Selected quad for the lemma: church_n

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

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A85315	Stablishing against shaking: or, A discovery of the Prince of Darknesse (scarcely) transformed into an angel of light, powerfully now working in the deluded people called, Quakers: with a sober answer to their railings against ministers for receiving maintenance from their people. Being the substance of one sermon preached Feb. 17. 1655. at Shalford in Essex. / By Giles Firmin (pastour of the church there) upon occasion of the Quakers troubling those parts.	Firmin, Giles, 1614-1697.	1656 (1656)	Wing F967; Thomason E885_13; ESTC R202074	45,528	65

of this life c. But how then shall he live I shall adde no more God hath provided for us expressly in the New Testament though the maintenance we have fall short abundantly of what the Priests had in the Old Test 5. The LORD did never upbraid any Church-Officer for taking tithes or maintenance who did his worke nor ever thought the worse of for that nay how often he blames the people for not bringing in the tithes Mal. 3.8 9 10. and other Texts The Lord did ever beteame his Ministers honourable wages Whence you doe but wickedly to upbraid us with those Texts unlesse you could prove us to be no workers I doubt not but Christ in glory doth take himself to be faithfully preached by the Ministers of England I will not say every one why then not maintained 6. But observe these Quakers how they provide for themselves by Scripture Naylor Saluta c. p. 37. 38. he speaks against the Magistrates because they imprison some of their Sect calling themselves Pilgrims and tells them that God foreseeing their doings hath commanded all that own him to entertain strangers and made a Law for it which you have made a Law against and quotes Levit. 19.34 Heb. 13.2 Observe how they have provided for themselves when they wander up and down to mislead souls and trouble the Churches yet you must entertain them they have two Scriptures for it But Naylor 1. Doe the Spirit that is infallible teach men to lye as you doe against the Magistrate hath he made a Law against Gods Law in this point no true stranger will say it but idle persons Vagabonds Rogues persons who worke not in their callings what should become of the Nation else 2. Will two Texts serve to prove that Naylor or others when they wander up and down yet they must be entertained men must provide you lodging food c. and will not five Scriptures that speak for Ministers maintenance be as strong for them to require it are not the people bound as well to provide for us as men to entertain you you are the persons who oppose Gods Law not the Magistrate For shame leave off quoting of Scriptures thus 3. But Naylor you might have read a little further to the 7 17 ver there you shall finde that these Hebrews to whom the Apostle writes had Rulers over them and they were to obey them their duty to entertain strangers so to have Rulers and obey them but your Sect and so others with you are not such as those Hebrews from whom you fetch your proof for you rail at those who are such and at the people who have such Thus then by the Quakers principles I hope we may yet call for our maintenance 7. Our Lord Christ who Mat. 10.8 bid his Disciples that as they had received freely so give freely that is as Christ had freely given them those gifts of healing c. by which they might have soon been very rich the 1 8 ver show what they had received yet Luke 10.7 he bids them eat and drinke for the labourer is worthy of his hire If they must carry no purse with them ver 4. he intended they should be maintained and shew plainly it was their duty to maintain them for he could have furnished them with money but would not For Paul Magd. ●en● 1. l. 2. p. 451. it plainly appears by Acts 18.3 that though he were brought up to Learning which at that time was so famous in Tarsus that it excelled Athens Alexandria and other Universities and so Paul was learned acquainted also with heathen Poets as appears yet withall he was also taught a Trade he was of the same craft with Aquila he did not learne it of Aquila then but before he came Paul had his trade for Paul being of the Tribe of Benjamin though he were learned yet he could not come into the Priesthood and so had none of the Tythes to maintain him he must maintain himself So those Elders of Ephesus Act. 20. and other Elders they all had their trades by which they maintained themselves before ever they heard of the Gospel then no wonder though Paul and those Elders did sometimes work Paul being a single person might easily maintain himself 2. Paul having the Spirit in that manner need not trouble himself to attain any thing needfull to his work and I doubt not the ordinary Elders at that time yet had another manner of assistance than we have now for to have them men so able to teach and convince gainsayers Tit. 1. these gifts could not be reached so quickly but though they did labour and study for them yet the Spirit might assist more than now he doth for the speedy fitting of persons 3. It was a free act in Paul that he for this time upon some reason moving him did suspend his power 1 Cor. 9.12 if he were absolutely bound to it why not others also v 6. So if any now who have means sufficient for themselves and their posterity will preach freely they may but neverthelesse there remains a duty on the peoples part to maintain them as such that preach the Gospel v. 14. though they be otherwayes able to live Neither hath the Scripture given any such caution that if Ministers have good estates of their own then the people should not give them the double honour Though the Priests were never so rich yet that did not hinder them from taking Tythes Though Kings have great Lands yet the people pay Customes So in any other Art or place whatever men are in for the reason holds The labourer is worthy c. But what are these things to us when first our fitnesse to this work is not so easily attained those Languages wherein the Scriptures were writ which cost us much time to attain to as without which no man can be a good Text-man they never bestowed any paines about The customes to which the Apostles allude often they knew them because their own but we cannot till we read and know them by Learning The Errors which Ministers are to oppose are abundantly multiplyed over they were in the Apostles time thus I might speak for the necessity of Arts without which men cannot be sufficient Ministers all things put together prove that he who will be a Minister had need give his whole time let him study and pray as bard as he will let him live a hundred years in his strength yet he that will be a Minister indeed will say he finds all little enough if it were no more to be a Minister but to step off a shop-board and get into a Pulpit and speak some honest practicall things which people have heard from others and know something it may be from their own experience then it were easie work indeed and well might the people grumble at the maintenance of such Hence we see Paul in his Epistle to Timothy who was not bred up as others he must give himselfe

