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A55382
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Evangelical worship is spiritual vvorship as it was discussed in a sermon preached before the Right Honourable the Lord Maior, at Pauls Church, Aug. 26. 1660. By Matthew Poole minister of the Gospel at Michael Quern in London.
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Poole, Matthew, 1624-1679.
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1660
(1660)
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Wing P2837; ESTC R218310
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16,718
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32
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altogether uselesse and the typical use being gone therefore were they laid aside c. And shall we go and set up other things equally unprofitable Shall we lay aside Gods Ordinances because they were unprofitable and set up mens devices that are as unprofitable What I beseech you Is not an Altar in our Churches as unprofitable as that of the Jews and more too for theirs was useful for sacrifice ours for nothing unlesse to be an Apple of contention and a wall of partition amongst Ministers and Christians 2. There is a great obstruction to edification and the salvation of souls Beloved that man understands little of the worth of a Soul that doth not value the salvation of one Soul before ten thousand of those unnecessary Ceremonies Better all the Organs in the world broken all material Temples level'd with the ground all sacred Garments as they are accounted of Ministers cast into a fire than one soul lost Now this I am perswaded most ingenuous men will agree with me in that the loss of many a soul may be charged upon or at least was occasioned by these things For if an able and powerful Ministry be the great means of the salvation of souls and the removal of such be a taking away of the means of salvation and many such Ministers such I say in the judgment even of their enemies have been removed because their Consciences could not comply with such Impositions Then I think the Conclusion is plain enough that they have been the occasion if not the cause of the ruine of many a precious soul And I should not speak of this now but that I see the same spirit at work again and we have too many among us that give us cause to think they had rather people should have no Ministers than no Ceremonies and rather a sottish unlearned debauched Ministry than not a ceremonious and superstitious Ministry Now I beseech you mark how much this differs from the Apostolical Precept and Practise Rom. 15. 2. Let no man please himself but let every one please his Neighbour for his good to edification 2 Cor. 13. 10. According to the power which the Lord hath given me for edification not to destruction What! had not the Apostles such power much lesse have those that are or pretend to be their Successors They speak of the power the Church hath to make Canons c. Be it so yet have they no power to destruction And although it be a truth that all things in the Church must be done decently and in order yet I am sure the order of the Church must give place to edification and we must not deperdere substantiam propter accidentia 3. There is a disturbance of the peace of the Church I know such men use to condemn those that cannot comply with their Ceremonies as disturbers of the Peace But as we say to the Romanists they charge us with schisme but are themselves guilty by imposing such heavy and unnecessary burdens as forced us to depart and by not allowing of us to continue with them unlesse we yield and concur with them in all things even so do our Adversaries with us first impose these unnecessary burdens which they know many thousands cannot bear and then blame them for withdrawing their shoulders from them It was prudently advised to K. James that he should do with Ceremonies as Possio did with his Cupboard of curious Glasses which he broke lest his Servants breaking them it should occasion much contention and trouble So surely men that prize the Churches peace as they ought should rather break those in pieces than lay a foundation for such bitter and innumerable contests as will certainly follow to the grief of good men and the rejoycing of our enemies The peace of the Church should be highly prized How earnestly and frequently doth the Apostle conjure us to this Follow peace with all men Seek peace and ensue it God hath called us to peace And forasmuch as it is confessed that these Ceremonies are indifferent in themselves and no further necessary than as the Church imposeth them I submit this Query to all ingenuous and judicious men Whether it were not more prudent and pious for the Church to lay such Ceremonies aside which will be a wall of partition between us and other Churches and a stone of stumbling and occasion of quarrel among our selves than continue them upon such dangerous and uncomfortable terms In things indifferent the Apostle exceedingly presseth a yielding to weak brethren not offending grieving one of those for whom Christ died So Christ not to offend one of these little ones c. Now it is certain many thousands of sincere Christians are grieved and stumbled at these things And say it is their weaknesse You then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak and not to please your selves Rom 15. 1. And it is strange to see that this is made an Argument for Ceremonies because else we shall offend the Papists a sort of obstinate and hardned enemies who will be offended whatever you do who are the more hardned by our compliance with them in worship but no way pleased unlesse you receive their Doctrines too and that they make this no Argument against them because they will offend so many Protestant Churches and Brethren 4. Distraction in spiritual worship which ought to be done without distraction The more Inveaglements there are to sense the more disadvantage to the Spirit To instance in one thing I appeal to the experience of any ingenuous person whether curiosity of voice or musical sounds in Churches doth not tickle the fancy with a carnal delight and engage a mans ear and most diligent attention unto those sensible motions and audible sounds and therefore must necessarily in great measure recal him from spiritual communion with God seeing the mind of man cannot attend to two things at once with all its might and when we serve God we must do it with all our might And hence it is that the Ancients have some of them given this rule that even vocal singing should not be too curious but legenti similior quam canenti And Paul himself gives it a wipe Eph. 5. 19. Speaking to your selves in Psalmes and Hymns and spiritual Songs making melody in your hearts to the Lord 5. Affectation of carnal and ceremonial worship begets oft-times an enmity against spiritual worshippers Look abroad in the Old Testament and so in the New c. you will find none were more bitter Adversaries to the Prophets to Christ to the Apostles than those that were the greatest Zealots for ceremonial Institutions and their own Inventions in Gods worship They were devout women that raised persecution against Paul Acts 13. 48. Mistake not I do not say that all that use ceremonies are such No I know some such that are {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} that are better born and better bred Christians that shew more ingenuity and piety
