A full SURVEY OF SION and BABYLON And A clear Vindication of the Parish-Churches and Parochial-Ministers of England from the uncharitable Censure the infamous Title and the injurious Nick-name of Babylonish Or A Scripture Disproof and Syllogistical Conviction of M. Charles Nichols of Kent his Erroneous Assertions Justifying his Separated Congregation for the true House of God and branding all the Parochial Churches and the Parish Officiating Ministers in England with the infamous Title of Babylonish Delivered in three Sabbath-dayes Sermons in the Parish Church of Deal in Kent after a Publick Dispute in the same Church with the said Mr. Charles Nichols upon the 20. day of October 1653. By Thomas Gage Preacher of the Word to the Church within the Bounds and Limits of Deal in Kent 2 Tim 3. vers 9. They shall proceed no further for their folly shall be manifest to all men Gen. 49. vers 6. O my Soul Come not thou unto their secret unto their Assembly mine honour be not thou united Ex Augustino Con. Epist. Pelag. Lib. 1. Cap. 1. Cum non desinant fremere ad Dominici gregis caulas atque ad diripundas tanto pretio redemptas oves aditum undique rimari commune nobis est pestilentibus insidiantibus eorum scriptis medentia munientia scripta praetendere quibus rabies qua furunt aut etiam ipsa sanetur aut à loedendis aliis repellatur London Printed by W. Bentley and are to be sold by Ioshuah Kirton at the Kings Arms in St. Pauls Church yard 1654. To the Worshipfull his ever Honoured Friend Captain JOHN LIMBERY Esquire Iustice of the Peace for Middlesex and of the Admiralty for Oyer and Terminer SIR OF all things which the Lord hath made in this great World Man is the most noble for whose sake other Creatures were created to whose feet the things below are subjected Of all the Essentials which Man the little World doth consist of the Soul is the most excellent It is infused by God which notes out the Dignity of it It hath command of the body which notes out the Authority of it It is a work as one calleth it both great Divine and admirable Of all the powers in the Soul none is comparable to the Reason Of all the Branches in the Reasonable part none is equal to the Minde none excelleth the understanding Of all the vertues in the Minde Wisdom gives the greatest light Wisdom swayeth with chiefest might Oh the breadth that Wisdom spanneth Oh the length that Wisdom reacheth Oh the heigth that Wisdom climbeth Oh the depth that Wisdom gageth when once it comes into a Soul cleared by Gods Spirit in some good measure from those duskish Clouds of Ignorance and Errour with which before it was obscured Without this how can men discern of things that differ how can they see what is good and what is evil and so exercise the power of their reason in ensuing the one in eschewing the other When dangers are imminent and coming against us Wisdom foreseeth them forecasteth against them When troubles are incumbent and lying upon us it doth either remove them or preserve us in them In a word what Walls are to Cities what skins are to beasts scales to fishes feathers to birds and shells to some creeping and baser Creatures the same is wisdom to that naked born Creature Man even a Covering a defence Yea Wisdom saith the Preacher strengtheneth the wise more than ten mighty men which are in the Citie And they are truely endowed with wisdom who by the light of it do distinguish Gospel-truths from errours and keep their Souls pure and undefiled from the infection of false and time-poysoning Doctrines Wisdom truely is in them who by the light and guidance of it have found out and continue in the true Church of Christ the true Zion of God where salvation is truely placed where pardon of sin is onely obtained where Soul-feastings and Divine teachings are truely enjoyed where are protections on every dwelling place where are true Ministers cloathed with salvation where the Saints do shout aloud for joy where all afflictions are sanctified where all good news are to be heard and where God hath commanded the blessing and life for evermore And such a gift of wisdom Worthy Sir have I admired in you by which light in your far and forraign travails you have alwayes discerned good from evil Truth from Errour Religion from Superstition Zion from Rome and Babylon It is true in you that wisdom hath preserved you from many snares to folly If Riches be snares the Riches of the West-India's even those Treasures amongst the Spaniards never ensnared your conscience If honour entice who of our English Nation was ever more honoured by Spaniards in the West-India's than your self as the â—ime of your abode in Hispaniola and at the Court of Santo Domingo doth sufficiently witness If favour of Great men and Princes doth allure and often obscure the light of true wisdom who ever of our English Nation enjoyed such a favour from that Greâ—t Don of Spain the Duke of Medina Sidonia as your self as also from the Duke of Nacara the Duke of Maqueda the King of Spains Chief