Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n
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A61806
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The lay-Christian's obligation to read the Holy Scriptures
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Stratford, Nicholas, 1633-1707.
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1687
(1687)
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Wing S5934; ESTC R20560
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25,603
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42
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THE Lay-Christian's OBLIGATION To Read The Holy Scriptures Imprimatur H. Maurice R mo P. D. Wilhelmo Archiep Cant. Ã Sacris Decemb. 10. 1686. LONDON Printed for Richard Chiswell at the Rose and Crown in S. Paul's Church-Yard MDCLXXXVII COLOSS. III. 16. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all Wisdom WHich words are an intire Precept of themselves those which follow in the same Verse teaching and admonishing c. being another distinct from it As preparatory to that which I intend from them I shall premise these two things First To whom this Precept is address'd Secondly What is the import of the Duty here injoyn'd 1. The persons to whom the Precept is address'd were the Saints and faithful Brethren in Christ that were at Coloss for to them the Epistle is directed c. 1. v. 2. That is all the Christians at Coloss of what order or quality soever For these titles Saints and faithful Brethren were not confined to any one order of Men but vouchsafed in common to all Christians * Who were all call'd Saints as they were by Baptism separated from the idolatrous World and consecrated to the service of the true God Brethren as by Regeneration and Adoption they were all become the Sons of that one God and Father Faithful as they persever'd in that profession notwithstanding all Temptations to the contrary It cannot therefore be question'd but that this Command was given to the Laity as well as the Clergy Yea to the Laity rather than the Clergy because it doth not appear that there were more than two Church-men at Coloss at the time when this Epistle was directed to them namely Archippus and Philemon for Epaphras by whom they had been first converted to the Christian Faith was now in bonds with S. Paul at Rome Phil. 23. 2. The Duty here enjoyn'd these Lay-Christians is That the word of Christ dwell in them richly in all Wisdom Though by the word of Christ is meant more especially that word which was at first spoken by Christ himself in person and afterward confirm'd by his Apostles yet it is not to be confin'd to that alone but extended to that also which was long before deliver'd by Moses and the Prophets For since Moses and the Prophets not only spake of Christ but it was also the Spirit of Christ by which they spake as 1 Pet. 1. 11. S. Peter expresly tells us the word spoken by them was no less the word of Christ than that which was preach'd by Christ himself In brief the whole divinely inspired Scripture is the word of Christ both as he is the Author and the principal scope and matter of it Now what is the Duty these Lay-Christians are exhorted to with respect to this word of Christ Is it not to read it Not to give it room so much as in their houses No but to give it entertainment in their Hearts To let it dwell in them to let it dwell in them richly to let it dwell in them richly in all Wisdom 1. That it dwell in them It is not said dwell with but more emphatically dwell in them Which denotes especially That they accustom themselves to the attentive reading and study of it till it become their Intimate and Familiar be habitually present to their minds as frequently and upon all occasions in their thoughts as a person is in the house in which he dwells Though a Man may perhaps have but little converse with those who dwell in the same House with him yet he can be no more estrang'd from that which dwells in him than he can from his own thoughts and inclinations 2. Nor will it suffice That it barely dwell in them but it must dwell in them richly which may have respect both to the word it self Let the word dwell richly and to the subject in which it dwells Let it dwell in you richly 1. To the word it self It is not enough that it dwell in them sparingly that they give entertainment to a passage here and there which best complyes with their own Humors but they must entertain it indifferently one part with another The Commands must be received with the like readiness as the Promises Nor must they think by admitting one Command to compound with God for the rejection of another but those Commands must be looked upon as worthy of all acceptation which most directly contradict their most beloved lusts 2. To the subject in which it dwells It must not as a Sojourner be confined to a single room to some one power of the Soul as it is in too many who give it entertainment in their understandings but suffer it to have no place in their Wills and Affections but it must be admitted into and make its abode in every Faculty in the Mind to enlighten it in the Conscience to awaken it in the Will to bow it to an humble submission to the Divine Will. It must take possession of the whole Man like as Leven to which the Gospel is compared diffuses it self thorough the whole lump For 3. In both these respects it must dwell in them so plenteously as to enrich them not only with some one kind of Wisdom but with all Wisdom To bring them to the Knowledge Belief and Practice of whatsoever is required to make them compleatly happy for ever For that alone is accounted Wisdom in the Scripture sense by which a Man is made wise to Salvation All other Wisdom in comparison with this being but a more creditable piece of Folly. From the words thus explained many Doctrines are clearly deducible As. 1. That it is the Duty of Lay-Christians to acquaint themselves with the holy Scriptures This is plain because they are here commanded to let the word of Christ dwell in them 2. That the holy Scriptures contain all things necessary to Salvation This is also as evident For where a Man may learn not only Wisdom but all Wisdom there can be nothing wanting that is necessary to Salvation 3. That all things necessary to Salvation are so clearly contain'd in the holy Scriptures that the common sort of Christians may attain to the understanding of them For how can the word dwell in them in all Wisdom if any part of that Wisdom which is necessary to Salvation be so obscurely express'd that they cannot understand the meaning of it The first of these is that which I intend at present to insist upon viz. The obligation that lies upon Lay-Christians to acquaint themselves with the holy Scriptures This is the least that can be hence inferr'd since without this the Scriptures cannot be said to dwell in them much less to dwell in them richly and in all Wisdom But though this is so plainly contain'd in the words that nothing can be more yet because it is a Duty not only question'd by some but expressly denied by others I shall therefore confirm it by other such arguments as may be of force not only to convince your Judgments
