and Authority that he usurped or claimed over the rest of the Apostles Fourthly We may plainly see by the Acts of the Apostles and by the Epistles of St. Paul that St. Peter had no Power nor Authority over the rest of the Apostles When the Apostles at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the Gospel they sent Peter and John to them to confirm them therein and that they might receive the Holy Ghost Acts 8.14 Now when the Apostles which were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God they sent unto them Peter and John Here we see that St. Peter as well as St. John is sent by the Apostles to these new Converts at Samaria And herein they act as Ministers under the Apostles For as our Lord saith Joh. 13.16 He that is sent is not greater than he that sent him And hereby we see that St. Peter was not accounted their Superior no more than St. John The right hands of Fellowship were given to Paul and Barnabas by James and John and Peter himself too Gal. 2.9 And when James Cephas and John saith St. Paul who seemed to be pillars perceived the grace that was given unto me they gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship that we should go unto the Heathen and they unto the Circumcision Barnabas and Paul are not commanded by them as Ministers under them but taken into Fellowship with them and this is done by James and John as well as Peter and they are to take care of the Church of the Gentiles as the other were to take care of the Church of the Jews And this shews that St. Peter was not then accounted the Head of the Apostles And St. Paul we may see withstood St. Peter at Antioch Gal. 2.11 But when Peter was come to Antioch saith St. Paul I withstood him to the face because he was to be blamed And ver 14. But when I saw that they walked not uprightly according to the truth of the Gospel I said unto Peter before them all If thou being a Jew livest after the manner of Gentiles and not as do the Jews why compellest thou the Gentiles 〈◊〉 live as do the Jews St. Paul here shews that he knew of no Power and Superiority that St. Peter had over him and over the whole Church to be an Universal Head thereof Again St. Paul tells the Corinthians that he was in nothing behind the very chiefest Apostles 2 Cor. 11.5 For I suppose saith he I was not a whit behind the very chiefest Apostles And 2 Cor. 12.11 saith he For I ought to have been commended of you For in nothing am I behind the very chiefest Apostles St Paul doth here clearly prove to us that St. Peter had no Power and Authority over all the Apostles For he mentions the chiefest Apostles in the plural number which shews that St. Peter alone was not exalted above all the rest and he affirms that he himself was not their Inferior Again where St. Paul reckons up the Orders of Men that God had constituted and appointed in the Church he plainly shews that St. Peter was not the Head of the Apostles and placed in an Order above them For he shews that the Apostles in general are the first Order of Men in the Church 1 Cor. 12.28 And God hath set some in the Church saith he first Apostles secondarily Prophets thirdly Teachers And Ephes 4.11 saith he And he gave some Apostles and some Prophets and some Evangelists and some Pastors and Teachers For the perfecting of the Saints Apostles are the first that our blessed Saviour hath set and appointed in his Church as the Apostle here plainly shews and St. Peter was not set up as a Head above them all And we may see that St. Paul acted as wholly independent upon St. Peter He ordained Timothy Bishop of Ephesus and gave him Instructions and Commands how to carry himself and what Persons he should ordain 1 Tim. 3. And he gave him a solemn Charge to observe what he had written to him 1 Tim. 5.21 I charge thee saith thee before God and the Lord Jesus Christ and the elect Angels that thou observe these things without preferring one before another He gave him Instructions and Commands and this solemn Charge to obsrve them but here is no mention of any Power derived from St. Peter or any account to be rendred to him He also ordained Titus Bishop of Crete and gave him Instructions how he should carry and demean himself Tit. 1.5 For this cause saith he left I thee in Crete that thou shouldest set in order the things that are wanting and ordain Elders in every City as I had appointed thee Titus was to walk according to his Instructions and as St. Paul had appointed him and without any regard at all to St. Peter And St. Paul of himself without any Power or Direction from St. Peter gave Orders and Commands in all Churches where he came and planted the Gospel 1 Cor. 7.17 But as God hath distributed to every man saith he as the Lord hath called every one so let him walk and so ordain I in all Churches It is not St. Peter but St. Paul himself that doth thus ordain in all Churches And 1 Cor. 16.1 saith he Now concerning the Collection for the Saints as I have given order to the Churches of Galatia even so do ye And he sheweth that the Care of all the Churches lay upon him 2 Cor. 11.28 It is plain that St. Paul acted without any dependence