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A06135 A sermon preached at Torceter in the countie of Northampton the 8. of Iune, Anno Dom. 1588. at the visitation of the right reuerend Father in God, the Bishop of Peeterborow, by Iohn Beatniffe preacher of the woord of God in Brackley. Beatniffe, John. 1590 (1590) STC 1662; ESTC S116644 12,021 38

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as follow our fantasies such as will not we vtterly condemne them whereas there bee many hundreds yea many thousands besides vs this was Elias fault O Lord saith he they haue broken down thy Altars and slaine thy Prophets and I onely am left and they seeke my life to take it away he thought there had not bin left vpon the earth one man that feared God but himselfe but marke responsum Domini harkē what the Lord saith Reg. 19.18 I haue reserued to my selfe seuen thousand men that neuer bowed their knees to Baal mark this wel there be more of the church then we bee aware of therefore let vs feed in hope and labor in hope incoraging all discoraging none but let vs feede the flocke of God visible and inuisible true false Of these two Churches it is necessary to speake a litle beginning with the false church that the other may be the better discerned the false church I cal those which either openly set their selues against the childrē of God or those which perswade themselues that they be of the church are not of both these sorts ther be many The one sort are they of whom Dauid speaketh of Psalm 26. I haue hath hated the congregation of the wicked and I wil not sit with the vngodlie Numb 15 Such were Corah Dathan and Abiram and the two hundred and fifty men that were with them men of renowne and famous in the congregation Gene. 11. Such were they that builded Babel euery of these were a congregatiō a church but a false church a church that openly fighteth and setteth it selfe against the Church of God The other sort are they which bragge that they be the seed of Abraham the children of promise but they deceiue themselues for they do not the works of Abraham they speak much but they do litle they look like Lambes but they bee rauenning Wolues outwardly they appeare bewtifull but inwardly they be full of dead mens bones He is not a Iew which is a Iew outward Rom. 2. but hee is a Iew which is hid within Of these face-makers and outward Religious persons speaketh Leo Ecclesiae nomine armamini sed contra ecclesiam demicatis Leo. yee arme your selues with the name of the church but yee fight agaynst the Church These say they are Iewes but they are not but are the congregation of Satan These be the false church Reg. 2.9 these must be taught if at any time God will giue them grace to repent that they may be brought to the true church and so be saued in the day of the Lord. Now let vs proceed vnto the true church which is in God hereby it is knowen it is not in man but in GOD this is the true church this is the society of all the true faithfull sainctes and elect of God This church consisteth of Faith Hope Loue and of the Spirit of Christ This we cal the catholicke church which is spread ouer the face of the whole world Then the catholicke church is not at Rome no no they are much deceiued that say so or beleeue so it is not tyed to one place or to one people but it is the company of all the faithfull that haue bene from the beginning of the world that are now shal be vnto the end of the world Ierom sayth Ecclesia Christi in toto orbe ecclesias possidens spiritus vnitate coniuncta est habet vrbes legis prophetarum euangelij apostolorum non est egressa de finibus suis i. de scripturis The church of Christ which possesseth all the churches in the world is ioyned together in the vnity of the spirit and it hath the cities of the law and of the Prophets of the Gospell and of the Apostles it doth not goe beyonde her boundes that is the Scriptures This Church hath in it pure and sounde doctrine euen the same which came from Christe and sent abroade throughout all the worlde by the Apostles which excludeth all other doctrines and precepts of man it hath also the true and liuely vse of the Sacraments it hath vnity and catholicke consent touching the chéef points of christian religion This church because it often erreth sometime by ignorance as Paul before his conuersion 1. Tim. 1.13 sometime by temptations as Abraham when for feare of his life he fel to dissembling or by infirmitie 2. Sam. 10.4 as Dauid when hee committed adulterie ought to bee fed with doctrine and be kept in with wholsome correction And therefore ouer this church hath God placed Bishops and hath commaunded them to ouersee it and to feed it faithfully and dilligently let those therefore watch that they may giue their fellow seruants meat in due season Blessed is that Seruant whome hys Maister shall find so doing Math. 24. Verily I say vnto you he will make him ruler ouer all his goods Therefore feed the flock this appertaineth to vs ministers God hath made vs pastors and wee haue a flocke euen a church in God the father begotten of the word born of the word and now must be nourished brought vp and instructed by the word That wee haue such a church here in England as I haue here described there is no question at all to be made neither do the godly doubt of it But for the better comfort of the church and that they may haue in a readines at all times to stop the mouth of the Anabaptist to ouerthrow the Papist and tread vnder feet the Secturian I wil prooue it most plainly by the way of an argument where the Gospell is truly preached where the Sacraments be according to Christ his institution reuerently administred where there is vnitie and catholicke consente touching the cheefe points of christian religion wher Christ is acknowledged the head of the church there is the true church in God the Father but the church of England hath vseth holdeth and acknowledgeth al these things ergo in England there is a true church in God the Father The chiefest reasons that the Anabaptistes Papistes and Scismatickes vse in defacing of our church are these first that our ministers bee not lawfully called 2. that we want discipline 3. that wee haue no lawfull prayers in our church and therefor no church These reasons though they be weake and most weake yet are they péeuish and very daungerous and therefore I thinke it necessarie to confute them Touching the first wher they say we haue not a lawful ministery I answere we haue yea and such a ministery as is sent of God and lawfully called by man I prooue it thus wheresoeuer there is a Church in God the Father there is also a lawful ministerie But wee haue a Church in God the Father as before is prooued ergo a lawful ministerie This argument in plainly prooued by the words of Ieremie Ier. 3.14.15 O yee disobedient Children turne againe sayth the Lord for I am you Lord and I
