Selected quad for the lemma: city_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
city_n	agree_v	church_n	zion_n	29	3	10.3274	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A26759	The utter routing of the whole army of all the Independents and Sectaries, with the totall overthrow of their hierarchy ..., or, Independency not Gods ordinance in which all the frontires of the Presbytery ... are defended ... / by John Bastvvick, captain in the Presbyterian army.	Bastwick, John, 1593-1654.	1646 (1646)	Wing B1072; ESTC R10739	685,011	796

doctrine to prove this their opinion to be legitimate So that in this point of their beliefe the Papists and the Independents agree against all the current and the whole Schooles of all the most Orthodoxe Protestant Divines who hold they were Christians Secondly they agree in this also that both of them hold that the forme of a church must ever be visible and apparent So that were their never so many Assemblies of Christians in a city or country and all beleevers if they be not cast into such and such a mold and forme then theyare not churches properly so called but in their dialect they are either Heritickes or no Christians but proclaimed enemies of Iesus Christ and his Kingdom So that according to the Papists doctrine all those Christians that are not within the limits compasse and bounds that they have circumscribed their church with and are not under that visible forme of government they have appointed they accompt them all Heritickes and no churches as all men know And in the same manner do the Independents unchurch all churches in the world but such as in their opinion are cast into a church mould according to the New Testament forme and have their distinct Officers and Members united into one body respectively That is to say speaking in their owne language all such congregations and assembles as are fluid and are not joyned and united together by an explcite particular Covenant fixed in their officers and Members having a Presbytery of their own with absolute Soverainty and power within themselves Independent they are no churches and all those Christians that are not within the compasse and limits of this their new mould or modell they proclaime them enemies of Iesus Christ and his kingdome and accompte of them as a company of infidels and affirme that they are no true churches nor churches properly so called So that we see that both the Papists and Independents agree in this that they bound and limit all churches to such and such an externall forme so that wheresoever that is wanting according to their dialect though otherwise they have the preaching of the Gospel the right administration of the Sacraments and the true invocation of God they are no churches properly so called And both of them farther accorde and agree in this that the forme of their churches consists in the distinction of their Officers and members and the uniting of them into one body respectively they must not be fluid as they speake but they must be fixed in their Officers and Members and having a Presbytery of their owne with absolute soverainty and jurisdiction within themselves Independent But in this the Papists deale far more honestly then the Independents for they have in many large volumes fully set downe the modell of their government and what it is and shew how they are fixed in their Officers and Members and for their chiefe Officers they say they are the Pope and his Presbytery at Rome the Cardinals Patriarchs Primates Metropolitans Archbishops c. and we know where to finde them and what their modell and government is to a hare But what the Independents modell is or will be no man could yet ever learne but by conjecture which I must confesse seemes a wonderfull thing to me that they should thus at pleasure unchurch and unchristian all churches and Christians as not formed into a church mould after the New Testament forme and yet never declare what that forme and mold is And yet this is their daily wicked practice So that all men may see if they will not put out their eyes that in this and many other of their tenents and opinions the Independents are but a company of Mungrell Papists and would have all men belieeve with an implicit faith as their Churches believe and take all they speake as Oracles though it be never so groundlesse But we have learned Christ better then so who is the Prophet and King of his Church and who hath commanded us to heare him Matth. 17. and to obey his voyce Iohn 10. and not to give eare unto strangers And from his blessed Word we have learned these two lessons the first that wheresoever the Gospel of the Kingdome of Iesus Christ is faithfully and truly Preached by Ministers sent by him and where this Everlasting Gospell is imbraced and believed and yeelded obedience unto by the people and where there is the right Administration of the holy Sacraments and the true invocation of God they are a true church or churches although they be fluid and be not fixed in their Officers and members and have not that externall forme either the Papists or the Independents speake of and for this our faith we have warrant from Gods holy Word Secondly we are taught out of the holy Scriptures also that there may be a true church or churhes in many nations and kingdomes where they injoy not all the Ordinances in a publicke manner nor where their very meetings together are not allowed unto them by authority for all such as confine a church or churches to these externall formes they speak of they confound the essence and substance of a church with the adjuncts and Accideuts of it whereas churches may be true churches and yet want the externall forme of Government as may by innumerable places of holy Scripture be proved as for instances In Israel where God had set up his owne worship and established a forme of Government and commanded that it should punctually be observed yet we read in the 2 of the Chron. chap. 15. ver the 3. these words Now for a long season Israel was without the true God and without a teaching Priest and without law So that from this place we may gather that their did not then appeare any externall forme of a church no not in Israel when the true God was not publickly known amongst them and yet notwithstanding God had there his true church amongst them yea in the greatest height of Idolatry when all the Prophets were persecuted and lay hid in Caves yet at that time also God had seven thousand that never bowed knee to Baal So that it is evident that it is not the externall forme that is absolutely required for the making of a true church but it may be a true church without that externall appearance they speak of For a church is one thing and the outward forme and discipline is another And truly if a man will not suffer himselfe willingly to be deluded with appearances and naked shaddowes for the truth it selfe and will but consider the great variety and change of the church in respect of the outward alteration of the government of it in all ages after God himself had set it up in Abrahams Family and consider it in all its peregrinations and pilgrimages and that after God had given unto Abraham and his seed such directions for the setting up of his worship wheresoever he and his posterity should come and

