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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A78018	Conformitie's deformity. In a dialogue between conformity, and conscience. Wherein the main head of all the controversies in these times, concerning church-government, is asserted and maintained; as without which, all reformation is headlesse, and all reconciliation hopelesse. Dedicated by Henry Burton, to the honour of Jesus Christ, as the first-fruits of his late recovery from death to life; as a testimony of his humble and thankfull acknowledgement of so great a mercy: and published for the service of all those, that love the Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity ...	Burton, Henry, 1578-1648.	1646 (1646)	Wing B6160; Thomason E358_20; ESTC R201164	26,532	40

Gods glory suffers the least diminution And therefore Conformity now that you are about the setting forth of your Confession of Faith let not this one Article be missing That you do believe confesse and professe before all the world that JESVS CHRIST is the sole King and Law-giver to every particular visible Church of his and over every particular mans conscience So as no Power on earth may usurp authority upon what pretence soever to make and impose what laws they please to bind the Conscience or to regulate the Churches of God but ought to leave both Conscience and Churches to the only rule and law of Christ the Scripture to which alone every mans conscience must be consined all Divine worship in all things conformed and all Church-Government reduced And for a close of all I pray thee Conformity advise all thy Colleagues that they would abstain from stirring up sedition in Pulpits and great Tables against the Parliament perswading to hold the Parliament to it till you obtain your desires to retain the Scots in England till their Government be here setled which would unsettle and overthrow our fundamental lawes and liberties which you go about in thus seeking to force the Parliament but learn to be wise honest loyal good Christians true Patriots true-bred English-men lest it prove bitternesse in the latter end For God is avenger of all such And so farewell Conformity FINIS THE CONTENTS of this DIALOGVE HOW Christs kingdome is the troubler of States p. 2. How a worldly kingdome comes to be set up for Christs spirituall kingdome ibid. The Heathen Emperour a shame to Christians ib. How Conformity is a troubler of Israel ib. The opin●on we have of men no good ground for conscience to build upon p. 3. Small difference between a Papist and Protestant at large ib. How a Synod of learned Protestants may erre in some fundamentals of faith ib. Many in England under a grand heresie and what it is p. 5 Faith denied no lesse in practice then in words p. 7. The evils of practicall deniall of the truth p. 8. Conformity can finde no better proofs for it in Scripture then the Pope for his Papality p. 9. Conformity answered concerning the model wherewith Conscience is so much cast in the teeth ibid. Great difference between the pattern in the Old Testament and the model in the New ib. Conformity put to prove many particulars of his Church by Scripture p. 10. Conformitie's objection concerning some Kings of Judah answered ib. Conscience free from mens yoaks p. 11. Conformity how the mysterie of iniquity its beginning growth full stature p. 12. Conformity the sluice or inlet of all superstition and slavery ibid. Sundry fearfull examples of Gods judgements upon Conformity p. 13. Conformity a necessary introducer of Popery when a State hath a popish Prince and Parliament as England hath had and may have again for ought we know p. 14. Conformity in worship to mens Precept brings a wonderfull spirituall judgement of blindnesse and deprivation of wisdome and understanding p. 15. All sorts put to try and examine themselves in sundry weighty particulars whether that prophesie Esay 29. 13 14. fall not heavie upon them wherein Conscience severs the innocent from the guilty p. 16. How Conformity is hypocrisie and a removing of the heart far from God ib. The many bad fruits of Conformity 17. How Conformity seeks to overtop the supream power p. 19. How the Scotish Church-government so much cryed up by the English Clergie is incompatible with the fundamentall laws and liberties of our English Nation p. 20. How Church orders or disorders as Heresie or Schisme may be or not be for all the Civil power p. 23. How Conscience clears it self from any withdrawing of due obedience to the Magistrate ib. What limits God hath set to the Magistrate ib. How prone mans nature is to idolize men in setting up a State-Religion and how slothfull to search the Scripture the only rule of faith and the evill consequence hereof p. 25. The counsel that Conscience gives Conformity at their parting and what he must of necessity do to make peace and hold communion with Conscience p. 26 FINIS Job 32. 22 Honos onus 1 Sam. 6. 9. Mat. 23. 2 Sam. 6. Rev. 17. Rev. 18. Luke 23. 2 5. Euseb. Eccl. Hist. John 7. 26. 48. 1 Cor. 3. 11. * 1 Joh. 4. 3. * Thess. 2. 4. * John 2. 22. * John 8. 32. * 1 Cor. 15. * 2 Pet. 2. 