Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	adoption_n	grace_n	note_a	42	3	17.0252	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A13752	Thrēnoikos The house of mourning; furnished with directions for preparations to meditations of consolations at the houre of death. Delivered in XLVII. sermons, preached at the funeralls of divers faithfull servants of Christ. By Daniel Featly, Martin Day Richard Sibbs Thomas Taylor Doctors in Divinitie. And other reverend divines.	H. W., fl. 1640.; Featley, Daniel, 1582-1645.	1640 (1640)	STC 24049; ESTC S114382	805,020	906

our selves Surely this the ground of this life the grace of God What God doth hee doth for himselfe for his owne names sake Grace is free And these two joyned together give evident demonstration of God to be a God in the thing that he doth conferre upon thee and in his dealing of it the greatnesse of the gift that he doth give and the freenesse of it For who can give life but the God of life that hath life in himselfe And then againe to doe this altogether upon meere grace upon his owne good pleasure it is a divine propertie And this is it that doth incourage us to come unto God notwithstanding our unworthinesse And in this respect in the second place wee have here a Use of instruction to acquaint our selves with God with the freenesse of his Grace to plead it unto God when wee come unto him and notwithstanding our unworthinesse and our wretchednesse yet to presse this Lord what thou dost thou dost for thy owne sake out of thy meere grace this makes me bold to come unto thee Specially upon the consideration of that greatest evidence of Gods free Grace and rich mercy in giving his Sonne to doe whatsoever is requisite for the satisfaction of his Justice so that here Grace and Justice doe sweetly goe together for the strengthening of our faith Grace in regard of our unworthinesse Justice in regard of our rebellion God doth what he doth for his owne sake his owne Sonne hath made full satisfaction to his Justice And finally this should the more inlarge the heart to God againe a gift the freer it is the more worthy of praise it must needes be the more acceptable to him that receiveth it when hee receiveth it from meere Grace and he that giveth it is thereby the more worthy of praise so that lay these two together life and the grace of life and then tell mee what sufficient thankes can bee given to him who out of his grace doth bestow this life Thus from the priviledge in the second part thereof come wee to the partakers of this priviledge And first of the simple consideration of it Heires so that wee come to a right unto that eternall life by inheritance as we are Heires So doe the Texts before noted expresly set it forth Wee are justified by his grace that we should be Heires of eternall life Tit. 3. 7. And Saint Paul giveth thankes to God for the Collossians that he had made them partakers of the inheritance of the Saints in light And our Lord when hee doth give us possession hereof inducts us thereunto with this inherit the kingdome prepared for you take it by inheritance Here is your right Now we may not thinke that this ground of right to our eternall inheritance commeth by our naturall generation for so wee are heires and children of wrath as the Apostle noteth in Eph. 2. 3. It cannot come by nature for so it is Christs prerogative the true proper naturall Sonne of God and thus as the Apostle saith God hath appointed him Heire of all things but it is by another grace whereby we are made children A double Grace in this respect a Grace of adoption and a grace of Regeneration A grace of Adoption for God giveth to us the spirit of Adoption whereby wee are moved to crie and call Abba Father and by this grace wee are children and being children wee are heires Coheires not only one with another but as it is there noted heires together with Christ Coheires with him by vertue of this grace of Adoption So likewise by the other Grace of regeneration wee are qualified hereunto Saint Peter in his first Epistle Chap. 1. ver 3. blesseth God Blessed be the God saith he and Father of our Lord Iesus Christ which according to his abundant mercie hath begotten us againe to an inheritance incorruptible c. Wee are begotten to this inheritance This might againe be pressed as a further Argument against the fore-mentioned presumptious Doctrine of Merit that that commeth by inheritance commeth not by desert But I passe it over This doth afford to us matter of consolation for this Text is full of consolation every word of it against the basenesse whereunto in this world the Saints seeme to be subject that are scoffed that are despised howsoever they appeare here in mortall mans eye yet notwithstanding in truth they are Heires they have an inheritance And as it doth administer to us matter of comfort and a ground of holy boasting and glorying in the Lord so it affordeth to us direction to carry our selves as becommeth Heires not to set our love too much upon this world not to dote upon it but to bee loftely minded to have our heart and affection where our inheritance is namely in heaven to waite with patience for it bee followers of those saith the Apostle that though faith and patience inherit the promise And likewise to make sure to our selves our inheritance looke to our evidences Give all diligence saith the Apostle to make your calling and election sure Doe but make your Calling sure that you are truly and effectually called then it followeth by just and necessary consequence you were elected before the foundations of the world and shall bee saved Many other Meditations doe arise out of this right we have to that life which by Grace is conferred upon us Consider we the extent hereof Heires together joynt-heires so as all of all sorts have aright to the life of Saints I speake here of outward conditions whether they bee great or meane rich or poore free or bond whatsoever they be they have all aright they are joynt-heires they are heires together As it is with us in some places there is a title of Gavill kind that giveth a joynt-right to all the sons that a man hath and so for daughters all Daughters are coheires so this Tenour is as I may say Gavill kind all have a right thereunto no exception of any because God is no respecter of persons This my brethren serveth as an admonition to those that are great or may seeme to be higher then others here in this world if they be Saints let them not despise others who are Saints too they are Co-heires with them they are fellow-brethren there is not an Elder brother among them Christ only is the elder brother There may some have a greater degree of glorie there may some have greater evidences thereof in this world and greater assurance yet notwithstanding they have all aright to the inheritance they are all Co-heires And this againe is another comfort to the meaner and weaker sort that howsoever there may be some difference in regard of outward condition here yet notwithstanding in the greatest priviledge there is no difference at all and therefore to conclude concerning these and other consolations ministred to you I will use the Apostles words comfort