favourite that great Conde Dugue Earle of Olivares and the Count of Castilia then President of the India's being trusted by the first to go and view the Silver and Golden Treasures of America a favour denied unto others and fully empowered by him to make choice of what Ports you pleased and there to lade your Ships with what Commodities might seem most advantagious unto your self If pleasures and vanities do tickle where do they abound more than in the India's and in that place especially where with so much honour from the best and Noblest in Santo Domingo you did sometime abide Yet in the midst of all these snares with wisdoms light you eyed Zion still you kept your self free from errours you were never defiled with Babylons superstitions Yea when troubles and evils were incumbent and lying upon you even the loss of ship and of Riches at your return into England wisdom preserved you in the midst of evils and as a true Member of Zion you found your losses and afflictions sanctified unto you Zion and Babylon Truth and Errour are the subject of these my weak indeavours which must be known by the light of wisdom With which light as you have hitherto discerned good from evil so I desire you may with the same take notice of Zion and of Zions true Ambassadours pointed out unto you in this my Treatise and eschew those Errours of Babylon and Antichristian fallacies which as Rocks and Sands under the waters are here discovered to be amongst us under a pretence of Christian and Gospel-Truths I must confess that when I called to minde that Proverb 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 know thy self I was not without some â—nwillingness drawn to a publick Dispute and afterwards to preach in publick upon this subject not being ignorant
either of mine own weakness or of the weightiness of so great a Task and with more unwillingness was I overcome to commit it to the Press from whence to be scanned by the judgements of all for Comes calami calumnia and I am sure theâ—e will be many Censurers of this my work that of the Apostle may be applied Vnus sic alter autem sic one judgeing after this manner another after that one speaking well another ill But as a Commanding Authority of the Spirit within me for a just defence of the Parochial Churches and Ministers of England both cried down with scandal by an opposing Adversary was the cause of the former so overruling importunity of some friends well-wishers to Zion hath effected the latter and now like an Infant new born my Book and Dispute is come naked into the World subject unto the nippings and bitings of the times It was the saying of the Spouse in the Canticles We have a little sister and she hath no breasts And I may say the like of this I have a little Bird and she wanteth wings yet fly she must into the open air and shift for her self But Alas what can she do before her wings be grown or her weak feathers come to ripeness It is impossible that she should escape and not be torn in pieces by the sharp eyed vultures the time-consuming Criticks of our time except some Eagle shall in pity to so poor a wanderer shadow her with the wings of protection Your ever known disposition Worthy Sir in giving incouragement to the Ministers of Christ in doing Justice and Right to such as suffer wrongfully hath imboldned this little Bird to shrowd herself under the roof of your Protection and favour and my self to Dedicate this small fruit of my Studies unto you whom with a most thankfull heart I must ever acknowledge my chief incourager in my work since after my Conversion from Babylon to Zion I have been a poor and unworthy labourer in the Vine-yard of Christ. And if at this time I may obtain your Love in accepting this small token of my thankfulness for those many and undeserved favours conferred by you upon me I shall receive a most comfortable incitement to go on forwards in my Studies and be for ever bound to pray for a blessed increase of all Graces spiritual and temporal both for this life and the life to come unto your self with your most vertuous aud truely Godly and Religious consort unto all yours both at home and abroad and their succeeding posterity for ever And so I commend you to God and to the word of his Grace which is able to build you up and to give you an inheritance amongst all them that are sanctified And the Lord of Peace himself give you peace alwayes by all means So prayeth he who is Sir Your constant Oratour before the Throne of Grace and faithfull servant in the Lord Jesus Christ. Thomas Gage To my beloved Parishioners and approved Friends the Inhabitants of upper and lower Deal in Kent Grace and Peace be multiplied My dearly beloved in the Lord ARistotle in penning his moral instructions of Philosophy thought all his indeavours well bestowed if he might profit as he saith any one thereby much more if Towns and Cities How happy then may I think my labours imployed if by these small pains I may rightly instruct you all not in moral vertues