Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	according_a	church_n	word_n	2,678	5	4.0797	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A75896	An admonition given unto Mr. Saltmarsh: wherein his great sinne in writing those pamphlets intituled, A new quære, Smoak in the temple, Groanes for liberty, &c. is plainly laid open before him, and charged upon his conscience. Where also among other things spoken of, the calling of the ministers in the reformed churches, is proved to bee according to the Word of God. Imprimatur, Ja: Cranford.	M. W.; J. D.; S. B.	1646 (1646)	Wing A594A; Thomason E350_10; ESTC R201045	16,200	19

AN ADMONITION GIVEN Unto Mr. SALT MARSH WHEREIN His great Sinne in writing those Pamphlets Intituled A New Quaere Smoak in the Temple Groanes for Liberty c. Is plainly laid open before him and charged upon his Conscience Where also among other things spoken of the Calling of the Ministers in the Reformed Churches is proved to bee according to the Word of God 2 TIM 3.7 Ever learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the Truth 2 PET. 2.18 19. For when they speak great swelling words of vanity they allure through the lusts of the flesh through much wantonnesse those that were clean escaped from them who live in errour While they promise them liberty they themselves are the servants of corruption for of whom a man is overcome of the same is he brought in bondage Cypriani Epistol 52. Antoniano Fratri Quòd verò ad Novatiani personam attinet frater Charissime de quo desiderasti tibi scribi quam haeresim introduxisset scias nos primo in loco nec curiosos esse debere quid ille doceat cum foris doceat Quisquis ille est qualiscunque est Christianus non est qui in Christi Ecclesia non est Jactet se licèt Philosophiam vel eloquentiam suam superbis vocibus praedicet qui nec fraternam charitatem nec Ecclesiasticam unitatem tenuit etiam quod prius fuerat amisit Imprimatur Ja Cranford Printed at London by John Dever Robert Ibbitson for Ralph Smith and are to bee sold at his shop at the signe of the Bible in Cornhill MDCXLVI THE PREFACE THE occasion of Printing this following Discourse is this The Reverend and learned Authour upon the comming forth and perusall of some of Mr. Saltmarshes Pamphlets being much offended and grieved at them sent him in a private way this Admonition taking speciall care that as it should safely come to his hands so to let him have notice where hee might return an Answer back to the Authour if hee had pleased Now the Authour having waited almost foure Moneths for an Answer from Mr. Saltmarsh and hearing nothing from him but on the contrary since hee sent him this Admonition Mr. Saltmarsh going on in Printing other things of the like nature as a Book Intituled Reasons for love unity and Peace with pretended Answers to Mr. Gataker Mr. Ley Mr. Edwards Mr. W. 't is thought fit to make publick this private Admonition which had it done any good upon him and brought him to repentance had never been published to the world But those who sin openly and being admonished goe on yet more ought to bee rebuked before all that others may fear and learn And if this publick Reproofe does Mr. Saltmarsh no good neither hee may expect to bee more sharpely dealt with that hee may learn not to blaspheme AN ADMONITION GIVEN UNTO MASTER Saltmarsh Master Saltmarsh ALthough I have no acquaintance with your person yet by some of your writings I thinke I can discerne somewhat of the frame of your Spirit and though I cannot well conjecture what use you will make of that which I purpose to expresse towards you in love to your Soule yet I thinke it my dutie at this time in this manner to admonish you that sinne may not rest upon You know the Commandement of our God doth oblige me to this Levit. 19.17 And our Saviour doth confirme the same in cases of offence betweene brethren Matth. 18.15 Now I must declare unto you in true simplicitie that your wayes of dealing with your Brethren are very offensive unto me and I conceive that you are bound in Conscience to give me some satisfaction in that which I shall propose unto you either by acknowledging and mending the dangerous error of your wayes or else by rectifying my judgement in the apprehension which I have of it The thing then is this that finding you a Preacher of the Gospell as you call your selfe and meddling with the controversies of the time about Church-Government to give Counsell therein to the State what to doe you follow no Rule of edification but venture boldly upon all the Wayes of destruction and savour nothing of Charitie in dealing with your Brethren of the Ministery but endevour to make them every way contemptible unto the world by injurious and false aspersions and to provoke their Spirits to invitation and disputes against you by a disorderly quarrelsome way of writing against them I take no delight God is my witnes as you seeme to do in your publicke Writings with a kind of insultation over a whole Assembly of Divines to lay this charge in a private way upon you but it is a grief to me to expresse it that I should finde any that cals himself a Minister of the Gospell of Christ lyable unto such faults and so far out of the way which Christs Spirit the anointing which you so much speake of doth teach his true Disciples to walke in Well then that I may ease my selfe upon you of the griefe which you have occasioned to the end that the Lord may be mercifull unto you to incline you if it be possible to take away the cause therof I shall truly and faithfully let you see whence it doth arise and how your proceedings have begotten it in me I have seene heretofore a litle Tract of yours which you call a New Quaere concerning Church-Government wherein you endevour to perswade the State to keepe it in an Unsettlement that Tract in the aime which you have in it and the way you take to insinvate it with many fallacies in Divinitie fit to intangle the weake and with many Principles of corrupt sensuall and worldly State-Policie fit to stir up and confirme Envie and Pride in the hearts of earthly men that have power in their hands did not a little sad my spirit when I read it had thoughts to have spoken to you about it when I was at London but the opportunitie was not offered and so I left off the thought of it chiefly when I found that some body answered it But now beeing out of London I meet in the Country with another Tract of a far worse nature if worse may be then that was concerning the Divine Right of the Presbyterie wherof I shall speake unto you plainly and in all true love my thoughts if perhaps God may be pleased to open your eyes to see the snare wherin you are caught by Satan to be his instrument to tempt all men to all manner of disorders to disturbe this distracted State and bring it to Rvine which I beseech God in mercy to prevent For truly the way which you have taken and wherein you proceed with a great deale of confidence provoking others to follow you and to answer you in the same kind if it should be entertained on all sides can produce nothing but the Gall of bitternesse and destruction in the end For if yee bite and devovre one another yee are in danger

