Selected quad for the lemma: christian_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
christian_n	day_n	lord_n	sanctify_v	1,265	5	10.2044	5	false

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A88693	Suspension reviewed, stated, cleered and setled upon plain scripture-proof. Agreeable to the former and late constitutions of the Protestant Church of England and other reformed churches. Wherein (defending a private sheet occasionally written by the author upon this subject, against a publique pretended refutation of the same, by Mr W. in his book, entituled, Suspension discussed.) Many important points are handled; sundry whereof are shortly mentioned in the following page. Together with a discourse concering private baptisme, inserted in the epistle dedicatory. / By Samuel Langley, R.S. in the county palatine of Chester.	Langley, Samuel, d. 1694.	1658 (1658)	Wing L405; Thomason E1823_2; ESTC R209804	201,826	263

c. notoriously such may profess his earnest desire to receive and yet that makes him not no whoremonger and no drunkard 2. Then also the Church may look for no further satisfaction in order to restoring of an excommunicate then his verbal profession of earnest desire to receive the Sacrament For that which should prevent their excommunicating of him must be avaylable to restore him But the Church in many ages hath required particular confession of notorious sins and expresse profession of repentance for them and not only profession of earnest desire to receive as antecedently necessary to the absolution of an excommunicate in analogy to that Levit. 5.4 5 6. where he who was to bring his trespass offering for a false oath though through ignorance was to confesse that he had sinned in that thing and then he is allowed to b●ing his trespass-offering to the Lord and the Priest shall make an attonement for him concerning his sin So more generally Numb 5.7 on which saith Ainsworth out of Maimonides The Hebrewes set down this duty thus This confession is with words and it s commanded to be done How do they confesse He saith Oh God! for I have sinned I have done perversly I have trespassed before thee and have done thus and thus and loe I repent and am ashamed of my doings and I will never do this thing againe And this is the foundation of confession And who so maketh a large confession and is long in the thing he is to be commended And so the owners of sin-and trespass-offerings when they bring their oblations for their ignorant or presumptuous sins attonement is not made for them by their oblation untill they have made Repentance and confession by word of mouth Likewise all condemned to death by the Magistrates or condemned to stripes no attonement is made for them by their death or by their stripes until they have epented and confessed And so he that hurteth his neighbour ● doth him damage though he pay him whatsoever he owe him illonement is not made for him til he confess and turn away from doing so againe for ever Now it may be Mr. W. could have taught them a more expeite and easie way of satiffactory confession viz. if the offendeiprofess verbally his earnest desire to partake of the Passeove that shall quit all scores §. 3. Mr. W. further addes As for your fully and not fully excommunicate wee look not on them as considerable in this present controversie they are your own miserable shifts c. What 's the conclusion Ergo my fore mentioned Reason is not sound Wonderfull hap he hath if he can draw this inference from such premises This distinction of excommunication hath been proved before at Chap. 3. and I wonder not if he would so faine shift it out of his way if he could it so fully enervates the Reasons of his Champion Mr. Timson and shewes his miscarriage in the very stating of the Question If that third Chap. aforesaid stand good particularly the sixth § that excommunicates are Church-members and are not by excommunication cut off from all ordinances although accidentally that may sometime coincidere and often did fall in in the primitive times The title of his booke is blasted which over each leafe is this to receive the Lords Supper is the actual right of all Church members but in the first page is thus To receive the Lords Supper the actual Right and duty of all Church members of yeares not excommunicate Which is sorrily propounded For 1. here and in his book he confounds Right and duty as if these were of the same latitude as if because its an heathens duty to be baptized or a Christians duty when drunk on the Lords day to sanctifie the Sabbath in publique Ordinances yea or an Excommunicats duty to receive all which are manifestly their duty which they are obliged to that therefore it were the heathens right to be baptized without any more adoe or the drunken Christians to be admitted into the Assembly while drunke or the excommunicate had actual right to the Lord Supper while excommunicate 2. And that all excommuncation turnes our of Church-membership Mr. Humphreys holeth Rejoynd p. 155. where he saith Suspension is null withot dismembership To what purpose then should Mr. Timson hae added not excommunicate but to instruct us in this lesso● That to receive the Lords Supper is the actuall right and duty of all Church members at yeares who are not no Church member This is the Warriour whose Herald Mr. W. is pleased to m●●e himselfe and he once and againe provokes me to graple with him But if I have made good this one argument against Mr. W. there 's none I thinke can reasonably thinke there 's any need of answering Mr. Timson in print Mr. W. hath much of his sense and language too where he could bring it in But his distinction of fully and not fully excommunicate I suspect the more angers him because it makes the weapons of his ious brave man unserviceable in this contest with me in this gument But I have shewed there is an excommunication by the Officers of the Church or Minister alone by the people alone though the Officers refuse to joyne and there is an excommunication wherein the Officers and people of the Congregation and neighbourhood too perhaps though that 's not essential do concurre which is a fuller excommunication then either of the former §. 