Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n
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A28581
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A brief account of the first rise of the name Protestant and what Protestantism is ... / by a professed enemy to persecution.
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Bold, S. (Samuel), 1649-1737.
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1688
(1688)
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Wing B3477; ESTC R16825
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36,552
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49
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our Principle which doth affirm that the Holy Scriptures are the Only Rule by which Christians are to govern themselves in all Matters of Religion But yet we affirm their doing this would not really advantage their Cause because the same Formal difference would remain betwixt them and us after as before for though we should be obliged on their exhibiting such proof for some particular Revelation which should warrant and oblige to own and use some Doctrine or Practice at present in dispute betwixt us yet the agreement which would then seem to be betwixt them and us in that particular would only be material and not formal because we should then own the Doctrine or Practice what is injoyned purely because taught and commanded by a Divine Revelation throughly evidenced And they would own the Doctrine or Practice the Duty injoyned purely because taught and commanded by a meer Humane Authority which they are pleased to name Infallible And it will not be to any purpose for them to undertake a more quick dispatch in this matter by talking of an Infallible Judge for he cannot be Judge and Rule too There must be Divine Revelation which must be the Rule for their Infallible Judge to exercise and imploy his Infallible Judgment about And seeing all their attempts to prove their Infallible Judge by Scripture have been very unfortunate and without success I may take it for granted when once they have agreed together and found out their Infallible Judge their best proof that that Person or Body of Men which ever they shall agree upon is a Judge and an Infallible Judge in Matters of Religion must be some new Revelation or some old Tradition never hitherto known to be a Divine Revelation for we must have better proof than any that has yet been offered on the behalf of any of their Traditions before we can entertain them as Divine Revelations And when they have well proved that Tradition and its Divine Authority which shall fix and settle their Infallible Judge they must still be at the trouble and pains to produce very substantial proof for every other Tradition they will make a part of the Christian Rule For the Authority of their Infallible Judge will not do here because his Infallibility does not reach to make nor declare a Rule but is purely concerned about the true sense and meaning of an acknowledged Rule when Controversies do arise about the importance of any Expressions contained in that Rule But besides all this Protestants have such evidence as doth create certain assurance that the Holy Scriptures are fully Perfect to instruct and direct Believers in all matters of Religion and do contain all those Divine Revelations God hath appointed to be of necessary and perpetual Use unto his Church greater evidence cannot be desired than the express Witness Testimony and Declaration of the unerring Spirit of the Faithful and True God. And this we have most plainly to the unavoidable and full Conviction of every honest piously disposed ingenious and unprejudiced Person who really owns and believes the Holy Scriptures are the Word of God And this you heard before is the professed Belief of all who profess themselves Christians And if such kind of evidence will not serve peoples turns I must acknowledge they are of a temper I do not much care to deal with for I must confess I am no preat admirer of booted blunderbus Apostles nor do I think he makes any real Proselites who only dragoon's Men into a Perswasion I never lik'd murthering Men for Religion nor persecuting Men because their Consciences would not stretch to every body's phancy I think whil'st the Scriptures are acknowledged on all sides to be Divine Revelations the greatest and best evidence we can have in matters of Religion is plain and express Scripture And if in all our Disputes with our Adversaries we did strictly keep within this compass we should guard and maintain our owe Cause the better and wound our Adversaries Cause the more fatally not but that I am very sensible we have Antiquity the Fathers rhe Primitive Writers and the most General Councils on our side either expresly or by way of silence thereby certifying us that no such Points were known or in question in those days But alas by having ordinary recourse to the Fathers c. we mightily gratifie our Adversaries for hereby they get out of the immediate reach of the Sword of the Spirit And all the Testimonies of Antiquity taken together in their own strength will not do rhe thousandth part of that execution against a Heresy as one plain and express Scripture will. Besides how often do we see that when the greatly Read and Learned on both sides do fall together by the Ears over the Fathers they lengthen the Dispute beyond measure and not only bewilder the Hearer or Reader but even themselves too that by the time they are got half through the Dispute they have well night forgot what it was they began to dispute about And having slipt into this digression I may even adventure to hint one digression more relating to the common way of managing Controversies with our Adversaries the Romanists It may be if it be well inquired into it may appear that we do not ordinarily proceed in our Controversial Discourses with them in that free and ingenious manner we ought but do too much limit and straighten our selves According to that little measure of apprehension I have it seems to me most expedient and most proper for us in opposing our Adversaries to maintain Protestantism or the Protestant Doctrines both really and professedly as such and not to pinnion our selves by pretending to maintain them as Taught or Owned by particular Communions The Cause is a common Cause and the Arguments we can truly maintain it with are common Arguments one Party is no more interested in them than another nor do the Matters in dispute amongst our selves concern the Controversies betwixt us and our Common Adversaries Why should we so affect and hug our selves in our private Notions and particular Differences as to please our selves with or at least receive and keep up the unreasonable Remembrance of them Indeed I do acknowledge the candor of our Adversaries in that they have not improved the advantage they might have taken to have made some Tragical Appearances by falling upon us with reference to this very matter of undertaking to maintain Protestant Doctrines meerly as owned by a particular Party for what doth this properly import but that we relinquish the Common Principle and undertake only to maintain our Doctrines not by the Scripture as the General and Only Rule of Christian Religion but by the Scripture as limited and bounded by those discriminating Terms and Instances whereby we are distinguished from all others who take the Scripture to be the Only Rule in all Matters of Religion Now will not this if insisted on make our task the harder and the more confound and perplex our
