Selected quad for the lemma: ground_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
ground_n	apostle_n	church_n	scripture_n	2,161	5	5.9273	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A66383	The case of lay-communion with the Church of England considered and the lawfulness of it shew'd from the testimony of above an hundred eminent non-conformists of several perswasions.	Williams, John, 1636?-1709.	1683 (1683)	Wing W2691; ESTC R1501	57,793	83

which men's minds have been corrupted I find in whatsoever they differ one from another yet in this they agree That it 's unlawful to hear in publick which I am perswaded is one constant design of Satan in the variety of ways of Religion he hath set on foot by Jesuits amongst us Let us therefore be the more aware of whatsoever tends that way Of this Opinion also is M r Tombs though he continued an Anabaptist who has writ a whole Book to defend the Hearing of the present Ministers of England and toward the Close of the Work hath given forty additional Reasons for it and in opposition to those he writes against doth affirm Sure if the Church be called Mount Sion from the preaching of the Gospel the Assemblies of England may be called Sion Christ's Candlesticks and Garden as well as any Christians in the World I shall conclude this with what M r Robinson saith in this Case viz. For my self thus I believe with my heart before God and profess with my tongue and have before the World that I have one and the same Faith Spirit Baptism and Lord which I had in the Church of England and none other that I esteem so many in that Church of what state or Order soever as are truly Partakers of that Faith as I account thousands to be for my Christian Brethren and my self a Fellow-member with them of that one Mystical Body of Christ scattered far and wide throughout the World that I have always in spirit and affection all Christian Fellowship and Communion with them and am most ready in all outward Actions and Exercises of Religion lawful and lawfully done to express the same And withal that I am perswaded the hearing of the Word of God there preached in the manner and upon the grounds formerly mentioned both lawful and upon occasion necessary for me and all true Christians withdrawing from that Hierarchical Order of Church-Government and Ministry and the uniting in the Order and Ordinances instituted by Christ. Thus far He. From what hath been said upon this Head we may observe that though these Reverend Persons do go upon different Reasons according to the Principles they espouse though they agree not in the Constitution of Churches c. yet they all agree that the Parochial Churches are or may be as I have observed before true Churches of Christ that Communion with such Churches is lawful and that we are to go as far as we can toward Communion with them Though they differ about the Notion of Hearing as whether it be an Act of Communion and about the Call of those they hear yet they all agree in the lawfulness of it And therefore to separate wholly in this Ordinance and from the Parochial Churches as no Churches are equally condemned by all 3. They hold that they are not to separate from a Church for unlawful things if the things accounted unlawful are not of so heinous a nature as to unchurch a Church and affect the Vitals of Religion or are not imposed as necessary terms of Communion 1. If the Corruptions are such as do not unchurch a Church or affect the vital parts of Religion So saith M r Tombs Not every not many Corruptions of some kind do un-church there being many in Faith Worship and Conversation in the Churches of Corinth and some of the Seven Churches of Asia who yet were Golden Candlesticks amidst whom Christ did walk But such general avowed unrepented of errours in Faith as overthrow the foundation of Christian Faith to wit Christ the only Mediator betwixt God and man and salvation by him Corruptions of Worship by Idolatry in Life by evil manners as are utterly inconsistent with Christianity till which in whole or in part they are not unchurched For till then the Corruptions are tolerable and so afford no just reason to dissolve the Church or to depart from it So M r Brinsley Suppose some just grievances may be found among us yet are they tolerable If so then is Separation on this ground intolerable unwarrantable in as much as it ought not to be but upon a very great and weighty cause and that when there is no remedy So M r Noyes Private Brethren may not separate from Churches or Church-Ordinances which are not fundamentally defective neither in Doctrine or Manners Heresy or Prophaness To all which add the Testimony of D r Owen and M r Cotton The former asserts That many errours in Doctrine disorders in sacred Administrations irregular walking in Conversation with neglect and abuse of Discipline in Rulers may fall out in some Churches and yet not evacuate their Church-state or give sufficient warrant to leave their Communion and separate from them The latter saith Vnless you find in the Church Blasphemy or Idolatry or Persecution that is such as is intolerable there is no just ground of separation This is universally own'd But if any one should yet continue unconvinced let him but peruse the Catalogue of the faults of nine Churches in Scripture collected by M r Baxter and I perswade my self he will think the Conclusion inferr'd from it to be just and reasonable Observe saith he that no one member is in all these Scriptures or any other commanded to come out and separate from any of all these Churches as if their Communion in Worship were unlawful And therefore before you separate from any as judging Communion with them unlawful be sure that you bring greater reasons for it than any of these recited were 2. They are not to separate if the Corruptions are not so made the Conditions of Communion that they must necessarily and unavoidably communicate in them M r Vines speaks plainly to both of these The Church may be corrupted many ways in Doctrine Ordinances Worship c. And there are degrees of this Corruption the Doctrine in some remote Points the Worship in some Rituals of mans invention or custom How many Churches do we find thus corrupted and yet no Separation of Christ from the Jewish Church nor any Commandment to the Godly of Corinth c. to separate I must in such a Case avoid the Corruption hold the Communion But if Corruptions invade the Fundamentals the foundation of Doctrine is destroyed the Worship is become idolatrous and what is above all if the Church impose such Laws of her Communion as there is a necessity of doing or approving things unlawful in that Case Come out of Babylon The Churches of Protestants so separated from Rome But if the things be not of so heinous a nature nor thus strictly required then Communion with a Church under defects is lawful and may be a Duty So saith M r Corbet in the name of the present Non-Conformists We hold not our selves obliged to forsake a true Church as no Church for the corruptions and disorders found therein or to separate from its Worship for the tolerable faults thereof while our personal profession

