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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
word_n	ceremonial_a	law_n	moral_a	3,536	5	9.8204	5	false

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A10834	A iust and necessarie apologie of certain Christians, no lesse contumeliously then commonly called Brownists or Barrowists. By Mr. Iohn Robinson, pastor of the English Church at Leyden, first published in Latin in his and the churches name over which he was set, after translated into English by himself, and now republished for the speciall and common good of our own countrimen; Apologia justa et necessaria quorundum Christianorum, aeque contumeliose ac communiter, dictorum Brownistarum sive Barrowistarum. English	Robinson, John, 1575?-1625.	1625 (1625)	STC 21108; ESTC S102955	59,722	74

we thus avow and stand for in matters truly publique and ecclesiasticall we do not understand as it hath pleased some contumeliously to upbraid us women and children but onely men and them grown and of discretion making account that as children by their nonage so women by their sex are debarred of the use of authoritie in the Church CHAP. V. Of Holy-dayes IT seemeth not without all leven of superstition that the Duch reformed Churches do observ certain dayes consecrated as holy to the Nativity Resurrection and Ascention of Christ and the same also as it commonly comes to passe where humain devices are reared up by the side of divine institutions much more holy then the Lords day by him himselfe appoynted And for this first we are taught by Moses thus speaking unto the people of Israel in the name of the Lord. Verily my Sabbaths ye shall keep for it is a signe between me and you thoroughout your generations that ye may know that I am the Lord that doth sanctifie you that it appertayns unto God alone and to no man or Angel as to sanctifie whether person or thing so to institute the signes or means of sanctification of which number holy dayes are I ad if the Lord as lehovah and the God of his people Is●ael and supream Lawgiver do ordeyn the sanctification of a day in the decalogue how far should Gods servants be eyther Magistrates from takeing this honour of God unto themselves by commaunding a holy day or subjects by observing it to give the same unto any other save God alone 2. It was not the least part of Israels defection first in the wildernes afterwards under Ieroboam that they ordeyned a ●east to Ichovah whom they represented to themselvs by the goulden calvs which they had made 3. Seeing that every first day of the weeke called by Iohn the Lords day is consecrated by Christ himself and his Apostles to the memoriall of Christs resurrection and Gods solemn worship it seems too much for anie mortall man to appoint or make an anniversarie memoriall and the same most solemn and sacred of the same resurrection or so to observe it Lastly that you may see it was a man from whom this device came and so erred as one saith not to meddle with the uncertaintie either of the day of the month or month of the yeare in which Christ was born as it is most certain on the contrarie that this 25 of December cannot be the time what good reason I would know can be rendred why a day should be consecrated rather to the birth circumcision and ascension of Christ then to his death seeing that the Scriptures every where do ascribe our redemption and salvation to his death and passion in speciall manner CHAP. VI. Of the celebration of Mariage by the Pastours of the Church SIxtly and lastly we cannot assent to the receaved opinion and practise answerable in the Reformed Churches by which the Pastours thereof do celebrate marriage publiquely and by vertue of their office because 1 The holy S●r●pture divinely inspired that the man of God that is the minister may be perfitly furnished to every good work doth no where furnish or oblige the minister to this work 2. Marriage doth properly and imediately appertein to the family which is primarily framed of man and wife and Citties and other politicall bodies consisting of manie familyes Secondarily and mediately to the common wealth and publique governers of the same who therefore weighing their office and what concerneth them doe accordingly in the low countries comelily and in good order●●y that knott of marriage amongst such theire subjects as require it at their hands Neither did God as a minister joyn in marriage our first parents as some would make him but as their common father by right of creation and the chief maister of the marriage neither ought the Pastours office to be streched to anie other acts then those of religion and such as are peculiar to christians amongst which marriage common to Gentiles as well as to them hath no place Lastly considering how popish superstitition hath so far prevailed that marriage in the Romish church hath gott a room amongst the sacraments truly and properly so called and by Christ the Lord instituted the celebration and consecration whereof the patrons and consorts of that superstition will have so tyed to the priests fingers that by the decree of Evaristus the first they account the marriage no better then incestuous which the priest consecrates not it the more concerns the reverend brethren and Pastours of the reformed Churches to see unto it that by their practise they neither doe nor seem to advantage this popish errour And these are the points of our difference frō the Belgick churches which are nei●her so small as that they deserv to be neglected especially of them unto whom nothing seemeth small which proceeds from the gracious either mouth or spirit of the Lord Iesus nor yet so great as to dissolv the bond of brotherly charitie and communion If any now shal object that there are yet other things beside these in which we consort not so well with them nor they with us as for example 1. In the sanctification of the Lords day in which we seem even superstitiously rigid 2. In a certain popular exercise of prophesi amongst us 3. In our dislike of the publique Temples and sundry other indifferent things as they are termed besides that we are accused by some for not having in due estimation the magistrates authoritie in matters of religion I do answere and first that in the two first of these the same Churches do not differ from us in judgment but in practise as appears evidently by the Harmonie of the Belgick Synods lately published by S. R. Of the former of those two the author of the same book testifieth in his Preface to the Reader that the Synod held at Middleborough in Zeland 1581. did supplicate unto the magistrate that by his authoritie he would decree the sanctification of the Lords day abolishing the manifould abuses thereof That sanctification then of the Lords day which the reformed churches do endeavour unto and desire to have fortified by the magistrates authoritie that we considering it as immediately imposed by Christ upon his churches by the grace of God labour to perform being thereunto induced by these amongst other reasons CHAP. VII Of the sanctification of the Lords day FIrst the sanctification of the Sabboth is a part of the Decalogue or morall law written in tables of stone by the finger of God of which Christ our Lord pronounceth that no one ●o●e or title shall passe away Now if it be unpossible for one title of the law to be dissolved much more for a whole word or commandement and one of ten by which it should come to passe that Christians now were not to count of ten commandements of the moral law but of nyne onely

