same care one of another 7. The end and use of the Pastoral office is the same with the end and use of the Apostolical Prophetical and Evangelical office Which is to perfect the Saints to do the work of the ministery and to build up the body of Christ Ephes 4. 12. 8. The effect of this office when it is rightly performed will be 1. The unity of the Faith and of the knowledge of the son of God unto a perfect man Ephes 4. 13. 2. Preservation from a seducers a Ephes 4. 14. That we henceforth be no more children tossed to and fro and carried about with every winde of doctrine by the slight of men and cunning craftinesse whereby they lie in wait to deceive 3. The growth b of the Body in all things in Christ b Ephes 4. 15. But speaking the truth in love in all things may grow up unto him which is the head even Christ 4. The jointing c and compacting of the Body together under Christ that the Members may act within themselves for the building up of each other in love c Ephes 4. 16. The whole Body fitly joyned together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth according to the effectuall working in the measure of every part maketh increase of the Body to the edifying of it self in love 9. To gain these ends and effects three things are requisite in the Pastor First that his entry upon the office be lawfull Secondly that the duties proper to it be discharged Thirdly that the spirituall manner of performing those duties be observed 1. Of the Entry upon the office 10. The lawfull entry upon the Pastorall charge is onely to come in by the door and he that doth enter into the sheepfold any other way is a thief and a robber Joh. 10. 1 2. 11. The door by which the shepherd must come is Christ Joh. 10. 9. I am the door by me if any man enter he shall be saved 12. Now Christ by the annointing of the Spirit doth dwell in the d hearts of the faithfull d 2 Cor. 1. 21 22. Now he which stablisheth us with you in Christ and hath annointed us is God who hath also sealed us and given the earnest of his spirit in our hearts 2 Cor. 3. 17. Now the Lord is the Spirit Ephes 3. 16 17. Grant you to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man that Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith If then a Minister doth offer himself by the Spirit with that Pastoral affection which proceedeth from Christ unto the flock He who is both the e Door and the f Porter doth open himself in the heart of the Flock to receive him and he enters in lawfully e Joh. 10. 9. I am the door c. compared with verse 3. To him viz. that entreth by the door the Porter openeth And with Revel 3. 7. He that hath the key of David that openeth and no man shutteth and shutteth and no man openeth 13. If any man hath not this Pastorall affection and spirit which Christ had towards the flock but commeth in some other way that is by some humane practises and contrivances of his own Christ doth call him a thief and a robber Joh. 10. 1. and saith that he doth come to steal to kill and to destroy ibid. v. 10. The heart then of the Flock must be opened to him that commeth unto them else he cannot pretend to be the Pastor of their soules 14. This door of the heart being first opened by the inward working of Christs spirit the outward call also must follow upon by a free choise and orderly reception of him that is chosen in a publike way in the face of the Congregation with the countenance of Authority as Aaron was called received Hebr. 5. 4. No man taketh this honour to himself but he that is called of God as Aaron was II. Of the Duties belonging to the office 15. The duties belonging to the Pastorall charge contain all the cares and endeavours whereby the Flock is to be fed conducted preserved and defended 16. The cares belonging to the feeding of the flock are these First to seek and find out pasture for them Joh. 10. 9. By me if any man enter in he shall find pasture Which is done by giving attendance to reading 1 Tim. 4. 13. by meditating and applying himself to profit in knowledge 1 Tim. 4. 15. Meditate upon these things give thy self wholly to them that thy profiting may appeare to all And to this effect he must keep the form of Doctrine received from the Apostles and the Truth of grace received from the Holy Ghost both which are recommended to Timothy 2 Tim. 1. 13 14. Hold fast the forme of sonnd words which thou hast heard of me in faith and love which is in Christ Jesus Keep by the Holy Ghost which dwelleth in us that good thing which was committed unto thee Secondly to give to the Flock that pasture which he findeth to be their proper portion Luke 12. 42. Give them their portion of meat which is done by dividing the Word to them 2 Tim. 2. 15. Study to shew thy self approved unto God a workman that needeth not be ashamed rightly dividing the word of truth Thirdly to give this portion in due season Luke 12. 