taken upon a particular occasion must be generally or strictly interpreted Rule 44. unless there be special reasons for a restraint from the Matter End or other evidence As if you are afraid that your Son should marry such a Woman and therefore swear him not to marry without your Consent He is bound thereby neither to marry that Woman not any other Or if your servant haunt one particular Alehouse and you make him forswear All Houses in General he must avoid all other So Dr. Sanderson instanceth in the Oath of Supremacy p. 195. § 67. Rule 45. He that Voweth absolutely or implicitly to obey another in all things is bound to obey Rule 45. him in all lawful things where neither God nor other superiour or other person is injured unless the nature of the relation or the ends or reasons of the oath or something else infer a limitation as implyed § 68. Rule 46. Still distinguish between the falshood in the words as disagreeing to the Thing sworn and Rule 46. the falshood of them as disagreeing from the swearers mind The former is sometime excusable but the later never There are many other Questions about Oaths that belong more to the Chapter of Contracts and Justice between man and man and thither I refer them CHAP. VI. Directions to the People concerning their Internal and Private Duty to their Pastors and the improvement of their Ministerial Office and Guifts THe Peoples Internal and Private duty to their Pastors which I may treat of without an appearance of â—ncroachment upon the work of the Canons Rubricks and Diocesans I shall open to you in these Directions following § 1. Direct 1. Understand first the true Ground and Nature and Reasons of the Ministerial Direct 1. Office or else you will not understand the Grounds and Nature and Reasons of your duty to them The Diâ—â—â—â— 2. of Church-Government Ch. 1. And universal Coâ—coâ—d Nature and Works of the Ministerial Office I have so plâ—inly opened already that I shall referr you to it to avoid repetition Hâ—re are two sorts of Reasons to be given you 1. The Reasons of the necessity of the Ministerial work 2. Why certain persons must be separated to this work and it must not be left to all in common § 2. 1. The Necessity of the work it self appeareth in the very Nature of it and enumeration of the parts of it Two sorts of Ministers Christ hath made use of for his Church The first sâ—rt was for Of the differencâ— between fixed and uâ—fixed Ministers see my Disp. 2. 〈…〉 Church-Government and Ios. Acoâ—â—aâ— 5. â— 21. 22. dâ— Missionibus the Revelation of some New Law or Doctrine to be the Churches Rule of Faith or Life And these were to prove their authority and credibility by some Divine attestation which was especially by Miracles and so Moses revealed the Law to the Jews and Christ and the Apostles revealed the Gospel The second sort of Ministers are appointed to Guide the Church to salvation by opening and applying the Rule thus already sealed and delivered And these as they are to bring no new Revelations or Doctrines of faith or Rule of life so they need not bring any Miracle to prove their call or authority to the Church For they have no power to deliver any new Doctrine or Gospel to the Church but only that which is confirmed by Miracles already And it is impudency to demand that the same Gospel be proved by new Miracles by every Minister that shall expound or preach it That would make Miracles to be no Miracles § 3. The work of the ordinary Ministry such as the Priests and Teachers were under the Law The Work of the Ministry and ordinary Pastors and Teachers are under the Gospel being only to Gather and Govern the Churches their work lay in Explaining and Applying the Word of God and delivering his Sacraments and now containeth thâ—se particulars following 1. To Preach the Gospel for the Conversion Rom. 10. 7 14. Mar. 16. 15. of the unbelieving and ungodly world And that is done partly by expounding the words by a Translation into a tongue which the hearers or readers understand and partly by opening the sense Matth. 28. 19 20. and matter 2. In this they are not only Teachers but Messengers sent from God the Father Son and Holy Ghost to charge and command and intreat men in his Nâ—me to Repent and believe and be reconciled 2 Cor. 5. 19 20 21. to God and in his Name to offer them a sâ—alâ—d pardon of all their sins and title to eternal life 3. Those that become the Disciples of Christ they are as his Stewards to receive into his Acts 26 17 18. Eph. 2. 19. house as fellow Citizens of the Saints and of the Houshold of God and as his Commissioned Officers Acts 2. 37 38 39 40. to solemnize by Baptism their enterance into the holy Covenant and to receive their engagement to God and to be the Messengers of Gods Engagement unto them and by Investiture to deliver them by that Sacrament the pardon of all their sin and their title by Adoption to â—ternal life As a house is delivered by the delivery of a Key or Land by a Twig and Turfe or Knighthood by a Sword or Garter c. 4. These Ministers are to gather these Converts into solemn Assemblies and ordered Churches Tit. 1. 7. 1 â—or 4. 1 2. Matth 28. 19 20. for their solemn worshipping of God and mutual edification communion and safe proceeding in their Christian course 5. They are to be the stated Teachers of the Assemblies by expounding and applying that Word which is fit to build them up 6. They are to be the Guides of the Congregation Acts 20. 32. 1 Cor. 3. 11 12. in publick Worship and to stand between them and Christ in things pertaining to God as subservient to Christ in his Priestly Office And so both for the people and also in their names to put Acts 14. 23. 2 Tim 2. 2. Acts 13. 2. 2. 41 42. 6. 2 Acts 20. 7 28. 1 Tim. 5. 17. Titus 1. 5. Acts 20 20 31. â—ol 1. 28. Eph 4 11 12. Mal. 2. 7. 1 Tim. 5. 17. up the publick Prayers and Praises of the Church to God 7. It is their duty to Administer to them as in the Name and stead of Christ his Body and Blood as broken and shed for them and so in the frequent renewals of the holy Covenants to subserve Christ especially in his Priestly Office to offer and deliver Christ and his benefits to them and to be their Agent in offering themselves to God 8. They are appointed to Oversâ—e and Govern the Church in the publick Ordering of the solemn Worship of God and in râ—buking any that are there disorderly and seeing that all things be done to edification 9. They are appointed as Teachers for every particular Member of the Church to have private
is the inherent evidence 3. The miracles of the spirit is the concomitant attestation or evidence 4. And the sanctifying work of the spirit is the subsequent attestation renewed and accompanying it to the end of the World So that the Argument runs thus That doctrine which hath this witness of the Holy Ghost antecedently in such prophecies inherently bearing his image so unimitably accompanyed by so many certain uncontrouled miracles and followed and attended with such matchless success in the sanctification of the body of Christ is fully attested by God to be his own But such is the ☞ doctrine of the Gospel Therefore c. The Major you are not to take upon trust from your Teachers though your esteem of their judgement may the better dispose you to learn But you are to discern the evidences of truth which is apparent in it For he that denyeth this must by force of argument be driven to deny 1. Either that God is the Governour of the World or that he is the supream but say he is controuled by another 3. Or that he is Good and True and must affirm that he either Governeth the world by meer deceits and undiscernable lyes or that he hath given up the power to some one that so governeth it All which is but to affirm that there is no God which is supposed to be proved before § 25. 8. There now remaineth nothing to be taught you as to prove the truth of the Gospel 8. To know the matters of fact subservient to our â—aâ—â—â—â— but only those matters of fact which are contained and supposed in the Minor of the two last arguments And they are these particulars 1. That there were such persons as Christ and his Apostles and such a Gospel Preached by them 2. That such Miracles were done by them as are supposed ☞ 3. That both Doctrine and Miracles were committed to writing by them in the Scriptures for the Est enim mirabilâ—â— quâ—dam continuatio seriesque rerum ut alia ex alia nexa omnes inter se aptae colligataeque videantur Ciâ— dâ— Natur. deor pag. 6. certainer preserving them to the Churches use 4. That Churches were planted and souls converted and confirmed by them in the first ages many of whom did seal them with their blood 5. That there have been a succession of such Churches as have adhered to this Christ and Gospel 6. That this which we call the Bible is that very Book containing those sacred Writings fore-mentioned 7. That it hath been still copyed out and preserved without any such depravation or corruption as might frustrate its ends 8. That the Copies are such out of which we have them Translated and which we shew 9. That they are so truly translated as to have no such corruptions or mistakes as to frustrate their ends or make them unapt for the work they were appointed to 10. That these particular words are indeed here written which we read and these particular Doctrines containing the Essentials of Christianity together with the rest of the material objects of faith § 26. All these ten particulars are matters of fact that are meerly subservient to the constitutingprinciples of our faith but yet very needful to be known Now the question is How these must be known and received by us so as not to invalidate our faith And how far our Teachers must be here believed And first it is very useful to us to enquire How so many of these matters of fact as were then existent were known to the first Christians As How knew they in those dayes that there were such persons as Christ and his Apostles that they preached such Doctrines and spake such Languages and did such Works and that they wrote such Books and sent such Epistles to the Churches and that Churches were hereby converted and confirmed and Martyrs sealed this with their blood c. It s easie to tell how they were certain of all these Even by their own eyes and ears and sensible observation as we know that there are Englishmen live in England And those that were remoter from some of the matters of fact knew them by such report of those that did see them as those among us that never saw the King or Court or his Restoration do know that such a thing there was and such a person there is Thus they knew it then § 27. From whence I note 1. That in those dayes it was not necessary to the being of true faith that any supernatural testimony of the Spirit or any other sort of proof than their very senses and reason should acquaint them with those matters of fact which they were eye-witnesses of 2. That credible report or history was then the means for any one that saw not a matter of fact to know as much as they that saw it 3. That therefore this is now the way also of producing faith Some things we have yet sight and sense for as that such Bibles and such Churches are existent that such holy effects this Doctrine hath upon the soul which we see in others by the fruits and after feel in our selves The rest we must know by History Tradition or Report § 28. And in the reception of these historical passages note further 1. That humane belief is here a naturally necessary means to acquaint us with the matter of our Divine belief 2. That there are various By all this it is easie to gather whether a Pastor may do his work per alium Saith Grotius de Imâ— p. 290 291. Nam illud Quod quis per alium facit per se facere videtur ad eas duntaxat pertinet actiones quarum causa efficiens proxima à jure indefinita est Yet people should labour after such maturity and stedfastness that they may be able to stand if their Pastors be dead or taken from them by persecution yea or forsake the truth themselves Victor Uâ—iâ— saith of the people in Africk when their Pastors were banished and others might not be ordained in their steads Inter haec tamen Dei populus in fide consistens ut examina apum cereas aedificantia manâ—iones crescendo melleis fidei claviculis firmabatur Quanto magis affligebantur tanto magis multiplicabantur Victor p. 382. degrees of this belief and some need more of it by far than others according to the various degrees of their ignorance As he that cannot read himself must know by humane belief in great part that the Preacher readeth truly or that such words indeed are in the Gospel as he saith are there But a literate person may know this by his eye sight and not take it upon trust So he that understandeth not Hebrew and Greek must take it upon trust that the Scripture is truly translated But another that understandeth those Tongues may see it with his eyes 3. History being the proper means to know matters of fact that are done in times past and out of our
those doctrines against which no Minister shall be allowed to preach and according to which he is to instruct the people 3. To be a testimony to all neighbour or forreign Churches in an heterodox contentious and suspicious age how we understand the Scriptures for the Confuting of scandals and unjust suspicions and the maintaining Communion in Faith and Charity and Doctrine Quest. 144. May not the Subscribing of the whole Scriptures serve turn for all the foresaid ends without Creeds Catechisms or Confessions Answ. BY Subscribing to the Scriptures you mean either Generally and Implicitly that All in them is True and Good though perhaps you know not what is in it Or else particularly and explicitly that every point in it is by you both understood and believed to be true In the first sense it is not sufficient to salvation For this Implicite faith hath really no act in it but a Belief that all that God faith is true which is only the formal object of faith and is no more than to believe that there is a God for a Lyar is not a God And this he may do who never believed in Christ or a word of Scripture as not taking it to be Gods Word yea that will not believe that God forbiddeth his beastly life Infidels ordinarily go thus far In the second sense of an explicite or particular Actual belief the belief of the whole Scriture is enough indeed and more than any man living can attain to No man understandeth all the Scripture Therefore that which no man hath is not to be exacted of all men or any man in order to Ministration or Communion While 1. No man can subscribe to any one Translation of the Bible that it is not faulty being the work of defectible man 2. And few have such acquaintance with the Hâ—brew and Chaldee and Greek as to be able to say that they understand the Original Languages perfectly 2. And no man that understands the words doth perfectly understand the matter It followeth that no man is to be forced or urged to subscribe to all things in the Scriptures as particularly understood by him with an Explicite faith And an Implicite is not half enough 2. The true Mean therefore is the antient way 1. To select the Essentials for all Christians to be believed particularly and explicitely 2. To Collect certain of the most needful Integrals which Teachers shall not preach against 3. And for all men moreover to profess in General that they implicitely believe all which they can discern to be the holy Canonical Scripture and that all is true which is the Word of God Forbearing each other even about the number of Canonical Books and Texts And it is the great wisdom and mercy of God which hath so ordered it that the Scripture shall 1 Cor. 8. 1 2. 13. 1 2 3 4. 1 Cor. 8. 3. Rom. 8. 28. have enough to exercise the strongest and yet that the weakest may be ignorant of the meaning of a thousand sentences without danger of damnation so they do but understand the Marrow or Essentials and labour faithfully to increase in the knowledge of the rest Quest. 145. May not a man be saved that believeth all the Essentials of Religion as Coming to him by Verbal Tradition and not as contained in the holy Scriptures which perhaps he never knew Answ. 1. HE that believeth shall be saved which way ever he cometh by his belief So be it it be sound as to the object and act that is If it contain all the Essentials and they be predominantly Believed Loved and practised 2. The Scriptures being the Records of Christs Doctrine delivered by Himself his Spirit and his Apostles it is the Office of Ministers and the duty of all Instructers to open these Scriptures to those they teach and to deliver particulars upon the authority of these Inspired sealed Records which contain them 3. They that thus receive particular truths from a Teacher explaining the Scripture to them do receive them in a subordination to the Scripture Materially and as to the Teachers part though not formally and as to their own part And though the Scripture authority being not understood by them be not the formal object of their faith but only Gods authority in general 4. They that are ignorant of the being of the Scripture have a great disadvantage to their faith 5. Yet we cannot say but it may be the case of thousands to be saved by the Gospel delivered by Tradition without resolving their faith into the authority of the Scriptures For 1. This was the case of all the Christians as to the New Testament who lived before it was written And there are several Articles of the Creed now necessary which the Old Testament doth not reveal Matth. 16. 16. Rom. 10. 9 10 13 14 15. 2. This may be the case of thousands in Ignorant Countreys where the Bible being rare is to most unknown 3. This may be the case of thousands of Children who are taught their Creed and Catechism before they understand what the Bible is 4. This may be the case of thousands among the Papists where some perverse Priests do keep not only the Reading but the Knowledge of the Scriptures from the people for fear lest they should be taught to resolve their faith into it and do teach them only the Articles of Faith and Catechism as known by the Churches tradition alone Quest. 146. Is the Scripture fit for all Christians to read being so obscure Answ. 1. THe Essentials and points necessary to salvation are plain 2. We are frequently and vehemently commanded to delight in it and meditate John 5. 39. Psalm 1. 2. Deut. 6. 11. Psal. 19. 7 8 9 10 11. 2 Tim. 3. 15. Psal. 119. 98 105. 133. 148. Acts 17. 11. Acts 8. in it day and night to search it to teach it our very children speaking of it at home and abroad lying down and rising up and to write it on the posts of our houses and on our doors c. 3. It is suited to the necessity and understanding of the meanest to give light to the simple and to make the very foolish wise 4. The antient Fathers and Christians were all of this mind 5. All the Christian Churches of the world have been used to Read it openly to all even to the simplest And if they may Hear it they may Read the same words which they hear 6. God blessed the ignorant Ethiopian Eunuch when he found him Reading the Scriptures though he knew not the sense of what he read and sent him Philip to instruct him and convert him 7. Timothy was educated in the knowledge of the Scriptures in his childhood 2 Tim. 3. 15. Rom. 15. 4. Mat. 12. 24. 8. That which is written to and for all men may be read by all that can But the Scripture was written to and for all c. Object But there are many things in it hard to be understood Answ.
than to have no publick helps and Worship Quest. 150. Is it lawful to read the Apocrypha or any good Books besides the Scriptures to the Church as Homilies c. Answ. 1. IT is not lawful to Read them as Gods Word or to pretend them to be the Holy Scriptures for that is a falshood and an addition to Gods Word 2. It is not lawful to read them scandalously in a title and manner tending to draw the people to believe that they are Gods Word or without a sufficient distinguishing of them from the holy Scriptures 3. If any one of the Apocryphal books as Iudith Tobit Bell and the Dragon c. be as fabulous false and bad as our Protestant Writers Reignoldus Amesius Whitakers Chamier and abundance more affirm them to be it is not lawful ordinarily to Read them in that honourable way as Chapters called Lessons are usually read in the assemblies Nor is it lawful so to Read heretical fabulous or erroneous books But it is lawful to Read publickly Apocryphal and humane Writings Homilies or edifying Sermons on these conditions following 1. So be it they be indeed sound doctrine holy and fitted to the peoples edification 2. So be it they be not read scandalously without sufficient differencing them from Gods Book 3. So they be not Read to exclude or hinder the Reading of the Scriptures or any other necessary Church-duty 4. So they be not Read to keep up an ignorant lazy Ministry that can or will do no better nor to exercise the Ministers sloth and hinder him from preaching 5. And specially if Authority command it and the Churches Agreement require it as a signification what doctrine it is which they profess 6. Or if the Churches Necessities require it As if they have no Minister or no one that can do so much to their Edification any other way 7. Therefore the use of Catechisms is confessed lawful in the Church by almost all Quest. 151. May Church Assemblies be held where there is no Minister Or what publick Worship may be so performed by Lay-men As among Infidels or Papists where Persecution hath killed imprisoned or expelled the Ministers Answ. 1. SUch an Assembly as hath no Pastor or Minister of Christ is not a Church in a political sense as the word signifieth a Society consisting of Pastor and flock But it may be a Church in a larger sense as the word signifieth only a Community or Association of private Christians for mutual help in holy things 2. Such an Assembly ought on the Lords dayes and at other fit times to meet together for mutual help and the publick worshipping of God as they may rather than not to meet at all 3. In those meetings they may do all that followeth 1. They may pray together a Lay-man being ☞ the Speaker 2. They may sing Psalms 3. They may Read the Scriptures 4. They may read some holy edifying Writings of Divines or repeat some Ministers Sermons 4. Some that are ablest may speak to the instruction and exhortation of the rest as a Master may do in his family or neighbours to stir up Gods graces in each other as was opened before 5. And some such may Catechize the younger and more ignorant 6. They may by mutual Conference open their cases to each other and communicate what knowledge or experience they have to the praise of God and each others edification 7. They may make a solemn profession of their Faith Covenant and Subjection to God the Father Son and Holy Ghost And all this is better than nothing at all But 1. None of them may do any of this as a Pastor Ruler Priest or Office-Teacher of the Church 2. Nor may they Baptize 3. Nor administer the Lords Supper 4. Nor excommunicate by sentence but only executively agree to avoid the notoriously impenitent 5. Nor Absolve Ministerially or as by authority nor exercise any of the power of the Keyes that is of Government 6. And they must do their best to get a Pastor as soon as they are able Quest. 152. Is it lawful to subscribe or profess full Assent and Consent to any Religious Books besides the Scripture seeing all are fallible Answ. 1. IT is not lawful to profess or subscribe that any Book is truer or better than it is or that there is no fault in any that is faulty or to profess that we believe any mortal man to be totally Infallible in all that he shall write or say or impeccable in all that he shall do 2. Because all men are fallible and so are we in judging it is not lawful to say of any large and dubious Books in which we know no fault that there is no fault or error in them we being uncertain and it being usual for the best men even in their best writings prayers or works to be faulty as the consequent or effect of our common culpable imperfection But we may say That we know no fault or error in it if indeed we do not know of any 3. It is lawful to profess or subscribe our Assent and Consent to any humane Writing which we judge to be True and Good according to the measure of its Truth and Goodness As if Church-Confessions that are found be offered us for our Consent we may say or subscribe I hold all the Doctrine in this Book to be true and good And by so doing I do not assert the Infallibility of the Authors but only the Verity of the Writing I do not say that He cannot err or that he never erreth but that he erreth not in this as far as I am able to discern Quest. 153. May we lawfully swear Obedience in all things Lawful and honest either to Usurpers or to our lawful Pastors Answ. 1. IF the question were of Imposing such Oaths I would say that it was many a hundred years before the Churches of Christ either under persecution or in their prosperity and glory did ever know of any such practice as the people or the Presbyters swearing obedience to the Bishops And when it came up the Magistracy Princes and Emperours fell under the feet of the Pope and the Clergy grew to what we see it in the Roman Kingdom called a Church And far should I be from desiring such Oaths to be imposed 2. But the question being only of the Taking such Oaths and not the Imposing of them I say that 1. It is not lawful to swear obedience to an Usurper Civil or Ecclesiastical in licitis honestis Because it is a subjecting our selves to him and an acknowledging that authority which he hath not For we can swear no further to obey the King himself but in things lawful and honest And to do so by an Usurper is an injury to the King and unto Christ. 2. But if the King himself shall command us to swear obedience to a subordinate Civil Usurper he thereby ceaseth to be an Usurper and receiveth authority and it becometh our duty And if he that
company or outward advantages to his Religion nor avoideth sin for want of a temptation but is Religious though against the stream and innocent when cast unwillingly upon temptations and is Godly where Godliness is accounted singularity hypocrisie faction humour disobedience or heresie and will rather let go the reputation of his honesty than his honesty it self Direct 2. TAke heed of being Religious only in Opinion without Zeal and holy practice or only in Direct 2. Zealous affection without a sound well grounded judgement But see that Iudgement Zeal and practice â—e conjunct § 1. Of the first part of this advice against a bare Opinionative Religion I have spoken already in my Directions for a Sound Conversion To change your Opinions is an easier matter than to change the Heart and Life A holding of the truth will save no man without a Love and practice of the truth This is the meaning of Iames 2. where he speaketh so much of the unprofitableness of a dead uneffectual belief that worketh not by love and commandeth not the soul to practice and obedience To believe that there is a God while you neglect him and disobey him is unlike to please him To believe that there is a Heaven while you neglect it and prefer the world before it will never bring you thither To believe your duty and not to perform it and to believe that sin is evil and yet to live in it is to sin with aggravation and have no excuse and not the way to be accepted or justified with God To be of the same Belief with holy men without the same hearts and conversations will never bring you to the same felicity He that knoweth his Masters will and doth it not shall be so far from being accepted for it that he shall be beaten with many stripes To believe that Holiness and Obedience is the best way will never save the disobedient and unholy § 2. And yet if Iudgement be not your Guide the most zealous affections will but precipitate you Scientiâ— quae est 〈…〉 ota à just 〈…〉 caâ—â—iditaâ— poâ—â—us quam sapientia 〈◊〉 est ◠〈◊〉 Of the necessity of Pâ—udence in Religious men â—ead 〈…〉 The unprudenciâ—s of welâ—-meaning men have done as much hurt to the Church sometimeâ— as the persecution of enemies e. g. When Coâ—stantine the Son of Constans was Emperour some busie men would prove from the Orthodoâ— Doctrine of the Trinity That his two Brethren Tibtrius and Heraclius should reign with him saying Si iâ— Trinitate creâ—iâ—â—is â—res etiam 〈…〉 which cost the chief of them a hanging Abbas Urspergens Edit Melancth p. 162. and make you run though quite out of the way like the Horses when they have cast the Coachman or the Riders To ride Post when you are quite out of the way is but laboriously to lose your time and to prepare for further labour The Jews that persecuted Christ and his Apostles had the testimony of Paul himself that they had a zeal of God but not according to knowledge And Paul saith of the deceivers and troublers of the Galathians whom he wisheth even cut off that they did zealously affect them but not well Rom. 10. 2. Gal. 4. 17. And he saith of himself while he persecuted Christians to prison and to death I was zealous towards God as ye are all this day Acts 22. 3 4. Was not the Papists Saint Dominick that stirred up the persecution against the Christians in France and Savoy to the murdering of many thousands of them a very zealous man And are not the Butchers of the inquisition zealous men And were not the Authors of the third Canon of the General Council at the Laterane under Pope Innocent the third very zealous men that decreed that the Pope should depose Temporal Lords and give away their Dominions and absolve their Subjects if they would not exterminate the godly called Hereticks Were not the Papists Powder-Plotters zealous men Hath not zeal caused many of later times to rise up against their lawful Governours and many to persecute the Church of God and depriue the people of their faithful Pastors without compassion on the peoples souls Doth not Christ say of such Zealots The time cometh when whosoever killeth you will think he doth God service John 16. 2. or offereth a service acceptable to God Therefore Paul saith It is good to be zealously affected alwayes in a good matter Gal. 4. 18. Shewing you that zeal indeed is good if sound judgement be its guide Your first question must be Whether you are in the right way and your second Whether you go apace It is sad to observe what odious actions are committed in all Ages of the world by the instigation of mis-guided zeal And what a shame an imprudent Zealot is to his profession while making himself ridiculous in the eyes of the adversaries he brings his prosession it self into contempt and maketh the ungodly think that the Religious are but a company of transported brain-sick Zealots And thus they are hardened to their perdition How many things doth unadvised affection provoke well-meaning people to that afterwards will be their shame and sorrow § 3. Labour therefore for knowledge and soundness of understanding that you may know truth from falshood good from evil and may walk confidently while you walk safely and that you become not a shame to your profession by a furious prosecution of that which you must afterwards confess to be an error by drawing others to that which you would after wish that you had never known your selves And yet see that all your knowledge have its efficacy upon your heart and life And take every truth as an instrument of God to reveal himself to you or to draw your heart to him and conform you to his holy will Direct 3. LAbour to understand the true Method of Divinity and see Truths in their several degrees Leg. Acost l. 4. c. 21. 22 de fructu catechizandi Et Li. 5. and order that you take not the last for the first nor the lesser for the greater Therefore see that you be well grounded in the Catechism and refuse not to learn some Catechism that is sound and full and keep it in memory while you live § 1. Method or right order exceedingly helpeth understanding memory and practice Truths Opas est imprimis duplici Catechismo Uno compendaâ—io brevi quem memoâ—iter addiscant ubi summa sit eorum omnium quae ad fidem mores Christiano sunt necessaria altero ubeâ—iore ubi eadem amplius dilucidiusque dicantur copiosius confirmentur Ut ille prioâ— discipulis potius hic posterior ipsâ— praeceptoribus usu sit Acosta l. 5. c. 14. p 490. have a dependance on each other The lesser branches spring out of the greater and those out of the stock and root Some duties are but means to other duties or subservient to them and to be measured accordingly And if it be not
