Selected quad for the lemma: world_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
world_n	catholic_a	church_n	communion_n	2,376	5	9.1446	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A79988	The cry of a stone, or, a treatise; shewing what is the right matter, forme, and government of the visible church of Christ. How, and wherein the present Church of England is wanting and defective, both in the body of the land, and in the parochiall branches thereof, with divers reasons and grounds taken from the Scriptures, to perswade all that feare God, rather to suffer any afflictions at the hands of men, than to submit to mans carnall policy and humane devices in the worship of God, or be deprived of the sweet fellowship of the saints in the right order of the Gospel. Together with a just reproofe of the over-strained and excessive separation, contentions and divisions of such as commonly are called Brownists. By Robert Coachman.	Coachman, Robert.	1642 (1642)	Wing C4746; Thomason E137_32; ESTC R208315	72,606	82

because I find that things are easiest understood when they are set downe shortly and when there is no enterlacings or surplusage of words more then barely to expresse the thing intended I have endeavoured for a plaine and familiar stile and yet avoyded light or affected phrases I have traduced no mans person otherwise than as the things beare witnesse against them I have given all the honour to men that I may with feare of my Maker And if yet either the Job 32. 22. matter or manner be defective or any thing out of joynt remember still it is but the Cry of a Stone which never learned to speake either Latine or English in any Schoole whatsoever And take heed of stumbling over the truth for some balkes in the way but if the thing aimed at be the right setling of the Saints in the order of the Gospel otherwise than the vaine ostentation and pompe of this age will permit rather set thy selfe to helpe the Author to beare his crosse Luke 22. 28 and follow Christ in his temptations then like Mat. 19. 28. a Sycophant to sit downe and scoffe at his wants of learning and eloquence The Lord of his mercy pardon all our aberrations and failings and give us grace to seeke him earnestly in love and sincerity that our true comfort may increase here and our eternail comfort remaine hereafter Thine in the Lord Robert Coachman An Advertisement to the Reader TO the end that the ingenuous and godly designe of this Author of reconciling these differences betweene those Christians of the English Parishes and those of the Separation may not miscarry observe that in blaming the Church of England and the Ministery thereof hee doth not meane the personall Graces Knowledge and Learning of any Christians there but he blames the confused manner of gathering Churches by house rowes of all sorts and by the Ministery hee meanes the externall office conveyed to them by that authority which hee doth justly oppose And when he speaks of the Separation hee is not against the cause much lesse the moderate way of the Churches of the Separation nor their rejecting of the prophane world from those privileges proper and peculiar to a visible Church as seales censures c. but he speaks against those personall errors of some who professe separation their erroneous opinions who deny all visible Christians in the parish assemblies and thereupon leave them in personall communion as Prayer Preaching Conference c. Now the God of all grace and mercy so dispose of all his servants that the great affaires of Jesus Christ may not miscary in their hands but that they may at last so discover errors that they may attain both peace and truth Amen The CONTENTS of the BOOKE OF the essentiall marks and notes of the visible Church pg. 1 2. The visible Church hath right to all Gods Ordinances pg. 4 3. The Church or Churches of England cannot be justified pg. 8 4. What Ordinances of God may be used in the parish assemblies and what not pg. 10 5. It is no wrong to Gods people when the carnall multitude is taxed and they perswaded to leave them pg. 12 6. It is best for wicked men to be kept from the comforts of salvation untill they repent pg. 14 7. It is in vaine to seeke the reformation of a Church when the Materialls are naught pg. 16 8. It is a matter of great weight and necessity for Christians to live in a right ordered Church pg. 18 9. The reformed Churches are not condemned but admonished by this strict practice pg. 22 10 The prohibition of the Magistrate though he be a Christian may not hinder our obedience to the Gospel pg. 23 11. Moses example in building the Tabernacle was no ordinary rule for after times pg. 25 12. The examples of the Kings of Israel and Judah in restoring Gods Worship