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	lord_n	sinner_n	2,648	5	7.4070	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A29709	A word in season to this present generation, or, A sober and serious discourse about the favorable, signal and eminent presence of the Lord with his people in their greatest troubles, deepest distresses, and most deadly dangers : with the resolution of several questions, concerning the divine presence, as also the reasons and improvements of this great and glorious truth ... / by Thomas Brooks ...	Brooks, Thomas, 1608-1680.	1675 (1675)	Wing B4970; ESTC R11759	200,185	248

usually is in the greatest flourish when the Saints are under the greatest tryals the snuffing of the candle makes it burn the brighter God suffers wicked men to beat bruise his links to make them burn the brighter and to pound bruise his spi●cs to make them send forth the greater aromatical savour fiery trials are like the Tezel which though it be sharp and scratching it is to make the cloth more pure and fine Stars shine brightest in the darkest nights and so do the graces of the Saints shine brightest in the darkest nights of affliction and tribulation God does sometimes more carry on the growth of grace by a Cross than by an ordinance yea the Lord will first or last turn all fiery Trials into Ordinances for the helping of grace in his Peoples souls Commonly the Saints spiritual growth in grace is carried on by such Divine methods and in such wayes as might seem to deaden grace and weaken it rather than any wayes to augment and encrease it We know that winter is as necessary to bring on Harvest as the Spring and so fiery Trials are as necessary to bring on the Harvest of grace as the Spring of mercy is Though fiery Trials are grievous yet they shall make the Saints more gracious God usually by smart sufferings turns his Peoples sparks of grace into a mighty flame their mites into millions their drops into Seas All the Devils in hell and all the sinners on earth cannot hinder the Lord from carrying on the growth of grace in his Peoples Souls When Men and Devils have done their worst God will by all sorts of Ordinances and by all sorts of providences and all sorts of changes make his People more and more holy and more and more humble and more and more meek and lowly and more and more heavenly wise faithful fruitful sincere couragious c. Though the Church of Smyrna was outwardly Rev. 2. 9. poor yet she was inwardly rich rich in grace and rich towards God I think he hit the mark who said it is far better to be a poor man and a rich Christian than to be a rich man and a poor Christian Though the Corinthians were under great tryals and 2 Cor. 8. 7. sufferings yet they did abound in every thing in faith utterance knowledge diligence in their love to Gospel Ministers The storm beat hard upon the Romans and yet you see what a singular testimony the Apostle gives of them I my self also am perswaded of Rom. 15. 14. you my Brethren that ye also are full of goodness filled with all knowledge able to admonish one another The Thessalonians were under great persecutions and troubles and yet were strong in the grace that was in Christ Jesus they were very growing and flourishing Christians singular 2 Thess 3. ● 10. 2 Thess 1 3. 8. Prophecies speak out the Saints growth and flourishing in grace The Lord is exalted for he dwelleth Isa 33. 5. on high he hath filled Zion with judgement and righteousness The Spirit shall be poured upon us from on Isa 32. 15. Cap. 35. 1. high and the wilderness shall be a fruitful field The desart shall rejoyce and blossom as the rose it shall blossom abundantly the glory of Libanon shall be given unto it The excellency of Carmel and Sharon they shall see the glory of the Lord and the excellency of our God And as singular prophecies so choice and precious promises speak out the Saints growth in grace take a taste of some of them But the path of the Just is as the shining light that shineth more and more unto the Prov. 4. 18. Job 17. 9. Psalm 84. 7. Psa 92. 12 13 14. perfect day The righteous shall hold on his way and he that hath clean hands shall be stronger and stronger They shall go from strength to strength every one of them in Zion appeareth before God The righteous shall flourish like the palm-tree be shall grow like a Cedar in Libanon Those that be planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish in the Courts of our God in old age they shall be fat and flourishing I have read of an Old-man who being asked whether he grew in grace Answered I believe I do for God hath promised that in old age his children should be fat and flourishing So Isa 46. 3. Hearken unto me O house of Jacob and all the remnant of the house of Israel which are born by me from the belly which are carried from the womb Verse 4. And even to your old age I am he and even to hoar hairs will I carry you I have made and I will bear even I will carry and will deliver you Zach. 12. 8. And he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David and the house of David shall be as God as the Angel of the Lord before them Hosea 14. 5. I will be as the dew unto Israel he shall grow as the Lilly and cast forth his roots as Libanon Verse 6. His branches shall spread and his beauty shall be as the olive-tree and his smell as Libanon Verse 7. They that dwell under his shadow shall return they shall revive as the corn and grow as the vine the scent thereof shall be as the wine of Libanon Malach. 4. 2. But unto you that fear my Name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing under his wings and ye shall go forth and grow up as the calves of the stall Psalm 1. 3. He shall be like a tree planted by the 〈◊〉 of waters that bringeth forth his fruit in his season his leaf also shall not wither and whatsoever be doth shall prosper John 4. 14. Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up to Eternal life The light and glory of the Church rises by degrees 1. Looking forth as the Cant. 6. 10. morning with a little light 2. Fair as the Moon more light 3. Clear as the Sun that is come up to a higher degree of spiritual light life and glory By all which it is most evident that all the powers of Hell nor all the powers on Earth cannot hinder the Saints growth in grace nor the thriving and flourishing estate of their precious and immortal souls But you will say what are the reasons why God will be favourably signally and eminently present with his People in their greatest troubles deepest distresses and most deadly dangers I answer there are these ten great Reasons for it First To awaken and convince the Enemies of his People 1 Reason to render his suffering children glorious in the very eyes and consciences both of sinners and Saints Dan. 3. 24. Then Nebuchadnezzar the King was astonied and Ponder upon these Scriptures Micha 7. 8 9 10 16 17. Psalm 126. 1 2. Exod. 8. 19. Isa 60. 13

