Selected quad for the lemma: mercy_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
mercy_n	death_n	great_a	lord_n	4,859	5	3.8144	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A88695	The persecuted minister, in defence of the ministerie, the great ordinance of Jesus Christ. Setting forth the severall names of Apostles, prophets, &c. [brace] 1. That there is a ministerial office. 2. That the sacrament of baptisme by a lay-person is invalid. 3. That necessity is no plea. 4. That the long omission of the Lords Supper is unwarrantable. With many other things, plainly and methodically handled / by William Langley late of S. Maryes in the city of Lichfield, minister ...	Langley, William, b. 1609 or 10.	1656 (1656)	Wing L408; Thomason E860_4; ESTC R202682	143,990	208

whereby we have an assurance of Gods favour It is a signe to signifie and represent a seal to ratifie and confirm the promises we read are confirmed to the believing soul Rom. 15.8 First in the Book of his Eternal Counsel that Book S. John speaks of Revel 5.1 2. which had 7 seals to signifie that it was perfectly ratified Secondly in his Son our Saviour for him hath God the Father sealed John 6.29 The riches of the New Testament are confirmed to us by the blood of Christ Heb. 9.15 Thirdly by Gods privy Seal his Spirit is called the Spirit of promise Ephes 1.13 Fourthly God confirmeth his promises by this Sacrament which is his broad Seale to confirm our faith and ratifie our assurance in Christ It doth give and conferre faith but more surely and strongly confirms faith which confirmation is not by any inherent power in it but by the holy Spirit working a strong perswasion and assurance in us sealing the blessings of the Covenant which doe chiefly consist of three parts First the forgivenesse of sins Jer. 33.8 Isa 43.25 Secondly the adoption of sons Jer. 31.31 32. Thirdly the promise of Eternall blessednesse And what greater blessings than pardon to poor sinners acceptation of bondslaves to be sons and to have the promise of Everlasting life This is the Covenant written by God to which he hath put to his Seale for our further assurance One Tree of Life served Adam One Rainbow gave assurance to Noah but to us behold Two unchangeable Sacraments two witnesses whereby we have full assurance Now I conceive that the deferring of this Seale from time to time which doth confirm our Charter is a great weakning of our faith hindrance of our assurance and ratifying the blessings of the Covenant of grace Thirdly the long Omission is a barre to the communion that should be betwixt Christ and Christians one with another hence it takes its denomination of communion 1 Cor. 10.16 17. As faith receives him so by this we are joyned near to him and have spiritual fellowship with him by this he means that the faithfull which come with due preparation are joyned and united to Christ by Faith instrumentally by the Bread sacramentally and by the Holy Ghost spiritually made one spirit 1 Cor 6.17 or one spiritual body as the members receive life from the head and the tree moysture from the root so the faithful from Christ Secondly this seals that communion that Christians have one with another For we that are many are one bread and one body because we are all partakers of one head 1 Cor. 10.17 It puts us in minde of our unity and concord being one body and to avoid discord and dissention 1 Cor. 11.18 20. When ye come together c. This was one end why it was ordained of Christ to be a bond of love and chain us together that we break not from God and our Brethren Of the Church of England Art 28. The Church of England saith that the Supper of the Lord is not onely a signe of love that Christians ought to have amongst themselves one to another c. This are we taught by the same bread compact of many corns the same wine prest out of many grapes 1 Cor. 10.17 Oh how many great and grievous are our distractions Brother against Brother Father against Son Minister against Minister People against Minister he hath no part in Christ that doth not grieve at this What a shame is it that the Sheep of the same Shepheard the Children of the same Father the Servants of the same Master the Heirs of the same Kingdome the Guests of the same Banquet the Partakers of the same Hope the Members of the same Body the Professours of the same Faith should contend and strive one against another fighting quarrelling hating envying and backbiting one of another Saint Paul condemning the abuses of the Corinthians exhorts them to tarry one for another 1 Cor. 11.33 that they would go hand in hand and lay aside all difference and dissention And our Saviour enjoyns Brotherly reconciliation Mat. 5.24 When thou bringest thy gift c. I appeal to any judicious Christian whether this fact doth not conduce to the renewing and maintaining of love and was by our Saviour instituted to that very end and whether the seldome use of it be not a great cause of that generall hatred rancour spight and envy of one against another Fourthly the long Omission of it is a barre to the frequent meditation of the great work of Redemption Art 28. The Church of England calls this a Sacrament of our Redemption