Selected quad for the lemma: mercy_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
mercy_n	judgement_n	sin_n	sinner_n	2,057	5	7.5058	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A47613	A summons to the grave, or, The necessity of a timely preparation for death demonstrated in a sermon preached at the funeral of that most eminent and faithful servant of Jesus Christ Mr. John Norcot who departed this life March 24, 1675/6 / by Benjamin Keach.	Keach, Benjamin, 1640-1704.	1676 (1676)	Wing K95; ESTC R29890	33,691	104

no more you shall hear him pray no more preach no more and is not this a ground of lamentation 9. Saints and Ministers of the Gospel are the interest of the Nation City or Place where they live Was not Lot the interest of Sodom I cannot do any thing till thou be come thither Gen. 19. 22. Till Lot was gone fire and brimstone could not come upon that miserable City Oh what love hath God to the poor Preachers of righteousness But again Was not Jacob the interest of Labans family How did God bless him for Jacobs sake The like might be minded of Joseph to the Egyptians Ye saith our blessed Saviour are the light of the world and the salt of the earth To whom did he speak but to his Disciples his holy Apostles that he sent forth to preach glad tydings of great joy unto the Nations I might shew you wherein they are the interest of the place where they are but I must hasten Take onely two or three brief hints 1. They stand in the gap or in the breach Ours is a great one the Lord look upon us They plead with God When Moses hands are up Israel prevails and when he lets down his hands Amalek Prevails Exod. 17. 11. Oh how doth he cry out for a provoking generation When Jehovah cries Let me alone that I may destroy them Exod. 32. 10. Oh saith Joshua what wilt thou do for thy great name If thou wilt not forgive their sin saith Moses blot me out of thy Book Nay though God promised to make of him a great Nation yet he still lifts up a cry for them Exod 32. 10 11 32. 2. They are the interest of the Nation where they are by counselling warning and admonishing 3. By their holy and exemplary conversations Except the Lord of hosts had left unto us a very small remnant we should have been as Sodom and should have been like unto Gomorrah Isa 1. 9. 10. Ground of Lamentation is because sin usually is the cause why God removes his faithful Embassadors He sends to treat with sinners about the concerns of their souls I wish this stroke be not in judgement to some of your souls The Message they bring is often slighted and thereby sinners slight and reject the King himself They cry and lift up their voice like a trumpet fore-warning of danger but none lays it to heart They spend their strenght and weaken their bodies for the good of sinners souls but sinners slight it Nay if they should sweat drops of blood it would not do it would not work in them remorse of Conscience and repentance unto life Well saith God now I 'll wait upon thee no more him that you despised and contemned or neglected to hear or whose counsel you did not regard you shall hear no more The taking 〈◊〉 of faithful Preachers is one of the greatest judgement that can come upon sinners But alas it may not onl● be for the sins of the ungodly world ●●on unconverted sinners but a punishment upon Professors and Church Members for their inquiry they may not prize the mercy nor walk worthy of the blessing They may not carry it as they ought to do to the Labourer that is amongst them They may grieve and wound his heart by their disorderly walking and God may from hence be provoked to take him a way Nay they may on the other hand overvalue him they may idolize their Teachers and look upon them above what is meet though sinful yet 't is possible to eye man more than God by man God may remove them Upon this account the Apostle speaks of some that had mens persons in admiration I am satisfied there is too great extreams in the world We should have a care we do not receive the Truth for the sake of a man or to please men because such and such says it but out of Love to Jesus Christ and because God hath commanded it Beloved it may not be amiss to lay these things to heart 't is good to hear the Rod and to know who it is and for what it is appointed I do not charge any in particular 11. And lastly Here is cause of lamentation because evil and dark dayes many times follows the removal of Gods Worthies When God take away so many faithful ones what may we expect to look for I might give divers instances of the sad effects or what hath followed the taking godly persons sincere Labourers away But I am afraid I have been too tedious already remember what the Prophet saith The righteous perisheth and no man layeth it to heart Merciful men are taken away and none considering that the righteous is taken away from the evil to come Isa 57. 1. Thus much by way of Lamentation and Consolation I have onely one Use more which shall be in the fourth place by way of Comfort and Consolation 1. Must all dye the godly as well as the wicked Is the Grave the place prepared for all Living Must Fathers Husbands Wives Children Ministres and the dearest Friends we have dye How shall we then comfort our selves against death If thou art a Beleiver I I have a word of comfort for thee there is none I am sure for Christless Souls 2. Consider death cannot hurt thee it cannot hurt those that are Believers because it hath lost his sting Death may hiss but cannot hurt Nothing makes death terrible to an ungodly man but it's Sting The sting of death is sin but this is taken away from Believers by Jesus Christ Oh death where is thy sting O grave where is thy victory 1. Cor. 15. 55 56. 2. Death cannot hurt a Believer because it cannot bring an annihilation of the body though it bring an alteration upon the stare and condition of the body yea and though the body be dissolved to dust yet it shall not be lost it shall rise to life again 3. Death cannot dissolve or break that blessed union there is between Jesus Christ and believers Though it may separate soul and body yet it cannot separate either from Jesus Christ and the soul immediately will be in a more glorious enjoyment of Christ and though the body for a while must lie in the grave yet that dust is precious dust in Christs sight 4. Consider Death cannot keep the body long under its power nor keep soul and body apart 't is but a little while and they will meet again Death and the Grave are conquered enemies Saints by faith can now through Jesus Christ triumph over them and shall have a compleat a full Conquest over a short space 5. Death has not power to cast into hell if Conscience condemns thee not if the Word convicts thee not if God passeth not the Sentence upon thee Death has no power to do it Death can but bring to the grave 't is sin that casteth the soul into hell 6. Consider Death is thine that is 't will be for thy profit and advantage every way Remember

