Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n
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A53966
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A sermon preach'd to the artillery-company, at S. Mary le Bow, October 21 1679 and published at their earnest request / by Edw. Pelling ...
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Pelling, Edward, d. 1718.
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1679
(1679)
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Wing P1092; ESTC R33043
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10,673
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28
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make Havock of the true Religion is a most Wicked and Damnable thing for the Charge here Do Violence to no man does rather restrain Souldiers from doing Violence to the Men of God and to the Faith of Christ None can but with a most guilty and sear'd Conscience be a Pioneer in this sense to Blow up Religion or to Undermine the Church which is the Pillar and Ground of Truth 1 Tim. 3. 15. These Jewish Souldiers though they were men of large Consciences and of Iron Hearts yet they abhorred the very thoughts of turning the Point of their Swords upon their Country-men and would chuse to endure any Punishments rather than they would strike a Blow to the prejudice of their Native Religion Nay Josephus Antiq. l. 20. c. 4. tells us that When an Heathen Souldier had by chance found the Books of Moses and tore them in pieces the Roman Procurator Cumanus a man that hated the Jews sufficiently but was so asham'd of the Fact that to revenge the Affront which had been offered to God himself ordered the prophane Wretch presently to be beheaded What an horrid thing would it be should You that have been Train'd up in the best Reformed Church upon the Earth a Church which though Militant was never yet the Mother of Rebels should You at last espouse a Quarrel against her Bible against her Sacraments against her Faith or against her Members When the Thebean Legion of old was commanded by the Emperour to fall upon their Fellow-Christians rather than they would wound their own Consciences by such an Act of Impicty they were content first to lay down their Arms and then to offer up their own Necks for a Sacrifice In those times more or braver Martyrs were not to be found than what were bred in the Field They were a Safeguard to their Prince and an Honour to Religion and counted it Honourable to dye for Religion but if once Religion was to be persecuted no Inducements in the World could prevail with them o lift up a Weapon or so much as a Finger against it I have the more insisted upon this because the Ax is now laid to the root of Tree Not only the Ax of Gods Judgments but the Ax of some mens Malice too who design to extirpate our true Religion to Hew it all down at once and to make destruction of Root and Branch To assist and join with such Engineers is a most impious and sacrilegious thing And let me add thirdly That to take up Arms rashly and without or against due Authority meerly for the Defence of the true Religion is unwarrantable and unlawful For Christ's Kingdom is not of this World and for that Reason his servants are not to fight for him because his Kingdom is not from hence Job 18. 36. He left the Power of the Militia in the same hands where he found it And Christians are not to snatch that Power into their own hands to maintain the Cause of Religion and to decide Controversies in Divinity by the Edge of the Sword Though some have fought for an Alcoran others for a Legend and others for a COVENANT yet no Pretences no Cause no Church can justifie such violent and arbitrary Proceedings no not for the sake of the Gospel For we do not war after the flesh neither are the Weapons of our Warfare carnal saith S. Paul 2 Cor. 10. And elsewhere shewing the Christians Arms he mentions Truth Righteousness Charity Faith Hope the Word of God and Prayer and of these he saith twice together that it was the Armour and the whole Armour of God Ephes 6. That Souldier then that will keep a good Conscience as his Sentinel and Guard must consider first the Authority by which and then the Ends for which he undertaketh a Martial Employment And according as those Ends are either Good or Evil so are his Undertakings either honest or sinful 3. There is now but one thing more you are to consider of viz. That Obedience and Fealty you owe to the Supreme Power under whom you act For it is required as in a Steward so in a Souldier that he be found faithful Neither a Desertor nor a Traytor Let every Soul be subject faith the Apostle Rom. 13. 