your salvation Take heed lest it turn into carnal security and a perswasion of your good estate upon ill grounds or you know not why 4. Have you the Hope of glory Take heed lest it turn into a careless venterousness of your soul or the meer laying aside of fear and cautelous suspicion of your selves 5. Have you a Love to them that fear the Lord Watch your hearts lest it degenerate into a carnal or a partial Love Many unheedful young persons of different Sexes at first love each other with an honest chaste and pious Love but imprudently using too much familiarity before they were well aware it hath turned into a fleshly Love which hath proved their snare and drawn them further into sin or trouble Many have honoured them that fear the Lord who insensibly have declined to honour only those of them that were eminent in wealth and worldly honour or that were esteemed for their parts or place by others and little honoured the humble poor obscure Christians who were at least as good as they Forgetting that the things that are highly esteemed among men are abomination in the sight of God Luke 16. 15. and that God valueth not men by their places and dignities in the world but by their graces and holiness of life Abundance that at first did seem to Love all Christians as such as far as any thing of Christ appeared in them have first fallen into some Sect and over admiring their party and have set light by others as good as them and censured them as unfound and then withdrawn their special Love and confined it to their party or to some few and yet thought that they loved the godly as much as ever when it was degenerate into a factious Love 6. Are you zealous for God and truth and holiness and against the errors and sins of others Take heed lest you lose it not while you think it doth increase in you Nothing is more apt to degenerate than zeal In how many thousand hath it turned from an innocent charitable peaceable tractable healing profitable heavenly zeal into a partial zeal for some Party or Opinions of their own and into a fierce censorious uncharitable scandalous turbulent disobedient unruly hurting and destroying zeal ready to wish for fire from Heaven and kindling contention confusion and every evil work Read well Iames 3. 7. So if you are meek or patient take heed lest it degenerate into stupidity or contempt of those you suffer by To be patient is not to be meerly insensible of the affliction but by the power of faith to bear the sense of it as over-ruled by things of greater moment § 3. How apt men are to corrupt and debase all duties of Religion is too visible in the face of the far greatest part of the Christian world Throughout both the Eastern and the Western Churches the Papists the Greeks the Armenians the Abassines and too many others though the Essentials of Religion through Gods mercy are retained yet how much is the face of Religion altered from what it was in the dayes of the Apostles The ancient simplicity of Doctrine is turned into abundance of new or private opinions introduced as necessary Articles of Religion and alas how many of them â—alse So that Christians being too proud to accept of the ancient test of Christianity cannot now agree among themselves what a Christian is and who is to be esteemed a Christian and so they deny one another to be Christians and destroy their Charity to each other and divide the Church and make themselves a scom by their divisions to the Infidel world And thus the Primitive Unity Charity and Peace is partly destroyed and partly degenerate into the Unity Charity and Peace of several Sects among themselves The primitive simplicity in Government and Discipline is with most turned into a â—orâ—â—ble Secular Government exercised to advance one man above others and to satisfie his will and lusts and make him the Rule of other mens lives and to suppress the power and spirituality of Religion in the world The primitive simplicity of Worship is turned into such a Masque of Ceremony and such a task of formalities and bodily exercise that if one of the Apostolical Christians should come among them he would scarce think that this is the same employment which formerâ—y the Church was exercised in or scarce know Religion in this antick dress So that the amiable glorious face of Christianity is so spotted and defiled that it is hidden from the Unbelieving world and they laugh at it as irrational or think it to be but like their own And the principal hinderance of the conversion of Heathens Mahometans and other Unbelievers is the corruption and deformity of the Churches that are near them or should be the instruments of their conversion And the probablest way to the conversion of those Nations is the true Reformation of the Churches both in East and West which if they were restored to the ancient spirituality rationality and simplicity of Doctrine Discipline and Worship and lived in charity humility and holiness as those whose hearts and conversations are in Heaven with all worldly glory and honour as under their feet they would then be so illustrious and amiable in the eyes even of Heathens and other Infidels that many would flock in to the Church of Christ and desire to be such as they And their light would so shine before these men that they would see their good works and glorifie their heavenly Father and embrace their faith § 4. The commonest way of the degenerating of all Religious duties is into this dead formality or lifeless Image of Religion If the Devil can but get you to cast off the spirituality and life of duty he will give you leave to seem very devout and make much ado with outward actions words and beads and you shall have so much zeal for a dead Religion or the Corpse of Worship as will make you think that it is indeed alive By all means take heed of this turning the Worship of God into lip-service The commonest cause of it is a carnality of mind Fleshly men will think best of the most fleshly Religion or else a slothfulness in duty which will make you sit down with the easiest part It is the work of a Saint and a diligent Saint to keep the soul it self both regularly and vigorously employed with God But â—o say over certain words by rote and to lift up the hands and eyes is â—asie And hypocrites that are conscious that they are void of the life and spirituality of Worship do think to make all up with this formality and quiet their consciences and delude their souls with a hansome Image Of this I have spoken more largely in a Book called The Vain Religion of the Formal Hypocrite § 5. Yet run not here into the contrary extream as to think that the Body must not worship God as well as the soul or that the
another and Tempt 25. that of two evils you must choose the lâ—ss as if there were no other way Thus James and John did by sinful unchâ—ritable zeal desire to punish sin Luke 9. 54. Peter would sinfully fight against the sinful Iews Mat. 26. 52. Thus he bids men lie to avoid some dishonour to God and Religion and persecute to preserve the unity of the Church and keep out sin and commit a lesser sin themselves to escape a greater § 74. Direct 25. This is to abuse God as if he had made that necessary which he forbids and Direct 25. had not provided you lawful means enough to use against every sin This is willfully to do that which you pretend you are unwilling to do even to sin Of two evils avoid both but be sure you consent to neither § 75. Tempt 26. He pleadeth Christian Liberty to entise to sin especially to sensuality Hath Tempt 26. not Christ purchased you Liberty to use the Creatures all things are yours No men but the godly have just title to them § 76. Direct 26. He never purchased us Liberty to abuse the Creature as poyson to hurt our Direct 26. selves to hinder Mortification and strengthen our enemy and our snare and to steal away our hearts from God It 's a Liberty from sin and not a Liberty to sin that Christ hath purchased us § 77. Tempt 27. He pleadeth the Necessity of Wife Children Estate Life c. Necessity makes Tempt 27. it Lawful § 78. Direct 27. There is no Necessity of sinning He cannot be Christs Disciple that thinks it Direct 27. more necessary to save his life or provide for Wife and Children than to obey his Lord Luke 14. 26 33. God must be Trusted with these § 79. Tempt 28. But saith the Tempter it 's Natural to Lust to love Honour Ease Pleasure c. Tempt 28. Therefore it 's no sin § 80. Direct 28. Nature is corrupted and sinful And it 's Natural to you to be Rational and to Direct 28. rule your sense and appetite by Reason and not to do what lust or appetite desireth Else man is but a beast § 81. Tempt 29. But saith the Tempter Authority commandeth it It is your Parents or Masters Tempt 29. will and you must obey § 82. Direct 29. There is no power but from God Therefore none against him or above him Direct 29. They must be obeyed in all things lawful but not in sin They cannot save you nor themselves from the wrath of God § 83. Tempt 30. But saith the Tempter you have promised or vowed that you will do it and are not Tempt 30. at liberty § 84. Direct 30. The vow of a lawful thing must be kept but if you vow to sin it 's another Direct 30. sin to perform it and to wrong God or man because you have vowed to wrong him § 85. Tempt 31. But saith the Tempter it is a controversie and many learned and good men Tempt 31. think it is no sin § 86. Direct 31. You have the more reason to be fearful and cautelous when you see that the Direct 31. case is so obsure and the snare so subtile and are sure that many learned and good men on one side or other are deceived before you Remember God is your King and Judge who will not take it for an excuse for sin that learned or good men did it or defended it Consult not with flesh and blood but with God § 87. Tempt 32. But saith the Tempter will you be singular and be pâ—inted or hooted at by all Tempt 32. § 88. Direct 32. In doctrine I will not be singular from the Holy Catholick Church of God Direct 32. In worship I will not in singularity or schisme seperate from the Communion of Saints But in doctrine I will be singular from Infidels and Hereticks and in a holy life I will be singular from the ungodly and prophane and sensual lest if I do as they to avoid their scorns I speed as they § 89. Tempt 33. But you are weak and you cannot help it till God will give you grace to Tempt 33. do it § 90. Direct 33. Therefore I must not be willful and negligent and rash and do that evil Direct 33. which I may forbear nor resist and refuse that Grace and help and mercy without which I can do nothing § 91. Tempt 34. But you repent and ask God forgiveness through Christ every night for the sins Tempt 34. of the day § 92. Direct 34. Repenting is a sorrowful turning of the heart from sin to God You Repent Direct 34. not if you turn not To mock God with such Hypocritical praying and repenting is it self a 〈…〉 us siâ— Will you take it for Repenting if a man that spits in your face and beateth you shall dâ— it every day and ask you forgiveness at night and purpose to do it still because he ask'd forgâ—vâ—nâ—◠§ 93. Tempt 35. Bâ—t every man sâ—nneth daily You do but as the best men in the world do 〈◊〉 â—5 § 94. Direct 35. No true Christian that is Justified hath any sin but what he hateth more than 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 â—â—â—â—th â—â—â—â—d would â—â—in be rid of and striveth against in the use of holy means He hath no beâ—â—â—â—d 〈◊〉 which he would not part with but had â—ather keep than leave § 95. Tempt 36. But thâ—se that seem strict and godly are hypocrites and sâ—â—râ—tly as bad as you 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 § 96. â—â—â—â—ct 36 This is just like the Devil the accuser of those that are sanctified and justified 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 by Christ the father of malice and liâ—s to charge that on them which he confâ—sseth is seâ—râ—t and he cannot prove So he said of Iob that iâ— he were touched in his â—state or body he would forsake his godliness but he was found a lyar But be it how it will I am sure I must be 〈◊〉 14 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Hâ—â—y â—â— I shall not see God and if I live after the flesh I shall die and other mens misery will be no â—asâ— tâ— me § 97. Tempt 37. But saith the Tempter if you will not sin come but near it and do that which â—â—mpt â—7 iâ— laâ—â—ul § 98. Direct 37. Indeed we must not run into a contrary extream under pretence of flying far 〈◊〉 â—7 â—nougâ— from sin But if you keep out of other sin you cannot go too far from any To be near sin is to be near Gods wrath and near that which tendeth to Hâ—ll fire And to come near it is the câ—mmon way of coming to it He that could wish he might do it is infected at the heart allrâ—â—dy Kâ—ep a tender conscience and a constant sense of the danger of sinning § 99. Tempt 38. It 's a great snare when sin is got into credit 1. By putting fair names upon Tempt â—8 it â—alling â—uxuâ—y and Gluâ—tony
a name above every name that at the name of Iesus every knee should bow of things in Heaven and things in Earth and things under the Earth and that every tongue should confess that Iesus is Christ to the glory of God the Father Phil. 2. 9 10 11. Pray therefore that the God of our Lord Iesus Christ the Father of glory may give you the Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation in the acknowledgement of him the eyes of your understanding being enlightned that ye may know what is the hope of his calling and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the Saints and what is the exceeding greatness of his power to usward who believe according to the working of his mighty power which he wrought in Christ when he raised him from the dead and set him at his right hand in the coelestials fâ—r above all principality and power and might and dominion and every name that is named not only in this world but in that which is to come and hath put all things under his feet and gave him to be Head over all things to his Church Eph. 1. 17 c. The Father hath glorified his name in his Son Iohn 12. 28. 13. 31 32. 14. 13. 17. 1. § 6. Direct 4. Behold God as the End of the whole Creation and intend him as the End of all the Direct 4. actions of thy life You honour him not as God if you practically esteem him not as your ultimate end even the Pleasing of his will and the honouring him in the world If any thing else be made your chiefest end you honour it before him and make a God of it § 7. Direct 5. Answer all his blessed attributes with suitable affections as I have directed in my Direct 5. Treatise of the Knowledge of God and here briefly Dir. 4. and his Relations to us with the duty which they command subjection Love c. as I have opened in the foregoing Directions We glorifie him in our hearts when the Image of his Attributes is there received § 8. Direct 6. Behold him by faith as allways present with you And then every Attribute will Direct 6. the more affect you and you will not admit dishonourable thoughts of him Pray to him as if you saw him and you will speak to him with reverence Speak of him as if you saw him and you dare not take his name in vain nor talk of God with a common frame of mind nor in a common manner as of common things By faith Moses forsook Egypt not fearing the wrath of the King for he endured as seeing him that is invisible Heb. 11. 27. God is contemned by them that think they are behind his back § 9. Direct 7. Think of him as in Heaven where he is revealed in Glory to the blessed and magnified Direct 7. by their high everlasting Praise Nothing so much helpeth us to Glorifie God in our minds as by faith to behold him where he is most Glorious The very reading over the description of the Glory of the New Ierusalem Rev. 21. 22. will much affect a believing mind with a sense of the Gloriousness of God Suppose with Stephen we saw Heaven opened and the ancient of daies the Great Jehovah Gloriously illustrating the City of God and Jesus in Glory at his right hand and the innumerable army of Glorifyed Spirits before his throne Praysing and magnifying him with the highest admirations and joyfullest acclamations that creatures are capable of would it not raise us to some of the same admirations The soul that by faith is much above doth most Glorifie God as being neerest to his Glory § 10. Direct 8. Foresee by faith the coming of Christ and the day of the universal Iudgement when Direct 8. Christ shall come in flaming fire with thousands of his holy Angels to be Glorified in his Saints and admired in all them that do believe 2 Thes. 1. 10. § 11. Direct 9. Abhor all Doctrines which blaspheam or dishonour the name of God and would Direct 9. blemish and hide the Glory of his Majesty I give you this rule for your own preservation and not in imitation of uncharitable firebrands and dividers of the Church to exercise your pride and imperious humour in condemning all men to whose opinions you can maliciously affix a blasphemous consequence which either followeth but in your own imagination or is not acknowledged but hated by those on whom you do affix it Let it suffice you to detest false doctrines without detesting the persons that you imagine guilty of them who profess to believe the contrary truth as stedfastly as you your selves § 12. Direct 10. Take heed of sinking into flesh and earth and being diverted by things sensible from Direct 10. the daily contemplation of the Glory of God If your belly become your God and you mind earthly things and are set upon the honours or profits or pleasures of the world when your conversation should be in Heaven you will be glorying in your shame when you should be admiring the Glory of your Maker Phil. 3. 18 19 20. and you will have so much to do on earth that you will find no leisure because you have no hearts to look up seriously to God Directions for Glorifying God with our tongues in his Praises § 13. Direct 1. Conceive of this duty of Praising God according to its superlative excellencies as being Direct 11. the highest service that the tongue of men or Angels can perform To Bless or Praise or Magnifie How great a duty Praising God is God is not to make him Greater or better or happier than he is but to declare and extol his Greatness Goodness and felicity And that your hearts may be inflamed to this excellent work I will here shew you how great and necessary how high and acceptable a work it is § 14. 1. It is the giving to God his chiefest due A speaking of him as he is And when we have Christianus est homo dicens faciâ—â—â—â—â—â—grata diabolo oâ—nans 〈…〉 am Dâ—â— â—â—â—â—oris vitae à salutis suae Bâ—choâ—â—â—â— spoken the highest how far fall we short of the due expression of his glorious perfections O how great Praise doth that Allmightiness deserve which created and conserveth all the world and over-ruleth all the sons of men and is able to do whatsoever he will Great is the Lord and Greatly to be praised and his Greatness is unsearchable One Generation shall praise his works to another and declare his mighty acts I will speak of the glorious honour of thy Majesty and of thy wondrous works And men shall speak of the might of thy terrible acts and I will declare thy Greatness Psalm 145. 3 4 5. What Praise doth that knowledge deserve which extendeth to all things that are or were or ever shall be and that wisdom which ordereth all the world He knoweth every thought of man
corruption Direct 3. and that the natural tendency of Reason is to those high and excellent things which corruption and bruitishness do almost extinguish or cast out with the most and that the prevalency of the lower-faculties against right Reason is so lamentable and universal to the confusion of the world that it is enough to tell us that this is not the state that God first made us in and that certainly sin hath sullied and disordered his work The wickedness of the world is a great confirmation of the Scripture § 7. Direct 4. Consider how exactly the Doctrine of the Gospel and Covenant of Grace is suited to Direct 4. the lapsed state of man even as the Law of Works was suited to his state of innocency so that the Gospel may be called the Law of Lapsed Nature as suited to it though not as revealed by it as the other was the Law of Entire Nature § 8. Direct 5. Compare the many Prophecies of Christ with the fulfilling of them in his person As Direct 5. that of Moses recited by Stephen Acts 7. 37. Isa. 53. Dan. 9. 24 25 26 c. And consider that those Jews which are the Christians bitterest enemies acknowledge and preserve those Prophecies and all the Old Testament which giveth so full a testimony to the New § 9. Direct 6. Consider what an admirable suitableness there is in the Doctrine of Christ to the relish Direct 6. of a serious heavenly mind and how all that is spiritual and truly good in us doth close with it and embrace it from a certain congruity of Natures as the eye doth with the light and the stomach with its proper food Every good man in reading the Holy Scripture feeleth something even all that 's good within him bear witness to it And only our worser part is quarrelling with it and rebells against it § 10. Direct 7. Consider how all the first Churches were planted by the success of all those Miracles Direct 7. mentioned in the Scripture And that the Apostles and thousands of others saw the Miracles of Christ and the Churches saw the Miracles of the Apostles and heard them speak in Languages unlearnt and had the same extraordinary gifts communicated to themselves And these being openly and frequently manifested convinced unbelievers and were openly urged by the Apostles to stop the mouths Gal 3. 1 2 3. of opposers and confirm believers who would all have scorned his arguments and the faith which they supported if all these had been fictions of which they themselves were said to be eye-witnesses and agents So that the very existence of the Churches was a testimony to the matter of fact And what testimony can be greater of Gods interest and approbation than Christs Resurrection and all these miracles § 11. Direct 8. Consider how no one of all the Hereticks or Apostates did ever contradict the matters Direct ◠of fact or hath left the world any kind of confutation of them which they wanted not malice or encouragement or opportunity to have done § 12. Direct 9. Consider how that no one of all those thousands that asserted these miracles are Direct 9. ever mentioned in any history as repenting of it either in their health or at the hour of death whereas it had been so heinous a villany to have cheated the world in so great a cause that some consciences of dying men especially of men that placed all their hopes in the life to come must needs have repented of § 13. Direct 10. Consider that the witnesses of all these Miracles and all the Churches that believed Direct 10. them were taught by their own doctrine and experience t◠forsake all that they had in the world and to be reproached hated and persecuted of all men and to be as lambs among wolves in expectation of death and all this for the hope of that blessedness promised them by a Crucified Risen Christ. So that no worldly end could move them to deceive or willingly to be deceived § 14. Direct 11. Consider how impossible it is in it self that so many men should agree together to deceive Direct 11. the world and that for nothing and at the rate of their own undoing and death and that they should all agree in the same narratives and doctrines so unanimously And that none of these should ever confess the deceit and disgrace the rest All things well considered this will appear not only a Moral but a Natural impossibility Especially considering their quality and distance there being thousands in several countries that never saw the faces of the rest much less could enter a confederacie with them to deceive the world § 15. Direct 12. Consider the certain way by which the Doctrine and Writings of the Apostles and Direct 12. other Evangelical messengers hath been delivered down to us without any possibility of material alteration Because the Holy Scriptures were not left only to the care of private men or of the Christians of one country who might have agreed upon corruptions and alterations But it was made the office of the ordinary Ministers to read and expound and apply them And every Congregation had one or more of these Ministers And the people received the Scriptures as the Law of God and that by which they must live and be judged and as their charter for Heaven So that it was not possible for one Minister to corrupt the Scripture Text but the rest with the people would have quickly reproved him Nor for those of one Kingdom to bring all other Christians to it throughout the world without a great deal of consultation and opposition if at all which never was recorded to us § 16. Direct 13. Be acquainted as fully as you can with the History of the Church that you may Direct 13. know how the Gospel hath been planted and propagated and assaulted and preserved until now which will much better satisfie you than general uncertain talk of others § 17. Direct 14. Iudge whether God being the Wise and Merciful Governor of the world would Direct 14. Neq enim potest Deus qui summa Veritas Bonitas est hu manum genus prolem suam decipere suffer the honestest and obedientest subjects that he hath upon earth to be deceived in a matter of such importance by pretence of Doctrines and Miracles proceeding from himself and which none but God or by his special grant is able to do without disowning them or giving any sufficient means to the world to discover the deceit For certainly he needeth not deceit to govern us If you say that he permits Mahometanism I answer 1. The main positive doctrine of the Mahometanes for the worshiping of one only God against Idolatry is true And the by-fancies of their pretended Prophet are not commended to the world upon the pretense of attesting Miracles at all but upon the affirmation of Ma sil 〈◊〉 de
to it 14. To defend the cause of the just and innocent and vindicate them against false accusers and excuse those causes and persons that deserve excuse 15. To communicate and convey to others the same good impressions and affections of mind which God hath wrought on us and not only the bare truths themselves which we have received 16. Lastly To be instruments of common converse of expressing our mutual affections and respects and transacting all our worldly business for learning arts manufactures c. These are the Uses and Duties of the Tongue § 11. Direct 3. Understand and remember what are the sins of the Tongue to be avoided And they Direct 3. are very many and many of them very great The most observable are these The sins of the Tongue § 12. 1. Not to say any more of the sins of omission because it is easie to know them when I have named the Duties which are done or omitted among the sins of Commission the first that I shall name is Blasphemy as being the greatest which is the Reproaching of God to speak contemptuously of God or to vilifie him or dishonour him by the denying of his perfections and to debase him by false Titles Doctrines Images Resemblances as likening him to man in any of our imperfections any thing that is a Reproaching of God is Blasphemy Such as Rabshakeh used when he threatned Hezekiah and such as Infidels and Hereticks use when they deny his Omnipresence Omniscience Government Justice particular Providence or Goodness and affirm any evil of him as that he is the author of sin or false of his word or that he governeth the world by meer deceit or the like § 13. 2. Another sin of the Tongue is false Doctrine or teaching things false and dangerous as from God If any falsly say he had such or such a point by Divine Inspiration Vision or Revelation that maketh him a false Prophet But if he only say falsly that this or that Doctrine is contained in the Scripture or delivered by tradition to the Church this is but to be a false Teacher which is a sin greater or less according to the aggravations hereafter mentioned § 14. 3. Another of the sins of the Tongue is an opposing of Godliness indirectly by false application of true Doctrine and an opposing of godly persons for the sake of godliness and cavelling against particular truths and duties of Religion or indirectly opposing the Truth or duty under pretence of opposing only some controverted mode or imperfection in him that speaketh or performeth it A defending of those points and practices which would subvert or undermine Religion A secret endeavour to make all serious godliness seem a needless thing There are many that seem Orthodox that are impious and malicious opposers of that Truth in the application which themselves do notionally hold and positively profess § 15. 4. Another great sin of the Tongue is the prophane deriding of serious Godliness and the mocking and jeasting and scorning at godly persons as such or scorning at some of their real or supposed imperfections for their piety sake to make them odious that piety through them might be made odious When men so speak that the drift and tendency of their speech is to draw men to a dislike of Truth or holiness and their mocks or scorns at some particular opinion or practice or more doth tend to the contempt of Religion in the serious practice of it When they mock at a Preacher of the Gospel for some expressions or imperfections or for truth it self to bring him and his doctrine into contempt or at the Prayers and Speeches of Religious persons to the injury of Religion § 16. 5. Another great sin of the Tongue is unjustly to Forbid Christs Ministers to preach his Gospel or speak in his Name or to stand up against them and contradict resist and hinder them in the preaching of the truth and as Gamaliel calls it to fight against God Acts 5. 39. Yet thus they did by the Apostles v. 40. When they had called the Apostles and beaten them they commanded that they should not speak in the Name of Iesus and let them go So Acts 4. 18 19. And they called them and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the Name of Iesus But Peter and John answered and said unto them Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God judge ye for we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard 1 Thess. 2. 15 16. Who bâ—th killed the Lord Iesus and their own Prophets and have persecuted us and they please not God and are contrary to all men Forbidding us to speak to the Gentiles that they might be saved to fill up their sins alway for the wrath is come upon them to the uttermost As Dr. Hammond Paraphraseth it And this generally is the ground of their quarrell to us that in spight of their prohibition we preach to the Gentiles § 17. 6. Another sin of the Tongue is Prophane swearing either by God or by Creatures And also all light and unreverent use of the Name and Attributes of God of which more afterwards § 18. 7. Much more is Perjury or Fâ—rswearing a most heinous sin it being an appealing to God the author and defender of Truth to bear witness to an untruth and to judge the offender and so a craving of Vengeance from God § 19. 8. Lying also is a great and common sin of the Tongue of which more anon § 20. 9. Another sin of the Tongue is hypocritical dissembling which is worse than meer lying when mens tongues agree not with their hearts but speak good words in prayer to God or conference with men to cover evil intentions or affections and to represent themselves to the hearers as better than they are § 21. 10. Another is Ostentation or proud boasting either of mens wit and learning or greatness Quod facere instituâ—s noli praedicare nam si facere nequiveâ—is rideberis Pâ—ttaâ—â— Sâ—â—t in Laâ—â—t or riches or honour or strength or beauty or parts or piety or any thing that men are proud of As the faithful do make their boast in God Psal. 34. 2. Psal. 44. 8. and in the Cross of Christ by which they are crucified to the world Gal. 6. 14. So the covetous boast themselves in the multitude of their riches Psal. 49. 6. and the workers of iniquity boast themselves against the righteous and the proud do triumph and speak hard things Psal. 94. 2 3 4. Even against the Lord do they boast in their boasting against his people Ezek. 35. 13. So far as Pride prevaileth with men they are apt to boast themselves to be some body Acts 5. 36. Either openly as the more foolish do or cunningly by the help of fair pretences as the more ingenious proud ones do § 22. 11. Another sin of the Tongue is unseasonable speaking of common things when
that our own advantage falls in but impliedly and in evident subordination Such are the blessed works of praise and thanksgiving which we here begin and shall in Heaven perpetuate Yet see a most admirable Mystery of true Religion We indeed receive more largely from God and enjoy more fully our own felicity in him in these acts of worship that give all to God than in the other wherein we more directly seek for somewhat from him And those are the second sort of worship-actions viz. When the substance or matter of the work is a seeking or receiving somewhat from God or delivering something Religiously in his name and so is more directly for our selves though yet it 's God that should be our ultimate end in this too You may perceive I make this of three sorts Whereof the first consisteth in our religious addresses to God for something that we want And is called Prayer The 2. consisteth in our religious addresses to God to receive somewhat from him viz. 1. Instructions precepts promises threatnings from his mouth Messengers c. 2. The Sacramental signs of his grace in Baptism and the Lords Supper The 3. is when the Officers of Christ do in his name solemnly deliver either his Laws or Sacraments His Laws either in general by ordinary Preaching or by a more particular application in Acts of discipline 2. The Word Solemn signifies sometimes any thing usual and so some derive it Solenne est quod fieri solet Sometimes that which is done but on one set day in the year and so some make solenne to be quasi solum semel in anno But vulgarly it is taken and so we take it here for both celebre usit â—tum that is a thing that is not accidentally and seldom but statedly and ordinarily to be done and that with such Gravity and Honourable seriousness as beseems a business of such weight 3. By family we mean not a tribe or stock of kindred dwelling in many houses as the word is taken oâ—t in Scripture but I mean a houshold Domus familia a Houshold and family are indeed in Oeconomicks somewhat different notions but one thing Domus is to familia as civitas to respublica the former is made the subject of the latter the latter the finis internus of the former And so Domus est societas naturae consentanea e personis domesticis vitae in dies omnes commode sustentandae causa collecta Familia est ordo domus per Regimen Patris-familias in personas sibi subjectas Where note that to a compleat family must go four Integral parts Pater familias Mater familias Filius Servus A Father Mother Son and Servant But to the essence of a family it sufficeth if there be but the pars imperans pars subdita one head or Governor either Father Mother Master or Mistress and one or more governed under this head Note therefore that the Governour is an essential part of the family and so are some of the governed viz. that such their be but not each member If therefore twenty children or servants shall worship God without the Father or Master of the family either present himself or in some Representative it is not a family worship in strict sense But if the head of the family in himself or Delegate or Representative be present with any of his children or servants though all the rest be absent it is yet a family duty though the family be incompleat and maimed and so is the duty therefore if culpably so performed 4. When I say in and by a family I mean not that each must do the same parts of the work but that one either the head or some one deputed by him and representing him be the mouth and the rest perform their parts by receiving instructions or mentally concurring in the Prayers and praise by him put up Lastly by Divine appointment I mean any signification of Gods will that it is mens duty to perform this Whether a signification by natural means or supernatural directly or by consequence so we may be sure it is Gods will The sum of the Question then is Whether any Sacred Actions religiously and ordinarily to be performed to Gods honour by the head of the family with the rest be by Gods appointment made our duty My thoughts of this Question I shall reduce to these heads and propound in this order 1. I shall speak of family worship in General 2. Of the sorts of that worship in special 3. Of the time I. Concerning the first I lay down my thoughts in these Propositions following for limitation and caution and then prove the main conclusion Prop. 1. It is not all sorts of Gods worship which he hath appointed to be performed by families as Prop. 1. such There being some proper to more publick Assemblies 2. More particularly the Administration of the Sacraments of Baptism and the Lords Supper are proper to the Ministerial or Organized Churches and not common to families for as they are both of them committed only to Ministers of the Gospel and have been only used by them for many hundred years in the Church except that some permitted others to baptize in case of necessity So the Lords Supper was appointed for a Symbole and means of a more publick communion than that of families And though some conjecture the contrary from its first institution and think that as there is a family prayer and Church prayer family teaching and Church teaching so there should be family Sacraments and Church Sacraments yet it is a Mistake For though Christ administred it to his family yet it was not as a family but as a Church For that which is but one family may possibly be a Church also This exposition we have from the Doctrine and practice of the Apostles and constant custom of all the Churches which have never thought the Lords Supper to be a family duty but proper to larger assemblies and administrable only by ordained Ministers Nor will the reasons drawn from circumcision and the passeover prove the contrary both because particular Churches were not then instituted as now and therefore families had the more to do and because there were some duties proper to families in the very institution of those Sacraments And because God gave them a power in those which he hath not given to Masters of families now in our Sacraments 3. Many thousands do by their own vitiousness and negligence disable themselves so that they cannot perform what God hath made their duty yet it remains their duty still Some disability may excuse them in part but not in whole I shall now prove that the Solemn Worship of God in and by families as such is of Divine appointment Argument 1. If Families are Societies of Gods Institution furnished with special advantages and opportunities for Gods solemn Worship having no prohibition so to use them then the solemn Worship of God in and by families as such is of
