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cause_n	know_v	lord_n	see_v	3,997	5	3.2299	3	true

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A90288	A sermon preached to the Honourable House of Commons, in Parliament assembled: on January 31. A day of solemne humiliation. With a discourse about toleration, and the duty of the civill magistrate about religion, thereunto annexed. Humbly presented to them, and all peace-loving men of this nation. / By John Owen, pastor of the Church of Christ, which is at Coggeshall in Essex.	Owen, John, 1616-1683.	1649 (1649)	Wing O805; Thomason E540_25; Thomason E549_1; ESTC R203104	74,810	103

shall not taste of the Deliverance by them to be procured wherefore though he sustaines their lives in being whereby they might have opportunity to know his minde and their owne peace yet he gives them a power to contend with their Helpers causing their helpers to act such things as under consideration of circumstances shall exceedingly provoke theses sinners Being so exasperated and provoked the Lord who is free in all his dispensations refuseth to make out to them that healing grace whereby they might be kept from a sinfull opposition Yea being justly provoked and resolved that they shall not taste of the plenty to come he makes them foolish and giddy in their reasonings and counsels blinds them in their understandings that they shall not be able to discerne plaine and evident things tending to their owne good but in all their wayes shall erre like a drunken man in his vomit whence that they may not be recovered because he will destroy them he gives in hardnesse and obstinacy upon their hearts and spirits leaving them to suitable affections to contend for their owne ruine Now what are the wayes and methods of sinfull mans working in such an opposition would be too long for me to declare what prejudices are erected what lusts pursued what corrupt Interests acted and followed how selfe is honoured what false pretences coyned how God is sleighted if I should goe about to lay open I must looke into the Hell of these times then which nothing can be more loathsome and abhominable Let it suffice that sinfull selfe sinfull lusts sinfull prejudices sinfull blindnesse sinfull carnall feares sinfull corrupt interests sinfull fleshly reasonings sinfull passions and vile affections doe all concur in such a work are all woven up together in such a Web 4. See the distance of their aimes God's aime is onely the manifestation of his owne Glory then which nothing but himselfe is so infinitely good nothing so righteous that it should be and this by the way of goodnesse and severity Rom. 11. 22. Goodnesse in faithfulnesse and mercy preserving his who are opposed whereby his Glory is exceedingly advanced Severity towards the Opposers that by a sinfull cursed opposition they may fill up the measure of their iniquities and receive this at the hand of the Lord that they lye down in sorrow wherin also he is glorious God forbid that I should speak this of all that for any time or under any temptation may be carryed to an opposition in any kind or degree to the instruments of Gods glory amongst them Many for a season may doe it and yet belong to God who shall be recovered in due time It is onely of men given up forsaken opposing all the Appearances of God with his Saints and people in all his wayes of whom I speak Now what are the ends of this Generation of Fighters against this brazen wall and how distant from those of the Lords They consult to cast him downe from his excellency whom God will exalt Psal. 62. 4. They thinke not as the Lord neither doth their heart meane so but it is in their heart to destroy and to cut off Isa. 10. 7. To satisfie their owne corrupt lusts ambition avarice revenge superstition contempt of Gods people because his hatred of the yoak of the LORD fleshly Interests even for these and such like Ends as these is their undertaking Thus though there be a concurrence of God and Man in the same thing yet considering the distance of their Principles Rules Actings and Ends It is apparent that Man doth sinfully what the Lord doth judicially which being an answer to the former Objection I returne to give in some Vses to the Point Let men constant sincere upright in the wayes of God especially in difficult times know what they are to expect from many yea the most of the Generation whose good they intend and among whom they live Opposition and fighting is like to be their Lot and that not onely it will be so because of mens lusts corruptions prejudices but also it shall be so from Gods righteous Judgements against a stubborne people They harden their hearts that it may be so to compasse their ends and God heardens their hearts that it shall be so to bring about his aimes They will doe it to execute their revenge upon others They shall doe it to execute Gods vengeance upon themselves This may be for consolation that in their contending there is nothing but the wrath of man against them whom they oppose which God will restraine or cause it to turne to his praise but there is the wrath of God against themselves which who can beare This then let all expect who engage their hearts to God and follow the Lambe whither ever he goeth Men walking in the