must feede the flocke of God The elders saith S. Peter The Greeke worde is Πρεςβυτερος which the Apostle vseth which word of two sortes of people is falslie interpreted Of the Papists which would haue it to signifie a sacrifising or a massing Priest Of an other sort which woulde haue it onely to signifie Lay-men but the Apostle heere confuteth them both for he speaketh not of sacrifising preists neither yet of lay men but of such as shoulde guide and teach his Church therefore the worde Elders signifyeth heere Bishops Ministers Of whome the office of the first is not only to teach but also to rule the Church of God to keepe it in with a Bishop-like authority this Paul prooueth Take heede vnto your selues and to the whole flocke Act. 20. ouer the which the holy Ghost hath made you ouerseeers to rule the Church of God which he hath purchased with his owne bloode Out of which wordes I gather thus much that of the one side as a Bishop is not exempted from the office of teaching because hee is a Bishop so on the other side hee is not called a Bishop because he is apt to teach neither for the office of teaching but for the preheminence of ruling and ouerséeing of the Church of God that false doctrine come not in that offenders which corrupt the manners and peace of the Church may bee punished and such like The office of the other is this to teach and to administer the Sacraments according to the saying of Christ generally to all ministers Goe into all the worlde Math. 28. teach all nations and baptize them in the name of the father and of the sonne and of the holie Ghost And Paul sayth Preach thou the worde bee feruent in season and out of season reproue rebuke exhort with al loue patience doctrine The which places beeing with disretion considered of are sufficient to prooue that as on the one side calling is necessary so they which be called must bee such as the Apostle heere speaketh of Elders that is to say Bishops to rule and to teach Ministers to teach to administer to rebuke and to exhort where they be therevnto lawfully called Feede ye heere is thirdly to be noted with what they must feede verily with the word with it haue all the Prophets fed that same is the nourishment of the Church S. Peter sayth We are borne agayne not of corruptible seede 1. Pet. 1 2● but of incorruptible by the word of God who liuech and endureth for euer For all flesh is grasse and the glory of man is as the flower of gras the grasse withereth and the flower falleth away but the word of the Lord indureth for euer and this is the worde which is preached among you By which saying it is manifest that the onely woord of God ought to be taught in the church and that they are not to be heard which would bring in mens deuises into the Church God hath not permitted so much to any mortall man neither may the Church bee gouerned or fed by any other word then by the worde of God by the which it is begotten and borne This confuteth the Papists which would haue the Church to be of greater authoritie then the woord which can not possibly be for the Church is grounded vppon the doctrine of the Prophets and Apostles Christ himselfe the head corner stone so that it is against the woord that the house that is to say the church should rule the maister that is to say the woord and it is against nature that the daughter namely the church should rule hir Mother which is the woord Hereuppon it followeth that the ministers must onely feede with the word of God Eze 3.17 and with no other God sayth thou shalt heare words from my mouth and thou shalt warne others from mee Ier. 1.7 Math. 28. I haue put my words in thy mouth and what so euer I haue commaunded thee that shalt thou speake and did binde his Disciples to a certain kinde of doctrine namely to teach those things which hee had commaunded them whereby wee learn that onely the woord of God must be taught in the Church and no other When I say that the only word of God must be taught I do not therby as some do condemne the reading or alledging of the Fathers for that were altogether curiositie I am not of that minde I thinke them very necessarie to bee read and alledged not as doctrine of saluation but as confirmation of iudgement for when our iudgements the iudgements of the fathers are one vpon some place of Scripture then we say it is idem spiritus one and the selfe same spirit so that alledging of the Fathers is not to be blamed but bringing in mans doctrine as necessarie to saluation in stead of the woord of God which onely serueth to that ende is woorthily to bee condemned where it is said feede and that with the woord There is rendred a reason because the written woord of God containeth in it all things necessarie to saluation and also to life and maners and therefore that we neede not seek any further for the assurance of the same this prooueth Iohn the Apostle Iohn 21 Many things did Iesus in the sight of his disciples which are not writtē in this booke but these things are written that Iesus Christ is the Sonne of God that in beleeuing yee might haue eternall life The other prooueth Paul 2. Tim. 3. Euery Scripture giuen by inspiration is profitable to teach to reprooue and to exhort that the man of God may be made perfect vnto euerie good woorke Rom. 15. Therefore search the Scriptures for in them yee hoope to haue eternall life Lastly it is to bee declared what they must feed n. the Church There be many sorts of Churches there is a visible Church and an inuisible Church there is a militant Church and a triumphant Church there is a true Church there is a false Church Now where the Apostle saith feede the flocke of God hee putteth a difference betwixt the true false Church now a Church is nothing els but a company of people gathered together so that euery company is a Church but euery company is not a church of God Moreouer this is to bee obserued that whereas the Apostle saith feed the flock of God and that the flock of God is partly visible partly inuisible as is aforesaid that hee meaneth that the ministers of the word should diligently feed all the flocke of God vppon the earth which is flatly against those that would single out the church of God from the rest not knowing that there bee some which though they do not appeare outwardly yet are they most dear and precious in the sight of the Lord I must bee plaine with you it is a great fault in this our time wee will haue none to be of the Church but such as we like such