Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	apostle_n	church_n	pillar_n	3,742	5	10.1590	5	true

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A53701	A guide to church-fellowship and order according to the gospel-institution wherein these following particulars are distinctly handled, I. The necessity of believers to joyn themselves in church-order, II. The subject matter of the church, III. The continuation of a church-state, and of the administration of evangelical ordinances of worship, briefly vindicated, IV. What sort of churches the disciples of Christ may and ought to joyn themselves unto as unto entire communion / by ... John Owen ...	Owen, John, 1616-1683.	1692 (1692)	Wing O760; ESTC R38177	32,962	84

them are 1. That constant Difference be put between the Good and the Bad in all Church Administrations 2. That Persons openly or fl●gitiously wicked be not admitted into the Society of the Church or a participation of its Priviledges 3. That Holiness Love and Usefulness be openly avowed as the Design and interest of the Church But they are all so comprized in the General Head of Discipline as that I shall not in particular insist upon them From what hath been thus declared it will appear on the other hand what Church it is that a Disciple of Christ who takes due care of his own Edification and Salvation ought in duty to joyn himself unto in compleat Communion To ans●er this Enquiry is the end of all those Discourses and Controversies which have been about the Notes of the true Church I shall briefly determine concerning it according to the Principles before Evinc●d 1. IT must be such a Church as wherein all the Fundamental Truths of the Gospel are believed owned and professed without Controversie and those not born withal by whom they are denied or opposed Without this a Church is not the Ground and Pillar of Truth it doth not hold the Head it is not built on the foundation of the Prophets and Apostles Neither is it sufficient that those things are generally professed or not denied A Church that is filled with wranglings and contentions about fundamental or important Truths of the Gospel is not of choice to be joyned unto For these things subvert the Souls of Men and greatly impede their Edification And although both among distinct Churches and among the Members of the same Church mutual Forbearance be to be exercised with respect unto a variety in Apprehensions in some Doctrines of lesser Moment Yet the Incursion that hath been made into sundry Protestant Churches in the last and present Age of Novel Doctrines and Opinions with Differences Divisions and endless Disputes which have ensued thereon have rendered it very difficult to determine how to engage in compleat Communion with them For I do not judge that any man is or can be obliged unto constant total Communion with any Church or to give up himself absolutely unto the conduct thereof wherein there are incurable dissensions about important Doctrines of the Gospel And if any Church shall publickly avow countenance or approve of Doctrines contrary unto those which were the Foundation of its first Communion the Members of it are at Liberty to refrain the Communion of it and to provide otherwise for their own Edification 2. IT must be such a Church as wherein the Divine Worship Instituted or approved by Christ himself is diligently observed without any Addition made thereunto In the Observation of this Worship as unto all external occasional Incidencies and Circumstances of the Acts wherein it doth consist it is left unto the Prudence of the Church it self according to the Light of Nature and general Rules of Scripture and it must be so unless we shall suppose that the Lord Jesus Christ by making men his Disciples doth unmake them from being rational Crea●ures or refuseth the Exercise of the rational Faculties of our Souls in his service But this is so remote from Truth that on the contrary he gives them an improvement for this very end that we may know how to deport our selves aright in the Observance of his Commands as unto the outward discharge of them in his Worship and the Circumstances of it And this he doth by that Gift of Spiritual Wisdom whe●eof we shall treat afterwards But if Men if Churches will make Additions in or unto the Rites of religious Worship unto what is appointed by Christ himself and require their Observance in their Communion on the force and efficacy of their being so by them appointed no Disciple of Christ is or can be obliged by vertue of any Divine Institution or Command to joyn in total absolute Communion with any such Church He may be induced on various considerations to judge that something of that Nature at some season may not be evil and sinful unto him which therefore he will bear with or comply withal yet he is not he cannot be obliged by vertue of any Divine Rule or Command to joyn himself with or continue in the Communion of such a Church If any shall suppose that hereby too much Liberty is granted unto Believers in the choice of their Communion and shall thereon make severe Declamations about the Inconveniences and Evils which will ensue I desire they would remember the Principle I proceed upon which is that Churches are not such sacred Machines as some suppose erected and acted for the outward Interest and Advantages of any sort of men but only means of the Edification of Believers which they are bound to make use of in Obedience unto the Commands of Christ and no otherwise Whereas therefore the Disciples of Christ have not only a Divine warranty justifying them in the doing of it but an express command making it their indispensible Duty to joyn in the Celeb●ation of all that Religious Worship which the Lord Christ the only Law giver of the Church and who was faithful both in and over the House of God as the Son ●ath Instituted and commanded but have no such warranty or command for any thing else it is their Duty to stand fast in the Liberty wherewith Christ hath made them free And if by the same ●reath in the same Rule Law or Canon they are commanded and obliged to observe in the Worship of God what the Lord Christ hath appointed and what he hath not appointed both on the same Grounds namely the Authority of the Church and on the s●●e Penalties of their Omission no man can be divinely obliged to embrace the Communion of any Church on such Terms 3. IT is required that the Ministry of a Church so to be joyned with is not defective in any of those things which according to the Rule of the Gospel are fundamental thereunto What these are hath been declared And because Edification which is the end of Church Communion doth so eminently depend on the Ministry of the Church there is not any thing which we ought to have a more diligent consideration of in the joyning of our selves unto any such Communion And where the Ministry of any Church be the Church of what sort or size it will is incurably Ignorant or Negligent or thro' a defect in Gifts Grace or conscientious attendance unto their Duty is insufficient unto the due Edification of the Souls of them that believe no man can account himself obliged unto the Communion of the Church but he that can be satisfied with a Shadow and the Names of things for the Substance and Reality of them If therefore it be granted as I think it is that Edification is the principal End of all Church Communion it is not intelligible how a Man should be obliged unto that Communion and that alone wherein due Edification

