alone Because they cannot be sure enough that any others have Grace but only themselves There is a Sixth Argument taken from the similitudes and comparisons under which the Church Visible is holden forth in Scripture which similitudes do shew there is not That strictness required in admitting Members to the Visible Church as the Separatists judge It 's compared to a Draught net cast into the Sea that gathereth fishes good and bad Matth 13. Secondly To a Field wherein is Wheat and Tares ibid. Thirdly It is compared Matth 22. to a Table of Guests where there are some with and some without a Wedding Garment Fourthly It is compared to a House wherein are Vessels of Honour and Dishonour and to a Fold of Sheep and Goats And in every Church there are many Called but few Chosen Now how shall Tares chaff Goats c. give convincing signes of that which they have not Certainly these Similitudes seem to speak That there needs not so much Waling or Picking out in admitting Members to the Visible Church providing they be free of Scandals Once take them in and and then let the Word work on them This great Waleing and Separation will be when the Net comes to the shoar when the great Harvest comes when the Sheep and Goats are severed This much for Arguments for the Truth III. We shall in the next answer Their Objections whereby they labor to prove that the Church Visible should only be made up of such Church members as can give satisfactory Signs of Grace to each other Obj. 1. Their first Objection which is the most specious is taken from these Glorious sâ—â—ies given to the Church in Scripture They are called Saints a chaste â—â—rgine spoused to Christ Sons and Daughters of the Lord Almighty and Christs mystical Body whose Members are all Gracious Now say they seing the Church hath these Stiles in Scripture Should any be joyned to the Church but such who to the uttermost of our discerning have Grace For answer If this Argument conclude any thing it will conclude that none should be Members of the Visible Church but those who have Real Grace for none is a partaker of Christsâ— Mystical Body the Lambs Wife c. But such only Now this our Opposites themselves will not affirm They grant there may be painted Hypocrites in the Church and the Scripture saith the same for Ananias and Saphira Judas and Simon Magus were such and so these places of Scripture if they prove any thing will prove more than They will grant But to answer directly ye would know that in the Church Visible there is a Company of Good and Bad sincere Christians and painted Hypocrites Now the Scripture speaks of them sometimes according to the Better Part and sometimes according to the Worse Part where it speaks of them according to the Better Part it speaks so of them as if there were not One Evil Man among them all hence are these Stiles The Lambs Wise Sons and Daughters of the Almighty Called to be Saints c. They are so according to the Better Part. Again when it speaks of the Visible Church according to the Worse Part it gives such names as if there were not One Good Man among them all it calls them Stif-necked a Rebelious house Children that are Corrupters Now As it were ill Argued to conclude from these places where such stiles are given to the Church that every one within the Church were Corrupters Stif-necked c. and not one seeking God For there he gives them those Stiles from the Evil Part among them So it is also ill argued from these places where the Scripture calls them the Lambs Wife Sons and Daughters of the Almighty c. That they were All of them so And we shall clear it more fully from the Church of Corinth 2 Cor 6 18. They get many Glorious stiles They are called The Sons and Daughters of the Almighty they are called A chast Virgin c. 2 Cor 11 2. Now there were many Schismaticks among them some denying the Resurrection some Vilifying Pauls Doctrine Many who were Contentious Drunkards Fornicators so that these Stiles cannot be Verified of the Members of the whole Church but only of the Better Part that was among them even as men speaking of an Heap of Chaff and Corn will call it An Heap of Corn Not that there is nothing but Corn in it but because the Corn is the Best Part And so the Church Visible wherein is a mixed Company is denominated from the Better Part sometimes in Scripture and called Sons and Daughters of the Lord Almighty and sometimes from the Worse Part and called Stiff-necked c. Obj. II Their second Objection is taken from Act 2. 47. Where it is said And the Lord added unto the Church daily such as should be saved Say they God added no other to the Church but such as would be saved therefore we should adde no others For Answer If any thing follow from this it would follow that none should be added to the Church but these who are Believers really for no other will be saved But this is against themselves And therefore our second Answer is this That the meaning of the words must be That He had a chief care of adding those to the Church who were to be Saved But it is not said that He added no other for the same Chapter sayes He added moe v 41 whole three Thousand were added and yet all those were not to be saved For there were Ananias and Saphira and doubtless many other Hypocrites among them Obj. III. The third Objection is taken from Matth 22. 12. In the Parable concerning the Kings Banquet where he bids his Servants go and invite to the Marriage and finding One wanting the Wedding Garment says he Friend how camest thou in hither not having a Wedding Garment Now say They this is a reproof to those who admitted him to this Priviledge We Answer This is quite contrair to the scope of the Parable if we look to the command v 9 Goe ye therefore into the high-ways c. They are commanded to invite all and to hold out none for want of the Wedding-Garment For that being Inward is only discernable by God Indeed this Parable will shew this much That Ministers may admit People to Communions and yet Christ will come with an after search and find many there whom he will cast that Ministers have admitted Ye ought not to think that every man that comes through a Ministers Tryal is in a good state The place says That Christ found One wanting the Wedding Garment But it sayes not That Ministers should let none come but those that had the Wedding Garment And to shew that this is the scope of the Parable see v 14. There it is said For many are called but few are chosen Ob. IV Their fourth Objection is taken from Rev. 2. 4 5. The Lord speaking there to the Church of Ephesus sayeth Nevertheless I have
this Breach should be under our Hand A Third Thing to make our present Division weighty is That it is the greatest Weight which Gods People up and down the Land lyeth under it 's a Weight beyond all other Weights and Sufferings And if it be their Weight it ought for many Reasons to be much more ours Fourthly Our Divisions and Courses taken for carrying them on hath given a deeper Inward Wound to the Government of Christ's House than all the Outward Power of the World could have done The leading of us by pairs to a Stake for our adhering to the Government and Constitution of our Mother Church our Imprisonment Banishment the laying of Congregations desolate for that Cause could not have shaken the minds of many in relation to these Truths so much as our own Divisions and Practices following thereupon have done An Inward Disease is more dangerous and weakeneth more than Outward Blows Fifthly Our Division may and ought to be the more weighty the more of Judgement is in it And certainly there is much of Wrath and Judgement in it It is a judicial stroak For all see it's Evil the most part are weary of it and yet cannot fall upon the right way for putting an end to it Yea no course hitherto essayed for Union but it hath proved an hightning of our Division And so it will until it come to that hight which God in His just Judgement will have it at However it 's clear that Wrath is in it much of Judgement is in it and that should make it weighty We side one against another and God is siding against us both Sixthly This should make our Division have a particular Weight with us in this Synod That we drink most of its bitter Fruits We are the Stage whereon this cruel Dividing Spirit acts its Game most None in time past so United as We but none now so Divided And even this may give Us sad thoughts of our Accession to the beginning and Fomenting of this woeful Rent Our Third Use is of Direction also following upon the former If Union be such a good if Division such an evil And if our Divisions be so much to be bewailed Then we ought to have some thoughts towards the making up of our breach there ought to be some guardings against these evils which may follow upon it until it be made up The Prosecuting of this Use as it is the most part of our Work so it is the most difficult and I fear also considering our present Distempers and deep Engagements lying on every one almost to his Own Way that for the time it shall be but Fruitless Yet being led to it by the word of Truth and not knowing when the Lord may make it have it 's own Fruits whether now or afterwards I shall with the Lords help adventure on it And therefore in pressing this Use I shall speak to three things 1. I shall show what things I conceive as necessary to be eyed by us while we aim at Union if so we would have Our aim's effectual 2. Because a Compleat Union is not soon to be expected I shall give some Directions for the Management of Our Differences so as the Church of Christ may have the less hurt by them at least Lastly I shall propound some Considerations to People for preventing of stumbling and making Shipwrack upon our Divisions As to the First I shall mention Six things we should carry alongs with us while we aim at Union Unto all which I premit One General as tending to give Life to all the rest without which all our Endeavours for Union though otherwise never so regular though guided with never so much Prudence though prosecuted with never so much zeal will prove ineffectual and it 's this That both Ministers and People should be more in seeking after God's Face So long as we remain at a distance from him no wonder we grope as Blind-men in the dark and cannot come nigh one to another It 's granted by all That Jesus Christ hath much withdrawn from the Spirits of his People There is not so much of Life conveyed by Preaching not such access granted in Prayer no such delight in Means no such joy in his presence This is granted by all and in a manner regrated by all but lamented by few And fewer yet make it their work to have the Lord returning and shewing himself as sometimes he hath done And until this be we can look for the less success of any attempts made for the removal of this our sore stroak But if God would return It were then easy work One glimpse of him filling the House with his Glory would scatter the Clouds of mutual Jealousies make us as men ashamed steal from all our Dividing Principles would put to silence all our turbulent Distempers and make us blush at our proud and selfish Animosities O! for more of God then would all be well But I come to the particulars to be eyed by us while we aim at Union First It is not to be expected that Our Union will begin at our Uniting in Judgment In that Question about which our unhappy Differences began It was the Judgment of some from the beginning that the standing at a distance in other things until we should be united in That should put Us at a further distance even in That Our Union in Practice first will be the shortest cut to bring us unto Union of Judgement about that Question if ever we shall come to it at all Hence publick Debatings before the People and such as tend to make others odious who are not of our Way is not the way for Union Such work irritateth but convinceth not It 's true no Truth may be quit for Union No not the least Quisquilâ—a veritatâ—â— praetiosissima The very refuse of Truth is most precious Yet that the positive asserting of some Truths may be forborn for Peace's sake I believe is granted by All and there is good reason for it Only there is one exception here necessary to wit when Truth is impugned then there is a necessity to speak for it at least till there be such a Testimony given to that Opposed Truth as may â—e rested upon And in this Case some may be made unwillingly to speak as the Apostle Paul was once in defence of his own Estimation 2 Cor. 12. 11. I am become a fool in glorying ye have compelled me for I ought to have been commended of you As if he should say God knows I have no more delight to speak of this subject than ye have to hear me but your Indiscretion forceth me to it A Second thing to be carried along with us while we aim at Union is no union of this kind of which the Doctrine speaks can be expected in the Church except there be an Union in one Supreme Representative land that such an one whose Authority we may stand under for the present As it is in the Civil
care about the Heart than if ye had none But as to your accquitting your selves in this particular of making your great work ly about the Heart and Inward parts Try your selves but by these Three things 1. What is your care to restrain and mortify Heart Sins which the Apostle calls the Filthiness of the Spirit As High conceit of your selves and your envying of the good of others because it overshadows you The Sin of Fretting and repining under cross dispensations of not reverencing God in and being contented with your Lott Try I say what your Cares and Endeavours are to mortify these and such like Heart sins 2. Try what Conscience ye make to Discharge Inward and spiritual Duties which require only the Inward man to be acted in them As the Duty of meditating on God keeping intercourse and fellowship betwixt your Hearts and Him The Duty of self judging and calling your self to an account every night of the days work the Duty of stooping to God under Cross Dispensations and constructing aright of every thing that God does Try I say what Conscience ye make to discharge those and such like spiritual Duties 3. Try in what way your greatest Care doth run in these Duties which require both the Outward and Inward man Is your great Care to act from right motives and for right ends or rather do ye not on the contrair take but litle care what be the frame of your Heart within if ye but get the outward work done and a fair out-side which none can challenge Is your desire not only to exercise your Tongue in Praying Your voice and art in Singing Praises but also and mainly to exercise your spiritual Graces your Faith your Humility your Love your Repentance for Sin and your joy in God I fear if ye try by these marks many of us shall find that though the Inward parts bâ— that which God Desireth most yet it is that whereof we do give him least which makes a great part of our Duties to be but shadows of Duty They have the external draughts and lineaments shape and proportion of Duty but no more they are painted Duties like a painted man without life a painted fire without heat Let the tryal of your self in these and judging of your selves for them be a part of your Preparation And take this for a further part of it from the same Ground if ye would have what ye do about your Preparation accepted of by God let your great work ly about your Heart how to get it brought to Duty and wrought up to some good Frame for the Lord desireth mainly the Inward parts and where your backward dead and lumpish Hearts will not move or drive for you beseech the Lord to draw them and make them willing in the day of his Power But now lastly I come to the particular here condescended on as a necessary Ingredient for making our performances Acceptable and savoury viz. The Grace of Truth and sincerity Behold thou desirest Truth in the Inward parts And it gives us this Doctrine That the Grace of sincerity and the exercise of it Is absolutely necessary for making our Duties acceptable to God It 's so necessary that the Lord will accept even very little where it is when heâ—l reject much where it is wanting we 'l see both these if we look to the Scripture verdict of two Kings of Judah The first is Asa He was guilty in many things there were very visible defects in him trary to that which the Law of God required as particularly he caused imprison the Prophet who reproved him 2 Chron 16 10. He did not remove the superstitious High places and yet see what the Spirit of God saith of him 1 King 15 14. The High places were not removed nevertheless Asa his Heart was perfect with the Lord all his days Implying that because he was a sincere upright hearted man the Lord overlooked his many other failings So much is also implyed in Hezekiah's Prayer and the Answer it gets from God 2 Chron. 30. 18. 19. The good Lord pardon every one that prepareth his Heart to seek God the Lord God of his Fathers though he be not cleansed according to the Purification of the Sanctuary And the Lord hearkned to Hezekiah and healed the People The other is King Amaziah 2 Chron 25 2. He did that which was right in the sight of the Lord but not with a perfect Heart Implying that though he did many things which in themselves were Right and Good yet because his Heart was not single sincere and straight in what he did the Lord doth not regard it which cleareth the thing I said before That the Grace of Sincerity and exercise of it is so necessary that the Lord will accept even very little where it is and will reject much where it is wanting Now for opening up this Grace of Truth and sincerity a litle in order to the application of the Point Know 1 Sincerity is a Grace which looketh mainly to the Inside therefore it is here called Truth in the Inward parts If thou be a Sincere man an Israelite indeed in whom there is no guile Though a fair outside may please Onlookers because they see no further yet it will not please thee because thou knows it will not please God He desireth Truth in the Inward parts But of this already 2. Sincerity and Truth of Heart makes a man's Tongue and Heart to go together in all his deportment whether to God or man The sincere hearted Man is not a double Man he labours to be that in effect which he gives himself out to be Thus 1. John 3. 18 Truth is opposed to â—air words which are no more but Words My litle Children saith he let us not love in Word neither in Tongue but in Deed and in Truth Implying where Word and Deed go not together there is no singleness sincerity or Truth there 3. Sincerity aims at the right end and works from right approven and spiritual motives The Apostle Paul Philip 1. 15 16. Puts this difference betwixt the sincere and unsincere man The Sincere Man works out of love and good will to Christ and Truth the Unsincere man again works the same Work and as much of it but he works out of envy and strife For some base and by ends This Grace of Sincerity and Truth makes a man look not only to the Substance of his Actions that they be Right and Commanded but also to the Manner of them and chiefly that they be from spiritual motives and for a right end that is for God's Glory Thy own Salvation Thy neighbours good and Edification Now for Vse Ye would try if there be not much want and inlake of this Truth and Sincerity among Us It 's true every inlake and failing in the exercise of Sincerity will not prove a Man to be Unsincere As every act of Hypocrisie will not make a Man an Hypocrite if so he do not countenance himself
sails so the root of Korah Dathan and Abiram's Error whereby they laboured to bear down Magistracy and Ministry was an unmortified root of pride within them They had a fair pretext for it a pretext of Liberty Are not all the Lords People Holy And may they not rule as well as yee A fair pretext indeed but the root was pride They could not endure to be ruled over and so they will rule themselves Thus when Jeroboam makes separation from the Church of Jerusalem he hath a fair pretext for this 1 King 12 28 It is too much saith he for you to go up to Jerusalem There is the pretext but the root of the matter was a lust within stirring him up to secure to himself the enjoyment of that which was not his own and this Ambition breeds fear that if they go up to Jerusalem to worship his power would quickly turn to nothing So ver 27. If this People go up to do Sacrifice in the house of the Lord at Jerusalem then shall the heart of this People turn again unto to their Lord even unto Rehoboam King of Judah and they shall kill me There is the matter a desire of Reigning was the cause of his Idolatry and Schism an unmortified lust within was the root and rise of his Error And secondly Scripture holds out That as Error is the Daughter of Prophanity so it is the Mother of prophanity as it rises from Prophanity so it tends to more Prophanity Christs words import this John 8. 31. Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him if ye continue in my word then are ye my Disciples indeed If ye adhere and keep closs to the Truth then shall ye attain to walk as my Disciples And it imports on the other hand That if ye drink in Error ye shall not be my Disciples indeed And so as Prophanity is the Mother of Error So it is also the Daughter of Error This serves to clear the point That a Child of God should as much watch and guard against Error as he should do against other gross Sins or prophanity of Life For Use This Doctrine serves for reproof first to those who would have Tolleration of all Opinions in the Matter of Religion and no coercive mean to curb Error And that because say they it may curb Piety Which followes no more than that the suppressing of Fornication will curb Piety the one is as dangerous as the other and God's People may fall in the one as well as the other and therefore the one should be as well curbed as the other Nay I may say that that which is called Liberty of Conscience is the most capital Sin in a Kingdom It is all one as if a King would proclaim liberty to Drink to Swear to Whore and to Steal for both are alike evil and where the one is commonly the other is also and therefore to proclaim liberty to the one is to proclaim liberty to the other We think there is no heart zealous of Gods Glory but should abhorre such a thought as this Vse 2. Secondly the Doctrine reproves those who think Opinions are free Many reason thus If ye lead an Holy Life it matters not what be your Opinion whether for Presbytery Independency Arminianism Prelacy or Popery your Soul is in no hazard if ye be kept from gross Out breakings but this Doctrine showes this sort of Reasoning to be a gross mistake For besides that Error speaks an unmortified root in the Heart Heresie and Error in themselves are damnable and are reckoned up among those Sins which debar from the Kingdom of Heaven Galat. 5. verse 21. Hereticks as well as Murderers are excluded and therefore Folks would not jest and play with matters of Religion so as not to care what side they be on Thirdly this Doctrine gives another use as ye would eschew Prophanity of Life so beware of Errors against the Truth For the one of those ends in the other Grant the Error pretend to much of strictness the upshot or Issue of it is still to Prophanity and therefore ye would advise well when tentations to Error are presented before ye drink in any thing contrary to Truths received if ye would not have it read in the looseness of your Life afterward Many whose Lives were very strict when they began first to change their Way were in a short time led by their new Light to a Prophane Godless Life Vse 4. Fourthly Seeing Errors have their rise from some unmortified root within therefore as ye would be keeped free from Error subdue Corruptions within We are ready to think that Godless Men will stand out best against Error But it will prove otherwise unmortified Lusts of any other thing will prove the greatest Friends to Error such as a Lust of Pride to be Eminent of Covetousness to get your Arms full of the World run as it will a Lust of Laziness in Duties that will make you drink in that Error that casts at all Duties as needless So for an Antidote against the works of the Flesh whereof Heresie is one Galat. 5. verse 21. The Crucifying of the Lusts of the Flesh is brought as one Doct. III. We come to the words themselves and and therein is to be considered first the Stile Beloved A warm and kindly compellation The point we are to raise is from comparing the Stile with the Matter which the Apostle is about He is to warn them to beware of Error and yet he gives them a loving Stile Beloved believe c. And it gives us this Doctrine That as at all times so chiefly when there is danger of spreading of Error there is most need that Love should be entertained betwixt Pastor and People So we find Paul labours to bear in himself on Peoples Affections especially in Galat. 4. ver 10. and 11. Ye observe Dayes and Months c. I am afraid of you lest I have bestowed on you Labour in vain There he reproves them for their Error And in the 12 verse he bears in on their Affection Brethren I beseech you be as I am for I am as ye are ye have not injured me at all And so in the 2 Corinth 12. v. 16. Through the whole Epistle he hath been speaking against their Error and all along he bears in on their Affection especially in the place cited And I will very gladly spend and be spent for you though the more abundantly I loved you the less I be loved c. Abundance of places shew his practice to have been this way The Reason is First because when People begin to differ they are ready to cast at these who differ from them chiefly those who would curb them For there is still a Spirit of Pride with Error it cannot endure to be contradicted or the least thing to be spoken to its own prejudice if not all the more warily it will foam and rage and if it cannot bear down the contrary Truth yet it will
