Selected quad for the lemma: religion_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
religion_n	church_n	england_n	reform_a	4,212	5	9.5265	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A90065	A sermon, tending to set forth the right vse of the disasters that befall our armies. Preached before the honourable houses of Parliament, at a fast specially set apart upon occasion of that which befell the army in the west. In Margarets Westminster, Sept. 12. Anno 1644. / By Matthew Newcomen, Minister of the Gospell at Dedham in Essex.	Newcomen, Matthew, 1610?-1669.	1644 (1644)	Wing N913; Thomason E16_1; ESTC R18134	39,055	48

made with mee and now have violated without cause If thou be a God as they say thou art shew thy power and powre out thy wrath upon this perjured people Dictum factum God did justice upon the Appeale of an Enemy a Turke who in his very appeale spake Blasphemy yet God will doe him Iustice presently the battel turnes and it prooved a very bloody fatall day to the Christian Army the King and many of their chiefe Commanders slaine the whole army routed a great part of that Country lost nothing the cause of all this more then breach of Covenant The Violation of the Covenant of God is such a sinne as will bring disaster upon any Army under Heaven Now to apply this to our selves I am sure you have not forgotten for it is not yet a full yeare since you did with your hands lifted up to the most high even in this place Sweare a SOLEMNE LEAGUE AND COVENANT in a most solemne and religious manner I may say to you as Ioshua did unto the people when they had renewed their Covenant with God Ioshua 24.27 Behold these stones are a witnesse unto you that you have made a Solemne Covenant with God as ever people made Sure you have not forgotten it I am sure God hath not God remembreth it God hath remembred it in mercy all this yeare hitherto and now God seemes to begin to remember it in Iudgement Me thinkes this stroake of God upon us so neere that time Twelve-moneth wherein we tooke the Covenant seemes to speake as if God intended once a yeare to require an account of this Covenant at the hand of England ô that we could call our selves to account this day The Iewes have a proverbe Non est paena super Israelem in qua non sit unci● vituli There is no punishment upon Israel in which there is not one ounce of the Golden Calfe meaning thus That was such a transgression as it is in Gods remembrance every time he plagues them and hath some influence into every calamity that falls upon them In like manner we may say Non est poena super Angliam in qua non sit uncia Foederis We fall under no punishment but there is an ounce of our Covenant in it I beseech you please to review a little some of the chiefe Articles of that Covenant and see how we have observed it In the first we engage our selves sincerely really and constantly to endeavour the Reformation of Religion in England and Ireland in Doctrine Worship Discipline and Government according to the Word of God and the Patterne of the best Reformed Churches A blessed and glorious worke which as it hath the first place in our Covenant so challengeth and deserveth the first and chiefe in our hearts But what hath been done in this great work since the Covenant was taken It is that God and man enquire after What hath the Assembly done what hath the Parliament done in the Reformation of Religion When will some Order be setled for the Worship of God When will the Government of the Church be established according to the Word of God I feare God takes it very grievously that since we have made a Covenāt for Reformation we have spent now a year done so litle in it We have covenanted in like manner without respect of Persons to endeavour the Extirpation of Popery Prelacy Superstition Schisme Prophannesse and what ever shall be found contrary to sound Doctrine and the Power of Godlinesse And blessed be God for the extirpation of Popery Prelacie and Superstition much hath bin done But I know not by what unhappinesse it is but so it is that this last yeare since we all covenanted to endeavour to our utmost without respect of Persons to endeavour the extirpation of Heresie and Schisme Heresie and Schisme have encreased upon us more then ever We are grown beyond Arminianisme Brownisme Anabaptisme we are come I meane many among us to down-right Libertinisme There are two opinions which if encouraged they are encouraged if connived at will open a door to Turcisme Iudaisme Atheisme Polytheisme any monster of opinion The one is That every man is to be left to the Liberty of his own Religion an opinion contended for by the bloudy tenets John Baptist Liberty of Cōscience and the like Pamphlets An opinion most pernicious and destructive as to the souls of men so to the Common-weale of the Kingdome Gerhard 〈◊〉 com de Magistratu § 199. Libertas illa quidlibet credendi saith Gerhard nihil aliud est quam libertas errandi c. That Liberty of beleeving what men will or of holding what faith they please is no other then a Liberty of erring and of erring in a matter that concernes the Eternall Salvation of the Soule wherein to erre cannot but be most dangerous and destructive and therefore saith he as it cannot be safe for sheep to be left alone to wander in mountaines and deserts and graze in what pastures they please Lest they fall upon some unwholesome