and pleasures and unspotted of the world as freer than other men from a proud a worldly and a covetous mind dividers will despise them and ignorant people will suspect the Cause for their sakes and many unsetled well-meaning persons will fall from them and turn to them that they think live a more strict and pious and humble and charitable life The Ministers Life as well as Doctrine is needful to remedy Schism As men fly from a Carrion or a stinking place in the house so will the people from Priests of a corrupt Conversation Sect. V. 3. And it is necessary 1. That a Preacher be skilled in the particular Controversies that the Church is in danger of 2. And that he skilfully zealously and frequently preach up the necessity and excellency of Unity Love and Peace and the sin and danger of the contraries That men may by right Reason and the Fear of God be taught to make as much Conscience of these as they do of other great Duties and Sins and may not be without preserving Fear Sect. VI. 4. And it is specially necessary that a Preacher know how to deal with the Persons as well as with the Cause and that is not to rail at them and render them shamefull and odious whom he would win nor publickly to expose them to contempt much less to slander abuse or oppress them But with Evidence managed with meekness love and tenderness to convince them and make them feel that all cometh for their own good from unfeigned Love as Musculus won the Anabaptists by feeding and relieving them in Prison till they sought to him for instruction and were disposed to hear it Nature flyeth from hurtful things and persons Had the Enmity been put at first between the Woman and the Serpent Eve had not been so easily seduced Too many Bishops and Preachers go about to cure Schism as a man would bring Birds to the Net or Fishes to the Bait by shouting and throwing Stones at them or as one would get the swarm of Bees into the Hive by beating them or as one that would get a Wife by deriding and railing at her or as a Physician that would get practice by mocking his Patients instead of medicining them Men know better than so how to bring an Oxe to the Yoak or a Horse or Dog to hand or to tame any Bird or Beast that is wild and frightful It 's true that as a Malefactor is hanged for the good of the Common-wealth rather than his own so a desperate seducing Heretick or Divider may be justly rendered as contemptible as he deserveth to keep others from being deceived by him But all that we hope to win must be otherwise used Reproach and disgrace maketh the Medicine so bitter which should be sugared that with one of many it will not go down Scorn and reviling is the way to drive them further from us Sect. VII 5. And Ministers Patience with tolerable Dissenters while they worship God with some difference from them in their own Assemblies is a necessary prevention of worser Schism Thus some peaceable Bishops kept peace and love with the Novatians when others by contrary means made more Schisms As Epiphanius saith Audius by intemperate foolish opposition was driven from the Church What hurt will it do me to let people hear another Teacher whom they preferre before me and can more profit by If I am for Organs for Images for Crossing c. what hurt is it to let others meet and worship God without them But when Preachers have not personal worth to keep up their Reputation and then rail at those that do not value them they do but make themselves more vile And when they are so proud that if people leave them and preferre another they cannot bear it but think to remedy it by making odious or vilifying those that undervalue them they do but as all proud men do even cross and more debase themselves and make that a Schism which was but a personal neglect Sect. VIII 3. And the Christian Magistrate must be a principal Instrument of remedying Schism And very much may he doe by wisdom moderation and right means which I have mentioned before when wrong wayes do but increase the Schism Sect. IX 4. And the ancient and wisest sort of good Christians must be great Instruments herein They must be Examples to the Younger of Love Peace and Concord They must oft tell them how good and amiable a thing it is for Brethren to dwell and meet together in Unity and open the sin and danger of Division Age Grace and Experience mellow and sweeten the Spirits of ripe Christians when the Young are green and harsh and sowre Sect. X. But among all these there are some men in all Ages whom God stirreth up to a special zeal for Christian Concord And though the state of the place and times which they live in or their own weakness may make some of them propose some terms which in better times would be unreasonable as Erasmus Cassander Wicelius and others did yet it is that healing Spirit that must be a prime mover in all the work if ever Concord be obtained Such have been Melâ—ncton Musculus Bucholzer Junius Job Ger. Vâ—ssius Camero Ludovicus Capellus Placaeus Testardus Amâ—raldus Blondell Dallaeus the Breme and British Divines at Dort and by their means the Decrees of the Synod are Pacificatory Calixtus and his Associates Johan Bergius Conrad Bergius Ludov. Crocius Iselburge Archbishop Usher Bishop Hall Bishop Davenant Dr. Ward Dr. Preston Mr. Whately Mr. Fenner Chillingworth and many more But before all John Dury and Mr. Le Blanke As some men that study the Revelations or Chronologie or Genealogies c. are readier in those particular Subjects than other men though of greater parts so they that study the Churches peace and the Concord of differing Christians usually are fitter for that work than others Sect. XI There is one sort of men that have written many things excellently for Peace even the Socinians who being Hereticks have thereby done much harm Divers of them have laid down in general those Rules and Terms which might much have furthered the Churches Peace if the same things had been written by men of Name and Reputation What Acontius was or what Rupertus Meldenius was I am not sure some say they were Socinians and some deny it But I am sure if they were heretical their excellent Precepts for Love and Peace may rise up in judgment against Orthodox Persecutors Schismaticks and Revilers Many that are known to be Socinians have written much for peace and Satan hath made great advantage of it to bring all earnest motions for peace into suspicion so that a man can now scarce write for the retreat of Church-warriours and for the quenching of our consuming flames but he is presently suspected to be guilty of some Heresie and to have specially need of Charity or toleration himself Like the Fox that having lost his Tail would have
all mankind and is very apt to enquire and take knowledge how it goeth with all the world and specially with all the Churches For none can much love and desire that which they mind not or take no thought of And this is the chief News which a true Christian enquireth after whether Gods name be hallowed his Kingdom come and his will be done on Earth as it is done in heaven And of this he is sollicitous even on his death-bed 52. The Vnity of the spirit inclineth men to mourn much for the sects Schisms divisions and discords of believers and to smart in the sense of them as the body does by its wounds And they that bewail them not are so far void of the Vnity of the spirit 53. The Vnity of the spirit helpeth a man greatly to distinguish between wounding and healing Doctrines wounding and healing courses of practice and between wounding and healing persons even as Nature teacheth us to discern and abhor that which would dismember or divide the body as painful and destructive 54. Therefore holy experienced Christians who have most of the Vnity of the spirit are most against the dividing impositions of Church Tyrants and also against the quarrelsom humour and causeless separations of self conceited Singularists whether Dogmatical or superstitious who proudly overvalue their own conceptions forms and modes of worship and doctrine and thence aggravate all that they dislike into the shape of Idolatry Antichristianism false worship or some such hainous sin when the beam of self-conceit and pride in their own eye is worse than the moâ—e of a modall imperfection of words method or matter in anothers eye 55. The Vnity of the spirit inclineth men to hope the best of others till we know it to be untrue and to take more notice of mens vertues than of their faults and love covereth such infirmities as may be covered beareth with one anothers burdens while we consider that we also may be tempted 56. The Vnity of the spirit teacheth and inclineth men to yield for peace and concord to such lawful things whose practice doth truly conduce to unity yea and to give up much of our own right for unity and peace 57. This Love and Vnity of the spirit inclineth men to vigorours Endeavours for concord with all others so that such will not slothfully wish it but diligently seek it They will pursue and follow peace with all men Heb. 12. 14. as far as is possible and as in them lieth Rom. 12. 18. They that are true Peace-lovers are diligent Peace-makers if it be in their power and way 58. This Love and Vnity of the spirit will prevail with the sincere to prosecute it through difficulties and oppositions and to conquer all And it teacheth them at the first hearing to abhor back-biters and slanderous censurers who on pretence of a blind zeal for Orthodoxness or Piety or Purity of worship are ready to reproach those that are not of their mind and way in points where difference is tolerable And when children that are tost up and down and carried to and fro Eph. 4. 14. with every wind of doctrine are presently filled with distast and prejudice when they hear other mens tolerable opinions forms and orders aggravated the right Christian is more affected with displeasure against the self-conceited reproacher who is employed by Satan though perhaps he be a child of God against the Love and Vnity of believers 59. The more any man hath of Love and Vnity of the Spirit the greater matter he maketh of Vniversal Vnity and the more Zealous he is for it A small fire or Candle giveth but a faint and little light and heat and that but a little way But the Sun â—light and heat extendeth to all the surface of the earth and much farther and that so vigorously as to be the life of the things that live on earth so strong love is extensive 60. The more any man hath of Love and the Vnity of the spirit the more resolved and patient he is in bearing any thing for the furthering of Vnity If he must be hated for it or undone for it if his friends censure and forsake him for it If Church Tyrants will ruine him he can joyfully be a Martyr for Love and Vnity If Dogmatists condemn him as an Heretick he can joyfully bear the censure and reproach If blind superstitious persons charge him with Luke-warmness or sinful confederacies or compliance or corrupting Godsâ—worship or such like as their errour leadeth them he can bear evil report and to be made of no reputation and to be slandered and vilisyed by the Learned by the Zealous by his ancient friends rather than forsake the principles affections and practice of Universal Charity Vnity and peace 61. Though Perfection must be desired it is but a very imperfect Unity which can be reasonably hoped for on earth 62. There must go very much wisdom goodness and careful diligence to get and keep Vnity and Peace in our own souls it being that healthful equal temperature and harmony of all within us which few obtain And most have a discord and War or disquiet in themselves But to have a family of such is harder and to have a Church of such yet harder and much more to have a Kingdom of such and a conjunction of such Churches and most of all to bring all the world to such a state And they that have a War in themselves are not fit to be the Peace-making healers of the Church in that degree 63. Yet as every Christian hath so much concord and peace at home as is necessary to his salvation so we may well hope that by just endeavours the Churches may have so much as may preserve the essentials of Christianity and Communion and also may fortifie the Integrals and may much encrease the greatness and glory of the Church and much further holiness and righteousness in its members and remove many of the scandals and sinful contentions which are the great hinderers of piety and are Satans advantages against mans recovery and salvation This much we may seek in hope 64. Despair of success is a an enemy to all pacificatory endeavours and low and narrow designs shew a low Spirit and a little degree of holy love and all other uniting grace 65. An earnest desire of the worlds Conversion and of the bringing in the barbarous ignorant infidels and impious to the knowledge of Christ and a holy life doth shew a large degree of charity and of the Vnity of the spirit which would fain bring in all men to the bond of the same Unity and participation of the same spirit 66. The most publick endeavours therefore of the good of many of Churches of Kingdoms of mankind are the most noble and most beseeming Christianity though it 's possible that an hypocrite may attempt the like to get a name or for other carnal ends 67. And it is very savoury and suitable to the Vnity
