Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	aaron_n	apostle_n	call_v	74	3	4.4256	3	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A90265	The duty of pastors and people distingushed [sic]. Or A briefe discourse, touching the administration of things commanded in religion. Especially concerning the means to be used by the people of God (distinct from church-officers) for the increasing of divine knowledge in themselves and others. Wherein bounds are prescribed to their peformances, their liberty is enlarged to the utmost extent of the dictates of nature and rules of charity: their duty laid downe in directions, drawn from Scripture-precepts, and the practise of Gods people in all ages. Together with the severall wayes of extraordinary calling to the office of publike teaching, with what assurance such teachers may have of their calling, and what evidence they can give of it, unto others. / By John Ovven, M.A. of Q. Col. O.	Owen, John, 1616-1683.	1644 (1644)	Wing O741; Thomason E49_6; ESTC R2375	45,909	59

never observe that any of those who wereso forward of late to stile themselves Priests were at all greedy of the apellation of Prophets no this they were content to let goe name and thing and yet when Christ ascended on high he gave some to be Prophets for the edification of his body Ephes. 4. 11. none as wee finde to be Priests Priests then like Prelats are a sort of Church Officers whom Christ never appointed whence I conclude Fourthly that whosoever maintaineth any Priests of the New stament as properly so called in relation to any Altar or Sacrifice by them to be offered doth as much as in him lyeth disanull the Covenant of grace and is blasphemously injurious to the Priesthood of Christ the Priest and the Sacrifice under the new Testament are one and the same and therefore they who make themselves Priests must also make themselves Christs or get another sacrifice of their owne As there is but one God so there is but one Mediator of God and man the man Jesus Christ 1 Tim. 2. 5. now he became the Mediator of the New Testament chiefly by his Priesthood because by the eternall spirit he offered up himselfe unto God Heb. 9. 14. 15. neither is any now called of God to be a Priest as was Aaron and without such divine vocation to this office none ought to undertake it as the Apostle argues Heb. 5. now the end of any such vocation and office is quite ceased being nothing but to offer gifts and sacrifices unto God Heb. 8. 3. for Christ hath offered one Sacrifice for sin for ever and is sate downe at the right hand of God Heb. 10. 12. yea by one offering he hath perfected them that are sanctified v. 14. and if that did procure remission of sins there must be no more offering for sin v. 18. and the surrogation of another makes the bloud of Christ to be no better then that of bulls and goates Now one of those they must doe who make themselves Priests in that sence concerning which we now treat either get them a nevv sacrifice of their owne or pretend to offer Christ againe the first seemes to have been the fault of those of ours who made a sacrifice of the Sacrament yet pretended not to beleeve the reall presence of Christ in or under the outward elements or species of them the other of the Romanists whose Priests in their Masse blasphemously make themselves Mediators between God and his Son and offering up Christ Iesus for a Sacrifice desire God to accept him so charging that sacrifice with imperfection which he offered on the Altar of the Crosse and making it necessary not only that he should annually but daily yee hourely suffer afresh so recrucifying unto themselves the Lord of glory Further themselves confessing that to be a true sacrifice it is required that that which is offered unto God be destroyed and cease to be what it vvas they doe confesse by what lyes in them to destroy the Son of God and by their Masse have transubstanciatd their Altars into Crosses their Temples into Golgatha's their Prelates into Pilates their Priests into Hangmen tormentors of Iesus Christ Concerning them and ours we may shut up this discourse with what the Apostle intimates to the Hebrews viz. that all Priests are ceased who were mortall now small cause have we to beleeve them to be immateriall spirits among whom we finde the Workes of the flesh to have been so frequent And this may give us some light into the iniquity of those times whereinto we were lately fallen in which Lord Bishops and Priests had almost quite oppressed the Bishops of the Lord and Ministers of the Gospell how unthankefull men were we for the light of the Gospell men that loved darkenesse rather then light A wonderfull and horrible thing vvas wrought in our Land the Prophets prophesied falsly the Priests bare rule by their meanes almost the whole people loved to have it so and what shall we now doe in the end thereof Ierem. 5. 30. 