Selected quad for the lemma: religion_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
religion_n	church_n	doctrine_n	england_n	6,989	5	6.3346	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A03292	The doctrines triall shewing both the necessity and the way of trying what is taught, in a sermon vpon 1 Thess.5.21. By Sam. Hieron.	Hieron, Samuel, 1576?-1617.	1616 (1616)	STC 13406; ESTC S116279	23,396	110

reuerence that acknowledgement which by vertue of the first Commandement is his peculiar I would faine see how the doctrine of the Church of Rome can bee freed from dispersing those affections and powers of the heart vnto sundry particulars which the Lord requireth to be giuen wholly vnto him Let the matter bee thorowly examined and if the seuerall points of that Religion which wee professe and preach in the Church of England at this day bee not like the lines in a Circumference which al meet in this one Center of Gods glory and of that maine ayme of God in all his proceedings He that reioyceth let him reioyce in the Lord we may freely allowe you to disclaime it Wee will neuer feare to ioyne issue with Papists in this wee will neuer decline nay we will entreat sue for this Triall Now for direction in dependance vpon our ordinarie preaching I commend this especially to the obseruation vse of common men For I now labour not so much to giue precepts for those that be learned and haue helps by Arts and Tongues reading to scan the things which are presented to them but I endeauour to guide those who haue no more for their ayde in this seruice then common education hath afforded them I remember a saying of Pauls Iudge you said he what I say Me thinks I may thence conclude that there is somewhat within the soule conscience of the hearer by which hee must determine touching that which commeth to him whether it bee meet to giue it entertainement yea or no. There is a certaine hid man of the heart which must bee iudge in this case Thou must try that which thou hearest by the work which it hath vpon thy soule There be three speciall things which I may tearme the aime of the whole Scripture That doctrine which tends to the furtherance of all or either of these three a man may safely build vpon it that it is true That which is a let or an impediment to any of these three it must be reiected as vnsound The three things are 1 Humility 2 Comfort 3 Conscience of obedience The whole Scripture driues to these three 1 To abase man in his owne eyes to lay him in the dust 2 To refresh his soule and to bring his bones which haue bin broken to reioyce 3 To frame his heart to a constant desire care of pleasing God These be three things simply necessarie to the composition of a right Christian Hereupon the Scripture is so exact in laying open the corruption of mans naturall estate in setting out the foulnesse and haynousnes of sinne in describing the rigour of Gods iustice in declaring the terror of that which is the best of mans desert Here upon secondly it is that it so gratiously discouereth the mystery of Christ the fulnesse of the grace which is in him the riches of Gods mercy through him euery way answering a mans spiritual necessity Hereupon thirdly it is that it so precisely straightly presseth the duties of holiness giuing no manner of liberty to mans owne naturall inclination but binding him to a finishing his saluation with fear trēbling and to a causing his heart to be in the feare of God continually Marke thou this then Exaamine thine owne soule how that which thou hearest helpeth thee onwards in either of these three how it beats down the naturall pride presumption of thy heart striuing to make thee vile in thine owne eyes how it acquaints thee with the Fulness of Christ and directs the for the settling of thine abased trembling soule vpon him how it hedgeth thee in in those excesses thou art inclinable to how it limits and stints thee in the things wherein thou wouldest faine haue liberty how it tieth thee vp and vrgeth thee to a kinde of strict and circumspect walking If thou finde it thus to work embrace it rest vpon it lay it vp hide it in the midst of thy heart it shall be health to thy nauill and marowe to thy bones If thou hearest a doctrine taught which thou findest to extenuate the corruption of mans nature or to darken and obscure that aboundant mercy which is in Christ weakning that assurance which an afflicted soule desireth by him or to hearten the euill inclination of the hart and to giue some liberty to the flesh and to seeme to make some of those courses tolerable which thou as a man art ready to affect beware thereof as of poyson to thy soule It is not that truth which thou must hearken to I haue set you downe a Rule which if you please to obserue and practice you shall finde to be exceeding vsefull That which thou hearest if thou perceiue that it humbleth and checketh thee in thy security comforts thee in thy perplexity curbs thee in in thy desired liberty thou maist be bolde to say It is the Truth of God All the falshood which in these dayes generally we are in danger of faileth in one of these 3 particulars If I shall shew you an experiment of this Rule it wil be the better vnderstood the better credited I pray be pleased to ioyne a little with me in the trying of the doctrine which my selfe haue here taught in my former Sermon vpon the precedent verse and vpon this thus farre I taught in that the necessity of dependance vpon preaching if we would be saued I vrged the seeking to enioy this means especially on the Sabbath day though it were with som charge or hazard I haue perswaded in this diligence to Try the doctrins which are taught care to be furnished with skill to that end Now it may bee all are not in these particulars of the same opinion perhaps you may heare that taught sometime which is somewhat differing as that other meanes may serue without preaching that there needeth not be such labouring and seeking after it now and then may suffice and that it is not for ordinarie persons to seeke to be so skilfull and busie as to fall to the examining of doctrines It may be I say such things as these may bee deliuered plausibly and with some shew of truth To resolue vs therefore herein let vs make vse of our Rule you shall finde that this doctrine which so presseth an attendance vpon preaching makes most for mans humbling most for his comfort most for his restraint 1 Most for his humbling For what can put a man downe more then the binding of him whatsoeuer he be noble wise learned and howsoeuer else outwardly qualified to sit him downe as a disciple in 〈◊〉 ●●●rners forme He shall not think to worke out a path to heauen by his owne industry but he must seeke sauing knowledge at the mouth of another and goe as hee is led by anothers hand This cuts the very heart of mans naturall pride according as indeed it is onely out of the hautinesse of their spirits and their loathness to stoope and the good

