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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
church_n	according_a	discipline_n	doctrine_n	2,848	5	5.6969	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A39923	The restoring of fallen brethren containing the substance of two sermons on Gal. VI, 1, 2 preached at the performance of publick penance by certain criminals on the Lord's-day, usually called mid-Lent Sunday, 1696, in the parish church of Old-Swinford in Worcestershire / by Simon Ford.	Ford, Simon, 1619?-1699.	1697 (1697)	Wing F1498; ESTC R29852	19,489	33

Man is to suffer Sin upon his Brother it it lie in his way to remove it Lev. 19. 17. For to do otherwise is in Gods own Interpretation to hate him in his Heart whom he sees dangerously wounded and yet as the Priest and Levite in our Saviours Parable Luke 10. 31 32. goes on the other side of the way and lets him lie and perish for want of help 2. There is yet a more restrained notion of the Word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which will also very well sute the design of the Text and the State of the Galatian Church and that is that which distinguisheth the Members of the Church who are in some respect more Spiritual from others who are in comparison to them elsewhere called Carnal and Babes in Christ 1 Cor. 2. 15. and 3. 1. And so seeing all the Members of the Church are not alike in Knowledge Gifts or Graces they that excell in any of these or think they do in the Phrase of Ch. 14. 37. are more especially obliged to this charitable Office as being or supposed to be furnished with greater store of spiritual Medicaments than their inferiour Brethren For the Apostle tells us that all these Gifts wherein one Christian excells another are bestowed not to capacitate them to vaunt and magnifie themselves and contemn others who in those respects are inferiour to them but they are all given to profit withal 1 Cor. 12. 7. And that the employing of them in a way of Charity is the most excellent way wherein they may be made use of v. 31. of the same Chapter But alas it is a thing to be much lamented that ordinarily from the Gnosticks downwards to these days Persons who most pretend to be extraordinarily gifted though indeed they excel only in a few new Phrases volubility of Language and impudent Boldness c. instead of charitable restoring their disjoynted Brethren most uncharitably reduce them into erroneous Opinions and rend the Body of Christ into divided Factions and separated Societies gathered too many of them out of the most Ignorant and Vicious of the Church they separate from whose spiritual Wounds they heal slightly by perswading them that to become their Proselites will sufficiently attone for all former Crimes 3. But then thirdly because whatever Applications private Persons make in kindness to their wounded Neighbours may possibly be insufficient to effect a Cure without the Assistance of a skilful Chyrurgeon therefore I must tell you that the word Spiritual here does yet admit also of a most restrained Sense to wit as it denotes those whose Calling and Employment is conversant in spiritual things that are the Teachers Guides Pastors and Rulers of the Church Including all from the Apostles downwards who are invested with those Offices in order to the good of their Souls and Spirits of Men committed to their Charge And to these only do some very Learned and Reverend Commentators though I think they are therein too narrow as I intimated before restrain the Sense of this Word in the Text. And yet I concur so far with them as to think these principally meant partly because in the apostolical Times the Charismata or special Gifts of the Spirit were most plentifully poured out upon them and so many of them as are necessary for the Conduct of the Church in all Ages since have accompanied that holy Calling to that degree as has been thought sufficient to denominate them the Spiritualty in distinction from the Temporalty in the esteem of all Christians till the Papacy abusing the Name render'd it less grateful to the ears of those who shook off that Yoke in the Reformation And partly because this very 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in the Text or Spirit of Meekness so requisite to the restoring dislocated Members is but once more used in the whole New Test and there joyned with the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or Rod of Correcttion as attributed to the Apostle in his managery of the Corinthian Church 1 Cor. 4. 21. and lastly because we find the word Spiritual applied to those extraordinary Persons in the Church which were called Prophets and made use of as equivalent in common use thereto as in the Old Testament in Hos 9. 7. and 1 Cor. 14. 