Selected quad for the lemma: power_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
power_n	bishop_n	church_n	elder_n	2,599	5	9.6510	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A64633	The true form of church government first instituted by Christ, novv used and practised in all the reformed churches of Germanie, France, and Scotland: humbly presented to the high and honourable court of Parliament, at this time most happily assembled. Plainly proved by Scripture, rectifide reason, and the testimonie of the Church, some hundreds of yeares after the Apostles time, and the generall consent of the Churches rightly reformed in these latter times, contrary to the Romish, and our archiepiscopall government.	Udall, John, 1560?-1592.	1642 (1642)	Wing U16; ESTC R218880	62,509	79

which Christ hath ordained for the last remedy against sinne and onely to be used when neither admonition reprehension nor separation from the externall communion of the Saints for a time will serve that same is not to be used but upon great extremitie But such is excommunication as appeareth Matth. 18.15 Therefore it may not be used but upon most waightie occasion that is in the case onely of extremitie when no other meanes will serve the turne 2. That which cutteth a man off from the Church of God and giveth him over unto Satan as one in a desperate case that same may not be used but in greatest extremitie But such is excommunication being used according as God hath left it unto his Church 1 Cor. 5.5 Therefore it may not be used but in greatest extremitie 3. That which a man will do in the cutting off of his hand or his foote that same must the Church doe in excommunication for it is the cutting off of a member But a man will try all other wayes and will never cut off his hand or his foote untill he see it incurable and ready to infect the other parts of his body Therefore excommunication may not be used but in case of greatest extremitie 4. That which is contrary to naturall affection and worketh that which a loving heart doth tremble to thinke of that same may not be done but in greatest extremitie But such is the excommunication for it depriveth the party excommunicated of our love and throweth him into the most wretched case that can be fall unto man in this life Therefore it may not be done but in cases of greatest extremitie Therefore if excommunication be ordained of Christ as a remedy onely when all other helpes will not serve if it cut the partie from Gods Church and give him over unto Satan if it must ●e proceeded unto 〈◊〉 a man doth ●o the cutting off of his hand 〈◊〉 ●oote lastly if it be a worke contrary unto the naturall affection of man and 〈◊〉 that which a loving heart doth tremble to thinke upon then must it needs follow that it is to be proceeded unto onely in the cases of greatest extremitie and af●●● that all other meanes have beene us●d and doe appeare not to 〈◊〉 The latter point which is that excommunication may not 〈◊〉 done by one man but by the Eldership the whole Church consenting thereunto is holde● 〈◊〉 as T.C. book 1. pag. 183. Discip. Ecclesiast 130. c. and denied by them Whitgift pag. 662. and their continuall practise But our a●●e●tion is th●● proved and their opinion and practice found to be erroneous and ungodly 1. That which Christ command●d to be done by the Church may not be done by one man unlesse you take my L. Grace for the Church 〈◊〉 Whitgift doth pag. 662. which needeth 〈◊〉 confutation But Christ commended that excommunication should 〈◊〉 done by the Church Matth. 18.15 Therefore it may not be done by one man 2. That which Paul enjoyned the Church when they were met together to doe may not be done by one man But he commanded them 〈…〉 the incestuous person when they were met together 1 Cor. 5.5 Therefore it may not ●● done by one man 3. That which hath need of greatest advice and greatest authoritie may no be done by one man But such is the matter of excommunication being the denouncing of that against a man which he will most hardly beleeve and being the waightiest point of discipline Therefore it may not be done by one man 4. Those must excommunicate that are to deale in the other parts of discipline as shall appeare in the Reasons following and a● I thinke no man will deny But the other parts of discipline are exercised not by one but by the church as hath beene proved Therefore not one but the Church is to excommunicate 5. As it was ministred among the Jewes so must it be in the Church forever which appeareth by this that it is translated unto us from them as the Greeke word Synedri●n being by a corrupt imitation called Sanedrim