Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	church_n	deny_v	true_a	1,490	5	5.4129	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A58941	Sacramentorum encomium: or The praise of the sacraments in a letter written in the year 1654 to the preacher then at Barham in the county of Kent, with-holding the holy sacraments from a great number of godly souls, unless they would subject themselves against laws and good conscience to a rigid Presbyterian government. Wherein the said government is plainly and undeniably proved to be (of all other) the most injurious to the magistrate, most oppressive to the subject, &c. Published by a member of the parish of Barham, for the satisfaction of all wel-affected subjects, and good Christians.	Member of the parish of Barnham.	1661 (1661)	Wing S223B; ESTC R219820	25,942	69

people whom they expect should do just as they would have them be it right or wrong will not presently go out of the old and instantly come into a new Church way and that even before they are shewn what it is or where it lies or the contrivers of it themselves have thorowly agreed what it shall be a way which when by themselves as they may think perfected will in all likelyhood be as little liked of and followed by the most godly most wise and most learned men of this Nation as it hath been practised by them since the time of our blessed Saviors coming into the world till the first year of Liberty for every one to take upon him what Religion he pleaseth broach what Heresie he fancieth and be of what Sect he conceiveth most to his own advantage And is it any other then an unsatisfactory reason in those Austere Doctors which will not administer the holy Sacrament of Baptism to those children whose Parents though visibly in the Covenant of God and visible members of Christs Church though they acknowledg themselves to believe in him and by vertue of his merits to obtain everlasting life and though they desire to partake of his Ordinances yet because they will not in every thing dance after their pipe will not have a hand with them in renting in pieces the seamless Coat of their Saviour will not apprehend all their errors to be truths will not suffer themselves to be rid upon by these unmercifull horsmen under pretence of Church discipline will not break the bond of unity amongst themselves but maintain a sociable familiarity and sometimes as they have too too much cause speak against Pharisaical practises yet because they will not confess all that these teachers say to be true all that they practise to be good all that they would have done to be of absolute necessity to be done shall therefore be denied the benefit of the Holy Sacraments though accused by no other then themselves to be ignorant scandalous and scoffers at Religion and hereupon be rejected as Children of wrath plain Aliens altogether without hope utterly without God in this present world Miserable were the condition of man if it were by a perpetual Law established that these partial and hard-hearted Rulers should be his Accusers and Judges For should not God through his unspeakeable goodness shew mercy unto thousands of poor Children whose remote forefathers loved him They must forever go without it for these men and all because their immediate parents were such as would not every way square themselves according to their wild fancies and unrectified judgments But suppose those immediate parents were wicked indeed as they many times only pretend them to be so Hath not God told them plain enough by the Prophet Ezekiel Ez. 18.20 That the child shall not suffer for the iniquity of the Father is it not evident that the Children of wicked Parents amongst the Jews were circumcised and if so why may not Children proceeding from the like Parents of the Christians be baptized sith it is not to be doubted his hand is not shortned and he hath given as large priviledges to us under the Gospel as he gave to them under the Law otherwise we should be loosers by the coming of Christ which Credat Judaeus Apella non nos though the circumcised Jew will believe we will be far from giving credit to any such monstruous improbability Nisi forte arbitramur Christum in suo adventu Patris gra●…am imminuisse aut decurtasse quod ex●crabi●… blasphemia non va●… C●l Inst lib. 4. c. 16. sect 4. We read that Saint John the Baptist sprang for joy in his Mothers womb at the salutation of the Virgin Luke 1.41 but are to seek for the cause of so great joy had his birth been so disadvantagious to him and others in that condition the coming of Christ witness the testimony of an Angel from heaven and the Holy Ghost bearing witness of the truth of that Testimony was joyous to all Lu. 2.20 all sexes all conditions all ages advantagious to all even to Infants Our most blessed Saviour brought grace along with him Grace and Truth saith John Joh. 1.17 came by with Jesus Christ Grace in the superlative degree reaching spreading farther under the new then the old Testament The grace of God which bringeth salvation hath appeared saith the Apostle Tit. 2.11 to all men i.e. to all sorts of ages conditions of men The grace of God in an ordinary dispensation was first appropriated to the Jews they were then his favourites to whom his grace in Christ was manifested but now that grace hath appeared to all men the grace of the Gospel is more ample and every wayes greater Grace then that before or under the Law God having provided some better things for us saith the Apostle Heb. 11.40 more greater and better privileges for us under the Gospel then for them under the Law and by consequence for the Children of the Christians then for the Children of the Jews which could not be if our Children had not right to the Covenant as well as theirs Had these Teachers who are thus scrupulous in administring this holy Ordinance perused and minded holy and learned Perkins his works as much as they use to read and and study the noval and schismatical Pamphlets of the time they might have been taught by him that The Children of Parents that are professed members of the Church though cut off for a time upon some offence committed have right to Baptism because it is not in the power of man to cut them off from Christ though excommunicated which being so why may not the Children descending from Parents though in their persons wicked not excommunicated have right to the sacred Ordinance of Baptism sith those of the very excommunicated in the Judgment of so profound a Master as Perkins have right thereunto But behold the opinion by the practice of a greater then Perkins even of John the Baptist himself who baptized all that came unto him for his Baptism Mat. 3.5 amongst others even those very Pharisees and Sadduces whom at the same time he called a generation of vipers Mat. 3.7 and the latter of whom denyed the resurrection it self And as they are no other then unsatisfactory reasons which are given for not administring the holy Sacrament of Baptism what are they better which are rendred for their not admitting those that are Religious and knowing Christians to the supper of the Lord because peradventure there may be some in a Parish who may be Scandalous or ignorant or others who will refuse to make answer to some needless questions may be demanded by such as rake it to be a part of their function to make a deeper search into consciences then any Law of God or reason of man inforceth and upon this denyal they shall be put off to another time from the mystery of

