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	faith_n	prove_v	3,810	5	6.3590	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A96335	An essay to promote virtue by example in a collection of excellent sayings (divine and moral) of devout & learned men, in all ages, from the apostles time, to this present year, 1689 / By William Whitcombe, gent.	Whitcombe, William.	1689 (1689)	Wing W1743B; ESTC R42718	61,072	231

somewhat more from you to Comfort my Stomach for unless the Lord assist me in his Service I shall play the White-liver'd Knight but he can make a Coward in his Cause to Fight like a Man. Jerom of Prague being ready to be Burned these were his last words This Soul of mine in Flames of Fire O Christ I offer unto thee Sir Thomas More said We go to Hell with more pain than we may go to Heaven with Honor. IT is Machiavils Rule That they that rise very high should descend timely to quit the Envy lest they lose the Honor of their Greatness Queen Elizabeth asked Sir Nicholas Bacon Why his House was so little he answered My House is not too little for me but you have made me too big for my House Heavenly Country HOw Worthy yea how necessary a thing it were that they that is the Lord Burleigh and Sir Francis Walsingham should at length bid farewel to the Snares one of a Secretery and the other of an Ambassador and should both of them set their Minds upon their Heavenly Country and by Repentance ask Mercy of GOD. Human Affairs Human Affairs are so uncertain that he seemeth the Wisest Man not who hath a Spirit to go on but he that hath a Wariness to come off And that seems the best Course that hath most Passages out of it Hatred THe World perhaps doth not Love us have we not reason to thank it if it make us place our Affections on Heaven Epiphanius used to say That he never let his Adversary Sleep not that he disturbed him in his Sleep but because he agreed with him presently and would not let the Sun go down upon his Wrath. Prosper saith Thou shalt neither Hate the Man for his Vice nor Love the Vice for the Mans sake Heart and Tongue CYprian saith Two things never wax Old in Man the Heart ever imagining new Cogitations and the Congue uttering vain Corruptions of the Heart Hearing the Word Cyril saith Some came to Church to see Fashions others to meet their Friends yet it is better come so than not at all In the mean time the Net is laid and they that intend nothing less are drawn into Christ who catches them not to destroy them but that being Dead he may bring them to Life Eternal St. Bernard when he came to the Church Door used to say this to himself Stay here all my Worldly Thoughts and Vanity that I may entertain Heavenly Meditations Hereticks IRaeneus was wont to compare the Hereticks and Schismaticks of his Time to Esop's Dogg that lost the Substance of Religion whil'st they gaped too earnestly after the Shaddow It was St. Hierom's saying Dead Flesh is to be cut off for fear of Gangrene Arias at first was but a Spark but being not suppressed betimes proved the Incendary of the whole Church Holiness ISodore faith Knowledge and a Good Life are both very profitable yet if both cannot be attained a Good Life is rather to be sought than much Knowledge Hope WE will never part comfortably with our Enjoyments on Earth till we have comfortable Thoughts of better in Heaven That Hope of Salvation that is not accompanied with Heart Purification is vain Hope Humility IT is a lowly frame and habit of Spirit arising from a due sence of the glorious Excellency of Almighty God and our own Frailties and Infirmities and upon our Infinite dependance on his Bounty Goodness and Mercy whereby we are under a constant firm and sound Conviction that all that is in us or that is Injoyed or can be expected by us is from the free and undeserved Liberality of that glorious GOD. An Humble Man says Alexander of Hales is like a good Tree the more fuller of Fruit the Branches are the lower they bend themselves It is the empty Soul I mean one empty of Pride Self-conceit and Vain-Glory that is capable of Satisfaction with the Divine Goodness If an Humble Man doth any Good Noble or becoming Action he checks the first motions of Pride and Ostentations in himself and receives not the Applause of others but directs all to the Praise and Glory of it to that God that hath done it for him and by him Not unto us but unto thy Name give the Glory C. J. Hales 141. And Justice Hales said I can call my own Experience to