Selected quad for the lemma: faith_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
faith_n	covenant_n	sacrament_n	seal_n	4,627	5	9.5821	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A27015	The safe religion, or, Three disputations for the reformed catholike religion against popery proving that popery is against the Holy Scriptures, the unity of the catholike church, the consent of the antient doctors, the plainest reason, and common judgment of sense it self / by Richard Baxter.	Baxter, Richard, 1615-1691.	1657 (1657)	Wing B1381; ESTC R16189	289,769	704

of Transubstantiation they feign him to have a body that can neither be seen nor felt nor circumscribed that is in innumerable places at once which is not made of the substance of the blessed Virgin but of bread as wine of that water Joh. 2.9 and which sustaineth the accidents of bread as their subject For they can devise no other subject after the transubstantiation of the bread Whence it follows that they are no more accidents of bread but of Christs body 6. And as to Christs Office they teach that Christ is Mediator onely according to his humane nature 7. They deny Christ to be the onely Mediator of intercession but joyn with him Angels and Saints 8. They teach that we must pray to Saints to intercede for us 9. That we are heard by the Saints suffrages and Merits 10. They deny Christ to be the onely Prophet whose voice onely must be heard spiritual King and Priest of the New Testament But they make the Pope also the chief Prophet and Pastor King and Monarch and Priest Whence it follows that the Pope is not onely opposied to Christ as his adversary but as his Rival 11. And they make other sacrificing Priests also of the New Testament having an external visible Priesthood and that according to the order of Melchizedeck whose office it is to sacrifice Christ again and offer him to his Father 12. That the unchangeable Priesthood of Christ the eternal Priest is made eternal by the succession of such Priests 13. That an Eternal Priesthood requireth an Eternal Sacrifice but is not Eternal unless it be often sacrificed 14. That this Eternal sacrifice can be nothing else but the sacrifice of the mass 15. That Christ who is God over all blessed for ever did merit for himself 16. That Christs merits are not the onely meritorious cause of salvation But they hope to be saved by their own and other mens merits § 5. Of the outward means LEt us now come to the external means to wit Gods Covenant and the administration of the Covenant in the Ministry of the word and Sacraments The Covenant is twofold 1. Of works or the Law 2. Of Grace or the Gospel 1. These two the Papists do almost confound for they plainly make the Gospel a Covenant of works and call it the new Law which prescribes a more perfect obedience then the Law it self for the obtaining of Justification and Salvation 2. That faith is stirred up and so sins forgiven by the preaching of the word they say is a fiction of the Hereticks of our Times 3. That the Sacraments are not seals of the promises or Covenant of God nor instituted to confirm the promise 4. That Circumcision was a seal of the Righteousness of faith onely to Abraham 5. That Sacraments of the new Law do confer grace that makes us acceptable or justifying Grace ex opere operato i. e. upon that very account because the external Sacrament is administred if they put not the Bar of mortal sin 6. That grace is contained in the Sacraments as in a vessel nay that the Sacraments are Physical instrumental causes of Grace and that they do work holiness by a power put into them by God as the heat of the fire is the cause of the burning of the wood 7. That there is necessarily required the intention of the Administrator to the truth of the Sacrament at least of doing what the Church does 8. That there are seven Sacraments of the new Covenant instituted by that neither fewer nor more 9. That in the Sacraments of Baptism Confirmation and Order there is imprinted in the Soul by God a Character or certain spiritual and indeleble sign or marke so that they cannot be re●iterated In the other Sacraments there is onely an ornament or dress imprinted instead of a Character or mark 10. That the observation of the Ceremonies which they use in the Administration of Sacraments though invented by themselves through will-worship is m●ritorious and part of Divine worship § 6. Of Baptism 1. THat all Infants before are possessed by the Divel 2. They grant a power to women even such as are unbaptized themselves to baptize 3. That Baptism is not only necessary by necessity of precept which we confess but also to be simply necessary to salvation by necessity of means for none can be saved without Baptism 4. That the efficacy of Baptism does not extend it self to the future but onely to that which is past 5. That the laver of Regeneration is not profitable to those that fall after Baptism 6. That there is in Baptism a silent and implicite oath of obedience to the Pope 7. That no sin remaines