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A15003 The nevv birth: or, A treatise of regeneration delivered in certaine sermons; and now published by William Whately, preacher and minisiter of Banbury in Oxfordshire. Whately, William, 1583-1639. 1618 (1618) STC 25308; ESTC S103302 103,954 167

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see the kingdome of God CHAP. III. Containing a description of Regeneration SO haue we demonstrated the truth of this necessary principle of Christian religion Now wee goe forward to explicate the same The explication of the doctrine by shewing foure things and will endeuour to lay it open so cleerely that euery man may be able if hee be willing to bestow the labour of trying to discerne of his own estate in this behalfe and to say whether himselfe be regenerated yea or no. So will there be a ready way made to that application of the doctrine which hereafter we intend Now that this matter may be soundly conceiued of by you it shall be requisite for me to enter into a discourse consisting of foure heads First to giue a description of regeneration Secondly to shew in what order and in what degrees as I may terme them it is wrought in the sons of men Thirdly to declare what effects doe follow vpon it there where it is wrought Fourthly to set downe the most eminent of those graces that are to be found in regenerate men Of which foure I pray you reuiue your attention to heare in order For the first point Regeneration 1. A description of regeneration called also sanctification and renouation and conuersion and repentance hauing the three former names giuen it in as much as it is Gods worke in vs the two latter in as much as we also being moued by God doe worke together with him for the accomplishing and fulfilling thereof and fitly called a re-begetting because in it we are restored to that image of God wherein we were at the first created but now by meanes of our corruption through the fall are altogether destitute of it in our first birth This regeneration I say seemes to me conueniently described in these or the like termes It is a worke of the spirit of God by meanes of the word of God infusing holinesse into the whole man for the glory of God in his saluation I call it a worke because it is so called of God himselfe for wee are said to bee his workmanship Ephes 2.10 created in Christ vnto good workes and because to beget is to doe to bee begotten to suffer in the plainest discourse of naturall reason Now this worke is in this description set out by all the causes and by the subiect thereof The causes are foure all briefly named in the description The efficient formall materiall and finall The efficient is double principall and instrumentall The principall the sole author in whom remaineth all the power of working and to whom all the praise appertaineth is the Spirit of God the Holy Ghost the third Person in Trinitie The same Spirit by whom our Sauiour Christs Man-hood was conceiued in his Mothers wombe is the sole worker of this conception of grace in the heart of Christians So doth our Lord himselfe instruct Nicodemus in the words following saying vers 6. That that is borne of the spirit is spirit and before Saint Iohn had told vs that beleeuers were borne not of blood cap. 1. vers 13. nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man that is not by any natural power vertue or strength which is naturally inherent in them but of God that is of the Spirit of God wherefore in the New Couenant the promise is made on this wise Ezek. 36.16 I will put my spirit in your hearts and in another place I will poure forth my spirit vpon all flesh The spirit of God that rests vpon our Sauiour Christ doth descend frō him vnto those that shall bee his members at the same time implanting them into him and imprinting his image vpon them No Angell can change mans heart no Angell can quicken the dead soule no creature can breath into vs the diuine nature but we are the workmanship of God by his spirit created vnto good workes This is the annointing oyle that being poured vpon vs doth consecrate vs vnto God The holy Ghost himselfe in a wonderfull and vndiscernable fashion as the winde that bloweth where it lusteth doth conueigh and insinuate himselfe into the man whom hee will beget againe to a new life and becommeth purifying water to cleanse him and an holy fier comming downe from heauen to consume his corruptions and refine him for the Lords vse And yet the Spirit of God that could work of himself and without meanes pleaseth not so to doe in this great worke but of his owne free-will makes choice for himselfe of a fit and blessed instrument for that purpose euen the Law of God the whole doctrine of the Scriptures which hee hath for that end made knowne to the sonnes of men by his holy Prophets and which hath receiued this high commendation from the Diuine testimonie left in writing by Dauids pen that it is perfect Psalm 19. and conuerteth the soule This doctrin hath two maine heads the Law and the Gospel The former vsed by Gods Spirit as a necessarie preparatiue the other as a proper essential instrumēt in this busines Wherfore the Word is called the incorruptible seede which being sowne in the heart 1. Pet. 1.23 doth by little and little grow vp to a new creature and Peter tels vs that by the pretious promises 2. Pet. 1.4 we are made partakers of the diuine nature and to his Apostles our Sauiour vttereth as much saying Now are you cleane by the word that I haue spoken vnto you John 15.3 There may be a question made whither the Word of God read onely may become effectuall to regenerate or whither it must want this efficacie vnlesse it bee preached as well as read To which question mee thinketh that this should be a true answere that the instrumentall power of regenerating cannot be denied to the Scriptures barely read though preaching bee not ioyned withall For why seeing the doctrine of the Gospell is called 2. Cor. 3.8 the ministration of the Spirit and it is the doctrine of the Gospell when it is offered to the vnderstanding by bare reading therfore it must follow that in such case also it may become the power of God to saluation and the instrument of the spirit to regeneration The same precepts promises and threats are by reading deliuered to the mind of the man that readeth or heareth the Word read and why then should we thinke that the Holy Ghost either cannot or will not worke together with them Yea doubtlesse he can doe it when hee will and will doe it then whensoeuer he doth not as often he doth not affoord to men a possibilitie of enioying any other helpe then reading Vnlesse the not being preached could make the Word not to be the Law of God I see no reason that it should bee thought vnable to conuert soules without being preached But withall wee must adde this that the Word of God is made effectuall by the Spirit more often more vsually more ordinarily to