herb or become a prey to the Wolfe And as it cannot be safe to leave a Ship to it selfe to be driven by the windes and waves without any guide or Steerage lest it dash it selfe against the Rockes So it cannot be safe for Magistrates to leave people to a Liberty of being of what Faith and what Religion they please Lest being carried away from the true Faith and Religion they become a prey to destruction Nor is any thing almost more destructive to a State or Common-weale Praecipuum Concordiae vinculum est Religionis similitudo de cultibus Divinis Consensio Likenesse of Religion and agreement in the Worship of God is the strongest Bond of Concord Bucholc in Chronol Nor is there any thing that doth more unite the Mindes of men then the same opinions of God and Communion in sacred things On the contrary Diversity of Religion dis-joynts and distracts the minds of men and is the Seminary of perpetuall hatreds jealousies seditions warres if any thing in the world be and in a little time either a Schisme in the State begets a Schisme in the Church or a Schisme in the Church begets a Schisme in the State That is either Religion and the Church is prejudiced by Civill Contentions or Church controversies and disputes about opinions breake out into cruell warres Quod à nobis avertat Deus Men will at last take up swords and speares in stead of Pens and defend by Armes what they cannot doe by Arguments Nor doe we want Examples that tell us that Bella sacra are managed with more enraged mindes then common warres are Gualth in Luc. cap. 10. For as another saith Constat nulla esse atrociora odia c. It is apparent that no hatred is so cruell no dissention so bitter as that which ariseth from difference in Religion For such is the Power of Religion that it possesseth the whole man and if once it

degenerate into superstition doth so enflame mens minds against those of the contrary party as they not only hate them but are even mad against them c. And the more we have been sometimes united in Religion and the wayes of God the greater will the mischiefe be that this Diversity shall I say or Vniversality of Religions and opinions pleaded for by some will lay us under Philip. Cawer in oper sacris cap. 92. For Odia acerbiora immortalia inter eos existere solent qui in fide Religione conjunctissimis animis fuere c. The bitterest and most immortall hatred is usually betweene those that have sometimes been of the most concordant mindes in Faith and Religion and afterwards begin to differ for nothing doth more alienate the mindes of men quam similis vel dispar Religio Once for all it is the Preservation and Reformation of Religion which you have covenanted to endeavour and not a Liberty of opinion that will consist with neither It is the Extirpation of Heresie and Schisme that you have covenanted which if to be connived at why doth the Apostle Paul reprove the Corinthians for their Schismes so much and why doth our Lord Jesus commend the Angel of the Church of Ephesus for trying those which said they were Apostles and were not And why is the Angel of the Church of Thyatira reproved for suffering that woman Jezabel who called her selfe a Prophetesse to teach and seduce If once we come to this that any man be suffered to teach what he pleaseth to seduce whom he lists to be of what Faith or Religion seemes good in his owne eyes farewell Covenant farewell Reformed Religion farewell the Peace and Glory of England If that day once come But you Right Honourable I hope better things of you though I thus speake I hope while you live and sit in Parliament this shall never be Greg. Tholoz●●de Repub. lib. 8. Fieri nec solet nec potest ut quit Deum sincerè ex toto corde diligat qui diversas Religiones simul fovere desiderat certissimum enim ost neutram credere qui contrarias admittit It is not usuall nay it is not possible that they which love God sincerely should desire to cherish differing Religions for it is most certain he that admits contrary Religions beleeves neither of them There is a second dangerous opinion give me leave in the name not only of all the Ministers of Christ in England but of all the Ministers that Christ hath in the world to complaine of it it is this That there is no Jus Divinum upon the Calling of the Ministry To this purpose there was a Pamphlet lately put forth bearing the Name of the compassionate Samaritane that under pretence of pouring Wine and Oyle upon the wounded Anabaptists as he fancies them poures the venome of Dragons and the gall of Aspes not only upon the Assembly who yet are to no other end an Assembly then that they may be serviceable to God and you in the things of Jesus Christ nor onely upon the Ministry of the Church of England for then I had held my peace at this time but upon the whole Ministry of Christ through the world and would make that Sacred and Tremend Function to be as meere an Imposture as very a mystery of iniquity as arrant a juggle as the Papacie it selfe I shall not need tell you what Anvill this was forged upon nor that the Principles of Anabaptisme are as destructive to the Magistracie as they are to the Ministery All that I say is this the Lord make you mindfull of your Covenant and wise and able to apply apt and seasonable Remedies to these growing evils before they be incurable We have covenanted against Prophannesse too But what hath beene