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A88829
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An examination of the political part of Mr. Hobbs his Leviathan. By George Lawson, rector of More in the county of Salop.
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Lawson, George, d. 1678.
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1657
(1657)
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Wing L706; Thomason E1591_3; Thomason E1723_2; ESTC R208842
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108,639
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222
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the main design of this long and tedious Chapter wherein he is not content to vent his errours but he must broach his blasphemies For after he had granted the Ecclesiastical power to be in the Apostles and their successors for about 300 years he tels us T. H. That the Trinity is a threefold representation of God 1. By Moses 2. By Christ on earth 3. By the holy Ghost in the Apostles and this agrees with that of the Divine Apostle There are three that bear witness in heaven the Father the Word and the Holy Ghost and these three are one 1 Joh. 5.7 G. L. This deserves no answer but detestation because it s not onely blasphemous but also devoid not onely of divine but humane learning and no ways to be suffered amongst Christians Having thus determined the proper and just subject of this power for so long a time he proceeds to let us know what this power is T. H. The power of the Church is but to teach to baptize to absolve to excommunicate G. L. The foundation and Rule of all Christian doctrine worship and discipline is briefly and by a wonderful wisdom comprised in those words of our Saviour ready to ascend into Heaven Go and teach all Nations baptizing them c. Mat. 28.19 20. For in those words we are taught 1. What Doctrine we must believe and profess 2. What worship we must perform unto the Deity and how and upon what grounds 3. Who may and who may not be admitted into Christian society and who may and who may not be continued in the same and enjoy all the priviledges thereof Those who being taught profess their faith in God the Father Son and Holy Ghost and promise to obey the commands of Christ may be baptized and solemnly admitted into the Church They who continued to profess their faith to perform their promise of obedience unto Christ might be continued in this society and enjoy the priviledges otherwise not From which words its evident there must be a power to teach baptize absolve excommunicate and also to ordain and design fit persons to do these things and give rules out of the Gospel how they may be done aright This Author first makes void as he conceives all Bellarmines discourse concerning the form of Ecclesiastical government whether it be Monarchical Aristocratical or Democratical 2. They have power but to teach The reason why Bellarmines discourse is void is given by him to be this because the Church hath no coercive power If he mean coercive civil by the sword its certain there is no such power Ecclesiastical Neither doth Bellarmine affirm or challenge it but indirecte per accidens Yet he was told before that the execution of the Churches censure is from heaven as it is passed in the name of Christ and by his power 1 Cor. 5.4 And he hath promised whatsoever is bound on earth shall be bound in heaven and whatsoever loosed on earth shall be loosed in heaven Mat. 18.18 This is not in the name of the civil Soveraign nor by the power of the sword And it must be done by some power and this power must be exercised either by one or more or all according to some certain order And Government is nothing but ordo imperii subjectionis 2. That the Church hath but power to teach perswade counsel c. he proves first by his false supposition that Christ doth not reign until the universal Resurrection secondly by that time of Regeneration which he bounds within the terms of Christs ascension and his second coming to Judgement The former argument was grounded upon a false interpretation of our Saviours words and so the later is for by Regeneration in Mat. 19.28 is meant the Resurrection and so it s printed and distinguished in divers coples and so the King of Spains Bibles read it as others also and the sense is they which have followed me shall in the Regeneration that is Resurrection sit upon twelve Thrones c. But suppose that regeneration be not the resurrection Yet it cannot be a time of that continuance as to reach Christs coming to Judgement but only the time of their following Christ which cannot extend beyond his ascention Yet let it be granted that by it is signified the whole tract of time from his ascention till his coming to Judgement it will not follow from that text that Christ doth not raign till that time be expired for he may as he doth raign and exercise many acts of his regal power before he pass the final sentence upon all men and Angels His other reasons are frivolous and not ad idem Yet his last argument save one is That because Christ hath left to civil Governors their power therefore he hath left none to the Church And its true that he hath left no civil power of the sword to the Church yet it doth not hence follow that he hath denyed it the spiritual power of the keyes And here he makes a most abominable digression affirming that we may deny or profess against our conscience and comply with civil powers commanding and forbidding contrary to that which Christ hath commanded and forbidden and so hath taken away the ground of all Martyrdom and razed the very foundation of our Christian confession Besides he seems to put a difference between their power to Preach and their power to Teach but he will not let us know what this difference is And his arguments tend to prove that Ministers have no power to command no authority yet the people are commanded to obey them that rule over them and submit themselves because they watch over their souls Heb. 13.17 And he that heareth them heareth Christ and God that sent him and he that despiseth them despiseth Christ and God that sent him To that purpose we read in Luk. 10.17 And how can this possibly be true if this have no authority no law no sin To teach and preach in such a manner as they who will not hear and obey shall be guilty as contemners of the divine Majesty and so as that it shall be more tolerable for Sodom in the day of judgement then for them is to teach with authority and power and the same no doubt greater then any Prince civil in the world is invested withal For they cannot command so as to make the disobedient liable to eternal penalties He granteth further that they have power to Baptize and by Baptism admit into Christs Kingdom which is a spiritual naturalization and also to absolve and excommunicate yet the former is an act of Legislation the latter of Jurisdiction and how can that be performed without power Thus the man is pleased to confute himself Yet in the acts of Jurisdiction we do not affirm the judgement of the Church to be infallible because they can have no infallible knowledge of the inward disposition of the souls of persons penitent or impenitent Yet sometimes the evidence of the cause is such