Ariminum Sirmium l. 26. for faith r. force p. 8. l. penult for me r. men p. 11. l. 10. for mutual r. mental p. 24. l. antip r. Wotton p. 38. l. 25. r. Councils p. 44. l. 14. r. Saravia Spalatto l. 17. r. Didoclave p. 5. l. 2. r. Pope p. 55. l. 7. r. Persidis p. 59. l. 8. for the r. de p. 64. l. 2. for no r. not p. 119. l. 30. r. Rulers p. 132. l. 12. for that r. the p. 143. l. 9. for it r. is The First Part. The Reasons for Christian Unity and Concord What it is And how much may be hoped for on Earth CHAP. I. The Text opened and the Doctrines and Method proposed EPHES. 4. 3. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Endeavouring or carefully or diligently studying to keep the Vnity of the Spirit in the bond of Peace HAD not the distempers of the minds even of Religious persons and the long and sad divisions and distractions of Christians assured me that this Text is not commonly understood and regarded as the Apostles vehement Exhortation and the importance and reason of the matter do bespeak yea had not the long bleeding wounds of the Church made by its Pastors and most zealous members still cryed out aloud for pity and help I had not chosen this subject at this time But after the complaints and exhortations and tears of the wisest and best men since the days of Christ after the long miseries of the Church and the long and costly experience of all ages the destroying Spirit of division still possesseth the most and maketh some of the possessed to rage and foam tear themselves and all that are in their power it haunteth the holy assemblies and disquieteth the lovers of unity and peace and by the scandals which it raiseth it frighteneth children and unstable persons out of their religion and their wits And therefore after the many books which I have written for Vnity Love and Peace and the many years preaching and praying to that end I find it yet as necessary as ever to Preach on the same Subject and to recite the same things and while I am in this Tabernacle which I must shortly put off to stir you up that after my decease you may have it in remembrance 2 Pet. 1. 12 13 14. And could I persuade the Churches of Christ to seek by fasting and fervent prayer the dispossessing of this distracting Spirit by which only this evil kind goeth out our languishing hopes might yet revive If Paul found it necessary to cry down division and plead for Unity so frequently and so vehemently as he doth to those new planted Churches of Rome Corinth Ephesus Galatia Philippi Thessalonica c. which had been founded by the means of miracles and had so much of the spirit of Unity and Community and had Apostles among them to preserve their peace what wonder if we that are much ignorant of the Apostles minds and of the Primitive pattern and have less of the Spirit have need to be still called upon to study to keep the Vnity of the Spirit in the bond of peace They that preach Twenty or an hundred Sermons for Purity and scarce one with equal Zeal for Vnity and Peace do not sufficiently discern that Purity and Peace are the inseparable fruits of the wisdom from above which live and die together and with them the souls and societies of believers This famous Church of Ephesus is it which Paul Act. 20. had so long laid out his labours in even publickly from house to house night and day with tears which was famous for its greatness and the open profession of Christ where even the price of the vain unlawful books which they openly burnt came to fifty thousand pieces of silver This is the Church that first of the seven is written to by Christ Rev. 2. Whose works labour and patience even without fainting were known and praised by the Lord which proved and disproved the false Apostles which hated the deeds of the Nicolaitans And yet Paul saw cause Act. 20. 30. to foretell them prophetically of their temptations to division that they should be tryed by both extreams as other Churches were and are that on one side grievous Wolves or Church tyrants should enter not sparing the stâ—ck and on the other side of themselves should men arise speaking perverse things to draw away disciples by Schism separation after them And to this excellent Church he seeth cause here to urge the Persuasives to the vigilant preservation of Vnity in this Chapter Having in the three first Chapters instructed them in the high mysteries of Election Redemption and the fruits thereof and magnified the riches of Grace in Christ and the spiritual knowledge thereof that we may know what Vse he principally intended he here beginneth his application 1. With a moving reason from his Person and Condition v. 1. I the Prisoner of the Lord As if he should say As ever you will regard the doctrine and counsel of your Teacher and Christs Apostle now I am in bonds for the doctrine which I preach 2. With words of earnest request I beseech you 3. With the matter of his request 1. In general that they walk worthy the calling wherewith they were called Beza need not have avoided the vulgar and proper translation of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and put quod convenit for worthy for worthiness can signifie nothing but moral congruity 2. Specially this worthiness consisteth in the holy and healthful constitution of their souls and the exercise thereof In their inward disposition and their answerable practice 1. The inward qualifications are 1. All lowliness 2. Meekness 3. Love 2. The fruits of these are 1. Long-suffering 2. Forbearing one another 3. And Studying to keep the Vnity of the spirit in the bond of peace Which Vnity is particularly described in the Terms and reasons of it which are seven 1. One Body 2. One Spirit 3. One hope 4. One Lord. 5. One faith 6. One Baptism 7. One God and Father who is above all and through all and in them all But negatively not in an equality of Grace in all the members for that is various according to the measure of the gift of Christ the free Benefactor I must pass by all unnecessary explication and the handling of the many useful Lessons which offer themselves to us in the way such as these following Doct. 1. It should not depreciate the counsels of Christs Ministers that they are sent or written from a prison or bonds but rather procure their greater acceptance when they are not imprisoned for evil doing but for Preaching or obeying the Gospel and Law of Christ it is their honour and the honour of that doctrine which they suffer for why else keep you days of thanksgiving and Commemoration of the Martyrs On the persecutors part Christ is evil spoken of or blasphemed but by the sufferers he is glorified and therefore he will glorifie
them I was once blamed for dating a book out of the Common gaol or prison in London as if it reflected on the Magistrate But I imitated Paul and mentioned nothing which the Rulers took for a dishonour as their actions shewed Doct. 2. Beseeching is the mode and language of wise and faithful Pastors in pleading for Vnity and against Schism in the Church For they are not Lords over the flocks but helpers of their faith They have no power of the sword but of the word They rule not by constraint but willingly nor such as are constrained by them but Voluntiers It is not the way to win Love to God to Pastors or to one another to say Love me or I will lay thee in a gaol stripes are useful to cause fear and timerous obedience but not directly to cause Love And hated Preachers seldom prosper in Converting or Edifying souls or healing disordered divided Churches Doct. 3. Though Grace find us unworthy it maketh men such as walk worthy of their high and heavenly calling that is in a suitable conversation answerable to the principles of their faith and hope Christianity were little better than the false Religions of the world if it made men no better If Christ made not his disciples greatly to differ from the disciples of a meer philosopher he would not be â—hought greatly to differ from them himself The â—ruits of his doctrine and spirit on our hearts and lives are the proofs and witness of his truth we wrong him heinously when we live but like other men And we weaken our own and other mens faith by obscuring a great evidence of the Christian Verity And those that are of eminent holiness and righteousness of life are the great and powerful preachers of faith and shew men by proofs and not only by words that Christ is true Doct. 4. Lowliness is a great part of Christian worthiness and a necessary cause of Christian Vnity and peace This 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is but the same thing which Paul elsewhere Act. 20. 19. tells this same Church that he practised towards them exemplarily himself Lowliness of mind containeth both low and humble thoughts of our selves and low expectations as to honour and respect from others with a submissive temper that can stoop and yield and a deportment liker to the lower sort of people than to the stout and great ones of the world As Mat. 5. to be poor in spirit is to have a spirit fit for a state of poverty not in Love with riches but content with little and patient with all that poor men must endure so Lowliness of mind is a disposition and deportment not like the Grandees of the world but suited to Low persons and Low things condescending to the lowest persons employments and indignities or contempt that shall be cast upon us A proud high-minded person that is looking for preferment and must be somebody in the world is of a spirit contrary to that of Christianity and will never lie even in the sacred Edifice nor be a healer but a troubler of the Church of Christ and must be converted and become as a little child before he can enter into the Kingdom of heaven Mat. 18. 3. And indeed only by selfishness and pride have come the divisions and contentions in the Church even by those that have made it the means of their domination to cry down division because they must have all to Unite in them in Conformity to their opinions Interests and wills A humble soul that can be content to follow a Crucified Christ and to be made of no reputation Phil. 2. 7. Heb. 12. 1 2 3. and to be a servant to all and a Lord of none and can yield and stoop and be despised when ever the ends of his office do require it is a Christian indeed and fit to be a healer Doct. 5. Meekness or Lenity is another part of Christian worthiness and a necessary cause of Vnity and Peace Though in some this hath extraordinary advantage or disadvantage in the temperature of the body yet it is that which persons of all tempers may be brought to by grace A boisterous furious or wild kind of disposition is not the Christian healing spirit If passion be apt to stir wisdom and grace must repress it and Lenity must be our ordinary temper we must be like tame creatures that familiarly come to a mans hand and not like wild things that flye from us as untractable otherwise how will such in Love and peace and sociable concord ever carry on the work of Christ Doct. 6. Love to each other is a great part of Christian worthiness and a most necessary cause of Vnity and peace Of which I hope to say so much by it self if God will as that I shall here pass it by It being the very Heart and Life of Vnity Doct. 7. Long suffering or a patient mind not rash or hasty is another part of Christian worthiness and a necessary Cause of Vnity and peace 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 hath more in it than many well consider of I know it is commonly taken for restraint of anger by patient long-suffering But I think that it chiefly signifieth here and elsewhere in Pauls Epistles that deliberate slowness and calmness of mind which is contrary to passionate haste and rashness When a passionate man is hasty and rash and cannot stay to hear another speak for himself nor to deliberate of the matter and search out the truth nor forbear revenge while he thinketh whether it will do good or harm or what the case will appear in the review this Longanimity will stay men and compose their minds and cause them to take time before they judge of opinions practices or persons and before they venture to speak or do lest what they do in haste they repent at leisure It appeaseth those passions which blind the judgment when wrath doth precipitate men into those conceptions words and deeds which they must after wish that they had never known Hasty rashness in judging and doing for want of the patience lenity of a slow deliberating mind is the cause of most errors Heresies and divisions and of abundance of sin and misery in the world Doct. 8. Bearing supporting and forbearing one another in Love is another part of Gospel worthiness and needful means of Vnity and peace Doubtless to forbear each other patiently under injuries and provocations is a great part of the duty here meant But both Beza who translated it sustinentes and the Vulgar Latine which translateth it supportantes seemed to think that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifieth something more While we are imperfect sinful men we shall have need of mutual support and help yea we shall be injurious provoking and troublesome to each other And when Christians yea Church Pastors are so far from supporting and sustaining the weak that they cannot so much as patiently bear their censures neglects or other effects of weakness Unity
and peace will hardly prosper much less if their spiritual Nurses become their chief afflicters Doct. 9. Vnity of the spirit is most necessary to the Church of Christ and to its several members though their measures of Grace be divers Doct. 10. The bond of Peace must preserve this Vnity Doct. 11. This Vnity consisteth in these seven things 1. One body 2. One spirit 3. One Hope 4. One Lord 5. One Faith 6. One Baptism 7. One God Doct. 12. This Vnity must be studied carefully and diligently endeavoured and preserved by all the faithful members of the Church These last Doctrines being the subject which I design to handle I shall speak of them together in the following Order I. I shall tell you What the Vnity of the spirit is which is so necessary II. I shall tell you What necessity there is of this Vnity and what are its happy fruits III. I shall open the seven particulars in which it doth consist and defend the sufficiency of them to the use here intended in the Text. IV. I shall open the nature and terms of counterfeit Unity V. I shall open the Nature and mischiefs of the contrary Division VI. I shall shew you what are the enemies and impediments of this Unity VII I shall shew you What are the study and endeavour and the bond of peace by which this Unity must be kept VIII I shall conclude with some directions for Application or Use of all CHAP. II. The Nature of Vnity and this Vnity of the spirit opened 1. WHat UNITY in General is and what This Vnity of the spirit in special I shall open in these following connexed propositions 1. I must neither here confound the ordinary Reader by the many Metaphysical difficulties about UNITY nor yet wholly pass them by lest I confound him for want of necessary distinction 2. UNITY is sometimes the attribute of an Vniversal which is but Ens rationis or a General Inadequate partial conception of an existent singular being and so All men are ONE as to the species of Humanity And all Living things are One in the Genus of Vitality And so of Bodies Substances Creatures c. It is much more than this that we have before us 2. Some think that the word ONE or UNITY signiâ—ieth only Negatively an Vndividedness in the thing it self But this conception is more than Negative and taketh in first in Compounds that peculiar Connexion of parts by one form and in simple spiritual beings that more excellent indivisible essentiality and existence whence the Being is intelligible as such a subsistence as is not only undivided in it self but divisible or differenceable from all other existent or possible beings so far as it is one 4. Passing by the distinction of Vnum per se per accidens and some such other I shall only further distinguish of Vnity according to the differences of the Entities that are called One Where indeed the difference of Things maketh the word ONE of very different significations 5. GOD is Supereminently and most perfectly ONE as he is ENS BEING No Creature hath Vnity in the same perfect sort and sense as GOD is One He is so ONE as that he is perfectly simple and indivisible and so as that he cannot be properly a Part in any composition 6. Therefore GOD and the World or any Creature are not compounding parts for a part is less than the whole And that which is less is not Infinite 7. Yet God is more Intimate to every creature than any of its own Parts are no form is more intimate to the matter no soul to the body no formal vertue to a spirit than God is to all and every being But his Perfection and the Creatures Imperfection is such as that creatures can be no addition to God nor compounding parts but like to Accidents 8. The same must be said therefore of Christs Divine and humane natures The Schoolmen therefore say that Christs soul and body are Parts of his humane nature but his Godhead and manhood are not to be called Parts of Christ Because the Godhead can be no Part of any thing 9. When Paul saith that God is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 All in All things he meaneth not that he is formally all things themselves But yet not that he is less or is more distant from them than the form but is eminently so much more as that the title is below him so he is said here Eph. 4. 