prevail with us to make us submit unto Authority that it is the Will of God we doe it Consider we within our selves of this other Motive How we shall be able if we will not doe his Will to endure his Wrath which we see Despisers of Authority have no hopes of escaping but upon these Presumptions that there is no Credit to be given to the Holy Scriptures no Life to come nor Day of Judgment to be hereafter The Duty of Subjection is thus enforced and there are but few who do not at least in words own it to be due to Magistrates but how far and wherein lies all the Controversy Some there be who are against the Magistrate's meddling at all in Matters Ecclesiastical Quid Imperatori cum Ecclesia was the Objection of Donatus an old Separatist What hath the Emperour to doe with Matters concerning the Church To which Objection the Reply Optatus made was then judged fully sufficient The Commonwealth is not in the Church but the Church is in the Commonwealth and consequently the Governour of the Common-wealth is Governour also of the Church But that which meets with greatest opposition at this day is this That the Magistrate should give Commands in things indifferent pertaining to the Worship of God But this men quarrel at without any colour of Reason for the same For these things are the peculiar Province as to Church-concernments wherein the Legislative and Executive Power of the Magistrate is exercised Things of Divine Institution do require our Submission by warrant from a Superiour and Paramount Injunction and cannot be accounted Humane Ordinances or Things indifferent But as to these other things we have sundry Ordinances in the Holy Scriptures Esther 9. 20. we find a religious Festival appointed by Mordecai without any Command from God for it And in the Book of the Maccabees we reade of another Festival instituted by Iudas Maccabaeus and the Iews which was afterwards approved of by Christ's presence at it And in the New Testament we find the Rulers of the Church imposing their Commands in things indifferent as they thought expedient for the present good of the Church The things indeed are called necessary but considering what some of these things were it is plain they were onely called so with relation to their End being at that time judged necessary though not in their Nature yet in their Use for the present quiet and composure of Differences in the Church And as soon as the black Cloud of Persecution was dispersed by Constantine the Great this Authority in matters Ecclesiastical was assumed by the Monarchs of the Christian World and very much to the Satisfaction of the Fathers of the Church in those times Felix est necessitas saith S. Augustin quae nos cogit ad meliora And thus he adviseth the Powers then in being Forìs inveniatur necessitas intus nascetur voluntas Let there be a Power without and there will be a Will within And what is very considerable here The Injunctions of Superiours in these things have never been disliked but by the Factions they have run cross to If Calvin's Opinion will weigh any thing with the Men who now oppose themselves and scruple in these matters we have it at large in his Epistle to the Duke of Somerset the Protectour in the days of Edward the VI. where he adviseth the Protectour in these words Statum esse Catechismum oportet statam Sacramentorum Administrationem publicámque Precum formulam There ought saith he to be a set Catechism a set Form for Administration of Sacraments and a set Form of publick Prayers from which it may not be lawfull for the Pastours of the Church to depart and vary as they please And that as he tells us for these Ends That the Ignorance of some may hereby be relieved the wanton Lightness of others in affecting and meditating Novelties restrained and then that the Agreement among your selves and with other Reformed Churches may be known to the World Which be all very good Ends and the bare mentioning of them is enough to satisfie any that Calvin did not think the Forms usefull onely for those Times and as things then stood as Separatists at this day persuade their Proselytes but for succeeding Ages also For in what Age may it not be necessary to have these good Ends looked after And in the same Epistle he tells the Protectour he understood there were two sorts of Seditious persons in this Kingdom then who have continued ever since and been as very Thorns in the side of the Government from that time to this as ever the Canaanites were to the Israelites The one sort he tells him were those who would by no means forgo the Superstitions of Rome the other sort he styles Cerebrosi and Phrenetici Brain-sick Phreneticks who under a pretence of Gospel-Liberty endeavoured the introducing 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 all Disorder and Confusion into the Church wherein to use his own words though something harsh excitantur à Satana nominatim they are prompted by the Devil himself that the World may take offence at the best Religion as the Fomenter of Rebellion in the State and Confusion in the Church This is his Censure and as severe is his Direction but it 's Calvin's Merentur quidem tum hi tum illi Gladio ultore coërceri Both these sorts of Seditious persons deserve to be restrained by the Sword which God hath put into thy Hand And Beza's Opinion is the same also in these matters What Laws the Magistrate makes in things indifferent for the sake of Order and Decency in the Church they are to be observed of all Godly men and they so far bind the Conscience that no Knowing and Understanding man can without