wearied with their ill carriage And in the times of the Prophets there were usually false Prophets seducing the people 2 Pet. 2.1 Our Saviour foretold false Christs and false Prophets should arise soon after his days Mat. 24.24 And his Apostles that there should be false teachers in the Church privily bringing in damnable Heresies even denying the Lord that bought them and that many should follow their pernicious ways 2 Pet. 2.1 2. The Primitive times as they were most happy in Zeal and affection in the sound and Orthodox professours so they were as unhappy in the manifold errors Sects divisions that did disturb them as any of these latter Ages Augustin hath given us a Catalogue of 80. Heresies that troubled the Church in those days August Lib. de Haer. ad Quod vult Deus and yet he saith he omitted many and named but the principal It appears by their Epistles that the Apostles had no sooner planted Churches but the weeds of errors and opinions did straight ways spring up amongst them and this chiefly by these three means here mentioned 1. By pretence of the spirit When God did afford his spirit in extraordinary gifts and revelations to his Prophets and Apostles there never wanted men who pretended to the same spirit and the like revelations for their own devices most of them wilfully feigning some artificially and some by diabolical means procuring revelations and Enthusiasms and some weakly mistaking their own fancies and strong perswasions for dictates and inspirations of the Holy Ghost 1 Joh. 4.1 2. Believe not every spirit but try the spirits whether they are of God for many false prophets are gone out into the world such as pretended to the spirit and that to the subversion of the greatest truths in the Gospel even to deny the person and coming of Jesus Christ as Simon Magus and his followers therefore he subjoyneth this mark v. 2 3. Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God and every spirit that confesseth that he is not come is not of God The same direction is given 1 Cor. 12.2 3. I give you to understand that no man speaking by the spirit of God calleth Jesus accursed Such it seems there were that preten ding to the spirit the Apostles had rejected and reviled Jesus Christ 2. By pretence of a word or oral tradition They that could not pretend the spirit speaking in themselves pretended the judgment and sayings of Christ and his Apostles when absent for their own opinions sometimes forging their sayings sometimes mistaking the meaning of them affixing their own sence to them Thus a tradition was received as coming from the mouth of Christ that the beloved Disciple should not die Joh. 21.22 23. and is yet believed in the Greek Church who shew a place near Ephesus where they say that Apostle when old commanded himself to be buried alive where by some estuation or bubling of the earth they conclude he still breatheth St. Paul was often troubled by the Judaizing Christians who would have kept up the ceremonial law pretending the authority and practice of Peter and other Apostles that lived among the Jews which he refuteth at large Gal. 2. And it appeareth by almost all Pauls Epistles that this tradition was importunately urged and scattered through all the Churches by that sort of men even when the Apostles and Church of Jerusalem had declared that they never commanded such doctrine to be preached Acts 25.24 3. Thirdly By the pretence of Scripture our Epistle in the text And this either by pretence of forged Scripture or false and forced interpretations of the true Canonical writings Of the former sort were the writings of the false Prophets among the Jews and those fabulous Legends of Tobit Judith Susannah c. which were never received by the Jewish Church And such were the many suppositious writings in the primitive times as the Gospel of Peter Andrew Thomas Nicodemus and almost of all the Apostles the Gospel and Epistle of Paul to the Laodiceans the Liturgie of James and the like mentioned by Eusebius and other writers Of the latter sort the Apostle speaketh 2 Pet. 3.15 16. That there were many unlearned and unstable Christians who did wrest some hard places in Pauls Epistles and the other Scriptures to their own destruction of this kind is this in the text as some suppose Cartwr in Locum that this opinion of Christs coming to judgment was rashly collected by some from those words in the former Epistle to the Thes ch 4. v. 15. We that are alive and remain unto the coming of our Lord shall not prevent those that are asleep hence they thought that the Apostle supposed that at least some of them who were then alive might live to the coming of Christ Though it seems that all these three means of pretended revelations traditions and Scriptures were used for this doctrine These arts have been all along used to disturb the Church and to pervert souls The Gnosticks Montanus and Manes pretended their inspired revelations Cont. Haer. De praeser and many others in latter ages Irenaeus and Tertullian tell us that many of the Hereticks of their days pretended traditions