syncerity of their hearts are very apt to conceive that all Sheaves should bow to theirs that all men should cry Grace Grace to their proceedings Why should any oppose Quid meruere Alas the more upright they are the fitter for the Lord by them to breake a Gainsaying people Let men keep close to those wayes of God whereto protection is annexed and let not their hearts faile them because of the people of the Land the storme of their fury will be like the plague of Haile in Egipt it smote onely the Cattel that were in the field those who upon the word of Moses drove them into the houses preserved them alive If men wander in the field of their owne wayes of selfe seeking oppression ambition and the like doubtlesse the storme will carry them away but for those who keep house who keep close to the Lord though it may have much noyse terrour and dread with it it shall not come nigh them And if the Lord for causes best known known onely to his infinite wisedome should take off any Josiahs in the opposition he will certainly effect two things by it 1. To give them rest and peace 2. Further his cause and truth by drawing out the prayers and appeales of the residue and this living they valued above their lives All you then that are the Lords workmen be alwayes prepared for a storme wonder not that men see not the wayes of the Lord nor the judgements of our God many are blinded Admire not that they will so endlessely engage themselves into fruitlesse oppositions they are hardened Be not amazed that evidence of truth and righteousnesse will not affect them they are corrupted But this doe Come and enter into the Chambers of GOD and you shall be safe untill this whole indignation be overpast I speak of All them and onely them who follow the Lord in all his ways with upright hearts and single minds if the Lord will have you to be a Rock and a brazen wall for men to dash themselves against and to breake in pieces though the service be grievous to flesh and blood yet it is His whose you are be prepared the wind blowes a storme may come Let

contemneth hee will never doe any honourable thing but because these not so worshipping introducing new Deities doe perswade many to transgresse or to change affaires whence are conjurations seditions private societies things no way conducing to Monarchies Hence doubtlesse was that opposition which Paul met withall in deverse of the Roman Territories thus at Athens though as I suppose they enjoyed there their owne Lawes and Customes very suitable as it should seem to those of the Romans preaching Jesus he was accused to be a setter forth of strange Gods Acts 14. for although as Strabo observeth of the Athenians that publiquely by the Authority of the Magistrates {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} they received many things of forreigne worships yet that none might attempt any such things of themselves is notorious from the case of Socrates who as Laertius witnesseth was condemned as {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} one who thought not those to be Gods whom the City thought so to be but brought in certaine new Deities Hence I say was Pauls opposition and his haling to Mars hill Without doubt also this was the bottome of that stirre and trouble he met withall about Philippi It is true private Interest lay in the bottome with the chiefe Opposers but this Legall Constitution was that which was plausibly pretended Acts 16. 21. They teach customes which are not Lawfull for us to receive neither to observe being Romans {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} it is not lawfull for us Romans to receive the Religion they hold out because Statutes are made amongst us against all Religious worship not allowed by publique Authority Let Calvin's short Annotation on that place be seen Gallio's refusing to judge between Jewes as he thought in a Jewish controversie is no impeachment of this truth had it been about any Roman establishment he would quickly have interposed Now this Law amongst them was doubtlesse Fundi Christiani Calamitas This then in the first place was Enacted that no worship should be admitted no Religion exercised but what received Establishment and Approbation from them who supposed themselves to be intrusted with Authority over men in such things And this power of the Dragon was given over to the Beast and false Prophet The Anti-christian power succeeding into the room of the Paganish the Pope and Counsels of the Emperours and Senate it was quickly confirmed that none should be suffered to live in peace who received not his marke and name Revel. 13. 