but in Divine and Gospel-verities not in precepts of manners onely but in Mysteries of true Religion On which I will not say the Civil Nurture or gay Deportment of the outward Man but the life of your Souls and hope of all eternity dependeth With which if you covet to enrich your Souls two things I request at your hands The one is not to frame an overweening conceit or bear too partial affection to such as are of contrary judgement unto me the other to peruse this Treatise with an indifferent and single eye and with a greedy zeal of imbracing truth from whose mouth soever I know the subtilty of Sathan and snare of Schismaticks hath ever been as the Apostle saith By good words and fair speeches to deceive the hearts of the simple By faigned words to make merchandize of you Their chiefest project and principal study is with meretricious and painted Eloquence to entertain their followers and whilest they fill their ears with delight to instill into their Souls most poysoned Doctrine But the great Oratour Demosthenes can tell you that the riches of Greece consist not in words And the Apostle pronounceth Not in loâ—tiness and sublimity of speech not in the perswasible words of humane wisdom are the Mysteries of Christ but in the power of God and Doctrine of the spirit Be not therefore be not I beseech you inveagled with the smooth tongue or filed speech and stile of our new Novations but consider the matter weigh the Reasons examine the proofs they all alleadge and you shall finde such silly Arguments such slender stuff as Augustine espied in the eloquent and lofty discourses of Faustus Manichaeus and the rest of his crew when not regarding as he saith what gallant dish or vessel of speech but what food of knowledge he propounded unto him not hearkening to the sound of words but to the pith of matter Albeit they bragged much and promised nothing more than Truth Truth yet he is discovered as he witnesseth No truth amongst them nothing but lies vanities and vile superstitions The like shall you discern in some new upstart Professours of these times For although they vaunt of the word of God vaunt of Scriptures and Scriptures onely seem to follow yet because as Ambrose teacheth By the word of the Law they impugne the Law framing their private sense and construction to countenance the perversity of their mindes by the Authority of the Law It is more than evident they follow not the Oracles of God but rather the fancies of their own brain the suggestion of Sathan For by perverse interpretation as Hierome testifieth of the Gospel of Christ is made the Gospel of man or which is worse the Gospel of the Devil And Martial the Poet speaketh to this purpose Quem recitas meus est Offidentine libellus Sed male cum recitas incipit esse tuus The Book thou doest recite Offidentine is mine Reciting it amiss it groweth to be thine Secondly they boast of their pure preaching of the word whereas in this my small Treatise and disproof of Mr. Nichols his errours you shall discover that some of them have no Authority to preach no laying on of the hands of the Presbytery no Mission no Vocation much less to Administer the Sacraments which requireth the power of the Keyes They are Theeves saith Christ who enter not by the door but climb another way to steal kill and destroy your Souls They are the false Prophets who cry Thus saith our Lord when our Lord said it not nor sent them nor gave them Commission to
Antichristian untruths and practises which have no warrant from any word of God 2. Reas. But secondly Gods people have great reason to separate from Babylon if the dwelling in Babylon were well considered by them Bartholdâ—s as I have shewed you before calls it the State of sin and confusion and in the language of Augustine it is termed the Citie of the Devil And was it fit that the people of God should lie loytering in the Citie of the Devil Babylon was a place of slavery the sink of sin the stall of beasts the Throne of Idols the Temple of Devils and Mother of confusion No place more â—nfamous for their pride and Tyranny their cruelty and idolatry Well might Gods people be weary of such a loathsom prison and noisom dungeon which could not but be offensive by its stench and darkness And the like should move the Christian people of God to forsake whatsoever may relish or favour of Mystical and Antichristian Babylon which by Iohn is called The hold of every foul Spirit and a Cage of every unclean and hatefull Bird Revel 18. vers 2. Where all inventions of wicked men swerving from the Rule and pure word of Christ all Heresieâ— Schismes errours prophaneness uncleanness Hypocrisie and Superstition as into a filthy loathsom and stinking sink have emptied themselves for many years 3. Reas. But thirdly If the place from whence Gods people should move and separate being so loathsome should be sufficient motive unto them Much more the place to which they are called should stirr them up and quicken them with speed to deliver themselves from