Selected quad for the lemma: mercy_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
mercy_n	call_v	lord_n	soul_n	6,288	5	5.4233	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A09950	The breast-plate of faith and love. A treatise, wherein the ground and exercise of faith and love, as they are set upon Christ their object, and as they are expressed in good workes, is explained. / Delivered in 18 sermons upon three severall texts, by the late faithfull and worthy minister of Iesus Christ, Iohn Preston, Dr. in Divinity, chaplaine in ordinary to his Maiesty, Master of Emmanuel Colledge in Cambridge, and sometimes preacher of Lincolnes Inne.	Preston, John, 1587-1628.; Sibbes, Richard, 1577-1635, ed.; Davenport, John, 1597-1670, ed.	1630 (1630)	STC 20208; ESTC S105956	328,230	606

to Aegypt I am that I am saith hee say I am hath sent me I take this word that it comes from the same roote Iehovah is described by that I am and by that it is best understood when the Lord calls himselfe I am whereas every man may say I was and I shall be this every creature may say but the Lord saith I am that is whatsoever the Lord was from eternity the same he is to eternity there is no change in him And that is a great excellency in him that may moue us exceedingly to loue him You know when we meete with a friend that is constant that hath no alteration in him that is a sure friend haue him once and haue him for ever it sets a higher price on him When we can consider what the Lord is that he hath dealt thus and thus with us that he hath loved us and when we consider he is constant in it that he embraceth them with the sure mercies of David as they are called that is his compassions faile not but when hee hath once begun to loue hee loues for ever it is not so with men if they loue us at one time they forget us againe as the Butler forgot Ios●ph when they are in prosperity they forget us but the Lord knowes us in all our conditions thou hast knowne my soule in adversitie When we are in a strait friends oft times are backward to helpe us but the Lord in such an exigent he is the same he appeares in the Mount when there is no helpe in man I say this constancy that God is alway the same to us that his mercies are sure for they are called the sure mercies of David He shewed mercies to Saul too but they were another kinde of mercies Saul was not one that he had chosen to himselfe and therefore his mercies continued not for indeed hee never loved Saul with that unchangeable loue But when he loues any man as he loved David his mercies are sure as they were to David David was ready to step aside often as well as Saul hee let Saul goe but he carried David along they were sure mercies and such hee shewes to all those that he hath begun to loue That is the first I am or Iehovah Secondly he is strong Iehovah strong mercifull and gracious c. that is Almighty What is the meaning of that that he is almighty The meaning of it is this that the Lord hath all the excellencies those which we call graces and vertues and qualities in men all these abound in the Lord for what serues any vertue for or any quality that you haue but to enable you to doe something if a man haue any science or art that is but to enable him to doe that which without it he cannot doe if a man hath the art of Arithmetique he is able to number or if he haue the art of Logicke he is able to dispute come to all morall vertues What is temperance but that which enableth us to doe such and such things uppon such and such occasions What is patience but that which enableth us to endure afflictions So all that is excellent in man all those amiable those beautifull qualities wherewith the soule is adorned are but so farre good as they enable a man to doe this or that Now when the Lord is said to be almighty the meaning is hee hath all excellency in him and hee hath it in the highest degree for in this sense God is able to doe more than any man in regard of excellency whatsoever a man is able to doe you know how infinitely the Lord hath it beyond him he is able to doe so much more as he is beyond any man For that power that attribute that quality that is in man it is not a quality in him he hath it beyond any man Againe when a man is able to doe one thing yet he is not able to doe another one creature is able to doe this another that But the Lord is Almightie therefore he is able to doe all things And therefore this is a kind of excellencie that is the second description he is Iehovah and he is Almightie But now when you heare that the Lord is thus constant and thus exceeding in excellencie a man will be ready to say what is this to me I am a sinfull man there is nothing in me but that which may turne away the Lord from me and cause him to abhorre me Well saith he to comfort you know that I am mercifull exceeding pittifull exceeding ready to forgiue though your sinnes bee exceeding many though they bee exceeding great yet the Lord he is mercifull he is ready to passe by all those infirmities And that is another of his excellencies You know we reckon it a very amiable thing in a man when we see him pittifull This doth more abound in the Lord than in any creature there is no man in the world so ready to forgive as God If he were not God if he were as man my brethren could hee beare with us as he doth Let us doe to a man injuries and injuries againe and againe and never give over what man can beare it doth he not in the end withdrawe himselfe and will no more be reconciled But it is not so with the Lord when wee have done all Yet returne to me saith the Lord Ier. 3.2 Well but if we haue such sinnes in us suppose the Lord is mercifull and ready to forgive but yet there is no goodnes in us wee haue nothing in us why he should regard us and why he should looke after us To that it is answered the Lord is gracious that is though there bee no worth found in you yet he is ready to doe you good as grace you know is proper to a Prince or a great man that is sayd to be gracious to his subject or to one that is very inferiour because hee can doe nothing to deserue it it is called grace for grace you knowe is nothing but freenes and to be gracious is to doe things freely when there is no motiue no wages when there is nothing to winne him but of free grace he doth it So the Lord doth what he doth of his free grace he hath mercy on whom he will have mercy that is when all men did stand before him alike though there were nothing when there was no cause why the Lord should regard them more than an other yet He will haue mercy on whome he will haue mercy that is he is gracious though there be nothing in us to winne that love at his hands Well but yet wee may be readie to object it is true the Lord hath been thus to me he hath ben very merciful to forgiue me my sinnes he hath beene very gracious to me to shew me favour when I never deserved it but after I was put into such a condition I provoked him to anger by relapsing into sinne againe and againe after

