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A09333
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Two twinnes: or Two parts of one portion of scripture. I. Is of catechising. II. Of the ministers maintenance. By Richard Barnard, preacher of the word of worship in Nottinghamshire
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Bernard, Richard, 1568-1641.
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1613
(1613)
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STC 1964; ESTC S115305
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35,775
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56
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is wicked and wilfull and so your condemnation the more iust except you amend But why doe you stand so much vpon your late Popish forefathers and neglect your Ancestors before them shall the grosse ignorance of the latter more harden vs in an ill course than the grace of the former in purer times stirre vs vp vnto goodnesse let this vanitie and vaine folly and madnesse indeed be farre from vs. When these come into your minde thinke whither it is better to follow them than our father Abraham the blessed Apostles the holy Saints in their time and our first forfathers receiuing religion submitting themselues to be Catechised when they were brought to the faith of Christ before Popery tooke possession of them Obiect But peraduenture yet you haue this more to say that you are olde and past learning and therefore will thinke to be excused Remember that olde age acquiteth none from iudgement for the man that is an hundred yeere olde Esa 65. 20. and vvicked is accursed vvee may not therefore liue wilfully in sinne because we be olde Olde folke for preseruation of bodily life will eate childrens foode and are you too olde to desire the Milke of the Word for the soules safety Againe the older so much the neerer the graue and therefore haue the greater cause to learne to prepare for death by knowing such things as bee most necessary to saluation Olde folke can learne such things as be for the body and can giue their mindes to remember them in cases of need why not then heauenly and spirituall knowledge the cause is for that indeed they are like soulelesse men not caring at all what may befall them in the life to come But to take this excuse away that olde age is past learning there are and haue beene many persons olde which haue learned the Catechisme so as all old persons are not past learning but such as indeed are past grace and so if they remaine are past hope of saluation The ancient in dayes and the multitude of yeeres should teach wisedome and shall olde age now not Iob 32. 7. onely be full of ignorance but also a supporter of the same blindnesse in the middest of such cleare light and so great varietie of the meanes to bring them to this light God forbid to whom I leaue you to bring you to a better minde But if you be past learning then from experience of your former lost time and inhabilitie now to learne thinke vpon such as be yong vnder you send them that they may not follow your steps and plead ignorance and vncapablenesse at your yeeres saue yours if yee cannot vse the sauing meanes for your selues Obiect But me thinkes I heare some say that euen the sending of their seruants is great detriment vnto them for by being restrained of their libertie thus they are not vvilling to serue them and so hardly can eyther get or keepe them Brother If this be so know it is for want of Catechâ—sing for if euery Master would discharge this duetie as they by law and conscience are bound whither should such iâ—religious seruants goe from the presence of the Lord But this is not euery where so good and godly seruants vvill seeke to good and godly places as for other seruants if thou thy selfe truely fearest God thou wilâ— as gladly be rid of them as they would be going from thee Abraham wanted no seruants though he had care to Catechise them nor Cornelius vvho was a deuout man fearing God with all his householde Vse well seruants reward the well-doers and thou shalt not want such as will serue thee faithfully and constantly As for libertie afford it vnto them out of thy owne sixe dayes of seauen seasonably and conueniently and let them not robbe thâ— Lord of his onely one day in seauen Remember that thy seruant should be to thee more precious than a beast yet what difference makest thou if not in this matter of religion thou feedest yea cloathest giuest libertie rest warme harbour and dressing to thy beast to haue the vse of him for thy seruice and if thou neglect thy seruants soule doest thou any more esteeme or make