Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	punishment_n	sin_n	sin_v	1,923	5	9.5821	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A47777	The parasynagogue paragorized, or, A parenetical confutation of the epidemical error which asserteth, separation from parochial church-communion : demonstrating their practice, who on the Lords day neglect the publick exercises of divine worship in their parochial congregations, and frequent (cæteris paribus) other churches, to be anti-scriptural / by John Lesly ...	Lesly, John, d. 1657.	1655 (1655)	Wing L1171; ESTC R11754	60,778	214

lewdnesse of Life he was degraded and deprived of all Ecclesiastical Liberties priviledges and endowments This is not only witnessed by Socrates in the Synodical Epistle of the first councel at Nice but also recorded by Eusebius Sozomen and Theodoret. Neither may they be forborne or tolerated in their Office upon their Repentance For as Repentance will never cure their Insufficiency So it must be a very notable Repentance that must at all much lesse suddainly readmit a scandalous person into the Ministery In the Primitive Church after such hainous sinning they would admit him to the Ministery no more were he never so penitent though they did admit him ad Laicam Communionem with the people Conc. Car. Anno 258. et conc Ro. 3.487 As for their maintenance it is forfeited by all law Divine and humane seeing it was given them only as unto Pastors for the worke of Christ and service of the Church only Quamdiu ●e bene gesserint therefore so farre as they are able saith a Pious Judicious Mr. Baxter concord p. 107. and learned late Writer they should make the Church restitution of the profits and emolumets which for so many yeares they have so unjustly received it being before God but plain robbery and one of the most hateful kinds of robbery that can be imagined to starve and destroy mens souls and thus to takes hire for it Moreover seeing the sincere keeping Covenant with God in Christ is a chief part of our Christian Religion and a matter of absolute necessity to our salvation It is as hard trusting the guidance of that man againe who hath once betrayed us and the Church unto sinne and superstition as it is to trust a Commander who once turned traitor and would deliver up his Army to the power of the Enemie Nature teacheth to forsake such Commanders in obedience to their Supreme Soveraigne and for safety of our selves Eng. Ann. en Eccl. 19.22 Lastly An ignorant or scandalous Pastor is so farre from being a gracious Mediator between God and his people as he should be that he is like to draw rather wrath upon himself then procure favour for them Yea the Poet telleth us that they endanger their flocks Homer Odys l. 17. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Evil shepherds infect their flocks They who sinne in Gods House or Sanctuary Isa 65.3 are said to provoke the Lord to his face and to do evil before his eyes as if a Servant should doe things directly crosse to his Masters mind and command to his face Now as when the fear or knowledg of man is removed for a man freely to indulge himself a liberty of sinning is a high provocation and to make a practice of it would argue a desperate case So when their sinne cometh to be publick it is the more grievous being committed by them who should have beene exemplary for Piety and Religion do suffer in their sinne for want of sincerity If so notable a Prophet as Moses escaped not punishment for the Psalmist saith Psal 106.32 It went evil with him for the Israelites sake though others provoked him to sinne how much shall they be subject to Gods judgment who by Ignorance or Scandal cause Gods children to sin § 3. But howsoever an Ignorant or Scandalous Pastor ought to be cashiered yet it is not in the peoples power to reject or relinquish one that is already their Teacher and separate from Church-communion with him except when he is utterly intolerable and all orderly meanes for his ejection do faile It cannot be proved from Scripture that any people may reject or depose their Ministers much lesse a lesser part of a Church may do it when the greater dissenteth No nor a greater because it tendeth to confusion Mr. Baine telleth you that Pastor and people are as individually joyned together as husband and wife That as no cause can separate husband and wife but Adultery so nothing beside insufficiency through ignorance or scandalous living can separate Pastor and people For as he is sacred in his first instalment so in the performance of his office he was honourable in the times of the Heathen Tertullian tells us Tert. de Cor. Mil. c. 10. that heathen Priests were crowned A symbole that they could not be degraded nor cashiered And the first Crown which the Romans used was their Spicea Corona given as a Religious Ensign in honour of their Priests Honosque is non nisi vitâ sinitur Plinius Nat. Hist lib. 18. c. 2. exules etiam captosque comitatur saith Pliny nought but death could terminate this honour which was their companion both in exile and captivity Concil Laodic cap. 13 Anno. 320 Sure I am that it was decreed in an ancient Councel That the people must not be permitted to elect and therefore not to reject their Pastor If your Minister then be unable to teach you do not admit him at first But if he be able to