light breaks out to the clearing of the Truth These are Reasons why Hereticks must be Vse The use is seeing the Spirit of Error began so early to trouble the Church in the Apostles time that were guided with an infallible Spirit then ye are not to wonder that Error should trouble the Church now when there are not such infallible lights as these The Spirit of Error is a bold darring Spirit it will dare to contradict God Himself and find out some shift to cast at that which God Himself sayeth As may be seen Gen 3. The Lord said The day thou eatest thereof thou shalt die And Sathan contradicts it thou shalt not surely die And so no wonder there be such impudence seen in the Spirit of Error now as to cast at any thing which Gods Servants say seeing Satan still Acts the Instruments of Error Vse 2 But secondly from this Doctrine learn not to quarrell with Gods most Holy and wise Providence in that he suffers so many Errors to be We are ready to think that if God had that care of his Church Covenant and Cause as men would think he had he would not suffer such Effronted Spirits and such Blasphemous Hereticks to prevail and to outdare his Truth But that is to quarrel the Lords providence and without a ground He whose furnace is in Zion can make all the tryals of the time that arise from Error to contribute much for the clearing of Truth by this means he will rouse up his People to study Truth to understand it better to search out grounds for it and that is one advantage only ye would know also that these times will be discovering times they will discover many a corrupt heart many unstable hearts and light heads many proud Spirits and many that have Lusts lurking within them So that many will choose that Religion that will gratify their Lusts most For there is not an Error that Sathan hatches but there is one Lust or other within People that speaks for it and there is nothing more ready to make People take in Error than their harbouring of unmortified Lusts. So in 2 Timoth Cap 3. The Apostle speaking of those who should be caried away with false Teachers says in the 6. v. For of this sort are they which creep into houses and lead captive silly women laden with sins led away with diverse Lusts Unmortified Lusts are as fuel to make the fire of Zeal for Error to burn very hot in Peoples bosom and so Error will try People this way Doct V. Next observe he sayes Believe not every Spirit that is believe not every Doctrine that hath the name of the Spirit and fair pretences put upon it as if they were the Doctrines of the Spirit of God believe them not From this we learn That the foulest Errors go out oftentimes under fairest names and are backed with most specious pretences what Fouler Errors than these spoken of here The denying of the Son of God And yet what fairer Names than the Spirit What fairer pretences than that they are Doctrines taught by the Spirit of God We will find this of all Errors spoken of in Scripture for the most part Coraâ— Dathan and Abiram's Error whereby they rose up against the Magistracy of Moses and Preist-hood of Aaron hath a fair pretence for it Ye take too much upon you Moses and Aaron are not all the Lords People Holy And Jeroboams Error his Idolatry in setting up the Calf at Dan and Bethel hath a fair pretence 1 Kings 12. It is too fair for you c. The Peoples ease and the publick good is the thing he pretends though his design was far otherwise And so these that urged Justification by works and opposed the way of free Grace and being justified by Faith they had their fair pretences O! say they to cast off Workes from Justification will make People secure wee may sin that Grace may abound very taking pretences all of them and as taking as any that Error is now covered over with The Reason of the Doctrine is from the cause for which the Tempter presents Error under fair colours and specious pretences which is this That he may make the Error the more taking For these are the baits he puts on the hook that he may deceive and catch the simple Therefore for use of this Doctrine ye would not be deceived with fair pretences or ravishinglike expressions that Error may be fairded over with See what the Apostle Paul sayes to this purpose 2 Thess cap. 2 v. 2. Where speaking against an Error he beseeches them by the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ That they be not soon shaken in mind or troubled neither by Spirit nor by word nor by letter as from us as that the day of Christ is at hand It supposes that the spreaders of that Error had all these three pretences Firstâ— they pretended the Spirit that it was a Doctrine taught them by the Spirit of God accompanied by his presence in their Spirits with more than ordinary flashes and raptures and In-bearings of the Spirit of Light And Secondly that they had the word or Scripture to alledge for it And Thirdly they picked somewhat out of Pauls Letters for them so would they say In speaking against us he contradicts himself These are fair pretences and yet sayes Paul be not shaken in mind with them So say I ye would guard your self against the fair pretences which Error may have and look not only to the out side but to the inside of them and then ye will find most bitter Serpents Lurking under fairest flowers As for example The Mother of all Error Tolleration hath a fair pretence for it viz. that good men may Err and so in suppressing Error ye may suppress Piety A fair pretence but it hath afoul end For by this meanes Blasphemers Denyers of God and Jesus Christ must have Liberty to vent their damnable Errors if so be that they can but pretend Conscience and so stable roome must be given in Christs Church to every unclean beast that ever was hatched in Hell The Antinomian Errors again have a fair pretence O say they Christ hath become sin for us and therefore it is taken off from us so we are not bound to repent for it for to say that we are to repent were to take the burthen off from Christs Back and to put it on our own These are specious words without solidity but they contradict Scripture Truths where they are narrowly looked to Peter was a justified Person and yet when Christ looked on him He weeped bitterly Davids sin was pardoned and Christ had taken the burthen of it and yet David was to Repent of it and to be corrected for it and so the Lord tells him that the sword should not depart from his house because he had made the Enemies of the Lord to Blasphem and yet sin was not laid upon David to satisfy divine Justice for it Only he must get
on the fingers to make him more warry and to scar all Justified Persons in time coming from doing the like We might so run through all the Errors of the time as that of Independency whereby power is denyed to Presbytries O say they to put power in Presbytries and make them receive Appeals from Congregations it is to Tyrannize over particular Flocks and therefore say they nothing is better than that every Congregation have compleat power within themselves and be left to their own guiding not being countable to any Judicatory above them but only to Christ This seems a specious Bait for such as would have liberty but when it is duly pondered it will be found most contrary to Truth For by this means if a particular Flock should Err and if one should sufâ—er wrong at the hands of a particular Session there is no remedy to repair the oppressed man and to bring the Erring Congregation to a right mind and how far this is derogatory to Jesâ—s Christ who was perfect in all his house any man may judge We might run through more of them But because we have a mind to refute these Errors by themselves we shall insist no further here having said enough to clear the point that the most dangerous Errors may be born in under the fairest pretences and therefore ye would not take all to be Gold that glisters take not all for Truth that is decked up with a bundle of brave high ravishing expressions Doct. 6 We proceed Believe not every Spirit sayes he He speaks not this in vain It supposes he saw an inclination in them to believe The point of Doctrine that ariseth from it is That when foul Error is holden out under fair Names and backed with fair pretences There is a danger lest people drink them in and believe them for John saw that hazard and therefore gives them a Watch-word So in the 16 of the Rom. ver 18. For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ but their own Belly and by good words and fair Speeches deceive the hearts of the simple Their baits hook'd the simple before they were aware We need no further proof of this than the Example of our neighbour Church in England Errors which could not have been named but People would have loathed at them such as the Arminian Error against free Grace c. Yet being decked with the name of new light they are greedily drunk in by too too many Wee shall give some Reasons to make you sensible of this hazard How great danger there is when Error is in spreading that People be taken off their feet with it We shall point at four or five things that speaks this hazard And the first is the proneness of our nature to Drink in Untruths We see this in Eva for Error is natures brood And as we said Error is the copy of some Lust and therefore it soon infects Truth again it hath nothing in us no party for it in our hearts and therefore it is harder to make us take with it there must be word upon word and precept upon precept we drink in Truth slowly and after much pains taken upon us we are hut to begin to learn it but the Spirit of a man is quick to take up Error Ye will find men more able in a short time to debate for Error than in a long time to debate for Truth I would seek no greater presumption that such a tenent is an Error than this that as soon as it is set on fire it runs through great numbers and sets their Spirits on edge for it we are not so hot for Truth it is not our nature to be so taken with it Reason 2 Then there is a Second thing that speaks this hazard and it is the shallowness of Peoples apprehension together with their foolish hast before they try From the shallowness of many it is that they cannot put a difference betwixt a fair pretence and a foul Error that is hid under it and from the hast of Peoples Spirit it is that they ingage suddainly with any thing having the colour of Truth and being once ingaged they are still the more and more involved These two laid together are another thing to point out this hazard Reason 3. We may add a Third and this is desire of Novelty in People spoken of in 2 Timoth Chap 4 v. 3 after their own Lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers having itching ears And they shall turn away c. Where by the way observe that Lust within is the cause of drinking in Error from without But the thing we mark is That they have an itching ear lusting after new things and this comes from their little practising of old Truths Reas 4 There is a Fourth Reason and it is the diversity of baits and pretences that is put upon several Errors according to Peoples several humors So subtile is Sathan that he puts a bait on for every appetit there are some that are Piously strict and are enclined so to be both towards themselves and others and he hath a bait to catch those to wit a pretence of strickness which the Error of Separation is covered with for this Error alloweth Church fellowship with none but these that have a real evidence of Grace in them It is a way think they to shame natural Men. Again there be some whose humor is for looseness he puts on a bait to gratify this humor also let them believe in Christ and let them live as they like sayes the Antinomian and so according to Peoples several humors there is a bait put on by the Devil upon Error Now when these baits and Peoples humors agree it is like powder and fire presently they kindle Reas. 5 There is a fifth thing which speaks this hazard and it is this The Lord that Error may be a tryal in his holy Justice lets out more than ordinary parts and abilities on spreaders of Error and on the Spirits of People when they are taken with it The Lord for a Judgement to themselves and for a tryal unto others gives them as we speak a cast of their craft he elevates them above their ordinary Sphere or what is their ordinary way And this we speak not without Scripture It is said of false Antichristian Teachers they shall come with lâ—ing signs and wonders And there is a Spirit of Error which he foretells shall accompany Error Be not soon shaken in mind neither by Spirit nor by word c. In that place that we already cited 2 Thess 2 2. When we look on all these things we hope we have made out the point viz. that foulest Errors even when they are colloured with fairest pretences there is a danger lest People drink them in The use of the point is If there be this hazard then ye would be afraid of your selves it is said The Righteous fear alwayes I would seek no clearer mark of any person that is
least not such an ample grant as it is Matth 28. 19. Goe ye therefore and teach all nations c and lo I am with you alway even unto the end of the World It doth not exeem them indeed from Erring themselves but the promise is there more largly given to them than to others And Secondly Ministers as called watch men have the charge of Peoples Souls God hath charged them with them which he hath not charged others with there is not a charge of Peoples Souls laid on private men by way of office every one is bound indeed by way of Charity to take a care of the Souls of others contrair to that of Cain am I my brothers keeper But beside this tye of Charity lying on sent Ministers there is a tye by vertue of a particular charge So that place Act 20. Take heed to the flock over which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers He hath given them a special Charge and so they are charged in a special way with Peoples Souls Then there is a Third Reason it is Sathan's Method to bring in Error on People by casting in prejudices betwixt them and sent Ministers which we have cleared sometimes from Scripture and so it should be watched against lest Sathans subtility prevail so far as to bring People to dis-respect their Ministers for if that be once gained he hath prevailed very much Doct VIII Now further he sayes Believe noâ— every Spirit But bring them to the tryal Doe not cast at all but try the Spirits Hence take this Doctrine It is not Gods way that People because there are differences about Religion should therefore believe no Religion that is not Gods way So Matth 16. we see the Apostles practise Christ sayes unto them whom say they that I am Say they some say thaâ— thou art John the Baptist some Elias others Jeremiah or one of the Prophets But whom say ye that I am They do not Answer we know not what to say there are so many different sayings about thee but say they Thou art Christ the son of the living God Reas So People are not to cast at all Religion because there are differences about it and that because First that were to give way to the Devils plot His design in raising up Error about Religion is to make People Atheists so as not to care for any Religion and so when the use which thou makest of different Opinions is that thou wilt believe none Thou fulfillest the Devils design Secondly thou makes use of Gods Providence to thy destruction The Lords Providence in raising up Error is to make men seek more after the knowledge of the Truth And when thou makest that use of it to cast at all Religion thou mockest the Holy Counsel of God to thy own ruin The Use then of the Doctrine is to reprove those of this stamp to wit Prophane Atheistical men that make no differences about Religion but this Let Church-men once agree among themselves what 's right and what 's wrong untill then the back of our hand to altogether that is a wofull way Indeed there may be a doubt proposed here viz. What else shall poor ignorant People do about differences in Religion but to lay aside the care of all when they see every party have their own Reasons stronger than these poor People can Answer I Answer there are some directions grounded on Scripture which if we walk by may bring us to a safe shore amidst these rocks of contrary Opinions And the first is this that for Differences that concern not Peoples practice I would not have People trouble themselves much with them as for example Our late unhappy Differences about the publick Resolutions the Lord hath taken the occasion of them away so I would not have any troubling themselves much about them Whatever Differences in matters of practice fall in it seems to be a safe rule that when the occasion of such Practices are removed all Contention about them should be laid aside Secondly As to the Differences wherein Peoples practice is concerned take these Rules First For these that are uncontraverted Truths make Conscience of the practice of them which will help to the knowledge of other things this rule Christ prescrives John 7. 17. sayes he If any man do his will he shall know of the Doctrine whether it be of God c. There is something that thy Conscience is clear of to be Duty and although the Differences of Opinion might be some excuse to make thee keep off from these things about which there is difference yet how art thou excused for neglect of these things which thou art convinced to be Duty as Prayer Reading the Word c. Secondly We would know whatever be the contrary Opinions about matters of Religion yet there is but one true way and the knowledge of this one way may be attained to by those who seek humbly after it At least if thou be judging thy self and as a damned Bankrupt or Dâ—vour by Nature be closing with Christ and drawing Grace from him to make thee Holy Thou wilt attain to the knowledge of as much of these things debated as will take thee home to Heaven A Third Direction is That ye should beware of calling in question any of these Truths that once have been Sealed into your Spirits by the Spirit from the Word of God 2 John ver 8. Look to your selves that we lose not those things which we have wrought The point of Truth that People have got thus Sealed to their Conscience should not readily be called in question A Fourth Direction is this That in seeking out Truth under Differences we should beware of Loftyness of Spirit 1 Cor. 14. 32 it is said The Spirits of the Prophets are subject to the Prophets How much more ought the Spirits of private persons to be subject to the voice of Christs Ambassadors speaking in his Courts This is not as if we would make Ministers Sayings the Peoples Rule to walk by But this much will follow that in a constitute Church where Discipline is Exercised there should be that Humility in People that whâ—n doubts arise concerning any point of received Truth within the Church they should offer their Judgement and the Reason of it to the Prophets and Christs Courts to be tryed before they lay down any new Opinion as a solid Truth That much is contained under this The Spirits of the Prophets are subject to the Prophets if it mean any thing at all Doct IX Now we proceed The next thing that we come to is what People should do Try the Spirits and the Rule of Tryal is whether they are of God The first point we learn is that how fair soever the pretence be that our Doctrine is colloured with it should not be taken upon Trust but the Spirits must be Tryed Such we see was the practice of the Bâ—reans and they are commended for it they would not take the Apostles Doctrine on
