Selected quad for the lemma: book_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
book_n	apostle_n	church_n	faith_n	1,775	5	4.9897	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A26975	Of national churches their description, institution, use, preservation, danger, maladies and cure, partly applied to England / written by Richard Baxter for promoting peace ... and for the fuller explication of the Treaty for Concord in 1660 and 1661, and of the Kings gracious declaration about ecclesiastical affairs ... and for further explication of his treatise of episcopacy ...	Baxter, Richard, 1615-1691.	1691 (1691)	Wing B1329; ESTC R13726	59,031	82

OF National Churches Their Description Institution Use Preservation Danger Maladies and Cure Partly applied to England Written by RICHARD BAXTER for promoting peace when the pacifying Day shall come by Healing their Extremes that are willing of Peace and Healing And for the fuller Explication of the Treaty for Concord in 1660 and 1661. and of the Kings Gracious Declaration about Ecclesiastical Affairs for which he had publick thanks by them that afterward rejected it And for further Explication of his Treatise of Episcopacy and many others written for Peace and rejected Rev. 11. 15. The Kingdoms of this World are become the Kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ and he shall Reign for ever and ever Chap. 19. 16. King of Kings and Lord of Lords Matth. 5. 9. Blessed are the Peace-makers for they shall be called the Children of God Jam. 3. 17. The wisdom that is from above is first Pure and then Peaceable c. London Printed by T. Snowden for Thomas Parkhurst at the Bible and Three Crowns the lower end of Cheapside 1691. THE EPISTLE TO THE READER Reader THIS short Discourse cometh not from the expectation of pleasing any of the Extremes the Tyrannical or the Confounders And therefore in a Time and Countrey where those that escape Extremes are few it must expect but the private approbation of those few But those few and their Cause are so considerable as that if God mean not to forsake the Land they may yet become the Agents and stamina of a happy concordant Reformation Of which in the appearance of Second Causes there is yet no great prospect nor like to be unless God cause the Supreme Power by Wisdom and Righteousness or by their own constraining Interest and Necessity to drive the Worldly Unpeaceable Sort to obey Healing Precepts for their own Advantage contrary to their Temptations and Inclinations If such a day come when I am dead these Principles will be of use They are not lately taken up by me as you may see in my Five Disputations of Church Government c. in my Treatise of Episcopacy Nonconformity stated c. and in our frustrated Treaty for Concord 1660 1661. In the state that we are in while we have none to whom we have any Call or Hope to address our selves for publick Concord let us keep our selves from the guilt of unpeaceableness and bear the Slanders and Wrongs of false Accusers and thank God for checking the Power of Persecutors and let us make peace among those that we may speak to with any hope and wait on God till he shew us whether he be saving or forsaking the Land and the rest of the Reformed Unreformed Churches And to them that will be offended with me for saying so much for Bishops and Archbishops let them know that this Book is but an Attendant on a bigger written against a Foreign Jurisdiction or Popery which sheweth that I am no more for the Extremes of others ' than of theirs As also my Treatise of Episcopacy hath shewn And here I have proved that Popery is but a Fabrick built on the Ruins of National Churches or Christian Kingdoms And if it ever fall it must be by their Restoration The Lord pity the Blind Malignant Self-destroying World and prepare us better for a better Society London March 26. 1691. Richard Baxter LET the Reader note that § 7 8 9 and 10. of the XII th Chapter are misplaced and must be read as the end of the IX th Chapter The rest of the Errata's I have not time togather THE CONTENTS CHap. I. What a National Church is Ch. II. That Christ Instituted such a Church Form Ch. III. In the Execution as well as Embrio Judea was such Ch. IV. Particular Churches and Pastors how far Essential to a National Church and what are its Materials Ch. V. The Pastors or Bishops of National Churches are to be of three Ranks Apostolick Successors Ch. VI. Who must be the Lay-members of National Churches Ch. VII What is the Confederacy or Concord needful to a National Church Ch. VIII How far this Confederacy and Concord bindeth the Members of a National Church to Conformity Ch. IX That Christ hath Instituted no Ecclesiastical Government in Man of any larger extent than National much less