4. 5. In the 5th place Mr. W. answers and confutes as he pretends my Reason by saying As for your Excommunication you give us a very quaint account thereof and in a taunt he saith Schollers may do well to furnish their note bookes with it And in stead of better Answers furor arma ministrat he fits downe in the chaire of the scorners and thus acts his part It should seeme saith he that your full excommunication is a very shrewd thing when you can be at leisure to meet in a full Classis and so have your severe Rabbies of discipline sit in state with the rest of your grave Benchers then the case of a poore sinner is put upon the debale and after that your Elders have well stroaked their beards and nodded in their votes the decree is that the sinner arraigned is to be excommunicated fully and that with full excommunication compleatly The summe whereof is that such a man found and judged guilty of such misdemeanours is declared to be as an heathen Infidel and do such an one to be lookt upon and dealt with by all our Church members i. e. to he counted as an enemie and not to be admonished as a brother Here are learned arguments apodictical demonstrations but be like all in Bocardo Here are formulae oratoriae for the cupping crew who may probably applaud the Author and quaffe his health round for them I 'le confesse they are not to be answered by me Ego poenitere tanti non emam as Demosthenes said to the

house is not publique though many be there present because this would not in times of freedome be counted a fit place for ordinary conventions of the Church for preaching 2. Baptisme on the week day at the place of publique assembly where there is not so considerable a number present as it would be counted expedient for a publique Sermon to be made to is yet but private baptisme 3. I suppose it also requisite that the Congregation on the Lords day before have notice of the time of a baptisme intended there the week following unless there be some known lecture or exercise there at that time or at least we may probably expect a considerable number of Christians then that they may freely repair unto the Word and Sacrament then to be dispenced the usuall signes being given for warning a publique transaction 4. Yet if it be judged unfit frequently to call an assembly of the Church I suppose at such time when we cannot urge a considerable number of our Congregation to attend in publique nor blame their absence we may not appoint a publique ordinance for them to be present at For this seemes little better then a prevaricating with them 5. To conclude Hence it follows that it s not this or that number present which is necessary to the making a baptismal administration publique in the place of publique Church meetings For then we should be at a losse what should be the least number necessary But the administring it at such a time and in such a place where and when the Congregation may freely and is obliged to attend We may in some Parishes or Chappelries suspect somtimes on the Lords dayes and upon other special and important occasions for preaching on other dayes when we call an assembly that few wil be present yet do we then preach publiquely though to never so few because it s not our fault that the Church is so empty But if it were our fault that so few are present by taking inconvenient times either of the dayes of the week when their occasions call them another way or of the houres of the day which are not usuall nor commodious for an assembly or lastly if we should call them to attend preaching so frequently that we could not reasonably expect the attendance of a considerable Congregation I suppose in these cases we should offend in pretending to the exercise of publique preaching before so small a number And the same should I say concerning publique baptisme For this is my maine direction that these ordinances of publique preaching and administring Baptisme ought to go parallel one with another in regard of the publiquenesse of dispencing the same ¶ It remaines now much honoured Sirs only to crave your pardon for this overtedious interpellation of you your courteous acceptance of my unfeined respects to you and your earnest prayers at the throne of grace for me the which I hope you will be more fervent in on my behalfe by your observing of the many weaknesses clogging me in this present service And now it s my humble petition for you who are called to the weighty function of the Ministry that the Father of mercies may ever direct and prosper your precious labours in his vineyard for the honour of his name the edification of his Church and the joyfull refreshment of your own spirits And for you Sir who are honoured to be an Instrument for preserving of natural life in many my hearty request at the throne of grace is that your soul may live the life of grace here in the exercise of godliness in the power of it which you have seene in a precious instance most neerly related to you is the sure and unshaken foundation of unspeakable comforts and peace passing all understanding in life and at death that so you may live the life of glory hereafter In testimony of which my cordiall and uncessant prayers for you all I subscribe my selfe with all readinesse Decemb. 