of him than of thy beast looking onely to his body for bodily seruice and therefore thou mayest not neglect this good of his soule for who so doth hath his seruant but as in place of a reasonable beast but not as a Christian soule See then Masters what you doe herein and you seruants behold such Masters to you as Turkes and your selues as their beast-like slaues bodily and Sathans spiritually but of this thus much concerning Catechising or teaching the first thing to be obserued in the person to be maintained Now followeth to shew what it is he must teach and from what in these words In the Word By Word here is ment the holy Scriptures and more specially the doctrine of the Gospell which in the new Testament by an excellency is called the Word Actes 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Acts. 14. 25. 16. 6. which in verse 10. is expounded to bee the Gospell so also vsed in other places Doct. Hence obserue That the doctrine of the Gospell is a word of great excellencie therefore wee see it here by a speciall manner of speaking to be called the Word as if there were no word else besides Proofe and for further proofe hereof the H. Ghost addeth elsewhere something to set out the excellency thereof it is called the Word of the Maâ—th 13. 19. Acts 13 26. 5. 20. Iohn 5. 25. 1 Pet. 4. 6. Heb 4. 12. Kingdome the Word of Saluation the Word of Life Reasons For it shewes what Christs kingdome is it is the instrumentall meanes for our saluation and causeth the dead to liue according to God in the Spirit vnto euerlasting life hence is it said to be liuely and mighty in operation Vse This teacheth vs to esteeme highly of the doctrine Acts 13. 48. of the Gospell to receiue it with great gladnesse as the Church hath done glorifying the Word of the Lord. Motiues For it is the glad tidings of peace it is the onely curing Salue to the accusing conscience the Law killeth this maketh aliue that terrifyeth this comforteth that saith discedite maledicts Away depart ye cursed ones but this venite benedicts Oh come ye blessed of the Lord receiue the kingdome prepared for you that is the law of bondage this of libertie therein we behold onely the Iustice of God and our miserie herein our happie deliuerance and Gods great vnspeakeable mercy Blesse the Lord therefore and let them be made much of who bring these glad tydings of great ioy vnto all his people for beautifull are their feet Esa 52. 7. Doct. Secondly hence may vvee obserue That the Word of God is the matter of the Ministery for the instruction of the people Proofe vvhich may appeare most true by these Scriptures Matthew 28. 20. 2 Timoth. 4. 2. 1 Câ—rinth 4. 6. and
of the fruit of the Vines and to receiue maintenance from their flockes ouer which the Lord hath set them Ministers are to giue themselues studiously to their 2 Tim. 2. 4. ministrie and not to be intangled with the cares of this world therefore must others care for them to preuent 1 Cor. 9. 14. their cares The Lord hath set this downe that hee which preacheth the Gospell should liue of the Gospell Is a messenger of saluation of glad tidings of peace lesse to be regarded then the Ministers of the Law and death who were well and very liberally prouided for among the people of God vnder the Law See then my brethren that Nature common equity and the word of God doth binde you to prouide for and to maintaine your Ministers by whom you are taught in the word and thus much for the person which is to maintaine the Minister euen euery one higher or lower richer or in some meaner estate are to ioyne together herein The second circumstance is that vvhereunto this party is exhorted and that is to make his Teacher 〈…〉 ker of or in all his goods Whence we may obserue this Doctrine Doct. That maintenance is allowed by the Lord or the Ministery of the Gospell and Preaching of the word this is proued in 1 Cor 9. 14. 1 Tim. 5. 17. Proofe Ephes 4. 2 Cor. 5. Reason Vse Math. 10. 10. Because it is a calling ordained of God and Ministers are his messengers and seruants and the labour of the Ministery is vvorthy of vvages and a worke deseruing a great reward Acknowledge therefore this truth For if you will confesse maintenance due you will then bethinke your selues peraduenture how you may giue them maintenance For hee that granteth maintenance must also afford maintenance as his iudgement is informed for the one so his conscience should pricke him forward to the other but I take this as agreed vpon on all hands except any be possessed vvith an Anabaptisticall spirit denying any need of the office of a publicke Teacher that it is fit that the Minister of CHRIST be maintained but the doubt is of the manner and of the meanes That this doubt may be remoued and your mindes setled if indeed you dally not with GOD and your owne consciences herein three things will I proue vnto Three points handled concerning the maintenance of Ministers Doct. Proofe 1 Tim 5. 