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	member_n	mystical_a	1,520	5	10.6674	5	true

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A10844	A treatise of the lavvfulnes of hearing of the ministers in the church of England: penned by that late learned and reverent deuine, Mr. Iohn Robinsz. late pastor to the new English church of God in Leyden. Printed according to the copie that was found in his studie after his decase [sic]: and now published for the common good. Together with a letter written by the same authore: and approued by his church: vvhich followeth after this treatise	Robinson, John, 1575?-1625.	1634 (1634)	STC 21116; ESTC S112268	28,560	99

for the preuenting in some and remedying in others of that inordinate and broken course And first I demaund of such what is this course of hearing such ministers as vvhose stare of ministerie they approue not Is it any perticuler ordinance left by Christ and enjoyned all christians in all ages and places Verily no. It vvere to be vvished that no church-ministerie vvere to be found vvhich is not approueable by the Word of God notwithstanding any good act performed by them that posses it This hearing is onely a vvork of naturall liberty in it selfe as I haue shewed and sanctified to beleeuers by their faith It is lawfull to vse it vpon occasion as it is to borrow of other men but to make it our course is to liue by borrovving vvhich no honest man that can do othervvise possibly vvould do Yea what differs it from a kinde of spirituall vagabondry in him that can mend it though vvith som difficulty to liue in no certain church-state and vnder no church-order and gouernment To print deep in our hearts the conscience of our duties this vvay let vs briefly consider how many bonds of necessity the Lord hath layd vpon vs to vvalk in the followshippe vnder the ordinances of the ministeriall and instituted-church First vve haue lying vpon vs the necessite of obedience to Christ our Lord in the commission Apostolicall enjoyning that after vve be made disciples as the vvord is Mat. 28. 19. 20. and baptised vve be vvithall taught to obserue vvhatsoeuer he hath commaunded It must not then suffice vs that vve are disciples and christians but we must joyn hearewith the entire obseruation of al the ordinances of Christ as vve can finde meanes from the greatest to the least And let vs beware that like the Scribes Pharisees Mat. 5. 19. 20. vve call none of Gods commaundements litle because vve vvould make our selues and others beleeue that litle and light account is to be made of obseruing them lest vve our selues bee called litle that is be indeed none in the kingdome of heauen Our sinnes of ignorance and humane frayly alas are to many let vs not adde therevnto presumptuous sinnes either of commission or omission to prouoke God vvithall 2. The church and ministrations therein are not needlesse but most needfull meanes sanctified of God and giuen of Christ for our saluation and edification therevnto Act 2. 47. vvhich he that despiseth that is Eph. 4. 11 doth not submit his soule and body vnto as he hath meanes and conuerse therein vvith good conscience though in affliction persecution despiseth not man but God and Christ to the depriuing of himselfe of the fruit of Gods most gracious presence in his house and temple 1. Tim. 3. 15. vvhere he hath promised to dwell and of Christs ascention into heauen for the powring out of all kingly gifts and largesses vpon men for the vvork of the ministery 2. Cor. 6. 16. 3. Our great infirmities vvhereof both the scriptures euery vvhere and our owne experience vvarn vs shew in vvhat great need vve stand of all the Lords holy ordinances and institutions for the supplying of vvhat is vvanting in vs and correcting of vvhat is a misse and continuing and encreasing of vvhat is good vnto the cōming of the Lord vvhere vve must also take knowledge and remember that it is on note of difference and the same very cleare betvveene the vvisedome of the fleshe and the vvisedome of the spirit that the former vvilbe sure to prouide for the body and outvvard man vvhat may bee though vvith danger and prejudize of the spirituall the other vvill take care and order for the spirituall state though the outvvard pinch for it And if any out of the view and persuation of his ovvne strength of grace come to conceaue that he stands in no such need of Christs ordinances or of any christian follovvshippe for the dispensing of them let such a man consider that the lesse need he hath of others by reason of his greater plenty of grace receaued the more need others haue of him for their supply But vvhatsoeuer any imagine of himselfe the Apostle vvho vvas not partiall teacheth that the very head the chiefe and highest member can not say to the feet the lovvest and meanest members I haue no need of you 1. Cor. 12. 21. 4. And lastly it is necessarie for our sound and entire comfort vvith the Lord our God that our obedience be entire in respect of all his holy commandements vvhich vve do or can discern to be such and to concerne vs according to that of the man of God Psa. 119 6 Then shal I not be ashamed vvhen I haue respect to all thy commaundements That so vve may haue our part in the testimonie giuen by the holy Ghost of Zachary and Elizabeth Luk. 1. 5. 6. vvhich vvas that they vvere righteous before God walking in all the commaundements ordinances of the Lord blamelesse That is both in the morall precepts and sacred ceremonies and institutions of the Lord Whose examples vve in our place and times are to followe not balking vvith the Lord in any thing great or small nor seeking starting holes vvhereby to escape from him in his word which is vvholy good and pure Good as comming from our good God Pro. 30. 5. Heb. 6. 5. good in it selfe and good for vs if vve conuerse therein as vve ought in good conscience tovvards God zeale for his ordinances modestie in our selues and charitie tovvards other men specially towards them vvith vvhom God hath joyned vs in the most and best things taking heed lest by any vncharitable either judgment of or vvithdrawing from their persons for such humane fraylties as vnto vvhich into one kinde or other all Adams sinfull prosterity are subject vve sinne not more by our course held against them then they by theirs in them vvhich God forbid To conclude For my selfe thus I beleeue with my heart before God and professe with my tongue and haue before the world that I haue one and the same faith hope spirit baptisin and Lord which I had in the church of England and none other that I esteem so many in that church of what state or order soeuer as are truly partakers of that faith as I account many thousand to be for my christian brethren and my selfe a fellow-fellow-member with them of that one misticall body of Christ scattered far and wide throughout the world that I haue alwaies in spirit and affection al christian fellowshippe and communion with them and am most ready in all outward actions exercises of Religione lawfull lawfully done to expresse the same withall that I am perswaded the hearing of the word of God there preached in the manner and vpon the grounds formerly mentioned both lawfull and vpon occasion necessary for me all true christians with drawing from that Hierarchical order of church gouernement and ministery and the appartenances