Babylon To Zion they must move and therefore they are called Zion Deliver thy self O Zion Every motion takes its denomination from its terminus ad quem And here even the Travailers themselves who were to move take their Title from thaâ— place unto which they moved Oh! why should not a people willingly forsake Babylon for Zion The Lord loveth the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob Psal. 87. vers 2. God chose that place for his Seat of special Residence and by a special Institution Recorded his Name and set up his Ordinances there Some parts of publick worship were so appropriated to that place that they were to be performed there and no where else Deut. 12.13 14. Take heed to thy self thou offer not thy burnt offerings in every place that thou seest but in the place which the Lord shall chuse in one of the Tribes there thou shalt offer thy burnt offerings and there thou shalt do all that I command thee God promised a blessing to all them who came up to Zion to worship the Lord in the Beauty of Holiness At first there was a general promise given Exod. 20. vers 24. In all places where I record my name I will come unto thee and I will bless thee But when God had chosen Ierusalem for the Seat of Royalty the place of Justice and Zion as the mountain of Holiness and place of publick worship then all the Tribes were to go up to Ierusalem for justice and to Zion to sacrifice Psal. 122. vers 4 5. Whither the Tribes go up the Tribes of the Lord unto the Testimony of Israel to gâ—ve thanks unto the name of the Lord for there are sâ—t thrones of judgment the thrones of the house of David The poor people had long been deprived of the benefit of justice and the liberty of Religion but now God had Promised by his Prophet Zechariah that their Common-Wealth should be setled their Church established their City and Temple both new builded Zechariah 1. vers 16 17. Thus saith the Lord I am returned to Jerusalem with mercies my house shall be built in it my Cities through prosperitie shall yet be spread abroad and the Lord shall yet comfort Zion and shall yet chuse Ierusalem You see then the Prophet had good reason to invite them to new Ierusalem here below a kinde of heaven upon earth to Zion the habitation of justice and mount of Holiness the praise of the Iews the glory of the Gentiles the house of God and Type of heaven Oh then what a motive should this be also to Christian people to forsake all Babylonish practises and Antichristian untruths for Christian Zion for the true Church of Christ where are also those comforts Zechariah speaketh of The Lord shall yet comfort Zion whose foundations are strong and sure and unmoveable in the greatest storms for here is his election and Praescience which will always stand The foundation of God standeth sure having this Seal The Lord knoweth them that are his And let everyone that knoweth the name of Christ depart from iniquitie 2 Tim. 2. vers 19. And Ieremiah saith Chap. 31. vers 3. I have loved thee with an everlasting love therefore with loving kindeness have I drawn thee Secondly here is this love of God actually adopting Psal 87. vers 1 2. Thirdly here is Iesus Christ the offspring indeed as man but the root also of David as he is God as he is God-man Revel 22. vers 16. He is laid in his Church a sure foundation stone Isai. 28. vers 16. Behold I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone a sure foundation a tried stone a precious corner stone Fourthly here is Gods Covenant in Christ which is as fast and as firm as the well rooted mountains Isai 54. vers 10.11 The mountains shall depart and the hills be removed but my kindeness shall not depart from thee neither shall the Covenant of my peace be removed saith the Lord of hostes that hath mercie on thee Oh thou afflicted tossed with tempest and not comforted Behold I will lay thy stones with fair colours and lay thy foundations with Saphirs Fifthly here is Gods presence of Grace which giveth his Zion unmoveableness when all the earth is moved and the foundations are destroyed God is in the midst of her she shall not be moved God shall help her and that right early Psal. 46. vers 5. Sixthly here are the Apostles and Prophets I mean their Doctrine foundation-truths Yee are fellow Citizens with theSaints and of the houshold of God and are built upon the foundation of the Apostles and Prophets Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone Ephes. 2. vers 19 20. Seventhly here are Christian Magistrates if they answer their office and calling and faithfull Zealous Ministers and true godly Christians as strong pillars subservient in this work of support under Christ The earth and all the inhabitants thereof are dissolved I bear up the pillars of it Psal. 75. vers 3. And Galat. 2. vers 9. James Cephas and John who seemed to be pillars And Prov 10. vers 25. The righteous is an everlasting foundation Eighthly here Gods peoples hope and trust is sure The Lord hath founded Zion and the poor of his people shall trust in it Isai. 14. vers 32. Ninthly here is Surely Salvation placed for Gods people I will place Salvation
