Selected quad for the lemma: christian_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
christian_n	new_a	old_a	testament_n	4,687	5	8.3352	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A67559	Against resistance of lawful powers a sermon preached at White-Hall, Novemb. Vth, 1661 / by Seth Ward ...	Ward, Seth, 1617-1689.	1661 (1661)	Wing W812; ESTC R10700	22,608	47

made good upon the Principles of Christianity I. As to the former of these I shall onely say that the Argument brought against this interpretation doth in truth exceedingly confirm it The Allegation is that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is used in Scripture for Temporal Iudgment The place produced is 1 Cor. xi 29. He that eateth and drinketh unworthily eateth and drinketh 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 damnation to himself where the Apostle seemeth to explain 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 by the following words Verse 30. For this cause many are weak and sickly and many sleep viz. by Temporal Iudgments And indeed this is true but these things likewise ought to be observed 1. First that the same Penalty is denounced in the Gospel to those who resist Authority and to those that are guilty of the body of Christ 1 Cor. xi 27. and trample upon the blood of the everlasting Covenant 2. That neither Ananias and Sapphira nor yet the Corinthians were by their temporal Iudgments exempted from eternal 3. And lastly that seeing the great difference betwixt the Legal and Euangelical dispensation did consist in this that the express Promises and Threatnings under the Law were temporal and under the Gospel eternal if God shall under the Gospel besides eternal punishments due to every Sin add moreover to some particular sins the threatnings of temporal Iudgments let these men consider what advantage they have gotten and what can more be devised to contribute to the aggravations of such a sin I shall say no more to the first Question nor to that part of the Text which concerns the damnation of Resisters precisely considered but shall apply my self to the resolution of the second II. It is impossible in half an hour to speak concerning all those pretenses for res●stance of Magistrates which being raised by Satan and made use of by the children of disobedience are falsly charged upon Religion I shall single out some of the chief of them and examine them by the Law and the Testimony by the Old and New Testament adding to them as occasion requires the judgment and practise of the Primitive Christians and afterwards make a brief Application Those which have given the greatest scandal as having troubled the Christian world and almost turned it upside down are reducible to the two Heads of ●eligion and Civil Affairs First Those which refer to Religion are such scandalous Tenets as these I. That Erroneous suppose Heretical or Idolatrous Powers may be resisted especially if they endeavour to force men to their own Religion II. That Christian Magistrates have no power in matters of Religion viz. None 1. In religious Causes 2. Over religious Persons By Orders Over religious Persons By personal Gifts Secondly Those which refer to matters Civil are reducible to such as these I. Harsh Administration II. Pretenses of Competition of power and the like Now I shall not be afraid or backward to acknowledge that if any one of these Tenets be agreeable to the Principles of Christianity or to the practise of the Primitive and purest Christians who are to be presumed to have known the minde of Christ and his Apostles then we are to admit that there is reason in what is alledged to create a Iealousy upon Religion For 1. If Erroneous Heretical or Idolatrous Magistrates may be resisted because they are so or because they joyn oppr●ssion of Godly men unto their Errour in Religion how can any Kingdom stand These are matters wherein every man makes himself a Iudg and it is not material whether he judge righteous or unrighteous judgment the matter once stated in Thesi that in such Cases men may resist the Hypothesis is easily made and men let loose to act according to their proper Apprehensions or the Pretenses of those who have power with them What shall be done when at the same time a Prince shall be judged by one part of his Subjects Heretical and prophane for departing from Superstition and vindicating his power from unjust Vjurpations over it while another part shall judge him to be Superstitious and will never believe him to abhor Idols so long as he will not commit Sacrilege What shall be done while some conclude him to be irreligious because he will not worship Images others Idolatrous because he kneels at the