Selected quad for the lemma: state_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
state_n	church_n	spirit_n	unity_n	1,402	5	10.2899	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A65836	The apostate incendiary rebuked, and the people called Quakers vindicated from Romish hirarchy and imposition in a serious examination of VVilliam Mucklows Liberty of conscience asserted against imposition, but proved a liberty which is in Christ Jesus, and against unity and order in his church / by one whose rejoycing is the testimony of a good conscience toward God and man, G. Whitehead.	Whitehead, George, 1636?-1723.	1673 (1673)	Wing W1890; ESTC R39076	20,163	27

Ch. 4. 17 19. with many more Now let us consider W. M's tender Conscience as to the Lord his further Manifestation c. for his wearing his Hat in time of publick Prayer where he tells us that we greatly err who say the keeping on the Hat is a Practice introduced unless we can prove it is done upon a religious Account when as in Truth it is only a Custom left which they formerly practized this agrees with what they say in their Spirit of the Ha p. 24. That they keep it neither off nor on upon a religious Account Then this bespeaks their meer Indifferency in the Case if not upon a religious Account there is no such tender Conscience nor farther Manifestation in the matter on their parts wherefore their Pretence of both is a meer Dissimulation and Cheat and if then this Man's Conscience were not asleep or much hardned he might see it is in his Wilfulness and Opposition that he hath persisted in such a reproved and offensive Gesture as he hath neither the Exercise of Conscience nor Religion in See what his asserting Liberty of Conscience amounts to he should have rather entituled his Paper Liberty of self-Will and a perverse Spirit asserted against the Unity and Order of the Church of Christ and People of God called Quakers And how do we err in saying their irreverend Posture is introduced when it was both brought in and imposed long after they accustomed the contrary in the Church But his main Allegation is He wants or finds not the Lord's Requiring for the Practice of him How should he know his Requiring for that which he is prejudicially engaged against And in such a hardned wilful State that feels not the living Union wherein he hath resisted the holy Spirit in his People and quencht it in himself and how should such a one that despises the Church of Christ and reviles the Lord's People in that State joyn with them either in the Unity or Order of Life This Man therefore playes the hardned Hypocrite and Dissembler while he seems to complain of being excluded out of our Communion when he desires it not with us having excluded himself and odified us as grosly as he can to the World His Complaint of Excommunication denying him and others the Benefit of Marriage and Burial having a Propriety therein only for the Omittance of keeping of the Hat in time of Prayer is neither fully nor truly stated for first we do not deny them Marriage in it self but among us and as being out of Unity and Charity with us which is more then only for the said Omission we may not in Conscience be their Witnesses 2dly Denyal of him Burial He hath not Cause to cast that upon us without Distinction 3dly Yet our Friends have Reason to take Care whom they admit Burial among us to prevent Reproach as much as in them lies His saying They give that Meeting this Appellation THE BODY is not true but also falsly scornfully given in the Spirit of the Hat to the Meeting in Devon-shire-House for the Lody is but one and hath many Members so also is Christ which is not made up of one particular Meeting but of the universal Church of Christ or general Assembly of the first-born and the Tryal of Motions and Unity is by that Life and Spirit which searches all things and whereby the spiritual Man judgeth all things and not by a few that seek Preheminence nor do such sway over us or our Body as he falsly insinuates who himself is one of the same Spirit Many are filled with Prayer and Praises to the Lord in silent Meettings who notwithstanding sometimes requires some outward Expressions thereof both in Words and Gestures and that in deep Humility of Soul with unvailed Spirits and Heads too which for this Man to oppose and shew a publick Sign against is no token of Humility but of Hardness and self-Exaltation As for what Gestures we may use in our private Devotion and Prayer whether walking by the Way or on our Beds it follows not that we must needs be in the same posture in publick Prayer in Meetings any more then we are to follow our usual Labours or Vocations in our publick Meetings and we are not accountable to Apostates of the manner of our private Devotion What we do is singly to the Lord without Respect to Spectators none being present but in our Assemblies he who is the God of Order and not of Confusion hath called us to express or shew forth Reverence and Order for the Sake of others and to do all things to Edification and God's Power Presence we feel with us in what we do but one while this Man is heaping Questions against our Practice another while his Complaint is only about imposing Postures upon our Fellow-Members which is false for they give us no such Occasion nor hath he approved himself as our Fellow-Member who hath slighted our Testimony and Exhortation and refused to hear the Church being one of them that went out from us for that they were not of us for had they been of us they would have continued with us To his Query Whether the Head mentioned in Cor. 11. may not be covered with a Hat off and uncovered with a Hat on Answ. The Head Christ whom he means may but this Man hath nor rightly considered the Apostle's Words in restraining them only to that Sence of the Head when they also relate to an outward Order or different Postures of Men and Women see ver 5 6 7 13. which argue that the Women would be uncovered then which was not comely in them as in the Men and the men's being uncovered appears to be in Opposition to the Jews Vails and Coverings under the Law as for the Head Christ he ought not to be covered in the Women any more then in the Men. Que. Have not some kneeled sat and stood in publick c. Whether a Cap is not as real a Covering to the Head as a Hat Answ. No that it is not but these Questions are to excuse himself and recriminate our Friends he states not the Ground of the Difference which lies chiefly in that Spirit of Division and Opposition in himself and some others which should it seek to make Discord and Parties either about kneeling Cap on or Cap off in Prayer the Life and Power of God in the Church would rise up in Judgment against it and the Discord-Makers he triffles touching wearing a Cap standing or sitting for God allows a Conveniency and what is expedient for the Necessity of the weak and aged and feeble in Body who are not in Prejudice or Opposition in what they do yet however where the substantial part of true Worship is known which is in Spirit and Truth with a naked bowed and broken Heart before the Lord there will be no Straitness nor Scruple to express it with uncovered Head and bended Knees as to the Lord which was practiced among