many superstitious Ceremonies the observation whereof were more strictly urged than the Commandments and Ordinances of God the Temple made a Den of Thieves the Discipline and censures shamefully abused the Doctrine was corrupt in many points yet the word tells you Christ whose example it binds you to follow and you profess your selves followers of him in all imitable things made no separation from this Church professed himself a Member of it was by Circumcision incorporated a Member received Baptism in a Congregation of that People was a hearer of their common Service and their Teachers allowing and commanding his Disciples to hear them communicated in the Passover with the People and the Priest no more did his Apostles make separation from this Church after his Ascension till their day had its Period c. By their example it appears that till God hath forsaken a Church no man may forsake it c. So that we may conclude from hence with M r Hildersham Those Assemblies that enjoy the Word and Doctrine of Salvation though they have many corruptions remaining in them are to be acknowledged as true Churches of God and such as none of the faithful may make Separation from We shall need no further proof of this Doctrine than the example of our Saviour himself c. For why should our Saviour use it if it was unlawful or why should it be a Sin in us who have not such Eyes to pierce into the impiety of mans Traditions as he had as M r Bradshaw argues The same measures were observed also by the Apostles after the establishment of the Christian Church This is not to be gainsaid and is therefore granted by one in other things rigid more than enough I do not say that every corruption in a true Church is sufficient ground of Separation from it The unsoundness of many in the Church of Corinth touching the Doctrine of the Resurrection and in Galatia touching the Doctrine of Circumcision and the necessity of keeping the Ceremonial Law were not sufficient ground of Separation from them for the Apostles held Communion with them notwithstanding these corruptions Now by parity of reason it will follow that if Separation was not to be allowed from those corrupted Churches then surely not from such as are not so corrupted as they So M r Cawdrey pleads Corinth had we suppose greater disorders in it than are to be found blessed be God in many of our Congregations why then do they fly and separate from us And if our Saviour and his Apostles did not separate from such Churches much less should we who may without doubt safely follow the advice given by an Author above-quoted When you are at a stand think how Christ would have carried what he would have done in the like case with yours and we may thereby be concluded Thirdly They further argue that Christ doth still hold Communion with defective Churches and not reject the Worship for tolerable corruptions in it and so neither ought we It is supposed by a worthy person that there is no such society of Christians in the World whose Assemblies as to instituted Worship are so rejected by Christ as to have a Bill of Divorce given unto them until they are utterly as it were extirpate by the Providence of God c. For we do judge that where-ever the Name of Jesus Christ is called upon there is Salvation to be obtained however the ways of it may be obstructed unto the most by their own sins and errors And if this may be said of Churches though fundamentally erroneous in Worship then who shall dare as another saith to judge when Christ hath forsaken a People who still profess his Name and keep up his Worship for substance according to his word though they do or are supposed to fail in circumstances or lesser parts of duty Now this granted the other will follow that then we are not to separate from such Churches Thus M r Hildersham concluded of old from the practice of Christ and observes 1. So long as God continueth his word and the Doctrine of Salvation to a People so long it is evident that God dwells among them and hath not forsaken them c. And till God hath forsaken a Church no man may forsake it 2. No Separation may be made from those Assemblies where men may be assured to find and attain Salvation but men may be sure to find and attain Salvation in such Assemblies where the Ministry of his word and the Doctrine of Salvation is contained So M r Vines The Argument saith he of M r Brightman is considerable if God afford his Communion with a Church by his own Ordinances Grace and Spirit it would be unnatural and peevish in a Child to forsake his Mother while his Father owns her for his Wife I might heap up Authorities of this kind but shall content my self with a considerable one from M r Cotton who reasons after this manner The practice of the Brownists is blame-worthy because they separate where Christ keeps fellowship Rev. 1.18 And that he walks with us we argue because he is still pleased to dispense to us the word of life and edifies many Souls thereby and therefore surely Christ hath fellowship with us and shall man be more pure than his Maker where Christ vouchsafes fellowship shall man renounce it Upon this are grounded the wholesome exhortations of many eminent Non-Conformists as that of M r Calamy You must hold Communion with all those Churches with which Christ holds Communion you must separate from the sins of Christians but not from the Ordinances of Christ. Of M r R. Allein Excommunicate not them from you excommunicate not your selves from them with whom Christ holds Communion Judge not that Christ withdraws from all those who are not in every thing of your mind and way Methinks saith a Reverend Person in his Farewel Sermon where a Church as to the main keeps the form of sound words and the substantials of that Worship which is Christs some adjudged defects in order cannot justifie separation I dare not dismember my self from that Church that holds the head I think whilst Doctrine is for the main sound Christ stays with a Church and it is good staying where he stays I would follow him and not lead him or go before the Lamb. To such we find a severe rebuke given very lately by a Reverend Person Proud conceited Christians are not contented to come out and separate from the unbelieving idolatrous World but they will separate also from the true Church of Christ and cast off all Communion with them who hold Communion with him Fourthly They argue that to separate for such defects and corruptions would destroy all Communion If this should be saith M r Bradshaw then no man can present himself with a good Conscience at any publick Worship of God wheresoever because except it should