live in the Church the coming of all sorts hand over head to the Supper of the Lord and further proves all these to be no lawfull causes to forsake the Church of Christ. And least any should Object the want of Ecclesiastical Discipline in a Church to be a sufficient cause to make a separation in page 224. he he saith Though Princes and Magistrates will not let Ecclesiastical Discipline to be restored into the Churches under them yet may we forsake that Church for that cause Thus in the judgement of learned Divines I have delivered my judgement and answer to our Separatists Objections and do further add that if the corruptions of some of our Members affright them from our Churches I wonder the same corruptions drive them not from all civil commerce with such corrupt men and from eating and drinking and conversing familiarly with them least their Souls by them be indangered which may as soon happen to them out of the Church meetings and societiâ—s where is more freedom for sin and no actual preaching cuâ—biâ—g sin as â—n our Church meetings and societies where praâ—er and praise to God is offered and the word preached which is powerfull in casting down imaginations and every high thing that exalteth it self against the knowledg of God and bringing into captivity everie thought to the obedience of Christ 2 Cor. 10. vers 5. And thus beloved having brought you to the main Objection the great stumbling block of those that separate from our Churches to wit some wickedness some corruptions in manners some prophaneness in life and conversation which was also Mr. Nichols his chief Objection against our Parochial Churches I shall now go on to clear my judgement further upon this point and to shew you that such corruptions of some wicked amongst us do not null our Churches nor unchurch us as no people of God but that we may truely notwithstanding corruptions and corrupt ones amongst us be called a true Church and people of God Which work that I may the better and more plainly perform it according to your capacities and understandings I shall first prâ—mise that known and true distinction of Churches into visible and Invisible denied bv no judicious Divines that I can hear of and for a sure truth delivered by Reverend Vâ—sinus in his Catechisme Psal. 348. The Militant Church which in this world fighteth under Châ—ists Bâ—nnâ—r against the world the flesh and the Dâ—vil is either visible or invisible The visiâ—le Church is a company among men imbracing and profesâ—ing the true and uncorrupt Doctrine of the Law and the Gospel and using â—he Sacramenâ—s aright according to Christ his institution and professing obedience unto the Doctrine In which company are many unregeneâ—ated or Hypocâ—ites consenting notwiâ—hsâ—anding and agreeâ—ng to the Doctrine In which also the Son of God is forcible to regenerate â—ome by virtue of his spirit unto eveâ—lasting life Or It is a company of such as consent in the true doctrine they profess wherein notwithstanding are many deâ—d unregenerate Members Not every one that saith unto mâ— Lord Lord shall enter into the Kingdom of heaven Math. 7. vers 21. Hither pertain the Parables of the seed and tares likewise of the net gathering both good bad fishes Math 13. vers 24 25 26 and 47. The invisible Church is a compâ—ny of those which are elected to eternal life in whom a new life is begun here by the holy Ghost and is perfected in the life to come This Church as long as it warâ—arâ—th and sojouâ—neth on earth always lieth hid in the visible Church They which are in this invisible Church never perish therefore neither are any hypocrites therein but the elect onely of whom it is said No man shall pluck my sheep out of mine hands John 10. vers 28. And again The foundation of the Lord remaineth sure and hâ—th this seal The Lord knoweth who arâ— hispunc 2 Tim. 2 verse 19. It is called invisible not that the men therein are invisible buâ— because their faith and godliness is invisible neither is known of any but of themselves in whom it is and because we are not able certainly to distinguish or discern in the visible Church the true godly from the hypocrites There is the same difference between the visible and invisible Church which is between the whole and part For the invisible â—â—th hid in the visible as a part in the whole which appeareth out of this place of Paul Whom the Lord predestinated them also he called Rom. 8. vers 30. This calling whereby the Lord calleth us is of two sorts inward and outward The inward Saint Paul saith was wrought according to the purpose of saving men and the elect are called by both Hypocrites are called onely by the outward calling and in respâ—ct of this outward calling is the Church called visible and the Church of the called where are hypocrites also But the invisible is called the company or Church of the elect and chosen This being