Sin either doe what is forbidden or omit what is commanded And after the Copy of these great Men did the Presbyterians of the late Times write The bare Injunctions of Parliament were held Canonical in these Matters when time was They are the words of a known Tractate Licensed by Mr. Downham No man that is endowed with right Reason but will acknowledge there is a Necessity of a Government If of a Government then of Vniformity else it will be confused Therefore there is a Necessity of suppressing all Conventicles and that all men should observe such Order Time and Place and publick Gesture as the Parliament by the Advice of the Assembly shall appoint And no man that hath any use of Conscience in any thing but must acknowledge that he is to obey the Laws of the Land in which he lives in all indifferent Things or else he is Turbulent and deserves Censure even for matters concerning Worship Thus far that Authour who was not alone in the opinion in the late Times that the Supreme Power may give Command in these things Whence it appears That they who could not endure the Constitutions of their Superiours in these Matters could when they became Superiours themselves call
IMPRIMATUR Haec Concio in 1 Pet. 2. 15. Guil. Sill R. P. D. Henr. Episc. Lond. Ã Sacris Dom. Ian. 28. 1677 8. Pag. 1. the last line but one for earnestly read earnest A SERMON PREACHED Before the Right Honourable Sir FRANCIS CHAPLIN Lord Mayor OF LONDON AT GVILD-HALL Chapell November the 18th 1677. By WILLIAM BATTIE Chaplain in Ordinary to His Majesty LONDON Printed by E. Flesher for R. Royston Bookseller to His most Sacred MAJESTY at the Angel in Amen-Corner 1678. TO THE Right Reverend Father in God ANTHONY By Divine Providence LORD BISHOP Of the Diocese of NORWICH My LORD THis Sermon had never been more publick then the Preaching of it made it had it not been complained of and represented by some of the Governours of the City of London for a Sermon that deserved to be Censured as reflecting upon the Government of the City Your Lordship being my Diocesan I have here presented your Lordship with the whole of what was preached humbly submitting my self and my Sermon to your Lordship's Censure It may be suspected that I have suppressed in the printing something that was preached which I have not done something may be added but nothing is diminished so that if there be no Reflexions upon the Government of the City in my Sermon now there were none then My Discourse as my Text did direct me was wholly to the Governed Directions to Governours as Governours from me would have been presumptuous and therefore I used none There is one Expression indeed in my Sermon to this purpose That were Laws duly executed men durst not despise and affront the Government so as they doe which Expression if it reflect any thing it is Praise and Applause to the Government and the Laws we are governed by and onely wisheth that the Mean whereby Government attains its End were sometimes looked a little better after Reflexions either upon the Government or Governours I ever thought improper for the Pulpit Nay I have ever hated them from the time that Pulpits were turned by such doings into Drums to beat up for Sedition and Rebellion remembring what the dismal Consequences of them have been to this Church and State I am so unwilling to reflect upon any that I am not pleased that the Vindication I have made of my self by the printing of my Sermon will reflect as it will upon the Misrepresenters of it accusing them except my pressing Subjection to Governours be reflecting upon the Government of the breach of the Ninth Commandment But the Slander I had not at all weighed but that it reflects upon the Government my sly Accusers seem so tender of For the Government will be suspected to be in evil Circumstances if it shall be found inconvenient to press due Subjection unto Governours and men will be made to fear that we are in such Times again as we were in about the time of the Scotch Invasion when they who appeared for the Government by adhering to their lawfull Governours were accounted the Delinquents whilst others were accounted the best Subjects as it is observed by him that hath lately writ the Life of Archbishop Bramhall when their Swords were drawn against him who could onely grant them Commissions and their Scabbards thrown away My Lord my appealing to your Lordship is in a right line and my presenting your Lordship thus publickly with my Sermon for as much as I doe it in my own Defence it will I hope in part excuse the Defects of it of which I am so Conscious that the Requests I had of Friends had not prevailed with me to publish it if I had not had this Provocation For the thing that I believe gave Offence my declaring that the Execution of the Laws is the best Expedient to preserve them from Contempt my Opinion herein I shall never retract and your Lordship's Government from the time of your Lordship's Translation to the Diocese of Norwich hath very much confirmed me and others in it And the Experience the Clergy have that it is not Preaching and Writing will so preserve the Peace as the Governours interposing himself to see the Laws observed doth oblige the whole Body of the Clergy to desire heartily the long continuance of your Lordship's Government over us and particularly Your most obedient Servant William Battie A SERMON Preached before the Lord MAYOR Novemb. 18. 1677. 