Selected quad for the lemma: england_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
england_n	act_n	king_n	scotland_n	2,696	5	8.4241	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A33963	The happiness of brethrens dwelling together in unity discoursed upon Psalm 133, vers. 1, on occasion of the late thanksgiving, Feb. 14, 1688/9 / by John Collinges.	Collinges, John, 1623-1690.	1689 (1689)	Wing C5318; ESTC R26035	25,331	41

have described little or nothing of this is done at least with any good success and effect he that apprehends himself hated by his Brother will not be very patiently reproved or admonished or instructed by him but he who findeth his Brother loves him yields an obedient Ear to a wise reproof and saith with David Psal 141. 5. Let the righteous smite me it shall be a Kindness and let him reprove me it shall be an excellent Oil which shall not break my Head. 4. Lastly It gives the great advantage of mutual Prayers one for another Those Prophane Persons that drink to the Damnation Confusion Destruction of others let you know how they pray for one another that do not dwell together in Vnity Now as little as the irreligious part of the World judge to be of advantage from the Prayers of others it appeareth Paul was not of their Mind by his so often begging the Christians Prayers who were many degrees his Inferiours The Apostle presseth the Duty of Husbands to their Wives upon this 1 Pet. 3. 7. Argument That your Prayers be not hindred It is a great Evil to any Society of Christians that hindreth their Prayers one for another and by a Parity of Reason whatever promoveth and advantageth such Prayers must be a great good and of a great advantage But I shall dwell no longer upon the Doctrinal part of my Discourse Vse 1. This Notion in the first place may serve to convince you how great a cause you have this day to meet and give Thanks to the God of Heaven It is true there are two ways either of which if you look you will see reason to Rejoice with trembling 1. If you look upon the Enemies which we have abroad There is no doubt but that Nimrod that mighty hunter before the Lord who hath driven all Protestants out of his Dominions hath as good a mind to drive them all out of the World and there is as little doubt but that there are abundance of Priests and Jesuits who make it their design in all places where they lurk 2. And it is as melancholick a Prospect if we look upon the Sins of the Nation and the Numbers of such all whose Protestant Religion lyes in their Protesting against any Reformation I say if we look at this we may see some cause to say Can a pure and Holy God spare so prophane so vile and sinful a People as this Shall not our Earth disclose her Blood Shall it cover her slain Innocents Our Fears are not over nor is our state secure There is yet room for Fasting and Prayer and bitter mourning before the Lord if the bitter Cup may possibly pass over But we have this Day at least three eminent and undeniable Causes of Thanksgiving 1. That so great a Revolution of Divine Providence is thus far passed over with so small a shower of Blood. Very few Weeks have passed since every of our Hands were upon our Loins and we stood in a trembling Expectation of what would be the issue of that great Commotion which we saw The Effusion of much Protestants Blood was the least of our Expectations the dreadful consequent of a Victory by Blood with reference to the Protestant Interest over all the World was a much more terrifying Speculation Now that God should do what is done with the shedding of so little Blood certainly deserveth their Thanksgivings who have any Kindness for the Protestant Interest 2. The Deliverance of the Nation from so great degree of fear as the most were under as to their best and highest Concern is another thing I know Popery had not over-ran us nor was it the topping Religion of the Nation nor like to have been in a short tract of Time. But we know that there is in us all a desire to Propagate our own Sentiments in Religion and we cannot but judge that Princes who have more Power have greater Temptations tho not advised by such as are restless in such a design God indeed hath so far blessed the Preaching of the Gospel that the most Peoples Palats are spoiled for such Lamp Oil as their Doctrines of Transubstantiation Purgatory and many other absurd tenets of that Religion nor was England to be hewed into a Conformity to them by such wooden Tools as came to do it they must have been Persons of more Learning and Piety too that could have promised themselves any sudden Success Nor were their Numbers any way proportionable for any such work as their Conversion of three Nations in their usual Methods of Conversion by Fire and Sword But we must have lived in fear of such a dismal change and died in a greater for our Posterity From these blessed be God we are in a great measure delivered and the Bondage of Fear is no inconsiderable Bondage This also giveth us an apparent Cause of Thanksgiving That we may now serve the Lord without fear 3. But there is yet a third and possibly that not the least cause of rejoycing before the Lord this day viz. That we have now the fairest opportunity offered us for the Vnion of Protestants in these Nations amongst themselves and with our Brethren of other reformed Churches that ever our Eyes saw and beyond whatever our Forefathers could could tell us of I mean by the Exclusion of the Romish Party from any influence upon our Courts and Councels whoso readeth the History of our Ecclesiastical Affairs for 130 years last past may see just reason to admire that instead of making further steps forward we have rather seemed to have gone backward In Doctrine indeed we had a very considerable Reformation and so in Worship in Discipline very little and that directed by some particular Statutes tho' that was by our first Reformers as truly intended as the other and at least 4 Acts of Parliament made to Authorize the Kings of England to appoint Commissioners for it and something was done of that Nature but that blessed Prince Edw. 6. died before he had given it his Royal Sanction since whose time nothing hath been done in it this we are told hath been by the mighty influence upon our Court which the Romish Party had who possibly might labour to keep up their old Forms of Discipline so far as our Statute Laws and King's Prerogative would allow them if peradventure they might ever gain an opportunity to use them to serve their ●urns This hath been one great Cause of our Divisions of Protestants amongst themselves Another bitter root hath been in Matters of Worship In the beginning of our Reformation so much of the ancient Forms Rites and Ceremonies were retained as was pretended to gain the Papists into our Communion This did something for the 〈◊〉 first years of Queen Elizabeth but when their Holy Father commanded the contrary it would do no longer Then Laws must be made to force them into it and these so penned that they might equally serve to force in all Protestants and as