42. Give them in due season their portion of meat Fourthly to give it according to every mans capacitie Mark 4 33. He spake the word unto them as they were able to heare it Then he must give to babes milk 1 Cor. 3. 2. and to those that are of full age strong meat Heb. 5. 12 13 14. He must feed all with judgement Ezech. 34. 16. He must not feed the weak with doubtfull disputations Rom. 14. 1. Nor entertain with any profane and vain bablings and oppositions of a Science falsly so called 1 Tim. 6. 20. 2 Tim. 2. 16. Or questions and strife of words 1 Tim. 6. 4. and contentions of Genealogies Tit. 3. 9. 17. The food to be given to the flock is the word of God Mat. 4. 4. Man liveth not by bread alone but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God This word of God is none other but the faithfull word which the Apostles taught Tit. 1. 9. Holding fast the faithfull word as he hath been taught And all the word is taught to the end that it may beget Charity out of a pure heart and of a good Conscience and of Faith unfained 1 Tim. 1. 5. 18. The cares belonging to the conduct of the Flock are these First the good Shepherd ought to call his sheep by name Joh. 10 3. Secondly he ought to lead them out and in Joh. 10. 3 9. Thirdly to go before them Joh. 10. 4. to be an example of the believers in word in conversation in charity c. 1 Tim. 4. 12. Fourthly To visit the flock and seek out the young ones Zach. 1. 16. and judge between cattell and cattell Ezek. 34.
partiality so I shall make use of that liberty which in a businesse of this nature doth beseem my profession in the Gospel which is to look upon all alike to be free in the matter and plain in speeches to utter the Truth as it is in my heart First then I think my self bound to declare this That I am under a Vow to prosecute upon all occasions as long as I live the wayes of Evangelical reconciliation amongst PROTESTANTS that is to say Professedly to seeke and upon all occasions offered to advance amongst those that have received the Holy Scriptures for their Rule and keep to the Fundamentals of Faith and Practice the means of spirituall unity of peace and of love by the manifestation of the truth and in the duties of holy Communion Having therefore this opportunity fairly offered I am obliged in minding my Vow to discharge a good Conscience and for the love which I owe unto the Gospel of Peace to the whole Church of God and to the prosperity and flourishing condition thereof in this Nation to make some Overtures which I hope shall give no matter of grievance unto any but will prove edifying unto all at least my aim shall be none other The scope of the Preface but to stir up thy pure minde Christian Reader to the thoughts of Brotherly kindnesse of meeknesse and of peace to the end that some wayes may be taken up which will help to reconcile the Affections of many divided about Circumstantials to preserve and keep entire the Vnity which remains about Fundamentals and to prevent or cure the manifold Misprisions which increase our confusions and obstruct the Remedies of our diseases Now to offer at this I shall not cry out against particular faults not because I think them not very hurtfull to the wayes of Reformation or that I think it unlawfull in due time and place or altogether unusefull to warne all of publike dangers when none other Remedies are left But I shall not do it because it is more sutable to my spirit to seek to gain all to the sense of necessary Duties than to reprove some for the neglect thereof because my resolution is to follow if it be possible the rule of Charity first to admonish a Brother in private before his faults be charged upon him in publike and because I find it the Theme of many on all sides that do almost nothing else And yet this course doth prove no lenitive but rather an incentive to our distempers My way then shall be 1. To represent as The parts of it briefly as I can the generall danger which hangeth over all our heads by reason of our common faults 2. To discover the causes whence our danger doth originally proceed And 3. to offer at some counsel which may point at a way to prevent the lamentable consequence which is like to ensue if no course be found and followed for healing of our breaches First concerning the danger wherein we are thus in brief That we amongst our selves almost in respect of every thing are all broken to peeces in our affections is very evident That in this rupture of affections there is not only a distance of parties but much heat of opposition no man can deny That by this heat the alienations and thoughts of heart grow daily greater and greater every one can perceive That few set themselves in the gap and labour to make up breaches all must confesse And by reason of all this if the cause of our unsettlement continue long that we shall be habituated unto Breaches even till we be consumed none can justly doubt but every one should sadly apprehend because the saying of our Lord and Saviour is undeniably true That every Kingdom divided against it self is brought to desolation and every City and House divided against it self shall not stand Mat. 12. 