15. 1657. Your assured and affectionate servant in our deare Lord and Saviour SAMUEL LANGLEY To the Reader I Have here in the following discourse endeavoured rightly to state and cleere the doctrine and practice of suspending notoriously prophane and scandalous persons from the Lords Supper and to vindicate the same from Misrepresentations and exceptions made against it And although I could rather have desired to have performed this in my own method yet I was advised in reference to these parts where a book entituled Suspension discussed is spread and taken notice of to accommodate my discourse in way of refutation of that book which pretended to answer a private sheet I had occasionally written Concerning which an Account is given at the latter end of this my defence Yet have I not so confined my selfe thereunto as not to take in other things I apprehended of most importance in this subject especially such as I had seene least spoken to by others who have owned the same Conclusion with me And although I have not particularly and expressly answered all the objections I have found in some Authors against me fearing least the book should swell too big under my hand and perceiving the most of them sufficiciently answered already by others yet I have as I humbly conceive given in those grounds which are fitly applicable for the easie expedite and cleere solution of them as the peaceably judicious I hope will discerne I like Augustines counsell contra lit petil Don. l. 1. at the conclusion Diligite homines interficite errores sine superbiâ de veritate praesumite sine saevitia pro veritate certate orate pro eis quos redarguitis atque convincitis c. And before my Reader judge mee to have transgressed this Rule in the following sheets I must desire him to observe 1. Whether there was any one tart expression in the paper which the Authour of Suspension discussed answereth 2. Whether he doth not uncivilly trample upon me in his answer and not me only but the Reformed Churches with the Reverend Assembly yea and the Parliament which commended the Presbyterial Government to us 3. Whether there is not a meane betwixt a sheepish insensiblenesse whereby further abuses should be invited and a passionate returne of such calumnies and reproachfull revilings on my Antagonist as he hath bestowed on me which I have touched upon Ch. 20. § 4. and Digress 12.17 And then I trust the equal Reader will allow me without condemning my selfe to say to my Answerer what the formentioned Augustine said to Petilian l. 3. Si ego tibi vellem pro maledictis maledicta rependere quid aliud quam duo maledici essemus ut ij qui nos legerent alij detestatos abijcerent sanâ gravitate alij suaviter haurirent malevolâ voluntate And because the Gentleman I stand on my defence against hath told me that he favoured me sufficiently in concealing my name in his booke setting L for it I shall not be wanting in retaliation of the like

should have been of some who are Saints and no Saints to have fitted beleevers and unbeleevers the denomination is taken from the prevailing or predominant part §. 3. Then for the thing it selfe First he describes positively beleevers such who are soederally and professedly of the Christian perswasion Well and are not all the excommunicate or most of them so have not they a dogmatical faith And 2. are they not foederally positively engaged no time nor condition can take off or free them from their baptismal engagements Well but in his explanation of his unbeleevers negatively he addes more to the description of his positively beleevers as namely 1. Visible submission to the outward meanes of faith and reformation not as aliens but of the houshold of faith 2. Not justifying their miscarriages 3. But coming to our solemnities 4. Professedly hoping in Christ for salvation and 5. in no other Saviour And p. 57. he further describes them thus The baptized among us that frequent our Assemblies heare our doctrine with reverence and attention joyne with us in our solemnities give us visible testimony of their assent to our doctrine to such we are to administer as beleevers c. Now 1. I would know what Reason Mr. W. can produce for putting in these qualifications into the description of his positively beleever rather than that he should in generall walk according to his profession which makes a visible Saint or justified beleever 2. If all these be necessary to make up his positive beleever who must have the Sacrament then if these or any of these be wanting visibly in a baptized person adult and not excommunicate he is not or not enough a positive beleever and so must not be admitted to the Sacrament It should seeme then it s Mr. W. his doctrine that if a person baptized and adult either will not be reproved is a desperate swearer who as the dog turns againe to rent him that though never so prudently and meekly casts the pearles of admonition before him or if he frequent not come not above twice or thrice a yeare to any publique religious solemnities or if he do justifie and plead for his miscarriages or if he know not whether Christ be God or no whom he saith he hopes in or whether Christ be man too and dyed yea or if he do not heare the word with reverence and attention and give us visible testimony of his assent