sin of man and merited for himself eternal power and glory and for us eternal life and all effectual means for the certain attainment thereof All the rest of his acts performed by him as King Priest and Prophet tended unto the application of his sacrifice that we by faith might be partakers of the benefit thereof This is the sum of that Doctrine of Redemption delivered clearly and more fully in several places of the Scripture especially of the New Testament Yet this Innovatour hath obscured the same several ways and determines the Kingdom of Christ to begin when the world doth end because Christ said to Pilate My Kingdom is not of this world Joh. 18.36 From whence he concludes T. H. That the Kingdom of Christ is not to begin before the general Resurrection G. L. This is a gross mistake and mis-interpretation of a place which is clear in it self For by his gloss he makes the Scripture to contradict it self Christ was then Candidatus imperii and was King when he gave this answer unto Pilate yet he began to reign and exercise his Royal power more eminently when he was set at the Right hand of the Father yet his Kingdom was not of this world that is not civil but spiritual and as Austin upon the place It was Hic non hinc in the world not of the world in the world yet not worldly but divine and far more excellent then the Kingdoms of the world This is the genuine sense of the words That Christ doth reign now and hath reigned since his ascension and sitting at the right hand of God is evident Before his Ascension he lets his Apostles know that all power in heaven and earth was given him and according unto and by vertue of that power he gave Commission to his Apostles to teach and baptize and perswade men to the obedience of his commands Mat. 28.18 19 20. He that hath an universal power in heaven and earth who makes officers and gives them power who makes Laws Institutes Sacraments and sends down the Holy Ghost must needs reign and his Kingdom is begun already We read that Christ must reign till he hath put all enemies under his feet and the last enemy that shall be destroyed is death And when all things shall be subdued unto him then shall also the Son of man be subject unto him that put all things under him that God may be all in all 1 Cor. 15.25 26 28. Where first from Psal 110.1 The Apostle tels us That Christs Kingdom did Commence at the time of Christs sitting at the right hand of God 2. That with him to sit at the right hand of God is to reign 3. That he must reign by Word Sacraments Spirit Ministry till all enemies whereof death is the last be destroyed 4. That when death is destroyed he shall deliver up his Commission and kingdom in respect of this administration by Ordinances 5. That at the Resurrection this manner of reign shall end when Mr. Hobbs saith it shall begin 6. That then God shall be all in all that is reign perfectly in his Saints without any enemy without opposition without Ordinances and more immediately Before that time indeed he will not proceed to the final and universal sentence and execution of the same Yet there are many acts of government besides judgement and many acts of judgement be sides those of the general Assizes and last Sessions To make Laws reduce men to subjection appoint Officers pass sentence and execute the same in the very souls of men are acts of one that reigns as likewise to subdue enemies Sin Satan and the world to protect the Church And in this manner Christ hath reigned since his Ascension And many Millions do adore him subject themselves unto him and obey him to this day Yet with this man Christ doth not yet reign Let him read Psalm 2. throughout It began to be fulfilled upon his Resurrection and Ascension as appears out of the Acts of the Apostles and their Epistles And if he or any other shall deny the present reign of Christ they must expect with his Iron Scepter to be dasht in pieces like a Potters Vessel CAP XI Of the third Part the 42. of the Book Of Ecclesiastical Power AFter he had enthroned Civil Soveraigns cap. 40. Dethroned Christ in the former Chapter In this he takes away all power from the Church and invests the Christian civil powers with it And herein it may be a question whether his ignorance or presumption is the greater for he is highly guilty of both He that will determine the controversie concerning the power of the Church must distinguist the universal power of God the spiritual power of Christ incarnate and exalted to the Throne of glory and the power deligated from Christ unto the Church universal here on earth as subject unto Christ as Lord and Monarch and also that which every particular Independent association of Christians is trusted withal for to preserve the Society and the Ordinances of God from profanation This he hath not done and therefore little or rather nothing can be expected from him This last power of particular Churches is called the power of the keys in foro exteriori in the particular government of their several combinations for there is no supreme universal Independent judicatory on earth to which all Churches in the world are bound to appeal in this outward visible administration General Counsels can be no such thing Neither was there ever any Oecumenical Synod in proper sense since the Gospel was preached to all Nations This power of outward Discipline is challenged by the Pope by the Clergy by the people Christian and by the States civil and Soveraigns of the world And in this last party is the Author deeply engaged but upon what reason I know not except he intends to side with the strongest for such are they which bear the sword The power of ordaining Ministers preaching the Word administring the Sacraments was in the universal Church since the time of the Apostles And in every particular Church reduced to a form of outward discipline there is a power of making Canons of jurisdiction of making Officers so far as shall conduce unto the better ordination of Ministers the preservation of the purity of Doctrine and the right administration of the Sacraments least they be profaned and Christ offended by the admission of ignorant scandalous and unworthy persons There is a power also of disposing and dispensing of those goods which are given to the Church for the maintenance of Christian Religion Civil Christian States may and ought to make civil Laws to confirm the just Canons and jurisdictions of the Church And those Laws may be a fence unto it against these who shall oppose or persecute Yet when all this is done those Laws are but Civil though the object of them be Ecclesiastical matters This might suffice for to confute and make void the main body and break in pieces