Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	age_n	church_n	time_n	2,142	5	3.6322	3	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A48445	Some genuine remains of the late pious and learned John Lightfoot, D.D. consisting of three tracts ... : together with a large preface concerning the author, his learned debates in the assembly of divines, his peculiar opinions, his Christian piety, and the faithful discharge of his ministry.	Lightfoot, John, 1602-1675.	1700 (1700)	Wing L2070; ESTC R12231	207,677	406

some Hundreds of Years all this Western World was Popish Italy Spain France England Germany and no Religion visible in all these Countries but Popery The Name of Protestant not owned the Protestant Religion not to be seen And where was then your Religion say the Papists to us To whom to give a full Answer let us compound these three or four things together We must tell them or else we speak not as the Truth is that the Popish Religion was far from being the true Religion and the Popish Church from being the true Church all that time or from ever being so I shall not insist upon many Arguments to prove this I shall only give you one Argument from a Scriptural Reason and one Consideration of a Scriptural Expression The Argument from a Scriptural Reason is this That Church that is built more on Traditions and Doctrines of Men than on the Word of God is no true Church nor Religion But the Church of Rome is built more upon Traditions and Doctrines of Men than on the VVord of God Ergo. The Foundation of the true Church of God is Scripture Eph. ii 20 And are built upon the Foundation of the Apostles and Prophets But if you look upon what the whole Frame of Popery is built you will find it upon a Sand of Humane Tradition That the Pope is Head of the Church that he pardons Sin rules over Princes where find you this in Scripture They are but Points of the cursed Inventions of Men. That Priests can sing Souls out of Purgatory that the Service of God should be in an unknown Tongue that the Priests can change the Bread into a God and generally the whole Rabble of their Romish Religion hath not so much as any one underpinning of Scripture Warrant but all founded upon the rotten Trash of Humane Invention and Self-ends The Scriptural Expression to be considered is that Title of Rome Rev. xvii 5 MYSTERY Babylon the Great the Mother of Harlots and Abominations of the Earth For that it speaks of Rome is plain ver 18. The Woman which thou sawest is the great City which reigneth over the Kings of the Earth And described even as the Roman Writers themselves do describe her ver 9. The Seven Heads are Seven Mountains on which the Woman sitteth She is stiled Mystery Babylon She was a Mystery of Iniquity Babylon while she takes upon her Sion Mother of Harlots and Abominations of the Earth when she takes upon her to be Mother of all Churches and the only Spouse of Christ in the World A Jezabel as Rev. ii 20 that takes on her to be a Prophetess but is a Seducer And Mysterious is the Providence of God in permitting such a Deceiver that should seduce all the Western World with a general Seduction It is observed that Popery and Mahometism rose together one overwhelmed all the East the other the West Where had been Glorious Churches there this Smoke of the Bottomless Pit clouded and darkened all And it is observable that wheresoever the Gospel had been these two came and spoiled all And Popery the more abominable than the other because under the Name of Christ and the Gospel it led Men from Christ and the Gospel We may say upon Thoughts of both as it is Rev. xvi 5 Thou art righteous O Lord which art and wast and shalt be because thou hast judged thus Because they received not the Love of the Truth that they might be saved it was just with thee Righteous God to send them strong Delusions that they might believe a Lie That they all might be damned that believed not the Truth but had Pleasure in Unrighteousness 2 Thess. ii 10 11 12. So that to question where was the Church of God before Luther we must answer 1. That the Roman Church was not it for that was but Babylon the Mystery of Iniquity the Plague of God upon the World for not receiving the Love of Divine Truth 2. Wheresoever there were any in that time that kept to the Truth of God they were the Church of God Ubi Imperator ibi Roma So wheresoever the true Profession of the Truth was there the Church was Where two or three are gathered together in my Name there am I in the midst of them The Seven Thousand that worshipped not Baal were the true Church I shall not insist to shew that even in the thickest and darkest Times of Popery there were other Churches in the World that were not infected with that Plague as the Grecians Abyssines c. But even Stories do shew that even within the Compass of the Popish Church there were some in all Ages that held to the Truth of God and Abominated the Wickedness and Delusions of the Church But if any such could not be named yet God never left himself without Witness and it hath ever been the Glorious Providence of God to preserve a Noah in a wicked old World a Lot in Sodom an Abraham in an Idolatrous Chaldea a Job in Heathen Arabia and a Jeremy in a most wicked Jerusalem a Church to himself in the worst Times But observe that the Church of God is the least part of the World and so the least part of the visible Church We must distinguish the Church in Opposition to the World and in Opposition to Hypocrites and carnal Gospellers So the Scripture nameth Saints in Opposition to the Heathen and in Opposition to unholy Christians Now take the Word in this latter Sense which is the most proper and the true Church of God is the least part of the Church I deny not that the Church of England Scotland and Ireland is a true Church of God in regard of outward Profession But there are Multitudes in these that are not the true Church in regard of sincere Profession but profane Hypocrites Castaways Imagine a great Parish or Congregation that meet together and in the Church hear and wait on the Ordinances and have the Word and Ordinances truly administred They attend upon them in outward Attendance but out of the Church are Profane and Ungodly We cannot but say here is a Church in Opposition to the Heathen a true Church in Opposition to a false where the Ordinances are not rightly administred Yet we cannot say this is a true and sincere Church of God because they do but outwardly profess and not at all Practice So Israel professed went to the Temple Es. i. had Ordinances rightly administred This was a true Church so far But they lied sware falsely committed Adultery oppressed the Innocent and such like Can we then say they were a true Church of God See that Eph. v. 25 26 27. Christ loved the Church and gave himself for it That he might sanctifie and cleanse it with the washing of Water by the Word That he might present it to himself a Glorious Church not having Spot or Wrinkle or any such thing but that it should be Holy and without Blemish Let us take up all these

