Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	let_v	lord_n	sin_n	6,239	5	4.5925	3	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A27171	The reformed monastery, or, The love of Jesus a sure and short, pleasant and easie way to heaven : in meditations, directions, and resolutions to love and obey Jesus unto death : in two parts.	Beaulieu, Luke, 1644 or 5-1723.	1678 (1678)	Wing B1575; ESTC R35744	117,906	289

and all little enough to keep it in any vigor These voluntary observations should not lead them to scruple or censoriousness that are pleased to use them and should not be clamoured against by others indiscreetly and uncharitably for in themselves they are adminicula pietatis handmaids to devotion and holy contrition And they that know themselves are sensible that they want all possible helps to stir them up and relieve their dulness When our understandings are convinced we have not quite done means must be used also to affect the fancy and to ingage the affections And he had need be very sure of his strength that refuseth the assistance of all auxiliaries CHAP. XXV A passionate Meditation on the Passion of our Blessed Saviour MY love is crucified said that loving and holy Martyr Ignatius declaring how earnestly he wished to die for JESUS and so 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 considering the passion of JESUS I meditate with him My love is crucified my dearest Saviour dies in most bitter pains he hath been rudely bound and drag'd from place to place he hath been stript tied to a post and whipt like a vile slave he hath been buffeted and caned and abused with all manner of contumelies and now I see him crowned with thorns all over spittle and blood I see him stretched upon the Cross where his hands and his feet are nailed his head hangs down I read in his pale face and his weeping eyes the extremity of his pain the anguish of his wounded soul Lord art thou he whom my soul loveth O Domine Jesu Christe si intelligentia quam mihi dedisti uti vellem sicut deberem cernerem manifeste quo modo ●●o quam sine modo a me creatura tua amari merueris qui prior dilexisti me tantus tantum gratis tantillum talem ingratum Idiot art thou my dearest JESUS were it my father my brother my friend or my benefactor that should suffer this undeservedly how would I pity them but should they suffer this upon my account Lord I could not outlive such a sight if nothing else love would certainly wound my soul to death But behold it is so this crucified this dying man is my father he gave me my being he is my brother he came down from heaven and took humane flesh that he might have that relation to me he is my friend he lays down his life to save mine he is my greatest benefactor from him I receive all I have all the blessings the good things I enjoy I owe to his kindness But now my soul suppose that from his Cross thou shouldest hear him thus expressing his love and bespeaking thine Christian dearest Christian for whom here I die consider seriously imprint it it thine heart what in my words what in my mysteries thou readest of my suffering for thee consider who I am what I endure and to what end I am the eternal Son of God whom the Angels adore I became Man to make thee partaker of the Divine Nature I am infinitely rich the whole universe is mine I became thus destitute of all things to purchase true riches for thee I am of an Almighty Power the whole world was made and subsists by me I am now weak to make thee strong I am overcome of mine enemies to make thee conquer thine I am crowned with glory and clothed with Majesty I now were these thorns and am become naked to cloth thee with robes of righteousness and Crown thee with a Royal Diadem I am the inexhaustible fountain of joy and happiness I now indure sorrows and miseries to make thee joyful and happy I am infinitely pure and innocent I am become a sacrifice for sin to merit thy pardon and to sanctifie and make the holy I am the Author of life the first and the last I now die to make thee live for ever nothing but love moves me thus to suffer for thee and nothing but love I require for it Dearest soul thy sins are more grievous to me than my wounds Aspice serve Dei sic me posuere Judei Aspice mortalis pro te datur hostia talis Aspice devote quoniam sic pendeo pro te Introitum vitae reddo tibi redde mihi te In cruce sum pro te qui peccas desine pro me Desine do veniam dic culpam corrige vitam add not sorrow to my sorrow by remaining impenitent deny not this request to thy dying bleeding Saviour that thou wouldest mortifie thy lusts and forsake thy sins all that is past I heartily forgive if thou becomest true penitent I freely give my self for thee and beg that thou wouldst give thy self to me To this O my Soul with the greatest love and wonder thou maist thus reply What shall I say now dearest Lord Words cannot answer thee I am amazed I am astonished I know not how to speak my tongue cannot express what my heart feels Lord I will say nothing I will answer with sighs and tears with devout affections by resigning and giving up my body and soul to thee I will answer by obedience by actions by now falling to work to reform my life to mortifie my sinful lusts to cut off the members of the body of sin Sweetest JESU I will love thee with all the affections my heart can entertain no bosome sin shall be so dear to me but for thy sake I will heartily part with it no lust shall be so pleasing but I will kill it at thy request and command even my natural desires and inclinations will I gladly deny when they come in competition with that duty and love I owe and ever will pay my dearest JESUS Sweetest Lord it was I had deserved to be smitten to be covered with shame to be deprived of life and thou sufferest all these for me for me vile wretch for me my Lord was it for me O where shall I find such another friend or rather what shall I do to requite thy kindness and mercy I can give thee nothing but love and thanks and that will I do O my Blessed Lord who wast spet upon I humbly worship thee Thou wast reviled like a vile slave I praise thee and own my self thy servant The Jews refused thee for their King but thou art mine thou art my Blessed Master I care not what becomes of me here so I may come to bless and adore thee for ever Lord if there is a place where thou art not loved and magnified let me never come into it Assist me dearest Lord let no pleasure or pain no fear or hope no profit or loss no temptations within or without ever make me to offend thee O ye Spirits and Souls of the Righteous praise ye the Lord praise him and magnifie him for ever O that I could but join with you to express worthily my thanks and gratitude O that all the world would join with me to praise and glorifie the Lord that died for us Blessed JESU cleanst