Controversies But would it not seem odd for a Remonstrant or a Contra-Remonstrant to defend Christianiry or the particular Doctrines of Christianity against Jews or Heathens purely as a Remonstrant or a Contra-Remonstrant For what have their particular differences to do in matters wherein they all agreed and in maintaining of that for which both sides are equally concerned The main of the Controversy betwixt us and those of the Romish Communion is either whether the Holy Scriptures be the Only Rule in all Matters of Religion Or whether those particular Doctrines wherein they and we do differ have warrant from the Scriptures And what need we intreating on these points to interest any discriminating notions amongst our selves As far as we do agree let us walk by the same Rule Besides by concerning our selves for Protestantism and Protestant Doctrines even in opposition to our Adversaries in common as fixing the Scriptures to be the Only Rule and that our particular Doctrine have plain warrant from the Scripture and those we oppose are either contrary to the Scriptures or have no warrant at all from thence we are excused from any obligation to trouble our selves with defending any unwary or less proper expressions which may have slipt from particular Parties or particular Persons in declaring their sense of particular Doctrines for whether they exprest themselves properly or no or whether their opinion were right or no is not at all material to the Controversy betwixt those of the Church of Rome and us For if any Parties or single Persons have declared their sense and opinions concerning any Doctrine or matter of Practice either that their opinion doth accord with Scripture or it doth not if it do it is the Protestant Doctrine if it do not it is not a Protestant Doctrine and so it doth not at all affect us since we own that persons professing themselves Protestants may mistake as well as we do declare our assurance that those who have been named Infallible in another Communion have erred most grieviously But this we affirm that so far as any do keep strictly and closely to the Holy Scriptures they cannot mistake And Protestants have no real concern to vindicate any Party or Person any further than they do keep unto the Scripture But now to return from these digressions unto what was said before viz. That Protestants have such evidence as doth create certain assurance that the Holy Scriptures are fully perfect to instruct and direct Believers in all matters of Religion and do contain all those Divine Revelations God hath appointed to be of necessary and perpetual use unto his Church I need not relate the whole evidence that might be produced on this occasion I will therefore content my self with these two particulars relating to this matter which certainly must sway powerfully with them who are under an influence which is truly Religious The first is this 1. That the Holy Spirit of God hath expresly declared that the Holy Scriptures are compleat and perfect to all the ends and purposes of Divine Revelations Hear how large and particular the Holy Spirit of God is in declaring the Fullness and Perfection of the Scriptures 2 Tim. 3. 15 16 17. And that from a Child thou hast known the Holy Scriptures which are able to make thee wise unto Salvation through Faith which is in Christ Jesus All Scripture is given by Inspiration of God and is profitable for Doctrine for Reproof for Correction for Instruction in Righteousness that the Man of God may be Perfect throughly furnished unto all Good Works 2. The same Holy Spirit hath solemnly devoted to the most dreadful Curse of Almighty God whomsoever shall be so arrogant and presumptuous as to offer any other Doctrine besides what the Holy Scriptures do teach as a Divine Revelation Gal. 1. 8. But though we or an Angel from Heaven preach any other Gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you let him be accursed Now if people will pretend to produce other Divine Revelations which God hath appointed to be of perpetual use to his Church either those must invalidate these Holy Scriptures or else these Holy Scriptures must invalidate them they cannot consist well together If we will own and stick to the Holy Scriptures we must reject whatever additional Discoveries shall be produced because the Spirit hath in these Scriptures excluded them What hath been discoursed concerning the evidence Protestants have for their great and main Principle may justly promt to take notice of two things 1. That they who would hinder and discourage people from reading and studying the Holy Scriptures do give them just occasion to suspect that they have none of the honestest and most commendable designs to manage We are very certain the Holy Prophets of God the Lord Jesus Christ and his Apostles were Persons beloved of God and Persons who were greatly concerned for Peoples Spiritual Welfare and we are as certain that these were very much and in good earnest in pressing exciting and perswading the common sort of People to read and study the Scriptures they command them in the Name of God to read and learn the Scriptures and those Revelations of the Mind of God which were communicated unto them read Deut. 31. 11 12 13. Deut. 6. 6 7 8 9. John 5. 39. Col. 3. 16. Nay does not the design and end for which God hath made his Will known and caus'd it to be committed to Writing manifest and prove our Duty evidently enough For what end hath God given the Holy Scriptures unto his Church and People Are we not assured that the Scriptures were written for our Learning for our Instruction for our Admonition c. And must we not read them then How will they answer these ends if we must not consult them Were not the Scriptures written for our Learning that we through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have Hope Read and consider Rom. 15. 4. Have we not then too much ground to suspect that those who would take or keep our Bibles from us are Enemies to our Faith Patience Comfort Hope and Happiness Is not the Word of God that Sword of the Spirit with which we are to defend our selves and worst our Spiritual Enemies Ephes 6. 17. And now what reason have we to take them for our Friends who would lay us open and expose us Naked to the Assaults of Sathan and his Instruments The Holy Penmen of the Scriptures did by the direction of the Blessed Spirit commend People for applying themselves to the Holy Scriptures and endeavouring to improve in the knowledge of them See Psal 1. 2. Act. 17. 11. Act. 18. 24. 2 Tim. 3. 15. And it is certain that the People of God of every rank and condition under the Old Testament Dispensation were obliged by Especial Appointment from God to take care to read and labour after a continual Increase in the knowledge of the Scriptures Now can we imagine that God having given