and accoutrements And yet although they be in divers and sundry Assemblies they are still the Prelaticall party and all of them of the Malignant Church and as the diversity of the places changeth not their complexions so it altereth not their faith nor manners but they continne still Malignants and remaine all Members of the Malignant Church And as in these dayes all that wish well unto the true Religion through both citie and kingdome and love their countrey stand for the Parliament so in those dayes those that loved Zion and the prosperity of Jerusalem cleaved unto Christ and the Gospel and stood for him and all his Ministers and by all computations though all the power and Authority was in the hands of the malignant Magistrates of those times who were swayed and guided by the Scribes Pharisees Elders and the high Priests yet to one Pharisee or Malignant Scribe or Ruler there was ten of those that beleeved in Christ and honoured him and all his Ministers and Disciples Yea the Pharisees themselves do acknowledge it not once but many times as is evident from the places above cited and many more that might be produced So that if I should frame no Argument out of them it is apparent that those new additions of Beleevers that were converted by Christ and his Ministry considered by themselves a part from those that Saint Iohn the Baptist converted were so great and numerous that they could not all meet in any one place for partaking of all acts of worship but of necessity must be distributed into severall Congregations and Assemblies if they would all be edified much lesse could they all meet together being joyned to those that beleeved through the Baptisme and Ministry of Iohn But out of the former places above specified I thus argue Where there was an innumerable multitude of beleevers in a word the whole people and Citie of Ierusalem whom the Pharisees accounted accursed there they could not all meet at any one time or in any one roome or place and in one Congregation to partake in all the Ordinances but of necessity must bee distributed into severall assemblies and divers Congregations if they would all bee edified But in Ierusalem the Scribes and Pharisees and Rulers by their owne confession being excepted there was an innumerable multitude of beleevers and in a word the whole people and Citie of Jerusalem whom the Pharisees accounted accursed Ergo they could not all meet together at one time and in one place to partake in all the Ordinances but of necessity must be distributed into severall assemblies and divers congregations if they would all be edified For the major no rationall man will deny is that hath but read the Scriptures or is but a little acquainted with the Histories of those times For the minor it is evident from the places produced and therefore the conclusion doth necessarily follow But I yet further thus argue Where there was a world of beleevers with many Rulers and men of great place and office with infinite multitudes of men and children all the people they could not al meet together at one time and in one place and congregation to partake in all acts of worship but of necessity must be distributed into divers assemblies and severall congregations if they would all be edified But in the Church of Jerusalem there was a world of beleevers with many Rulers and men of great place and office with multitudes of men and children and all the people Ergo they could not all meet together at one time and in one place to partake in all acts of worship but of necessity must be distributed into divers congregations and assemblies if they would be all edified For the Major it is evident by the very light of nature neither will any rationall man deny it that hath not resolved to sacrifice himselfe to stupidity For the Minor the places above specified prove it for in expresse words it is said that the world followed him that is believed in him and that great multitudes entertained him with their acclamations and crying Hosanna the very children also seconding them And that the chiefe Priests Scribes and Elders sough● to destroy him and could not find what to doe for all the people were very attentive to heare him The whole people we see here or the generality of them except the Scribes Pharisees Elders and High Priests which in comparison of them were very few beleeved in Jesus Christ and were his Disciples and such as were converted by his Ministry and such a multitude there was of them as for that present they so awed the High Priests and Elders that they durst not destroy Christ though they desired it so that the minor stands firme and from the premises the conclusion necessarily followeth But out of the former places I yet further thus argue Where ther was such an increase of multitudes of Beleevers as that there was not water enough in any one place to baptize them all nor any one place in the wildernesse capable to containe or receive them all so that Christ himselfe and his seventy Disciples and twelve Apostles and Iohn Baptist and all his Disciples were for the numerosity of them forced in severall places to preach unto them and baptize them there they could not all meet at any one time or in any one place or roome or in one Congregation to partake or communicate in all acts of worship but of necessitie were to be distributed into severall congregations or assemblies if they would all be edified But in Jerusalem there was such multitudes of beleevers that went out to the Baptisme of John and Christ as that there was not water enough in any one place to baptize them all nor any one place in the wildernesse capable to containe or receive them all so that Christ himselfe and his seventy Disciples and his twelve Apostles and Saint John Baptist and his Disciples were for the numerosity of them forced to divide themselves into severall places and severall assemblies and congregations that all the people might partake in all acts of worship and be edified Ergo they could not all meet at any one time or in any one place but were of necessity forced to divide and distribute themselves into divers places and severall congregations and assemblies that they might all be edified For the Major and Minor of the Syllogisme they are so evident both by reason and the holy Scripture that no man that hath not resolved with himselfe to remaine incredulous and continue in his obstinacy can deny the truth of them so that the conclusion of necessity must from the premises be granted And all these multitudes of people were beleevers before Christs Suffering Resurrection and Ascension Now before I goe on to declare what infinite multitudes of beleevers were added to those that were converted by Iohns and the Disciples Ministry in the Church of Ierusalem after Christs death and ascension which makes it an