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A56561 A discourse of penal laws in matter of religion endeavouring to prove that there is no necessity of inflicting or continuing them : first delivered in a sermon ... occasioned by His Majesties late gracious declaration for liberty of conscience, and now humbly offer'd to the consideration of the publick / by James Paston ... Paston, James, d. 1722? 1688 (1688) Wing P665; ESTC R915 15,251 41

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Different also in the Doctrine of each The Law teaches an active Valour Deut. 31.6 to be strong and of good Courage But the Gospel a Passive to turn the other Cheek when one is smitten and Blessedness we find chiefly promised to suffering Vertues To the poor in Spirit Mat. 5. to those that Mourn to the Meek to the Merciful to those that are Persecuted for Righteousness sake The Law forbad Actual Killing but the Gospel even Causeless Anger The Law allow'd Retaliation Eye for Eye and Tooth for Tooth but the Gospel forbids resisting of Evil The Law commands loving of Neighbours and hating of Enemies but the Gospel commands loving of Enemies to Bless them that Curse us to do good to them that hate us and to Pray for them that despitefully Use and Persecute us Fourthly Different also were the Behaviours of the Propagators of each towards those that oppos'd them and different the Punishments of their Opposers When Pharaoh withstood Moses Exod. 7. c. Miracles of Vengeance are inflicted his Rod is turn'd into a stinging Serpent the Waters of Egypt into Blood the gain-saying People are infested with Frogs and Flies and Locusts with such Darkness as might be felt the Dust of the Land is turn'd into Lice the Cattel are afflicted with Murrain the People with Boils and Blains both Man and Beast with Thunder and Hail and Fire running upon the Ground all the first born of Egypt are smitten with sudden Death And Moses's Law more over inflicted Death upon several sorts of Criminals among themselves The Murderer Num. 25.16 the Thief the Breaker of the Sabbath Deut. 24.7 the Rebellious and Disobedient were to die the Death Exo. 31.15 and the Priests themselves sometimes were the Executioners of Mortal Vengeance Deut. 21.21 and sometimes procured it by miraculous Means Phineas the Son of Eleazer Stabs Corby and the Midianitish Woman Num. 25.8 the Sons of Levi are commanded by Moses himself to put on every Man his Sword and to go in and out from Gate to Gate throughout the Camp and to slay every Man his Neighbour the Prophet mention'd in this Chapter by the Disciples call'd down Fire from Heaven upon the Captains and their Fiftys who were sent to apprehend him These and many other Instances we have in the Old Testament shewing the vindictive Behaviour of the Asserters and Propagators of the Law towards those who infring'd or oppos'd it But the Carriage of the meek Lamb of God is quite different All his Miracles were such as were winning not terrifying Miracles of Mercy not of Vengeance all perform'd without noise or Pomp. He feeds the Hungry gives Sight to the Blind Hearing to the Deaf Raises the Dead Mat. 14.19 12.22 Mark. 7.35 And when notwithstanding all these wonderful Works of Love he is led as a Lamb to the Slaughter Act. 8.32 and as a Sheep before her Shearer is Dumb he opens not his Mouth unless it be to put in practice his stupendiously Charitable precept of Praying for his Maliciously Blind Persecutors Father forgive them they know not what they do Luk 23.34 No Vengeance no return but of Good for Evil no Fire from Heaven but that of Love to melt their hard Hearts No exterior Force no outward Punishments are made necessary in the Gospel For the Christian Church was to overcome its Adversaries by meekness to conquer by patient Suffering to silence its Gainsayers by Martyrdom It is true we find such an Expression as this in a Parable Compel them to come in Luk. 14.23 But its force seems to be abated in another where it is said Mat. 13.29 Let the Wheat and the Tares grow together till the day of Judgement In which last Parable Christ Intimates at least that there is no absolute necessity of rooting up probably least some undiscerning rash Hand pluck up the Wheat with the Tares destroy the good with the bad and then moreover that Expression Compell them to come in Paraphrase upon the place According to the Learned Dr. Hammond implyes not outward Force but the more gentle compulsion of Love Which as the Wise man tells us Cant. 8.6 Is as strong as Death Compel them to come in according to the Paraphrast is importunately Woo them And the Apostles followed their Master in these ways of Meekness they propagated his Religion by gentle means by their own not by others Suffering they endur'd Stripes and Imprisonment and Death Act. 5.40 2 Cor. 11 25 but inflicted none of these Severities upon others either without or within the Church Act. 12.2 7.58 Ananias and Saphira were destroyed by sudden Death Act. 5.5.10 but it was by the immediate Hand of God Almighty we read not that this Vengeance was called for or so much as wish'd for by the Apostles whom these Criminals endeavour'd to impose upon the Apostles sure were Infallibly certain that they taught the Truth Joh. 16.13 Mat 28.22 Luk. 10.16 and yet they endeavour'd with all midness to perswade others to embrace it and with Patience endur'd the stubborn and unreasonable contradiction of their Opposers And this gentle course was taken also in succeeding Ages and the Church grew and flourish'd by being irregated by the Blood not of Adversaries but of its Martyr'd Children near three hundred years pass'd from the death of our Saviour before there were any Christian Kings or Emperours and therefore before there was any outward Force And yet Christianity made out its way not like Vinegar or Aqua-fortis but like Oyl it gently spread and easily insinuated into all Bodies and all Societies it conquer'd without any Sword but that of the Spirit There was no rooting out of a Canaanite no slaying of Old and Young Infant and Suckling Sheep and Oxen. And when Christians took up Arms it was in Defence of their Goverours and by Temporal Authority upon which account they often laid down their Lives but would not otherwise lift up their Hands to defend themselves from their Persecuting Enemies For Fifthly The Law and the Gospel differ'd in their very Constitution By the Law the Civil and Ecclesiastical Powers were blended and interwoven together from the beginning by God Almighty's own Authority And Moses and Aaron went Hand in Hand But the Gospel came into the World without any Temporal Power to support it all Temporal Governments were against it Their Lord of Hosts now become the Prince of Peace and the Lyon of the Tribe of Judah the meek Lamb of God so great and so manimanifold were Differences between the Law and the Gospel The Spirit of Christianity is a Spirit of Meekness the Disposition and Temper of Christians ought to be Meek and Humble and Patient But according to the IV. Next Observation from the Words men are apt to forget or not to regard what manner of Spirit they are of It is evident from their being so prone to be carried away by a different Spirit