vessels Now for the time of the New-Testament observe that our Lord Christ not onely as he was God but also as he was man did officiate this Ministery He forgave sins and reconciled men to God For he saith unto the sick of the Palsie Son be of good cheere thy sins be forgiven thee At which the Scribes murmuring our Lord replies Whether is it easier to say thy sins be forgiven thee or to say Arise and walk but that you might know the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins What could the Lord have said more plainly he spake of very purpose as he said that they might know what power he had not onely as he was God for that was not doubted of whether God could forgive sins but also as he was man and on earth Wherefore when the multitude heard and saw what was done they glorified God who had given such power unto men This power as he was man he purchased by his death upon the Crosse As it is written For the suffering of death he is crowned with glory and honour And againe Him hath God exalted to be a Prince and a Saviour to give repentance unto Israel and forgivenesse of sins And in another place He hath obtained a more excellent Ministery Observe the words He hath obtained not as he was God that could not be but as he was man he obtained a more excellent Ministery So that now we may see the Keyes of the Kingdome of Heaven committed to a Man of our own flesh compassed about with infirmities even as our selves The Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins This is that Elihu Job 33.6 His words to mankind are Behold I am according to thy wish in Gods stead I also am formed out of the clay Behold my terrour shall not make thee afraid Job 9.33,34 For Job had wisht for such a dayes-man to stand be twixt him and God because if God should speak His terrour would be upon him As it was with Israel at the delivering of the Law when they heard God speaking unto them out of the mount so terrible was it that they desired they might not hear the voice of God again lest they dyed but desired that God would deliver his Law to them by Moses which desire God approves and then said that he would send them a Prophet raise him from among their brethren like unto Moses who indeed is Gods substitute This is that great Prophet into whose mouth he said he would put his word and surely require it of every one Deut. 18. And now our loving Lord condescending to mans request hath in sending his Son in the likenesse of sinfull flesh fulfilled his good word This is the man Christ Jesus whom the Father hath sent with authority to forgive sins Matth. 16. which authority he first promised to Peter saying I will give thee the keyes of the kingdom of heaven and whatsoever thou shalt binde on earth shall be bound in heaven and what ever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven Which promise after he was risen from the dead he performed not onely to St. Peter but also to the other Apostles and that in a most solemne manner Ioh. 20. when he said to them again the second time Peace be unto you he then said As my Father hath sent me so send I you And when he had said this he breathed on them and said Receive ye the holy Ghost Whose soever sins ye remit they are remitted and whose soever sins ye retain they are retained Was ever any power upon earth put over from one to another in greater plainnesse then this As the Father saith our Lord sent me to remit and retain sins so send I you What is done is done from God the Father by my commission and the holy Ghost in you To which end I now breathing upon you give saying Receive ye the holy Ghost Whose soever sins ye remit they are remitted to them and whose soever sins ye retain they are retained And let none seriously imagine as some boldly affirm that all this is done onely by Preaching and Baptisme and that is all which is here meant It is most true that sins committed before Baptisme are sacramentally forgiven by the washing of water in Baptisme but sins cannot properly be said to be retained in or by Baptisme And besides the Apostles had authority before our Lords passion both to preach and baptise without this solemne investment which commission was enlarged after his resurrection The first Commission being to Israel onely but the second inlargement to all the world Matth. 10.5 28.18,20 All power is given me in heaven and in earth Go ye therefore into all Nations teaching and baptizing Lo I am with you alwayes even unto the end of the world So that I do here conclude that our Lord Jesus did not onely give unto his Disciples authority to absolve by Baptisme such sins as were committed before but also in a most solemne manner hath given them authority to remit unto the penitent sins committed after Baptisme which mercy the learned call the second Table or board after shipwrack The which who ever contemns must utterly perish For as at Sea when a ship splits some laying hold upon boards are saved from drowning so in the Church such as by deadly sins have made their Baptisme of none effect are likely to perish unlesse they hold upon the plank or board namely penitentiall Confession and priestly Absolution And truly that man doth not argue rationally that questions their authority in the latter more then in the former why a man repenting of particular sins committed after Baptisme may not by the Priest be absolved as well as he was by a generall repentance of all sins committed before Baptisme May we not say Thou fool is it not as easie to forgive a few sins to a man truly penitent though committed after Baptisme as to forgive a multitude suppose to an aged man as in the Apostles dayes many such there were that came to be baptized committed before baptisme for it is beleeved that the sins committed all his life time whereby the Minister in the name of the blessed Trinity washed away in baptisme may not the same Minister by the same Authority viz. in the name of the Father Son and Holy Ghost forgive sins committed after baptisme Obj. But they object that sins are loosed or retained by the word preached Ans The Prophets of old preached Men and women by good counsell and advise may occasion the conversion of some if such therefore have they Keyes of binding and loosing there is no excellencie nor speciality in that gift which our Lord is said to bestow upon Peter I will give thee the Keyes c. What shall we say to these things shall we think that the Apostles of our Lord did not so understand their Master and therefore did not so do and practise Certainly