16 17. Wherunto for my part I cannot but referre very many of those following Imperiall Constitutions which were made at first against the opposers of the Churches Orthodoxisme but were turned against the witnesse of Jesus in the close 2. This being done they held out the Reasons of this Establishment I shall touch only one or two of them which are still common to them who walke in the same paths with them Now the first was that Toleration of sundry ways of worship and severall Religions tends to the disturbance of the Common-wealth and that civill Society which men under the same Government doe and ought to enjoy So Cicero tels us Lib. 2. de legibus Suos Deos aut novos aut alienigenas coli confusionem habet c It brings in confusion of Religion and civill Society The same is clearly held out in that Counsell of Maecenas to Augustus before mentioned They saith he who introduce new Deities draw many into Innovations whence are Conspiracies Seditions Conventicles no way profitable for the Common wealth Their other maine Reason was that hereby the Gods whom they owned and worshipped were dishonoured and provoked to plague them That this was continually in their mouths and clamours all the Acts at the slaying of the Martyrs the Rescripts of Emperours the Apologies of the Christians as Tertullian Justine Martyr Arnobius Minutius Felix doe abundantly testifie All trouble was still ascribed to their Impiety upon the first breaking out of any judgment as though the cause of it had been the Toleration of Christians presently the vulgar cry was Christianos ad Leones Now that those causes and reasons have been traduced to all those who have since acted the same things especially to the Emperours successor at Rome needs not to be proved With the power of the Dragon the wisedome also is derived see that great Champion Cardinall Bellarmine fighting with these very weapons Lib. de Laicis cap. 21. And indeed however illustrated improved adorned supported flourished sweetned they are the sum of all that to this day hath been said in the same case 3. Having made a Law and supported it with such reasons as these in proceeding to the Execution of the penalty of that Law as to particular Persons which penalty being as now Arbitrary was inflicted unto Banishment Imprisonment Mine-digging Torturing in sundry kinds Mayming Death according to the pleasure of the Judges they always charged upon those persons not onely the denying and opposing their owne Deities Religion and Worship but also that that which they embraced was foolish absurd detestable pernitious sinfull wicked ruinous to Common●wealths Cities Society Families honesty order and the like If a man should goe about to delineat Christian Religion by the Lines and features drawne thereof in the invectives and accusations of their Adversaries he might justly suppose that indeed that was their God which was set up at Rome with this Inscription DEUS CHRISTIANORUM ONONYCHITES Being an Image with Asses eares in a Gowne Clawes or Talons upon one foot with a Booke in his hand Charged they were that they worshipped an Asses head which impious folly first fastened on the Jews by Tacitus Histor. lib. 5. cap. 1. in these words Effigiem animalis quo monstrante errorem s●●imque depulerant penetrali sacravere having before set out a faigned direction received by a company of Asses which he had borrowed from Appion a rayling Egiptian of Alexandria Joseph ad App. lib. 1. was so ingrafted in their minds that no defensative could be allowed The Sun the Crosse Sacerdotis Generalia were either really supposed or impiously imposed on them as the objects of their worship The blood and flesh of Infants at Thiestaean banquets was said to be their food and provision promiscuous lust with Incest th●●● chiefest refreshment Such as these it concerned them to have them thought to be being resolved to use them as if they were so indeed Hence I am not sometimes without some suspition that many of the impure abhominations follies villanies which are ascribed unto the Primative Hereticks yea the very Gnosticks themselves upon whom the filth that lyes is beyond all possible beliefe Epiphan. Tom. 2. lib. 1. Har. 26. might be ●ained and imposed as to a great part thereof For though not the very same yet things as foolish and opposite to the light of nature were at the same time charged on the most Orthodox But you will say they who charged

dis-beleeve all the strange imputations of wickednesse and uncleannesse that are imposed upon many to be either the end or the medium of the practise of that communion in Religion which they do professe and imbrace I remember that when I was a boy all those stories were told me of Brownists and Puritans which afterward I found it to have been long before the forgeries of Pagans and imposed on the primitive Christians I dare boldly say I have heard stories of them an hundred times holding out that very thing and those deeds of darknesse which Minutius Felix holds out in the tongue of an Infidel concerning the Christians of those dayes but yet because sundrie venerable persons to whom Antiquity hath given sanctuary from being arraigned in the point of false testimony have left it upon record of sundry Hereticks in their dayes as the Gnosticks others that they were conjoyned into societies tessera pollutionis and some assert that the like iniquities are not wholly buried I made the supposition and hope that if they depose themselves from common sence and reason the Magistrate will never exalt them to the priviledge and exemption of Religion In these and such like eases as these when men shall break forth into disturbance of common order and enormities against the light of nature beyond all positive command of any pretended Religion whatsoever that the Magistrate ought to set hedges of thornes in their wayes sharpned according to their severall delinquencies I suppose no man not abhord of common