Selected quad for the lemma: scripture_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
scripture_n	ghost_n	holy_a	inspire_v	2,844	5	10.2489	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A39260	A letter to a friend reflecting on some passages in A letter to the D. of P., in answer to the arguing part of his first letter to Mr. G.	Ellis, Clement, 1630-1700.	1687 (1687)	Wing E565; ESTC R18718	18,279	34

that there is such a thing to be found among men Then will he have us grant That there are no means by which men may be secured from being deceived and then they will not take all that pains that are necessary to compass that good which for ought they can tell they may not compass with all their pains Ibid. But here he is too hasty for thô we know not where to find infallible men now living on Earth yet we know there is an Infallible and Living God and He by Men indued with his Infallible Spirit hath given us his Word plainly Written and this Word is a sufficient means to secure us from being dangerously deceived in any thing necessary to our Salvation if we diligently attend unto it and use the proper helps of understanding it And this is our encouragement to take all pains to compass the good we desire that the same Infallible God who hath given the means hath assured his blessing to them that diligently use them Yet I a little wonder to hear him talk of men's being discouraged from taking pains to be well assured of the truth for want of an Infallible Guide when it hath been the common Argument a long time whereby such a Guide has been commended to us that it would save us the pains of examining the particulars of our faith If we be in love with ease or if we be content to take pains all 's one there 's enough in the Infallibility of the Church of Rome for all the pleasure of the one or the necessity of the other may be a Motive sufficient to enter into that Communion wherein we may it seems have our free choice of either What cunning Gamesters are these men that hope to win with any hand Certainly they trust more to their Art than to their Cards After we have been sent from place to place to seek this Infallibility where now shall we find it at last In Tradition if any where for we have miss'd it everywhere else And there we have already found it if our Authour must be trusted The certainty of Scripture is from Tradition therefore there is no refusing that Tradition causes certainty and makes faith as certain as Scripture page 7. Yet it may be this Certainty comes not up to Infallibility yes it is the very same as you heard before and he adds page 23. This makes Tradition to be an Infallible ascertainer of some things at least and so unless some special difficulty be found in other things that light into the same channel it must needs bring them down Infallibly too Now it is very true that we have the Books of Scriptures by Tradition and what other way such antient Books could be convey'd unto us I confess I do not know neither indeed can I see what greater Certainty any man can reasonably desire that these indeed are the very same Books which the Authors of them left to the Church and which the Church hath always received as the Word of God. And this Tradition we look upon as a ground of sufficient certainty of this matter of Fact wherein no man was ever wont to desire better nor in reason can But then first This Tradition is not that of the Church of Rome only which is the only Tradition that I ever heard of that has been pretended to be the ground of Infallibility but a more Vniversal Tradition of all Christians if some of whom had not been more careful to preserve these Books than they of Rome we might for ought I know have lost some of them at least that Excellent Epistle to the Hebrews And in the next place this Vniversal Tradition is no more but Humane Testimony and that can be no ground of Infallibility which excludes all possibility of Error A Moral Certainty is enough to stand on such a foundation and all that can be rationally desired in this case These Books as writ by the Inspiration of the Holy Ghost are the foundation of our Christian Faith and he knows I hope that neither Papists nor Protestants content themselves with Tradition but produce abundance of other Arguments for the Confirmation of Scripture's Divine Authority And whereas he saith it makes Faith as Certain as Scripture no man can doubt but conveying the Book to us it conveys to us all points of Faith contained in the Book and witnessing the Book to be writ by men divinely inspired it also gives as good credit to the Faith contained in it as humane Testimony can give But he means another thing when he thus explains himself Vnless some special difficulty be found in other things that light into the same channel it must needs bring them down infallibly too These other things are things unwritten in that Holy Book and without more ado we will promise him that when ever he can shew us those other things and assure us that they light into the same channel of Vniversal not only Roman Tradition and are so convey'd to us we will entertain them with the same Certainty as we entertain the Scripture upon account of that Tradition only But for these other things which are to be parts of Faith too I fear we must either fish for them in the Channel of Tiber or not at all find them All Traditionary Christians believe the same to day which they did yesterday and so up to the time of our Blessed Saviour page 8. So saith Mr. G. And saith our Author There is no denying this but by denying that Traditionary Christians are Traditionary Christians But suppose these Traditionary Christians be so call'd from their adhering to a Tradition which reacheth not so high as our Blessed Saviour's time but only pretends to it as they are by others if not by themselves may we not call them Traditionary Christians and confess too that they believe the same to day as they did yesterday yea and as they did ever since the Council of Trent or some hundreds of years before that and yet deny that they believe the same that was believed quite up to the time of our Blessed Saviour Yes this is and will be denied till he can prove it Next Mr. G. faith If they follow this Rule they can never err in Faith. And his Friend tell us This is palpably self-evident and p. 9. therefore they are infallible But unless the Rule of Tradition which they follow be longer than it is yet proved to be they may follow it and err all along by following it And let it be never so long yet if they follow it not they may err and therefore are not infallible except he shew that they cannot choose but follow it So that unless it be first as was before said proved that God hath given a Rule which no man can possibly swerve from which supposed not only a Pope or Council but all who have it are infallible we must all be content to be fallible still Yea but They could not innovate in Faith