A29368:404
The freeness of the grace and love of God to believers discovered in reference…
The freeness of the grace and love of God to believers discovered in reference to 1. their services and suffering, 2. their consolations, and 3. their salvation and eternal glory : together with the excellency of the fear of God, the goodness and pleasantness of brotherly love, the wisdom of hearing the voice of the rod, repentance the only way to prevent judgements / delivered in several sermons by the late reverend and faithful minister of Christ, Mr. William Bridge ...The freeness of the grace and love of God to believers discovered in reference to 1. their services and suffering, 2. their consolations, and 3. their salvation and eternal glory : together with the excellency of the fear of God, the goodness and pleasantness of brotherly love, the wisdom of hearing the voice of the rod, repentance the only way to prevent judgements / delivered in several sermons by the late reverend and faithful minister of Christ, Mr. William Bridg ...
London: printed for Nath. Crouch, 1671
Title page typeset from the transcription.
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
Secondly, If you would know further what the Rod teacheth; I answer Negatively:
First, The Rod doth not teach you any skill or knowledge of its own, but the spirit of the Lord in the Rod that teacheth, Blessed is the man that thou chastenest, and teachest him out of thy law, Psalm 94.12. By the Rod a man shall see that presented to him, which lay hid before; when the glass is shaken you see that sand, which you could hardly, or not at all perceive before; so when a man is shaken by affliction, his sins are discovered to him; and a sight of sin is the first step to Conversion.
First, The Rod doth not teach you any skill or knowledge of its own, but the spirit of the Lord in the Rod that teacheth, Blessed is the man that thou chastnest, and teachest him out of thy law, Psalm 94.12. By the Rod a man shall see that presented to him, which lay hid before; when the glass is shaken you see that sand, which you could hardly, or not at all perceive before; so when a man is shaken by affliction, his sins are discovered to him; and a sight of sin is the first step to Conversion.
Secondly, By the Rod you are humbled and broken, and made more fit and capable to receive instruction; when the young Horse is once well broke, then he is afterwards fit for the saddle; now afflictions break men, and fit them for Gods service, and for Gods work: If a narrow mouthed vessel be in continual motion and unfixed, you cannot pour any liquor into it, you must first fix the vessel, and then you may put what you will into it; so afflictions will fix you, and settle you, you have many a poor man, that no ground will hold him (as we use to say) ⟨p. 143⟩