holy Apostles are sufficient to perswade an humble Christian to receiue it as the Lords ordinance though it be not certainly knowne when Christ did ordaine it But it is probable that he gaue commandement concerning the same within those 40. daies after his resurrection When as it is written x Act. 1. 2. 3 in expresse words he gaue through the Holy Ghost Commandements vnto the Apostles whom he had chosen and spake of those things which appertaine to the Kingdome of God Now doth it not especially appertaine to the kingdome of God that Christians should sanctifie their Lords day wherein y 1. Cor. 1. 23. 24. Christ crucified z 1. Tim. 3. 16. The mystery of godlines and a Mat. 1. 21. Sauiour of the world should be * Act. 10. 42. 43. preached as well as the Iewes had their Sabbath on which Moses A schoole master b Gal. 3. 24 to Christ and A minister of the Letter c 2. Cor. 3. 6. which killeth was d Act. 15. 21. preached Againe If in those 40. daies Christ e Eph 4. 8. 10. 11. appointed what Ministers should teach his Church for euer how can it be but that theÌ„ also he appointed some Sabbath wheron they should ordinarily performe the worke of their ministerie as hee was wont f Luk. 4. 16. to do himselfe Seeing it is prophecied g Psal 110. 2. 3. That the power of his rod should be such that His people should come willingly at the time of assembling his army in holy beauty Seeing his Father whose works * Ioh. 5. 19. he imitateth appointed h Leuit. 16. 2. 29. as an high Priest so a time when once in a yeere he should enter into the Most holy place and as other Priests i Exod. 29. 44. 38. so morning and euening sacrifices and considering it is written k Eccles 3. 1. To euery purpose vnder heauen there is an appointed time Lastly If the Sonne be like his Father as in teaching his Apostles 40. daies for so long l Exod. 24. 12. 18. 39. 42. was Moses with the Father vpon the mount so in speaking those things which appertaine to the kingdome of God as his Father taught Moses al things belonging to the furnishing of the Tabernacle and If the Sonne be like his Father in sanctifying a day to his owne honor as hath been declared Why may not Christians beleeue that Christ sanctified The Lords day within those 40. daies as the Father m Deut. 9. 9 confirmed The seuenth day in those 40. daies that Moses was with him on the mount And the rather because it is te be obserued That the Disciples n Ioh. 20. 19. 26. assembled the two first daies of the two weeks immediatly following Christ his resurrection and that our Lord not only of purpose sanctified both those assemblies with his holy and miraculous presence but also immediatly before his Ascension commanded his Apostles o Act. 1. 4. 5. 7. 9. to wait a few daies for the promise of the Father Which by his prouidence in whose power bee times and seasons as Christ affirmed euen in this case was fulfilled p Mark 16. 1. 2. Leuit. 23. 15. 16. Act. 2. 1. 4. 14. vpon a Sonday and at the same time the Apostles first began the execution of their ministery and preached Christ publiquely But publique preaching q Num. 10. 7. 8. Isa 58. 1. Ezech. 44. 23. 24. Act. 23. 14. 42. is a speciall worke of the Sabbath day It may therefore bee gathered That Christ appointed his Apostles to sanctifie Sonday whereon he would manifest himselfe r 1. 6. 7. 8 to be King of Israel as his Father instituted A seuenth day as on which he was manifested to bee GOD of heauen and earth To conclude If Saturday were made common not by man but by God himselfe and that not for a Ceremony but for some other cause If God sanctified a Sabbath as well to Christians as to Iewes If euery ordinance of Christ were an ordinance of God If Christ were as faithfull in all his owne house as Moses about the Tabernacle If Christ came to fulfill the fourth Commandement which prescribeth one day of seuen If the Church of God bee not easily to bee condemned as neglecting the ordinance of God in sanctifying Sonday for many huÌ„dred yeeres If Christ were like his Father in sanctifying that day to his owne honor whereon he was declared to be the Sonne of God and King of Israel to wit Sonday If the day be so appointed that the Creator is glorified with the Redeemer If it appeare by the Word that the first day of the week was confirmed by the Apostles practise and preceptiue exhortation If by the first day of the week be meant that day wheron Christ did rise againe and that was Sonday If in the Word Sonday be called The Lords day to the honour of Christ our Lord If the warrant of Sonday consisteth not in the ordinarie authoritie of the Church because it was established by the Apostles If euery spirituall man be to acknowledge the ordinances of the Apostles to bee the ordinances of the Lord and If the Apostles were informed by Christ touching the Lords day within those 40. daies after his resurrection I may safely hold this my Position The Lords day commonly called Sonday is an ordinance of God THE SECOND POSITION THE CHVRCH OF ROME IS not the Catholike Church neither yet hath continued an apparant member of the same euer since the Apostles time 1 THe Church is said to be Catholike in regard of the vniuersality thereof for this word Catholike signifieth Vniuerfall The Vniuersalitie thereof consisteth in Times Persons and Places For there is no age of the world no nation on the earth and no sort of people that can be exempted from the same And therefore it is called The celestial Hierusalem and said to be the congregation Heb. 12. 