Selected quad for the lemma: authority_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
authority_n	church_n	civil_a	power_n	6,426	5	5.4101	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A04622	A sermon preached at Henly at the visitation on the 27. of Aprill, 1626 Vpon those words of the 9. Psalme, vers. 16.	Barnes, Robert, 1576 or 7-1639.	1626 (1626)	STC 1474; ESTC S114149	18,363	40

maist goe to law with him as if he were a heathen or publican and haue him before a Roman magistrate that is prophane For Christ speakes not onely to the Iewes that then liued but giues a remedy to be vsed at all times The promise that followes whatsoeuer yee shall binde on earth belongs not to one time one place one people nor to the civill magistrate nor wrongs civill but to the conscience and had beene impertinently added if Christ had spoken of seeking civill remedy against civill wrongs as may appeare by these reasons First the words concurring in the text touching binding and loosing and else-where of opening and shutting remitting and reteining sinnes were neuer understood but of spirituall power Secondly the authority here spoken of was such as the disciples present should sometimes in person exercise but these exercised no civill power Thirdly Christs words are imperatiue Tell it the Church not permissiue you may tell And Christ commandeth no man to persecute his brother civilly offending him before the civill magistrate he commands to forgiue him and to be ready to take another iniury rather then in law to pursue him Mat. 4. Fourthly the ground of this action is not ciuill for then it should more fitly haue beene named 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 an iniury but here it hath the expresse name of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 sinne Likewise he teacheth a little before of offences spirituall and the cure of them then he sheweth our duty of seeking and recouering euery brother going astray by comparison of seeking and recouering of a lost sheepe So that we may conclude that to take the word Church for a company of civill magistrates or a bench of Iustices hath no approbation of any author But why doe I dispute so long I rather com●●o mourne and lament our peoples obstinacie and improvidence in sleighting this punishment Do yee know in what state you are while yee remaine excommunicated I will tell you Excommunication is a sentence of the Church whereby a member thereof convicted or to be convicted of some greivous crime as yet continuing vnrepentant is driven out of the church and out off from the communion and fellowshippe of the faithfull that thereby he might be driven to repentance O what a heape of mischeifes rise here vp together I'ts bellua multorum capitum Doth this judgement passe on thee art thou excommunicated first thou endeavourest as much as in thee lieth to blot thee out of Gods booke and to depriue thy selfe of Gods protection Secondly know that the sentence pronounced by Gods faithfull minister is ratified in heauen Christ is the author of it The Corinthians being charged to put out from amongst them him that had offended they must do it in the name that is by the command of Christ 1. Cor. 5.4 Thirdly thou art barred from the word and sacraments and prayers of the Church The word doth the noe good the sacrament hurts neither can we blesse thee in the name of god Was not Nebuckudnezars case most fearfull when he was turned to feede on grasse like an Oxe but the excommunicates state is worse he wants the food of eternall life Fourthly thou art to be accounted as an heathen now betwene the Iewes and heathens there was no commerce concerning gods worship Fiftly thou being excommunicated out of one Church canst not be admitted into any other Churches are sisters whom one receiues all receiue whom one reiects all rerect Were thou sure saith St. Austine Epist 74. that thou leauing one service thou shouldest betakē into no other thou wouldest be carefull how thou diddst forgoe it or offend Lastly adde hereunto the decrees of princes and counsells thou canst haue no benefit of the lawes others may sue thee but thou canst not sue others others may make their last will and testament but but thou maiest not set thy house thus in order others may challenge christian buriall but thou must be buried like an asse as thou wast out of the church through thy obstinate life so shalt thou not be brought neere it vpon thy death As I would craue of you right worshipfull to be sparing in these emissions making vp an extremum fulmen against impenitents so I cannot but iustifie your tendernesse herein vpon mine owne late experience you rather aiming at a