discretion and let the law of wisedome be vnder your tongue Then slip gently into some one or other necessary head of Christian doctrine that may be most behoofefull and from one to an other till your wholesome and profitable speeches haue helped to open the eyes of the blind Say to thy selfe how can I tell but that God by my meanes may begin to make these simple ones vnderstand wisdome and these ignorant learne that knowledge which may in time procure their conuersion then let thy loue burne within thee and strengthen thy desires so farre till thou hast broken thorough the bands of shamefastnesse and feare and other carnall hinderances that Satan will cast in thy way till hauing made it familiar to thy selfe to vse good conference thou beest able to doe it at all seasons and with all readinesse No souldiour is hindred either by bashfulnesse or feare if the company will giue him hearing to talke of warre and the discipline of warre The drouer and grassier will be talking of sheepe and oxen The husband-man cannot keepe his tongue from the plough and the prices of his corne Euery trades-man is apt to fall in speech of the commodities or works that belong to his trade Shall the Christian and sanctified man alone either feare or shame to shew forth the riches of his minde and to be telling of the wonderfull mysteries of godlinesse I pray you lay aside carnall feare and carnall shame and resolue to approue the goodnesse of your hearts by the seasonable wisedome of your words and remēber what Dauid tels you in the Psalme The mouth of the righteous speaketh wisedome and his tongue talketh iudgement Secondly ioyne louing and wholesome exhortations stirring vp one another and exhorting one another as the Apostle speaketh Perswade with the kindest and affablest words thou canst inuent perswade I say those whom thou maiest hope will bee perswaded by thee to reade the Scriptures to reade other good bookes of good men and if thou thinkest there be any hope that they will reade the same giue them withall some briefe and good writing that thou hast found to thy selfe most beneficiall especially perswade them to goe and heare the word of God say Come let vs go vp to the house of the Lord. Striue to bring them to a good estimation of Gods ordinance of preaching and to frequent it constantly and take aduantage of what thou knowest they haue heard to stirre them vp to godly sorrow and to mourning for sinne and to amendment of life Doe thy best to draw them vnto those duties that haue drawne thy selfe and may draw them to God Great is the force of louing perswasion it stealeth into the soule afore a man is aware and taketh footing before he can obserue it It leades and guides men with a kinde of gentle violence to the things that they neuer intended and often times it alters euen peremptory and stomackfull resolutions Forget not therefore by these goads to pricke men forward vnto all the good duties of piety which thou hast found effectuall to thine owne new birth And thirdly let wholesome reproofes or admonitions be intermingled How truly said he that called these Pretious balmes onely let them bee deliuered louingly and seasonably in as much priuatenesse as may be and with as much gentlenesse It is Saint Pauls precept Admonish the vnruly Indeed we must limit it with Salomons limitation vnlesse hee haue shewed himselfe a scorner but otherwise hee is and must bee more then ordinarily vnruly that if he be gently taken aside and told of a fault with kind words shall not bee somewhat affected for the present and more when hee comes alone and thinkes of it But chiefly if a man doe purposely betake himselfe to one with whom hee hath some acquaintance and some interest in him hauing formerly prayed to God for assistance and successe and there in mild and sorrowfull manner lay open vnto him the greatnesse of that euill course he can proue him to liue in the danger of it the dishonesty the discreditfulnesse the vengeance of God against it and such like withall beseeching the offender to remember himselfe and afore it bee too late to reforme himselfe If a man I say shall thus doe he must bee a double scorner euen one that hath setled himselfe in the seat of the scornful that shal not be somwhat wrought vpon by words so sweetly and wisely vttered And thus must all regenerate persons as they haue occasion labour the regenerating of others by good life and good speeches Now I shew gouernours of families how they should seeke the regenerating of those that are vnder their gouernment 2 To those of their family ●●●●r sh pping God w●th them Their care must extend it selfe partly to those of yeeres partly to their infants For those of yeeres first they must see God serued in their owne families learning of him that said I and mine h●use will serue the Lord. Now God is serued in the family by reading of the Scriptures and inuocation of the name of God for seeing God hath vnited them into the body of one family and made them a common body therefore he doth require a common seruice of them that they may all ioyne in doing homage to him to whom all are seruants remembring that euen the families as well as the kingdomes are cursed that call not vpon the name of God Is the Master commanded to whet the Law of God vpon his children as he sits in his house and must it not needs follow that he must ioyne with them in calling vpon that God whose law that is When Daniel did pray in his house it seemeth probable to me that if it had been a priuate prayer of himselfe alone no man could haue knowne it his enemies could not haue found him at it It was therefore rather an houshold prayer then a closet prayer in regard of which those enemies of his did seeke an aduantage against him And seeing Hester tooke her maids with her in the extraordinary prayers ioyned with fasting wee haue little reason to thinke but that she tooke them to her also in her daily and ordinary prayers Zachary tels of them vpon whom the spirit of grace and prayer should be poured that they should mourne and this mourning was not without praying euery family apart and their wiues apart Behold an exercise of the family apart from other families and of each member of the family the wife put for the rest synechdochically apart from other members of it So then let euery godly man striue to propagate godlinesse by performing these duties of godlinesse with his people Let him make them acquainted with the Scriptures by an orderly and constant reading it amongst them Catechising them and let him learne them how to pray for themselues by praying with them and for them all Secondly let him instruct them in the principles of religion teaching them some good Catechisme according to their capacitie at least