by the Rabbins doth import and had nothing ceremoniall in it But it was executed among them by the Church and not any one Joh. 9.22 Therefore the Church is to excommunicate and not one man 6. Saith he would never doe any thing in his charge without the counsell of his Elders and consent of the people 7. The Elders and other Church-officers have as well power to absolve as the Bishop 8 For so much as absolution belongeth unto all I alone dare not doe it 9. If there be any that have committed such a fault that he is to be put away from the partaking of the prayers of the Church c. There doe beare rule certaine of the most approved Ancients or Elders of the Church which have obteined this honour not by money but by good report 10. It helpeth much to make the party more ashamed that he be excommunicated by the whole Church also in his Books of Baptisme against the Donatists often 11. The Elders have interest in other censur●s of the Church and the Church it selfe in excommunication 12. S. Paul accuseth the Corinthians for that the whole Church had not excommunicated the incestuous person 13. The Elders had the government in excommunication 14. It is very dangerous to permit so weightie a matter to one man and therefore that tyranny may be avoyded and this censure executed with greater fruit and gravitie the order that the Apostle there useth is still to be observed 15. He sheweth that it pertaineth not to one man that it is a wicked fact that one should take the authoritie to himselfe that is common to others that it openeth a way to tyranny taketh from the Church their right and abrogateth the Ecclesiasticall Senate ordained by Jesus Christ 16. The Bishops when they excommunicated of themselves alone did it ambitiously contrary to the decrees of godly Cannons See Bucer against Gropper and upon Ephes. 4. De animi C●ra also Zuinglius in Ecclesiast 17. It is plentifully forbidden even by that filthy puddle the cannon law and therefore it must needs be a hainous sinne when it findeth fault with it Therefore if excommunication be to be executed by the commandement of Christ of the Church if S. Paul enjoyned it unto the Church if it have need of greatest advice and authoritie if it belong to them that may execute the other parts of Discipline if it was so executed among the Jewes if to absolve be as well in the Elders power as the Bishops if Cyprian durst not doe it alone if it was the action in Tertullians time of the most approved Elders if to be by the whole Church helpeth much to make the partie more ashamed if the whole Church have interest in it if the whole Church at Corinth was reproved for not doing it if it be too waightie

Ministery above the people but a Minister may not be Lordly over Gods people as is testified by him on whom they would father the greatest lordlinesse 1 Pet. 5.3 Therefore one Minister may not bee Lord or have superiority over another 4. It is ordained and is equall and right that every mans cause be heard where the fault was committed and it is meete to handle the matter there where they may have both the accusers and witnesses of the fault which sheweth that every Minister had authority over his owne flocke and no other to meddle 5. Bishops wheresoever they be in all the world are equall to our Bishops or Parish Ministers and Preachers Of none it can be said one is Lord another is Servant whatsoever belongeth to the Church belongeth equally to all saving that some are of better gifts then others howbeit such gifts cause no inequallitie or Lordship in the Church 6 In the Apostolike Church the ministers of the Word were none above another and were subject to no head or president c. 7. The honour of a Bishop being taken from the rest of the Ministers and given to one was the first step to Papacie 8. Christ did most severely forbid unto the Apostles and their successors primacie and dominion 9. Equall power and function is given to all Ministers of the Church and that from the beginning no one preferred himselfe before another saving onely that for order some one did call them together propounded the matters that were to be consulted of and gathered the voyces Therefore if all Ministers have their commission indifferently given unto them If Christ have forbidden that one Minister should have dominion over another if no minister may exercise dominion over Gods people if authoritie to handle Controversies belonged to every severall congregation if a Bishop and Parish Minister be all one if in the Apostles time no Minister was above another if the superiority of one above another was the first step to the Papacie lastly if they