17. Ministers ought liberally to be maintained you first that this maintenance must be liberall secondly certaine and thirdly that the best meanes is to be maintained by Tythes The painefull Preachers of the Gospell are liberally to be maintained this is a part of their double honour in beggarly maintenance is no honour but base contempt here in this Text the Apostle vvilleth their Hearers to make them partakers of all their goods this is a large allowance The Ministery of the Gospell is more excellent than the Ministery of the Law and therefore if the Lord iudged them vvorthy of a very great allowance for their labour in their seruice for the Tabernacle how much greater now are the Ministers of the Gospell worthy of But see how liberall The Lords liberall allowance to maintaine the Leuites the Lord vvas to the Priests and Leuites The whole Land of promise was but as a fourth part to all England in compasse yet did the Lord allow for their maintenance and their families First forty eight Cities with the Suburbs to dwell Num. 35. 4. 5. 7. in that their families after their death might not bee exposed to the cruell world and mercilesse mindes of men to seeke harbour and homesteedes Secondly they had tythes of all things of Corne Leu. 27. 30. 32. Fruit Catle Sheepe c euen tythes of all as Iacob vowed Gen. 28. 22. Thirdly the first borne of Man and Beast was theirs Exod. 34. 19. 20. as appeareth by many places Fourthly all the first fruits vvere due vnto them Ezec. 44. 30. Nâ—he 10. 36. Num. 18. 15. 16. Num. 18. 13. Deut. 18. 4. Ezec. 44. 30. Neh. 10. 35. 37. Fiftly all oblations and vowes whatsoeuer was dedicated to God and separated from a common vse Num. 18. 8. 14. 19. Ezec. 44. 29. 30. Sixtly sinne Offerings heaue Offerings shake Offerings and the Shew-bread Num. 18. 9. 11. Ezec. 44. 29. Leuit. 24. 9. Seuenthly of the sacrifice of thankesgiuing they had the brest and the shoulder of other the shoulder the two cheekes and maw and of burnt offerings the skin Numb 18. 18. Leuâ— 7. 31. 32. 34. Eightly they reaped benefit by the yeerely appearing of the Males Exod. 23. 15. and 34. 20. and by other occasions Leu. 5. 15. 16. If therefore wee account double honour partaking of all your goods and this the Lords bountie to the Leuites liberall maintenance then are wee now liberally to be maintayned For the Ministerie of the Gospell is as worthy of it as the Ministerie of the law Ministers are to be liberall and plentifull in good workes how can they doe this if they be not liberally maintained It is also not a little meanes to procure to them that reuerence which is due to them and so to preuent contempt Vse Therefore you see that you are not onely to maintaine them Motiues but liberally also So shall you encourage them in their Ministery stir vp other in hope to become Ministers make them able to shew forth good workes of mercy vnto the poore and so get them fauour and countenance before the people In the primitiue Church professours were exceeding large handed to the Church and our latter Auncestours spared not any cost to doe good to the Church Reprehension Which iustly reproueth and condemneth now in our age the sparing and niggardly hand of most tovvards the Church in other too many their Robbing and Sacriledgious hands layd vpon the goods of the Church who professe religion in policie and not in Pietie and can allow Michaes wages perhaps ten shekels of Siluer Iudg. 17. a suite of apparrell and meate and drincke and blesse themselues for their bounty if any of these come to twenty nobles ten or twenty pounds as peraduenture they will in some cases viz. that by such a pittance they may possesse many hundreds of pounds as some doe Oh how bountifull Latrones I should say Patrons be they for vvhy they and the like doe iudge out of their charitable pietie twentie pounds a sufficient allowance And it may be so to such base fellowes perhaps as they present who are almost altogether vnlearned vnfit for the Ministery and who neuer knew how otherwise they could get ten pounds without great bodily paines no maruaile that such can be willing to take twenty pounds yeerely for a Parsonage worth fifteene score horrible Symonie exâ—crable The Parson and a Cheuerill conscience hath met together most worthy a Plum-tree Sacriledge The Canker-worme of Gods heauie curse seaze vpon such possessed prayes and eate vp their substance til they