Selected quad for the lemma: mercy_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
mercy_n	earth_n	great_a	lord_n	5,368	5	3.8783	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A09965	Foure godly and learned treatises Intituled, I. A remedy against covetousnesse. II. An elegant and lively description of spirituall death and life. III. The doctrine of selfe-deniall. IV. Vpon the sacrament of the Lords Supper. Delivered in sundry sermons, by that late famous preacher, and worthy instrument of Gods glory, Iohn Preston, Doctor of Divinitie, chaplaine in ordinarie to his Majestie; master of Emanuel Colledge, and sometime preacher of Lincolnes Inne.	Preston, John, 1587-1628.; Preston, John, 1587-1628. Three sermons upon the sacrament of the Lords Supper. aut	1633 (1633)	STC 20222; ESTC S115040	185,075	475

that even as it is with all things that are symbols of other things as take markes in feilds that stand for the division of severall mens rights take counters th●● stand for Thousands and Hundreds the very essence of these things stands in the very institution of them So in the Sacrament except these words were from the Lords owne mouth that delivered it this very delivering of the bread and wine being a signe to you of the forgivenes of your sinnes except the Lord had thus instituted it there had beene no force in it I say consider they are words that the Minister speaks not in an ordinary course but he is appointed by the Lord himselfe to speak them and now whē these words make a new impression upon thy heart it addes an intention to thy faith and love For example to make it a little more cleare to you that you may understand it distinctly The Lord hath said this he will forgive the sinnes of all those that come unto him hee will forgive them that forsake their sinnes and take Christ Iesus and love and feare him for the time to come The Lord might have suffered it to goe thus in generall that hee hath delivered it unto you and no more But hee thought good to goe further and say thus to mankind It s true I have said it but I will not content my selfe with that but will adde certaine seales and symbolls certaine externall signes that thou shalt see and looke on and I say to thee this covenant have I made with thee and when thou seest the bread and wine delivered by the Minister know this that the thing that thou seest is a witnesse betweene thee and me That as it was said by Laban and Iacob when they made a covenant This stone be witnesse betweene us And God said to Noah when I looke upon the rainebowe it shall bee a signe that I will destroy the earth no more after this manner when the Lord hath said it and hath appointed this outward Symboll that thine eies looke upon I remember the covenant and this as a signe betweene us this shall bind mee to it and him likewise Now when this is done anew it may be every month this is a wondrous great mercy this is a marvellous great helpe if it be rightly understood to strengthen our faith Doth it not helpe us when wee see the Rainebowe which the Lord hath appointed to put him in mind of his covenant I will remember my covenant when I looke on the Bowe in the Cloud it shall confirme me and I will not breake my covenant to destroy the world with a flood So this administration of the Sacrament when the Lord lookes upon it hee cannot but remember his promise and his covenant of pardoning our sinnes And when thou lookest on it thou art assured of it for hee hath said it it shall bee a signe and a witnesse betweene us Now I say that new impression that these words thus contrived and understood and delivered by the Minister make upon the heart intends our faith and love as indeed it is a great matter to have it spoken to us by a Minister of the Gospell sent from Christ from his owne mouth Take and eate this is my body that is broken for you and this is my blood that was shed for you and for many for the remission of sinnes This is the fourth qualification that is required that our faith and love be intended and our union increased that the will resolution and purpose of taking Christ for our Lord receive more degrees that so we may be more fast and firmely united and knit to him which I say is done partly by the repetition on both sides for the very repetition doth it and partly by a new impression that these words take eate c make on the soule Now I adde the last thing which is required still remember the maine thing wee are upon that it is not enough for thee to be in Christ but if thou wilt bee a worthy receiver thou must have these foure qualifications in thee that I have named already Thou must reconcile thy selfe anew thou must rub off the rust from thy soule which it hath gathered thou must recover the distance that is growne betweene God and thee Thou must adde an intending and an increase Thou must adde more degrees to thy faith and love and after all these Fiftly and lastly this is also required which is much for our benefit and comfort namely to put up thy request when thou comest neere to the Lord in the Sacrament Now thou must not onely do this but thou must also make some use of the covenant which the Lord hath made with thee for his part so that thou mayest think this with thy selfe When I come to receive the Sacrament I have but two workes to do one is to recovenant with the Lord to renew my repentance and to set all eaven and the other is to remember the Lords