and breed up children for the devil Their natural corruption is advantage enough to Satan to engage them to himself and use them for his service But when Parents shall also take the Devils part and teach their children by precepts or example how to serve him and shall estrange them from God and a holy life and fill their minds with false conceits and prejudice against the means of their salvation as if they had sold their children to the Devil no wonder then if they have a black posterity that are trained up to be heirs of Hell He that will train up children for God must begin betimes before sensitive objects take too deep possession of their hearts and custom increase the pravity of their nature Original sin is like the arched Indian Fig-tree whose branches turning downwards and taking root do all become as trees themselves The acts which proceed from this habitual viciousness do turn again into vicious habits And thus sinful nature doth by its fruits increase it self And when other things consume themselves by breeding all that sin breedeth is added to it self and its breeding is its feeding and every act doth confirm the habit And therefore no means in all the world doth more effectually tend to the happiness of souls than wise and holy education This dealeth with sin before it hath taken the deepest root and boweth nature while it 's but a twig It preventeth the increase of natural pravity and keepeth out those deceits corrupt opinions and carnal fantasies and lusts which else would be serviceable to sin and Satan ever after It delivereth up the heart to Christ betime or at least doth bring him a Disciple to his School to learn the way to life eternal and to spend those years in acquainting himself with the ways of God which others spend in growing worse and in learning that which must be again unlearned and in fortifying Satans garrison in their hearts and defending it against Christ and his saving grace But of this more anon § 5. Motive 5. A holy well-governed family is the preparative to a holy and well-governed Church If Masters of families did their parts and sent such polished materials to the Churches as they ought to Motive 5 do the work and life of the Pastors of the Church would be unspeakably more easie and delightful It would do one good to Preach to such an auditory and to Catechise them and instruct them and examine them and watch over them who are prepared by a wise and holy education and understand and love the doctrine which they hear To lay such polished stones in the building is an easie and delightful work How teachable and tractable will such be And how prosperously will the labours of their Pastors be laid out upon them And how comely and beautiful the Churches be which are composed of such persons And how pure and comfortable will their communion be But if the Churches be sties of unclean beasts if they are made up of ignorant and ungodly persons that savour nothing but the things of the flesh and use to worship they know not what we may thank ill-governed families for all this It is long of them that Ministers preach as to idiots or barbarians that cannot understand them and that they must be always feeding their auditors with milk and teaching them the principles and Catechizing them in the Church which should have been done at home Yea it is long of them that there are so many Wolves and Swine among the Sheep of Christ and that holy things are administred to the enemies of holiness and the godly live in communion with the haters of God and Godliness and that the Christian Religion is dishonoured before the heathen world by the worse-than-heathenish lives of the Professors and the pollutions of the Churches do hinder the conversion of the unbelieving world whilest they that can judge of our Religion no way but by the people that profess it do judge of it by the lives of them that are in heart the enemies of it when the haters of Christianity and Godliness are the Christians by whose conversations the Infidel world must judge of Christianity you may easily conjecture what judgement they are like to make Thus Pastors are discouraged the Churches defiled Religion disgraced and Infidels hardned through the impious disorder and negligence of families What Universities were we like to have if all the Grammar-Schools should neglect their duties and send up their scholars untaught as they received them and if all Tutors must teach their pupils first to spell and read Even such Churches we are like to have when every Pastor must first do the work which all the Masters of families should have done and the part of many score or hundreds or thousands must be performed by one § 6. Motive 6. Well-governed Families tend to make a happy State and Commonwealth A good Motive 6. education is the first and greatest work to make good Magistrates and good Subjects because it tends to make good men Though a good man may be a bad Magistrate yet a bad man cannot be a very good Magistrate The ignorance or worldliness or sensuality or enmity to godliness which grew up with them in their youth will shew it self in all the places and relations that ever they shall come into When an ungodly family hath once confirmed them in wickedness they will do wickedly in every state of life when a perfidious Parent hath betrayed his Children into the power and service of the Devil they will serve him in all relations and conditions This is the School from whence come all the injustice and cruelties and persecutions and impieties of Magistrates and all the murmurings and rebellions of subjects This is the soil and seminary where the seed of the Devil is first sown and where he nurseth up the plants of Covetousness and Pride and Ambition and Revenge Malignity and Sensuality till he transplant them for his service into several Offices in Church and State and into all places of inferiority where they may disperse their venome and resist all that is good and contend for the interest of the flesh and Hell against the interest of the Spirit and of Christ. But O what a blessing to the world would they be that shall come prepared by a holy education to places of Government and Subjection And how happy is that Land that is ruled by such superiours and consisteth of such prepared subjects as have first learnt to be subject to God and to their Parents § 7. Motive 7. If the Governours of Families did faithfully perform their duties it would be a Motive 7. great supply as to any defects in the Pastors part and a singular means to propagate and preserve Religion in times of publick negligence or persecution Therefore Christian Families are called Churches because they consist of holy persons that worship God and learn and love and obey his word If you lived among
will be but a temptation to waste your time and neglect greater duty and to make you grow customary and sensless of such sins and mercies when the same come to be recited over and over from day to day But let the common mercies be more generally recorded and the common sins generally confessed yet neither of them therefore slighted and let the extraordinary mercies and greater sins have a more particular observation And yet remember that sins and mercies which it is not fit that others be acquainted with are safelyer committed to memory than to writing And methinks a well humbled and a thankful heart should not easily let the memory of them slip § 20. Direct 20. When you compose your selves to sleep again commit your selves to God through Direct 20. Christ and crave his protection and close up the day with some holy exercise of Faith and Love And if you are persons that must needs lye waking in the night let your meditations be holy and exercised upon that subject that is profitablest to your souls But I cannot give this as an ordinary direction because that the body must have sleep or else it will be unfit for labour and all thoughts of holy things must be serious and all serious thoughts will hinder sleep and those that wake in the night do wake unwillingly and would not put themselves out of hopes of sleep which such serious meditations would do Nor can I advise you ordinarily to rise in the night to prayer as the Papists Votaries do For this is but to serve God with irrational and hurtful ceremony And it is a wonder how far such men will go in Ceremony that will not be drawn to a life of Love and spiritual Worship Unless men did irrationally place the service of God in praying this hour rather than another they might see how improvidently and sinfully they lose their time in twice dressing and undressing and in the intervals of their sleep when they might spare all that time by sitting up the longer or rising the earlier for the same employment Besides what tendency it hath to the destruction of health by cold and interruption of necessary rest when God approveth not of the disabling of the body or destroying our health or shortning life no more than of murder or cruelty to others but only calleth us to deny our unnecessary sensual delights and use the body so as it may be most serviceable to the soul and him I have briefly laid together these twenty Directions for the right spending of every day that those that need them and cannot remember the larger more particular Directions may at least get these few engraven on their minds and make them the daily practice of their lives which if you will sincerely do you cannot conceive how much it will conduce to the holiness fruitfulness and quietness of your lives and to your peaceful and comfortable death CHAP. XVIII Tit. 1. Directions for the holy spending of the Lords Day in Families § 1. Direct 1 BE well resolved against the Cavils of those carnal men that would make you believe Direct 1. that the holy spending of the Lords Day is a needless thing For the Name Since the writing of this I have published a Treatise of the Lords Day whether it shall be called The Christian Sabbath is not much worth contending about Undoubtedly the Name of The Lords Day is that which was given it by the Spirit of God Rev. 1. 10. and the antient Christians who sometime called it The Sabbath by allusion as they used the names Sacrifice and Altar The question is not so much of the Name as the Thing whether we ought to spend the day in holy exercises without unnecessary divertisements And to settle your consciences in this you have all these evidences at hand § 2. 1. By the confession of all you have the Law of Nature to tell you that God must be openly worshipped and that some set time should be appointed for his Worship And whether the fourth Commandment be formally in force or abrogated yet it is commonly agreed on that the parity of reason and general equity of it serveth to acquaint us that it is the will of God that one day in seven be the least that we destinate to this use this being then judged a meet proportion by God himself even from the Creation and on the account of commemorating the Creation and Christians being no less obliged to take as large a space of time who have both the Creation and Redemption to commemorate and a more excellent manner of Worship to perform § 3. 2. It is confessed by all Christians that Christ rose on the first day of the Week and appeared to his congregated Disciples on that day and powred out the Holy Ghost upon them on that day and that the Apostles appointed and the Christian Churches observed their assemblies and communion ordinarily on that day And that these Apostles were filled with the extraordinary gifts of the Holy Ghost that they might infallibly acquaint the Church with the Doctrine and Will of Jesus Mar. 16. 2 9. Luke 24. 1. Christ and leave it on record for succeeding ages and so were entrusted by Office and enabled by gifts to settle the Orders of the Gospel-Church as Moses did the matters of the Tabernacle and Worship then and so that their Laws or Orders thus setled were the Laws or Orders of the Holy Ghost Iohn 20. 1 19 26. Acts 2. 1. Acts 20. 7. 1 Cor. 16. 1 2. Rev. 1. 10. Matth. 28. 19 20 Iohn 16. 13 14 15. Rom. 16. 16. 2 Thess. 2. 15. § 4. 3. It is also confessed that the Universal Church from the dayes of the Apostles down till now hath constantly kept holy the Lords Day in the memorial of Christs Resurrection and that as by the will of Christ delivered to them by or from the Apostles In so much that I remember not either any Orthodox Christian or Heretick that ever opposed questioned or scrupled it till of late ages And as a historical discovery of the matter of fact this is a good evidence that indeed it was settled by the Apostles and consequently by Christ who gave them their Commission and inspired them by the Holy Ghost § 5. 4. It is confessed that it is still the practice of the Universal Church And those that take it to be but of Ecclesiastical appointment â—â—me of them mean it of such extraordinary Ecclesiasticks as inspired Apostles and all of them take the appointment as obligatory to all the members of the Church § 6. 5. The Laws of the Land where we live command it and the King by Proclamation urgeth the execution and the Canons and Homilies and Liturgy shew that the holy observation of the Lords Day is the judgement and will of the Governours of the Church Read the Homilies for the Time and place of Worship Yea they require the people to say when the fourth Commandment is
in the sense of your natural sin and misery to stir up the lively sense of the wonderful Love of God and our Redeemer and to spend all the day in the special exercises of Faith and Love And seeing it is the Christian weekly festival or day of Thanksgiving for the greatest mercy in the world spend it as a day of Thanksgiving should be spent especially in Ioyful Praises of our Lord and let the huâ—bling and instructing exercisâ—s of the day he all subordinate to these laudatory exercises I know that much time must be spent in teaching and warning the ignorant and ungodly because their poverty and labours hinder them from other such opportunities and we must speak to them then or not at all But if it were not for their meer necessity and if we could as well speak to them other dayes of the Week the Churches should spend all the Lords Day in such praises and thanksgivings as are suitable to the ends of the institution But seeing that cannot be expected methinks it is desirable that the antient custome of the Churches were more imitated and the morning Sermon being fuited to the state of the more ignorant and unconverted that the rest of the day were spent in the exercises of Thanksgiving to the Joy and encouragement of believers and in doctrine suited to their state And yet I must add that a skilfull Preacher will do both together and so declare the Love and Grace of our Redeemer as by a meet application may both draw in the ungodly and comfort those that are already sanctified and raise their hearts in Praise to God § 4. Direct 4. Remember that the Lords day is appointed specially for publick worship and personal Direct 4. Communion of the Churches therein see therefore that you spend as much of the day as you can in this publick worship and Church-communion especially in the celebration of that Sacrament which is appointed for the memorial of the death of Christ untill his coming 1 Cor. 11. 25 26. This Sacrament in the Primitive Church was celebrated every Lords day yea and ofter even ordinarily on every other day of the week when the Churches assembled for Communion And it might be so now without any hinderance to Preaching or Prayer if all things were ordered as they should be For those Prayers and instructions and exhortations which are most suited to this Eucharistical action would be the most suitable Prayers and Sermons for the Church on the Lords dayes In the mean time sâ—e that so much of the day as is spent in Church-communion and publick worship be accordingly improved by you and be not at that time about your secret or family services but take only those hours for such private duties in which the Church is not assembled And remember how much the Love of Saints is to be exercised in this Communion and therefore labour to keep alive that Love without which no man can celebrate the Lords day according to the end of the institution § 5. Direct 5. Understand how great a mercy it is that you have leave thus to wait upon God for the receiving and exercise of grace and to cast off the distracting thoughts and businesses of the world and Direct 5. what an opportunity is put into your hand to get more in one day than this world can affâ—rd you all your lives And therefore come with gladness as to the receiving of so great a mercy and with desire after it and with hope to speed and not with unwillingness as to an unpleasant task as carnal hearts that Love not God or his Grace or Service and are aweary of all they do and glâ—d when it is done as the Ox that is unyoaked Isa. 58. 13 14. If thou turn away thy foot from the Sabbath from doing thy pleasure on my holy day and call the Sabbath a Delight the holy of the Lord honourable and shalt honour him not doing thine own waies nor finding thine own pleasuâ—e nor speaking thine own words then shalt thou delight thy self in the Lord The affection that you have to the Lords day much sheweth the temper of the heart A holy person is glad when it cometh as loving it for the holy exercises of the day A wicked carnal heart is glad of it only for his carnal ease but weary of the spiritual duties § 6. Direct 6. Avoid both the extreams of Prophaneness and Superstition in the point of your external rest And to that end Observe 1. That the work is not for the day but the day for the holy Direct 6. work As Christ saith Mark 2. 27. The Sabbath was made for man and not man for the Sabbath It is appointed for our good and not for our hurt 2. The outward rest is not appointed for it self but as a means to the freedom of the mind for inward and spiritual employments And therefore all those outward and common labours and discourses are unlawful which any way distract the mind and hinder either our outward or inward attendance upon God and our edification 3. And whatever it was to the Jews no common words or actions are unlawful which are no hinderance to this communion and worship and spiritual edification 4. Yea those things that are necessary to the support of nature and the saving of the Life or health or estate and goods of our selves or our neighbours are needful duties on that day Not all those works which are truly charitable for it may be a work of mercy to build Hospitals or make Garments for the poor or Till their ground but such works of mercy as cannot be put off to another day and such as hinder not the duties of the day 5. The same word or action on the Lords day which is unlawful to one man may be lawful to another as being no hinderance yea a duty to him As Christ saith The Priests in the Temple break or prophane the Sabbath that is the outward rest but not the command and are blameless Matth. 12. 15. And the Cook may lawfully be employed in dressing meat when it were a sin in another to do it voluntarily without need 6. The Lords day being to be kept as a day of Thanksgiving the dressing of such meat as is fit for a day of Thanksgiving is not to be scrupled The primitive Christians in the Apostles time had their Love-feasts constantly with the Lords Supper or after on the Evening of the day And they could not feast without dressing meat 7. Yet that which is lawful in it self must be so done as consisteth with care and compassion of the souls of servants that are employed about it that they may â—e deprived of no more of their spiritual benefit than needs 8. Also that which is lawful must sometimes be forborn when it may by scandal tempt others that are loose or weak to do that which is unlawful not that the meer displeasing of the erroneous should put us out of the right
been truly taught that to deny our foundations is the horrid crime of Infidelity And therefore because it is so horrid a crime to deny or question them we thought we need not study to prove them And so most have taken their Foundation upon trust and indeed are scarce able to bear the tryal of it and have spent their dayes about the superstructure and in learning to prove the controverted less necessary points Insomuch that I fear there are more that are able to prove the points which an Antinomian or an Anabaptist do deny than to prove the immortality of the soul or the truth of Scripture or Christianity and to dispute about a Ceremony or form of prayer or Church-government than to dispute for Christ against an Infidel So that their work is prepared to their hands and it is no great victory to overcome such â—aw unsetled souls § 2. Direct 2. Get every sacred Truth which you believe into your very hearts and lives and Direct 2. see that all be digested into Holy Love and Practice When your food is turned into vital nuâ—â—iment into flesh and blood it is not cast up by every thing that maketh you sick and turneth your stomachs as it may be before it is concocted distributed and incorporated Truth that is but barely known is but like meat that is undigested in the stomach But Truth which is turned into the Lâ—ve of God and of a holy life is turned into a new nature and will not so easily be let go § 3. Direct 3. Take heed of Doctrines of presumption and security and take heed lest you fall Direct 3. away by thinking it so impossible to fall away that you are past all danger The Covenant of Vâ—â—tu â—â—â—â— Chrysippus â—â—â—â—â—â—â—ossâ— â—leaâ— hâ—â—â—â—â—â— nâ—n â—â—â—â—se aâ—â—â—â—e posse aâ—â—â—â—â— pâ—r 〈◊〉 aâ—ram bâ—â—em 〈…〉 posse o 〈…〉 aâ— stabâ—es comprehension â—â— c.. Lâ—â—t in Zâ—â—oâ—â— Grace doth sufficiently encourage you to obey and hope against temptations to despair and casting off the means But it encourageth no man to presume or sin or to cast off means as needlesâ— things Remember that if ever you will stand the fear of falling must help you to stand and if ever you will persevere it must be by seeing the danger of backsliding so far as to make you afraid and quicken you in the means which are necessary to prevent it It is no more certain that you shall persevere than it is certain that you shall use the means of persevering And one means is by seeing your danger to be stirred up to fear and caution to escape it Because it is my meaning in this Direction to save men from perishing by security upon the abuse of the Doctrine of Perseverance I hope none will be offended that I lay down these Antidotes § 4. 1. Consider That the Doctrine of Perseverance hath nothing in it to encourage security The very Controversies about it may cause you to conclude that a certain sin is not to be built upon a Controverted Doctrine Till Augustines time it is hard to find any antient Writers that clearly asserted the certain perseverance of any at all Augustine and Prosper maintain the certain perseverance of all the Elect but deny the certain perseverance of all that are Regenerated Justified or Sanctified For they thought that more were Regenerate and Justified than were Elect of whom some stood even all the Elect and the rest fell away So that I confess I never read one antient Father or Christian Writer that ever maintained the certainty of the perseverance of all the Justified of many hundred if not a thousand years after Christ And a Doctrine that to the Church was so long unknown hath not that certainty or that necessity as to encourage you to any presumption or security The Churches were saved many hundred years without believing it § 5. 2. The Doctrine of Perseverance is against security because it uniteth together the End and the Means For they that teach that the Justified shall never totally fall from Grace do also teach that they shall never totally fall into security or into any reigning sin For this is to fall away from Grace And they teach that they shall never totally fall from the use of the necessary means of their preservation nor from the cautelous avoiding of the danger of their souls God doth not simply Decree that you shall persevere but that you shall be kept in perseverance by the fear of your danger and the careful use of means and that you shall persevere in these as well as in other graces Therefore if you fall to security and sin you fall away from grace and shew that God never decreed or promised that you should never fall away § 6. 3. Consider how far many have gone that have fallen away The instances of our times are much higher than any I can name to you out of History Men that have seemed to walk humbly and holily fearing all sin blameless in their lives zealous in Religion twenty or thirty years together have fallen to deny the truth or certainty of the Scriptures the Godhead of Christ if not Christianity it self And many that have not quite fallen away have yet fallen into such grievous sins as make them a terrible warning to us all to take heed of presumption and carnal security § 7. 4. Grace is not in the nature of it a thing that cannot perish or be lost For 1. It is a separable quality 2. Adam did lose it 3. We lose a great degree of it too oft And the remaining degrees are of the same nature It is not only possible in it self to lose it but too easie and not possible without co-operating grace to keep it § 8. 5. Grace is not Natural to us To love our ease and honour and friends is natural but to love Christ and his holy wayes and servants is not Natural to us Indeed when we do it it is Nature as not lapsed and Nature as restored incline the soul to the Love of God but not Nature as corrupâ— nor is it an act performed per 〈…〉 â— â— nâ—â—â—â—ssario our Natural powers that do it But not as Naturally disposed to it but as inclined by the Cure of supernatural Grace Eating and drinking and sleeping we forget not because Nature it self remembreth us of them but Learning and acquired habits may be lost if not very deeply radicated And it s commonly concluded as to the Nature of them that Habitus infusi habent se ad modum acquisitorum Infused Habits are like to acquired ones § 9. 6. Grace is as it were a stranger or new-comer in us It hath been there but a little while And therefore we are but raw and too unacquainted with the right usage and improvement of it and are the apter to â—orget our duty or to neglect it or ignorantly to do that which tendeth to its destruction § 10. 7. Grace dwelleth in a heart which
man may be made a Priest that hath sinned mortally after baptism and Si is qui taâ— in Episcopaâ—â—â—el Presbyteriâ— positus mortale pâ—â—catâ—â— aâ—â—â—â—od admâ—â—â—â—rit noâ— debâ—t oâ—â—â—â—rre pâ—â—es Domino quaâ—to magis patienter retrahat se ab hoc non tam honore quam onere aliorum locum qui digni sunt non ambiat occupaâ—e Qui cuim in erudiendiâ— instituendis ad virtutem populis praeest â—ecesse est ut in omnibus sanctus sit in nullo reprehensibilis habeatur Qui enim aliquem de peccato arguit ipse a peccâ—o debet esse immuniâ— Auct Bib. Paâ— To. 2. p. Sâ— If there were somewhat too much strictness in the ancient exclusion of them that heynously sinnâ—d after Baptism from the Priesthood let not us be as much too loose God of this world having blinded their minds It must be no small matter that must satisâ—ie a serious Christian to cast his soul upon any hurtful or dangerous disadvantage Though Daniel and his company may live well on pulse yea and Ezekiel upon bread baked with dung when God will have it so yet no wise man will choose such a dyet especially if his diseases require the exactest dyet or his weakness the most restorative and all toâ— little which alas is the common case Yet this caution you must here take with you 1. That you pretend not your own Benefit to the common loss or hurt of others 2. And that you consider as well where you may do most good as where you may get most For the way of greatest service is the way of Greatest gain § 12. Direct 5. Understand what sort and measure of Belief it is that you owe to your Teachers that Direct 5. so your incredulity hinder not your faith in Christ nor your overmuch credulity betray you not to heresie nor make you the servants of men contrary to Matth. 23. 8 9 10. Ephes. 4. 13. 2 Cor. 1. 24. Act. 20. 30. We see on one side how many poor souls are cheated into Schism and dangerous â—rrours by forsaking their â—eachers and refusing their necessary help and all upon this pretence that they must not make men the Lords of their faith nor pin their faith on the Ministers sleeve nor take their Religion upon trust And on the other side we see among the Papists and in every Sect what lamentable work is made by an overmuch credulity and belief of ambitious worldly factious The Order and Credit of Ministerial Teaching the doctrine of salvation proud and erroneous Guides That you may escape both these extreams you must observe the truth of these conclusions following which shew you what it is that your Teachers have to Reveal unto you and in what Order and how far the several particulars are or are not to be taken upon their words § 13. And first as a preparative it is presupposed 1. That you find your self ignorant and one that needeth a Teacher For iâ— you think you know all that you need to know already you are like a full bottle that will hold no more 2. It is presupposed that you take the man that you learn of to be wiser than your self and fit to teach you either because fame or other mens reports have told you so as the Woman Ioh. 4. drew the Samaritans to Christ or because his own Profession of skill doth make you think so as you will hearken to him that professeth to be able to Teach you any Art or Science Or else because your present hearing his discourse doth convince you of his Wisdom By one of these means you are brought to think that he is one that you may learn of and is fit for you to hear so that here is no need that first you take him to be infallible or that you know which is the true Church as the Papists say These are presupposed § 14. The Doctrines which he is to teach you are these and in this method to be taught 1. He 1. To know your self will teach you the natural knowledge of your self that being a man you are a Rational free agâ—nt made by another for his will and use and by him to be Ruled in order to your ultimate end being wholly his and at his dispose § 15. 2. He will next teach you that there is a God that made you and what he is and what 2. To know God and Holiness relation he standeth in to you and you to him as your Creatour your Owner your Ruler and your Benefactor and your End And what duty you owe him in these Relations to submit to him and resign your selves to him as his own to be obedient to all his Laws and to Love him and delight in him and this with all your heart and soul and might even to serve him with all the Powers of your soul and Body and with your estates and all his blessings § 16. 3. He will next teach you that this God hath made your souls immortal and that there is 3. To know â—â—â—â— Life to come a lite after this where everlasting Happiness or Mâ—sery will be your part and where the Great Rewards and Punishments are executed by the Judge oâ— all the World as men have behaved themselves in this present life That your End and happiness is not here but in the life to come and that this Life is thâ— way and time of preparation in which everlasting Happiness is won or lost § 17. Thus far he needeth no supernatural proof of what he saith but can prove it all to you from the light of nature And these things you are not primarily to receive of him as a Testifier by mâ—er Believing him but as a Teacher by Learning of him the Evidences by which you may by degrees come to know these things your selves § 18. Yet it is supposed that all along you give him so much credit as the difference between his Knowledge and yours doth require so far as it appeareth to you As you will hear a Physicion a Lawyer a Philosopher or any man with reverence while he discourseth of the matters of his own profession as confessing his judgement to be better than yours and therefore more suspecting your own apprehensions than his Not but that the Truth may compell you to discern it though you should come with no such reverence or respect to him but then you cast your self upon much disadvantage irrationally And this humane belief of him is but a medium to your Learning and so to the knowledge of the matter so that you do not stop and rest in his authority or credibility but only use it in order to your discovery of that evidence which you rest in which as a Teacher he acquaints you with § 19. These things being thus far revealed by natural light are usually at first apprehended by natural reason not so as presently to put or prove the soul in a state of saving grace but so as to awaken it
