Selected quad for the lemma: world_n

Word A Word B Word C Word D Occurrence Frequency Band MI MI Band Prominent
world_n church_n particular_a visible_a 5,102 5 9.5322 5 true
View all documents for the selected quad

Text snippets containing the quad

ID Title Author Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication) STC Words Pages
A87934 A letter from a person of honour, reconciling the dissenting brethren, (commonly called Independents) and the Presbyterians, in matter of judgement, about the setling of the church. Sent to an eminent divine of the Assembly. Person of honour. 1644 (1644) Wing L1421; Thomason E22_17; ESTC R21554 10,569 18

There are 2 snippets containing the selected quad. | View lemmatised text

A LETTER FROM A PERSON OF HONOUR RECONCILING The Dissenting Brethren commonly called Independents AND The Presbyterians in matter of Judgment about the setling of the CHURCH Sent to an eminent Divine of the Assembly LONDON Printed by R.A. M. DC XL V. SIR FOr the satisfaction of your desire expressed in the Letter I will first lay down some grounds which I conceive to be agreeable to truth and thereupon give you the Reason of my judgment and practice First I conceive a visible Ministring Church under the Gospell to be a Company of Believers joining themselves together in the name of Christ for the enjoyment of such Ordinances and exercise of such spirituall goverment as the Lord hath apointed for his worship and honour and their mutuall edification This description doth sufficiently express what is intended An exact definition such bodies are not so Capable of as some other things may be Neither needs it when what is meant is fully understood by both Parties therefore in such a Case to stick upon that doth produce rather a Litigation about words and terms then any satisfaction If the truth of any thing herein be questioned that must stand or fall according to Scripture I call it a Visible Ministring Church to distinguish it from that Universall which can be neither except we will admit the Pope or some Image of him some such humane device to be it virtually always to exist visibly for the performance of such duties as Christ hath enjoyned his Churches to perform upon all Occasions of Offence or otherwise And yet that will not serve neither except Courts and Officers be allowed even to the Apparitors as hands in all places to supply defects in this way I adde Under the Gospell because the Constitution under the Law was Nationall the Officers Ordinances and Places of Worship all fitted to such a frame and typicall which under the Gospell was changed as appeareth both by Christs institution Matth. 18. and all t●e Apostles practice throughout in all places who best understood our Saviours intention and meaning for the Constitution of Churches Evangelical being by him instructed ●nd left authorised thereunto Secondly The matter of this Church is a Company of Saints such whom as the Apostle so the Church that admits then or joyns with them ought to think it meet to judge of every one of them that Christ hath begun a good worke in them and will finisht it The Apostles always stile them Saints and faithfull Brethren or the Church of such a place which is in God the Father and in the Lord Jesus Christ Saints by Calling sanctified in Christ Jesus the Church Elected together with them and such like titles applyable only unto men sanctified That they ought to be such in profession will not be denied that they ought to be what they professe is as evident The power of the Church and the exercise of that power commanded by our Saviour is for this end that Offences may be taken away when men shall appear to be other then they make profession to be and that they may be prevented so far as man can judge by keeping out false brethren that they creep not in privily the unruly are to be admonished and if upon admonition they will not reforme Christ directeth what course shall be taken with them And he who is to be cast out when he is known ought not to be admitted could hee be knowne to be other then a Saint by the Church before he was received Thirdly The Form of such a visible Church I conceive to be the Relation which by their mutuall consent is raised between them for Spirituall Ends by which it is that they have power of jurisdiction and may and ought to judge those that are within 1 Cor. 5.12 Which jurisdiction no man can lawfully be subjected unto but by his own agreement The superioritie of Jurisdiction either in things Spirituall or Temporall if it be not naturall as the paternall must be voluntarily subjected unto or it is usurped and tyrannical Therefore to raise this Relation which gives a power of judging there must be a voluntary submission of themselves one to another testified by some Act whether you will call it a Covenant or Consent or Agreement between fit Members for such ends This Consent and agreement ought to be explicite or the wel being but not necessarily to the being of a true Church for it may be implied by such constant and frequent Acts of Communion performed by a company of Saints joined together by cohabitation in Townes and Villages as that the falling in of their spirits into this brotherly fellowship and communion in things spirituall is acted unto the true being of it but for the want of the cleere and full expression thereof among themselves the relation it raises the power it gives them one over anoher the dutie it obligeth them unto in the exercise of that power is obscurely and little apprehended and lesse practised This I conceive to be the present state of most of the Churches in this Kingdome which although they be true Churches I do not mean it of the whole Towns yet being too ignorant wherein that consisteth and what power and priviledge they have and ought to exercise by it they suffer themselves by usurpers to be deprived of the exercise of this power and thereby a mixed multitude presse in among them to their own hardning to the Churches levening contracting guilt through neglect of their dutie to seperate the vile from the precious suffering sin to fret like a Gangreen● and to the great dishonour of Ch●ist who hereby is held forth through the negligence of the Church to be an Head unto such members in the eye of the World There is besides through the same usurpation a yoke of bondage cast upon the Churches by the imposition of many humane devices both upon Officers and Members full of tyranny and Superstition the suffering whereof will cause the Lord to have many things against them but doth not unchurch them since many wants and many corruptions may stand with the being of a true Church as all Experience sheweth I expect hereupon to be demanded what Reasons I can give why Seperation should be made from such Churches which are acknowledged to be true Churches although with many wants and corruptions In answering whereof I shall give you an account of that I undertook And first I say this word Seperation is no such Bug-beare as many would make the world and themselves believe who hand over head without differencing things or persons or understanding that whereof they affirme take it up and cast it abroad with as little Charitie as Learning Seperation whereof we speak is either from the Communion of the Invisible Church Heb. 12. the Generall Assembly and Church of the first-borne which are written in Heaven or from this or that particular visible Churches Communion The first cannot be made but by denying the faith for the Requisites unto