covenant You will say what is the Covenant It 's a Covenant that consists of these three things or points Iustification I will forgive thy sins Sanctification I will make you new hearts and new spirits and the third All things are ours that is I have made you heires of the world heires of all things you have all the promises belonging to you that belong to this life that which is to come this is the Covenant which the Lord hath made Now thou art bound when thou comest to receive the Sacrament not onely to remember this Covenant Doe this saith hee in remembrance of Mee and not barely of me and of my being crucified for thee of all the love that I have shewed unto thee but also in remembrance of the Covenant and of those gracious promises which are the particulars of which that Covenant is the summe and therefore thus a man is to do What hath the Lord vouchsafed mee this favour that I may come to his Table I may come and renew the nuptials and my covenant with him Surely then I will looke about and consider what I want what request I shal put up unto him for there is nothing that is wanting but it is within this Covenant and thou art to put up thy request in a speciall maner whatsoever it be be it concerning things belonging to thy soule to have a strong lust mortified to have thy hard heart softned to have some sin that lies upon thy conscience forgiven to have that forgivenes assured to thee be it any thing that concernes thy particular estate if it be to be delivered from a potent enemy or whatsoever it be put up thy request and that largely open thy mouth wide that is make thy request full feare it not Put the case againe it be somewhat that doth not concerne thee but that it concerneth the Church abroad or the Church at home it is a case that much concernes

a great helpe to us That this is true see in 4. Eph. 6. Hee is in all and through all and over all That is the Lord is in every man hee passeth through every thing his eyes runne through the earth and he is over all looking what secrets are in mans heart what thoughts yea before hee thinkes them he knowes them because hee seeth them in their causes Hee that is in a man that lookes in all the secret corners of the heart hee must needs see what thoughts he hath what petitions hee putteth up secretly even then when his mouth speakes not And lest that should not be enough saith hee He is over all you know one that stands on high and lookes over all that is below hee easily can see whatsoever is done So the Lord he is in all he is through all he is over al. But this is enough for that only I would have you remember that he takes notice of all he knowes thy prayers But you will say I doubt not of that I make no question but he heares me and understands me well enough but how shal I know that he is willing to grant the thing I pray for You shall see these 2 Reasons in the 7. Mat. where our Saviour urgeth this very point that we have now in hand from the 7. verse downeward Aske saith he and you shall have seeke and you shall find knock and it shall be opened unto you here is the promise For he backs it with these 2. Reasons Every one that asketh receiveth and he that seeketh findeth and to him that knocketh it shall be opened unto him As if he should say ye have this reason for it why you should beleeve it that it is no more but aske and have for saith he all that ever asked have obtained all that ever have sought have found all that ever have knocked it hath beene opened unto them That is looke through the whole book of God see what prayers ever have beene made to him and you shall finde that there is not a prayer mentioned in all the Scriptures but it hath beene heard Now when we have such a cloud of witnesses it is a strong reason when it is said to us that there were never any prayed but were heard Why you will say There were many prayed that were not heard Did not David pray for his Childe and was not heard Did not Paul pray to be delivered from such a temptation and was not heard My Beloved It s true they were not heard for the particular but yet I dare be bold to say that David was heard at that time though I say not in the particular for though his Childe was taken away yet you may see the Lord gave him a Childe of the same woman with much more advantage he gave him a Childe that was legitimate which this was not he gave him a Childe that exceeded for wisedome Salomon was the Child that he had So that the Lord did heare him and gave him this answer as if he had said to him David I have heard thee I know that thou art exceeding importunate thou shalt not have this but thou shalt have another Childe which shall be better And so he saith unto Paul 2 Cor. 12. Christ reveals this unto him Paul saith he though I grant thee not this particular request in the manner that thou wouldest have me To take away the pricke of the flesh which thou art troubled with thou shalt bee a greater gainer by it thou hadst better have it than want it whē Paul understood that it was a medicine and not a poyson as hee tooke it to be hee was content and resolved in it And a man resolveth not except he be a gainer He saw that Gods power was manifest in his weakenesse and hee saw himselfe humbled by it and when he saw that God gained glory and himselfe humiliation by it he was content to be denyed in it So I say whosoever asketh findeth you shall never finde any example but that whosoever sought to