Selected quad for the lemma: word_n
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A37500
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Vniformity examined whether it be found in the Gospel or in the practice of the churches of Christ / by Wil. Dell ...
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Dell, William, d. 1664.
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1646
(1646)
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Wing D936; ESTC R21430
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7,409
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8
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nor yet over the little world or man For looke upon a man consisting of âead and members unto which the Apostle compaâes the Church and you shall not finde all the members like one another neither in regard of their outward forms nor operations for the hand doth not move as the foot nor the foot act as the hand and if all the members should appear and act in one form what a monster would a man bee And yet among the members though there be no externall vniformity yet there is admirable unity And yet again look in to the Kingdomes of the world and you shall see no such thing in them as externall vniformity Here in England you shall observe that York is not governed as Hull nor Hull as Hallifax nor that as Bristoll c. neither is one County governed uniformly as another there is no vniformity in the government of Kent and Essex nor one town governed like another in Godmanchester the youngest son inherit in Huntington the Eldest nor one Corporation governed like another nor one Company in the Citie governed as another and yet between all Counties Cities Towns Corporations Companies there is unitie though no externall vniformity Yea look upon the famous Citie of London and there are it may be an hundred thousand families or more in it and each one goveânâd after a severall manner and among all these families there is no externall vniformity and yet they all agree well enough into the unity of a City Nay further to bring but one man to an vniformity of life and practice by an outward Law would be the most absolute tyranny in the world and make his life worse then death To compell every man by a Law every day in the week or every Munday Tuesday c. in the week to an uniformity of life that he shall rise at the same time use the same postures speak the same words eat the same food receive the same Physick sit and stand and walk and lye down at the same set times who ever heard of such a cruel bondage What an absurd and intollerable thing then is uniformity in the life of a man taking away all freedome of the soule But how much more evill and intollerable is uniformity in the life of a Christian or of true Churches of Christ taking away all freedome of the spirit of God who being one with God works in the freedome of God and is not to be bound with any authoritative or coercive power of poor dark ignorant vain foolish proud and sinfull men What now then do the Presbyters mean by Vniformity Would they have the Word preached and the Sacraments administred and the Name of God called on and all this done in spirit and truth in the Churches of Christ This truly is Vnity and not Vniformity and such an unity as no man can compell But would they have the Word preached the name of God called on Sacraments administred the spirituall discipline of the spirituall Church managed the vertues of Christ and graces of the Spirit in the Saints exercised and all this in one and the same outward form or uniformity This is the burden of the Saints the bondage of the Church the straitning the Spirit the limiting of Christ and the eclipsing the glory of the Father And how wise soever these men may be in naturall and carnall things yet their wisedome is but foolishnesse in spirituall things in which there is no more uniformity then in the workings of the Spirit who works severally in severall Saints and severally in the same Saints at severall times And therefore they that would tye the Church to an uniformity which works not of it sâlf but as the Spirit works in it let them first tye the Spirit to an uniformity and we are contented But these men seem to run a sad hazard who would thus reduce the workings of the Spirit in Christians and Churches to an outward uniformity according to their own minde and fancy and so would rule and order and enlarge and straiten the Spirit of God by the spirit of man seeing it is worse to sin against Christ in the spirit then against Christ in the flesh And therefore till I be otherwise taught by the Word I cannot conceive that there ought to be or is possible to be any such externall uniformity in the Churches of Christ as these men strive wrastle sweat contend for I will not say are ready to fight for but that severall Churches of Christ having unity of doctrine faith the spirit ordinances c. may have divers forms of outward administrations as God and Christ by the spirit shall lead them and that every Church is in these things to be left free and no Church forced by any outward power to follow or imitate another Church against its will not being freely led unto it by the Spirit of God Neither do I think that God hath set up any company of men or Synod in the world to shine to a whole Nation so that all people shall be constrained to follow their judgement and to walk by their light seeing other Ministers and Christians may have more light and spirit then they Neither hath Christ promised his presence and spirit to Ministers more then to believers nor more to an hundred then two or three and if two or three Christians in the Country being met together in the name of Christ have Christ himself with his Word and Spirit among them they need not ride many miles to the Assembly at London to know what to do or how to carry and behave themselves in the things of God And therefore for any company of men of what repute soever to set up their own judgement in a Kingdome for a peremptory rule from which no man must vary and to compell all the faithfull people of God who are the very members of Jesus Christ himself to fall down before it upon pain of being cast into the burning fiery furnace of their indignation heated seven times more hot thân ordinary through the desired accesse of secular power to their power is a far worse work in my eyes then that of King Nebuchadnezzar setting up a golden Image and forcing all to fall down before it seeing spirituall idolatry is so much worse then corporall as the spirit is better then the flesh And therefore I do think let them teach me better by the Word that can that uniformity the great Diana of the Presbyterians and the Image that falls down from the brain and faâcy of man hath no footing in the Scriptures or in the practice of the Churches of Christ And that the Presbyterian uniformtty is near a kin to Prelatiâall coâfoâmity and is no other âhen the same thing under another word after ââe manner of Prelacy and Presbytery and do conclude that Vnity is Chriââiaâ Vniformity Anticââââââan And ãâã I have ãâ¦ã among many occasâons to discover to ãâ¦ã me still prevail and ãâ¦ã very name of Refââmation And alâo to give occasion ãâ¦ã discourse more fully ãâ¦ã power of the Word ãâ¦ã âINIS