Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	bishop_n	church_n	succession_n	1,636	5	10.2155	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A57537	A godly & fruitful exposition upon all the First epistle of Peter by that pious and eminent preacher of the word of God, John Rogers.	Rogers, John, 1572?-1636.; Simpson, Sidrach, 1600?-1655.	1650 (1650)	Wing R1808; ESTC R32411	886,665	744

to make a bad building These indeed were Christs chief Enemies and could not away with him persecuted him prefer'd Barabbas before him crucified him forbade his Disciples to preach in his name yea imprisoned and scourged them for so doing How came this to pass They had a strong conceit that the Messiah should be an earthly Potentate and that he should continue Moses his Law and Ordinances When therefore they saw the contrary they would none of him but for all they were so expert in the Law yet they fulfilled it to their own destruction in rejecting him that was the fulfilling of the Law and the Prophets See what a strong conceit and prejudicate opinion will do Now their rejecting of him was 1. To shew that God had purposed the Salvation of his Church and building of his kingdom by a way that the wise men of the world never dreamed of 2. That their malice might appear to their punishment and Gods power in resisting them 3. To shew that great men are not always the greatest maintainers of the Truth but miss the cushion oftentimes they be not always friends and furtherers of the Truth but often great lets and arch enemies thereunto Thus it hath been for the manifestation of Gods power who can do his will not onely without the help but against the might of great persons Thus was it in Ahabs time Thus in Jeremiahs Thus in our Saviors They that should have been the first and chiefest entertainers of him preaching to the people hated him excommunicated him and persecuted the people for believing in him so hath it been of long time and is at this day with the chief of Rome Oh they boast themselves to be the onely Church and all that vary from them to be Hereticks and that they have all the marks of a true Church Unity Universality Antiquity with a perpetual succession of Bishops from Peter when yet they are the Enemies of the true Church of God and have still so been a pack of erroneous and pestilent Doctrines they hold contrary to Christs Truth whose Church they persecute with fire and sword The Church never found greater Enemies nor any so great as they that profess themselves to be the Church of Christ. For their succession which they boast of from the Apostles it s very idle and makes no more for them then that Ahab was right owner of Naboths Vineyard because he came into the possession of it or that a Thief having kill'd the master of the house sits down at Table in his chair and eats of his meat Succession is of Doctrine or Person Succession of Doctrine is good Therefore that company that continues in the Doctrine of the Apostles and Fundamental Points thereof though some errors should be mingled and hath the Sacraments pure for the substance that company is a church of God though there be defects in maners for so Christ said of them that sate in Moses chair for though both Doctrine and maners be necessary in a good Pastor yet if he hold the Fundamental Points of Doctrine though he erre in life and maners we reject him not from being a Pastor But as for succession of Person and Place it s nothing For Place Where hath God ever in the New Testament tyed himself or his Church to any particular place or doth he not call it Universal as being in the parts of it spread into all places For Person as though Thieves may not succeed good men and Wolves faithful Pastors Therefore though they could prove that there hath been ever since Peter a continual succession of Bishops in Rome yet this would do them small pleasure but this their Personal succession they cannot prove they agree not among themselves who was first after Peter Again it was broken off sundry times when some of their Popes were condemned for Heresie when there were many Antipopes and in the days of Pope Joan unless they will say that these were true successors of the Apostles But say they could prove this yet what would it avail them seeing they are altogether degenerate from the purity of the Apostles doctrine and are become enemies and persecutors of the same They have overthrown the foundation and almost all the Fundamental Points of Religion and left nothing sound brought in errors and laden the Church with an infinite rabble of idle and most frivolous Ceremonies by their Doctrine overturning almost every Article of the Faith and thereby violating every Commandment of the Law and for the Sacraments they have altogether abolished one and turned it into a Sacrifice and blasphemous Idol and the other they have so besmeared with their filthy inventions that it s nothing like it self Not at all to speak of their filthy maners that besides all other sins are wholly sold to blood and murther as being not from above but from the Devil Who is a murtherer from the beginning we therefore conclude that they are none of the Church of God but a Synagogue of Satan They be the rightful successors of the Apostles that being rightly called do build upon their foundation teaching the purity of Doctrine and administring the Sacraments for substance sincerely whether they have had long succession or have but lately come to their places Thus we see that they which boast themselves to be the Converters of the world the onely Church are the deadliest enemies thereto they which would challenge to themselves to be the great Fathers and Builders of the Church have not onely not built themselves but as the Scribes and Pharisees that kept back the key of knowledge have been the greatest lets to the building whose case is the more fearful seeing they both may and ought and profess to do great matters yet are so far from doing that they altogether hinder 1. This serves to teach us not to stand upon great mens opinion or hang upon their mouth approving and disallowing upon their testimony or example We must herein look onely to the Word of God yet the common saying is Do you think that such great or learned men would say or do so and so if it were not good and right 2. To magnifie the power and wisdom of God that hath used to build his Kingdom and uphold it not onely without the help but against the wills of great men that rather fret then rejoyce thereat Builders They would be so called so reputed But what did they build Errors their own Traditions and humane Ceremonies for which they were very zealous being enemies to the true Building and Builders They are so called not because they were so but because they should have been so their place and office did so require These should have taught the Law and offered Sacrifice in memorial of Christ till his coming and being revealed they should have preached him the Foundation and built up the Church on him But they did quite contrary Hence note 1. That none will take