that they did so understand him their own practice with the generall tradition of the Catholick Church East and West Greek and Latin down till this present presumptuous age doth testifie For till this last century it was scarse ever questioned or in any disrespect 2 Cor. 2.6 See Saint Paul sending an absolution by the hands of Titus and Luke for the incestuous person who before had been before excommunicated See the Apostle demonstrating his Authority received from Christ V. 10. Sufficient to such a man is this punishment For your sakes I forgave it in the person of Christ or in Christ stead or name he forgave him What can be more plaine than this example in the first Epistle of binding here of loosing there of punishing here of pardoning there of retaining sins here of remitting them Moreover as our Lord forgave the sins of the man sick of the Palsie Mat. 9. So saith Saint James If any man be sick let him send for the Priests of the Church For I have seen it so translated which translation by moderate learned men is said to be the truest and most consonant to the honour of God and Holy Scriptures For if an originall word about holy things should beare in English two significations the one common and profane the other more sacred shall not the servants of God render it in the most sacred As under the name of an Elder in those times were contained Priests Magistrates and old men to which of these do we think Saint James sends us for the recovery of bodily health by ghostly meanes that we should confesse our sins unto them and they pray over us and in Christs name anoint us with oyle Surely not to Magistrates nor old men but Priests except we will apply this to our Church-wardens or late made lay-elders which experience shewes are as little concerned in this as either Magistrates or old men Therefore let us read it as the Church hath alwayes done and common reason and experience sheweth if necessity constraines that the word must be rendred either Priests Magistrates old men Church-wardens or lay-elders for so the learned affirm it may be Englished of all The word Priests is most proper and consonant both to the matter to which it relates and also to Gods Honour Therefore if any be sick let him send saith Saint James for the Priests of the Church For them it is most proper to pray for the sick to have confession made to them and for them in Christs name to remit sins and to anoint the sick with oyle in the name of the Lord. Besides the late English Church which ever stood at so great a distance from the Roman did allow of the title or word Priest And if she could have had but some handsome colourable ground of an utter rejection of confession and absolution she would not for the advantage it gave to the Roman cause have inserted it severall times in her Liturgy using the very same forme as the Romanists do at the visitation of the sick viz By that authority which our Lord Jesus Christ hath committed unto me I absolve thee from all thy sins in the name of the Father Son and holy Ghost Amen And besides but for some reasons best known to themselves they would have established Confession Penance and Absolution in another manner then at that time they did The words at the beginning of the Commination before Lent are these Brethren in the Primitive Church there was a godly discipline that at the beginning of Lent such persons as were notorious sinners were put to open penance and punished in this world that their souls might be saved in the day of our-Lord and that others admonished by their example might be more afraid to offend Instead whereof untill the said discipline may be restored again which is much to be wished mark that it is thought good that these Scriptures should be read c. By this we may see as in a glasse what opinion the Church of England had of these things And God forbid we should be such enemies to our own souls as spitefully to cast off that which is consonant and not against old or new Testament that which our Lord for our speciall benefit did constitute his Apostles officiate the Churches universally till this present age practise with a full approbation of the English Church scarce ever any contradicting I mean private Confessions and Absolutions for the quieting of consciences It is true that private sins being publickly confessed did occasion scandall to some which was by the Church in that Age forbidden Socrat. l. 5. c. 19. which place with some others of like nature some persons for the hatred they generally bear to all Confession make a ground of writing and disputing against it but such are not sensible of the evils that insue upon the omission of Confession for by this the ordinary means both of the forgivenesse and purgation of sins is rejected and how salvation may be had in a Church which hath so done is very doubtfull This donation of our Lord to his Apostle was a great mercy an high prerogative to the Apostles as ever was given to the sons of men To what men on earth Angels or Arch-angels in heaven did he ever say Whose sins ye remit they are remitted what ye binde on earth shall be bound in heaven what ye lose on earth shall be loosed in heaven yet to his Apostles and their successors was this grace given Wherefore I pray such as tender their soules safety seriously to think and consider on what the wisdome of God hath appointed for mens sins namely 2 Courts one in Heaven and another on earth Of that in Heaven our Lord is the onely judge for the Father hath committed all judgement to the Son But that on earth our Lord hath delegated and put over to his Ministers or Priests given the Keyes to them and hath promised that what sins they bind on earth shall be bound in Heaven and what they loose on earth shall be loosed in Heaven he seems to give them the precedency and promise to confirm in Heaven what they do on earth Then what art thou O man that darest deny or presume to contradict the blessed trinity The Father authorizeth the Son and the Son authorizeth his Apostles and their successors to forgive sins to which end they had the Holy Ghost given them and therefore what they do is done in the name of the Father Son and Holy Ghost and wilt thou venter to go time after time to the blessed Sacrament and at last to death and so to judgement without a penitential preparative by confession presuming of a pardon from God the Father without his substitute because thou didst beleeve and fancie such a thing Dost thou think that he will be pleased with thy presumption Thou wilt not except of a pardon from his Ministers but wilt have it from himself Oh the soule is pretious and the