6. To be 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the Father of all above all and through all and in us all And 1 Cor. 12. 16. it is said that the same God worketh all in all as to the diversity of operations He is the most intimate prime Agent in all that acteth though he hath enabled free Agents to determine their own acts morally to this or that hic nunc c. For in Him we live and move and have our Being for we are his offspring Act. 17. 10. Somewhat like this must be said of the special Union of Christ and all true believers As to his Divine Nature and so the Holy Ghost he is as the Father Intimately in all but more than the form of all or any But he is specially by Relation and Inoperation in his members as he is not in any others So Col. 3. 11. Christ is said to be 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 All in All that is to the Church And so I conceive that it is in a Passive or Receptive sense that the Church is said to be the fulness of him that filleth all in all Eph. 1. 23. Whether it be spoken of Christs Godhead only or of his humane soul also as being to the Redeemed world what the Sun is to the Natural illuminated world I determine not But which ever it is Christ filling all in all the Church is called his fulness as being eminently â—possessed and filled by him as the Head is by the humane soul more than the hand or other lower parts 11. The Trinity of Persons is such as is no way contrary to the perfect Vnity of the Divine essence As the faculties of Motion Light and Heat in the Sun and of Vital Activity Intellection and Volition in man is not contrary to the Unity of the essence of the soul yet man is not so perfectly One as God is 12. The Vnity of a spirit in it self is a great Image or Likeness of the Divine Vnity As having no separable Parts as passive matter hath but being One without divisibility even one Essential Vertue or Vertuous substance 13. The most large extensive Vnity as far as spirits may be said to have extension or Degrees of Essence is likest to God And the Unity of a material atome is not more excellent than the Vnity of the material part of the world made up of such Atomes Whether there are such Atomes physically indivisible I here meddle not but the shaping of an Atome into cornered hollow and such other shapes is
peace they did not serve the Lord Jesus whose great and last command was Love which he made the Nature and character and badge of his true disciples but by those good words and fair speeches deceived the hearts of the simple and deceivable Here there are four words especially to be noted 1. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which we translate good words is commonly translated flattery but as Beza well noteth it signifieth a speaking of things that are plausible in themselves for some good that is in them and that are pretended to be all spoken for the hearers good as Satan pretended when he tempted Eve yea perhaps to be necessary to their salvation or to make them the most knowing and excellent sort of Christians 2. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which signifieth both to Bless them as ministers do that desire their happiness and to praise them and speak well or highly of them And so almost all sects and divided bodies are gathered by flattering the hearers into a conceit that thus they shall become the surest and most excellent Christians and all others are far inferiour to them 3. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 It is the Hearts of such hearers that are deceived and not their heads or reason only or chiefly For the good words first take with them by moving their Passions or affections And then the Praise fair promises and speeches kindle a kind of secret spiritual pride and ambition in the heart as Satans words did in Eve to be as Gods in Knowledge And the Heart thus infected and puft up promoteth the deceit of the understanding 4. And this is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 hominum minime malorum as Beza translates It is not simple fools but such simple persons as we call harmless or innocents as the Vulgar Latine translates it well meaning men or not ill men People that fear God and have good desires and meanings are for want of Judgement and watchfulness overcome by dividers And on the contrary the amiable examples of Vnity and Concord and their happy effects are recorded in Scripture to make us in Love with them but none so eminent as that of the first Christians It is very remarkable that when Christ would shew the world the work of his Mediation in its notable effects and when he would shew them the excellency of his disciples about the common world and of his Church under the Gospel above that under Moses Law he doth it by shewing them in the power and exercise of Vniting Love Love was it which he came to exercise and demonstrate his Fathers and his own Love was that which he came to kindle in their souls and bring them to possess and practise Perfect Love is the perfect felicity which he hath promised them Love and Unity are the matter of his last and great Command These are the Characters of his genuine disciples and of the renewed Divine Nature in them It was Love and Vnity which must in them be the witness of Christs spirit and power to convince the unbelieving world And therefore it is Love and Vnity which is the matter of his last excellent prayer for them John 17. 22 23 24 25. 15. 12 17. 13. 34. 1 John 3. 14 23. 4. 21. And all these his preparations precepts examples and prayers were accordingly exemplified in the wonderful Love and Concord of his followers When the day of Pentecost was come in which the Holy Ghost must be most eminently communicated to them they were all with One accord in one place Acts 2. 1. The Apostles had an Vnanimity and Concord before proportionable to the measure of their grace which was preparatory to their reception of the eminent gift of the Spirit which increased their unanimity And v. 41 42 43 44 45 46. the three thousand that were suddenly added to the Church continued stedfastly in the Apostles doctrine and fellowship and in breaking of bread and in prayers And all that believed were together and had all things common and sold their possessions and goods and parted them to all men as every man had need And they continuing daily with one accord in the Temple and breaking bread from house to house did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart praising God and having favour with all the people What greater demonstration could be given that Christ is the great Reconciler the messenger gift and teacher of Love the Prince of Peace and the great Vniter of the divided world both with his Father and Himself and with one another In this text Acts 2. and marvellous example you see the design and work of the great Reconciler When men fall out with God they fall out with one another when they depart from the only Center of Vnity they can have no true Unity among themselves when they lose the Love of God they lose the Love of Man as for Gods sake and interest And he that cannot see and Love God in man can see nothing in man that is worthy of much love As he that loveth not a man for his soul and its operations more than for his body loveth him not as a man And few have any great Love to a dead Corpse Cicero could say It is your soul that we speak to and converse with were that departed we should speak to you no more God is more to every man than his soul If God were not their life and amiableness all men would be unlovely loathsome carkasses Therefore wicked men that cannot Love God and Goodness can Love none thoroughly but themselves and for themselves or as Bruâ—es by a low or sensitive kind of love For it is self that they are fallen to from God and Man And yet while self is carnally and inordinately loved instead of God and Man it is but destroyed and undone by that inordinate idolatrous love And he that loveth Himself to his own destruction with a Love more pernicious than anothers hatred doth love his friends but with such a kind of killing love as I have seen some Brutes kill their young ones with the violence of their love that would not suffer them to let them alone Thus all love to man saving a pernicious love doth dye where the love of God and goodness dieth And Cain giveth the world the first specimen or instance of depraved nature in envy and wrath and finally in the murder of his Brother and undoing Himself by setting up and adhering inordinately to himself But when Christ reconcileth God and Man he reconcileth Men to one another For he teacheth men to love God in Man and Man for God with a Holy noble reasonable kind of Love And so to love all men as far as God hath an Interest in all And to Love all Christians with an eminent Love as God is eminently interessed in them And this is Christs work on the souls of men and much of his business which he came for into the world And therefore he would have his
first Disciples to give the world such a specimen of Love in this extraordinary way of Community For as extraordinary works of Power that is Miracles must be wrought by the first Preachers of the Gospel to shew Christs power and convince the unbelieving world so it was as needful that then there should be extraordinary works of Love to shew Christs Love and teach them the great work of Love which he came to call and bring men to For the first Book that Christ wrote was on the Hearts of Men which no Philosopher could do In fleshly tables he wrote LOVE TO GOD and MAN by the finger of his Spirit many a year before any Book of the New Testament was written And as his Doctrine was Love one another and Love your enemies forbear and forgive c. so his first Churches must extraordinarily exemplifie and express this doctrine by living in this extraordinary community and selling all and distributing as each had need And afterwards their Love-feasts did long keep up some memorial of it For they were the first sheet as it were of the New Book which Christ was publishing And LOVE was the summ of all that was imprinted on them And their Practice was to be much of the Preaching that must convert the world Christ was not a meer Orator or teacher of Words And non magna loquimur sed vivimus was the profession of his disciples He came not meerly to talk and teach men to talk but to Do and teach men to Do even to do that himself which none else ever did and to teach his followers to do that which no other sort of men did in this world But this leadeth me up to the next Use of Unity V. The SPIRIT of UNITY and LOVE is the Great means of the Churches increase There is a twofold augmentation of the Church 1. Intrinsick and Intensive when it Increaseth in all Goodness and hasteth to perfection And it is this Vital principle of Vniting Love or the Spirit of Vnity which is the immediate cause of this 2. Extensive when the Church is enlarged and more are added to it And it is a Life of Vniting Love among Christians that must do this as much or more than preaching Or at least if that preaching which is but the effect of Knowledge produce Evangelical Knowledge in the hearers yet a Life of Love and Vnity is the adapted means of breeding Love and Vnity the Life of Religion in the world Light may cause Light but Heat must cause Heat and it must be a Living thing that must generate life by ordinary causation That which cometh from the Head may reach the Head and perhaps the Heart but is not so fit to operate on Hearts as that which cometh from the heart Undoubtedly if Christians did commonly live in such Love and Vnity among themselves and shew the fruits of common Love to all about them as their Great master and his Religion teacheth them they would do wonders in converting sinners and enlarging the Church of Jesus Christ Who could stand out against the convincing and Attractive power of Uniting Love Who could much hate and persecute those that Love them and shew that Love This would heap melting coals of fire on their heads Our Saviour knew this when he made this his great Lesson to his disciples and when he prayed Joh. 17. 21 22 23 24. over and over for them which should believe on him through the Apostles word that they all may be One as thou Father art in me and I in thee that they also may be one in us that the world may believe that thou hast sent me And the Glory which thou gavest me I have given them that they may be One even as we are One I in them and thou in me that they may be made perfect in One and that the world may know that thou hast sent me and hast loved them as thou hast loved me O when will Christ revive this blessed principle in his followers and set them again on this effectual way of preaching that Love may draw the world into the Churches Vnity Some look for new miracles for the converting of the now-forsaken Nations what God will do of that kind we know not for he hath not told us But Holy Vniting Vniversal Love is a thing which he hath still made our certain duty and therefore we are all bound to seek and do it And therefore we may both pray and labour for it in hope And could we but come up to this known duty we should have a means for the worlds conversion as effectual as miracles and more sweet and pleasant to them and us Obj. But why then is the world still unconverted when all true Christians have this love Ans 1. Alas those true Christians are so few and the hypocrites that are selfish worldlings are so many that the poor people that live among professed Christians do judge of Christianity by those false professours who are indeed no Christians Men see not the hearts of one another Thousands of ungodly persons for interest education and custome take on them the name of Christians who never were such indeed by heart-consent When these counterfeit Christians live like Infidels men think that Christians are no better than Infidels For they think they must judge by the greater number of such as go under the Christian name But if the world could tell who they be that are truly Christians at the heart they would see that they have that spirit of Love which is not in unbelievers 2. And alas the Love and Vnity even of true Christians is yet too imperfect and is darkened and blemished with too much of the contrary vice were Christians perfect Christians they would indeed be the honour of their profession Then Love would be the powerful principle of all their works which would taste of its nature and as it is said of Wine Judg. 9. 13. it cheereth God and man so I may say God and man would be delighted in the sweetness of these fruits For with such Sacrifice God is well pleased Heb. 13. 16. But alas what crabbed and contrary fruits how soure how bitter do many distempered Christians bring forth If it will increase the Church and win men to the Love of Christianity to be reviled or persecuted to be contemned and neglected to be separated from as persons unworthy of our-love and kindness then Christianity will not want propagaters The pouring out of the Spirit was the first planting of the Christian Church And where there is most of Love there is most of the spirit As there needeth no forcing penal Laws to compel men to obey God so far as Love prevaileth in them so if Love were more eminent in the Church Pastors and Professors that they preached and ruled and lived towards all men in the power of sincere and fervent Love there would be less pretence for all that violence oppression and cruelty which hath been long