the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of thy holy Spirit that we may perfectly love thee and worthily magnifie thy holy name now and for evermore Amen CHAP. XXVI Of a sincere amendment which must be wrought by proper means BUT fickle and unhappy creatures that we are we often promise well but seldom stand to our ingagements our resolutions are good and our performances very defective The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak I must not therefore O my Soul rest in generals but I must resolve more especially against those sins I am inclined to and not only against them but also upon the means whereby I may overcome and mortifie them as avoiding the occasions and inticements inflicting on my self such severities as may be proper remedies and tying my self to such pious exercises as I know will drive away the temptation To forsake my sins is not to forbear drunkenness when perhaps I am not inclined to it or to avoid swearing when I look upon it as an unpleasing and unprofitable sin or to hate covetousness when by nature I am liberal but knowing what sin pleaseth me most what vice my temper inclines me to and what temptation is most strong and importunate upon me by my calling or my company against that to fortifie my self and imploy the utmost of my strength against that to watch and pray and use sincere and earnest endeavours To forsake my sins is not to say I will forsake them Some men when they are called upon by fear adversity or the secret voice of God within them are forward enough to ingage with the Elder Brother in the Gospel Lord I will go and work in thy vineyard but their hot zeal and hasty promise soon decays into negligence and at last into a cold denial Though I resolve against my natural corruptions never so seriously that will not subdue them without I use proper means for it to take up my cross and follow Christ to forsake all for him to deny my self to take the kingdom of heaven by force to cut off my right hand and pluck out my eyes when they offend is more than barely to resolve and promise high and proceed no further They that are Christ's have not only verbally renounced but actually crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts Gal. 5.24 therefore now I have given up my self to Christ and desire ever to be his I must pray heartily and watch diligently against my sins those especially that are most pleasing and customary to me I must like S. Paul not not fight in the air against generals but keep under my body be temperate in all things and strive to the utmost for the incorruptible crown I must use that violence to my self such harsh applications acts of penance and mortification of my own or the Spiritual Physicians appointment as are fit and requisite to cure my distemper to expel or reform that evil inclination which is inconsistent with my love to JESUS To that end it will be very useful frequently to meditate on the passion of Christ the day of our change our appearance in judgment the joys of heaven the torments of hell and the amazing consideration of Eternity and I am perswaded that it would be an excellent instrument of Reformation and very useful in many cases to acquaint the Spiritual Judge and Physician with the distempers of our Souls and the state of our conscience But what ever means we use for our amendment we must be sure that they be effectual And as he that would cure a natural evil applies a stronger remedy where a weaker is found insufficient so must he that would cure the spiritual diseases of his soul still use stronger applications boggle at nothing that may be requisite to escape his danger and recover his health But be sure we really desire to be healed for then all things conducing to that end will be welcome and acceptable Si desideras via brevis est swavis si negligis longa est laboriosa Every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown but we an incorruptible He that would vanquish his antagonist was in the first place to vanquish himself to endure hardship and severity and use all endeavours for the victory for a fading garland so he that will overcome his lusts and master himself and obtain that heavenly crown which never sadeth must use great industry many arts all means that can conduce to that end CHAP. XXVII Love the best instrument of Self-Reformation and true penitence with an act of hearty contrition BUT the voluminous directions of Casuists and Confessionists cannot reach all cases and all particulars to shorten our labour therefore let the love of JESUS do the work of self-reformation and it will be soonest and best done Love will find out the most effectual means for the extermination of our sins and love will use them to the best purpose Certain it is that love in all instances sets men upon acts of self-denial as great Generals and many more who forego the peaceable injoyment of the comforts they might have at home and expose themselves to dangers because they love honour merchants who forsake their dearest relations and run through many great troubles and perils because they love gain and the more generous love of friendship which hath caused many to chuse great incoveniences and even death to serve their friends and therefore certain it is also that the love of JESUS will make his yoke and even his Cross easie will make us deny our selves and forbear what displeaseth him though otherwise pleasing to us That men might be without excuse God hath made a short work upon the earth Vt nemo habet excusationem in die judicii veluit Deus sicut scriptum est consummare abbreviare verbum super terram Aug. de Doct. Christiana l. 1. c. 1. saith S. Aug. by contracting his immensity into the narrow dimensions of man he hath abbreviated his doctrine and our task JESUS is the Center and the sum of our Faith and Religion and the love of JESUS is the content of our duty I have determined saith S. Paul not to know any thing among you save Jesus Christ and him crucified and we preach Christ crucified to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness but to them that are called Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God 1 Cor. 2.2 and 1.24 that is in whom God fully reveals his will and gives us full power to fulfil it Therefore saith the Apostle God forbid that I should glory save in the Cross of Jesus Christ my Lord by whom the world is crucified unto me and I unto the world Gal. 6.14 The knowledge and love of JESUS our Crucified Saviour is the most proper means to teach us our duty the greatest motive to undertake it and the best instrument to perform and effect