come vnto it with Deuotion Now that which the Scripture meaneth by humblenes of spirit in this case and Augustine by Deuotion is this A yeelding of a mans selfe ouer to bee taught of God out of a resolued and strong opinion that he is of himselfe but a foole in the things of God This is that which the Apostle calleth a beeing a foole to the end that he may be wise They be the simple to whom the word of the Lord giues sharpnesse of wit The summe is this in a word that I may not dwel vpon this particular Except a man be sensible in himselfe of mans natiue dulnesse in the matters of God of the vnfitness of his reason to iudge and to determine in points of that nature and so resolue to submit himselfe wholly to be taught of God and to conforme himselfe and to subdue his thoughts and to frame them to that which hee shall reueale it is vnpossible that he should euer be by the Scriptures made wise vnto saluation Now the best euidence of ones being furnished with this worthy quality is his binding himselfe not to looke into the Scripture without praier Thus did Dauid bewray the meekenesse of his spirit by begging of God to open his eyes to see the wonders of the Law by praying him to giue him vnderstanding to teach him good iudgement and knowledge This shewed Dauid to haue renounced all opinion of his owne sufficiency and to haue resigned himselfe ouer wholly to the Lords guidance Hee would not trust himselfe in wading into these depthes but in more then a iealousie ouer himselfe hee cast himselfe altogether vpon God It is but as Paul calleth it vaine iangling and science falsely so called a kind of frothie knowledge whatsoeuer men get out of the Scripture aduenturing on it without this quality Determine if thou wouldest get ought out of Gods booke by which thy soule may bee satisfied as with marow and fatnesse neuer to betake thy selfe to the vse of it but to vrge that vpon thy selfe which the woman of Samaria scoffingly said to Christ Thou hast nothing to draw with and the well is deepe without thee O Lord I shall depart empty away God must bee prayed vnto and wee must say with the Apostles Lord shew vs this parable Now when a man is thus addressed and prepared with an humble yeelding and resigned spirit his next care must be to be furnished out of the Scripture with some matter of Rule by which hee may still in his hearing course make that tryall which is necessarie This matter of Rule I may thus distinguish It is either more generall or more speciall and particular The more generall matter of Rule is the doctrine of Catechisme I will shew you what I meane hereby There is a thing which Paul in one place calleth the Forme of doctrine in another the Patterne of wholesome words else where The doctrine of the beginning of Christ It is a certaine frame of sacred Truth raysed out of plaine direct and vnquestiond Texts of holy Scripture manifesting by the way of abridgement the order and course of mans saluation to whom he must looke vp for it and by what way meanes he must come to it He which doth not beginne at this shall neuer come vnto that in Religion which is called the Certainty There was a course of teaching this in the Apostles dayes as may be gathered out of Heb 6. 1. and hath beene continued in all well gouerned Churches euer since And I am verely perswaded that one speciall reason why both many who are for profession Diuines are staggering and vncertaine and various in pointes of diuinity and subiect to drawing this way and that way either by the Times or by such Authors as they meete with and diuers also of our people of all rankes are so vnsettled and so by and by puzled vpon the raising vp of a new or strange point of doctrine is they were neuer well broght vp in the grounds of Chatechisme And it is a great errour both amongst vs Ministers that this kinde of Teaching is so little in our practice amongst the people that where it is vsed it is so little in esteem Neuer shall a man bee other then raw in Religion that was not well seasoned with the first rudiments These must be to him like the patternes which some craftsmen haue by which they proportion out their worke That which they heare if it hold not agreement with these principles it must be reiected as vnsound These our daies afford many helpes in this kinde and our neglect herein is the more without excuse If you shall giue this point but a little time and roome in your thoughts to bee here considered of I make no doubt but you will all confesse it to bee true Now the more speciall and particular Rule is either for the deciding of the great question betwixt vs and papists or for our direction and settlement in that ordinarie preaching which is amongst our selues Touching Popery wee shall finde that course which Salomon tooke for the trying of the two Harlots which came before him whether was the true mother whē both were therein very confident to be of very special vse for the triall thereof and for the confirming of a mans determination touching it that it is but counterfeit Shee who could bee content the liuing childe should be diuided Salomon gaue his verdit vpon her that surely shee was not the mother Vnity is a matter much boasted of by papists yet there is nothing so pregnant against them as this point of diuision For whereas God will haue all reserued to himselfe and will admit no copartinarie I will not giue my glory to another we shal finde Poperie in the points of Christian religion to admit clean cōtrary to the fundamētall lawes of heauen as it were a Gauel-kinde custome and to allow shares with God in the things wherein hee will endure no partners as for example Adoration is diuided betwixt God Images The seruice of prayer betwixt God and creatures Mediation to the diuine Maiesty betwixt Christ and Saints The headship of the Church betwixt Christ the Pope The conuersion of a Sinner betwixt the freedome of Gods grace and the freedome of mans will Iustification betwixt faith and workes The ground of a Christian mans faith beetwixt Scriptures and Tradions Absolute obedience betwixt Gods Commandements and the precepts of the Church And so in other things for I giue you but a taste Take we this for a certaine Rule by which to iudge of the doctrine of Popery It is content like the pretended mother to diuide those things betwixt two or moe which ought of right to bee reserued vnto one I dare vndertake that in the maine points of Religion there is a making ouer more or lesse from God to somewhat else all that glorie that respect that dependance vpon that