upon St. Peter and that the Gospel of the Uncircumcision was committed unto him as the Gospel of the Circumcision was to St. Peter Gal. 2.7 In the Divisions at Corinth some affirmed themselves to be the Disciples of Paul and others of Apollos which shews that they knew nothing of St. Peter's being the Head over all the Church and had been instructed in no such point of Doctrine 1 Cor. 1.12 Now this I say that every one of you saith I am of Paul and I of Apollos and I of Cephas and I of Christ Is Christ divided was Paul crucified for you or were ye baptized in the Name of Paul And these Divisions St. Paul blamed and affirmeth that they were the Ministers of Christ and the Gospel and instructs them in no Supremacy of St. Peter's 1 Cor. 3.3 For ye are yet carnal saith he for whereas there is among you envying and strife and divisions are yet not carnal and walk as men Who then is Paul and who is Apollos but ministers by whom ye believed even as the Lord gave to every man By these and such places it is clear that St. Peter was not exalted above the rest of the Apostles and that this Position and Doctrine of the Church of Rome That St. Peter was the Head and Governor of all the Apostles and of all the Church is not consistent with the sacred Scriptures but directly contrary to them II. Their Position and Doctrine That the
any thing out of the sacred Oracles to countervail what is said of it Again we may see that it is an impossible thing for one spiritual Pastor to superintend and overlook the Affairs of the whole Church and to do it in such a Christian manner as it ought to be done There is no more likelihood that one Bishop should Rule and see to the whole Church than that one Temporal Prince should govern the whole World which hath never yet been done since it hath been overspread with Inhabitants It is altogether impossible for one Pastor to take Care of the Church that is scattered into the four quarters of the Earth and to administer Assistance to places a thousand or perhaps four or six thousand miles from him To such he can be nothing but an Inutile Pondus and hinder them of that speedier Help and Succour which otherwise they might have by having Pastors of their own that could act without waiting for his tedious Commissions And it is clear that particular and National Churches had Power to govern themselves without any dependance at all upon the Church of Rome The Epistles to the Corinthians do shew that they had Power to govern their own Church according to St. Paul's Direrections and Commands 1 Cor. 5.12 Do not ye judge them that are within saith the Apostle And by the Power of Christ were they to deliver over the Incestuous Person to Satan ver 4 5 In the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ saith St. Paul when ye are gathered together and my spirit with the Power of our Lord Jesus Christ To deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus In this weighty Matter which was to be done in such a solemn manner there was no need of any Authority from St. Peter or Rome but they might act of themselves with the Power of Christ And saith the Apostle 1 Cor. 14.40 Let all things be done decently and in order By this Chapter and other places in his Epistles to the Corinthians we may clearly see that St. Paul doth give them full Power to govern and rule their own Church without any dependance at all upon Rome or any other Church And the Epistles to Timothy and Titus do plainly shew that they had Power to do so too And our Lord as I have shewed before hath expresly declared that no one of his Disciples should Lord it over the rest as the Kings of the Gentiles did Matt. 20.25 And this plainly shews that all the Pretences of the Roman Church of this kind are vain and groundless and not at all consistent with the Gospel of Christ But farther It is our Lord's Prerogative and Peculiar to be the Chief Shepherd and the Universal Head of all the Church and those that do assume such a Title invade his Prerogative and Right This the Apostles shews that our blessed Saviour Christ is the Supreme Head of the Church and the Chief Shepherd thereof Ephes 1.20 Which he wrought in Christ saith the Apostle when he raised him from the dead and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places far above all Principality and Power And hath put all things under his feet and gave him to be the Head over all things to the Church which is his Body And saith he Ephes 5.23 For the husband is the head of the Wife even as Christ is the Head of the Church And again Col. 1.18 And he is the Head of the Body the Church who is the beginning the First-born from the dead that in all things he might have the preeminence And St. Peter sheweth that Christ is the Chief Shepherd 1 Pet. 5.4 And when the Chief Shepherd shall appear saith he ye shall receive a Crown of glory that fadeth not away And he tells the dispersed Jews to whom he wrote that they ought not to Lord it over God's Heritage ver 3. Neither as being Lords over God's heritage but being ensamples to the flock We see that no Bishops are to Domineer over the Church and that it is