the Lord as he ought he was certainely heard or else he had somewhat that was better granted to him instead of it And this is the first reason that is used heere The second reason is this What man among you if his Son aske bread will give him a stone or if he aske a fish will give him a serpent if you then that are evill know how to give good things to your children how much more shal your heavenly Father give good things to them which aske him saith hee you bee not able to perswade your selves of this truth because you know not the Father for he dwells in light inaccessable you are not acquainted with him saith our Saviour I will helpe you out with an argument that you better understand even upon earth saith he take but a father here a father that is ill but the Lord is full of goodnes fathers have but a drop but a sparke of mercy in them whereas the Lord is full of mercy as the Lord is ful of light he is the God of all comfort Yet saith hee this father when his sonne comes to aske him bread he is ready to give it him he is full of cōpassion and tendernes toward him doe you not thinke that our heavenly Father is as true a father as he that hee loves you as well as he whose compassion and pitty is much greater doe you not thinke hee is ready to heare his Children when they call upon him O this is a strong and unanswerable Reason and this you see is backed in 16 Ioh. 27. you see there the love of the Father how it is expressed to us I say not unto you that I will aske the father saith he the father himselfe loves you Marke as if he should have said let this be one ground to you to think your petitions shall be granted and that they are not onely granted for my sake for saith hee the Father himselfe loveth you and hath a great affection to you that is in naturall parents there is a naturall affection to their Children So if I were not immediatly to present your petitions though that be not excluded yet saith hee the Father hath such an affection to you that he cannot choose but heare you I say not saith he that I will aske the father for the father himselfe loves you So that this is the second reason which this promise is there backed with the love of the father That hee cannot find in his heart to deny us even for that affection that he beareth to us Wee will adde a third Reason that wee meet here in the same Chap. 16. Iohn 23. In that day you shall aske in my name verily verily I say unto you yee shall aske the father in my name and he will give it you It is brought in upon this occasion when our Saviour Christ was to goe from his Disciples they

understandeth and knoweth that I am the Lord which execute loving kindnesse Iudgement and Righteousnesse in the earth As if hee should have said If these things could doe you good or hurt there were some reason that you might seeke them but there is nothing in them that you should desire them For it is I onely that execute Mercy and Iudgement all good and evill is from mee Therefore Psalme 62. we have this caveat given us If riches increase set not your hearts vpon them magnifie not your selves in them or for them for all good and comfort is onely from God else you might set your hearts on them but now all power and kindnesse is from him therefore your wealth can never doe it But it may bee objected That God doth comfort us and make us happie in this life by meanes and riches are the meanes Wherefore then may we not seeke to them to get this comfort To this I answer That God doth reward every man according to his workes not according to his wealth Yea hee can comfort us without these For he is the God of all Consolation 2. Cor. 1.3 and that both Inclusive and Exclusive all comfort is in him and from him none without him If wee thinke to have it from honours wealth or friends we deceive our selves for they are vaine and profit not 1 Sam 12.21.22 Turne yee not aside for then shall yee goe after vaine things which cannot profit nor deliver for they are vaine All these things without GOD will profit you nothing But will not health wealth and friends profit us No not all they are vanitie they are empty in themselves they cannot doe it they are in themselves but vanitie having the creature yee have but the huske without the graine the shell without the kernell The creature is but empty of it selfe except God put into it a fitnesse to comfort you all is vanity and nothing worth and this vanity is nothing but emptinesse And this serves to correct the thoughts of men who thinke that if they had such an estate all their debts paid if they had such and such friends then all would bee well with them and who is it that thinks not thus But let those that entertaine such thoughts consider the vanitie of the creature all our sinnes proceed from the over-valuing of the creature for sinne is nothing but an aversion of the soule from the immutable God to the creature Labour then to conceive of the creature aright to see that it is vaine this will keepe you right and hinder you from going from God and cleaving to the creature To presse this further consider these foure things first First if ye goe another way to worke beleeve all ye see and seeke comfort in the creature consider yee shall loose your labour It is not in the power of the creature to yeeld yee any comfort if yee busie your selves in seeking any comfort from it ye walke in a vaine shadow Psal. 39.6 Surely every man walketh in a vaine shadow surely they are all disquieted in vaine Hee heapeth up riches and knoweth not who shall gather them If we looke comfort from riches wee looke it but from a shadow all our labour is in vaine There is a shadow of the Almightie in which some men walke where they shall be sure to finde this comfort Others there are that walke in the shadow of the creature in the vanity of their mindes seeking comfort from it those who thus walke shall be deceived A shadow though it seeme to be something yet it is nothing it may seeme to have the lineaments of a man or some other body yet it is nothing So these outward things may seeme to have something in them but yet indeed they have nothing those who seeke for comfort in them commit two evills Ierem. 