Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	faith_n	reason_n	reveal_v	2,166	5	8.9320	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A29196	Saintship no ground of soveraignty, or, A treatise tending to prove, that the saints, barely considered as such, ought not to govern by Edw. Bagshaw ...	Bagshaw, Edward, 1629-1671.	1660 (1660)	Wing B422; ESTC R10641	20,947	66

SAINTSHIP No ground of SOVERAIGNTY OR A TREATISE Tending to prove That the SAINTS barely considered as such ought not to GOVERN By Edw Bagshaw Student of Ch Ch ACADEMIA OXONIESIS SAPIENTIA ET FELICITATIS Oxford Printed by H Hall Printer to the Vniversity for T. Robinson 1660. To the Honorable JOHN DORMER Esq A Member of PARLIAMENT Worthy Sir THough the manner of my Life and nature of my Studies doth lead me to affect a more then ordinary Retiredness and Privacy yet I neither am nor ought to be so great a stranger to the passages of Providence amongst us as not to take notice what great things it hath pleased God of late to doe for this Nation if not by compleating our hopes yet at least by preventing our fears and bringing us within some nearer view of Settlement Whilest others therefore are taken up with celebrating the Authors and magnifying the means of our deliverance I have a little made it my businesse to search into the cause of our Danger which if once rightly stated will be a direction for our present Senators to secure themselves against that Rock on which the Ship of the COMMON-WEALTH hath almost been ruined And herein there was no need of any long study for who does not see that the too free venting of all sorts of Opinions and that by all sorts of men how ignorant and unconcerned soever will if not restrained for ever keep us a Divided and consequently make us an Unsetled People Amongst those many Principles which are now let loose upon us to exercise the Faith and Patience of this last Age there is none that I know of which doth either more immediately conduce to the ruine of all Civil Government or had a greater influence in the pretences at least of the Actors upon our late unwarrantable Disturbances then this which I have here endeavored to confute For let this once be granted that our Saviour is a Temporal Prince and that onely those have a right to Govern who have by Faith an Interest in him presently a door is opened to all manner of Rebellion and Treason nay there can be no such Crimes in the World if Religion and a design to advance our Saviours Kingdom be once made the pretence to authorize them Indeed the consequents are so fatall and horrid and the remembrance of Munster Affairs which were acted by the same spirit so fresh Sleid. lib. 10. and recent that it might almost seem needless to endeavor any other confutation then a bare relating of that Story But Sir that I may take here that liberty which you have hitherto always indulged me of speaking my thoughts I never yet looked upon that way of confuting an Error which the Arminian Writers do usually tread in to be either Rational or Convincing I mean by urging the Inconveniences and ill Consequences of the Doctrine we dispute against For it is one Question What is true and another What is convenient and after all those Tragical Inferences wherewith men seek to affright unwary and unobserving Readers yet this will be an eternal Axiome That truth is truth let the consequences be what they will and the more harsh and repugnant any Doctrine if plainly revealed seems unto Naturall Reason the greater is our Faith and the more signall our Obedience if we notwithstanding do submit unto and embrace it In prosecution therefore of this Design which I have laid down to my self as the onely satisfactory way of deciding all Controversies in Divinity I have not inquired so much how dangerous or how destructive and ruinous the contrary Doctrine is as how it is written and so have proceeded by direct proof to shew that their Opinion who would have Soveraignty founded upon that bottom is utterly unscriptural for that it is unreasonable I think none makes any question And therefore I hope this Treatise may be useful for those who erre not knowing the Scriptures and following the sound of words have not leisure nor perhaps ability to look into the sense of them Had I consulted my own credit I might have made this Discourse more plausible by filling up my Pages with the Authority of ancient Writers but I purposely forbore both because those for whose sakes I mainly publish it are not acquainted with any thing of Christianity more then their English Bibles do instruct them in and likewise because I thought it needless having so much of Divine Authority for my Text to croud humane Testimonies into the Margin since such mixtures doe usually make a good Cause suspected Sir Whatever it is I humbly present it to you and doubt not how rude and inartificial soever it seems but it will finde entertainment among those who love seasonable Truths if you please first to honor it with your Acceptance Whose Piety Prudence Integrity and Zeal for your Countrys Liberty and Welfare have as much advanced you in the Esteem and Judgement of all sober and unprejudiced men as your many personal Favours in the Heart and Affections of Worthy Sir Your most obliged and most humbly devoted Servant Edw Bagshaw Ch Ch Jan. 26. 1659. SAINTSHIP No ground of SOVERAIGNTY INtending to prove out of Scripture that the Saints ought not to governe the earth in that sense which is now by some contended for I shall take for the ground of my discourse those words of our Saviour to Pilate Joh. 18.36 when he said My kingdom is not of this world which words are very considerable whether we regard the Person who the Time when or the Manner how they were spoken 1. For the Person who spoke them it was no lesse then our Saviour Christ each of whose speeches how occasionall soever ought to be unto us so many Precepts and Obligations to Duty 2. For the Time when they were spoken it was just then when he was taking his leave of Earth 1 Tim. 6.13 that he witnessed before Pilate a good confession of which this Assertion is the greatest Part so that if the words of dying men do use to make the greatest impressions then ought these of our Saviour even upon that account to quicken our Attention Lastly for the Manner how they were spoken it was not only after a Resolved and seemingly Obstinate silence Marc. 15.5 in so much as the Governour marveiled but in direct Answer to Pilate's Question who was very desirous to know whether our Saviour was King or not so that our Saviour's Purposed and Positive disavowing any Temporall or Earthly Kingdome his redoubling this Assertion in the following part of the verse My Kingdome is not from hence his repeating and insisting upon it againe in the next verse as a bearing witnesse to the Truth ought to convince us that our Saviour was in earnest and therefore the matter is very Considerable If therefore we put all this together viz. the Authority of the Person the Exigence of the time joyned with those Vehement and Reiterated Circumstances wherewith these words are

