Selected quad for the lemma: conscience_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
conscience_n	idol_n	knowledge_n	weak_a	1,298	5	9.3976	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A02435	A description of the Church of Christ, with her peculiar priuiledges, and also of her commons, and entercommoners With some oppositions and answers of defence, for the maintenance of the truth which shee professeth: against certaine Anabaptisticall and erronious opinions, verie hurtfull and dangerous to weake Christians. Maintained and practised by one Master Iohn Smith, sometimes a preacher in Lincolneshire, and a companie of English people with him now at Amsterdam in Holland. Whome he hath there with himselfe rebaptised. By I.H.	Etherington, John, fl. 1641-1645.	1610 (1610)	STC 12567; ESTC S118987	75,210	130

aboue Iohn 19.10 So then whether it be the Emperours Deputy Pilat or his successour the Pope or any other that hath authority and power Their power is giuen them from aboue whatsoeuer they be And so one saith true All powers that be Rom. 13.1 are ordained of God and he that resisteth the power resisteth the ordinance of God So that what power so euer it be and in whatsoeuer they command or forbid They must be obeyed alwayes prouided that they command not that which God forbiddeth or forbid that which God cōmandeth And so wee giue to Caesar the things that are Caesars But these things are loathsome in your eares and eyes and this of all other vvill goe hardest downe with you For the power and authority of Bishops you hold is Antichristian and to obey their lawes and ordinances you say is to worship the beast Though the things they commaund be neuer so indifferently lawfull in themselues to be done or left vndone their authority and commaund you say makes it abhominable And this is not your saying alone it is a sore that hath festered these thirty yeares in England and hath bred diuers Sects and infectiue errors Our Teachers and writers for pretended reformation were the first planters thereof who through their ignorance in their heat not discerning betweene the thinges of God and the things of Caesar for want of knowledge concerning Christian liberty conceiued a law of forbidding and gaue it out charging the people vppon paine of condemnation to be obedient thereunto whereby they haue brought themselues and many hundred poore soules besides loaden with sinne into a further captiuity and greater bondage then they were in before For whereas their sinnes onely opprest them and remembring Gods promise had almost escaped This law of their Teachers came so suddenly on the necke of them that they were driuen into a harder streight and vnder a more vnrecouerable burden then they were before which hath beene so wearisome vnto them that to ease themselues they haue made Sects and running into them haue fallen into many grosse errours some also falling to and embracing this present world Onely a remnant God hath and will deliuer from these wayward and distastful spirits and giue them to see how Christians are free and yet subiects to Caesar and how the conscience is no more defiled by the commaunder of what condition soeuer hee bee in their obedience then it should be by leauing it vndone if neyther man nor God require it for as wee are freed from the law of Ceremonies once in force before the death of Christ that there is now no more conscience to be made of them but as to be circumcised is nothing so to be vncircūcised is nothing Act. 16.1 2 3. as we may see by the example of Paul and Timothy who after the death resurrection and ascension of Iesus Christ and the holy Ghost was sent vnto the Church after which time Circumcision was as absolutely abolished with all the whole law of Ceremonies A●t 21.24 25 26. as euer it was since to this day yet Paul did purifie himselfe after the maner of the Iewes and circumcised Timothy To proue and shew vnto vs euen to the worlds end That there is no more holinesse or Religion in making conscience to abstaine from Circumcision then there is to be Circumcised for as it is nothing now to be Circumcised seeing the end of it was accomplish't long agoe so is it nothing to bee vncircumcised 1. Cor. 7.18 19. So that if a man of God should now be circumcised to the like end as Timothy was or should fashion himselfe like a Iew 1. Cor. 8.4 5 6. to the same end that Paul did he should sinne no more then Paul and Timothy did Neither should a man offend if he should sit at Table in the Idols Temple and eate of the meate sacrificed to an Idoll so that he know that an Idoll is nothing in the world and dooth esteeme it as the dust vnder his feete he sinneth not so that hee bow not nor giue or shew any reuerence 1. Cor. 10.23 28 29. either to the Idoll the Temple or the Feast but onely receiue the meate with giuing thankes to God Alwaies prouided too withall that there be no weake brother that dooth make conscience for want of knowledge which is offended thereat nor yet any Christian as then there were some that hauing beene bred and brought vp among Idolaters and long accustomed to the Idoll seruice did yet thinke that there was some conscience to bo made 1. Cor. 8. ver 7. ieuerence to be had of it that might be emboldened thereby in that their sinne or encouraged thereby to fall to worship the Idoll againe 1. Cor. 8. and to doe seruice vnto it I say Ver. 10. all these thinges being considered and conscionably regarded and preuented It is no sinne to sit at Table in the Idols Temple and to eate the meate sacrificed to Idols But otherwise all these things considered and done as is aforesaid If he eate meat sacrificed to Idols or sit at the Idols Table he sinneth against the brethren and so against God and not onely so but if he yeeld any reuerence he is also an Idolater Josh 23.7 and sinneth against God in a more high degree Now if these thinges may bee lawfully done amongst the Idolaters and in their Temples as then Christians liued for the most part amongst Idolaters and as these Scriptures doe euidently proue was in their liberty and as Paul saith To the Iew I become as a Iew that I may winne the Iew 1. Cor. 9.19.20.21.22.23 to the Graecian and the Graecian c. Yea I am made all things to all men to the end that I might win some And also that of the Assirian when hee should goe into the house of the Idoll Rimmon and bow downe for his Master to leane on 2. King 5.18.19 when he was worshipping to the Idoll when he made doubt of it the Prophet bad him goe in peace I say if these things bee thus farre in our liberty among the heathen and in place of Idolatry where the end and intent is abhominable And also among the Iewes concerning the ceremonies whose end is absolutely abolished As also in Rome whose commaundements of all other haue in them the greatest abhomination so that we partake not with them in their sinnes least we partake of their plagues Reuel 18.4 If wee may among all these yeeld and obey in things indifferent whatsoeuer the commander be as those Scriptures before mentioned doth witnesse How much more ought wee to be obedient to the lawes and ordinances of England seeing they intend not neither Idolatry nor superstition Considering also what great difference there is betweene our Commanders in profession of Religion and the commanders of the heathen and of Rome the City of abhominations For if I should aske you what King with his vnder