to Doctrine and Instruction It is profitable for Doctrine and Instruction It will make a man perfect in that as well as in reproof Vse This reproves First the Papists they cast by the rule of the Word and will have their Traditions and their Poâ—es Decrees to be the rule But of this enough already in the preceeding Doctrine In the second place it reproves the Sectaries some whereof reprove the Word they will have a higher tryal and rule to examine by and it is the inbearing of Gods Spirit say they He is the Spirit of Truth and can he bear in a Lye But say we how know they the Spirit of the Devil by the Spirit of God except they bring it to the Word So the Word is the Rule yea and the last Rule But here is a doubt which we shall speak to This is a very hard task may some say for poor ignorant People to try Doctrines by the Word the Word it self is obscure and every one pretends the Word all Parties will say that they have the Word and so it is hard for us to know what is of God and what not if we have no other rule but the Word I answer it is very true there are very few Sectaries who will not pretend the Word And yet it does not follow that ye may cast by the Word But Secondly we say although the Word be in some places obscure and although Men of Opinions as contrary to the Word as Light is to Darkness may every one of them wrest the Word yet there is as much of the Word clear if it be rightly studied as will make a man know what is right and what is wrong Hence that Epithet given to the Word The word of the Lora is a Lamp to direct thy Paths The Word of the Lord is not unfitly compared to a Sea wherein Elephants i. e. men of greatest parts and Learning may swime and readily lose their fect how great soever their parts be if they rely upon them And yet it may be compared to a shallow calm running Stream wherein Lambs that is men of mean Gifts may wade and find out Gods mind in it if they be humble and take Gods way for searching of it But say ye what is that way of God wherein people may hope so as not to miscarry in the searching out of Gods mind in his Word In answer to this we shall give several Directions First A man that would not mistake Gods mind in his Word should be a diligent Reader of it Acts 17. 11. and searched the Scriptures daily c. it was their daily task And Secondly Reading of the Word should have Prayer going alongs with it Prov 2. 3. Yea if thou cryest after knowledge and liftest up thy voice for understanding ver 4. If thou seekest her as silver and searchest for her as for hid treasures Then c. this crying and seeking is certainly in Prayer as well as in other means When people joyn Prayer with the Reading of the Word they will more readily attain to the knowledge of Gods mind Than a man that takes no more with him but his own natural parts Thirdly The word should be read with Meditation Psal 1. 2. in his Law doth he meditate day and night And Fourthly with Self-denial Prov. 3. 5. Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not to thine own understanding We should go to the Word with a deep sense on us of our own Ignorance to seek Light from it There are several other directions how People may be led to get the meaning of the word we shall speak of some First Obscure places being compared with these that are more clear will be clear also There are some places obscure but the Lord hath been so Graciously condescending in contriving the Scriptures that there are other places to make them clear So there is an obscure place we are not under the Law but under Grace which at first seems to sound as if People needed not to take heed to the Law But there is another place that clearly shows how we are not under the Law There is no condemnation to them that are in Christ. They are freed from the condemning power of the Law but not from the directions of it Secondly in obscure and dark places of Scripture on which men according to their several Conceptions would Father several senses the meaning that agrees most with the â—nalogy of Faith should be taken this is that which Paul calls the forme of wholsom words So there is a place controverted he laid on him the iniquitâ— of us all Says the Antinomians all our sins were laid on Christ and so do what we will we are not bound to seek pardon or mourn for tâ—em for our sins are laid on him and so we have none Now this gloss is contrary to the whole current of Scripture which holds out that believers have sin in them a body of Death 1 John 1 8. If we say we have no sin we deceive our selves and the Truth is not in us It holdeth out believers at their best condition as Mourning for sin and praying for the pardon of sin Rom. 7. Psalm 25. 11. So that this Antinomian sense cannot be right because it is contrar to the whole current of Scripture and therefore the laying of our iniquities on him must be the guilt and punishment of our iniquity and not the being of sin it self which was bound upon Christ So another place the promoters of Tolleration pleads from is that in Phil. 3 15. that Counsel that Paul gives Let us therefore as many as be perfect be thus minded And if in any thing ye be otherwise minded God shall reveal even this unto you say they there is Tolleration whatever be Peoples differences let them walk according to their Light we say again that what Paul sayes of mutual forbearance must not be extended to all Errors but it must only be applyed to these that were Errors of infirmitie As Rom 15. 1. we then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak and not to please our selves And that the opposite meaning cannot be right because it is contrair to the current of many other Scriptures which command Hereticks to be Excommunicat An Heretick after the first and second admonition reject and not so much as bid them God speed So this is another way to know the meaning of the Scripture And this much now for directions to help you in the study of Gods word that you may attain to know Gods mind in it and so to know whether a Doctrine be of God or not We thought to have spoken of these other marks which do not infer necessarly a Doctrine to be of God but for the most part do follow on such a Doctrine but the time being now ended I shall only name them First That Doctrine which is of God will have Holiness following upon it And so that Doctrine of the
Church but if he neglect to hear the Church let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a Pubican That is Excommunicate him Now for what faults he is to be Excommunicate they are set down v. 15. Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee c. So it is a scandalous Trespass wherein the offender does persist and remain obstinate on which according to Christ's Rule Excommunication should strick Now sure it is there are many Errors not contrary to fundamental Truths such as many points of Arminianism Antinomianism c. which yet persisted in are Scandalous both to particular Christians and the Church and therefore according to Christs Rule Excommunication should strick upon other Errors than those contrary to the fundamental Points of Religion which is contrary to their assertion Thirdly Neither can we assent that Excommunication should strick on no other Errors but those contrary to the light of Nature and that not only because of what is presently said that Excommunication should strick against every scandalous Sin done against a Brother or the Church wherein the offender does persist and remain obstinate but also according to that Rule whereby they maintain that Excommunication should strick on no other Error but these that are contrary to the very Light of Nature it would follow that the publisher of these Errors following or the like against fundamental Truths should not be censured to wit That the Scriptures are not the word of God That Jesus Christ was an Impostor a Deceiver That we are not justified by free Grace say according to that rule such Hereticks should not be censured no not Ecclesiastically because these Errors are not against Natures Light but Scripture Light only for Natures Light teacheth not the Truths which are contrary to these Errors This much for Church Tolleration but as said is concerning this is not the present Contraversy The main question then is concerning State Tolleration Concerning which some do affirm That whatever the Church may do in Inflicting Church Censures on Hereticks Maintainers of Heterodox Opinions Yet say they no civil Punishment such as Death Imprisonment Mulcts or Fines should be inflicted on any Error or Blasphem whatsoever providing the Maintainers of them carry themselves peaceably do not trouble the State or do evil against the Commonwealth in civil Things We again on the contrary do hold That it is the Duty of the Civil Magistrate to suppress Error Heresie and every sin against the First Table as well as it is his Duty to suppress Adultery Fornication Sedition and other sins against the second Table And that he is not only bound to suppress Errors and Blasphemies that are contrary to fundamental Truths or the Light of Nature but all Error contrary to other points of Truth Now for clearing the State of this Question and freeing it from some odious Imputations that may be cast upon it Before we come to Arguments we shall lay down these Assertions First We do not say that the Magistrate is bound to punish Hereticks at the first step Pains should first be taken to inform them the Judgement of the Church is Antecedent and their Labour is to convince Gainsayers So this must go before the Magistrates Duty they must be found Obstinate before the Magistrate medle with them or punish them Civilly Especially if their Errors be not horrid Blasphemies against God and Natures Light in such the Magistrate is not bound to give so much Forbearance Secondly We do not say that all Errors and Heresies are to get alike punishment but according to the degrees of the guilt that is in them even as it is in sins committed against the Second Table Murder is a more hainous Fault than Fornication and therefore the Magistrate is bound to punish it more highly Even so is it in Sins done against the First Table Blasphemies done against God or a denying of the true God is a higher Sin than Worshiping of the true God after a false manner and therefore the Magistrate is bound to punish it more severely Thirdly As we do not say that every Error and Heresie is to receive the like punishment so neither do we say that every one that maintains the same Error is to be alike punished for there are some that are Seducers or Drawers on of others to Error Disturbers of the Peace of the Church Ring-leaders there are others again that are only seduced and drawn away to Error and these last although they should not be Tollerate yet the power of the Magistrate is to be exercised more sparingly towards them So Secondly There are some rooted in Error confirmed in it who will not hear Instruction There are others that are but weak and are seeking Light whose way evidenceth them to be Conscientious only for the time they are Ignorant and in Humility seeking after Light and these last the Magistrate as all other Christians is to bear much with according to Rom. 15. 1. We then that are strong ought to bear the Infirmities of the weak c. Now this being said to clear the question we come to Arguments to make out this Truth to wit That the Magistrate is bound to suppress and punish Error Heresie and other sins against the First Table as well as he is bound to punish Adultery Theft and other sins against the Second Table The First Argument we bring is from the approven practice of Kings and Magistrates under the Old Testament from which we form an Argument thus If it was the approven practice of Kings and and Magistrates under the Old Testament to suppress Error Heresie and Blasphemy then Magistrates under the New Testament are bound to do the like But so it is that it was the approven practice of Kings and Magistrates under the Old Testament to suppress Error Heresie and Blasphemy and other sins against the first Table Therefore Magistrates under the New Testament are bound to do the like For confirming of this Argument there are two things to be made out First That it was the practice of the Magistrate under the Old Testament to suppress Error and Heresie Secondly As it was their practice so their practice herein is approven of God otherwise it were not binding unto others for Kings and Magistrates did several things wherein they were not approven and so not binding unto us now The first thing then we are to clear is that this was the practice of Magistrates under the Old Testament And we shall begin First with Abraham's practice Genes 18. 19. For I know him that he will command his Children and his Houshold after him and they shall keep the way of the Lord to do Iustice and Iudgement c. Secondly with Jacob who was a Magistrate in his own Family And we shall see him employing his Power to suppress false Religion In the 35 of Gen. vers 2. Then Jacob said unto his Houshold and to all that were with him put away the strange Gods that are among you
Heaven to consume the Samaritans and from this they argue That when People refuse Christ in his Person much less when they oppose him in his Doctrine it is not his mind that they should be punished but admonished and waited on But before we Answer they must prove the Quarrel was for Religion Now this cannot be made out for the Reason why James would have â—ire coming down from Heaven was because of an Act of Inhumanity in denying lodging to Christ and that because of the great envy and hatred betwixt these two people the Jews and Samaritans The Second Answer we give is although the Quarrel had been for Religion yet it makes not against this Doctrine because they were wholly Idolaters utterly ignorant of the Gospel and our Doctrine is not that when a Nation is lying in Idolatry that the first thing that should be done is the Magistrates sword to slay them or to seek fire from Heaven to consume them We say it is utterly unlawful to goe with fire and sword to force the Indians to embrace the Christian Faith only they should be taught instructed and restrained from spreading Blasphemies reproaching the Son of God c. Our Question is whether or not a People that are Members of the visible Church that have bound themselves by Covenant to adhere to the Christian Truths whether or not when they fall away from Truth to damnable Error the Magistrate may make them stand to their Covenant as Josiah did 2 Chron 34. 31. And he caused all that were present to stand to it Object 6. The Sixth Objection is this say they If Magistrates may punish Error and Heresy then he may force the Conscience for what they hold is as they profess according to the light of their Conscience Now to force the Conscience is a fearful sin who dare meddle with Conscience but the God of Conscience Answer This Argument seems plausible but for Answer to it we say Conscience cannot be forced properly Only we say that the Magistrate may punish for or restrain sin in such outward motions as come from an evil informed Conscience and if this be a sinful forcing of the Conscience then it were a sin to punish those who from Conscience killed the Apostles John 16 2. the time cometh that whosoever Killeth you will think that he doeth God Service Yet we hope none will say the punishment of such would be a sinful forcing of the Conscience so it were a sinful thing to punish those who made their Children to pass through the fire unto Molech under the name of Conscienceâ— These and many other absurdities would follow on this Tenet of theirs that none ought to be punished for any thing they do following the indytments of a deluded Conscience What have there not been and yet are Hereticks who pretend Conscience for the vilest villanies of the World The Jesuits pretend Conscience for stobbing Kings and Magistrates The Gâ—ostâ—cks to have Wives common And ancient Hereticks hath made it a point of Conscience to practice Adultery and some present Hereticks to Marry their Sisters so that the â—igher in Blood the Persons Married are the Marriage is to them the more spiritual and a number of such like villanies Now will any think it a sinful forcing of Conscience to punish such whatever they tatle of Conscience But Secondly To what they say for the Magistrate to punish men for Error is a persecuting of men for Conscience To this we Answer Then it should follow that God commanded sin to the Godly Magistrates under the Old Testament for it is clear they had a command to punish men for Idolatry Thirdly if this be a persecuting of Conscience then it is a persecuting of Conscience to Preach against Error to refute it by good Reason To make this Consequence clear know as there is a Persecution with the hand so with the Tongue and it is the bitterest Persecution that is called job 5. 21 The scourge of the Tongue And the mocking of Christ was one of the fearfullest Persecutions he met with he trusted in God c. And so according to this Doctrine it were unlawful to Preach against them c. Why For it is a sin to persecute them for Concience But Fourthly our Answer is It is not the hurt inferred that makes sinful Persecution but it is the cause for which the punishment is inflicted There is a Seventh Objection they bring against this Truth and it is this say they If Magistrates were bound to punish Error and Heresy it would lay a tye on Magistrate to know what is Truth and what is Error Now say they there are many intricate Questions about the nature of Error and Truth which the Generality of Magistrates are ignorant of and therefore say they according to this Doctrine we put power in the hand of the Magistrate whereby he may punish those that profess the Truth if the Magistrate mistake and take Truth for Error A dangerous Doctrine If Magistrates turn ignorant or corrupt This seemeth plausible But we shall Answer to it If this Argument hold strong then it would follow that the Civil Magistrate hath no power to punish sins against the second Table for there are a number of difficult Questions even about these as in some cases of Murther Incest matters of false Witness And the Lord sayeth Deut. 17. 8. If there arise a matter too hard for thee in Judgement between blood and blood between plea and plea and between stroke and stroke c. Which suppones there are many doubtful questions even about things Civil which the generality are ignorant of and so it may fall out they may punish the honest man for the knave and yet this doth not evert the ordinance of Magistracy neither doth it follow that he hath no power to punish for Civil crimes Secondly they may argue as well against what is commanded to Masters of Families That he receive not an Heretick within his house 2 John v. 10. and 2 Timoth 3 6. For of this sort are they which creep into houses c. Rom 16. 17 18. Now I beseech you Brethren mark them which cause divisions and avoid them c. By all which he supposeth certainly they have some knowledge to judge who are Hereticks and who not else how could they elchew them and so they may argue as well against these commands as against this Doctrine For may they say this is to put it on Masters of Families to know who are Hereticks who not to know what is Truth and what not and this the generality of Masters of Families are ignorant of and so a power put on them to barr the door on honest men in stead of an Heretick Now when they free these Commands from these consequences we shall free this Doctrine from them also Thirdly Neither the word nor this Doctrine putteth a power on Magistrates to punish Truth their power is only to punish Error They may indeed so abuse their power but
it followeth not that therefore they have no power to punish Error no more than because that a Godless Magistrate as Nero was may abuse his power to oppress Murther honest Citizens and do other Acts of Injustice against the second Table that therefore the Magistrate hath no power to punish Theeves Robbers Murderers because either through mistake or wickedness he may abuse it to punish innocent Men whatever remedy is left for the Magistrates abusing of his power under the one the same is left under the other as insome cases suffering in others resisting There is an Eighth Objection they have against this Truth say they we make the mean unproportionate to the end no outward force can convert a man and brâ—ng him to Christ it makes men but Hypocrites the blast of the Kings horn or outlawry can make no man a member of Christs body that must be done willingly not by compulsion and this were to cudgell People out of their opinions To this we Answer That our Doctrine doth not hold forth that the power of the Magistrate is any mean to convert Souls Only this it doth hold forth that the power of the Magistrate is a mean to restrain men from doing sinful Acts against Christ as Asa made use of his Civil Power to keep down Idolatry it puts People indeed on the profession of outward Obedience and to this it is very proportioned And therefore Secondly Though the blast of the Kings horn cannot make a Member of Christs invisible Body by working Grace Yet it may be a mean in its own kind for making a Member of the Church visible by with-holding from sinful Acts and putting them on Acts of outward Obedience A Third Answer we give That the power of the Magistrate doth not make men Hypocrites of it self but through the corruption of Man's heart who makes himself an Hypocrite The end of this ordinance what it is in it self is set down in Deut 13. 11. And all Israel shall hear and fear and shall do no more any such wickedness as this is among you That is the end that they being moved by their Example should abstain from such like worke but that they do this Hypocritically is from their corrupt nature who fears him more who can kill the Body than him who after he hath killed the Body can cast both Soul and Body into Hell We Answer lastly if this were a good Argument why a Magistrate should not make use of his power to punish for false Doctrine because throw occasion thereof many turn Hypocrites then say we It should follow that the Magistrate should not make use of his power to punish Incests Adulteries Murders Thefts c. because it is the occasion of many Hypocrites who abstain more from such for the fear of punishment than for the fear of God yea according to this Doctrine it should follow That the Preaching of the word should be unlawful because through the occasion of it many turn Hypocrites under it There is a Ninth Objection they have against this Truth and it is this say they By this power we give to the Magistrate to punish Error and Heresy we give him the Power of Church Judicatories to judge of Doctrines Error and Heresy In Answer to this we shall speak more fully in the 〈◊〉 Doctrine only for the present this giving Power to the Magistrate to punish Error and Heresy gives him not a publick Judgement to discern what is Error and what not as a Judge in Church matters but only a Judgement of Discretion in relation to his own Act As for Example when the Lord gives Power to Masters of Families not to let Hereticks come into their House it is not a putting the Power of Church Judicatories in their Hands IV. The last thing we promised to speak to you of was to give you some use of this And the First is to reprove those who think Opinions are free and that none ought to be punished for such We grant as we said that there would be a difference amongst Errors some more damnable some less and so to be less punished and there is a difference to be put amongst persons some are seduced some whose Conscience is Seared some venting their Darkness some seeking Light In such there should be a difference observed Again the Magistrate is to deal one way with a Community another way with some persons before it come to such an hight And Lastly He is to deal otherwise with Errors that cannot be mantained without troubling the Peace of the Church and State and those that break not Love nor strike not at any material point of Truth the last happily may be Tollerate if the Maintaineâ—s of them do not evidence contempt But not so the first These and such like Distinctions may be to qualify this Power but to deny it altogether is the most damnable Doctrine that ever was vented the Devil cannot take a shorter course to undoe Religion and there can be no heart zealous for God but he must loath it and therefore look so on it Think not what is that to you what others do if ye get leave to serve God your self Is that all your zeal for God that if ye get leave to serve him ye care not that all beside you Spit on his Face and serve the Devil Vse 2. Hence see what an Account those Magistrates have to make who make no use of their Power this way for God if they get their own Houses built cares not for his if Rebellion against themselves be curbed cares not for the curbing of Rebellion against God This was the Sin of the Parliament of England though they entred into a Covenant with the most high God That they would suppress Error and Heresy they never employed their Power that way and that because they durst not for angring of their Army and therefore God hath suffered their Army to overturn them and set themselves and whom they please in their place And now they by their practice give Tolleratâ—on to all and this is the way to strengthen them I say in the Name of the Lord if they repent not it shall be the way to ruine them A people Swearing in their low condition to root out Heresy c. And God blessing them from that day and within a few years carrying themselves as if they had Sworn to do the contrary to suffer all encourage all invite all the Devils in Hell to vent what Blasphemies they please and for their encouragement to give them Surety that no Power in Brittain shall hinder them Was there ever such an affront done to God Think ye that he will sit with it No if he should make the one half avengers of a broken Covenant against the other He will not It is noted of Asa 2 Chron. 14. 5. Gods way to keep Magistrates sure and their Kingdoms quiet is to be zealous against false Worship No but say they the way is not to anger Hereticks they