That in all Civil things a man in Obedience to the higher Powers may and ought to act contrary to his own Opinion and Judgment The Reasons for this are obvious 1. He transgresseth no Law of God in doing it 2. Nay he obeyeth the Law of God in it Tho' the Law of God in Religious Matters obligeth every Man to follow the dictate of his own Conscience judging a thing lawful or unlawful and in things indifferent judging a thing more or less expedient because in all such things next after God a Man's practical Conscience is the Supream Judge as to his actions Yet in Civil Matters the Higher Powers of States and Kingdoms are plainly Judges betwixt God and our practical Judgments God hath clothed them with Power to make Laws and determine of things necessary or not necessary expedient or not expedient for the better managery of their particular Governments That text Deut. 17. is to be restrained to such things it is restrained v. 8. to matters betwixt blood and blood plea and plea stroke and stroke matters of Judgment c. and most impertinently urged further Now suppose a Thousand Men half of which judge such a Law for a Tax or a Custom necessary or expedient the other half judge it unnecessary and inexpedient they are none of them Judges of the publick Good of a Nation or City but the chief Magistrate is by God left Judge in the case What should hinder but that all these Men should Unite in their Designs Councels and Practice for the Publick Good. And this is the unquestionable Duty of them all 2. A second Union referring to the Will I call'd the Vnion of Love and Charity That is when all persons in any community are agreed in what they may to do all Offices of Love each to other I see nothing can hinder this but Mens passions and lusts Pride Envy Malice Hatred of one another c. I hear some pleading for another Vnion which they call an Vnity of Communion and expound by a resorting to the same Church to offer up united Prayers and Praises and together to receive the Sacrament and telling us That an Vnion in Love Charity and mutual forbearance is very difficult when Men divide Communion and why I pray because Mens not joining in Communion one with other is in effect a declaring them with whom we do not join Heathens and Publicans Now I must confess this is a Doctrine I cannot understand 1. Is there then any Church to be found so large as to hold all Christians who are obliged to live together in Unity But it will be said tho' they meet in several places yet they are one in their worship 2. Very well but what is meant by Worship only the specifical tho' not their individual acts of Worship Or one in all the Rites and Modes of their Worship If the first only be intended all good Christians are in Unity I know of none but worship God by Prayer Praises receiving the Sacraments c. Must it needs be an Union in all the Rites and Modes of Worship 3. In the first place There was never such an Vnity either in the Primitive Churches or betwixt the Reformed Churches Could they not therefore love another 2. If there must be such an Vnity for which I see no reason What Church shall be the Standard to which all others shall Unite Why should the Church of God in Scotland more Unite to that in England than that in England to that in Scotland Shall the Word of God over-rule Then all are bound to Unite to that Church which performs all its Acts of Worship most conformably to the Divine Rule To this I know no Dissenter but will willingly say Amen 4. But it is yet much more un-intelligible how Christians not joyning with others in the same Modes and Rites of Worship should be in effect a declaring them to be as Heathens and Publicans and Persons out of a state of Salvation This 1. In the first place proclaims to the World that those that are of this Mind not joyning with Nonconformists in publick Prayers and Praises and in the Sacraments is in effect a declaring them Heathens and Publicans and not in a state of Salvation 2. I cannot understand the Divinity of this Assertion May not Christians chuse to joyn in Communion with one Congregation and adhere to that alone and yet think others Christians and in a state of Salvation this is certainly both a new and false Notion It is not enough for to justifie me to joyn with other Christians that Salvation may be had amongst them I am further obliged to joyn my self with such where the Ordinances are so administred as my Conscience tells me will be most to my comfort and Edification and as I judge is nearest to the Divine Rule I know that in all cases a Christian is not always obliged to do what is best but that in the Worship of God he is not so obliged is more than I or I suppose any thinking Divine will assert But I have dwelt upon this too long He who doth not think himself and his Church Infallible may easily allow others to be Christians and in a state of Salvation that do not in some Rites and Modes of which the Word of God saith nothing follow him and those with whom he chuseth to walk If any do think themselves infallible and fit to make a Standard to the World they certainly think of themselves above what they ought to think or can think with any degree of Humility I conclude That it is the Duty of all Christians agreed in things necessary to Salvation to be at Vnity one with another so far as mutually to Unite all their Councels and Studies and Practices in things which concern the Glory of God and the common good of the place wherein they dwell together tho' they may differ in some private Opinions and such differences may oblige them not to walk together in those things wherein they are not agreed and to be ready to do all good offices one to another both 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 maintaining what they apprehend tho' differently to be Truth in Love and serving one another in love Nor is there a greater difficulty in this than what attends all Self Denial without which we cannot be the Disciples of Christ who so can deny himself in malice and hatred against such as he judgeth stricter than himself and in Pride thinking that it is possible he may be mistaken may easily overcome this difficulty which is no more than every one must meet with that will come in Heaven Though Calvin would not joyn in Communion with Luther yet he not only loved him but own'd him as an eminent Servant of God and profess'd he would so acknowledge him though he should call him a Devil such was the Sweetness and Evangelicalness of that excellent Man's temper This I say is our Duty to be as the Apostle phraseth it Rom.