1 2. {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} Haereses vastantes * {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} * {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} * {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} As those infamous books of Tho. Edwards and Iohn Bastwick too welknown to all Notus nimis omnib Horat. * Tit. 1. 16 Tit. 1. 14 15. * Mat. 16. 18. * Luke 22 38. John 16. 13. * Exo. 25. 30. Heb. 8. 5. * 1 Chro. 28. 12 19. Chap. 43. 10. * 2 Cor. 2. 24. * 1 Pet. 5. 3. * 1 Cor. 7 23. Mat. 23. Rom. 14. 4 2 Thess. 2 4. * 3 John Gen. 8. 9. Dan. 3. * 1 Kings 19. 18. * 1 Kings 12. 28. * Hos. 5. 11. * John 11. 48. Esa. 26. 11 * Mat. 26. 61. Luke 23. 2 2. 3. 4. Regnum Angliae Regnū Dei Polydor. Virgil Chron. * Quos perdere vult Deus hos prius dementat * 2 Tim. 3. 5. In Ordine ad Spiritual ● * And if the Reeder desire surthet satisfaction were it needfull to the wise let him read the late book entituled The Troian horse of the Presbyterial government unbowelled Iudg. 19. 15. * Joh. 19. 7 Luke 19. 14. Rom. 12. Esa. 9. 7. * Actum est de R●lig●one ubi vel m●●imum de rahitur de D●● gloria Calvin

instance we need not go beyond the seas or over our English bounds to fetch it What if the generality of the Ministers and people in England be found to be wrapped in such a destructive Heresie I call it destructive using the * Apostles word where he saith That there shall be false teachers among Gods people who shall cunningly bring in destr●ying Heresies And what are these Even denying the Lord that bought them bringing upon themselves * swift destruction And many shall follow their destructive wayes or their destructions by whom the way of truth shall be * evill spoken of or blas●hemed A Prophesie by the way which if well weighed and rightly applyed may be found to be in a great measure fulfilled in these our times For here is first a destructive or as our common Translation damnable Heresie Secondly this Heresie * is in deaying the Lord Jesus Christ Thirdly here is a many followers Fourthly among this many there be some at least who have their mouthes open in Pulpits Streets Tables and their Quils in Presses in Pamphlets blaspheming speaking all manner of evill against the way of truth even that way of truth which holdeth forth confesseth professeth maintaineth against all the worlds reproaches Jesus Christ in that very particular wherein he is at this day so mightily decried and denied by false Teachers and their followers Nor can any Age as touching this one particular be paralleld with this of ours for Pens and Tongues of blasphemy lashing out and running over all the bounds and banks not only of Christianity but even of common modesty and humanity as men bereaft of their wits and all this against the assertors and maintainers of the Kingly Office of Jesus Christ And lastly a destructive Heresie in that not only it destroyes soules but is in a precipice to destroy Kingdoms to such a height of rage it is now grown Conf. But Mr. Conscience what means all this What In that your generality do you charge as all Synod Sion City Countrey as lying under the guilt of such an Heresie What All denying the Lord Jesus Christ Consc Mr. Conformity cannot a man speak of a generality but he must needs name particulars And you know that generals have their exceptions And when a generality is mentioned let all particulars look to it But what if there be a generality and that of Protestants so called in the land which will be found to overthrow Christs Kingly Office Conf. What if say you what if the sky fall Nay I dare say yea and swear too that not any one of this generality you mean doth or dare deny Christs Kingly office and prerogative I have often heard them in publick to give Christ the title of King and to speak of his kingdom and they every where confesse and professe him to be King of his Church So as such a charge would argue as much malice as untruth Consc And I have heard them say as much as you say But is saying sufficient Yea I have heard them say That all Church-members must be Saints that all Churches be equal none have jurisdiction over other that Gods Word is the only rule of Reformation and many such principles about Churches they confesse in words So Christ to be King But if this be all it may prove little better then the Jews putting a purple robe upon Christ with a crown of thorns on his head and a reed for a scepter in his hand with Hail King of the Jewes but for all this crucified him so that you confesse Christ to be King and crucifie his true subjects Again you know the Pharisees said many things well but they did them not And doth not the Scripture speak of such as * professe they know God but in works deny him Whence we observe a twofold deniall of God one in words another in deeds Now I do not say that the generality doth in words deny Christs Kingly office but this I affirm that in works they deny him Conf. Sir how do you prove that or how doth that Scripture reach to those you speak of Consc A question opportunely put And therefore if you turn to the 14 15 verses immediately foregoing you may observe what manner of persons those were whom the Apostle there speaks of and upon what occasion For that Chapter being to set forth the office of a Bishop or Pastor of a particular Church or Congregation and how he should be qualified and gifted and the Church governed the Apostle willeth Titus to warn the Christians Not to give heed to Iewish fables and commandements of men that turn from the truth Where he ranks the commandements of men in Church-matters manners and government with Iewish fables as which do turn men away from the truth and so from Christ as he also sheweth at large Col. 2 8. 