2.13 They forsake God the fountaine of living waters and digge unto themselves pits which will hold no water God having all comforts in him comforts never failing because there is a spring of comfort in him yet wee forsake him and dig to our selves pits which if they have any water it is but borrowed and not continuing and that water which they have is none of the best it is muddy and will not alwayes continue wherefore pitch your affections on the tru● substantiall good not on vanities If wee see a man come to an orchard full of goodly fruits and hee should catch onely at the shadow of them netling his hands and spending his labour in vaine wee would account him either a foole or a mad-man yet wee in the cleare Sunne-shine of the Gospell such is our madnesse doe catch and seeke after shadowes with trouble of minde and sorrow of heart neglecting the substance Secondly Consider that you seeke your happinesse the wrong way in that you seeke it in worldly things they are not able to helpe or make you happy because they reach not to the inward man The body is but the sheath and case our happinesse lies not in it so in the creatures their happinesse consisteth not in themselves but in something else It lies in observing the rule that God hath appointed to them the fire observing the rule that God hath given it is sure so is it of water so of all creatures animate and inanimate their happinesse consists in observing the rule that God hath prescribed to them The Law of God is the rule that we must walke by following it as a rule we are happy hee that keepeth the Commandements shall live in them hee that departeth from them is dead Everie motion of the Fish out of the water is to death but every motion of it in the water is to life So let a mans motions bee towards God then they are motions to life but let him move after outward things and it is a motion to death and misery therefore if yee seeke this comfort from outward things yee goe the wrong way to get it Thirdly Consider that you make a wrong choise yee seeke not that which will doe it If you seeke for this comfort from God all is in one place but if yee seeke for it in the creatures yee must have a multitude of them to comfort you yee must have health wealth honours friends and many other things but one thing will doe it if yee goe the right way yee shall finde it onely in God Martha shee was troubled about many things when as one thing onely was necessary If yee seeke comfort in earthly things ye must have a thousand things to helpe it but godlinesse which hath the promise of this life and of the life to come doth yeeld this comfort of its selfe if that yee seeke it in it It is a great advantage for us to have all comforts in one thing Godlinesse onely hath all these comforts therefore seeke them in it Fourthly Consider that that comfort and happinesse which you have from the creature is but a

any of these in the Church put it up to him and put it up with confidence For this is a marriage day as it were it is the time when he reacheth out his scepter as you know the things I allude to and thou maist come to his presence You know when Hester was admitted to the presence of the King then said he What request hast thou when thou art admitted to the familiarity and presence o● the Lord he looks for it he asks what request you have to put up to him and the promises are large enough I will give it whatsoever it be if you aske according to my will and therefore do in this case as Moyses used to do you shall find when Moyses drew neere unto the Lord when he was admitted into his presence and saw him face to face for that was the great priviledge Moyses had when there was any special apparition of the Lord to him Moses makes this argument saith hee It is a great mercy that thou wouldest shew mee this that such a poore man as I am should have this priviledge and give mee leave to make use of it Lord if I have found favour in thy sight that is since thou hast vouchsafed mee such a favour in thy sight do thus and thus for me you see he made this request for the whole Church of God and saved them or else they had beene destroied If thou hast not any particular argument in this case say If I have found favour in thy sight do this so I say when thou hast this promise confirmed that Christ hath given himselfe to thee and the symboll of that promise is the bread and wine which he hath given to thee put up thy request O Lord if thou hast vouchsafed to give mee Christ wilt thou not with him give mee all things else Lord if I have found favour in thy sight to do so great a thing for me deny me not this particular request Thus we ought to doe especially when we