more to be regarded in many points which require experience than many of the younger sort that are yet more zealous and of quicker understanding and expression than the elder So those that we call the Fathers or Ancients were indeed in the younger ages of the Church and we that are faln into the later and more exprienced age have all the helps of the wisdom and experience of the Ages that were before us And therefore God will require at our hands an account of these greater talents which we have received As it were unexcusable now in a Physicion that hath the help of such Voluminous institutions observations and experiments of former ages to know no more than those former times that had no such helps so would it be as unexcusable for this present age of the Church to be no wiser than those former ages When Aquinas Scotus Ariminensis and other Schoolmen delivered the Doctrine of Christianity to the Church in a dress so far different from Ignatius Irenaeus Tertullian Cyprian or any of those former ages they certainly thought that they had attained to a far greater excellency and accurateness in the Knowledge of Divinity than those their Ancestors had attained And whatever they swear in the Trent Oâ—th of not expounding any Scripture otherwise than the Fathers do I doubt not but Suarez and Vasquez and others of their modern Schoolmen thought so too and would have been loth to be accounted wise in the measure only of those ancients The later and elder ages of the Church have had abundant experience e. g. of the tendâ—ncy of Ambition and Papal aspirings and usurpations of the mischiefs of composing and imposing the Popish Missals and numerous ceremonies and of their implicite faith and their concealment of the Scriptures from the Vulgar and many such points And if we are never the wiser for all this experience we are the more unexcusable and may be judged as the neglâ—cters of our greater helps § 32. Direct 21. In Controversies which depend most upon skill in the Languages Philosophy or other Direct 21. parts of common learning prefer the judgement of a few that are the most Learned in those matters before the judgement of the most ancient or the most Godly or of the greatest numbers even whole Churches that are unlearned In this case neither Numbers nor Antiquity nor Godliness will serve turn but as one clear eye will see further then ten thousand that are purblind so one Hierome or Origen may judge better of a translation or the Grammatical sense of a Text than a hundred of the other Fathers could One man that understandeth a Language is fitter to judge of it than a whole Nation that understand it not One Philosopher is fitter to judge of a philosophical question than a thousand illiterate persons Every man is most to be regarded in the matters which he is best acquainted with § 33. Direct 22. In Controversies of great difficulty where Divines themselves are disagreed and a Direct 22. clear and piercing wit is necessary regard more the judgement of a few acute judicious well studied Divines that are well verst in those Controversies than of a multitude of dull and common wits that think to carry it by the reputation of their number It is too certainly attested by experience that Judicious Satis triumphâ—t Vâ—ritas si apud paucos bonosque accepta nec indoles ejus est placere multis Lipsius men are very few and that the multitude of the injudicious that have not wit enough to underderstand them nor humility enough to confess it and to learn of them have yet pride and arrogoncy enough to contradict them and often malice enough to vilifie them In such differences it is not only a sign of a wise man to be content with the approbation of a few but also to have but few approvers except where the injudicious do implicitly believe those few that are judicious Commonly a very few that are wiser than the multitude are fain to stand by and compassionate not only the World but the Church and see the disease and the easie remedy and all in vain while they are but neglected or despised by the rest that will not be made wiser by them § 34. Direct 23. In all contentions hold close to that which all sides are agreed in There is so Direct 23. much agreed on even between the Papists and the Protestants as would certainly save them all if all of them did sincerely believe Love and Practise it For they all confess that the whole Canonical Scripture is true Therefore be more studious sincerely to hold and improve those common truths which they all profess than to oppose the particular opinions of any further than that common truth requireth it See that the Articles of the common Creed which all profess be unfeignedly believed by you and that the Petitions in the Lords Prayer be sincerâ—ly and earnestly put up to God and that the ten Commandments be heartily and entirely obeyed and then no errour or difference will be damning to you § 35. Direct 24. Take nothing as necessary to salvation in point of faith nor as universally necessary Direct 24. in point of practice which the universal Church in every age since Christ did not receive For if any thing be necessary to salvation which the Church received not in every age then the Church it self of that age could not be saved and then the Church was indeed no Church For Christ is the Saviour of his body But certainly Christ had in every age a Church of saved-ones who openly professed all that was of common necessity to salvation An opinion may be true which accuseth the generality in the Church of some errour or imperfection For it is most certain that the Church on Earth is composed of none that have the use of reason but erring and imperfect members But no opinion can be true that condemneth all the Church to Hell in any one age For the Head and Husband of the Church must be her Judge § 36. Direct 25. Be not born down by the censoriousness of any to overrun your own understanding Direct 25. and the truth and to comply with them in their errours and extreams But hold to the truth Thus Peter and Barâ—abas erred Gal. 2. and keep your station Jer. 15. 19. Let them return unto thee but return not thou unto them It is too usual for the younger and more injudicious sort of Christians to be most zealous about some little Opinions Ceremonies and Words and to censure all those that differ from them with such bitter censures as ungodly flashearted c. that hereupon some of the more judicious forsake the truth and simplicity of the Gospel to comply with these censurers meerly to escape them or as some say that they may keep an interest in them to do them good But such carnal compliances though with the most zealous men will bring
their schism to the height as far as arrogance can aspire they not only refuse communion with those from whom they separate but condemn them as no Pastors no Churches no Christians that are not subject to them in this their Usurpation And they that are but about the third or fourth part at most of the Christian world do condemn the Body of Christ to Hell even all the rest because they are not Subjects of the Pope § 25. Besides all this criminal odious Schism of Imposers or Separaters there is a degree of Schism or unjust Division which may be the infirmity of a good and peaceable person As if a humble tender Christian should mistakingly think it unlawful to do some action that is imposed upon all that will hold communion with that particular Church such as Paul speaketh of Rom. 14. if they had been imposed And if he suspecting his own understanding do use all means to know the truth and yet still continueth in his mistake If this Christian do forbear all reviling of his superiours and censuring those that differ from him and drawing others to his opinion but yet dare not joyn with the Church in that which he taketh to be a sin this is a sinful sort of withdrawing because it is upon mistake But yet it is but a pardonable infirmity consistent with integrity and the favour of God § 26. IV. In these cases following Separation is our duty and not a sin 1. The Churches separation What Separation is a duty from the Unbelieving world is a necessary duty For what is a Church but a society dedicated or sanctified to God by separation from the rest of the world 2 Cor. 6. 17 18. Wherefore come out from among them and be ye separate saith the Lord and touch not the unclean thing and I will receive 1 Pet. 2. 5 7 9. Leg. Gâ—otâ—um de Imp. pag. 230 231. you and will be a Father unto you and ye shall be my Sons and Daughters saith the Lord Almighty The Church is a Holy people and therefore a separated people § 27. 2. If a Church apostatize and forsake the faith or if they turn notoriously Heretical denying openly any one Essential Article of the faith and this not only by an undiscerned consequence but directly in express terms or sense it is our duty to deny to hold communion with such Apostates or Hereticks For it is their separating from Christ that is the sinful separation and maketh it necessary to us to separate from them But this is no excuse to any Church or person that shall falsly accuse any other Church or person of Heresie because of some forced or disowned consequences of his Doctrine and then separate from them when they have thus injured them by their calumnies or censures § 28. We are not bound to own that as a Church which maketh not a visible Profession of faith and holiness that is If the Pastors and a sufficient number of the flock make not this Profession For as the Pastor and flock are the constituent parts of the Church politically considered so Profession of faith and holiness is the essential qualification of the members If either Pastors or people want this profession it is no Political Church But if the people profess true Religion and have no Pastors it is a community of believers or a Church unorganized and as such to be acknowledged § 29. 4. If any shall unlawfully constitute a new Political Church-form by making new constitutive Officers to be its Visible Head which Christ never appointed we are not to hold communion with the Church in its devised form or Polity though we may hold Communion with the members of it considered as Christians and members of the Universal Church Mark well that I do not say that every new devised Officer disobligeth us from such communion but such as I describe which I shall sullyer open § 30. Quest. May not men place new Officers in the Church and new forms of Government which Quest. Whether any form of Church-Government be of Divine appointment and whether man may appoint any other God never instituted or is there any form and Officers of Divine institution Answ. Though I answered this before I shall here briefly answer it again 1. There are some sorts of Officers that are essential to the Polity or Church-form and some that are only needful to the well-being of it and some that are only Accidental 2. There is a Church-form of Gods own institution and there is a superadded humane Polity or form There are two sort of Churches or Church-forms of Gods own institution The first is the Universal Church considered Politically as Headed by Jesus Christ This is so of Divine appointment as that it is an Article of our Creed Here if any man devise and superinduce another Head of the Universal Church which God never appointed though he pretend to hold his Soveraignty from Christ and under him it is Treason against the soveraignty of Christ as setting up an Universal Government or Soveraign in his Church without his authority and consent Thus the Pope is the Usurping Head of a Rebellion against Christ and in that sense by Protestants called Antichrist And he is guilty of the Rebellion that subscribeth to or owneth his Usurpation or sweareth to him as his Governour though he promise to obey him but in licitis honestis Because it is not lawful or honest to consent to a Usurpers Government If a Usurper should trayterously without the Kings consent proclaim himself Vice-King of Ireland or Scotland and falsly say that he hath the Kings Authority when the King disclaimeth him he that should voluntarily swear obedience to him in things lawful and honest doth voluntarily own his Usurpation and Treason And it s not the lawfulness and honesty of the matter which will warrant us to own the Usurpation of the Commander And Secondly There is another subordinate Church-form of Christs institution that is Leg. Grotium de Imp. p. 223. 226. Particular Churches consisting of Pastors and people conjoyned for personal Communion in Gods Worship These are to the Universal Church as particular Corporations are to a Kingdom even such Parts of it as have a distinct subordinate Polity of their own It is no City or Corporation if they have not their Mayors Bâ—ilists or other Chief Officers subject to the King as Governours of the people under him And it is no particular Church in a Political sense but only a Community if they have not their Pastors to be under Christ their spiritual Conductors in the matters of salvation as there is no School which is not constituted of Teacher and Schâ—lars That particular organized Political Churches are of Christs institution by his Spirit in the Apostles is undenyable Acts 14. 23. They ordained them Elders in every Church Tit. 1. 5. Ordain Elders in every City as I commanded thee Acts 20. 17. He sent to Ephesus and called the Elders
of the Church 28. Take heed to your selves and to all the flock over which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers to feed the Church of God So 1 Thess. 5. 12 13. Heb. 13. 7 17 24 c. 1 Cor. 7. 23. If the whole Church be come together into one place c. Thus far it is no question but Church-forms and Government is of Divine appointment And man can no more alter this or set up such other without Gods consent than a subject can alter or make Corporations without the Kings consent 2. But besides these two sorts of Divine institution there are other allowable associations which some call Churches God hath required these particular Churches to hold such Communion as they are capable of for promoting the common Ends of Christianity And Prudence is left to determine of the Times and Places and manner of their Pastors Assemblies Councils and Correspondencies according to Gods general Rules If any will call these Councils or the Associations engaged for special correspondencies by the name of Churches I will not trouble any with a strife about the Name In this case so far as men have power to make that Association or Combination which they call a Church so also if they make Officers suited to its ends not encroaching upon the Churches or Officers of Christs own institution I am none of those that will contend against them Nor will this allow us to deny Communion with them 3. And in those Churches which Christ himself hath instituted there are Officers that make but for the Integrity and not for the Political Essence of the Church As Deacons and all Pastors or Presbyters more than One. For it is not essential to it to have any Deacons or many Pastors As to this sort of Officers Christ hath appointed them and it is not in mans power to alter his institution nor to set up any such like in co-ordination with these But yet if they should do so as long as the true Essentials of the Church remain I am not to deny communion with that Church so I own not this corruption 4. But there are also as circumstantial employments about Gods Worship so Officers to do those employments which men may lawfully institute As Clerks Church-wardens Door-keepers Ringers c. It is not the adding of these that is any sin By this time you may see plainly both how far Churches Officers and Church-Government is jure Divino and how far man may or may not add or alter and what I meant in my Proposition viz. That if men introduce a new Universal Head to the Church Catholick or a new Head to particular Churches instead of that of Christs institution this is in sensu Politico to make new species of Churches and destroy those that Christ hath instituted for the pars gubernans and pars gubernata are the essential Constituents of a Church And with such a Church as such in specie I must have no communion which is our case with the Papal Church though with the Material parts of that Church as members of Christ I may hold communion still § 30. 5. If particular members are guilty of obstinate impenitency in true Heresie or ungodliness or any scandalous crime the Church may and must remove such from her communion For it is the Communion of Saints And the offender is the Cause of this separation § 31. 6. If a whole Church be guilty of some notorious scandalous sin and refuse with obstinacy But not denying her to be a Church unless she cast off some essential part But so disowning her as in a Thess. 3. to Repent and Reform when admonished by neighbour Churches or if that Church do thus defend such a sin in any of her members so as openly to own it other Churches may refuse communion with her till she Repent and be Reformed Or if they see cause to hold communion with her in other respects yet in this they must have none § 32. 7. If any Church will admit none to her personal Communion but those that will take some false Oath or subscribe any untruth or tell a lye though that Church do think it to be true as the Trent Oath which their Priests all swear it is not lawful to do any such unlawful thing to obtain Where any Church retaining the purity of doctrine doth require the ownâ—ng of and conforming to any unlawful or suspected practice men may lawfully deny conformity to and communion with that Church in such things without incurring the guilt of Shism Mr. Stilliâ—â—fleet Ireâ—ic p. 11â— communion with that Church And he that refuseth in this case to commit this sin is no way guilty of the separation but is commendable for being true to God And though the case may be sad to be deprived of the liberty of publick Worship and the benefits of publick communion with that Church yet sin is worse and * 1 Sam. 15. 22. Prov. 15. 8. obedience is better than Sacrifice God will not be served with sin nor accept the Sacrifice of a disobedient fool Eccles. 5. 1 2. Nor must we lye to glorifie him nor do evil that good may come by it Just is the damnation of such servers of God Rom. 1. 7 8. All publick Worship is rather to be omitted than any one sin committed to enjoy it Though neither should be done where it is possible to do better It is not so unwise to think to feed a man with Poysons as to think to serve God acceptably by sin § 33. 8. If any one Church would ambitiously Usurp a Governing power over others as Rome doth over the world it is no unwarrantable separation to refuse the Government of that Usurping Church We may hold communion with them as Christians and yet refuse to be their subjects And therefore it is a proud and ignorant complaint of the Church of Rome that the Protestants separate from them as to Communion because they will not take them for their Governours § 34. 9. If any by violence will banish or cast out the true Bishops or Pastors of the Church and set up Usurpers in their stead as in the Arrians persecution it was commonly done it is no culpable separation but laudable and a duty for the people to own their Relation to their true Pastors and deny communion with the Usurpers as the people of the Eastern Churches did commonly refuse communion with the intruding Bishops even to the Death telling the Civil Rulers that they had Bishops of their own to whom they would adhere § 35. 10 If a true Church will obstinately deny her members the use of any one Ordinance of God as Preaching or Reading Scripture or Prayer or Praise or Discipline while it retaineth all the rest though we may not separate from this Church as no Church which yet in the case of total rejection of Prayer or Praise is very questionable at least yet if we have opportunity we must remove our local communion
pretend to the greatest austerities do grow up to such a measure of sowre pride and uncharitable contempt of others and especially of all superiours and hellish railing against the holiest Ministers and people as we have scarce known or ever read of § 63. 7. These Divisions fill the Church with sin even with sins of a most odious nature They introduce a swarm of errors while it becomes the Mode for every one to have a doctrine of his own and to have something to say in Religion which may make him notable Acts 20. 30. Of your own selves shall men arise speaking perverse things to draw away Disciples after them They cherish pride and malice and belying others the three great sins of the Devil as naturally as dead flesh breedeth Worms They destroy impartial Christian Love as naturally as bleeding doth consume our vital heat and moisture What wickedness is it that they will not cherish In a word the Scripture telleth us The Greek word is Zeal that where envying and strife is there is confusion and every evil work And is not this a lamentable way of Reformation of some imaginary or lesser evils § 64. 8. These Divisions are the grief of honest spectators and cause the sorrows of those that are guilty of them They make all their duties uneasie to them and turn their Religion into a bitter unpleasant wrangling toil Like Oxâ—n in the yoke that strive against each other when they should draw in order and equality What a grievous life is it to Husband and Wife or any in the family if they live in discord So is it to the members of the Church When once men take the Kingdom of God to consist of meats or drinks or ceremonies which consisteth in Righteousness and Peace and Rom. 14. 17. 1 Tim. 1. 4. Joy in the Holy Ghost and turn to strive about unedifying questions they turn from all the sweetness of Religion § 65. 9. Sects and Divisions lead directly to Apostacy from the faith Nothing is more in the design of Satan than to confound men so with variety of Religions that they may think there is no certainty in any that so both the ignorant spectators may think all Religion is but fancy and deceit and the contenders themselves wheel about from Sect to Sect till they come to the point where they first set out and to be at last deliberately of no Religion who at first were of none for want of deliberation And it is no small success that Satan hath had by this temptatation § 66. 10. The Divisions of Christians do oft proceed to shake States and Kingdoms having a â—amentable influence upon the Civil peace And this stirreth up Princes jealousies against them and to the use of those severities which the suffering party takes for persecution yea and Turks and all Princes that are enemies to Reformation and Holiness do justifie themselves in their cruellest persecutions when they see the Divisions of Christians and the troubles of States that have followed thereupon If Christians and Protestants in special did live in that Unity Peace and Order as their Lord and Ruler requireth them to do the consciences of persecuters would even worry and torment them and make their lives a Hell on earth for their cruelty against so excellent a sort of men But now when they see them all in confusions and see the troubles that follow hereupon and hear them reviling one another they think they may destroy them as the troublers of the earth and their consciences scarce accuse them for it § 67. IV. It is necessary also for your true understanding the malignity of this sin that you The Aggravations of Schism take notice of the Aggravations of it especially as to us 1. It is a sin against so many and clear and vehement words of the Holy Ghost which I have partly before recited that it is therefore utterly without excuse Whoredoms and Treasons and Perjury are not oftner forbidden in the Gospel than this § 68. 2. It is contrary to the very design of Christ in our Redemption which was to Reconcile us all to God and unite and center us all in him To gather together in one the Children of God that are scattered abroad John 11. 52. To gather together in one all things in Christ Ephes. 1. 10. To make in himself of twain one new man so making peace Ephes. 2. 15. And shall we joyn with Satan the divider and destroyer against Christ the Reconciler in the very design of his Redemption § 69. 3. It is contrary to the design of the Spirit of Grace and contrary to the very nature of Christianity it self By one Spirit we are all baptized into one body and have all been made to drink into one Spirit 1 Cor. 12 13. As there is one Body and one Spirit so it is our charge to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace Ephes. 4. 3 4. The new nature of Christians doth consist in Love and desireth the Communion of Saints as such And therefore the command of this special Love is called the New Commandment John 17. 21. 13. 34. 15. 12 17. And they are said to be taught of God to love one another 1 Thess. 4 9. As self-preservation is the chief principle in the Natural body which causeth it to abhorr the wounding or amputation of its members and to avoid division as destruction except when a gangrened member must be cut off for the saving of the body so it is also with the mystical body of Christ. He is senseless and graceless that abhorreth not Church-wounds § 70. 4. These Divisions are sins against the nearest bonds of our high Relations to each other We are Brethren and should there be any strife among us Gen. 13. 8. We are all the children of Rom. 8. 16. 9. 26. God by faith in Christ Iesus Gal. 3. 26. We are the fellow-members of the body of Christ and 1 John 5. 2. should we tear his body and separate his members and cut his flesh and break his bones Eph. 5. 23. 30. For as the Body is one and hath many members and all the members of that one body being many are one body so also is Christ 1 Cor. 12. 12. As we have many members in one body so we being many are one body in Christ and every one members one of another Rom. 12. 4 5. He that woundeth or dismembreth your own bodies shall scarce be taken for your friend And are you Christs friends when you dismember or wound his body Is it lovely to see the children or servants Quicquid ad multitudinem vergit antipatâ—â—am continet quanto magis multitudo augetur tanto â—â—â—â—pathia quicquid vero ad unitatem tendit sympathiam habet quanto magis ad unitatem accedit tanto puâ—â—ori sympathia augetur Paul Scaliâ—er Epist. Cath. l. 3. p. 176. in your family together by the ears Is Civil Wars for
our deliverance from the Powder-plot I know not why it should be thought unlawful to do the like in this case also Provided 1. That it be not terminated in the honour of a Saint but of the God of Saints for giving so great a mercy to his Church 2. That it be not to honour a Saint meerly as a Saint but to some extraordinary eminent Saints Otherwise all that go to Heaven must have Festivals kept in remembrance of them and so we might have a million for a day 3. That it be not made equal with the Lords Day but kept in such a subordination to that Day as the Life or death of Saints is of inferiour and subordinate respect to the work of Christ in mans Redemption 4. And if it be kept in a spiritual manner to invite men to imitate the Holiness of the Saints and the constancy of the Martyrs and not to encourage sensuality and sloth CHAP. XI Directions about our Communion with the Holy Angels § 1. Direct 1. BE satisfied in knowing so much of Angels as God in Nature and Scripture Direct 1. hath revealed but presume not to enquire further much less to determine of unrevealed things That there are Angels and that they are holy Spirits is past dispute But what number they are and of how many worlds and of what orders and different dignities and degrees and when they were created and what locality belongeth to them and how far they excell or differ from the souls of men these and many other such unnecessary questions neither Nature nor Scripture will teach us how infallibly to resolve Almost all the Hereticks in the first ages of the Church did make their doctrines of Angels the first and chief part of their Heresies arrogantly intruding into unrevealed things and boasting of their acquaintance with the orders and inhabitants of the higher worlds These being risen in the Apostles dayes occasioned Paul to say Col. 2. 18. Let no man beguile you of your reward in a voluntary humility and worshipping of Angels intruding into those things which he hath not seen vainly puft up by his fleshly mind Direct 2. § 2. Direct 2. Understand so much of the Ministry of Angels as God hath revealed and so far take notice of your communion with them but affect not any other sort of communion Angelorum vocabulum nomen est officii non naturae nam sancti illi coelestis patriae spiritus semper sunt spiritus sed semper vocari Angeli non possunt Greâ—or I shall here shew how much of the Ministry of Angels is revealed to us in Scripture § 3. 1. It is part of the appointed work of Angels to be Ministring Spirits for the heirs of salvation Dan. 4. 13. Gen. 32. 1 2. Exod. 32. 2. Dan. 6. 22. Acts 12. 7 11. 1 King 19. 5 â— Heb. 1. 14. Not Ministers or Servants of the godly but Ministers of God for the godly As the Shepherd is not a servant of the sheep but for the sheep It is not an accidental or occasional work which they do extraordinarily but it is their undertaken Office to which they are sent forth And this their Ministry is about the ordinary concernments of our lives and not only about some great or unusual cases or exigents Psal. 34. 6 7. Psal. 91. 11 12. § 4. 2. It is not some but All the Angels that are appointed by God to this Ministration Heb. 1. 1 4. Are they not all ministring Spirits sent forth c. Mark here that if you enquire whether God have any higher Spirits that are not imployed in so low an Office but govern these Angels or if you enquire whether only this world be the Angels charge or whether they have many other worlds also of Viators to take care of neither Nature nor Scripture doth give you the determination of any of these questions and therefore you must leave them as unrevealed things with abundance more with which the old Hereticks and the Popish Schoolmen have diverted mens minds from plain and necessary things But that all the Angels minister for us is the express words of Scripture § 5. 3. The work of this Office is not left promiscuously among them but several Angels have their Luke 1. 13. 18. 19 26 28. 2. 10 13 21. Actâ— 10. 7. 22. 12. 8 9. Dan. 3 28. 6. 22. Gen. 24. 40. several works and charge Therefore Scripture telleth us of some sent of one message and some on an other And tells us that the meanest of Christs members on earth have their Angels before God in Heaven Matth. 18. 10. I say unto you that in Heaven their Angels do alwayes behold the face of my Father which is in Heaven Whether each true Believer hath one or more Angels and whether one Angel look to more than one Believer are questions which God hath not resolved us of either in Nature or Scripture But that each true Christian hath his Angel is here asserted by our Lord. § 6. 4. In this office of Ministration they are servants of Christ as the Head of the Church and the 1 Peâ— 3. 22. Matth. 26. 53. Mediator between God and man to promote the ends of his superiour office in mans Redemption Mat. 28. 18. All power is given to me in Heaven and Earth John 13. 3. Eph. 1. 20 21 22. And set him at his right hand in the celestials far above all principality and power and might and dominion and every name that is named not only in this world but also in that which is to come and hath put all things under his feet and gave him to be head over all things to the Church Rev. 23. 16. I Iesus have sent Rev. 1. 1. mine Angel to testifie unto you these things in the Churches Whether the Angels were appointed about the service of Adam in innocency or only began their Office with Christ the Mediator as his Ministers is a thing that God hath not revealed But that they serve under Christ for his Church is plain § 7. 5. This care of the Angels for us is exercised throughout our lives for the saving of us from 2 Kings 6. 17. all our dangers and delivering us out of all our troubles Psal. 34. 6 7. This poor man cryed and the Lord heard him and saved him out of all his troubles the Angel of the Lord encampeth about them that fear him and delivereth them Psal. 91. 11 12. For he shall give his Angels charge over thee to keep thee in all thy wayes They shall bear thee up in their hand lest thou dash thy foot against a stone In all our wayes that are good and in every step we tread we have the care and Ministry of tutelar Angels They are our ordinary defence and guard § 8. 6. In all this Ministry they perfectly obey the Will of God and do nothing but by his command Dan. 4. 35. Psal. 103. 10. Zech. 1. 8 10.