If reply be made that the fourth commandement is so ceremoniall that notwithstanding it hath this morall in it that some tyme be assigned and taken for the publique ministerie and exercises of religion I answer 1. That the same may be said in generall of the Mosaicall ceremonies whatsoever all and everie one whereof affoardeth something morall For instance The Mosaicall Temple or Tabernacle had this morall in it and perteyning to us as well as to the Israelites that it was a fit and convenient place for the Church assembly Is therefore the precept for the tabernacle as well morall as that for the Sabboth Is it alike a part of the decalogue and morall law Is it alike one of the ten Commandements 2. If the morall sanctification of the Sabboth stand in this that sometime be assigned to the publique ministerie then were the Israelites especially the preists and Levites bound to an everie day sabboth and sanctification morall being bound everie day to offer in the tabernacle and temple two young lambs the one at morning the other at evening for a daylie sacrifice 3. If the second precept of the Decalogue do in the affirmative part injoyn all outward instituted worship of God then also by consequence it requi●es some set time as a naturall circumstance absolutely necessarie to everie finite action in which the same worship is to be performed In va●n then is the fourth commandement and to no purpose if it injoyn nothing at all but that which was injoyned before namely in the second 4. The verie essence of the fourth commaundment consists in this that a day of seaven be kept holy that is separated from common use and consecrated to God in wh●ch as in a holy day the works of divine worship and such as serve for the spirituall man ought to be exercised as appears plainly by the reason taken from Gods example upon which the commandement is founded Take this away and the life of the precept seemeth to suffer violence The truly godly take some tyme for the exercises of Gods worship not onely publique and Ecclesiasticall but private also and domesticall yea in their closets as Christ teacheth Yet are not these either times or places in which such things are done then others ar● Eyther therefore a day in it self must be holy by divine institution or the Decalogue is may●ed in the fourth commandement But you will doubtlesse object the change made from the last daie to the first day of the week I answer 1. that change is mee●ly circumstantiall in which also the essence of the precept i● not abolished but established As for example God promised unto children duly honouring their parents a long life in that land to wit of Canaan then to be possessed by his people which the Lord thy God gave unto them The same promise by the Apostles testimonie still stands good to obedient children though out of Canaan and in another land so doth the same precept stand in force for the sanctification of the sabboth though removed to another of the seven dayes by the Lords hand 2. It is evident that this alteration was made both upon weightie ground and warrantable authoritie The ground is Christ our Saviours resurrection from the dead in wh●ch mans new creation at least in respect of Christ working the same in the state of humiliation for that ●nd undertaken was perfeited a new kinde of kingdome of God after a sort established and as the Scriptures speak all things made new And why not also a new sabboth after a sort in which yet notwithstanding the former as ●he creation also by Christ● is not so properly abolished as perfited The authoritie upon which this change lea●eth is no lesse then of Christ himself who first by word of mouth for the fortie dayes after his resurrection taught the disciples the things which apperteyned to the kingdom of God that is as Calvin saith whatsoever things they published either by word or writing afterward 2. By his example or fact setting himself in the middest of the same his Apostles the first day of the week and as Iunius saith everie eigth day till his ascension into heaven therein not onely blessing them with his bodily but much more with his spirituall and that speciall presence 3. By his spirit speaking in his Apostles whose office it was to teach his disciples to observ what things soever he had commanded them and to declare unto them the whole counsail of God who also in their whole ministration were to be reputed none other then the ministers of Christ and lastly whose both writing preachings accordingly even about order and comlines to be kept in the church exercises were the commandements of the Lord Iesus Agreable hereunto it was that the Apostle Paul coming to Troa● and there with his companie abid●ng seven dayes he did not till the first day of the week which yet was the last of the seven call together the a●sciples to eat bread that is to communicate in the Lords supper Hereupon also it was that the same Apostle ordeyned that on everie first day of the week as on a day sanctified for the holie assemblies and ●ttest for most effectuall provocations to the supplying of the necessities of the poore Saints everie one of the richer sort should lay something apart as God had blessed him for the releif of the Churches in Syria at that tyme oppressed with great penurie and want Lastly upon none other ground but this was this day by Iohn the Apostle named expresly the Lords day as being consecrated to the resurrection and service of the Lord Iesus for which end also it was kept in the primitive Churches as appeareth by most ancient and authentick writers Neyther did Pathmos more distinctly denote a certain and known Iland and Iohn a certain and known person then did the Lords day a day certain and known especially unto Christians unto whom the Apostle wrote Whereunto also agreeth that of Austin This Lords day is therefore so called because on that day the Lord rose again or that by the verie name i● might teach us how it ought to be consecrated to the Lord. The second reason is because the sanctification of the Sabboth the circumstantiall change notwithstanding doth as well belong to us in our times as to the Israelites in theirs whether we respect the Reason of the commandement or the end The reason is taken from the example of God himself who rested the seventh day from the works of creation The ends are 1 that we framing our selvs to Gods example after six daies spent in servile works or works of acquisition might rest the seaventh 2. That we might recount with our selvs not onely with thankfull but also composed hearts as the creation of man and of all other things for mans good so also his re-creation renovation clearly shineing in the resurrection of Christ from