substantial parts of Church Government have a warrand in the word and are therein so fixed and established as they are unalterable by any State whatsoever And Secondly As to the Circumstantials that relate to this Government we say they are set down under general Rules sufficient for the ordering of them such as let all things be done in order and to edification Our Second Assertion is we are not to enter here to show what is the particular kind of Government that is appointed in the word and what things falls under the power of Church Governours and in what relation they are to handle them what are the nature of these Censures and how in all these things they differ from the Civil power It would take long time to clear these The thing we aim at is only this general That Jesus Christ the King of his Church and Lord of his House hath set down in his word a particular way for Governing of his house distinct from the Civil which is not in the power of any State to alter We proceed now to Arguments for comfirming this Truth II. The first Argument is this If so be that under the Old Testament there was a particular form of Church Government different from the Civil set down in the word then there must be also the like set down under the New but so it is that there was a particular way set down under the Old Testament for Governing the Church Therefore there must be the like set down under the new For making out this Argument there are two things we have to clear The First is That there was such a Government as this under the Old Testament warranted by the word The Second thing to be cleared is that therefore and upon the same Reason there must be also the like under the New For proving of the First that there was a particular Government of the Church different from the Gvernment of the state under the Old Testament We shall clear two things First That they had Church Judicatories different from the Civil Judicatories And to prove this we shall cite two places of Scripture The First is in 2 Chron 19. 8 9 10. Ye may read the place at leasure but there are these things in it proving that there was a Church Judicatory distinct from the Civil First We see that there is a Judicatory made up of the Church-men of the Levits and Priests in verse 8. Secondly We see that the things they judged of were spiritual matters distinguished from Civil things by calling the the first sort The matters of the Lord And the Second Matters of the King v. 11. Thirdly We see that in this Judicatory a Church-man was Moderator in the 11 verse And behold Amariah the chief Priest is over you And Fourthly We see that the sentence of the Court was Execute by Church-men in the end of the 11 vers Also the Levits shall be officers before you All which being laid together makes out clearly that under the Old Testament â—â—â—re was a Church Judicatory different from the Civil The Second place is in Jeremiah 26. 8. 9. 10 Where we have these things to make out the present point First We see that there were two Judicatories in the 8 v. There is a Judicatory of the Priests and Prophets condemning Jeremiah as a false Prophet again in the 10. and 1â— v. We see there is a Civil Judicatory made up of States-men When the Princes of Judah hard these things then they came up from the Kings house c. So it is plain they had a Church Judicatory for Church matters as well as a Civil Judicatory for Civil matters The Second thing that we are to speak to in order to the proving of the first point to wit That there was a Government of the Church different from that of the State among the Jews is this that as they had Church Judicatories different from the Civil so they had also Church Censures different from Civil punishments as we have amongst us And First publick confession of Scandalous sins was in use among them we shall clear it from one place of Scripture Ezra 10. 10. 11. And Ezra the Priest stood up and said unto them Ye have transgressed Now therefore make confession unto the Lord God of your Fathers c. There is confession of sin appointed for a fault that was Scandalous to wit their Marrying with strange Wives Now this confession was not only private to God nor on a Fast day but a personal publick acknowledgment after particular Examination of all one by one And we gather this from the 13. v. where it is said Neither is this a work of one day or two c. And in the 16. v. Three moneths was spent on the business so that this was a personal acknowledgment given by every one of them after the Examination of their guilt as we do in our Church Judicatories Secondly Besides this publick Confession they had the Censure of suspending Scandalous men from the Ordinances as we do suspend from the Sacrament of the Lords Supper we will find this in David his appointing of the offices of the Priests Among the rest it is recorded of Jehoiadah 2 Chron. 23. v 19. And he set the porters at the gates of the house of the Lord that none which was unclean in any thing should enter in They were suspended from the Ordinances because of their uncleaness And for the neglect of this the Priest's are reproved in Ezek. 22 v 26. Her Priests have violated my Law and have prophaned my Holy things they have put no difference between the unclean and clean neither between the Holy and prophane They let all come rushing together to the Ordinances And for this they are reproved Thirdly They had among them the sentence of Excommunication which is set down under the name of Cutting off from among the People And in the new Testament it is expressed by the name of casting out of the Synagogue which certainly was Excommunication It is a Ridiculous alledgence that they say by cutting off was meaned the inflicting of Temporal death by the sword of the Magistrate for the uncircumcised Man-child he that had touched a dead Body and did not wash after it were to be cut off now who would think that such were to be put to death The Second thing to be made out is That therefore there must be a Church Government under the New Testament seing it was so under the Old and the Reason is because no necessity can be alleadged for a â—hurch Government then but the same necessity is now Is not the Church a mixed multitude now as well as then is there not as great need to separate betwixt the precious and the vile now as then Is not the Church now a feild of Wheat and Tares as well as then Is there not need to keep the Ordinances pure now as then by the fence of Government Is there not need now to
that is censured So in the 2 Thess 3. 14 note that man and have no company with him that he may be ashamed And 1 Cor 5. 5. Excommunication serveth for the Destruction of the Flesh that is To tame and mortify its Lusts And so although the word be only the necessary mean for the converting of Souls yet it doth not follow that the Government of the Church should not be exercised to wit that the word may work the better The Second Objection is this That all the Arguments we have to establish a Church Government by Divine right are taken from the Churches practice in the Apostles time and commands given them but it does not follow that what was then should be a rule now and they give this as the Reason of the difference because the Magistrate was then a Pagan and so would not meddle with these things but the case is now otherwise when the Magistrate is turned Christian. We Answer First By this it is granted that Church Government was an institution of Christ at least in the primitive times Now sure it is that every thing instituted by Christ layeth on a perpetual obligation except Christ in his word hath set a period that it should be only so long So if this Argument of theirs have any force they must show from Scripture that Christ hath appointed this period for Church Government so as it should be only in force under an Idolatrous Pagan Magistrate And that the Power of it should cease under the Christian Magistrate But no place of Gods word can be given for the proof of tâ—is But on the contrary a Command is given That which Christ delivered to the Apostles 1 Timoth. 6. 14 Should be keeped to his second coming And therefore it remains a perpetual Ordinance Secondly We Answer That if this were true then the Case of the Church should be worse under the Christian than the Pagan Magistrate If so be that under the one they have an Intrinsecal Power to purge and keep his Church free from Scandals but not under the other would not this be hard Thirdly We Answer That the reasons for which the Church did exercise Government in the primitive times were taken from common Equity and so are binding to the Church at all times We find this 1 Cor. 5. 5. Where a command is given to exercise Discipline by Excommunicating of the Incestuous person The reasons given are First The good of the Mans Soul verse 5. Secondly The good of the Church to be keeped from Infection vers 6. Now the Church is bound to see to these at all times We come to the Fourth thing which is a word of Vse And it serves 1. To reprove those who think debates about the Government of the Church useless and of no value To what purpose is it say they what be the Government and who governs if sin be punished and the Word Preached I answer ' it is of much moment For from what is said it appears that Church Government is an Ordinance of God a part of his word and they who evert it or gives way to the everting of it give way to evert a part of the Word of God yea to the bringing down of the Government of Christs own House It is a point of Truth that concerns no less than the Royal Diadem of Christ and all who have got good of Truth are bound to stand for it yea it is more than an ordinary Truth The question is concerning Châ—ists Kingdom if he have a Kingdom of his own distinct from the Kingdoms of the World If he shall have â—is own Laws Office-bearers Courts Censures according to his will in his Word or if all he hath left to that purpose be to scraâ—ched out and the Civil Magistrate to appoint what Laws Rules Courts he pleaseth in Christs House So it is a point relating to his Kingdom a Doctrine to be avowed and a point of Truth worth the Sustering for and which some have suffered for and boasted in it yea it is a point of Truth that hath this advantage beyond other Truths That Christ hath suffered for it himself in his own person for it 's clear that this was the only point he was accused on by Pâ—late and he avowed it Luke 23. 3. That he had a Kingdom though not of the World yet in the World We shall find that this point was chiefly laid to Christs charge in John 18. 33. 34 35 36 37. And this was the pâ—int that was driven home by the Jews 〈◊〉 Christ John 19. It was his 〈◊〉 on the Cross Jesus Christ of Nazareth King of the Iews And this was the point that straitned Pilate most and put him to it to make Christ suffer Joh. 19. So this point hath this advantage that in a special manner Christ sâ—ffered as a Martyr for it Should any then think it a little thing to suffer for God forbid Yea we may think it an Honour The Second Use If so be that Church Government is an Ordinance of God then those intrusted with it such as Ministers and Elders would discharge it as Service to God so as to be countable to him tâ—ere should be an other frame of Spirit when Men are in Church Judicatories than when they are in Civil Judicatories These are Ordinances of Men thir of God and require more than a common frame of Spirit Alas we may say for the Unministerial like Carriage of Ministers and Elders may justly provoke God to thro us out altogâ—ther A Third Vse of this point is That seeing Church Government is an Ordinance of Jesus Christ then ye that are people should obey and submit to those that are over you in the Lord otherwise if it be not tâ—us looked on it may provoke the Lord to remove the Hedge from us and if this were God knoweth what we would be we are evil now but if people got leave to do every thing that seemeth good in their own eyes we could not but be much worse Ye see what ye are with it but know not what ye will be without it And so much for the first Head of Erastian Doctrine Head II. The Power of Church Government belongeth not to the Civil Magistrate THe Second Head of Erastian Doctrine which we are to prove not to be of God is That whereby they affirm That all the Power of Church Government is in the Hands of the Civil Magistrate And here there are some differences among themselves some giving him all Power to dispence all Church Ordinances and this as a Magistrate without a Call from the Church and so to Preach and to Administrate the Sacraments Others again content themselves to ascribe to him only a Power of Jurisdiction to make Church Laws to inflict Church Censures And herein they also differ some puting this Power wholly in the Hand of the Magistrate Others conjunctly with the Ministers a third placeth it in him as the fountain and in Church-men but as
Magistrate may do somewhat here also He may command them to resume the matter he may compear in person and reason the matter and bid them see to it in the Name of the Lord and stir them up to judge it better and he may go from one Judicatory to another till he get this done As for example If it be a censure wrongously inflicted But yet it is still the Church Judicatory that must ranverse their own Censure The Third Argument they use against this Truth is If the Power were put in the Hands of the Civil Magistrate it would be a mean to decide all the whole Controversies about Church Government which are managed with so much Animosity on all hands Prelates plead that They should have the Power of it Independents That particular Congregations Presbyterians That Sessions Presbyteries Synods General Assemblies should have the Power of it the former being Subordinate to the latter Sessions to Presbyteries c. Hence ariseth all our Debates Now were not this good to take it from all and give it to the Magistrate We answer It is a way to end the Difference such as Solomon did to the two Women striving about the living Child It shall be none of yours A way that relished not with the kindly Mother of the Child 1 Kings 3. 25. Secondly We answer This Argument may take with natural Hearts who would buy Peace at any rate but not with those who are taught of God To buy the Truth and not to sell it For it holdeth out a way to end Controversies which is not God's His way is to establish what is right and to quite what is wrong But this way tends to suppress both right and wrong such Peace-makers will not be Blessed Thirdly The Presbyterians may borrow this Argument against Prelates Independents Erastians and have better right to it and so it will run thus If Church Government were put in the hands of the Presbytery It would establish and settle all Differences in the matter of Church Government betwixt Prelates Independents and Erastians Now if this Arment be good when they use it for them it must be also good when it is used for us But I doubt if they will admit of such like reasoning and so neither can we There is a Fourth Argument they use say they Jeremiah appealed to the Civil Magistrate Jerem 26. and so Paul Act 25. He appeals to Caesar. We answer let that place of Jeremiah cap. 26. be read and nothing will be found to prove that Jeremiah makes any appeal to the Civil Judicatories But Secondly Though he had appealed yet it does not prove that it is Lawful to appeal to the Magistrate in a Church business for the Sentence which the Priests had past on Jeremiah was Civil Thou shalt surely die v. 8. Now it was the Princes Duty to see to it That Innocent Jeremiah should not be put to Death especially by those who had no Powet to inflict such a punishment As for that instance Acts 25. 10 11. about Paul's appealing to Caesar it makes nothing to these purposes He appeals only from Festus an Inferior Civil Magistrate to the Superior And this we are not against But Secondly Though Paul had appealed from a Church Judicatory yet this makes nothing to confirm their Doctrine For the cause here whereabout Paul was to be judged was a Civil cause to wit Treason against Caesar And a thing worthy of Death Now we do Teach that a Church-man may appeal to a Civil Magistrate when he is questioned about his Life and for a Civil crime But hence it followeth not That we may appeal from a Church Judicatory when the cause is Ecclesiastick and no wayes civil Their last Objection is taken from 1 King 2. 27. Whereof they make much The words are So Solomon thrust out Abiathar from being Priest unto the Lord From which they argue thus Here is a civil Magistrate inflicting a Church Censure to wit Deposition of a Church-man to wit of Abiathar the Priest Solomon thrust out Abiathar from being Priest unto the Lord Therefore Christian Magistrates have Power to Dispence Church Censures Yet we answer Solomon did nothing here but what we yeild to any Magistrate for a civil Magistrate may inflict a civil Punishment on any person whatsomever for a civil Crime and so was the present case Abiathar's Fault was Treason in assisting Adonijah to the Crown against Solomon appointed by God to it Secondly The Censure inflicted by Solomon was not a Church Censure but civil to wit Banishment to Anathoth as appears from verse 26. And therefore what is mentioned in verse 27. He thrust out Abiathar from being Priest unto the Lord Is not the Censure directly intended by Solomon but that which followed upon his Banishment from Jerusalem ipso facto because the Office of the Priests could not be exercised but at Jerusalem IV. In the last place it follows That we give a word of use from all we have said The First use If so be that Jesus Christ hath appointed a Government in his House as is proven to be exercised by his own Officers Then know that those Magistrates that would ingross this Power to themselves so as to have his Courts and Censures depending on them or rather taken away and others put in their place do highly incroach on the Regal Power of our King Jesus Christ. And this seemeth to be the great sin of the Times Atheists prophane Men plead for it as looking for more forbearance to their Lusts from civil Powers than from Christs own Courts Civil Powers plead for it They are not content that Christ let Them reign and that they let Christ reign besides them But they must have him thrust out of his Throne and made to plead at their bar And so no wonder Christ overturn Kingdoms and Governments It was the Parliament of England's fault They feared lest Christs Courts should have wronged their Priviledges Hence they would not allow him his Priviledges They set up indeed a Government in Christ's House but it was a Lame one They durst not give Christs Courts their full Power but so as to be their Deputes And therefore they have dashed themselves against that corner-stone Christ Jesus until they are struck in pieces Their Fear is come upon them What they feared from Christs Courts they have met with at the Hands of their own Servants Our Kings have still been afraid of this and Malignants also going under the Name of Royalists They thought they could not get Their Throne secure if so be Christ got leave to reign besides them And this among many others hath made their Throne shake O that Kings would be wise and kiss the Son It would be their Wisdom to be faithful in what is committed unto them But for the Government of his House it is not in their Charter and so a thing that will not thrive in their hands their prudential Laws and Rules will do no good Secondly Yee would
