A86531:435
The saints dignity and duty· Together with the danger of ignorance and hardness. /…The saints dignitie and dutie· Together with the danger of ignorance and hardnesse. /…
The saints dignity and duty· Together with the danger of ignorance and hardness. / Delivered in several sermons: by that reverend divine, Thomas Hooker, late preacher in New-England.The saints dignitie and dutie· Together with the danger of ignorance and hardnesse. / Delivered in severall sermons: by that reverend divine, Thomas Hooker, late preacher in New-England.
London: printed by G.D. for Francis Eglesfield, 1651
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.
That, Faith causeth fruitfulness in the hearts and lives of those in whom it is.
Mark what I say, A faithful man, is a fruitful man: Faith enableth a man to be doing. Ask the Question, By what power was it whereby Abraham was enabled to yield obedience to the Lord? The Text answereth you, They that walk in the footsteps not of Abraham, but in the footsteps of the faith of Abraham. A man would have thought the Text should have run thus, They that walk in the footsteps of Abraham, that is true too, but the Apostle had another end, therefore he saith, They that walk in the footsteps of the faith of Abraham, implying, that it was the grace of faith that God bestowed on Abraham, that quickened and enabled him to every duty that God required of him, and called him to the performance of. So that I say, the Question being, Whence came it that Abraham was so fruitful a Christian, what enabled him to do, and to suffer what he did? Surely it was faith that was the cause that produced such Effects, that helped him to perform such actions. The Point then you see is evident, Faith is it that causeth fruit.
Mark what I say, A faithfull man, is a fruitfull man: Faith inableth a man to be doing. Ask the Question, By what power was it whereby Abraham was inabled to yeeld obedience to the Lord? The Text answereth you, They that walke in the footsteps not of Abraham, but in the footsteps of the faith of Abraham. A man would have thought the Text should have run thus, They that walk in the footsteps of Abraham, that is true too, but the Apostle had another end, therefore he saith, They that walk in the footsteps of the faith of Abraham, implying, that it was the grace of faith that God bestowed on Abraham, that quickned and inabled him to every duty that God required of him, and called him to the performance of. So that I say, the Question being, Whence came it that Abraham was so fruitfull a Christian, what inabled him to do, and to suffer what he did? Surely it was faith that was the cause that produced such Effects, that helped him to perform such actions. The Point then you see is evident, Faith is it that causoth fruit.