Selected quad for the lemma: duty_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
duty_n	pray_v	prayer_n	word_n	4,036	5	4.6953	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A86600	Clavis exousiasichē [sic]: The key of ordination. Or, Missio potestativa. Oichonomichē: ministerial power: or, Authoritative separation of men to the work of Christ, a ministerial privilege.A sermon preached at the ordination of Mr. Thomas Porter Master of Arts, Mr. John Wilson, Mr. David Jenks, Mr. George Burraston, and Mr. Tho: Soley, at Whitchurch in the county of Salop. / By Aylmer Houghton, minister of the word at Prees in the said county.	Houghton, Aylmer.	1656 (1656)	Wing H2918; Thomason E1665_3; ESTC R208387	22,964	62

The Juridical power is in the Presbytery to judge of and examine those who are to preach the Word of God that so false Teachers and Unworthy men might be kept from creeping into the Church of Christ For wicked men such as are meerly natural and prophane or hypocrites in heart would never consent to the call of a holy Minister of Jesus Christ And besides these are not capable in their choice to judge of such but may either out of prejudice or ignorance or out of a prophane heart deny consent to his Ministery whom God hath called and said Separate me such a one to the work whereunto I have called him For my part I cannot be perswaded or satisfied in this one thing that ever any one not called by the Church and that is out of office and orders and intrudes upon this holy calling should ever convert souls or bring any to heaven Dissenting judgements there are of some of our Brethren about this Separate me even concerning the form of this Separation and Ordination But I intend not to wade into this business or meddle with this Controversie Our practise is approved and sufficiently cleared to the satisfaction I hope of all here or of the most that desire unity and order in the Church of Christ and therefore I shall leave it with this one additional requisite belonging to it which is Probation 1 Tim. 3.10 Hiprobentur let them first be proved And this hath been our form of proceeding in setting apart and separating those whom hitherto we have laid our hands on and sent forth to the work whereunto they have been called and that both of their abilities and deportments And the rather For as a wise Master of a Family will not commit matters of moment to any one Servant till he hath first made proof of his ability to do it and also of his faithfulness in doing it Multo magis necessarium est eos probari quibus comittenda est cura sanctae Congregationis Hiperius Much more fit is it that those be tryed and proved to whom is committed the care of souls in the Church of Christ A word of the fourth Term which is the form of this outward call by Separation And when they had prayed Prayer is a duty for all undertakings of Christians especially in an undertaking of that nature and high concernment as this in my Text and as we are this day come about 2. By fasting This was a duty for extraordinary undertakings and more than ordinary occasions such as this is we are now about 3. By Imposition of hands which contains the species of their Consecration In conferring of holy Orders a double posture hath anciently been observed First 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the Imposition of hands in token of Consecration Acts 8.17 2. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the holding up of hands in sign of confirmation Acts 14.23 And in this Ceremony is held forth the offering of them up to God for the work whereunto the Holy Ghost hath called them And this outward call though it be not of men yet it is by men and necessary to so holy a function And all such as come not in by this door are but 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 new illuminates lately dropt out of heaven that yesterday were but Dolts and Dunces but to day are Doctors and Divines Yesterday with Saul were seeking their fathers Asses and to day are gotten among the Prophets 1 Sam. 10.16 like the Nightingale Vox preterea nihil a voyce and nothing else or like the Camelion all lungs and no heart All their learning is by Revelation they pray and preach and all by the Spirit whereas all are but the visions of their own hearts the fancies of distempered spirits and meer chymera's of sin-sick brains which they rather feign than know and foolish unstable souls rather follow than believe or trust But those called of God and by men are such as know God and themselves who have a feeling of that spirit who teacheth them to know God and God to know them and them to know themselves Of these the holy Ghost hath said to us Separate me these men for the work whereunto I have called them I have now done with the Doctrinal part of my Thesis and shall fall upon the Applicatory part and be brief in it I hava a threefold Errand from Christ to all here this day suitable to your threefold Stations Relations Places and Persons My first Errand is to you my Reverend Brethren and my self who have this Command in my Text enjoyned us To separate these our Brethren for the work whereunto they are called My second Errand is my Brethren to you who are this day to be Separated from other persons and imployments to this weighty work And my third Errand is to all of you Christian Auditors and Spectators to this Religious crowd and throng who are this day Spectators to behold and Auditors to hear how this work is performed both by them and us In all of which I hope you will be both Approbationers to approve it and Petitioners with us to the Throne of grace and help us by your prayers for a blessing on them And pray all your Amens unto it Reverend Brethren My first Errand and Word I have from Christ is to you and to my self All the excuse I shall now plead is I must be faithful to my Lord and Master Jesus Christ 1 Cor 4 2. You have called me forth to this work therefore give me leave to be plain and impartial in delivering the minde of Christ to us in this weighty business My first word to you and to my self is onely that which this Apostle gave to his beloved Timothy 1 Tim. 5.22 A charge that he gave him to keep himself pure and to lay hands suddenly on no man lest he be partaker of other mens sins To prevent this evil two things are required of us before admission of any to this weighty work 1. Circumspection 2. Sincere Affections First Circumspection That such onely be admitted as are in some measure fraught and furnisht with the sufficiencies of both men the inward and the outward man clad and cloathed with the indowments and perfections both of nature and grace Secondly Sincere affections That we be not transported with by-respects either of profit or of partiality If we neglect either of these we may make our selves partakers of other mens sins of the sins of others And that 1. By consenting to such 2. Or By concealing of such 3. Or By contriving for such 4. Or By commending of such to the work of the Lord who are not called of God to this work by his Spirit to this Ministerial Function I Remember a passage of Erasmas who stories of the Bishop of Utretcht who was son to the good Duke of Burgundie who had at one time three hundred who came to him for holy Orders He was resolved he would examine them himself and made tryal of their

