the rather to prevent and meet with the ingratitude of unworthy men who after they have served their turne of him fling away Christ crucified as an element as beggerly as any of those Ordinances which represent it and under I know not what vanity or pride of notion cast that behind their backs which Paul in his preaching desired especially to know and manifest 1 Cor. 2.2 Thus much for what I thought to say to this head concerning the difference betweene us and the Jewes in our formes of worship and ministration Object But if any shall bee yet unsatisfied with this as pretending after a more spirituall converse with God then is suitable to such Ordinances of preaching Baptisme Church fellowshippe breaking of bread c. Answ 1 I answer first That for some part of these to wit Prophecy or Preaching neither God nor the Devil will easily part with that under any notion whatsoever not God because by the foolishnesse of preaching hee saves them that beleeve it is a mighty Ordinance in his hands for the converting and building up his in the faith and knowledge of him nor the Devill what ever in a kind of gallantry he or such as are acted by him may pretend to for he would want the most proper and naturall and easie medium to diffuse and propagate his lyes and therefore when I have heard of some who having prophesied notorious lyes in the name of the Lord have by the same spirit of lying fayned themselves in the state of the resurrection and that therefore they were to pray and preach no more I alwayes sayd before the event proved it true that for the businesse of preaching I would undertake they should not long refraine that what ever became of other things for as much as the Devill would not long loose that mighty engine of diffusing his principles and accordingly these persons have beene since the most constant and diligent Preachers and the Devill hath not beene wanting to his usuall methods of transforming himselfe into an Angell of light and mingling abominable lyes with seeming raysed and high and spirituall expressions that the one may be set of and take better by the ayde and assistance of the other Then if prophesying or preaching or conference which are of the same nature wil be allowed by these men that are scandalized at the foolishnesse of Ordinances why not Baptisme breaking of bread and the rest which are no more foolish nor no more carnall then the other for cannot the holy spirit speake as spiritually and as effectually by these Hieroglyphick's of its institution as by the words and reasonings of any man Cannot it tell you the love of the great God the merits of the death of Christ what conformity and assimilation God expects from you to your head with all the rest of those things wherein these Ordinances instruct you as well as by the words or reasonings of any man which unlesse the spirit informe and inliven it is as dull and improper to convey spirituall things to us and in it selfe as low and carnall as any other medium you can imagine This being granted as it cannot be denied they who will admit of prophesying or preaching or conference which goe all under one head cannot deny any of the rest Church-fellowship Church-assembling Baptisme breaking of bread c. to be proper and fit mediums for Gods convaying himselfe to us in any piece of spirituall knowledge or manifestation for since it is the holy spirit that must doe all that is done in us and upon us for good the holy spirit hath and can make as good use of these mediums and preach to us upon that text as well as upon the word or expressions or reasonings of any man whatsoever and it is as proper and suitable to that blessed spirit to speake to us by things as by words c. Words in themselves and in their letter are as carnall and unfit for our spirituall edification as any thing you can imagine This answer therefore is a Pari if you will allow of preaching or conferences which as I said none will be found to denie long there will be no good reason to reprobate or reject Baptisme breaking of bread Church-fellowship or the rest as things in their nature improper and unspirituall for whatever reason comes from institution we shall examine that afterwards Answ 2 But then secondly for those who would lay aside these mediums as things more carnall and bodily then befits their state whether wilfully or ignorantly they deceive themselves and others I would intreat them to consider how they come to apprehend any things spirituall or whether whilst they are in the body whilst their soules live in these houses of clay they can reason understand by which spirituall impressions are conveyed without the ayde and assistance of the body For though God hath this preheminence effectually to inlighten the understanding and determine the will in respect of the event which no creature man or Angell can doe yet the way by which he accommodates himselfe to us in the doing of these things is still human● more and after the rate and proportion of our weaknesses as wee are able and fitted to receive things being in the body and in this mixt lame and imperfect state in which wee are when Gods speaks to us by men or things it is alwaies by the mediation of our externall senses but when hee goes another way to worke it is not without the body but by the mediation of phantasmes either formerly received or newly injected which God can doe though perhaps neither men nor Angels can he represents objects to our understandings and wills which take and move us as it peaseth him to give the blessing so as you cannot contemplate nor meditate nor reason nor thinke of God without the assistance and use of the body nor receive impressions from him upon your understanding and will and affections but by the same way It is therefore grosse ignorance in men as it is in the most assisted and improved by pride or wilfulnesse which makes them subject to these mistakes to judge that converse with God unholy and unspirituall