or is l●●t in the Baptized for sin is wholly taken away by Baptisme not onely so that it is not imputed but ●o as that has no being 8. That Baptisme also does confer grace to the Baptized exopere operato by the work done by which he is truely and formally justified 9. That the Baptism of John was not the same Sacrament nor had it the same force and efficacy with the Baptisme which is instituted by Christ as if Christ were ●ot the Author of Jonh's Baptisme 10. That after the Baptism of John they must needs receive the Baptisme of Christ 11. That the Bells are to be Baptized by the Bishops or Suffragans with a solemn Rite 12. They use and urge some unprofitable and super●itious Ceremonies as if they were necessary both before Baptism and after For 1. The Baptized are signed with the sign of the Cross on the forehead on the brest on the eyes on the ears on the nose and on the mouth that all the senses of the body may be guarded with this sign for by vertue of this signe are the Sacraments compleated and the Divels stratagems frustrated 2. They give them hallowed Salt to eat that being seasoned with wisdom they might be free from the stink of sin and may not putrifie again 3. They play the Conjurers about little children as if they were such as were pulled out of the hands of the Divel and they blow the wicked spirit out by their breath That one spirit may be driven out with ●nother 4. They touch their nostrils and ears with spitle saying Ephata be opened 5. They anoint them with consecrated oile in the breast that they may be fortified against the adversary and he may not be able to perswade them unto unclean and hurtful things They anoint them also between the shoulders that they may receive strength to bear the Lords burden After Baptism they anoint the top of the head of him who is newly Baptized with Crisme or Oyle After this sacred Unction they cover his head with a holy veil that he may know himself to enjoy a Kingly and Priestly Diademe They give him a lighted Taper that he may be taught thereby to fulfill

Ground of our Belief of the Christian Doctrine or of our Receiving the Holy Scriptures as the Word of God N. HAving already enquired whether the Romanists or the Reformed Churches are in the safe way to Salvation we shall now more particularly enquire whether their faith or ours be built on the surer grounds Our Belief is thus resolved we believe the Christian Doctrine to be True because the True God is the Author of it We discern that God is the Author of it both by his Intrinsicke and Extrinsicke Seals or attestations of it in that it beareth his image and superscription and is confirmed by his undoubted uncontroled Miracles and other effects which lead us to the cause The revealing containing signs or characters are the the holy Scriptures That these Books were written by the Prophets Apostles and Evangelists and were confirmed by Miracles and are uncorrupted in the main we are infallibly assured of by the evident certainty of the historical attestation and Tradition For we depend not barely on the credit of a deceivable or deceitful man such as is the Pope of Rome or of any fallible society of men but on such History as we can prove by plain reason to be infallible containing in it besides the Testimony of the Pope and all his party the same Testimony also of all the rest of the Christians in the world yea and of the very Hereticks who were enemies to much of the truth and enough also even from the mouths of Infidels to confirm us so that by this infallible history and universal Tradition we have a fuller discovery that these Books are the same that were written by the Apostles c. then we have that the Statutes of Parliaments in the Reign of King James or Queen Elizabeth are the same that they pretend to be And to a man that heareth not God himself or the Lord Jesus or the Apostles and hath not their immediate inspirations we know not how the Laws of heaven should be more fitly delivered in an ordinary rational way nor what surer other means such as we can expect who live at such a distance from the first receivers of it unless we would have God to speak to every man as he did to Moses or have Christ or Apostles still among us or unless God must make us all Prophets by his extraordinary inspirations And lastly the true meaning of this word we understand as we do the meaning of other Laws or writings having moreover the assistance of the spirit which is necessary because of the sublimity and spirituality of the matter and the necessity of the great effects upon our hearts Our Teachers by Translation and further instructions are our helpers as they must be in other things that we would learn and by the help of them without and of the spirit within we are able to understand the meaning of the words especially comparing text with text and so receive the sanctifying impress upon our hearts And thus is the Faith of the Reformed Catholike Resolved He receiveth the Bible from the hands or mouth of his Teachers and perhaps first