exercised by the worldly Clergy and so much the more odiously by how much the more the sacred name of Religion hath been used for its justification or excuse VI. UNITING LOVE is the GLORY and Perfection of the Church And therefore there will be in Heaven much greater Love and much nearer UNITY than there is of the dearest friends on earth yea greater and nearer than we can now distinctly understand And again I say that they that in thinking of the state of separated souls do fear lest all souls do lose their individuation and fall into one common soul do foolishly fear a greater Vnity than is to be expected And yet nothing else about the souls Immortality is lyable to a rational doubt For 1. It s substance certainly is not annihilated 2. Nor its formal essential Virtues lost by mutation into some other species 3. Nor doth the Activity of such an Active nature cease 4. Nor will there want objects for it to act upon Were it well considered that LOVE is as Natural to a soul as Heat is to the Sun that is an effect of that Act which its very essence doth perform 2. And that our UNITY is an Unity of LOVE Voluntarily performed it would much abate such selfish fears of too much Unity For who ever feared too much Love too extensive or too intensive too large or too near a Union of minds And as the beloved Apostle saith that GOD IS LOVE as a name which signifieth his essence why may not the same be said of souls which are his Image that A SOUL IS LOVE Not that this is an Adequate conception of A SOUL much less of GOD but of the partial or inadequate Conceptions it seemeth to be the chiefest The SOVL of Man is a Pure or Spiritual substance informed by a Virtue of Vital activity Intellection and Volition which is LOVE informing or animating an organical body for a time and separable at the bodies dissolution And as the Calefactive Virtue is the Essence of the Fire though not an adequate Conception of its essence For it is a pure substance formally induâ—d with the Virtue Motive Illuminative and Calefactive and the act of Calefaction is its essence as operative on a due recipient so LOVE is the souls essence in the faculty or Virtue and its Essence as operative on a due object in the Act which Act though the soul exercise it not ad ultimum posse by such a Natural necessity as the fire heateth yet its Nature or Essence immediately exerciseth it though in a freâ—r manner yea some Acts of Love quoad specificationem though not quoad exercitium are exercised as necessarily as calefaction by the fire yea more though now in the body the exercise by cogitation and sense be not so necessary we cannot say that in its separated state it will not be so yea yet more even in the body the LOVE of a Mans SELF and of felicity or pleasure seemeth to be a deep constant or uncessant Act of the soul though not sensibly observed And if LOVE be so far essential to it the perfection of Love is the souls perfection and the exercises of Love are the chief operations of the soul And consequently the perfection and glory of the Church which is but a conjunction of holy persons consisteth in the same Uniting Love which perfecteth souls And indeed Vniformity in circumstantials and in external Polity were but a Carkass or Image of Unity without Uniting Love which is its soul As much external Union in good as we are capable of doth advantage Vnity of spirit But all Union in evil and all in unnecessary circumstantials which is managed to the diminution of Christian Love are to the Church but as the glory of adorned cloathing or monuments or pictures to a carkass And the Church-Tyrants that would thus Unite us and sacrifice Love and the means of it to their sort of Vnity are but like the Physician that prescribed a sicâ—man a draught of his own heart blood to cure him The Inquisitors that torture mens bodies to save their souls are not more unskilful in their pretended Charity to save men than is he that hindereth or destroyeth Love while he seeketh the Churches Unity in humane Ordinances by fraud or fear When they have killed any Church by Love killing snares and practices and glory that it is united in Papal power splendor and decrees it is but as if they cut all a mans nerves or cast him into a Palsie or killed him and gloried that they have tyed his limbs together with strings or bound them all up in the same Winding-sheet and Coffin That edifieth not the Church which tendeth not to save but to destroy mens souls CHAP. V. This Vnity conduceth to the good of the world without the Church § 1. THe chief hopes of the Heathen and Infidel world consist in their hopes of being brought into the faith and Church of Christians And as God addeth to the Church such as shall be saved so the means that our charity must use to save them is to get them into this ark The measure of their other hopes or what possibility there is of their salvation I have elsewhere plainly opened It sufficeth us here to remember that no man cometh to the Father but by the Son and that he is the Saviour of his body however he be called also the Saviour of the world § 2. And as in nature it is the principle of life in the seed and womb which is the Generating Cause of formation and augmentation of the soetuâ— And it is the vital powers in Man which maketh his daily nourishment become a living part of himself and causeth his growth So is iâ— the Spirit in the Church that is Gods appointed means to quicken and convert the Infidel world And it is those Christian Countreys which are adjoyning to Mahometans and Heathens that should do most to their conversion who have far easier means than others by proximity and converse to do it and therefore are under the greatest obligations to attempt it As also those remoter Countreys that are most in amity and traffick with them § 3. And as Instruction by evidence must do much so this Vniting Spirit of Love must do a great part of this work and that both as it worketh inwardly on our selves in the Communion of Saints and as it worketh outwardly by attraction and communication to draw in and assimilate others § 4. I. The Churches Vnity of Spirit doth fortifie and fit it for all its own offices in order to the conversion of the world All parts are better qualified for the work by that Wisdom Goodness and Life which they must work by And each member partaketh of the common strength which their Unity causeth An united Army is likest to be victorious Their routing is their flight and overthrow And the Army or Kingdom that is Mutinous or in Civil Wars or not unanimous is unfit to enlarge dominion and conquer
the world that doth not save his own disciples from sin and folly No wonder that God hath no pleasure in fools and that the foolish shall not stand in his fight when they are such a dishonour to Christ and him what fellowship hath Light with darkness And who knoweth not that disagreement proveth ignorance and errour in one party at least When they hold and plead for contrary opinions both cannot be in the right And when this is but in dark and difficult matters of no great influence on our hearts and lives and future hopes it is tolerable and no more to be wondered at than that we are yet but imperfect men in flesh and in this low and darksome world But when it amounteth to that which maketh Christians judge it necessary to anathematize one another and to cast out each other from their communion as intolerable and perhaps to seek one anothers destruction do they not loudly proclaim their shameful ignorance to the world § 3. I know that discipline must be exercised and the precious separated from the vile and this especially for the honour of Christianity For if the Church be as a Swinesty and the clean and unclean the sober and the drunken the chaste and the fornicators equally members of it such a society and their religion will be contemned For sin is a reproach to any people But casting a felon or murderer in Jaile doth much differ from a civil war For the Church to cast out the impure that repent not is necessary to their honour but to divide and subdivide among themselves is their reproach though the dividers have never so fair pretences § 4. I know also what pretences against heresie c. the dividing sects have had in all ages They have pretended that they only being the true Church the condemning and rejecting of all others was necessary to the Churches honour But is it indeed to the honour of the Christian name that so great bodies for so many ages have continu'd to condemn and anathematize each other That the Greek Church condemneth the Western and the Western them That the Eastern and Southern are separated from both And the Western Christians so divided among themselves Who that is not a stranger to man and history knoweth not that it hath been to exercise a Dominion over others and also to extol the skill of their understandings as speaking rightlier than others when they strove about ambiguous words that very much of their anathematizing hath been used And when the Pope hath anathematized the Patriarch of Constantinople he hath anathematized him again yea so hath the Patriarch of Alexandria also And when the three parties the Orthodox the Nestorians and the Eutychians for so many ages have continued anathematizing each other the dishonour falleth on them all in the eyes of beholders and no party recovereth their honour with the rest § 5. Undoubtedly it is they that God shall make the blessed instruments of restoring the necessary means of Concord and thereby of reviving Christian Love and peace that will be the chief and honourable agents for the repairing of the honour of the Christian Church if ever it be repaired in this world All parties seem agreed in this even they that most foolishly and cruelly tear and distract the Church that it must be Love and Concord that at last must heal it and recover its glory if ever it be healed And how much Christ is pleased to see his servants live in Love and peace his office his nature his many and vehement Commands do tell us CHAP. VII III. What obligations are on all Christians to avoid sinful divisions and discord and to promote this Vnity and peace § 1. FRom what is already said it is easie to gather that many and great obligations are on all Christians to be promoters of Concord and enemies of discord and divisions I. The many and express commands of Christ in Scripture do oblige them This is no dark or controverted point written in words which are hard to be understood but plainly uttered and often urged Yea when several of Gods commands are mentioned this is still preferred before most others that can be imagined to stand in competition against it As the uniting Love of God is called the first and great Command so the uniting Love of man is called the second like to that and the summ of the second table and the fulfilling of the Law It is not mentioned as an Accident of the New Creature but as an essential part not as the high qualification of some rare Christian but as that which is necessary and common to all that are the living members of Christ Not only as needful to some inferiour uses but as necessary to all the great Ends of our Religion preferred before sacrifice and all the rituals and not to be dispensed with on any pretence § 2. II. No man therefore can be an obedient servant of Christ that seeketh not to keep the Vnity of the spirit in the bond of peace If he that breaketh one of the least commands and teacheth men so to do shall be called Least in the Kingdom of God what shall he be called and where shall be his lot that breaketh the greatest § 3. III. The Love of God our Father and of Christ our Redeemer doth oblige us For if he that loveth not his brother whom he seâ—th daily cannot Love God whom he never saw how much less he that loveth not the multitude of believers and so great an interest of God in the world as is that unity and concord of the body of Christ And if he that doth or doth not good to one of the least of the servants of Christ is supposed to have done it or not done it to himself how much more he that doth or omitteth that which Christ and his whole Church is so much concerned in § 4. IV. The Love of our own souls obligeth us considering how many and great impediments discord doth raise against all grace and duty and against our holiness comfort and salvation And how much Christian Love and Concord do conduce to the preservation of all grace and to the attainment of Glory All men in true Concord are our helpers and all men in discord are our hinderers and tempters How fair and easie is the way to Heaven among true Loving and agreeing Christians and how hard is it where divisions and contentions take place § 5. V. The Love of our neighbours souls obligeth us to this That which is best for us is best for them Alas carnal minds deceived by sin need not to have the way to heaven made harder nor to be tempted by the discords of Christians to despise them Their own malignity and the devils temptations when we have done our best may suffice to deceive them and undo them Every Christian should be a helper to the salvation of all about him and a souldier under Christ to fight against Satan as he