following Treatise proues the contrarie then it vvere good for euery church that will auoid communion with profane men to meete in priuate and then to shut their dore when their own compagnie is meet together else I cannot see how they can auoid hauing communion with wicked men to wit if beare hearing be an acte of communion Secondly as this hearing is not against any Article of their faith so likewise it was not in the iudgement of the church esteemed as a thing that might not be borne withall The letter you shall find after the Treatise this may appeare by a copy of a letter which we haue heer following published where the church in the counsell which they giue to the church of London do sufficiently make it appeare that their iudgement did manifestlie differ from those which now haue made this breach and which is well to be marked by the reader how that the church when this letter was write enioyed the Pastor and their company was fiue tymes greater then it was when this breach was made because these men in his their error are vvilling to retraine it and not being able to make any sufficient reply to the answere made in this Treatise to their obiections though the manuscript therof hath bene in their hands for many yeares yet because they will find somthing to say more then others haue done heretofore though of lesse force therefore they haue ioyned some new obiections which both the seducer and the seduced do thinke are vnanswerable therfore it will not be amisse for vs to propound them and to giue some answere to them that so if their stomachs serue they may reply to all at once First they obiect and say that we hold the church of England to be a false church and the Ministers thereof to be Antichristian and yet we go thither to worship the true God Before we answere directly to this objection we shall intreate the Reader and themselues to consider of this that followes First A church may be said to be false in diuers respects and according to those respects vve are to haue diuers Considerations thereof as first a church may be said to be false in respect of outward order to vvit vvhen a church is gathered together not according to the rule of Christ neither in their outward gouernement do they conforme therevnto now this church cannot be said to be the church of Christ being thus erected and gouerned contrary to the rule of Christ but is false and Antichristian and yet notwithstanding the faith professed by this church and the doctrines taught in this church may be sound and according to God Secondly a church may be false not onely in respect of outward order but likewise in respect of faith and doctrine Now to this latter vve counsell no man to go because from thence no good can be expected and that is the esteeme vve haue of the church of Rome But now as in a true church in respect of outward order there may be manie false doctrines taught so in a church that is false in respect of outward order there may be manie sound and seasonable truths taught and this esteeme vve haue of the preaching in England Namelie that the doctrine there taught according to the Articles of their faith is sound and the effects of it hath appeared in the vvorking of faith in the hearts of manie thousands For the outward order or meeting there as a church that concernes themselues and those that are in vnion vvith that church estate but not all that heare them Now that worshipping of God which consists in hearing his word is warrantable for vs to doe in England we proue it by this argument That preaching which ordinarily begets men to the faith of Christ may lawfully be heard But the preaching of many Ministers in the Church of England hath and doth ordinarily beget men to the faith of Christ. Therefore the preaching of many Ministers in England may lawfully be heard The first part of this sillogisme is proued out of Rom 10. where the Apostle telling what is the ordinary vvay God vses to beget men to the faith of Christ telles vs it comes by hearing of the vvord of God preached if faith comes by hearing the vvord of God preached to vvit if that be the outward meanes then there is no question but that a man may heare such preaching and any man may blush for shame that shall deny this so that the major part of the argument is cleare And for the Minor parte they cannot deny it no more then a man at noon day can deny the sunne to shine for if any man make question whether faith comes ordinarily by the preaching and hearing in England it is a great question vvether they euer had faith or no yet because some are so grosse as to deny this we will therefore proue the contrarie by this Argument That preaching and hearing which makes them which were altogether carnall and so not capable of a church-estate to become saints so fit for a church-estate That preaching must needs beget men to the faith But the preaching and hearing in England made them that were vnfit carnall to become saints and so fit members to the true church which were not so before Therfore the preaching in England and hearing the same doth beget men to the faith That the preaching and hearing in England hath done this Witnesse the church of Leyden and of Amstelredam Let them tell vs where they receiued their faith if they say they had it not till they ioyned in these bodies how could they then be true to their owne grounds that none but visible Christians are fit matter for the church vvhereas none can be so esteemed except in the iudgement of charitie we iudge them to haue true faith But some of these that haue made this diuision haue not denyed but faith is wrought by the preaching and hearing in England and yet which is wonderfull contradiction they say it is not the vvord of God as it is there preached so that it seemes there is something besides the vvord of God which is an ordinary meanes to beget men to the faith and there is another vvord besides Gods vvord that vvill do it the like absurditie hath sildome bene heard from any that professe them selues to be Christians and that they may not seeme to say this vvithout some reason marke the reason that they bring to proue it say they we do deny that to be the vvord of God as it is there preached by a false Ministry though the vvord it selfe be of God yet as it is by them preached it is none of Gods vvord so Gods vvord here stands at fast and loose it is Gods vvord and it is not Gods vvord as if they should say it is Gods word if M r. Canne shall preach it but if another that is a Minister in England preach the same it is none of Gods vvord so