have equall power and function from the beginning than must it needs follow that no Minister may have superiority or exercise dominion over another Their objections hereunto so many as are worthy any answer be these 1. Object Christ Math. 20.25 forbiddeth onely ambition and not dominion as Musculus expoundeth it Ans. Musculus his judgement appeareth in the 6 and 7 reasons the place is expounded against superiority by Calvin Bulling Zwing G●alter Hemingi●s c. But let it be so expounded that dominion is am●ition because it causeth a man to aspire above his ●ellow Ministers 2. Object The Greek word signifieth rule with oppression which is the thing that is forbidden Answ. That is not so for Luk. 22 25. useth the single verbe Kurieuein which signifieth simply to rule the sonnes of Zebedeus desired not to oppresse but to rule which desire ●e reproved 3 Objection Christ saith not no man shall be so but hee that will be so desiring it Answer But Luke saith let the greatest be as your servant and therefore that is but a silly shift So that their assertions being overthrown and their objections answered it remaineth that we prove yet more directly that the Lord hath ordained that there should be a Bishop resident over every congregation which is thus proved 1 If a Bishop and Minister be all one then must there be a Bishop in every congrega●ion for every man will confesse that every congregation ought to have a Mi●ister But a Bishop and a Minister is all one as appeareth by this tha● S. Paul describeth not one quality for the Bishop but it is also the quality of every good Minister and also in that hee describeth no other Minister but the Bishop Therefore there ought to be a Bishop in every congregation 2 S. Pauls Bishops and his Deacons were appointed to one place as appeareth both in the description of them and the practise of the Apostles But the Deacons were in every Congregation which appeareth Phil. 1.1 Acts 6.2 that Office being needfull every where and in that it continued so longer then the Office of Bishops Athanasius Apol. 2. Jerome Contra 〈◊〉 c. Therefore there ought to be a Bishop in every congr●●●t●●n 3 That which Paul enjoy●●● to Titus is also to be practised alwayes in the like 〈◊〉 But he commanded him to ordaine Elders in every Citie Tit. 1.5 which are expounded in the next verse to be Bishops Therefore there must be a Bishop in every congregation 4 Every Church should have her Communion Table and every Church her Bishop 5 Where there was found any worthy to be a Bishop there a Bishop was appointed and where there was not to furnish both Bishop and preaching El●er hee meaneth the Doctor there the Apostles made a Bishop and left the Elder 6 If a Bishop runne into a slander and many Bishops cannot suddenly be gathered his cause shall be heard of twelve Bishops c. 7 If an Elder be accused hee may call six Bishops from the places hard by S●ories make mention of Bishops of little Townes as (a) Soti●us Bishop of the Village Cuman (b) Mares Bishop of a sm●ll Towne called Solicha (c) Gregory Bishop of a small Citie called Nazianzum (d) The Bishop of a Castle 9 A Minister that is to say a Bishop ●nd a little after the Apostle doth plainly teach that a Minister and a Bishop i● all one and upon Titus a Bishop and a Minister are the same and ad Ocea●um with the ancient Fathers Bishops and Elders were all one 10 D. Barnes in his 〈◊〉 Article saith I will never beleeve neither can I ever beleeve that one man may by the law of God be a Bishop of two or three Cities yea ● a whole Country for that it is contrary to the doctrine of S. Paul who writing to Titus commandeth that ●e should ordaine a Bishop in every Towne 11 It is pitie to see how farre the Office of a Bishop is degenerated from the originall in the Scripture it was not so in the beginning when Bishops were at the best at the Epistle to Titus testifieth that willeth him to ordaine in every Citie c. They know the primitive C●ur●h had no such Bishops as we have untill the time of Silvester the first Therefore if a Bishop and a Minister be all one if Bishops were to be where Deacons are who were in every congregation if Paul enjoyne●Titus to ordaine Bishops in every Citie and if every Church had her B●shop a long time after the Apostles as appeareth by the testimonies of Councels Histories and learned Writers both old and new t●en mu●● it needs follow that there ought to be a Bishop in every Congregation CHAP. II. FOr the further revealing of the truth God hath ordained that there should be in the Church Doctors whose office is to be imployed in teaching of doctrine and is an office different from that