Evangelical Worship IS Spiritual Worship As it was Discussed in a SERMON Preached before the RIGHT HONOURABLE THE Lord Maior At Pauls Church Aug. 26. 1660. BY Matthew Poole Minister of the Gospel at Michael Quern in London The Second Edition LONDON Printed for Sa. Thomson at the Bishops-head in Pauls Church-yard 1660. To the Ingenuous Reader THat this Sermon is brought to light it is not from my own choice inclination but by constraint not only in respect of the importunities of many that pressed me to it but in regard of the mis-constructions censures and scandalous aspersions of others that forced me to it It hath fared with me as it did with David They laid to my charge things that I knew not Psal. 35. 11. and fastned such reports upon my Sermon as never entred into my thoughts being it seems well instructed in that Diabolical Lesson calumniare fortiter adhaerebit aliquid For my part I thank the Lord who hath taught me that it is a small matter to be judged of man or of mans judgment I could not expect better measure than my Saviour had of whom we read John 7. 12. Some said he is a good man others said nay but he deceiveth the people It is sufficient to me that I have the Conscience of mine own integrity and the uprightness of my aimes that whatever was said was not spoken out of a spirit of contention or bitterness or opposition nor with any other design that I know of God is my witness but from a Conscience of my duty and an abhorrency of that unchristian and antichristian spirit which breaths after the ruine of all those who cannot stretch to the length of their bed and consent to them in every punctilio To which I was the more encouraged because his Majesty hath frequently expressed his dislike of that furious spirit and his resolution that the affairs of the Church should be managed in a moderate way I intended not to meddle with Common-Prayer of which I spake not one word however I am traduced nor Ceremonies considered in themselves but only as some endeavour that they may be pressed with an AEgyptian rigour and violently imposed upon the Consciences of their Brethren I supposed that there were divers of the Episcopal perswasion of more sedate and peaceable dispositions who were unconcerned in my Discourse and I must needs do them that right that some of that opinion and those of considerable esteem in the world for Learning and Goodness were pleased to pass a favourable construction upon my Sermon and to acknowledge that I had reason for what I said I spake no more for substance than what some of the Bishops of England however overborn by a more potent Party have said in their Speeches and Writings that have declared their dislike of those tyrannical proceedings whereby Learned and honest men were forced to forgo the exercise of their Ministry for some Ceremonies As much was said by the B. of St. Davids in a Convocation An. 1604. as it is cited in a Treatise called Beams of former Light printed this year p. 205. Which is worthy of the perusal of all those that would not have the Ministers and people of England to bite and devour one another and thereby make sport for the common Adversary I thought it was an hard case if a man should be accounted violent for dehorting men from violence and immoderate for pressing them to moderation I concluded that I could not do his Majesty better Service than by endeavouring to disswade men from those practises which might occasion the dividing distracting and unsetling of his Realms and to perswade unto such a temper in which the generality of the people of the Land seem prepared to acquiesce if they be not turned out of the way by the Pride Cruelty and Tyranny of some exorbitant Persons As for what some have fastned upon me that I had seditious passages and Reflexions upon his Majesty it is well that beside the witness of my own Conscience I have so many hundred Compurgators I desire alwaies to abhor that sinful practise of speaking evil of Dignities I have learned to fear God and honour the King I am instructed in that Lesson that I must not curse the King no not in my Bed-chamber much lesse defame him in a publick Assembly And other Sedition I am resolved by the Grace of God not to be guilty of than this to offer up my most hearty and fervent Prayers publick and private for his Majesties long and happy Reign here and in Heaven and that God would guide him to those counsels which conduce most to his own and the Nations Peace Amongst other Calumnies which have been cast upon me one is this that I wisht their fingers might rot that plaied upon the Organs where I must not only condemn the falshood and impudence of those that raised and propagated so abominable a Lie but also I must blame the imprudence and uncharitableness of such as were ready to receive and believe so improbable a report The Reader will see that I only declared my dislike of Organs in our Churches and therein I think I have better Authority than those that are of another mind forasmuch as in the Homily of the Place and time of Prayer a Book established and enjoyned by the Laws of the Land p. 131. they bring in some superstitious Persons complaining that they could not hear the like Piping Singing Chaunting and Playing upon the Organs that they could before To this is immediatly answered thus But Dearly Beloved We ought greatly to rejoyce and to give thanks to God that our Churches are delivered out of those things which displeased God so sore and filthily defiled his holy House c. Which how our great Zealots for these things who pretend to be the only genuine sons of the Church of England can reconcile with their Principle and Practise let themselves consider and let the Indifferent judge I shall adde no more but this that to the best of my knowledge and remembrance this Sermon is printed as it was preached without either omission or alteration of any one material word and so I commend thee to the Guidance of the great Counsellour of his Church Begging that the God of Truth would lead us all into every Truth but especially that which concerns his Worship wherein he is so jealous which is the Prayer of Thy Servant in the Gospel M. P. JOHN 4. 23 24. But the hour cometh and now is when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and truth for the Father seeketh such to worship him God is a Spirit and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and truth IN this Chapter you have an holy conference between Christ and a Samaritan woman who at first entertains his discourse with scoffs but afterwards began to be more seriously affected and upon the occasion of his strange discovery of her secret wickednesse she saith ver. 19.