by Christs death It was Christs last word to his Disciples the words of a dying friend which ever leaves behinde deep impressions Doe this in remembrance of me it was reserved till the approaching of his death that we might the better remember him when he was dead God gives the Rainbow a token of mercy to posterity the first born must be sanctified that so the day of the Jewes deliverance out of the Land of Aegypt might be remembred There must be a Golden pot of Manna reserved for the remembrance of that great mercy in feeding the Jewes with Angels food When the Lord parted the waters of Jordan he commanded Joshua to set up 12 Stones in memoriall of his mighty and miraculous works and that when the Children of Israel should aske in time to come what was meant by those stones they should answer that the waters of Jordan were cut off before the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord. Even so the Lord hath left unto his Church the Sacrament of his Supper as a visible representation of a crucified Christ and hath commanded us to continue this holy remembrance of his death and passion 1 Cor. 11.25 26. to be kept in memory and remain to posterity that they might know the occasion of it I desire that it may be considered whether the long omission of the Lords Supper doth not hinder Christians from a frequent meditation of the great work of Redemption Fiftly the long Omission is a barre to the serious and sad remembrance of our sins it is true we are every day to call to minde our wormwood and our gall to cast up our accompts Quid feci quid non feci Yet we had need of all helps to this end and the Sacrament being a lively representation of a crucified Christ doth bring to our mindes the remembrance of our bitter sins that brought to Christ such bitternesse of torment Magna amaritudo peccati quae tantam amaritudinem peperit Great was the bitternesse of sin which brought forth so much bitternesse of torment When we behold a crucified Saviour we presently reflect on our sins as the proper and principall causes of Christs sufferings Pilate Herod Judas the Jewes and Gentiles were but instruments which our sins set on work None are more guilty than we whose sinnes are those bloody instruments that slew the Lord of glory

thou art fretted with just reprehensions consider whose Word he speaks whose message he carrieth and why God sendeth him For if you receive not the message and Messenger that bringeth the glad tydings it is an argument of a hard and stubborn heart yea I dare lay this down as a positive truth That no childe of God cometh into Gods presence to hear his Word but with godly reverence due preparation and carefull attention he leaves prejudice behinde and puts on Cornelius resolution Acts 10 33. What if we convert none to God Object Answer is all our labour lost We shall save our souls though Israel be not gathered yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the Lord Isa 49 5. If we have laboured and none be turned by us yet for our faithfulnesse there is layd up a Crown of glory 2 Tim. 4 8. I reap no profit by going to the Church Object but as an Ethiopian into the bathe who cometh out as black as he went in First Answ 1 examine thy self whether the fault be in the Preacher or in the Hearer whether the vaile be not over thy heart and thy understanding darkned and God hath set open the doors of mercy Gospel grace and glory Onely mens hearts are shut up and untill the Lord unlock them we may aswell preach to these walls and move the stones as their cauteriz'd and benummed consciences Secondly this is a great discouragement and grief to a Minister that his tongue should be the pen of a ready writer and thy heart like a paper oyled which will not receive the print of the pen that his talk should drop upon thee and thou like Gideons fleece remain dry yet the Cock doth crow though Peter still denies his Master and Peter knocketh still though the Damsell doth not open unto him and launcheth out into the deep though he hath laboured all night and taken nothing Non est in medico semper relevetur ut aeger Yet the Physician hath his see though the sick patient never recovers health for the diseased Woman spent all she had upon Physicians yet was never the better Every man receiveth his wages according to his labour Secundum laborem saith a learned Fryer non secundum proventum and therefore S. Paul saith I laboured more than they all not profited more than they all The Conclusion A short Refutation of Master Butlers practise arraigned and justly condemned by all the Orthodox And the Apologie of his Friends examined and confuted WHat hath been spoken extremely condemneth the practise of those that durst be so bold and presumptuous as to take upon them the Ministerial Function or exercise any part of it without lawful Ordination or deputation thereunto Of this some I finde guilty as Master John Butler Minister of Stowe who took upon him a publick charge of Souls at Lichfield the boldnesse to Marry and to Baptize Infants had the maintenance of 150 lib. per annum allowed him upon a false Certificate that he was a Minister of the Gospel and yet was not set apart to this holy