is the great divider and destroyer As ever therefore we pity the souls of sinners and would not be guilty of their damnation we should keep the Unity of the spirit in the bond of peace § 6. VI. Our Love to the Church and Sacred Ministry doth oblige us Our Discords unsay too powerfully what Christs Ministers say when they set forth the power of grace and the excellency of Christianity All the opposition of the arguments and reproaches of Quakers or malignant prophane enemies is of far less force against the Gospel than the discords of professed Christians The labours of many worthy Ministers have been hindered and their hearts even broken with such sinful and scandalous divisions when the enemies hit us in the teeth with these we are ashamed and cannot deny the fact though we can deny their false conclusions How much of the designs of Satan and his agents have lain in dividing the servants of Christ Some of the moderate and peaceable Emperours in the more flourishing state of the Church and Empire by the discords and mutinies of factious Christians were made a-weary of their Crowns Yea some of those that the hasty hereticating Orthodox party too hastily pronounced hereticks and heretical such as Theodosuis junior Zeno Anastasuis Justinian c. were tired out with labouring in vain to keep the Christian Bishops in Peace and by Historians are recorded to be men of better qualities than the Bishops And one of them Anastasius laid down his Crown and told them he would not be the Ruler of such contentious and unruly men till the necessities of the people brought them to remorse and to intreat him to continue Emperour and promised to cease their mutinous contentions And what the divisions in the Church of Rome did to shame and thus far abase the Papacy is past all doubt When there have been in many generations sometimes two and sometimes three called Popes at once when some Kingdoms owned one and some another and when they often fought it out and as Victor the third and many another got their pretended right by Victory not by the Word but by the Sword When one Pope for forty years together lived in France at Avignion and the other at Rome When they fought it out with many Emperours and Kings When Italy was kept by them many ages in divisions and bloody wars and when the very Citizens of Rome and their Popes were put to fight it out at home in their streets And when the Popes have excommunicated the people of Rome it self where then was the Church of Rome All this Church history recordeth to their perpetual shame And have not the dissensions between Luther and Carolostadius and Zuinglius Lutherans and Calvinists to name no more been a reproach to the Reformation as I said before As we Love the Church then and as we regard the honour and success of the Ministry and would not have Christs house and Kingdom fall or be shaken or disgraced by our sinful discords Let us keep this spiritual Unity and peace § 7. VII And indeed Experience is not the least of our obligations A danger never tryed is seldom so cautelously avoided as those into which we have formerly fallen and out of which we have narrowly escaped They that have read Church-History what the factions and heresies of the Bishops and people have done from the dayes even of the Apostles to this day Yea they that have but seen and felt what Religious discords have done in this generation even at home in England Scotland and Ireland and yet do not hate such discord as death and love peace and spiritual unity as life and health and safety they are hardened past all excuse CHAP. VIII What sort and measure of Vnity may not or may be groundedly hoped for on earth § 1. THe Prognosticks in diseases are needful to direct Physicians in their attempts He that either pretendeth to Cure incurable diseases and thereby doth but torment the Patient and hasten death or else will hastily prevent the Crisis or will open inflammations before the time may be called a Physician or Surgeon but will prove a hurtful or pernicious enemy Some diseases will admit of no better than palliating and delay Some that are curable are made mortal by temerarious haste Who will break the Egg to get the Chicken before it is ripened by nature for exclusion Yet hath the Church had too many such Midwives that will hasten abortion and untimely birth and cannot stay till natures time such mischievous Surgeons as are presently lancing unripe apostemes It is of mischievous consequence to expect such Concord and accordingly set upon the hastening of it which certainly will never be And it is of great and necessary Use to know how much and what Vnity may be expected in the Church militant and what not § 2. I. Negatively I. It is certain that Christians will never be all of one stature or degree of grace The Apostle hath fully opened this 1 Cor. 12. and here Eph. 4. and Rom. 14. 15. and elsewhere Some will be of more blameless lives and some more offensive Some will be more fruitful and useful in the Church than others some will have greater gifts than others for that end some will be more patient and meek and others more passionate and hot some will be more considerate and prudent and some more rash and of indecent carriage some will be more humble and condescending and abhorr pride much more than others will do some will be more zealous and some more frigid or luke-warm some will be much more heavenly and make less of earthly things than others some will be more self-denying and patient under sufferings and some will too much seek their own transitory things and with greater impatience bear both crosses from God and injuries from man some will be more cheerful and rejoyce in God and the hope of Glory and others will be more sad and timerous and heavy Some will have a strong faith and some a weak Some will have assured sealed hopes and others will be doubting of their salvation But in nothing will there be more certain and notable difference than in mens knowledge and conceptions of spiritual things Undoubtedly there is scarce a greater difference of Visages than there is of Intellectual apprehensions Nay perhaps the likeness of all mens faces is greater than of their understandings Some will still know little and none very much but others comparatively much more Some that know much in one kind will be ignorant in others And as all men are not of the same Trade nor all Scholars prosecute the same studies but some excell in one thing and some in another and some in nothing so in religion such proportions and differences of understanding there will be § 3. No observing man that converseth with mankind one would think could be ignorant of this And yet the talk and actions of too many Church-Leeches in most parts and
Philippians that some preached Christ not sincerely but in envy and strife to add affliction to his bonds whom yet he silenced not but rejoyced that Christ was preached even by such And he foretelleth Timothy that in the later dayes much false doctrine should be vented And even then he had none like minded to Timothy that naturally sought the Churches good but all sought their own too much and the things of Jesus Christ too little And the Apostle John met with such as he would not have Christians bid Good speed to nor receive them into their houses And James was put sharply and largely to reprove such as in conceited wisdom would needs be Masters and had the envious wisdom which is from beneath and is earthly sensual and devilish producing strife confusion and every evil work Jam. 3. And could it then be expected that all Christians be of the same opinions in all things § 14. 12. But now this temptation to differences of judgement is grown much greater in that the Christian world is so publickly and notoriously divided into different parties The Greeks are one party the Armenians and Georgians somewhat differ The Syrians and the Abassines and Copties in Egypt and other Eastern and Southern Countreys are of divers sentiments in many things The Papists differ from all and the Protestants from them and too many divisions are among themselves which I need not name And can it be expected that in such a world particular Christians should be sound without their personal differences § 15. 13. And the variety of Governments an◠Laws will also produce the like disagreements While one Prince or State is of one mind and another of another One is a Papist another a Protestant one a Lutheran and another Reformed one a Greek and another against all sorts of Christians And in the same Kingdom in one age the Prince is of one mind and in the next his Successour of another And this must needs cause disagreement in the Subjects § 16. 14. And even the variety of Gods providences will occasion diversity of thoughts when some are in health and some in sickness some in wealth and some in poverty some high and some low some favoured and preferred and some persecuted imprisoned slandered and distressed whence different impressions will arise § 17. 15. Yea mens different trades and callings will occasion different impressions whilest their business leadeth them several wayes and into several companies and altering employments § 18. 16. And almost all men have some different interests The Teacher and the Hearer the Landlord and the Tenant the Souldier and the Countrey-man the buyer and the seller the master and the servant the ruler and the subject which will occasion different inclinations § 19. 17. And men have great difference of temptations and provocations from Satan and from men some Satan tempteth one way and some another some are abused and provoked by one sort of men and some by another some are called out to disputes with one Sect and some with another And when they are engaged they usually bend all their studies one way and little consider what may be said on the other side or of other matters § 20. 18. And when once a man hath received some one great opinion true or false it draweth on abundance of consequences which those that received not that point did never think of § 21. 19. And some have much more time and leisure to study and happy counsellours to help them And some follow hard labour and have little leisure to read hear or think or else live retiredly where they have little notice of affairs and miss the help of sound and faithful counsellours and helpers § 22. 20. Lastly Gods own Grace is free and given to men in great diversity some that have the same spirit have more illumination and some less as the Apostle at large declareth 1 Cor. 12. and elsewhere There is one Glory of the Sun and another of the Moon saith Paul And as one star differs in glory from another so doth one man in gifts and understanding And the face of the whole Creation sheweth that God delighteth to make a wonderful diversity in his works scarce two stones in the street two sheep two beasts two birds two fishes two trees c. so like but we may know one from another by their differences No nor two sons of the same parents or two of the off-spring of any animals And is not all this joyned to the constant experience of all ages enough to prove that even among Christians and good and tolerable Christians yea among all there will still be differences in degrees of knowledge and virtue and consequently discords in some matters of Religion higher or lower more or less § 23. II. It is therefore certain that while there will be discord in Judgement there will be also discord in professions and in practice For honest mens professions and practices will agree with their judgements in the main Even Paul and Barnabas will part when their judgements lead them so to do When men have not the same measure of skill and accurateness in expressing their own minds and in speaking properly grammatically logically significantly agreeably to the thing spoken nor the same skill in defining or distinguishing or sitting the true sense of words they will really differ and they will verbally differ and seem to most unskilful judges to differ really when they do not § 24. It is not therefore to be expected that if some men think that long doctrinal confessions formed in mens private words or Liturgies or other humane formes have nothing in them untrue or evil or which all men may not consent to therefore all others must think so too and say as they who can think that in many thousand uncertain words all men can and must be of the same mind and approve them all alike Or that honest men can lye and say that they assent to what they do not § 25. And if mens judgements differ about matters of practice in essentials integrals or accidents their practice will accordingly differ He that judgeth a thing unlawful will not do it if he fear God and be truly conscionable Had Images been lawfully used in places or exercises of Gods worship yet it was inhumane and unchristian in those Bishops and Councils who cursed from Christ all that were of the contrary mind and pronounced it an intolerable heresie and ejected and silenced dissenters and raised wars and bloodshed for such a difference Much more unchristian was it for the Roman Pope to rebel against his proper Prince the Greek Emperour and alienate the Western Empire from him to the French on that account and to excommunicate and depose Emperours as hereticks called Iconoclasts as if Imagery had been an Article of faith or a necessary universal Command of God For how can that be a heresie that is not a plain denyal or subversion of any necessary article of faith
