Selected quad for the lemma: authority_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
authority_n	church_n	faith_n	scripture_n	24,200	5	6.8197	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A49318	The reasonableness of the Christian religion a sermon preached at the visitation held at Stoakesly in Cleveland, in Yorkshire : being the first visitation of the Reverend Mr. Long, B.D. and Arch-Deacon of Cleveland / by Ja. Lowde ...	Lowde, James.	1684 (1684)	Wing L3302; ESTC R14296	20,988	54

differ from the Church of England as those of Deposing Princes and absolving Subjects from their Obedience of Purgatory and Prayers for the Dead and the like how these both in their own Natures and as they are managed by those that entertain them do more Naturally tend to get Riches and maintain a secular Pomp and Grandeur then to promote Piety in the lives of their Professours These are the Men who partly by their Contrariety of Doctrine partly by their loose Rules of Conscience partly by their frivolous Distinctions and Evasions have made many of the most weighty Duties of Christianity of none effect And some of these Roman Doctrines particularly that of Disobedience to and Resistance of lawful Authority has been exactly copyed out by some I cannot say of our Communion those I mean of the Separation I am no Friend to the fixing of bad Names upon any scrt of Men yet this I think I may truly say that there is more real Popery so far as it is false and dangerous in this single Opinion of resisting of Authority which is so much espoused by some of our Separatists then there is in all the Innocent Ceremonies and those other things which have occasion'd so many groundless Clamours against the Church of England Indeed this Doctrine of Resistance is too ugly to appear bare-faced in the World and therefore has always had some specious pretence or other as the Glory of God the Purity of Religion the Liberty of Conscience or the property of the Subject and all these back'd with a great many of false and Foolish Silly and dangerous Distinctions But the most modern Mask that this Opinion has appeared in of late is this that Non-Resistance say they was only a temporary Command proper only for those first and primitive Ages of the Church when Christians suffered according to the Laws of the Country but the Case was much different in after Ages when the Laws were in Favour of Religion and Christians persecuted contrary to Law I shall not need to speak much in Answer to this Argument the Weakness and Falseness of it being already fully and sufficiently shown by several Worthy Persons I shall only intimate these two things 1. To say that Passive Obedience was only a Duty Incumbent on Christians in the first Ages of the Church is an Assertion without the least Ground or Evidence of Proof for Scripture speaks of Obedience to Authority as a Constant indispensable Duty of Christianity without any Restriction or Limitation as to time or place and we must know that Scripture was intended as a Rule of Faith and Manners not only to that particular time wherein it was writ but also to all succeding Ages and it would be a great Reflection upon the Scripture as to the Perfection of it if it requir'd Non-Resistance of Authority only as a temporary Duty and yet never in the least to intimate how long it should continue thus or how we should know when the time was expired or by what Rules and Measures we should guide our selves when things came to be otherwise I hope they will not say that this is Casus Omissus in Scripture and so to be supplyed either by the Popish Additions or Euthusiastick Interpretations of later Ages But in short these mens way of arguing seems very much to resemble that of Mr. Hobb's in another Case of whom it is observ'd that he supposed Men worse then they were and from thence drew Principles to make them worse then otherwise they would be That is from the Observation of the General Depravation of Humane Nature and the Vicious Inclinations of most Men hence he unwarily drew such Conclusions as these that Violence and Oppression Self-Preservation and Interest without any respect to any higher Principles are the Prime and Fundamental Dictates ofNature and Reason in general without ever distinguishing betwixt pure and corrupted Nature or betwixt Reason truly so call'd and that which is only the Dictate of inferior Sense and Appetite So these Men from some irregular Proceedings either falsely imputed to the Christians about Julian's time or if truly yet but the Miscarriages of some particular Men yet from such premises as these would draw such false and dangerous Conclusions as should justifie and legitimate the like irregular Practises to all succeeding Ages 2. This Assertion has a very bad Influence upon several other Duties of Christianity for thus they argue where there is any Variation of Circumstances now different from what was in the Apostles times there that ceases to be a Duty now which was one then I deny not but where the thing is in its own Nature indifferent and the Reason of the Obligation depends upon the present Circumstances there the Circumstances being chang'd the Obligation ceases but it is not so in his Case Obedience to Magistrates is an Eternal Duty and that which the very Essential Constitutions and Principles of Government require of us here the Variation of some smaller Circumstances will not alter the Nature of the thing if it did we might also by the same way of Arguing prove that voluntary Charity to the Poor now is no Duty incumbent upon Christians this indeed we may say was a Duty in the first Ages of the Church because there were then no Laws in Favour of the Poor but their whole Subsistance depended upon Voluntary Contributions but the case is far otherwise now and thereforethis kind of Charity ceases now to be a Duty the weakness of this Argument I suppose easily appears to any Considerate Man at the first view For tho' there is Provision now made for the Poor by the Law yet notwithstanding there is no Law neither of God nor Man against Voluntary Charity to the Poor So tho' the Laws thanks be to God be in Favour of our Religion now yet there are no Laws neither of God nor Man in the least to encourage Rebellion or Resistance of lawful Authority for Religions sake 2. We must Preach Christ Crucified both in Opposition to some Hereticks of Old who tell us that Christ did not really and truly suffer but in Appearance only so subverting our Faith and also to some later Enthusiasts of our own Age. These seem to be offended upon the same Account that the Jews were here in the Text that is at the plainness and simplicity of the Gospel those Men think every thing Foolish that has not something of Mystery and Enthufiasm in it making all Religion to consist in airy Notions and nice Speculations these are the Religious Chymists of the Age who think they then only speak nothing to the purpose when they speak so as to be understood makeing it their great business to involve and intangle the otherwise plain and easie Doctrines of Christianity These Men pretend to make Religion a far more profound and mysterious thing then God ever made it and whenever any one Argues any thing against 'em according to the best and truest Principles of