Ephes. 4. 14. That we henceforth be no more Children mark that James tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of Doctrine 7 Quaery Whether thou wilt now own immediate Revelation yea or no Answ. First I say that the Apostle teacheth us to pray for the Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation in the acknowledgment of God Ephes. 1. 17. which also in a way of faith obedience prayer and perseverance may be obtained but there are many false lights and delusions of Satan who too often transforms himself into an Angel of light 2 Cor. 11. 14. which are entertained by unwary men for the Illuminations and Revelations of Gods Spirit as appears in Zedekiah aforesaid See also Ezekiel 13. 6. and 14. 9. 2 Thess. 2. 11. 8 Quaery What is thy Gospel which thou art a Minister of And whether thy Gospel be free and without charge as the Apostles was Answ. To the first part of this quaery I say That my Gospel which I preach is the same which Christ and his Apostles taught which is summarily contained in those 4. verses Tit. 2. 11 12 13 14. For the Grace of God which bringeth salvation to all men hath appeared Teaching us that denying ungodlinesse and worldly lusts we should live soberly and justly and godly in this present world Looking for that blessed hope and the appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ Who gave himself for us that he might redeem us from all iniquity and purifie unto himself a peculiar people zealous of good works To the second I say That the Apostles Gospel was not every way free and without charge For he saith 2 Cor. 11. 8. I robbed other Churches taking wages of them to do you service Nor hath Christ or any of his Apostles imposed it upon us that the Gospel should be altogether without charge and to them which have it taught Rom 15. 27. Gal. 6. 6. Nor is James Parnel's Gospel be it right or wrong without charge if he do not take more then it is worth when duly examined it 's well 9 Quaery Whether thou dost hold up the first Priesthood which took Tythes or the second Priesthood that took no Tythes which last thou dost deny seeing thou takest Tythes Answ. Although it be clear here that James Parnel understands not which was the first Priesthood and which was the last whatsoever his fellowes do yet I say that Melchizedeck whose Priesthood was the first Priesthood took Tythes Gen. 14. 20. Heb. 7. 2 3 4 5 c. And the Levitical Priesthood which was the second and not the first Priesthood took Tythes also as is confessed by your selves and also others So that there is no Priesthood mentioned in the Scriptures which took not Tythes How then do I or any others deny either of those Priesthoods by taking that which they took 10 Quaery Whether is thy Rule in the Scriptures for the Ministers of the Gospel to take Tythes Answ. Although it be sufficient for me and other Ministers of the Gospel that there is no Commandment in the Gospel against the taking of Tythes which you must produce ere you can make the thing unlawful yet we have warrant enough there for what we do in this kind For first the Lord hath assumed to himself the right and title of all tythes Levit. 27. 30 31 32. And all the Tythe of the land whether of the seed of the land or of the fruit of the Trees is the Lords it is holy to the Lord And if a man will at all redeem ought of his Tythes he shall adde thereto the fifth part thereof And concerning the tythes of the herd and of the flock even of whatsoever passeth under the rod the tenth shall be holy unto the Lord Secondly the Lord hath bestowed those upon the second Priesthood to wit the Levites as well as upon the first Numb. 18. 24. But the Tythes of the children of Israel which they offer as an heave-heave-offering to the Lord I have given to the Levites to inherit Hence it is that the Lord saith he was robbed as well as the Levites when these were detained Mal. 3. 8. Will a man rob God but ye have robbed me Yet ye say Wherein have we robbed thee In tythes and offerings Yea hence it was that the whole Land was cursed for thus withholding of Tythes vers. 9. as on the contrary a blessing is promised to the due keeping of this Commandment as well as of others there verse 10 11 12. Now you will not deny but there is a Priesthood or Ministery in the New Testament which is to succeed the Priesthood of Melchizedeck as ministring thereunto and more spiritual efficacious and worthy then the Priesthood of Levi We would then have you shew us where Christ or his Apostles have taken away that maintenance which was allowed to both the others which you can never do out of clear Scriptures Nay doth not Christ rather confirm them then take them away though he hath fair occasion to do it for the future where he saith Matth. 23. 