ground your self in this Truth It may cost you much and though it should stand you never so much it is worth the avowing Christ himself suffered on this account as we have already shown and others of his servants have thought it their Glory to be called unto suffering for it Who am I saith Master Welsh That he hath not only called me to be a Preacher of glad things but also to be a sufferer for his cause and Kingdom To wittness that good confession That Jesus Christ is the King of Saints and that his Church is a most free Kingdom Yea as free as any Kingdom under Heaven That she is free in her Government from all other Jurisdiction on Earth except only Christs We are waiting saith he with joyfulness to leave the last Testimony of our blood for the confirmation of this Truth If it would please our God to be so favourable as to honour us with that dignity Thus He. And who knowes how soon he may honour some of us with that dignity A dignity indeed to suffer for the Royal Crown and Diadem of Our Lord Jesus SECT IV. A BRIEF REFUTATION OF THE DOCTRINE OF Independency Head I. The Power of Church Government is in the Church Officers and not in the Body of Church-Members THE dayes by-past we spake against the Doctrine of Erastianism And shew you that however it had many fair pretences yet it is to be reckoned among those Doctrines which are not of God We are now with the Lords assistance to speak against the Doctrine of Independency Ye Remember when we entered on these controversies about Church Government We shew you there were Four points of Truth which we should Labour to make good The first was That Jesus Christ the head of his Church had appointed in his word a way for the Governing and Ruling of his Church and that he had not left it to the power of the Civil Magistrate King or Parliament To establish what way of Government they please The second point was That this Government of the Church which Christ established in his word was not in the hands of the Civil Magistrate to be Executed by him Thir two points we have made good in our former Disputs against Erastianism The third point of Truth is this That Jesus Christ the head of the Church hath not committed the power of Governing his Church unto the Body of Believers To the community of Church Members but hath established it in the hands of his own officers Ministers and Elders The Fourth point of Truth which we promised to prove was this That Jesus Christ the head of the Church hath not given particular Elderships and Church Sessions the Supream power of Church Government in their hands so as that there should be none above them to call them to an account But that they are subject in the Lord to Superior Church Judicatories such as Presbytries Synods and General Assemblies These two last points we are to make out in Refuting this Doctrine of Independency This Error of Independency above all other we may call a fountain Error It is the Sluce whereby an entrance is made to all other Errors of what sort soever This is the Error whereby the most part of those that hath fallen from the way of Truth these years by past have been first hooked They first turned Independents yet rested not long there but proceeded from evil to worse Our scope shall be in this as in the former points to show That however it hath many fair pretences yet when it is brought to the Tryal it will be found not to be of God There are two main heads of this Error of Independency opposit to the two last points of Truth which we promised to make out The first is That whereby they affirm That Jesus Christ has given the power of Governing the Church unto all those that are Members of the Church Although they be not Ministers or Elders To the community of believers as they call it The second Head of their Error is this They do affirm that Jesus Christ hath intrusted particular Congregations Elderships or Church Sessions with the highest power of Church Government on earth so that there is no Judicatory above them to call them to an account As for the first Head of their Error which we are to speak against at this time Therein they have different Opinions among themselves some affirming that the power of Governing the Church is given to the Body of Church Members the community of Believers without the Minister and Elders yea a power over them to ordain them Censure depose them and inflict all other Church Censures Others give them this power conjunctly with the Church Officers Ministers and Elders Secondly Some give only the power and Authority to Govern to the Church Members But for the Exercise of that power they allow it to the Elders Yet so as to the Peoples deputs to whom they must give an account Others give the People not only the power and Authority but also the Exercise of this Government So that the People may sit down in Church Judicatories themselves enact Church Canons inflict Church Censures c. Thirdly Some give them the Exercise of this power only in some things as the Excercise of the power of Jurisdiction to make Church Canons and inflict Church Censures But not to Preach Others give them a full Exercise of Authority to do all We in opposition to all these lay down this conclusion which we shall Labour to make good from the word of God and solid Reason to wit That Jesus Christ hath not given to the Body of Church Members or to private Christians either the power or Exercise of Church Government neither in whole nor in part but hath intrusted it wholly to his own Officers Ministers and Elders I prosecuting this point we shall follow forth the former Method First We shall clear the State of the Question Secondly Bring Arguments for the Truth And Thirdly We shall propone and answer their Arguments brought against the Truth And Fourthly We shall shall apply the whole to some use I. For clearing the state of the Question Thâ—a it may be known what we do grant to private Christians and what we deny several distinctions would be given First There is difference betwixt Church power or Authority and Christian priviledges We do grant several Christian priviledges to private Christians but these do not infer any Church power or Authority of Governing the Church As for Example We do grant to the People a Power of Electing their own Officers Ministers or Elders we grant to them a power to try the Spirits whether they be of God i e They are not to believe blindly what Ministers say but have a power to Try what they say in Relation to their practice To pass a Judgment of discretion upon it whether it be according to the word or not We grant these priviledges to the People but none of them doth
in the minds of many if it were but for this one Reason that they who are intrusted with it do not Labour to beautify it It is looked on by many as a place of respect and not of Office If a man be Richer than his neighbour he thinks he is not respected if he be not an Elder and having goten the name he cares for no more Now is that the way either to make People respect thy Person or thy Office Let me obtest and charge all of you who have taken on this Heavenly Calling as ye will Answer on your hazard to Jesus Christ the chief sheepherd that ye would study by all means so to walk in it as to beautify it and that so much the more as the Devil is Labouring to disgrace it And this now for the First Head of Independency Head II. The highest Power of Church Government is not in Church-Sessions or Congregational Elderships WE come now to the Second Head And it is That for which mainly they are called Independents The point they affirm is this That every particular Church Session or Congregational Eldership is instructed with the highest power of Church Government on Earth so that there is no power in the Church above them to call them to an account when they go wrong to rescind any Act once concluded though it were never so unjust They grant that a Synod of Ministers and Elders may meet to consult about matters but withall affirm that they have no Ecclesiasticall power to command in the Lord any Congregation whatsoever So that if a man be wronged by a Session As for instance if he be unjustly censured as it may very readily fall out he must sit with his wrong there is no power to right it till Christ come in the Clouds Or if a particular Congregation divide turn Hereticks run wrong as many of the Independent Congregations doe there is no Church power to heal the breach unless it be by giving an advice which they may either follow or not follow as likes them best We again grant That particular Elderships have a power from Jesus Christ to Exercise Discipline in these things which concern the Congregation in particular But as for other things of more publick concernment that is to say Things that concern other Congregations as well as them these ought to be handled by a Superior Judicatory And that even in those things of particular concernment They are lyable to Appeals and the inspection of the Superior Judicatory So that wherein they shall be found wrong partial or Erronious They may be called to an account For shewing the fashood of this Error as also for the vindicating of the Government of the Church of Scotland that is now so much spoken against we shall labour to make out with the Lords assistance these Three Truths from the word of God The first it this That besides the power of Church Government that Christ hath given to particular Elderships There is also holden forth in his word A plat-form or a Copy of the Government of many Congregations by one Presbytry over them all in common The Second Truth that we shall make out is this That besides the Church Government that Christ hath established by Presbytries there is also holden out in the word greater Church Judicatories to wit Synods made up of Commissioners from several Presbytries instructed with power of Church Government from Christ also And Thirdly We shall labour to make out this Truth That the inferior Judicatories are to be Subject to the Superior as Sessions to Presbytries Presbytries to Synods Synods to General Assemblies So that the Superior judicatories have power over the Inferior in the Lord to receive Appeals from them and complaints 〈◊〉 them to Censure them for Miscarying in the matter of Discipline and to enact Church Canons or conclusions binding to them which Inferior Judicatories are bound to obey in the Lord. ¶ I. There is a Platform of the Government of many Congregations by one common Presbytery holden out in Scripture COncerning the State of this Question I only premit this That however we have the very name of this Presbytry whereabout we dispute holden out in 1 Tim 4. 14. Whereby I might easily show is meaned the Presbytry we plead for yet we shall not dispute about names Though the Name were not yet it is sufficient that the Thing be in it And this we shall make good to wit That in Scripture is holden out a pattern of the Government of many Congregations by one common Presbytry The proof of this point we might instance almost in all the Churches that were planted in the Apostles time As in the Church of Jerusalem The Church of Antioch Ephesus Thessalonica Corinth and of Rome We might easily make it appear that those Churches were not single Congregations but Presbyterial Churches under one common Government But in stead of spending of time in pointing out this in all these Churches we shall instance it only in the Church of Ierusalem That by this One ye may know what to judge of the rest And first concerning the Church of Jerusalem planted by the Apostles we shall labour to make out thir two things 1. That in that one Church there were many particular Congregations And 2. That all these particular Congregations made up but one Church and was guided by one common Presbytry and Judicatory set over them all in common Which two being made out the point we intend will appear evidently to wit That there was here a Government set over many Congregations in one common Judicatory such as our Presbytry is over all the particular Church-Sessions in the bounds The first thing we shall make out is this That there were moe Congregations in the Church of Jerusalem than one and this from four grounds First From the multitude of Church Members that were in Jerusalem Secondly From the multitude of Pastors Teachers and Elders that were there moe than could get work in one single Congregation Thirdly From the diversities of Languages that were among the People of that Church And Fourthly From the way of their meeting and the place they resorted to for Gods service And first For the multitude of Church Members that was at Jerusalem If we compare place with place we will find that they amounted to many thousands and so behooved to be moe than one single Congregation Take a view of some of these places Acts 1. 15. they are numbred to be about ane hundred and twenty And Act. 2. 41. there are added unto them about three thousand Souls and then in v. 47. There is daily Addition of moe and moe the Lord added unto the Church daily such as should be saved Act. 4. 4. We see yet a greater increase There are about five thousand and the nuâ—ber of the men was about five thousand concerning which five thousand it is necessarly to be understood that they were added presently excluding the rest of the numbers before
not absurd for in our Parliament Commissioners from Shires are Judges to the whole Kingdom But how It is as they are joyned in Parliament not by themselves alone It is in matters common to the Shire not in other petty particular Affairs And so it is here They are Elders to all the Congregations indeed as they are joyned together in the Presbytery But not by themselves alone In things of common concernment to the whole particular Congregation not in these Duties belonging to every Congregation in particular Object 4. If this Subordination and Judicatory above Judicatory were of Divine Institution It s like Scripture would have spoken more plainly of it not leaving it to be drawn out by so many far fetch'd Consequences Answer We have already given sufficient Warrand for this Government by clear Consequences from Scripture And Consequences from Scripture are Scripture else we must cast at many points of Divine Truth which have no other ground but Scripture Consequence As the Trinity and Change of the Sabbath yea we see Christ himself grounding a material point to wit The Resurrection upon Scripture Consequence Mark 12. 26. 2. We must not teach God how to set down his mind in Scripture We perchance think It had been a plainer way to have cast matters of Religion to so many Heads By which means many Controversies should have been shunned But He hath thought otherwise The Lord in Wisdom hath scattered the parcels of every Truth through his Book intermixing it with other Subjects as the Gold is in the Mine and this to exercise his people in searching out his mind from Scripture IV. In the last place We come to make some Vse of what is said And the first Vse is this If it be so that this Government by Presbytery is grounded on the word of God Then ye would know it is not a thing of nought we are contesting for It 's a part of that Truth once delivered to the Saints and a Truth of no small concernment What would become think ye of Particular Congregations If they had none above them to call them to an account What Divisions Strifes Heresies Schisms would ensue if people were informed of these Contests that have fallen out among our Opposits themselves where this way of Independency was followed The one half renting from the other Excommunicating one another It might make moderate Men scar at it But we need seâ—k no other evidence of this than by looking on Scotland and England these years by past In the Church of England Presbytery could not be set up Independency was pleaded for and practised And what is become of it Sathan hath vomited out a floud of Errors that there were never more nor more gross in any time of the Christian World Yea all the rotten Graves of old Heresie are digged up and now avowed Socinianism In denying Christs Righteousness in the matter of Justification Anabaptism In denying the Baptizing of Infants Arianism In denying the Trinity And many other such like Yea there are some Errors there that were never before heard of Some affirming There is no Church they can joyn with And therefore They turn Seekers Some are above all Preaching Prayer and all Ordinances And all these are the Fruits of Independency Again look on the Fruits of the Presbyterial Government in Scotland where it hath been in Vigour God hath made it an Hammer for battering down the beginnings of Error So that these twelve years bypast not any one Error hath come to any Strength And this all under God from Presbyterial Government being His Institution Our Judicatories were indeed terrible as an Army with Banners though indeed we are now like to turn contemptible God himself heal our Breaches Secondly Guard against the Errors that would draw you from this Truth If ye cannot carry the grounds we have been speaking of with you yet ye may remember ye once heard this Truth confirmed from Scripture and Reason That so when ye meet with temptations to quite it ye may advise well before ye yeild I would press this so much the more As that this Doctrine of Presbyterial Government is the Butt of Sathan's Envy the thing he would have most gladly overthrown As that which stands most in his way For so long as it stood in its integrity We might in the Lords strength have defied the Devil to have brought Error into Scotland And indeed it is the thing he sets himself to brangle To get the hedge once plukt up that so the wild Boar of the wilderness may come in And believe me there is nothing makes me more affraid than that through Gods permission the Devil shall get a deludge of Error brought in on Scotland Because those who have been intrusted with this Government have weakned the power of it by Divisions among our selves A copy is casten How that Erronious Spirits need not stand much on the Authority of Assemblies when they would cross their Designs We are affraid yea we may be past â—ear and conclude That Presbyteries Synods c. have lost much of the weight They had lately in mens consciences Only let me intreat you in the bowels of Christ That ye would put a difference betwixt the Government it self and the Persons who are intrusted with it Doe not charge the faults of the one upon the other The best things that are may be abused And it is Peoples Tryal to put difference between the good of a thing and the Abuse of it The Government is good and of God and the abuse of it is evil and of men What is of God cleave to it and stick fast by it what is from mens corruptions mourn for it Pray themselves may get a sight of it And thus ye shall walk in an eaven way Ye had need to deal with God to ground you in the knowledge of these things For we know not how soon we may be put to it to quite them Only remember They are Truths ye have sworn to maintain with your hands lifted up on high SECT V. A SHORT REFUTATION OF THE ERROR OF Separation Head I. Shewing what is required for making one a Member of the Visible Church WE have gone through these Controversies which are about the Government of the Church We are now to refute some dangerous Errors of Doctrine And first We shall begin with the Error of Separation The Errors of Separatists are many but we shall only engage with two Heads of them which are the main The first is That which they teach concerning the Constitution of the Visible Church Or who it is that should be received Members of Christs visible Body The second is That which they hold to be the duty of every sincere Christian viz. That when they spy any corruption in a Church wherein they are Members as if Persons Scandalous be admitted to the Lords Supper seeing they ought all to be Gracious who come there Then say they It is their duty to keep back from
A Good which they were to Follow The Evil to be Eschewed is in the second Sentence to wit That there be no Divisions or as it is in the Original Schism's among you I shall not enter to speak of the nature of Schism or how it differeth from Heresy It is sufficient for the opening up of the Text to know what Divisions or Schisms the Apostle meaneth by here And that is know'n from the following Verse to wit Their Factious sidings in extolling One Minister and debasing Another with many fruitless Janglings and other bad consequences following thereupon whereof doubtless this was One The engaging of the Ministers themselves in Parties for upholding their Dependants So Verse 12. Every one of you saith I am of Paul and I of Apollos and I of Cephas One saith Paul is best let us follow him Another sayeth Nay but Apollos is best we 'll follow him A third saith Cephas is better than them both I 'le follow none of them Now away with these fruitless Contests saith he In the next place There is the Good to be Followed and that is threefold in opposition to three sorts of Evils which usually accompany Schism in a Church The first Evil accompanying Schism is Flat Contradiction first among Ministers and next among People when not only their Opinions do differ but they are so hot upon the Business that at all occasions they proclaim their Differences In opposition to this he exhorts them To speak the same thing that is They would beware of Contradictions in a matter of so small importance Wherein they agreed they would speak to that Wherein they differ'd they would forbear others spending their time and parts upon more edifying purpose The second Evil accompanying Schism in a Church is Renting of Affections When the Members of one Body turn cold-rife one towards another and their Affection dyeth In opoosition to this Evil he exhorts them to be Joined together in the same Mind or the same Affection It 's true the Word here rendred Mind is used indifferently for the whole Faculties of the Soul as the Understanding Will and Affections But the Understanding being spoken to under the Word Judgement which followeth We think with some of the best Interpreters That by the Mind here is meaned the Affections So the thing he presseth in the second Place is That not only they would forbear others in the matter of their Publick Expressions but also would labour to blow at the Coal of their almost dying Affections The third Evil accompanying a Schism is Difference of Judgement And in opposition to this he exhorts them to be Perfectly joined in the same Judgement The meaning is They would labour to remove the Root of the Difference by coming to One Judgement Not as if the Apostle had been careless what Judgement they had been of providing they had been One No the one part of every Contradiction is Truth and there is no Truth which the Apostle would have denied for Peace This for the Duty pressed Next there are some Arguments perswading to this Duty As 1. There is the Apostles Insinuation partly in his Affectionate Exhortation I beseech you partly in his lovely Compellation Brethren 2. There is his Grave Obtestation By the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ That is to say as the Name of Christ is dear to you which ye profess so much respect unto so set about the Cure of these Factions and Fractious Sidings and Schisms by which His Name suffereth so much There is a third Argument to enforce this Duty in the words perfectly joined whereby the Apostle hints at the great Evil the Church was under by the present Schism and the great good they should attain to by the removal of it The word in the Original is borrowed from the Office of Chirurgeons and that part of it which consists in the mending of broken Bones and setting in joynt of Dislocated Members So it imports 1. That through occasion of the Schism they were put all out of joynt All the Members of the Church were Dislocated and therefore unfit so long as they remained in that case for doing of any good Office to the Body 2. It imports that their following of his Advice for removing of the Schism would set every Member of the Body in it's own place and so enable the Body for going about actions profitable unto it self which now the whole Members being out of joynt it could not do This This much for opening up the meaning of the Words Divers points of Truth arising from the several branches of the Text might here be handled but I intend to insist upon One arising from the scope which will comprehended the most part of the rest It is this Vnity in the Church is a thing much to be laboured for and sought after and Division and Schism in a Church is much to be eschewed In prosecuting this Doctrine I shall first distinguish Vnion That we may know what Vnion is meaned 2. I shall confirm the point 1. By Scripture 2. By Reason 3. I shall apply the Doctrine for our Vse First then To know what Vnion the Text and Doctrine speaks of It 's fit you know That there are several sorts of Union 1. There is an Union of the Church Invisible the tye and bond whereof is Inward Graces All the Members of the Church Invisible are United to Christ the Head by Faith and one to another by Love This is not the Union here meaned The Text speaks of a Visible Union of the Church Visible In Opposition to a Visible Rent and Schism Secondly There is an Union of the Church Visible and of it's Members among themselves This again is twofold The first is That Vnion which is necessary to the Being of a Church and the Being of a Member So that a Church cannot be a Church nor a Man a Member of the Visible Church without it Wherein this Vnion consists is Controverted betwixt Us and the Independants But the Doctrine meaneth not of This Vnion either So we insist not on it The Vnion pressed in the Text is such that the Church at Corinth for the time did want and yet remained a Church The Union therefore here meaned is A second sort of Union belonging to the Visible Church To wit That which is necessary to the Well-being of a Church without the which tho a Church remain a Church yet she losseth much of her outward Beauty her Authority is much weakned her great work which is the edification of her self in Love Eph. 4. 13. is much retarded She remains a Church but not such a Church as is described Cant. 6. 10. Who is she that looketh forth as the Morning fair as the Moon clear as the Sun and terrible as an Army with Banners A divided Church is not such a Church But for further understanding of the Vnion here pressed ye would know that this Union which is necessary to the Well-being of a Church is Threefold 1.
