Selected quad for the lemma: church_n
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A75971
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The agreement of the associated ministers of the county of Essex: proposed to their particular congregations, and to all such of the county that love the churches peace; with a word of exhortation to brotherly union.
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1658
(1658)
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Wing A776; Thomason E955_2; ESTC R207612
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42,278
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62
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saying Come and let us join our selves to the Lord in a perpetual Covenant that shall not be forgotten And to submit to the Government and discipline which Ghrist hath ordained If thy Brother shall trespasse against thee go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone if he shall hear thee thou hast gained thy Brother but if he will not hear thee then take with thee one or two more that c. and if he shall neglect to hearken then tell it unto the Church but if he shall neglect to hear the Church let him be unto thee as a Heathen man and a Publican For his own glory and his peoples good 2 Cor. 10.8 For though I should boast more of our Authority which the Lord hath given us for edification and not for destruction and Chap. 13.10 The power which the Lord hath given me to edification and not to destruction And that I may have the opportunity of the enjoyment of these priviledges for the advancement of mine obedience I resolve and promise Isai 44.5 One shall say I am the Lords and another shall call himself by the name of Jacob and another shall subscribe with his hands unto the Lord c. 2 Cor. 8.5 And this they did first gave themselves to the Lord and unto us by the will of God 2 Cor. 9.13 They glorifie God for your professed subjection to the Gospel of Christ To submit to the Ministerial Guidance and over-sight exercised according to the rule of the Word in this Congregation Acts 14.22 And when they had ordained them Elders in every Church Acts 20.28 Take heed therefore unto your selves and to all the Flock over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you over-seers to feed the Church of God Heb. 13.17 Obey them that have the rule over you and submit your selves to such for they watch for your souls as they that must give an account that they may do it with joy and not with grief for that is unprofitable for you And to the Brotherly advice and admonition of fellow-Christians here Rom. 15.14 I am perswaded that you are filled with all knowledge able also to admonish one another Col. 3.16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdome teaching and admonishing one another Jude 20. Ye beloved building up your selves in your most holy Faith keep your selves in the love of God and of some have compassion making a difference others save with fear pulling them out of the fire 1 Thess 5.11 Comfort your selves together and edifie one another Heb. 3.16 Exhort one another daily Heb. 10.24 Let us consider one another to provoke to love and to good works The Exhortation to Union IT will readily be yielded that the great work of Christians here is to advance to their utmost the Superlative interest of Christ his Kingdome and Glory That the way conducing hereunto lies First for a sure foundation to begin with a Totall and free subjecting themselves to Christ Then for suller furtherance to endeavour after the largest Heart and most publike Spirit for doing very much for Christ And as a yet more full and proportionate meanes to put themselves into the best posture of the fullest and firmest Union and Conjunction for exalting together of the Name and Cause of Christ without which Generall Union neither the Churches Edification Reformation or Preservation can be sufficiently provided for as necessarily requiring a conjunction of hearts knit together in Love of heads united in counsels and contrivances and of hands affording their best assistance and help Among others there are these three things in the reformed Churches which are the great Dolenda the greatly to be bewailed 1. That great defect and want of Union and good correspondencies for mutuall help 2. That height and depth of hazzard and danger they daily run by that want of good Union 3. That so great so great neglect of applying any just and proportionate remedy to heal divisions and prevent the danger Certainly 't is no small one but one of the great scarrs seen this day in the Face of the Protestant Churches that sinfull division and want of Union which interrupts those good correspondencies and joynt actings thereupon to the securing and propagating the Protestant interest that would upon conjunction follow Our Lord indeed tells us Luke 16. The Children of this world are wiser in their generation then the Children of Light and besides former our own present age and experience do abundantly prove and seale unto it Divers adverse parties though smaller they can hit it they can be closely united among themselves and strongly combined against the reformed But Papists the greatest enemies and the greatest party are the most eminently and observedly prudent and wise as to matter of Union and combination against the reformed They though so scattered over the earth as to places of habitation yet are all one in heart for to unite still strongly against the Protestants And for a spring and feeder of all their affairs and dangerous actings they have one chief the deepest and most impenetrable counsel They have the choicest instruments exactest correspondencies surest intelligences and the most equall and unwearied prosecutions of their grand design the propagating of their own and extirpating of the reformed party and way But the Protestants though for numbers no whit despicable and by good conjunction would be sussiciently formidable are so defective towards themselves as they neither do nor will piece together in any entire and generall Union for Counsels correspondencies and joynt prosecution of their own interest and preservation And as this 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and inconsistency becomes a daily derision and reproach among their adversaries and makes them look upon the Protestants as a very simple party and wanting that wisdome of self-preservation by union So it is the great ground given them to place their destructive Engines carry on their mines and lay their trains But for any just and speedy remedy as yet undertaken effectually This is rather the Object of our Desires Prayers and Tears then of our Hopes and not to be expected untill God rebuke that spirit of division gone out among the Churches breathe a Spirit of Love and Unity and bow the clashing interests of States and Kingdoms into a due subserviency to that Supream interest of the Kingdome of Jesus Christ When therefore disunion and division is so great a scarr in the face of the Churches in generall It can be no small blemish in any particular Nations and Churches but is more especially so in this Nation of ours That so many Nations divided in situation and of such different Languages and interests more especially do not so perfectly unite is not altogether so strange But for those of our Nation and which formerly were so united to be so rent and torn in pieces and so remain without a healing up into unity to behold the great and growing divisions among us to hear the continuall scorns and