party that is in power In Japan and China and Heathen Lands they can copiously declaim against the mischiefs of tolerating Christianity The Papists think tormenting Inquisitions and burning Christians and murdering thousands and hundreds of thousands better than to tolerate Protestants The Lutherans cry down the toleration of Calvinists What need I name more As the Papists say that every Sect pleadeth the Scripture so we may say that every powerful party be their cause never so false cry out against tolerating others though in the truth § 6. And doubtless Concord even in perfection is so desirable that it 's easie for a man to set forth the beauty and excellency of it And discord is so bad that it 's easie to declaim against it But for him that Causeth it to do it is self-condemnation And for him that falsly describeth the cause and justifieth the Schismatick and accuseth the innocent to write Books and preach Sermons against Schism and Toleration is but delusion tending to their own shame and others deceit and ruine § 7. And he never was a good Musician Builder Watch-maker nor good at any Art or Science that thought all diversity was discord He that would with zeal and learning write a Book to prove that a Lute or Organs must not be tolerated if each string and key be not of the same sound or that all the parts in a Clock Watch Building c. must be of the same shape and magnitude or all men of one language or complexion c. would scarce get so much credit as most of our Hereticaters do when they call for fire and faggot and Jaylors as more meet and able confuters of error than themselves § 8. The men on whom they cry for vengeance either are really religious or not If not it 's a marvel that they are not of the accusers mind being supposed to follow the upper side It 's possible that some advantage may turn a man that hath no religion out of the Kings high-way into some Sectarian cottage especially in some storms But it 's very rarely that Gain goeth not for Godliness and the way of reputation ease and profit for religion with such as indeed have none at all But if they are seriously religious they take it as from the Law of the Almighty the King of Kings and Lord of Lords to whom all men are less than the vilest worms to us and they take it to be that which they lay their salvation and everlasting hopes on believing that God will bear them out and if they dye for it will reward them with the crown of Glory They believe that they shall be damned in Hell for ever if they break Gods Law and obey man against him And in this case it should not be hard to reasonable men especially Bishops and Teachers to know what means and measures are meetest to be used with such men and when he that must suffer hath flesh that is as unwilling to suffer as other mens it should be considered how far Satan useth the flesh for his interest and how far the Pastors of the Church should take part with it when as St. Paul saith He that doubeth is damned if he eat because he eateth not of faith § 9. There is no heed to be taken by mens crying out against error or schism to discern who is the erroneous or Schismatick None more cry out against them than the guilty Who condemneth error and schism more than the Papists and who are greater causes and authors of them than the Pope As our common prophane rabble are so great hypocrites that they live quite contrary to their Baptismal Vow and the Religion which they nominally profess and yet commonly crâ—â—ut against hypocrisie and call all men hypocrites that seem to be serious in living as they vowed and profess even so the greatest Schismaticks and Hereticks partly in blindness and partly to avert both men and conscience from accusing themselves do usually first cry down Schismaticks and Hereticks and perhaps preach and write most vehemently against them I take a man to be never the more Orthodox Catholick or of the true Church for crying up the true Church Catholicism and Orthodoxness and crying down the contrary and accusing others § 10. I have long observed with the best judgement I have that usually those Divines that write most for Peace and Reconciliation of hot contenders are men of clearer judgement than others and usually see further into the cause than either of the fierce contending parties Though the Turks in policy give some liberty to Christians as a necessary preservation of their Empire and the Socinians have much pleaded for peace and concord partly by necessity for themselves and partly from common light of reason yet among real Reformed Christians the greatest judgement is found in the greatest Pacificators such as Le Blank Amyrald Phaceus Camero Lud. Crocius Bergius Martinius Calixtus Dallaeus Blondel Vsher Davenant Hall Morton Chillingworth and such others Darkness doth best fit the Spirit of contention § 11. There is nothing in humane actions that is free from inconveniences especially actions of publick consequence And the collecting and aggravating of such inconveniences and making tragical exclamations thereupon without looking to the mischiefs that men imagine must be the remedy or seeing the evils on the other side is the common practice of these Church-Mountebanks How easie is it to say If we be not all of one Religion it will cherish contention bring Ministers into contempt scandalize the weak harden the enemies raise factions shake the peace of Kingdoms and more such like How easie is it to say If men be tolerated to break the Laws and gather Conventicles souls will be poysoned error propagated Christianity disgraced c. When in the mean time 1. Their course tendeth not at all to make men of one Religion 2. Nay they plead for that which is the great divider where do fire and banishment or prisons cause true faith or make men think that their persecutors are in the right Is there any thing in the nature of the thing so to perswade men nay what more inclineth men to think that other mens opinions are false than to feel that their practice is hurtful All will say Do men gather grapes of thorns or figs of thistles By their fruit they may be known If it be forcing some to dissemble and destroying the rest that they mean by making men of one religion thus saith Tertullian did the Heathen persecutors Solitudinem faciunt pacem vocant But 1. This will not do France Ireland Belgia and Queen Mary in England cryed it in vain God will still have some that shall be seriously religious and shall fear him more than man and not sell their souls to save their bodies If you have no hope of making men to be of one Religion but by making them to be of no Religion as all are that fear not God more than man your hopes are vain
as of that ad quem as Mar. 6. 12. Luke 13. 3 5. Acts 2. 38. 3. 19. 8. 22. 17. 30. 26. 20. Matth. 9. 13. Luke 24. 47. Acts 5. 31. 11. 18. 20. 21. 26. 20. 2 Tim. 2. 15. 2 Pet. 3. 9. Luke 10. 13. 15. 7 10. 2 Cor. 7. 10 11. § 5. Christ himself the Law giver and Judge doth oft in his explications lay his acceptance of men on a few great plain sure necessary things He summeth up the whole Law into the two great Commands the first and the second like unto it even the Love of God and Man and when he tells one that had lived soberly and justly that yet he lacked one thing Luke 18. it is but this plain great necessary duty to prefer his heavenly reward and hopes and Christ to bring him to it before his wealth and prosperity on earth This was not a great Volume of hard opinions but one plain and necessary duty not hard to know but hard to an unbelieving worldly heart to be willing to do So in his great Sermon on the Mount Matth. 5. it is not many dark opinions or small ceremonious practices that he pronounceth blessedness on but the pure in heart the poor in spirit the merciful the peace-makers and such as suffer for righteousness sake And in all his most excellent Sermons and Prayers John 5. 6. 10. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. what have you but our common Catechism truths Which of the controversies of contenders or what nice opinions are there decided or propounded Nay he himself oft distinguishing tells men that God will have mercy and not sacrifice and reproveth the Pharisees that were strict in tything mint annise and cummin and neglected the great matters of the Law Mercy truth and justice and that troubled the Church with their ceremonies and worshipped God in vain with their traditions teaching for doctrines the commandments of men Matth. 15. Yea when he describeth the Judgement to come it is not many hard opinions that he layeth life and death on but on loving relieving visiting his members yea the least of his members yea himself in them And he condemneth those that do it not even to the least What then shall they suffer that interdict and anathematize Kings and Kingdoms and hereticate great part of the Church of Christ yea the Pope and his Councils of military Bishops that have risen to their greatness and conquered the Christian Nations by this art of Anathematizing or cursing Kings and Subjects from Christ § 6. We find Christ preaching also to divers single persons as to Nathaneal to the Samaritan woman John 4. to the blind man John 9. to the Canaanitish woman and others and he never went beyond these few plain divine and necessary terms § 7. And he sent out his disciples to preach but the same doctrine that he had done even to Repent and believe the Gospel and Devils were subject to them that preached this short plain truth who I fear are the Masters of many that spin a finer web And John Baptist went but the same way And among the counsels which he gave to the many sorts that flocked to him see whether any of our Engines of heretication and division and silencing are to be found All the four Gospels are strangers to such things § 8. And the very Controversal Epistles of St. Paul that were written to confute Seducers were written by the same spirit and go the same way The summ of all is Repentance towards God and faith towards our Lord Jesus Christ The doctrine of faith in Christ and the abrogation of the burdensome Ceremonious Jewish Law and that the Gentiles â—ere not bound to keep it is the summ of his doctrine 〈◊〉 summeth up all the Law in LOVE Rom. 13. â—â—d in living soberly righteously and godly in the â—orld following the spirit and mortifying the lusts of the flesh living a holy and heavenly life in love and unity and peace And whereas pride and ignorance then began the dividing way and condemning Christians for tolerable differences he oft and plainly reproveth and confuteth this But most fully and purposely to the Romans Chap. 14. 15. Him that is weak in the faith receive ye but not to doubtful disputations or not to judge his doubtful thoughts instancing in differences about meats and dayes Let not him that eateth despise him that eateth not and let not him which eateth not judge him that eateth for God hath received him Who art thou that judgest another mans servant to his own master he standeth or falleth Yea he shall be holden up for God is able to make him stand Let every man be fully perswaded or assured in his own mind He that regardeth a day regardeth it to the Lord c. But why dost thou judge thy brother or why dost thou set at naught thy brother For we shall all stand before the judgement-seat of Christ Let us not therefore judge one another any more but judge this rather that no man put a stumbling block in his brothers way If thy brother be grieved with thy meat now walkest thou not charitably Destroy not him with thy meat for whom Christ dyed For the Kingdom of God is not meat and drink but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Ghost For he that in these things serveth Christ is acceptable to God and approved of men Let us therefore follow after the things that make for peace and things wherewith one may edifie another For meat destroy not the work of God All things indeed are pure but it is evil for that man that eateth with offence I is good neither to eat flesh or drink wine nor any thing whereby thy brother stumbleth or is offended or maâ—â— weak And he that doubteth is damned if he eat beâ—cause he eateth not of faith For whatsoever is not 〈◊〉 faith is sin Ch. 15. We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak and not to please our selves Let every one of us please his neighbour for his good to edification For even Christ pleased not himself c. Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be like-minded one towards another according to Christ Jesus That ye may with one mind and one mouth glorifie God even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ wherefore receive ye one another as Christ also received us to the glory of God § 9. I know not what can be spoken more plain and home to the case in hand and the humane unnecessary impositions which have so many ages torn the Churches of Christ And yet all this is nothing to the Imposers The different exposition of this one part of Scripture hath had a great hand in the calamitous distractions silencings imprisonments scatterings that have been exercised in many Nations of the world The controversie lyeth here The One side say that All this was spoken by St. Paul only
of such things indifferent as the Church had not setled by any Law and would not so settle but that it 's nothing to such as the Church either hath or will so command This opinion hath carried it in England and other Nations of the world Being once commissioned to plead this cause by his Majesty among others I then presumed to say 1. That St. Paul here writeth not only to the laity but to all the Roman Church That therefore he writeth as Christ Rev. 2. 3. to the Angels of the seven Churches to the Rulers of the Church as well as to the People 2. And therefore he forbiddeth those Rulers what he forbiddeth others and so forbiddeth them the imposing of any thing contrary to this his full determination 3. Yea himself was an Apostle and a Church-Governor of as great authority as those that he wrote to And these his words signified his own judgement and what he would do himself Yea they were as good a Law as any the Romans could make that he wrote to Therefore when an Apostle by the Spirit of God shall write thus plainly and peremptorily to Priests and people thus to tolerate and receive each other he that now expoundeth it with an except the Church otherwise decree maketh this the sence I do by all these great reasons charge and perswade you not to judge despise or reject one another unless you decree to do it or not to make such rejecting Laws unless you make them And the Holy Ghost speaketh not in the holy Scriptures at this rate § 10. Yea I prove from the arguments used by St. Paul that he extended his speech to the Clergy or Rulers as well as to the people and so forbad them making such Laws And indeed the knack of making Church-Laws without the Holy Ghost in Apostolick persons was not as then learnt and used by the Churches 1. Because St. Paul argueth from Universal reasons 2. and from Moral and necessary arguments and 3. Speaketh by the Spirit and Apostolical Authority § 11. I. His reasons touch not only some singular persons and case but the case of all Churches in all Ages He argueth from the difference between well-meaning Christians as Weak and Strong as doubting and as assured as mistaken and as in the right as in danger of being damned if they act doubtingly and of stumbling and being offended c. Now such weak mistake◠Christians in such matters ever have been and ever will be and so the reason from their case and necessity will hold in all Countreys and Ages to the end § 12. II. And many great and pressing Moral reasons that all Christians are bound by are here heaped up 1. One is from Christian Love to brethren 2. Another from humane Compassion to the weak 3. Another is from Gods own example who receiveth such whom therefore we must not reject 4. Another is from Gods prerogative to judge 5. and another from his propriety in his own servants 6. Another is from our having no such judging power in such cases 7. Another is from Gods Love and mercy that will uphold such 8. Another is because what men do as to please God must not be condemned without necessity but a holy intention cherished so it be not in forbidden things 9. Another is that men must not go against Conscience in indifferent things 10. Another is from Christs dreadful judgement which is near and which we our selves must undergo and must be that