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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
church_n	epistle_n	paul_n	timothy_n	2,910	5	10.4803	5	false

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A23767	A sermon preached in St. Peter's Westminster on Sunday, Jan. 6, 1660 at the consecration of the Right Reverend Fathers in God, Gilbert, Lord Bishop of Bristoll, Edward, Lord Bishop of Norwich, Nicholas, Lord Bishop of Hereford, William, Lord Bishop of Glocester by Richard Allestry ...	Allestree, Richard, 1619-1681.	1660 (1660)	Wing A1163; ESTC R8500	24,735	46

sure the consecrated Persons are the Temples of that City the separate places of it and then as they are most in sight the Church is ordinarily the most visible building so truly he that sees one of them it should be as if he saw an open Church where there is nothing else but holy duty as if his life were Liturgy publick Service and Worship of God Hath your zeal never rose at least your indignation at the profane fury of this age which never made a stop in violation of things sacred when to its heap of other Sacriledges it added most contemptuous defilements of God's Houses making the place that Angels met us in to worship and God dwelt in to bless us there the place appointed for the Divinest Mysteries of our Redemption for the Celebration of Christs Agonies for the Commemoration of the blessed Sacrifice the place for nothing but Christ's blood then to become the place of a most odious and insolent uncleanness If I had worded this more aggravatingly it had been onely to inferre that then to see a consecrated person to pollute himself with those black foulnesses that made Hell and made Fiends is sure a sadder and a more unhappy spectacle If an Apostle become wicked he is in our Saviours Character a Devil Have I not chosen Twelve and one of you is a Devil Yea if the good Saint Peter do become a scandal tempt to that which is not good Get thee behind me Satan Christ calls his neerest Officers Stars Emblems of a great separateness those that teach them how far their Conversation should be remov'd from Earth for they are of another Orbe Heaven is the Region of Stars But they are Emblems of a greater purity there 's nothing in the World so clean as light 't is not possible so much as to sully shine it may irradiate dung-hils but they do not defile it you may eclipse a star but cannot spot it you may put out the light you cannot stain it 'T is a word for God's purity onely his light is glory and as his holiness is so separate that it is incommunicable so his Light is inaccessible Yet sure they that are starres in Christs right hand they do come neer and mix their light with his and they of all men must be pure and holy whom the Spirit calls to that place as he does all whom he calls to that separation that he did Barnabas and Saul the Persons and the next Part Separate me Barnabas and Saul I intend not to make particular reflections upon these persons although the Character of Barnabas be registred the 11. Chap. ver 24. He was a good man full of Faith and of the Holy Ghost and the good influence that that had upon the people follows and much people was added to the Church And as for Saul though he began the Christian persecution and was baptiz'd in the first Martyr-blood and breath'd out threatnings so that nothing but thunder could out-voice him and at last was born as an 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as an untimely birth aborting through those wounds which his own hands had made in the Church and making himself a birth with ripping up her bowels yet this Abortive prov'd the strongest birth and 't was a Miscarriage into the chiefest Apostle As he began the after-sufferings of Christ in Stephen so he fulfill'd the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and made up all that was behind in himself being in deaths more then those he inflicted The sound of his preaching was louder then that at his Conversion out-voic'd the thunder for this went out into all lands as if himself alone meant to execute the whole Commission preach the Gospel to every creature which he did almost not onely preaching to those places where Christ was not named without the other Apostles line but even where the rest imploy'd themselves he wrought as much as they in Asia as Saint John at Antioch as Peter yea and at Rome too having as much to doe in their foundation If I had said more I could have brought the Popes own Seal for evidence where not onely both are but Saint Paul hath the right hand And truly if they had had the luck to think at first of founding all their pretensions on Saint Paul his care of all the Churches would have born them out as well as feed my Lambs does now But these considerations I pass though they would give a Man that hath done mischief in the Church a pattern for the measures of his future Service to the Church The thing I shall concern my self in is the solemne separation here of those who were before separated to the work of the Gospel Barnabas sent by the Church of Jerusalem to Antioch Act. 11. 22. and Paul not onely separated from his Mothers womb Gal. 1. 15. but chosen by express Revelation and by the laying on of Ananias hands to go preach the Gospel to the Gentiles and to Kings and qualified for it by receiving of the Holy Ghost Act. 9. from 15. In which work both of them had for some years exercised themselves Yet here is a new consecration and they are taken up to a condition more separate and distinct from what they were before And all those vast advantages in which these persons did excell the one of faith and fulness of the Holy Ghost the other besides those of express and immediate mission from Heaven and the most strange success their labours had been blest with all these I say did not qualifie them to assume these powers which the Holy Ghost commands another Separation to enstall them in and 't was this Call that call'd Paul to be an Apostle Rom. 1. 1. as from this time he is alwayes call'd Paul not sooner Nor do we find any least footsteps of their being Apostles before though Barnabas were sent to Antioch yet he does not undertake what Peter and John did at Samaria in the very same case for they confirm and give the Holy Ghost Act. 8. 15 17. but Barnabas does nothing but Exhort Act. 11. 23. and he and Paul together preacht the Word abroad but we find nothing else they enterpriz'd but from this time they exercise Jurisdiction settle Churches and ordain them Elders in the Churches Ch. 14. 22 23. and as it does appear singly deriv'd these powers to others to be exercised by them singly To Titus most expressly Tit. 1. 5. the like also to Timothy with all the other acts of Jurisdiction of which their Epistles are the Records particularly that of Censures which Paul himself had inflicted on offenders in the Churches he had planted Powers these which by such steps and by degrees of separation an Apostle himself receives and does not execute till he ascend the highest that which they have a new solemnity ordain'd from Heaven to enstate them in by a new laying on of hands and the Holy

