Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	grace_n	love_n	soul_n	6,851	5	4.8704	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A27035	A second true defence of the meer nonconformists against the untrue accusations, reasonings, and history of Dr. Edward Stillingfleet ... clearly proving that it is (not sin but) duty 1. not wilfully to commit the many sins of conformity, 2. not sacrilegiously to forsake the preaching of the Gospel, 3. not to cease publick worshipping of God, 4. to use needful pastoral helps for salvation ... / written by Richard Baxter ... ; with some notes on Mr. Joseph Glanviles Zealous and impartial Protestant, and Dr. L. Moulins character.	Baxter, Richard, 1615-1691.	1681 (1681)	Wing B1405; ESTC R5124	188,187	234

With these and such others Truth is not tollerable he raileth that confuteth them and doth Auriculas molles mordaci radere vero I profess I felt so little passion in writing that book which he saith was written in one continued Passion that I think verily I sinned all the while for want of a livelier sense of the sin and hurt which I was detecting by my confutation But I confess it is my opinion that Falshood of Speech may lie in describing a thing short of Truth as well as in going beyond it And that the Truth of words is their Agreeableness to the matter and mind And that verba rebus aptanda sunt And that he that writeth against sin must call it sin and open the evil of it § 5. His Preface giveth us hopes that we are so farr agreed in our ends as to be both for God for truth for unity and peace and Love and against Popery and one would think this much should go far towards our Concord But alas all agree not what Piety is or what Popery is nor of the way to our ends If he think that to be against Spiritual Prayer would help us against Popery 1. I would he would tell us which way If by reducing the Nonconformists to think Formes lawful so do the Jesuites And he told us that they at Franckford took a Forme from Geneva as useful And the present Nonconformists put their judgment out of question an 1660 and 1661. In their witings offers and Formes Printed But all that are for Formes are not for all things in your Formes 2. And I would he would have better told us what the Spiritual Prayer is which the Jesuits first brought in and helpes in Popery For hitherto it is the Dead Ceremonious formality and Imagery of Popery destroying Spirituality by words not understood Mummeries Beads Canting Stage workes which hath alienated most Religious Protestants from them I will 1. Tell you what I take Spiritual Prayer to be and then 2. Desire his judgment of it 1. It is my judgment if he know it to be erroneous I crave his reasons 1. That Mans Soul is by sin so depraved that it is morally unable without Gods Spirit effectually to know feel and desire deliverance from his own sin and misery and to desire Gods Grace and Glory above all worldly sinful pleasures 2. That therefore such desires in act and habit must be wrought in us by the Spirit of God And the whole work of Regeneration and Sanctification is a giving to the Soul that new Divine nature Love and delight which worketh by such holy desires And that as the carnal mind is enmity to God and cannot be subject to his Law and if any man have not the Spirit of Christ the same is none of his so to be Spiritually minded is life and peace and God who is a Spirit will be worshiped in Spirit and truth and by this we know that we are the Children of God by the Spirit which he hath given us For he promised to pour out the Spirit of Grace and supplication And because we are sons he hath given us the Spirit of his Son by which we cry Abba Father And this Spirit helpeth our Infirmities in Prayer If these things be in the Papists Bible I hope they are not therefore Popery I suppose the Papists also own our God our Saviour and our Creed 3. The help in Prayer which we expect from the Spirit is 1. To illuminate us to know what we need and should desire and ask 2. To kindle in us holy desires sincere and servent of what we should ask 3. To give us a true belief of and trust in the Love of God the entercession of Christ and the promises of the Gospel that we may pray in hope 4. To give us thankful hearts for what we do receive and fit with joy to praise the giver 5. To stir up all these dispositions to particular acts in the due season And to save us from the contrary 6. And we believe that a mind so illuminated and affections so sanctified and kindled have a great advantage above others coeteris paribus to express themselves in words For. 1. A man that knoweth what to say can speak it when the ignorant cannot Doth not a stock of knowledge enable you to Preach without book 2. Such a Soul will set it self diligently to think what and how to speak in so great a business when the careless mind it not 3. Love and delight are very speedy Learners 4. Fervent desire sets all the powers of the Soul awork and is full and forward to express it self Hunger can teach men easily to beg Poor men speak intreaties Anger Joy every passion maketh and powreth out words where there is prerequisite ability 4. We believe that he who by natural defectiveness or difuse cannot find words fitly to utter his own mind may have the help of Gods Spirit in uttering such words as he readeth or learneth of others and especially in the case of Psalms which are not of sudden invention if for Concord the Churches agree to use the same meet words Gods Spirit may actuate their desires therein 5. We hold that this Holy Spirit is as Tertullian speaketh Christs Vicar Agent or Advocate by preventing operateing Cooperating grace thus to illuminate Sanctifie and actuate believers in all holy works and especially in prayer And I could heartily wish that you would not be against so much as Spiritual Preaching Spiritual Writing and disputing and living and not say that the Jesuits brought them in 6. I believe that we are Baptized into the name of the Holy Ghost as well as of the Father and the Son believing that he is thus Christs Agent for all this work upon our Souls and covenanting to obey him 7. I believe that sins against the Holy Ghost especially deriding or reproaching his great works miraculous or Sanctifing have a dangerous malignity 8. I suppose that in all this the faculties of mans own Soul are the natural recipients of the Spirits influx and agent of the act which both causes effect And that it s as vain a question whether it be by the Spirit or by natural faculties that we pray aright as whether it be God as fons naturae or mans natural powers which cause our natural acts Or whether the Act of seeing be from the sun or the eye As if the same effect might not yea must not have a Suprior and Inferior Cause 9. Therefore as Gods Spirit witnessing with ours that we are his Children so Gods Spirit helping our infirmities in Prayer suspendeth not the exercise of our Spirits or maketh our reason and consideration needless but actuateth them in their duty Learning and studying how to pray is consistent with the Spirits help in Prayer 10 I never talkt of it with any Nonconformists who denyed that an hypocrite may without any special help of the Spirit speak all the same words in prayer without either book