inconsistent with Christianity or the Essentials of the Ministry we may well presume of many of them they would not receive it Therefore as an error which consequentially contradicteth some essential article of faith nullifieth not his Christianity who first and fastest holdeth the faith and would cast away the error if he saw the contradiction as Davenant Morton and Hall have shewed Epist. Conciliat So is it to be said as to practical error in the present case They are their grievous errors and sins but for ought I see do not nullifie their office to the Church As a Mass-Priest he is no Minister of Christ As an Anabaptist is not as a Rebaptizer nor a Separatist as a Separater nor an Antinomian or any erroneous person as a Preacher of that error But as a Christian Pastor ordained to preach the Gospel baptize administer the Lords Supper pray praise God guide the Church he may be The same answer serveth to the Objection as it extendeth to the erroneous Doctrines which they preach which are but by Consequence against the Essentials of Religion 2. But it is a greater doubt Whether any power of the Ministry can be conveyed by Antichrist or from him And whether God will own any of Antichrists administrations Therefore seeing they profess themselves to have no office but what they receive from the Pope and Christ disowning his usurpation the same man cannot be the Minister of Christ and Antichrist as the same man cannot be an officer in the Kings Army and his Enemies But this will have the same solution as the former If this Antichrist were the open professed enemy to Christ then all this were true Because their corrupt additions would not by dark consequences but so directly contain the denyal of Christianity or the true Ministry that it were not possible to hold both But as our Divines commonly note Antichrist is to sit in the Temple of God and the Popes Treason is under pretence of the greatest service and friendship to Christ makeing himself his Vicar General without his Commission So that they that receive power from him do think him to be Christs Vicar indeed and so renounce not Christ but profess their first and chief relation to be to him and dependance on him and that they would have nothing to do with the Pope if they knew him to be against Christ. And some of them write that the Power or Office is immediately from Christ and that the Pope Ordainers and Electors do but design the person that shall receive it Because else they know not what to say of the Election and Consecration of the Pope himself who hath no superiour And the Spanish Bishops in the Council of Trent held so close to this that the rest were fain to leave it undetermined so that it is no part of their Religion but a doubtful opinion Whether the power of Bishops be derived from the Pope though they be Governed by him But as to the other the case seemeth like this If a subject in Ireland usurp the Lieutenancy and tell all the people that he hath the Kings Commission to be his Lieutenant and command all to submit to him and receive their places from him and obey him And the King declareth him a Traytor antecedently only by the description of his Laws and maketh it the duty of the subjects to renounce him Those now that know the Kings will and yet adhere to the Usurper though they know that the King is against it are Traytors with him But those from whom he keepeth the knowledge of the Laws and who for want of full information believe him to be really the Kings Lieutenant and specially living where all believe it but yet would renounce him if they knew that he had not the Kings Commission These are the Kings subjects though in ignorance they obey an Usurper And on this account it is that A. Bishop Usher concluded that An ignorant Papist might be saved but the Learned hardly But when the Learned through the disadvantages of their Education are under the same ignorance being Learned but on one side to their greater seduction the case may be the same The same man therefore may receive an Office from Christ who yet ignorantly submitteth to the Pope and receiveth corrupt additions from him But suppose I be mistaken in all this yet to come to the second Question II. Whether Baptism and Ordination given by them be Nullities I answer no on a further account 1. Because that the Ministry which is a nullity to the receiver that is God will punish him Matâ—h 7. 23 24 2â— as an Usurper may yet perform those Ministerial Acts which are no Nullities to the Church Else Phil. 1. 15 16 17. how confused a case would all Churches be in For it is hard ever to know whether Ministers have all things essential to their Office Suppose a man be ignorant or an Heretick against some essential Mark 9. 40. Article of faith or suppose that he feigned Orders of Ordination when he had none or that he was ordained by such as really had no power to do it or suppose he pretended the consent of the majority of the people when really the greater part were for another If all thâ—s be unknown his Baptizing and other administrations are not thereby made Nullities to the Church though they be sins in him The Reason is because that the Church shall not suffer nor lose her right for another mans sin When the fault is not theirs the loss and punishment shall not be theirs He that is found in possession of the place performeth valid administration to them that know not his usurpation and are not guilty of it Otherwise we should never have done Re-baptizing nor know easily when we receive any valid administrations while we are so disagreed about the Necessaries of the Office and Call and when it is so hard in all things to judge of the Call of all other men 2. And as the Papists say that a private man or woman may baptize in extremity so many Learned Protestants think that though a private mans Baptism be a sin yet it is no nullity though he were known to be no Minister And what is said of Baptism to avoid tediousness you may suppose said of Ordination which will carry the first case far as to the Validity of the Ministry received by Papists Ordination as well as of Baptism and Visible Christianity received by them For my part God used Parsons Book of Resolution corrected so much to my good and I have known so many eminent Christians and some Ministers converted by it that I am glad that I hear none make a controversie of it whether the conversion faith or Love to God be valid which we receive by the Books or means of any Papist Quest. 4. Whether it be necessary to believe that the Pope is the Antichrist IT is one question Whether he be Antichrist and another Whether it be necessary
to believe it To the first I say 1. There are many Antichrists And we must remove the ambiguity of the name before we can resolve the question If by Antichrist be meant One that usurpeth the Office of a Universal Vicar of Christ and Constitutive and Governing Head of the whole Visible Church and hereby layeth the ground of Schisms and Contentions and Bloodshed in the world and would rob Christ of all his members who are not of the Popes Kingdom and that formeth a multifarious Ministry for this service and corrupteth much of the Doctrine Worship and Discipline of the Church in this sense no doubt but the Pope is Antichrist But if by Antichrist be meant him particularly described in the Apocalyps and Thessalonians then the controversie de re is about the exposition of those dark Prophecies Of which I can say no more but this 1. That if the Pope be not He he had ill luck to be so like him 2. That Dr. Moors Moral Arguments and Bishop Downhams and many others expository arguments are such as I cannot answer 3. But yet my skill is not so great in interpreting those obscure Prophecies as that I can say I am sure that it is the Pope they speak of and that Lyra learned Zanchy and others that think it is Mahomet or others that otherwise interpret them were mistaken II. But to the second Question I more boldly say 1. That every one that indeed knoweth this to be the sense of those Texts is bound to believe it 2. But that God who hath not made it of necessity to salvation to understand many hundred plainer Texts nor absolutely to understand more than the Articles and fundamentals of our Religion hath much less made it necessary to salvation to understand the darkest Prophecies 3. And that as the suspicion should make all Christians cautelous what they receive from Rome so the obscurity should make all Christians take heed that they draw from it no consequences destructive to Love or order or any truth or Christian duty And this is the advice I give to all Quest. 5. Whether we must hold that a Papist may be saved THis question may be resolved easily from what is said before 1. A Papist as a Papist that is by Popery will never be saved no more than a mans life by a Leprosie 2. If a Papist be saved he must be saved against and from Popery either by turning from the opinion Viâ— Hâ—â— Eâ—â—l Rom. not est Christiana 〈◊〉 A Papist cannot go beyond a Reprobate and then he is no Papist or by preserving his heart from the power of his own opinions And the same we may say of every error and sin He that is saved must be saved from it at least from the Power of it on the heart and from the guilt of it by forgiveness 3. Every one that is a true sincere Christian in Faith Love and true Obedience shall be saved what error soever he hold that doth consist with these 4. As many Antinomians and other erroneous persons do hold things which by consequence subvert Christianity and yet not seeing the inconsistence do hold Christianity first and faster in heart and sincere practice and would renounce their error if they saw the inconsistence so is it with many Papists And that which they hold first and fastest and practically doth save them from the power operations and poyson of their own opinions As an Antidote or the strength of nature may save a man from a small quantity of poyson 5. Moreover we have cause to judge that there are millions among the Papists corrupted with many of their lessor errors who yet hold not their greater that believe not that none are Christians but the Popes subjects and that Christs Kingdom and the Popes are of the same extent or that he can remit mens pains in another world or that the Bread and Wine are no Bread and Wine or that men merit of God in point of Commutative Justice or that we must adore or worship the Bread or yet the Cross or Image it self c. Or that consent to abundance of the Clergies tyrannical usurpations and abuses And so being not properly Papists may be saved if a Papist might not And we the less know how many or few among them are really of the Clergies Religion and mind because by terror they restrain men from manifesting their judgement and compell them to comply in outward things 6. But as fewer that have Leprosies or Plagues or that take poyson scape than of other men so we have great cause to believe that much fewer Papists are saved than such as escape their errors And therefore all that love their souls should avoid them 7. And the trick of the Priests who perswade people that theirs is the safest Religion because we say that a Papist may be saved and they say that a Protestant cannot is so palpable a cheat that it should rather deterr men from their way For God is Love and he that dwelleth in Love dwelleth in God And all men must know us to be Christs Disciples by loving one another And he that saith he loveth God and loveth not his Brother is a lyar And charity believeth all things credible That Religion is likest to be of God which is most charitable and not that which is most uncharitable and malicious and like to Satan To conclude no man shall be saved for being no Papist much less for being a Papist And all that are truly holy heavenly humble lovers of God and of those that are his servants shall be saved But how many such are among the Papists God only knoweth who is their Judge THe Questions whether the Greeks Abassines Nestorians Eutychians Antinomians Anabaptists c. may be saved must be all resolved as this of the Papists allowing for the different degrees of their corruption And therefore I must desire the Reader to take up with this answer for all and excuse me from unnecessary repetition As for such disputers as my Antagonist Mr. Iohnson who insisteth on that of Tit. 3. 10. A man that is an Heretick is condemned of himself when he hath proved that the word Heretick hath but one signification I will say as he doth Till then if he will try who shall be damned by bare equivocal words without the definition let him take his course for I will be none of his imitators Quest. 6. Whether those that are in the Church of Rome are bound to separate from it And whether it be lawful to go to their Mass or other Worship THese two also for brevity I joyn together I. To the first we must distinguish of separation 1. It is one thing to judge that evil which is evil and separate from it in Judgement 2. It is another thing to express this by forbearing to subscribe swear or otherwise approve that evil 3. And another thing to forbear communion with them in the Mass and Image Worship and gross or known
intercision as I have proved it hath had as to lawful Popes the whole Catholick Church is nullified and it is impossible to give it a new being but by a new Pope But the best is that by their Doctrine indeed they need not to plead for an uninterrupted succession either of Popes Bishops or Presbyters but that they think it a useful cheat to perplex all that are not their subjects For if the Papacy were extinct an hundred years Christ is still alive And seeing it is no matter ad esse who be the Electors or Consecrators so it be but made known conveniently to the people and Men only Elect and Receive the person and Christ only giveth the power by his stated Law what hindereth after the longest extinction or intercision but that some body or some sort of persons may choose a Pope again and so Christ make him Pope And thus the Catholick Church may dye and live again by a new Creation many times over And when the Pope hath a Resurrection after the longest intercision so may all the Bishops and Priests in the world because a new Pope can make new Bishops and new Bishops can make new Priests And where then is there any shew of necessity of an uninterrupted succession of any of them All that will follow is that the particular Churches dye till a Resurrection And so doth the whole Church on earth every time the Pope dyeth till another be made if he be the Constitutive Head 2. But as they say that Christ only Efficiently giveth the Power to the Pope so say we to the Bishops or Pastors of the Church For there is no act of Christs Collation to be proved but the Scripture Law or Grant And if that standing Law give Power to the Pope when men have but designed the Person the same Law will do the same to Bishops or Pastors For it establisheth their Office in the same sort Or rather in truth there is no word that giveth power to any such Officer as an Universal Head or Pope but the Law for the Pastoral Office is uncontrovertible And what the Spanish Bishops at Trent thought of the Divine Right of the Bishops Office I need not mention I shall therefore thus truly resolve the question 1. In all Ordinations and Elections man doth but first choose the Recipient person 2. And Ceremoniously and Ministerially Invest him in the Possession when God hath given him the power But the efficient Collation or Grant of the Power is done only by Christ by the Instrumentality of his Law or Institution As when the King by a Charter saith Whoever the City shall choose shall be their Mayor and have such and such power and be Invested in it by the Recorder or Steward Here the person elected receiveth all his Power from the King by his Charter which is a standing Efficient conveying it to the Capable Chosen person and not from the Choosers or Recorder only the last is as a servant to deliver possession So is it in this case 2. The regular way of entrance appointed by Christ to make a person capable is the said Election and Ordination And for order sake where that may be had the unordained are not to be received as Pastors 3. If any get Possession by false pretended Ordination or Mission and be Received by the Church I have before told you that he is a Pastor as to the Churches use and benefit though not to his own And so the Church is not extinct by every fraudulent usurpation or mistake and so not by want of a true Ordination or Mission 4. If the way of regular Ordination fail God may otherwise by the Churches necessity and the notorious aptitude of the person notifie his will to the Church what person they shall receive As if a Lay-man were cast on the Indian shoar and converted thousands who could have no Ordination And upon the peoples Reception or Consent that man will be a true Pastor And seeing the Papists in the conclusion as Iohnson ubi supra are fain to cast all their cause on the Churches Reception of the Pope they cannot deny reasonably but ad esse the Churches reception may serve also for another Officer And indeed much better than for a Pope For 1. The Universal Church is so great that no man can know when the Greater part Receiveth him and when not except in some notorious declarations 2. And it is now known that the far greater part of the Universal Church the Greeks Armenians Abassines Copties Protestants c. do not receive the Roman Head 3. And when one part of Europe received one Pope and another part another Pope for above fourty years together who could tell which of the parties was to be accounted the Church It was not then known nor it is not known yet to this day And no Papist can prove it who affirmeth it As a Church e. g. Constantinople may be gathered or oriri de novo where there is none before so may it be restored where it is extinct And possibly a Lay-man as Frumentius and Edesiâ—s in the Indies may be the instrument of mens conversion And if so they may by consent become their Pastors when regular Ordination cannot be had I have said more of this in my Disputations of Church-Government Disp. 2. The truth is this pretence of a Necessity of uninterrupted successive Ordination Mission or Jurisdictional Collation ad esse to the being of Ministry or Church is but a cheat of men that have an interest of their own which requireth such a plea when they may easily know that it would overthrow themselves Quest. 12. Whether there be or ever was such a thing in the world as one Catholick Church Constituted by any Head besides or under Christ THe greatest and first controversie between us and the Papists is not What man or Politick person is the Head of the whole Visible Church But Whether there be any such Head at all eiPersonal or Collective Monarchical Aristocratical or Democratical under Christ of his appointment or allowance Or any such thing as a Catholick Church so Headed or Constituted Which they affirm and we deny That neither Pope nor General Council is such a Head I have proved so fully in my Key for Catholicks and other Books that I will not here stay to make repetition of it That the Pope is no such Head we may take for granted 1. Because they bring no proof of it whatever they vainly pretendâ—â— 2. Because our Divines have copiously disproved it to whom I refer you 3. Because the Universal Church never received such a Head as I have proved against Iohnson 4. And whether it be the Pope their Bishop of Calcedon ubi sup Sancta Clara System â—id say is not de fide That a Council is no such Head I have largely proved as aforesaid Part 2. Key for Cath. And 1. The use of it being but for Concord proveth it 2. Most Papists confess it
by decisive Iudicial â—entence Nor any Universal Civil Monarch of the world 2. The publick Governing Decisive judgement obliging others belongeth to publick persons or Officers Eph. 4. 7 13 14 15 16. of God and not to any private man 1 Cor. 12. 28 29. 17. 3. The publick decision of Doubts or Controversies about Faith it self or the true sense of Gods Word and Laws as obliging the whole Church on Earth to believe that decision or not gainsay it Acts 15. See my Key for Catholicks because of the Infallibility or Governing authority of the Deciders belongeth to none but Jesus Christ Because as is said he hath made no Universal Governour nor Infallible Expositor It belongeth to the Law-giver only to make such an Universally obliging Exposition of his own Laws 4. True Bishops or Pastors in their own particular Churches are Authorized Teachers and Guides in Expounding the Laws and Word of Christ And the people are bound as Learners to reverence their Teaching and not contradict it without true cause yea and to believe them fide humanâ in things pertinent to their Office For oportet discentem credere 5. No such Pastors are to be Absolutely believed nor in any case of notorious Error or Heresie where the Word of God is discerned to be against them 6. For all the people as Reasonable creatures have a judgement of private discerning to judge what they must Receive as Truth and to discern their own duty by the help of the Word of God and of their Teachers 7. The same power of Governing-Iudgement Lawful Synods have over their several flocks as a Pastor over his own but with greater advantage 8. The power of Judging in many Consociate Churches who is to be taken into Communion as Orthodox and who to be refused by those Churches as Hereticks in specie that is what Doctrine they will judge sound or unsound as it is Iudicium discernendi belongeth to every one of the Council â—ingly As it is a Iudgement obliging themselves by Contract and not of Governing each other it is in the Contracters and Consenters And for peace and order usually in the Major Vote But with the Limitations before expressed 9. Every true Christian believeth all the Essentials of Christianity with a Divine faith and not by a meer humane belief of his Teachers though by their Help and Teaching his faith is generated and confirmed and preserved Therefore no essential Article of Christianity is left to any obliging decision of any Church but only to a subservient obliging Teaching As whether there be a God a Christ a Heaven a Hell an Immortality of souls whether God be to be believed loved feared obeyed before man Whether the Scripture be Gods Word and true Whether those that contradict it are to be believed therein Whether Pastors Assemblies publick Worship Baptism Sacrament of the Lords Supper be Divine institutions And the same I may say of any known Word of God No mortals may judge in partem utramliâ—et but the Pastors are only Authorized Teachers and helpers of the peoples faith And so they be partly to one another 10. If the Pope or his Council were the Infallible or the Governing Expositors of all Gods Laws and Scriptures 1. God would have enabled them to do it by an Universal Commentary which all men should be obliged to believe or at least not to contradict For there is no Authority and Obligation given to men yea to so many successively to do that for the needful decision of Controversies which they never have Ability given them to do For that were to oblige them to things impossible 2. And the Pope and his Council would be the most treacherous miscreants on earth that in so many hundred years would never write such an Infallible nor Governing Commentary to end the differences of the Christian world Indeed they have judged with others against Arrius that Christ is true God and one with the Father in substance c. But if they had said the contrary must we have taken it for Gods truth or have believed them 11. To judge who for Heresie or Seandal shall be punished by the Sword belongeth to none but the Magistrate in his own dominions As to judge who shall have Communion or be excommunicated from the Church belongeth as aforesaid to the Pastors And the said Magistrate hath first as a man his own Iudgement of discerning what is Heresie and who of his subjects are guilty of it in order to his publick Governing Judgement 12. The Civil Supream Ruler may Antecedently exercise this Judgement of Discerning by the Teaching of their proper Teachers in order to his consequent sentences on offenders And so in his Laws may tell the subjects what Doctrines and practices he will either Tolerate or punish And thus may the Church Pastors do in their Canons to their several flocks in relation to Communion or non-communion 13. He that will condemn particular persons as Hereticks or offenders must allow them to speak for themselves and hear the proofs and give them that which justice requireth c. And if the Pope can do so at the Antipodes and in all the world either per se or per alium without giveing that other his essential claimed power let him prove it by better experience than we have had 14. As the prime and sole-universal Legislation belongeth to Jesus Christ so the final Judgement universal and particular belongeth to him which only will end all Controversies and from which there is no appeal Quest. 29. Whether a Parents power over his Children or a Pastor or many Pastors or Bishops over the same Children as parts of their flock be greater or more obliging in matters of Religion and publick Worship THis being toucht on somewhere else I only now say 1. That if the case were my own I would 1. Labour to know their different Powers as to the matter commanded and obey each in that which is proper to his place 2. If I were young and ignorant Natural necessity and natural obligation together would give my Parents with whom I lived such an advantage above the Minister whom I seldome see or understand as would determine the case de eventu and much de jure 3. If my Parents commanded me to hear a Teacher who is against Ceremonies or certain Forms and to hear none that are for them natural necessity here also ordinarily would make it my duty first to hear and obey my Parents And in many other cases till I came to understand the greater power of the Pastors in their own place and work 4. But when I come to Church or know that the judgement of all Concordant Godly Pastors condemneth such a thing as damnable Heresie or Sin which any Father commandeth me to receive and profess I would more believe and follow the Judgement of the Pastors and Churches Quest. 30. May an Office Teacher or Pastor be at once in a stated Relation of a Pastor and a
Disciple to some other Pastor 1. THat Timothy was still Pauls Son in point of Learning and his Disciple and so that under Apostles the same persons might be stated in both relations at once seemeth evident in Scripture 2. But the same that is a Pastor is not at once a meer Lay-man 3. That men in the same Office may so differ in Age Experience and degrees of knowledge as that young Pastors may and often ought many years to continue not only in occasional reception of their help but also in an ordinary stated way of receiving it and so be Related to them as their ordinary Teachers by such gradual advantages is past all doubt And that all Juniors and Novices owe a certain reverence and audience and some obedience to the elder and wiser 4. But this is not to be a Disciple to him as in lower Order or Office but as of lower Gifts and Grace 5. It is lawful and very good for the Church that some Ordained persons continue long as Pupils to their Tutors in Schools or Academies e. g. to learn the holy Languages if they have them not c. But this is a relation left to voluntary Contractors 6. In the antient Churches the particular Churches had one Bishop and some Presbyters and Deacons usually of much lower parts who lived all together single or chaste in the Bishops or Church-house which was as a Colledge where he daily edified them by Doctrine and Example 7. The Controversie about different Orders by Divine Institution belongeth not to me here to meddle with But as to the Natural and Acquired Imparity of age and gifts and the unspeakable benefit to the Juniors and the Churches that it is desirable that there were such a way of their education and edification I take to be discernable to any that is impartial and judicious Ambrose was at once a Teacher and a Learner Beda Eccl. Hist. mentioneth one in England that was at once a Pastor and a Disciple And in Scotland some that became Bishops were still to be under the Government of the Abbot of their Monasteries according to their first devotion though the Abbot was but a Presbyter 8. Whether a setled private Church-member may not at once continue his very formal Relation to the Pastor of that Church and yet be of the same Order with him in another Church as their Pastor at the same time As he may in case of necessity continue his Apprentiship or civil service is a case that I will not determine But he that denyeth it must prove his opinion or affirmation of its unlawfulness by sufficient evidence from Scripure or Nature which is hard Quest. 31. Who hath the power of making Church Canons THis is sufficiently resolved before 1. The Magistrate only hath the power of making such Canons or Laws for Church matters as shall be enforced by the Sword 2. Every Pastor hath power to make Canons for his own Congregation that is to determine what hour and at what place they shall meet what Translation of Scripture or Version of Psalms shall be used in his Church what Chapter shall be read what Psalm shall be sung c. Except the Magistrate contradict him and determine it otherwise in such points as are not proper to the Ministerial Office 3. Councils or Assemblies of Pastors have the power of making such Canons for many Churches as shall be Laws to the people and Agreements to themselves 4. None have power to make Church Laws or Canons about any thing save 1. To put Gods own Laws in execution 2. To determine to that end of such Circumstances as God hath left undetermined in his Word 5. Canon-making under pretence of Order and Concord hath done a great deal of mischief to the Churches whilest Clergy men have grown up from Agreements to Tyrannical Usurpations and Impositions and from Concord about needful Accidents of Worship to frame new Worship Ordinances and to force them on all others but especially 1. By encroaching on the power of Kings and telling them that they are bound in Conscience to put all their Canons into execution by force 2. And by laying the Union of the Churches and the Communion of Christians upon things needless and doubtful yea and at last on many sinful things whereby the Churches have been most effectually divided and the Christian world set together by the Ears and Schisms yea and Wars have been raised And these maladies cannot possibly be healed till the tormenting tearing Engines be broken and cast away and the Voluminous Canons of numerous Councils which themselves also are matter of undeterminable Controversie be turned into the primitive simplicity and a few necessary things made the terms of Concord Doubtless if every Pastor were left wholly to himself for the ordering of Worship Circumstances and Accidents in his own Church without any Common Canons save the Scriptures and the Laws of the Land there would have been much less division than that is which these numerous Canons of all the Councils obtruded on the Church have made Quest. 32. Doth Baptism as such enter the Baptized into the Universal Church or into a particular Church or both And is Baptism the Particular-Church Covenant as such Answ. 1. BAptism as such doth enter us into the Universal Church and into it alone and is no particular Church-Covenant but the solemnizing of the great Christian Covenant of Grace between God and a believer and his seed For 1. There is not essentially any mention of a particular Church in it 2. A man may be baptized by a general unfixed Minister who is not the Pastor of any particular Church And he may be baptized in solitude where there is no particular Church The Eunuch Mat. 28 19 20. Act. 8. was not baptized into any particular Church 3. Baptism doth but make us Christians But a man may be a Christian who is no member of any particular Church 4. Otherwise Baptism should oblige us necessarily to a man and be a Covenant between the Baptized and the Pastor and Church into which he is baptized But it is only our Covenant with Christ. 5. We may frequently change our particular Church relation without being baptized again But we never change our relation to the Church which we are baptized into unless by Apostasie 2. Yet the same person at the same time that he is baptized may be entred into the universal Church and into a particular And ordinarily it ought to be so where it can be had 3. And the Covenant which we make in baptism with Christ doth oblige us to obey him and consequently to use his instituted means and so to hear his Ministers and hold due Communion with his Churches 4. But this doth no more enter us into a particular Church than into a particular family For we as well oblige our selves to obey him in family relations as in Church relations 5. When the baptized therefore is at once entered into the universal and particular