final decider of many things which here will not be fully decided 11. Another is from the sin of laying stumbling-blocks and occasions of offence 12. Another is from the danger of crossing the ends of the death of Christ destroying souls for whom he dyed 13. Another is that it will make our good to be ill spoken of 14. Another is that the Kingdom of God or the Constitution of Christianity and the Church lyeth in no such matters but in righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Ghost 15. And another that Christ is pleased in this without the other and God accepteth such 16. Another is that such are approved of men that is This righteousness peace and holy joy without agreement in such Ceremonies and by-matters beareth its own testimony for approbation to the judgement of all impartial men humanity and Christianity teach us to love and honour such 17. Another is from our common obligation to live in peace with all 18. Another is from our obligation to do all to the edifying of one another 19. Another is because Gods work else is destroyed by us 20. And our own lawful acts are turned into sin when they hurt another 21. Another from the obligation that lyeth on us to deny our own liberty in meat wine c. to avoid the hurting of another that is weak 22. Another is from the damnation of such as are driven or drawn to act doubtingly 23. Another is from the special duty and mercy of the strong that should bear the infirmities of the weak 24. Another is from the common duty of pleasing others for their good and edifying 25. Another is from the example of Christ himself that pleased not himself 26. Another is from Gods patience to us 27. Another is from our great obligation to imitate Christ 28. Another because indeed this is the true way to Love and unity that with one mind and one mouth we may glorifie God while we lay not our concord on impossible terms 29. Another is in the concluding precept because Christ receiveth us and it is to Gods Glory therefore we must thus receive each other If all these moral arguments signifie no more than this Receive and tolerate such till you make Laws against it I cannot understand the argumentations of God or holy men § 13. III. And to conclude Paul spake by the Holy Ghost and by Divine authority himself and his words recorded are part of Christs Law indited by the Spirit and no man that cometh after him or to whom he wrote had power to contradict or obliterate it All this methinks should satisfie men of the meaning of so full a decision of an easie case about things indifferent which it's strange that so many yet for nothing do oppose And that the authority of an Apostle in Sacred Scripture the peace of the Church and the souls and peace of all dissenters and doubting persons should seem so contemptible to them as not to weigh down their humour and domineering will in an unnecessary and indifferent thing But it is the nature of sin especially Pride to be unreasonable and unpeaceable and the troubler of the soul the Church the world § 14. The same Apostle in the Epistles to the Corinthians 1. c. 1. v. 10. c. importuneth them to peace and unity and sharply reprehendeth their divisions 1. c. 3. He desireth them to be perfectly conjoyned in the same mind and in the same judgement But what are the terms and means of such a
Church-tearing Spirit And to shut out false anathematizing he concludeth with pronouncing Grace to all them that Love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity whoever condemn them § 18. The same Apostle leaveth the same Canon to the Philippians c. 1. v. 15 16. Though some preached Christ not sincerely but of contention supposing to add affliction to his bonds so far was he from silencing them or forbidding men to hear them that he rejoyced that Christ was preached though in pretence and contentiously And ch 2. 1 2 3. he most vehemently importuneth them to be like minded of the same Love of one accord and of one mind But how can that be and on what terms Let nothing be done through strife and vain glory but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves Not say say as I say or be silent Look not every man on his own things but every man on the things of others And not tread down others that you may be great nor think of your own case and reasons only Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus who being in the form of God thought it not robbery to be equal with God but made himself of no reputation and took upon him the form of a servant c. This is the Pastors pattern Let him that is Greater than Christ refuse to stoop so low And his Canon for the Concord is ch 3. 13 14 15 16. To confess our selves imperfect seekers of perfection pressing forward for the prize Let as many as be perfect be thus minded This is your measure here and if in any thing you be otherwise minded God shall reveal even this unto you Nevertheless whereto we have already attained let us walk by the same rule let us mind the same thing As if he said while you agree in true Christianity take it for granted that you will all have imperfection for I have so my self and therefore there will be different judgements in tolerable cases but let this be your Canon notwithstanding such difference while you press towards perfection walk by the Rule of Christian Love in searching after the will of God and mind with Concord the great things which you are all agreed to pursue And bear lovingly with each other in lesser differences and God in this way will teach you more § 19. The same doctrine he delivereth to the Colossians reprehending those that would lay Christian faith or Concord on their will-worship worldly rudiments and ordinances Touch not taste not handle not after the Commandments and doctrine of men in things which have a shew of wisdom in voluntary humility and neglecting the body in worshipping Angels and intruding into unseen things vainly pufft up by fleshly minds And instead of this he exhorteth them to hold the Head Christ who is the true wisdom and bond of unity and believe that in him they are complete and to take heed lest any spoil them of their faith love and concord by Philosophy pretending greater subtilty and vain deceit after the traditions of men and after the rudiments of the world and not after Christ in whom dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily in whom we are compleat And he instances in some such snares Let no man judge you in meat or drink or in respect of an holy day or new Moon or of the Sabbath which are a shadow of things to come c. that is Let no man bring you under such Laws and lay salvation or unity and Concord on them And ch 3. he largely sheweth that in the New Man there is neither Greek nor Jew circumcision or uncircumcision Barbarian or Scythian bond or free but Christ is all and in all And that the true bond of perfection is charity by which the peace of God must rule in their hearts that are called into One body And the subordinate Canons are bowels of mercy kindness humbleness of mind meekness long-suffering forbearing one another and forgiving one another if any man have a quarrel against any even as Christ forgave you so do ye § 20. If any say These are not precepts for Church-Governours but for subjects I answer still They are the precepts of the Holy Ghost by an Apostle that had more authority than any of our Church-Governours and that to all the Churches about their common duty unity and interest binding them and binding us even all the Churches § 21. It would seem tedious to recite all other texts to the same purpose His prohibitions of vain disputes and janglings about the Law and genealogies and his confining men to the common doctrine of Christianity and his warning men to preach no new or other doctrine may be seen in the Epistles to Timothy and Titus § 22. And it is much to be observed 1. That all the hereticks of those times pretended to greater wisdom and curiosity than the Christian Churches had and by such pretences brake their Concord as may be seen in all the Epistles especially Col. 2. Jam. 3. 2. And yet that whenever the Apostles or Christ himself Rev. 2. 3. censure any such hereticks to be forsaken and cast out it is never for any little matter but for denying some common article of the faith as Christs Incarnation the Resurrection c. or for some gross wicked doctrine and practice as fornication and eating things offered to idols or rebelling against Rulers c. Which shews what then were the terms of Church unity and by what Canons they were governed by Gods appointment § 23. I will add that one great warning of Paul which summeth up all 2. Cor. 11. 3. a prophesie of the deceit and corruption of the Churches would to God you could bear with me a little in my folly as proud corrupters account it and indeed bear with me For I am jealous over you with godly jealousie For I have espoused you to one husband and not to usurpers that I may present you as a chaste Virgin to Christ But I fear lest by any means as the Serpent beguiled Eve though his subtilty flattering her with the hopes of higher knowledge so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ Christianity is not a snare for mens wits but a way to their salvation It is a plain and simple thing though most mysterious 1. It consisteth of simplicity of doctrine a few great plain and necessary things and not of philosophical curious subtilties though it forbiddeth not but encourageth the utmost improvement of reason and true learning especially for method elucidation and defence 2. It is a simple and spiritual worship that it commandeth for God is a spirit and will be so worshipped in spirit and in truth The Schismaticks contended whether in this Mountain or at Jerusalem but Christ rebuked that contention 3. And it is a simple sort of Government or Discipline that Christ hath instituted commanding him that will be Greatest to seek his preeminence in being most
of the Countreys and the Judges of all Christians even in secular affairs And when one Sophronius or few others opened the case rightly to them they either understood it not or bawl'd it down and set up a cry Away with the Hereticks The Eutychians following Cyril spake uâ—ntly and said Christ had two natures before the union and but one after because united and union maketh one of two But it is apparent as Derodon hath proved that Cyril and so his ignorant followers did not think that Christs humane nature did exist before the union and so that ever they were divided but that in order of nature the existence is intelligible before the union and so that they were but one as being undivided not denying them to be still distinguishable and so to be what Nestorius and the Orthodox meant by two as being distinct but not divided § 25. And Derodon hath also proved that Cyril and so the Eutychians when they called them One did mean One person mistaking the sense of the word Nature and meaning by Nature the same that the Orthodox meant by Person And so the opening of two words would have ended all their Controversie and proved that they meant the same thing and knew it not that is 1. distinguishing between One undivided and One undistinguished 2. Opening what they meant by Nature and Person But alas this was no work for those famous General Councils but to cry out Anathema to Nestorius Anathema to Eutyches Anathema to Dioscorus Holy Leo Holy Cyril c. these were their arguments And Dioscorus as bad as his adversaries or worse excommunicated Leo the Bishop of Rome and went the Anathematizing way And so much of Religion was placed in cursing one another that there were scarce any Bisops in the world that were not cursed by one another § 26. VI. And the difference between the Greeks and Latines about the words hypostases Personae had almost come to the same extremity When Hierome himself that liked â—ot three hypostases was accused of heresie and was fain to fly to his baptismal Creed for refuge and to prove that he was a believer because he was baptized But one wiser than the rest had the unusual good success as to convince them that by the two words it was the same thing that they meant and did not know it § 27. VII The next calamitous Anathematizing fell out about the owning or disowning of the Council of Chalcedon because of the foresaid Nestorian and Eutychian quarrels And so doleful was the case that it became the test of the Orthodox in one Countrey to Curse or Anathematize that Council and in another to Curse all that did not receive it Especially when one Emperour was for one side and the next for another the Cursing varyed accordingly for the most part § 28. But that which added grievously to the Calamity was that the same Bishops that under one Emperour cursed the Council under the next cursed those that owned it not and thus most scandalously anathematized themselves even one party this year and another the next I say nothing but what Binius and Baronius and such others say § 29. VIII The next sad Anathematizing was about the Monothelites They that said that Christ had but One Will and One Operation were cursed as Monothelite hereticks and they that said He had two were cursed by the Monothelites And these were no narrow petty Sects but Emperours and great General Councils were for them Binius saith that the Council of Constantinople called Quin sextum that made the Trull Canons were Monothelites and yet that they were the same Bishops that had constituted the fifth Council so that those also were Monothelites And in the reign of Philippicus he saith a Council of the Monothelites was so great that there were besides the rest Innumerable Bishops out of the East And these and their adversaries kept on the cursing trade of Religion one side cursing under one Emperour and the contrary under the next § 30. And O doleful case even these also seem fully to me to contend about nothing but bare words and really agreed and did not know it partly following the stream for worldly interest and partly having not skill enough to explicate ambiguous words and state the Controversie Who knoweth not that ever read any Metaphysicks how many senses the word One or Vnity hath and how the same thing in several respects may be said to be One or Two And was this discussed in any of these Councils Which where and when 1. Two things may concur to one effect where say the subtilest Philosophers materially they are two causes but formally and properly but one All set together make but one cause being ejusdem generis and are but many parts of that one cause though many things And so some called Christs Wills One as being but One cause in these School-mens sense of the same effect For the Deity operateth only per essentiam and hath no effect in God himself 2. And as Voluntas and operatio signifie the Internal principle of the effect no one can doubt but Christ had two for the Divine essential Will and the humane faculty or Act were not the same principle or thing But Objectively they are One that is The Divine Nature or principle and the humane do will the same thing and contradict not one another 3. And the Controversie is the same as the former with the Eutychians Christ hath but One Will as opposite to Divisions One as not divided but Two as intellectually distinguishable Two as denominated à principiis from two natures one as 1. from One person and 2. as undivided and 3. as terminated on One object I doubt not but had this been thus opened to them all the sober men would have said we are all agreed in it And yet this wordy difference maketh the name of an Anathematized heresie to this day § 31. IX The next cursing difference arose about â— question whether Christs body on earth was corruptible or no O the unhappy spirit of self conceited anathematizing Prelates The affirmers were called corrupticolae and reproached as blasphemers of the Christ and the worshippers of that which was corruptible The denyers were called Phantasiasticks and made hereticks the affirmers getting the last prevailing vote And alas the Emperour Justinian out of his great zeal for the honour of Christ proved one of the hereticks and is so branded to this day yea and persecuted the corrupticolas as hereticks Where will hereticating cursing and persecuting stop or end And yet one word of just distinction had ended all this had it been duly used and received Christs Body was potentially and as to the natural quality of flesh lyable to or capable of corruption But not actually corrupted and not corruptible in respect to Gods decree that it should not actually corrupt And yet even holy Hilary Pictav held not only this errour but somewhat more His words are so bad
