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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
heaven_n	church_n	kingdom_n	visible_a	4,215	5	9.6422	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A89790	A declaration of the faith and order owned and practised in the Congregational Churches in England; agreed upon and consented unto by their elders and messengers in their meeting at the Savoy, Octob. 12. 1658.	Congregational Church in England and Wales. Savoy Meeting (1658).; Owen, John, 1616-1683.; Nye, Philip, 1596?-1672.	1659 (1659)	Wing N1488; Thomason E968_4; ESTC R203024	44,014	43

and regular obedience are so far from being degrees of higher perfection that they are superstitious and sinful snares in which no Christian may intangle himself CHAP. XXIV Of the civil Magistrate GOD the supreme Lord and King of all the World hath ordained civil Magistrates to be under him over the people for his own glory and the publique good And to this end hath armed them with the power of the Sword for the defence and incouragement of them that do good and for the punishment of evil-doers II. It is lawful for Christians to accept and execute the Office of a Magistrate when called thereunto in the management whereof as they ought specially to maintain Justice and Peace according to the wholsome Laws of each Common-wealth so for that end they may lawfully now under the New Testament wage war upon just and necessary occasion III. Although the Magistrate is bound to incourage promote and protect the Professors and Profession of the Gospel and to manage and order civil administrations in a due subserviency to the interest of Christ in the World and to that end to take care that men of coroupt minds and conversations do not licentiously publish and divulge Blasphemy and Errors in their own nature subverting the faith and inevitably destroying the souls of them that receive them Yet in such differences about the Doctrines of the Gospel or ways of the worship of God as may befal men exercising a good conscience manifesting it in their conversation and holding the foundation not disturbing others in their ways or worship that differ from them there is no warrant for the Magistrate under the Gospel to abridge them of their liberty IV. It is the duty of people to pray for Magistrates to honor their persons to pay them Tribute and other dues to obey their lawful commands and to be subject to their Authority for conscience sake Infidelity or difference in Religion doth not make void the Magistrates just and legal Authority nor free the people from their obedience to him from which ecclesiastical persons are not exempted much lesse hath the Pope any power or jurisdiction over them in their dominions or over any of their people and least of all to deprive them of their dominions or lives if he shall judge them to be Hereticks or upon any other pretence whatsoever CHAP. XXV Of Marriage MArriage is to be between one man and one woman neither is it lawful for any man to have more then one wife nor for any woman to have more then one husband at the same time II. Marriage was ordained for the mutual help of husband and wife for the increase of mankind with a legitimate issue and of the Church with an holy seed and for preventing of uncleanness III. It is lawful for all sorts of people to marry who are able with judgment to give their consent Yet it is the duty of Christians to marry in the Lord and therefore such as profess the true Reformed religion should not marry with Infidels Papists or other Idolaters neither should such as are godly be unequally yoaked by marrying with such as are wicked in their life or maintain damnable Heresy VI Marriage ought not to be within the degrees of consanguinity or affinity forbidden in the Word nor can such incestuous Marriages ever be made lawful by any law of man or consent of parties so as those persons may live together as man and wife CHAP. XXVI Of the Church THe Catholique or Universal Church which is invisible consists of the whole number of the Elect that have been are or shall be gathered into one under Christ the Head thereof and is the Spouse the body the fulness of him that filleth all in all II. The whole body of men throughout the world professing the faith of the Gospel and obedience unto God by Christ according unto it not destroying their own profession by any Errors everting the foundation or unholiness of conversation are and may be called the visible Catholique Church of Christ although as such it is not intrusted with the administration of any Ordinances or have any offices to rule or govern in or over the whole Body III. The purest Churches under heaven are subject both to mixture and error and some have so degenerated as to become no Churches of Christ but synagogues of Satan Neverthelesse Christ always hath had and ever shall have a visible Kingdom in this world to the end thereof of such as believe in him and make profession of his name IV. There is no other Head of the Church but the Lord Jesus Christ nor can the Pope of Rome in any sence be Head thereof but it is that Antichrist that man of sin and son of Perdition that exalteth himself in the Church against Christ and all that is called God whom the Lord shall destroy with the brightness of his coming V. As the Lord is in care and love towards his Church hath in his infinite wise providence exercised it with great variety in all ages for the good of them that love him and his own Glory so according to his promise we expect that in the latter days Antichrist being destroyed the Jews called and the adversaries of the Kingdom of his dear Son broken the Churches of Christ being inlarged and edified through a free and plentiful communication of light and grace shall enjoy in this world a more quiet peaceable and glorious condition then they have enjoyed CHAP. XXVII Of the Communion of Saints ALL Saints that are united to Jesus Christ their Head by his Spirit and Faith although they are not made thereby one person with him have fellowship in Graces Sufferings Death Resurrection and Glory and being united to one another in love they have communion in each others gifts and grace and are obliged to the performance of such duties publique and private as do conduce to their mutuall good both in the inward and outward Man II. All Saints are bound to maintain an holy fellowship and communion in the Worship of God and in performing such other spiritual services as tend to their mutual edification as also in relieving each other in outward things according to their several abilities and necessities which communion though especially to be exercised by them in the relations wherein they stand whether in Families or Churches yet as God offereth opportunity is to be extended unto all those who in every place call upon the Name of the Lord Jesus CHAP. XXVIII Of the Sacraments SAcraments are holy Signs and Seals of the Covenant of Grace immediately instituted by Christ to represent him and his benefits and to confirm our interest in him and solemnly to engage us to the service of God in Christ according to his Word II. There is in every Sacrament a spiritual relation or sacramental union between the signe and the thing signified whence it comes to pass that the names and effects of the one are attributed to the other III. The grace

