Selected quad for the lemma: power_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
power_n	authority_n	church_n	elder_n	3,463	5	9.7366	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A61215	The mutual duties of elders and people Delivered in a discourse at Beckles in Suffolk, Octob. 13. 1697. At the setting apart of Mr. John Killinghal, to the office of an elder, over a Church of Christ there. By John Stackhouse, elder of a Church of Christ in Norwich.	Stackhouse, John, dissenting minister.	1698 (1698)	Wing S5104; ESTC R220764	32,438	41

care for the tender Lambs they must care for those that are oppress'd with Infirmities they must not over-drive the Flock and they must diligently know the state of their Flock whether increasing or decaying in grace They must be very careful to avoid that reproof that God gives by Ezekiel against the Shepherds in that day Ezek. 34. 2 3 4. Woe be to the Shepherds of Israel that feed themselves should not the Shepherds feed the flock Ye eat the fat and clothe you with the wooll ye kill them that are fed but ye feed not the flock The diseased have ye not strengthned nor healed that which was sick neither have ye bound up that which was broken neither have ye brought again that which was driven away neither have ye sought that which was lost but with force and with cruelty have ye ruled them Oh this is a severe Reproof a dreadful Charge to be given in against any that are called to be Shepherds or Pastors it behoves us all to keep our selves unspotted and to be faithful 8. They are called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Teachers or Doctors Isa 20. v. 30. Thine eyes shall see thy Teachers they shall no more be removed into corners 1 Cor. 12. 28. God hath set some in the Churches first Apostles secondarily Prophets thirdly Teachers Therefore they must be apt to teach Therefore that is inculcated as the qualification of a Bishop 1 Tim. 3. 2. He must be apt to teach And they must hold fast the faithful Word and be able by sound Doctrine to exhort and convince gain-sayers Titus 1. 8. They must exhort instruct and comfort the Church with all Authority these things command and teach 1 Tim. 4. 11. Charge them that are rich in this World cap. 6. 17. They must reprove publickly such as do sin publickly they must give an open reproof for open sins 1 Tim. 5. 20. Them that sin rebuke before all that others also may fear and they must take heed to themselves and to their Doctrine There must be great care and great solicitousness 1 Tim. 4. 16. in us that what we speak in the Name of the Lord be indeed the Mind of the Lord and cordially believed and submitted unto by our selves as such 9. And lastly They are called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Elders or Presbyters If any Man be sick let him send for the Elders of the Church James 5. 14. The Elders that are among you I exhort who am also an Elder 1 Pet. 5. 1. But with Elders there must be Wisdom and an Ability to give Counsel and Gravity they must not be Novices they must Rule well and be Examples to the People Thus in general from their Names and Titles I have shewed you that they are over you in the Lord. II. I shall shew you a little in Particular what you are to understand by this being over you in the Lord. 1. It is a Power communicated by Christ's Word of Command or Institution the Constitutions of the Gospel do prescribe it Matth. 28. 20. teaching them to do whatsoever things I have commanded you And if any do assume more than Christ doth grant and command in his Word such are Usurpers Thieves and Robbers vainly pretending to what they do not receive and derive from Christ by his Word 2. The Rule that Chrst hath entrusted and committed to them by his Word is the guidance of the Church in all things belonging to the Worship of God for the ordering and disposing of all things in the Church for Christ's Glory and the Churches Edification they are to care for all the Spiritual Concernments of the whole Society that is committed to them they are to care for the House of God 1 Tim. 3. 5. 3. They have their Power immediately by the Church but not from the Church Christ doth apply the Office tho' the Church designs the Person The Church chuseth them and the Holy Ghost makes them Overseers Acts 20. 28. They are sent by Christ John 13. 20. He that receiveth whomsoever I send receiveth me and he that receiveth me receiveth him that sent me They are Ambassadors for Christ they do act in his stead and by the Authority that he hath committed to them As a King in his absence may appoint Officers to wait upon his Queen and to manage the Affairs of his Kingdom and may also give Rules that upon the death of any of them she should Dr. Goodwin's Government of Churches chuse new ones yet still their Authority is such as the King hath vouchsafed in his Commission to them not what the Queen gives them by chusing them 4. The Obligation of the Members of the Church to a free and voluntary and uncompelled Obedience to them doth arise from the Authority of Jesus Christ which the Elders exercise according to his Laws Your Obedience I say must be free and voluntary yet you are obliged to obey them because they exercise the Authority of Christ according to his Laws They do not act by the Authority of the Church when they declare the consent and determination of the Church in the common Affairs of the Church The Church doth in consenting exercise their Liberty and their Privilege according to the order of the Gospel for the order of the Gospel is such that no act can take place in the Church without their own consent but whilst the Church doth thus exercise their Liberty and the Elders do declare the consent of the Church yet still they act by the Authority of Christ and in his Name Matth. 28. 3 last Verses All Power is given to me in Heaven and in Earth Go ye therefore and teach all Nations baptizing them in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost Teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you Note here That because all Power is given unto me therefore I do authorize you to disciple and baptize all Nations and to teach them to observe all the Institutions of Worship that I have commanded you All Gospel Ministrations are grounded upon the Power that is given to Christ and that not only with respect to the Apostles themselves but also with respect to ordinary Elders that are their Successors for so it follows Lo I am with you always to the end of the World So in Tit. 2. 15. These things teach and exhort and rebuke with all all authority let no Man despise thee They must not act Imperiously nor Precariously but they are to act in their Ministration with all Authority and this Authority is not their own Authority but Christ's and the Authority of Christ must be be freely owned no Man must despise them Thus I have spoken to their Dignity they are over you in the Lord. II. Consider their Work they labour among you and admonish you And here let me shew you Summarily First What their Work is And Secondly That it is a labour I. As for their Work the Apostle speaks Eph. 4.