what nature soeuer to thinke otherwise is to limit the holy one of Israel trust perfectly therefore It is not a little that will serue the turne as the Apostle saith 2 Pet. 3. vlt. grow in grace there is neede of it you shall finde that as you wade further in the profession of Christianity so you shall haue neede of more strength you shall haue greater imployment therefore you haue more neede of growth to goe forward and perseuere Againe you shall meet with greater temptations and assaults if you bee not more strong then at the first you are not able to resist Againe If you grow in faith you shall growe likewise in Joy and that is a thing which wee haue continuall vse of that is of onely vse to comfort and strengthen vs to make vs abound in the workes of the LORD that helpes vs to goe thorow all variety of conditions that enables vs to abound and to want to passe thorow good report and euill report to suffer and endure persecution now the more you grow in faith the more you grow in joy as the Apostle saith Rom. 15.13 The God of peace fulfill you with all ioy by beleeuing So that the more wee beleeue the more ioy the more consolation wee haue Againe the more you grow in faith the more you shall gaine the fauour of GOD the more you shall winne his loue there is nothing in the World doth so much winne the fauour of GOD as a great degree of faith and therefore though thou mayest be saued with a lesse degree yet that thou mayest be in a greater degree of fauour seeke more faith and this though it be reckoned a small matter to haue a great degree of GODS fauour yet it is the greatest dignity in the world Looke vpon all the difference of men it is their difference in the fauour of God that makes them so Why was Moses a man aboue all the rest saith GOD I will haue compassion vpon whom I will haue compassion and I will shew mercie to whom I will shew mercie I haue chosen Moses looke to what difference of men you will looke into what estate what condition thou wouldest haue either thy soule or thy body whatsoeuer it be it is by the grace and fauour of GOD in CHRIST IEsus that all thy comfort and consolation increaseth What shall make me grow in the fauour of GOD I answer there is nothing that causeth God to set so much by vs as faith the woman of Canaan see what cause Christ had to giue her such a great commendation great is thy faith and because her faith was great therefore hee set her at so high a rate So the Centurion saith CHRIST I haue not found so great faith in Israel and that is the thing that he set so great a price vpon So Iacob when hee got the name of Israel when he preuailed with GOD certainely it was the greatest blessing that euer he had Why was that Because hee shewed the greatest faith that euer he did it was a strong faith that preuailed with GOD And what set him at so high a rate in GODS Booke It was the faith he had in GOD therfore he is remembred in the whole Booke of GOD for his faith Therefore the more faith you haue the more GOD prizeth you it is it that winnes his loue I cannot stand vpon the arguments why we should grow in faith they are many The more faith we haue the more powerfull are our prayers in preuailing with GOD for faith giues strength to them Againe the more faith you haue the more you bring glory to GOD if there bee much faith there will bee much fruite it is the roote of all grace as Iohn 15.8 Herein is my Father glorified that you bring forth much fruit Get much faith then if you will haue much fruit that you may bring glory to GOD as if he should say If a man haue but some faith he brings forth fruit yet there shall be something wanting but when a man is eminent when he is conspicuous when he is as a great light that euery man turnes his eye to when he is as a Tree that brings forth much fruite which turnes the eyes of the beholders to it So it is with Christians herein saith Christ is my Father glorified c. A Christian hath no such motiue as this he shall glorifie GOD exceedingly if he haue abundance of faith he shall haue abundance of euery Grace he shall grow rich in good workes this is that which we should all labour for I cannot stand to presse it further So much for this time and for this Text. FINIS A TREATISE OF EFFECTVALL FAITH Deliuered in sixe Sermons vpon 1 Thes. 1.3 By the late faithfull and worthy Minister of IESVS CHRIST IOHN PRESTON Dr. in Diuinity Chaplaine in ordinary to His Maiestie Master of Emanuel Colledge in Cambridge and sometime Preacher of Lincolnes-Inne The iust shall line by faith Hab. 2.4 Who through faith subdued Kingdomes wrought righteousnesse obtained promises c. Heb. 11.33 34. LONDON Printed for Nicholas Bourne 1630. OF EFFECTVALL FAITH The first Sermon 1. THESS 1.3 Remembring your effectuall Faith c. IN the former Verses the Apostle setteth down this generall Wee giue thankes alwaies for you making mention of you in our prayers without ceasing First hee tels them that hee prayes for them and then hee tels them more particularly that his prayer was a thanksgiuing And this giuing of thanks for them hee expresseth by the continuance of it he did it constantly without ceasing not by fits making mention of you in my prayers Then he names the particulars for which he giues thankes namely these three For their Effectuall Faith Diligent Loue Patient hope Now these three Graces he describeth and setteth forth three wayes First from a certaine property or character which distinguisheth the true faith from the false faith the true loue from the false loue the true hope from false hope I giue not thankes for euery faith but for such a faith as is effectuall that is the property or character by which the truth of faith is discerned Againe not for euery loue but for such a loue as is laborious for so the word signifieth Thirdly not for euery hope but for such a hope as makes you patient that is the character by which to know hope And this is the first way whereby he describeth these Graces Secondly he describeth them from the object vpon which these Graces are pitched and that is Iesus Christ our Lord that is to say I giue thankes for the faith you haue in Christ for the loue you haue towards him for the hope you haue of what he will doe for you I giue thankes for that faith for that loue for that hope that hath Christ for the object of it Thirdly he describeth these graces from the sincerity of them I giue thankes for all these graces that you haue in the sight of God