feeble onsets of your canker'd fiery opponents whose writings against you most of them seem to me to be indited by nothing but spleen and choler Nor have I been able to ascribe the ingaging of so many virulent pens against you to any other cause than the indeavours of Satan to hinder the success which your powerful pen hath had against the Dark Kingdom And the spirit that I have perceiv'd to animate some of their wild ravings hath confirm'd me in that belief that it was the great Abaddon that inspir'd their undertakings I thought e're this to have given you a more publick specimen of mine affections by indeavouring somewhat in your vindication against the calumnies and feeble arguings of some of those fiery Assailants But collateral occasions and other studies have hitherto diverted me Yet I shall not forget my obligations assoon as I can be master of convenient time and opportunities for the performance But I see my paper warns me And though I should please my self by a larger expression of my respects and sense of your high deservings from every one that hath had the happiness to be taught by you either from the Press or Pulpit yet I dare not be so rude in this first Address as to be troublesome and importunate I know your occasions are such as that they cannot bear a long divertisement I had several times design'd at London to have taken the boldness to have waited on you but the consideration how you were constantly ingag'd in business prevented the execution of those intentions And about three years since I came from Oxford on purpose to Kederminster to see you there and hear you preach both which I was happy in But you were then so busie in the company of several Ministers that were at your house that I could not gain an opportunity of making way for a future acquaintance If I were sure that you were less incumbred now and that you made any considerable stay in the Country I would make a journey on purpose to wait on you I have with this sent you a small Discourse of mine own of which I desire your acceptance For the subject and design I know it will not displease you And for the management I 'me confident you will not quarrel with it because it is not so popular as it might have been when you shall know that 't was intended for those of a Philosophick Genius I durst not Sir be any longer troublesome and therefore shall conclude with this profession that the freedom of your spirit the impartiality of your inquiries the Catholickness of your judgment and affections the peaceableness and moderation of your principles the generosity and publick spiritedness of your disposition the exact uniform holiness of your life and your indefatigable industry for the good of souls excellencies which I never knew so combin'd in one have so endear'd you to me that there is not that person breathing that hath such a share in the affections and highest value of Most excellent Sir one of the meanest though most sincere of your affectionate lovers and admirers Jos Glanvill Sept. 3. 61. CHAP. XV. Some Notes on the Book called the Lively Picture of Dr. Lud. Moulin and his Repentance subscribed by Dr. Simon Patrick Dean of Peterborough and Dr. Gilb. Burnet § 1. I Had taken no notice of this Book had not the Author by citing my words against Dr. L. Moulin as justifying his Character made me a party Therefore I shall impartially speak my judgment of him and the accusation lest I be thought to own all that the Writer speaketh of him and so to be as guilty of uncharitableness as he seemeth to me to be I honour the name for the sake of his famous Father and his worthy Brother Peter yet living who by his Answer to Philanax Anglicus c. hath well deserved of all Protestants And his worthy Brother Cyrus and his very worthy Son now dead And I truly believe that Dr. Lewis was a sincere honest-hearted man though Dr. Stillingfleet seem to dislike my giving him that title And I will tell you why I think so § 2. I ever observed that his faults lay in his weakness and not in wickedness 1. He was not a man of an accurate distinguishing head and so was apt to take verbal Controversies for real 2. And it was no singular thing in him that hereby he was led by the authorities which he most valued to think that the differences between the Remonstrants and Contra remonstrants were much greater than they are and Arminianism as it was called to be a more heinous thing than indeed it is 3. And when he thought that God's Cause as Bradwardine called it was so deeply engaged against such Opinions who can wonder if he was zealous against them 4. And then he had a hasty rashness in speaking what he thought was true and necessary when sometimes it was not well tryed and sometime it was in an imprudent manner and time And so in his hast ran into the temerities and mistakes which Mr. Daillé and I did blame him for But I never perceived that he had more passion much less fury than other ordinary disputers but a more ra●h and blustering way of uttering his mind sometimes and in some Cases where he thought Religion much concerned He h●● so servent ● love to truth that he sometime rusht upon mistakes that wore the vizor of it and then truth real or supposed whatever it cost him he would speak 5. I ever observed it was in his too extreme opposition to some real errour or crime that he was carried into his temerities 6. And I never found that he was a worldling nor sinned by the preference of worldly interest And doubtless the love of worldly profits honours and pleasures are more dangerously contrary to the love of God than some rash uncharitable words and censures in a Cause which he thought was Gods § 3. Yea I found him more patient of confutation contradiction and reproof than most men that ever I disputed with his Zeal which you call fury being far more for God than for himself I began with him about 24 years ago confuting his Latine Book of Justification against his Brother Cyrus I wrote a second time against him in the Preface cited by his Picture-drawer about Universal Redemption and had said much more in a Book of Universal Redemption going to the Press which I cast by because Mr. Daillés came then out which had the same testimonial part and more which I intended Yet I never heard that the Dr. gave me any uncivil or uncharitable word nor did he ever reply to either of these Books nor signified any abatement of his love And I think this shewed a forgiving mind § 4. But it 's intimated that this was because we agreed in other things I answer we disagreed also even about Church-Government which was the dividing Controversie of those times The Dr. was zealous for the Magistrates