witness that even in the external Actions Occurrences and Incidencies of my whole Life I was never disappointed of the best Guidance and Direction when in Humility and the sence of my own deficiency and diffidence of my own Ability to direct my self or grapple with the difficulties of my Life I have with Humility and Sincerity employed the secret Directions and Guidance of the Divine Providence and I dare therein appeal to the vigilant and strict Observance of any Man's Experience whether he hath not found the same Experience in relation to himself and his own Actions and Successes whether those Counsels and Purposes which have been taken up after an humble Invocation of the Divine Direction have not always been most successful in the end 146 and 130. Hypocrisie Hypocrisie is to do the outward Acts without the inward Sincerity now to do them without Sincerity is to do them without Love for to do a thing in Love is to do it in Sincerity that is the best way to know it by A man that doth much to God but not out of Love all that he doth is out of Hypocrisie Doctor Preston The Hypocrite hath a Profession that he may not seem Wicked but it is but a Profession and therein he is Wicked He that pretends to Godliness by a specious Profession and yet doth not practise Godliness by an holy Conversation he hath a Form but doth deny the Power Mead. It is seriousness and earnestness about fleshly Vanity and want of seriousness about things Spiritual and Eternal which is the temper and Character of the Hypocrite Jests ARche made King James sensible of the danger the Prince was in in Spain by telling him he would change Caps with him Why said the King because thou hast sent the Prince into Spain from whence he is never likely to return But said the King What wilt thou say if thou see him return back again Marry said he I will take off the Fools Cap which I now put on thy head for sending him thither and put it on the King of Spains for letting him return Secretary Baurus's Son kept a Gentlemans Wife in Shropshire and when he was weary of her caused her Husband to be dealt with to take her home again assuring him of 500 l. for Reparation The Gentleman went to Sir Henry Sidney to take his Advice telling him That his Wife promised him to live a new Life and to say the truth 500 l. would be very seasonable at that time By my troth said Sir Henry take her home and the Money with her and then whereas other Cuckholds wear their Hornes plain you may wear yours Guilt

brings Men into Snares which drown Men in Perdition Fulgentius used to say CHRIST Died for Men and Angels for Men that they may rise from Sin and for Angels that they may not fall into Sin. And if they go to Hell that do not Feed the Hungry Cloath the Naked c. If want of Charity be Tormented in Hell what will become of the Covetous Tertullian saith Gold to many Men is much better than their Faith and Honesty And the Love of it makes many so Covetous as if they were to Live here for ever Avarice is not the Vice of Gold but of Men that use it Conscience THe Two main Principles that guide Human Nature saith Judge Dodderidge are Conscience and Law by the former we are obliged in reference to another World by the latter in reference to This. St. Ambrose was wont to say A clear Conscience should not regard slanderous Speeches nor think that they have more Power to Condemn him than his own Conscience hath to clear him Aquinas was wont to say That Day will come when Fair-Dealing will be found a Jewel when a good Conscience shall be better than a good Purse when the Judge will not be put off with fair Speeches nor drawn aside with hopes of Reward Isidore saith All things may be shuned but a Man 's own Heart a Man cannot run from himself a guilty Conscience will not leave him wheresoever he goes It is very dangerous to quiet Conscience with any thing but the Blood of Christ It 's bad being at Peace till Christ speaks Peace Nothing can truly satisfie Conscience less than that which pacifies God and that is the Blood of the Lord Jesus Christ Mead. Whoso will keep the Peace of his Conscience and his Confidence in God must carefully keep himself from all those things that displease his Holy Eyes and turn away his Gracious Countenance lest that when need of our Duty calls us to draw near him by Prayer we feel our selves pulled back by Guilty Fears Du Moulin 63. The Glory of a good Man is the Testimony of a good Conscience A good Conscience is able to bear very much and