thereunto In any of these cases much more where all concurre suspension is allowed of and I presume Mr. W. would not have this person for any one of these offences excommunicated in his sense viz. excluded all publique Ordinances And yet whiles he grants all this he pretends to justifie the position I opposed viz. that no ignorant or scandalous baptized adult and not excommunicated person should be debared the Sacrament our Gentleman who is so impatient of being contradicted by me can calmly and contentedly contradict himselfe and that in so many instances altogether 3. I would demand where God hath promised to him that beleeves dogmatically only and professeth so and that he is willing to receive c. that he shall have the Sacrament either the bare signes or the thing signified thereby If he will forbeare to answer these scriblings as his severity calls my writings till he have some cleere proofe for that I thinke we shall be no more honoured with his publique assaults But I may not impose such hard conditions on him his tongue and pen are his own 4. But if his positive beleever do truly profess the whole Christian perswasion that is to assent to the doctrine of the Gospel understandingly for a man cannot be perswaded of what he understands not and that he hopes in Christ that is in Christs way he is a justified beleever If he do but credibly profess the same no one doubts of his admission to the Sacrament But then the Question will be whether this word profession is credible when his deeds do notoriously contradict the same of which we must speake beneath §. 4. Mr. W. addes p. 51. And we read not of any debarring this had people the Israelites from the solemnity of the Passeover There were no such imperious Masters of Reformation in those dayes which gathered proselytes of the better sort into a faction and excluded all the rest from Church fellowship as the world aliens unbeleevers and no Church members Likewise the Apostle saith We are Jewes by nature and not sinners of the Gentiles so our people are Christians by nature and birth and not sinners of the Pagans positively by the proper Rules of their very profession This latter assertion of our being Christians by birth as the Jewes were Church members borne I deny not But that 's no medium to prove the general admission he pleads for The former words of his are argumentative after a fashion The argument is gathered from comparing the Sacrament of the Lords Supper with the Passeover among the Jewes and our Ministers with the Jewish Governours then And here first we have the flowers of his argument Imperious Masters of Reformation faction He should remember he was to dispute not revile now But some mens mouthes do so abound with the distillation of reproachfull termes that they can hardly speake vehemently without spitting abusively 2. We have his false intimations that we gather proselytes into a faction excluding all the rest c. This falshood runs almost through his book that we gather new Churches and disclaime the old constitution as null lay another in examination notorious untruths I shall say no more to them now but demand whether the Constitutions and Cannons ecclesiasticall primo Jacobi which Can. 27. enjoyned that all should kneel at the Communion and that the Minister should not deliver it to any if they did not kneele were intended by the Imposers thereof or did it amount in the nature of the thing it selfe to a new constitution of the Church Did they gather the kneelers into a faction as their proselytes Mr. W. I thinke will hereby cross his affection to the Prelatical Government hinted in his p. 73. so as to say that was a factious designe And then all excluding some-from the Communion in our Churches without excommunicating them from all Ordinances yea though upon unscriptural grounds for I am of opinion their kneeling was not jure divino no more than bowing at the name of Jesus is not a demolishing of the former constitution of the Church and erecting a new one in a faction And I might ask whether every time the people of the Jewes were by their godly Magistrates called to renew their Covenant with God and sometimes so strictly enjoyned hereunto that he that refused should be severely punished yea separated from the Congregation 2 Chron. 15.9 12 13. 34.29 31 32. Ezra 10.3 5 7 8.11 12.19 Whether I say then they pulled down the old constitution of their Church and made a new one in a faction But

to whom the Lords Supper ought not to be administred This assumption I thus confirmed numb 27. hecause to profess to renounce Christ is to profess not to believe now he who seems seriously to professe his not believing that is his renouncing Christianity cannot be by any rightly judged and taken to be a believer that is such a believer as aforesaid I here gave an instance of one uncapable of rightfull admission to the Sacrament and therefore not to be admitted though he be baptized adult and on whom the sentence of the Church may not perhaps have passed for excommunication The Instance was of one who doth in words renounce Christianity I added seriously not in opposition to madness or distraction as Mr W. trifles p. 63. For then the Instance would not have fitted the Question Mr. W. himselfe excludes the unintelligent p. 34. but in opposition to both 1. Ironicall uttering of words which then signifie not what otherwise they would as those words are usually interpreted Gen. 3.22 Behold he is become like one of us And 2. a questioning or doubting uttering of words which though in forme assertive yet are otherwayes