Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	great_a	place_n	see_v	2,893	5	3.1798	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A82555	The Quakers confuted, being an answer unto nineteen queries; propounded by them, and sent to the elders of the church of Duckenfield in Cheshire; wherein is held forth much of the doctrine and practise concerning revelations, and immediate voices, and against the holy Scriptures, Christs ministry, churches and ordinances &c. Together with an answer to a letter which was written and sent by one of them to a family of note and quality in the said county, which pleaded for perfection in this life, and for quaking. By Samuel Eaton, teacher of the Church of Christ heretofore meeting at Duckenfield, now in Stockport in Cheshire.	Eaton, Samuel, 1596?-1665.; Waller, Richard, d. 1657.	1654 (1654)	Wing E125; Thomason E719_8; ESTC R9865	69,620	98

distemper of this kind which is very prevalent in these dayes yet I dare not so affix preaching to office as thereby to exclude all exercising of gifts but the exorbitancy is that which I appear against I would have those that do preach and others also that are solid sober Christians judge together who are fit to preach and who have a gift 1 Cor. 14 32. and I would have them first proved before approved 1 Tim 3. 10. and then they should exercise it occasionally for he that hath an office it belongs to him and is his part to wait upon it but he that hath only a gift without an office must look unto it how he is called out to exercise it before he use it Thirdly Not only outward teaching offends them but Concerning praying standing praying standing will not down with them I know not what posture they would have but that which we intend by it is that he that prayeth may be seen by all the people on whose behalf he prayes For he is their mouth and it doth affect the heart of the people when their eyes behold him who is praying for them and it is justified from Solomons example who when he prayed on the behalf of Israel he stood in the presence of all the Congregation and spred forth his hands towards Heaven And yet we plead not so for standing but that we shall grant other postures to be lawful provided that the person that prayeth be visible to the people but they that love not the duty it self but except against it as in Querie 15. may better be allowed to find fault with the posture Fourthly Nor will they be pleased with the place of Concerning praying in the Sunagogues meeting who would have no meeting at all for such exercises they call them Synagogues in way of derision but there is no harm in that word if they understood it it doth but signifie a place where the people come together a place of Assembling It did signifie the place where the Jews met together to hear the Word of God upon the Sabbath-day It was no holy place in the Jews accompt as the Temple was it was not hallowed and sanctified for sacred uses only as the Temple was but was made use of for civil purposes as to punish offences For they scourged such as they counted malefactors in their Synagogues Mat. 23. 34. If our place therefore be only like a Synagogue it s no brand to us some place we must have if a service be to be done one place will serve our turn as well as another provided it be a capacious place that will hold the company that are to meet in it and that it be also a free place which we may make bold with without detriment to any and a known agreed-on place which all may take notice of and may repair thither yet our place cannot hardly be called a Synagogue in allusion to the Jewish Synagogues for it was not erected for any spiritual or divine use or with any intent of serving God in it as the Synagogues among the Iews were though they made use of them for other services Fifthly After cavelling at places they come to strike at Concerning Title of Master Persons and charge us with Ambition and Affectation of Honour 1. Because we are called Masters 2. Because we have as they say the chiefest places in the Assemblies for the former viz. the title we confess it is put upon some of us and as we have not affected it so neither have we cause to reject it It doth import nothing but civil honour and respect which others shew us It is put upon all persons who have either birth breeding riches of this world office and employment of an honourable nature It was not only put upon Christ but upon the Apostles of Christ also in Joh. 12. 21. and not rejected by them Some came to Philip and said Sir we would see Jesus It is in the Greek Master we would see Iesus and Acts 16. 