is chearful in Adversities To walk inwardly with God and not to be possessed with any outward Affection is the State of a Spiriritual Man. Have a good Conscience and thou shalt ever have Joy. Charity CHrisologus saith Let not thy Care be to have thy Hands full when the Poors are empty for the only way to have full Barns is to have Charitable Hands St. Ambrose saith It is not so much to be enquired how much thou Givest as with what Heart It is not Liberality when thou takest by Oppression from one and givest to another St. Cyril saith It is the best way for a Rich Man to make the Bellies of the Poor his Barn to succor the Fatherless and Naked and thereby to lay up Treasure in Heaven that he may be received into the Heavenly and everlasting Habitations Chastity A Woman is truly Chast that hath Liberty and Opportunity to Sin and doth not Commands GOD comes to us not a Naked GOD but Cloathed with His Commands and if we Love Him we must receive Him so Cloathed GOD hears our Prayers according as we keep his Commands Whatsoever God forbids in the Act he forbids likewise in the Thoughts If Christ be not our King to Rule and Govern us he will neither be our Prophet to Fore-warn nor our Priest to Expiate If Christ hath freed us from the Damnation of Sin he hath also freed us from the Dominion of Sin. If with his Blood he hath quenched the Fire of Hell for us he hath also quenched the Fire of Lust in us Christ's Justifying Blood is given by his Sanctifying Spirit Touchstone of a Christian Conversion LAbor after and Pray for a through Conversion beg of GOD that he would make a saving Change in your Souls that you may be altogether Christians all other Changes below this saving Change this Heart change make us but almost Christians Morality and Civility may commend us to Men but not to God they are of no moment or value to the procurement of Eternal Salvation The sober Man not being renewed throughout by the Spirit of God shall as surely go to Hell as the beastly Drunkard Corruptions WHilst Grace is Imperfect Corruptions will be strong The great Corruptions that the Godly find in themselves keep them from being Proud and despising of others Hildersam Custom THe Halsion Days of the Gospel provoke Hypocrisie but the Sufferings for Religion prove Sincerity He that is a Professor of Religion meerly for Custom when it Prospers will never be a Martyr for Christ's sake when it Suffers Covenant the Second THe Son of GOD came to make known unto us the Will of his Father in performance of which we shall be sure to be Accepted and Rewarded by Him And this was one great part of his Business which He performed in those many Sermons and Precepts we find set down in the Gospel and herein He is our Prophet it being the Work of a Prophet of Old not only to Foretel but to Teach Our Duty in this particular is to hearken diligently to Him to be most ready and desirous to learn that Will of God which He came from Heaven to Reveal to us The second Thing He was to do for us was To satisfie GOD for our Sins not only that One of Adam but all the Sins of Mankind that truly Repent and Amend and by this means to obtain Forgiveness of Sins and the Favour of God and so to Redeem us from Hell and Eternal Damnation which was the Punishment due to our Sins All this He did for us by his Death He offered up Himself a Sacrifice for the Sins of all those who heartily bewail and forsake them and in this He is our Priest it being the Priests Office to Sacrifice for the Sins of the People Our Duty in this particular is truly and heartily to Repent and forsake our Sins without which they will never be Pardoned us altho' Christ hath Died. Secondly Stedfastly to Believe if we do that we shall have the Comforts of this Sacrifice of His all our Sins how great or how many soever shall be Pardoned and we saved from those Eternal Punishments which were due to us for them And for that other part viz. That of Praying that he not only performed on Earth but continues still to do it in Heaven He sits on the Right-Hand of God and makes Requests for us Rev. 8.34 Our Duty herein is not to resist this unspeakable Blessing of His but to be willing to be thus Blest in being turned from our Sins and not to make void and fruitless all his Prayers and Intercessions for us which will never prevail for us whilst we continue in them The third thing that Christ was to do for us was To enable us or give us strength to do what God requires of us This He doth First by