Communion and both esteem him an Oppressour because he restrains their Zeal and hinders them from that excess of Riot which they pant after to the devouring of one another Supposing this Tenet to be true it is indeed evident no Government can be But now what Colour can there be to charge this Tenet upon Christianity Doth the Old or New Testament give any occasion to this Doctrine Is it countenanced 1. by Moses or 2. by the Prophets or 3. by our Saviour or 4. by the Apostles 5. That Cloud of Witnesses the Noble Army of Martyrs did they give Testimony to this Assertion or to the contrary I may not insist a word to each of these 1. Moses was so far from the Doctrine of Resistance that notwithstanding the hardness of Pharaoh's heart the cruelty of the Bondage the weakness of the Egyptians by Plagues the numbers of Israel six hundred thousand and three thousand five hundred and fifty fighting men above twenty years old besides the Tribe of Levi yet he would not lead them into the promised Land without Pharaoh's positive and express consent to their Departure 2. As for the Prophets in the third Chapter of Daniel we finde three of God's Children put to the trial the fiery trial of this Doctrine by Nebuchadnezzar an Idolater and a Tyrant acting highly under both those Capacities together They were cast into the fiery Furnace because they would not worship the golden Image which he had set up And in the sixth we finde Daniel thrown into the Lion's den onely for praying to the God of Israel Let us consider their Behaviour did they resist or mutiny or labour to alienate or discontent or by denouncing threats or terrours to discourage Subjects from Obedience How had they been instructed by their Prophets Ieremy 2 Chron. xxxvi 13. had taught them that Zedekiah had turned from the Lord God of Israel in rebelling against Nebuchadnezzar who had made him swear by God and that they ought to seek the peace of the City whether they were carried Captives and to pray unto the Lord for it Jer. xxix 7. And therefore the three Children in the third of Daniel onely refer themselves to God for deliverance and Daniel in the midst of the Lion's den prays heartily for Darius O King live for ever Dan. vi 21. 3. In the next place let us consider the Case of Christ and his Apostles and see whether any such Tenet may be collected from their Doctrine or Practise their Speeches or their Actions As for what concerns our Lord Christ I have had the Honour formerly in this place more at large to vindicate him from such aspersions He paid Tribute at

heart to be tender of the rights of the Church as of the Apple of his Ey This is a Calumny insisted on generally by almost all our Adversaries but it is too rude and gross to be spoken to in this place Rather let us see whether the Sovereigns among all people Heathen Iews Christians have not claimed and exercised power in all Causes over all Persons as well Ecclesiastical as Civil 1. For Causes The New Testament sometimes divides the Gentiles into Greeks and Barbarians sometimes into wise and unwise according to which division the Romanes are I suppose reckoned under the Greeks from whence they were mostly extracted and with whom they contended in Civility Briefly 1. the Greeks 2. the Romanes 3. the Barbarous Nations did alwaies exercise such a power 1. Aristotle the greatest among the Greeks tells us that the first and principal Thing in a Common-Wealth is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 And accordingly if we consult the Fragments which are left us of the Laws of the most antient Grecian Common-Wealths we shall finde nothing so frequent as the Ordinances concerning their Religion 2. Amongst the Romans Cicero the wisest saith that Religion is the Foundation of Humane Society as in truth it is To say nothing of the Ordinances of Numa the Ius Pontificium c. the Titles of the Twelve Tables are many of them concerning Religion 3. As for the Barbarous Nations I shall not multiply Testimonies nor go beyond the line of Scripture In the third of Daniel we finde an Edict of the King of Babylon enjoyning all People Languages and Tongues to commit Idolatry Verse 4 5. And by and by another Edict that no man should speak amiss of the God of Shadrach Mesech and A●ednego Verse 29. In the sixth we finde Darius the Persian by the advise of his Council signing a Decree against petitioning for thirty days any God besides himself Verse 9. and shortly another that all men should tremble and fear before the God of Daniel Verse 26. In the third of Ionah the King of Nineveh and his Nobles proclaim a publick Fast. In the first of Ezra Cyrus puts forth an Edict to build the Temple at Hierusalem In the fourth Artaxerxes