steddiness purity and soberness This new nature while it is lodg'd in the earthly tabernacle is clogg'd with many adverse things especially the relicks of the old nature which cause much vanity of thoughts indisposedness of mind motions to evil and aversations from good and somtimes more sensible disorders of affections and eruptions of unruly passion and aberrations in life and conversation The same divine principal is in some Christians more firm lively and active than in others yet it is habitually prevalent in them all and it resists and overcomes the contrary principle even in the case of most beloved sins and strongest temptations and perseveres in earnest and fearful indeavours of perfecting holiness in the fear of God And whatsoever degree of sanctity is obtained it ascribes wholly to the praise of Gods grace in Christ and the power of his spirit Christianity being known what it is it may easily be known what it is not and so the false disguises of it may easily be detected Forasmuch as it looks far higher than the temporal interests of mankind in the settlings of this life though it doth not overlook them it cannot be thought to have done its work in making men meerly just-dealers good neighbours and profitable members of the Common-wealth for such may be some of them that are without Christ without the hope of the Gospel and without God in the world Moreover it cannot lie so low as in a bare belief of the Gospel and an observance of its external institutes accompanied with a civil conversation As for such as rest in these things what are they more in the eye of God than the heathens that know him not And wherein do they differ from them except in a dead faith and outward form taken up by education tradition example custom of the country and other such like motives Nor doth it lie in unwritten doctrines and ordinances of worship devised by men nor yet in curiosities of opinion or accidental modes of Worship discipline or Church-government nor in ones being of this or that Sector party nor in meer Orthodoxality all which being rested in are but the false coverings of hypocrites It is not the lax and easie low and large rule by which Libertines and Formalists yea some pretended perfectionists do measure their own righteousness who assert their perfectness by disannulling or lessening the law of God In a word it is not any kind of morality or vertue whatsoever which is not true holiness or intire dedication to God and therefore much less is it that loose and jolly religion of the sensual gang who keep up a superficial devotion in some external forms but give up themselves to real irreligion and profaneness and bid defiance to a circumspect walking and serious course of Godliness And now it is too apparent what multitudes of them that prophess the faith of Christ are Christians in name only and not indeed Their alienation from the life of God and their enmity against it and their conformity to the course of this world in the lusts thereof doth testifie that they have not received the grace of God in truth But Christians indeed according to the nature of Christianity above expressed which is now in them though not in the highest yet in a prevalent degree do make it their utmost end to know love honour and please God to be conformable to him and to have the fruition of him in the perfection of which conformity and fruition they place the perfection of their blessedness In the sence of their native bondage under the guilt and power of sin they come to the Mediator Jesus Christ and rest upon him by the satisfaction and merit of his obedience and suffering to reconcile and sanctifie them to God and accordingly they give up themselves to him as their absolute Teacher and Ruler all-sufficient Saviour Having received not the Spirit of the world but that which is of God they are crucified to the honours profits and pleasures of the world and have their conversation in heaven and rejoyce in the hope of glory and prepare for sufferings in this life and by faith overcome them The law of God is in their hearts and it is the directory of their practice from day to day by the touchstone of Gods word they prove their own works and come to the light thereof that their deeds may be made manifest to be wrought in God They draw nigh to God in the acts of religious worship of his appointment that they may glorifie him and enjoy spiritual communion with him and be blessed of him especially with spiritual blessings in Christ and as God is a Spirit they worship him in Spirit and in truth It is their aim care and exercise to keep consciences void of offence towards God and towards men and to render to all their dues both in their publick and private capacities and to walk in love towards all not excluding enemies and to do all the good they can both to the souls and bodies of men but those that fear God they more highly prise and favour The remainder of corruption within themselves they know feelingly and watch and pray and strive that they enter not into temptation and maintain a continual warfare against the Devil the world and the flesh under the conduct of Jesus Christ their Leader according to the laws of their holy profession with patience and perseverance In the midst of a crooked and perverse generation they indeavour to be blameless and harmless as the Sons of God and to shine as lights in the world and by the influence of their good conversation to turn others to righteousness