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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
ground_n	church_n	truth_n	word_n	4,240	5	4.9394	4	true

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A09868	A sermon preached at the consecration of the right Reverend Father in God Barnaby Potter DD. and L. Bishop of Carlisle, at Ely house in Holbourne March 15. 1628. By Christopher Potter D.D. provost of Queenes Colledge in Oxford. Hereunto is added an advertisement touching the history of the quarrels of Pope Paul 5 with the Venetians; penned in Italian by F. Paul, and done into English by the former author	Potter, Christopher, 1591-1646.; Sarpi, Paolo, 1552-1623. Historia particolare delle cose passate tra'l sommo pontefice Paolo V. e la serenissima republica di Venetia. English. Selections.	1629 (1629)	STC 20134; ESTC S114961	32,999	132

his noble and unexpected choice And that elogie which Nazianzene gives to S. Basil truly and Orat. 20. properly fits our Bishop he was promoted 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 he did not steale or shuffle himselfe into the chaire hee did not invade it the honour sought and followed him and though hee acknowledge a deepe obligation to many great and honourable Friends yet hee owes it to no thing to no man but to God and the King And thus shall it bee done to all them which truly honour God and the King God and the King without doubt will honour them Thus at length we have done with the first part of the Text the authority of Peters commission Iesus said unto him the next now followes expressing the matter or sum of it Feed my sheepe A rich and copious argument wherein it were easie to be endlesse But because the time which remaines is not long I will bee short and with a light foot slip over this boundlesse field wherein otherwise if I durst presume I could desire to expatiate In the words our Lord imposes a necessity upō al his holy servants and officers and requires their constant continuall care in the instruction of his people by sound doctrine and a holy life The charge is given in metaphoricall termes and the metaphor is very proper and significant Feed my sheepe Every word caries the weight of an argument and implies a pressing motive to this dutie The words are three so are the arguments The first taken from the quality of the Minister Thou art a Pastor of the People therefore feed them The second from the qualitie of the People they are Sheepe therefore feed them The third from their relation to Christ they are my sheepe not thine and therefore as thou wilt answer me feed them For the first the Embleme and image of a Shepheard sets out to the life all the sweet and gracious qualities the tendernesse providence innocence benignitie fidelitie prudence diligence c. that should be in every good Governour Therefore no Metaphor more emphaticall none so frequent in all good Authors holy and profane throughout the body of Scriptures as this There we finde God himselfe often termed a a Psa 〈◊〉 1. Pastor and Christ our Lord the b Ioh. 10. 14 good Pastor the c 1 Pet. 5. 4. chiefe Pastor all Kings and Prophets are Pastors and for us of the Ministerie we may say as they to Pharaoh d Gen. 46. ●4 We are all Pastors from our youth we and our Fathers and all our Tribe What are the dut●es of a good and wise Pastor we may collect from that description of a wicked and foolish Pastor in the Prophet Zechar. e Zech. 11. 16. Ezech. 34. Loe saith God I will raise up a Shepheard in the land who shall not visit those that be lost neither shall seeke the lambes nor beale that that is broken nor feed that which standeth still but he shall eate the flesh of the fat and teare their clawes in pieces Woe to the Idoll Shepheard that leaveth the flocke To doe the contrary to all this is to doe the part of a good Pastor One word in my Text implies all Feed Shortly the principall Vid. Naz Orat. 7. cares of a good Shepheard are three which accordingly require three principall vertues first valour to keep off the thiefe the Wolfe the Fox and all ravenous beasts Secondly wisdome to keepe all his flocke within the pale of good order and if any unruly disorderly Ramme will bee ranging to curbe and call him in with his whistle if he can or if not with his crooke Thirdly fidelity to provide his lambs and sheepe of wholsome convenient pasture These same cares and vertues in proportion are required in all spirituall Pastors specially and eminently in every good Bishop 1. Such as professedly or secretly corrupt the true doctrine of godlinesse bringing in either profane novelties or destroying opinions they are Theeves Wolves 2 Tim. 2. 16 2 Pet. 2. 