wholly to these things Chap. 4. ver 15. not entangle himselfe with the affairs of this life Chap. 2. ver 4. Then must Timothy be maintained by the Church or beg if he have not enough of his own estate to keep him 2. Is your offence at Tithes First it is well known if the Magistrate who is to doe what in him lieth that the people under him may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godlinesse and honesty 1 Tim. 2.2 why else should the people pray that they might doe so and to this end takes care that according to Gods Institution Ministers be provided who may teach the people all godliness honesty he in the mean time a Nursing Father to them Isa 49. see that they may have an honourable maintenance according to the word I say if the Magistrate could finde a better way for the maintenance of the Ministery every way you shall see how easily Ministers will part with Tithes But now we take them as that which the Supreme power of the Nation for many yeares have allotted to us You have the least cause to be offended at Tithes because Tithes are no mans owne but the Ministers many hundred years since the Parliament of England not the Pope as learned Parnel saith in his books did set apart the Tithes for the maintenance of the Ministery and the supreme Magistrate is but the Feoffee in trust to see that what the people of England in their representative with the King and house of Lords had given to the Ministerie be duly payed them let this convince you if your hearts be sober that Tythes are no mans owne but the Ministers for let a man be to hire a Farme his Landlord cannot let him a Farme that shall pay no Tythes let a man buy a Farme or sell a Farme he can neither buy nor sell a Farme that shall pay no Tythes if a man have a Farme to sell of an hundred pound per annum this Farme may possibly pay twelve pound a yeare for tythes if this man could fell this farme tythe-free would he not raise the price in the sale of it accordingly So would not Landlords let their farmes accordingly if they could let them tithe-free the Tenant should soon finde it But neither the Landlord nor Tenant doe look upon the tythes as theirs but the Ministers whence men let hire buy sell lands as still looking upon them to pay tythes and so none of all these are wronged at all whence tythes are as duly our own as any mans estate is his and that is the reason why when people deny our due we go to the supreme Magistrate who as I said is the Feoffee in trust in his Officers and Courts to help us to our due as any other man wronged goeth for right to any Court whence it is evident it is meer blindnesse if not madnesse which makes people talk thus against Ministers taking of Tithes for we take onely what is our own and no mans else As for lands so for houses we observe the long Parliament made two Acts it may be more that I know not of one for Bristoll another for Colchester that according to the rents of houses so men should pay not exceeding a certain summe a very little one I am sure I know wicked spirits raile at the Magistracie for doing this but herein the Parliament did what was equal and just before God and man For as I said in my first if the Magistrate be bound to take care that the people under him doe lead a life in all godlinesse c. which comprehends the first Table of the Law then the Magistrate must set up able men no slight fellowes that may answer the qualifications in the Word to teach the people then reason besides the Word saith these must be fed maintained and that as become their places surely the Magistrate who hath power to raise a taxe when the good of the Common-wealth requires it hath as much power to cause people to pay towards the upholding of the Officers and Ordinances of God unlesse Religion doe nothing concern the interest and good of the Common-wealth which to affirm is to fall below Heathenisme As for such as affirm that the Magistrate hath nothing to doe in the Church the care of it doth not at all belong to him I think such devilish principles deserve not an answer yet they are answered though such owne not the Scriptures yet let them but go to the Heathens and they will shame them 3. It is well known there are abundance of Ministers who take not their tythes in kinde but compound with the people for their tythes I would faine see the enemies of the Ministers prove that ever the Priests in the old Law could doe such a thing then still we take not our Tythes as the Priests All Ministers would doe thus would people be reasonable in their compositions but we finde they defraud us 4. For Tythes it is impossible that the Supreme power should ever settle a more equall and easie way for the maintenance of the Ministery than this way of Tythes already set 1. Not more equall for therein we rise and fall with the people we share with their blessings and crosses we have little or more as they have little or more 2. Not more easie because as I said neither the buyer nor seller neither he that hires nor he that lets doe look on Tythes as theirs and is it a burden for men to pay for what is none of their own and they esteem none of their own as in my second I have opened Object But you should trust God for your maintenance Answer So we doe and desire to doe but we will not nor dare trust you if your corruption be touched or your rotten opinion be opposed if your covetous lust stirre and that reigns what is next we must seek for maintenance 2. We see God hath taken care for us already many hundred years before we were born in setling an estate upon us by the Supreme power of the Nation 3. You would have done well had you lived in the Primitive Churches when the Magistrate was an Heathen and so took no care for the Church but to destroy it but yet even then they were so free to maintain the Officers and Ordinances of Christ c that they could have Church stocks to maintain all with the poor the sick strangers yet then were Bishops besides Presbyters and none of these were to meddle with Secular cares for if they did they were to be cast out Can. Apost 7.80 as the Canons then made declare Had that spirit that is now amongst professors been in those dayes it had been very ill with the Church as it is now and should be worse might such Christians have their wills To gather up all then since Christ in his word hath commanded that we should be maintained since the Magistrate being Christian hath long since appointed us maintenance