Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	ghost_n	holy_a	paul_n	7,516	5	6.4255	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A20802	The Christian armorie wherein is contained all manner of spirituall munition, fit for secure Christians to arme themselues withall against Satans assaults, and all other kind of crosses, temptations, troubles, and afflictions : contrived in two bookes, and handled pithily and plainly by way of questions and answers / by Thomas Draxe ... ; hereunto is adioined a table of all the principall heads and branches comprised in each chapter of the whole treatise.	Draxe, Thomas, d. 1618.	1611 (1611)	STC 7182; ESTC S782	133,281	384

denomination of faith and is accepted with God for faith For as euery graine of gold is gold so euery quantity of faith is faith and the imperfections and failings in true faith doe no more take away the name and nature of it then a great mountaine of chaffe doth take away the name and nature from the corne contained in it or the drosse in a great mine of gold doth take away the name of it albeit the gold be the lesser part for God accepteth it for the better part Thirdly no man is absolutely perfect in faith for the most regenerate haue but the first fruites of the spirite i. some small portion of it and hereupon the Apostles themselues besought Christ to encrease their faith wherefore in this case we must not be daunted nor discouraged but beséech God to confirme our ●aith and be frequent in hearing and reading of the scripture for the Word preached that begat it will encrease and strengthen it Obiection But my calling is very laborious and many difficult works offer themselues to bee performed which I cannot see how I can vndergoe A. First God that hath giuen thée thy calling and fitted thee for it wil blesse thee so long as thou walkst in his waies hee will prosper thy handy worke and perfite his power in thy infirmity 2. Cor. 12. Secondly God according to giftes and graces receiued measureth out to euery man his calling and the labours thereof for he obserueth a Geometrical proportion in distributing his temptations according to his seruants strength and in employing them in seruices answerable Thirdly the holy Ghost is the spirite of strength who enableth thee to dispatch and absolue the most weighty and dangerous workes of thy calling as he did Abraham Dauid Paul c and by the help of him that strengthneth vs we shall be able to doe all things Fourthly no excellent worke can be performed or notable act atchieued at home or abroad without labour paines diligence continuance Lastly God hath promised to blesse and assist vs in the workes of our lawfull calling wherefore let vs depend vpon Gods commandement and desire strength of him and wee shall obtaine our desire Q. But the sacred Scriptures are so diuersly yea and contrarily in sundry points and places expounded that I cannot be perswaded that they are Gods word A. First the diuersity or variety of interpretation doth not preiudice the truth of Scripture for many scriptures as for example the Canticles diuers Psalmes of Dauid as the 2. the 45. the 73. the 91. c haue both a literall and an allegoricall sense Secondly diuers places may bee diuersly expounded and yet nothing expounded against Faith Hope Charity and then the exposition is not euill Thirdly they that expound the scriptures in an absurd or contrarie sense are but meere naturals and carnall men who for want of spirituall vnderstanding cannot discerne the things of the spirit For as the eye in the body cannot see without the light of the sunne so the naturall man be he neuer so acute and criticall cannot without the light of the spirit iudge of heauenly thinges Fourthly though many parts of scripture be hard obscure to the most regenerate man yet this darkenes is not in the scriptures for they are light it selfe but in our blindnes ignorance infirmity Lastly no man vnderstandeth all things but some man one thing some another according to the measure of grace receiued and euery day the truth is and will be more fully reuealed Q. But how can the scriptures bee Gods vndoubted word seeing that by the preaching interpretation and application of them many are offended and made worse A. First the pure powerfull eternal and holy word of God is not the cause hereof for it is in it own nature the wisdome of God and power of saluation the immortall séed and food of the soule but the fault is altogether in the hearers who either doe not vnderstand it or belieue it not or else contemn it to them alone it is the sauor of death vnto death they are owles and cannot endure the light of the sunne they are sicke of a burning feuer and cannot abide the wine of the Gospel they are filthy swine and therfore cannot abide this delicious muskadell but are thereby swelled vnto death Secondly the vaine and Atheisticall hearers doe conceiue of the Scriptures as of a mans inuention and not as it is indeed the sauing word of God hereupon they being offended at it are accidentally made worse And herein they are like to Samuel who when God began to call him as he did seuerall times heare the voice of God and not knowing it so to bee but supposing it to bee the voice of Elie returned to his naturall sléepe and rest So the greatest sort of them that are outwardly called because they heare Gods word as the word of men and so estéeme it they like dogs and swine returne to their former filth and vomit of their sins Lastly as we must not contemne nor condemn Iewels pretious stones artes and sciences because the ignorant know not their worth and so regard them not so though some or many ignorantly or contemptuously refuse to be bettered by Gods word we must not be offended at their abusing and despising of it but rather condemne their madnes make benefite of it and thanke God that hee hath giuen better light and more grace Q. Why doth God suffer the faith of his children to labor of so many doubts wants and imperfections A. First to bring them to a true touch and sense of their sinne that they may perceiue in what need they stand of Christ and of euery drop of his bloud that so they may sue seeke vnto Christ for recouery Secondly to correct abate and pull downe pride humour and selfe conceite in them to which they are so lyable and enclinable Thirdly to traine and practise them in the daily fight and battaile against sinne and to make them such expert soldiers that Satan though seeking an occasion to sift them shall be wholy disappointed of his expectation Fourthly to perfect his power in their infirmity he will enable them to performe all for his grace is sufficient for them Q. What vse are we to make hereof A. First wee must bee thankefull vnto God for the seedes and beginnings of grace and for the least measure of true faith lest otherwise wee prouoke God either to depriue vs of or at least to diminish his graces bestowed vpon vs. Secondly we must bewa●le our manifold defects wants and back slidings and diligently vse all holy meanes to cherish further and confirme our begun faith such as are the ministery of the word and sacraments preaching praier conference meditation and the holy practise of all good works Lastly hauing a true faith though for the present borne downe with the winter of affliction let vs perswade