us and laboureth Heb. 13. 17. Obey them that have the Rule over you and submit your selves Obey their Teachings and submit to their Admonitions Reproofs and Government do not you do as the stubborn Israelite did when Moses came to part two that were quarrelling the faulty Person thrust him away and said Who made thee a Ruler and Judge over us Acts 7. 27. When your Elders would persuade you to Peace or Holiness don't fly in their Faces and say Who made you Rulers over us But yield gently to their guidance so far as they follow Christ 1 Cor. 11. 1. Be ye followers of us as we also are of Christ Jesus It is sad to consider how foolishly we are apt to run into Extreams some Elders are for taking all to themselves and they will be Absolute and Arbitrary and will allow the Church no Power Liberty nor Privilege and on the other side some People are for taking all to themselves and will have their Elders to be no more than Cyphers or Tools among them they will not understand how their Liberty can consist with obeying and submitting to them that are over them in the Lord. There are some that are apt to have a great opinion of their own Sufficiency Wisdom and Authority and that they have little need of their Elders But Christ will not bear it that his Messengers should be so slighted and they that are humble and wise and sincerely desire the publick good of the Church will submit themselves to them that are over them in the Lord and they will be afraid of following their own Will lest in so doing they should mislead others they will seek the Law of Christ from the Mouth of their Elders that all things may be done orderly according to the Word of God and that their Elders may be with them without fear and trouble of Spirit 3. You must believe and practise the sincere Word of God being preached unto you by them that are over you in the Lord The Apostle doth greatly commend the Thessalonians for this 1 Thess 1. 6. Ye became followers of us and of the Lord having received the Word with much affliction and with joy in the Holy Ghost And cap. 2. 13. When ye received the Word of God which ye heard of us ye received it not as the Word of Man but as it is in truth the Word of God which effectually worketh also in you that believe If that you do not believe and obey the Word that is preached to you as the Word of God if you accept Mens persons if you judge according to the Flesh as your Ear and as your fancy is pleased and your humour is gratified you do not shew that love to your Elder that God requireth of you Desire earnestly the sincere Milk of the Word that ye may grow thereby let the Word of the Lord be precious unto you not only as the manner of some is when there is no open Vision but also when it is plentifully dispenced Let your growth be answerable to your feeding let not fatness breed loathing and nauseousness in you being glutted by the Word Do not despise the Stewards of Christ that minister it unto you do not grow weary of the Ordinances of Christ because you enjoy them peaceably come not under that reproof Mal. 1. 13. Ye have said also behold what a weariness is it and ye have snuffed at it saith the Lord of Hosts Oh be not you so guilty lest God should judge you and send leanness into your Souls and make you to wander from one Sea unto another seeking the Word of the Lord and ye shall not find it as he speaks Amos 8. 12. Be not all Ear do not content your selves with hearing many Sermons and talking of them that it is a good and a seasonable Word do not content your selves without practising them If you know these things happy are you if you do them Be ye the Epistle of Christ ministred by us written not on Stone or with Ink but in the fleshly Tables of your Hearts by the spirit of God 2 Cor. 3. 3. Surely Beloved if you profess never so much Honour and Reverence and Obedience to us in your outward Words and Actions yet if the Word of Christ which we preach doth not dwell richly in you if it be not by you highly valued and rightly improved and you do not bring forth the fruits of it in your conversation you do not what pleaseth Christ nor what satisfieth us it is not that love which we desire from you but you send us mourning to our God As the Lord tells Ezekiel cap. 33. 32. Loe thou art unto them as a very lovely Song of one that hath a pleasant voice and can play well on an Instrument for they hear thy words and will not do them So we too often find it and you make us weep bitterly and cry out because our Labours are successless Oh take heed that you do not turn your backs on the Rod of Christ's Power the Word of his Grace and take heed also that you do not hear with an unbroken and unaffected and unbelieving heart for if you do either of these you are guilty of casting off Christ 4. You must pray earnestly for your Elders Heb. 13. 18. Pray for us for we trust we have a good Conscience in all things willing to live honestly Pray that their stores of the gifts and graces of the Spirit may be encreased pray that they may be helped by the Holy Spirit in their great work as the Apostle calls upon the Ephesians cap. 6. 19. Pray for me that utterance may be given unto me that I may open my mouth b●ldly to make known the Mystery of the Gospel do not you stop your Ministers mouth do not you say that he grows dull whilst you neglect praying for him that God would open his mouth So to the Colossians the Apostle saith cap. 4. 3. Withal praying for us that God would open a door of utterance to speak the Mystery of Christ and to the Thessalonians 1 Thes 3. 1. Finally Brethren pray for us that the Word of the Lord may run and be glorified even as it is with you Pray for us that we may have success in our work and pray that we may be delivered from wicked and unreasonable Men for all Men have not Faith as it follows in the next verse And in Rom. 15. 30. Now I beseech you Brethren for the Lord Jesus Christ's sake and the Love of the Spirit that ye strive together with me in your prayers to God for me that I may be delivered from them that believe not in Judea and that my Service that I have for Jerusalem may be accepted of the Saints Oh pray that their Labours may be acceptable for tho' their Work ought to be acceptable yet many times it is not Pray for them that all their afflictions dangers and troubles may be sanctified to them for the working out