judge of its evidences and fruits in their external Demonstration as unto a participation of the outward Privileges of a Regenerate state and no farther And we shall hereon briefly declare what belongs unto the forming of a right judgment herein and who are to be esteemed fit Members of any Gospel Church State or have a right so to be 1. SUCH as from whom we are obliged to with-draw or with-hold Communion can be no part of the matter constituent of a Church or are not meer Members for the first constitution of it But such are all Habitual Sinners those who having prevalent habits and Inclinations unto Sins of any kind unmortified do walk according unto them Such are prophane Swearers Drunkards Fornicators Covetous Oppressors and the like who shall not inherit the Kingdom of God 1 Cor. 6.9 10.11 Phil. 3.18 19. 2 Thess. 3.6 2 Tim. 3.5 as a man living and dying in any known Sin that is habitually without Repentance cannot be saved so a man known to live in Sin cannot regularly be received into any Church To compose Churches of Habitual Sinners and that either as unto Sins of Commission or Sins of Omission is not to erect Temples to Christ but Chapels unto the Devil 2. SUCH as being in the fellowship of the Church are to be admonished of any scandalous Sin which if they repent not of they are to be cast out of the Church are not meer Members for the Original Constitution of a Church This is the state of them who abide Obstinate in any known Sin whereby they have given Offence unto others without a professed Repentance thereof although they have not lived in it habitually 3. THEY are to be such as visibly answer the Description given of Gospel Churches in the Scripture so as the Titles assigned therein unto the Members of such Churches may on good grounds be appropriated unto them To comp●●● Churches of such Persons as do not visibly answer the character given of what they were of old and what they were always to be by virtue of the Law of Christ o● Gospel-contitution is not Church Edification but Destruction And those who look on the things spoken of all Church Members of old as that they were Saints by calling lively stones in the house of God justified and sanctified separate from the World c. as those which were in them and did indeed belong unto them but even deride the necessity of the same things in present Church Members or the Application of them unto those who are so are themselves no small part of that woful Degeneracy which Christian Religion is fallen under Let it then be considered what is spoken of the Church of the Jews in their Dedication unto God as unto their Typical H●lines● with the Application of it unto Christian Churches in real Holiness 1 Pet. 2.5.9 with the Description given of them constantly in the Scripture as Faithful Holy Believing as the House of God as his Temple wherein he dwells by his Spirit as the Body of Christ united and comp●cted by the communication of the Spirit unto them as also what is said concerning their ways walkings and duties and it will be uncontrolably evident of what sort our Church Members ought to be nor are those of any other sort able to discharge the Duties which are incumbent on all Church-members nor to use the Privileges they are intrusted withal Wherefore I say ●o suppose Churches regularly to consist of such persons for the greater part of them as no way answer the Description given of Church-members in their Original Institution nor cap●ble to discharge the Duties prescribed unto them but giving evidence of Habits and Actions inconsistent therewithal is not only to disturb all Church Order but utterly to overthrow the Ends and Being of Churches Nor is there any thing ●ore scandalous unto Christian Religio● than what Bellarmine affirms to be the judgment of the Papists in opposition unto all others namely that no internal Vertue or Grace is required unto the Constitution of a Church in its Members Lib. 3. d● Eccles. cap 2. 4. THEY must be such as do make an open profession of the subjection of their Souls and Consciences unto the Authority of Christ in the Gospel and their readiness to yield Obedience unto all his Commands This I suppose will not be denied for not only doth the Scripture make this Profession necessary unto the participation of any benefit or privilege of the Gospel but the nature of the things themselves requires indispensably that so it should be For nothing can be more unreasonable than that men should be taken into the privileges attending Obedience unto the Laws and Commands of Christ without avowing or professing that Obedience Wherefore our Enquiry is only what is required unto such a Profession as may render men meet to be Members of a Church and give them a Right thereunto For to suppose such a confession of Christian Religion to be compliant with the Gospel which is made by many who openly live in Sin being disobedient and unto every good work reprobate is to renounce the Gospel it self Christ is not the High Priest of such a Profession I shall therefore declare briefly what is necessary unto this Profession that all may know what it is which is required unto the entrance of any into our Churches wherein our Practice hath been sufficiently traduced 1. THERE is required unto it a competent knowledge of Doctrines and Mystery of the Gospel especially concerning the Person and Offices of Christ. The Confession hereof was the ground whereon he granted the Keys of the Kingdom of Heaven or all Church Power unto Believers Matth 16.17 18 19. The first Instruction which he gave unto his Apostles was That they should teach men by the preaching of the Gospel in the knowledge of the Truth revealed by him The knowledge required in the Members of the Judaical Church that they might be translated into the Christian was principally if not solely that of his Person and the acknowledgment of him to be the true Messiah the Son of God For as on their unbelief thereof their Eternal ruine did depend as he told them if you believe not that I am he you shall die in your sins so the confession of him was sufficient on their part unto their Admission into the Gospel Church State And the Reasons of it are apparent With others an Instruction in all the Mysteries of Religion especially in those that are fundamental is necessary unto the Profession we enquire after So Justin Martyr tells us what pains they took in those Primitive Times to instruct those in the Mysteries of Religion who upon a general Conviction of its Truth were willing to adhere unto the Profession of it And what was their Judgment herein is sufficiently known from the keeping a multitude in the state of Catecumens before they would admit them into the Fellowship of the Church They are not therefore