Selected quad for the lemma: act_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
act_n	king_n	parliament_n	supreme_a	2,829	5	9.2880	5	false

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A53667	A brief and impartial account of the nature of the Protestant religion its present state in the world, its strength and weakness, with the wayes and indications of the ruine or continuance of its publick national profession / by a Protestant.	Owen, John, 1616-1683.	1682 (1682)	Wing O716; ESTC R11764	23,846	42

of the Enemies of this Religion with the Disappointment of many of them are also a Pledge of the care of God over it Wise and considering Men knew well enough that they were at work with all Diligence Craft and Industry for the accomplishment of what they had long designed and which for some Ages they had been engaged in various contrivances to bring about But what they saw of the Effects of their Counsels they could not remove and all the specialties of their Design were hid from them The generality of Men in the mean time were in the highest Security some enjoying themselves in the Advantages which they hold by the Profession of Religion and others altogether regardless of these Things But in this State of things the Providence of God making use of the unparallel'd Confidence and precipitation of the Enemies themselves by strange and unexpected means layes open their works of Darkness awakens the Nation unto the Consideration of its Danger variously disappoints their Hellish Plots and puts the Minds of Multitudes it may be Millions into a posture of taking care about those concernments of their Religion which they had assuredly been surprized into the Loss of had they continued in the Security from which their Enemies awakened them And it may be well supposed that nothing but Sin and the highest Ingratitude can divert or stop the progress of those streams of Providence whose Springs were undeserved Mercy and Bounty For although the Wisdom Justice and Honour of the Nation in the Actings of the King as Supream of both Houses of Parliament in the Judges and their Legal Administrations with the Piety of the Church in the Observation of a Day of Fasting and Prayer with respect hereunto be every Day exposed to Scorn and Contempt in the Papers and Pamphlets of unknown Persons by decrying the Plot and vilifying the Discoveries of it a practice never allowed never tolerated in any other well ordered Government as that which would tend to its Dissolution yet all sober Men have sufficient Evidence of the Hand of God in these things to make them an Argument of his Watchful care over the Protestant Religion And unto all these things we may add the fatal Miscarriages and miserable ends of such Apostates from the true Religion as have not been contented to ruine their own Souls alone but have been active and Instrumental in their Capacities to draw or drive others into the same Perdition Examples in this kind might be multiplied sufficient to stop this sort of Persons in their career if an open discovery of the Pit whereinto they will precipitate themselves may have any influence upon them Some few things may yet be added concerning the outward means of the preservation of the Protestant Religion as unto its publick Profession for the thing it self will be preserved in despite of the World which those concerned therein may do well to apply themselves unto And I shall only name them at present And the first is fervent Prayers to Almighty God that the Princes and Potentates of the Earth may have Light to discern that their Principal Interest in this World lyes in its preservation And although some Reasons that may induce them hereunto may not seem of force unto them yet there is one that is uncontrollable For where the Protestant Religion is received publickly professed and established by Law it cannot be changed without the extream Havock and Ruine of the greatest and best part of their Subjects in all their Temporal concerns And this there is no doubt but that they are obliged so far as in them lies to prevent as they will give an account unto God of the Trust reposed in them For as things are stated in the World as the Designs and Interests of the Parties at variance are formed it is a madness to suppose that any Alteration can be made herein without these direful Effects and if they should be covered for a Season they will break forth afterwards with more rage and fury But I refer this unto the Wisdom of them that are concerned It is also necessary hereunto that all those who sincerely own this Religion and make it the Rule of their Living unto God in Hopes of the Eternal Enjoyment of him in another World do depose the consideration of the lesser Differences amongst themselves and unite in one common Design and Interest to oppose the Entrances and Growth of Popery among us And it is an hard thing to perswade Rational Men that they are in Earnest for its Opposition and Exclusion who are not willing so to do But that whereon amongst our selves the Event of this Contest doth depend is the Repentance and Reformation of all them that profess this Religion upon the Divine calls and warnings which they have received For a close of this Discourse if we may suppose what we may justly fear namely that the Holy God to punish the horrible Sins and Ingratitude of the Nations professing the Protestant Religion should suffer the Profession of it by any of these means or any other that he shall think meet to use in his Holy permission to be extinguished for a Season and remove the Light of the Gospel from these Nations we may yet conclude Two things 1. That it shall issue at last in the Advantage of the Church Antichrist shall not be a final Gainer in this contest His success herein will be the Forerunner of his utter Destruction The healing of his deadly wound will preserve his Life but for a little while Religion shall be again restored in a more refined Profession There shall ensue hereon no new Revelations no new Doctrines no new Scriptures no new Ordinances of Worship the Substance of the Protestant Doctrine Religion and Worship shall be preserved restored beautified in themselves and in their Power in them by whom they shall be professed The Demonstration whereof shall be given elsewhere 2. In the mean time to suffer for it even unto Death is the most glorious Cause wherein we can be engaged and wherein we shall be undoubtedly victorious It is no less Glorious in the Sight of God no less Acceptable with him to suffer in giving Testimony against the Abominations of the Apostate Antichristian Church-State than to suffer for the Gospel it self in Opposition to Idolatrous Paganism FINIS