substantiall reformation in the delinquents then any exactions Howsoever the common conceit runnes riot as if all were for pay I haue found the contrary from your vnderagents Let that still remaine as a tax in the Romish courts which are more for payments then repentance saying to their offenders discharge the court and be gone and not repent reforme and be readmitted into the Church I remember i'ts noted of Irenaus he earnestly reproued Victor Bishop of Rome for excommunicating many churches in Asia not for heresy and apostacy but for that they would not consent with the Church of Rome in the celebration of Easter I beseech you let not your excommunications passe for small occurrences tending still to reformation and execution which is my third circumstance To execute God is knowne to execute A commendation that brings with it Gods glory a lands blessing and each particular peccants wellfare The Lord ex●cuteth iudgemēt to all th●se that are oppressed with wrong Psal 103.6 The Lord hath executed his iudgement vpon Angels cities the old world the great Monarchies and mighty kingdomes haue ●asted of his iudgements who as they spoyled others so haue they beene spoyled themselues As we may see in the subuersion of the Monarchies spoken of by Daniell the Assirians Persians Grecians and lastly Romans His executions haue lighted on wicked kings Pharaoh Saul Ieroboam Ahab Zedechiah Herod vpon wicked priests as those of Baal and Elyes sonnes vpon wicked persons Iudas Achitophel Absalon Corah Dath●n and Abiram in a word on wicked people that put the Sonne of God to death Pilat that corrupt judge who for f vour of the Iewes and feare of Caesar condemned our innocent Saviour was shortly after put out of his office and retur●ing to his house in a ma●e content made away himselfe Caiaphas was dep●sed and Ionathan tooke his roome Herod that despised Christ was condemned by Caligula to perpetuall banishment where he died miserably and the other H●rod who killed Iames and imprisoned Peter was eaten vp with wormes As for the Iewes who cried his blo●d be vpon vs and our children they had their wish n●● any of th●se pl●gues Ezekiel formerly mentioned but overtooke them especially want and famine Through famine as you largely heard from this place the last weeke they were driuen to eate the leather of their shooes girdles bucklers targets the dung of their stables and in fine their owne children Wofull was this execution as also that by warre when the streetes of Ierusalem ran with bloud when they were still taken and crucified on crosses and gibbets set vp before the walls that they which were within might see them and giue over

red●m●t he hath visited and redeemed his people Luke 1.68 and of pitty and compassion Pure religion is to visit the fatherles and widdowes Iam. 1.27 So is there a visitation with him in correction and sever●ty I will visit their transgressions with the rod Psal 89.22 and of wrath and fury shall not I visit for these things saith the Lord shall not my soule be avenged of such a nation Ier. 5.29 Lastly the end is for reformation of all such vnregenerate ones who as yet remaine enemies to the crosse of Christ whose God is their belly whose glory is their shame who mind earthly things Phil. 3.18.19 The person attribute execution end are by the gratious assistance of Gods Spirit and your right worshipfull and the rest deerely beloued much desired patience at this time to become the subject of my ensuing meditations And first of the Person with whom I beginning even make an end for I will not goe about to describe either That he is or What he is the one is needeles the other impossible How shall I describe him that dwells in a light that none attaines vnto how shall I describe him that hath made darkenesse his pavilion measured the waters in his fist sits on the circle of the earth in comparison of whom the inhabitants are but as grashoppers Es 40. How shall I describe him that cannot be circumscribed who comprehends all things yet himselfe not comprehended is in all things himselfe not included moues all things himselfe not moued changeth all things himselfe vnchangeable Finally how shall I describe him who is without quantity great without quality good without measure wise without time everlasting in greatnes infinite in vertue omnipotent in wisedome profound in counsell wounderfull in judgement terrible and in all vertues perfect and compleat Search not then after the majesty least thou be oppressed with the glory There is sayes a learned father a holy kinde of ignorance not to search after things vnrevealed secret things belong to God but revealed to vs Deut. 29.29 As he is therefore in