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A70390 A sermon preach'd at Turners-Hall, the 5th of May, 1700 by George Keith ; in which he gave an account of his joyning in communion with the Church of England ; with some additions and enlargements made by himself. Keith, George, 1639?-1716. 1700 (1700) Wing K209; ESTC R14185 28,024 34

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be great uncharitableness Will they dare to judge so of the publick Prayers of the Church of Christ that were in Set Forms in the purest Times of Primitive Christianity from the days of the Apostles in the Three First Centuries as is evident from Church History before Popery was heard of in the World Or will they be so uncharitable to Censure the publick Prayers of the Jewish Church in her best and purest Times who had Set Forms of Worship both for Prayer and Thanksgiving And that it was the constant manner of the Jewish Church to have a Part of the Publick Worship with the Priests joining with them in Vocal Prayer with their Mouths and Lips Both in Prayer and Thanksgiving is clear from many places of Scripture in the Old Testament where no doubt their Assemblies both in the Temple and Synagogues consisted of a great mixture of good and bad Sincere and Hypocritical see Psal 50. 15 16. This was spoken not to Priests only but to the People and Isai 29. 13. where the Lord blam'd not the People simply for drawing near to God with their Mouth and honouring him with their Lips but that while they did give him that outward Part of Worship they had removed their Heart far from him and gave him not the internal as well as the external Part of Worship the internal being as the Soul and the external as the Body of it This clearly shews what the manner of their Publick Worship then was and that the People that assembled did really Pray Vocally with the Priests and that they did Offer unto God the Calves of their Lips according to Hos 14. 2. And in like manner the Christians in their Assemblies are commanded to Offer up unto God the Fruit of their Lips Heb. 13. 15. and though the Sacrifice of Praise is there only mentioned yet no doubt Prayer is also understood and is as real a Duty for the People to practise as that of Praise and if People may Sing with the Spirit and yet use Set Forms as they do in Singing David's Psalms in Publick Congregations all of them some Anabaptists excepted why may they not Pray with the Spirit in Set Forms If the Set Form quench not the Spirit in Singing why should it be supposed to do it in Praying It is indeed one of the chiefest Reasons that perswade me that in the Publick Worship of God Set Forms are necessary because the People ought to have a Part of the external Worship as well as the internal by Confessing Praying and giving thanks in Common with their Mouths and Lips as in believing in one Common Faith with their Hearts being a holy Priesthood unto God 1 Pet. 2. 5. And whereas they say the Ministers Mouth when he Prays is the Peoples Mouth unto God in Publick Prayer As this is allowed that sometimes so it is but to say it is always and must be always so is without ground yea is hurtful and prejudicial for so as God is denied that external Service from the People that is due to him of Adoration the People is deprived of that which is their Priviledge and a great Benefit unto them to speak unto God by themselves and not by a Proxy always when they Pray And if Prayer with the Mouth be a Duty in Private for all Christian People it is no less a Duty or rather much more in Publick We are Commanded to Confess with the Mouth as well as Believe with our Heart to hold fast the Profession of our Faith the Greek word in both places signifies a joint Confession simul dicere to say together How should we know one anothers Faith that we hold it fast but by holding fast the Profession of it in joining together in the Christian Assemblies Vocally and with word of Mouth to Confess what we Believe as we are Commanded and as with one Mind so with one Mouth to Glorifie God Rom. 15. 6. This one Mind is the Consent and Harmony of many Minds and therefore the one Mouth is not one simple Mouth of the Minister no more than it is one single Mind of the Minister but the Consent and Harmony of many Mouths even of the whole Congregation There is a greater Advantage and Benefit in Vocal Prayer by the Organs of Speech when duly performed both in Private and Publick than many do well understand and especially in Publick both for their own good and the good of others Although our Prayers neither Vocal nor Mental move God properly speaking yet they move our selves and others and if the Spirit of God assist in our Vocal Prayers as we have cause to believe he doth so assist all good Christians though not in that manner as he did the Prophets that Motion kindles a Celestial Fire both in our selves and others that hear us and if one Mouth so divinely moved kindles a little many Mouths so moved will kindle a great deal St. James tells us the Tongues of wicked Men are set on the Fire of Hell and that one Tongue is like a little Spark of Fire that kindles a great matter James 3. 5. And why may not we as well conclude that the Tongues of Godly Men are enkindled with Fire from Heaven Yea it stands with good reason that Holy Angels who are present in the Assemblies of the Faithful are moved with the Vocal Prayers and Praises of the Faithful in the Church whereby they know our inward States and Thoughts as Men know our Thoughts by our Words when we sincerely express them for Angels know not our Thoughts immediately but mediately either by audible words or by some soft and gentle motion of our bodily Organs of Speech Also it stands with good reason from Scripture Authority that our blessed Mediatour Jesus Christ not as he is God but as he is Man in our Nature now in Heaven glorified is really moved and affected with the Prayers both Mental and Vocal of the Faithful Heb. 4. 15. We find in the Revelations that after the four Living Creatures i. e. the Body of the Church had sung together their Antheme the Twenty Four Elders i. e. the Governours answered with their Antiphone and the Angels answered both with theirs Rev. 4. 8 9 10. compared with Rev. 5. from ver 8. to 12. Now if the People in the Publick Worship should have a Part joining in Vocal Prayer and Thanksgiving with the Minister and answering him sometimes by saying Amen sometimes by other fit and suitable words this must needs be in Set Forms that both are agreed in and know beforehand otherwise either the People must be tied to his Form which however Extempore to him and free yet to them is a Limitation and Restriction as much and much less safe than to be tied to a Form they had formerly known and been acquainted with or else we must suppose a Miracle to be wrought every time they Pray Vocally together If every of them or any two of them Pray extempore in the