that Communion are Faith and Love and this is a Seperation as fearfull and terrible as they would or can make Seperation to be The second consisteth in refusing to joine in the externall Communion of this or that particular Church as in their Liturgies publike Prayers participation of Sacraments and this Seperation upon due Cause may be made without any more danger or ill Consequences then there is in keeping our selves free from pertaking with other men in their sins and being made it neither seperates those men who made it from the Communion of the Catholike Church nor from internal Communion with the Saints of that particular visible Church as they are Saints and Members of the Catholike Church but only from the Corruptions of their Externall Communion which they hold in that visible Church whereof they are Luther made a seperation from the eternall communion of all the Churches in the world and hee with those that adhered to his doctrine in that seperation did constitute Churches more pure both in regard of their constitution and exercise of externall communion yet none but Papists or such in our times as linger after popery and would be glad of a Captain to lead them back again into Egypt will accuse him to have made a Schisme and brand him with the odious name of a Schismatick For he seperated not from believers as believers but from those corruptions which were universally spread over all in the externall communion that then was held in the Christian world And this hee was bound to doe and others with him who believed his doctrine if they would keepe themselves pure from the guilt of those common corruptions In the second place I answer that there is a necessity laid upon many and it is as I conceive the duty of all that have light to see it to seperate themselves from holding externall communion with many Churches here in England although acknowledged true Churches and that for these reasons First Because such things are required of them to bee performed if they will hold externall communion as they cannot practise without sin Secondly If they might be free for their own practise yet they cannot perform that duty which by Christs command lyeth upon them as members of a visible Church to performe and fulfil that they may not contract guilt and be leavened by the sinfull practises of fellow members For the first I wil instance in those things which being retained in these Churches and enjoyned upon all have been ever since the reformation of Religion opposed and witnessed against by the greatest Lights of this later age both strangers and of our own Nation yea and cast out by the purest if not by all other reformed Churches abjured as Antichristian by some only these which hang between heaven and earth and are still moving downwards towards the centre of their old superstitions doe not onely retain them but will suffer none to joyne in externall Communion with them except they will approve and practice what they do These are the usurping Hierarchie and the popish Ceremonies the devices of men the Ornaments and dresse of the Romish Whore thought decent and fittest for to adorn Gods worship not in my judgment at any time tolerabilis ineptiae in their use here as one calls the Ceremonies but at this time much lesse tolerable as they are maintained pressed the one not by Commission from the Magistrate but as a Superiour degree of Ministry by divine Institution not esteemed to be jure humano the other not as idle empty Ceremonies but serving to teach and expresse the inward affections of the heart The white Linnen what can that expresse but Angelicall puritie The Crosse hath its expression and what it teacheth is given unto it Constancie in Confession of the faith kneeling in the act of Receiving urged as a Gesture of more reverence and fitter for that Ordinance then that which our Saviour used and thought Congruous to it Unto these I will adde that Composition of a Divine publike worship by men which they call the Publike Prayers of the Church the Service book containing the divine Service White in his Epstle to the Archbishop of Canterbury before his book against the Sabbath stiles it the universall Sacrifice which amongst the Jews was the daily Offering the Morning and Evening Sacrifice This sheweth what apprehensions they have of it and in what sense they strictly enjoine that no part of it shall at any time be omitted that so the Divine Worship which the Church hath set apart and consecrated unto God may be fully observed and performed and then the Offering of God the daily Sacrifice wherein all have vote and interest is offered up see his own words in the place which is in the end of his Epistle Now this Consecrate thing more holy then the singlar and affected devotions of private Spirits because devoted to God by the Church and State for his publike service what is it but a device of man a new Cart taken up from the Papists as the Israelites in imitation of the Philistims heretofore did to case the Levits who ought to have carried the Arke upon their own shoulders and not suffered to be carried by beasts instead of men The same thing is done here Christ hath given gifts to men that those gifts may be the foundation of Offices for the Edification of his bodie He hath given Pastors and Teachers and therefore the Gift of Teaching the Word of Wisdom and the Word of Knowledge by the exercise of these gifts in the severall administrations whereto they serve he will be honoured and by an effectuall operation edific his bodie Those who are fitted for such Offices and called to them must therefore to these ends give themselves to prayer to the Ministerie of the Word In place hereof is brought in and enjoined to be used this new Cart which a boy of 12 yeeres old may drive even the meanest of the people if he will draw neer and fill his hand with this Service book may be a Scribe instructed sufficiently and furnished to bring forth what is here required so that instead of Christs way for his owne honour and his Churches edification here is mans way brought in instead of the Gifts which he giveth and furnisheth men with all to be exercised in the Ministerie here is a composure and frame of Divine Service pieced up together into a body by some men which must serve insteed of Gifts to all Men and for all Times and be enjoyned to be used without variation as comming from the publike spirit of the Church and thereby devoted Hereby they doe not only set their Posts by Gods Posts but they lay aside his and enjoine theirs only to be used as fitter for the building If it be said Men are not prohibited to exercise the gift of prayer nor preaching in their publike Ministerie I answer they are expresly enjoined to use no Praiers but these consecrated Praiers