State so is it in the Church as to this purpose No Union can be there as of one actually incorporate Body except it be under one and the same Supreme Rulers So is it in the Church So long as there is no agreement about One and the same Supreme Representative under whose Authority we may stand for the present But one part standeth for it's Authority another is contrary unto it or setting up another against it In this case the matter is clear there is no compleat Union but a fixed Schism or at the best a strong tendency unto it A Third thing to be eyed is If so Our Union must be under one Supreme Representative then such ways of Union will do no good as carry not alongs the Body An Union if not with the Body instead of healing doth widen the Rent A resolution or desire to unite with a few not caring for the rest will not produce an union I mean of the Church altho it may be of a stronger Party in the Church These few would possibly as gladly unite as others would have them if it were not evidently a strengthening of the Breach Fourthly Yet a Part ought to labour with the Body for condescending as low as warrantably can be for Peace's sake Only a Caveat must be here They are so to deal with the Body to condescend for Vnion as to beware of making a new Rupture in the Body upon their not granting For that were in a desperate way to make a new Rent because others will not take Our way for removing of the Old Fifthly If we desire an hearty cordial Vnion it would be endeavoured without rubbing upon the Credit 1. Of Persons 2. Of Parties 3. Of Ordinances If the Credit of all can be held up it 's well He is no friend to Vnion that would endeavour the contrair But if some must suffer Love to the Publick and Zeal for God will teach That the former is to yeild to the latter viz. Persons to Parties and the Credit both of Persons and Parties yea and of both Parties themselves if need be are to stoop for upholding the Authority of Divine Ordinances A litle of this Self-denial would do much good But how litle of it is there to be found Sixthly Dividing Principles and such as tend of their own nature to obstruct Union should be abandoned There is One Principle often spoken of by some and now made more publick which if maintained in Our judgment will close the door upon Union in hast to wit That it is unlawful to sit in an Assembly with those who have enacted persecution against the Godly And this in the sence of the Propounders as it is expresly tho injuriously applyed by them is as much as to say It is unlawful to joyn in any Assembly made up for the most part of those who acted in and approved of Our late Controverted Assemblies Now if it be unlawful to joyn in an Assembly made up for the most part of such why not also unlawful to join in a Synod or in a Presbytry likewise made up of such yea and to join at a Communion Table where the most part are such And indeed some of the People chiefly draw out their Principle to this full length A Principle which to say no worse of it striketh at the very throat of Peace and if stood to makes it desperat and so I hope is and will be disowned by all who cordially pretend to Peace and Union in the Church These I conceive and many moe should be eyed by Us in Our aiming at Union if we would have Our endeavours effectual But because a Compleat Union in an ordinary way is not to be so soon expected I shall in the next place give Two Directions for managing our Differences So as the Church of Christ may have less hurt by them at least The first Direction is That we ought to guard against these Tentations which Our Standing Division may readily make way for Whereof I shall mention Three The First Tentation is this An oversight of every other fault almost whether in Ministers or Professors providing they be true to the Party A Party is a dangerous thing and in nothing more dangerous than in this That it driveth men if not all the more tender to take fidelity unto the Party to be the prime if not the only 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and badge of honesty and enclines them to look on all other things whether Corrupt Principles or loose Practices as excusable Infirmities A woeful Tentation and destructive both to Truth and Piety And therefore ought so much the more to be guarded against on both hands A Second Tentation is The secret wishing after and rejoycing in the Slips one of another An Evil so woeful that David complains to God of it even in his avowed Enemies Ps. 38. 16. When my Foot slippeth they magnify themselves against me And Jeremiah complaineth of it in his false Friends Ch. 20. v. 10. They watched for my halting And yet an Evil that even Good men if once engaged in Parties will have a Battel with A Third Tentation upon Our standing Divided and which is also to be guarded against is A bending of Our selves to the outmost of Light and possibly beyond it for strengthning of our selves to the doing of these things in relation to these who now Rule which not long since we would have abhorred both in our selves and others It is very possible that as Gifts blind the Eyes of the Wise Exod. 23. So the seeming advantage unto that which we conceive Truth may draw out somewhat like an Approbation to such like Work from those of our own Judgement and if these do approve it is the less matter think we that others do disapprove But we ought to remember there are others to sift our Actions Forreign Churches abroad our own Conscience being sober and settled and above all God the Judge of All. A Second Direction for managing our Differences is That we ought not to be so taken up with others as to take our Eye off from guarding against that which is Satan's main design against the Church of Christ at this time Satan does as a subtile Warriour labour to raise a Mutiny among the Forces which should oppose him that while they are wrangling one with another he may carry his Point without stroke of Sword Being to insist a little on this Direction I shall first speak to what I conceive to be Satan's main design against the Church at this time 2 I shall give some Directions to manage our Differences So as not to further this his main design nor yet to be short-coming in our Duty against it And First For taking up what is Satan's great Design we shall in a word or two lay before you a wonderful Contexture as it were of God's Wisdom and Satan's Malice since the first beginnings of the Christian Church even untill now There is no Truth almost but Satan's
cast themselves head-long upon the Errors of the time I do not love that any thing should be done of purpose to make People as we say kyth or appear in their colours I mean to bring out these Practices the Seed whereof thou conceives to be already within which at the best is to cast a stumbling Block before the Blind I might reckon several Practices which are not only Irritating but also in themselves Sinful such as Promiscuous admissions of Clean and Unclean to the Lord's Table Little pains taking by Ministers to Instruct People with Knowledge Shewing much of Passion but little of Reason against Errors There be many whose Zeal is honestly fervent against Error and Confusion who yet by these and such as these are not a little indirectly instrumental to the furtherance of it Our Second Direction how to manage our Differences so as not to further Satan's main design is That all especially Ministers would beware of such things as of their own Nature do prove and by constant observation have proven Fore-runners of Error and Confusion Of which I shall reckon Three The First thing to be eschewed is Unscriptural Expressions while speaking of things Religious as Cases of Conscience Exercises of Mind and Scripture Truths An affected way of bringing forth old Truths in new and uncouth Phrases high soaring Notions serving more to astonish than inform the Hearers Paul 2 Tim. 1. 13. bids Hold fast the form of sound words and not only of sound Doctrine It was Calvin's Observation in his time and severalls since that those who coin new Words and strange Expressions tending only to amuse the Hearers are in hazard to be carried away themselves and to carry others with them unto some New and Dangerous Opinions 2. Ye must beware lest a disgust of old Truths spread amongst the People together with an itching after new Things new Opinions new Cases new Fellowships new Teachers Ye'll find 2 Tim. 4. 3 4. That itching Ears in People go before the turning the Ear from the Truth For preventing whereof Ministers should be much in the inculcating of old Soul-saving and Soul-humbling Truths And for keeping these still fresh and savory much of the need of Christ should be pressed to a Soul-hungring for Christ every bitter thing is sweet but a Soul full of Conceit loatheth the Hony-comb A Third Thing predisposing to Error and so to be guarded against is The undervaluing of the Ministry It hath been Satan's method in drawing on People towards Error at all times and in no time more than these of late First To make them despise their Faithful Ministers that once getting the Ear stopped by prejudice against thesâ— he might get the more ready access for his Emissaries to infect them with Damnable Errors It is the Observation of a Reverend Writer of late speaking to the same purpose That the Galatians were easily seduced so soon as they were made to disgust Paul their Faithful Teacher This much for the Second Direction for managing of our Differences so as not to come short in defence of these Truths which Satan is labouring most to deface Our Third Direction is To be watchful over the first Buddings of Error That way There are some lesser Errors whereby Satan scoureth the Field and maketh way for these great Ones which he mainly intends Whereof as to the present case I shall mention some Concerning which whatever we might speak from our own knowledge of the propensity of severals towards some of them yet I shall rather choise to speak of them in the abstract as such That if People should be taken with them will make way for that Confusion which Satan mainly aimeth at Error 1. The first whereof is That no Man truly Godly ought to be Censured for Opinion or Practice which we conceive he owneth or practiseth from grounds of Conscience tho his Opinion or Practice tend never so evidently to the Renting of the Church Error 2. Secondly That the presence of Scandalous Persons at the Lords Table defileth the Ordinance unto all who Communicate knowing such to be there Error 3. Thirdly That a Minister Scandalous tho not Judicially proved such ceaseth to be a Minister so that it is unlawful to receive either Word or Sacrament at his hand or to join in Discipline with him Error 4. Fourthly That there is no special tye upon People to countenance the Ordinance in that Congregation whereof they are Members But a liberty left to go constantly where they may be most edified tho with the discouragement of those whose hands they are bound to strengthen I have only mentioned these Tenets without Refutation being confident that none of Christs Ministers to whom herein I mainly speak will own them Only I shall point at three things Ministers should make conscience of as their Duty in relation to these or such like First As it is our Duty to watch against prophanity and Scandal upon the one hand so to be learning where any thing of this kind vents it self either in Practice or Contentious Reasoning Secondly We should not think lightly of such when they do appear and that Because 1. They do evidently make way for Satans great design in these times which is to cover the Church of Christ with Confusion 2. Because that however possibly such do not reflect so much upon our own Ministry as upon others who we may conceive have justly procured their own grief yet a year or two may lay them down at the door of him who thinks himself for the time at greatest distance from them and that with so much the more weight as that he did not resent these evils sooner 3. Such would not be thought of lightly Because Experience sheweth That the simple overseeing of such is not the way to root them out but rather to make them take strength And therefore the Third thing that Ministers should make Conscience of in relation to such is To set about the Curing of them wherein ye are to eye two Caveats 1. As ye would thrive so set about the Cure of One evil as not to neglect Another They are not to be approven if any such be who in their Reproofs bend themselves wholly against Error but little against Prophanity and Vice neither are they to be approven if there be any such who pass over the reproof of Error wholly because the Person to be reproved will hardly take with it or that prophane men will take occasion to mock at Piety because of it These things require indeed that the Duty be wisely and tenderly done but not that it be left altogether undone A second Caveat to be eyed is your Cure should be more in Convincing Arguments than in Bitter Reproofs Else it will be taken but for the venting of Passion and that ye have nothing to say in Reason which will make the Disease worse This much for the second branch of our last Use. The Third shall be some Considerations to the People especially for
it self is expressed by the Word Truth Behold thou desirest Truth in the inward parts c. Whereby is not meaned Truth in the Judgement opposed to Error nor Truth in People's Words opposed to the Sin of Lying and speaking Untruth But it is Truth in the Heart and Affections called here Truth in the inward parts In a word it is the Grace of Sincerity and Singleness of Heart For so is this Grace often expressed in Scripture Isai. 38. 3. I have walked before thee in Truth saith Hezekiah and with a perfect upright or sincere Heart And Ephes. 6. 14 Having their loins girt about with Truth c. That is with Sincerity and Single-heartedness This then is That Truth which God requires as a necessary seasoning Ingredient in all Duties and especially in all Religious Performances And which David here holds out with a Behold as the thing which above any other thing he had aimed at and yet would aim more at in his Penitential Address unto God We have then in the Words 1. A Note of Attention Behold which David prefixeth to that which he is to say I call it a Note of Attention for that is the use it serveth for in this place as I shall clear afterwards 2. There is That which he subjoineth to this Behold The Lords Complacency and Delight in the Grace of Sincerity and the Exercise of it as that without which his Present Address could not be savory or acceptable to God Thou desirest Truth in the inward parts I shall observe Two things in General before I come to the Particulars of the Text. 1. From this David holds out the Rule he had walked by and was to walk by for making his Present Address to God In confessing of Sin and pleading hard for Pardon acceptable Hence take this Doctrine That it is not enough that we do somewhat of Commanded Duties but we must labour to do what we do in some measure acceptably David not only confesseth Sin and pleads for Pardon but he aims to do it in Truth that so he may do it Acceptably For while he saith God did desire Truth in the inward parts it is evidently implyed that He aimed to have it There is reason for this Because If the thing we do be not done Acceptably and in the Right Manner though the thing done be never so good in it self the doing of it is but lost labour unto us Thus though it was a piece of Commanded Duty under the Old Testament to offer up Sacrifices to God yet when People made not Conscience to discharge this Duty in the Right Manner all they did was to as little purpose as if they had done nothing at all Hence Isai. 1. 11. To what purpose is the multitude of your Sacrifices unto me saith the Lord c. Yea the more excellent any Duty is in it self and the greater good is to be had by going about any Duty in a Right and Acceptable Manner the greater is the Hurt and Damnage which we incurr by it when we advert not how we do it And when without taking heed to our Feet we rush foreward to it and carry our selves but carelesly in the mean time that we are imployed about it What more excellent comfortable and Soul edifying Ordinance is there than this of a Communion which through God's Mercy ye have yet the liberty of approaching unto Is it not a Feast of Fat things of Wine on the Lees well refined wherein we Feast with Christ and upon Christ His broken Body is Meat indeed the most excellent that Heaven or Earth can afford And yet saith Paul If ye come not to this Ordinance in the Right Manner if ye set not your selves so to go about it as that ye may be accepted in your work if ye eat or drink unworthily without previous Examination of your selves Ye shall eat and drink Damnation and Judgement to your selves Not only shall your Table prove a snare but your meat be turned into poyson And therefore consider this in the entry and labour to have it imprinted on your Hearts That it is not enough to come rushing foreward to your Work not considering how ye come Your coming ought to be according to the Direction given Eccles. 5. 1. Keep thy foot when thou goest to the House of God c. As at all time so especially when ye approach unto such a dreadful Ordinance a this is whereof the advantage is so great if ye come Right and the hurt and hazard so unspeakably great if ye come Wrong But Secondly observe yet in General That in going about Commanded Duties in some measure Acceptably ye ought now and then to reflect upon the Manner and Way of your discharge of Duty even in the mean time when ye are about it For so doth David Here He casts an eye upon the Right Manner how He should have prayed to wit In Sincerity and Truth even in the very midst of his prayer while he saith unto God Behold thou desirest Truth in the inward parts And thus Christ in Luke 8. 18. saith unto His Disciples in the very mean time they were Hearing Take heed therefore how ye hear And surely our Hearts do oft turn formal vain wandering and lumpish or heavy in the Service of God because we do not seriously mind how sinful shameful and unseemly it is that it should be so A check of this kind in time and seasonably to a vain straying and wandering Heart would do much through God's Blessing to make it halt David doth this oft especially Psal. 43. 5. where he turns his speech from God and gives himself a rebuke and check for the present unsuitable frame of Heart wherein he then was Why art thoucast down O my Soul saith he And why art thou disquieted in me hope thou in God c. So that this reflecting upon the Manner and Way how ye discharge Duty even in the mean time when ye are about it is useful When ye find your Heart out of frame a serious timous check given unto it will prove an effectual mean to reclaim it Besides if upon your reflecting thus ye find matters tollerably Right and your Heart in such a frame for the Main as the Lord requireth it will furnish you with matter of boldness courage and confidence as here it doth David who having found somewhat of this Truth and this upright and sincere frame of Heart in his own Inward parts He takes ground of Confidence from That to expect that God who had given him This could also give him more In the hidden part saith he thou shalt make me to know Wisdom For Vse This doth shortly speak two things 1. The Service of God is a Work not of the Outward Man only but also and mainly of the Inward Man The Heart and Mind of a Man must be exercised in it if so be go rightly about it And that many wayes And this is One way The Heart must be exercised by reflecting now