1 S. PETER II. 15. For so is the Will of God that with Well-doing ye may put to silence the Ignorance of Foolish men WE do not in any of the Apostles Epistles meet with any particular Addresses to the Magistrates of the Age they lived in yet the Duty of Subjection unto Magistrates is frequently enjoyned all Christians whatsoever Husbands and Wives Parents and Children Masters and Servants have all the special Duties of their several Callings taught them in the Apostles Writings but for Magistrates though their Office is no-where so vindicated as by the Apostles yet the Persons under Subjection are the persons onely who are taught their Duty which is Subjection A Duty our Apostle as also the Apostle S. Paul is very earnest in the pressing upon the Christians of that Age and the more earnestly as is thought for these two Reasons 1. To prevent the Danger the new-converted Gentiles might be in of being leavened with the old Leaven of the Iews viz. a perverse and froward Disposition unto Magistracy A Leaven that had so soured that Nation that in the vogue of the world they were accounted for no better then Pests of Nations and Enemies of Mankind because they were stubborn and stiff-necked to Authority as Moses long before had found them 2. Again the Apostles are thought to be the more earnest in the pressing of this Duty writing in the Reign of the Emperour Nero whose many monstrous Wickednesses and particular Malice against Christians were likely to endanger the ensnaring of them into Temptations to despise and oppose his Authority and that to the great Scandal of their Religion the Devil needing nothing more to nip the Christian Religion in the bud then to get it voiced in the world for a Licencer of Sedition and Rebellion in case the Supreme Governour be vicious For this allowed who is so short-sighted as not to foresee that in succeeding Ages the Heads of Factions have nothing more to doe to promote their Treasonous Designs but to get the Supreme Governour represented to the People for an Idolater or a Tyrant And if then by Arms or Money they can get him in their power if they cut him off it is but writing over his Statue Exit Tyrannus and all is salved Well the Apostles to let the World know the Gospel allows no Disobedience upon any such account do the more earnestly press Subjection to Authority at the time the Roman Empire had as wicked a Governour as ever before or since And in the Verses before my Text he calls for this Subjection to Authority of whatsoever Rank or Degree whether
And it may not be amiss to remember them of some of them Mr. Ienkins in the Sermon before mentioned having observed that it was looked upon as a Blessing that they were in Days that men might be as good as they pleased which had then been lately Dr. Owen's words in one of his Sermons he intreats the Parliament in these words I beseech you as you love your own Souls and as you dread the Anger of him whose Anger if kindled but a little blessed are all they that put their trust in him let not men be suffered to be as wicked as they please And in his Commentary upon S. Iude he thus contends with Magistrates They who reign by God should reign for him How unreasonable is it that people should be Lawless onely in Religion Shall it not be indifferent whether men will pay a Tax and shall it be indifferent whether they will ever hear a Sermon And then he mentions Artaxerxes his Decree Ezra 7. 26. as if he would have had it decreed after the manner of the Medes and Persians that men should be confined to hear him and his Brethren upon the penalty of Death Banishment Confiscation of Goods and Imprisonment for so runs that Decree And lest they should boggle at these things in any sense of their Obligation to Moderation he thus cautions them as to this How soon learned is the Wisedom of shunning Troubles of Self-preservation and tame Silence when Religion is endangered i.e. when Presbytery was in danger of being worsted by the After-Subdivisions and how easily but alas how falsely is this called Moderation And in his Sermon before mentioned he hath these words Because no Conscience can be touched must all Practices be suffered And Dr. Manton at the same time in his Comment upon the eleventh Verse of S. Iude warning Magistrates to be aware of the followers of Corah to use his own words of Factious and Seditious persons compared to Cain as he observes well because of their Cruelty and to Balaam because of their Covetousness he assures the Magistrates That the Danger of the latter Times would not be so probably from a second Deluge of Antichristians as from Seditious Insurrections of Sectaries who though they seem to be meek and full of Love while their Party is contemptible yet when they grow considerable they appear in their Colours The Antichristian Party carrieth things by Power and Worldly Greatness but this Party is a creeping Party that gets into Houses This is the Party from whence I fear such Danger and Disturbance And the same sense and fear of Toleration and Sectaries had the Ministers of the Province of London witness their Subscription to a Book called A Testimony to the Truth of Jesus Christ and to our Solemn League and Covenant in which Book this is mentioned among others for one abominable Errour viz. That little can be done unless Liberty of Conscience be allowed for every man and sort of men to worship God in that way and perform the Ordinances of Christ in that manner as shall appear to them most agreeable to God's Word And the Trouble they had to think what other Reformed Churches would say of them should this take place they thus expressed Is this England which Covenanted to Extirpate Popery Prelacy Superstition Schism c and after so long