manifest to be intended not as assertive but probational So Josephs speech is fairely interpreted Gen. 42.9 16. By the life of Pharaoh yee are all spyes So Psal 73.13 Verily I have cleansed my heart in vaine but after he cleeres his meaning was only a questioning or doubting of it v. 15. If I should say thus I should offend against the generation of the just Now such an one as thus in words significative of a renouncing of Christianity where the circumstances of uttering them declare the meaning of the speaker is not ironical nor probational only doth profess to renounce Christianity I said is not in a capacity of rightful admission to the Sacrament And by this one Affirmative I overthrew their universal negative they say none adult baptized not put off from other ordinances may be suspended or debarr'd the Sacrament I say such an one as we have mentioned may therefore their universal negative proposition is false except further limited §. 2. I thinke now there are few who understand any thing concerning disputation but would expect Mr. W. should have answered either by affirming that this word renouncer of Christianity should be admitted to the Sacrament if he tender himselfe to partake or els by distinction have put some limitation on the universal negative I assault whereby it might have appeared that such an instance as this was not comprehended in it But to admiration he can answer and doubts not to refute mee without denying or distinguishing as followes 1. He saith The whole depends upon a meere supposition It is rather a thing imagined than a cause likely to happen in the Church This exception I made my selfe and answered it which answer of mine Mr. W. endeavours to take off beneath where I shall make my reply 2. He saith But if such a case should fall out viz. That a man in the Church should professedly renounce Christianity then he renounceth the Lords Supper too And so your suspension in this case would be needlesse There is no need of suspending or excommunicating such a wilfull renouncer of Christianity I answer by distinguishing 1. Betwixt renouncing of all the essential parts and some essential part of Christianity 2. Between his renouncing the Lords Supper in particular as to his using it for the end and use Christ hath appointed it for and renouncing it altogether upon all accounts whatsoever And 2. now I say 1. To renounce an essential part of Christianity is to renounce Christianity though a man profess not to renounce all the essential parts of Christianity It is essential to Christianity that Christ be accepted embraced and submitted to as Lord and Saviour to save us from sin Math. 1.21 as well as from punishment therefore to reject Christ as Lord is to reject Christianity He that saith I beleeve Christ dyed for me to redeeme me from hell c. But I will not obey him he shall not reigne over me I neither will nor can spare my lusts at least not yet c. doth renounce an essential part of Christianity and so by Consequence Christianity it selfe For any essential parr of a thing being removed the thing it selfe is removed I may say of our accepting Christ as King and Saviour as the Epigrammatist spake of his two poysons Dividat haec si quis faciunt discreta venenum Antidotum sumet qui sociata bibet 2. He who thus renounceth Christianity renounceth also expresly or by consequence the Lords Supper as to a maine end and use Christ hath appointed it viz. for the engaging the soul neerer to Christ and resigning it up in grateful and holy obedience to him who is the author of salvation to them who obey him But yet he may not renounce it as to all other respects he would do as others do in the outward work c. And therefore there is need yea a necessity of suspending or excommunicating such a wilful renouncer of Christianity §. 3. 3. Mr. W. tells us this supposed renouncing Christianity cannot abolish his positive estate which stands on the free grace of God by Baptisme and so he is a beleever for his positive estate in point of Religion by vertue of his consecration unto the Christian faith in Baptisme and God will judge him as a Christian if he continue in his revolt till death not as a Pagan Infidel p. 63 64 65. Ans 1. Who ever said his wickedness disobliged him from his baptismall engagements 2. Mr. W. confesseth that this renouncer of Christianity is a Christian and beleever by vertue of his Baptisme at the day of Judgement when condemned And doth he thinke such a Christianity as is in hell gives right to the Sacraments here Who then can be excluded A damned Christian is a baptized person consecrated to Christian duties and not wholly disobliged from the same 3. And yet Mr. W. saith p. 63. I should judge of him rather by his continuance or non-continuance in this supposed abrenunciation What would he judge of him to be a Pagan Infidel●e So he is not when damned therefore cannot so be judged of by his foresaid abrenunciation here and continuance therein or will he judge him to be an unbeleever as destitute of habitual saving grace that belongs not to us to judge of but to God alone who knows the heart or must he be judged an unbeleever as lying under notorious wickedness inconsistent with the exercise of faith that indeed we may judge of But then to what purpose doth he thus judge of him in reference to his sacramental claime If to allow it and admit him then its all one as to this as if he were not so judged of If to exclude him then I have what I contend for unless there be no judging of a man till he be dead and then no man can be excommunicated for any crime