Selected quad for the lemma: kingdom_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
kingdom_n	church_n	member_n	visible_a	4,197	5	9.3868	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A80413	What the Independents would have, or, A character, declaring some of their tenents, and their desires to disabuse those who speak ill of that they know not. / Written by John Cook of Grays Inne Barrister.	Cook, John, d. 1660.	1647 (1647)	Wing C6031; Thomason E405_7; ESTC R201877	9,934	18

fast till authority settle a forme of worship He holds the Word and Sacraments not to be the constitution of a Church no more then the Law is the Common-wealth or the axe the house but the means and instrument of constitution and counts him the onely extravagant man that flies from reason which makes all men so noble he is of an opinion that the far greater part of men in the Kingdom beleeve that an honest upright meaning will win heaven and hope so to live as by their good works Prayers and good meanings to be saved and therefore does not conceive these men to be visible members of Christs body and consequently not to communicate in the distinguishing Ordinances Hee thinks it ill done to enforce any under penalties to receive the Sacrament possibly to seal up his own condemnation he is for every reformed Church so far as it is reformed but says many Scotch Ministers complain that things are not thorowly reformed with them hee counts it licentiousness not Christian liberty to affront those that be in Authority and never speaks any thing against the Nationall way of worship but to justifie his owne if called thereunto Hee will not be beaten but by Scripture weapons and in reading Scriptures neither stretches things wider nor draws them narrower then God has made them hee holds perswasion to be the Gospellary way and that liberty of Religion to all Protestants is the bond of Religion against Papists hee believes the community of the faithfull in appearance to be the immediate receptacle of all ecclesiasticall authority and holds Non-communion with Churches when one Church after fasting and Prayer shall tell an hereticall company that it appears they are in the state of damnation as Heathens and Publicans and better a milstone were hung about their necks then to give such just offence to be as effectuall to attain the spirituall end as Excommunication He is sorry that Brethren should fall out by the way being all animated by one Spirit as the body by one soul but is glad that himself is not the least cause of the disagreement He thinks spirituall diseases must have spirituall cures and thinks it is no proper way to confute an Heretick to break his head with the Bible Hee is one that desires to live lovingly with all the World and loves most where he sees most of God hee does not so much desire that Jesus Christ should love him because he knows hee loves him already nor that hee should love him more because hee knows hee loves him enough but that hee might love Christ and love him more and hee joyn●s himself in Church-fellowship not to gaine Heaven but to witnesse his love to Jesus Christ and desires to love himself no farther then he finds the Image of God renewed in him He counts it a great honour and security to Protestants to joyn all as one man against Popery and desires heartily a Union with our Brethren the Scots which hee conceives may very well be without a Uniformity which is a condition for the Saints above fully enlightned hee thinks Religion is ab eligendo as well as à religando and that the French Protestants are cordiall and sincere that may eyther goe to Masse or to Church as they please He conceives a moderate Presbytery such as men cannot except against in point of Reason or Conscience is best consistent with the happinesse of this Kingdom and why should not moderate men be content with a moderate Discipline He loves an honest Presbyterian better then an dishonest Independent and believes that the want of Morality excludes from Heaven he believes that this Army would fight as heartily for the State against Popery or any that should doe them wrong as ever they did for the Liberties of this Kingdom and desires that the Parliament and Army would grant as much to the City of London as may possibly consist with the safety of the Kingdom Hee freely forgives all those that rail against him in Pulpits and prays that God would make such Ministers more zealous to advance the power of godlinesse then their own power Hee desires to learn the truth with all diligence and humility and if for the present hee be in an errour hee hopes all good Christians will excuse it because it proceeds from a desire of all possible purity in a Congregation as if a servant be over diligent thinking to please his master by doing his businesse too well no ingenuous man would blame him He judges him the best Common-wealths man that wil suffer much himself when it may conduce to the publike peace and that is most forward to go in a way safe for the Kingdome though dangerous to himself and him the best Christian that studies Truth and Peace yet so as a Union of hearts rather then a vicinity of Houses is to make up a Congregation according to the New Testament then which he conceives his way no Newer Concerning the Errours of the times many whereof pretend from weak judgements but strong affection to Jesus Christ he thinks all this smoak is not without some fire but because the common enemy the Papists have more differences among themselves lest our jarring should be their musick he desires we may spend our wits upon them and our charity upon one another and if all truths be seasonable he conceives that the Assembly sitting so long before they agreed upon any thing was a great occasioner of them they kept the Kingdome too long fasting as if all men had beene of a like strong constitution whereas passengers to heaven are in haste and must walk some way or other and hee that hath gone far in a Wood is loth to turn back though hee be wrong so dangerous is it to procrastinate in their matters and very rare for a man to confute himself His practice is to baptize the children of one or both believing parents as foederally holy the contrary opinion of some Anabaptists or Antibaptists make him study Scripture in pietie and devotion more there being neither expresse precept nor example for it and the correspondency of the Seals under both dispensations more and possibly that may be a truth which for want of light hee conceives to be an errour if it be an errour 't is a very harmlesse one resting there and cannot disturbe the publike Peace If an Antinomian doctrinall doe not prove an Antinomian practicall hee thinks some of those opinions are very comfortable and learns hereby not to exalt duty too much but to study free grace the more and believe that the Doctrine of Justification and satisfaction have never been more cleerly taught then by them that have been so called He hopes Seekers finde the way to Heaven yet counts it sad that any should wait for new Apostles they may as well seeke a new Gopel and that those Ordinances which Christ hath purchased with his pretious bloud should be counted shadows much derogatory to his love and wisdome yet he