Travail hath she now brought forth an hideous Monster of Toleration In these and many the like Expressions that might be alledged we see that how little soever it was the Presbyterians repented them of the first Breach they themselves had made they were yet so sensible of the Confusion they had brought upon this Nation by it that they were utterly against Toleration as that which would certainly endanger more Breaches But all their Applications to the Usurpers and all their Endeavours this way were no better nor other nor less vain till God by restoring us our KING built up the old Wall again for us then theirs who take no care to secure their Lands from an Inundation till the Sea hath made a Breach into them A Neighbourly Agreement before-hand to put to all hands where there was the greatest appearance of Danger might have prevented the Mischief but the Breach once made he onely who sets Bounds to the Sea can help here Well this was our Condition by Breach after Breach we were overflown with Confusion in the words of the Psalmist we were brought very low and God helped us when we were very hopeless of it from any other hand and in a manner even miraculous he hath made up our Wall again for us by giving us our Iudges as at the first and our Counsellours as at the beginning Now as Samuel exhorteth the Israelites Let us fear the Lord our God considering what great things he hath done for us and let us honour the Authority by which he hath done it and express it in the Honour we are ready to pay to all their Commands in the observing of them and to their Commands in the things I have been speaking of in particular and the rather because we cannot be truly accounted any other then Despisers of Authority if we oppose our selves here for the things most of them are such as it is very likely we should doe them of our own heads were there no Appointments about them What other are Kneeling at Prayers Kneeling at the Sacrament and the having our Heads uncovered in the time of Divine Service and Sermon and the like For men to oppose themselves in such things they will never satisfie any rational person that they object and scruple and disobey upon a Consciencious Account but out of an untoward Principle of Opposition rather whereby some men are inclined to dislike some Circumstances in Religion meerly upon the account of their Establishment by Authority which surely is despising of Authority and argues a very cross and sullen temper of Mind and such as is not to be humoured especially when we shall consider how great a matter a little Fire did here kindle It is not long since these Kingdoms were all in a Flame and here it was they took fire first in these Chips the Dissatisfactions of men about these Indifferent things many persons very inconsiderately preferring a little Pleasing of themselves a small portion of private Satisfaction in being admired for persons of a Purer way and having many Followers before the publick Peace and Safety of the Church and State Let the burnt Child dread the Fire Take we warning henceforth never to be so far wedded to our own private Persuasions as not to consider that where the publick Peace and Safety of the Church and Kingdom are concerned it is most meet for us to strike Sail and to give place and above all things to follow after the things which make for peace as the Apostle counsels even concerning these Indifferent things for of them had he been discoursing as the observing of Days and the eating of Meats In these things we are so to order our selves as to endeavour the promoting of the publick Peace by reasoning with our selves about these things in this manner and behaving our selves accordingly I am of this Opinion but my Brother is of another but by whose Opinion the publick Peace shall be best promoted let that Opinion by all means have the place and be yielded to For what thing in this World is comparable to universal Peace and Accord amongst Christians who have one God one Faith one Hope one Baptism so many Obligations to be at one amongst our selves Next to Glory to God on high in the estimation of the blessed Angels comes Peace on Earth The sweet Singer of Israel as wanting words to express its Excellency breaks out into this Admiration of it Behold how good and how pleasant it is for Brethren to dwell together in Vnity Let those who have the like Esteem for it follow the things that make for it by submitting to the wholsome and innocent Constitutions that were devised purely for the conserving of it Which that we may all of us doe and so by our Peaceable Conversation put to silence such as speak evil of us as of evil-doers The God of Peace give us his Grace to enable us thereunto for the Merits and sake of Iesus our Peace-maker the Prince of Peace to whom with God the Father and God the Holy Ghost be all Honour and Glory Adoration and Thanksgiving henceforth and for ever Amen FINIS Gen. 19. 9. 1 King 18. 17. Jer. 15. 10. Isa. 53.3 Matth. 10. 25. Acts 24.5 1 Cor. 4. 13. Prov. 18. 13. Prov. 25. 23. Hor. Epist. Lib. 1. Ep. 16. Amb. de Interp. Lib. 2. Ca. 2. Prov. 27. 22. 2 Tim. 2. 25. Rom. 13.5 1 Tim. 4. 12. 1 Tim. 3. 15. Acts 15. 20. Vers. 28. Beza Epist. 24. ad Peregrinarum in Anglia Ecclesiarum Fratres Policy of Princes pa. 37. Ursin. loc Theol. in 3. praecept Scandalum datum est in rebus adiaphoris Errores in animis infirmorum confirmare Beza Epist. 8. ad D. Edm. Grindallum Episc. Lond. Policy of Princes pa. 33. Policy of Princes pa. 33. Verse 3. Page 117. * Pag. 121. Page 23. Page 402 and 403. Page 22. Rom. 14. 19. Psal. 133.1