37. in the New And this Duty all that are in any Ecclesiastical Station are according to the Trust Reposed in them to mind in reference to all committed to your Inspection and are solemnly engaged thereunto in this Church of England at their Ordination they are to preach the Word to be instant in season and out of season to reprove rebuke exhort with all long suffering and doctrine 1 Tim. 6. 2. and by the Rubrick before the Communion are allowed to exercise some Power of Discipline with due deference to the Bishop in case of scandalous Offenders And indeed hereof we are sure that the chief Power of Church-discipline as it was at first committed to the Apostles and Apostolical Men and by them derived by Ordination to the successive Pastors and Rulers of the Churches Planted by them so it hath always till of late Years been exercised by Bishops the whole Current of Antiquity giving us abundant Proofs hereof as to Matter of Fact who in many Cases acted therein alone but in the most weighty Matters were assisted by and acted with a Presbytery But of a Presbytery acting without and much less against the Bishop especially in inflicting Church censures I think except in Schismatical Churches the greatest Assertors of Presbytery can hardly give us one Instance And to those who are thus intrusted with Ecclesiastical Authority it belongs in the Name of Christ and with his Power in the Apostles Phrase 1 Cor. 5. 5. to determine finally the Cases of scandalous Offenders and by Church-censures to proceed against them either in order to their Recovery in case they be incurable or in order to the Preservation of the Church both in its Health and Reputation in case they be apparently irrecoverable with more or less Severity And there is a stronger Obligation lies upon them than upon all the rest of the Church to lay themselves forth to the utmost extent of their Ability and Power in the pursuance of so good a Work To wit the Trust Reposed in them by our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ who on the account thereof are concerned to watch for their Peoples Souls as they that must give an account And they are Pastors even such as are of the highest denomination only under him the chief Shepherd and Bishop of Souls 1 Pet. 2. 25. And therefore to them it belongs to use all means they can to seek out and reduce to the Fold all straying Sheep and to heal the wounded of that Flock over which the Holy Ghost has made them Overseers or Bishops that having discharged their Duty herein when 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Act. 20. 28. 1 Pet. 2. 4. the chief Shepherd shall appear they may receive a Crown of Glory

render the Cure more Tedious and Hazardous Besides in their Case they have no appearance of Reason to justifie them in the Passions of Anger or Revenge For who can think it Rational to be angry with another for such Offices as really and in due Estimation carry in them the greatest and most obliging Kindnesses and such are indeed all pious and charitable Attempts to Rescue a Man from Sin and Hell the greatest Evils yea though the Attempter through Haste and inconsiderate Zeal should be undecently rough and forget his wonted Meekness yet his Love in such a Case in all reason should excuse his Rudeness And afterwards to reflect on this as deserving a Revenge is certainly as unreasonable as it is to return Evil for Good which David complains of asa most unaccountable Malice Psal 109. 4 5 And as little colour of Reason can such Persons have for Pride which another way is wont to dislodge Meekness For there is nothing more unreasonable then for a deformed Person to be lifted up with Opinion of his own Beauty and all Sin is a Deformity to the Soul For him then that is notoriously Criminal to be Proud and Impatient to be looked on and treated as he deserves is so very unbecoming that it ordinarily gives the greatest Tentation to others to break the Measures of Meekness towards him and turns their Pity and Compassion into Scorn and Contempt in the highest Degree And this is the Duty I am in the last place to press upon you that now appear as Penitents in this Congregation It is certainly to be commended in you that you have been willing to accept of the Punishment the Church in Christ's Name Lev. 26. 41. hath inflicted on you for your Iniquity And I hope it proceeds from an hearty desire to be restored to your Integrity by Repentance and that the Confessions you are to make before God and his Church will be accompanied with a deep sense of true Sorrow and brokenness of Heart which may render it as acceptable a sacrifice to God as David's was Psal 51. 