Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n
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A43676
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No King but Jesus, or, The Walls of tyrannie razed and the foundations of unjust monarchy discovered to the view of all that desire to see it wherein is undeniably proved that no king is the Lords anointed but Jesus ... / by Henry Haggar.
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Haggar, Henry.
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1652
(1652)
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Wing H187; ESTC R31087
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42,037
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60
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is a Crown of righteousness and glory that in due time we shall reap if we faint not Therefore dear friends let not us be ignorant of Gods great work which he is now a working upon the face of the earth but let us that be children of the day be sober and watch knowing that these are the days of vengeance in which all things must be fulfilled that are written in the Prophets and the signes of the coming of the Lord are upon the face of the earth even distress of Nations and perplexity Kingdom against Kingdom and City against City and mens hearts failing them for fear and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth but yet let us remember the promises Rom. 10.13 It shall come to pass that whosoever shall call upon the Name of the Lord shall be saved and again Heb. 13.5 6. he hath said I will never leave thee nor forsake thee so that we may boldly say The Lord is our helper and we will not fear what man can do unto us therefore let us remember the words of our Lord Christ Luke 21.28 When these things begin to come to pass then look up and lift up your heads knowing that your Redemption draweth nigh Wherefore this is my humble advice to all that fear the Lord that we labour now to approve our Consciences before God by being to him that Redeemed us a peculiar people zealous of good works knowing that is the end of our Redemption and preservation Tit. 2.14 Let us therefore consider that Christ is that great Prophet by whom God hath spoken to us in these last days Heb. 1.12 And that we are commanded to hear him in all things whatsoever he shall say unto us Act. 3.22 23. And his sheep are they that hear his voice and follow him Joh. 10.27 and the voice of a stranger will they not follow vers. 5. and we are his friends if we do whatsoever he hath commanded us Joh. 15.14 and he that hath his commandments and keepeth them it is he that loveth him Joh. 14.21 for this is the love of God that we keep his commandments and his commandments are not grievous 1 Joh. 5.3 But he that saith he loveth Christ or knoweth Christ and keepeth not his commandments is a lyer and the truth is not in him 1 Joh. 2.4 5. with Joh. 18.24 and whosoever transgresseth and abideth not in the Doctrine of Christ hath not God 2 Joh. 9. and if any shall come to you and preach any other doctrine then what is already preached receive him not ver. 10. yea if we or an Angel from Heaven shall preach any other Gospel then that which we have preached to you saith Paul let him be accursed as we said before so say I now again let him be accursed Gal. 1.9 10. for how shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation as was first preached by the Lord himself and was confirmed to us by them that heard him God bearing them witness both with signes and wonders and divers gifts of the Holy Ghost according to his own will Heb. 2.3 4. Wherefore dear brethren and beloved in the Lord let us contend earnestly for the faith that was once delivered to the Saints Jude vers. 3 4. even as it was delivered at the first by the Lord himself and his holy Apostles For there are certain men crept in unawares which do turn this grace of our Lord Jesus Christ into wantonness and deny the Lord that bought them in their actions although they confess him in their words and do also think to make us forget and deny him by their dreams which they tell every man to his neighbour as the Lord saith Jer. 23.27 Let us therefore seeing we know these things before beware lest we also being led away with the errour of the wicked fall from our own stedfastness but let us grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Iesus Christ let us abide in his love by keeping his commandments Joh. 15.10 and continue his friends by doing whatsoever he hath commanded us ver. 14. so shall we have a good conscience void of offence towards God through our Lord Iesus Christ and boldness and access with confidence through faith in his blood unto that throne of grace where he ever liveth to make intercession for us To him be glory for ever Lastly we must exercise a good conscience towards man even by doing to all as we would they should do to us but in a special manner we ough to have respect unto the Magistrates whom God hath set over us to do to them even as we would they should do to us viz. If we would that they should protect and preserve us in well-doing we ought also to assist and aid them both with persons and estates without which they are not able to suppress wicked and ungodly men they being without us but private or particular persons Therefore I desire that all christians may be put in minde to be subject to principalities and powers and to obey magistrates to be ready to every good work and not to speak evil of any man to be no brawlers but gentle shewing all meekness to all men Tit. 3.1 2. We know also that there is no power but is of God for the powers that be are ordained of God and therefore he that resisteth them resisteth the ordinance of God especially when Rulers are not a terrour to good works but to the evil therefore we must needs be subject to such not onely for wrath but also for conscience sake let us consider them as the servants of God set over us for our good to take vengeance and execute wrath upon them that do evil Let us render to all their due tribute to whom tribute is due custom to whom custom fear to whom fear honour to whom honour belongeth see Rom. 13. But I know some will object that we ought indeed to pay tribute and custom to whom it is due and to give honour to whom honour belongeth but it belongs not to this present Power and Authority for the Scripture saith that we should Fear God and Honour the King and that we should be subject to every ordinance of man for the Lords sake and to the King as supreme But these have rebelled and slain their King therefore neither honour obedience nor tribute belongs to them To which at present I answer That to the end this stumbling-block may be taken away and a right understanding may come in the place and a true affection to these present Rulers may be begotten in the hearts of those people that stumbled and a general reconciliation might speedily be brought forth amongst all men I have presumed to present these ensuing lines to their view knowing before that enemies will except against the most perfect Truth and soundest Reason witness their excepting against the Word of God but friends will bear with infirmities Wherefore I desire you that are