our selues that it will reuiue in the spring of Gods graces CHAP. III. Of the distresse of mind that ariseth from the sense and seeling of a Christians weaknesse and imperfectio● in sanctification and first of all in praier Question WHat course must a Christian take to relieue and ease himselfe that findeth and ●eeleth many imperfections in his praiers A. First hee must acknowledge and bewaile his wants and failings Secondly he must desire from God a further addition of zeale Thirdly when he cannot pray as he desireth let him then sob and sigh vnto God in his praiers for God who searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the meaning of his owne spirit and no maruel for these groanes are effects of Gods spirit in him and are as it were so many glorious beames breaking out from it and God accepteth and approueth of them as may appeare in the examples of Moses of the children of Israel of Ezechias of Iehosaphat and others Fourthly he must remember that the power of Christ remaineth to cure his infirmities and to remoue his imperfections Lastly the more imperfections that he findeth and perceiueth in his praiers the more earnestly must hee labour for the remouall and reformation of them Q. What vse is to be made hereof A. First hereby are met withall and condemned all such who ignorantly count them the best proficients in praier who neuer knew what these wants and imperfections meant Secondly no man must cease from this exercise of praier because of his wants for so long as any man liueth here hee is but in the beginning of perfection Q. But I feele my selfe cold dull and drousie in my praiers how then can I haue any true sanctification A. Yes thou maiest well assure thy selfe of the truth of thy sanctification so thou loue God and delight to commune with him by praier Secondly it is good that thou shoulde●t sometimes discouer and discerne the dulnes and deadnes in praier that thou mightest more earnestly desire this gift otherwise thou wouldest thinke it naturall and wouldst attribute the glory of it not to thy God but to thine own selfe for thus thou wouldest offend if thou couldst alwaies pray according to thine owne satisfaction Lastly if we can but sigh and sob for wee preu●ile more by sighes then by words God will heare and helpe vs. For shall an earthly father pitie and regard the groanes and sobs of his sicke sonne and will not our heauenly father much more regard and pitie vs Q What vses are we to make hereof A. First when we haue an ability to pray and a will thereunto we must be thankfull to God for it Secondly if the spirit of praier bee weake in vs we must call and cry vnto God for further grace and we shall obtaine it Lastly we must by all good meanes stirre vp the spirit of praier in our selues Obiection I in my praiers am troubled and disturbed with many euill idle worldly and carnall thoughts and therefore J doubt that I haue not the spirit of praier A. Déerely beloued brother though these vaine and sinfull thoughts are so many sparkles of corruption that proceed from the furnace of our vncleane heart and are like the birds that defiled and disturbed Abrahams sacrifice yet note for thy comfort that the most regenerate man in earth cannot sound out all the corruptions in his heart much lesse is hee able to remooue them For his new birth is onely begunne and tending towards perfection but not complete and then no wonder though some dregs of corruption yet remaine Q. What course shall we take for our helpe and redresse herein A. Séeing that prayer is so heauenly an exercise and so preualent with God and so offensiue to Satan let vs stirre vp our zeale herein and for our furtherance heerein it is good for vs before wee pray to talke and conferre reuerentlie of heauenlie things to reade the Scriptures diligentlie and meditate in them and then wee shall be possessed with better thoughts Lastly we must not yéeld to but resist and earnestly pray against euill thoughts yea and intreat the Lord of his grace to purge and purifie our hearts and then these vaine and idle thoughts shall lesse vex and annoy vs. Obiection I haue long importuned the Lord by prayer and the Lord will not vouchsafe to attend vnto my praier therefore I feare I haue not the spirit of praier A. You haue no cause thus to doubt For God doth not deferre you because he purposeth to deny you but to cause you to haue his gifts in more high estéeme and to make you more sound sincere and more earnest and instant in praier Secondly it may be that the thing that you desire of God if it were granted you would not profit you but turne to your hurt and therefore God in his mercy refuseth to spéed your yéeres Thirdly Dauid Job the people of God in captiuity and the Church in the Canticles that sought Christ in her bed by praier and that consulted her Christian acquaintance the Ministers of Gods word were long delaied but at last graciously heard Fourthly God by putting off your praiers will exercise and set on worke your faith patience constancie and when he prospereth your petition he wil replenish you with the greater ioy Lastly though God heare you not according to your wil yet he heareth you for your wealth and though he heare you not according to your expectation yet he heareth you to your saluation and therefore you must take all in good part Q. When God delaieth and deferreth to grant our praiers what duties then behoueth it vs to performe A. We must not faint in our praiers but persist therein and cry vnto God day and night and then God will heare vs and we shall preuaile with him as Iacob did Our petition shall not be returned non inuentus est but we shall haue corpus cum causa Secondly we must look that the things we beg and craue bee lawfull and conuenient for vs and then if wee with patience wait Gods leasure he wil spéed our desires Obiection But I feare that I haue committed that vnpardonable sinne against the holy Ghost because I commit so many sinnes against knowledge A. Thou déere brother hast no cause thus to doubt because thou art sory and grieued for thy sinnes Secondly thou repentest of them but he that committeth this sinne neuer sorroweth nor repenteth for so doing Secondly they that sinne against the holy Ghost tread vnder foot the Sonne of God they count the bloud of the new Testament as an vnholy thing they despite the spirit of grace they f●ll away wholly and finally from the reue●led truth of the doctrine of Christ and of their redemption yea they incessantly blaspheme deride and persecute it but thou continuest in the approbation profession and practise of the truth and remainest sound in iudgement and sincere in affection therefore thou art farre from this sinne