us for holding that the meer natural progeny of believers are saved as such did well understand our doctrine they would perceive that in this we differ not from the understanding sort among them or at least that their accusations run upon a mistake I told you before that there are three things distinctly to be considered in the title of Infants to baptism and salvation 1. By what right the Parent covenanteth for his child 2. What right the child hath to baptism 3. What right he hath to the benefits of the Covenant sealed and delivered in baptism To the first two things concur to the title of the Parent to Covenant in the name of his child One is his Natural Interest in him The child being his own is at his dispose The other is Gods gracious will and consent that it shall be so that the Parents Will shall be as the childs for his good till he come at age to have a Will of his own To the second The childs right to baptism is not meerly his Natural or his Birth relation from such Parents but it is in two degrees as followeth 1. He hath a Virtual Right on condition of his Parents faith the Reason is because that a believers consent and self-dedication to God déth Virtually contain in it a dedication with himself of all that is his And it is a contradiction to say that a a man truly dedicateth himself to God and not all that he hath and that he truly consenteth to the Covenant for himself and not for his child if he understand that God will accept it 2. His Actual title-condition is his Parents or Owners Actual Consent to enter him into Gods Covenant and his Actual mental dedication of his child to God which is his title before God and the Profession of it is his title before the Church So that it is not a meer Physical but a Moral title-condition which an Infant hath to baptism that is His Parents Consent to dedicate him to God 3. And to the third His title-condition to the Benefits of baptism hath two degrees 1. That he be really dedicated to God by the heart-consent of his Parent as aforesaid And 2. That his Parent express this by the solemn engaging him to God in baptism The first being necessary as a Means sine quo non and the second being necessary as a Duty without which he sinneth when its possible and as a Means coram Ecclesia to the priviledges of the Visible Church The sum of all is that our meer natural interest in our children is not their title-condition to baptism or to salvation but only that presupposed state which enableth us by Gods Consent to Covenant for them But their title-condition to baptism and salvation is our Covenanting for them or Voluntary dedicating them to God which we do 1. Virtually when we dedicate our selves and all that we have or shall have 2. Actually when our Hearts consent particularly for them and Actually devote them to God before Baptism 3. Sacramentally when we express this in our solemn baptismal covenanting and dedication Consider exactly of this again And if you loath distinguishing confess ingenuously that you loath the truth or the necessary means of knowing it Quest. 39. What is the true meaning of Sponsors Patrimi or God-fathers as we call them And is it lawful to make use of them Answ. I. TO the first question All men have not the same thoughts either of their Original or of their present use 1. Some think that they were Sponsors or Sureties for the Parents rather than the child at first And that when many in times of Persecution Heresie and Apostasie did baptize their children this month or year and the next month or year apostatize and deny Christ themselves that the Sponsors were only credible Christians witnessing that they believed that the Parents were credible firm believers and not like to apostatize 2. Others think that they were undertakers that if the Parents did apostatize or dye they would see to the Christian Education of the child themselves 3. Others think that they did both these together which is my opinion viz. That they witnessed the probability of the parents fidelity But promised that if they should either apostatize or dye they would see that the children were piously educated 4. Others think that they were absolute undertakers that the children should be piously educated whether the Parents dyed or apostatized or not So that they went joint-undertakers with the Parents in their life time 5. And I have lately met with some that maintain that the God-fathers and God-mothers become Proprietors and Adopt the child and take him for their own and that this is the sense of the Church of England But I believe them not for these reasons 1. There is no such word in the Liturgie Doctrine or Canons of the Church of England And that is not to be feigned and fathered on them which they never said 2. It would be against the Law of Nature to force all Parents to give the sole propriety or joynt-propriety in their children to others Nature hath given the propriety to themselves and we cannot rob them of it 3. It would be heinously injurious to the children of Noble and Learned persons if they must be forced to give them up to the propriety and education of others even of such as perhaps are lower and more unfit for it than themselves 4. It would be more heinously injurious to all God-fathers and God-mothers who must all make other mens children their own and therefore must use them as their own 5. It would keep most children unbaptized Because if it were once understood that they must take them as their own few would be Sponsors to the children of the poor for fear of keeping them and few but the Ignorant that know not what they do would be Sponsors for any because of the greatness of the charge and their aversness to adopt the children of others 6. It would make great confusion in the State while all men were bound to exchange children with another 7. I never knew one man or woman that was a God-father or God-mother on such terms nor that took the child to be their own And if such a one should be found among ten thousand that is no rule to discern the judgement of the Church by 8. And in Confirmation the God-father and God-mother is expresly said to be for this use to be Witnesses that the Party is Confirmed 9. And in the Priests speech to the Adult that come for baptism in the Office of baptism of those of riper years it is the persons themselves that are to promise and covenant for themselves and the God-fathers and God-mothers are only called these your Witnesses And if they be but Witnesses to the adult its like they are not Adopters of Infants II. Those that doubt of the Lawfulness of using Sponsors for their children do it on these two accounts 1. As supposing
Church 11. Though the Sacrament of the Lords Supper be appointed for the renewing of our Covenant at age yet is it not the first owning of the Covenant by the aged For that Sacrament belongeth neither to Infants nor Infidels And he that claimeth it must be an adult Church-member or Christian which those are not who at full age no way ever owned their baptismal Covenant nor made any personal profession of Christianity But of this I have written purposely in a Treatise of Confirmation long ago Quest. 52. Whether the Universal Church consist only of particular Churches and their members Answ. NO Particular Churches are the most Regular and noble parts of the Universal Church but not the whole no more than Cities and Corporations be all the Kingdom 1. Some may be as the Eunuch baptized before they can come to any particular Church or as Acts 8. 37 c. Acts 9. 17 18 19 20 26 27 28. Paul before they can be received 2. Some may live where Church-tyranny hindereth them by sinful impositions As all that live among the Papists 3. Some may live in times of doubting distraction and confusion and not know what Church ordinarily to joyn with and may providently go promiscuously to many and keep in an unfixed state for a time 4. Some may be Wives Children or Servants who may be violently hindered 5. Some may live where no particular Churches are As Merchants and Embassadours among Mâ—hometans and Heathens Quest. 53. Must the Pastor first Call the Church and aggregate them to himself or the Church first Congregate themselves and then choose the Pastor Answ. THe Pastors are in order of Nature if not in time first Ministers of Christ in general before they are related to a particular Charge 2. As such Ministers they first make men fit to be congregate and tell them their duty therein 3. But it is a matter variable and indifferent Whether the Minister first say All that will joyn with me and submit to me as their Pastor shall be my particular Charge Or the people before Congregated do call a man to be their Pastor Quest. 54. Wherein doth a particular Church of Christs institution differ from a Consociation of many Churches Answ. 1. IN that such a particular Church is a company of Christians associated for personal immediate Acts 2. 1 24 44 46. 4. 32. 5. 12. 1 Thess. 5. 12 13. 1 Cor. 14. 19 23 24 28 35. Acts 14. 23. Titus 1. 5. Acts 11. 26. James 2. â— Communion in Gods worship and in holy living Whereas Consociations of Churches are combined for mediate distinct Communion or by Delegates or Representatives as in Synods 2. Such a particular Church is constituted of one or more Pastors with the people officiating in the Sacred Ministry among them in Doctrine Worship and Discipline in order to the said personal Communion But a Consociation of Churches hath no particular Head as such of divine institution to Constitute and Govern them as one In Ignatius's time every particular Church was characterized or known by two marks of Unity 1. One Altar that is one place of assembling for holy communion 2. One Bishop with the Presbyters and Deacons And two Altars and two Bishops proved two Churches 3. A particular Church under one Bishop or the some Pastors is a Political holy Society But a combination of many Churches consociate is not so but only 1. Either a Community agreeing to live in Concord as neighbour Kingdoms may 2. Or else a humane Policy or Society and not of Divine immediate institution So that if this Consociation of Churches be called a Church it must be either equivocally or in a humane sense Quest. 55. Whether a particular Church may consist of more Assemblies than one Or must needs meet all in one place Answ. 1. THe true distinguishing note of a particular Church is that They be associated for holy Communion in Worship and holy living not by Delegates nor distâ—ntly only by owning the same faith and loving one another as we may do with those at the Antipodes but Personally in presence 2. Therefore they must necessarily be so near as to be capable of personal present Communion 1 Cor. 14. 19 23. Acts 11. 26 c. as before cited 3. And it is most convenient that they be no more than can ordinarily meet in the same Assembly at least for Sacramental Communion 4. But yet they may meet in many places or Assemblies as Chappels or Oratories or other subordinate meetings which are appointed to supply the necessity of the weak and aged and them that cannot travail far And in times of persecution when the Church dare not all meet in one place they may make up several smaller meetings under several Pastors of the same Church But they should come all together as oft as they can 5. And it is to be considered that all the persons of a family can seldome go to the Assembly at one time especially when they live far off Therefore if a Church-place would receive but ten thousand yet twenty thousand might be members while half meet one day and half another or another part of the day 6. Two Congregations distinctly associated for personal Worship under distinct Pastors or having statedly as Ignatius speaketh two Bishops and two Altars are two particular Churches and can no otherwise be one Church than â—s that may be called One which is a Consoâ—iation of divers Quest. 56. Is any Form of Church Government of Divine Institution Answ. YEa There are two Essentially different Policies or Forms of Church Government of Christs Eph. 1 22. 23. 5. 25 26 c. 4. 4 5 6 16. Heb. 10. 25. 1 Cor. 14. Acts 14. 23. Titus 1 5. 1 Tim. 5. 17. 1 Thess. 5. 12 13. 1 Tim 3 3 4 6. 1 Pet 5. 1 2 3. Acts 20 28. Phil. 1. 1 2. own Institution never to be altered by man 1. The form of the Universal Church as headed by Christ himself which all Christians own as they are Christians in their Baptism 2. Particular Churches which are headed by their particular Bishops or Pastors and are parts of the Universal as a Troop is of an Army or a City of a Kingdom Here it is of Divine Institution 1. That there be holy Assemblies for the Publick Worship of God 2. That these Assemblies be Societies constituted of the people with their Pastors who are to them as Captains to their Troops under the General or as Mayors to Cities under the King 3. That these Pastors have the power of the Keyes or the special Guidance and Governance by the Word not by the Sword of their own particular charge in the matters of Faith Worship and holy living and that the flocks obey them And when all this is Iure divino why should any say that No form of Government is jure divino 3. Moreover it is of Divine appointment that these Churches hold the nearest Concord and help each other
power derived from the Emperours and partly meer Agreements or Contracts by degrees degenerating into Governments And so the new forms and names are all but accidental of adjuncts of the true Christian Churches And though I cannot prove it unlawful to make such adjunctive or extrinsick constitutions forms and names considering the Matter simply it self yet by accident these accidents have proved such to the true Churches as the accident of sickness is to the body and have been the causes of the Divisions Wars Rebellions Ruines and Confusions of the Christian world 1. As they have served the covetousness and ambition of carnal men 2. And have enabled them to oppress simplicity and sincerity 3. And because Princes have not exercised their own power themselves nor committed it to Lay-Officers but to Church-men 4. Whereby the extrinsick Government hath so degenerated and obscured the Intrinsick and been confounded with it that both going under the equivocal name of Ecclesiastical Government few Churches have had the happiness to see them practically distinct Which tempâ—eth the Erashans to deny and pull down both together because they find one in the Pastors hands which belongeth to the Magistrate and we do not teach them to untwist and separate them Nay few Divines do clearly in their Controversies distinguish them Though Marsilius Patavinus and some few more have formerly given them very fair light yet hath it been but slenderly improved 11. There seemeth to me no readier and directer way to reduce the Churches to holy Concord and true reformation than for the Princes and Magistrates who are the extrinsick Rulers to re-assume their own and to distinguish openly and practically between the properly-Priestly or Pastoral intrinsick Office and their extrinsick part and to strip the Pastors of all that is not Intrinseeally their own It being enough for them and things so heterogeneous not well consisting in one person And then when the people know what is claimed as from the Magistrate only it will take off most of their scruples as to subjection and consent 12. No mortal man may abrogate or take down the Pastoral Office and the Intrinsick real power thereof and the Church-form which is constituted thereby seeing God hath instituted them for perpetuity on earth 13. But whether one Church shall have one Pastor or many is not at all of the Form of a particular Church but it is of the Integrity or gradual perfection of such Churches as need many to have many and to others not so Not that it is left meerly to the will of man but is to be varied as natural necessity and cause requireth 14. The nature of the Intrinsick Office or power anon to be described is most necessary to be understood as distinct from the power of Magistrates by them that would truly understand this The number of Governours in a Civil State make that which is called a variety of Forms of Common-wealths Monarchy Aristocracy or Democracy Because Commanding Power is the thing which is there most notably exercised and primarily magnified And a wiser and better man yea a thousand must stand by as Subjects for want of Authority or true Power which can be but in One Supream either Natural or Political person because it cannot consist in the exercise with self-contradiction If one be for War and another for Peace c. there is no Rule Therefore the Many must be one Collective or Political person and must consent or go by the major Vote or they cannot govern But that which is called Government in Priests or Ministers is of another nature It is but a secondary subservient branch of their Office The first parts are Teaching and Guiding the people as their Priests to God in publick Worship And they Govern them by Teaching and in order to further Teaching and Worshipping God And that not by Might but by Reason and Love Of which more anon Therefore if a Sacred Congregation be Taught and conducted in publick Worship and so Governed as conduceth hereunto whether by one two or many it no more altereth the Form of the Church than it doth the Form of a School when a small one hath one Schoolmaster and a great one four Or of a Hospital when a small one hath one Physicion and a great one many seeing that Teaching in the one and Healing in the other is the main denominating work to which Government is but subservient in the most notable acts of it 15. No mortal man may take on him to make another Church or another Office for the Church as a Divine thing on the same grounds and of the same nature pretendedly as Christ hath made those already made The case of adding new Church Officers or Forms of Churches is the same with that of making new Worship Ordinances for God and accordingly to be determined which I have largely opened in its place Accidents may be added Substantials of like pretended nature may not be added Because it is an usurping of Christs power without derivation by any proved commission and an accusing of him as having done his own work imperfectly 16. Indeed no man can here make a new Church Officer of this Intrinsick sort without making him new work which is to make new Doctrine or new Worship which are forbidden For to do ☞ Gods work already made belongs to the Office already instituted If every King will make his own Officers or authorize the greater to make the less none must presume to make Christ Officers and Churches without his Commission 17. No man must make any Office Church or Ordinance which is corruptive or destructive or contrary or injurious to the Offices Churches and Oâ—dinances which Christ himself hath made This Bellarmine confesseth and therefore I suppose Proâ—estants will not deny it Those humane Offices which usurp the work of Christs own Officers and take it out of their hands do malignantly fight against Christs institutions And while they pretend that it is but Preserving and not Corrupting or Opposing additions which they make and yet with these words in their mouths do either give Christs Officers work to others or hinder and oppress his Officers themselves and by their new Church-forms undermine or openly destroy the old by this expression of their enmity they confute themselves 18. This hath been the unhappy case of the Roman frame of Church innovations as you may observe in the particulars of its degeneracy 1. Councilâ— were called General or Oecumenical in respect to one-Empire only And they thence grew to extend the name to the whole world when they may as well say that Constantine Martiaâ— c. were Emperours of the whole world seeing by their authority they were called 2. These Councils at first were the Emperours Councils called to direct him what to setle in Church orders by his own power But they were turned to claim an imposing authority of their own to command the Churches as by commission from God 3. These Councils at first
as much as may be in a way of Concord with the united faithful Pastors and Churches in your proximity or Countrey 3. Look to the publick good and interest of Religion more than to your particular Congregation 4. Neglect not the greatest advantages for your own edification But rather take them by a removal of your dwelling though you suffer by it in your estates than by any division disturbance of the Churches peace or common detriment 5. Do not easily go against the Magistrates Commands unless they be apparently unlawful and to the Churches detriment or ruine in the reception of your Pastors 6. Do not easily forsake him that hath been justly received by the Church and hath possession that is till necessity require it Quest. 106. To whom doth it belong to Reform a Corrupted Church to the Magistrates Pastors or People Answ. A Church is reformed three several wayes 1. By the personal reformation of every member 2. By doctrinal Direction and 3. By publick forcible Execution and constraint of others 1. Every member whether Magistrates Pastors or People must reform themselves by forsaking 1 Cor. 11. 28 29 31 33 34. 1 Cor. 5. 11. Dan. 3. 6. all their own sins and doing their own duties If a Ruler command a private person to go to Mass to own any falshood or to do any sin he is not to be obeyed because God is to be first obeyed 2. The Bishops or Pastors are to Reform the Church by Doctrine Reproof and just Exhortations 1 Cor. 5. 3. 4 5 1. Pet. 5. 2 3. Luke 22. 24 25 26 27. and Nunciative Commands in the name of Christ to Rulers and people to do their several duties and by the actual doing of his own 3. The King and Magistrates under him only must Reform by the Sword that is by outward force and Civil Laws and Corporal Penalties As forcibly to break down Images to cast out Idolaters or the Instruments of Idolatry from the Temples to put true Ministers in possession of the Temples or the Legal publick maintenance to destroy punish or hurt Idolaters c. Supposing still the Power of Parents and Masters in their several families Quest. 107. Who is to Call Synods Princes Pastors or People Answ. 1. THere are several wayes of Calling Synods 1. By Force and Civil Mandates 2. By The question of the power of Synods is sufficiently answered before Pastoral Perswasion and Counsel and 3. By humble intreaty and petition 1. Magistrates only that is the Supream by his own power and the Inferiour by power derived from him may call Synods by Laws and Mandates enforced by the Sword or Corporal Penalties or Mulcts 2. Bishops or Pastors in due Circumstances may call Synods by Counsel and perswasive invitation 3. The people in due Circumstances and necessity may Call Synods by way of Petition and Intreaty But what are the due Circumstances Answ. 1. The Magistrate may Call them by Command at his discretion for his own Counsel or for the Civil peace or the Churches good 2. The Pastors and people may not Call them nor meet when the Magistrate forbiddeth it except when the necessity of the Church requireth it Synods may profitably be stated for order when it may be lawfulâ—y obtained both as to limits of Place numbers and Time But these prudential Orders are not of stated necessity but must give place to weightier reasons on the contrary 3. Synods themselves are not ordinarily necessary by Nature or Institution Let him that affirmeth it prove it But that which is statedly necessary is The Concord of the Churches as the End and a necessary correspondency of the Churches as the Means and Synods when they may well be had as a convenient sort of means 4. When Synods cannot be had or are needless Messengers and Letters from Church to Church may keep up the Correspondency and Concord 5. In cases of real necessity which are very rare though usefulness be more frequent the Bishops and people should first petition the King for his consent And if that cannot be had they may meet secretly and in small numbers for mutual consultation and advice about the work of God and not by keeping up the formality of their set numbers times and places and orders provoke the King against them 6. The contempt of Synods by the separatists and the placing more power in Synods than ever God gave them by others yea and the insisting on their circumstantial orders making them like a Civil Senate or Court have been the two extreams which have greatly injured and divided the Churches throughout the World Quest. 108. To whom doth it belong to appoint dayes and assemblies for publick Humiliation and Thanksgiving Answ. THe answer of the last question may serve for this 1. The Magistrate only may do it by way of Laws or civil Mandate enforced by the sword 2. The Pastors may do it in case of necessity by Pastoral advice and exhortation and nunciative command in the name of Christ. 3. The people may do it by Petition 4. As ordinary Church Assemblies must be held if the Magistrate forbid them of which next so must extraordinary ones when extraordinary causes make it a duty 5. When the Magistrate forcibly hindereth them natural impossibility resolveth the question about our duty Quest. 109. May we omit Church-assemblies on the Lords day if the Magistrate forbid them Answ. 1. IT is one thing to forbid them for a time upon some special cause as Infection by May we omit Church-Assemblies on the Lords day if forbidden by Magistrates pestilence fire war c. And another thing to forbid them statedly or prophanely 2. It is one thing to omit them for a time and another to do it ordinarily 3. It is one thing to omit them in formal obedience to the Law and another thing to omit them in prudence or for necessity because we cannot keep them 4. The Assembly and the circumstances of the Assembly must be distinguished 1. If the Magistrate for a greater good as the common safety forbid Church Assemblies in a time of pestilence assault of enemies or fire or the like necessity it is a duty to obey him Because positive duties give place to those great natural duties which are their end so Christ justified himself and his disciples violation of the external rest of the Sabbath For the Sabbath was made for man and not man for the Sabbath 2. Because Affirmatives bind not ad semper and out of season duties become sins 3. Because one Lords day or Assembly is not to be preferred before Many which by the omission of that one are like to be obtained 2. If Princes prophanely forbid holy assemblies and publick worship either statedly or as a renunciation of Christ and our religion it is not Lawful formally to obey them 3. But it is lawful prudently to do that secretly for the present necessity which we cannot do publickly and to do that with smaller numbers which we
and then they that think it most decent may do it without scruple or just offence 5. But as a mans heart may put up a short ejaculation as he walketh up the Church without losing what else he might hear so a man may on his knees be so brief as that his loss shall be but small And whether his profit preponderate that little times loss he can judge better than another Therefore though I like best keeping to Concord with the Assembly in our devotion yet these are things in which it ill beseemeth Christians to judge or despise each other And I shall take on either side the judging and despising of those that differ from us to be a far greater sin than the doing or not doing of the thing Object Is it not called in Eccles. 5. 1 2. the sacrifice of fools who know not they do evil Answ. No I have wondered to hear that Text so ordinarily thus perverted The Text is Keep â—by foot when thou goest to the house of God and be more ready to hear than to offer the sacrifice of fools Which is no more than that it is the imagination and custome of fools to think to please God by their sacrifices and bringing somewhat to him while they refuse or neglect to hear his commands and obey him Whereas Obedience is better than Sacrifice and the sacrifice of the wicked is abomination to the Lord And he that turneth away his ear from hearing the Law his prayer is abominable And because they hate instruction they shall cry and Good will not hear them Therefore be first careful to hear what God saith to thee and to learn his will and do it and then bring thy sacrifice to him Leave thy gift at the Altar and go and be reconciled to thy brother Obey first and then come and offer thy gift This is all the meaning of the Text. See also Psal. 50. 8. and compare these cited Texts 1 Sam. 15 22. Prov. 15. 8. 21. 17. Mat. 5 c. But whether we should begin with Prayer or Hearing when we enter into the Church God hath left to prudence to be decided by the General rules Quest. 120. May a Preacher kneel down in the Pulpit and use his private Prayers when he is in the assembly Answ. THis will have the same answer with the former and therefore I shall trouble the Reader with no more Quest. 121. May a Minister Pray publickly in his own name singly for himself or others Or only in the Churches name as their mouth to God Answ. IT is good to be as exact in order and decency as we can But they that would not have other mens Ceremonies brought in on that pretence should not bring in their own made doctrines 1. It is certain that all the Assembly come thither not only to hear a prayer but to pray as well as the Minister And therefore the practice of all Churches in the world as is seen in all the Liturgies is for the Minister to speak in the plural number and usually to pray in the Churches name And so he is both their Guide and mouth in prayer Therefore even when he prayeth for himself it is usually fittest or very fit for him rather to say We beseech thee give the speaker thy assistance c. than I beseech thee 2. And even subjectively it is not inconvenient to speak of himself in the third person Give him or Give the speaker thy help instead of Give me 3. But they that will place a necessity in either of these and make the contrary a sin must have more knowledge than I have to be able to prove it For 1. In the latter case the Minister doth not pray in his own person but only for his own person when he saith We beseech thee give me thy help c. 2. And I know no word of God that saith either that the Minister is only the mouth of the people 1 Tim. 2. 1 2. Isa. 59. 16. Jer. 27. 18. 7. 16. 29. 7. 37. 3. 42. 2 4 20. 1 Sam. 7. 5. 12 19 23. 2 Cor. 13. 7. Phil. 1. 9. Col. 1. 9 3. 1 Thess. 5. 23. 2 Thess. 1. 11. 1 Thess. 3. 10. or that he is to speak only in their names or that he may not pray for himself or them in his Ministerial capacity in the first person For 1. He is a Minister of Christ for the Church and not the Minister of the Church properly And he is subordinate to Christ in his Priestly Office as well as in his Teaching and Ruling Office And the Priests did alwayes take it for their Office not only to speak as the Peoples mouth but as Sub-mediators or Intercessors for them to God And as then they were Types of Christ by standing between God and the people so they were his Officers as well as Types And so they are his Officers to this day And as they Teach and Rule in his Name by Office so do they intercede in his Name All men confess that they may do this in private And where is it forbidden to be done in publick 2. And there are some cases in which it is fittest that it should be so That is when it is supposed that the Congregation doth not joyn with him As 1. When the whole Church is fallen into some error of judgement as who hath not many and he knoweth that they differ from him It is fitter for him to pray as a Sub-intercessor for them in his own person than to speak as in their persons who he knoweth joyn not with him For that hath a plain untruth in it 2. If the whole Church be fallen into some little sin which seduction yet hindereth them from Repenting of he were better confess it and profess sorrow for it in his own person than in theirs that joyn not with him in it 3. When he prayeth for somewhat for himself and them that is above their understanding as for direction in some difficult Controversies c. I know not that he is bound to speak in their names that understand him not Therefore this is no business for Christians that are not possest with a proud pievish self-conceited â—uarâ—elsome humour to censure or despise a Minister for Nor should any introduce that false doctrine of mans invention into the Church that the Minister is only to pray in publick as the peoples mouth But the power of prejudice is great Quest. 122. May the name Priests Sacrifice and Altars be lawfully now used instead of Christs Ministers Worship and the Holy Table Answ. 1. HE that useth them in design to bring in the Popish Transubstantiation and Real Sacrifice of the Mass doth heinously sin in such a design and use 2. In a time and place where they may not be used without scandal or tempting or encouraging any to their errors the scandal will be a grievous sin 3. The New Testament useth all the Greek names which we translate Priests