teach you and guide you be ruled by him even in things that to you are doubtful except he teach you any singular points and then take the advice of other Ministers in trying it Expect not that he should humour you and please your fancies and say and do as you would have him It is contrary not only to all examples in any age of the Church but to the office of Pastors and Duties of the people in Scripture to guide their Pastors and not to be guided by them but to joyn with other Congregations on the Lords day either in the forenoon or afternoon as much as with their determined Parish or Congregation Yet Nazianzen teacheth us Naz. Ep. 26 That he that thus despiseth his Pastor is a vain man and by reason of his presumption a new Dathan or Abiram And we complain to the Lord in the words of the same holy Father that it all our sufferings this thing is the most ridiculous Naz. Ep. 31 and yet most to be pityed that we are the same men that are injured and accused For some men object one thing against us others another according as their either mind or manners or mischievous passions so suggest and the most favourable men to us do neglect or contemn us and after we have spent our strength and spirits for their good they cast us aside as vile and dishonest vessels Thus Nazianzen with whom we againe doe complaine Naz. Or. 32 Iren. Praes l. 1. n. 18. that the world seeketh not Pastors but Orators And Irenaeus before him sheweth us that it is the duty of a faithfull Pastor to study the Truth and not Eloquence I remember that Sozomen writeth that Aetius the Eunomian Atheist his Eloquence was to matchlesse Soz. l. 4. c. 22. Eus l. 7. c. 31 that it made his errour impregnable And Eusebius reporteth that Meletius the Heretick for his eloquence was called Mel Atticum The hony of Greece This I write not for any evil eye I bear to them

his sincerity and foreknow his perseverance The fruit of Church-separation appeareath that now when Satan hath a design to burn up the Nurseries of Learning and R●ligion how few are watering Gods plants when the greedy mouth of sacriledg is gaping for their maintenance how few are voluntarily adding for the supply of its defect when the Gospel is so undermined the Ministry so maligned and their maintenance so envied how few are they that appeare for them How few are like that Noble man who publickly tore and rent the impious Edict of Dioclesian the Emperour against Cristians Euseb l. 8. c. 5 What God will yet do with us we cannot tell but if he will continue his Gospel to us these few may have the greater comfort in it if hee will forsake a proud and unworthy people yet may these few souls have comfort of their sincere endeavours they may escape the gnawings of conscience and the publick curse and reproach which the hystory of this age may fasten upon them who would either in ignorant fury or malicious subtilty or base temporizing cowardize oppunge or undermine the Gospel or in perfidious silence look on whilst it is destroyed CHAP. XVIII The Conclusion § 1. HAving taken the boldnesse to deliver my Reasons against this common Sin and Error I humbly crave that if ever Christians would have their soules converted they would labour to frequent Divine Ordinances in their due circumstances If we look to the quality of the Action 1 Sam. 13.18 Arn. contra Serapien Saul did well saith Arnobius when he offered Sacrifice unto God But we must not consider the quality of the Fact but the Pride of the contemner for there are many Duties Quae cum bona fint opera perniciem pariunt cum non eo ordine quo sunt constituta peraguntur Which though they be good works bring damnation when they are not done in that order as they should No man will be much wrought on by that which he despiseth The great causes of this contempt are a Perverted Judgement and a gracelesse Heart It is no more wonder for a Soul to loath Divine Ordinances that savoureth not their Spiritual Nature then it is for a sick man to loath his food Where a sanctified Judgment is wanting the most hellish Vice may seem a Vertue and the most sacred Ordinance of Divine Institution may seem as the waters of Jordan to Naaman Oh! How many Soules may curse those wretches in Hell fire for ever that have by them been brought to contemn the Meanes that should save them And let the greatest that are guilty in this crime Cyprian Epist 72. read Cyprian his words and tremble What greater crime can there be saith he then to have stood up against Christ In his Officers and Ordinances Then to have scattered the church of Christ which he hath purchased with his blood Then to have fought by the fury of hostile Discord against the unanimously agreeing people of God Who though themselves should repent and turn to the church yet can they not recover and bring back with them those seduced by their Example or those that being by death prevented are dead without the church whose Souls at the day of Judgment shall be required at their hands who were the Leaders of them to Perdition c. § 2. And now I have given you my best advice for the avoiding this Error The manner of it is imperfect and too much mine own but for the main matter I dare say I received it from God in his Holy Scriptures And from him I deliver it to his People and his charge I lay upon them that they entertain and practise it Yet I