31. such a hasty Apostacy was growing on us as we might justly wonder at because unparalelled in any Church of any age but our revolters were profound hasty men and eager in their masters service So what an height of impiety and opposition to Christ the Roman Apostacy in a thousand yeeres attained unto and yet I dare aver that never so many errors suspitions in an 100. yeeres crept into that Church as did into ours of England in 16. and yet I cannot herein give the commendation of so much as industry to our Innovators I accuse not the whole Church but particulars in it and that had seized themselves of its authority because they had a Platforme before them and materialls provided to their hand and therefore it was an easie thing for them to erect a Babel of Antichristian confusion when the Workemen in the Roman Apostacy were forced to build in the plaine of Christianity without any praeexistent materialls but were fain to use brick and slime of their own provision besides they were unacquainted with the maine designe of Satan who set them on worke and therefore it is no wonder if those Nimrods oftimes hunted counter and disturbed each other in their progresse yea the first mover in Church Apostacy knowes that novv his time is but short and therefore it behooves him to make speedy worke in seducing lest he be prevented by the comming of Christ Then having himselfe a long tract of time granted unto him he allowed his agents to take leasure also but what he doth novv must be done quickly or his whole designe will be quashed and this made him inspire the present businesse with so much life and vigor Moreover he was compelled then to sow his tares in the darke while men slept taking advantage at the ignorance and imbroylement of the times if any man had leasure enough to search and learning enough to see and finde him at it he commonly filled the world with clamors against him and scarse any but his vowed champions durst be his Advocates in our time he was grown bold and impudent working at noone day yea he openly accused and condemned all that durst accuse him for sowing any thing but good Wheat that durst say that the tares of his Arminianisme and Popery was any thing but true doctrine let us give so much way to indignation we know Satans trade what it is to accuse the brethren as men are called after their professions one a Lawyer another a Physitian so is he the accuser of the brethren now surely if ever he set up a shop on earth to practise his trade in it was our High Commission Court as of late imployed but {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} CAP. 4. Of the duty of Gods people in cases extraordinary concerning his Worship THis being thus determined I returne againe to the maine {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} concerning the duty and

that him whom he hath chosen he will cause to come neere unto him Numb. 16. 5. chosen by a particular calling ad munus to the office of the rituall priesthood so in regard of that other kind comparatively so called it is said of the whole people What nation is there so great that hath God so nigh unto them as the Lord our God is in all things that we call upon him for Deut. 4. 7. their approaching nigh unto God made them all a nation of Priests in comparison of those dogs and unclean Gentiles that were out of the Covenant now this Prerogative is often appropriate to the faithful in the new Testament for through Christ we have an accesse by one spirit unto the Lord Eph. 2. 18. 3. 19. We have boldnesse accesse with confidence so James 4. 8. Draw nigh unto God and he will draw nigh unto you which accesse and approximation unto God seemed as before was spoken to be uttered in allusion to the Priests of the old Law who had this Priviledge above others in the publike worship in which respect only things then were typicall Since because we enjoy that prerogative in the truth of the thing it selfe which they had onely in type we also are called Priests and as they were said to draw nigh in reference to the rest of the people so we in respect of them who are strangers to the Covenant that now are said to be afarre off Ephes. 2. 17. and hereafter shall be without for without are dogs c. Rev. 22. 15. thus this metaphoricall appellation of Priests is in the first place an intimation of that transcendent priviledge of grace and favour which Jesus Christ hath purchased for every one that is sanctified with the bloud of the Covenant 2. We have an interest in this appellation of Priests by vertue of our union with Christ being one with our high Priest we also are Priests there is a twofold union between Christ us the one by his taking upon him our nature the other by bestowing on us his Spirit for as in his Incarnation he took upon him our flesh and bloud by the work of the Spirit so in our regeneration he bestoweth on us his flesh and blood by the operation of the same spirit yea so strict is this latter union which we have with Christ that as the former is truly said to be a union of two natures into one person so this of many persons into one nature for by it we are made partakers of the divine nature 2 Pet. 1. 4. becoming members of his body of his flesh and of his bones Ephes. 5. 30. we are so parts of him of his mysticall body that we and he become thereby as it were one Christ for as the body is one and hath many members and all the members of that one body being many are one body so is Christ 1 Cor. 12. 