Selected quad for the lemma: religion_n
Text snippets containing the quad
|
ID |
Title |
Author |
Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication) |
STC |
Words |
Pages |
|
A65232
|
To all rulers and magistrates in England, and all men in authority from the highest to the lowest a few sober words tendred to your serious consideration, which you are desired to read with moderation.
|
Wastfield, Robert, fl. 1647-1665.
|
1665
(1665)
|
Wing W1035; ESTC R33569
|
6,716
|
9
|
endeavour to prevent those dangers that are apparent by endeavouring to stop those floods of wickedness and unrighteousness which even overflows the Land and which may endanger to sink the whole Bottom in which all your concernments are imbarqued under the wrath of Almighty God and would not this be more sutable to your Trust and tend more to the discharging and clearing of your Consciences both towards God and man And as for such who differ from you in judgement about Religion Faith Worship it would be your wisdom to follow wise Gamaliel's Counsel and let them alone for if the things about which you strive with them be not of God it will fall of it self and come to nothing though you meddle not with it but if it be of God as surely it is then take heed what you do for you will never be able to destroy it though you oppose it with all your Power and therein be found fighters against God neither will those Laws by which you proceed against them justifie your proceedings any more than they were justified who proceeded against Daniel the three Children Christ himself his Apostles Servants and Martyrs in Ages past who could all of them plead they had Laws and Decrees for what they did and many of them proceeding more according to those Laws then in being than is done at this day yet you your selves will condemn them for Persecutors and wicked men and therein you judge rightly and you may consider what was their end and what they brought upon themselves by so doing though many of them did it ignorantly thinking thereby they did God service And it would be more acceptable to God and more honour to the King and better service to him by all that are in Authority under him to endeavour the stopping and preventing of Wickedness and Prophaness that it might be removed out of the Land that so his Throne might be established in Righteousness than the putting of those Laws in execution against peaceable people about Religion because they cannot submit to things contrary to the perswasion of their consciences Nevertheless be this known unto you all That whatsoever may be in your minds concerning us or in the purpose of your hearts to do unto us or to cause us to suffer upon this account as you shall not thereby provoke us to render unto you evil for evil or to move a hand against you or any wayes practise or endeavour your hurt ruine overthrow or destruction though we are well assured that if you proceed against us you will thereby provoke the Lord against your selves and bring ruine upon your selves yet our hand shall not be upon you or against you but rather pitty you and pray for your conversion and endeavour your good in what we may neither shall all your hard dealing with us and cruelty towards us prevail with us to do any thing contrary to the perswasion of our Consciences or to bow or conform to any thing which is against the righteous Law of God and the Requiring of his Spirit in our hearts for we will bow down unto the Lord but we will not bow down unto another neither shall we do any thing which is forbidden by your Laws or omit the doing of any thing which is required by your Laws out of wilfulness stubbornness pride or contempt against your persons or authority but shall submit unto you in all lawful things only when your Laws come in competition with the Law of God in our Consciences then judge you which we ought rather to obey for if we sin against the Testimony of our Consciences who then can give us peace and whether it be not better for us in such cases to trust the Lord and to fall into his hands than into yours for if we are faithful unto him and obey him in what he requires he is able to deliver us out of your hands and to restrain your wrath but if we disobey him by obeying you and by submitting to your Commands you cannot save us from the stroke of his Hand nor deliver us from his Wrath Therefore it is our firm resolution and the purpose of our hearts whatever the Lord may yet suffer you to do unto us or inflict upon us not at all to defile our Consciences by doing any thing which we are perswaded is contrary to his will for we have counted the cost of this work and are freely given up unto the Lord to be disposed of at his pleasure either in doing or suffering it being his Cause and not our own we being onely Instruments in his hand so that the controversie is between you and God and to him do we look and commit our selves and the keeping of our souls in well-doing and leave it to him to plead our Innocency and the Righteousness of this Cause with all that rise up against us And this is written and tendred to your serious consideration in that Love which would have none to perish in their gainsaying but rather that all might turn from their wickedness and live By a lover of Peace Righteousness and Good-Government Robert Wastfeild LONDON Printed in the Year 1665.