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A87595
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A sober word to a serious people: or, A moderate discourse respecting as well the Seekers, (so called) as the present churches. Wherein the difference between them touching visible administrations, is discovered and discussed: and may serve as a plea for the nations ministery. / By a lover of truth and peace.
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Jackson, John.
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1651
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Wing J78A; ESTC R202618
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52,789
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71
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promised Quest That from the rising of the Sun to the going down of the same his Name shall be great among the Gentiles Mal. 1.11 How shall this Name of Christ be proclaimed and made great among the Gentiles in this desolate and lost condition according to Rom. 10. Answ This Question seems to be like Isaac's Question to his Answ Father My Father where is the Lamb for the Sacrifice and the Answer may be the same that his was to his Son God will provide himself a Lamb. I would intreate you to read these Scriptures Mich. 2.7 10. Mich. 3.5 6 7. Mich. 4. the whole Chapter and that passage mentioned in Rom. 10.15 being compared with Isa 52.7 doth evidently declare that there is yet a further sending forth of the Messengers of Peace when the Sion of God shall awake and put on strength and Jerusalem the holy City shall put on beautiful garments Read Isa 52.1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 and judge whether this be not a Gospel-Prophecie part whereof is yet unfulfilled And whether this be not the Apostles scope in the tenth of the Romans vers 14 15 and the whole eleventh Chapter to the Romans Onely while you say How shall this be The wisdome of Jehovah can bring this about Zeph. 3.8 9 10 12 13 14. When the time of the Lord is come wherein that great Angel shall lighten the earth with his glory Rev 18.1 and wherein the Angel shall flie in the midst of Heaven having the ancient Gospel to preach to them that dwell on the earth to every nation kindred and tongue and People Rev. 14.6 When the Lord of the Harvest seeing the fields white to the Harvest shall thrust forth labourers into his Harvest when his Angels or Messengers shall be sent forth to gather his elect from the four winds from one end of Heaven to the other The zeal of the Lord of Hosts shall perform this though we know not how Object Object If there be not a Ministery in the World What will become of the Faith of all such as believe in the Lord Jesus differenced and dishinguished under those several professions and known by those several appellations whereby men have named them Answ seeing the Scripture witnesseth that men cannot believe without a Preacher Rom. 10.41 Answ This Objection grounds it self upon an absurdity that will seem to follow upon the premises viz. If what hath been alleadged be true touching the Ministery How can this Scripture be true also which saith How can they believe on him of whom they have not heard And how shall they hear without a Preacher To solve which seeming-contradiction I desire the Reader to consider who that relative word they must be applied to And consequently what is the scope of the Apostles argument in this place For the understanding of which I conceive it will be necessary to read the ninth tenth and eleventh Chapters together and they will appear to be one continued Discourse or Argument whereby the Apostle Paul doth hold forth the state of the Jewes whom he calls his brethren his kinsmen according to the flesh Rom. 9.3 Now concerning these he begins all the three Chapters and shewes both their priviledges which they had by the Law Chap. 9.4 5. Their rejection through their non-submission to the righteousness of God Chap. 10.3 Their restitution when the fulness of the Gentiles is come in Chap. 11.25 to fulfil the Mystery of this dispensation of God by the appearing of the deliverer who shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob according to his Covenant Vers 25 26 27. Isa 59.20 21. These are that they which are mentioned in the 1 2 3 and 14 Verses of the tenth Chapter to the Romans touching whom the Apostle thus reasons Brethren my hearts desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they might be saved For I hear them record c. Object But blessed Apostle Object what ground of Faith is there in this prayer considering how they are rejected Answ The Scripture hath said Whosoever believeth in him Answ shall not be ashamed for there is no difference between the Iew and the Greek for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him For whosoever shall call upon the Name of the Lord shall be saved Therefore they viz. the Jews if they call upon the Name of the Lord they shall be saved Onely the Question is How they shall call upon him in whom they have not believed and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard and how shall they hear without out a Preacher and how shall they Preach except they be sent Therefore till there be a sending forth of Messengers even to the Jews quatenus Jews as well as there hath been to the Gentiles quâ such no wonder if they believe not For how can they believe in him of whom they have not heard and how can they hear without a Preacher and how can they Preach except they be sent Object Object But they have heard though they have not obeyed as appears Answ Rom. 10.16 18 21. Answ This may not be denied for Christ was sent first to the lost sheep of the house of Israel And he accordingly came unto his own and his own received him not But the consideration hereof makes the Mystery the greater Once God chose the family of Abraham before all the families of the earth and in Judah was God known and his Name famous in Israel He dealt not so with any other nation neither had they the knowledge of his Law Though afterwards when the fulness of time was come and the wall of partition broken down by the appearing of our Lord Jesus then the Mystery of Christ which in other ages was not made manifest was revealed to his holy Apostles and Prophets Eph. 3.5 6 by the Spirit which Mystery was That the Gentiles should be fellow-heirs and of the same body and partakers of his promise in Christ by the Gospel And the Jewes to whom the Gospel first was preached having put it from them Act. 13. ult and reckoned themselves unworthy of that salvation became the onely nation of all the world who were by the just hand of God concluded under blindness and hardness in part and so are to continue such a proportion of time as was fore-appointed and decreed Rom. 10.8 9 10 25. At the expiration and determination of which time there is to be a revelation of the Mystery of their breaking off and ingrafting in again Rom. 11 2◠and that to be done when the deliverer shall come out of Sion and shall turn away ungodliness from Iacob For as in times past the Gentiles believed not having not that opportunity of the knowledge of God as the Jews had yet at length obtained mercy through their unbelief Even so have these also now not believed that through their mercy they might obtain mercy Object But how is