12. and the ground of this is because the same spirit is in him and us in him indeed dwelleth the fulnesse of it when it is bestowed upon us onely by measure but yet it is still the same spirit and so makes us according to his own prayer one with him as the soul of man being one makes the whole body with it to be but one man two men cannot be one because they have two souls no more could we be one with Christ were it not the same spirit in him and us now let a man be never so big or tall that his feet rest upon the earth and his head reach to heaven yet having but one soul he is still but one man now though Christ for the present in respect of our nature assumed be never so far remote and distant from us in heaven yet by the effectuall energie and inhabitation of the same spirit he is still the head of that one body whereof we are members still but one with us Hence ariseth to us a twofold right to the title of Priests 1. Because being in him and members of him we are accounted to have done in him and with him whatsoever he hath done for us we are buried with Christ Rom. 6. 4. dead with him v. 8. quickned together with Christ Ephes. 2. 5. being raised up we sit together with him in heavenly places v. 6. risen with him Colos. 3. 1. now all these in Christ were in some sence Sacerdotall wherefore we having an interest in their performance by reason of that heavenly participation derived from them unto us and being united unto him that in them was so properly are therefore called Priests Secondly by vertue of this union there is such an analogie between that which Christ hath done for us as a Priest and what he worketh in us by his holy spirit that those acts of ours come be called by the same name with his we for them to be termed Priests Thus because Christs death and shedding of his blood so offering up himself by the eternall spirit was a true proper sacrifice for sin even our spirituall death unto sin is described to be such both in the nature of it to be an offering or sacrifice for I beseech you Brethren saith S. Paul that you offer up your bodies a living sacrifice holy c. Rom. 12. 1. and for the manner of it our old man is crucified with him that the body of sin might be destroyed Rom. 6. 6. Thirdly we are Priests as we are Christians or partakers of an holy unction whereby we are annointed to the participation of all Christs glorious Offices we are not called Christians for nothing if truly we are so then have we an unction from the holy one whereby we know all things 1 Ioh. 2. 20. and thus also were all Gods people under the old Covenant when God gave that caution concerning them Touch not my CHRISTIANS and do my Prophets no harm Psal. 105. 15. the unction then of the holy spirit implies a participation of all those endowments which were typified by the anointing with oyl in the old Testament and invests us with the priviledges in a spirituall acceptation of all the sorts of men which then were so anointed to wit of Kings Priests and Prophets so that by being made Christians every one is not so that bears that name we are ingrafted into Christ and do attain to a kinde of holy and intimate Communion with him in all his glorious Offices in that regard are called Priests Fourthly the sacrifices we are injoyned to offer give ground to this appellation now they are of divers sorts though all in generall Eucharisticall as first of prayers and thanksgivings Psa. 116 17. I will offer unto thee the sacrifice of thanksgiving and will call upon the name of the Lord And again Let my prayer be set before thee as Incense and the lifting up of my hands be as the evening sacrifice Psa. 141. 2. so Heb. 13. 14. Therefore let us offer unto God the sacrifice of praise that is

might administer the Communion but endlesse are the arguments that might be multiplied against this fancy In a word if our Saviour Christ be the God of order he hath left his Church to no such confusion Thirdly that to appoint time and place for the doing of that which God hath appointed indefinitely to be done in time and place rather commends then vitiates the duty so did Jobs friends in the duty of comforting the afflicted they made an appointment together to come and comfort him Job 2. 11. and so did they Zech. 8. 21. and so did David Psal. 119. 62. Fourthly There is much difference betweene opening or interpreting the word and applying the word upon the advantage of such an approved interpretation as also betweene an authoritative act or doing a thing by vertue of speciall office and a charitable act or doing a thing out a motion of Christian love Fifthly It may be observed concerning gifts First that the gifts and graces of Gods Spirit are of two sorts some being bestowed for the sanctification of Gods people some for the edification of his Church some of a private alley looking primarily inwards to the saving of his soule on whom they are bestowed though in their fruits also they have a relation and habitude to others other some ayming at the common wealth or profit of the whole Church as such of the first sort are those mentioned Gal. 5. 