Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	ghost_n	holy_a	scripture_n	19,615	5	6.1818	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A43822	Nevv lords, nevv lavvs, or, A discovery of a grand usurpation, in opposition to the Holy Laws of God and contempt of the good laws, and royal prerogative of the supream magistrate, as it hath been lately practised by the lordly Matthew Caffin, a pretended true apostle of our blessed Lord and Saviour, and ruling head of his congregation, usually meeting at Southwater near Horsham in Sussex. By R. H.	Haines, Richard, 1633-1685.	1674 (1674)	Wing H202B; ESTC R216445	62,553	67

that which is no less than a Damnable Erroneous Principle For if it be true as you have in words said That the Church of Rome he become a Harlot which once was the Spouse of Christ Then Vsurpation is a Damnable Error For if she had not Usurped Authority to Compel Persons to do and practise more or less then what is by their Supream Lord and Master required and appointed for Discipline and. Government of the Church according to the Holy Scriptures then no doubt but she had continued a true Church unto this day Again If the Church Officers had not through Usurpation been corrupted but had governed the Church according to the Will of our Lord and Saviour revealed in Scripture and not mixt their own Inventions with Christs Institutions Then doubtless the Officers of the Church of Rome had still deserved the Honour to be stiled The Holy Successors of the Holy Apostles But if as you say by usurpation she be now come a VVhore and her Officers none of Christs Ministers Then I infer that Usurpation is a Damnable Sin For ever since such Usurpation her Officers are ceased to be the holy Successors of the Apostles and are become the Antichristian Successors of Usurpers Tyran●s and Murtherers and notorious Enemies to all true Christian Emperours Kings and Princes Whence 't is evident that Usurpation is a Damnable destroying Sin and most dangerous to Church and State But you may possibly say That Usurpation cannot be the greatest and most damnable Sin since it is the Sin of the Holy Ghost that is the greatest Sin and never to be forgiven To which I answer That the Sin committed against the Holy Ghost in my opinion is that Sin only which is committed under the highest degree of saving means to wit God by his holy Spirit and Word opposing and the person persevering in his intended wickedness so that whether it be the Sin of Usurpation Rebellion Tyranny Hypocriste Idolatry c. any of these may thus be committed against the Holy Ghost and so become impardonable And therefore my Brethren look to your Consciences if Baal be God serve him but if the Lord be God how dare you go beyond his Word and unerring Rule Believe not trust not the best of men in matters of Religion in any thing that is not according to the Word of the Lord remember that a man of God was torn in pieces by a Lyon because he believed one who was not as then a Prophet an Example worthy the observation of those that incline to trust any private man rather than the Word of God Be no longer deluded Oh ye my Beloved although unkind Friends and bear with me for endeavoring at once to defend my own Innocent Just Cause and shew you your Delusions and how you are Betray'd For hath he not corrupted your Authority and Government so as to render it to be Lordly Arbitrary and Tyrannical contrary to the Will and Mind of Christ whom you suppose is the Head of your Church Yea and I do also believe That you think that you Act under Christ by vertue of Authority and Commission received from Him only and not otherwise which if really true then are you the true Church or part of the true Church and so ought to go no further than the Lords Commission which so long as you observe you are undoubtedly his beloved Children and true Subjects to him here and such as shall Reign with him in his Kingdom forever which I also believe is your hope and expectation And to this you are often encouraged by your pretended true Apostle and to believe that the Order of his present Government will bring you to this happy estate But if like a pretended Angel or Light he with smooth Words and hypocritical Speeches and Pretences of Tender Love to you and Honour to the Church have led you out of this good way and order in which you might stand and remain in safety and hath inveigled you into a Government under which you are become Servants to another Master and Rebels to Him whom you conceit you serve and honour like those grievous Transgressors of whom the Lord complains Isaiah 58. 2. Yet they seek me daily and delight to know my ways as a Nation that did Righteousness and forsook not the Ordinance of their God They ask of me the Ordinance of Justice they take delight in approaching to God What I pray have you done more than they Oh! that you would lay it to heart and consider Whether you are not as much deluded as they were Which if so Then beware of vain Confidence and be sure that you are in danger wherefore for your Reformation I pray consider First That you ought to do nothing in obedience to your true Lord and Master but what you believe is your duty because Whatsoever is not of Faith is Sin Secondly That your Faith and Belief hath a firm and sure Foundation for what you do and especially for what you do compel in matter of Religion otherwise your Building may come to sudden ruine Add not therefore sin to sin but haste haste for Reformation apply yourselves to the Law and to the Testimonies In case he compells person to submit to his or your Wills without that Authority then know It is because his pretended Holiness is turned into VVickedness Haste then I say and do Justice when by the Lord it is required of you although it be to the cutting off of your right hand when by reason of a Gangrening malignant distemper it is destructive to the whole Body But if notwithstanding all that I have said you are so strongly deluded that he cannot appear in your Judgments a Rebel and an Usurper Then tell me I pray who it is gave him Commission and Authority to Accuse Condemn Judge and pass sentence against a member of the Church for that which is no Transgression and not suffer him to plead his Cause with the Congregation whom in words you declare are the proper Judges or reason with those that were offended in order to give them Satisfaction But contrary to the way of peace and peace-makers perpetually to Interpose with malicious Agravations So that we were not suffered to propose any Terms of Reconciliation each to other Do you verily believe Christ gave him Commission to Exercise this Arbitrary Government If you do shew me good grounds for such your faith and I will believe it also otherwise remember the Popes Acts of Tyranny are of as good Authority as yours and he as honest as your Apostle and not half so much an Hypocrite Secondly Who requires you to be so Slavishly at the dispose of this pretended Apostle as through his Instigation to Condemn a member before ever it was proved that he had Transgressed any known Law wronged Man Woman or Child or ever dispised any Admonition or indeed that he was ever so much as Admonished at all by any Two persons or that there ever was any occasion