Universal nor of Foreign Jurisdiction And that the French Aristocracy with the Popes Primacy and Patriarchate is as bad as Papal Monarchy Ch. X. Whether Universal Church Government more than per partes be of Apostolick Succession Ch. XI Whether National Church Primacy or Aristocracy infer Universal Ch. XII 1. Whether the Romans Church Policy should be chosen as strengthning the common Christian Interest 2. Whether Protestants Differences and Divisions make the Roman way of Concord necessary 3. Whether Protestants or Papists have more Errors Chap. XIII What are the Dangerous Diseases of a National Church Chap. XIV Whether the Present Church of England be of a sound Constitution and what is Necessary to its Welfare Safety Strength and Peace Chap. XV. The Case answered Of Tolerating Dissenters from the Laws or Customs of a National Church Books Printed for and Sold by Tho. Parkhurst at the Bible and Three Crowns in Cheapside near Mercers Chapel Baxter's Catholick Theology plain pure peaceable for Pacification of the Dogmatical Word-Warriours in three books Folio His Church History of Government of Bishops and their Councils Abbreviated Quarto His true History of Councils enlarged and defended Quarto His Treatise of Episcopacy Quarto His Saints Everlasting rest in four parts Quarto His Paraphrase on the New Testament Quarto His Life of Faith in three parts Quarto His answer to Dodwel and Sherlock Quarto His Catholick Communion in five parts Quarto Catholick Communion doubly defended c. Whether Parish Congregations be true Christian Churches defended against both Extremes Unnecessary Divisions Quarto His Apology for Non-Conforming Ministers Quarto His Naked Popery c. Quarto His Treatise of Knowledge and Love Compared c. in two parts Quarto His English Non-Conformity as under King Charles the second and King James the second truely Stated and Argued the Second Edition Quarto His Treatise of Self-Denial Octavo His Defence of Non-Conformists Plea for Peace Octavo His Full and Easy satisfaction which is the True and Safe Religion Octavo His Key for Catholicks opening the Juglings of the Jesuits Octavo His Catechizing of Families Octavo His Scriptures Gospel Defended and Christ Grace and free Justification vindicated against the Libertines Octavo His Two Disputations of Original Sin Octavo His Cain and Abel Malignity that is Enmity to Serious Godliness c. Octavo His Call to the Unconverted to turn and live c. Octavo His Glorious Kingdom of Christ described and clearly vindicated c. Quarto stitcht His Reply to Mr. Beverly's Answer to my Reasons against his Doctrine of a thousand years Quarto stitcht His Farewel Sermon prepared to have been Preached to his hearers at Kederminster at his departure but forbidden Quarto published

the Jewish State and not an Universal And this National Form went before that part of the Apostles Work and Power which was to be Universal or Indefinite § 15. IV. The Apostles made no Universal Laws of their own but only promulgated the Laws of Christ which by his Word and Spirit he taught them And to that end he promised and gave them his Spirit to lead them into all Truth and bring all to their remembrance and they were sent to all Nations indefinitely to Convert them and Baptize them and to teach them to observe all things that Christ had commanded them The Cryer is not the Law-maker though he proclaim the Law The Obligations to Infant-baptism and the Lords day alledged by some as Apostolical Laws are from Christ himself as I have proved elsewhere at large the Apostles being Authorized Witnesses and Promulgators And had they done it by the extraordinary promised Spirit it had so been Christs own Law-giving no other having that promise of the Spirit to make a new Word of God or Universal Law by bringing all his Commands to remembrance and leading them into all Truth The determinations Acts 15. were also the delivery of the Law of Christ the Holy Ghost giving them the certain understanding of it And it 's like that as two of the four Cases Fornication and Idol-Communion were of known Morality so the other two strangled and Blood-eating if not so were not of Universal Obligation but only to those Gentiles that lived among the offended Jews The like may be said about the Institution of Deacons and Bishops of single Churches If they did not Institute them as in Christs Name by his Command or Spirit but had Authority from him to do it as Apostles It was under the promise of the Spirits Infallible Guidance and a Temporary Work in which they have no Successors For Christs Church would never be formed nor his Laws and Word setled perfect if we must have Men in all Ages to add to his Church Ordinances and Officers and to make him new Laws and a new Word How big