A94156:841
The Christian-man's calling: or, A treatise of making religion ones business. Wherein the nature…
The Christian-man's calling: or, A treatise of making religion ones business. Wherein the nature and necessity of it is discovered. : As also the Christian directed how he may perform it in [brace] religious duties, natural actions, his particular vocation, his family directions, and his own recreations. / By George Swinnock ...
London: printed for T.P., 1662
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.
The fruits of trees under the law, were the three first years unclean, the forth year offered to God, and after that free for the owners. All thy comforts are by reason of sin unclean and cursed to thee; if thou wouldst have them clean and blessed, they must be sanctified by the Word of God and prayer. The Elephant is said to turn up towards Heaven the first Sprig that he feedeth on. O Friend, wilt thou be worse then a beast? For shame be not so Swinish as to feed on the Acorns, and never look up to the tree that bears them.
2. In holy expressions and affections when thou ⟨p. 406⟩art eating. Whilst thy body is filling, thy soul must not be forgotten. Though it be not unlawful at meals to talk of other matters, yet its pity Saints should ever meet to eat earthly bread, and not have some discourse of their eternal. Heavenly banquet. How often did our Saviour at such a meeting raise the hearts of his company to better meat? Luk. 5.31. As their outward man was feeding, he feasted their inward man. When the Publican was at much cost to make him a great feast, he entertains him and the rest too with better cheer; The whole need not a Physician, but the sick; I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. When one of the chief of the Pharisees invited him to his Table, observe how he teacheth the Guests humility, and the Master of the Feast charity, Luk. 14.7, 8, 12, 13. His Lips dropped Honey to sweeten and make all their Dishes savoury. One of the Fathers writeth that the Primitive Christians were so holy in their talk at their Table, that one would have thought they had been at a Sermon, 1not at a Supper. Plato gives rules for the writing down the Table Talk of men, thereby to make them more serious; Luther's Colloquia Mensalia, Printed in a large Folio, do abundantly prove that he was not idle when he was eating, but that his Table was his Pulpit, where he read many profitable Lectures; There is scarce a meeting of ungodly men to eat, but the Devil hath his Dish among them.