Selected quad for the lemma: authority_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
authority_n	apostle_n	church_n	tradition_n	3,170	5	9.1818	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A26921	Richard Baxter's dying thoughts upon Phil. I, 23 written for his own life and the latter times of his corporal pains and weakness.; Dying thoughts upon Philippians I, 23	Baxter, Richard, 1615-1691.	1683 (1683)	Wing B1256; ESTC R2942	256,274	424

Physical evidence of Truth On this account mens agreement about Natural Notices is infallible It seems strange that all the World from Adam's time are agreed which is the first second and third c. day of the Week and not a day lost till now It could not be otherwise Because being a thing of Natural interest and notice if any Kingdom had lost a day by over sleeping or had agreed to falsifie it all the rest of the World would have shamed them Thus all Grecians Latines Englishmen c. agree about the sense of Words for if some would pervert them the rest would detect it Thus we are certain that the Statutes of the Land are not counterfeit For men of cross interests hold their Lands and lives by them and if some did counterfeit them the rest would by interest be bound to detect it Arg. 1. There can be no effect without an adequate cause But in Nature there is no cause that can make all men agree to assert a known falshood or deny a known Truth against all their known interest therefore there can be no such effect Arg. 2. A necessary cause will necessarily effect But where mens known Interest obligeth them to agree of a known Truth this is a necessary cause of certain credibility therefore it hath a necessary effect You know who were your Parents and when and where you were Born c. by such Tradition in a lower Degree This dependeth not on pretended Authority nor on meer honesty but on natural necessity Having premised this I come to prove that we have such Tradition of Physical infallible evidence that the Faith of the present Church in the Essentials is the same which the first Churches received infallibly from the Apostles 1. The World knoweth that ever since Christ's Ascension all that believed in him were Baptized as all Abraham's Covenanting seed were Circumcised And what is Baptism but a Profession of Belief in Jesus Christ as dead risen and glorified and a devoting our selves in Covenant to God the Father Son and Holy Ghost All that ever were Christians by solemn Vow profest this same Faith And this is such a Tradition of Christianity as humane Generation down from Adam is of the same humanity in the World 2. They that were Baptized were Catechized first in which the three Articles of Baptism were opened to them of which Christ's Death Resurrection and Ascension were part And this hath been an undeniable Tradition of the same Faith 3. The Summ of the Christian Faith was from the beginning drawn up in certain Articles called the Creed which expounded the three Baptismal Articles and all Churches on Earth had the same in sense and most in Words and all at Age that were Baptized professed this Creed Which is as full a Tradition of the same Belief in Christ's Birth Death and Resurrection Ascension and Glory as Speaking is a Tradition of the same humane Nature 4. Before Christ's Ascension he instituted the Office of the Sacred Ministry which Friends and Foes confess hath continued ever since And what is this Ministry but an Office of publishing the Gospel of Christ his Life Death Miracles Resurrection Grace c. What else have they done in all Ages in the World So that the Office is an undeniable Tradition 5. Christ and his Apostles instituted the Weekly Celebration of the Remembrance of his Resurrection on the Lord's days Friends and Foes confess the History that the first Day of the Week hath been kept for such Memorial ever since through all the Christian part of the World Which proveth the uninterrupted belief of Christ's Resurrection as a Notorious Practical Tradition 6. Christ and his Apostles ever since his Resurrection instituted Solemn Assemblies of Christians to be held on those Days and at other Times Once a Week was the least through the Christian World And what did they meet for but to Preach hear and profess the same Christian Faith 7. It was the constant custom of Christians in their Assemblies and their Houses to sing Hymns of Praise to Jesus Christ in remembrance of his Resurrection c. Pliny tells Trajan that this was the practice by which Christians were known by their Persecutors Which is a Practical Tradition 8. Jesus Christ instituted and all Christians to this Day have constantly used the Sacrament of Christ's Sacrifice called the Eucharist to keep in remembrance his Death till he come and profess their Belief that he is our Life And as the constant Celebration of the Passover with all its Ceremonies was a most certain Tradition of the Egyptians Plagues and Israelites deliverance more than a bare written History would be so hath the Lord's Supper been of the uninterrupted belief of the History of our Redemption by Christ 9. The Church hath from the beginning had a constant Discipline by which it hath kept it self separate from Hereticks who have denied any Essential Article of this Faith Which is a sure Tradition of the same belief 10. None question but Christians have from the beginning been persecuted for this same Faith and in Persecution made Confession of it Persecutors and Confessors then are both the Witnesses of the Continuance 11. When ever Hereticks or Enemies have written against Christians their Apologies and Defences shew that it was this same Faith that they owned 12. Most of the adverse Hereticks owned the same Matters of Fact 13. The Jews were long before in Possession of the Books of the Old Testament which bear their Testimony to Christ 14. The Books of the New Testament have by certain Tradition been delivered down to this present Day which contain the Matters of Fact and Doctrin the Essentials Integrals and Accidents of the Faith 15. No Enemies have written any thing against the Matter of Fact of any Moment 16. Yea the Jews and other bitterest Enemies confess much of the Miracles of Christ 17. Martyrs have cheerfully forsaken Life and all in confessing it 18. God by his wonderful Providence hath maintained it 19. The Devil and all the Wicked of the World are the greatest Enemies to it 20. The Holy Ghost hath still blest it to work the same holy and heavenly Nature and Life in all sincere and serious Believers Quest This proveth infallibly the Tradition of the same Faith in the Essentials But how prove you that the same Holy Scripture is delivered as uncorrupted Answ All the Bible is not brought down so unchanged as are the Essentials of our Religion When there were no Bibles but what Scriveners wrote no wonder if oversight left few Copies without some of their slips There are hundred of various Readings in the New Testament and of many no Man can be certain which is true But none of them are such as make any difference in the Articles of our Faith or Practice nor on which any point of Doctrine or Fact dependeth And the words are necessary but for the Matter which they do record And 1. All Ministers and all Churches