would his Bible be then at the last Why have no new Scriptures as his been so made these 1600 years I hope our Volumes of Councils will not go for such § 16. V. The occasional determination of Questions about mutable Circumstances as long Hair the Vails the Love-feasts the time of Collections for Charity and divers such were not Universal but Local and not of Immutable but occasional Mutable Obligation and were but such as National and Congregational Governors may determine without any Universal Supreme Power The Genus or Rule by which they must be determined Edification Love Concord Peace Decency Order being Gods Laws § 17. VI. There is great difference between what the Apostles did as Segregate or Dis-junct each one in his Province and what they did as an Aristocratical Person or College unitedly They Ordained Elders gave the Holy Ghost setled Churches decided Controversies wrote Books and Epistles singly each one in his Province and met not to write any one Book or Epistle by a Major College-Vote in one Body And though their Books now oblige all the Church that have them yet 1. At the first writing they obliged only the Churches or Persons to whom they were written and only after by parity of Reason bind others that have them And every ordinary Pastor that writeth a Book that is sound Divinity bringeth an Obligation on all that read it to obey it according to the Evidence of truth The Obligation of the Apostles Books and theirs is Extensively Indefinite or Universal to all that read or hear it But the Degree of the Obligation Intensively is greater from the Apostles Writings because of their extraordinary Spirit § 18. VII The decision Acts 15. was not by a General Council nor a Pope No such Council was called But they were sent and appealed to as Men of most infallible fitness to decide that Case and if they did it as a College it was only as a National Church College such as de formâ the Jews Nation had in which relation they were first setled For as Twelve they were only so related others being added to be sent with them to the Centiles And besides and after that we never read that they did any thing but in their separate Provinces and Personal Capacity § 10 VIII And as they never did as an Universal Aristocratical College by Vote make new Universal Laws to the Church much less by any ordinary continued Power so neither did they as such a College exercise Judicial or Executive power but did it in their single Capacities only in their proper Provinces and that was partly by an ordinary power of Reproof and Excommunication which continueth and partly by an extraordinary miraculous power of delivering to Satan for Corporal punishment which power is ceased with them Tho' Papists in a mock-imitation deliver the Excommunicate to the Secular powers to be kill'd as if these were Devils As for the Universal Laws that tell whom to Excommunicate they are Christs own Laws and Rules of Judgment To which if men may add the like no wonder if they make Sin and Heresie as they please and Excommunicate and deliver to Satan their Magistrates whom they will and if he that was an Orthodox Saint this year be burnt without change as an Heretick the next and it be never certain till the end of the World what is Heresie or Sin and what not § 20. IX It being certain then that the Apostles did not as an Aristocratical Supreme power over the Universal Church Exercise Legislation Judgment and Execution much less by any ordinary continued power it followeth that they have no Successors that have such power and all Government being contained in these three parts there is de Jure no Universal Governour § 21. X. The power of Moses and Aaron were of equal extent and both of Divine Institution but Aaron was under Moses Government And Christ gave the Twelve and Seventy at first no larger Provinces or Power And when he added more and sent them to the Gentiles he commanded every Soul to be subject to the Princes power as of God Therefore their power in the Empire was limited and subject to the Imperial Government and so in other Lands They were bound to fear God and Honour the King They might by Doctoral and Nunciative Authority perswade Emperors and deliver Gods Commands and so still may any ordinary Teacher but not by Imperant Judicial and Executive power Govern them unless by self-subjecting they make them their Governors as Pupils do their Tutors and Patients their Physicions Yea they could make no Man a Christian but by Persuasion to voluntary consent and till they were Christians they could not Govern them as Christians And they were not Governors of the World but Monitors and Persuaders § 22. XI Indefinite and were it possible Universal Concord Love and Communion All Christians must endeavour