22. 23. of the first borne which are written in heauen So that we are to beleeue That as there hath been euer an head to wit Christ so there hath been also a body to wit the Church some where or other but the Church of Rome is a particular Church confined within a certaine compasse and hath not been a Câ—â—â—â—â— but since Christ his comming in tâ—◠〈◊〉 therfore it is not the Catholique Câ—â—â—â—â— 2 The Catholique Church is an obiect of faith according to the Apostles Creed and therefore inuisible howsoeuer the members thereof called by Peter Liuely 1. Pet. 2. 5. Heb. 11. 1. stones be visible as they be men For faith is the euidence of things not seene But the Church of Rome is visible therefore not the Catholique Church 3 I grant that as one man so one particular Church may be called Catholike but it is only in regard of the Catholique faith as being one the same throughout the Catholique Church which that one man or
CARPENTERS CHIPPES OR SIMPLE TOKENS OF vnfeined good will to the Christian Friends of IAMES BALMFORD vnworthie seruant of Iesus Christ a poore Carpenters Sonne Act. 3. 6. Such as I haue that giue I thee Printed for Richard Boyle 1607. THREE POSITIONS Concerning the 1 Authoritie of the Lords day 2 State of the Church of Rome 3 Execution of Priests ALL WRITTEN VPON SPEciall occasion by IAMES BALMFORD Minister 2. Tim. 2. 7. Consider what I say and the Lord giue thee vnderstanding in all things AT LONDON Imprinted by Felix Kyngston for RICHARD BOYLE 1607. TO THE RIGHT HONORABLE AND VERTVOVS LADY THE LADY MARGARET Countisse of Cumberland IAMES BALMFORD an vnprofitable seruant of Iesus Christ wisheth all true honor in this life and eternall glorie in the life to come I Will honor them who 1. Sam. 2. 30 honor me saith the Lord of Lords but in no one thing is that Lord more honored than in a religious sanctifying of the Lords day which is an holy Signe Exod. 31. 13 betweene the Lord and vs that he doth sanctifie vs to be his people and that we sanctifie him to be our God Of which day it is thus written If thou turne away Isa 58. 13. 14. thy foote from the Sabbath frō doing thy will on mine holy day and call the Sabbath a delight to cōsecrate it as glorious to the Lord and shalt honour him not doing thine owne waies nor seeking thine own wil nor speaking a vaine word Then shalt thou delight in the Lord and I will cause thee to mount vpon the high places of the earth and feed thee with the heritage of Iacob thy father For the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it In which words we may obserue 1. How highly the Lord esteemeth his Sabbath 2. How religiously the people of God are to sanctifie the same 3. That they who make no conscience of such sanctifying the Sabbath can neuer delight in the Lord what profession soeuer they make and 4. That religious sanctifying the Sabbath as it is a principall part of Godlinesse so it hath a speciall promise of speciall blessings euen in this life With these and many other most gracious words would God perswade man to bee holy But man hath sought out many inuentions and amongst the rest this conceipt That the Lords day is not the ordinance of God Vpon which ground many make no more conscience of sanctifying the Lords day than of keeping holie daies so called ordained only by humane authoritie and some by writing not yet published haue opened a gappe to much licentiousnesse To sloppe which gappe as I may I haue endeuoured to proue That the Lords day is an ordinance of God Which Position with two other concerning the Church of Rome and Execution of Priests written vpon iust occasions and by perswasion the former of your Honor the other of that right Christian Noble-man of most honorable memorie Henry late Earle of Huntington I houe published vnder your Right Honorable name As knowing your well informed zeale for the Lords day and against the Synagogue of Rome to be such that England were the happiest nation in the world if all noble personages were indued with the like And withall hoping that by these and other more Diuine Treatises the same shall be yet more and more inflamed