Selected quad for the lemma: christian_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
christian_n	body_n	church_n	unity_n	1,412	5	9.5035	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A70943	An answer to Mr. William Prynn's twelve questions concerning church government at the end whereof, are mentioned severall grosse absurdities, and dangerous consequences of highest nature, which do necessarily follow the tenets of Presbyteriall, or any other besides a perfect independent government : together with certaine qveries.	Robinson, Henry, 1605?-1664?; Burton, Henry, 1578-1648.	1644 (1644)	Wing R1665; ESTC R17515	26,672	28

one v. 31. and whether it be not greater confusion in the sight of God to compell a hundred men of twenty severall opinions to joyne in one imposed worship than permit each of them to serve God after his owne manner and a kinde of constraining God to curse the true worshippers for the false worshippers sake or whether he will or not to blesse the false worshippers for the true worshippers which are amongst them And lastly whether way is most peaceable to desire only a Christian liberty for our selves of serving God in such manner as we finde ourselves bound in conscience to doe or the imposing a prescript way our owne a humane ordinance upon others who neither understand it to be reasonable or godly let man see and judge as God doth in judgement and in truth As touching your texts for Subjection to the Powers viz. Rom. 13. 1. 2. 1 Pet. 2. 13. 14. 15. We must bate them in this case or be subject to Episcopacie which I would be loath to be though it boast of Statute Law as yet And for 1 Cor. 10. 32 33. deale equally with me can you conceive that you give me lesse offence in forcing me to joyne with you in such a way of worship as I thinke sinfull or lesse pleasing unto God than I should give unto you by peaceably serving God after another manner only different from yours without so much as maligning yours much lesse compelling of your person or doe you any way seeke my profit that I might be saved when you force me to serve God as you alleadge after such a manner whereof I doubt and so am damned Rom. 14. 22 23. 3. and 4. To the third and fourth Question I answer That in all the New Testament you finde no Nationall Churches but severall Independent ones to wit so many Churches as you read of in all the New Testament no one depending on the other But for Presbyteriall government I finde there no print thereof far better colour for Episcopacie yet lest Episcopacie should attempt to shew her hornes againe I propound it as a querie whether superiority or Episcopall preheminence which the Apostles enjoyed in those dayes was not only by reason of the immediate Call Commission and a higher measure of inspiration which they enjoyed above their brethren and that since neither Bishops Synods nor Classicall Presbyteries can now boast more of the Holy Ghost than others whether Presbyters should not be contented to become levell with their brethren or restore againe the superiority to Bishops unto the Apostles and their successours The unity peace and amity which you insinuate to be established by Presbyteriall Government is it otherwise than of the outward man can you compell them into an unity of hearts and mindes as well as bodies was a coercive power ever sanctified for such a purpose had a subordinate government of Churches or a Nationall Church been so beautifull in the eyes of Christ doe we not thinke the Apostles and Primitive Christians would have been as wise to finde it out and as daring to practise it as were the Papists of England who alwayes governed themselves by Bishops their Bishop of Chalcedon being continually resident in the Land till within these tenne yeares which yet caused such a difference betwixt the Jesuits and the secular Priests as that they have been impleading one another at the Court of Rome for above these twenty yeares Methinkes you should have knowne of this and not presuppose the Apostles and Primitive Christians inferiour to Papists for piety or discipline But as for the capacity you say this Government hath to prevent heresie errours faction libertinisme injustice and other inconveniences I appeal to the throne of reason since that of Christ Jesus being spirituall is so little apprehended by the carnally minded whether the quite contrary be not the truth it selfe out of this consideration only viz. The Nationall Church government to be afterwards established must first be made choice of by most voices and so imposed upon the rest for Evangelicall the most are most commonly the most corrupt most licentious most injust most factious either quite carelesse or regardlesse of every Religion of all devotion and by their Club-law which they are able to manage being the major party they will both erect their government and compell others to be like themselves and I desire to propound it to your saddest thoughts to be seriously considered on whether such as are so earnest that the State should prescribe them what Religion to be of and after what manner to worship God doe not so for the most part out of idlenesse because they themselves will not take paines to try the Spirits 1 Joh. 4. 1. whether they be not meer formalists and such as may be thought to be of opinion and passe their lives as though the State must give account both of their faith and workes at the day of judgement and not they themselves As I told you before I finde no Nationall Church in the New Testament but severall Independent ones which I intreat you to consider on If you say there was no whole Nation converted to the Christian Faith in those dayes and that the Christians wanted Civill power I answer That there were so many Proselites so many converted as made severall Churches if not in one City in one Province at least and within a few some 12 miles one of another to wit the 7 Churches of Asia no two whereof besides the first Christian Antioch and others were above 120 miles distant and yet all these were Independent as appears by the respective directions and the distinct charges which the Blessed Spirit in the Revelation pronounced against them and whether the Civill powers were then Christian or Antichristian had the dependencie and subordination of Churches been an Ordinance of God good Christians would have submitted without a Civill power to pillory or whip them to it and the Apostles not omitted to reprehend them if they had done amisse in not observing it Since then a Classicall Presbyteriall government has no president in the New Testament and Episcopall which domineer'd in some degree almost ever since has been voted Antichristian and neither of them by coercive meanes can worke more upon Christians than they can upon so many head of Cattle by impounding them in what place they please no one of them may warrantably be established 5. As the grounds of Independent government attribute nothing to the Magistrate in Church affaires farther then the Magistrate is a member of their Churches and Assemblies so no people under heaven ascribe more unto the Magistrate than the Independent doe in Civill matters The Great Turke is not so absolute a Monarch as a Prince a Magistrate may be over a people independent in matters of Religion who being such as make a conscience of all they do would not only give unto Caesar the things that be Caesars but even suffer their own their propriety in part to