Such is the Character of those persons upon whose souls the holy doctrine of the Gospel is impressed and in whom the Christian religion hath its real being force and vertue These are partakers of the heavenly calling and set apart for God to do him service in the present world and afterwards to live in glory with him for ever These are the true Church of God the Church being here taken as mystical not as visible and these are all joyned together by one Spirit in one Body under Christ their Head in the same new nature having one rule of their profession and one hope of their calling These are a great multitude which no man can number of all nations and kindreds and people and tongues yet hitherto not proportionable to the rest of mankind And they continue throughout all ages but in greater or lesser numbers and more or less refined from Superstition or other corruptions and more or less severed from the external communion of the Antichristian State according to the brightness or darkness of the times and places wherein they live CHAP. II. Things pertaining to the Sound State of Religion And first holy Doctrine THe advancement of the Christian life which hath its beginning in the new birth being the great end propounded in this discourse in reference to this end
knowest not whether shall prosper this or that or whether they shall be alike good Whatsoever scornfull or careless Men conceit hereof the Divine Wisdom hath made it praise-worthy and precious The tongue of the just is as choice silver and the lips of the righteous feed many And to good Hearts this Practice will not be burdensom for they will recreate their Minds herewith as an holy divertisement and serious Pastime while others spend their leasure in that mirth and laughter which the Wise Man calls madness CHAP. IX The Prevalence of Religion or real Godliness in the Civil Government of a Nation IN Christian States and Kingdoms Religion being Gods interest ought to have the preeminence in all things And its Preeminence is no incroachment upon the Rights of the Higher Powers but their Establishment God alone hath an underived and unlimited Empire over Man his creature The People are primarily Gods Subjects and then are subject to Princes as to his Vicegerents and obedience to him is the grand interest both of Prince and People None can doubt that God hath made his own Glory and mans Salvation the supreme ends of government and subjection And consequently that is the best Policy which gives these ends the highest place and makes temporal advantages and the wellfare of the outward Man subordinate thereunto And this requires that the Constitution give the highest regards to Gods Laws and maintain their Authority and that the whole publick Administration tend to the promoting of Righteousness and true Holiness and to the suppressing of all unrighteous and impious Practice As it is the Church's duty and honour to teach and command her Children to do whatsoever Christ hath commanded so it is the proper work and chiefest glory of the Magistrate who is Gods Minister to defend the Faith and uphold the Ordinances of the Gospel and to further the most lively and powerfull Dispensation of them and to incourage and command obedience to the Divine Law written in Nature or Scripture In subserviency hereunto his Power is to determine such things as are requisit in general but in particular are left undetermined of God and therefore called indifferent and are to be ordered by human Prudence according to the general Rules of Gods word And for these ends the chief Magistrate hath a Supremacy in all causes and over all persons Civil and Ecclesiastical But it is no diminution of his Authority to remove from it things unnecessary unprofitablē and offensive in their use and for their doubtfull nature apt to perplex the Subjects conscience And he is the general Bishop of his Dominions in a political sense without any incroachment upon that Authority wherewith Christ the King of the Church hath invested spiritual Pastors As he is such an Officer it is worthy of his chiefest care to provide and send forth able and faithfull Dispensers of the Word that may teach the People the good knowledge of God after the example of the good King Jehoshaphat and to see that every one who hath the Cure of Souls be resident with his Flock and constantly instruct them by preaching the Word and Catechizing them in the Principles of Religion and not to suffer Pluralists to seise upon several Congregations as a prey to fleece but not to feed them to incourage laborious Ministers that watch for the Peoples Souls as those that must give an account and strictly to injoyn the Sanctification of the Lords Day which was sanctified to the publick Worship of God by the Apostles of our Lord who were guided by an infallible Spirit in setling this as all other Ordinances pertaining to Christs Kingdom and was observed by the Apostolick Churches and so hath continued in all Ages and in all places of Christianity and is conveyed down to us by as unquestionable Tradition as the Scripture it self It is not of little moment to suppress or at least to bring into disgrace whatsoever customs serve for nought but to feed inordinate Sensuality and to make those that use them profane vicious and licentious There are frequented shews and pastimes well known that increase unto all ungodliness and may be called the Devils ordinances Those that wish well to Piety have an ill