Selected quad for the lemma: book_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
book_n	church_n	doctrine_n	read_v	2,665	5	6.2970	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A35044	The hard way to heaven explained and applyed in a sermon intended to be preached at Peters-Cornhill, but by reason of the disorderly concourse preached at St. Katherines Creed-Church London, the 27th of July 1662, being the third day after his release / by Z. Crofton.	Crofton, Zachary, 1625 or 6-1672.	1662 (1662)	Wing C6995; ESTC R29659	37,927	47

THE Hard way to HEAVEN Explained and applyed in A SERMON Intended to be preached at Peters-Cornhill but by Reason of the disorderly Concourse preached at St. Katherines Creed-Church London the 27th of July 1662. being the third day after his release By Z. CROFTON Minister at Buttolphs-Algate Taken as Preached in Characters compared with his own Notes providentially lost and brought to our hands Now published to check and correct the misrepresentation thereof by the Sons of slander and Subjects of weakness LONDON Printed in the Year 1662. To the Reader Good Reader THe untrue and direct contrary reports of this Sermon and its Authour extort the publication thereof Mr. Crofton will not do it he contenteth himself in the conscience of his integrity and accounts it an easie thing to be judged of men yea of good men his good name is the Churches advantage and ought to be preserved and defended against the calumnies of the wicked and censures of the weak who wound not him without more deeply wounding their own souls I having written this Sermon from his mouth in short-hand and by his Notes lost by his Son and by Providence directed to my hand having supplyed what time and the disorder of the audience caused him to pretermit I thought it my duty to hazard the discontent of my friend and Pastour and to present thee with the same that by unprejudiced reading thou mayest be undeceived edified and enabled to contradict the clamours of the sons of slander and check the censure of the over-credulous subjects of weakness though not of Sanctity Recantation is most strangely expected from him who never yet was charged or by argumentation was convinced of an errour on whom no terms or conditions for obtainment of Liberty was once imposed or so much as proposed by any person whatsover whose non-conformity was fully freely and to the honour of the honourable Persons before whom he was convened acceptably declared and the occasion yea formality of which is no other then a consciencious practice and profession of principles he ever stated in his late contests for Reformation I wonder to finde some serious Christians scandalized at Mr. Crofton's attendance on Gods solemn publick worship celebrated according to the order of the Common Prayer Book and to hear men censure him for the same as if defective and an apostate from the cause of Reformation in which he appeared with so much vi●our I must tell the Reader such as sate under his ministry cannot but know and witness he ever adjudged against separation in his most earnest perswading or endeavours for reformation he alway disswaded non-communion of members as non-conformity of Ministers and did constantly and convincingly affirm that ministerial disorder and corrupt appendents in Gods worship was not a sufficient cause of personal absence or non-attendents on the same he ever concluded guilt on the Church Collective by these disorders and corruptions which did not stain individuals looking to their own personal actings in their necessary attendance on Gods Ordinance Verily we must say Mr. Crofton in prison did only practice what he preached whilst at liberty Such was Mr. Croftons care and condition in his late contests for reformation not to be esteemed an Advocate for separation or an approver of non-communion much lesse a Martyr for them that in his late writing he professeth his judgement and resolution against them In his Analepsis or St. Peters bonds abiding thou hast him thus professing I protest whatsoever shall be the establishment in the Church though never so corrupt whilst consistent with salvation though it may occasion to me sufferings and the suspence of my ministry by Gods grace it shall not effect in me or such on whom I have influence Schisme from the Church In his Analepsis Anaelephthe or the fastning of St. Peters bonds he avoweth this reformation cannot justifie the separation for that the corruptions established were never made such essential parts of worship as to make a sufficient ground for separation The sober zealous Non-conformists who groaned under the burden of these corruptions and for this reformation were grieved by and greatly contended against the separation as that which was without sufficient ground yea like Jesus Christ their Master they kept communion with a Church whose doctrine and worship was in much need of reformation yea and they taught men so to do And in his Epistle to Mr. Firmius Liturgical Considerator Considered in which he apologiseth for Ministers not reading not for members not learning the Common Prayer Book he tells us expresly his judgement and resolution in these express words I am so much affected to the peace of the Church that I have of late preached what God assisting I resolve to practise viz. many and great corruptions in Gods worship are to be grieved for patiently and groaned under before Schismes be consented unto and separation consulted provided nevertheless I be passive not active I can keep communion under that form of worship whereby I cannot administer and heartily say Amen to the matter of those Petitians which are put up in an order so confused preposterous and indigested that it seemeth to me to be so much below the gravity of the Church whose mouth I must be the seriousness of the office whereby I minister the sanctity of the duty I am to perform and the sacred nature of the object to whom they are presented that I dare not stand between God and his people in the same Let these passages and the like in his late writings be observed as the best of his Judgement and Conscience and let malice it self read in his practise the least contradiction to his Cause or Principles or defection from the same or not read with half an eye an exact conformity to himself and clear obedience to his judgement in a non-conforming communion Good Reader be pleased to observe that Mr. Crofton's attendance on the solemn worship of God in the Tower and in the Common Prayer Book order is so far from being the result of his restraint and effect of temptation or any condition in order to his release that his judgement was ever for it He never did conceive that Order though to be corrected a moral sufficient bar to this duty and therefore the very first day he came in prisoner he did desire of the Lieutenant the liberty of going to Church and not obtaining it he did demand it the next day from his Gaoler he did many times petition for the same and sollicited the obtainment thereof many months before he did obtain it nay I must further acquaint thee it is now neer upon a compleat year since Mr. Crofton it being rumored that he went to the Church in the Tower and he heard Common Prayer did write a full Apology and defence of his practice which was then but in the view in that case this Apology passed through my hands to many good people and Ministers who would not undertake to convince the same