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A89790 A declaration of the faith and order owned and practised in the Congregational Churches in England; agreed upon and consented unto by their elders and messengers in their meeting at the Savoy, Octob. 12. 1658. Congregational Church in England and Wales. Savoy Meeting (1658).; Owen, John, 1616-1683.; Nye, Philip, 1596?-1672. 1659 (1659) Wing N1488; Thomason E968_4; ESTC R203024 44,014 43

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would become servants of corruption and be brought in bondage to all sorts of fancies and imaginations yet the whole world may now see after the experience of many years ran-through and it is manifest by this Confession that the great and gracious God hath not only kept us in that common unity of the Faith and Knowledge of the Son of God which the who●e Community of Saints have and shall in their Generations come unto but also in the same Truths both small and great that are built thereupon that any other of the best and more pure Reformed Churches in their best times which were their first times have arrived unto This Confession withall holding forth a professed opposition unto the common errors and heresies of these times These two considerations have been taken from the seasons we have gone through Thirdly let the space of time it self or dayes wherein from first to last the whole of this Confession was framed and consented to by the whole of us be duly considered by sober and ingenuous spirits the whole of days in which we had meetings about it set aside the two Lords days and the first days meeting in which we considered and debated what to pitch upon were but 11 dayes part of which also was spent by some of us in Prayer others in consulting and in the end all agreeing We mention this small circumstance but to this end which still adds unto the former That it gives demonstration not of our freeness and willingness onely but of our readiness and preparedness unto so great a work which otherwise and in other Assemblies hath ordinarily taken up long and great debates as in such a variety of matters of such concernment may well be supposed to fall out And this is no other then what the Apostle Peter exhorts unto Be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason or account of the hope that is in you The Apostle Paul saith of the spiritual Truths of the Gospel That God hath prepared them for those that love him The inward and innate constitution of the new Creature being in it self such as is suted to all those Truths as congenial thereunto But although there be this mutual adaptness between these two yet such is the mixture of ignorance darkness and unbelief carnal reason pre-occupation of judgment interest of parties wantonness in opinion proud adhering to our own perswasions and perverse oppositions and av●rsness to agree with others and a multitude of such like distempers common to believing man All which are not onely mixed with but at times especially in such times as have passed over our heads are ready to overcloud our judgments and to cause our eyes to be double and sometimes prevail as well as lusts and do byass our wills and affections And such is their mixture that although there may be existent an habitual preparedness in mens spirits yet not always a present readiness to be found specially not in such a various multitude of men to make a solemn and deliberate profession of all truths it being as great a work to find the spirits of the just perhaps the best of Saints ready for every truth as to be prepared to every good work It is therefore to be looked at as a great and special work of the holy Ghost that so numerous a company of Ministers and other principal brethren should so readily speedily and joyntly give up themselves unto such a whole Body of Truths that are after godliness This argues they had not their faith to seek but as is said of Ezra that they were ready Scribes and as Christ instructed unto the Kingdom of Heaven being as the good housholders of so many families of Christ b●nging forth of their store and treasury New and Old It shews these truths had been familiar to them and they acquainted with them as with their daily food and provision as Christs allusion there insinuates In a word that so they had preached and that so their people had beleived as the Apostle speaks upon one like particular occasion And the Apostle Paul considers in cases of this nature the suddenness o●length of the time either one way or the other whether it were in mens forsaking or learning of the truth Thus the suddenness in the Galatians ca●e in leaving the truth he makes a wonder of it I marvel that you are SO SOON that is in so short a time removed from the true Gospel unto another Again on the contrary in the Hebrews he aggravates their backwards ess That when for the time you ought to be Teachers you had need that one teach you the very first principles of the Oracles of God The Parallel contrary to both these having fallen our in this transaction may have some ingredient and weight with ingenuous spirits in its kind according to the proportion is put upon either of these forementioned in their adverse kind and obtain the like special observation This accord of ours hath fallen out without having held any correspondency together or prepared consultation by which we might come to be advised of one anothers mindes We alledge not this as a matter of commendation in us no we acknowledge it to have been a great neglect And accordingly one of the first proposals for union amongst us was That there might be a constant correspondence held among the Churches for counsel and mutual edification so for time to come to prevent the like omission We confess that from the first every or at least the generality of our Churches have been in a manner like so many Ships though holding forth the same general colours lancht singly and sailing apart and alone in the vast Ocean of these tumultuating times and they exposed to every wind of Doctrine under no other conduct then the Word and Spirit and their particular Elders and principal Brethren without Associations among our selves or so much as holding out common lights to others whereby to know where we were But yet whilest we thus confess to our own shame this neglect let all acknowledge that God hath ordered it for his high and greater glory in that his singular care and power should have so warcht over each of these as that all should be found to have steered their course by the same Chart and to have been bound for one and the same Port and that upon this general search now made that the same holy and blessed Truths of all sorts which are currant and warrantable amongst all the other Churches of Christ in the world should be found to be our Lading The whole and every of these things when put together do cause us whatever men of prejudiced and opposite spirits may find out to slight them with a holy admiration to say That this is no other then the Lords doing and which we with thansgiving do take from his hand as a speciall token upon us for good and doth shew that God is faithfull and