our Lord 's Right and Peculiar to be the Head and chief Shepherd of the Church and that no one ought to invade this Right and Prerogative of his And no one ought to be forward to give such Supremacy and Preeminence to any earthly Bishop and think it a light thing to do so Lastly Those that keep not the Doctrine of the Gospel pure and uncorrupt but fall to gross Errors and Heresies can be no true Governors of the Church at all much less the supreme Governors thereof This the sacred Scriptures plainly shew A Bishop must be blameless saith St. Paul Tit. 1 7-9 as the Steward of God Holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught that he may be able by sound Doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers And such men as act flat contrary to the Gospel of Christ do make void their Authority Matt. 5.19 saith our blessed Saviour Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least Commandments and shall teach men so he shall be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven And Joh. 15.6 If a man abide not in me he is cast forth as a branch and is withered and men gather them and cast them into the fire and they are burned No one must pretend to be a Pastor under our blessed Lord that doth not carefully observe his Doctrine and Commands but must then expect to be cast out like a withered branch that is to be cast into the fire and burned And St. Paul sheweth that an Apostle or an Angel that should pretend to come from Heaven which should preach contrary to the Doctrine of the Gospel is not to be heard and heeded but to be accounted accursed Gal. 1.8 But tho' we saith he or an Angel from Heaven preach any other Gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you let him be Accursed As we said before so say I now again if any man preach any other Gospel unto you than that ye have received let him be accursed But it is plain by these Papers that Popery is another Gospel in that they make the Pope the supreme Head of the Church and allow him a Power to over-rule and disannul the sacred Commands of our blessed Lord at his own pleasure and to set up his own Commands in the room of them And how can the Bishops of Rome then that establish another Gospel and whom the Apostle here pronounceth accursed for so doing How can they I say be any Pastors at all of Christ's Church And what good Christian then that is zealous for our blessed Lord and his sacred Commandments can comply in such a sinful Religion as Popery is And saith St. John 2 Joh. 9 Whosoever transgresseth and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ hath not God If there come any unto you and bring not this Doctrine receive him not
Bishops of Rome do succeed St. Peter in such a Supreme Power and Authority and are now the Head of all the Christian Church is not consistent with the sacred Scriptures but directly contrary to them This is proved by what hath been said already For if St. Peter had no such Universal Power and Authority over the Apostles and all the Church as it is clear that he had not then the Roman Bishops have no ground to pretend to succeed him in such a supreme Power and Authority This is altogether vain seeing there is no truth in the former And there is no proof at all that they should be St. Peter's Heirs and Successors and be the only Masters of that Power and Authority which he had in the Church And how then can they assume such an Universal Power and Authority which he had not Heb. 5.4 And no man taketh this honour unto himself saith the Apostle but he that is called of God as was Aaron And how then can the Bishops of Rome justly assume to themselves such a supreme and universal Power over all the Church till they can shew some Divine Commission for it And for such Authority they have no Plea nor Colour from the sacred Word of God There is no clear place in the sacred Scriptures to prove that ever St. Peter was at Rome and he wrote no Epistle to them to confer any Power upon them and in those Epistles that he wrote he makes no mention of any such Power and supreme Authority that they were to have St. Peter was chiefly the Apostle of the Jews as St. Paul sheweth Gal. 2.7 And how then can the Roman Gentiles pretend that all his Power is devolved upon them St. Peter was much at Jerusalem and the Bishops of that place might have had a better Title to be his Successors in a higher manner than others if any were to have been so than the Bishops of Rome can have because he was chiefly and primarily the Apostle of the Jews St. Peter was also at Antioch some time Gal. 2.11 And the Bishops of that place may alledg as good a Plea to be his Successors as the Bishops of Rome can Again St. Paul writes an Epistle to the Romans and several Epistles from Rome but no intimation in them that the Bishops of that place only were to be St. Peters Successors and to have an universal Power and Authority over the whole Church And from hence we may see that St. Paul knew nothing of any such universal Power that the Roman Bishops were to have For if he had known that our blessed Lord had designed them to be the Universal Pastors over