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tradition_n book_n holy_a scripture_n 2,474 5 6.0561 4 true
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ID Title Author Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication) STC Words Pages
A34193 Sermons preach'd on several occasions by John Conant.; Sermons. Selections Conant, John, 1608-1693.; Williams, John, 1636?-1709. 1693 (1693) Wing C5684; ESTC R1559 241,275 626

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light that it shine not in upon us to our conviction humiliation and conversion but he makes him shuttings to do it of our own darkness prejudices false Principles and corrupt Affections I now proceed to the third Objection taken from Matth. 11.25 where God himself is said to hide the Mysteries of his Gospel from the wise and prudent Before I say any thing to this Objection I must premise That God in this matter as in other things hath a Prerogative which he makes use of and according to which he acts where and when he sees good He being the Supream Lord of Heaven and Earth as our Saviour styles him in the place whence this Objection is taken may dispose of the knowledge of the Mysteries of his Kingdom as he pleaseth freely vouchsafing it to some and withholding it from others For what can restrain him but that he may do with his own as he pleaseth Matth. 20.15 as in the person of the Householder he argues This good pleasure of God is it into which our Saviour expresly resolveth his hiding the Mysteries of the Gospel from the wise and prudent Matth. 11.26 Thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent and revealed them unto babes even so father for so it seemed good in thy sight So then reserving unto God his Prerogative I answer That yet however God's hiding the Mysteries of the Gospel from men may very much and in many cases though not universally be resolved into the sins of men For whereas there are chiefly three ways by which God may be said to hide the Mysteries of the Gospel from men namely by denying to them or removing from them the means of knowledge or by with-holding the effectual influences and operation of his Spirit to accompany the means or by permitting Satan to blind them upon consideration of the matter we shall find That the sins of men have frequently very much to do therein and contribute much towards it though even here the good pleasure of God must also be acknowlegded who permits it so to be and doth not powerfully interpose to hinder it as he might do if he saw good 1. If God deny the Gospel to men 't is often through their thrusting it away and keeping it off from themselves when 't is approaching towards them How often do men oppose themselves against it How often do men decline the light and chuse to live in places of darkness where there are no means or as good as no means of knowledge So if God remove the Gospel from a People is it not most commonly not only for their own sin but by their sin that 't is removed God for their unfruitfulness and unthankfulness for their manifold sins against the Gospel most righteously gives them up to be active and instrumental themselves in putting out the light and sending the Gospel far away from themselves 2. If God continuing the Gospel and the means of grace to a People with-hold the powerful influences and co-operation of his Spirit what is this in effect but a leaving them to themselves suffering their lusts prejudices love of sin and hatred of holiness so far to prevail in them as to shut and bar up the Soul and forcibly to keep out the light or so far to weaken the influences and impressions of it as nothing to purpose is done upon them 3. If God hide the Mysteries of his Kingdom from them by giving them up to Satan to be blinded and deluded by him the thing is still upon the matter one and the same for as hath been at large shewed Satan effects his purpose much by their own sin and makes use of their Corruptions as the Weapons of his warfare against the Soul to keep it under the power of darkness Now to apply what hath been spoken VSE 1. This gives us a true account of the reason of several Practises of the Church of Rome As 1st Of their vilifying and disparaging the Holy Scriptures as defective and imperfect as obscure and uncertain and no better than a Nose of wax that may be turned any way at pleasure that may be moulded and shaped to every man's fancy as one of that Party wickedly and and profanely reproacheth it In short Their making the word written insufficient to inform us touching the matters of our belief and practise and to lead us in the way to Heaven without the help and supplement of Human Traditions 2. Of their refusing to bring their Doctrines Worship and Practises to the Test and Touchstone of the Holy Scriptures alone and of their setting up another pretended Infallible Judge of Controversies not admitting the Scriptures to be the common Umpire and Determiner of them 3. Of their shutting up the Book of the Holy Scriptures and forbidding it to be read by the People so taking away from them the key of Knowledge What 's the reason of these their ungodly and abominable Practises but this He that doth evil hateth the light and cometh not to it lest his deeds should be reproved Their Principles are unsound and rotten wicked and abominable their Doctrine false their Worship Idolatrous their Usages vain and superstitious and therefore they hate the light of the Scriptures that discovers their Errors Cheats and Juglings therefore they decline the light and run away from it they defame and reproach it they shut it up and imprison it they do what they can to extinguish it and keep men in darkness wheresoever they have power to do it But blessed be God that we are not yet brought into bondage by them they have not yet prevailed to deprive us of the light of the Gospel we have free access to the Holy Scriptures the Bible lies open before us in our Mother-tongue O! may we never by our unthankfulness our not improving the mercies we enjoy and our other sins so far provoke God as that he should suffer the Land of our Nativity to be again overspread with that worse than Egyptian darkness VSE 2. This discovers the true reason why many that frequent Publick Ordinances love and affect such Preaching only as comes not too near the Conscience meddles not with their spiritual estate toucheth not their own particular darling and beloved sins A smooth and general Discourse that descends not to the concernments of their own Souls or it may be a serious and smart Sermon that reproves the sins of the Age or the sins of some particular Persons known to them those sins which they thomselves are not guilty of all this they can hear with much patience and perhaps with some delight Mar. 6.20 as Herod is said to have heard John Baptist gladly But if any man shall lay open and set before them the great evil of their own sins the unsoundness of their spiritual Estate while they continue in them the extream danger of their present condition the absolute and indispensable necessity of Regeneration of sincere and universal Repentance of sound Conversion