all the enemies of a Christian are either reconciled or conquered and foyled and what then need he feare them For God that is an enemie to every man naturally he is reconciled Christ hath made our peace with God hee hath made our attonement we need not feare him slavishly though wee may and must feare him with a filiall feare we must not bee afraid of him with horrour as to runne from him but wee must so love him as to reveren●…e before his foot-stoole Againe in regard of the evills of the world they are enemies too but how Christ hath beene pleased to sweeten these to us all things in the world saith the Apostle speaking of afflictions Rom. 8. they worke for good to them that feare God Shall a man be afraid of his owne good Nay there is nothing in the world that more workes our good then afflictions and losses and crosses we might spare any thing better then them shall we be afraid of that that workes our good Death it is reconciled and made our friend It was the greatest enemie Christ hath pulled out the sting and changed the nature of it he hath made it the birth-day of eternitie a sweet passage to a better life Death brings not evill to a man that is in covenant with God but rather terminates all evill that he is molested with in the world So then some enemies are reconciled and made our friends and these wee have no reason to feare Againe there are some that are irreconcileable and they are conquered and overcome The Divell will never be friends with us therefore Christ hath spoyled principalities and powers and trampled Satan under-feet and now if he walke about yet hee is in his chayne he can bite but he can hurt none but those that willingly betray themselves into his hands For sinne it is of a condemning nature but those that are in covenant with God and walke with him it is removed as farre from them as the East is from the West it is throwne into the bottomelesse sea of Gods mercy so that it shall never anger God or hurt us any more then if we had not committed it Who shall lay any thing to the charge of Gods Elect Nay more God hath bestowed his Spirit whereby hee hath freede our hearts and whereby if a man labour to stirre up the grace of God in him and to walke comfortably as he might in the presence of God he might through the power of God free his heart from these horrours and feares for saith the Apostle yee have not received the Spirit of bondage to feare againe but yee have received the Spirit of adoption whereby wee cry Abba Father The Spirit of bondage casts downe the soule with horrour and feare but wee have the Spirit of God to assure us that wee have God for our Father reconciled in Christ and so by consequent that our sinnes are pardoned that death is overcome that Principalities and powers are spoyled and all things in the world though contrary in themselves yet they shall worke for our good So you see the ground of it a Christian hath no enemies some enemies are reconciled and others are trampled under foote that they cannot hurt him And wee receive this freedome by the Spirit of God that if wee would stirre it up and labour to walke as becommeth Christians we may make our lives very comfortable Briefly for Application First let us all take notice of the command that God gives to Abraham of this incouragement and make use of it to our selves and know that the power of grace and Religion must reflect upon a mans selfe He beloved shall be accounted the best Christian before God and in the sight of judicious men whose Religion is practicall and reflects upon himselfe Now there are many busie ones in the world that meddle with the conversations of others and are still talking and complayning of things without themselves but surely he is a happie man that reformes himselfe and that sets in tune his owne affections and passions as this in particular to labour to be without slavish and inordinate feare Alas wee may complaine of many that finde fault with many things but if they looke within there is a combustion of a great many unruly affections and passions and these are the things we never complaine of wee finde not fault with our selves as wee should wee should take notice of the Law of God that it is spirituall to set in order our hearts and mindes and soules as well as our tongues and hands The law of man reacheth but to the outward man if a man keepe himselfe in order in regard of these thought is free and the Law doth not take hold of a man for his affections but the Law God doth therefore you know that lusting after a woman in Gods account is reputed adultery the hating of a mans brother in his heart is accounted manslaughter he is accounted a murtherer that hates his brother so he that is angry unadvisedly you know what he is in danger of and that man is accounted guiltie before God that cannot order his affections in regard of those unruly passions that are within him This I observe by the way God in Scripture takes especial notice of it I am perswaded it is an infallible distinguishing character between an hypocrite a sincere child of God an hypocrite labours to wash the outside hee hath a demure countenance cleane hands smooth language c. these things are good but he goes no further he makes no conscience of secret contemplative wickednesse of the lusts of his heart and the thoughts of his minde these things he never enters into himselfe to mortifie But that man that is conscionable so walkes with God as that a wrie affection an inward lust after somewhat that is evill troubles him and humbles him before God the vanitie of his thoughts in secret cause him to mourne before God this is a signe of a man that walkes before God and accounts God a Spirit that searcheth the hearts and tryeth the reynes and therefore if ever wee will approve our selves to God let our Religion bee practicall and reflect upon our selves and among other things upon our inward man to set that in order Secondly by way of instruction we see what happy men and women we might be if we were not our owne foes If wee could attaine this pitch to live without feare that nothing should trouble us were it not a happy condition surely it is a thing feazeable some Saints have attained it in a great measure you know David when Ziglag was taken his wives gone all the spoyle taken and the people were ready to stone him what did poore David hee can incourage himselfe in the Lord his God notwithstanding this So it may be with a poore Christian his friends may forsake him perhaps the world is gone riches take to themselves wings it may bee his body is