part to act when they take upon them to defend some exercises from which an extreem abuse is inseperable and which are made a trade of gain arising from the impurity and profaness of them and therefore are incorrigible and can admit no reformation The Piety of any Nation is not to be measured by formalities and opinions and uniformity in little things but by substantial Devotion by solid zeal in the weighty matters of the Law and main concerns of Religion by righteousness of life by sobriety purity modesty by peace and concord with mutual forbearance in those differences that should not and need not make breaches among Brethren by dutifulness in all relations by industry frugality and by abounding Charity that is full of good Works Happy is that State where religious influence is predominant where the pious and prudent bear sway not by intrusion but by lawfull Admission also where it ariseth to that strength as to carry along with it the affection and interest of a Nation not by setting up the Faction of a few but by making the generality or at least the greater number of considerable men some of them truly regenerate Christians and the rest orderly and well affected One would think it were out of question that it were more desirable that Religiousness should be in fashion than open dissoluteness and profaness For uncontrolled profaness will run down all Religion But when those that reach not the Power of Godliness indeed come so far as to take up an outward garb thereof it is a great external advantage to true Religion and shews its prevalent Influence on the publick State If any should demur upon this Assertion by making it a question whether Phariseim or Profaness be the worser evil let him know first that profane and dissolute Christians are notorious Hypocrites for professing to know God when in works they deny him Besides Phariseism is not simple insincerity but a compound hypocrisie wherein malignity and enmity against the Power of Godliness is the chief ingredient it is a kind of strict externalness that seeks to destroy the inward life and spirit of that Religion which it pretends to own I have no list to say that such malignity is less mischievous than filthy lewdness or debauchery But the garb of strict Profession here mentioned is of another nature and serviceable to the Churches good though we must continually and strictly charge all Men to beware of resting in it to the ruine of their own Souls CHAP. X. Christian Unity and Concord ALl faithfull Christians are Members of one mystical Body having all one Spirit one Lord and Head one Faith one Baptism and one God and Father of them all one Hope of their Calling and one Heaven to receive them all
Subordination in the several parts thereof either in way of proper authority or of mutual agreement And the Associated Churches and particular Members therein are naturally bound to maintain the orderly state of the whole Association and to comply with the Rules thereof when they are not repugnant to the Word of God A Bishop or Pastor and the People adhering to him are not declared to be the only true Church and Pastor within such a Precinct by their conjunction with the largest Combination of Bishops or Pastors and their Churches For the greater number of Bishops may in such manner err in their Constitutions as to make rightly informed Persons uncapable of their Combination A National Church is not a particular Church properly so called but a Combination or Coagmentation of particular Churches united under one Civil Supream either Personal as in a Monarchy or Collective as in a Republick And the true notion thereof lies not in any Combination purely Ecclesiastical and Intrinsecal but Civil and Extrinsecal as of so many Churches that are collected under one that hath the Civil Supremacy over them The National Church of England truly denotes all the Churches in England united under one Supream Civil Church-Governour the Kings Majesty Civil Magistrates as such are no Constitutive parts of the Church The Christian Church stood for several Centuries without the support of their authority But Supream Magistrates have a Civil Supremacy in all Ecclesiastical matters and a political extrinsecal Episcopacy over all the Pastors of the Churches in their Dominions and may compell them to the performance of their Duties and punish them for negligence and mal-Administration and they may reform the Churches when they stand in need of Reformation The possession of the Tithes and Temples doth not of it self declare the true Pastor and Church nor doth the Privation thereof declare no Pastor and no Church For these are disposed of by the secular power which of it self can neither make nor make void a Pastor or Church A Diocess is a collective body of many Parishes under the Government of one Diocesan If the several Parishes be so many particular Churces and if their proper and immediate Presbyters be of the same order with those which in Scripture are mentioned by that name and were no other than Bishops or Pastors then a Diocess is not a particular Church but a Combination of Churches and the Diocesan is a Bishop of Bishops or a Governour over many Churches and their immediate Bishops If the Parishes be not acknowledged to be Churches nor their Presbyters to be realy Bishops or Pastors but the Diocess be held to be the lowest Political Church and the Diocesan to be a Bishop of the lowest rank and the sole Bishop or Pastor of all