30. The Gaoler came to Paul and Silas and said Sirs that is in Greek Masters what shall c. and they repelled him not in reference to that Title But these Persons alledge Mat. 13. where it is said Be not ye called Masters for you have one Master which is Christ But this Text will stand them in no stead for this word that is translated Masters is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which signifies such Masters as are Duces viae Guides of ones way and Gubernatores vitae Governours of a mans life which is proper to Christ and not to any man For no man doth-it saving instrumentally from and under Christ And Rabbi which was forbidden them also vers 8. is such another Title which carries too much in the signification of it it imports one Teacher who for the abundance of his knowledge is instead of many And the affectation is that which is principally forbidden and the derogating in the coveting of such-Titles from God in that Glory which is due to him who is that Dux viae that Guide of Guides and that Rabbi that one teacher which is more then all But for the Title Master in a civil acception there is neither hurt in giving of it nor in taking of it provided that pride and haughtiness do not occasion it For the Apostle saith in giving honour go one before another Rom. 12. 10. And we know that he justifieth the Title of Master in all such who have others to serve them and gives direction unto them how they ought to deport themselves towards those who are their servants But these persons may better be born with if they destroy Titles who destroy Relations themselves which founded them Concerning chief places in the Assemblies except the Pulpit be the chief place which the great ones covet not I know nothing of the cause of this charge but do account it a meet slander Querie 19. Whether a man shall ever grow up that he need no man teach him under your Ministry yea or no seeing the Apostle saith you need no man teach you and you which have been long Teachers how many have you brought up into this Condition Answ Persons may grow up under the teaching of such a Ministery as is among us to need no man to teach them in the sense in which the Apostle understands it they may be brought to the knowledge of all the great truths of the Gospel and may come to understand many of the high and deep things of Scripture they may also come to be much confirmed and established therein so that in a comparative sense they may not need Teachers not that they are absolutely perfect in knowledge but that they know very much and are able to teach others also and of this we have some experience But in the sense in which these persons understand it for they intend such a perfection in knowledge as excludes all ignorance and all humane helps for any

further attainments we ingenously confess that no man is ever like to grow up so high as to need no teaching nor are we our selves come up to such a perfection and we think our selves to be but Children in knowledge in comparison of that which we hope to attain unto in heaven nor do we think it any dishonour to us to confess so much especially while we medicate upon the Apostles expression 1 Cor. 13. 12. Now we see through a glass darkly speaking of the time of this life but then we shall see face to face speaking of the time after this life Nor do we find that Christ himself or the Apostles ever bred up persons to such a condition as these men speak of to need none to teach them in their sense Paul bred up Timothy and to a great height he bred him under his Ministery whom he cals Son because he had been with him as a Son yet he exhorts him to meditate upon such things and to give himself wholly unto them that his profiting might appear unto all 1 Tim. 4. 15. And Peter exhorcs those that he wrote to of whom he Iaith that he did ouly put them in remembrance of things and that they knew them already and were established in the present truth that they would grow in grace and in the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ 2 Pet. 3. 18. The Conclusion that they put to all these Questions is this The Church of Christ say they is a pillan and ground of Truth which doth witness the eternal Spirit and if you be the same Church and have the same Spirit answer me these Queries without any consequencies or senses otherwise diny your Eldership and Pastorship and to be no Church of Christ Answ The Church of Christ is the ground and pillar of Truth and doth witnese the truth of all that is contained in the holy Scriptures and more especially that the mysterie of godliness is gteat viz. That God was manifest in the flesh justified in the Spirit seen of Angels preached unto the Gentiles believed on in the World received up into Glory And this we assert without any Consequencies or senses many of which if not all you that urge us thus most desperately deny As for your questions we have answered them agreeablyto Scripture and have made such inferences and necessary consequences and have put such senses as cannot be contradicted by any knowing Christian nor indeed by any but those whose design is to destroy all Scripture and utterly to subvert the Faith of the Gospel and to lead men captive after their own delusions and instead of denying a Pastorship and Eldership and our selves to be the Church of Christ we shall pray God to open the eyes of so many of these poor creatures who are thus sold over to delusions that so many of them as belong to Gods Election may be recovered out of the snare of the