17. and that none of you will play the Hypocrites with God and his Church in professing that outwardly which inwardly you do not feel And indeed according to your Sincerity herein you are to expect God's Pardon and according to the Evidence you give thereof by your meek and humble Demeanour joyned with the other circumstantial Evidences of true Sorrow which naturally attend it where it is so you will be entitled to the Churches also And I must tell you the Church will have the more reason to be satisfied herein by your meek Submission to those Habits and Rites of Penitence which she in Conformity to the ancient Times enjoyns you of all which and they were very many our Church because many of the rest were abused by the Popish Church when they thought fit to make Penance a Sacrament has thought fit generally to retain but two that of the white Sheet and Wand with which her Penitence are enjoyned if the Crimes require it to appear and where they do not she hath liberty even to dispense with them That of the Sheet is only enjoyned to you all the rest being admitted only in their Course working-day apparrel with the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or Wand to acknowledge they justly deserved the Zod of Discipline should be used towards them And the reason of that Difference is as I suppose because your Offence appearing to your Ecclesiastical Judges accompanied with many gross and foul Circumstances of wanton Dalliance betwixt the Wife of another Man and you also a married Person gave a scandalous Appearance and notorious cause of Suspicion of actual Adultery from which Suspicion the Defences you made did not in their Judgment sufficiently clear you as you Confession enjoyns you to acknowledge whereas the Crime of the ●est was of an inferiour Guilt though very great too according to the Apostles Aggravation of it 1 Cor. 6. 13. c. and they humbly offered themselves to their Penance before the Court had passed Judgment upon them in order thereunto But if they had required you all to have appeared in the like ●innen Garb I know no reason why any of you should have waved ●t on that Account A course square Sheet without being Fashioned or Trimmed being much of Kin to the Sack-cloath which ●ntiently Penitents whom God himself in a particular Case required to present themselves before him without Ornaments Exod. 33. 4 5 6. appeared in as many Scriptures witness only with this difference that the old Sack-cloath was far rougher and more pungent as being made of Hair not Flax or Hemp ●s ours is This Imitation however the Church thought fit to ●etain rather than to leave Penitents the choice of coloured and fashionable Garments least even Penance it self should in time turn to an Ostentation of Pride in Apparel through the affected Emulation of Persons vainly inclined to Singularity in the Garb they Publickly appear in And for the whiteness in particular of the Vest I am apt to believe it might owe it self to the Conformity which the Design of publick Penitence bears to that of Baptism This being as the Evangelists call it the Baptism of Repentance for the Forgiveness of Sins Mark 1. 4. Luke 3. 3. and that a Profession of Repentance in order to the same end the restoring Penitents who had notoriously broken their Baptismal Vow to their Baptismal Estate and Capacity again it is not to me improbable that the Candidates for both were enjoyned to appear in the same Garb wherein the one sort by the Testimony of all Antiquity were admitted to that Ordinance from which Practise the Dominica in Albis which from the white Vestments worn by the Baptised on that solemn Day especially appointed Anciently for the publick Administration thereof still retains with us the Name of White sunday This Digression if it be so to be accounted on this Occasion I thought fit to make in order if not to the Satisfaction yet to the stopping the mouth of those who that they may discourage the Practice of publick Penance so useful for the Souls of Penitents themselves and so conducible to the Cred●● of Christianity have in this last Age endeavoured to Ridicu●● it and I hope it may not prove altogether unsuccessful to the end intended And now to conclude my Application to you remember what I told you that the sincere Conformity in your Hearts t● your outward Garb in the Confessions you are now to make according to your several Cases can only render you capable o● the benefit of that Absolution or Ministerial Forgiveness which in the close of this Action I am impowered by the Church to give you as the Apostle expresseth it 2 Cor. 2. 10. in the Person of Christ for without it it will be bestowed o●ly clave errnate as the Schools speak upon mistaken Subjects and so prove not only Ineffectual for you good but also greatly Prejudicial to you before him that searcheth the Hea●● and tryeth the Reins by the Addition of high Presumption and foul Hypocrisie to your other Crimes which God of his Mercy give you Grace to prevent Amen FINIS