Selected quad for the lemma: work_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
work_n	apostle_n	exclude_v	law_n	5,332	5	5.7642	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A30907	William Michel unmasqued, or, The staggering instability of the pretended stable Christian discovered his omissions observed, and weakness unvailed : in his late faint and feeble animadversions by way of reply to a book intituled Truth cleared of calumnies : wherein the integrity of the Quakers doctrine is the second time justified and cleared from the reiterate, clamorous but causeless calumnies of this cavilling cetechist [sic] / by Robert Barclay.	Barclay, Robert, 1648-1690.	1672 (1672)	Wing B742; ESTC R37062	60,482	82

but he is for it According to the true sence and meaning of the Spirit And therefore it remains to prove that ours is not so His alledging from some words of Samuel Fisher Where he speaks of works having merit sayeth nothing for the question recurrs concerning the signification of the word Merit which we use in a qualified sence for we say that works are no other wayes Meritorious then as they are rewarded Merit and reward being relative terms as I told him in my last to which he returneth no answer And thus is solved Sam. Fishers using of that argument mentioned by him Page 60 to whom he foolishly supposes I cannot reconcile my self without being of a higher strain then for a reward of Merit to wit That as Condemnation is the reward of evil works so Eternal Salvation and consequently Justification is the reward of good works Now Merit in a quallified sence doth not import an absolute desert according to strict Justice as on our part but a sutableness agreableness or congruity according to these Scriptures Mat. 3. 8. Bring forth fruits worthy of repentance the Greek word is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which signifieth Moritorious or Worthy and the same Greek word is used in these other Scriptures 1 Thes. 2. 12. Walk worthy of God 2 Thes. 1. 5. That ye may be counted Worthy of the Kingdom of God And thus R. Baxter speaketh of Merit in the Book above mentioned Page 90. in a large sence saith he As promise is an obligation and the thing promised is called debt so the performers of the conditions are called Worthy and their performance Merit Though properly it is all of Grace and not of debt Moreover whereas Augustine Bernard and others of the Fathers uses the word Merit in this qualified sence W. M. and his Brethren can give it the right hand but where we use it notwithstanding we tell them the simplicity of our meaning we must be upbraided with Popery It is here observeable How he turns it to my reproach That I seem to draw neer in the least to any of the moderate sort of Papists And yet as to things wherein I charged him of affinity with them he returneth no solid answer but sayes I must not be credited Yea he plainly not onely drawes neer but fully acknowledges his agreement with them Saying They hold some things common with the Orthodox His third and fourth Section containeth not any thing of a solid reply to that which is writ from Page 36. to 44. of my last which the Reader by comparing them may easily observe He begins alledging That Rom. 3. 28. Gal. 2. 19. must exclude all works even the Works of Christ in us And that because the Apostle must be supposed to exclude either evil or good Works not evil therefore good And consequently the Works of Christ in us But as I told him in my last some Works may be good materially which proceeding not from the Spirit of God but mans own Spirit are therefore excluded And thus the case of Abraham doth not answer who though a godly-man was capable sometimes to have done Works from his own Spirit It is here observeable How he seeks to shift that which I inforce upon him from Tit. 3. 5. Alledging He mentioned it in opposition to Justification by Works as the meritorious cause thereof But of this there was not one word Where he cites in his Dialogue Pag. 20. nor doth he answer any thing for that which I infer from this Scripture showing Page 37. of my last to which I refer the Reader he having wholly omitted it that by this Scripture where the Apostle sayes According to his mercy he saved us by the washing of regeneration the Apostle includes good works as to Justification now all this he shuffles over as Insulting Triumphing words And yet notwith-standing he himself insults here as though he had found us guilty of Popery though what we say in this matter be no other then what is clearly asserted by these famous Protestants above mentioned and more particularly by R. Baxter in his Book aforesaid from Pag. 185. to the end where he sayes That we are Justified by Works in the same kind of causality as by Faith Viz. as causae sine quibus non conditions or quallifications of the new Covenant requisite on our part in order to Justification showing How the Apostle Paul in the places above mentioned excludes onely the Works of the Law from Justification and never at all the Works of the Gospel as they are the conditions of the new Covenant and there he refutes W. M's exposition upon Isa. 2. 12. As if our Justification were onely Justified by Works or we declared Just by them before men And seeing W. M. hath declared he hath so good an esteem of R. Baxter I refer him to read how he is refuted by him as being to large to be here inserted Pag. 65. 66. To overturn that which is said by me concerning the Faith Knowledg and Obedience of the Saints Pag. 38. 39. of mine But his Impertinency will be more then manifest if the Reader do but look unto the place for I shew him how faith was not alwayes attended with doubting by the example of Abraham And therefore his example of the Light and the Air is foolish for faith and doubt are not onely distinct but opposite and not mixt as is the Air and Light and a little Gold may be perfect and unmixed with dross so may little faith be perfect in its measure without doubting And though the knowledge and obedience of the Saints be not such as there can nothing be added unto or answerable to the infinite Love of God yet that doth not prove them in what they are to be defined His Answer to that Scripture brought by me 1 Joh. 3. 9. He that 's born of God sinneth not is most Impious and Antichristian as if the words imported onely He maketh not a trade of sinning for accordingly he might argue that where it is said Commit no Adultery do not Steal Murder c. it is onely understood that we ought not to make a trade of these sins but yet might practice them now and then Page 67. He addeth That as the Prophet Esa. 64. 6. saith not all our righteousness which is of thy working in us is as filthy rages so neither as we say all our righteousness which we even the best of Saints can perform of and from themselves are as filthy rags from thence infering That because of this general term all even the Righteousness of Christ in us ought to be accounted as filthy rags but for this he bringeth no proof and as the Prophet saith All so he saith Our which implyes it to be different from the Righteousness of Christ As he proceeds in the same Page he is highly confused first he sayes It ought not to make us ashamed that our Righteousness understanding that which Christ works in us are as filthy rags and