believeth them fide humana that it is Gods Word He knoweth that this Book was written in Hebrew and Greeke by the Prophets and Apostles by Infallible Hystory or Universal Tradition He knoweth that they did it by Inspiration of the Holy Ghost by the Image of God which he findeth on it and by the uncontroled Miracles by which they sealed it He believeth it to be True because it thus proceeded from the Holy Ghost and so is the Word of God who is most True Of the Resolution of our Faith according to the Protestant Doctrine See L. du Plessis of the Church cap. 4. Translat pag. 121.122 123. and Conradus Bergius Prax. Cathol Can. p. 208.209 210. Disp 2. § 125 126. To this same sence Vid. Sibrand Lubbert Princip Christ Dogm li. 1. pag. 20 c. What the Resolution of the Romane faith is the Question which we are now to discuss doth intimate in part for it cannot be laid down in one proposition because they are of so many minds themselves Indeed we may see in this their foundation that Popery is a very maze and dungeon for the builders of this Babel are all in confusion at the laying of their first stone Yet this much they seem to be mostly agreed in That the Scripture is the word of God and part of the Rule of faith and duty but not the whole Rule nor the whole Word of God but that unwritten Traditions are the other part and the judgement of the present Church is Gods Word after a sort as they speak That the Scripture hath its Authority in it self from God the prime truth but quoad nos as to us it hath its Authority from the Church That it is the act of Tradition or the unwritten part of Gods word to tell us that the Scriptures are the word of God or a Divine Revelation And that it is the Office of the Church to judge both of this Tradition and the Scripture as also to decide all controversies in Religion and to judge which is the true sence of Scripture and that this Church must be one only visible infallible authorized thus to judge by Christ and this is onely the Romane Church Thus far the most of them seem to be agreed But when these mysteries of iniquity come to be opened they fall all to pieces For 1. Sometimes they say that the judgement of the Church is Gods word after a sort sometime that it is some middle thing between a Testimony Divine and Humane 2. And what the formal object of faith is they are not all of a mind whether it be only the Prime Truth or whether the Revelation of the Material object be any part of the formal But I confess this controversie is more verbal then real 3. And what place here to assign to the Testimony of the Church they are not agreed neither 4. Especially they are divided in the main viz. what this Church is which is the infallible Judge and into whose judgement their faith is resolved whether it be the present Church or the former Church Whether it be the Pope only at least in case of difference between him and his Council or whether it be a General Council though the Pope agree not as the French and Venetians say Yea whether it be the Clergy only or the Laity also that are this Church Nay some of them plead Universal Tradition as Holden White Vane and divers other Englishmen of late as if that were the same with the Romane Tradition or as if it were the point in controversie between us and them And ordinarily they use to tell us of All the Church and All the Christian world and to mouth it in such swelling words that the simple hearer would little think that by All the Church they meant but one man or at the

or feel any difference to give them the least cause of doubting I am sure I have the judgement of thousands and millions on my side which in a matter of sense among sound men is certainly enough And if the Papists are so mad as to tell me that it is otherwise with their senses and will seriously profess that their eyes and taste c. do not take these for Bread and Wine but perceive that they are not I will take them for shameless lyars or madmen and I suppose no man in his senses will blame me for so doing Well I its pa●● doubt that all our senses tell us its Bread and Wine as confidently as they tell us any thing is such And it is certain that the Pope and his Council tell us it is not Bread and Wine If our eyes be infallible that read it and our ears that hear it from their own mouthes then this is sure enough and too sure I know they will not deny it I would they would we should then be somewhat neerer a reconciliation What now can be said to avoid the conclusion is past my understanding save onely that it is possible that some of them may come in with some alluding distinction to see if they can blind mens sense and reason and so perhaps they 'l tell them that 1. sense is infallible on supposition of the right constitution of the medium but else not or 2. that sense judgeth but of accidents and not of substances and the accidents of Bread and Wine are here or 3. that sense is infallible in common cases where substances and accidents are not separated as here they be To which if such stuff