himselfe I meddle not with him heere but rather as he manifests himselfe in his words and workes in his mercy and iudgements in his purity and power these being the very hands with which he taketh hold of vs and the armes he embraceth vs with or stretcheth over vs. Bernard in his 8 ser Cant. ascribes these two hands to God the one is latitudo quâ tribuit affluentèr this is his bounty bestowing his largesse giving gifts to men the other is fortitudo qua defendit potenter the hand of his power stretched ouer all his creatures to protect and defend them and not so onely but to punish them when they shall offend him to which purpose Ierome de memb Dei saith manus Dei flagellum Gods hand is a scourge With the one he seemes as standing on mount Gerasim Deut. 11.29 to deale abroad his blessings and like Homers Iupiter out of one of those tunnes and great vessels which stands at the entrance of his pallace sets abroach his favoures to men with the other as on mount Eball he scatters his cursings as out of the other tunne he drencheth men with affliction giving them plenty of teares to drinke Psal 80.5 What I now speake or might more enlarge herein reflects on vs men fathers and brethren who represent this great person to our people and hence are truely tearmed Persons embassadors for Christ And secondly on you deerely beloved who are heere this day in the feare of God to present misdemeanures This supereminent goodnes in the person calls to vs for imitation that we would set copies of goodnes and sanctity to our people that our examples may proue our best sermons Vita exemplaris saith Gregory in his pastoralls optima est concio illudque cum imperio docetur quod priùs agitur quàm docetur A good life is the best sermon and he preacheth with authority whose practise goes before his preaching For indeede it is a kinde of vnhappines as of princes so of priests that quicquid faciunt pracicipere videntur Neither can we be ignorant that euery mole-hill in our misbehauiours is a mountaine euery moate in our eyes a beame Chrysologus his tax in one kinde Serm. 26. passeth popularly currant for all sinnes Ebrietas in alio crimen in sacerdote sacrilegium alter necat animam suam vino alter spiritum sanctitatis extinguit I spare the english Herevpon so much clamouring hath beene about the cleargies exorbitancy Our dayes are farre different from Constantines who as Theodoret. 1. lib. of his story cap. 3. reports when a libell or booke was given vp to him concerning some Bishops misdemeanures first tied a thred about it then sealed it with his ring lastly cast it into the fire before all things were composed professing himselfe would not reade a word in it and saying if what was in it should be divulged the common people would grow more brasen faced in sinning gathering thereby a protection for their sinnes nay againe in the same chapter when even he tooke a Bishop committing any vncleane act he would cast his cloake ouer him to keepe such faults from the common eye O the disparity of times But yet I praise God to his honour I may truely and boldly speake it If other places be answearable to these parts about vs in respect of notorious crimes in the cleargy I am assured much time might haue beene spared for reformation In the meane time Antichrist goes vp and downe the city grinnes like a dog and striues to seduce our professours with that groundlesse position or principle That first we must looke to the Person teaching before we looke to the thing taught thereby to bring in a seeming formality to outface true doctrine A position I say againe without all ground For first Christ hath taught vs what persons soeuer they are that build vp his kingdome they must goe on Wherefore Iohn complayning to him Mark 9.38 39. Master we saw one casting out devills in thy name who followed not vs. Iesus faid forbid him not for whosoever is not against vs is on our part Secondly in the new Testament none but enemies of the gospell looke to persons more then doctrine The priests and elders said to Christ by what authority doest thou these things Mat. 21.23 And the Synod at Ierusalem asked Peter by what power and in what name haue yee done this Act. 4.7 But of the true worshippers of God we heare no such thing Which I speake not as if ordinarily we ought not to aske after mens authority this were the next way to leape from the shop-board to the pulpit with Brownists and other sectaries but to shew doctrine must be preferred before persons Thirdly the Eunuch and Lydiae did not ill in hearing Phillip and Paul without enquiry after their persons they knew that Christians should not giue an account at the last day of the persons they heard but