reverseth it In the sixth Darius re-inforceth it I suppose it is now evident that Greeks and Barbarians did exercise this power To think to elevate the force of these Instances because all these were Strangers from God and aliens from the Common-Wealth of Israel is to mistake the purpose for which they are alledged However it was not thus among the Kings of the Nations only but among the holiest and wisest of the Governours and Kings of Israel and Iudaea who for abolishing false Worship and ordaining the true are often highly commended by the Holy Ghost in the Scriptures The time would fail me to speak distinctly and particularly of the Ordinances concerning Religion which were made by Moses Ioshua David Solomon Asa Iehosaphat Hezekiah Manasses also and Iosiah concerning whom the Scripture gives these Characters Moses was the man of God Joshua the servant of the Lord. David a man after God's own heart There was none like unto Solomon Asa his heart was perfect with the Lord. The Lord was with Jehoshaphat Hezekiah did that which was right in the sight of the Lord. Manasseh was heard of God Josiah did that which was right and his Goodness was recorded Now the Acts of every one of these concerning the Worship of God and matters of Religion are recorded and applauded in the Scriptures For these all ordered and regulated Services and Sacraments and Covenants with God they erected Altars and Tabernacles and Temples and dedicated them to the Lord they destroyed Idolatry reformed abuses in God's Worship settled both the standing Worship of God and occasional Thanks-givings and Humiliations to omit other matters The whole Aaronical Ministery which consisted in Ceremonies and Sacrifices Typical and Carnal Ordinances was not ordered by the hand of Aaron but of Moses who was King in Iesurun The Tabernacle and Temple-service which beside the Mosaical Institutions consisted of Spiritual abiding Ordinances was instituted by David who being the sweet Singer of Israel and acquainted more then ever any man for ought appears with the ways and helps of lifting up the Heart to spiritual intercourse with God to that end appointed the use of Musick in the Church and without fear of stinting the Spirit he prescribed Set-forms of Praise and Prayers for the use of the Temple and ordered the Service for every day A Psalm consisting partly of the one hundred and fifth ninety sixth and one hundred and eighteenth he first delivered to Asaph and his Brethren at the reduction of the Ark from the house of Obed-Edom 1 Chron. xvi 7. And divers other Psalms were composed by him for the Service of the Church And what he had ordained Solomon put in practise In the fifth Chapter of the second Book of Chronicles we finde the pattern of the Service of this Time and Place the Sons of Asaph Heman and Ieduthun arrayed in white Linen with musical Instruments praising the Lord saying For he is good c. viz. reciting the one hundred and eighteenth Psalm and in token of God's acceptance a Cloud filled the house The one hundred thirty and sixth Psalm likewise was wont to be sung in Thanksgivings So we finde also Hezekiah and Iosiah praising the Lord in the words of David and Asaph Thus stood the matter under the Law the ordering of matters of Religion was not exempted from the Supreme Power Hezekiah varied from Moses his Law and was blameless Neither was it otherwise in the best and purest Times under the Gospel It had been but a slender invitation to the Emperours to become Christian if by submitting to Christianity they must lose so considerable a part of the Sovereign Power enjoyed by all their Predecessours and be thereby exposed inevitably to Seditions and Rebellions upon every Frantick eruption of religious Melancholie The Primitive Emperours understood themselves otherwise and so did the Christians under them I may not stand to recite the Annals of the Church If Constantine had not interposed for the composing of the Arrian Heresie what had become either of Government or Religion The drawing up of Canons for the regulation of Religion was by our LORD committed to the Apostles and their Successours the Bishops and other Ecclesiastical Persons but that these Canons should be enforced as Laws by temporal Penalties it was by the sanction of Civil Powers In the second Oecumenical Council the Fathers assembled at Constantinople beseech Theodosius the Elder to ratifie the Decrees of that Synod Thus we finde Iustinian establishing the Homo-Canonicon or Code of the Vniversal Church consisting of the Canons of the four first General and five antient Provincial Councils and commanding them 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to be kept as Laws Briefly