in it If so he do bewail it and flee to Jesus Christ to get pardon for it and strength to subdue it It is not for this end I would have you to search and try your Inlakes in the exercise of Sincerity that ye may give your selves over for Rotten-hearted Hypocrites But that you may bewail it take with it judge your selves for it flee to Christ to get it pardoned and to get Grace to amend it And your making this use of your foul Failings as to this point shall be a clear evidence that though there has been much unsincerity and shameless Hypocrisie in you yet ye are no real Hypocrites But the main Use of the Point is That as ye desire to come to the Lords Table Acceptably and in the Right Manner so deal with God sincerely and in Truth that is Let your great Work ly about your Heart and Inward Parts to get some right frame and disposition put on them whereof I spoke before Only an humble hungring frame thirsting after Communion and Fellowship with him is a good frame at such a time Again let your coming flow from Spiritual Motives and level at Right and Approven Ends But especially deal Sincerely and in Trâ—th with God by labouring to be That indeed which by your Act of coming to the Communion ye give your selves out for Now ye give your selves out for many things 1. Your Coming saith That ye have need of Christ and must be at him And therefore deal sincerely and in Truth with Christ in searching out and being affected with the need ye have of Him 2. Your Coming to the Lords Table speaks that ye are weary of your old Masters and have a real mind to change them Now I beseech you deal sincerely and in Truth with God and see it be so that ye are really weary of your old Lusts which formerly enslaved you And that ye have a mind indeed to quite them 3. Ye do hereby give out that you have a mind to take God for your Master to enrol your self in the List of His Soldiers to fight against the Devil the World your own Flesh and every thing which is an Enemy with Him Deal in Truth and dissemble not with God in this See ye come not to give God a Day with a secret purpose to give the Devil an Year 4. Ye do hereby give out that you mind to close with Christ on His own Terms See ye deal sincerely with Him in this also And for this end Ponder well and think on the Terms before hand for if ye close a Bargain with Him on his own terms and so deal sincerely and in Truth with him Ye must first take him Freely For Come and buy saith he without money and without price Isai 55. 1. And therefore ye must not keep back from Him or come heartlesly to Him because ye find no worth in your selves for which ye should be beloved by Him If ye do so ye deal not Sincerely and in Truth with Him 2. If ye take Him on his own Terms and so deal Sincerely with Him ye must take him wholly not only as a Priest to save you but as a King to Rule in you If ye mind to make no other use of Christ but to get your by-past Sins pardoned by Him that ye may take on a new Score in time to come ye deal not Sincerely and in Truth with Him ye pretend to take Him on His own Terms and that is to take Him wholly And yet ye will not take Him as a King to Rule over you 3. Ye must take him with all the hazard that may follow upon your taking of Him ye must take him with a resolution to â—leave to him through Well and through Woe aswell when the World frowns upon him as when it smiles otherwise ye deal not Sincerely with him For these are his own terms whereon ye pretend to close with him If any man saith he will be my Disciple les him deny himself take up his Cross and follow me And lastly Ye must take him Irrevocably for it is an everlasting Covenant So that if the next day when the sensible Fruits of a Communion do not answer your expectation ye loose your grip and quite the Bargain ye do not deal Sincerely and in Truth with Him I shall shut up all I have said by giving some motives for making you deal thus Sincerely and in Truth with him Know 1. He is dealing Sincerely and in Truth with you He minds indeed to close a a most blessed Bargain with you and with all of you who mind to take him at his Word and to give him Credit And if ye will but credit him ye shall find from experience ere long that he hath been sincere real and in earnest with you And to the end ye may trust him He gives the most speaking evidences of His Real sincerity towards you which can be given Before ye take a tryal of him ye have His Word for it His Writ for it His Oath for it and ye shall have His Seal and Pledge of it Even that He shall be all that to you which He gives himself out for so that I may well say The Lord is dealing Sincerely and in Truth with You and therefore do ye so with Him 2. Your dealing thus Sincerely and in Truth with Him as I shew'd before will make him overlook your many other Failings which otherwise he will take notice of and reckon on your Account 3. If ye deal not Sincerely and in Truth with Him now it is a venture when or if ever again ye get such another occasion to do that which ye now leave undone Many of us have often at such times dealt deceitfully with God our Hearts have not been straight before Him And yet for all this he gives us a New Offer That notwithstanding all that is come or gone He shall be our God and we his People And if ye close with this Offer in Truth and on his Own Terms ye shall find him to be forth-coming according to his Offer But if ye shall slight him and deal deceitfully with him seeming to close a Bargain with him when really ye do it not It is a venture I say it over again if ever ye get such another Offer The shaddows of the Evening in respect of the bright Sun-shine of Pure Ordinances we have hitherto enjoy'd seem to be stretched out upon the Land and our Sun drawing towards a declining But though that should not be yet who is there among you can infallibly promise That he shall ever see another Communion yea or hear any number of Sermons after this And therefore while it is to day hear his Voice and harden not your Hearts Behold Now this very present Now is the Acceptable time and the day of Salvation And therefore Seek the Lord while he may be found and Call upon him while he is near A SERMON PREACHED AT KILWINNING MAY 11th 1663. Upon the Munday
immediatly after the Giving of the COMMUNION The Third SERMON LUKE 7. 23. And blessed is he whosoever shall not be offended in Me. Beloved in the Lord THAT place 1 Cor. 1. 23. We Preach Christ crucified unto the Jews a stumbling block hath had its accomplishment in all Ages and in no Age more than in this Jesus Christ and His way of working both with Churches and Particular Souls hath been a stone of stumbling and rock of offence to many yea moe and moe are stumbling still what through one occasion or other many who once did seem to run well in the way to Heaven in the way of Truth and in the way of Piety have either already taken up or are in hazard to take up such an halt as Christ may be conceived to say to those very few who seem resolv'd to follow him through Better and Worse as once he said Joh. 6. 67. Vnto the twelve when many of his Disciples went back and walked no more with him will ye also go away I have therefore chosen this Text to speak from now immediatly after having engaged your selves to walk in Christs Way that thereby ye may guard against that woeful common evil of Being offended in Christ or of stumbling and taking up an halt in his Way of Truth and Piety notwithstanding all the stumbling blocks and rocks of offence ye may meet with For Blessed is he saith Christ whosoever shall not be offended in me The Words are a Part of Christs Answer to that Question propounded to Him by Two of John's Disciples at John's desire verse 20. Art thou he that should come or look we for another Ye may wonder that John who knew Christ so well should have moved such a Question But the Answer is First Tho Souls know Christ never so well they 'l desire and have need to know him better and to get what knowledge they have of him confirmed to them especially in the day of Trial For John was now in Prison And 2dly They 'l desire that others may know him also For it appeareth from what goeth before that John propoundeth this Question for his Disciples satisfaction and to satisfy their Doubts more than his own Christ's Answer hath two Parts 1. He bids them shew John what they saw him doing Verse 22. Tell Iohn saith he what things ye have seen and heard how that the blind see the lame walk the lepers are cleansed the deaf hear the dead are raised to the poor the Gospel is preached If ye ask what makes this to the Answer of the Question I answer It maketh much for it shews he was doing that which Scripture foretold the Messias would do Isai. 35. 5 6. And therefore he behoved to be the Messias 2. In thir words he answereth a main Objection against this Truth taken from Christ's own low condition and the practice of his Followers which made many bear off him For they expected a Glorious Messias a Great earthly Monarch And because Christ was but obscure and mean therefore they stumbled and were offended in him To this Christ answereth Blessed is he whosoever shall not be offended or scandalized in me The word rendered here offended or scandaliz'd seems to be a Metaphor taken from Travellers who having dashed their Foot or Leg at some stone or block in the way do stumble or take up an halt so as they can go no further at least advance not so quickly in the way as they did And Secondly while he sayes Offended in me take this first Actively And so the meaning is They should not take occasion of stumbling from any thing in Christ or in His Way 2. It may be taken Passively so as to point out the Way that we should not stumble nor take up an halt in For there are some wayes to wit Every sinful course and way that it were good for People to stumble in and turn their backs upon But this Way wherein we should not stumble is Christ Himself and the Way of Truth and Piety prescrib'd by him Blessed is he saith Christ who shall not be offended in me As if he had said Happy is that Man who taketh not occasion from Me or any thing in My Way to stumble or turn his back upon Me and that course of Truth and Piety wherein I have commanded him to walk The Words are but One entire Proposition and Sentence I need not therefore spend time in dividing them But shall come to the Doctrines First The Lord applyeth the general Prophesies Concerning the Messias in the Old Testament to Himself in particular shewing they were verified in Him For the Words in me have in them a direct Answer to the Question propounded by John's Disciples and shews the Messias was come and that He is That Messias Whence we might mark That JESUS CHRIST the Son of Mary who was Born in Bethlehem brought up in Nazareth and Crucified in Jerusalem is that very same Messias who was to Come and promised to the Fathers We might observe 2ly That before He gave this Answer that He was the promised Messias whom they were to follow and not to stumble at He doth first prove by Scripture that it was so while he hids John's Disciples tell their Master he was doing such miraculous Works as the Scriptures did foreshew none but Christ should do Whence we might learn That all Questions and Debates about Religion should be determined from Scripture and according to the Rule set down in Scripture For here when a Question ariseth among John's Disciples If JESUS the Son of Mary was the promised Messias neither John the Baptist than whom there was not a Greater Prophet among these that are Born of Women yea nor Christ himself who was Greater than he do take it upon them to determine in it But John sends them to Christ and Christ sends them to the Scripture for a Solution Thus To the law and to the testimony saith the Lord Isai. 8. 20. if they do not speak according to this word it is because there is no light in them The neglect of this Rule hath been the In-let to Humane Traditions without and contrary to Scripture both in Worship and Government in the Antichristian Church And if this Rule once be laid aside there can be no end of Humane Ceremonies untill all that trash which is in the Roman Church be brought in upon the Church of God For if the Authority of a Man can make way for One it may also make way for all the rest But passing those The two following Doctrines are these that I intend most to insist upon And both of them are implyed 1. That there are many stumbling Blocks in Christ's way whereat People are apt to Offend take up an Halt and stumble And yet Secondly There is nothing of that kind which ought to make us stumble For if there were not some stumbling Blocks Christ needed not so much guard against them and by his guarding against them he
was One Athanasius And when Antichrist was to prevail it is shown Rev. 11. 3. That notwithstanding all the Tyranny of Antichrist and the torrent of Corruption in these times God should have His Two that is tho not many yet some few Witnesses 3. The Lord in His deep Wisdom doth measure out such a Dispensation for heightning His Churches Tryal And that these who keep their Garments clean may come forth as Gold It is but an inconsiderable Tryal and calls for little Resolution to stand it out When all the Lord's Ministers speak one thing lifting up their Voice as a Trumpet and denouncing the dreadful Judgements of God on all who turn their back on Truth and Piety But when the generality of Ministers at any time do blow the Trumpet of Defection from the Lord That speaks Loyalty indeed If then notwithstanding such Defection People stand to the Lords Banner and in nothing be moved from it And that because the Trumpet gives an uncertain sound speaking one thing one day and another thing the next So that to stumble at Christ's Way because of this when it falleth out is to stumble at the Wisdom of God 4. Therefore should no Man stumble at Christ nor His Way for this because the Lord in all times hath made it and no doubt will yet make it tend to the advantage of His Way in the close So as afterwards times growing more favourable the Church of God hath thereby been freed from a Fleece of Time-servers who would never otherwayes have discovered themselves Besides that others who through weakness had turned aside in some degreâ—â— with the torrent of the time somewhat against their Heart have been made to acknowledge their weakness to God's Glory And so make up by their Repentance the breach they had made on God's Way by their Fall And consequently for any to stumble at Christ's Way because of This is to break their neck on that which in God's method doth make His Way most lovely in the Close There are other Two Points yet which might be handled jointly as the former The one Expressed The other Implyed and both of them serve to confirm the last to wit That whatever we meet with in Christ's Way we should not love Christ nor His Way the less None of these things should make us take up an halt in His Way much less turn our back upon it For 1. It is an happy thing not to stumble at Christ or His Way This is expressed in the Text. 2. The Man who is offended in Christ who turneth his back upon Him because of Stumbling-blocks or Rocks of Offence in the Way That Man is an unhappy Man and cursed I might prosecute both these Points but for the time I shall forbear and only say something in Answer to a needful Question I think one may readily ask what I call Christ's Way whereat we should not stumble For there are Men and Parties of several wayes There are Papists and Protestants Sectaries Socinians Formalists Anabaptists Prelatists or Episcopâ—l-men Presbyterians Independents and Quakers every one whereof have their Own Way about Religion And no doubt all of them will call their Own Way Christ's Way And therefore it is needful to know which of these wayes are Christ's Way indeed that so we may not turn our backs upon it In Answer to which Question It cannot be expected if it were but for the time I can enter in a Debate concerning what is Right or Wrong what is Christs what is not Christs in All those Wayes I shall therefore only give you some general Directions for finding out what is Christ's Way amidst the tide and torrent of so many contrary Opinions And these such that upon the one hand I think there is no Man having his right Wits about him with the least Grain of Piety but he must give his Assent unto them And yet such as through God's Blessing being rightly improven shall not leave you without a Guide what to choose as God's Way and what not First then I doubt not it will be taken for granted by All. That the Way of Christ whereat we should not stumble are the Essentialls of Piety and Christianity I mean Faith in Jesus Christ Repentance unto Life Holiness and tenderness of Walk in eschewing all known Sin and coming up to the Practice of all known Duty This is it I intended mainly all alongs to wit That notwithstanding all the forementioned Rocks of Offence ye would not turn Profligate Profane Debauch'd and Irreligious Atheists but hold on in the Way of substantial Piety notwithstanding of all and over the belly of all 2. But this is not all It 's but a loose way of Religion and very near to no Religion at all for a Man to pretend to no more but adhere to the Practice of substantial Duties and the Faith of Fundamental Truths while in other things he sayes and unsays and rolls about with the times For hereby they may suffer the Devil to do with the most part of Scripture what he pleases For Truths absolutely necessary to Salvation are but few the Lord in Mercy having so provided that the meanest capacity may explicitly comprehend them and all of them seing they cannot be saved without them But tho there be some few Truths only of absolute necessity for Salvation yet there are others in their own kind also necessary to wit for Gods Glory and your own Comfort and the Lord will have you sticking closs by these Truths once knowing them to be Truths as well as by others and that because a great part of Christ's Way lyeth in a Mans adherence even to these Truths to wit God's Glory and the Man 's own Comfort And a Profane loose and indifferent Spirit as to these doth both in the nature of the thing and in God's just Judgement beget in progress of time Profane Indifferency and Atheism as to other more great and substantial Truths So doth the Apostle Paul inform the Galatians Ch. 5. 9. A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump Thus then the great Question is to know which is Christ's Way in Truths of that sort that so we may not stumble at it For which in the first place take Paul's Rule Philipp 3. 16. Nevertheless whereto we have already attained let us walk by the same Rule And 2 John 8. Look to your selves that we lose not these things that we have wrought In a word whatever a Man is perswaded on good ground to be Christ's Way let him stick closly by That as his way and whatever he meet with beware of doing any thing wherein his own Heart will condemn him I say this because there are some Truths of an inferiour Nature which are as clearly revealed in Scriptures as other more substantial Truths And consequently a Man may as much be perswaded of the one as the other And tho another Man may think or say he is perswaded of the contrary Error that it is Truth and be deceived