premised I say that corruptions or corrupt Members in a visible Church there aâ—e and yet they make not the Churcâ— no Chuâ—ch but still it is a true Church both from the proâ—ession of faiâ—h in it as also from the right use of the Sacraments administred in it Which is maâ—ifest from that place where our Saviour sendeth his Disciples to convert people and to gaâ—her them into Churches Go and teach all natioâ—s Baâ—tizing tâ—â—m in the name of thâ— Father and of the Son and of the holy Ghost teacâ—ing them to obseâ—ve all things whatsoever I have commanded you Math. 28. vers 19.20 In the words Go and teach is implied the true and sound Doctrine to be professed In the words baptizing them is implied the right use of the Sacraments In the words teaching them to observe all things is implied the profession of obedience to the Doctrine and Ministery In the words whatsoever I have commanded is implied faith in Iesus Christ commanding the word and Doctrine to be preached and observed which word though it be not actually nor exactly obeyed nor observed by all yet it is taught to be observed and acknowledged that it ought and must be observed which are the marks and tokeâ—s of a true visible Church and where these maâ—ks and tokens are there is a true Church Now I shall clearly prove unto you that the corruptions of wicked men in a Church do not make that Church no Church or no people of God Fiâ—st from the old Testament besides those places already in my Argument against Mr. Niâ—hols urged from the 1 Sam. 2. vers 29. compared with the 12. verse and from Exod. 32. Chap. verse 11. compared with the 1. and 6. verses and from 1 Sam. 12. vers 22. Further yet the Prophet Isaiah calls the people of his time Gods people Isai 1. vers 3. yet exceeding great wickedness was then amongst them Magistrates were wicked Chap. 1. vers 23. and Chap. 3. vers 14.15 and
Christs name is named called upon and professed and that without superstitious inventions of man there is a true Church But our Parochial meeting and gathering together is to name the Name of Christ to call upon it and profess it Ergo Our Parochial people here in England so meeting and gathering together are true Churches and not Babylonish 3. Argument We be either the Church of Christ and so a true Church or the Church of Antichrist But we are not the Church of Antichrist Ergo we are the Church of Christ and so not Babylonish but a true Church The Minor is clear we have forsaken Rome the Pope his Doctrine his Sacraments Yea every year upon the Friday before Easter day we are excommunicated by the Pope with this Ceremony which my self have seen and was present at it Ann. Dom. 1640. The Pope standing in a high Balcony in Peters Palace before thousands of people gathered beneath in an open wide and capacious place takes in his hand a lighted Torch declaring that light to represent the light and brightness of the true Militant Church and the light and glorie of the Triumphant Church above and then one of his Chaplains putting out the light The Pope casteth the Torch out of his hand from on high down to the ground declaring by that Ceremony that so he excommunicates and deprives of all light of mercy favour comfort in the Militant Chuâ—ch and also excludes from the light of glory in the Triumphant Church all Hereticks in England as such he looks upon us who acknowledge him noâ— by their obedience to him to be the supream head of the universal Church and condemns their Souls to the pits of Hell where is no light of mercy and redemption but darkness for ever excâ—pt they repent and turn to him using in this action of casting down the Torch the words of Christ to the wicked on the leâ—t hand Dâ—part from me ye cursed into everlasting fire prepared for the Devil and his Angels Matth. 25. vers 41. Thus are we disowned cast out anathematized and for ever cursed by the Pope and shall we yet be said by Mr. Nâ—â—hols to be Babylonish to be his or any wayes to belong to him No surely we may rather say as our Saviour said of the World and his Disciples If ye were of the World the World would love his own but because ye are not of the World but I have chosen you out of the World therefore the World hateth you John 15. vers 19. So if we were of Rome of Babylon Rome would love us as her own but because we are not of Rome but the Lord hath chosen us out of Rome and out of Babylon therefore she hates us and her Triple Crowned Head and Governour bids us depart casteth us out and curseth us So it appears that we are no Church nor people of Antichrist Ergo we are a Church of Christ. And if there be any further doubt of this in Mr. Nichols I must tell him plainly that the difference is between him and the Pope The Pope saith we are no Church of Christ because not belonging to him Mr. Nichols saith we are no Church of Christ because we are Babylonish and so belonging to the Pope and to Antichrist As Paul set the Pharisees and Sadducees at variance to help himself Act. 23. vers 6 7. So I