Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	church_n	doctrine_n	teach_v	6,712	5	6.4919	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A69622	English Puritanisme containing the maine opinions of the rigidest sort of those that are called Puritans in the realme of England / written by William Ames ...	Bradshaw, William, 1571-1618.; Ames, William, 1576-1633.	1641 (1641)	Wing B4158; ESTC R14601	11,152	25

claime unto and is in possession of the like universall Supremacy hath more warrant in the word of God to the same then any Metropolitane or Diocesan not dependant upon him hath or can have So that they hold that by the word of God either there must be no Metropolitans and Diocesans or else there must be a Pope 5. They hold that no Ecclesiasticall Minister ought to exercise or accept of any Civill publique jurisdiction and authority but ought to be wholly imployed in spirituall Offices and dueties to that Congregation over which he is set And that those Civill Magistrats weaken their owne Supremacy that shall suffer any Ecclesiasticall Pastor to exercise any civill jurisdiction within their Realmes Dominions or Seignories 6 They hold that the highest and Supreame office and authority of the Pastor is to preach the Gospel solemnely and publickly to the Congregation by interpreting the written word of God and applying the same by exhortation and reproof unto them They hold that this was the greatest worke that Christ and his Apostles did and that whosoever is thought worthy and fit to exercise this authority cannot be thought unfit and unworthy to exercise any other Spirituall or Ecclesiasticall authority whatsoever 7. They hold that the Pastor or Minister of the word is not to teach any Doctrine as to the Church grounded upon his owne Judgement or Opinion or upon the judgement or opinion of any or all the men in the world But only that truth that he is able to demonstrate and prove evidently and apparently by the word of God soundly interpreted and that the people are not bound to beleeve any Doctrine of Religion or Divinity whatsoever upon any ground whatsoever except it be apparently justified by the word or by necessary consequent deduced from the same 8. They hold that in interpreting the Scriptures and opening the sense of them he ought to follow those rules onely that are followed in finding out the meaning of other writing to wit by waying the propriety of the tongue wherein they are written by waying the Circumstance of the place by comparing one place with another and by considering what is properly spoken and what tropically or figuratively And they hold it unlawfull for the Pastor to obtrude upon his people a sence of any part of the divine word for which he hath no other ground but the bare testimonies of men and that it is better for the people to be content to be ignorant of the meaning of such difficult places then to hang their Faith in any matter in this case upon the bare Testimony of man 9. They hold that the people of God ought not to acknowledge any such for their Pastors as are not able by preaching to interpret and apply the word of God unto them in manner and forme aforesaid And therefore that no ignorant and sole reading Priests are to be reputed the ministers of Jesus Christ who sendeth none into his ministery and service but such as he adorneth in some measure with Spirituall gifts And they cannot be perswaded that the faculty of reading in ones mother tongue the Scriptures c. which any ordinary Turke or Infidell hath can be called in any congruity of Speech a ministeriall guift of Christ 10. They hold that in the assembly of the Church the Pastor only is to be the mouth of the congregation to God in prayer and that the people are onely to testifie their assent by the word Amen And that it is a Babilonian confusion for the Pastor to say one peece of a prayer and the people with mingled voices to say another except in singing which by the very ordinance and instinct of nature is more delightfull and effectuall the more voices there are joyned and mingled together in harmony and consent 11. They hold that the Church hath no authority to impose upon her Pastors or any other of her Officers any other ministeriall dueties Offices Functions Actions or Ceremonies either in Divine worship or out of the same then what Christ himself in the Scriptures hath imposed upon them or what they might lawfully impose upon Christ himselfe if he were in person upon the Earth and did exercise a ministeriall office in some Church 12. They hold that it is as great an injury to force a congregation or Church to maintaine as their Pastor with tithes and such like donations that person that either is not able to instruct them or that refuseth in his owne person ordinarily to doe it as to force a man to maintaine one for his wife that either is not a woman or that refuseth in her owne person to doe the dueties of a wife unto him 13. They hold that by Gods Ordinance there should be also in every Church a Doctor whose speciall office should be to instruct by opening the sense of the Scripture to the Congregation and that particularly in the maine grounds and principles of Religion CHAP. IIII. Concerning the Elders 1 FOr as much as through the malice of Sathan there are and will be in the best Churches many disorders and Scandals committed that redound to the reproch of the Gospel are a stumbling block to many both without and within the Church and sith they judg it repugnant to the word of God that any Minister should be a Sole Ruler and as it were a Pope so much as in one Parish much more that he should be one over a whole Diocesse Province or Nation they hold that by Gods Ordinance the Congregation should make choise of other officers as Assistants unto the Ministers in the spirituall regiment of the congregation who are by office jointly with the ministers of the word to be as Monitors and Overseers of the manners and conversation of all the Congregation and one of another that so every one may be more weary of their wayes and that the Pastors and Doctors may better attend to prayer and Doctrine and by their means may be made better acqainted with the estate of the people when others eyes besides their owne shall wake and watch over them 2 They hold that such onely are to be chosen to this Office as are the gravest honestest discreetest best grounded in Religion and the Ancientest Professors thereof in the Congregation such as the whole Congregation doe approve of respect for their wisdome holinesse and honesty and such also if it be possible as are of civill note and respect in the world and able without any burden to the Church to maintain them selves either by their lands or any other honest civill trade of life neither doe they thinke it so much disgrace to the policy of the Church that tradesmen and artificers indowed with such qualities as are above specified should be admitted to bee Overseers of the Church as it is that persons both ignorant of Religion and all good letters and in all respects for person quality and state as base and vile as the basest in the Congregation should be