done against True it is you have made pious Ordinances for the strict Observation of the Lords Day and dayes of solemne Humiliation But for want of a strict course prescribed for the bringing of such as shall yet dare to profane these dayes to severe and exemplary punishment not onely in the Countrey but here in the Citie and before your eyes Sabbaths and Fasts are as much contemned as ever It would be worthy of your second thoughts what further course to take for the better sanctifying of those Dayes As also for the stopping of that Rage of all manner of prophannesse that in these loose and arbitrary times breakes in as a floud upon us and no wonder Perverse opinions and perverse manners alwayes walke hand in hand together Buchol in Chronol O●●nibus seculis Doctrinae coelestis corruptionem comitatur pu●●●u morum corruptela quae tandem Regnis ultima fata attrahit Common corruption of manners hath ever attended corruption of Doctrine and this at length brings desolation upon a Kingdome We live in a strange age for licentiousnesse of opinion and as strange for licentiousnesse of living There was a thing done not many dayes since not farre from this place I think the like was hardly ever done before in England or in the Christian world I meane that scandalous abominable I know not what to call it I doubt not but you know what I meane how farre your wisdomes will thinke fit to take notice of it and enquire after it I know not But certainly it was such an affront to the Justice of God such a dare to the power of his wrath now burning against us such a scorne to the whole Nobility Gentry and Parliament of England as both your owne Honour and Gods call upon you to shew your just indignation against it Had some young Gallants in Rome while heathen played such a Trick the Censores morum would have at least degraded them We have Covenanted to bring Incendiaries Malignants and evill instruments to punishment Since this Covenant God hath delivered many of yours and the Kingdomes chiefe Enemyes into your hands I will not inquire what Iustice you have done upon them That may upon some prudentiall considerations be deferred possibly But whether it be right in the sight of God that his and the Kingdomes Enemies when God hath shut them up in your hand should not onely have their Lives and their Ease but their lusts their sinnes indulged them and which is the common complaint in your prisons Sweare and Drinke and Gluttonize and be as joviall and as filthy as in their owne Garrisons whither this be right or no consider Some possiby are ready to say to you Petr. Nicol. Gelstroup as that poore smith in Thuring did to the Landt-grave of that Country who was more mild then was for his peoples good Duresce Duresce ô infoelix Landtgravie c. I know there ought to be in those into whose hands God hath put the sword a contemperature of Severity and clemency The sword of Iustice must be fourbished with the Oyle of Mercy yet there are cases in which severity ought to cast the scale I know not what

their soules inquire and say What have I done Vt nemo in sese tentat descendere Nemo Pecl. The Lord hearkened and heard but no man spake aright No man repented him of his evill deeds saying What have I done There is indeed an opinion That Beleevers the Children of God ought not to thinke that their sinnes have any influence into the Judgements that are upon a people A soule perverting a Land destroying opinion it is The Lord preserve us from it I am sure David was not of this opinion Lo I have sinned and I have done wickedly saith David 2 Sam. 24. when Israel was consumed by the Pestilence and the Spirit saith expressely 2 Chron. 32.25 That for the sinne of Hezekiah and for the pride of his heart came wrath upon him and upon all Ierusalem And yet David was a Beleever and a Child of God Hezekiah was a Beleever and a Child of God If Hezekiah to his former pride that brought wrath upon Jerusalem had added this further pride to thinke that his sin had not at all provoked that wrath because He was a Beleever a justified Person ô what a provocation would that have beene The Lord deliver all his people from such pride of heart it is too bad out of a slightnesse and carelesnesse of spirit not to take notice of our sinnes in our Disasters But when this proceeds from an opinion from a fixed Principle of Judgement and Reason This makes it much worse In the second place Is it the will of God that his people should take notice of their sinnes in the disasters of their armies Then I beseech you let us labour to doe this will of God and as before I called you to take notice of the Blow to be sensible of that so let me now call you to take notice of the sin and the Lord help us that we may be sensible of that The Lord speakes to us in this Disaster as he did here to Joshua Israel hath sinned But who shall give us a particular discovery of the sinne or sinnes that are the cause of this Disaster we cannot goe and as Joshua did here or as Saul did 1 Sam. 14.38 cast the lot that we may know and see where this sinne hath been Who is the prudent man that knoweth this and who is he to whom the mouth of the Lord hath spoken that he may declare it for what the land perisheth Jer. 9.12 Oh that we could discover it It is a Discovery that might more advantage England then the Discovery of as much Treasure as is in both the Indies It