devil who are led captive for the present after his will A Coppy of a Letter which Richard Waller a Quaker sent to a Gentlemans Family near Stockport in Cheshire in which both he and his wife had been formerly servants Wherein he pleads for an absolute perfection and for Quaking Dear Friends MY dear love in the Lord presents it self unto you all in the power of the truth desiring the Lord to establish you all in the truth it self that you may grow and become faithfull unto the Lord to bring forth much fruit that the Lord in all things may be glorified by you Dear friends I did long stand in opposition against a company of people by the World called Quakers So it pleased the Lord in his time to let me see my condition So that I did plainly see that I had got the Saints words to talk of before I came to witness the Saints condition Now the Scripture saith Jesus Christ was made manifest to destroy the works of the Devil Whosoever can witness Christ manifest in him can witness sin destroyed But he that saith Christ is manifest in him and committeth sin is a lyar For whosoever is born of God sinneth not 1 Job 2. 4. For his seed remaineth in him and he cannot sin because he is born of God Now the Priests of the World tell us we cannot be perfect here So they leave a hole for Satan here contrary to Scriptures and when will they have him cast out As for me I deny all the Teachers of the World For I can really witness that I have found my Teacher within me which is a mysterie to all the World Now I and the rest that can witness that Christ is made manifest in us we are hated of the World for we disown the Worlds ways Worlds worships and Worlds Customs and they disown us Now the Scriptures saith He that is a friend to the World is an enemy to God The World calls us witches and mad men they did so by Christ they said he was a Devil and they said Paul was mad and Stephen spoke Blasphemy It is just so now as it was then they Jear and say Never any of the Saints Quaked and Trembled Read these Scriptures at your leasure and you may find them lyars Heb. 12. 25 26. Ezra 9. 3 4. Heb. 12. 21. Moses quaked and trembled David trembled Psal 119. 120. Psal 18. 7. Heb. 3. 16. When I heard my belly trembled my lips quivered Jerem. 23. 9. Isa 66. 2. Ezek. 32. 10. Dan. 10. 7. and 11. Daniel Trembled Acts 9. 6. Joel 2. 10. Job 26. 11. Amos 8. 8. Jer. 30. 6 7. Acts 13. 40. 41. See here is a Cloud of Witnesses against them And whereas they deny that perfection is to be attained here they are found lyars See Phil. 3. 15 Let us as many as are perfect be thus minded Col. 1. 28. Col. 4. 12. 2 Tim. 3. 17. Heb. 6. 1. Heb. 10. 14. He. 12. 23. Heb. 13. 21. Jam. 1. 4. Col. 4. 12. Deut. 18. 13. Joh. 17. 21. I in thee and thou in me that they may be made perfect in one I plainly see the Priests taught deceit and we believed them But the Lord hath discovered their deceit to his and he will teach all his himself Oh therefore wait upon the Lord and cease from man whose breath is in his nostrils and mind the light of God in you which discovers deceit and the peace of God be with you all and keep you all in the sense of him staid in your minds that you may be kept in his feare which keepeth the mind clear and pure and open to receive his teachings and to forsake the evil and choose the good and so bring you into obedience and it will suffer you to joyn with nothing but what is of it own nature pure and clear and it will keep you from the evil of the World The Lord cause you all to grow up as trees of Righteousness and stablish your hearts in the living truth that his name in all thing may be glorified

Dear friend Christian I have sent you a little book read it without partiality and you may see deceit discovered My wife desires you to present her service to her Master and Mistress and all the children and her love unto you and all the servants We are both well and our child grows fast As for me as I begun with my dear love unto you all so I end For I dare not complement because it is a Custom of the World Farewell A Copy of an answer to the forementioned Letter written in the name of the Church of Duckenfield now meeting in Stopport and sent unto the wife of Richard Waller for the setling and establishing of her in the faith of Christ being a member of the forementioned Church wherein all such Scriptures which were brought to prove an absolute Perfection and Quaking are Interpreted and the true sense given to them and freed from such corrupt fense for which they are alledged Sister Waller YOu are very precious to us though your miscarriage against God and us hath been very great We are apt to hope that the Lord either hath or will convince you of the sin you committed in your unadvised Marriage Which you so selfwilledly carried on against us And when your heart is kindly humbled we know you will give praise to God and justifie us And then we shall conceive as much can see of joy from your repentance as we have done grief from your sin We cannot yet think otherwise but that you do belong to the Lord And if so