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	whole_a	2,196	5	5.5864	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A50843	Samaritanism reviv'd, a sermon preached at the parish church of Great Yarmouth, upon the ninth of September being the day appointed for a solemn thanksgiving for the discovery of the late horrid plot, against His Majesty's person and government / by Luke Milbourne.	Milbourne, Luke, 1649-1720.	1683 (1683)	Wing M2037; ESTC R7778	45,022	57

new Divine Revelations And again It would be no part of Englands Thankfulness after so many Deliverances and Mercies receiv'd from God to grant men Liberty openly to blaspheme him at their pleasure to wrest the Scripture to their own destruction to trample upon his Holy Ordinances slight and contemn all Ministry despise his Messengers commit all manner of abominations and for every one to go a whoring after their own Inventions Harm cons p. 10 11. which yet would be the Effects of a lawless Toleration This was subscrib'd by the Ministers of a whole County If then it be as they truly assert a thing so extreamly ill to indulge persons of different Perswasions at all much more is it so to let them be engaged in the greatest and noblest work the Church of Christ undertakes Schism and Heresie are Crimes of so bewitching a Nature as we find by Experience that those Leaders of either kind who happen to renounce their Errors are unable to reduce those unhappy Souls they had formerly led astray and 't is but too common that such Converts relapse themselves into those very Errors they had abjur'd and then having by pretended Repentance insinuated themselves into the Churches bosom they have the better opportunity to scatter their Poyson every where Those who plead for this Liberty of Conscience for the better stopping of Mens mouths are generally wont to distinguish between Errors tolerable and intolerable but which are so or which are not who shall be judge The Answer is presently by themselves return'd To the Law and to the Testimony Isa 8.20 Let Gods Word decide the Controversie and this is indeed a certain way And yet Experience tells us that almost every Party pretend the Scripture is on their side and alledge it in defence of their own Opinions when yet 't is impossible it should he for them All and every one acknowledges that impossibility What then is to be determin'd in this case must every one be indulg'd in their own way That is indeed to give them leave to damn themselves without controll and is so contrary to Christian Charity that no Party when in power was ever yet bad enough to agree to it and when in their deprest Condition they cry out loudest for Toleration they are then active and busie to draw men over to their different Parties out of tenderness as they alledge to their Souls Therefore the exactest Rules of all true Policy whether Ecclesiastical or Civil forbids all kind of Indulgence even to those Errors that seem in themselves the most tolerable the Church and State are so united in their Interests in this Case that what ruines the one must certainly confound the other The Word of God is a Rule to Princes as well as others and Princes if inquisitive having better opportunities for Instruction and Souls more vast and capable than other Men may soon understand what Principles have a due agreement with the Tenor of Holy Writ and what have not That Chain of Principles which leads men through all the Actions of Life without opposition to any Dictates there is that to which a Christian Prince is oblig'd to bring men for Gods and for his own sake with all that power God has entrusted him with And unprejudiced Men by consulting this Word of God and by applying to it the practice of the Prophets and Apostles and the whole primitive Christian Church as upon Record may easily find out these saving Principles Thousands whose Souls are now at rest have done it before us And it is a most infallible Truth that wheresoever a Principle disagreeing to the general scope of Scripture is entertain'd that very Principle will rend the Church and have an unhappy influence in due time upon the State nor will the honest intention of the Person advancing such a Principle be any security either to the one or the other That one Maxim That the foundation of Power is originally in the People seems at first very little to concern Religion yet 't is directly opposite to that assertion of Gods eternal Wisdom Prov. 8.15 By me Kings reign and Princes decree Justice Rom. 13.1 and to that of S. Paul that there is no power but of God and the powers that be are ordained of God and this Tenet as proper for their turn Schismaticks in general own Now though I doubt not but many Persons of very sober and innocent tempers have entertain'd that Notion and d●ed in the Belief of it yet there is no Rebellion or Insurrection carry'd on by Man pro●●ssing Christianity but has been grounded upon and asserted from that Principle and indeed Crowns are very insecure things if that be true But every one knows that by how much the more Innocent the first Movers or the great Promoters of such Doctrines are so much the greater is the Danger and the weakness of careless and uninquisitive Persons the more easily impos'd upon Again That Opinion that denies any Power in Church Governours to impose indifferent things upon those under their Charge seems to hold forth a great deal of Charity and yet it 's directly contrary to the Practice of the Apostles who made Indifferent Things Acts 15.29 viz. Abstinence from things offer'd to Idols from things strangled and from Blood absolutely necessary by their Command But certainly every truly compassionate Heart must bleed to see what miserable Fractures and Divisions this has made in the Church how it has been the Common Plea of Sectaries and has almost vacated all the Laws of God and Man For whilst men oppose their immediate Church Governours if Princes who are to be nursing Fathers and nursing Mothers to the Church interpose as their Power and Duty engage them Ignorant Zeal presently breaks out into a raging Fire and creates Tumults and Disorders for Conscience sake and every one who dies in so curst a Cause looks upon himself and is esteem'd by too many as a Martyr suffering for the Common and dearly purchas'd Liberty of Christians The Government of the Church by a mixt Body of Clergy and Lay Elders though it be Novel and Absurd must needs be very plausible to the vulgar when every Cobler in the Parish may hope in time to mate his Landlord or the proudest of his Superiours and yet Popery has nothing in it more fatal to the Thrones of Princes than this Those of the Church of Rome suppose the Bishop of Rome Infallible and from that Supposition laid as a Foundation they rightly enough conclude he may depose the Highest Magistrates For if the Bishop of Rome be indeed Infallible he cannot charge a Prince with any other than a real Sin He cannot be mistaken in his Judgment and of necessity he must be Superiour to the greatest Kings and Emperors under Heaven in opposition to all this confute but their primary Erroneous Hypothesis and the Blindest Romanist will be sensible that all his Conclusions are foolish and unwarrantable But with those who