20. 22. and throughout the whole Chapter So as to set up the Commandements of men in formes of worship or of Church-government being Christs spirituall kingdom is to separate men from Christ Col. 2. 19. and to make them unbelieving Tit. 1. 14. and impure in minde and conscience V. 15. yea abominable and disobedient and unto every good work reprobate Vers 16. All which I commend to your more sad and serious consideration Master Conformity Conf. I confesse this is a terrible Scripture to those that lye under the condemnation of it But I hope those whom you mean are no such men for first you confesse they deny not in words Christs Kingly office and for any deniall in works you have not yet proved nor I hope can Consc I have nothing to do with your hope But whereas you would make it my confession that they deny not in words Christs Kingly office neither doe I absolutely confesse so much For though I confesse I have heard them upon occasion being put to it in words to confesse Christ to be King of his Church yet I have heard them again say and have read it in their books and they maintain it tooth and nail that Christ hath left the forms of worship and Church government unto men to be so framed as is most suitable to the conditions of the people or the laws of each State binding all the subjects thereof and that under severe penalties to an universall conformity or uniformity Conf. Why sir hath not Christ left that power and liberty to those that are in authority as Synods to frame and compose forms of worship and Church-government such as they judge fittest having an eye to the Scripture and the civill Magistrate to confirm the same by law Consc The Pope indeed arrogating to himself all power in Heaven and Earth over Churches and Kingdoms makes his claim from Scripture As * Thou art Peter c. Therefore his successor the Pope is the Rock whereon the Church is built So here are two swords therefore the Pope hath power of both the swords So

* The Holy Ghost shall lead you into all truth Therefore the Apostolick Chair at Rome cannot erre Here Mr. Conformity cast your eye a little upon the Scripture and see there what one place you can finde to serve your turn that hath any more likenesse or probability in it for what you claim then those places which the Papists are not ashamed to build their Babel-Towre upon You have talked much of Jure Divino but are not able to crane it up higher then to Jure Humano and therefore I suppose it is that of late dayes since the House put their nine Queres to the Synod the mention of Jure Divino is quite husht And now Conscience challengeth you to produce but one testimony from Scripture for you which will not make you as ridiculous as the forenamed Scriptures do the Pope And for Synods they have no such authority as you speak of Give us one Scripture That in Acts 15. will not serve your turn And the Apostles sought not to humane authority and laws to confirm the Gospel or to give power to the exercise of their ministery Conf. Why Mr. Conscience you your self cannot shew us from Scripture a model of your way though promised and long expected and therefore why should you require one of us Consc We do not require so much of you but to shew us one only place of Scripture for you which you cannot do And for us though we do not give you such a model as you desire or rather dream of for no such model is left in the New Testament as was given to Moses and David in the Old which consisted altogether of externall things being shadows of the spirituall now under the Gospel the pattern whereof was Christ But this we both have done and yet further are able to do to prove our way with all our practises in every particular out of Gods Word which you are not able to do for any one of your practices much lesse for the whole way of your Classicall Presbytery as which hath no footing in Scripture For because you thus urge me shew us if you can in all the New Testament any one Nationall Christian Church Or shew us any one ground for either Nationall or Parochiall Christian Churches or yet any Church fixed to a place so that all people successively comming to dwell there be they what they will godly or prophane Protestants or Papists because inhabitants there must therefore make up the Church there whether Nationall or Parochiall Or shew us that Churches should come by naturall propagation or locall habitation and succession and not by spirituall generation only Or shew us in Scripture either rule or example for a Classicall Presbytery Or shew us in the whole Scripture a State church government allowed of God Or shew us out of the Word that the Apostles constituted no Churches without leave obtained from the civill State Or whether those Christian Jews that constrained the Galatians to be circumcised for the avoiding