22 23. The fruit of the Spirit is love joy peace c. with all other graces that are necessary to make the man of God perfect in all holinesse and the feare of the Lord the other are those {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} spirituall gifts of teaching praying prophe●ying mentioned 1 Cor. 14. and in other places Secondly That all these gifts comming down from the Father of lights are given by the same Spirit dividing to every one as he will 1 Cor. 12. 11. he is not tied in the bestowing of his gifts to any sort estate calling or condition of men but worketh them freely as it pleaseth him in whom he will the Spirit there mentioned is that God which worketh all things according to the counsell of his owne will Ephes. 1. 11. they are neither deserved by our goodnesse nor obtained by our endeavours Thirdly That the end why God bestoweth these gifts on any is meerely that within the bounds of their owne calling in which they are circumscribed 1 Cor. 1. 24. they should use them to his glory and the edification of his Church For the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withall 1 Cor. 12. 7. Christ gives none of his talents to be bound up in napkins but expects his owne with increase and from these considerations it is easily discernable both what the people of God distinct from their Pastors in a well ordered Church may do in this kinde whereof we treate and how in generall then I assert That for the improving of knowledge the increasing of Christian charity for the furtherance of a strict and holy communion of that spirituall love and amity which ought to be amongst the brethren they may of their owne accord assemble together to consider one another to provoke unto love and good works to stir up the gifts that are in them yeilding and receiving mutuall consolation by the fruits of their most holy faith Now because there be many Vzzahs amongst us who have an itching desire to be fingring of the Arke thinking more highly of themselves then they ought to thinke and like the ambitious sons of Levi taking too much upon them it will not be amisse to give two cautions deducted from the former rules First that they doe not under a pretence of Christian liberty and freedome of conscience cast away all brotherly amity and cut themselves off from the communion of the Church Christ hath not purchased a liberty for any to rent his body they will prove at length to be no duties of piety which breake the sacred bonds of charity Men ought not under a pretence of congregating themselves to serve their God separate from their brethren neglecting the pnblick Assemblies as was the manner of some rebuked by the Apostle Heb. 10. 25. there be peculiar blessings and transcendent priviledges annexed to publick Assemblies which accompany not private men to their recesses the sharp-edged sword becomes more keene when set on by a skilfull master of the Assemblies and when the water of the word flowes there the spirit of God moves upon the face thereof to make it effectuall in our hearts What despise you the Church of God 1 Cor. 11. 22. Secondly As the Ministry so also ought the Ministers to have that regard respect and obedience which is due to their labours in that sacred Calling Would we could not too frequently see more puffed up with the conceit of their owne gifts into a contempt of the most learned and pious Pastors these are spots in your Feasts of charity clouds without water carried about of winds It must doubtlesse be an evill roote that bringeth forth such bitter fruit Wherefore let not our brethren fall into this condemnation lest there be an evill report raised by them that are without But remember them who have the rule over you who have spoken unto you the word of God Heb. 13. 7. there is no greater evidence of the heavenly improvement you make by your recesses then that you obey them that are guides unto you and submit your selves for they watch for you soules as they that must give an account that they may do it with joy and not with griefe for that is unprofitable for you ver. 17. Let not them who despise a faithfull painfull Minister in publick flatter themselves with hope of a blessing on their endeavours in private Let them pretend what they will they have not an equall respect unto all Gods ordinances Wherefore that the comming together in this sort may be for the better and not for the worse observe these things Now for what gifts that are as before freely bestowed whose exercise is permitted unto such men so assembled I meane in a private family or two or three met {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} in one And first we may name the gift of prayer whose exercise must not be exempted from such Assemblies if any be granted these are the times wherein the Spirit of grace and supplications is promised to be poured out upon the Jerusalem of God Zech. 12. 10. Now God having bestowed the gift and requiring the duty his people ought not to be hindred in the performance of it are all those precepts to pray in the Scriptures onely for our Closets when the Church was in distresse for the imprisonment of Peter there was a meeting at the house of Mary the mother of John Act. 12. 12. manie were gathered together praying saith the text A sufficient warrant for the people of God in like cases the Churches