doe not binde to any fashions in Religion but Christs pg. 26 13. A comparison of the paterne of Christs Church with the Church of England pg. 27 14. A proportionable application of the Jewes State unto our times pg. 28 15. The submission of the Jewes to the Heathen Kings about building the Temple is no imitable practice about the Church pg. 30 16. The onely way to establish the Gospel and the pure Ordinances thereof is to suffer persecution for it pg. 31 17. The time of suffering is now come pg. 32 18. Other motives to perswade us to suffering pg. 33 19. It is no strange thing for Christians to be persecuted of Christians pg. 35 20. The scandalls in the separated Churches is no Argument to condemne their practice pg. 37 The second part 21. THe rigid Separation overrun their course in their first onset pg. 41 22. The generall Ohjection against hearing in the Parish assemblies answered pg. 43 23. What preaching it and who may preach as also where and to whom pg. 44 24. Of the libertie that the Word of God ought to have pg. 45 25. The particular objections against hearing in the Parish assemblies answered pg. 47 26. Other objections against hearing answered pg. 50 27. They that goe about to justifie the Ministers in England in their office drive men from the Church altogether pg. 54 28. The strict separation cannot hold together amongst themselves pg. 56 29. There are some sinnes that must be borne in the Church pg. 58 30. What kind of sins and sinners they be that may be borne in the Church pg. 60 31. Three cautions concluding the Doctrine of forbearance pg. 61 32. The Conclusion and Summe of all pg. 63 The CRY of a STONE Of the essentiall marks and notes of the visible Church THere is nothing that can rightly be described by any SECT 1. speciall Ornaments or priviledges thereof but hee that will make a true and proper definition of any thing must describe it by such properties as are so essentiall to the thing as that being there they make it to be that it is and being absent it ceaseth to be any more the same The Church is often compared to a house yea called Gods 1. Tim. 3. 15. House Now no man can describe a house by the ornaments and furniture thereof but onely by the matter and forme both which being together there is indeed a house but if either be absent the house cannot be Indeed when materials are framed wee sometimes say there is a house though no forme appeare but such speaking is improper and it may rather be said there is stuffe for a house then a house indeed so in regard of the true materials of the Church the people of God whose hearts are framed to holinesse and sanctitie dwelling here and there in the world and never combining into a body nor perhaps knowing they should so doe may yet be said in an improper kind of speaking to be the Church of God but this cannot be said but of the Church in generall and universall combined and knit together

writings of Isaiah Ieremy Ezechiel and the rest are so many sermons of direction and advice to the Kings of Israel and Iuda Now if these godly Kings did thus who can thinke that any now can be privileged so farre as to be sole Law-givers for the Church of God Fourthly the Revelations of Moses were delivered with such heavenly Majesty Signes Miracles and wonders from heaven as no man could Exod. 20. 18. and 40. 38. 24. 8. doubt or call in question of the immediate finger of God in the establishing of them but never since nor now neither are there any Laws or Precepts of Princes confirmed with that heavenly Testimony but that doubt may be made whether the King of heaven ratifie them or not Fifthly When Moses wrote Lawes no man had ever written any before him so that as these Lawes were infallible so they were alone but now divers Magistrates make their Laws different for the Church and Religion and if we may not amidst them all and without disparagement to any man cleave unto the Lawes of Christ who infallibly hath given the Lawes for the Church as did Moses for the Tabernacle Heb. 3. 1. 2. 5. and is become our everlasting Priest and Prophet for ever and must reigne over his alone we shall presently have as many formes of Churches as there arise Governours and as many Church Lawes as the unsettled mindes and uncertaine capacity of fraile man pleaseth to make Sixthly If Moses example in giving the Law for the Tabernacle teach us to submit to the Religious Lawes of Christian Princes now without questioning or altering then why ought we not also if we live under them to submit to the Lutheran Arian or Popish Princes for it cannot be denyed but that they are Christians And what folly and ignorance was it in the Martyrs aforetime to lose their lives A dishonour to Martyrdome so many of them and expose themselves and theirs to such slavery and misery if in the Court of heaven and before God they might have beene excused so long as they had followed the Lawes of their Christian Governours The examples of the Kings of Israel and Judah in restoring Gods Worship doe not bind to any fashions in Religion but Christs IT is further objected from the Kings of Israel and Iudah as David SECT 12. Asa Hezechiah and Iosiah c. who restored Religion repaired the Object 5 Temple and brought in the Law and the Ordinances without 2 Chron. 