the included Parishes I confess I have no knowledge of the Divine right of such a Church or Bishop or of any precept or precedent thereof in Scripture For every particular Church mentioned in Scripture was but one distinct stated Society having its own proper and immediate Bishop or Bishops Elder or Elders Pastor or Pastors who did Personally and immediately Superintend over the whole Flock which ordinarily held either at once together or by turns Personal present Communion with each other in Gods Worship But a Diocess consists of several stated Societies to wit the Parishes which are Constituted severally of a proper and immediate Presbyter or Elder having cure of Souls and commonly called a Rector and the People which are his proper and â—…rge or cure And the People of thâ—… not live under the Personal and inâ—…rsight of their Diocesan but under â—…legates and Substitutes Nor do they oâ—…ly hold Personal present Communion with each other in Gods Worship either at once together or by turns Nevertheless which way soever a Diocess be considered I have nothing to object against submission to the Government of the Diocesan as an Ecclesiastical Officer established by the Law of the Land under the Kings Supremacy There is nothing in the nature of the Office of Presbyterate which according to the Scripture is a Pastoral Office that shewe it ought to be exercised no otherwise than in Subordination to a Diocesan Bishop Christ who is the Author and only proper giver of all Spiritual Authority in the Church hath not so limited the said Office and men cannot by any act of theirs enlarge or lessen it as to its nature or essential state or define it otherwise than it is stated of Christ in his word No power Ecclesiastical or Civil can discharge any Minister of Christ from the exercise of his Ministery in those circumstances wherein Christ commands him to exercise it nor any Christians from those duties of Religion to which the Command of Christ obligeth them As the Magistrate is to judge what Laws touching Religion are fit for him to enact and execute so the Ministers of Christ are to use a judgment of discretion about their own Pastoral acts and all Christians are to do the same about their own acts of Church-Communion The too common abuse of the judgment of discretion cannot abrogate the right use thereof it being so necessary that without it men cannot act as men nor offer to God a reasonable Service CHAP. II. Of true Church-Unity WHen the names of Unity and Schism are by partiality and selfishness commonly and grosly abused and misapplied the nature of the things to which those names do of right belong ought to be diligently inquired into and clearly and distinctly laid open For a groundwork in this inquiry I fix upon two very noted texts of Scripture The one is Eph. 4. 3. Indeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of Peace The other is Rom. 16. 17. Mark them that cause Divisions and Offences contrary to the Doctrine that ye have learned and avoid them The former guides us to the knowledge of true Church-unity and the latter shews us the true nature of Schism By the former of these Texts all Christians are obliged to maintain that Spiritual Unity which they have one with another under Christ their Head by the Holy Ghost in all due acts of holy Communion in Peace and Concord Several important things are here to be taken notice of 1. There is a Spiritual unity between all Christians in the form of one mystical Body as there is a natural unity between all the members of the natural Body The members being many are one body and members one of another 2. This Unity is under Christ as the Head of it What the head is to the natural Body that is Christ and much more to his mystical Body the Church 3. This Unity of Christians one with another under Christ is by the Holy Ghost and therefore called the Unity of the Spirit The Spirit of Christ the Head doth seize upon and reside in all the Faithfull by which they become Christs mystical Body and are joyned one to another as fellow-members 4. This Unity of
Their Union and Fellowship being chiefly mystical and invisible their Unity is far greater than what outwardly appears to the World and sometimes than what themselves can discern among themselves in particular by reason of many inferior yet very disquieting differences and discords Nevertheless it behoves them to provide that it might appear as much as may be what it is indeed and that it be conspicuous and illustrious in the sight of Men by their walking in love and peace Unity is the Churches strength and beauty the honour of the Faithfull and an argument for the certainty of their most holy Faith It makes Religion lovely and draws forth blessing praise from the Beholders of it and wins the World to a love and reverence of that Piety which makes the Professors of it to live in brotherly kindness and mutual charity But Division is the Church's weakness and deformity the reproach of Christians and a scandal against Christianity and an objection put into the mouths of Infidels against the Faith and an occasion of stumbling unto many In the present divided state of Religion each Party is apt to appropriate Godliness to themselves or at least to carry it towards others as if they did so And they that are loudest in accusing Dissenters of uncharitableness in this kind are themselves as uncharitable as any others It is true that God hath a peculiar People distinguished from