a new Refinement that themselves are approved Members admitted to the Lords Supper and their Children to the Ordinance of Baptism they regard not other matters as Gallio did not but do easily and readily give up themselves unto their Guides being like dead fishes carried with the commonstream whereas those that have a further renewed Light by a work of the Holy Ghost whether saving or temporary are upon the quite contrary grounds apt to be bufie about and inquisitive into what they are to receive and practise or wherein their Consciences are professedly concerned and involved And thereupon they take the freedom to examine and try the spirits whether of God or no And from hence are more apt to dissatisfaction and from thence to run into division and many of such proving to be inlightned but with a temporary not saving Faith who have such a work of the Spirit upon them and profession in them as will and doth approve it self to the judgment of Saints and ought to be so judged until they be otherwise discovered who at long-run prove hypocrites through indulgence unto Lusts and then out of their Lusts persist to hold up these divisions unto breach of or departings from Churches and the Ordinances of God and God is even with them for it they waxing worse and worse deceiving and being deceived and even many of those that are sincere through a mixture of darkness and erroneousness in their Judgments are for a season apt out of Conscience to be led away with the error of others which lie in wait to deceive Insomuch as the Apostle upon the example of those first times fore-seeing also the like events in following generations upon the like causes hath been bold to set this down as a ruled Case that likewise in other Churches so constituted and de facto empriviledged as that of the Church of Corinth was which single Church in the Sacred Records about it is the compleatest Mirror of Church-Constitution Order and Government and Events thereupon ensuing of any one Church whatever that we have story of his Maxim is There must be also divisions amongst you he setly inserts an ALSO in the case as that which had been in his own observation and that which would be {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} the fate of other Churches like thereunto so prophefieth he And he speaks this as peremptorily as he doth elsewhere in that other We must through many tribulations enter into the Kingdom of Heaven Yea and that all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution There is a MUST upon both alike and we bless God that we have run through both and do say and we say no more That as it was then so it is now in both respects However such hath been the powerful hand of God's Providence in these which have been the worst of our Tryals That out of an approved Experience and Observation of the Issue we are able to adde that other part of the Apostles Prediction That therefore such rents must be that they which are approved may be made manifest among you which holy issue God as having aimed at it therein doth frequently and certainly bring about in Churches as he doth bring upon them that other fate of division Let them therfore look untoit that are the Authors of such disturbances as the Apostle warneth Gal 5. 10. The experiment is this That we have seen and do daily see that multitudes of holy and precious souls and in the Holy Ghosts word approved Saints have been and are the more rooted and grounded by means of these shakings and do continue to cleave the faster to Christ and the purity of hi● Ordinances and value them the more by this cost God hath put them to for the enjoying of them Who having been planted in the House of the Lord have flourished in the Courts of our God in these evil times to new that the Lord is upright And this experimented event from out of such divisions hath more confirmed us and is a louder Apologie for us then all that our opposites are able from our breaches to alleadge to prejudice us We will add a few words for conclusion and give a more particular account of this our Declaration In drawing up this Confession of Faith we have had before us the Articles of Religion approved and passed by both Houses of Parliament after advice had with an Assembly of Divines called together by them for that purpose To which Confession for the substance of it we fully assent as do our Brethren of New-England and the Churches also of Scotland as each in their general Synods have testified A few things we have added for obviating some erroneous Opinions that have been more broadly and boldly here of late maintained by the Asserters then in former times and made other additions and alterations in method here and there and some clearer Explanations as we found occasion We have endeavoured throughout to hold to such Truths in this our Confession as are more properly termed matters of Faith and what is of Church-order we dispose in certain Propositions by it self To this course we are led by the Example of the Honorable Houses of Parliament observing what was established and what omitted by them in that Confession the Assembly presented to them Who thought it not convenient to have matters of Discipline and Church-Government put into a Confession of Faith especially such particulars thereof as then were and still are controverted and under dispute by men Orthodox and sound in Faith The 30th cap therefore of that Confession as it was presented to them by the Assembly which is of Church Censures their tlse Kinds and in whom placed As also cap. 31. of Synods and Councels by whom to be called of what force in their Decrees and Determinations And the 4th Paragr. of the 20th cap. which determines what Opinions and Practises disturb the peace of the Church and how such Disturbers ought to be proceeded against by the Censures of the Church and punished by the Civil Magistrate Also a great part of the 24th cap. of Marriage and Divorce These were such doubtful assertions and so unsutable to a Confession of Faith as the Honorable Houses in their great Wisdom thought fit to lay them aside There being nothing that tends more to heighten Dissentions among Brethren then to determine and adopt the matter of their difference under so high a Title as to be an Article of our Faith So that there are two whole Chapters and some Paragraphs in other Chapters in their Confession that we have upon this account omitted and the rather do we give this notice because that Copy of the Parl. followed by us is in few mens hands the other as it came from the Assembly being approved of in Scotland was printed and hastened into the world before the Parl had declared their Resolutions about it which was not til June 20. 1648. and yet hath been