sense can once hesitate or doubt And I am the more inclin'd to assert a restraint to all such as these because it may be established to the height without the least prejudice unto the truth though persons erring should injoy the place of authority That which now remaineth in this head to be considered is concerning persons maintaining and upholding any great and pernicious errors but in such wayes as are not by any of the former disorders to be brought under the cognizance of the Civill Magistrate but good honest allowable and peaceable in themselves not at all to be questioned but in reference to the things that are carried on in and by those wayes as communication by discourse and private preaching and the like Now concerning these it is generally affirmed that persons maintaining any error in or against any fundamentall Article of faith or Religion and that with obstinacy or pertinacie after conviction ought to be proceeded against by the authority of the civill Magistrate whether unto death or banishment imprisonment or confiscation of goods Now unto this supposing what I have written heretofore concerning the incompetency of all and the non-constitution of any Judge in this case with the Answers given at the beginning of this Treatise to the most of the places produced usually for the affirmative reserving the consideration of pressing conformity to the next head to be handled I shall briefly give in my thoughts and 1. That I cannot but observe that in the question it self there are sundry things gratis assumed as 1. That it is known and confessed what Articles in Religion are fundamentall and this also to the Magistrate when no one thing among Christians is more questionable most accounting them so be they what they will wherein they differ from others So that one way or other all dissenters shall be hooked in directly or indirectly to clash upon fundamentals In this Papists are secure who make the Churches Propositions sufficient to make an Article fundamentall 2. That the persons holding the error are convinced when perhaps they have been onely confuted between which two there is a wide difference he that holds the truth may be confuted but a man cannot be convinced but by the truth That a man should be said to be convinced of a truth and yet that truth not shine in upon his understanding to the expelling of the contrary error to me is strange To be convinced is to be over-powred by the evidence of that which before a man knew not I my self once knew a Scholer invited to a Dispute with another man about something in controversie in Religion in his own and in the judgement of all the by-standers the opposing person was utterly confuted and yet the Scholer within a few months taught of God and clearly convinced that it was an error which he had maintained and the truth which he opposed And then and not till then did he cease to wonder that the other person was not convinced by his strong Arguments as before he had thought May not a Protestant be really worsted in a Dispute by a Papist hath it not so ere now fallen out If not the Jesuites are egregious lyars To say a man is convinced when either for want of skill and ability or the like he cannot maintain his opinion to and against all men is meer conceit The truth is I am so far from this morose severitie of looking upon all erring persons as convinced that have been confuted that I rather in charity incline to beleeve that no erring person whilest he continues in his error is convinced It will not easily enter into my dull apprehension how a man can be convinced of an error that is enlightned with a contrary truth and yet hold that error still I am loth to charge more corrupt and vile affections upon any then do openly appear That of Paul affirming that some men are self-condemned is quite of another nature I think a person is said to be convinced not when there is a sufficiency in the means of conviction but when there is such an efficacy in them as to lay hold upon his understanding 5. That they are obstinate and pertinacious is also a cheap supposall taken up without the price of a proof What we call obstinacy they call constancy and what we condemne them for as pertinacy they embrace as perseverance as the conviction is imposed not owned so is this obstinacy if we may be judges of other mens obstinacy all will be plain but if ever they get uppermost they will be judges of ours Besides I know not what good it will do us or how it will advantage our cause to suppose men obstinate and convinced before we punish them no such qualifications being anywhere in the book of God urged in persons deserving punishment if they have committed the crime whereunto the penalty is annexed be they obstinate or not they shall be punished But now supposing all this that we are clear in all fundamentals that we are convinced that they are convinced and doubt not but that they are obstinate if they keep themselves in the former bounds what is to be done I say besides what we spake at the entrance of this discourse I shall as to any wayes of corporall coaction and restraint oppose some few things 1. The non-constitution of a Judge in case of heresie as a thing civilly criminall As to spirituall censures and an Ecclesiasticall judgement of