deserve an answer I reply 1. What medium is here questionable or questioned by you but the accidents themselves which you say are the objects Sure the aire is clear and perspicuous the distance is not too neer or too far off our eyes and taste are sound 2. I think senses judge of substances with their accidents The eye sees substantiam coloratam and the hand feeleth the substantiam qualem quantam and not onely qualitatem quantitatem substantiae But let that controversie go how it will I am sure the substance is objectum s●nsus per accidens though not per se or that the intellect infallibly judgeth of substance by the help of the senses apprehension Otherwise all the forementioned absurdities will follow and still the Pope and Church will be fallible For then the Apostles and others that saw Christs Miracles could be sure onely of the accidents and not of the substance Then no man is certain whether it was Christ himself that lived on earth that was crucified and rose again or onely the accidents of Christ And then no man knows whether there be a Pope at Rome or onely the accidents of a Pope and so of the rest 3. And to the third part of the answer I reply That if sense be infallible when substances and accidents are inseparable then it is alwayes infallible For the accident separated from the subject doth perish Moreover how shall we know whether substances and accidents are separated or not If we be sure of that by sense then sense is still infallible so far if not then sense is fallible because it knows not when it apprehendeth any more then naked accidents But indeed it s a contradiction to talk of accidents that are not subjecti alicujus accidentia Obj. Sense is infallible suppose the right temper of the Organs object Medium till God tell us the contrary but then it is fallible But in the point of Transubstantiation God hath told us the contrary to what common sense apprehendeth Therefore here sence is deceived Answ 1. Sense must in order be first known to be infallible before you can tell any thing that God hath said or wrote of its fallibility or infallibility or else you cannot tell but your eyes in reading or your ears in hearing those words of his did deceive you 2. Sense and Reason are the judging faculties which God hath given to mankind for the discerning of their objects It is not therefore to be imagined that God doth turn the great Deceiver of the world and by supernatural light contradict the Light of Nature even the apprehensions of the sound and general sense of the world Gods supernatural Revalations presupposes his Natural ones and are additions thereto but do not contradict them for then God should contradict himself when both are his Revelations God cannot lye saith the Apostle And what were it for God to lye or say truth but onely to make a deceitful or not deceitful discovery of his mind and will or the effects to us Indeed there may through our imperfection be a deceit of the senses when the Organs are distempered and the medium or object are not conveniently disposed and every such distance impediment or other ill disposure is not as Gods voice to tell us the thing as what to our imperfect sense it seems But if the common senses of men that are sound and not hindred by any such impediments shall yet be all deceived meerly by a contradicting ordinance of God then it would seem that God gave man contradictory lights and guides And their objection seems to be as bad as if they should say so of Gods word That it is alway true except where God tells us the contrary but if it might be false at any time how can you tell that that very word is true which you pretend doth tell you of the falshood of another word so say I here If sense be not alwayes infallible where it hath its requisite assistance then how can you tell that your senses are infallible when you are reading Hoc est corpus meum This is my body which you think contradicteth the infallibility of sense For 2. Is the infallibility of sense a thing that is known by nature or by supernatural Light Not by supernatural Light unless consequentially where doth Scripture or your Tradition say that sense is sometime infallibe and sometime fallible supposit is requisitis And nature tells you no more of the infallibility of any other acts of sence or Receptions then of those same which you pronounce to be fallible 3. We challenge you and all the world to prove that ever God hath revealed in Scripture that the common sences of men are deceived about their proper objects the requisites in Nature supposed Or that ever he made any ordinances for the deluding or contradicting the sences of his Church Or ever said any such thing Cannot Christ say Hoc est corpus meum This is my Body but he must needs proclaim a delusion of the sences of all men that take it to be Bread Then when God saith Hoc est faedus meum This is my Covenant Gen. 17.10 He must proclaim all mens sences deceived because sence faith it was but Circumcision and Bellarmine will confess it was but the sign of