some Apostles some Evangelists some Pastors and Teachers for the perfecting of the Saints for the work of the Ministry namely because those gifts enabled for those offices and all the reason in the world that he should have a speciall hand in giving where himself is to be receiv'd Receive the Holy Ghost that was from the beginning and is yet the installation to them And if we take them from their divine original from that great Pastor and Bishop of our sonls who was the maker of them too Thus he was consecrated The spirit of the Lord is upon me therefore he hath anointed me to preach the Gospel Luk. 4. 18. And when he comes to ordain succession he sayes as my Father sent me so send I you and he breathed upon them and said Receive the Holy Ghost Joh. 20. 21. and after bids them tarry at Jerusalem till they should be endued with power from above Luk. 24. 47. that is endued with the Holy Spirit Act. 1. The present Barnabas and Saul were sent by his Commission in the Text and v. 4. Saint Paul tels the Elders of the Churches of Asia the Holy Ghost made them overseers 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Act. 20. 28. Timothy had his office 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 by immediate designation of the Holy Ghost 1 Tim. 4. 14. Clemens Romanus saith the Apostles out of those they had converted did ordain Bishops and Deacons 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 having first try'd them by the Holy Ghost and so taught by his revetation who should be the men And Clemens Alexandrinus says John after his return to Asia ordain'd throughout all the regions about 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 such as were signified and design'd by the Holy Ghost So that Oecumenius pronounces in the general 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 The Bishops that were made they made not inconsiderately on their own heads but such whom the Spirit did command Chrysostome said as much before and Theophylact. Nor can we doubt that he maintains his interest in this affair even at this day But that our Veni Creator Spiritus Come Holy Ghost eternal God does call him to preside in these so concerning solemnities For Christ when he commission'd his Apostles assuring them Behold I am with you even to the end of the world which promise he performs onely vicariâ Spiritûs praesentiâ by the presence of the Holy Ghost who is his Vicar as Tertullian expresses nor can the Spirit be with them till then but by making them be till then which being done by Ordination that Ecclesiastical procreation for so they derive themselves to the worlds end upon the strength of that promise we may assure our selves he does assist as truely though not so visibly as when he said here Separate The Ghost's concernment being thus secured I have this one thing onely to suggest that they who set themselves against all separation to these offices and Orders in and for which the Holy Ghost hath so appear'd what they be I dispute not now they fight against the Holy Ghost and thrust him out of that in which he hath most signally interess'd himself And they that do intitle the Spirit to this opposition do not onely make Gods Kingdome divided against it self or raise a faction in the Trinity and stir up division betwixt those Three One Persons but they set the same Person against himself and make the Holy Spirit resist the Holy Ghost You know the inference prest upon them that did this but interpretatively in the Devils Kingdome and did make Satan cast out Satan and is 't not here of force And they who make the Spirit cast out the Holy Ghost contrive as much as in them lyes Gods Kingdome shall not stand I will not parallel the guilts Those Pharisees blasphemed the Holy Spirit in his Miracles ascribing that to Beelzebub which was the immediate work of the Holy Ghost and such indeed do sin unpardonably because they sin irrecoverably for Miracles being the utmost and most manifest express wherein the Holy Ghost exerts himself they who can harden their understandings against them have left themselves no means of conviction and cannot be forgiven because they cannot be rectified or reclaimed These others do blaspheme the Spirit in his immediate inspirations and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ascribing to the spirit of Antichrist all those Offices and Orders which these gifts of the Holy Ghost were powr'd from Heaven immediately to qualifie for and separate to things in which he hath as signally appeared as in his Miracles and as he made these meanes to convince the world so he made those the Officers of doing it and set them to out-last the other Now in the same nearness that these two guilts come up one towards the other just to the same degree these sin the sin against the Holy Ghost For the Holy Ghost said Separate So I pass to the second to those whom this injunction is directed to And thence I do observe in general that Notwithstanding all the interest and office that the Holy Ghost assumes in these same separations yet there is something left besides for man to doe Although he superintend they have a work in it He is the Uncti●● but it must be apply'd by laying on of hands I have call'd them saith he in the Text and yet to them that ministred the Holy Ghost said Do ye separate I do not now examine what degree and order of men they were whom the Holy Ghost here commissions for this Office The Judgment of the Antient Church in this affair is enough known by the condemnation of Aerius and by the Fate of Ischyras and Colluthus and for the present instance in which they are call'd Doctors that are bid to doe it there hath enough been said to prove 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a Title of a Bishop to which I shall onely adde that it was a variation of Name that stuck by them untill Bede's age in which what Bishop signified does come under no question for he does say that Austin call'd together to the Conference Episcopos sive Doctores the Bishops or the Doctor of the Province Besides that there was then in Antioch a Bishop 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 In the time of Claudius Emperour of Rome and of Euodius whom the Apostle Peter had ordained at Antioch those that before were call'd Nazarenes and Galil●ans were call'd Christians a thing which happen'd a little before this separation in the Text as you finde ch 11. 26. But who they were that us'd to separate for every Execution of these holy Offices will appear from the instances that I shall make to prove the present observation that besides that of the Holy Ghost there was an outward Call And whomsoever the Spirit sent he commanded that they should have Commission from Men. And all my former Testimonies for the Holy Ghost bear witness for this too The Text is positive here was a Congè