1. where he taketh in men of all Ranks and Qualities whether in an Ecclesiastical or in a Civil or in a Military Station and whosoever resisteth either the Authority or Person of the King shall receive to himself damnation A dreadful Sentence because Subjection is a most necessary Duty And this the Primitive and best Christians were so careful to observe that notwithstanding the impious Persecutions and the unheard of Cruelties of their Princes though some of them were Infidels some Hereticks one of them an Apostate and most of them Oppressors and Persecutors of Religion yet Christians and even those who had Swords in their hands resolved to undergo all Miseries and Torments and a thousand Deaths rather than they would make any the least Resistance Nay notwithstanding the prodigious numbers of Christians too though as Tertullian tells us expresly Christians filled the Roman Empire their Cities Apolog. c. 37. Islands Castles Towns Councils Palaces Senates Courts and their very Camps too so that they could have ruin'd their Enemies even without the use of Arms and meerly by holding off from their services yet so true were they for Conscience sake that not so much as one Christian did ever offer in those days to Rebel And of this we have two very memorable Instances The one in Julian's Army which consisted for the most part of Christians who notwithstanding those intolerable usages which they and the whole Christian Religion received at his hands yet never so much as attempted to use those advantages they had either to attack his Person or to invade his Prerogatives nor lifted up their hands but in Prayer for the Emperour when a Pagan an Apostate and their inveterate Enemy The other is in the Thebean Legion I mentioned before consisting of six thousand six hundred sixty six Souldiers and all of them Christians and had they not been so enough to have been successful Traytors But after too several Decimations each Tenth â—ucker L … d. man being kill'd upon the spot for refusing Maximian's most unjust Commands they meekly yielded up themselves the whole Body of them to be cut in pieces at their Enemies Feet thereby shewing unto all men and especially to men of War how necessary it is for such as are once Matriculated into the Service of Christ to live good Subjects and if need be to dye Martyrs By this time Beloved you cannot but see your Duty if you enquire as those Souldiers did in my Text And what shall we do When the Ax is laid to the root the best way to keep the Tree from falling is to prevail with God to take his hand off and the way to that is not to murmur and complain of the Danger but for every man to do his Duty in his Place and to move regularly in that Sphere where Providence hath set him You are Christians Citizens and Souldiers and your Society is a Nursery of Valour Men in whom our Soveraign doth repose much Trust and on whom the whole Nation may at this time have fixt their Eyes observing your Motions and which way you will lead others whether to the Right or Left Your care ought to be the greater in the prudent and Christian Government of your selves that you give not Fire to those who are ready to receive any little Spark Herein then Exercise your selves principally as good Souldiers of Jesus Christ to keep a Conscience void of Offence both to God and Man The Word of God is the great Standard whereby your Consciences must be guided and that Word tells you that you are to render to Caesar the things that are Caesars That Word tells you That Sedition is a work of the Flesh and that Rebellion is as the sin of Witchcraft That Word gives them the Character of Reprobates and ranks them in Jannes and Jambres's Society that resist the Truth That Word calls them the Enemies of God who have evil will at Sion and are Enemies to the Church to whom Kings are bound to be Nursing-Fathers And that Word requires you as to Fear God so to Honour the King and not to meddle with them who are given to Changes Take heed therefore that you leap not over your Lines or break your Ranks or run cross to the Laws of your great Commander lest you be found even to Fight against God Beware that for the sake of Liberty you engage not against Authority that you plead not Conscience to destroy Obedience and that you pawn not your Souls as Hostages under a pretence of Redeeming Religion But let the Faith of Christ be your Buckler and Trust in God be your Helmet and whatsoever is just and pure and honest and lovely and of good report be the rest of your Accoutrements and then will the Spirit of God be your Strength and the Providence of God will be your Banner and a Crown of Righteousness will be your Prize and the Kingdom of Heaven the Place of your Everlasting Triumphs To which Kingdom God of his mercy bring us all for Christ Jesus his sake the Prince of Peace and the Captain of our Salvation To whom be Glory and Dominion world without end Amen
A SERMON PREACH'D TO THE Artillery-Company AT S. MARY LE BOW OCTOBER 21. 1679. AND Published at their earnest Request By EDW. PELLING Rector of S. Martin Ludgate and Chaplain to his Grace the Duke of Somerset LONDON Printed for Jonathan Edwin at the Three Roses in Ludgate-street 1679. S. LVKE III. 14. And the Souldiers likewise demanded of him saying And what shall we do WHat shall we do is an old and general Question which many times will puzzle even a wise man to answer In this Chapter we find first the People facing John the Baptist with this Question in their mouths He had told them of an Ax that was now laid to the root and presently the people who are commonly frighted at the noise of such fatal and edged Instruments came unto the Baptist like a Forlorn Hope and desired him to tell them what they should do then v. 10. Then came the Publicans which were Officers under the Romans that did Farm and Collect the Customary Taxations but not content with their ordinary Profits and Pay used all manner of Oppression racking and pillaging the people so that the Name and Office of a Publican was infamous even among the Romans themselves and in the Scripture Publicans and Sinners commonly go together in