23. If then I may parallel the universall state of Protestancie as it is opposite to Poperie unto a Kingdome and the Nationall Churches thereof unto so many Cities and the severall Congregations of each city unto so many Houses and in all these if I reflect upon the Breaches which are apparent unto all First between the Lutherans and the Reformed Churches which have brought them both from a flourishing to a desolate condition in Germany Secondly between each of these within themselves by their Sub-divisions and crosse Parties which have weakned all their strength and multiplied scandals amongst them I must needs confesse that Christs sentence is verified upon them and that the judgement which of old was denounced and executed against Israel is now come to passe in part upon the Protestant Churches and may be accomplished over them all if the Causes thereof be not taken away by true repentance Let us briefly consider what the Prophet Amos in his sixt chapter saith unto Israel that we may apprehend therein our own danger First he denounceth a heavy woe unto those that were at their ease in Zion and were not grieved at the affliction of Joseph namely That they should be led away captive with the first that go captive v. 1. till 7. Captivity then is threatned unto all but chiefly unto these Then he sheweth the certainty of this judgement with the means by which and the chief causes for which it should be brought to passe The certainty of the Judgement is declared v. 8 9 10. namely that God had sworne by himself that he did abhorre their excellency and hate their palaces that he would deliver up the City and all that was in it to the enemies thereof and that he would kill with death such as remain after the captivity in the city although there should be but ten men remaining in one house The meanes by which and the causes for which this heavy Judgement should be thus executed are set forth in vers 11 12 13 14. The means are two He would divide them within themselves v. 11. and he would bring a forraign Nation against them to afflict them v. 14. The causes are chiefly two their incorrigiblenesse in unrighteousnesse v. 12. and their pride in their own strength v. 13. All these things are considerable in our present case For this is evident although the Church of God is heavily afflicted every where and the Saints throughout the world have great cause to mourn yet that most of us take our ease and rest contented in the enjoyment of our Victories and that we grieve for nothing in effect but because we have not all our will accomplished against the adverse party with whom we are in contest about particular concernments and as for other things besides we are secure and carelesse we take our pleasures to the full without restraint and we grieve not at the affliction of Joseph but in effect we do even as Josephs brethren did they sate down to eat bread when they had cast their Brother into a pit Gen. 37. 24 25. So we who heretofore have helped to
evident that an unlimited liberty to every one to vent and practise whatsoever he shall think good without controll will not do it because this very Liberty hath begotten our distempers and no doubt will increase them if no course be found to regulate mens proceedings concerning their publike Profession so as they shall have no just cause to complain that they are persecuted for Conscience sake But how to determine the way of Regulating mens proceedings so as none shall have any just cause of complaint herein lies the difficulty Yet I conceive it may thus be taken away Let all Parties who take the Holy Scriptures for the Rule of Faith and Practise set down positively and declare plainly either that which they judge to be fundamentall in matter of Doctrine and Practise or clearly commanded and usefull for Edification or that wherein they professe a full agreement with their Brethren If they do either of the two last as I thinke all may easily be engaged to do either by the demand of any one Party that seeks to advance Peace or by the command of the Civil Magistrate who ought to restrain Quarrels and take away the causes thereof so far as he can in publike If I say either of these positive Declarations or both be delivered by each Party to another then the Apostles counsel is to be put in execution which is Phil. 3. 