made use of unto this End and all in vain And it was for a while the Judgment of most Wise men that the Council of Trent had rendred all Reconciliations so much as by a pretence of any Condescention on the part of Rome utterly impossible For it hath bound it self and all the World that will own its Authority under Solemn Curses not to make any change or Alteration in the present State of the Papal Church though the Salvation of all Men living should depend thereon Yet notwithstanding the fixing of this unpassable Gulph between the two Churches or Religions some persons professing the Protestant Religion either angry at their Station and disappointments in the World or Ambitious above their Station in the Protestant Church though of the Highest Dignity attainable in it or out of an Itch or Curiosity of venting their Conciliatory Notions as they suppose them and so to entitle themselves unto the name of Peace-makers have in the foregoing and present Age revived the same fruitless Design but hitherto without success But it must be confessed that at present things are more prepared for the plying of this Engine and making it Effectual unto the Ruine of the Protestant Religion than they were in former Ages whereof I shall give some Instances Sundry Learned men who have made themselves of great Name and Reputation thereby have in their publick Writings granted a Patriarchal Primacy in the West unto the Bishop of Rome which is meet to be restored And therewithall they have relinquished the true Grounds of the Reformation For whereas the real Causes and Reasons of it were the Idolatry Heresies and Tyranny of the Church of Rome which every private Christian might understand and was bound to Separate from in his own Person were there no other of his Mind in the World but himself alone and had Right so to do they have resolved it into the Power of a National Church in that Patriarchate with their Supream Civil Ruler to reform it self from such things as they esteem abuses Now as this is a matter wherein the Consciences of the People or private Christians are not concerned so it is built on sundry Arbitrary presumptions that have not the least Countenance given unto them from the Word of God And as this Endeavour tends directly to divert the Minds of Men from the true Causes and Reasons of the Reformation whereon all the Martyrs died so it leads directly upon a Relief against the pretended abuses to return unto the Pope as an Head of Unity and Peace unto all Churches at least in these Western parts of the World which is all that at present is pleaded for by many of the Papists themselves For the Dispute they say about the Pope his Power and Infallibility you need not trouble your selves let the Bishop of Rome in his Succession from St. Peter be acknowledged as an Head of Unity and Peace unto all Christians with a Patriarchal Power and no more shall be required of you that is at present for the Pope will be Pope whilest he is so that is until he is utterly cast out of the Church But by such Concessions as these the way is preparing for a composition as unto the outward Order and Rule of the Church As unto the Internal part of Religion in Doctrines of Faith there is no small advance towards a Reconciliation in the Introduction of Novel Opinions into the Protestant Profession For although on their first entrance among us they were publickly protested against by the Commons of England in Parliament as introductory of Popery yet their prevalency since hath been so great as that their Abettors are ready to avow them as the Doctrine of the present Church Yet are they all of them opposite unto the fundamental Principles of the Reformation which were to exalt the Grace of God and debase the Pride of Men from the contempt of which Principles all the Abominations of the Papacy did arise And this progress towards a Reconciliation is daily improved by the endeavours of some to lessen all the Doctrinal differences between the Papists and Protestants and to make them appear as things not worth the striving or contending about The same work is carried on by the labours and endeavours of many in their publick Writings to divert the making Application of Scripture Prophesies and Predictions of an Apostatical Antichristian Church-State unto the Church of Rome The perswasion hereof as it is a most undoubted Truth wherein the Souls of Men are concerned is the Principal means of preserving the Body of the People in an aversation unto Popery If you can once perswade them that the Pope is not Antichrist that the Church of Rome is not that Idolatrous Tyrannical State foretold in the Scripture many would be very indifferent how you treat with them or what composition you shall make for your selves But it is hoped that the broad Light which ariseth from the Evidence the Pope and his Church for many Ages have given of themselves so to be by their Idolatries Persecutions Murders Luciferian Pride trampling on the Power and Persons of Kings and all sorts of Persons in conjunction with the Characteristical Notes of Times Places Rise Progress Nature and Actings of that Church State in the Scripture will not easily be extinguished There is no small prevalency in the World of an Atheistical Principle lately advanced namely of Resolving all respect unto the publick Profession of Religion into the Wills and Laws of Men in Supream Power It is supposed herein that Men may be in their own Minds of what Religion they please and be as Religious as they will But for the preservation of Society it is meet that the Wills of Law-givers in all Nations should be the Sole Rule of the outward Profession of Religion Now although this Atheistical Opinion be destructive of Christian Religion condemning all the Professors of it from its first entrance into the World of the highest Folly imaginable yet being suited to accommodate all the Lusts and Interests of Men profane and ungodly it is incredible what a progress in a short time it hath made in the World And those who have imbibed it are ready for all such compositions in Religion as may be supposed any way Commodious unto their Inclinations and Interests I shall only mention that which of all other things is of the worst abode namely the Loss of the Power of Religion in all sorts of Persons The Protestant Religion will not any where long maintain its Station any otherwise than by an Experience of its Power and Efficacy on the Souls of Men. Where this is lost through the power of prevalent vitious Habits of the minds of Men the whole of that Religion will be parted withall at an easie Rate For there is another continually proposed unto them with those entertainments for Mens Fancies and carnal Affections with those accommodations for their Lusts Living and Dying with outward Secular advantages that this