all the Church we may be sure that he would not have been wanting to have instructed the Churches to which he wrote in this great Point of Duty and to have let them know where the Supreme Power of the Church was lodged that they might have had recourse to it in all weighty Concerns The Apostle commandeth Christians Heb. 13.17 To obey them that have the Rule over them and to submit themselves but not a word of obeying the Roman Bishop nor any regard that is to be had to him more than to another Again if any place should have been Invested with such a Supreme Power over all the Christian Church we may well conclude that Jerusalem should have been the place For more is said of that place tending this way than of any place in the whole World besides This is the place that is renowned above all others in the sacred Word of God and the Bishops of this place might have pleaded the most of all for a Divine Right of Governing the Universal Church of Christ For this was the Holy City as St. Matthew calls it Matt. 4.5 This was the City of the Great King as our Saviour himself calls it Matt. 5.35 Neither by Jerusalem saith he for it is the City of the Great King This was the City of the Lord of Hosts the Great King of all Kings This was the place where Christ the Great Shepherd of all did exercise the Power that God the Father gave him over all the Church and for whose sacred Temple he shewed so much Zeal and was so much concerned Mar. 11.15 Within the jurisdiction of this City and among the Jews who had a dependence upon this City as their great Metropolis did our Lord do all his Miracles and exercised his Pastoral Office This was the great Metropolis of the whole World and here had Almighty God recorded his Holy Name Psal 87.2 3 The Lord loveth the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob Glorious things are spoken of thee O City of God Great Matters were spoken and predicted of this City This was to be the City of Truth Zac. 8.3 Thus saith the Lord I am returned unto Zion and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem and Jerusalem shall be called the City of Truth and the Mountain of the Lord of hosts the holy Mountain This was the place from whence the Law was to go forth according to the predictions of the Prophets Isa 2.3 And many people shall go and say Come ye and let us go up to the Mountain of the Lord to the House of the God of Jacob and he will teach us of his ways and we will walk in his paths For out of Zion shall go forth the Law and the Word of the Lord from Jerusalem And Micah 4.2 For the Law shall go forth of Zion and the Word of the Lord from Jerusalem From this place was the Law and Word of God to go forth This is the place where God is said to dwell for ever and he promiseth to cloath her Priests with Salvation Psal 132.13 14. For the Lord hath chosen Zion he hath desired it for his habitation This is my Rest for ever And ver 16. I will also cloath her Priests with Salvation This is said of this place and the Priests thereof Here the Holy Ghost came down upon the Apostles on the day of Pentecost Acts 2. Here was held the first Council Act. 15. And St. James that was Bishop of Jerusalem was President of this Council of Apostles and Elders And if all this and much more be said of this place in the Word of God we may be sure that Jerusalem should have been the place of Supremacy and Power over all the Church if any place should have been so We may be sure that the Bishops of this place should have been the Universal Head of the Church if there should have been any such Head For more may be said for a Divine Right of Ruling over all the Church for Jerusalem than for any place in the whole World besides But seeing Jerusalem has no such Superiority and doth not exalt it self over all other places we may be sure that no other place ought to do so For Rome or any other place cannot stand in Competition with it for Superiority or urge
into your house neither bid him God speed For he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds We are to have nothing to do we see with such as keep not the Doctrine of Christ pure and uncorrupt and much less to account them our true Heads and Governors And Rev. 22.18 saith St. John For I testifie unto every man that heareth the words of the Prophecy of this Book If any man shall add unto these things God shall add unto him the plagues thar are written in this Book And if any man shall take away from the words of the Book of this Prophecy God shall take away his part out of the Book of Life and out of the holy City and from the things which are written in this Book It is clear by these places that such as keep not the Doctrine of the Gospel of Christ pure and uncorrupt cannot be the true Pastors and Governors of the Church of Christ nor so much as true Members thereof but have a Wo and Curse denounced against them And it is clear by what is said in these Papers to such as will impartially consider it That the Doctrine and Practice of the Romish Church is not consistent with the Gospel of Christ but contrary to it And therefore that the Bishops of Rome that are