Selected quad for the lemma: love_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
love_n	believe_v	faith_n	heart_n	5,328	5	5.2153	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A88943	Church-government and church-covenant discussed, in an answer of the elders of the severall churches in New-England to two and thirty questions, sent over to them by divers ministers in England, to declare their judgments therein. Together with an apologie of the said elders in New-England for church-covenant, sent over in answer to Master Bernard in the yeare 1639. As also in an answer to nine positions about church-government. And now published for the satisfaction of all who desire resolution in those points.	Mather, Richard, 1596-1669.; Mather, Richard, 1596-1669. Apologie of the churches in New-England for church-covenant.; Peters, Hugh, 1598-1660.; Davenport, John, 1597-1670.	1643 (1643)	Wing M1270; Thomason E106_8; Thomason E106_9; ESTC R18913	104,756	140

hath separated me from his people v. 3. Besides bringing them into the Church as members and granting them the priviledge of members is promised as a reward and blessing upon this their joyning to the Lord by faith and obedience v. 7. And therefore it is not the same but a distinct thing from it the one being promised as a reward and blessing upon the other Secondly The Lord promiseth that he will make them members of his Church Them will I bring to my holy mountaine and make them joyfull in my house of Prayer Thirdly That among other things requisite to make them members this was one viz. the taking hold of that Covenant which was between the Church of Israel and God v. 6. So that hence we may gather that men may be members of Christ joyned to the Lord by faith and love and yet for the present not be members of the visible Church And that when God is so gracious to true beleevers as to make them members of his visible Church it is requisite that they joyne in Covenant before But might not faith in Christ beleeving in heart on the God of Israel be all the taking hold of the Covenant that is here meant Not so but over and above that here is also meant their open profession of their Faith in the God of Israel and open binding of themselves by Covenant to all such duties of faith and obedience as God required of the Church of Israel and the members thereof Now distinctly take the Answer to this Objection in three or foure particular Propositions First There was a Covenant between the Church of Israel and God Exod. 19. 5 6 7 8. Ezek 16. 8. Deut. 29. 10. c. Secondly This Covenant was mutuall not onely a promise on Gods part to be their God and to take them for his people but also reciprocally on their part to give up themselves unto God to be his people and to doe the dutie of people to their God The Covenant is not meerely to receive from God and promise nothing back againe to him nor doth God binde himselfe therein and leave men at libertie but it is mutuall on both parts as these Scriptures declare Gen. 17. 1. Exod. 197. 8. Deut. 5. 27. 26. 16 17. Hos 2. 23. Zach. 13. 9. Thirdly Hereupon it followes that if men had not promised and also performed in some measure of truth the duties of Faith and obedience unto God they had not taken hold of the Covenant but had discovenanted themselves notwithstanding all the promises of God unto their Fathers or others Thus though God promised Abraham to be a God to him and to his seede in their generations Gen. 17. 7. yet the Ishmaelites and Edomites descending from Abraham were discovenanted by not promising nor performing those duties of Faith and obedience which God required on the peoples part when a Covenant containes promises on Gods part and duties also on mans he doth not take hold of the Covenant that takes one part and leaves another Fourthly To beleeve what God promised in the Covenant for his part and to promise in a private way the duties of obedience on mans part was not sufficient to make these strangers members of the Church but they must doe it openly and in the view of the Church else the Church could have had no warrant to have admitted such into their Fellowship if their faith and obedience had not been visibly professed Exod. 12. 43. 48 2 Chron. 23. 19. And in as much as the Covenant was mutuall when these strangers did manifest their taking hold of the Covenant they manifested and professed both Faith and obedience both that they beleeved what God promised and that they would be obedient to what he required If any should have claimed Church-fellowship saying I beleeve the promises but would not binde himselfe to any duties of Evangelicall obedience this had been a taking hold of the Covenant by the halves a taking of one part of it in seeming and pretence and a leaving of another but it would not have been sufficient to have brought a man into the fellowship of the church Such of the Congregation of Israel as would not come to Hierusalem to enter into Covenant were to be separated from the Church in the dayes of Ezra Ezra 10. 8. And therefore such as being strangers should refuse to enter into it could not be admitted into the Church So that the taking hold of Gods Covenant which is there required to make these strangers members of the Church is a beleeving in heart on the God of Israel and an open profession that they did beleeve and likewise a promise of obedience or subjection unto the God of Israel and an open professing of such obedience and subjection and that is the joyning in Covenant which we stand for before a man can be a member of a Church even an open profession of Faith and of Obedience A third Argument is taken from those Scriptures which shew that men become members by being added to the Church or being joyned to them Act. 2. 47. 5. 13. 9. 26. If men become members of the Church by being added or joyned then joyning in Covenant or professing of subjection to the Gospel or Covenant of God is that whereby a man becomes a member of a Church But the former is true as appeares by the Scriptures forementioned and therefore the latter is true also But all the doubt in this Argument will be concerning the consequence of the Major Proposition but that may be made good by this reason and the confirmation of it viz. that a man cannot be added or joyned to the Church by any other meanes without this joyning in Covenant The truth of which Assertion will appeare by shewing the insufficiency of all other means without this joyning in Covenant and that may be done in Answer to the Objections ensuing When men were added to the Church it may be no more is meant but that God did convert them and worke Faith in their hearts and that converting of them was the adding of them to the Church This cannot be all for first Saul was converted and had faith wrought in his heart and yet he was not at the first received for a member of the Church at Hierusalem though he assayed to be joyned unto them till they were better satisfied in his spirituall estate by the testimony of Barnabas Act. 9. 26 27 28. And those strangers Isa 56. as was said before were joyned to the Lord by being converted and having Faith wrought in their hearts and yet they doe lament it with griefe that they were not joyned as members to the visible Church The Lord hath separated me from his people say they ver 3. The old saying is true concerning the visible Church There are many wolves within and many sheepe without Secondly Those that were joyned were beleevers before they joyned for it is said divers were