1. Foxes and must be opposed convinced confounded by the valour and learning of the Bishop But especially if hee love his Master or his flocke let him beware of that Monster compounded of a Wolfe and a Fox that brand and boutefeu of all Churches and Kingdomes the Iesuite A thing that was never of Gods making created onely by the Pope and yet though he owes his being to the Pope and the Pope againe reciprocally his being now to him and would seeme to honor him whose name hee leudly assumes yet the truth is as that prudent French Cardinall d'Ossat wel Epistre 8. a Mons Villivey observing the maximes of the Iesuitical Cabale their practises long since rightly defined him A Iesuite some few excepted is one that neither beleeves in Iesus Christ nor in the Pope 2. Such as walke disorderly and are scandalous in their evill life likely to taint all the flocke with the contagio● of their bad example these the Bishops wisedome and authoritie must either reclaime by sweet words of admonition if he can or otherwise represse them by the sharpe edge of Ecclesiasticall censures And it were perhaps to be wished that the spirituall sword were both more tenderly used in some cases and more severely in others more blunted against some offendors and better edged against others But 3. the prime care and vertue of a good Bishop is faithfully and fruitfully to dispense the word of life the doctrine of salvation to his people and to live himselfe the life which he commends that so he may be an absolute paterne of pietie and his life a cleare commentary upon his doctrine This I call his prime care and vertue for t is this which our Lord principally intends in this charge to Peter and all Pastors Feed my sheepe and therefore here wee will insist a little This care requires as I have said 1. wholsome doctrine 2. a holy life Of either a few words By wholsome doctrine I meane not any vaine jangling about unprofitable questions not any nice or curious speculations in forbidden mysteries which serve more to amaze or distract the people then to instruct them and more inlarge the kingdome of Sa 〈…〉 an then of Iesus Christ planting rather Atheisme and irreligion then sound knowledge and devotion But I meane the plaine preaching of that truth which is according unto godlinesse the laying of the foundation of faith in Christ and repentance from dead workes and new obedience Which howsoever now adayes we put off to our Curates and under-journeymen as a thing unbeseeming our learning and greatnesse yet Saint Paul is of another judgement and accounts this the master-piece of a wise Architect And sure that 1 Cor. 3. 10 I may borrow the words of a reverend Prelate of this Church the D. H. most usefull of all preaching is Catecheticall this is both food and physicke both a cordiall to comfort and settle the heart in truth and a

preservative against all error this is the ground all other discourses though profitable are but the descants If any dainty palate distast this bread of Angels hee is distempered and worthy to fast Whose heart that hath any compassion bleeds not to see the strange growth of ignorance and infidelity in this age and the poor Church every where miserably labouring under her wofull Schismes and ruptures Certainly the ground of all this calamity is because the old rudiments of pietie the principles of saving truth are every where neglected and new subtle inventions with great vehemency pressed Men are faln from living to disputing and whilst their hands are idle and their heads empty yet their tongues must needs be working And after a while it will bee a matter of great wit to be a Christian for he must be faine every yeare to learne a new Creed Each private opinion must needs bee matter of faith and it contents not many zelotes of each side to injoy their owne conceits they are out of charity with all that are not of their judgement I verily thinke it might bee a happy meanes to settle many unfortunate Controversies and to unite us all in blessed truth and peace if men would give themselves leave without passion rightly to apprehend and consider the diversitie and degrees of divine truth Many truths are profitable very few a Ioh. 17. 3 20. 31. Rom 10. 9. 13. Luke 7. 48. 8. 48. 