Sacrifice and Altars therefore we may use the same in Greek And our Translation or English names are not intolerable If Priest come from Presbyter I need not prove that If it do not yet all Ministers are subordinate to Christ in his Priestly Office as essentially as in the rest And Rev. 1. 6. 5. 10. 20. 6. it is said that we are or shall be made Priests of God and unto God And 1 Pet. 2. 5. we are an holy Priesthood and ver 9. a royal Priesthood If this be said of all then especially of Ministers And the word Sacrifice is used of us and our offered Worship 1 Pet. 2. 5. Heb. 13. 15 16. Phil. 4. 18. Ephes. 5. 2. Rom. 12. 1. And Heb. 13. 10. saith We have an Altar whereof they partake not c. And the word is frequently used in the Revelations Chap. 6. 9. 8. 3 5. 16. 7 c. in relation to Gospel times We must not therefore be quarrelsome against the bare names unless they be abused to some ill use 4. The antient Fathers and Churches did ever use all these words so familiarly without any question or scruple raised about them either by the Orthodox or any Hereticks that at present I can remember to have ever read of that we should be the more wary how we condemn the bare words lest thence we give advantage to the Papists to make them tell their followers that all Antiquity was on their side Which were very easie for them to prove if the Controversie were about the Names alone Extreams and passionate imprudence do give the adversaries great advantages 5. The names of Sacrifice and Altar were used by the Antient Churches not properly but meerly in allusion to the Jewish and Heathen Sacrifices and Altars together with a tropical use from the Christian reasons of the Names As the Lords Supper is truly the Commemoration of Christs Sacrifice And therefore called by Protestants A Commemorative Sacrifice so that our Controversie with the Papists is not Whether it may be called a Sacrifice But whether it be only the Sacrament of a Sacrifice or a Sacramental Commemorative Sacrifice or also a Real proper Sacrifice of the very body and blood it self of Christ. For we acknowledge That This is a Sacrifice is no more tropical a speech than This is my body and blood 6. Yet it must be noted that the Scripture useth the word Sacrifice about our selves and our Thanksgivings and prayses and works of Charity rather than of the Lords Supper and the word Priests of all men Lay or Clergy that offer these foresaid Sacrifices to God Though the antient Doctors used them familiarly by way of allusion of the Sacrament and its administrators 7. In a word as no Christian must use these or any words to false ends or senses or deceiving purposes nor yet to scandal so out of these cases the words are lawful And as the Fathers are not to be any further condemned for using them than as the words which they foresaw not have given advantage to the Papists to bring in an ill sense and doctrine so those that now live in Churches and Countreys where the publick professed doctrine doth free them from the suspicion of a Popish ill sense should not be judged nor quarrelled with for the terms But all sober Christians should allow each other the liberty of such phrases without censoriousness or breach of charity or peace Quest. 123. May the Communion-Tables be turned Altar-wise and Railed in And is it lawful to come up to the Rails to Communicate Answ. THe answer to this is mostly the same with that to the foregoing question 1. God hath given us no particular Command or prohibition about these circumstances but the General Rules for Unity Edification Order and Decency Whether the Table shall stand this way or that way here or there c. he hath not particularly determined 2. They that turn the Table Altar-wise and Rail it in out of a design to draw men to Popery or in a scandalous way which will encourage men to or in Popery do sin 3. So do they that Rail in the Table to signifie that the Vulgar or Lay-Christians must not come to it but be kept at a distance when Christ in his personal presence admitted his disciples to communicate at the Table with himself 4. But where there are no such ends but only to imitate the Antients that did thus and to shew reverence to the Table on the account of the Sacrament by keeping away Dogs keeping Boyes from sâ—ting on it And the professed doctrine of the Church condemneth Transubstantiation the Real Corporal presence c. as ours doth In this case Christians should take these for such as they are Indifferent things and not censure or condemn each other for them nor should any force them upon those that think them unlawful 5. And to communicate is not only lawful in this case where we cannot prove that the Minister sinneth but even when we suspect an ill design in him which we cannot prove yea or when we can prove that his personal interpretation of the place name scituation and rails is unfound For we assemble there to communicate in and according to the professed doctrine of Christianity and the Churches and our own open profession and not after every private opinion and error of the Minister As I may receive from an Anabaptist or Separatist notwithstanding his personal errors so may I from another man whose error destroyeth not his Ministry nor the Ordinance as long as I consent not to it yea and with the Church profess my dissent 6. Yet caeteris paribus every free man that hath his choice should choose to communicate rather where there is most purity and least error than with those that swarve more from regular exactness Quest. 124. Is it lawful to use Davids Psalms in our Assemblies Answ. YEs 1. Christ used them at his last Supper as is most probable And he ordinarily joyned Matth. 26. 30. Mark 14. 26. Luke 4. 16. 6. 6. John 6. 59. 18. 20. Mark 1. 21. 23 29. 3. 1. 6. 2. 1 Chron 16. 7. Psalm 105. 2. 95. 2. James 5. 13. 1 Chron. 16. 9. with the Jews that used them And so did the Apostles 2. It is confessed Lawful to read or say them Therefore also to sing them For saying and singing difference not the main end 3. They are suitable to our use and were the Liturgy of the Jewish Church not on a Ceremonial account but for that fitness which is common to us with them 4 We are commanded in the New Testament to sing Psalms And we are not commanded to compose new ones Nor can every one make Psalms who is commanded to sing Psalms And if it be lawful to sing Psalms of our own or our neighbours making much more of Gods making by his Spirit in his Propheâ—s Object They are not suitable to all our cases nor to all
that is eldest and ablest and be ruled by him 24. Whether there shall be any Deaconesses in the Church 25. Whether a Church shall have one Minister two or more 26. Who shall be the men 27. What space of ground shall be the Church bounds for the cohabitation of the members 28. How many Neighbour Churches shall make a Synod and which be they 29. How many members a Synod shall consist of 30. Who shall be president Or whether any And who shall gather the Votes 31. Who shall record their Acts as Scribe 32. What Messenger shall carry them to the Churches 33. What Letters for Correspondence and Communion shall be written to the Churches 34. When Pastors shall remove from one Church to another And to which 35. Who shall be ordained Ministers to Preach Baptize and gather Churches 36. How many the Ordainers shall be 37. Whether there shall be any Musick by Instruments in the Church or house for the praises of God and what 38. Who shall lead the Psalm 39. Who shall read 40. What words the Churches Profession of faith shall be expressed by 41. By what signes the Church shall signifie their consent Whether lifting up the hand standing up bowing the head or by voice or writing 42. By what sign or ceremony men shall take an oath Whether lifting up the hand toward Heaven or laying it on a Book or kissing the Book c. 43. Whether the people at the Sacrament sit neer the Table or keep farther off 44. Whether it be put into each persons hand or they take it themselves With many more such like 4. And it is a lawful Invention to determine of meer Circumstances of Time and place which God hath not determined of in Scripture As 1. At how many times in the year or week Baptism shall be administred 2. At what age persons be admitted to the Lords Supper 3. On what dayes and hours of the week there shall be Lectures or Church-assemblies 4. How oâ—t and when Ministers shall Caâ—echise and instruct the people privately 5. On what hour the Church shall assemble on the Lords dayes and receive the Sacrament 6. How long Prayer Reading and Sermon shall be 7. At what hour to end the publick exercises 8. At what hours to pray in Families or in secret 9. How often Disciplinary meetings shall be held for the trying of accused members 10. How often Synods shall meet and how long continue Of Holy dayes before 5. The same is to be said for the Places of Holy Exercises 1. What Edifices the Churches shall have for such uses 2. In what places they shall be scituate 3. Where the Pulpit shall stand 4. And where the Font 5. And where the Table 6. Where each of the people shall sit 7. Where Synods shall meet 8. How many Temples shall be in a City c. 6. The same is to be said of all Accidental subordinate Offices As Lectors Clerks Door-keepers Church-wardens and many more before mentioned 7. The same is to be said of Church Utensils As Table Cups Linen Pulpits Fonts Clock Hour-glass Bells Seats decent Habit of Cloaths c. 8. The same may be said of Decent Gestures not particularly commanded As what Gesture to Preach in standing or sitting What Gesture to Read in What Gesture to Hear in What Gesture to sing Psalms in Whether to be covered or bare-headed In what gesture to receive the Lords Supper In which Scripture no more regulateth us than of the room the hour of communicating the number of Communicants the place in all which Christs example was not a particular Law 9. The same may be said of Order 1. Whether the Pastor shall begin with Prayer reading or exhortation 2. Whether the people shall begin with prayer or ejaculations privately 3. Whether we shall make but one or two long continued prayers or many short ones 4. Whether we shall pray before Sermon immediately and after in the Pulpit or in the Reading place 5. When the Psalms shall be said or sung and how many 6. How many Chapters shall be read and which and in what order 7. Whether Baptism shall be before or after or when 8. When the Catechumens and Learners shall be dismissed and the proper Eucharistical Church Exercises begin 9. When Collections made c. But O Lord have compassion on thy scattered flocks who are afflicted and divided by the Imperiousness of those Pastors who think it not enough for the exercise of their Domination to promote all thine own holy Laws and doctrines and to make their own Canons in all these cases or such like but they must needs make more work than all this cometh to for themselves and for the flocks even unto those distractions and dissâ—pations and fierce persecutions and contentions which many hundred years have exercised the Greek and Latine Churches and many more throughout the World Quest. 134. What are the mischiefs of unlawful Additions in Religion Answ. ALas many and great 1. They tend to dethrone Christ from his Soveraignty and Legislative prerogative 2. And to advance Man blind and sinful man into his place 3. And thereby to debase Religion making it but a humane or a mixed thing And it can be no more noble than its Author is 4. And thereby they debase also the Church of God and the Government of it while they make it to be but a Humane policy and not Divine 5. They tend to depose God from his Authority in mens Consciences and to level or joyn him there but with man 6. They tend to mens doubtfulness and uncertainty of their Religion seeing man is fallible and so may his constitutions be 7. They tend to drive out all true Religion from the World while Man that is so Bad is the maker of it and it may be suspected to be bad that is made by so bad an Author 8. And it taketh off the fear of God and his judgement For it is man that must be feared so far as man is the maker of the Law And it destroyeth the consolation of believers which consisteth in the hopes of a reward from God For he that serveth man must be rewarded by man And though they do not exclude God but joyn him with themselves yet this mixture debaseth and destroyeth Religion as the mixture of God and Mammon in mens Love and as mixt and debased metals do the Soveraign's coin 9. It hardeneth Infidels and hindereth their Conversion For they will reverence no more of our Religion than we can prove to be Divine And when they find one part of it to be humane they suspect the rest to be so too and contemn it all Even as Protestants do Popery for the abundance of humane trinkets and toyes with which we see them exercise and delude their silly followers 10. It is the great engine of dividing all the Churches and breeding and feeding conâ—â—ntions in the Christian World 11. And because men that will command will be obeyed and they that are
3. Either Christianity is something and discernable or nothing and undiscernable If the latter then Christians are not to be distinguished from Heathens and Infidels If the former then Christianity hath its Constitutive parts by which it is what it is And then it hath essential parts distinguishable from the rest 4. The word Fundamentals being but a Metaphor hath given room to deceivers and Contenders to make a Controversie and raise a dust about it Therefore I purposely use the word Essentials which is not so lyable to mens Cavils 5. Those are the Essentials of Christianity which are necessary to the Baptism of the Adult Know but that and you answer all the pratings of the Papists that bawle out for a list of Fundamentals And sure it is not this day unknown in the Christian world either what a Christian is or who is to be baptized Do not the Priests know it who baptize all that are Christened in the world And why is Baptism called our Christening if it make us not Christians And why hath Christ promised that He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved Mark 16. 16. if that so much faith as is necessary to baptism will not also serve to a mans state of salvation 6. The Baptismal Covenant of Grace therefore is the Essential part of the Gospel and of the Christian Religion And all the rest are the Integrals and Accidents or Adjuncts 7. This Covenant containeth I. Objectively 1. Things True as such 2. Things Good as such 3. Things Practicable or to be done as such The Credenda Diligenda Eligenda Agenda as the objects of mans Intellect Will and Practical power The Credenda or things to be known and believed are 1. God as God and our God and Father 2. Christ as the Saviour and our Saviour 3. The Holy Ghost as such and as the Sanctifier and our Sanctifier as to the offer of these Relations in the Covenant The Diligenda are the same three persons in these three Relations as Good in themselves and unto us which includeth the grand benefits of Reconciliation and Adoption Justification and Sanctification and Salvation The Agenda in the time of baptism that make us Christians are 1. The actual Dedition resignation or dedication of our selves to God the Father Son and Holy Ghost in these Relations 2. A Promise or Vow to endeavour faithfully to live according to our undertaken relations though not in perfection that is as Creatures to their Creator and their Reconciled God and Father as Christians to their Redeemer their Teacher their Ruler and their Saviour And as willing Receivers of the Sanctifying and Comforting operations of the Holy Spirit II. The Objects tell you what the Acts must be on our part 1. With the Understanding to know and believe 2 With the Will to love choose desire and resolve and 3. Practically to deliver up our selves for the present and to promise for the time to come These are the Essentials of the Christian Religion 8. The Creed is a larger explication of the Credenda and the Lords Prayer of the Diligenda or things to be willed desired and hoped for and the Decalogue of the Natural part of the Agenda 9. Suffer not your own Ignorance or the Papists Cheats to confound the Question about Fundamentals as to the Matter and as to the expressing words It is one thing to ask What is the Matter ☞ Essential to Christianity And another What Words Symbols or Sentences are Essential to it To the first I have now answered you To the second I say 1. Taking the Christian Religion as it is an Extrinsick Doctrine in signis so the Essence of it is Words and Signs expressive or significant of the Material Essence That they be such in specie is all that is essential And if they say But which be those words I answer 2. That no particular Words in the world are essential to the Christian Religion For 1. No one Language is essential to it It is not necessary to salvation that you be baptized or learn the Creed or Scriptures in Hebrew or Greek or Latin or English so you learn it in any Language understood 2. It is not necessary to salvation that you use the same words in the same Language as long as it hath more words than one to express the same thing by 3. It is not necessary to salvation that we use the same or any one single form method or order of words as they are in the Creeds without alteration And therefore while the Antients did tenaciously cleave to the same Symbol or Creed yet they used various words to express it by As may be seen in Irenâ—â—s Tertullian Origen and Ruffin elsewhere cited by me so that its plain that by the same Symbol they See the Appendix to my Reformed Pastor meant the same Matter though exprest in some variety of words Though they avoided such variety as might introduce variety of sense and matter 10. Words being needful 1. To make a Learner understand 2. To tell another what he understandeth it followeth that the great variety of mens capacities maketh a great variation in the necessity of Words or Forms An Englishman must have them in English and a Frenchman in French An understanding man may receive all the Essentials in a few words But an Ignorant man must have many words to make him understand the matter To him that Understandeth them the words of the Baptismal ☞ Covenant express all the Essentials of Christianity But to him that understands them not the Creed is necessary for the explication And to him that understandeth not that a Catechism or larger Exposition is necessary This is the plain explication of this question which many Papists seem loth to understand Quest. 139. What is the Use and Authority of the Creed And is it of the Apostles framing or not And is it the Word of God or not Answ. 1. THe Use of the Creed is to be a plain explication of the Faith professed in the Baptismal Covenant 1. For the fuller instruction of the duller sort and those that had not preparatory knowledge and could not sufficiently understand the meaning of the three Articles of the Covenant what it is to believe in God the Father Son and Holy Ghost without more words 2. And for the satisfaction of the Church that indeed men understood what they did in baptism and professed to believe 2. The Creed is the Word of God as to all the Doctrine or Matter of it what ever it be as to the order and composition of words 3. That is oft by the Antients called the Apostles which containeth the matter derived by the Apostles though not in a form of words compiled by them 4. It is certain that all the words now in our Creed were not put in by the Apostles 1. Because Vid. 〈…〉 Vossiâ—m de Symbolis some of them were not in till long after their dayes 2. Because the
antient formulae agree not in words among themselves 5. It is not to be doubted of but the Apostles did appoint and use a Creed commonly in their ☞ dayes And that it is the same with that which is now called the Apostles and the Nicene in the main but not just the same composure of words nor had they any such precise composure as can be proved But this much is easily provable 1. That Christ Composed a Creed when he made his Covenant and instituted Baptism Matth. 28. 19. 2. That in the Jewish Church where men were educated in the knowledge of the Scriptures and expectation of the Mâ—ssiah it was supposed that the people had so much preparatory knowledge as made them the more capable of Baptism as soon as they did but seriously profess to Believe and Consent to the terms of the Covenant And therefore they were presently baptized Acts 2. 38 39 40. 3. That this could not be rationally supposed among the Gentiles and common Ignorant people of the world And Ignorantis non est Consensus He doth not Covenant who understandeth not the Covenant as to what is promised him and what he promiseth 4. That the Apostles baptized and caused others to baptize many thousands and settle many Churches before any part of the New Testament was written even many and many years 5. That the Apostles did their work as well and better than any that succeeded them 6. That their successors in the Common Ministery did as far as any Church History leadeth us up Instruct and Catechise men in the meaning of the Baptismal Covenant which is the Christian faith before they baptized them Yea they kept them long in the state of Catechumens usually before they would baptize them And after baptized but twice a year at Easter and Whitsontide as our Liturgy noteth And they received an account of their tolerable understanding of Religion before they would receive them into the Church 7. No doubt then but the Apostles did cause the baptizable to understand the three Articles of Christs own Creed and Covenant and to give some account of it before they baptized them ordinarily among the Gentiles 8. No doubt therefore but they used many more Explicatory words to cause them to understand those few 9. There is neither proof nor probability that they used a Composure of just the same words and no more or less Because they had to do with persons of several capacities some knowing who needed fewer words and some ignorant and dull who needed more Nor is any such Composure Heb. 5. 11 12. 6. 1 2 3. come down to our hands 10. But it is more than probable that the Matter opened by them to all the Catechumens was still the same when the words were not the same For Gods Promises and mans Conditions are still the same where the Gospel cometh Though since by the occasion of Heresies some few material clauses are inserted For all Christians had one Christianity and must go one way to Heaven 11. It is also more than probable that they did not needlesly vary the words lest it should teach men to vary the matter But that all Christians before baptism did make the same profession of faith as to the sense and very much the same as to the very words using necessary caution and yet avoiding unnecessary preciseness of formality But so as to obviate damnable Heresies that the Christian profession might attain its ends 12. Lastly No doubt but this practice of the Apostles was exemplary and imitated by the Churches and that thus the Essentials of Religion were by the tradition of the Creed and Baptism delivered 2 Tim. 1 13. 2 Cor. 3. 2 3 7. Heb. 8. 10. 10. 16. by themselves as far as Christianity went long before any Book of the New Testament was written And every Christian was an Impress or Transcript or Specimen of it And that the following Churches using the same Creed wholly in sense and mostly in words might so far well call it The Apostles Creed As they did both the Western and the Nicene Quest. 140. What is the use of Catechisms Answ. TO be a more familiar explication of the Essentials of Christianity and the principal Integrals in a larger manner than the Creed Lords Prayer and Decalogue do that the ignorant may the more easily understand it Every man cannot gather out of the Scripture the Greatest matters in the true method as distinct from all the rest And therefore it is part of the work of the Churches Teachers to do it to the hands and use of the ignorant Quest. 141. Could any of us have known by the Scriptures alone the Essentials of Religion from the Rest if Tradition had not given them to us in the Creed as from Apostolical Collection Answ. YEs For the Scripture it self telleth us what is necessary to salvation It describeth to us the Covenant of Grace both Promises and Conditions And it were strange if so large a Volume should not as plainly tell us what is necessary to salvation as fewer words The Scripture hath not Less than the Creed but more Quest. 142. What is the best Method of a true Catechism or Summ of Theology Answ. GOd willing I shall tell the Church my opinion of that at large in a peculiar Latin Treatise called Methodus Theologiae which here I cannot do Only I shall say that among all the great variety of Methods used in these times I think none cometh nearer the Order of the Matter which is the true Commendation of a Method than those which open Theology 1. In the breviate of the Baptismal Covenant 2. In the three explicatory summs the Creed Lords Prayer and Decalogue with the added Gospel Precepts 3. In the Largest form which is the whole Scripture And that our common English Catechism and Paraeus or Ursine and many such who use that common easie Method are more truly Methodical than most that pretend to greater accu 〈…〉 ness Though I much commend the great industry of such as Dudley Fenner Gomarrus and 〈…〉 cially George Sohenius Quest. 143. What is the use of various Church Confessions or Articles of Faith Answ. I Will pass by the very ill use that is made of them in too many Countreys where unnecessary opinions or uncertain are put in and they that can get into favour with the Secular Power take advantage under pretence of Orthodoxness and Uniformity Truth and Peace to set up their opinions and judgements to be the common rule for all to bow to though wiser than themselvâ—s And to silence all Ministers and scatter and divide the flocks that will not say or swear as they do that is that they are wise men and are in the right The true and commendable use of various Church Professions or Confessions of faith is 1. To be an Instruction to the more ignorant how to understand the Scriptures in most of the most weighty points 2. To be an enumeration of
1. And there are many things easie to be understood 2. We never said that men should not use the help of their Teachers and all that they can to understand it 3. Were not those Teachers once ignorant And yet they did read it by the help of Teachers And so may others 4. As the King for Concord commandeth all the Schoolmasters to teach one Grammar So God makeeth it the Ministers Office to Instruct people in the Scriptures And were it not a question unworthy of a Schoolmaster to dispute Whether the Scholars must learn by their Book or by their Master Yea to conclude that it must be by their Master and not by their Book or that they must never open their Book but when their Master is just at hand to teach them The Doctrine of the Papists who tell us that the Scriptures should not be read by the Vulgar it being the rise of all Heresies is so inhumane and impious as savouring of gross enmity to Scriptures and to knowledge that were there no other it would make the Lovers of Religion and mens souls to pray earnestly to Christ to save his flocks from such seducers who so Jewishly use the Key of Knowledge Object But many wrest the Scriptures to their own destruction and what Heresie is not defended as 2 Pet. 3. 1â— Psal. 19. 3 8 9 10. 2 Tim. 3. 16. â— Pet. 1. 23. by their authority Answ. 1. And many thousands receive saving knowledge and grace by them The Law of the Lord is perfect converting the soul. All Scripture is profitable to instruction c. to make the man of God perfect It is the incorruptible seed by which we are born again and the sincere milk by which we are nourished 2. And is it not as true 1. That the Law of the Land is abused by every false pretender Lawyer and Corrupt Judge What title so bad that is not defended in Westminster Hâ—ll sometimes under pretence of Law And what action so bad that some pretend not Law for What then Must the Law be forbidden the common people for this 2. Nay what is so much abused to unrighteousness and sin as Reason it self What Heresie or Crime do not men plead Reason for Must Reason therefore be forbidden the Vulgar 3. Yea Contrarily this signifieth that Law and Reason are so far from being things to be forbidden men that they are indeed those things by which Nature and Necessity have taught all the world to try and discern right from wrong good from bad Otherwise good and bad men would not all thus agree in pretending to them and appealing to their decisions 4. If many men are poysoned or killed in eating or drinking If many mens eye sight is abused to mislead them unto sin c. the way is not to eat nothing but what is put into our mouths nor to put out our eyes or wink and be led only by a Priest but to use both the more cautiously with the best advise and help that we can get 5. And do not these Deceivers see that their Reason pleadeth as strongly that Priests and Prelates themselves should never read the Scripture and consequently that it should be banished out of the world For who that is awake in the world can be ignorant that it is Priests and Prelates who have been the Leaders of almost all Heresies and Sects who differ in their Expositions and opinions and lead the Vulgar into all the Heresies which they fall into Who then should be forbidden to read the Scripture but Priests and Prelates who wrest them to their own and other mens destruction Quest. 147. How far is Tradition and mens Words and Ministry to be used or trusted in in the exercise of faith Answ. 1. THe Churches and Ministers received the Gospel in Scripture from the Apostles and Heb. 2. 3 4. 2 Pet. 1. 17 18 19 20 21. 2 John 1. 1 1 3 4 5. 4. 6. 2 Tim. 2. 2. Titus 1. 5. the Creed as the summary of faith And they delivered it down to others and they to us 2. The Ministers by Office are the Instructers of the people in the meaning of it And the keepers of the Scriptures as Lawyers are of the Laws of the Land Quest. 148. How know we the true Canon of Scripture from Apocrypha Answ. BY these means set together 1. There is for the most part a special venerable excellency in the Books themselves which helpeth us in the distinct reception of them 2. The Tradition of infallible Church History telleth us which Books they are which were written by men inspired by the Holy Ghost and who sealed their Doctrine with Miracles in those times It being but matter of fact which Books such men wrote whom God bear witness to infallible Church History such as we have to know which are the Statutes of the Land and which are counterfeit is a sufficient notification and proof 3. The sanctifying Spirit still in all Ages and Christians attesteth the Divinity and Truth of the Doctrine of the main body of the Bible especially the Gospel And then if we should err about the authority of a particular Book it would not overthrow our Faith It is not necessary to salvation to believe this particular Text to be Divine But it is sin and folly to doubt causelesly of the parts when the Spirit attesteth the Doctrine and the Body of the Book I pass these things briefly because I have largelier handled them elsewhere Quest. 149. Is the publick Reading of the Scripture the proper work of a Minister or may a Lay-man ordinarily do it or another Officer Answ. 1. IN such cases as I before shewed that a Lay-man may preach he may also Read the Scriptures Of which look back 2. No doubt but it is a work well beseeming the ordained Ministers or Pastors and an integral part of their Office and should not be put off by them when they can do it 3. When they need help the Deacons are ordained Ministers authorized to help them in such work and fittest to do it 4. Whether in a case of necessity a Lay-man may not ordinarily Read the Scripture to the Congregation is a Case that I am loth to determine being loth to suppose such a necessity But if the Minister cannot and there be no Deacon I cannot prove it unlawful for a Lay-man to do it under the direction of the Pastor I lived sometime under an old Minister of about eighty years of age who never preached himself whose eye sight failing him and having not maintenance to keep an assistant he did by Memory say the Common-prayer himself and got a Taylor one year and a Thresher or poor day-labourer another year to Read all the Scriptures Whether that were not better than nothing I leave to consideration And I think it is commonly agreed on that where there is no Minister it is better for the people to meet and hear a Lay-man Read the Scriptures and some good Books
quid vel insalubre manum admoveat Cohibeat Equiso inter equitandum adigat equum per locum praeruptum vel salebrosum cui subsit periculum Etiamne Medico Etiamne Equisoni suo subjectus Rex Sed de Majori potestate loquitur sed â—â ad rem noxiam procul arcendam qua in re Charitatis semper Potestas est maxima Here you see what Church Government is and how Kings are under it and how not in Bishop Andrews sense for my part I would rather obey the Laws of the King than the Canons of the Bishops if they should disagree 3. But in cases common to both in which the Pastors Office is more nearly and fully concerned than the Magistrates the case is more difficult As at what hour the Church shall assemble What part of Scripture shall be read What Text the Minister shall preach on How long Prayer or Sermon or other Church-exercises shall be What Prayers the Minister shall use In what method he shall preach and what doctrine he shall deliver and the people hear with many such like These do most nearly belong to the Pastoral Office to judge of as well as to execute But yet in some cases the Mâ—gistrate may interpose his authority And herein 1. If the one party do determine clearly to the necessary preservation of Religion and the other to the ruine of it the disparity of consequents makeeth a great disparity in the case For here God himself hath predetermined who commandeth that all be done to â—dification As for instance If a Christian Magistrate ordain that no assembly shall consist of above forty or an hundred persons when there are so many Preachers and places of meeting that it is no detriment to mens souls and especially when the danger of infection or other evil warranteth it then I would obey that command of the Magistrate though the Pastors of the Church were against it and commanded fuller meetings But if a Iulian should command the same thing on purpose to wear out the Christian Religion and when it tendeth to the ruine of mens souls as 〈…〉 399 saâ—â—â—◠〈…〉 of Bâ—shops in thâ—se dayes â—eloâ—ged to the people and not the Prâ—â—ce and though Valens by pâ—ain force placed Luâ—ius there yet might the people lawfully reject him as no Bishop and cleave to Peter their right Pastor when Preachers are so few that either more must meet together or most must be untaught and excluded from Gods Worship here I would rather obey the Pastors that command the contrary because they do but deliver the command of God who determineth consequentially of the necessary means when he determineth of the â—nd But if the consequents of the Magistrates and the Pastors commands should be equally indifferent and neither of them discernably Good or Bad the difficulty then would be at the highest and such as I shall not here presume to determine No doubt but the King is the Supream Governour over all the Schools and Physicions and Hospitals in the Land that is he is the Supream in the Civil Coercive Government He is Supream Magistrate over Divines Physicions and Schoolmasters but not the Supream Divine Physicion or Schoolmaster When there is any work for the Office of the Magistrate that is for the sword among any of them it belongeth only to Him and not at all to them But when there is any work for the Divine the Physicion the Schoolmaster or if you will for the Shoomaker the Taylor the Watch-maker this belongeth not to the King to do or give particular commands for but yet it is all to Too many particular Laws about little maâ—ters breed contention Alex. Severus would have dâ—stinguished all orders of men by their apparel Sâ—d hoc Ulpiano Paulo dispâ—icuit dicentibus plurimum rixarum fore â—i faciles essent homines ad injurias and the Emperour yielded to them Lamâ—rid iâ— Alex. Sever. Lipsius Ubi leges multae ibi lites multae vita moresque pravi Non mulâ—ae leges bonos mâ—res faciunt sed pauâ—ae fideliter servatae be done under his Government and on special causes he may make Laws to force them all to do their several works aright and to restrain them from abuses As to clear the case in hand the King is informed that Physicions take too great Fees of their Patients that some through ignorance and some through covetousness give ill compounded Medicines and pernicious Drugs No doubt but the King by the advice of understanding men may forbid the use of such Drugs as are found pernicious to his Subjects and may regulate not only the Fees but the Compositions and Attendances of Physicions But if he should command that a man in a Feavor or Dropsie or Consumption shall have no Medicine but this or that and so oft and in such or such a dose and with such or such a dyet and the Physicions whom my reason bindeth me to trust and perhaps my own experience also do tell me that all these things are bad for me and different tempers and accidents require different remedies and that I am like to dye or hazard my health if I obey not them contrary to the Kings commands here I should rather obey my Physicions partly because else I should sin against God who commandeth me the preservation of my life and partly because this matter more belongeth to the Physicion than to the Magistrate Mr. Rich. Hooker Eccl. Polit. lib. 8. p. 223 224. giveth you the Reason more fully § 54. Direct 25. Give not the Magistrates Power to any other whether to the People on pretence of Direct 25. their Majestas Realis as they call it or to the Pope or Prelates or Pastors of the Church upon pretence of authority from Christ or of the distinction of Ecclesiastical Government and Civil The peoples pretensions to Natural Authority or Real Majesty or Collation of Power I have consuted before and more elsewhere The Popes Prelates and Pastors power of the Sword in Causes Ecclesiastical is disproved so fully by Bishop Bilson ubi supra and many more that it is needless to say much more of it All Protestants so far as I know are agreed that no Bishop or Pastor hath any power of the Sword that is of Coercion or force upon men bodies liberties or estates except as Magistrates derived from their Soveraign Their spiritual power is only upon Consenters in the use of Gods Word upon the N. B. Quae habet Andrews Tort. Tort. p. 310. Quando apud vos dictio juris exterior Clavis proprie non sit eamque voâ— multis saepe mandatis qui Laicorum in soâ—te sunt exortes sane sacri ordinis universi Conscience either generally in preaching or with personal application in Discipline No Courts or Commands can compell any to appear or submit nor lay the mulct of a penny upon any but by their own consent or the Magistrates authority But this the Papists will few