him when he promiseth and hear him before the worldly wise when he teacheth us the way to God Hear him for he knows what he saith Hear him for he is true and faithful and infallible Hear him for he is the Son of God the greatest Messenger that ever God sent Hear him for he purposly came down into Flesh that he might familiarly teach us Hear him for none else in the Word hath made known the things of God like him and none can do it Hear him for he meaneth us no hurt He is our dearest Friend and Love itself and saith nothing but for our Salvation and promiseth nothing but what he will perform Yea Hear him for every Soul that will not hear him shall be cut off Hear him therefore if he contradict thy fleshly Appetite Hear him if great or small if any or all shall be against it Hear him if he set thee on the hardest work or call thee to the greatest suffering Hear him if he bid thee take up the Cross and forsake all and follow him in hope of a reward in Heaven Hear him if he call thee to lay down thy Life for none can be a loser by him Hear him now in the Day of Grace and he will hear thee in the day of thy Extremity in the day of Danger Sickness Death and Judgment when the World forsaketh thee and no ones hearing else can help thee § 37. But I was not one that saw this Vision Had I seen it my self it would have satisfied me and confuted all my doubts Answ But it is the will of God that the Ministry and Testimony of Man shall be a means of our believing It 's Faith and not Sight that must be the ordinary way of our Salvation Else Christ must have shewed himself and his Miracles Resurrection and Ascension to every one in the World that must believe in him And then he must have been visible at once in every Kingdom Parish and Place on Earth and continued so to the end of the World and must have died risen and ascended many Millions of times and in every place They that will put such Laws on their Lawgiver before they will believe in him must be saved without him and against him if they can This is more unreasonable than to tell God that you will not believe that there is a Heaven or Hell unless you see them But God will have us live and be saved by believing and not by sight And he will use Man for the Instruction and Salvation of Man and not send Angels with every Message § 38. But Why did Christ shew this Vision but it Three of his Disciples Answ He is not bound to tell us why But we may know that a sight of heavenly Glory is not to be ordinarily expected on Earth Why did God shew the back parts of his Glory to none but Moses no not to his Brother Aaron Why did he speak to him only in the Bush and in the Mount Why did he translate none to Heaven without dying but Henoch and Elias Why did he save but Noah and Seven with him in the Ark These are not things ordinary nor to be common to many § 39. But by this it appeareth that even among his Twelve Apostles Christ made a difference and preferred some before the rest Though he set no one over the rest in any Governing Authority yet some of them were qualified above the rest and esteemed and used by him accordingly Peter is called the first and it seems was qualified above the rest by his more frequent speaking and familiarity with Christ and his Speeches and Miracles after the Resurrection Though yet the Faction that said I am of Cephas or I am of Paul was rebuked as Carnal so far was Christ from directing the Churches to end all difference by obeying Peter as their Supream Ruler James and John are called the Sons of Thunder They had some more eminent qualification than the rest So that James was the first Martyred Apostle and John the Disciple whom Jesus specially loved Ministers of the same Office and Order may much differ in Gifts and Grace in labour and success and in God's acceptance and reward and in the Churches just esteem and love All Pastors were not such as Cyprian Basil Gregory Nazianzene Chrysostome or Augustine And the rest must not envy at the preference of Peter James and John Andrew seems to be Peters Elder Brother and knew Christ before him as Aaron was Elder Brother to Moses and yet must give God leave to choose to give pre-eminence to whom he will § 40. But Why did not these Three Apostles tell any of this Vision till after Christ's Resurrection Ans Christ did forbid it them And it was according to the Method of his Revelation He would make himself known to the World by degrees and more by his Works than by bare Words And these works were to be finished and all set together to be his convincing Witness to the World And the chief of these were his Resurrection Ascension and sending down the Holy Ghost The Apostles could not say till then Jesus is risen ascended and hath given us the Seal of the Spirit therefore he is the Son of God Christ first preached Repentance like John Baptist And next he told them that the Kingdom of God by the Messiah was come and was among them And then he taught them to believe his Word to be sent from God and to be true And he taught them the Doctrines of Holiness Love and Righteousness towards men And he wrought those Miracles which might convince them that what he said or should say deserved their belief But yet before his Resurrection his Apostles themselves understood not many of the Articles of our Creed they knew not that Christ was to die for sin and so to redeem the World by his Sacrifice nor that he was to Rise Ascend and Reign and Intercede in Glory And yet they were then in a state of Grace and Life such as Believers were in before Christ's Incarnation And sure no more is required of the Nations that cannot hear the Gospel But the Resurrection was the beginning of the proper Gospel State and Kingdom to which all before was but preparatory then by the Spirit Christianity was formed to its setled Consistence and is a known unalterable thing And it is a great confirmation to our Faith that Christ's Kingdom was not settled by any advantage of his personal Presence Preaching and Persuasion so much as by the Holy Ghost in his Apostles and Disciples when he was gone from them into Heaven § 41. But how are we sure that these three men tell us nothing but the Truth Ans This is oft answered elsewhere The Spirit which they spake and work'● by was Christ's Witness and theirs They healed the Sick raised the Dead spake various Languages which they never learnt and Preached and Recorded that Holy Doctrin committed to them by Christ which