owne bare assertion though any may observe this to be his constant course when other Arguments fail him As he proceeds to prove the continuance of this practice he sayes It cannot be denied there was once a command for it and there is no repeal of it but the same recurs in washing one-anothers feet and anointing the sick with Oyl Jam. 5. 14. which were as expressly commanded and never repealed and yet W. M. can easily find a gloss to evict these rechoning it a small matter to forbear them he addeth That coming of Christ till which the Apostles were injoyned to be in the use of the outward Supper must be meant of his outward comming so many years after because such to whom Christ was come in the Spirit were found in the practice of it but this proves no more its continuance necessitate Precepti as he wordeth it then the Circumcising and being Circumcised under the Gospel will prove Circumcission to be binding upon us He concludes saying That surely we are great enemies to our Souls that oppose this Ordinance But answereth not one word of Page 56. where I shew how great reason we have to forsake it as also the many abuses where with they have corrupted it it suffiseth him to say That it is meeter to pass it by then to reply unto it for part of it being about the quallifications of Persons W. M. is loth to tell his Judgment least he should harp upon the old Independant controversy it is dangerous to touch this string especially while he injoyes his hire under the shadow of Episcopacy Head 12. Concerning the Ministry Pag. 96. He hath nothing to say against my affirming that the Quakers own the Ministry of the Word Pag. 97. speaking of Eph. 4. 11. where Paul saith Christ gave some Prophets some Evangelists some Pastors and Teachers He saith The first three are Extraordinary and Tempory the last two Ordinary and Perpetual for this he brings no Proof at all but that frequent Argument his own bare Assertion And whereas I tould him Pag. 58. of mine That the former three were not ceased citing for Proof Calvin who Inst. lib. 4. cap 3. avers That in his day God raised up Apostles and Evangelists to this he answers not one word As he goes on he repeats my words where I say That though we own the Ministry not to be common yet that doth not hinder but that any may speak as the Saints are met together according to 1 Cor. 14. 31. asking How I can make out that In that place is meant an ordinary Office though it might suffice for answer to ask what reason W. M. hath to frame here his distinction of Ordinary and Extraordinary yet it is obvious that the Apostle is here presenting the ordinary order of the Church he needed not present an order to extraordinary Offices for such as are extraordinarily sent are also instructed how to go about their Office and not limited to set Rules else it were not extraordinary Pag. 98. He goeth about to prove this distinction of Mediate and Immediate asking If the Prophets and Apostles were not called imediatly And if Timothie was not set apart to the work imediatly by the laying on of the hands of the Presbytery What then as the Apostles being called by the Lord did not hinder them from receiving the approbation and Testimony of the Brethren yea laying on of hands as did Paul who without doubt was as imediatly sent as any of the rest Act. 9. 17. So Timothes having the hands of the Presbytery laid on him doth not prove he wanted an inward imediate call in himself it is without any proof at all what he subjoynes That Paul saying he was an Apostle not by man doth oppose himself to Ordinary Ministers He adds That seeing I say That those who come Preaching the Gospel not in speach onely but also in Power and in the holy Ghost and in the evidence and demonstration of the Spirit give sufficient proof that they are called of God he thinks I should have favorable thoughts of Protestant Ministers who have given such proofs of their Call Answ. He should have tould me what these Protestant Ministers are whom he sayes we impiously censure or by what Rule he or his Brethren would be laying such claim to be Protestant Ministers so as to exclude the Quakers from being such Pag. 99. Though he quarrel me for saying that with Papists he pleads for Miracles he is so far from vindicating himself from this charge that he giveth again new ground for it saying That such as assert an imediate call ought to give tokens of it by Miracles c. adding That though John did no Miracles yet his call was attended with extraordinary things at his Conception and Birth Now this was the very objection which the Papists made against the first Reformers to whom Luther and Calvin replyed That though they had an imediate call yet there was no need of Miracles and this objection of W. M. is no other then that which almost in totidem verbis in as many words was objected to Beza at the conference of Poizy in France by Claudius Dispensus Doctor of the Sarbone who urged this very argument of John the Baptist confirming his call by the Testimony of Maláchy c. Alledging That they ought to confirm there call by Miracles to whom these are Beza his express words Hist. Eccles. of France Pag. 581. And as to what dispence thou Alledge that extraordinary Vocation is allways aproved by Miracles or by the Testimony of the Prophets I deny that it is allwayes so verified but if we must come to Miracles do you not think that the changing of the Life the fruit which is seen to proceed from this Doctrine in our time by Persons so contemptable and so much persecuted by the greatnest of the world are not sufficient Miracles as said the Apostle to the Corinthians that they were the Seals of his Apostleship So the rational Reader may observe that notwithstanding of W. Ms. so often laying claim to the Protestant Churches and Protestant Ministry and crying out against us as opposers of them he so directly makes use of Popish arguments against us and how we defend our selves by no other but the very same answers the Protestants gave unto the Papists yea of late W. Rett present Preacher of Dandy in his Book against Papists printed but the last year at Aberdeen doth plead That Miracles are not needful instancing that John the Baptist did none And so W. M. though he compare us to the Jesuites in his Epistle is so far one with them himself that if his evasion may be esteemed of worth whereby he seeks to overturn this example of John when brought by us he will rather furnish the Jesuites with it to fight against his Brother W. Rett or rather borrow it out of their atillery whereby they fight against Protestants then miss to have a hit at the Quakers may we not