go down before the work is finished Redeem the time because the days are evil Eph. 5. 16. Alas Sirs are not the shadows of the evening upon some of you the Lord help you to lay it to heart Do not think the whole work of your lives can be done upon a Dying Bed Oh consider Old age is unfit for labour and it is folly with a witness to think 't is time enough to sow when thou shouldest reap Delays proves the ruin of many thousands The night cometh saith Christ when no man can work 10. And lastly Consider what will become of your precious souls if death takes you before you are ready for it will not stay for you Will he be bribed or perswaded to come another time I remember a young Maid in the Countrey that was sick and as she grew near her end she cried out to be spared one quarter of a year one month but when that would not be granted rather than fail one week but die she did greedy death will have no denial Oh what a sad sight is it to see a Christless soul a dying When death sits upon your trembling lips and you not prepared what would you give for peace and pardon then When pale death comes upon thee like a sturdy Sergeant and doth arrest thee in the name of the great King of Heaven and Earth he will hale you along to prison you must go Death comes upon a wicked man like a hungry Lyon tearing their souls from their bodies to such he is indeed the King of Terrors He comes on them like a fiery Serpent with his venomous sting with which he wounds them and lays them a bleeding to all Eternity Oh to have the soul dragged out of the body and cast into hell is of a dreadful and amazing Consideration With this I shall conclude the Use of Exhortation The next is an use of Direction to poor sinners and all others that would be prepared for the grave if this be so First Doth not some poor soul hear say Oh what shall I do that I may be prepared for the grave Have you a heart a mind a desire indeed to be fitted for that hour Then in the first place labour to get a full sight and sense of your sins and of your lost and undone condition by nature Oh what a miserable creature hath sin made man or rather man by sin made himself That must needs be the greatest evil that deprives man of the greatest good God is mans chief good sin deprives man of this good sin makes man hated or God and causeth man to resemble Satan who is the opposite of God The carnal mind is enmity against God this enmity must be removed Unless a man be born again he cannot see the Kingdom of God John 3. 3. Secondly Labour to get Brokenness of heart oh strive to melt in the sight and sense of your iniquity Sinner what hast thou done wilt thou sin away thy mercies sin away thy Ministers Gods hand is lifted up we are under sore rebukes of the Almighty though I fear few are sensible that it is the fruit of their transgressions May we not say with the Prophet No man repenteth him of his wickedness saying What have I done Jer. 8. 6. God expects and looks for tears of Repentance A broken and a contrite heart is a sacrifice that he will not despise If you are not broken in the sense of the odious and abominable nature of sin broken into pieces now you are like to be broken with horror under the weight of the punishment hereafter Oh! Is it not better to be smitten and broken in a way of mercy in order to healing then to be broken in a way of wrath and judgement when there will be no help nor cure for you Thirdly Labour so get an interest in Jesus Christ Oh that this opportunity might have some tendency this way Unless ye believe that I am he saith Jesus Christ you shall die in your sins Soul never rest and be satisfied till thou canst say with Thomas My Lord and my God John 20. 28. Can you still stand it out against such precious patience and offers of grace Will you not yet open to Christ Shall he call and cry to you and will you give him no entertainment Can you close in with a better friend How long hath he stood knocking at the doors of your hearts Was he not graciously calling upon you the last Lords day and now in mercy he is giving you another knock Oh fear lest he depart Is he not ready to take his farewell of you Have you not let him stand till his head was wet with the dew and his locks with the drops of the night Sinner sinner hasten to him and open the door do'st not hear that lovely voice that was spoken to the blind man Be of good comfort rise he calleth thee Mark 10. 49. It may be you will ask where I 'll tell thee if thou art a weary and burdened soul that feelest the weight of thy sin there is a precious word spoken for thy sake take hold of it Matth. 11. 28. Come unto me all you that are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest take my yoke upon you and learn of me for I am meek and lowly in heart and you shall find rest for your souls Oh the sweetness of that word take it and receive it down Fourthly Labour in the strength of Christ to oppose every sin See that there be no sweet morsel hid no Dalilah no pleasant nor profitable lust spared O cry with David Search me O Lord and try my heart prove me and know my thoughts Psal 139. 23. Fifthly Take heed you do not sin against Light Neglect no Conviction either of Sin or Duty if you would be prepared for the grave Then shall I not saith David be ashamed when I have respect to all thy commandments Psal 119. 6. Sixthly Never be satisfied until you have all your sins subdued Sin must be crucified or the soul must die Rom. 8. 13. To this I might add for I cannot enlarge make it your business also to get your sins pardoned so that you may have the feeling sense of the forgiveness of them in your own hearts Seventhly Labour after a pure Conscience What will stand your souls in greater stead when you come to die than this Paul's great care and endeavour was to keep a Conscience void of offence towards God and toward men Acts 24. 16. I must tell you An accusing Conscience will be a bad Death-bed Companion I remember what our dear Friend spake to me in the time of his Sickness Oh Brother said he a good conscience is the best refuge That was his rejoycing alluding to that Text 2 Cor. 1. 12. the testimony of his conscience that in simplicity and godly sincerity not with fleshly wisdom but by the grace of God he had his conversation in the world It matters not who reproach