he will not suffer you to have rest in any evil way you have gone in till he have made you truly sensible and sorrowfull after a Godly manner which if ever you once manifest to us we shall with as much tenderness own you as in any time heretofore For you are very dear to us and our bowels do very much yearn after you Especially since we heard of a Letter which your husband wrote to Duckenfield which some of us have seen by which we discern what deadly poyson he hath sucked in to the undoing of his poor Soul if God be not very mercifull to him and bring him to Repentance And you also through your nearness of Relation to him are exposed to multiplicity of Temptations to forsake the faith of our Lord Jesus and to turn aside to such Satanical delusions which he is carried away with We do conceive hope that as yet the Lord hath kept you by observing one passage of his Letter which holds out your desire that your service may be presented to your Master and Mistress therein owning the relation they stood in to you and you to them which he declares against making it the worlds way and not Gods Our desire and prayer to God for you shall be that he will yet keep you even to the end And who can tell but that the Lord may bring out a great deal of good to your soul by this evil of your Husbands fearfull apostacy which his Letter holds out God may open your eyes thereby to see your sinfull haste which you made in that Marriage He may humble you for rushing upon it against Counsel he may make you to know that he was angry against you by leaving him to such fearful error of way He hath laid a sore affliction upon you by giving up one so near and dear to you to such fearfull Temptations You have offended God through him and now you must be chastned in him Be awakned be awakned and consider the Lords righteous hand in this matter The person whom you have chosen God seems to have forsaken at least for a time he is become the Devils Captive O fear you and repent you least he also forsake you But we hope better of you and our prayer is that you may be setled and established in the truth We foresee that you will be strongly sollicited He that thought himself bound to tempt persons by his Letters at so great a distance what alluring ways will not he take to cause you to forsake your integrity and to turn aside to such fleshly deceits of Satan take heed you be not bewitched with pretences and quotations of Scripture presented in the Letter there lyes the greatest danger The Devil tempted Christ by telling him that it was written and his Instruments will use the same fleights They will put false Glosses upon Scripture while they deny all senses to be put upon Scripture to deceive themselves and others thereby The Apostle Peter saith 2 Pet. 3. 16. that some that are unlearned and unstable do wrest Scripture to their own destruction and he doth warn them lest they being led away by the error of the wicked do fall from their own stedfastness by such means And we also do beseech you to beware of this Snare viz of Scripture abused by misconstructions It is a misconstruction when the construction is made to follow the sound of the words though it be never so much repugnant to other Scripture You know that all Scripture is given by Inspiration of God 2 Tim 3 16. And that holy men spake as they were Inspired by the Holy Ghost 2 Pet. 1. 21. Now God is a God of Truth and the Spirit is a Spirit of Truth and cannot speak contrary things nor contradict himself therefore if there be any seeming contradiction in Scripture taken in the Letter of it we must seek after a right sense by which the seeming contradiction may be removed Your husband produceth many Scriptures to prove an absolute perfection without sin And the first Scripture he mentions is Phil. 3. 15. Let us saith Paul speaking of himself and the Philippians as many as be perfect be thus minded He Collects from hence that the Saints here have such a perfection that excludes all sin Alas poor Creature We thought he had been better acquainted with his own heart But he might have looked a little higher in the Chapter upon ver 12. and have discerned that Paul expresly denies Perfection in reference to himself Not as though I were already perfect saith he Was Paul perfect and yet was he not perfect In the Letter there is a contradiction But Paul speaking by the Spirit of God cannot contradict himself therefore we must look after the sense of the word Perfect It is many time taken for sincere 2 Kings 15. 14. Asa took not away the high places that was his failing Yet his heart was perfect In what sense perfect Was it perfect without sin Not so For it was his sin that the high places were not taken away But perfect that is Upright He did not serve God in pretence but in truth They say we must not give the sense of Scripture but must take it in the Letter but that is contrary to the examples of Scripture Those in Nehemiah 8. 8. read in the Book of the Law and gave the sense and it is necessary sometimes to avoid contradiction which is in the Letter to