from one Apostle or other for their doctrine and practice as also others had their Apocryphal Scriptures or Canonical texts misapplied to maintain their errors The Papists make great use of all three of these pretences to establish their grossest errors The doctrine of the real presence of Christ in the bread of the worship of Saints and of religious Orders and Images is mainly built upon Revelations dreams and apparitions Lindanus ingenuously confessed that all those doctrines and practices wherein the Protestants do oppose them and dissent from them are to be proved by traditions of the Apostles not from the Scripture Their doctrines of Purgatory invocation of Angels equivocations and dissemblings are proved by the book of Tobit Judith Susan c. The Apostles Canons increased from 50 to 85 in the last age do them great services in the matters of their discipline and sometimes they wrest Scriptures for their purpose but they have been so baffled and shamed out of this since the Bible hath been common and studied by Protestants that they have forsaken this hold and the Jesuites think the poor secular Priests have betrayed their cause by undertaking to dispute for it out of the Scriptures These troubles by errors arise from the weakness of some who have more zeal than judgment and usually desire new things 2 Pet. 3.16 2 Tim. 4.3 People unlearned and unstable and that have itching ears from pride and conceit in others who that they may seem wiser than their brethren will be wise above or against what is written some teach perverse things to draw disciples after them some for secular interest There was no other reason why the Popes of Rome imbraced the worship of images transubstantiation and some such doctrines but because
their Church declares it nor is any sense or meaning to be fixt upon as the certain sense of any Scripture but what they determine to be the meaning of the place Accordingly the Trent Council out of their great power have determined the vulgar Latin Translation of the Bible to be authentick and equal to the Greek and Hebrew originals Council of Trent Ses 4 though their own authors acknowledge it to be most false defective and in many things ridiculous Now then our faith is not ultimately resolved into the Scriptures we do not believe and obey because we know and are sure from Scripture that this is the mind of God but because the Pope or Church declare it to be the mind of God yea though the words of Scripture plainly condemn what they teach or though the Translation of a Scripture be contrary to the original which was indited by the spirit of God immediately yet if they say this is the meaning of the place and the true translation of it we must believe it The foundation then of all our faith and obedience is the determination of the Church or Pope Obj. But they are infallible they say Answ This they can never prove but if they were if I must believe meerly upon their Testimony and saying they are infallible my faith is still resolved into the witness of men their testimony concerning themselves is but a humane Testimony they do not cannot prove it by any divine infallible proof therefore my faith and obedience must ultimately pesolve into humane authority The Apostles were infallible yet had not they dominion over the faith of the Church 2 Cor. 12.24 to command what should be believed and practised but they proved by infallible and divine Testimony of miracles and gifts of the Holy Ghost that what they taught came from God and so the belief of the people was built upon the Testimony of God to the Apostles doctrine 1. Cor. 2.4 5. the Apostle saith his preaching was in demonstration of the spirit and of power That their faith might not stand in the wisdom of men but in the power of God If their faith had been grounded upon the Apostles own Testimony of his self that he was infallible and upon his determination concerning any Scripture or doctrine out of his own wisdom though he had seemed to prove it strangely their faith had stood upon the authoty wisdom of man but therefore their faith was built on God because his spirit did powerfully demonstrate what the Apostle preacht to be from God therefore unless the Papists can prove their infallibility by miracles and demonstration of the spirit theirs is but a humane Testimony and so we know it is and a false one too and therefore it is an intolerable abuse to take the Church off from faith and obedience to Christ as the head commanding and ruling her and from the holy Spirit as inditing and confirming the holy Scriptures and to subject her to the authority and determinations of fallible and sometimes most wicked men To let pass that the Papists themselves not being agreed who is the infallible supreme judge whether the Pope Council or the whole Church no man of them hath any sure foundation for his Faith If they say the Scripture declares who is the supreme infallible Judge I answer that Judge must again tell us what is the meaning of that Scripture The Pope saith it means him the Council and Church say it means