23. Wo unto you Scribes and Pharisees for ye pay tythe of mint and dill and cummin and have omitted the weightier matters of the Law Judgment mercy and faith These ought ye to have done and not leave the other undone Nor can you gainsay this truth That Paul himself spends half a Chapter 1 Cor. 9. to prove that the preaching of the Gospel should have a sufficient maintenance allowed to it as well as the Levitical Priestood although at Corinth because the adversaries sought occasion to speak against the Gospel he did for a short time forbear to take that which was his right and due But doth not the same Apostle in joyn more then a tenth or tythe where he saith Gal. 6. Let him that is taught in the Word communicate to him that teacheth in all good things Finally when the Princes Lords and owners of Lands and Manours did by their Charters and Grants give to the Ministers of the Gospel in this Nation and elsewhere and to their Successours for ever the tenths of all their grounds and caused the same to be settled by Law was not this a lawfull and a pious gift and suitable to what was paid in the Old Testament and injoyned in the New And this is our legal and civil claim also and our birth-right in this Nation to which vve have as lawful a claim and title as any Son hath to the Inheritance of his Father 11 Quaery Whether ever the Ministers of Christ had or stood in need of an outward Law to compel people to maintain them as thou and such as thou now hath and doth use Answ. The righteous or those that are truly spiritual need no such compulsive Law to free them for they are a law unto themselves but for as much as the greatest part of the Professours in the visible Church alwayes were and yet are earthly-minded and neither do nor can rightly value spiritual and heavenly
as thou dost who make a Trade of their words Ans. First I say that here you forget our order we do not first infer Uses and then Points but first Points Doctrines or Propositions and then Uses Secondly all that we do in this kind hath been the practice of the Church and her Teachers for many hundreds of years Thirdly none will deny but this is a profitable and useful way of teaching Fourthly it may be proved out of the Scriptures that all this hath been done by Christ and his Apostles For Christ preacheth to the Jews Luke 4. 18 c. out of Isaiah 61. 1 2 3 4. and to the Sadduces Matth. 22. 31. out of Exod. 3. 6. So doth Peter with his fellow-Apostles Act. 2. 16. out of Joel 2. 28. and Philip to the Eunuch Act. 8. 35. out of Isaiah 53. As for the Uses which we make of those Points we have our rule for them from the Apostles own mouth Rom. 15. 4. 2 Tim. 3. 16 17. Nor did Christ leave us without marks of tryal Joh. 8. 31. 13. 35. Finally he useth many motives himself to keep us from the distracting cares of this world Matth. 6. 25 -34. Yet are we not so in love with this way of ours but that we would change it for a better if any can shew it us and make our hearers believe that it would be more advantagious for them Finally this trade of interpreting the Scriptures is an old and a good trade Job 32. 23. Psal. 78. 2 3. Prov. 1. 6. Acts 8. 3. And so often as you speak sense you do the same thing though ignorantly which you blame in us 20 Quaery Whether thou dost speak as thou art moved by the Holy Ghost as they did who spake forth the Scriptures Answ. I have answered to this already that I usually do speak at the motion or in the assistance of the Holy Ghost I praise God for it but dare not say that I do it in that degree that the Prophets and Apostles did who spake and wrote the holy Scriptures nor doth it yet appear to me that James Parnel or any of his fellow-prophets do speak or write in that high way of spiritual dictation and instinct in all things though I shall be ready to acknowledge Gods gift unto and working in the meanest of his servants without envy or disparagement yea with all humility and thankfulnesse to God for them 21 Quaery What Scripture hast thou for sprinckling Infants with water in the face and whether all are Christians and in the faith of Christ to whom it is so done or what doth it profit Answ. To the first demand in this quaery I say I hold not the Baptisme of Infants absolutely necessary but lawful onely It is sufficient that I have no command in Scripture against the sprinckling of Infants in the face with baptismal water but I have the commandment of Governours whether Civil or Ecclesiastical for it seeing I am commanded to be subject to every Ordinance of man for the Lords sake whether it be to the King as Supream or unto Governours as those that are sent by him c. 1 Pet. 2. 13 14. Yet have we an universal Promise that all Nations in the Earth should be blessed in the seed of promise Gen. 12. 5. 18. 18. 22. 18. which promise is made to us and our children Act. 2. 