Selected quad for the lemma: authority_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
authority_n	according_a	church_n	power_n	3,403	5	5.0065	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A65836	The apostate incendiary rebuked, and the people called Quakers vindicated from Romish hirarchy and imposition in a serious examination of VVilliam Mucklows Liberty of conscience asserted against imposition, but proved a liberty which is in Christ Jesus, and against unity and order in his church / by one whose rejoycing is the testimony of a good conscience toward God and man, G. Whitehead.	Whitehead, George, 1636?-1723.	1673 (1673)	Wing W1890; ESTC R39076	20,163	27

implyed and yet he grants Christ to be the Head of the Body and is not that Body the Church which he hath owned See what Contradiction Envy leads this Man into who also saith That the Chuch was then to be in Subjection to her Head and every Member governed and exercized according to the Order of the Head but now the Body the Church claims Authority over their Fellow-Members as peculiarly having the infallible Spirit c. These latter Words from BUT contain two false and Unjust Reflections upon the Church for First the Body or Church claims no such Authority over their Fellow-Members it is gross Confusion in him for to affirm it for all Fellow-Members thereof are included in the same Body in Subjection to one and the same Head which is Christ. 2. None of the Fellow-Members of the Body of Christ are excluded from having the infallible Spirit in some degree as if it were peculiar only to some few whenas its universal throughout the whole Body though there be diversities of Gifts given as the Lord sees meet to every Man his proper and peculiar Gift which all tends to Unity and Edification of the whole Body But this Man seems to claim a Member-ship in the Church or Body as he calls us and yet judges and reviles the Church what then would he be a Member of Is it of such a Body that he represents as torn to peices and rent from the Head or fallen under Apostacy for we cannot look upon the Church to be made up of himself and John Pennyman or a few of their Spirit and that were also contrary to J. P's writing himself One of the least of the Thousands in Israel but whether he had such low Thoughts of himself or not let God's Witness and his People who have beheld his Deportment and Luceferian Spirit judge W. M. saith Friends That which was declared of and testified unto in the beginning was to direct our Minds unto the Heavenly Gift not to the Church but to the Manifestation of the Spirit in the particular waiting there to feel its Motions and to hear its Voice which would infallibly teach us our Duty towards God our Neighbour and our selves and not to go forth into Reasonings to promote comely Orders after the Manner of men nor to be found in the Exercise of any thing in his pure Worship but what the Lord not the Body required else to stand still c. Herein he hath intermixt his perverse Parenthesis falsly charging us in divers Respects as if the Heavenly Gift and the Church were now separate and what the Lord and his People require in Oppositior or as if we were promoting a Body without the Spirit or Subjection to what the Lord requires as if our Testimony were now so much varied from what it was in the Beginning these are all most falsly suggested his saying It was to direct our minds to the Heavenly Gift not to the Church to what the Lord not the Body required See what Division this would make between the Lord and his People but he mistakes Not to the Church for our Testimony was in the beginning and still is to promote the Unity of the Spirit in our directing the Minds to the Spirit and to them that love the Lord to dwell in Love and Unity which all come unto who come unto the Heavenly Gift and to follow the Lord's Requirings therein which is unerring and what is this but to preach up a true Church-State which hath been the real Intent and Tendency of our Testimony from the Beginning And had this Man been faithful to what was testfied in the Beginning as he pretends a great Esteem thereof the Unity and Society of the Church and People of God called Quakers would have been of more value with him then now so enviously and confusedly to quarrel with them or any comely Order or reverent Custom in the Church as he doth which he did not in the Beginning for when his Mind was directed to the Manifestation of the Spirit which would infallibly teach us our Duty towards God our Neighbour and our selves as he saith then he and the rest concerned in the Beginning did not irreverently sit with their Hats on in publick Prayer among us nor say that the contrary among us was a going forth into Reasonings to promote comely Orders after the manner of Men for what needed that when the infallible Spirit which was then owned to be their Teacher freely led them into it Nor did the Apostle so go out into reasoning when he exhorted the Saints to think on whatsoever things were true honest just pure lovely of good Report c. But this Man is offended at our vindicating that Order which was made both lovely and comely by that Spirit that set it up since he is gone out from that infallible Spirit which he was directed to in the Beginning which then moved and led them into both Reverence to God Respect to his People and how to behave themselves in the Church of Christ both in Decency and in Order Note that W. M. in so plainly professing and in Words owning the Truth 's Testimony and Infallibility of the Spirits Teaching as it was in the Beginning testified to among us he hath therein said more for the comely Order that then was brought forth in our Assemblies and for the Church having the infallible Spirit to know Truth from Error and the right from the wrong Spirit then ever he can say or produce for the contrary viz. for his keeping on his Hat in Prayer for his accusing the Church with Fallibility Apostacy or the Antient Friends with Imposing Usurping c. Out of his own Mouth he is condemned as one apostatized from the Heavenly Gift from his first Love Convincement and Order and hath wilfully excluded himself from the Union and Society of the Church of Christ. He still boggles and seems offended at the Body the Church having the infallible Spirit the certain unerring Judgment reciding with them upon all Occasions to know Truth from Error and the right from the wrong Spirit will you limit the Lord saith he Answ. Is it a limitting the Lord for the Body or Church of Christ to have his Spirit which is infallible and an unerring Judgment so far as we received from the same Spirit What gross Darkness is come over this Man Doth not the spiritual Man judge all Things And the Saints shall judge the World and dare he say that the Spirit of Christ hath not taught the Church Truth from Error nor to know the right from the wrong Spirit Whenas the Principle we direct unto and our Testimony concerning it he dares not say is fallible but seems to justifie our Testimony as it was in the Beginning and in Words to own Inward Motions Voice and Teachings of the infallible Spirit and the measure thereof within to try the Verity of our Doctrine And why should it be rendred a limitting of the Lord