to the glorie of God and comfort of your owne Soule THE FIRST POSITION THE LORDS DAY commonly called Sonday is an ordinance of GOD. IF this bee true that man is not to pollute a Act. 10 15 what God hath sanctified and If Saturday so called were sanctified by God I appeale to the consciences of Gods people for iudgement whether Man can make Saturday common without warrant from God himselfe If not then Saturday is made common either in regard of some Ceremonie or by God himselfe for some other speciall cause As hee permitted a man vncleane b Numb 9 10 11. or in a long iourney to make common the Passeouer which otherwise was to be kept in the first moneth That there was no Ceremony in the Iewes Sabbath to bee abrogated by the comming of Christ I haue proued in another Discourse which with sundrie points concerning the Sabbath I am desirous to publish hereafter if God will In the meane while I desire the Reader to consider these briefe notes 1. That the Sabbath was made c Mark 2 27. Deut. 5. 14 15. for man yea so that great care is had of seruants their rest which is no ceremoniall respect 2. That the Learned do so disagree about the supposed Ceremony that one affirmeth Rest and denieth The seuenth day another affirmeth the seuenth day and denieth Rest to be the Ceremony 3. That the fourth Commandement which by cōsequence gaue confirmation to Saturday before Christ his death as now to Sonday and euery word thereof was d Exod. 34. 1. twise written by the finger of God in tables of stone To shew e 19 11. 20 1. Deut. 4 12 13. 14. Gen. 17 9 10 22 23. That the Decalogue as it was preached to the Church immediately by God himselfe before it was written by God and deliuered to Moses on the Mount so it is eternall as God himselfe As the Gospell preached by Christ himselfe who was God as well as Man is eternall Gal. 3. 19. Heb. 12. 27. 28. 21. c. 8. 2. Whereas Circumcision and the ceremoniall Law brought from God to the Church by Abraham and Moses was temporall 4. That none of the other nine Commandements except the second by Papists is said to be in any part ceremoniall 5. That Saturday of it selfe without the consideration of Rest or the number Seuen both which are also liable to Sonday cannot signifie any thing to come 6. That it was sanctified f Gen. 2. 3. in Paradise though not expressely named and therfore not instituted at the first to signifie Christ to come and therefore no more a Ceremonie to be abrogated by the comming of Christ than Marriage which g Gen. 2. 23. 24. was also instituted in Paradise and is figuratiuely applied to signifie h Ephes 5. 25. c. the spirituall coniunction betweene Christ and his Church But let it be supposed that Saturday was ceremoniall What other thing is thereupon to be inferred but that therefore it ceaseth to be Gods Holy day But can we imagine that God would take no order that another day should be established for his owne worship Did hee sanctifie a Sabbath in the time of innocency and when there were none to keep it but Adam and Eue And would he not appoint a Sabbath in the time i Mat. 19 28. of Regeneration when his people were k Isa 2 2 3. multiplied his Sonne l Psal 110. 1 2 3. King in Sion and the power of his rod such that as it was prophecied His people should come willingly at the time of assembling his army in holy beautie
Did he himselfe not only institute a Seuenth day in Paradise to our first Parents but cōfirmed it also m Exod. 20 1 8. to the Iewes And will he leaue Christians n 1. Pet. 2 9. Achosen generation and Royall Priest-hood without a Sabbath sanctified by his Diuine authoritie considering the Sabbath o Exod. 31 13 17. is a signe that wee may know that hee is the Lord who doth sanctifie vs to be his people And to what other end than p Ezech. 46 1 2 3. to worship him our Sanctifier Lastly when the Passeouer was not kept in the first moneth because of vncleannesse or a long iourney did God suffer it either to be omitted or translated as it seemed good to the Israelites Nay he himselfe q Num. 19 10 11. nominated the fourteenth day of the second moneth to be kept for the Passeouer in those cases Was God so zealous for the Passeouer a ceremoniall Sabbath therefore temporall And would hee neglect The seuenth day a morall Sabbath and therefore eternall Sith in the fourth precept he commandeth A seuenth day to be holy for euer For as hee commaundeth Worship vpon the Sabbath prescribing neither Iewish nor Christian so he commandeth A seuenth day to be the Sabbath prescribing neither Saturday nor Sonday So that the fourth Commandement and euery word thereof without any alteration doth belong to Christians as well as to Iewes If so then I conclude that whether Saturday were made common because of a ceremony or for some other respect some other day in place thereof was sanctified to holy worship by diuine authoritie If it be obiected that whereas by God himselfe the institution of the Iewes their Sabbath was commanded vnto Adam and the cōfirmation therof promulgated to the Israelites with the rest of the Decalogue It is strange that it should cease not of it selfe as being ceremoniall but for some other speciall cause and another day appointed in the place thereof and that by God and yet it is not knowne whether immediately or by whom God made this alteration I answere that as God at the last day will iudge the world r Act. 17. 