come to things that are beyond nature when we come let us consider with our selves Indeed I have a naturall disposition that carries me strongly to evill I shall never be able to overcome it there are such duties to doe I shall never be able to performe them In such a case thou must doe it the more earnestly thou must sigh groane to the Lord. Elishah when hee comes to doe a thing so much above the course of nature as to raise a dead child to life hee sighed unto the Lord that is he prayed earnestly Eliah when hee would have Raine he cryed he tooke much paines he prayed So must thou do in this case and know this for thy comfort that though thou thinke thou shalt never be able to doe these things to overcome such lusts such hereditary diseases yet the Lord is able to helpe thee though these are past naturall helpe yet they are not past the helpe of grace though the spirit in us lust after envy yet as the Apostle Iames saith The Scriptures offer more grace that is the Scriptures offer grace and ability to doe more than nature can doe nature cannot heale a spirit that lusteth after envy or any other thing a spirit that lusts after credit after money after the sinne of uncleanenesse or whatsoever is presented now the Scriptures offer that grace that will overcome any of these sinnes be they never so strong or so old Christ healed hereditary diseases he healed those that were borne lame and blind so though thou be borne with such lusts Christ is able to heale thee you see a Prophet could heale Naaman of his Leprosie when there was no other that could doe it so saith Christ Come unto me all ye and I will heale you So that you see wee must put up our requests to God The third Sermon WE have already made some entrance upon the words I told you what the Apostles scope is in them which is to make knowne to all Christians to whom he wrote another great priviledge besides that which hee named before that is That he that hath the Son hath life this saith he is another priviledge that whatsoever you aske you shall have onely remember that you have this assurance in him that is in Christ Iesus That point what it is to be in him that it may be the ground of all the benefits and priviledges wee injoy we handled the last day Now wee come to the priviledge it selfe If we aske any thing according to his will hee heareth us The words are so plain I shal not need to spend any time in opening of them but deliver you the point that lyes so evidently before us which is this That all the prayers of the Saints made upon earth are assuredly heard in heaven whatsoever we aske saith hee according to his will hee heareth us onely the conditions must be observed When you heare such a generall as this it must be limited there are certaine bounds set to it which we will name unto you which are these foure conditions First all the prayers that are made upon earth shall be heard in heaven if they be the prayers of a righteous man and are faithfull and fervent The person must be righteous that must first be remembred because although the prayer be never so good yet except the person bee accepted from whom it comes the Lord regards it not you know in the old Law the blood of Swine was reckoned an abominable Sacrifice yet if you take the blood of sheepe and compare them together you shall find no difference It may be the Swines blood is the better then what 's the reason the Swines blood is not accepted even because of the subject of it it was the blood of Swine and therefore you see it was put downe that it was an abominable Sacrifice So it is with prayer Take the prayer of a Saint and the prayer of a wicked man it may be if you looke upon the petition or whatsoever is in the prayer it selfe you shall finde some time the prayers of a godly man more cold and lesse fervent the petitions are not so well framed as the wicked mans yet because this comes from such a person the Lord regards it not you know the condition is mentioned Iames fift The prayer of the righteous man availeth much if it be fervent Now as this is required in the person so there is somewhat required in the praier also that is that it be fervent and faithfull that it be fervent you have it in the same place The prayer of a righteous man availeth much if it be fervent that is it must be a prayer made from the sence of the misery that is in us from the mercy of God when a man takes a thing to heart that he prayes for and comes with confidence to bee heard for that makes him fervent This the Lord will have and also he will

we put confidence in one of them In like manner wee must both pray and use the meanes but so as wee put our chiefe trust in prayer it is not meanes that will doe it But the truth is wee doe the quite contrary It may be we pray and use the meanes but wee trust the meanes and not the prayer that is a common and a great fault among us it is a peece of Atheisme for men to thinke the Lord regards their prayers no more than hee regards the bleating of sheepe or the lowing of oxen to thinke he heeds them not And it s a great part of faith to thinke that the Lord harkens to them and regards them as certainely he doth But you will say I have prayed and am not heard and have sought to the Lord and have found no answer Well it may be thou hast not for the present but hast thou stayed the Lords leasure for that is to be considered in this case sometimes the Lord comes quickly he gives a