16 Whereunto we have already attained let us walk by the same rule let us minde the same thing Which counsel to me doth furnish this matter of advise in reference to our present constitution First let the Parties by some of their selected men who shall do all things with their full consent and knowledge make a draught of the full Agreement of those former Declarations and that being imparted unto all let an Acknowledgement be made concerning it that it is that whereunto All have attained and wherein they will minde the same thing to edifie one another in the Truth whereunto they are come Secondly Let the same Parties declare negatively the things wherein they conceive they disagree from each other And when these Declarations are drawn up let those that have penned them adde their advice concerning the wayes of reconciling the differences whether in Judgement or in Practise and then let some selected men the most moderate of each Party be called together to set down the joint agreement of their Advices concerning the way of reconciling Differences and according to that Agreement let them make a tryall of reconciling the Differences and offer it to all only as an Essay without prejudice to any to be considered Thirdly Let the same Parties declare both Positively and Negatively the Rules by which they are willing to walk inoffensively towards those with whom they do not agree and in case any offences be given or taken about those things How the same ought to be taken away by mutuall consent Here then the same selected men or others may be set a work to peruse such Declarations and gather into one Body the Rules whereunto all sides will agree to walk by to avoid offences and let every one who will pretend to any freedome of Profession in publike be obliged towards those that have inspection over the publike to walke by those Rules of inoffensivenesse notwithstanding any difference that is or may arise in after-times amongst themselves or others These things I conceive may be done without great difficulty and will be done by all those that love peace And that they may be done I could wish that the Supreme Authority of the Kingdom would appeare in it to procure it that when the Publike Confession of Faith and Catechisme shall be put forth all such as shall desire the protection of the Supreme Power and shall be willing to live in peace with those that allow of the Government established by Law may be enjoyned thus to proceed towards the settlement of an union between them and their Brethren in the Profession of the Gospel and in the mean while till this can be done if all sides would agree voluntarily upon a cessation from all bitternesse and railing accusations against each other or if it should by those that are in place of Authority be enjoyned as a Preparatory for so good a worke it would be very consonant to the abatement of our distractions and commendable in those that should do it willingly But if no such way of transacting differences can be brought to passe answerable to the counsel of the Apostle truly then I must confesse that I can see no way to prevent the growing effects of our fatall distempers except God so blesse the Government by law established with that spirit of Discretion of Moderation of Equity and of Lowlinesse in all things which it doth act that none shall be able to find any just grievance at it And to this effect the lesse the Classicall Presbyteries shall resemble the Civil Courts of Judicature or the Bishops Courts in former time the more they will be sutable to the end for which they are instituted which is to entertain Brotherly conferences and consultations about spirituall matters for mutuall assistance and support in the wayes of God and not at all to intermeddle with the Congregations in any of their particular affairs which are not voluntarily brought unto them as a Case wherein their Judgement is sought unto for no particular Church by its subordination to a Classis is to be deprived of any right which it hath within it self but is rather thereby to be maintained therein The Maximes then of spirituall Communion to be observed in the Classical Presbyteries that all misconstructions of their wayes which occasion jealousies and clamours may be prevented ought to be published to wipe away the fears which ensuare us into distractions against the duties of Love And it will be necessary not only to publish those Maximes for this end but three other things more must be satisfactorily and from the grounds of Scripture cleared if ever the Government shall prosper to settle us in Peace 1. It must be made out that the Ministers of particular Congregations and their Elderships are bound in conscience in the things belonging to their charge to maintain a Brotherly communion and correspondencie with each other and consequently to enter into such combinations as to that effect they can conveniently cast themselves into 2. That to such Combinations of Elderships Appeals may and ought to be made hath sufficiently been cleared by many especially by Mr. Paget of Amsterdam in a Treaty which hath not been answered by any that I know But the second thing requisite to clear mens scrupulous apprehensions about the proceedings of such combined Elderships is not so much their Right to receive Appeals and judge Authoritatively thereof as to make the wayes of their handling matters in judging thereof as a Senate of spirituall men evident that is To shew forth their way of handling things amongst themselves by