Spirit and sufficient Rule 23. That men must believe the Scripture without reason for their believing it or must believe it to be Gods word without seeking any proof that it is his word 24. That it is meritorious to believe the Scripture to be Gods word without knowing any proof or reason of it this being an infused faith and proof making it but acquired 25. That we must believe Gods word no further than we have evidence of truth from the nature of the matter revealed 26. That Mahomet is the Paraclet promised by Christ V. Of the Creation 1. That this world was from eternity and not made in time 2. That an evil God made this earth or a middle God between the perfect God and the evil one As old Hereticks variously spake 3. Or that such an evil or middle God made the body of man 4. Or that such an evil or middle agent made the woman 5. That God made sin and death and disorder before sin deserved them 6. That when God had made this world he left it to the Government of certain Angels who fell and necessitated man to fall 7. That the World is Gods body and he the Soul of it and no more 8. That the world came by chance or by a fortuitous conflux of atomes and was not made by Gods wise and powerful word or action 9. That there is nothing in the world but matter and motion and the various shapes of matter caused by motion or at least nothing but God and matter and motion and its modal effects 10. That the world is Infinite as being made by that infinite God who made it as great and good as he was able and therefore infinite in his own similitude VI. Of Angels and Spirits and Heaven 1. That men can certainly tell the space number and order of all the celestial regions orbs or spaces and the number of Angels or when the first were made 2. That this world or earth was made by Angels only 3. That the fallen Angels were necessitated by God to sin and to tempt man 4. That God hath so left to Angels the Government of this world as not to govern it himself save by such leaving all to their free contingent action 5. That all that which scripture ascribeth to the Holy Ghost is done only by Angels 6. That we may know which are our Guardian Angels 7. That men may choose their own guardian Angels or spirits 8. That we must pray to Angels though we see them not or have no special notice when they hear us 9. That Angels lusted after women and begat Giants of them before the deluge 10. That they fight with each other for the government of the Kingdoms of this world even the good Angels among themselves VII Of Man as man in his nature and first state 1. That mans soul is God or part of God 2. Or is only a part or act of an universal soul of the world and is no singular or individual substance in each one 3. That the soul is but a quality motion or action of a higher agent 4. That the soul is mortal and dieth with the body being either annihilated or asleep or sunk into a meer potentia or hath no knowledge will sense or action or is swallowed up in the universal soul so as to lose its proper or numerical existence 5. That mans soul is of the same species as the bruits 6. That mans spirit only is immortal and continueth after death but not his soul 7. That mans soul or spirit was from eternity 8. That it was made before this earth and sinned in a former body and was thrust for punishment into this body and world 9. That the souls departed of men are sent back into beasts or at least into other men and so are oft born 10. That mens souls are fallen Angels 11. That Adams soul was made first male and female before it was incorporate 12. That Adams body was the cloathing that God made him after he sinned having no body before 13. That neither soul nor body was made after Gods image as Epiphanius ill affirmeth 14. That mans Vital faculty Intellect and Will are but accidents of his soul 15. That the soul is moved but as an engine by an extrinsick cause and hath not any Essential self-moving form or power 16. That no man can do more or less or otherwise than he doth because God as the first mover necessitateth all his actions 17. That the will hath no habits but a meer power and liberty 18. That Adam and Eve had no holiness or holy inclination to love God as God and to obey him but a meer neutral possibility 19. That Adam had not help or strength sufcient or necessary power to have forborn his first sin 20. That man was made only to be an inhabitant of earth as Angels are of heaven and is not capable of an higher habitation VIII Of sin Original and subsequent 1. That God is as much the Cause of all sin as he is of darkness and such other privations and that he made Adam sin or that he irresistibly predetermineth every ones will to every forbidden act which it doth 2. That the Devil irresistibly necessitated Adam to sin and so some superior cause did the Devils 3. That sin is not only the occasion of much good but a proper cause and as such is decreed willed and caused by God 4. That God made a Covenant with Adam that if he sinned all that came of him should be reputed sinners farther than they were really seminally in him and by natural in-being and derivation were partakers of his guilt and corruptions and so that God made them sinners by his arbitrary imputation when naturally they were not so 5. That Original sin necessitateth every sin of omission or act which ever after followeth in the world 6. That sin being a meer privation all are by nature deprived of all moral good and so all are equally evil and as bad as those in hell notwithstanding any thing that the Redeemer hath done to prevent it 7. That infants have no Original sin no guilt of Adams sin and no sinful pravity of nature 8. That Infants have no participation of guilt of any nearer parents sin but Adams only and God doth not inflict any punishment on children for their fathers sin because of their derived guilt by nature 9. That therefore Infants have no need of a Saviour to suffer for their sin nor of a pardon 10. That Infants need not the Holy Ghost to sanctifie them by killing any sinful pravity or inclination in them 11. That sin was not the cause of death 12. That sin deserveth not hell or an everlasting punishment IX Of Redemption and the Covenant of grace made to Adam and Noah 1. That God made no promise Covenant or gift of grace to Adam after his fall 2. That God made the Covenant of grace only to Adam and the elect and not to all mankind in him
down Sect. XI 3. They turn all the Parish-Churches into Chappels or meer parts of one Church and Unchurch them all in the judgment of those that take a Bishop to be essential to a Church And all will not agree to Unchurch all such Parishes Sect. XII 4. It maketh true Discipline as impossible as is the Government of so many score oâ— hundred Schools by one Schoolmaster or Hospitals by one Physician without any other Schoolmaster or Physician under him but Ushers and Apothecaries which all Christians will not agree to Sect. XIII 5. It is contrary to the Practice of the Primitive Churches and casteth out their sort oâ— Parochial Bishops as I have elsewhere fully proved 1. From the Testimonies of many such as that oâ— Ignatius before cited 2. From the custom of choosing Bishops by all the People 3. And of managing Discipline before all the Church 4. By the custom mentioned by Tertulliâ—â— and Justin Martyr of receiving the Sacrament onely from the hand of the Bishop or when he Consecrated it 5. By the custom of the Bishops onely Preaching except in case of his special appointment 6. In every Church the Bishop sate on a high Seat with the Presbyters about him 7. The Bishop onely pronounced the Blessing 8. Many Canons after when the Churches grew greater command all the People to be present and communicate with the Bishop on the great Festivals These and many more Evidences prove That in the Primitive Times the Bishops had but single Churches and every Altar and Church had a Bishop Sect. XIV 6. The very Species of the old Churches is thus overthrown and the old office of Presbyters therewith which was to be assistant Governors with the Bishop and not meer Preachers or Readers And all these Changes all Christians will not agree to Sect. XV. 7. Especially the sad History of Councils and Prelacy will deter them from such Concord when they find that their Aspiring Ambition and Contention hath been the grand Cause of Schisms and Rebellions and kept the Church in confusion and brought it to the lamentable state in East and West that it is in Sect. XVI 8. And constant Experience will be the greatest hinderance As in our own Age many good Men that had favourable thoughts of Diocesans are quite turned from them since they saw Two thousand faithful Ministers silenced by them and that it is the work of too many of them to cast out such and set up such as I am not willing to describe And such Experience After-Ages are like to have which will produce the same effects When Experience persuadeth Men That under the name of Bishops they are Troublers Persecutors and Destroyers they will account them Wolves and not agree to take them for their Shepherds It will be said That Good Bishops are not such It 's true and that there are Good Ones no sober Man doubteth But when 1300 years Experience hath told Men That the Good Ones are few in comparison of the Bad Ones ever since they had large Dominions and Jurisdictions And when Reason tells Men That the worst and most worldly Men will be the most diligent seekers of such Power and Wealth and that he that seeketh them is liker to find them than he that doth not and so that Bad men are still likest to be Diâ—cesans And when the divided scattered persecuted Flocks find that the work of such Men is to silence the most conscionable Ministers and to be Thorns and Thistâ—es to the People though they wear Sheeps cloathing Men will judge of theâ— by their fruits and the Churches will never be united in them Sect. XVII 9. The greatest Defenders of Episcopacy say so much to make Men against them as will hinder this from being an uniting course I wiâ—l instance now but in Petavius and Doctor Hamâ—â—d who followeth him and Scolus who saith 〈…〉 Clara led them the way These hold That the Apâ—stâ—â—s setled a Bishop without any subject sort of Presbyters in every City and single Congregational Church And Doctor Hammond Annot. in Act. 11. Dissertat adversus Blondel saith That it cannot be proved that there were any subject Presbyters in Scripture-times but that the word Presbyter every where in Scripture signifieth a Bishop And if so 1. Men will know that the Apostolical Form was for every Congregational Church to have a Bishop of its own 2. That no Bishop had more setled Congregations than one For no such Congregation could worship God and celebrate the Sacrament of Communion as then they constantly did without a Minister And one Bishop could be but in one place at once and so without Curates could have but one Assembly 3. And Men will be inquisitive By what Authority Subject Presbyters and Diocesan Bishops and Churches were introduced after Scripture-times in which they will never receive universal satisfaction If it be said that the Apostles gave Bishops Power to make a subject order of Presbyters and to turn Parish or Congregational Churches into Diocesan and so to alter the first Forms of Government when they were dead this will not be received without proofs which never will be given to satisfie all Nay it will seem utterly improbable and Men will ask 1. Why did not the Apostles do it themselves if they would have it done Was not their Authority more unquestionable than theirs that should come after If it be said that there were not qualified Men enow it will 2. Be asked Were there not like to be then greatest Choice upon the extraordinary pouring out of the Spirit 3. Do we not find in Corinth so many inspired gifted persons in one Assembly that Paul was put to limit them in their Prophecying yet allowing many to do it one by one And Acts 13. there were many Prophets and Teachers in Antioch And at Jerusalem more and at Ephesus Acts 20. and at Philippi Phil. 1. 1 2. there were many Bishops or Elders And such Deacons as Stephen and Philip c. would have served for Elders rather than to have none 4. Doth not this imply that after-times that might make so great a change may also do the like in other things 5. And that Diocesans and subject Presbyters be but humane Institutions and therefore Men may again change them 6. Doth it not dishonour the Apostles to say that they setled one Form of Government for their own Age which should so quickly be changed by their Followers into another species All these things and much more will hinder Universal Concord in Diocesans Sect. XIX Yet I must add that there is great difference between Diocesans both as to their Government and their Persons whence some Churches may comfortably live in Concord under them though 〈◊〉 be divided and afflicted under them 1. Some Diocesans have Diocesses so small that Discipline is there a possible thing Others as ours in England have some above a thousand some many hundred or score Parishes which maketh true Discipâ—â—â— impossible 2. Some Diocesans exercise