them here are three pretenders to supreme and infallible authority and to interpret the Scripture which soever a man adheres to it is two to one but he is mistaken however here is no way to determine who is the infallible Judge unless there be infallible marks and Testimonies of it given by God and then they are of the supreme authority and neither Pope Council nor Church themselves but such they can never produce Thus the whole matter is but an inconsistent juggle to bring the Church into subjection to the Pope 3. Because the Church of Rome takes away the Scriptures from the people yea and alloweth the Clergy themselves the use of the corrupt vulgar Translation of the Bible only Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God Rom. 10.14 How then shall the people get Faith or grow in it when they must not have the Scriptures to read themselves nor have them read to them by their teachers but in an unknown tongue and that Translation so corrupt also that if any of them should understand Latin they would yet have much difficulty to find the truth The Scriptures are Christs Law whereby he governs his Church and the peoples Magna Charta the Charter of all their priviledges and of all Gods promises spiritual and temporal to take this from them is to deprive them both of the rule of their obedience and of the foundation of all their faith and hope in God This is not to be endured upon any pretence whatsoever 4. Because they impose the celebration of Gods worship in an unknown tongue the Papists celebrate their prayers Sacraments and singing of Psalms all in Latin which as they know the people understand not so they would not have them understand it by this means the people are deprived of all true worship For worship is the reverence and affection of the soul to God either in ascribing honour to him or desiring of him and trusting in him for whatever we need This it is impossible man should give to God in and by those words and expressions which he understandeth not which for what he knows may blaspheme God or beg a curse instead of a blessing which as managed by illiterate Priests oftentimes are nonsense and signifie nothing and sometimes contrary to sound Doctrine yea may at all times for what the people know be directed to an Idol or a Devil instead of God For preaching of the word the Papists pretend but little to it And thus the Roman Church is a Church of Christ which acknowledgeth not him for her head and Governour nor his word for her rule and Law nor his worship for her practice but sabjecteth her self to a wicked man under the name of Christs Vicar taketh his will for her Law and his institutions for her worship without Question and without understanding This is an abuse Jot to be tolerated 5. The Idolary that the Papists impose on the Church the Apostle is express You cannot partake of the Table of the Lord and the Table of Devils the Cup of the Lord and the cup of Devils 1 Cor. wor-10 20 21. and these Devils he saith are shipped in Idols by Idolaters with whom therefore we must have no communion now the greatest part of the Papists worship consists in the worship and invocation of Saints Angels and the Virgin Mary and their waser-God which they practise upon the very same grounds on which the Heathens worshipt their Idols and therefore are Idolaters as well as the
POPERY The Grand APOSTASIE Being the Substance of certain SERMONS Preached on 2 Thes 2. v. 1. to 12. On occasion of the discovery of the desperate Plot of the Papists against the King Kingdom and the Protestant Religion By John Troughton Minister of the Gospel To which is added a Sermon on Rev. 18.4 preached November 5. 1678. London Printed for Tho. Parkhurst at the Bible and three Crowns in Cheapside near Mercers Chapel 1680. THE PREFACE TO THE READER Good Reader IT was well observed by one That next to the knowledge of Christ and of the true way of salvation by him nothing is more necessary for a Christian than the knowledge of Antichrist for hereby he may be able to distinguish the true knowledge of Christ from the corruptions and mixture with which Antichrist hath adulterated and obscured the true Doctrine of the Gospel That the Pope with his Adherents is Antichrist hath been the general opinion of learned men for these last 600. Years ever since Gregory 7. not of Protestants only Hus Wicleff and the Waldenses but also of many that lived and dyed in the communion of the Roman Church And seeing our Papists generally confess Antichrist in St. Johns epistle to be the same with the man of sin in St. Paul and with the mystical Babylon in the Apoc. they do in effect yield that the Pope is Antichrist seeing all the marks of the two latter do undeniably agree to him For this cause I have waved the particular controversies betwixt us and the Papists which have been so largely and clearly managed by our Writers both formerly and of late as less necessary for this present time there being little of reason conscience or Scripture to urge any Protestant to embrace any particular error or corruption of the