committed to each in their severall Administrations under God the one for the inward the other for the outward man which ought no more to bee at variance in a State then Soule and Body in one and the same Man in their facultties and operations upon their distinct Objects Here you shew the rayling disposition of your minde when you parallel the Nationall Assemblies of all the Reformed Churches against all evident experience of their behaviour to the contrary and against the cleere light of their Doctrine whereby they Challenge no interest in the Government of worldly matters with the Papal and Antichristian Power which hath exalted it selfe above all that is called God on Earth and in Heaven also The inferences which you make upon their Petition are such as truly deserve none other observation but this that it is an untruth which you say at the beginning of every inference namely that you may inferre from their words that which you doe inferre for I say that you may not make evill inferences and misconstructions of any mans meaning from his words if they can beare any better sense then you can put upon them to his prejudice may you bee injurious and uncharitable to your Brethren May you accuse them of wicked intentions against their cleare professions if you may doe this what may you not doe I pray you looke to your selfe what liberty you take you pressed to bee in a Spirituall liberty but looke now whether in using your libertie thus you give not an occasion to your flesh to sow the seede of divisions of Complaints of murmurings and disputes and of all evill affections against your Brethren Therefore the last grievance which I shall offer unto you to Consider in your way is the Artifice which you use to exasperate the Spirits of men by a misconstruction even of the best things which are in them to the worst sense with so much boldnesse and varietie of applications and in such a Tautologicall way to beate it upon the imaginations of Earthly men and to intricate the thoughts of the simple that it is a great matter of sorrow to see you so busie in a perverse zeale to sowe dissension amongst Brethren You builde upon your own false supposalls and inferences a kinde of Method to instruct people in the wayes of opposition wherein It will not trace you because it is tedious and unprofitable and needlesse to shew you all the deceitfull windligs of your Spirit to which you give an unlimited libertie to intangle men by fallacies I shall rather represent unto you what in your case if you had beene zealous for the Truth and not for deceiving and leading men out of the way you should have done Hearken now then and consider you that talke so much of Truth All The Truth which wee should aime at and beare witnesse unto one towards another is either of Doctrine or Practise The Truth of Doctrine is the Testimony of the Word and Spirit whereby God hath revealed himselfe and the things belonging to Christ and his Kingdome unto us that by this knowledge wee might receive all things pertaining to life and to Godlinesse The Truth of Practise is that upright and sincere dealing with others in God for their good according to our best knowledge of the things which wee would desire to have from them in the same kinde The meanes to make this Truth of both kindes effectually profitable to our selves and others is to endevour that which the Apostle exhorts us unto Ephes 4.15 Namely to speake the Truth in Love and the effect of this endevour will bee that which hee doth promise there shall follow thereupon Namely to grow up in all things into him who is the Head even Christ Thus then whether it bee a matter of Doctrine or of Practise whereunto we are to beare witnesse if we desire thereby to grow up within our selves or to build up others into Christ which is the onely warrantable aime wee can have wee must apply our mindes to speake the Truth in Love and to doe the Truth in Love For the originall words 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 containe the sense of both in one expression If then this is the Rule by which wee should walke in all things that wee may approve our Consciences to God as his true servants and enjoy Christ by walking after his Spirit in all things then wee must never suffer any humane and worldly aimes to sway our thoughts to speake or act that which may tend onely to satisfie our own or other peoples humours but before wee undertake a businesse towards others whether the concernment be private or publicke we should settle the affections of Truth and discerne the way of uttering them in Love to gaine these with whom wee deale to some dutie of godlinesse wherein they and wee may grow up in Christ Now then to apply this Spirituall Method of proceeding to your Case let us State the Question which you make and consider how you should and I would have proceeded if it had beene my Case to desire a Resolution for my selfe or others in it The Question is Concerning the Divine Right of the Prebyteriall Churches to judge themselves of the scandalls of their Members according to the Word of God whether yea or no it doth belong unto them I would have set downe this Quaere distinctly as a Doubt and then would have sought out a way to resolve my selfe without partialitie onely for love to the Truth in it and to this effect I would have lookt upon the frame and constitution with the Doctrine and Practise of the Churches which are called Presbyteriall and set downe truly all that I should have found substantially materiall in them for their owne beeing or distinctively observable to difference them from other Churches Then in the second place I would have made enquirie of their true meaning of that which they call a Scandall in a Member and of that which is called Judging within themselves of Scandalls And lastly of that which is called a Divine Right whereunto they pretend in this act of judging and when I should have satisfied my selfe in this enquirie so farre as I could attaine if then I had judged them to bee in an error either of Doctrine or Practise hurtfull to the Kingdome of Christ and to their owne and others interest therein I would have taken a resolution to deale with them in Truth and sincerity to reclaime them from that error and answerable to such a resolution would have declared unto them my aime in dealing with them and desired them to weigh and seriously to consider the doubts which I had concerning their Pretence of a Divine Right perswading them to lay downe the plea thereof And if in their ordinarie Practises to maintaine and get possession of this Right I should have observed things destructive to the glorious Gospell of Peace or to the edification and true libertie of their Brethren I would with all zeale