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	infallible_a	scripture_n	12,280	5	7.2436	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A92847	An arke against a deluge: or, Safety in dangerous times. Discovered in a sermon before the honourable House of Commons, at their late extraordinary fast, October 22. 1644. / By Obadiah Sedgwicke, Batchelour in Divinity, and pastour of Coggeshall in Essex. Published by order of the said House.	Sedgwick, Obadiah, 1600?-1658.	1644 (1644)	Wing S2364; Thomason E17_18; ESTC R11991	18,247	36

fall of that house The fall of a Parliament will be the greatest fall that ever Englishmen heard of I am confident it would prove the fall of the Three Kingdomes and I feare it would endanger the fall of most of the Churches of Christ The third is Gods House this is an House to be look't unto before and above all other houses as Aeneas had a care of his houshold gods before he tooke care of his houshold goods Princes of old did strive to joyne their Pallaces next to the Temples set the Temples above their own Pallaces Gods House must be looked unto before any of our own houses They in Haggai found it by wofull experience that their neglect of Gods House in the first Haggai 1. 2. 4 6. c. place was very distastfull to God and unprosperous to themselves and so shall any Statesmen finde it notwithstanding all their Politique conceits I doe not know three such Houses in the world againe as these therefore it behooves you to have a singular care of them 2. But then in the next place I must tell you that there are Deluges many Deluges not onely probably but also actually breaking out to endanger the drowning of all these for the first House our Soules O how many sensuall lusts breake forth and how many worldly lusts breake forth to drowne the soule as the Apostle speaketh in perdition And for the second House the Parliament what an inundation of lies and scandalls what raging waters of Papists Delinquents and other people what a deluge of blood hath beene gushing out to overwhelm and swallow up that House And for the third House what floods are Papists Arrians Socinians Arminians Anabaptists Brownists Antinomians Libertines cast out of the mouth of the Serpent to beare down the House of God A deluge of errors a deluge of Blasphemies a deluge of Schismes a deluge of odde opinions a deluge of dissentions and divisions So that all cry out unto you as the Disciples in the Storme to Christ Master save us or else wee perish your soules cry out O save us and the Kingdome cries out O save us and the Church of God cries out O pitty and save us 3. The safetie of all which consists in making of an Arke both proper and seasonable for the contriving whereof if I should a little misse of Art in my subsequent directions yet pardon me for I shall not faile in will and desire that all may be saved Thus then 1. For your Soules the first House I mentioned Two things really got exercised will assuredly save them Repentance and Faith 2. For the Kingdomes House the second that I mentioned foure things will exceedingly conduce to the saving of it 1. An effectuall care that Justice be executed why it is lamentable to behold how loose the raines of Justice are in the Country every man almost does what seemes good in his own eyes sweare and cheate and lie and swagger and slight Sabbath-dayes and Fasting-dayes and wallowin uncleanenesse and drunkenesse c. and there is scarce a Justice of Peace to put them to shame Good Lord what will become of us if matters continue thus sinnes of all sorts will become out of measure sinfull and God will be extreamely provoked against us I beseech you therefore take care not onely to name Justices but that they be sworne and execute judgement The life of all Laws you know well lies in their execution O that your care would appeare about this which I speake not onely from my selfe but from thousands more For my part I had rather live where nothing is lawfull then where every thing is lawfull The Lacedemonian being asked by one how they came to be so strong a people Answered well The Lawes doe governe us and we by them doe governe the people Beleeve me if you do not carefully see Justice done upon sinne God himself will see Justice done upon you 2. A mutuall complying amongst your selves in matters which necessarily referre to the publike preservation how familiar is Machiavils destructive maxime to your mindes and tongues Divide impera rent them and ruine them and yet there is not a more sad spectacle to us who stand below upon the earth then to heare of those rents and divisions in that upper Region which is above us Divisions in Counsells divisions in Armies divisions in all I confesse that division once made a Tower of Babel but it never made a saving Arke I once wished when I preached before