2● 4● Act 8. ●7 1● 31. necessary As in the practicall part of religion true sanctifying grace hath a wide latitude very strong and vigorous in one very weake and feeble in another yet in both saving So in the intellectuall or dogmaticall part of Christianitie b R●● I●cobus in 〈◊〉 Casaub Epist ad Card P●rron G●●●ve ●spraefat Observ 〈◊〉 Harm confess G●●l●rt observ in H●●min gij Opuscula D. Vsher Serm. of the unity of faith Vi●c Lirin cap 39. Petrus Mol●ntus in Confilio Gallicè scripto all divine verities are not of equall moment and necessity S. Paul hath taught us a distinction betweene foundations and superstructions 1 Cor. 3. and among these latter some border more closely upon the foundation then others Where there is a distinct and explicite assent in all the maine Articles of the Catholique faith and in all conclusions cleerely immediately necessarily issuing from those principles and no poison after mingled with this milke Other truths more subtile may admit an 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or a non liquet both ignorance and error without danger as being disputable in themselves and happely by plaine Scripture indeterminable To be free from all error and sin is the priviledge of the Church triumphing in this life where there is so great variety of the Spirits illuminatiō so great imbecility of all mens understanding and so many mysteries inscrutable to expect an absolute and generall consent in all particles of truth were a great vanity to exact it a greater tyranny of pernicious consequence in the Church The best of men are but men at the best and if any in this s 〈…〉 e of mortality thinke or hope to reach all incomprehensible Mysteries hee mistakes his measure and forgets that his dwelling is in the dust that he is yet on earth not yet in heaven So long as we are here below on our way ignorance and infirmity will accompany us they will not leave us till we leave the world and be admitted into our heavenly Country When once a 1 Cor. 3. 10 12. 2 Cor 5 7. 1 Ioh. 3. 2. the time of perfection is come then not before shall all defects bee abolished all imperfections perfited then shall our Faith be turned into vision our darke knowledge into cleare comprehension b I●s Scal Ele●c Orat. Chron●● Elias quùm venerit solvet dubia Now those maine Articles whereof we spake the wisdome of the ancient Church contracted out of Scripture into a short Creed which they called the Rule of faith and placed in it the c Mr Brad. ford Mart. conference with Heth a●d Day unity of the Church which d Ire● l●b 1. cap. 2. 3. Iren●us saies admits neither addition nor diminution being common to small and great And e Te●tul de Virg Vel. c. 1. Vide et●●m Ambros Ser 38 de Iejun Quadr. in fine Rufi● in Ex●os Symb. in p●aefat August d● Temp. Ser. 115. 119 181. in praef Leon. Epist 13. ad fin Tertullian to the same purpose Regula fidei una omnino est immobilis irr●formabilis then after a briefe repetition of it hee addes Hâc lege fidei manente caetera admittunt novitatem correctionis But above all the rest f Naz orat 3. de pace num 14. 26. Vinc. Lirin Iud. 3 Gregorie Nazianzene most excellently and judiciously handles this argument in his 14 Oration and his 26 which he entitles de moderatione in disputationibus servandâ This was the faith once given to the Saints for which those ancient Worthies contended so stoutly even unto blood And which they did all so diligently inculcate unto their auditors as it appeares by lustine Martyr his Exposition of the faith S. Basil his Treatise or Homily de verâ fide Athanasius in his Creed Epiphanius in his Ancoratus S. Augustine his Enchiridion and the Bookes de Doctrinâ Christianâ Gregory Nyssen and Cyrill of Ierusalem in their Catecheticall Orations c. upon this evidence they convicted and condemned all ancient heresies and I am confident were they now alive they would all side with us in our necessary separation from the abominations idolatry and tyranny of the Papacy with which no good Christian can hold any union in faith any communion in charitie Now for our Controversies first let me professe I favour not I rather suspect any new inventions for ab Antiquitate non recedo nisi invitus especially renouncing all such as any way favour or flatter the depraved nature and will of man which I constantly beleeve to be free onely to evill and of it selfe to have no power at all meerely none to any act or thing spiritually good Most heartily embracing that doctrine which most amply commends the riches of Gods free grace which I acknowledge to bee the whole and sole cause of our predestination conversion and salvation abhorring all damned doctrines of the Pelagians Semipelagians Iesuites Socinians and of their ragges and reliques which helpe onely to pride and pricke up corrupt nature humbly confessing in the words of S. g Test ad Qui● lib. 3. c. 4. Cyprian so often repeated by that worthy champion of grace S. a Cont. du●s Epist Pel●g l. 4. cap. 9. Austine in nullo gloriandum est quandoquidèm nostrum nihilest It is God that worketh in us both the will and the deed and therefore let him that glorieth glory in the Lord. But for the points in question they might sure bee debated with lesse edge and stomach as they are at this day