might be the saving of the rest of our Armies of the Cause and therein of All. What may we think the sinne the cause of this Disaster to be I will tell you what we may not thinke it to be We may not we must not thinke that there is sinne in the foundation of the Action That the Ground and cause of the warre is unjust and sinfull because of this Disaster no more then Ioshua's here or the Benjamites Iudg. 20. no though God should frowne yet further upon us and breake us with breach upon breach We must yet say as the Church Psal 44.17 18 19. All this is come upon us yet have we not forgotten thee nor dealt falsly in thy Covenant Our heart is not turned back neither have our steps declined from thy way Though thou hast sore broken us in the place of Dragons and covered us with the shadow of Death Never repent that we have imbarqued our selves in the quarrell for the sinne lies not in the cause it selfe But where then I professe sincerely I cannot tell you where if I could I durst not be so unfaithfull to God to your soules to the Kingdome as to conceale it All that I can say is That as God in this his Providence hath frowned upon not onely our Armies but the Parliament the City and the whole well-affected Party both Ministers and People so All have sinned and possibly all our sinnes have an influence into this calamity that is now upon us And therefore let All of us Parliament-men Commanders Souldiers Citizens Ministers People All of us ô let us search our selves and enquire in our severall Orbes and Activities what our wayes have been that so if possible we may find out what and where this sinne is There is a spirit in man which is as the Candle of the Lord searching the innermost parts of the belly Prov. 20.27 that consulted with will discover hidden things Now therefore every one of you consult your owne spirits And first you that are Members of the Honourable Houses of Parliament for I must speake to you God and your selves have called me hither this day to what end if not to speake to you Oh how doe I feare least some sinnes of yours may have a great influence into this Disaster that is now upon us This I am sure of Parliament sinnes and sinnes of Parliament men are great Provocations Looke how much honour God hath put upon every One of you singly more then upon others of your Ranke that are not Members of this Honourable Body and looke how much more honour God hath put upon you joyntly as a Parliament more then upon other Parliaments so much the greater is your Engagement unto God and if you sinne it is so much the greater Provocation ô that you would ever remember it Was there ever Parliament that had so many Prayers Deliverances Wonders waiting upon it as you Was there ever Parliament that had God so neere unto them in all things ô such a Parliament should as Caesar said sometimes of his wife be free not only à culpâ sed à suspitione In the Name of Iesus Christ whose Minister I am and to whom I must give account of the discharge of this dayes service I beseech you Right Honourable let this hand of God under which you are met to humble your selves this day cause every one of you seriously and impartially to review your wayes not as men but as Parliament-men commune every one with your owne hearts and say What have I done How have I discharged the trust that God and man have committed to me ô remember God and man have entrusted you with that which is dearest to them both God hath entrusted you with his Gospell with his Glory with the affaires of the Kingdome of his Sonne with the welfare of that Church which he hath purchased with his owne Bloud Men have entrusted you with their Estates Liberties Lives ô that these things were written upon the wals of the Houses where you daily sit as over the gate of the Senate house in Rome was written Ne quid Respublica detrimenti capiat Let the Common-wealth receive no dammage But your care must be not only for Common-wealth but for the Church and Religion to both are committed to your Trust But ô that you would inquire this day how you have discharged this Trust Every

all cut off by Hannibal he not listening to what Envy or what Revenge might dictate to him came in to their reliefe presently and not only rescued them but by that courtesie reduced Minutius to his obedience again the man is as willing to resigne his command as ever he was ambitious to take it up Truly these glorious sparklings of something humano majus even in heathens of selfe-deniall of faithfulnesse of Zeale for a publike good swallowing up all other interests of Factiō Honour Priority Power These things even in heathens make me blush wonder tremble Si faciunt hoc Ethnici ut fama sua nomen extendant Dan. quid agendum est Christianis ut in coelesti sibi gloriâ sedes acquirant If Heathens will doe thus much for a Bubble of vaine-glory upon Earth what should Christians doe for a Crowne of Glory in Heaven Or were I to speake this day to the Ministry of England that are rightly affected to the glory of God and the Publike good I would intreat them to consider with me whether we may not feare that some of our former sins in the matter of Gods Day and Worship may at this time come in remembrance before the Lord especially seeing we have been no more humbled for them and whether our present divisions and dissentions and the undue managing of them may not have an