Function An action that never passed without the Churches censure no light or small sin repugnant to Gods word the judgment of all Orthodox Divines and Reformed Churches all which we have made fully to appear But lest you judge it unreasonable that any should passe verdict before the party be heard to speak for himself though an ingenuous confession in my judgment were farre better and more sutable to the nature of that offence and the best Apologie I will lay down what himselfe and others say for him 23 Art of the Church of England which view'd with a single and impartial Eye will be found little to avayl to the extenuating his grievous fault so esteemed by all the Orthodox First that he was a Minister intentionally but not actually Object 1 Answ What strange Evasions men finde out for the justifying of their sinfull actions which an humble acknowledgment and Christian confession might salve and into what grosse absurdities will they run before they be brought to confesse their Errour Nemo periculosius peccat quàm qui peccata defendit No man sinneth in an higher degree than he that makes Apologie for sin I wish it may be considered First what a gap this opens to disorder who will not climbe into Moses Chair Primas in Rom 2. and intrude himselfe into his Office if this distinction may serve the turn such an easie pretence will give no small encouragement to mutinous Corahs Dathans and Abirams to invade our properties Secondly if a Minister intentionally intitle onely to the exercise of the Ministerial Function shew me where ever any did upon the like pretence assume the Ministerial Function or if any did for à facto adjus argumentum non valet saith Zuinglius It is not lawful from a matter of fact to conclude a matter of Law Hath it not ever by the Orthodox been declared unlawfull who tell us That it is the proper office of Ministers ordained and if I must use the term actual Ministers in facto not in fieri to perform the administration of the Sacraments as hath been fully proved in the 3d Chapter where I have fully shewed That the Sacraments ought to be administred onely by a lawful Minister one set apart c. Thirdly this distinction proceeds from the puddle of Popery where I finde something of intention but not much to your purpose yet I believe there you rak'd for it The Papists tell us That the Sacraments depend upon the intention of the Priest therefore saith Bellarmine If a Masse-Priest in his Ministration intend to doe as the Church of Geneva doth it sufficeth to make the Sacrament effectual and of force how doth this leave the conscience unsetled and without comfort what small assurance can that be to the parties if the intent of the Minister give power to the Sacraments This foppery brings to my minde a story which Manlius reports in Prorussia Sacerdos parùm doctus cùm aliquando delatus esset apud Episcopum Quod non juxta ritum Ecclesiae baptizaret infantes Episcopus volens experiri hanc rem accusat Sacerdotem de negotio Sacerdos negabat dicens se retinere communem morem baptizandi infantes Vt autem certus de hac re esset Episcopus sic exploravit Cùm nullus infans baptizandus esset subornat quosdam componentes ut dicunt ex stramine quem fasciis involvi jussit sic inscio Sacerdotem ad baptizandum adferri Cúmque jam ad baptismum aestaret Episcopus alii Sacerdos fraudem subolens dixit Baptizo te in nomine Episcopi in nomine meo in nomine compatrum Episcopus statim erupit in haec verba Domine an haec est forma baptizandi in Ecclesia Respondit sacerdos Qualis est puer talis est Sacerdos A Priest in * Borussia or Prussia is Poland scituate on the North of Mazoviae Borussia of little learning when he

acknowledgeth retain it and the reverend Fathers recite it Omnis qui irascitur fratri suo temerè Whosoever is angry with his Brother unadvisedly or rashly as Cain with Abel Ahab with Naboth Saul with David shall be in danger saith CHRIST of judgment he alludes as Bullinger and Beza upon the place to the proceedings of the Jewes in their Civil ●ourts by whom a small matter was heard and decided by the judgment of three men that of greater importance determined in a Councel of three and twenty Judges and the greatest of all by the sentence of threescore and eleven Now Christs intent is to shew that as amongst men so before God there are different degrees of punishment according to the different degrees of sin and maketh the malice of the heart aswell murther as that of the hand Whosoever is angry with his Brother c. Secondly he condemneth scornful gesturs Whosoever shall say to his brother Racha shall be in danger of the Councel some derive this word of the Greek 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in English as much as ragged Others from the Syrian Racha which is a terme of disgrace Hierome from rec signifying Idle head S. August and others make it an interjection or broken speech of an angry minde bewraying a malitious heart Others think that by it is signified something betwixt close and open railing as a fiery countenance such as was in Cain a jeering fleering look such as was in Ishmael bending of the browes shaking of the head gnashing of the teeth thrusting forth of the