Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n
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A29104
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A perswasive (sic) to peace and unity a sermon preached before the Lord-Mayor and the aldermen of the city of London ; at the Church of St. Mary le-bow, on Sunday, January 16th 1697/8 / by Samuel Bradford.
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Bradford, Samuel, 1652-1731.
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1698
(1698)
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Wing B4117; ESTC R6286
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17,512
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34
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Nay a kind and amicable demeanor towards each other in our whole Conversation It implys yet more particularly a preserving entire as far as in us lyes the External Communion of the Christian Church To keep the Vnity c implys the maintaining as much as may be an Unity in Judgment especially as to the main and Principal Doctrines of the Christian Faith 1 Cor. â— 10 This is what St. Paul exhorts the Corinthians to Now I beseech you Brethren by the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ that ye all speak the same thing and that there be no Divisions among you but that ye be perfectly joyn'd together in the same Mind and in the same Judgment 'T is true Christians as well as all other Men may be suppos'd and fairly allow'd to differ in some matters which are of no great consequence but there are certain Truths deliver'd down to us in the Scriptures from our blessed Saviour and his Apostles which are to be faithfully adher'd to by all Christians even such as wherein Christianity it self is concern'd and which cannot be denyed without Subverting or at least shaking and endangering the Foundation as there as likewise many others which are necessary to be understood and believ'd if we will form any true Scheme of our Religion or arrive at any competent Knowledge and Understanding in it Why else should St. Paul require Timothy to hold fast the form of sound words which he had heard of him 2. Tim. 1.13 14. And again to keep by the Holy Ghost that good thing which was committed to him Why did he order him to abide at Ephesus on purpose as himself sayes 1. Tim. 1.1.3 Tit. 2.1.2 that he might charge some that they should teach no other Doctrine Why does he command Titus to speak the things that become sound Doctrine And to teach those under his charge to be sound in the Faith And why again does he in the same Epistle set it down as a Qualification of those Bishops whom Titus should ordain that they should hold fast the faithful word as they had been taught Tit. 1.9 10 11. that they might be able by sound Doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gain-sayers and to stop the Mouths of unruly and vain talkers and deceivers And lastly what else can St. Jude mean Jude v. 3. by his exhorting those to whom he writes Earnestly to contend for the Faith which was once deliver'd unto the Saints Now as all the Truths of Christianity which are propos'd to our belief are contain'd in the Holy Scriptures which we Protestants assert to be the compleat Rule of our Faith as well as our Minners So the main and Fundamental Articles of the Christian Faith were at first contain'd in that short Formulary of Confession which was made by Christians at their Baptism This form of sound words was according to the Apostles Expression committed to or deposited with those whom they ordain'd to Officiate in the Church to be by them delivered unto the Saints that is to all Christians at their Baptism And accordingly the profession then made is by the antient Christian Writers commonly call'd the Rule of Faith the Summ of which was that the Person baptized did acknowledge God the Father as the Creator of all together with his only begotten Son as appearing in our Nature and dying for our Redemption rising again and ascending into Heaven and sitting on the right hand of the Father from whence he is expected to come again and judge the World and also the Holy Ghost the Sanctifier the Guide and the Comforter of all True Christians with the Resurrection of the dead and the Life of the World to come This was afterwards drawn up into that Form which we have in the Apostles Creed which as occasion was given came to be farther explain'd in those which we call the Nieene or Constantinopolitan and Athanasian Forms Farther explain'd I say For these last mentioned Forms do contain no more in substance than that which we call the Apostles Creed as that likewise contains the very same in Substance with the antient Forms of Profession made at Baptism So that there are no New Articles contain'd in any of these Creeds but only an explication of the ancient Baptismal Profession according to the Tenor of the Holy Scriptures and agreeable to the declar'd Judgment of the First and best Christian writers extant So that it is in truth the want of a due acquaintance with the holy Scriptures at least the true sence and meaning of them as understood by those who were nearest to the time of their being written and best able to judge in the case that makes some in our days whilst they profess themselves Christians yet so openly and vehemently to inveigh against these Forms in which our Christian Faith is exprest Which I the rather take notice of because there have appear'd of late divers writers who have in a bold and insolent nay rude and Scurrilous manner attackt those Doctrines which have so constantly from the beginning of Christianity been own'd as some of the first Principles of the Christian Religion Nay it is too apparent that under the pretence of opposing the Doctrine of the blessed Trinity all Religion especially that which hath been reveal'd hath been Struck at So that we may in this Age repeat St. Judes complaint that there are certain men crept in ungodly Men Jude ver 4. denying the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ upon which account we ought to exhort one another as he did those to whom he wrote earnestly to contend for the Faith ver 3. which was once delivered unto the Saints and that not only against Socinianism and Arianism but even against gross Scepticism and downright Infidelity Now if we would keep the Vnity of the Spirit in this first sense which I am speaking of we ought strictly to adhere to the Doctrine which we receiv'd when we were baptized in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost and thereby dedicated to our great Creator Redeemer and Sanctifier we should seriously consider and endeavour fully to understand the Profession of Faith we were then baptized into settling our Judgments in all the great Articles of our Religion by the careful study of the Holy Scriptures which were indited by men indued with a divine Spirit and which are therefore able to make us wise unto Salvation We should by the daily use of these endeavour to improve our minds not only in the absolutely necessary but in all the other Doctrines of Christianity such as will help us to understand the true Scheme and consequently the great worth and excellency of that Religion which we profess still growing and increasing in all that useful Knowledge which these Books are able to furnish us with To which purpose as we should read them with seriousness and humility so we should make use of all those Methods which