39. If children then be within the Covenant why may not they receive the seal of the Covenant Christ himself saith also that of such is the Kingdome of heaven Mark 10 14. why may not such then receive the badges of the children of the Kingdome Yea the Apostle affirms That all which came out of Egypt under Moses children as well as parents were baptized in the cloud and in the Sea 1 Cor. 10. 1 2. which is no contemptible ground for Infant-Baptisme Christs inviting and encouraging those that brought little children his embracing them and praying for them discovers his affection to such and his rebuking of his Disciples who would have kept them back makes not for you and the Antipaedobaptists but against you all To the second demand I say That actual faith is required onely in men and women of some years and capacity to hear the Word But Infants may be in Christ and Christ in them if he lightens every one that comes into the world especially since some are sanctified from the womb as John the Baptist was Luk. 1. 13. And if Christ be in them then they are Christians indeed and not in profession onely To the third and last demand I say That the prayers of the Minister and the Saints in the Congregation who pray for the regeneration preservation and salvation of the child for the present may profit and benefit the Infant The Lord also may with the outward washing even then give his Spirit to the child And though he do not yet that washing may prove as good a document to the person baptized for the time to come as Circumcision did in times past to the Jews when they were grown up though administred in their Infancy To say nothing that it is a great satisfaction to the Christian parents that their children are admitted into the body of the visible Church and have received a distinguishing badge and cognizance of Christianity And the child it self hath from thence no small motive or instigation to be a follower of Christ in his death and resurrection 22. Quaery What is the estate and condition of a Christian Answ. As there are 3. ages steps and degrees of Christians according to their interest and progresse in the work of regeneration so their estate is various and different even in this world for the Babes in Christ are new begotten of the Father in the hatred of sin and love of righteousnesse and by him brought to the knowledge hope and love of redemption from all iniquity and renovation in all righteousnesse who also have their sins forgiven them which they have repented of and left 1 Joh. 2. 12. Their estate lyeth in a renewed understanding and will especially The young men in Christ are become strong in him and have the Word abiding in them through whom they overcome the wicked one 1 Joh. 2. 13 14. These differ from the former in stature and strength But the old or dayed men which are such in deed and growth and not in years only have attained to much more wisdome power and righteousnesse in the Spirit and know the Father and his counsels more intimately then either of the other 1 Joh. 2. 13 14. Now it is no small confusion to make these 3. one nor lesse presumption to take the first or second for the last as I fear many among you and the other Sectarians do 23 Quaery What doth the faith which thou professeth differ from the faith of the hypocrite and what is the faith of the hypocrite Answ. My faith which I professe is a trust in the Lord Jesus
Q. 59. Did not the Apostles give these mystical signs to those that afterwards proved Schismaticks and Apostates if not Hereticks likewise though for the present time they professed true faith and repentance seeing Paul saith 1 Cor. 11. 18 19 c. For first of all when ye come together in the Church I hear that there be schismes among you and I partly believe it For there must be also heresies among you that they which are approved may be made manifest among you When ye come together into one place this is not to eat the Lords Supper c. And the Apostle John saith 1 Joh. 2. 19. They went out from us but they were not of us c Concerning the present Ministers and Teachers and their maintenance Q. 60. Were there no Ministers in this Nation that held forth the truth amongst us till you and your associates rose up since we have our Lords promise The gates of hell shall not prevail against the Church and Behold I am with you to the end of the world Q. 61. What is become then of all your forefathers theirs and ours who dyed since the Apostles dayes till your rising up with the pretended Spirit of Truth Q. 62. If there were some taught of God before you were called why are not they owned by any of you Q. 63. Did Christ or his Apostles decry the whole Priesthood and Ministery that was in their dayes though many of them were sufficiently blind and corrupt Q. 64. Were not those Priests and Scribes thar either walked in the Truth or were well affected towards it acknowledged by Christ and his Apostles as Joses the Levite afterwards called Barnabas Act. 4. 