of persecution did well or no so to constrain and that only to avoid persecution or whether this example will warrant you to constrain all to conform to you either because conformity is free from persecution or because all must be persecuted that conform not Or lastly shew us what better rule or example the Scripture affords for wresting from the Magistrate through the force of importunity by men both many and mighty stirred up and egged on by a Colledge of Priests to reject Christ and his government and deliver him up to their wils to be crucified then that Colledge of Priests in Jerusalem who so incensed the people against Christ that nothing would satisfie them but he must be crucified so as the Magistrate is necessitated even against his conscience what through fear of Caesar on the one side and what for favour of the people on the other to gratifie them with a Barabbas in stead of Christ Now to all or any of these we desire your answer Conf. Sir I only urge this for the present that though the Scripture hath not expressed a power given to men by Christ yet we finde examples of it in the Old Testament as Jehosaphat Ezekiah Iosiah Asa Kings of Judah who reformed Religion and are commended for it as good Kings for their labour Consc They did not set up any new forms of Religion of their own head but they commanded the Priests and Levites to restore and repair Religion in all things according to the prescript and precise pattern given by God himself And note withall that the kingdom of Iudah or of David was a type of Christs spiritual kingdom and all the Kings of Judah were types of Christ So as no other Kings or States are to be paralleld with them But yet I say for all that they went not beyond the precise rule of Gods law as you may see by all those examples you alledge For Christ gave those Kings though types of himself no such power as you pretend Yea the Scripture every where in both the Testaments hath punctually preserved inviolate and entire that Kingly prerogative of Christ as being as incapable of being communicable to any humane power as his omnipotency is or his other offices as High Priest and Prophet For proof hereof Moses for all his wisdom and learning and piety though he were a great Prophet and a type of Christ yet had not this power granted unto him to frame the Tabernacle with all things pertaining thereunto as himself pleased but a strict charge God gave unto him saying See thou do all * things according to the patterne shewed thee in the Mount So David though a King and a man after Gods own heart yet was not entrusted for the framing of the pattern of the Temple for his son Solomon but * God gave him the pattern thereof both by the Spirit and in writing so carefull was God lest David should forget any thing which he delivers to his son Solomon to do in all things accordingly So in Ezekial we reade where the reformation of the Church under the Gospel is typed there is a pattern to be measured as Ezek. 40. 5. to which answereth that in Rev. 11. 1. a place worthy our best observation as pertinent to these times of Reformation which must be measured by the golden reed of the Word of God And for any the least dominion over the conscience by any humane binding law in matters of faith Christ would no more entrust the Apostles themselves then he did Moses and David And therefore * Paul disclaimed it And * Peter disswaded it to the Presbyters or Elders being himself an Elder And herein even servants must not be servants to men as being bought with a price and so Christs free-men And remarkable is that * Scripture where Christ speaking to the multitude and to his Disciples he tels them of the Scribes and Pharisees sitting in Moses chair and so to

us which the only terrour of our Army hindreth holding them at a bay apply it Thirdly Let all those who with such violent and potent importunity do presse the Parliament for an Ordinance to bring themselves and the whole Land under the greatest sin of unnaturall inhumane and more then heathenish ingratitude impiety injustice cruelty by not only dishonouring discountenancing abasing as the vilest our-casts those men who have not only freely laid out their estates but even prodigally if not prodigiously to wonderment hazarded yea poured out their dearest life-blood but also as if they would despight God by trampling upon those whom he hath highly honoured and not suffering them to breathe in their native aire by whom we yet breathe and by making them underlings and off-scourings of the land who have been the preservers of it and that they should be despicable in their own mother countrey whom so many glorious victories have made admirable to the neighbour Nations yea to the whole world and terrible to their professed enemies and ours yea and to pretended friends too who would master us at home were not these masters of the field So as God having thus made them the great instruments of the preservation and deliverance of our Countrey and City from the most desperate bloody and bestiall enemies that ever the Earth bred or Hell hatched enough to have for ever ever obliged a people of any ingenuity not wholly given up to testifie their approbation at least and congratulation