Files As soon as they heard of an Ax coming 't is no wonder if they should be alarm'd too they put the same Question to the Baptist which the rest did Master What shall we do v. 12. In the Rear of all came these Souldiers in my Text a sort of men that had been used to the Sword but yet were apt as others to be afraid of an Ax and as unwilling to be hewn down These Souldiers are thought to have been Jews that listed themselves under the Romans and quartered up and down in Garrisons for the security of the Nation who though they thought themselves obliged in Conscience not to undertake any Military Expeditions or to engage in an open War and pitcht Battel against their Country-men yet were a rapacious sort of Infantry as sordid Auxiliaries for the most part are and not so over-kind to their Brother-hood but that upon occasion they would plunder and Forrage in an Hostile way or skrew Booties out of them by Accusations after the manner of Delators and Pick-thanks But as stout and insolent as they were it seems that S. John's Sermon took down their Courage when they heard that the Judgment of God was at their Heels ready to cut its way so that no Shield or Buckler could be their defence against it their hearts sunk like men desirous of Quarter and hereupon they follow their Leaders the Publicans and People and beseech the Baptist to give them their Charge likewise they demanded of him saying And what shall we do From the Occasion and Connexion of the Words I might proceed to entertain you with John's Resolution of the Souldiers Question Do Violence to no man neither accuse any falsly and be content with your Wages which was a very seasonable Charge then considering first that the Jews at that time were yoked and kept under by the Roman Forces and were subject to be opprest and harrassed and made a Prey of whensoever the Roman Eagle should invade them with her Tallons and her Bill And considering too the insolent and base behaviour of these Souldiers that not content with their ordinary Pay liv'd like Harpies and Sycophants upon Rapine and Spoyle To them the Baptist spake home aiming at the proper mark and levelling his Admonition at their sin and darting his Arrow that way where he was sure to hit and to wound deepest But these directions may not seem so proper for this place and for this Auditory there being a vast disparity and difference in respect both of Persons and Times 1. In respect of Persons These Souldiers in the Text were not so much as Listed into the Christian Religion nor very well Disciplin'd in their own but men who followed the Conduct of their own impetuous Appetites and minded no Law so much as that of Arms. But You have not so learned Christ the Captain of your salvation You that are clad in the Armour of God You that have Truth for a Military Girdle and Righteousness for a Breast-plate and Charity for a Marching-Shoe and Faith for a Shield and Hope for an Helmet and the Word of God for a Sword as S. Paul describes a Christian that is armed Cap-a-pe and that is strong in the Lord Ephes 6. 2. There is difference too in respect of the Times things being with us though to the great dissatisfaction of some Renegado's abroad and some Mutineers at home in a quiet and peaceable state and those two dear Darlings of mens Affections Liberty and Property being in our actual and plenary possession Indeed S. John's Admonition would be pertinent were the Times such as they were not so long ago that we should forget them when the Pulpit was the Drum and Curse ye Meroz and Rebellion was the Beat when the whole Land was sequestred into the Claws of our Mortisied Saints after they had lustily squeez'd the Publick Faith and when an Information was the Price of the greatest Estate then 't was a seasonable Command to our Masters those Ruffians in Buff Do no violence to no man neither accuse any falsly But considering the posture of our Affairs that God be blessed it is yet undisturb'd so that your Arms are not for Terrour but for Shew only I must be pardon'd if I do not tye my self strictly to the Baptist's Answer but resolve the Souldiers Question in such a way as may suit with our Times and in some measure answer the purport of this Solemnity The general design of S. John was to Train these Souldiers into good Manners and so my first business shall be to advise you to have a good Conscience I do not speak of a cheap Humour or an Opinion that is easily taken up or a perverse Perswasion much less do I mean the acting upon loose Principles Principles which among honest men will not pass Muster for such a Conscience is nothing else but the Colour of a Knave or the Trumpet of a Rebel But by a good Conscience is understood a Judgment that is rightly informed and that is faithfully obey'd so that the result thereof is Vertue and Religion and Righteousness which is indeed the Breast-plate of every good Christian Let such a Conscience as this be your Armour a Conscience that will endure the Shock that will stand by a man undaunted in the day of Battel and that will be a Guard and a Comfort to him at the Onset of Death We read of that Centurion Cornelius that he was a devout man and one that feared God with all his house Act. 10. 2. Piety and a Religious Dread of offending God is a necessary Qualification in a Souldier whether we consider First the Quality of his Office or Secondly the Dangers which do attend his