for the Church to claim this Priviledge as thus having the unerring Spirit And that we have it to guide and give discovery in the weighty matters of Faith and Salvation and to try Spirits whether they be of God or no Surely then we need not want true Understanding and Judgment in things of lesser Concernment And we are so far from limitting the Lord his Power and Church to Persons or such as would exercise Authority above their places that we affirm as we experience that the Power is universally free and unlimitted and the whole Church even every living Member of the Body of Christ pertakes of it though every Member is not an Eye and we further testifie that wheresoever two or three are gathered together in Christ's Name there he is in the midst of them to aid and ass●st them whether it be to make Agreement on Earth end Differences give a true Judgment in matters as there shall be need in the Church among the weak or only to wait in Truth of Heart upon the Lord to receive inward Advantage unto their Souls and God beareth us Record that our Eye is to his Power and our Dependence is upon his Counsel upon all weighty Occasions in our Assemblies and not upon our own Understandings meerly as Men. Now it were very gross and impious to deny that Priviledge to the whole Church Body or general Assembly which two or three met in the Name of Christ pertake of namely his Presence in the midst of them and if his Presence be in the midst of two or three met in his Name surely he will not be absent from a greater number so met but saith W. M. Cannot he reveal to a particular yea such things as the Church would he startled at yea and be ready to question the Verity thereof yet he confesseth that it hath pleased the Lord to reveal himself unto the lowly Ones that are little in their own Eyes to inform the Church and Elders thereof And are not these lowly Ones Members or included in the Church then Or is the whole Church or Body which he confesseth Christ to be the Head of in such an Exaltation over the lowly ones Oh what confused Work doth this man make yet we will grant him that that may be revealed in some particular Cases to a Prophet or Apostle which is not to all in the Church but then such Prophets or Apostles are no self-Separators but included in the Church as having one Head and then the Church will not be startled thereat nor question the Verity thereof but be in Subjection to the Power or Head Christ which reveals and the Spirits of the Prophets are subject to the Prophets John to the Angells of the seaven Churches in Asia Moses Isaiah Jeremiah c. to the Jews had particular Discoveries and Reproofs who thereby did not make Divisions nor Schisms in the true Evangelical Church nor oppose any comely Order or Custom therein but then his Comparison is unequal between the Church or Body of Christ now and the Carnall Jews fallen Angells Elders that sat in Moses Chair who Resisted the Appearance of Christ both in Flesh and Spirit or between the Spirituall Church and Congregation of Israel whom Caleb and Joshuah withstood is there not a manifest disparity between the Carnal Jews Under the Law and the Spiritual Church now Under the Gospel from whom his Work still drives at a Separation in those he counts the lowly Ones that may have such things revealed as the Church may be startled at who then are those lowly Ones that are not of the Church And what are those peculiar Revelations or Motions Are they such as John Perrot John Pennyman W. Mucklow c. whose perverse Spirits and Works of Darkness are denyed by the true Church among us as J. Perrot with his Motion To be ashamed to morrow of that which he might do in Truth and Righteousness to day or J. Pennyman with his Motion to have the Bible and Testimonies of Martyrs with other good Books to the Exchange in order to burn Or to invite both Jews and Gentiles to the Publication of his Wedding at Merchant-Taylors Hall and to his many Venson Pasties voluptuous Extravigancy and there to act a Fool 's Tragedy and to tell the People I have taken M. B. but when and where he had before taken her he told not so how should they witness to his clandestine Proceedings they hoped they should have come to his Wedding but were cheated and deceived of their Expectations And afterwards his Motion to cry against us in our publick Assemblies which whimsical Motions and mad Actions of his the Church hath utterly denyed and condemned and also W. M. with his Motion to deliver his envious confused Papers neer our Meeting-House Door to all sorts of People to render the People of God called Quakers odious and obnoxious it seems he values his own Reputation which he pleads for more then the Church's He saith Of what hath been said this is the Sum A Church limitted to Persons may impose an Error and cast out the most spiritual Seeing his great Matter against the Church is summed up in this narrow Compass let it be noted that his Charge against the Church or Body which he hath confest Christ to be the Head of is varied into a Supposition against a Church limitted to Persons that such a Church may err and cast out the most spiritual And that is not true as it s universally stated of a Church limitted to Persons which is any Church or selected number of persons whereas there are Persons in the true Church that are grown in the Truth and VVisdom of God who being chosen out by the Lord and his People for any Service of Truth they are a Church and fitted to do the Service they are called to and so are two or three gathered in the Name of Jesus whom he is in the midst of And to be sure if this Man will own that there is any Members in the Church of a sound Judgment or any Eyes in the Body there may be a Church or select Number chosen out that will give a true Judgment and make a right Distinction between the pretious and the vile and we know there are such Persons in the Church of Christ now Men growa in the Light and Wisdom and Counsel of God and of old the Church had Power in some Cases to chuse out Men of honest Report full of the holy Ghost and Wisdom and there were Elders and Overseers made by the holy Ghost however the Elders and ancient Frie●ds now who have kept their Integrity be slited by Apostates who are fruitless withered Branches as for this Man's Vindication of his Innocency from being one of the Cabal with the Author of Tyranny and Hypocrisie in that he saith He hath not the least A●● 〈…〉 with him that is said to b● the Author thereof We do not look upon this to be sufficient to clear