of that great favour honor God hath vouchsafed to cast upon them and that as he hath crowned them with so much glory and they have cast their crowns at the feet of the Lambe that sits upon the throne So these should come and first giving all the glory to God gather up those crowns and set them upon the heads of those their preservers and deliverers and put chains of gold about their necks so far off should they be from trampling such Pearls under feet or casting them out of our gates and ports that they might Solum vertere spend the remainder of their life in some inglorious exile to the eternall infamy of our English Nation Let these apply it Fourthly let all those who endeavour by their strong factions to make wide breaches between Parliament and City between House and House yea between Gods blessing and this Land which was wont of old to be called Gods kingdom and so by these breaches would let in again our bainfull enemies Let all these these I say make the application to themselves while as they have wrested out of the Magistrates hand a form of worship and government and so as it is established by the precept of men so God hath deprived them of wlsdom and understanding while they would pull upon their own heads and upon the Land the guilt of so much innocent blood of so many hundred thousands both in Ireland and England to be made the footstooll of a bloody Tyranny and while their eyes are so closed up as no charme be it never so wise can make them either to hear or see or understand or their brains or bowels to be sensible of all those notorious and palpable outrages rapes and robberies violence and oppression extortion and exaction in the land even at noon day unworthy affronts done to our Parliament by seditious spirits or of all those cryes and complaints of sundry Countries and Counties and no redresse no justice as if God had now forsaken us left us as a silly Dove without heart full of slavish and degenerous fear of shadows forgetting the mighty God that hath done so great things for us and will do more if we by faith still depend upon him And although the faction is still working and machinating the ruine of this Nation if our God miraculously prevent not yet the god of this world hath so blinded the eyes of these men through the just judgement of God that they see nothing at all hereof but are themselves the main fomenters abettors countenancers promoters advancers encouragers and helpers on of those that hope to be the instruments of our ruine So strong is the poyson of this one sin hypocrisie and Idolatry in teaching and setting up a fear or worship towards God by the precept of men which as it is a removing of the heart from God so it causeth him to remove his Spirit from us and to give us up to such a fearfull * dementation as is the forerunner of destruction And Conformity if thou hast any of thy right senses left consider seriously with thy self what that religion is which turns men out of their very naturals to become brutish and worse then Heathens and which the Holy Ghost brands for hypocrisie then which nothing is more abominable in the sight of God Certainly the true Religion and Doctrine of Christ produceth no such fruits as those fore-mentioned are as Treason against the State unnaturalnesse towards our native countrey unthankfulnesse towards our best deserving friends our Benefactors our Preservers yea injustice and cruelty towards them factious plottings and underminings hatred of those that be good enmity against those that are the friends of Christ and so persecution of the way of Christ destroying of Christs kingdom by setting up a worldly kingdom of men * having a form of godlinesse but denying the power thereof yea and seeking to overtop the Supream Power Are we not then as the Apostle admonisheth and commandeth to turn away from such Conf. Nay here Conscience I have you upon the hip For First how do we seek to overtop the Supream Power And Secondly who doth more go about to overtop the Civil power then you while you set up a Religion without it and above it Consc First For you Do you not seek to overtop the Supreme Power whilst you would have your Church-government to be framed after the pattern of that which sets up a Power called a Generall Assembly above the Power of Parliaments Now the supreme power in England is the Parliament so as to set up a superior power over this is to overturn the very Fundamental laws of the Kingdom And this you labour tooth and nail to do while nothing will serve you but the Scotish church-government I wish you would all consider well of it and beware of falling into a Premunire if you be not deep in it already And I could wish it were well weighed by the wisest and those in highest place of authority whether the importunate pressing of the Covenant for Uniformity in the Scotish sense tend not to undermine and overthrow the liberty and priviledges of the subjects of England when once a superior power therein consisting of more Clergy men then of Lay is predominant over the Parliament of England And so much the rather when we read and consider their own publique and authentique Books of their Kirk government Orders Discipline Confession of faith c. wherein