all others by a peculiar Character but it is not confined to any Party of this or that Persuasion or Denomination that is narrower than meer Christianity And all true Christians are to receive one an other as God hath received them Indeed the best Christians are to be best esteemed and their fellowship is most desired But if they should be severed from the universality and in a strict combination set up as divided Party it tends to the Churches Ruine For a Kingdom divided against it self cannot stand and if the nobler parts of the Body forsake the rest the whole must needs die Christian Concord doth not signifie an aggregation of things inconsistent as the fellowship of righteousness with unrighteousness the communion of light with darkness the concord of Christ with Belial To set up Unity against Piety is a conspiracy against Christ who is King of righteousness and to pretend Piety against Unity is to oppose Christ the Prince of Peace whose Kingdom is the Reign of Love in the Soul Holiness and Peace must kiss each other and as inseperable Companions walk together It is the unity of the Spirit we are charged to keep in the bond of Peace But concord in any external Order without fellowship in the Divine Life is not the unity of the Spirit which is to partake of the same new nature and to walk together in the same holy way This is far more excellent than the greatest compliance in matters of meer external order and consequently much more regardable in our estimation and reception of Persons Though to meet in one place be not of so great importance as to be joyned in one Spirit yet it must not be counted a small matter The unity of Faith and Love is much concern'd in the unity of Church Communion it will be a matter of some difficulty for them to live together in Love whom one Church cannot hold Church divisions commonly divide affections and draw men into Parties and divided Interests and make them seek to strengthen their own Party by weakening all others to the great dammage of true Religion in general For which cause the unchurching of Churches and renouncing of Communion with them that are sound in the Doctrine of Faith and Sacrament and in the substance of Divine Worship should be dreaded by all sober Christians yea all unnecessary distances should be avoided least they lead to greater alienations and direct enmities and oppositions Those Churches that cannot hold local communion one with another by reason of differences that destroy not the essentials of Christianity should yet maintain a dear and tender Christian love one to another and profess their owning of each other as Churches of Jesus Christ and should agree together upon certain just and equal Rules for the management of their unavoidable differences so as may least prejudice charity and common good and least harden the ungodly and grieve the weak or dishonour God or hinder the success of common great and necessary truths upon the Souls of men amicably promoting the common cause of Christianity and every part thereof in which they are agreed and opening their disagreements to the People as little as they can Schism is an unwarrantable separation from or division in a Church and without controversie it is a heinous sin and to be detested both for its exceeding sinfulness and wofull consequents But it hath been so disguised and the odious name hath been so confusedly cast abroad and so unreasonably and maliciously misapplied that it is too slightly thought of where it should be sadly laid to heart For it is common with the strongest Party be it right or wrong to call themselves the Church and to have no better name for others than Schismaticks And so the reproach is but contemned by them that suffer it and the sin it self is too little feared on all sides But it is not a Temporal Law nor Secular Power nor any prevalence of Strength or Interest that makes a Church and none of these things will excuse them from Schism that act uncharitably against their Brethren and obstruct the progress of the Gospel and the increase of Godliness Nor are they forthwith to be counted Schismaticks who cannot in all points observe the Commandments of men and cannot neglect to yield their help to the saving of Souls that would otherwise want due means of Salvation when God hath called them to that Service with a woe unto them if they Preach not the Gospel For as much as all must dread the guilt of Schism truly so called let it be well considered that Ecclesiastical Superiors are as much concerned to take heed of Schismatical impositions as the People are to shun Schismatical Recusancy and Disobedience As well the Pastors Wisdom as the Peoples due submission is here importunately called for When Superiors know how to Command and Inferiors how to Obey things will go as well as may be hoped for in this our imperfect state here upon Earth As the Peace of a corrupt state of Religion is best assured by suppressing all conscientious inquiries into its Decrees so the Peace of the true Church and of the sound state of Religion is most secured by the most perfect exercise of sound Judgment and upright Conscience in all its adherents That Church that claims to her self an infallibility or challenges and obtains from her partakers an implicit Faith in her determinations without further enquiry needs not fear the breaking of the bond of her Peace if she multiply constitutions and impose any devised Doctrines and Ordinances sutable to