action of Divine Worship before the Lord. And fasted Addit Jejunium fasting is fixed to this duty Ut sciamus eorum mentes omni impedimento fuisse solutas ne quid obstaret Calvin To hold forth their firm resolution that nothing should obstruct the business they were about The Holy Ghost said That is by some prophetick spirit of Revelation to one or more of them with the consent of the rest Diodate The Holy Ghost that is spiritus sanctus God by his Spirit or God the third Person in the Trinity God said separate mee 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 sever them set them apart from other men and from all other imployments A Ministers Calling is not of men yet by men The Author of all holy Calling to the Ministery is only the Holy Ghost exclusively to all men but not to the other two persons in the Sacred Trinity They all equally concur in this external work It belongs to the Lord of the Harvest to call in Labourers into his Harvest but now by his Servants Nothing should be done in spiritual undertakings of such high concernment as this in my Text and as this day we are come about without this separation In the first plantation of the Church of God Moses and Aaron had a speciall charge given them to separate the Levits from among the Children of Israel and their cloathes must be washed and then presented as an offering to the Lord Numb 8.14 21. And their separation was twofold First Their initiation to their office at a month old and afterward the second time at the age of 25 years Numb 8.24 And this laudable and approved custome of severing separating of men from the rest of the multitude for the work of Christ hath been the practice of the primitive times of the Gospel and is still continued as the practice of the Church of Christ in these Gospel days and kept up as most suitable to the mind of Jesus Christ For this was the practice of the Apostles Acts 6.6 The Apostles set them before them and prayed and laid their hands on them and these prospered in their Ministery The Holy Ghost said separate me Barnabas and Saul that is to be held in equall degree and to go forth with equal authority with us to the work of Christ Barnabas 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 filius Consolationis See Act. 4.36 the Son of consolation Jerom gives the interpretation of this name filius prophetae the Son of a Prophet com●ositum est of the Hebrew word Bar et nabi Prophetae munus so Pafor And Saul an Hebrew word Schaul hoc est petitus and Paul that is pusillus and so called in vers 9. of this Chapter Paul signifies little to hold forth ut deus voluit ostendere per pusillum hunc et per vas hoc infirmum splendidam hujus mundi potentiam infracturam et per contraria agere That God would by this little and infirm weak instrument break the seeming power and greatness of this world and work by contraries Paul little to set forth the humility and lowliness of him whom the Holy Ghost had here called forth to the work of the ministery He was little in his own eyes God raiseth Work-men to his work out of the dust He plows and sows in low grounds these are they that oftentimes prove most fertile and fruitful Paul signifies also to cease thereby intimating hee had now ceased to persecute Hee was now called to work for Christ that formerly had been a persecutor of Christ Hee was now ceast and stopt from raging against Christ and now was to work for him Austine observes upon this Text that these two in my Text had bina nomina two names given them to hold forth the successe that should accompany their Ministery in the Church of Christ Their natures were changed with their names For the work whereunto I have called them 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Ad opus seu officium ad quod eos vocavi To the work or office to which I have called them Work labour 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 The word signifies such work as wears and wastes out all 1 Thes 5.12 wee beseech you brethren know them which work among you who waste and wear themselves away with work among you Gods Ministers are separated and sent to be 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 workers together with Christ 2 Cor. 6.1 whereunto I have called them This call in my Text was different from the call of others to this work it was not ordinary but extraordinary it was an immediate call which is not required in the call of others of Gods special servants It is not to bee expected ut nobis è coelo inclamet Deus That God should call from heaven to tell us who are to be separated for this work Hee who calls them doth inable them to the work they are called forth to work God Ministers now must have a mediate call The Holy Ghost sends and calls and the call of the Holy Ghost is twofold 1 Immediate 2 Mediate 1 Immediate as these in my Text. 2 Mediate by his servants But some there are who have no call either from God and his Spirit or by men his servants but runne on their own heads and on their own errands The Spirit of God complains against these Jer. 23.21 non mitebam prophetas et ipsi currebant non loquebar illis et ipsi prophetabant I have not sent them yet they ranne I have not spoken to them yet they prophesied but hee that set them on work must pay them their wages And our Saviour saith that he that comes not in by the door the same is a thief and a robber John 10.1 2 Some are called and sent of men but not of God as when Jeroboam made Priests of the lowest of the people 1 King 12.31 So Jason and Menelaus was ambitiously affected after the Priesthood and sought by all unlawfull means to procure it of Antiochus And so by favour and some indirect means or other heretofore many of bad learning and baser living have been thrust into the Ministery to the dishonour of God grief to the godly and ruine of many souls But blessed be God there is now care taken and God hath put it into the hearts of the supream Authority of this Church and Common-wealth not only to prevent this evill but to purge this evil not only to cast out but to keep out such buyers and sellers out of the Temple 3 But some are sent and called of God and by men as these in my text and so Timothy and Titus and others by the Apostles for how shall they preach till they be sent Rom. 10.15 And when they had fasted and prayed This was the form and order of the Church of Christ in such high undertakings in matters of such moment to address themselves to God in these duties Calvin Erasmus and others observe it was not so much for imploring God to give them prudence and