know there is a remnant of Paganisme and Infidelity in the best of christians concerning the Divine Authority of the Sacred Scriptures August de Fide Op. c. 4. The chief cause besides many others which perverteth the Understandings of men in this point in my poor observation is this When men have deeply wounded their consciences by sinning against Knowledge and given the Victory to their fleshly Lusts so that they must either deeply accuse and condemn themselves or deny the Scriptures they choose that which seemeth the more tolerable and desireable to them and so rather condemn the Scriptures then themselves These are Lucifuga Scripturarum as Tertullian calls them Owles or Bats Tert. de Resur Carn c. 47. which can no more take heed unto that light that is the Life of the World then Bats do unto the light of the Sun And what Malefactor would not do the like and except against the Law that doth condemn him if that would serve his turn And when men that are engaged in a sinful course do see that the Word of God doth speak so terribly against it they dare not live in that sinne while they believe the Scripture because it is still wakning and galling their guilty consciences but when they have either cast away their Belief of the Scriptures or otherwise mistaken them through misinterpretation misapplication c. then conscience will let them sin with more quietnesse The like may be expected from those I oppose For these men refuse their Physick because it is unpleasant and not because it is unwholesome yet at last their Appetite so mastereth their Reason that they will not believe any thing can be wholesome which goes so much against their stomack Ahab believed not the message of Micajah not because he spake falsly 1 King 22.8.18 but because hee spake no good of him but evill Men will easily be drawn to believe that to be true which they would faine have to be true and that to be false which they desire should be false But alas how short and silly a cure is this for a guilty Soule And how soone will it leave them in uncurable Misery § 3. Only I must crave this of the Reader that my confessed weaknesse be no prejudice to Gods Truth and that he will not judge of the cause by the Person nor take the Name or Person for a Fault Which is the thing that the ancient christians did so deprecate of the Pagans and therefore I hope every Christian will grant For in regard of the churches present necessities I dare not give over for all my Imperfections Though I have ever been of a Spirit too easily discouraged and ready to say as the Prophet I will speak no more in his Name Jer. 20.9 yet God hath so suited his Providence to my Infirmities and Necessities as not only to cure my backwardnesse but also to convince me of the pleasantnesse of his Work I am assured that it was the Lord that sent me into his Vineyard and without him none shall force me out Mat. 25.16 He that gave me fewer Talents then others will Expect but an answerable Improvement at my hands but be they never so small I dare not hide them He that calleth for two Mites will accept them Mat. 11.25 Zech. 4.10 Hee despiseth not the day of small things Hee sometime revealeth that to babes which he hideth from the wise and prudent For the Wisdome of the World is foolishness with God 1 Cor. 1.25 and the foolishness of God is wiser then men and no flesh shall glony in his sight The Lord grant that I may so use the small abilities that I have that I be not condemned as an unprofitable and unfaithful Servant and then I do not feare being condemned for their smalness § 4. More I would say but I feare to spoile the elegancy or learned Camero in his Epistle ad Theologos Leidenses Can. pag. 720. folio by Englishing it wherein is the summe of what I would say and thither I refer the Reader In the mean time look upon my aberrations where you find them with pity and Pardon And where you shew me that I have erred as a man you shall see that as a Christian it was not my want of love to the Truth but want of light to discover it that hath misled me from it My Prayer is that the Lord would save his People from that spirit of Pride hypocrisie separation and Giddinesse which is of late gone forth and is now destroying and making havock of millions of Soules in England And that the Lord would keep his People unspotted of the guilt of those Sinnes which in these dayes have been the shame of our Religion and have made us a Scandal and Scorn to the World And pardon O Lord thy Servants Sin for I do daily dishonour thy Holynesse and disgrace thy Work and Service by my weakness and unworthinesse I bewaile from my heart that my Apprehensions are so dull my Affections so stupid and my Expressions so law and unbeseeming thy Service Remember with whom thou hast to do What canst thou expect from dust but levity or from corruption but defilement I know thou wilt be sainctified in them that come nigh thee And before all the people thou wilt be glorified But though weaknesse and irreverence be the fruit of mine own Corruption yet the fire is from thy Altar and the work is of thy commanding Oh therefore wash away all my Sins with the blood of the Lamb which taketh away the Sin of the world Imperfect or none must be they Service here Oh take thy Sons excuse The Spirit is willing but the Flesh is weak Gratias tibi Domine Jesu