what ground they know not there can be no reason rendred why Peter should hide the name or dissemble it But this is that they might get some place of Scripture proving Peter to have been at Rome but if they can get no plainer then this the Pope may sit besides his Chair They have no place to prove it by and yet they say he sate there as Bishop five and twenty years which that it was not the Learned have proved by divers Reasons But thus the Pope comes by his Supremacy Peter had it and he left it to his Successors the Bishops of Rome But neither had Peter any such Supremacy or if he had it was not tyed to place but to Truth and Religion now the Popes is clean contrary to Peters hating and persecuting the same But where by Babylon Rome indeed is meant as Rev. 14. 17 18. so called mystically for the likeness to Babylon in Idolatry and vexing the Church and Servants of God that they cannot away therewith See Dent on this Question Thus Hereticks wrest Scripture at their will to their own purpose where it may make for them though it have no such meaning it shall yet be used where it s against them though it be never so plain yet it may not be allowed This is a vile taking of Gods name in vain and it will be to their own destruction 1. Therefore we must not believe that is confirmed by Scripture of their or any Hereticks alledging but try their allegations 2. That we never dare to bring a sence of our own to the Scripture but fetch the sence thereof out of the Scripture by humble and diligent search Elect together with you A Church chosen of God as you are out of the world to bestow his Gospel upon and reveal his truth unto Election is taken largely or strictly Largely for choosing a People or Nation out of the world to bestow his favors upon and make Covenant with as Israel from all other Nations You onely have I chosen So to choose to an Office as our Savior Christ saith I have chosen you twelve and one of you is a Devil Strictly for the Election of any to Salvation before the world When God chooseth out a Church and bestoweth his mercy upon it though no doubt there be numbers of Gods Elect in it as in the Church of England yet many may be Reprobates especially in such a Church where Religion is enjoyned by authority in such a company as this of the Jews where they were voluntary there was likelyhood of the more and yet even among such were Hypocrites that voluntarily joyned themselves to the Church as Ananias and Sapphira 1. Know we that its a great mercy to live in an Elect Church as the Church of England is when most of the world sit in darkness and be Synagogues of Satan 2. Yet must not we content our selves herewith but be able to prove our own particular Election which is an unspeakable favor and for which we ought to be exceedingly thankful Now in that the Apostle calls them an Elect company it was because he knew there was a number of Gods chosen among them as he saw by their fruits but who they were particularly and who were not that he could not justly tell because its unknown what the heart of the one is and what God may do in time for the other We must not take upon us precisely to determine of other mens Election or Reprobation but judge modestly and charitable thanking God for being sure of our own and laboring more and more for assurance herein Saluteth you wisheth all good unto you What would the Apostle trouble himself or his Epistle with such a trifling matter as sending of commendations It s no idle or small matter but of very good use So that as it hath been an ancient custom in the Church of God so being Christianly performed its worthily continued and is of great use For 1. It testifieth to our selves that we are of the number of Gods faithful ones that we not onely love the brethren with us but even those which are absent yea not onely no kindred but not known by face onely heard of that we so love God that we love his grace wheresoever 2. It s no small encouragement to the Servants of God that be thus saluted against the many unkindnesses yea hatred they meet with from the world that yet they see themselves regarded loved and prayed for of Gods people 1. This should provoke us to perform this Christian duty to the Servants of God for our own discharge and both their and our comfort we must not be all to our selves nor to those we be with but even have our hearts with the Church of God elsewhere rejoycing to hear of the free passage of the Gospel the zeal of any embracing it and that we help them forward the best we can 2. If we have salutations sent us by any of Gods Servants we should make special account thereof and be much comforted thereby and set the same against all the scoffs ill will and hard measure that the world affordeth and if we be in any heaviness that we stir up our selves and be thankful to God that we are remembred of him and his Servants and make more account of commendations from a mean Christian then from a great Knight or Noble man that 's not in Christ. 3. They that are Messengers hereof must not forget nor deal carelesly herein even civil and courteous Salutations onely of friends or kindred each to other are of use and not to be omitted but much more such as those here who knoweth how seasonably they may come what good they may do what heaviness they may remove They must not count so lightly of them being sent as to forget them or let them as they say flye away by the way but as a token wherewith they were entrusted and which it were no honesty to keep back Marcus my son It s like its that Mark spoken of Col. 4. 10. who was Cozen to Barnabas about whom there was a breach between Paul and Barnabas He calls him his Son not in the flesh but in the faith as having begotten him thereto by his Ministery as the Apostle Paul useth the same word on the same ground See Tit. 1. 4. 1. Tim. 1. 2. 1 Cor. 4. 14. Philem. v. 10. Here note that The Preaching of the Word is the instrument of Regeneration to beget men again to God 1. This rebuketh those that disgrace either simply or under colour of magnifying praying and reading so also those that withdraw themselves from this and staying at home say They read good Books c. They do as the Israelites who having Manna allowed them by God which should have been unto them in stead of all the food in the world yet would have Quails but they had leanness sent into