that may pass upon him How many Martyrs have ventured into the Heb. 11. 34. very flames to meet with Christ and that have many other wayes made a sacrifice of their dearest lives and all to meet with Christ O the cruel mockings the scourgings Rev. 12. 11. Heb. 11. 36 37 38 the bonds the imprisonments the stoning the sawing asunder that many of the Lords worthies have ventured upon and all to meet with the presence of the Lord and why then should any of you be afraid to enter into an afflicted condition where you shall be sure to meet the singular presence of the Lord that will certainly turn your afflicted condition into a comfortable condition to you The great design of the Lord in afflicting of his People is to meet with them and to draw them into a nearer communion with himself it is that they may see more of him than ever and taste more of him than ever and enjoy more of him than ever in order to which he subdues their corruptions by afflictions Isa 1. 25. c. 27. 8 9 Heb. 12● 10 11. Hos 2. 14. and strengthens their graces and heightens their holiness by all their troubles and trials When ever he leads his Spouse into a wilderness it is that he may speak friendly and comfortably to her or that he may speak to her heart as the Hebrew runs The great design of the Lord in bringing her into a wilderness was that he might make such discoveries of himself of his love and of his soveraign grace as might chear up her heart yea as might even make her heart leap and dance within her Or as some sence it I will take her alone for the purpose even into a solitary wilderness where I may more fr●ely impart my mind to her that she having her whole desire she may come up from the wilderness leaning upon her beloved and so be brought into the bride-house with all Cant. 8. 5. solemnity By all which it is most evident that there is no such evil in a wilderness estate in an afflicted condition as many imagin But Eightly will the Lord be signally present with his 8 Inference People in their greatest troubles deepest distresses and most deadly dangers then what a high encouragement should this be to poor sinners to study Christ to acquaint themselves with Christ to embrace Christ to chuse Christ to close with Christ to submit to Christ Joh. 1. 12. Ps 112. 2 3. Ps 2. 12. 2 Cor. 8. 5. and to make a resignation of themselves to Christ and to secure their interest in Christ that so they may enjoy his signal presence in their greatest troubles deepest distresses and most deadly dangers O how many mercies are wrapt up in this mercy of enjoying the singular presence of the Lord in all the troubles and tryals of this life It is a mercy to have the presence of a Friend it is Psalm 23. 4. a greater to have the presence of a near and dear relation with us in a day of distress in a day of darkness But what a mercy is it then to have the presence of the Lord with one in a dark day That 's excellent counsel that the wisest Prince that ever swayed a scepter gives in that Eccles 11. 8. Remember the days of darkness for they shall be many When light shall be turned into darkness pleasure into pain delights into wearisomness calms into storms Summer dayes into Winter nights and the lightsome dayes of life into the dark dayes of old age and death O now the singular presence of the Lord with a man in these dayes of darkness will be a mercy more worth than ten thousand worlds To have a wise a loving Psalm 71. 20 21. a powerful a faithful Friend to own us in the dark to stand by us in the dark to uphold us in the dark to refresh us in the dark to encourage us in the dark c. is a very choice and singular mercy O then what is it to have the presence of the Lord with us in all those dark dayes that are to pass over our heads What David said of the sword of Goliath in another case There is none 1 Sam. 21. 8 9. like that that I may say of the Divine presence with a man in the dark There is none like that The Psalmist Psal 73. 26. The Greek saith The God of my heart c. hit the mark the whit when he said My flesh and my heart faileth but God is the strength of my heart and my portion for ever When his flesh that is his outward man and when his heart his courage that is his inward man failed him then God was the strength of his heart or the rock of his heart as the Hebrew runs at the very last gasp God came in with his soveraign Cordial and revived him and recovered him and brought new life and strength into him When a Saint is at worst when he is at lowest when he is even overwhelmed with troubles and sorrows and when the dayes of darkness so multiply upon him that he seems past all hope of recovery then the Divine presence does most gloriously manifest it self and display it self in supporting strengthning comforting and encouraging of him In the Rev. 4. 6. you read that the world is like a sea of glass I saw before the Throne a sea of glass The world is transitory very frail and brittle as glass and it is instable tumultuous and troublesome as the sea Here the world is shadowed out to us by a sea of glass and how can we stand on this sea how can we live on this sea how can we walk on this sea if Christ don't take us by the hand and lead us and support us and secure us O Sirs we can't uphold our selves on this sea of glass nor others can 't uphold us on this sea of glass it is none but dear Jesus it is no presence but his singular presence that can make us to stand or go on this sea of glass And if this world be a sea of glass oh what infinit cause have we to secure our interest in Christ who alone can pilot us safe over this troublesome dangerous and tempestuous sea Oh that I could prevail with poor sinners to take Christ into the ship of their souls that so he may pilot them safe into the heavenly Harbour the heavenly Canaan No Pilot in Heaven or Earth can land you on the shore of a happy eternity from off this sea of glass but Jesus When on this sea of glass the winds blow high storms arise and the bold waves beat into the ship O then the sinner cryes a Kingdom for a Christ a world for a Pilot to save us from eternal drowning Oh that before eternal storms and tempests do beat upon poor sinners they Ps 11. 6. Ps 9. 17. Hos 2. 19 20. 2 Cor. 11. 2. would be prevailed with to close