Selected quad for the lemma: conscience_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
conscience_n	authority_n	church_n	ordain_v	1,218	5	9.9132	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A60655	A spiritual prospective glass Through which the rulers and people of England, may plainly see those things which concerns their peace. Being a manifestation from the Spirit of God, in love to all people. By one that desires the prosperity of truth, and the peace of the nation. W.Smith.	Smith, William, d. 1673.	1670 (1670)	Wing S4333; ESTC R216948	15,398	21

consciences and that will settle righteousness unity and peace in every conscience that is well disposed towards God and so the soul will come to live in comfort as in a day of prosperity and there you will know the things that belongs to your peace Now in things of such weighty concernment there ought to be great regard to the well being of a Nation for there is your proper place to stand and rule not to meddle with spiritual things but look after the well being of the nation and to suppress vice and vanity that occasioneth mischief and injury here stand in your places and exercise your power to the punishment of evil doers there your authority is to shew it self and not in punishing tender peaceable people for their conscience towards God for persecution will never bring Righteousness Unity and peace to a Nation but always disturbs and disquiets the most setled condition so thus the consequence of persecution is for the most part strife and sedition and yet under the colour of suppressing seditious meetings persecution is carried on as the best means to do it and so that which is evil in it self would make a good thing to appear evil that it might appear against it as evil to make it self appear as if it was good for this is to be observed that persecution never appeared against any thing as if it was good but as if it was evil and so hath always had a cloak to cover it in its greatest fury for such as are persecuted do always suffer as such that in the account of that spirit which persecuteth deserve the thing that is done for it is the general cry at this day by those that acts persecution or joyn with it you deserve to suffer that will not obey the Kings Laws and so would appear as if they were doing a good work with their violent hands and will concern the King and his Laws in what they do but such never yet looked thorow the Spiritual Prospective Glass to see things as they are and therefore they follow evil as if it was good and would suppress the good as if it was evil and so are evil doers and who will conclude that an evil doer obeys the Kings laws and if it be those that do well that are such then the Innocent Quakers do not deserve that punishment as some inflicteth upon them under colour of disobeying the Kings Laws and what work doth this make in the Nation doth it not make the nation like broken shattered bones when so many honest people and peaceable subjects have their Estates torn from them by violent hands and many of conside able Estates have little left and no encouragement to begin again and many families lies distressed for want of that which should have been their outward Relief can ever such things bring the Nation into righteousness unity and peace or doth it not wast it like a Consumption upon the Natural body and what pleasure or delight can you have in such a work who joyn hands to perform it are you not smitten in your Consciences for your doings and is not that the hand of the Lord that smites you and so you cause the hand of the Lord to turn against you and except you repent it will be terrible to you for you are not like to prosper that persecutes the innocent and where is there a president in any nation of such actions doth any Nation ruine the Estates one of another in such a manner surely you are not come high to righteousness unity and peace whose hands are busied in this destructive work and therefore a Spiritual Prospective glass is set to every mans eye that you may look thorow it and see the nature of truth and the righteousness unity and peace contained in it that ye may come to love the truth and live in it to the comfort of your Souls that so righteousness unity and peace may run through the Nation to the satisfaction of those that dwell therein and that it may be so I shall state a few particulars to be observed 1. Mind the Light of Christ Jesus to be guided by it and do unto all men as you would be done by 2. Be tender towards all that fear God and work righteousness for their incouragement 3. Ordain no Laws that may be of a compelling or restraining power in things pertaining to God and the Conscience and repeal such as be in force for any such end or purpose 4. Allow the Supreamacy and Authority of Church Government into Christ Jesus the head 5. Ordain such Laws as may reform the vain lives of such as fear not God and to right such as suffer wrong and to preserve outward Government in peace Here is your bound set beyond which you are not to go for God doth not allow you to go beyond civil concernments and if you meddle with any thing further you go too far so stop where the Lord bounds you and act where he allows you do not encroach upon his Prerogative and right do not meddle with the conscience which belongeth onely to his power let that alone as a thing too weighty for you for you know no more of it then what your own Judgement and opinion may perswade you and so may err in your doings and if you err in your doings you cannot do the thing that is right and therefore better let all alone that is out of your reach then reach too far and hurt both your selves and others Now if you mind the light of Christ to be guided by it you will plainly see that what is here briefly stated doth much conduce to the settlement of the Nation in Righteousness unity and peace for why should Religion be an occasion of trouble and disquietness to a Nation may not people enjoy their own Faith and live in quietness with their neighbors and love their neighbors and so the nation may live in righteousness unity and peace together as men though they do not all observe the same things in practice and worship towards God and would not this heal the broken shatter'd bones of the nation and make it a lovely nation in the eyes of all people and hath not England been counted a lovely nation upon the account of Christian profession and now to deform it self with such a black Image of persecution will make the praise of it fall with great dishonor for what nation doth make a larger profession of Christianity then England is it not looked upon by many to be setled in a Christian profession after the best reformation and will it now deform its beauty by putting on a countenance of persecution for the best reformation and persecution hath not the same countenance and beauty and hath not the Lord shewed kindness unto England above many other nations hath he not sent of late years many tender visitations and warnings by many of his faithful servants doth not his light shine in England to expel