tongue and the like Thirdly Christ condemneth opprobrious words railing and reviling Whosoever shall say Thou fool shall be c. Bitter words are like the pricking of swords Prov. 12.18 And David complains of men whose tongues are as spears and their words as sharp arrows set on by the fire of hell saith S. James Jam. 3.6 and so are liable to hell fire The railer with his venemous tongue not onely poysons his neighbours name his box of pretious ointment but like a sharp rasor cuts his throat this is one prop and that a main one of Sathans kingdome A second is hypocrisie the Jewes vile and sinfull yet could boast of their Father Abraham Joh. 8.53 This conceit John the Baptist would have beaten down Mat. 3. Think not to say c. The varnish of their hypocrisie did delude them so that they grew in love with themselves and undervalued all others This is another great prop of Sathans kingdome A third is Sophistry fraud and cunning Most men strive how to supplant and overthrow one another to undermine the walls of innocency plain dealing is dead and which is to be lamented it died without issue Once Orbis ingemuit factum se videre Arianum The world groaned seeing it selfe made an Arian It may now groane Factum se videns Machiavellum Seeing it selfe made a Machiavell this is that false key that opens the doore of the wrath and vengeance of God maketh the Church of God so thin of Saints and the World so full of Dissemblers A fourth prop is Cruelty what the Fox cannot doe the Lyon must when railing fails and patience is a conquerour then Sathan works in his instrumens by violence John 8.59 They took up stones to cast at him These four are not the weapons of a Christians warfare the properties of a true disciple parts of Gods building but the props of Sathans kingdome They fearfully sinne against God that either despise the Messengers of God or his message Preachers or preaching his servants or his service and yet a thousand offend of mean ones of great ones even in this particular Oh how contemptible vile and base are the Ministers of God in the eyes of many They may justly complain with the Prophet Zachary that they are wondred at Zach. 3.8 And with the Apostle That they are made a spectacle unto the world and Angels and to men and made as the filth and off-scouring of all things unto this day 1 Cor. 4.9 13. They are Christs servants in a speciall manner his Ambassadours Stewards workers together with him such as he parles with all and makes his fellow-Commoners as David said to Sauls men 1 Sam. 18.23 Seemeth it unto you to be a light thing to be the Kings Son-in-law So may I say Seemeth it a small matter to be servants in ordinary to the King of kings Receive them in the Lord with all gladnesse and hold such in reputation Phil. 2.29 We beseech you Brethren to know them which labour c. 1 Thess 5.12 13. God will revenge their wrongs their persecution shall light on the persecutors pates Thou shalt smite saith one of the Children of the Prophets unto Jehu the house of Ahab thy Master that I may avenge the blood of my servants the Prophets and the blood of all the servants of the Lord of the hand of Jesabel 2 Kings 9.7 Many great discouragements attend the Ministery We may spend our lungs preach out our hearts before we can pierce mens hearts or be instrumental to convert their souls If the Lord close the heart we cannot by all our strength open it if people conceive not the things of God let them not blame the Ministers dulnesse but their own hardnesse dig at the root and there see the cause for the Lord hath set open the doors of mercy Gospel grace and glory onely mens hearts are shut up and untill the Lord unlock them we may aswell preach to these walls and move the stones as their cauterized and benumm'd consciences Now as stubbornnesse attends their Ministery so persecution their persons for they are sent forth as Lambs in the midst of Wolves not as Wolves amongst Wolves or Shepherds among Wolves or Sheep about Wolves but as harmlesse innocent Lambs 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in the midst of hurtfull and hungry Wolves Now from this persecuting none are free 1. Not Christ of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 it may be said by way of Anagram 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Tu es Ovis Thou art the Lamb So saith John the Baptist Take him typically and really he was slain he was oppressed he was afflicted he was brought as a Lamb c. Isa 53.7 The fleecers fleece him and then the Butchers kill him 2. Not the Church poor thing she hath many Enemies Lyons Psal 58. Break out the great teeth of the Lyons oh God Wilde Boares and Beasts Psal 80. The Boare out of the wood c. Bulls Psal 22. Many Bulls have compassed me strong Bulls of Basan have beset me round thus are the sheep Christs Church devoured It is observed Caetera animalia armavit Natura solum Agnum dimisit inermem Other living creatures Nature hath armed but the Lamb is sent into the world naked giving it neither offensive nor defensive weapons The Dog hath teeth to bite the Bear nayles to teare the Bull his horns to dash the Boare his tush the Lyon his paws and jaws to devoure To these