is obliged to search into them IV. And for the Commandments especially let it be further consider'd That there are some Commands laid upon Lay-men as well as others which no Man can be capable of yielding obedience to who is not conversant in the Holy Writings I shall instance in three only 1. To instruct their Children in the Scriptures 2. To try the Spirits whether they be of God. 3. To give a reason of the hope that is in them 1. To instruct their Children in the knowledge of the Scriptures This God commanded the Israelites in the place frorecited The words which I command thee this day shall be See also Deut. 4. 9. and chap. 32. 46. in thine heart and thou shalt teach them diligently to thy Children Of the like import is S. Paul's injunction to Christian Parents To bring up their Children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. Hear what S. Chrysostom says upon these words Wouldst thou have thy Son obedient nurse him up from the beginning in the instruction and admonition of the Lord. Think it not more than needful that he hear the Divine Scriptures for there he will first hear this lesson Honour thy Father and thy Mother Say not that this belongs to Monks why dost thou fear that which is greatly gainful make him a Christian For it is most necessary for those who converse with the World to know those lessons which are to be learnt from thence especially for Children And a little after he adds Let us make them from their childhood to apply themselves to the reading of the Scriptures And can a Parent instruct his Children in the Scriptures who does not study them himself 2. To try the Spirits whether they be of God. This 1 Joh. 4. 1. S. John commands not only Bishops and Priests but all sorts of Christians to do By Spirits are meant the Teachers who pretend to divine inspiration but now because it cannot ordinarily be discerned whether the Teachers are of God but by the tryal of what they teach they are therefore first to try the Doctrines and as they find them either true or false to conclude the Teacher either a true or a false Prophet Now the Scriptures being the Rule by which Doctrines are to be tried how can a Man make this tryal who is not acquainted with them Yea should we suppose that the Scriptures are not the entire Rule as the present Church of Rome in contradiction to the antient Church and the Scriptures themselves teaches but stand in need of unwritten Traditions to supply their defects yet since the Romanists still grant them to be the Rule of all those Doctrines they extend to that whatsoever Doctrine is deliver'd in them is infallibly true whatsoever is contrary to any Doctrine deliver'd in them is certainly false It plainly follows that no Man can be qualified for the tryal of Doctrines who is a stranger to them because no Man can know what Doctrines are either contrary or agreeable to the Scriptures before he knows what are contain'd in them 3. To give a reason of the Hope that is in them Be 1 Pet. 3. 15. ready always says S. Peter to give an answer to every one that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you When your Religion is opposed and persecuted be ready not only to confess it but to give a reason to every one that requires it why you are Christians And what reason can a Man who knows not the Scriptures give why he is a Christian rather than a Mahometan unless the very same that a Turk can give why he is a Mahometan rather than a Christian viz. That he had the good fortune to be born and bred in a Nation where the Christian Religion was in fashion To conclude this argument In that God commands those things to be done by Lay-men which no Man can do without the knowledge of the Scriptures he also commands them to acquaint themselves with the Scriptures As he that requires the end he also requires the use of those means without which it cannot be obtained V. The uses and ends to which the Holy Scriptures are by God designed are a sufficient proof of Lay-mens obligation to acquaint themselves with them 'T is true some parts of Scripture were intended for the use of Teachers and others of Hearers consider'd as such on purpose to instruct them in those Duties which belong to them as so distinguished the one from the other But besides those Texts which are proper to them with respect to their different ranks and stations the uses to which the Scriptures are design'd are such which respect Men in common both Laity and Clergy of what degree or quality soever Such are in the general To teach and instruct us in those things by which we may be made wise to Salvation S. Paul tells us That whatsoever things were written Rom. 15. 4. aforetime were written for our learning And if whatsoever was written by Moses and the Prophets to those who lived before Christ came in the flesh to reveal the will of God more fully and clearly to us was written not only for their learning but for ours too how much more whatsoever is written since by the Apostles and Evangelists this being written for our learning only and not for theirs More particularly They are design'd to teach us what is necessary for us to know and believe and do that we may be saved These Joh. 20. 31. things are written says S. John that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ the Son of God and that believing ye might have life through his name And these things have I written 1 Joh. 2. 1. to you that ye sin not To this purpose they teach us not only our Duty in general but what are those sins in particular that are to be avoided and those good works which God hath ordained that we should walk in and are admirably suted to the begetting and promoting of all those heavenly virtues by which we may be disposed and enabled to deny all sorts of ungodliness and worldly lusts and to live soberly righteously and godly in this present World that having our fruit unto holiness here our end may be everlasting life In short the word of Christ is the great instrument which God hath ordained for the saving of Souls and therefore it is call'd the Grace of God which bringeth Salvation Tit. 2. 11. Ephes 1. 13. Rom. 1. 24. Jam. 1. 21. the power of God to Salvation to every one that believeth the Gospel of Salvation And certainly no Man can deny that these uses and ends of Holy Scriptures appertain to Lay-men who does not place them in the order of Beasts and deny that they have Souls capable of immortal Bliss Nor were they written to instruct the People as well as Priests in those points only of Faith and Practice which concern them all in common as they are Men and