our own vileness makes us afraid at heart that we our selves are the greatest of sinners such as when we consider our own deservings we cannot but tremble with terror and amazement at the just and dreadful punishment due unto us for sin and hereby have learned to pity others as fellow sinners not think our selves too good to accompany them in civil or religious duties Wee do withgreif and shameconfess that we have erred willingly and strayed willingly from the wayes of our Almighty and most merciful Father and that more like untamed Buls then lost and wandring sheep we have followed too much even altogether the absurd devices and brutish desires of our own hearts we have been offended against nay been offended at his holy most holy laws we have left undone not lone at all those things which we ought to have done but insteed thereof done those things which we should not have done insomuch as there is no health no hope of health in us miserable most miserable and the greatest of sinners all which when we seriously lay to our guilty consciences how can we possibly preferr our own wicked and abominable selves whom we certainly know to be thus polluted and defiled before others whose hearts we are no way so able to search and dive into as we may into our own And being in so great a measure sinful from the crown of our heads to the soles of our feet all over contaminated and infected in so much as no part of us remaineth sound we know no certain cure for our sick and wounded souls laden with so many and so grevious sins but to cast our selves into the arms of our most blessed Redeemer and by a lively faith though we cannot as Saints yet lay claim unto him as sinners as wounded and penitent sinners whom he came to save and his coming being to save such he will certainly afford the seals of his Grace to such and having appointed the Ministers of his Gospel to deliver them to such we look upon you Mr. Barton if you be a Minister of Jesus Christ as bound in duty having thrust your self upon us and thereby kept off those who might otherwise have done it to perform your office according to the dispensation of God Col. 1.25 which is given to his Ministers to us ward to fulfil the word of God And we also say to you as the Apostle commands the Church of God to say to Archippus Col. 4.17 Take heed to the Ministry that thou hast received in the Lord that thou fulful it a part whereof is the Communication of the Sacraments of the Lord Jesus Christ which we wish we had no cause to say so to our greif and your own shame you have hitherto omitted And therefore give us leave to tell you that the Ministers total omission of administring the Sacraments to the generality of the people under his charge because there may perhaps some wicked persons not known to be scandalous creep in amongst the Godly is as an erroneous so an upstart way never used in the Church from the time of the first planting of it till of latter dayes the wild Boar of the forest hath rushed into Christs vineyard to the danger of the rooting out of the hearts of men the zeal to the frequent practise of applying the seals of Grace to their souls and insteed thereof to the planting of a peculiar and superstitious holiness in the Ordinances thereby quite to invert the charitable use of them and to bereave them of the great Legacy which the Saviour of the world hath left to his people And we do wonder there can be any person so obstinate and selfish as thereby to have the eyes of his understanding so blinded to force himself to believe that an upstart unused way should be the right way when God himself hath said Ask for the old way and with all told us that it is the good way given us a charge that we should walk in that way with a promise that in so doing we should find rest to our souls He hath also said by his Scripture for our instruction Call to remembrance the dayes of old ask thy Fathers and they will shew thee ask thy Elders and they will tell thee And now can any man who is not utterly void of reason think that He for whom it is impossible to lie hath promised rest unto our souls by our walking in the old way and hath promised to guide his Church all wayes in the right way should notwithstanding break his word and suffer it to wander out of the way and that for above 16 hundred years together even till these times these very latter and perrillous times in which the spirit speaketh evidently that there should come divers Hypocrites men having their consciences seared with a hot iron who should depart from the faith giving heed to the spirit of error 1 Tim. 4.1 2. Tim. 3.1 Jude 19. And shall that spirit of error have so much power as contrary to Gods direction to intice us into new wayes by perswading us to imbrace novel opinions or unwarrantable practices in Religion schismes or heresies shall any under any plausible pretence whatsoever go about to make us believe that the Sacraments are not necessary to Salvation or that the Celebration of them doth not belong to the Ministerial Office we shall boldly aver such to be of Yesterday and not to be yet come to their understanding And we shall not be ashamed to say they are altogether out of the old right way and have made to themselves crooked pathes wherein they grope as blind men without eyes and stumble at noon-day as in the twi-light their feet treading the pavements of desolation and destruction run to evil far off from the way of peace and equity which it should seem they never would be enduced to follow which is the reason why judgment is so far from them and justice comes not neer them And we do here for our selves profess that if an Angel should come from heaven and preach to us any doctrine in order to the putting us out of the right way we would neither follow nor believe him For as it hath been hitherto so shall it be ever far from us of the Parish of Barham in these licentious times in which some would have the golden reines of discipline and government let loose in the Church in so much that single Ministers and private persons might take up what forme of divine worship they pleased to follow so dangerous an example far be it from us to be led by wandring stars new but false lights bold but blind guides far be it from us to make small or no account of the pretious Ordinances of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ by neglecting the holy Sacrament of Baptism and by counting the blood of the Testament as an unholy thing far be it from us to exchange the truth which we have received for falshood which