31 by the man whom he hath appointed so in the meane time he doth gouerne the Church by his Sonne ſ Psal 2. 6. Joh. 5. 22. Col. 3. 1. 2. 20. whom hee hath placed King in Sion So that whatsoeuer the Sonne doth is authenticall and of Diuine authoritie Not only because hee is God t Rom. 9. 5. 1. Tim. 6. 14. 15. 16. blessed for euer but also in that he is that great Prophet u Deut. 18. 18. 19. Act. 3. 20. 22. like vnto Moses whom we are to heare For he doth nothing of himselfe * Ioh. 3. 32. 33. 8. 28. but as his Father taught him But that Christ the Sonne of the liuing God sanctified that other Sabbath day I thus proue If the Sonne bee as faithfull in all his owne house in things concerning the worship of God x Heb. 3. 2. 5. 6. as Moses the seruant If Christ bee the Messias y Ioh. 4. 19. 20. 25. 26. who should teach vs all things If Moses prescribed euery thing belonging to the Tabernacle z Exod. 25. 9. 38. euen to a paire of snuffers If the things belonging to the house of God befew in cōparison of those which belonged to the Tabernacle of Moses because the houre is come when a Ioh. 4. 23. wee must worship the Father in Spirit and Truth that is spiritually b Gal. 3. 3. without the intolerable c Act. 15. 10 Gal. 4. 3. yoke of carnall d Heb. 9. 1. 10. rites If a Sabbath be as necessarie vnto the edification of Christ his house as a paire of snuffers to the seruice of Moses his Tabernacle then without doubt Saturday being made common Christ appointed some other day to be a Sabbath vnto his people as the Leuiticall Priest-hood being ceased e Heb. 7. 11. 12. Ephes 4. 8. 11. 12. he sanctified another Ministery vnder the Gospell Againe whereas Christ came f Mat. 5. 17. not to breake but to fulfill the Law and the Law doth command one day of seuen to be a Sabbath as is said Therefore Christ did either cōfirme Saturday or sanctifie some other day of the weeke but that he confirmed Saturday none will affirme therefore he sanctified some other day of the weeke Which to be Sonday I thus proue We see that Sonday is generally kept holy in all the Churches of Christ And there is nothing to the contrarie but that it hath been sanctified In and since the Apostles time If then God by Christ hath sanctified a Sabbath vnto Christians it must necessarily follow that either the Church hath neuer regarded but neglected the ordinance of GOD for many hundred yeeres or else that Sonday was sanctified by Christ. But the former is not easily to bee admitted considering the Church g 1. Tim. 3 15. is the Pillar of truth therefore the later more willingly to be receaued Againe if the Sonne h Ioh. 5 19 21. doth whatsoeuer the Father doth and if the Father hath committed all iudgement to the Sonne i Exo. 22 23 that all men should honor the Sonne as they honor the Father then as the Father sanctified A seuenth day k Gen. 2 2 3 as on which he finished his works of Creation and l Rom. 1 19. 20. was declared mightily to be the liuing God m Exod. 31 13 17. to his owne honor and therfore n Isa 58 13. did call it mine holy day For it was not a shadow of Sanctification as some dreaming of a ceremony do imagine but A Signe to Gods people of their Sanctifier that is A tokē or memorial that they may know that the Creator is the Lord who doth sanctifie them to bee his people So the Sonne sanctified that day o 1. Cor. 15 16 17 57. Rom. 8 34. whereon he consummated and sealed his workes of Redemption and was declared mightilie p 1 4. to be the Sonne of God to his owne honor Which was Sonday called for that respect q Reuel 1 10. The Lords day as shall bee declared hereafter For * Leuit. 23 15 16. Matth. 28 1 5 6. vpon that day r Rom. 4 25 Christ rose againe for our Iustification and manifested himselfe to be ſ Act. 1 6 7 8 2. 1. the spirituall King of his Church by miraculous giuing the power of the Holy Ghost vnto his Apostles So that Sonday is a signe or memoriall vnto Christians that they may know that the Redeemer is the Lord who doth sanctifie them If it bee demaunded why Christians should so honor the Sonne that they neglect the Father and so celebrate the memoriall of the Redeemer that they neglect the memoriall of the Creator Seeing it is written t Ioh. 4 23. The houre is come when the true