you that the Parliament had no friend you remember the sense wherein I spake it And now I wish that the Parliament had but one man left in it Nay doe not wonder at the expression there is no hurt at all in it I say but one man Nothing but Unity no division at all that all of you might be as one man of one heart of one minde of one endeavour to save our divided and perishing Kingdome 3. Timely Supplies Beloved there are three After-games which every Judicious man accounts very ill and sad The first is for a mans Name The second is for a mans Soule And the third is for a Kingdomes Safety O how my heart hath aked for the neglecting of our late Army in the West God knows where the fault rests every eye was open to see our opportunity both offered and lost Let me freely tell them whosoever they were that were guilty of delaying their helpe That a few more such omissions will shake the Thoughts and Hearts of the people if not also the safety of the whole Kingdome unlesse any amongst you can assure to themselves the Power of Christ to raise Lazarus when hee is Three or Foure dayes dead I beseech you and againe I beseech you let no more seasons be lost But what you doe doe in time for ought you know the Kingdome might have been setled if timely succour had been forwarded 4. Your now prepared Propositions of Peace The Scriptures tell us That wee must follow Peace yea though it be flying from us And Peace with all men much more amongst our selves Now then if your Termes of Peace be such as I presume they are That Peace and Christ doe meet together that Peace and Holinesse doe meet together that Peace and Truth doe meet together That Peace and Reformation meet together That Peace and Justice meet together That Peace and Safety meet together I will be bold to say That such Termes of Peace will speake for you before God and will acquit you before all the World They will be our comfort if obteined However they will be our safety though denied 3. Lastly For Gods House the other which I mentioned I humbly conceive That the Arke to save it may be made as Times are now with us of two Acts of yours 1. One is your Abhorring of the mentioning yea of the very thoughts of Tollerating all opinions in the Church This were such a monstrous Prodigie such an Intollerable way of Confusion Such a mocking of the people of God! Such a mocking of God himself To whom wee have all Solemnly engaged our utmost for Unity in Doctrine and Uniformity in Discipline such a speedy Grave for the Kingdome and Church that mischief it selfe could not easily digge the like Such a spirit to revive Arrianisme Pelagianisme the Turkish Alcoran the Popish Hoast c. And yet I have seene walking Bookes and Printed Books for this purpose For my part Right Honourable If God thinkes fit I should rather wish to lie in my Grave then live to behold such an intollerable Tolleration Most of the Arguments for this wildnesse of late I have found heretofore used by one who stiled himselfe Martinus Bellius a friend to that monstrous Heretick Servetus all which are related and confuted by learned and pious Beza in his booke de Haereticis a civili Magistratu puniendis 2. The second is Call upon the Assembly to hasten their worke unto which you have summon'd them bee pleased to command the sight of that Government which you desire to have setled in the Church of Christ If I mistake not you may finde most of the Principalls agreed upon as for the fillings up let them if time supply us be debated at leisure And that no more rubbs may lie in the way If there be any party more considerable then another use your Authority that they may cleerly and fully represent the whole platforme of their Government that wee may try it by the Infallible Touchstone of the Scriptures where if it can indure the Tryall and finde Approbation wee will with all our hearts embrace it If not then neither they should nor we nor any else countenance or submit unto it And thus have I as I trust faithfully discharged my duty unto you this Day If God will be pleased to incline your Hearts to regard what hath been said I shall not doubt but that an Arke of Safety will attend you and all of us notwithstanding all the dangerous Deluges which now threaten us FINIS Die Martis 22. Octob. 1644. Ordered by the Commons assembled in Parliament That Mr. Ashurst and Mr. Gourdon doe from this House give Thanks to Mr. Obadiah Sedgwick for the great paines he took in the Sermon he Preached this Day at the intreatie of this House at St. Margarets Westminster it being a Day especially set apart for a Publique Humiliation and to desire him to Print his Sermon And it is Ordered that none shall presume to Print his Sermon without leave under his hand writing H. Elsynge Cler. Parl. D. Com. I appoint Samuel Gellibrand to Print this SERMON OBADIAH SEDGVVICK