them to be teachers of Rebellion It is not every different opinion in politicks that proveth men to be against subjection He that can read such a Book as Bilsons for Christian subjection against Antichristian rebelion and yet deny him to be a Teacher of Subjection hath a very hard forhead For the Controversies I shall say no more of them here but what I have said before to Mr. Hooker And as for Calvin and the Disciplinarians or Puritans as they are called They subscribe all the same confessions for Magistracy and take the same oaths of Allegiance and Supremacy as others do and they plead and write for them so that for my part I know not of any difference in their Doctrine Hear what B. Andrews saith who was no rebel in his Tortura Torti pag. 379 380. Calvinus autem ut Papam Regem ita Regem Papam non probavit Neque nos quod in Papâ detestamur in Rege approbamus At ille nobiscum nos cum illo sentimus easdem esse in Ecclesia Christiana Regis Iacobi partes quae Iosiae fuerunt in Iudaica nec nos ultra quicquam fieri ambimus that is But Calvin neither liked a Pope King nor a King Pope Nor do we approve of that in the King which we detest in the Pope But he with us and we with him do judge that King James hath as much to do in a Christian Church as Josias had in the Iewish Church and we go not about to get any more And after Sub Primatus nomine Papatum novum Rex non invebit in Ecclesiam sic enim statuit ut non Aaroni Pontifici ita nec Ieroboamo Regi jus ullam esse conflatum à se vitulum populo proponendi ut adoret idest non vel fidei novos articulos vel cultus Divini novas formulas procudendi that is The King doth not bring into the Church a new Papacy under the name of Primacy For thus he judgeth or determineth that neither Aaron the Priest nor Jeroboam the King had any Right to propose the Calf which they had made to the people to be adored that is neither to hammer or make new articles of faith or new forms of Divine Worship And pag. 379 380. Quos vero Puritanos appellat si Regium primatum detestantur detestandi ipsi Profitentur enim subscribunt jurant indies sed illi quod faciunt ingenuè faciunt societatem in hoc Torti ipsumque adeo Tortum tanquam mendacem hominem alibi de aliis hic de se ac sycophantem egregium detestantur that is And for those he calleth Puritans if they detest the Kings Supremacy they are to be detested For they daily profess subscribe and swear to it And what they do they do ingenuously and they detest the society of Tortus in this and Tortus himself as a lying man elsewhere of others and here of themselves and an egregious sycophant By these testimonies judge what Protestants think of one another in point of loyalty 5. And why are not all the other Christians taken into your enumeration The Armenians Abassins and all the Greek Churches whom the Papists so frequently reproach as flatterers or servile because they still gave so much to their Emperours Have you any pretence for your accusation as against them Unless perhaps from the tumults which Alexandria in its greatness was much addicted to which is nothing to the doctrine of Christianity nor to the practice of all the rest § 84. Having answered these cavils of the late Atheistical or Infidel Politicians I shall next shew Christianity is most for Loyalty and subjection though briefly yet by plentiful evidence that Christianity and true Godliness is the greatest strength of Government and bond of subjection and means of Peace that ever was revealed to the World which will appear in all these Evidences following 1. Christianity teacheth men to take the higher powers as ordained of God and to obey them as Gods Ministers or Officers having an Authority derived immediately from God so that it advanceth the Magistrate as Gods officer as much higher than Infidels advance him who fetch his Rom. 13. 1. 2 3 4. power no higher than Force or Choice as a servant of God is above a servant of men which is more than a man is above a Dog § 85. 2. Christianity telleth us that our obedience to Magistrates is Gods own command and so that we must obey him by obeying them And as obedience to a Constable is more procured by the Kings Laws than by his own commands so obedience to a King is far more effectually procured by Gods Laws than by his own If God be more above a King than a King is above a a Worm the command of God must be a more powerful obligation upon every understanding person than the Kings And what greater advantage can a King have in Governing than to have subjects whose Consciences do feel themselves bound by God himself to obey the King and all his officers Obj. But this is still with exception If it be not in things forbidden of God And the subjects are Object made judges whether it be so or no. Ans. And woe to that man that grudgeth that God must be obeyed Answ. before him and would be himself a God to be obeyed in things which God is against The subjects are made no publick Judges but private discerners of their duties And so you make them your selves or else they must not judge whether the King or a Usurper were to be obeyed or whether the word of the King or of a Constable if they be contradictory is to be preferred To judge what we B. â—ilsoâ— ubi sup p. 259. As Bishops ought to discern which is truth before they teach so must the people discern who teacheth right before they believe Pag. 261 262. Princes as well as others must yield obedience to Bishops speaking the word of God But if bishops pass their commission and speak besides the Word of God what they list both Prince and people may despise them See him further pag. 259 260 261 262. proving that all have a judiciun discretionis must choose or refuse is proper to a Rational Creature even bruits themselves will do something like it by instinct of nature and will not do all things according to your will You would have us obey a Justice of Peace no further than our Loyalty to the King will give leave and therefore there is greater reason that we should obey the higher powers no farther than our Loyalty to God will give leave But if men pretend Gods commands for any thing which he commandeth not Magistrates bear not the sword in vain and subjects are commanded by God not to resist If they punish them rightfully God will bear the Rulers out in it If they punish them wrongfully or persecute them for well-doing God will severely punish them who so wronged his subjects and abused
Body of Christ not of the body of the Pope Let Christian and Catholick be all your titles as to your Religion Mark those that cause divisions and offences and avoid them Rom. 16. 17. § 31. Direct 11. To this end Overvalue not any private or singular opinions of your own or Direct 11. others For if once spiritual pride and ignorance of your own weakness hath made you espouse some particular opinion as peculiarly your own you will dote on the brats of your own brains and will think your conceits to be far more illuminating and necessary than indeed they are as if mens sincerity lay in the embracing of them and their salvation on the receiving of them And then you will make a party for your opinion and will think all that are against it deserve to be cast out as enemies to reformation or to the truth of God or to the Church And perhaps twenty years after experience may bring you to your wits and make you see either the falshood or the smalness of all those points which you made so great a matter of and then what comfort will you have in your persecutions § 32. Direct 12. Obey not the solicitations of selfish passionate disputers Bishops and Divines falling Direct 12. out among themselves and then drawing Princes to own their quarrels when they find their arguments will not serve hath been the distraction division and ruine of the Christian world And he that falleth in with one of the parties to bear out that by the ruines of the other is lost himself in their contentions Would Rulers let wrangling Bishops and Disputers alone and never lend them their Swords to end their differences unless the substance of Religion be endangered they would be weary of quarrelling and would chide themselves friends and no such tragical consequents would follow as do when the Sword interposeth to suppress the discountenanced party and to end their Syllogisms and wranglings in blood § 33. Direct 13. Take heed lest an uncharitable hurting spirit do prevail under the name of holy Direct 13. Zeal As it did with Iames and Iohn when they would have fire from Heaven to have revenged the contempt of their Ministry To whom Christ saith Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of Luke 9. 55. The difference between a Christian zeal and an envious contentious censorious hurtful zeal is excellently described by the Apostle Iames Chap. 3. throughout Where envying and strife is there is confusion and every evil work The wisdom from above is first pure then peaceable gentle easie to be intreated full of mercy and good works without partiality and hypocrisie § 34. Direct 14. The Catholick Church and Particular Churches and our Communion with each Direct 14. must be distinguished and a man must not be cast out of our Catholick Communion because by some tolerable difference he is uncapabable of Communion with some particular Church If a man be impenitent in any Heresie or sin which is contrary to the common nature of Christianity or Godliness and so unfit for Catholick Communion he is to be cast out of Christian Communion But if some particular Church do impose any unnecessary doctrine or practice and he dare not approve it or joyn in it be it right or wrong yea or if he withdraw himself from one Church through the badness of the Minister or through any falling out between them and joyn to another that hath a Minister more suitable to his case these are not crimes to be punished with ejection from Catholick Communion He that is not fit for Communion with some one particular Church may be fit for Communion with many others that give him no such occasion of difference or distaste Without Catholick principles persecution will not be avoided § 35. Direct 15. Let Church Union and Communion be laid upon none but Catholick terms which Direct 15. are possible and fit for all to be agreed in Common Reason will tell any impartial man that there See my Treatise of A True Catholick and Cath. Church can be no more effectual engine to divide the Churches and raise contentions and persecutions than to make Laws for Church-communion requiring such conditions as it is certain the members cannot consent to If any man knew that my opinion is against the doctrine of Transubstantiation or of the Dominicans Predetermination and he would make a Law that no man shall have Communion with that Church who subscribeth not to these he unavoidably excludeth me Unless I be such a Beast as to Believe nothing soundly and therefore to say any thing If ever the Churches agree and Christians be reconciled it must be by leaving out all dividing impositions and requiring nothing as necessary to Communion which all may not rationally be expected to consent in Now these Catholick principles of Communion must be such as these 1. Such points of faith only as constitute Christianity and which every upright Christian holdeth and therefore only such as are contained in our Baptismal Covenant or Profession which maketh us Christians And not those other which only some stronger Christians believe or understand Because the weak are not to be cast out of the family of Christ. 2. Such points as the Primitive Churches did agree in and not innovations which they never Sâ—e Viâ—cent Lâ—â—iaens practised or agreed in For they are our pattern and were better than we and no more can be necessary to our Concord and Communion than was to theirs 3. Such points as all the Church hath sometime or other at least agreed in For what reason can we have to think that the Churches should now agree in that which they never hitherto agreed in 4. Such points as all the true Christians in the world are now agreed in For otherwise we shall exclude some true Christians from our Christian Communion 5. No points of Worship much less of Modes and Circumstances which are not necessary and more necessary to the Churches good than is the Communion of all those persons who by dissenting are like to be separated or cast out and whose omission would not do more hurt than this separation and division is like to do 6. Especially no such things must be made necessary to communion as the most conscientious are ordinarily fearful of and averse to and may be forborn without any great detriment to godliness § 36. Object But it will be said that Catholick Communion indeed requireth no more than you say Object But particular Churches may require more of their members For that may be necessary or fit for a member of this particular Church which is not to at all Answ. Catholick Communion is that which all Christians and Churches have with one another and the terms of it are such as all Christians may agree in Catholick Communion is principally existent and exercised in particular Churches as there is no existent Christianity or faith which existeth not in
preservation of the family in peace If children cry or fight or chide or make any fowle or troublesome work the mother will not therefore turn them out of doors or use them like strangers but remember that it is her place and duty to bear with that weakness which she cannot cure The proud impatience of the Pastors hath frequently brought them into the guilt of persecution to the alienating of the peoples hearts and the distraction and division of the Churches when poor distempered persons are offended with them and it may be revile them and call them seducers or antichristian or superstitious or what their pride and passion shall suggest or if some weak ones raise up some erroneous opinions alas many Pastors have no more wit or grace or pity than presently to be rough with them and revile them again and seek to right themselves by wayes of force and club down every errour and contention when they should overcome them by evidence of truth and by meekness patience and love Though there be place also for severity with turbulent implacable impenitent hereticks § 55. Direct 33. Time of learning and overcoming their mistakes must be allowed to those that are Direct 33. mis-informed We must not turn those of the lower forms out of Christs School because they learn not as much as those of the higher forms in a few weeks or years The Holy Ghost teacheth those who for the time might have been Teachers of others and yet had need to be taught the first Principles Heb. 5. 11 12. He doth not turn them out of the Church for their non-proficiency And where there is ignorance there will be errour § 56. Direct 34. Some inconveniences must be expected and tolerated and no perfect Order or Concord Direct 34. expected here on earth It is not good reasoning to say If we suffer these men they will cause this or that disorder or inconvenience But you must also consider whither you must drive it if you suffer them not and what will be the consequents He that will follow his Conscience to a prison will likely follow it to death And if nothing but death or prison or banishment can restrain them from what they take to be their duty it must be considered how many must be so used and whether if they were truly faulty they deserve so much and if they do yet whether the evils of the Toleration or of the Punishment are like to be the greater Peace and Concord will never be perfect till Knowledge and Holiness be perfect § 57. Direct 35. You may go further in restraining than in constraining in forbidding men to Direct 35. preach against approved doctrines or practices of the Church than in forcing them to preach for them or to subscribe or speak their approbation or assent If they be not points or practices of great necessity a man may be sit for the Ministry and Church-communion who meddleth not with them but Preacheth the wholsome truths of the Gospel and lets them alone And because no duty is at all times a duty a sober mans judgement will allow him to be silent at many an errour when he dare not subscribe to or approve the least But if here any proud and cruel Pastors shall come in with their lessâ—â— selfish incommodities and say If they do not approve of what we say and do they will secretly foment a faction against us I should answer them that as good men will foment no faction so if such Proud impatient turbulent men will endure none that subscribe not to all their opinions or differ from them in a circumstance or a Ceremony they shall raise a greater faction if they 'l call it so against themselves and make the people look on them as tyrants and not as Pastors and they shall see in the end when they have bought their wit by dear experience that they have but torn the Church in pieces by preventing divisions by carnal means and that they have lost themselves by being over zealous for themselves and that DOCTRINE and LOVE are the instruments of a wise Shepheard that loveth the flock and understands his work § 58. Direct 36. Distinguish between the making of new Laws or articles of belief and the punishing Direct 36. of men for the Laws already made And think not that we must have new Laws or Canons every time the old ones are broken or that any Law can be made which can keep it self from being broken Perversness in this errour hath brought the Church to the misery which it endureth God hath made an Universal Law sufficient for the Universal Church in matters of faith and holy practice leaving it to men to determine of necessary circumstances which were unfit for an universal Law And if the sufficiency of Gods Law were acknowledged in mens practices the Churches would have had more peace But when particular Countreys have their particular Volumes of Articles Consessions Liturgies and I know not what else to be subscribed to and none must Preach that will not say or write or swear that he believeth all this to be true and good and nothing in it to be against the Word of God this Engine wracks the limbs of the Churches all to pieces And then what 's the pretense for this epidemical calamity Why no better than this Every Heretick will subscribe to the Scriptures and take it in his own sense And what followeth Must we needs therefore have new Laws which Hereticks will not subscribe to or which they cannot break It is the Commendation of Gods Law as fit to be the means of Unity that all are so easily agreed to it in terms and therefore would agree in the sense if they understood it But they will not do so by the Laws of men All or many Hereticks in the primitive times would profess assent to the Churches Creed no doubt in a corrupt and private sense But the Churches did not therefore make new Creeds till above 300 years after Christ they began to put in some particular words to obviate Hereticks which Hilary complained of as the Cause of all their divisions And what if Hereticks will subscribe to all you bid them and take it in their own corrupted sense Must you therefore be still making new Laws and Articles till you meet with some which they cannot mis-understand or dare not thus abuse What if men will mis-interpret and break the Laws of the Land Must they be made new till none can mis-expound or violate them Sure there is a wiser way than this Gods word containeth in sufficient expressions all that is necessary to be subscribed to Require none therefore to subscribe to any more in matters of faith or holy practice But if you think any Articles need a special interpretation let the Church give her sense of those Articles and if any man Preach against that sense and corrupt the Word of God which he hath subscribed let his fault be
is good neither to eat flesh or drink wine or any thing whereby thy brother stumbleth or is scandalized or offended or made weak It is a making weak So 2 Cor. 11. 29. Who is offended that is stumbled or hindered or ready to apostatize So much for the nature and sorts of Scandal § 22. IV. You are next to observe the Aggravations of this â—in Which briefly are such as these 1. Scandal is a murdering of souls It is a hindering of mens salvation and an enticing or driving them towards Hell And therefore in some respect worse than murder as the soul is better than the body 2. Ssandal is a fighting against Jesus Christ in his work of mans salvation He came to seek and to save that which was lost and the scandalizer seeketh to lose and destroy that which Christ would seek and save 3. Scandal robbeth God of the hearts and service of his creatures For it is a raising in them a distaste of his people and word and wayes and of himself and a turning from him the hearts of those that should adhere unto him 4 Scandal is a serving of the Devil in his proper work of enmity to Christ and perdition of souls Scandalizers do his work in the world and propagate his Cause and Kingdom § 23. V. The means of avoiding the guilt of Scandal are as followeth § 23. Direct 1. Mistake not with the vulgar the nature of scandal as if it lay in that offending Direct 1. men which is nothing but grieving or displeasing them or in making your selves to be of evil report But remember that Scandal is that offending men which tempteth them into sin from God and Godliliness and maketh them stumble and fall or occasioneth them to think evil of a holy life It is a piâ—iâ—ul thing to hear religious persons plead for the sin of man-pleasing under the name of avoiding scandal yea to hear them set up a Usurped dominion over the lives of other men and all by the advantage of the word scandal misunderstood So that all men must avoid what ever a censorious person will call scandalous when he meaneth nothing else himself by scandal than a thing that is of evil report with such as he Yea Pride it self is often pleaded for by this misunderstanding of Scandal and men are taught to overvalue their reputations and to strain their consciences to keep up their esteem and all under pretence of avoiding scandal And in the mean time they are really scandalous even in that action by which they think they are avoiding it I need no other instance than the case of unwarrantable separation Some will hold communion with none but the re-baptized Some think an imposed Liturgy is enough to prove communion with such a Church unlawful at least in the use of it And almost every Sect do make their differences a reason for their separating from other Churches And if any one would hold communion with those that they separate from they presently say that it is scandalous to do so and to joyn in any worship which they think unlawful and by scandal they mean no more but that it is among them of evil report and is offensive or displeasing to them Whereas indeed the argument from scandal should move men to use such communion which erroneous uncharitable dividing men do hold unlawful For else by avoiding that communion I shall lay a stumbling block in the way of the weak I shall tempt him to think that a duty is a sin and weaken his charity and draw him into a sinful separation or the neglect of some Ordinances of God or opportunities of getting good And it is this Temptation which is indeed the scandal This is before proved in the instance of Peter Gal. 2. who scandalized or hardened the Jews by yielding to a sinful separation from the Gentiles and fearing the Censoriousness of the Jews whom he sought to please and the offending of whom he was avoiding when he really offended them that is was a scandal or temptation to them § 24. Direct 2. He that will escape the guilt of Scandal must be no contemner of the souls of others Direct 2. but must be truly charitable and have a tender love to souls That which a man highly valueth and dearly loveth he will be careful to preserve and loth to hurt Such a man will easily part with his own rights or submit to losses injuries or disgrace to preserve his Neighbours soul from sin Whereas a despiser of souls will insist upon his own power and right and honour and will entrap and damn a hundred souls rather than he will abate a word or a Ceremony which he thinks his interest requireth him to exact Tell him that it will ensnare mens souls in sin and he is ready to say as the Phariseâ—s to Iudâ—s What 's that to us See thou to that A Dog hath as much pity on a Hare or a Hawk on a Partridge as a carnal worldly ambitious Diotrephes or an Elymas hath of souls Tell him that it will occasion men to sin to wound their Consciences to offend their God it moveth him no more than to tell him of the smallest incommodity to himself He will do more to save a Horse or a Dog of his own than to save anothers soul from sin To lay snares in their way or to deprive them of the preaching of the Gospel or other means of their salvation is a thing which they may be induced to by the smallest interest of their own yea though it be but a point of seeming honour And therefore when carnal worldly men do become the disposers of matters of Religion it is easie to see what measure and usage men must expect Yea though they assume the office and name of Pastors who should have the most tender fatherly care of the souls of all the flocks yet will their carnal inclinations and interests engage them in the work of Wolves to entrap or famish or destroy Christs Sheep § 25. Direct 3. Also you must be persons who value your own souls and are diligently exercised in Direct 3. saving them from temptations or else you are very like to be scandalizers and tempters of the souls of others And therefore when such a man is made a Church Governour as is unacquainted with the renewing work of grace and with the inward Government of Christ in the soul what Devilish work is he like to make among the sheep of Christ under the name of Government What corrupting of the Doctrine Worship or Discipline of Christ What inventions of his own to ensnare mens Consciences and driving them on by armed force to do that which at least to them is sin and which can never countervail the loss either of their souls or of the Church by such disturbances How merciless will he be when a poor member of Christ shall beg of him but to have pity on his soul and tell him I cannot do this or swear
tempted to Popery or Infidelity In some Countreys they learn to drink Wine instead of Beer and arising from the smaller sort to the stronger if they turn not drunkards they contract that appetite to Wine and strong drink which shall prove as Clemens Alexandrinus calleth gluttony and tipling a Throat-madness and a Belly-devil and keep them in the sin of gulosity all their dayes And in some Countreys they shall learn the art of Gluttony to pamper their guts in curious costly uncouth fashions and to dress themselves in novel fantastical garbs and to make a business of adorning themselves and setting themselves forth with proud and procacious fancies and affections to be lookt upon as comely persons to the eyes of others In some Countreys they shall learn to waste their precious hours in Stage-playes and vain spectacles and ceremonious attendances and visits and to equalize their life with death and to live to less use and benefit to the world than the Horse that carryeth them In most Countreys they shall learn either to prate against Godliness as the humour of a few melancholy fools and be wiser than to believe God or obey him or be saved or at least to grow indifferent and cold in holy affections and practices For when they shall see Papists and Protestants Lutherans and Calvinists of contrary minds and hear them reproaching and condemning one another this cooleth their zeal to all Religion as seeming but a matter of uncertainty and contention And when also they see how the wise and holy are made a scorn in one Countrey as Bigots and Hugonots and how the Protestants are drunkards and worldlings in another Countrey and how few in the world have any true sense and savour of sound and practical Religion and of a truly holy and heavenly life as those few they are seldome so happy as to converse with this first accustometh themselves to a neglect of holiness and then draweth their minds to a more low indifferent opinion of it and to think it unnecessary to salvation For they will not believe that so few shall be saved as they find to be holy in the world And then they grow to think it but a fancy and a troubler of the world And it addeth to their temptation that they are obliged by the carnal ends which drew them out Read Bishop Halls Quo Vadis on this subject to be in the worst and most dangerous company and places that is at Princes Courts and among the splendid gallantry of the world For it is the fashions of the Great ones which they must see and of which when they come home they must be able to discourse So that they must travel to the Pesthouses of pomp and lust of idleness gluâ—â—ony drunkenness and pride of Atheism irreligiousness and impiety that they may be able to glory what acquaintance they have got of the grandeur and gallantry of the Suburbs of Hell that they may represent the way to damnation delectable and honourable to others as well as to themselves But the greatest danger is of corrupting their Intellectuals by converse with deceivers where they come either Infidels or jugling Iesuits and Fryars For when these are purposely trained up to deceive how easie is it for them to silence raw unfurnished Novices yea even where all their five senses must be captivated in the doctrine of Transubstantiation And when they are silenced they must yield or at least they have deluding stories enough of the Antiquity Universality Infallibility Unity of their Church with a multitude of lyes of Luther Calvin Zuinglius and other Reformers to turn their hearts and make them yield But yet that they may be capable of doing them the more service they are instructed for a time to dissemble their perversion and to serve the Roman Pride and Faction in a Protestant garb and name Especially when they come to Rome and see its glory and the monuments of antiquity and are alluned with their splendour and civilities and made believe that all the reports of their Inquisitions and cruelties are false this furthereth the fascination of unexperienced youths 2. And usually all this while the most of them lay by all serious studies and all constant employment and make Idleness and Converse with the Idle or with Tempters to be their daily work And what a mind is like to come to which is but one half year or twelvemonth accustomed to idleness and vain spectacles and to a pleasing converse with idle and luxurious persons it is easie for a man of any acquaintance with the world or with humane nature to conjecture 3. And they go forth in notable peril of their health or lives Some fall into Feavors and dye by change of air and drinks Some fall into quarrels in Taverns or about their Whores and are murdered Some few prove so steadfast against all the temptations of the Papists that it is thought conducible to the holy cause that they should be killed in pretence of some quarrel or be poysoned Some by drinking Wine do contract such sickness as makes their lives uncomfortable to the last And the brains of many are so heated by it that they fall mad 4. And all this danger is principally founded in the quality of the persons sent to travel which Peregrinaâ—io â—evia taedâ—a quaedam animorum veâ—uâ—i nause as toâ—â—â—â—t Non tollâ—t mâ—rbos quâ— altiuâ— penetrarunt quam â—t externa ulla m dicina huc pâ—râ— ngâ—t Id. eb are ordinarily empty Lads between eighteen and twenty four years of age which is the time of the Devils chief advantage when naturally they are proâ—e to those Vices which prove the ruine of the most though you take the greatest care of them that you can 1. Their lust is then in the highest and most untamed rage 2. Their appetites to pleasing meats and drinks are then strongest 3. Their frolick inclinations to sports and recreations are then greatest 4. And ignorant and procacious Pride beginneth then to stir 5. All things that are most Vile and Vain are then apt to seem excellent to them by reason of the novelty of the matter as to them who never saw such things before and by reason of the false esteem of those carnal persons to whose pomp and consequently to whose judgement they would be conformed 6. And they are at that age exceedingly inclined to think all their own apprehensions to be right and to be very confident of their own conceptions and wise in their own eyes Because their juvenile intellect being then in the most affecting activity it seemeth still clear and sure to them because it so much affects themselves 7. But above all they are yet unfurnished of almost all that solid wisdome and setled holiness and large experience which is most necessary to their improvement of their travels and to their resistance of all these temptations Alas how few of them are able to deal with a Jesuite or hold fast their Religion against