shall leave the Pope and Mr. Nichols to reason this case whilest I step forth to my fourth Argument thus 4. Argument A company having no false nor Babylonish head but having Iesus Christ for their true head can be no false nor Babylonish Church or body But we are a company having no false nor Babylonish head but having Iesus Christ for our true head Ergo we can be no false nor Babylonish Church or body The Minor is clear thus because we do all profess him which is a token of Faith in the heart Rom. 10. vers 9. If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Iesus and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead thou shalt be saved And the Apostles judged such worthy to be of the Church in their time and thereupon did admit men as Act. 16. vers 31 32. Yea Simon Magus thereupon was admitted Act. 8. vers 13. though otherwise a dissembling Hypocrite whose example is a sufficient answer to Mr. Nichols his Objection saying sheâ— me â—here the Apostles admitted wicked men into their Churches as you do To which with this example of Simon Magus we answer as also with Demas Hymenaeus and Alexander that they admitted wicked dissembling Hypocrites as we may do some not qua and as wicked and dissemblers but qua and as Proâ—essours professing with their mouth the Lord Jesus as a token of Faith in their hearts Rom. 10. vers 9. Yea secondly such is this confession or profession of the name of Christ that it is a token laid down in Scripture that such as confess Iesus Châ—ist have the Spirit of God Hereby know ye the Spirit of God every Spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God 1 John 4. vers 2. And thirdly the confession of his name is a part of our praise so Paul saith By him let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually that is the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name Hebr. 13. vers 15. Thus we hold Christ for our head we profess and confess him and his name â—rgo we are no Babylonish â—or false Body 5. Argument A company having Iesus Christ for their Mediatour and Advocate are a true Church But we are a company having Iesus Christ for our Mediatour and Advocate Ergo we are a true Church The Minor is proved thus First by our prayers which are onely made to God and in the name of Iesus Christ onely Secondly in that we do condemne the Papists for making the Virgin Marie Saints and Angels Mediatours to God and we do reject it as idolaâ—rous Thirdly because we do partake of the Covenant made unto us by God through Iesus Christ which I thus make good First because many of us both in Church and Common-wealth of both higher and lower degree have true knowledge of Gods word which is one part of the promise and Covenant as you may read in these words of Ieremiah This shall be the Covenant that I will make with the house of Israel saith the Lord. I will put my Law in their inward parts and write it in their hearts and I will be their God and they shall be my people And further They shall all know me from the lowest of them unto the greatest of them saith the Lord Jerem. 31. vers 33 34. and the like Hebr. 8. vers 10. and Chap. 10. vers 16. Secondly the fear of God possesseth the hearts of many which is another part thereof as the same Prophet writeâ— I will make an everlasting Covenant with them that I will not turn away from
other And therefore his Church may well be called a flying a wandring Church limited to no particular place as are our Parish Churches and were the Churches in the Primitive times But if he say his Church is not to be called by his Name but by the place and so will call it the Church at Adisham and where in any other place some of his Members live they are to be called Limbs to his Church at Adisham and single congregations belonging to that Church I answer two things First that he must know whither a better and abler Pastour that lives at Adisham and the people or his Church will allow that the Church at Adisham shall be known and named by two or three or four at most belonging to Mr. Nichols and not by the Major part pertaining to the chief Parish Pastour But secondly I answer if Mr. Nichols his Church be thus built up with several single Congregations in divers parts belonging to one chief building at Adisham then Mr. Nichols will go beyond us and turn Episcopal and make Adisham his Metropolitan seat and other places Limbs of it Or then Mr. Nichols will begin to jump with our Ministery and will I hope in time turn a Classical man making Adisham his Classical or Provincial Church and others of his Congregation in divers places homogeneal parts of that his Classical Church Which if he yield not to I must judge his building and his house to be contrary to the rule and practise of the Apostles and to savour too much the practise of the Jesuites 5. Errour A fifth errour in Doctrine taught by him which is Popish Jesuitical Jewish and Turkish is that his people or Congregation must be bound to hear none other preach but himself or such as