its pristine and primitive Constitution as well to respect the Nations which are without viz. the out-casts of Israel together with those worshippers of the Sun and Moon the Moors and Indians and the people that know not God nor have ever heard the sound of him nor of the salvation which through Christ Jesus he holds forth to Mankinde as well as that sort of Ministery which it 's supposed is found among good people who judge they are in Church-estate already though indeed they are both but the fruit of the same ascension and both respect the same end Ministery and duration or continuance For as the Saints already such are not come to a perfect man in Christ and therefore have need of an edifying feeding Ministery so the number of them which are to be gathered are likewise not compleated and therefore need a gathering and breeding Ministery the one without the other being not perfect especially the later not without the former Forasmuch as the Ministery for the World as it was first given namely to the Apostles in these words Go ye into all the world or Teach all nations so it was comprehensive and took in the later and stood sometimes without it they holding out the brest of consolation and confirmation to those to whom they had been as a womb parental or instrumental in conversion Therefore in a return of mercy as in point of Ministery it would be considered Whether the first Apostolical and National Ministery be not again to be looked for hoped for and longed for and prayed for and that by way of eminency not onely for Sion's sake and for Jerusalem's sake but also for the Nations sakes the Kindreds Tongues Peoples those who know not God considering that there is a time wherein John having eaten the book was to prophesie again before many people and nations and tongues and kings Rev. 10. ult And the Angel which he saw flying in the midst of heaven was to preach the ancient Gospel to every nation kindred tongue and people And this was to follow Antichrist's universal over-spreading of the earth for after he had prevailed so far as to cause all both small and great rich and poor bond and free to receive his mark and that no man might buy or sell but he that had received the mark and that all the world wondered after the Beast Rev. 13.3 16 17. after this great power and prevalencie of Antichrist then should the ancient Gospel be preached to every nation kinred tongue and people that dwell upon the earth Rev. 14.6 and then should follow the fall of Babylon v 8 there followed another Angel saying Babylon is fallen is fallen and this should be that Angel Rev. 18.1 2 which should come down from heaven with great power and enlighten the earth with his glory and should cry mightily with a strong voice saying Babylon the great is fallen according to that of the Apostle 2 Thess 2.8 Then shall that wicked be revealed whom God shall consume with the spirit of his mouth and destroy with the brightness of his coming And whether this be not that Ministery which the Lord will send forth to gather his chosen ones from the four corners of the windes Mar. 13. forasmuch as after that the false Christs and false Prophets shall arise and shall shew their seducing signes and wonders to deceive if it were possible the very elect vers 22. and that great tribulation shall happen the sun darkned and the moon not give her light Then shall the Son of man come in the clouds with great power and glory and shall send his Angels or Messengers and shall gather together his elect from the utmost parts of the earth From all which it were to be desired that the Lord would stir up the hearts of his people to cry mightily to him and give him no rest till he accomplish the work of gathering together his number out of all Nations Kindreds Tongues and Peoples the utmost parts of the Heathen being given to Christ as his peculiar inheritance Psal 2.8 and because from the rising of the sun to the going down of the same God's name shall be great among the Gentiles Mal. 1.11 Object Object If this be true which hath been spoken then we must expect more Apostles but it is said in 1 Cor. 4.9 that those were the last Apostles Therefore there can be no ground to expect any more Answ Answ 1. That Scripture concludes not against what hath been spoken as will appear when it is examined The word which is rendered there last 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is in Luke 14.9 taken for the lowest or meanest 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 When thou art bidden of any man to a wedding go sit down in the lowest room And this signification of the word may very well agree with that which is the Argument of this Chapter 1 Cor. 4.9 and so it seems to be carried I think God hath set forth us the Apostles last i. e. lowest or vilest as it were men appointed to death For we are made a spectacle unto the world to Angels and men We are fooles for Christs sake but ye are wise We are made the filth of the world and the off-scouring of all things to this day Let it be considered whether all these several expressions do not more properly agree to the word as it is rendered the lowest or basest then to the word last Apostles Secondly If the word he to be taken for the last yet it doth not necessarily inforce it self to be understood of the last of what shall be but the last of what hath been therefore it is rendred novissimus the newest as our English Dialect will infer the last garment or newest garment are Synonimaes In 2 Pet. 2.20 it 's rendered not last but later And 1 Pet. 1.20 speaking of Christ it 's said He was made manifest in the last dayes Heb. 1.2 it 's said In these last dayes God hath spoken unto us by his Sonne Which last dayes may not be so understood as if they were so the last that there were no more dayes to succeed them for there hath been sixteen hundred years of dayes since that time past and gone neither may I conceive those Apostles were the last or so the last Apostles that there should no more come after them understanding them to be Messengers sent forth as the term Apostle imports for then I would inquire By whom should the out casts of Israel be gathered or the Nations converted to the faith of Christ Jer. 32.37 38. Jer. 23.3 Mar. 13.10 Matth. 24.14 If there be any Nations of the World Kindreds Tongues and People to whom the Gospel hath not been sent it must be done to fulfill the Word of the Lord. And by whom shall it be done but by such Messengers which shall be endued with like power of Evidence and Demonstration both of Tongues and Gifts as the first Messengers or Apostles had to preach