Papists endeavouring briefly and summarily to shew that the Church of Rome is as Wicleff long since called it the Synagogue of Satan mystical Babylon a state of Apostate Christians that have joyned themselves to the Pope as their Head against Christ his Gospel and pure Church that by this brief consideration of things Christians may be the more stirred up to detest and to oppose in their places that body of men which call themselves the only Catholick Church that they may be the more zealous for the truth as it is received in the Reformed Churches and that they may if called to it suffer with the greater comfort what cruelties and violence God may yet permit that Beast of Rome to exercise upon his Church I my self and many that heard this discourse have thought it might be seasonable and useful in these days to plain and private Christians for the learned have no need of it because through long peace and security the error and tyranny of the Papists have been much forgotten by the people and many that hate the name of Papists scarce know the grounds they stand on and are Antipapists by a kind of implicite faith If any find their judgements informed their consciences settled their zeal and courage excited by these endeavours in these shaking times I have mine end and may they and the Church of Christ long enjoy that benefit to the glory of God and their own comfort to the strengthening of their brethren and the shame of their implacable and restless adversaries Thine in the work of the Gospel J. T. 2 THES 2. v. 1. to 12. Now we beseech you Brethren by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and by our gathering together unto him v. 2. That you be not soon shaken in mind or be troubled neither by Spirit nor by word nor by letter as from us as that the day of Christ is at hand v. 3. Let no man deceive you by any means for that day shall not come except there come a falling away first and that man of sin be revealed the son of perdition c. THese words begin a new discourse and contain an earnest obtestation to the Thessalonians not to be troubled at the Doctrine of some that the day of Christ viz. his second coming was at hand which though in appearance it tended to holiness and watchfulness to make men live in preparation for Christs coming yet seeing his coming was not nigh and many great things were to be transacted first both in the world and the Church this perswasion would take off Christians from their repective duties in the several places and times they should live in and would give great occasion to Atheistical mockers to think and say Christ would never come seeing his coming was so long delaied beyond expectation of his servants and consequently that all the Gospel was a fable and Religion vain which also was foretold 2 Pet. 3. v. 3 4. In the last days shall come Scoffers walking after their own lusts saying Where is the promise of his coming for since the Fathers fell asleep all things continue as they were The Apostle therefore beseecheth them by the coming of Christ and our gathering to him i. e. As sure as they did believe Christ would come and his Saints should be gathered to him so also to believe that his coming was not nigh but that great transactions and changes should come before that day Or 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 may be well rendered I beseech you for the sake of the coming of our Lord and our gathering to him i. e. that you may not bring this Doctrine of Christs coming into Question when the world shall see you are mistaken in the time when you looked for it That you be not soon shaken 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 i. e. That you be not unsetled or made to fluctuate in your minds 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 nor be perplexed This is the obtestation Next the Apostle signifies the means how this perplexing Doctrine was introduced amongst them viz. By spirit by word or by pretence of his Epistle v. 2. Then renewing his obtestation v. 3. Let no man deceive you by any means 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 by any pretence whatsoever he entereth upon the confutation of this opinion telling them that Christ would not come till there had been an Apostasie in the Church 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 it is an Ellipsis wherein something for brevity sake is omitted For except there come an Apostasie first it is to be supplyed from the first v. The day of Christ shall not come Afterwards he describeth the manner and measure of this Apostasie to v. 12. Hence we may observe by way of introduction Obs 1. That the Church even in the best ages of it hath been infested with errours and disturbances The Church of old under Moses immediately after their deliverance out of Egypt and their receiving the Law from God by an audible voice did presently return to the Idolatry of Egypt in the worship of the Golden Calf Ex. 32.1 2. though they had obliged themselves to the Lord by Covenant a few days before chap. 24.3 6 7 c. And all his time he was