be severely dealt with If he who is Infallible command you to approve of a Usurped Authority and disown all other Government to make himself only your Confessor to murther and destroy Kings Emperors or Princes or any other Persons to believe that the Bread and Wine after Consecration is really and substantially the Body and Blood of our blessed Saviour Believe and perform it you must or else be Damn'd And all the Congregation must say Amen But if some of the Services are too hard if you can but purchase as much kindness of him as your New Lord hath for his Kinswoman you then may have Pardon or Indulgence without Penance Obj. But now I suppose you will say although He nor we had no Scripture Authority for what he and we have done yet we do not pretend that he is Iafallible for if you remember you were accused because by the Patent you did offend the weak Brethren and you may call to mind That our dear Brother did prove that whatever did offend the weak Brethren If the Offender persist in justifying the thing although in it self lawful and honest and no way relating to Religion or Religious Worship ought to be punisht and because you did persist we therefore at his Request gave our Consents that you should be Damn'd except you submit although you might not know who those weak Brethren were To which I answer That by what hath been pretended and practised you would have me believe that it is the weak Brethren that are Infallible for otherwise you would not send a man to Hell for offending them that are subject to a quarrelsome boundless humour What your Apostle said I remember pretty well but that he proved his groundless Affertions I cannot so easily grant for let me tell you this is one of his Popeships New cheats by which his Police is Improved the better to seduce you so as to give him occasion to boast and rejoyce in his unlimited Power and admirable Greatness For now it is So that his and his weak Brethrens Power and Authority is equal with the Usurped Power and Authority of his pretended Infallible Brethren at Rome For now he and they may Damn whom they please and for what they please except they submit for what they please shall offend them But I knowing that many of you notwithstanding all his new Devices Tricks and Deceits do really believe that still his design is good and his heart towards God perfect and upright I therefore in Love to regain you am as it were constrained to shew you what great dangers this groundless Belief is attended with The best of those who was Seduced by Pope Innocent John the Taylor King of Leyden that pretended holy man Hacket or any other the greatest Deceivers that ever were in the Church were drawn in by this Bait viz. A Belief that although they might Act strangely and practise things without Scripture Authority yet their design was to promote Gods Glory and that his heart was upright Be wise now therefore and remember that the most Vnerring and Infallible Rule is without him not within him by that try his heart bring the counterfeit Gold to the Touchstone and whatever out of fondness or excess of Charity you may have Believed compare the same with that of Solomon and who knows but you may find it appear so after all his pious pretences and solemn Protestations viz. That his Heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked who can know it But if you will shut your eyes and be still seduced to Believe that whatever he does is for Gods glory c. What may he not allure and draw you unto having already brought you meerly on his request to commit spiritual Murther and most uncharitably and unjustly Damn a man without the least Authority from Scripture Dare any of you my Beloved though most unmerciful Brethren say that his Precepts and your Practises are Authorized by the most High Do they not rather look like the hair-brain'd Proclamations of John of Leyden or the Extravagancies of a Popish Bull Do you own the holy Scriptures for the only and Infallible rule for Church Government Worship and Religious Exercises search then I pray peruse them diligently and if you find not his Commission for what he hath done therein Recorded you have too much cause to believe that you are Betrayed and if so look to your selves delays are dangerous Hast to the work keep close to your unerring Rule and eber remember that Councel of Christ Beware of false Prophets which come in Sheeps Cloathing but inwardly are ravenous Wolves Te shall know them by their Fruits Therefore see his Commission But suppose he should solemnly Protest That he is led by the Spirit yet as I wish the worst of you well let me beg of you to remember That the Spirit of the Lord doth not contradict his own will and mind revealed in Scrip●ure Be not too confident consider that others like himself and his Confederates did in their wickednss lean upon the Lord and say Is not the Lord amongst us No evil can come upon us Is not the Case plain hath he not deceived and abused you at his pleasure through and by reason of his pretences to an extraordinary Zeal and unheard of Love And may not all good people whose eyes are not blinded with partiality easily see his Commissions and Authoritie by which he acted as aforesaid proceeds from the Devil the Father of Usurpers Rebels and Tyrants the Authorizer of all wickedness whereby he may destroy Christian Peace both of Church and State and will you condemn the Pope as his only darling Child for putting in Execution his devises and yet justifie him that doth the same thing at Home are they not Brethren serving one Master both Usurping Tyrants and will you separate from one here and yet receive your Portion with them both hereafter If so Then I say Adieu to you my unkind friends Adieu to you for ever But to prevent the worst I would yet in Love with all plainness further admonish you in hopes that you will hear as your Apostle said VVhat have we to do with the Laws and Statutes of Men So let me intreat you seriously to say Oh! what have we to do any more with Idolls Consider and lay to heart what an exquisite peice of Cruelty you have committed even offered up a Soul as a Sacrifice to your Idol for since you cannot prove your doings therein were required by or pleasing unto the most high God Is not the thing evident that it was wholly performed to the Solemne Adoration of your Idol who alone commanded and is well pleased with your Actions And further to convince you that he is no true Apostle do but observe I pray what manner of Persons they were he makes choise of above all others to attend his Person and help to defend his Acts of Tyranny when called to London to give an account thereof for