the obtaining and exercising dominion over the consciences of your brethren Oh the impartiality and falshood of a mans owne heart and understanding At the beginning of this Parliament the whole Kingdome sided with both Houses in the vindication of their Liberties and so it continued untill such as did overmuch idolize Presbytery prevailed for a Bill to damne Episcopacie root and branch that Presbytery might succeed it with its fascibus fustibus with its Pentifiealibus Synodalibus nothing to be abated which concerned either wealth or jurisdiction only an Episcopall tyranny to be exchanged for a Presbyteriall slavery which so soone as the Court Clergie discovered they quickly plotted a countermine they quickly prevailed to bring Armes into the Field for asserting the Nationall Church Government and Discipline established by Law and thus betweene Episcopacie and Presbytery between the covetous and aspiring dominering Clergie-men of War on both sides not only the Grand Designe the vindication of our just Liberties through Gods just judgement is well neare blasted which was so likely to be compassed by a universall union and concurrence without the least bloodshed save of some few notorious Delinquents and in stead thereof by their severall and yet joynt contrivances like Sampsons Foxes the depraved Clergie-men of both sides have engaged all three Kingdomes in so violent and execrable a Civill Warre to the destruction and sudden death of so many thousand Christians Protestants as the whole Christian World in so short a time had never felt the like Can Mr. Pryn deny but that the parties now in Armes at least the Grand Instruments those principall Engines which set all the wheeles a running till they are growne quite giddy may notwithstanding their subtle carriage of it be justly denominated Episcopall and Presbyteriall have they not as the Prophet Daniel saith 11. 39. divided the Kingdomes betwixt them at present and as Esaiah tells us 56. 11. doe they not looke to their owne way only whilest every one has his chiefe aime at the gaine which comes from his quarter nay hath not each of them designed to reduce all three Kingdomes totally to their command and bondage hereafter may not the Apostle James his reprehension bee thought purposely directed to them From whence come warres and fightings among you come they not hence even of our lusts James 4 1. aut Caesar aut nullus nothing will serve their turnes lesse than absolute conquest of the Kingdome of the whole man both soule and body imprisonment and banishment fire and sword to all alike to Independents as well as to Papists though the Papists till they renounce some certaine tenets can be true to neither but the Independents unto either as well as the Apostles and Primitive Christians were to the Antichristian Roman Emperours Did Micah to whom the Word of the Lord came c. 1. 1. tell the Jews how they hated the good and loved the evill that they plucked off the skin and flesh from their bones that they did eat the flesh of Gods people and flay'd their skin from off them that they brake their bones and chopp'd them in peeces as for the pot and as flesh within the caldron they build up Sion with bloud and Jerusalem with iniquity the heads thereof judge for reward the Priests teach for hire and the Prophets thereof divine for money yet will they say is not the Lord amongst us Micah 4. 2. 3. 10. 11. and may it not now as truly if not then Prophetically be said of too too many on both sides at present that they seeke to settle uniformity and build up a Nationall Church in bloud and rapine did Micah then tell the Jewes v. 11. That their Heads did judge for reward and may it not now be said as truly that neither widow nor fatherlesse neither poore nor oppressed can tell whom to flye to for reliefe or comfort no Saint to helpe them within hearing the Drummes and Trumpets with imminent necessities are made excuses to continue the whole Kingdomes in unsufferable miserie except such as can make friendship by their unrighteous mammon which they have got with fishing in these troubled waters Luke 16. 9. may it not now be said as justly that the Priests of both sides the Episcopall and Presbyteriall Clergie do teach for hire and prophesie for money doth not the same Prophet Micah say truly of them He that putteth not into their mouthes they even prepare War against him doe they not with the most prostitute Popelings cry out No penny no Pater noster Is not maintenance maintenance the burthen of all their Parlour or Pulpit pastime and why should they so sacrilegiously set a price on that which is but supposititious the phancie of their owne braines the reall truth whereof God required all true Disciples to give for nothing Mat 10 8. Es. 55. 1. 2. or why should people be forced to buy the chaffer of these Clergie-merchants rather than the wares or labour of a Shoomaker or porter would not such dealing be damned for an unjust monopoly which yet these encroachers practise without a patent if any but themselves should doe the like nay why must we be forced to pay these mercenary Clergie-men for such counterfeit service and ministration which others will discharge better and that for nothing is not this the greatest infringing of the Subjects propriety which the Kingdome suffers I say not this to under value the Ministery of the Gospell or to disswade an ample and abundant maintenance to such as truly labour in Gods Vineyard but to exaggerate the heynousnesse of those that do not only set as they pretend the inestimable treasure of the Gospell the unvaluable Word of God to sale as if it were an unholy thing Heb. 10. 29. but as much as in them lyes compell all people and Nations by fire and sword to buy trash and trumpery in stead thereof and that at what price they themselves please And lastly as Micah pronounced a curse upon the Israelites for these iniquities of theirs v. 12. so have we instead of peace and propriety nothing remaining besides direfull Wars and barbarous devastations and instead of a Nationall Church through Gods just judgements we see three Nations weltering in one anothers blood If then we have thus fallen into these miseries may we not by retrograding get cut againe if Episcopacie and Presbytery have set the State on fire through an ambitious desire of Empire together with a pestilent spirit of persecuting one another may not the serving both alike reduce us to quietnesse againe they are these pretended Clergy-men that love to be called the great Rabbies and Doctors that affect the uppermost seats at feasts and meetings Mat. 23. 6. 7. these thinke the Blessed Spirit departed from all the Saints to be retreated and confined unto their breasts they will allow no body to Prophesie besides themselves contrary to Pauls testimony 1 Cor. 14. 31. in which respect the people being for the most part bred up