out of a pure heart and a little after The Servant of the Lord must not strive but be gentle unto all men Patient in meekness instructing those that oppose themselves which tho' it be spoken primarily to the Bishops and Pastors of the Church yet concerns all Christians in general as being Servants also of the same Lord. Mark 9.50 I shall conclude this particular with our Saviours precept to his immediate followers and in them to all that should afterwards believe in him Have salt in your selves and have Peace one with another That is See that you be season'd with that Spiritual Wisdom and that divine Temper of mind which may render you acceptable both to God and men and particularly in order to the same end maintain a constant Peace and agreement among your selves To keep the Vnity of the Spirit in the Bond of Peace implies yet more particularly a preserving entire as far as in us lies the External Communion of the Christian Church I am sensible that considering the divided state of the Church in the present Age this is a very tender point to discourse of but as I shall speak so I desire to be heard in the Spirit of meekness and Charity which I am sure is the true Spirit of Christianity External Communion may be very properly call'd the bond of Peace in as much as it shews to all the World that Christians own themselves one Body and especially as it tends to preserve them in that State this being one great end and design of our being appointed to meet together to celebrate the publick worship of God that when we glorifie God and our Redeemer with one Heart and one Mouth our Charity towards our Christian Brethren may at the same time be Inflamed And that it is apt to have this effect I dare appeal to the experience of all that are serious and constant in the publick worship according to the Institution of the Gospel And there can be no doubt but that abundance of that uncharitableness which is to be observ'd in Christians towards each other proceeds from their having first divided Communions and refus'd to worship God and their Saviour together How many unchristian Contentions among our selves in this Nation may be attributed Solely to this Cause I leave all that hear me to judge For after all that men may talk of the Duty and the Possibility of Christians who are of different Communions Loving one another such is the Weakness of humane Nature and the coldness of Christian Charity that as experience convinces us men are easily carry'd from difference in communion not only to a coolness in affection but as the consequence of that a distance and a shyness in conversation First the differing parties admit unkind thoughts of each other then often proceed to hard words to uncharitable censures either of the opinions or which is worse of the Intentions of those that differ from them and it may be at last come in good earnest to strive for Mastery to struggle for superiority and preeminency to contend for Power and Dominion But besides all the Benefits which result from keeping the Vnity of the Spirit c. in the sense I am now speaking of and the Mischiefs which evidently flow from breaking it which are more than I can have time now to enumerate that which I would propose to your impartial consideration is that the Nature and Frame of that Religion which we all profess obliges us to be One in this respect The First Christians assembled in one place offering up their Devotions daily together under the Direction and conduct of the Apostles as long as their number would permit them so to do Thus we read in the beginning of the Acts of the Apostles Acts 2.1 ver 44 45. At the day of Pentecost they were all with one accord in one Place And afterwards in the same Chap. All that believ'd were together and Again They continuing daily with one accord in the Temple and breaking bread from House to House did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart that is they worship God together in the Temple at the Hours of Prayer and then withdrew into some more private apartment to celebrate the Lords Supper together the peculiar Christian service doing all with great simplicity ver 42. Integrity joy and Charity and once more They continued stedfastly in the Apostles Doctrine and fellowship and in breaking of bread and Prayers Thus did the first Christians and then 't is observ'd that the Lord added to the Church daily such as should be sav'd ver 4â— the unanimity of Christians together with the Blessing of God which is ready to attend it having a mighty tendency to the increasing their Number When the Number of Christians was by this means increas'd and the Religion of our Saviour was spread through many distant Citys and Countrys they were then indeed necessitated to assemble in distinct places to which Purpose the Apostles ordain'd and fix'd Bishops and Lastors in every place where they form'd a Church but still they were one in heart and Soul a fair correspondence was kept up between all these particular Churches and when any Christian travel'd from one city to another he immediately joyn'd with and was receiv'd by the Church settled in that place to which he came as may be easily discern'd in the Sequel of that History of the Acts of the Apostles Every Christian is in truth a Member of the Catholick Church of Christ and consequently dispos'd if he be rightly instructed in his profession to joyn with any sound part of the Church throughout the World wherever his business or occasions shall lead him But forasmuch as the Catholick Church must be distributed into several particular Churches for the good of the whole and the Edification of every particular member of it each particular Christian is by consequence of right a member of that part of the Christian Church in which providence hath cast his lot and where his ordinary abode and residence is there in all reason ought his Stated and ordinary Communion to be provided always that no unchristian no unlawful Terms of Communion are impos'd upon him If any particular Church impose any unlawful Terms of Communion then a good Christian is discharged of this obligation that will be a sufficient plea for his separation from it For which reason if the Romish Communion were established among us which God forbid it ever should be we who have been Instructed in the principles of Christianity as reform'd from the Errors and Corruptions of that Church ought not we could not Consistently with our Principles Communicate with it But wheresoever here is a Church established under the conduct of Bishops and Pastors regularly call'd and appointed to guide and govern it and if the State be Christian with the concurrence of its Authority also in which a good Christian may worship and serve his Maker and Redeemer without