therefore are of no authority in the Church of God nor to be any otherwise approved or made use of then other humane writings IV. The Authority of the holy Scripture for which it ought to be believed and obeyed dependeth not upon the Testimony of any man or Church but wholly upon God who is Truth it self the Author thereof and therefore it is to be received because it is the Word of God V. We may be moved and induced by the Testimony of the Church to an high and reverent esteem of the holy Scripture And the heavenliness of the Matter the efficacy of the Doctrine the Maiesty of the Style the consent of all the parts the scope of the whole which is to give all glory to God the full discovery it makes of the only way of Mans Salvation the many other incomparable excellencies and the intire perfection thereof are Arguments whereby it doth abundantly evidence it self to be the Word of God Yet notwithstanding our full perswasion and assurance of the infallible Truth and Divine Authority thereof is from the inward work of the holy Spirit bearing witness by and with the Word in our hearts VI The whole Counsel of God concerning all things necessary for his own Glory mans Salvation Faith and Life is either expresly set down in Scripture or by good and necessary consequence may be deduced from Scripture unto which nothing at any time is to be added whether by new Revelations of the Spirit or Traditions of men Nevertheless we acknowledge the inward illumination of the spirit of God to be necessary for the saving understanding of such things as are revealed in the Word And that there are some circumstances concerning the Worship of God and Government of the Church common to humane actions and Societies which are to be ordered by the Light of Nature and Christian prudence according to the general Rules of the Word which are always to be observed VII All things in Scripture are not alike plain in themselves nor alike clear unto all yet those things which are necessary to be known believed and observed for Salvation are so clearly propounded and opened in some place of Scripture or other that not only the learned but the unlearned in a due use of the ordinary means may attain unto a sufficient understanding of them VIII The Old Testament in Hebrew which was the Native Language of the people of God of old and the New Testament in Greek which at the time of writing of it was most generally known to the Nations being immediately inspired by God and by his singular care and providence kept pure in all Ages are therefore Authentical so as in all Controversies of Religion the Church is finally to appeal unto them But because these Original Tongues are not known to all the people of God who have right unto and interest in the Scriptures and are commanded in the fear of God to read and search them therefore they are to be translated into the Vulgar language of every Nation unto which they come that the Word of God dwelling plentifully in all they may worship him in an acceptable manner and through patience and comfort of the Scriptures may have hope IX The infallible Rule of Interpretation of Scripture is the Scripture it self And therefore when there is a question about the true and full sense of any Scripture which is not manifold but one it must be searched and known by other places that speak more clearly X. The Supreme Judge by which all controversies of Religion are to be determined and all Decrees of Councils Opinions of ancient Writers Doctrines of men and private Spirits are to be examined and in whose Sentence we are to rest can be no other but the holy Scripture delivered by the Spirit into which Scripture so delivered our Faith is finally resolved CHAP. II. Of God and of the Holy Trinity THere is but one onely living and true God who is infinite in Being and Perfection a most pure Spirit invisible without body parts or passions immutable immense eternal incomprehensible almighty most wise most holy most free most absolute working all things according to the Counsel of his own immutable and most righteous Will for his own Glory most loving gracious merciful long-suffering abundant in goodness and truth forgiving iniquity transgression and sin the rewarder of them that diligently seek him and withal most just and terrible in his Judgments hating all sin and who will by no means clear the guilty II. God hath all Life Glory Goodness Blessedness in and of himself and is alone in and unto himself All-sufficient not standing in need of any Creatures which he hath made nor deriving any glory from them but onely manifesting his own glory in by unto and upon them He is the alone Fountain of all Being of whom through whom and to whom are all things and hath most Soveraign dominion over them to do by them for them or upon them whatsoever himself pleaseth In his sight all things are open and manifest his Knowledge is infinite infallible and independent upon the creature so as nothing is to him contingent or uncertain He is most holy in all his Counsels in all his Works and in all his Commands To him is due from Angels and Men and every other Creature whatsoever Worship Service or Obedience as Creatures they owe unto the Creator and whatever he is further pleased to require of them III. In the Unity of the God-head there be three Persons of one Substance Power and Eternity God the Father God the Son and God the Holy Ghost The Father is of none neither begotten nor proceeding The Son is eternally begotten of the Father The Holy Ghost eternally proceeding from the Father and the Son Which Doctrine of the Trinity is the foundation of all our Communion with God and comfortable Dependence upon him CHAP. III. Of Gods Eternal Decree GOD from all eternity did by the most wise and holy Counsel of his own Will freely and unchangeably ordain whatsoever comes to passe Yet so as thereby neither is God the Author of sin nor is violence offered to the will of the Creatures nor is the liberty or contingency of second Causes taken away but rather established II. Although God knowes whatsoever may or can come to pass upon all supposed Conditions yet hath he not decreed any thing because he foresaw it as future or as that which would come to passe upon such Conditions III. By the Decree of God for the manifestation of his Glory some Men and Angels are predestinated unto everlasting Life and others fore-ordained to everlasting Death IV. These Angels and Men thus predestinated and fore-ordained are particularly and unchangeably designed and their number is so certain and definite that it cannot be either increased or diminished V. Those of mankind that are predestinated unto Life God before the foundation of the world was laid according to his eternal and immutable purpose and the