Subscription to the Orders of the Church which a great many of them had refused But Lightfoot honestly said that this was the Question betwixt our Saviour and the Woman of Samaria And if she had directly asked him whether the Church of the Jews were the true Church he would doubtless directly have answered it was For otherwise God had no Church in the World And yet was the Church of the Jews at that time in a worse Condition than any of them could think the Church of England then was 2. He was no Innovator He sat indeed in the Assembly of Divines called together by the Parliament to consult upon Matters of Religion and he came thither in the simplicity of his Heart contributing his Service towards the Correcting of supposed Abuses in Religion But still he had a respect to the good Laws of the Church and disliked and declared against many Propositions brought in for Reformation and opposed several things attempted to be introduced not only by Independents and Antinomians but such as were for transcribing the Model of the Scotch and Geneva Discipline In their settling a Set Form for Religious Worship the Parliament having laid aside the Common-Prayer-Book Lightfoot had an Eye to former Rubricks and Canons To give one Instance hereof When in the Directory for Baptism the giving Ministers warning when any Children were to be Baptized was omitted he moved that that might be taken order for seeing that in our old Rubrick said he it is enjoyned that warning should be given the Night before And now he shewed there was more need since the Minister by the Directory was to make an Exhortation and to give some Instructions concerning Baptism Whereupon this Clause was added Warning being given to the Ministers the Day before Again he utterly disliked the bringing in a Rank of Women for Officers in the Church viz. Widows Which some had urged grounding themselves upon that of the Apostle Let not a Widow be taken into the number under Sixty Years old Where Lightfoot shewed that for that very thing he could not be of that Opinion For that it was contrary to the Old Testament where the Officers of the Temple were to be dismist at Fifty Years Old And when Goodwin answered that the Priests indeed were discharged of their Service at those Years because of the Burthen of their Service As particularly carrying of the Ark and the Labour of Sacrificing Lightfoot replied that the Ark was fixed after Solomon's time So that there was no more Occasion to carry that Neither were the Sacrifices any such Burthen the Courses of the Priests were so full as that no less than Eighty opposed Vzziah And he shewed it from Josephus and that there were Five Thousand apiece at least in each Course and that their Service was but one Week in half a Year And therefore they could not be overladen with Work Nevertheless when after much Debate it was brought to the Vote whether Widows were Church Officers it was voted in the affirmative Yet only by one Voice Lightfoot being then absent which he calls in his Journal His Misfortune and adds that the Proposition was utterly against his Mind and far different from his Judgment 3. He set himself especially against such as made use of Religion to supersede the Duties of Morality and who upon pretence of higher Attainments in Christianity overlookt Truth Honestly and Righteousness He could not bear such as made Religion a Pander to Sin And such Sects there were that shewed their Faces in his Time There were some that had refined Religion to that Degree that they went all upon Illuminations Revelations and Spiritual Raptures and talked of nothing but of their being acted by the Spirit of God and doing all by some mighty Influences of that Spirit Poring so much upon these Fancies that they measured their own and others Religion according as they were endued with these Enthusiastical Flights In the mean time made little or no account of Moral Duties and were much addicted to Unpeaceableness Covetousness Fraud Lying Deceiving Slandering and such like There was one considerable Sect that then appeared and got much ground which was known and distinguished by this Doctrine That Christians were not obliged by the Moral Law Against this Party great complaints were at length brought into the Assembly of Divines many of whom among which was our Divine saw well to what a Decay all true Religion would soon come if Men of this Opinion were tolerated For to shew them a little to the present Age these were Doctrines contained in the Books or Speeches of three of them collected by Dr. Temple and offered to the Assembly as I find them in Lightfoot's Journal 1. That the Moral Law is of no use at all to Believers No Rule to walk by nor to examine their Lives by And that Believers are freed from the Mandatory Power of it 2. That it is as possible for Christ to Sin as for a Child of God 3. That a Child of God needs not nay ought not to ask Pardon for Sin and that it is no less than Blasphemy to ask Pardon for our Sin And one of them being told that David asked Forgiveness of Sins it was answered it was his Weakness 4. That God doth not chastise any of his for Sin Let Believers Sin as fast as they can there is a Fountain open for them to wash in That not for the Sin of God's People but for Swearers and Drunkards the Land is punisht 5. That there ought to be no Fasting Days under the Gospel and Men ought not to afflict their Souls no not in a Day of Humiliation And it being asked one of them whether he Fasted in obedience to the Civil Command he answered That were to be the Servants of Men. 6. That this Doctrine is false If you Fast and Pray and Humble your selves unto God then God will turn away his Judgments Yea if you Pray by the Spirit you are not hereupon to expect deliverance from Judgments 7. That when Abraham in outward appearance seemed to Lye in his Distrust Lying Dissembling and Equivocating even then truly all his Thoughts Words and Deeds were perfectly Holy and Righteous from all Spot of Sin in the sight of God 8. That if a Man by the Spirit know himself to be in a State of Grace though he commit Murder or Drunkenness yet God doth see no Sin in him Lightfoot with divers others of the soberer sort in the Assembly were hugely concerned at these Men and their Doctrines Because they well saw and urged to the rest how these Opinions opened a Gap to all manner of Licentiousness struck at the very obedience due to the Civil Magistrate horribly scandalized all the Doctrine of Free-Grace and Justification endeavoured to blast all Faithful Ministers calling them Legal Preachers And that this Sect was the more dangerous because their Preachers crept into the Favour of the Souldiers And it was observable that when the Definition