ye would 3. Do not needlesly and without a ground call in question the reality of your former closing with him For that as I told you before will make you heartless to set to it of new Or however ye question the reality of what ye have done already yet see that in no terms ye question your Right to close with him by Faith and believe in him for time to come For whatever thou hast done formerly the Gospel Offer is yet at thy door and a Command from God unto thee to close with it and if thou hast not done it in earnest before thy need is so much the greater to do it frequently and in earnest now But now to proceed By the Lord to whom he exhorts them to Cleave is not only meaned The Lord Himself as he is offered in the Promise but generally all that he hath recommended to our care as an evidence of our respect to him Thus we testify our respect to absent Friends by owning their Concerns and Interests and if ye ask what these things are that the Lord Christ hath recommended to our care I answer in two words First His Truth and next his Service So that 1. ye are to Cleave unto and Continue in his Truth against Error according to what the Apostle Jude commands V. 3 Ye should earnestly contend for the Faith to wit the Doctrine of Faith or Truth which was once delivered unto the Saints 2. We are to Cleave to and Continue in his Service whether the Duties of Immediate Worship we should cleave to these against Superstition voluntary neglect Will-worship and Idolatry Or the Duties of our Particular Callings and Stations All which should be gone about as Service to him So Servants are to do their service with good will as to the Lord and not to men Ephes. 6. 7. Now that Cleaving to all These is meaned by Cleaving unto the Lord appears from Deutr. 10. 20. and 30. 20. where Cleaving to the Lord is explained by fearing the Lord by obeying his voice by serving him and swearing by his name Now to speak a little to each of these 1. Ye must Cleave to and continue in his Truth Gaius is commended for this 3 Joh. 3. even that he walked in the Truth And Prov. 23. 23. we are bidden Buy the Truth and sell it not And ye heared from Jude Ye should contend for the Truth For Error contrary to Truth is of a Damning Nature 2 Peter 2. 1. They are called Damnable Heresies And Error in point of Truth makes way for Prophanity and loosness of Life a sound Heart and an unsound Head cannot well subsist Therefore doth Peter 2 Epist. 3. 17. call Error The error of the wicked For helping you to this needful Duty of Cleaving to the Lord by Cleaving to His Truth I shall recommend to you these things 1. Beware of Scepticism or making all Truths debateable or those Truths especially which may bring you in greatest hazard to confess or cleave to This is down right contrary to the Cleaving to Truth here enjoined 2. Do not undervalue any Truth say of no Truth as Lot said of Zoar is it not a little one and so I may skip from it It 's true there is a difference among Truths some greater Truths and some smaller But as it is of Sins so it is of Errors The lesser alwise doth make way for the greater and there is no Truth which cometh not from the God of Truth And therefore no Truth which ye should look on as a thing Indifferent whether ye think so or otherwise of it Besides in times of Defection from Truth it is the usual Artifice of Persecuters to extenuate those Truths they labour to bear down as things Indifferent and very triffles When in the mean time their own practice doth give theâ—r Profession the lie For if they thought them things indifferent and triffles why would they persecute Mâ—n for adhering to them Besides tho some Truths be not so absolutely necessary to Salvation but a Man may be saved tho he think otherwise yet it doth not follow we should be careless of all such Thus tho a Man's hand be not so absolutely necessary but he may live without it yet he were a mad Man who on that account would wittingly and willingly cut it off Besides an Error in some Truths which will not damn one may condemn another who knows at least may easily know it to be an Error and yet will live and die in the Justification of it without Repentance 3. Ye ought chiefly to cleave to those Truths which ye are most engaged to owne either by God's sealing them to your Spirits or by Catechising and Instructing you from your very Childhood in them so that ye are put out of all doubt of the Truth that is in them or by bringing you under most sacred Tyes of Solemn Vows and Oaths to maintain them I say ye ought to look upon it as your Duty chiefly to Cleave unto such Truths 2 Joh. 8. Look to your selves that we lose not those things that we have wrought And Solomon saith It is not safe after vows to make enquiry If a Man's Conscience grow once so wide as to let such Truths pass through either for Errors or Triffles he may perswade himself there is not a Truth in all the Bible if he be hard put to it that he 'l stick at but that meeting with a pressing suitable tentation he 'l let it slip through after them 4. We are to Cleave to Truth not only by retaining the knowledge of it and by giving assent to it in our Judgements but also by giving a modest and faithful profession and confession of that Truth on all hazards when we are called to it This is commanded 1 Pet 3. 15. Be ready alwise to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meakness and fear and Rom 10. 10. With the heart man believeth unto righteousness and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation This is necessary both for the honour of God Truth being a piece of his Name which we are bound to confess Rev 2. 13 Thou holdest fast my name and hast not denyed my faith And its necessary also in order to our own Salvation For whosoever saith our Saviour will confess me before men him will I also confess before my father which is in heaven but whosoever will deny me before men him will I also deny before my father which is in heaven This now as upon the one hand it doth not justify unseasonable Confession contrary to Matth 7. 6 Cast not your pearls before swine lest they trample them under their feet and turn again and rent you So upon the other hand it reproves those who dar not or will not give a Confession of the Truth even when they are called to it and much more those who deny the Truth either expresly or Interpretativly That is when they
A BRIEF REFUTATION OF THE ERRORS OF Tolleration Erastianism Indepéndency AND Separation Delivered in some SERMONS From 1 Joh. 4. 1. Preach'd in the Year 1652. To which are Added Four Sermons Preach'd on several Occasions By Mr James Fergusson Late Minister of the Gospel at Kilwinning EDINBVRGH Printed by George Mosman and are to be Sold at his Shop in the Parliament-Close Anno Domini MDCXCII TO THE HONOURABLE M r. Francis Montgomery OF GIFFINE HONOURED SIR SO soon as I resolved upon the Publication of the following Papers I fixed on You as the only Person to whom they should be Addrest And indeed whether I look on the Author or on my Self I conceive I was many wayes Obliged so to do For as to the Author You are a Worthy Branch of the Noble and Ancient FAMILY of EGLINTOUN whereof God had given Him the peculiar Charge and Oversight in the Ordinary Course of his Ministry A Family which as Himself somewhere testifies were his great Encouragers in going about all the parts of his Function with Joy and not with Grief and for which he had sent up many Fervent Prayers to the Throne of Grace of the Effects whereof You your Self me Blessed be God yet a living Instance It was to that Noble Patriot and Zealous Instrument of Our late Reformation Your Grand-Father and to the Noble Earl Your Father then Lord Montgomery and to Your most Examplarly Pious and Religious Mother That the Author did Dedicate his Exposition of the Epistles to the Galatians and Ephesians And as all who have the Honour to know You are glad to see You so Naturally trace the Religious Example of Your Honourable Predecessors in Your firm Adhering to Your Principles and Purity of Religion Your Encouraging of Piety and Persons Pious Your Streight Sincere and Vpright Deportment towards All a Quality as Eminent in that Noble Earl Your Grandfather as rare in this Generation so I nothing doubt but that if it had pleased God to have spared the Author to Publish any other of his Works He would have looked upon Your self as the most Proper person to whom he should Present them As for my self Your Respect to the Author's Memory with your undeserved kindness to all his Relations and to my Self in particular Do strongly oblige me to take all Occasions for testifying my Thankful Acknowledgements And I presume I can scarce give You a more Acceptable Testimony of my Gratitude than the presenting You with the ensuing Papers which tho the Publication be posthumous yet I hope a serious perusal of them will be sufficient to supersede any further Commendation And indeed my near Relation to the Author will not allow me to speak either of Him or his Works what perhaps others might And therefore without giving You any further trouble but Commending You and Your Vertuous Lady to the Protection of the Almighty And Wishing That as God has blessed You with an Hopeful off-spring who are as so many Living Images of your selves in whom you see your own Lives renewed who by Their Good Enclinations do already give us cause to expect the best of Them So You and They may live together till You see Them prove a Comfort unto You And that after You are gone They may be no less Vseful in Their Generation than now You are I shall humbly crave leave to subscribe my self in all duty Honoured Sir Your most obliged and most humble Servant JAMES FERGVSSON TO THE READER THere are divers years past since the Reverend Learned and Pious Author of the following Discourses fell a sleep in the Lord and is gone to receive the fruit of his Labours from the chief Shepherd of the Sheep Yet we have in his Memory a lasting proof of the Truth of that Word Pro. 10. 7. The memory of the Just is Blessed And that of Psalm 112 6 The Righteous shall be in everlasting Remembrance Their memory is Precious and Honourable For I can truly say though I have heard many of high and low Degree speak of Master Fergusson I never heard any make mention of him but with Honour and Respect As a Man of great Piety and Learning and Eminent for Prudence and Moderation And I am confident there will be no need of Epistles of Recommendation for any of his Works to any who either knew Himself or have perused his Judicious and Pious Treatises published already on the Epistles to the Galatians Ephesians Philippians Colossians and Thesâ—alonians Nor am I so presumptuous as to imagine my Testimony could raise the Esteem of any thing done by so Famous and Worthy a Man But being his Mediate Successor to the Parish of Kilwinning where he did for many years Labour in the Work of the Gospel and being desired by his Son of the same Name I could not deny to express the esteem I have for his Memory Though I had not the Advantage of knowing him while he lived I am informed the following Discourses were the subject of Divers Sermons delivered to that People in a time when there was much need of Warning It was after that through a Boundless Tolleration a deludge of Errors had broken in upon England and the Sectarian Army having Subdued Scotland and dispersed themselves in all the Parts of it Corrupt Men and Seducers among Them did endeavour to pervert the People from the Truth Then it was anno 1652. When this worthy Author as a Faithful Watchman gave to his Flock Warning of the Danger And that they might be rooted and grounded in the Truth did represent to them the necessity of a sound and well-informed Judgement in order to Holiness and Salvation and for that end did excite and direct them to Try the Spirits and afterwâ—rd for their further Instruction and establishment in the Truth took notice of some particular Errors by which they seem'd to be in greatest hazard at that time and did in a plain and convincing way Refute the Errors and Confirm the Truth making alwayes some Practical Improvement of what he had delivered Although the Reverend Author was known to be a great Master of School-learning and was invited to be Professor of Divinity in the Famous University of Glasgow which yet he humbly refused yet he did not calculate these Discourses for the School or Court But being to speak to a Countrey Congregation wherein were many Common People for whom they seem to have been intirely designed since the Author could never be induced to Publish them in his own time He had such a sense of the holy Apostles example 1 Cor. 14. 18 19. that he choosed to speak to the edification of the meanest and he had a peculiar faculty of making things intricate plain and easie to be understood And I am confident that those who are not for pleasing their fancy with fine notions or their ear with jingling-jingling-words but desire to have their judgement informed and their conscience satisfied will find here that which will be very edifying For his
endeavour is That Controversies be clearly stated And with great perspicuity and solidity doth he confirm the Truth by Scripture and Reason and confute the contrary Error and all this without bitterness or wrath but with such calmness and moderation of Spirit wherein he did excell So that as I am informed divers of the English Army though of a contrary Judgement did resort to hear him I know not what effects his Teaching of these Truths had on Them but by the Blessing of God these of his own Flock were so established in the Truth that not one of them was seduced from it And I cannot but record it to the praise of God and commendation of that Congregation and for the encouragement of any who may be invited to be their Pastor when I to their and my grief am to be separated from them to a more difficult Post I say I cannot but record it that as that Congregation of Kilwinning hath since the Reformation been blest with eminent learned and pious Men Mr Glasford Mr Bailie Mr Fergusson and Mr Rogirs So they have by the Blessing of God on their labours been kept not only Sound in the Faith but United among themselves when others have been wofully Divided And they have alwayes shewed a great love to the Gospel and all the Ordinances of the Lord Jesus and the Ministers thereof And I pray That their fruit may abound more and more If some Expressions Concerning the Opinion of Independents or Congregational Men seem severe It would be remembred that the Author doth not speak against Persons but against Things And in a time when many Errors followed that Division about Church Government and the Debate was hot about it and fear that it should have taken place in Scotland But considering the Zeal these of New-England have discovered against Error and their United way of acting in Association and Synods when they think there is need and the love that hath been in time of Common Tryal and the Late Essay which hath been made for an Accomodation betwixt Presbyterians and Them in England I suppose if our Reverend Author had lived until this time he would have concluded the Difference may be so lessened that it need not hinder their walking together in that wherein they are agreed nor their Endeavours to keep the Vnity of the Spirit in the bond of Peace I do not know of any particular design of publishing these Discourses now when they have been kept hid for fourty years but that the Author's Son having long delay'd and declin'd to Publish them though frequently and seriously advis'd to do it by many he was advertised that some would publish the Imperfect Notes received from His mouth in the time of Hearing which being incorrect might not only prejudge the Authors name but the Truth and others Edification If these as is hoped they will be acceptable and useful what yet remains unprinted of these Discourses may see the Light in due time There are here subjoyned Four Sermons of the Reverend Author which the Publisher and others hope may be found of good use and may make way for the communicating more of his Pious and Judicious Sermons which are longed for by them who knew Him or his other Works It had surely been of great advantage to the Church had it pleased God to have spared this judicious and pious Author till now and that he had published more of his Works in his own time But seing our infinitely wise and good God hath disposed otherwise it becometh us to submit But if by this or any other of his Works God get Glory and the Church be edified The Publisher will rejoice and bless God as having attained his end And if the Reader peruse his Works with the same Spirit wherewith they seem to be spoken and written I am confident he will not fail of profit Now that the Spirit of Truth and Holiness would lead Thee and all His people into all Truth and help them to edify one another in love and that He would bless His Churches with Truth and Peace and send out many Faithful Labourers into His Harvest with a double measure of the Spirit that was in Mr. Fergusson and other eminently holy Men who then lived shall be the Prayer of Christian Reader Thy Souls cordial Well-wisher George Meldrum Edinburgh June 1692. The Contents SECT I. OF Doctrine in general and the Tryal thereof Being some Doctrines raised from the Text Introductorie to the main purpose Pag. 1 ad 26. Doctr. I. Error is to be Eschewed pag. 3. Doctr. II. Orthodoxy or a Right opinion in the matters of Truth is as much to be stuâ—â—ed as Holiness of Life pag. 5. Doctr. III. As at all times so chiefly when there is danger of spreading of Error there is most need that Love should be intertain'd betwixt Pastor and People Where are some directions for a Ministers carriage in order to the keeping of the affections of his People while he is Refuting their Errors pag. 12. Doctr. IV. The Spirit of Error began very early to trouble the Church Where are some Reasons for which the Lord suffers Errors to spread pag. 16. Doctr. V. The foulest Errors go out oftentimes under fairest Names and are backed with most specious Pretences pag. 19. Doctr. VI. When foul Error is holden out under fair names and backed with fair pretences there is a danger lest People drink them in and believe them Where are 5 things that speak this hazard pag. 23. Doctr. VII Ministers the Servants of God are not to clap Peoples heads or to indulge them in this inclination of Theirs to Error but on all hazards they are to testify against it Where are 3 Reasons for which People ought to reverence much what warnings of this kind are given by Ministers pag. 28. Doct. VIII It is not Gods Way That People because there are differences about Religion should therefore believe no Religion Where are 5 Directions for the unlearned to walk by in order to difference of opinions among the Learned pag. 31. Doctr. IX How fair soever the pretence is that a Doctrine is colloured with It should not be taken upon Trust but must be brought to a Tryal Where are some Directions how to walk betwixt Popish Tyranny and Sectarian Confusion pag. 34. Doctr. X. The right Tryal to be taken of Doctrines preached or any otherwise vented is To try whether they be of God or not Where is shown what is requisite to a Doctrines that it may be said to be Of God pag. 38. Doct. XI There are many Doctrines pretending to the Spirit which yet being brought to the Touchstone will be found Not to be of God p. 44 SECT II. The Doctrine of Toleration Try'd and foundnot to be Of God Wherein as in all the Errors following First The Question is stated 2. Arguments are brought for Confirming the Truth and vindicated from the Opposites Exceptions 3. The Opposites Objections are Answered and Refuted from Scripture