influence into our present calamities I remember in the beginning of the first Reformation there fell an unhappy difference between Luther and Zuinglius and their followers which was managed with a great deale of bitternesse and remaines to this day uncomposed And both parties smarted under the sword of the common enemy the longer it is probable for their disagreement among themselves The Lord grant it fall not out so to us O that we could all of us both Ministers and people remember that vehement obtestation of the Apostle Paul 1 Cor. 1.10 Now I beseech you brethren by the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ that ye all speake the same thing and that there be no divisions among you but that you be perfectly joyned together in the same mind and in the same judgement Oh that at least the advantage that redounds to our enemies and disadvantage to our selves from these our differences might compose them for us And that we would imitate Basil and Eusebius who perceiving the common adversary the Arrians to improve a difference which was between them to the prejudice of the Orthodox Churches were soon reconciled and imployed their united strengths against those enemies But I digresse too farre to returne therefore to my present Auditory You that stand here before the Lord this day Men and Brethren I beseech you every one aske your owne Consciences and say What have I done what sinne is it of mine that hath awakened this hand of God against us Is it my unsensiblenesse of the indignation of the Lord in this civill destructive warre Is it my pride my luxurie my eating flesh my drinking wine my clothing my selfe with scarlet my walking with an out-stretched neck at such a time as this when the Lord cals to weeping and mourning and baldnesse and girding with sackcloth every day Beleeve it brethren it is a great provocation in the eyes of our God to behold so much bravery and joviality as he sees every day in this great Citie at such a time as this when he is making his sword drunke with the bloud of our slaine There are three Texts of Scripture Oh that all the children of pride and vanity would but studie them Ezek. 21.9.10 A sword a sword it is sharpened and also fourbished It is sharpened to make a sore slaughter it is fourbished that it may glitter should we then make mirth Isai 22.12 13. And in that day did the Lord God of hosts call to weeping and to mourning and to baldnesse and to girding with sackcloth And behold joy and gladnesse slaying oxen and killing sheep eating flesh and dinking wine Isai 3 16-25 26. Moreover the Lord saith Because the daughters of Zion are haughtie and walke with stretched forth neckes and wanton eyes walking and mincing as they goe and making a tinkling with their feet Therefore thy men shall fall by the sword and thy mighty in the warre And her gates shall lament and mourne and she being desolate shall sit upon the ground Little doe our Ladies thinke that their Gallantry which that third of Isaiah gives an Inventory of may make our mighty men fall in the warre and our strongest Cities sit upon the ground But say againe Is it my trusting to an arme of flesh my putting confidence in the Gallantry of our Army and ah Lord in this thing the Lord be mercifull to us who almost can plead Not guilty that hath made this Arme of flesh to wither Is it my neglect of Prayer Am I the man that when I heard our Army was in streights nay when his Excellencie sent to desire Prayers my wretched heart would not lift up one Prayer Nay if it were to doe again if One Prayer would save the Army save the Kingdome I could not doe it Am I the man that have with those perverse Israelites despised the pleasant Land the Land of desires as it is Psal 106.24 When Israel was in Egypt there was nothing they desired more then the Land of Canaan when they were come out of Egypt and were upon the borders of that Land then they despised it and wished themselves in Egypt againe ô that it were not so with us It is not long since a Parliament an Assembly of Godly Divines the Reformation of the Church in Doctrine Worship and Discipline was the desire of all the well-affected in the Nation But now the Parliament the Assembly of Divines despised The Reformation which we are now even upon the borders of in Doctrine Worship Discipline despised Men wish themselves in Egypt againe And had rather be under Prelaticall Bondage then under a Government most conforme to the Word and to the Government of other Reformed Churches No Reformation of Religion now now nothing will satisfie some but a Toleration of all Religions and all Opinions Church Government Discipline is to some a fiction to others Tyranny and Persecution Ah Brethren this is a Provocation and will be a Provocation for this God may turne us into the wildernesse againe It were an endlesse taske to enumerate the rest of the particular sins that possibly the people of this City and this Kingdome may be guilty of and that God may have his Eye and Hand upon in this Rebuke that he hath given us And therefore I must not prosecute this any further Only againe I beseech you all Lords Gentlemen Souldiers Ministers Men Women Every one of you say to your selves Sure we have sinned Israel hath sinned and every one of you aske your owne Consciences saying What have I done And let us all in the feare of God make it one part of this dayes