are of his Iudgement Which errour how gross and Antichristian it is I leave you to judge when hereby he limits Gods hand and working to himâ—elf a sin formerly of the Jews who are said to Limit the holy one of Israel and he binds God to do good to those poor Souls by no other means nor instruments save by himself or such as are of his judgement But alas the poor silly people understand not the depth of this Popish policy borrowed from the Pope who excommunicates all such ipso facto as shall hear any of our Proâ—estant Preachers to preâ—ch least by hearing us they should hear somewhat against the Popes wicked practises so by means of our preaching they should be drawn from his obedience The same is Mr. Nichols his policy in binding his people from hearing us least we should undeceive and take away the vail of â—overing cast upon those poor blinded Souls and bring them to the acknowledging of the truth and detect the Antichristian practise and untruth in that policy and so they may recover themselves out of the snare who are taken captive by him at his will 2 Tim. 2. vers 26. Is not this to be like the Jews limited to Ierusalem onely and to the Temple there Is this to â—orship God neithâ—r in this mountain nor at Jerusalem but every where and in any place in spirit and in the truth John 4. vers 21 23. But this practise is not onely the Popes and the Jews in limiting the peoples spirits to himself and to the place where he teacheth but it is also the Turks policy who to continue and maintain the Alcoran and Mahomâ—ts laws upon pain of death keeps the Turkish people from resorting to any exercise or Preaching amongst the Christians And lastly this practise is meer Iesuitical borrowed from the Jesuites who binde their Ghostly Children from confessing to any Parish Priest or Friar and in case they finde that they have confessed any sin to their Parish Priest they make them renew again to them that Confession and discover to them that sin or sins confessed to another pretending that they cannot guide their lives well nor direct them the right way to Heaven unless they know the whole state of their lives and all their sins in the whole course of their life committed and for Preaching they must resort to their Sermons and to their Churches and to no other upon pain of being cast out of their Society and incurring their curse and heavy displeasure But what do I weary you beloved with longer Histories to condemn these Popish and Jesuitical practises in Mr. Nichols his house of God as he calls it I am confident did but Mr. Nichols know that though these be his practises they are borrowed from the Jesuites and the like to be practized by them he would abhor them and his people loath them Ah beloved he thinks his Arguments against us are his own his practise in drawing the people from our Parishes is his own light his grounds to separate from us are his own but little thinks he how he pleaseth the Pope and Jesuite in what he doth little thinks he that all his Arguments against us and all his practises have come from that subtil Serpentine brood of the Jesuites who study nothing but to overthrow our Church to undermine our Discipline to root up our Nurseries of learning to bring under contempt our Learned Clergy who have alwayes opposed Rome and with their Pens discovered their errours to the World This the Jesuite considering and fearing our Unity our Uniformity in Church and Church Discipline least by it we should flourish too much hath these many years blown the fire of our discords stirring up the people against the true Ministery covertly committing privily to the Press those scruples which Mr. Nichols and others like him make their best advantage against us little dreaming from what brain they first did spring I have often spoken of it in private and Preached it in publick Sandwiâ—h may remember it that at the beginning of the last Parliament when our differences began in Church and State at what time I had freer access ingress and egress to the Spanish Ambassadours house Don Alonso de Cardenas by name than now I dare enjoy or do desire to make use of there were then harboured in that house at least fourty Priests and Jesuites a List of whose names I gave to some of our State Rulers but the Jesuites more peculiarly had a place by themselves having bought a Back-house joyning to the Glass-house by London Wall from the which they made a passage into the Lord Rivers his house where the said Ambassadour did then live a full Description whereof I gave to Sir Henry Mildmay both of the left hand at the coming in to the house and of the Bell at the door of this close Colledge wherein at that time two Jesuites were imployed in nothing but in Printing dayly Pamphlets one against another the one egging on the Separation and Independency the other coldly and weakly holding up with slight Arguments the Church and Ministery of England and all this unknown to us from whence or from whom those Pamphlets came and we ignorant