30. 1. 35. 1. 2 3. 1 King 8. 1. any advice or consultation of the people and so now the Kings as agents to appoint and command the people as patients to suffer and obey that which is commanded c. I answer first all this still sheweth what forwardnesse there Answer 1 ought to be in godly Princes when faithfulnesse is departed from their Lands namely by their examples and edicts to seeke to raise some life againe in that which is dead but that the people may doe nothing in Gods worship till their Princes begin but may remaine as cold and as carelesse or superstitious as they and as the rebellious Jewes were is an unreasonable and unsound affirmation For it cannot be imagined but it had beene lawfull to have read the Law of God though Iosiah had not commanded it as also the Priests might have cleansed the Temple and have offered the sacrifices and the people might have eaten the Passeover and brought their oblations though the Princes had forbid it since these Statutes were Exod. 12. 24. 25 27. 21. nor given onely to the Kings but to all the House of Israel As the Kings of Israel and Iudah were types of Christ the eternall King so they were successors and imitators of Moses and they onely which most strictly followed Moses are most approved and commended for their faithfulnesse but now the succession of Moses being 2 King 23. 25. cut off by a more perfect and better Lawgiver there is now no Law or policie that can be devised for the gathering and ordering of the Church that deserves any commendation but onely Christs yea and whosoever is not with Christ therein is against him and be he what he will he is rather a scatterer than a gatherer with him So that as the Kings of Israel looked into the Lawes of Moses for direction to build repaire and stablish the Temple and Ordinances of God then so now if Princes will establish Religion and settle a Church whither shall they goe for a patterne but to Christ A Comparison of the patterne of Christs Church with the Church of England CHrist though he had all power in heaven and earth yet he SECT 13. raised no forces nor pitched no fields to compell Nations and Countries to be of his Church but sent out his Ambassadors Mat. 28. 18 19. Luke 14. 17 18. 2 Cor. 10. 4. 2 Cor. 5. 20. Acts 17. 34. and Messengers unarmed in any carnall weapons to passe thorow Kingdomes and Countries with intreatings and beseechings to gather here and there a man to him and such as by preaching would believe and by voluntary submission would obey of them onely he became the Captaine and Head secondly when hee had gathered his Church together he fed them not with dead decrees nor carnall Devices Ioh. 6. 51. 53 1 Cor. 12. 7. 1 Pet. 2. 2. but with his Word Flesh and Spirit which nourished to life eternall thirdly hee governed them not by any stately or pompous power but by such rules and regiments as their necessities required and themselves desired 1 Cor. 5. 4. And if now by glittering swords and sounds of trumpets Churches be gathered by thousands and that wee are growne to such pomp and swelling in words that we can talke of a Catholique visible Church of a Christian world of a Nationall Church c. Let the multitudes sound as loud as they will I feare mee heaven will have never the more of them but when all is done his Word will stand that saith Few finde the way to life and Christ chooseth not Mat. 7. 13. 14. a world but a remnant out of the world And yet whilest proud flesh and carnall policie thus vainly presumeth how doe men struggle and strive by wit policie and learning to make that stand for truth which onely times have hatched and to make true Religion stand with all the faire shew in the flesh that may be but in the meane time what scattering scambling and contradicting there is and how men are plunged and fumbled to bind the truth and the times in a bundell that even the most wisest and ablest have even lost themselves about it A proportionable application of the Iewes State unto our times TRue it is that when the Kings of Iudah commanded the Ordinances SECT 14. of Moses the people were bound to obey them even in Religious rites but if they should have varied from Moses rule the question is whether