the Patrons of such Doctrine and Practice cannot be true Pastors of the Church of Christ and much less the supreme Pastors and Head thereof if any such should have been From what hath been said upon this and the former Head it is manifest that this Doctrine and Position of the Romish Church That the Bishops of Rome do succeed St. Peter in a supreme Power and Authority over all the Church is not consistent at all with the sacred Word of God but is quite contrary to it III. Their keeping the sacred Scriptures in a Tongue unknown to the common People and not suffering them to come to the knowledge of them that they may read them and practise the things therein commanded And instead of them imposing their own Commands and a blind Belief upon their Proselytes and Lay-Members is flat contrary to the Word of God and a very wicked thing This is a very sinful thing to suppress and stifle the blessed Word and Commands of Almighty God and a down-right opposing of the Gospel of Christ to endeavour to keep men from the knowledge of it This is a quenching of the Light of the sacred Scriptures that are to be our guide unto eternal Life This is highly injurious both to God and Man too We may see that God hath commanded that his Word and Laws should be declared and made known to all men and that all should be taught them God commanded the Jews that they should teach their Children his Laws and Ordinances Deut 6 6 And these words which I command thee this day shall be in thine heart And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house and when thou walkest by the way and when thou lyest down and when thou risest up Thus diligently were they to reach their Children the Law of the Lord and often to repeat it to them that they might perfectly understand and know it and not be kept in ignorance of it And this they are often and strictly commanded to do Deut. 4.9 and 11.18 and 32.46 And in a solemn manner was this Law of Moses to be read all over to all the People at certain times Deut. 31.11 When all Israel saith Moses is come to appear before the Lord thy God in the place which he shall choose thou shalt read this Law before all Israel in their hearing And Moses read the Book of the Law and Covenant in the audience of the People that they might know it and keep it Exod. 24.7 And he took the Book of the Covenant and read in the audience of the People And they said all that the Lord hath said will we do and be obedient Moses read to them in their own Language that they well understood And in the Land of Moab by Jordan did he again declare the Law of God to the People Deut. 1.5 And after Moses Joshua his Successor read all the Law of Moses to the common People that they might understand it and keep it Josh 8.34 35. And afterward he read all the words of the Law the blessings and the cursings according to all that is written in the Book of the Law There was not a word of all that Moses commanded which Joshua read not before all the Congregation of Israel with the Women and the little ones and Strangers that were conversant among them Here we see that the whole Law was read to all the Congregation even to the Women Children and Strangers among them Good Josiah after the Law of God had been suppress'd for some time thro' the prevailing of Idolatry caused the Law of God to be read in a solemn Assembly both to great and small that they might all understand it 2 Kings 2â— 2 And the King went up into the house of the Lord and all the men of Judah and all the Inhabitants of Jerusalem with him and the Priests and the Prophets and all the People both small and great and he read in their ears all the words of the Book of the Covenant which was found in the house of the Lord. And after the Captivity we may see that Ezra read the Law publickly to all the People both Men and Women Neh. 8.3 And he read therein before the street that was before the water gate from the morning until mid-day before the men and the women and all those that could understand And the ears of all the people were attentive unto the Book of the Law And ver 8. So they read in the Book in the Law of God distinctly and gave the sence and caused them to understand the reading And ver 18. Also day by day from the first day unto the last day he read in the Book of the Law of God And Neh. 9.3 And they stood up in their place and read in the Book of the Law of the Lord their God one fourth part of the day This great care was then taken to instruct all the People in the Law of the Lord and to interpret it to them where they did not well understand it And in the time of our blessed Saviour and his Apostles we may see that the Law of Moses and the Prophets were constantly read every Sabbath-day to the common People in a Language that they understood Acts 13.15 And Acts 15.21 For Moses of old time saith St. James hath in every City them that preach him being read in the Synagogues every Sabbath day This we see was the constant practice of the Jews when Idolatry and great wickedness did not prevail over them to instruct the common People in the Law of God that they might hear it And this they were