implyed and yet he grants Christ to be the Head of the Body and is not that Body the Church which he hath owned See what Contradiction Envy leads this Man into who also saith That the Chuch was then to be in Subjection to her Head and every Member governed and exercized according to the Order of the Head but now the Body the Church claims Authority over their Fellow-Members as peculiarly having the infallible Spirit c. These latter Words from BUT contain two false and Unjust Reflections upon the Church for First the Body or Church claims no such Authority over their Fellow-Members it is gross Confusion in him for to affirm it for all Fellow-Members thereof are included in the same Body in Subjection to one and the same Head which is Christ. 2. None of the Fellow-Members of the Body of Christ are excluded from having the infallible Spirit in some degree as if it were peculiar only to some few whenas its universal throughout the whole Body though there be diversities of Gifts given as the Lord sees meet to every Man his proper and peculiar Gift which all tends to Unity and Edification of the whole Body But this Man seems to claim a Member-ship in the Church or Body as he calls us and yet judges and reviles the Church what then would he be a Member of Is it of such a Body that he represents as torn to peices and rent from the Head or fallen under Apostacy for we cannot look upon the Church to be made up of himself and John Pennyman or a few of their Spirit and that were also contrary to J. P's writing himself One of the least of the Thousands in Israel but whether he had such low Thoughts of himself or not let God's Witness and his People who have beheld his Deportment and Luceferian Spirit judge W. M. saith Friends That which was declared of and testified unto in the beginning was to direct our Minds unto the Heavenly Gift not to the Church but to the Manifestation of the Spirit in the particular waiting there to feel its Motions and to hear its Voice which would infallibly teach us our Duty towards God our Neighbour and our selves and not to go forth into Reasonings to promote comely Orders after the Manner of men nor to be found in the Exercise of any thing in his pure Worship but what the Lord not the Body required else to stand still c. Herein he hath intermixt his perverse Parenthesis falsly charging us in divers Respects as if the Heavenly Gift and the Church were now separate and what the Lord and his People require in Oppositior or as if we were promoting a Body without the Spirit or Subjection to what the Lord requires as if our Testimony were now so much varied from what it was in the Beginning these are all most falsly suggested his saying It was to direct our minds to the Heavenly Gift not to the Church to what the Lord not the Body required See what Division this would make between the Lord and his People but he mistakes Not to the Church for our Testimony was in the beginning and still is to promote the Unity of the Spirit in our directing the Minds to the Spirit and to them that love the Lord to dwell in Love and Unity which all come unto who come unto the Heavenly Gift and to follow the Lord's Requirings therein which is unerring and what is this but to preach up a true church-Church-State which hath been the real Intent and Tendency of our Testimony from the Beginning And had this Man been faithful to what was testfied in the Beginning as he pretends a great Esteem thereof the Unity and Society of the Church and People of God called Quakers would have been of more value with him then now so enviously and confusedly to quarrel with them or any comely Order or reverent Custom in the Church as he doth which he did not in the Beginning for when his Mind was directed to the Manifestation of the Spirit which would infallibly teach us our Duty towards God our Neighbour and our selves as he saith then he and the rest concerned in the Beginning did not irreverently sit with their Hats on in publick Prayer among us nor say that the contrary among us was a going forth into Reasonings to promote comely Orders after the manner of Men for what needed that when the infallible Spirit which was then owned to be their Teacher freely led them into it Nor did the Apostle so go out into reasoning when he exhorted the Saints to think on whatsoever things were true honest just pure lovely of good Report c. But this Man is offended at our vindicating that Order which was made both lovely and comely by that Spirit that set it up since he is gone out from that infallible Spirit which he was directed to in the Beginning which then moved and led them into both Reverence to God Respect to his People and how to behave themselves in the Church of Christ both in Decency and in Order Note that W. M. in so plainly professing and in Words owning the Truth 's Testimony and Infallibility of the Spirits Teaching as it was in the Beginning testified to among us he hath therein said more for the comely Order that then was brought forth in our Assemblies and for the Church having the infallible Spirit to know Truth from Error and the right from the wrong Spirit then ever he can say or produce for the contrary viz. for his keeping on his Hat in Prayer for his accusing the Church with Fallibility Apostacy or the Antient Friends with Imposing Usurping c. Out of his own Mouth he is condemned as one apostatized from the Heavenly Gift from his first Love Convincement and Order and hath wilfully excluded himself from the Union and Society of the Church of Christ. He still boggles and seems offended at the Body the Church having the infallible Spirit the certain unerring Judgment reciding with them upon all Occasions to know Truth from Error and the right from the wrong Spirit will you limit the Lord saith he Answ. Is it a limitting the Lord for the Body or Church of Christ to have his Spirit which is infallible and an unerring Judgment so far as we received from the same Spirit What gross Darkness is come over this Man Doth not the spiritual Man judge all Things And the Saints shall judge the World and dare he say that the Spirit of Christ hath not taught the Church Truth from Error nor to know the right from the wrong Spirit Whenas the Principle we direct unto and our Testimony concerning it he dares not say is fallible but seems to justifie our Testimony as it was in the Beginning and in Words to own Inward Motions Voice and Teachings of the infallible Spirit and the measure thereof within to try the Verity of our Doctrine And why should it be rendred a limitting of the Lord