particular Congregations it is to be managed by those that rule over them in the Lord and that therefore the Examination and Determination of things in point of admissions to Ordinances and refusals together with other Church acts shall be performed and mannaged by them yet not without notice given to the people of what in matters of general concernment and consequence is determined by them that if any can upon grounds out of the Word object any thing their satisfaction may be endeavoured or the matter forborn 3. In these and all such cases wherewith the people are made acquainted we agree according to Scripture Rules practice of the Churches and all Societies rightly ordered there must be one to govern the matter of speech and silence of which the Pastour or Minister is to take care that order be maintained 4. We agree that to heal offences and remove scandals out of the Church Christ hath provided the remedy of admonition of offenders and other Church censures to which there ought to be no proceeding but in case of known offence and such as cannot be healed without censure and offences being some of them private others publike they require a proceeding according to their nature and quality 5. In private offences or scandals of one Brother against another known if to more than the brother yet but to few we agree that as Christian Inspection and watchfulness over each other must not degenerate into imprudent rash and uncharitable prying into others failings so Brotherly Admonition may not at any time become unadvised and unwarrantable medling therefore we are in proceedings of this sort to follow as other Scripture Rules so espcially that Rule Mat. 18.15 If thy Brother c. which offence or trespass we understand not to be meant by our Lord of such humane infirmities that all men even the best Saints on earth in this state of imperfection continually fall into nor of such smaller faults or injuries which Christian prudence love and peaceableness require an over-looking and passing by but the offence there grounding the admonition is a greater evil endangering the soul of the doer scandalizing the Brother seeing it and lying as a stumbling stone in his Christian course and such a sin that for the nature of it is fit in case of insuccessefulness of admonition to be brought before the Church 6. Besides this Ecclesiastical Admonition we yeeld there may be other Charitative Admonitions which must not proceed to Ecclesiastical censure 7. Therefore for our own particulars we shall be very tender and cautious what either we our selves do or encourage others unto in this case but on such grounds as the Word will sufficiently warrant 8. The offence or scandal against a Brother being more than a meer humane infirmity the offending Brother by the Rule of Christ ought to go to his Brother offended and declare his Repentance to him who thereupon is to forgive him but if the Offender neglect that duty the Brother offended is to go personally to him and tell him his fault between themselves alone and if by that admonition the offence be healed and the Brother gained it is to be concealed for the future If he hear not this first admonition the party offended is to take to him two or three witnesses and if he then hear at the second admonition before witnesses the matter ought to be kept secret by both the Admonisher and the Witnesses but if he again hear not before Witnesses then the matter is to be told to the Church which though some understand of Church Rulers others of the Church of a particular Congregation yet all do agree that for order and decency the accusation must not first be brought to the whole Congregation but to the Rulers or Over-seers and therefore we resolve not to countenance the bringing of any such matter before the Congregation till those that are set over them in the Lord have first been acquainted with it to whom belongs also the giving of all publike admonitions if afterward the aforesaid party upon proof of sin be admonished by the Church and he hear not the Church but is obstinate in the sin then he ought to be accounted as an Heathen man and a Publican and excluded the Church Publike Scandal 1. VVE agree that a private Scandal by obstinacy added to it against private admonition and thereupon told and proved to the Church especially by that further obstinacy against the Churches following admonition becomes a publike scandal but properly a publike scandal is that which in its own nature at the very first is publike and notorious known to many if not to the whole Church in which case the former proceeding by a private gradual admonition is not requisite nor proper but the Church when an offence is thus publike ought immediatly to deal with it according to the nature of the offence either by the less censure of admonition when the Scandal is less which admonition may be once or oftner as need shall require or by the greater Censure of Excommunication when the scandal is greater and heinous wherein we resolve faithfully to endeavour the discharge of that duty shall be incumbent on us 2. If the party offending after due proceeding shall manifest Repentance and satisfie the Church he is to be received into fellowship again 3. To the satisfaction of the Church is required more evidence of Repentance after some greater sin is committed or in case of relapsing readily into the same sin for which he hath declared Repentance before the Church or falling into some new scandalous evil after a former censure and re-admission into Communion then in other cases Therefore we agree to be very cautious and circumspect herein that there be not an over-hasty re-admitting of any such till due tryal of Reformation be made in some competent measure of time 4. When an offender is under Church-Censure though the former Christian-Fellowship be denied to him yet ought there to be all due wayes used to reduce him to Repentance towards God and former Fellowship with the Church as being a Member or person under cure Therefore we resolve so long as opportunity and hope remain to do our best endeavours when any Member of our Congregations shall come under Censure for the Recovery of such out of Satans Snare and reducing them to the obedience of Christ and his Churches Fellowship 5. Whereas such Members of the Church born and Baptized in it by vertue of the Covenant of their Parents and so received into it have many priviledges which others not Church-Members have not as their being in Covenant with God having the Seal of the Covenant of Baptisme upon them and so if they are not Regenerate yet are in a more hopeful way of attaining Regenerating Graces and all the spiritual blessings both of the Covenant and Seal and are also under Church-watch and oversight and consequently subject to such Gospel-order as may conduce to their spiritual good Therefore we agree