the Condition of his Covenant Lastly if the Jewes who had so much to plead for themselves both upon a Civil and Religious Account as being not onely a Free but likewise a Godly People might yet passe away their whole Liberty unto an Heathen Prince and by vertue of their Oath be debarred for ever from forceable seeking a Re-envestiture but were obliged not onely to submit unto him as their Conquerour but after Faith given to obey him as their Soveraigne if I say the Case stood thus with them then certainly no Pretence of Sanctitie can absolve us now from such Ties of Obedience in the Times of the Gospell which doth as farre transcend the Jewish Politie in Peaceablenesse of Disposition as in Purity of Doctrine therefore Arg 2 Secondly that Saintship is not the ground of Soveraignty will yet farther appeare from the Nature of Christian Religion in particular whether we respect 1. Its Precepts 2. Its Promises 3. The manner of propagating it 4. The Practise of the Apostles and other Professours in the purest and most Primitive Times First This appeares from Gospell Precepts for there is nothing more frequently or vehemently injoyned by our Saviour then selfe denyall The command doth not run Take a Kingdome Mat 16.24 but Take up your Crosse and follow me Learne of me saith our Saviour he doth not adde For this is the way to Honour for I can point you out a Path to Preferment but Learn of me Mat 11.26 for I am mecke and Lowly i. I have equalled my selfe to the meanest of the sons of men I have not where to lay my head and am so little desirous of worldly Greatness that I have voluntarily devested my selfe of a greater Royalty then the world can comprehend and all this I have done to show you a Patterne of Humility Therefore when the Disciple who before our Saviours Resurrection did as much mistake the meaning of his Kingdome as some amongst us now do did contend amongst themselves who should be greatest how sharply doth our Saviour reprehend this Ambitious strife Mat 18.3 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 If you be not turned i. quite changed as it were into another Nature and become as little Children as careless and secure of greatness as little swelled and leavened with Ambition you shall in no wise enter into the Kingdome of Heaven whereby the Kingdome of Heaven whether we understand Grace or Glory whether it meanes Initiall or Compleat Happinesse it is all one to the Question in hand for it clearly proves that to affect Temporall Greatnesse and Promotion is utterly inconsistent either with holinesse here or with our hopes hereafter I need not multiply more Texts for the whole designe of the Gospell is aimed at nothing else but to levell and lower our Thoughts unto the size of our Saviours meeknesse to beat down the tumour and swelling and agitation of our Spirits in reference to worldly things to empty and devest our soules of all that wind of Ambition wherewith poore miserable men who have no better Hopes are constantly tossed and perplexed And the reason for this is unanswerable for if as our Saviour hath stated it None can serve God and Mammon then none can serve God Honour we cannot serve God and gaine a Kingdome much lesse are we to make one prepare the way for the other for this would be to invert the Intent of the Gospell and make it a setter up of what it was principally discovered to beat downe whereby it would become nothing else but a Ladder for Ambition to climbe by Secondly This appeares likewise from Gospell Promises for these as they are constantly annexed to the Poore the Humble the Mortified the selfe denying Christian so they are alwayes about such things as are most remote and distant from Temporall Enjoyments Blessed saith our Saviour are the poore in spirit he doth not adde Muth 5. for theirs shall be the Kingdome of Earth but Theirs is the Kingdome of Heaven According to the Analogie of which Promises must that Text be understood which while they fixe onely upon the Literall meaning hath deluded so many Blessed are the Meek for they shall Inherit the Earth i. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 illam Terram That Earth which was promised in a Type and is Figuratively Heaven as the Author to the Hebrewes hath elegantly proved For that neither that place Heb 11.13 16. nor any other in the N. T. can be understood absolutely of any outward and Earthly Happinesse is cleare because all that we Christians can certainly expect in this world by virtue of a Promise Joh 16.33 is onely Afflictions In the VVorld saith our Saviour to his Disciples and therein to all who will be like them you shall have Tribulation this was the last Legacy he left them 2 Tim 3.12 and therefore saith he ye shall have it rest ye as certaine of it as of your Inheritance or Patrimony And the Apostle who very well understood our Saviour's meaning laies it down as a Fundamentall in Religion All that will live Godly in Christ must suffer Persecution they must suffer there is no avoiding it For this Fatall attendance of Persecution upon Piety it is that our Saviour hath provided us so many Cordialls and Comfortable Receipts in Scripture as when he bids us to rejoice Mat 5. c. Heb. 12. and be exceeding glad nay 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to skip and dance for Joy when such Afflictions do most beset us for they are evidences of our Sonship and assured signes that God hath a Care of us all which Expressions would have been very vaine and uselesse if ever Religion should be abused to those Ends that the suffering might become the Afflicting Party if a Christian could not only exempt himselfe from Injuries but returne them upon others and challenge Authority here as a Reward of his Piety For this would not only deprive us of the Priviledge so the Apostles counted it of Martyrdome but would have none fit to be Persecuted but onely the Wicked and this is an Honour which I hope no true Christian but envies them 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 To you saith the Apostle it is given of grace Phil 1.15 not only to believe on Christ but likewise to suffer for his Name We are mistaken whilst we so much dread Affliction for it is not a Judgment no nor an Evill neither to suffer but 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a Gift a peculiar Boone a choice Indulgence of God unto his Favourites So the Apostle Peter bids those he writes to not be discouraged or count it strange if the Fiery Tryall had its effect upon them 1 Pet. 11.21 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as well as upon others for faith he unto this were ye called as if he had said be sure you look nay long for it for if you misse of this you have some reason to doubt the Truth of your Calling All which places with many