36. and that Scribe which asked our Saviour concerning the great Commandment Mark 12. 34. and many Priests also Acts 6. 7 Q. 65. Did not Christ ratifie the present Priesthood and their maintenance when he sent the Lepers whom he cleansed to them to offer according ro the Law Matth. 8. 4 Luk. 17. 14 Q. 66. Where hath Christ or his Apostles forbidden the hearers to pay or the Teachers to take Tythes Q. 67. Where did Christ or his Apostles deprive any man and much more so great a society of men of their birthright by Law or their civil Inheritance as you go about to deprive us the Ministers of this Nation of our legal rights and dues given by pious Benefactors and confirmed by many Lawes and Acts of Parliament Q. 68. Is the teaching Priesthood to cease till the spiritual Melchizedeck come unto us to blesse us after the slaughter of all our enemies with the heavenly bread and wine Gen. 14. 18 19. Heb. 7. 1 2 3. That you say that Priesthood of Aaron with the Law annexed of Tythes is ceased under the Gospel Q. 69. Why then hath Christ Ephes. 4. 11 12 13 14. given some to be Apostles some Prophets some Evangelists and some Pastors and Doctors for the perfecting of the Saints for the work of the Ministery and for the edifying of the Body of Christ till we all come in the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God unto a perfect man unto the meansure of the stature of the fulnesse of Christ Q. 70. Is he an hireling that takes the salary and wages allowed by God and men for his labour which he doth faithfully or he only that affects the wages alone and not the work leaving his charge in time of danger and longing only for the shadow and rest as being weary of the work seeing our Saviour saith Joh. 10. 13. The hireling fleeth because he is an hireling and careth not for the sheep See Job 7. 12. Q. 71. Are the Superiour powers hirelings because they take tribute and custome by Gods allowance for their support Rom. 13. 6. For for this cause pay ye tribute also for they are Gods Ministers attending continually upon this very thing Q. 72. Is it then dishonest gain to take or require that which by the Lawes of God and man is appointed unto us for the work we do Q. 73. Do any follow the way of Balaam but those that for gain and reward sake are ready to curse Gods people and to give evil counsel against them that they may be drawn into whoredome and commit iniquity and fornication against the Lord as be did Rev. 2. 14. But I have a few things against thee saith Christ because thou hast them that hold the doctrine of Balaam who taught Balak to cast a stumbling block before the children of Israel to eat things sacrificed to Idols and to commit fornication Q. 74. Did ever the Church of Rome cast greater reproaches upon the Protestant Ministers then you do and are you not Jesuited by some of her Emissaries that you would have them all one with another rooted out at once Yea what can the Devil himself desire more in this kind Concerning the inward Light Q. 75. Is there not a false light within men as well as a true seeing the Apostle saith of the false Teachers 2 Cor. 11. 13 14. For such are false Apostles deceitful workers transforming themselves into the Apostles of Christ And no marvel for Satan himself is transformed into an Angel of light Q. 76. Is not that false light the most dangerous darknesse the hardest to be discerned and driven away seeing our Saviour faith Matth. 6. 23. But if thine eye be evil thy whole body shall be full of darknesse If therefore the light that is in thee be darknesse how great is that darknesse Q. 77. Are we not therefore to try mens pretended light by the Law and Word of God seeing Isaiah saith Chap. 8. 20. To the Law and to the Testimony If they speak not according to that it is because there is no light or morning in them Q. 78. What may men think of your pretended light who hate so many of your Brethren in the Ministery of England seeing the Apostle saith 1 Joh. 2. 9. He that saith he is in the light and hateth his brother is in darknesse even till now Q. 79. Is there not another light to go before the light of Christ seeing the Wise men that came from the East were guided unto Christ by a star Matth. 2 Q. 80. Is not the sure Prophetical Word a light that shines in a dark corner till the true day light arise in our heart seeing the Apostle saith thus 2 Pet. 1. 19. We have also a more sure Word of Prophecie whereunto ye do well that ye take heed as unto a light that shineth in a dark corner till the day dawn and the day-star arise in your hearts Q. 81. Whether the life of Christ be not the true light that men are to wait for and wherein the true children of light are to walk seeing the Evangelist saith Joh. 1. 4. In whom was life and that life was the light of men And the Apostle Paul saith Ephes. 5. 8 9. Walk as children of the light for the fruit