suspects his own heart and thinks that possibly some men live at a very high rate in spirituall enjoyments being wholy at rest in God and have the lesse need of Ordinances and for those that thinke the Saints are here in full perfection of grace and glory his sinfull heart tels him it is an errour yet he will not judg any tree to be evil but by its fruits He knows no hurt in a million of millenary-like errours who would not be glad to see Jesus Christ That Christ died for all he judges to be a great error for then all must be saved or possibly none may be saved yet there are prudentiall reasons and motives for it as the Papists have for good works if not meritorious why commanded If he dyed not for all why is he preached to all Yet the maintainers ayme is thereby to honour and exalt Christ which is the great designe of the Father and thereby his greater study so by different opinions he learns to doe things upon clearer principles and so to walke in love and peace as seeing him who is invisible and knows no reason why their brethren by the good leave of the maof the family and Parliament may not live lovingly together He thinks it very absurd that Popish Bishops should ordain Ministers as if the sheep should have no shepherds but such as the Wolves appoint the rather for that the Apostles did not abridge the people of that liberty of choosing an Apostle much lesse may a Synod deprive them of choosing their own Officers He desires no Toleration for any Errours against Religion or State-policie but of some errours in Religion which do not raze the foundation conceiving liberty to be the best means to cure all such differences and that the Sword hath no capacity to settle Religion being not sanctified to that purpose and if imprisonment cure an heretick 't is but like his curing an enemy by letting out the Impostume when he thought to kill him for mysticall Wolves are to be kill'd mystically and therefore marvels that any politick Christian should oppose his desires for why may not he which five years since was for Bishops considering the wheeling vicissitude and revolution of things five years hence be an Independent Hee thinks compulsion is the onely way to make Hypocrites and if Church Papists were ever accounted most dangerous he wonders why men should be forced to go to Church He thinks it strange that Christians should have most wars who can least justifie them but conceives it is for want of liberty of conscience The Turke hath more colour to come with three or foure hundred thousand men to invade this Kingdom because we are not of his Religion then one Protestant hath to persecute another And he verily beleeves that if every man might take his Religion upon choyce and tryall thousands would be saved which dye securely making no question of their salvation He thinks it is a soloecisme for Ministers to bid men search the Scriptures when they may not profess that which they find to be true He finds that this Kingdom hath had litle peace since the Bishops banished men into New England where Independencie hath bin so far from being the root of evill as it hath cured Schismes and Heresies He conceives the rigid Presbyters are notable Polititians to put the Parliament between themselves and the envy of the people for they do but untie the poynts and deliver the party to the Magistrate to be whipt as the Papists doe who put Protestants to death because Protestants delight in persecution but wishes they would be moderate if they intend to last for the rigidness of the Bishops was their ruine He doth not finde any punishment in Scripture for tender consciences and by that politique Law which puts Idolaters to death their cattell also were to be destroyed He would gladly conforme to the present government if he had his conscience at command in his own power and knows no reason why carnall professors should oppose liberty but because they desire not to be troubled about Religion but have it put into their mouthes by authority which they hope will stand between them and harme He conceives variety of opinions in circumstantials is but as one star differs from another difference in hearts cannot hurt nor difference in heads need not breed difference in hearts and understands not why Covenants should be made to repaire Castles in the aire and since the moderate Disciplinarians agree that every congregation in America hath intirenesse of jurisdiction intrinsecally within it selfe hee wonders that any man should hold that Churches are in worse condition where the Magistrates professe christianity or that it is not a favour that corporations may determine differences within themselves but he looks not at the likelynesse of the means but Christs institution who is onely King of the conscience and conceives that all the world hath no more power over the conscience then a Tinker hath which can be no disparagement to say that a stone hath as much life as the Sun Hee conceives that Mat. 18. Tell the Church are very plain words but that learned men have invēted distinctions to make them intricate and that Christ hath intrusted the keyes to hang rather at his Spouses girdle then with the Stewards and that a Churches censure being ratified in heaven there can be no appeal on earth to any other Church He conceives that such a liberty will wonderfully indeare all conscientious men to the Magistrate the King and Parliament will gain the hearts of the people without which all obedience will be uncordiall Compulsion can no more gain the heart then the fish can love the fisher-man As for those arguments of disorder and confusion the two Theologicall Scar-crows he conceives they are but imaginary vain fears yet have been so drunk with the bloud of the Saints that like Lycurgus Vines he would never have them more urged for an Heretike is but to be rejected and as Luther said to be burnt with the fire of charity nor should we send them to hell who give no signes of repentance He is an irreconcilable enemy to tyranny and popery and it is the joy of his heart that God may have glory though in his confusion He counts every godly Presbyterian to be his deare brother but not to be preferred before the truth He conceives that whosoever is above his brother in spirituall matters unlesse impowred is a pre ate the onely way to make the Assembly more victorious then Alexander is by reason and gentlenesse to conquer consciences without bloud He conceives that Magistrate in probability to be more religious that will suffer diffring opinions cōsisting with the publike peace then he that Haman-like will have all to bow and stoop to his sheaf and that all the wars in Christendome have sprung from this one depraved principle to suffer no opinion but his own for how can truth appear but by argumentation He