quick answer to our requests somtimes he staies longer But this is our comfort that when the returne is longer the gaine is the greater ●s we see in trades some trades have their returne very quicke it may be the tradesmens money is returned every weeke but then their gaine is so much the lighter but when their returne is flower as is your great merchants when it stayes three or foure yeares wee see the ships come home laden bringing so much the more So for the most part when our prayers do stay long they returne with the greater blessings they returne loaden with rich cōmodities Let this be an encouragement to us Though I stay the Lord will grant it and thinke not with thy selfe I made such a prayer long agoe I found no fruit of it for be sure the Lord remembreth thy prayer though thou hast forgotten it the prayers that thou madest a good many yeares agoe may doe thee good many yeares hence May not a man pray to have his Child sanctified to have him brought to better order It may be hee lives many yeares and sees no such thing yet in the end the prayer may be effectuall So likewise it may be in many cases you see there are many examples for it Abraham prayed he stayed long but you see it was a great blessing that he had when he prayed for a Sonne you know what a Sonne hee was he was a Sonne of the promise in whom all the nations of the earth were blessed So David when the Lord promised him a kingdome hee staied long for it Many such examples there are Therefore comfort thy selfe with this though I stay long this is my hope this is my encouragement that sustaines me If I seeke the Lord and waite upon him Hee will come with a great blessing the gaine shall bee heavier and greater though the returne be not so quicke and sudden Last of all when you heare such a promise as this That whatsoever you aske you shall bee heard in it you shall hence learne to spend some time in the meditation of this great priviledge that the Saints have and none but they This I propound to every mans consideration that those that are not Christians that is those that are not regenerate may know what they lose by it and those that are may understand the happines of their condition that they may learne to magnify it and to blesse themselves in that condition that they have such a great priviledge as this It is no more but aske and have therefore that which in the third place I exhort you to is this namely to spend time in the meditation of it to consider what a great advantage it is David cannot satisfie himselfe enough in it In 18. and 116. Psalmes Lord I love thee dearely hee cannot prayse enough and why I sought to thee in distresse thou heardest me I called upon thee and thou inclinedst thine eare to my praier I say consider this mercy as you ought to doe it is part of the thankes we owe to the Lord for so an exceeding priviledge That whatsoever our case bee it is no more but put up our requests and wee shall bee heard When there was a speech among some holy men as you know that man that was named in the story what was the best trade he answered Beggerie It is the hardest and it is the richest trade Now he understands it not of common beggery for this is the poorest and easiest trade that condition he puts in but saith hee I understand it of a prayer to God that kind of beggery I meane which as it is the hardest nothing more hard than to pray to God as wee ought so withall there is this comfort in it it is the richest trade of all others there is no way to inrich our selves so much with all the promises that belong either to this life or to that which is to come Even as you see among men a Courtier a Favorite in the Court get● more by one suite it may be than a Tradesman or Merchant or husband man gets with twenty yeares labour though he takes much paines for one request may bring more profit may make a Courtier richer than so many yeares labour and paines So in like case a faithfull prayer put up to God may more prevaile with him wee may obtaine more at his hands by it than by many yeares labour or using many meanes and therefore it is a rich trade and great priviledge a priviledge that we cannot thinke enough of that wee cannot esteeme enough You have heard of a noble man in this Kingdome that had a Ring given him by the Queene with this promise that if he sent that Ring to her at any time when he was in distres she would remember him and deliver him This was a great priviledge from a Prince and yet you see what that was subject unto he might be in such a distresse when neither King not Queene could be able to helpe him or though they were able as shee was in that case yet it might be sent not delivered Now then consider what the Lord doth to us Hee hath given us this priviledge he hath given us prayer as it were this Ring he hath given us that to use and tells us whatsoever our case is whatsoever wee are whatsoever we stand in need of whatsoever distresse wee are in doe but send this up to me saith hee do but deliver that message up to me of prayer and I will bee sure to relieve you Now certainely what case soever wee are in when we send up this it is sure to be conveyed whersoever we are Againe whatsoever our case is we send it to one that is able to helpe us which a Prince many times is not able to doe This benefit we have by prayer That whatsoever we aske at the Lord● hands wee shall have it Now consider this great advantage which you have It