of Christ and abound in the work of the Lord for asmuch as we know our labour shall not be in vaine and if we do these things we shall never fall but an entrance shall be opened to us abundantly into the everlasting Kingdome of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ 2 Pet. 1 so that we may stand by saith and rejoyce in the hope of the glory of God even that eternal weight of glory the Apostle speaketh of 2 Cor. 4. 16 17 18. which will make our affliction seem light and momentary and though our outward man should perish yet our inward man will be dayly renewed Let us therefore consider these things lest we faint and be weary in our minds and that we may lift up our heads and rejoyce knowing the day of our Redemption draweth nigh Thus having laboured to stir up your pure minds in some measure by way of remembrance I shall proceed to the last particular namely the vindication of the Saints from the false aspersions cast upon them by wicked ignorant men First they assirme that we will not obey Magistrates but have rebelliously rose up against and prevailed over the King to the taking away of his life and therefore they conclude that we are those that dispise dominion and ars not afraid to speak evil of dignities To which answer This is no more true then that which Ahab spake of Elijah when he told him that it was he that troubled Israel 1 King 18.17.18 and therefore the same answer may well serve us viz. That it is not we that have troubled the Nation by fearing God and keeping his Commandments which are written in his Word of Truth for that is the whole duty of man Eccle. 12.13 but it was he and his fathers house in that he had forsaken the commandments of the Lord and brought in the commandments and traditions of men in stead therof as Ahab followed after Baalim and therefore in vain did they worship God as Christ faith But let our accusers remember those prophane days of Liberty which were set up by Authority and Books of liberty read in stead of preaching by which they strengthened the hands of the wicked that they could not turne from their wickedness for they thought all was well so long as it was set up and allowed by Authority and read by the Parish-Priest Secondly Let them remember the persecuting of them that feared the Lord in those days by banishment imprisonment and spoiling their goods and some by death whose blood cried for vengeance in the eares of the Lord with the prayers sighs and grones of the other banished out of their native Countrey from friends and acquaintance and those in Prison the wife being separated from her loving husband and the husband from his dear wife the children from their parents and parents from their children being thereby made uncapable of getting a livelihood in the world even to the utter undoing of many and all because they would but search into the Scriptures for eternal Life further then the Bishops and the King and his counsel would have them By all which it is evident that it is the just hand of God that hath taken vengeance upon his Teachers and Counselers and will yet find out more of them and that not onely in this Land but in other Nations also untill he hath stained the pride of all their glory and brought into contempt all the honorable of the earth the which is sufficiently proved before in the sixth and seventh particulars of this Book Thirdly Let them consider the abundance of wickedness that was at Court in his days what gluttony drunkenness pride swearing lying whoring carding dicing and all manner of unlawfull gaming allowed of practised and maintained by him his Courtiers and their attendance all which with the reft of their wickedness procured the just judgement of God upon them for because of these things the wrath of God cometh upon the children of disobedience Eph. 5.3 4 5 67. Againe whereas they accuse us of speaking evill of dignities and for resisting of powers I answer It 's false for there is no power but of God the Apostle saith Rom. 1.3.1 2. And how to know what power is of God he sheweth in the 3 4 verses in these words for Rulers and powers that are of God are not a terrour to good works but to the evil Therefore if thou doest that which is good thou shalt have praise of the same for he is the servant of God to thee for good and is for the praise of them that do well and for the punishment of them that do evil And saith the Apostle To such a power we must needs be subject not onely for wrath but also for conscience sake Object But the powers that are be of God and must be obeyed though they should be wicked Answ. I deny it for wicked men in Authority commanding wicked things ought not to be obeyed but opposed either actively by doing or passively by suffering Therefore said the Apostle to the Magistrates Act. 4.19 Whether it is right in the sight of God to hearken to you more then to God judge you And again Chap. 5.28 29. Peter and the other Apostles told the Magistrates they ought to obey God rather then them Thus we see Magistrates are not to feared and obeyed because they are Magistrates and powers but because they are good Magistrates and powers ordained of God such as are for the praise of them that do well and a terrour to them that do evill 1 Pet. 2.14 Therefore saith the Apostle Rom. 13.3 they that do well shall not need to be afraid of the powers that are of God but we know by wofull experience that those that did well had most cause of fear and were in greatest danger therefore that power was not of God and is cast down Againe if we must understand it in their sence viz. that all powers are of God and must be obeyed because they are powers then we shall prove the Devil and all wicked men as theives and murtherers must be obeyed for the Devil is both a Prince and a power even the Prince of the darkness the Prince of the powers of the aier the Spirit that now worketh in the hearts of the children of disobedience Eph. 2.2 but now I hope none will say that because he is a power that therefore he ought to be obeyed or that he is of God But if the other argument be true this must needs follow but men reason thus because they are ignorant and are indeed of the number of those that speak evil of things they understand not and shall utterly perish in their own corruptions except they repent 2 Pet. 2.12 for indeed these men know not neither do they consider what God hath done in former ages much less what he is doing and will do yet before the end of all things and therefore speak they evil of things they know not and as Peter saith